Two months on, big-hearted Nepal still at the relief stage post quake

New Delhi Seventy four days after a massive earthquake left 14 of Nepals 75 districts in a state of devastation and its inhabitants with a feeling of despair and darkness its government does not hesitate to admit that the nation is still in relief and rehabilitation mode but working assiduously towards restoring a sense of normalcyIn interactions with political leaders the hotel and tourist lobbies of the Himalayan nation what comes across is a sense of acceptance that humans can never battle the vagaries of nature but can certainly carry on with a sense of renewed hope for a better and improved tomorrowNepals determined Home Minister Vamdev Gautam told ANI that We are still at the relief stage After this we will plan out the rebuilding and reconstruction phase Statistically ten lakh buildings have been destroyed and approximately 50 lakh people have been left homeless and are living in tented accommodationA Nepalese resident carries a child as she walks past damaged homes on the outskirts of Katmandu following the second major earthquake that hit Nepal on May 12 2015 File pic AFPAfter the monsoon we will be doing it rehabilitation with more speed We will overcome this tragedy KP Oli the chairman of the Communist Party of NepalUnited MarxistLeninist CPNUML said it was an important time in Nepals history and added that his nation was in a transitional phaseAcknowledging the enthusiastic response of the international community to the tragedy that claimed over 8000 lives he said that a recent meeting of global donors had delivered some good and positive outcomes and believed that the average Nepali is inching closer to normalcy post the earthquakeThe enormity of the calamity took time to understand and once the extent of the damage dawned on us 10000 volunteers of my party stepped in across different affected districts whether in the Terai or in the hilly areas to help So far 77276 houses and 1013 schools have been constructed The debris of 22000 structures has been cleared We have put in 750000 man working days not hours into this effortHe was particularly critical about the negative portrayal of the tragedy by the media and other vested interests Some nations projected a very grim picture of Nepal Some issued adverse travel advisories to their citizens not to visit Nepal There was absolutely no reason to do thisWe feel there was a campaign by some nongovernment organizations and other agencies to block the release of funds to our government which was perceived and projected as corrupt These agencies used this tragedy to their advantageI can emphatically say that only 15 percent of our tourism sector has been affected by this earthquake the balance 85 percent is intact Oli said The CPNUML leader said that a whole lot of people and agencies are monitoring the relief and rehabilitation effort and the record distribution of aidThis rumour of corruption is baseless and being projected by vested interests Everything is being done in a transparent manner We are seeking media support to pass out a message that Nepals tourism sector is not fully damagedTourists can come and see Some buildings maybe destroyed but flora and fauna is intact Some old and heritage buildings have also suffered some damage but the reconstruction process is on and with time will pick up speed Oli saidPreliminary estimates suggest that there has been a loss of between USD 65 to 66 billion dollars and that Nepal is initially expecting to receive approximately USD 10 billion Oli said that this was a workable amount but certainly not enoughHe said that donor agencies have committed to provide more funds as and when required Planning must however be Nepali as we are a sovereign nation and will act accordingly he added Gautam said it could take Nepal approximately 15 years to recover fully from the tragedyKey representatives of the Nepal Tourism Board NTB the Reporters Club of Nepal the Lumbini chapter of the Siddhartha Association of Travels and Tour Agents the Federation of Nepali Journalists the NepalIndia Friendship Association the regional Hotel Association of Pokhara and the Hotel Association of Nepal said that the main objective behind inviting a media delegation from India and hosting them was to neutralize and end what they called negative media perceptions about the extent of the damage caused by the earthquakeAll were unanimous in crediting the Indian Government for being the first to respond to the calamitous tragedy with alacrity which subsequently prompted other nations to chip in as well Nepal is a place of great heart It is a place that also offers ultramodern facilities This is the biggest earthquake to hit Nepal after 1934 81 years We will accept that the economic and psychological damage was hugeSome heritage sites have been damaged some remote areas have also been impacted severely and are presently inaccessible but most other parts of Nepal did not experience as much damage as is being made out At the same time it must be acknowledged that as a result of the earthquake Nepal has became better known globally said Ramesh Kumar Adhikari the head of the NTB Travelling from the centre of Nepal towards its southeast and back similar views were echoed suggesting that the Himalayan nation is steadily working its way back to normalcy