Mahabharat Rural Municipality in Kavre is currently in darkness. After the rainfall last week, floods and landslides have blocked roads and washed away poles, transformers, power lines, and other infrastructure, leaving 3,174 households in the rural municipality without electricity.

Chairperson Kanchha Lal Jimbu of the rural municipality stated that it has been difficult to restore electricity after the Roshi River washed away the road connecting the municipality. “The flood also swept away the road entering the municipality, making it impossible to work on the infrastructure needed to restore power,” he said. He also informed that officials from the Nepal Electricity Authority have already said that power will not be restored before Dashain. “There is no water, electricity, or roads throughout the municipality,” he said, “The Sipali road connecting the municipality to the Roshi River has been completely washed away.

Amrit Babu Adhikari, head of the Kavre Distribution Center of the Nepal Electricity Authority, stated that although electricity has been disrupted in Roshi Rural Municipality, Khanikhola Rural Municipality, and Bethanchok Rural Municipality due to the rain, power will be restored in some areas before Dashain. “Work is ongoing to restore electricity up to the Roshi Rural Municipality office, but testing is still pending,” he said. “Power has already been restored in Bethanchok Ward No. 6.

He also mentioned that since it was not possible to bring electricity to Mahabharat Rural Municipality from the Roshi side, efforts are being made to supply power from Khanikhola. “If we can bring electricity from Khanikhola, there is a possibility of lighting up some areas of Mahabharat,” he said. “The progress depends on the availability of workers, and we’ll see by Wednesday.” He further stated that most areas of Mahabharat will not have electricity restored. However, there is a possibility of supplying electricity to Roshi Rural Municipality Wards 2, 3, 5, 7, and the rural municipality office. He added that due to the lack of road networks, various parts of Bethanchok, Mahabharat, and Roshi Rural Municipalities will remain without electricity.

The South Lalitpur Rural Electricity Cooperative has indicated that there is little chance of electricity reaching the Kapiram and Gimdi areas in southern Lalitpur, near the Kathmandu Valley, before Dashain. “The cooperative serves 7,500 customers, of which 60% of households have already received electricity,” said Govinda Bajgai, the chairman of the cooperative. “The rest haven’t, and in some areas, entire settlements have been washed away, so it’s not yet confirmed where power is still out.” He also mentioned that five transformers under the cooperative have been completely swept away.

He mentioned that although electricity has been restored in areas with good road networks, it has not been possible to do so in places where roads have been completely cut off. It has been difficult to work in areas where settlements, branch power lines, and roads have been washed away. Bajgai stated that efforts are underway to restore electricity in Mahankal Rural Municipality Wards 3, 4, 5, and 6, and in Bagmati Rural Municipality Ward 7 within the next two days. The Nepal Electricity Authority has also informed that electricity has been supplied to Sunkoshi, Golanjar, and Phikkal areas through alternative means.

According to the authority, floods and landslides have damaged 1,019 high-tension poles, 1,112 low-tension poles, and 47 transformers in the electricity distribution sector. The authority also reported that 4,200 meters of power lines have been damaged. The most significant damage has occurred to the electrical infrastructure under the Bagmati Regional Distribution Center. While electricity has been temporarily restored in most areas, it will take a few months to fully reconstruct, according to Manoj Kumar Yadav, head of the Bagmati Regional Division. He also mentioned that it has been difficult to carry out the work as many workers have started returning home.

Kulman Ghising, the Managing Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority, stated that efforts are underway to restore electricity in flood-affected rural areas such as Kavre and southern Lalitpur. “In remote villages of Kavre and southern Lalitpur, the roads have been washed away by floods. The flood has also swept away electricity poles, transformers, wires, and other materials,” he said. “Without roads, it has been difficult to transport electrical equipment. However, more than 20 teams have been deployed, and work is ongoing to restore electricity through alternative means.

Source: Kantipur