PM urges parties to send volunteers to quake-hit areas

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli Wednesday urged all political parties to send volunteers to the districts severely hit by the earthquake in April and May last year to assist in the reconstruction programmes.

Addressing the concluding ceremony of two-day training on ‘Basic training for engineers on housing reconstruction’, he said, “Reconstruction of the quake-ravaged settlements is an uphill task that requires the mobilization of a large pool of human resources. Therefore, I urge all major political parties to send volunteers for at least a month.”

The training was organized by the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) as orientation programme for about 2,500 engineers selected by the Authority who will soon be sent to the quake-hit areas to assist in the reconstruction works.

They would assist in house reconstruction, settlement development and authorization of housing plan. 

The Prime Minister directed the young engineers to be at the front line of the reconstruction process. “There are some legal complexities in obtaining grants for house reconstruction and passing the blueprint of houses. You should be assisting the quake-victims in solving these problems and report these hurdles to the NRA.”

He assured that the government would always be with the engineers.

PM Oli expressed his commitment to roll out plans for hydroelectricity and road development.

The government is mobilizing 1346 engineers, 600 overseers and 550 sub-overseers in the quake hit areas.

“More than 3,000 engineers had applied for the job. We selected 1346 engineers on the basis of 70 per cent and 30 per cent merit and interview respectively,” informed Dipendra Nath Sharma, secretary of the Ministry of Urban Development.

He declared that the female engineers would be deployed to the districts in and around the Kathmandu Valley.

He directed the engineers to be people-oriented and fair.

Kunti Kumari Shahi, Minister for State at the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development, said that it was both opportunity and responsibility of the young engineers and directed them to use their skills for reconstruction and sustainable development.

NRA Chief Executive Officer Sushil Gyawali said that priority would be given to the reconstruction of houses of marginalized and poor people.

“Your major responsibility is to assist people in construction of houses that are in harmony with nature and culture. Let the local communities decide the modalities of houses and the NRA will facilitate them in reconstruction,” he said.