Bajura’s Himali rural municipality left without electricity after flood

Bajura: Villages in Himali Rural Municipality, located in the north-eastern region of Bajura, have been left without electricity following severe flooding. The Kawadi Micro Hydropower Project, which began producing 100 kilowatts of electricity in Falgun 2078 BS, had previously lit up 1,100 households in the area.

However, the flood in the Bichhya River on the night of August 11 washed away all the electricity canals, leaving households and the Himali Rural Municipality office without power. The flood also damaged drinking water systems, roads, and other physical infrastructure used by locals. The municipality has been working over the past two months to repair these facilities and provide basic convenience to the community.

The electricity canals were severely damaged, and repairing them requires a significant amount of funding, which the municipality cannot provide on its own. As a result, the municipality has requested financial support from the provincial and federal governments.

Ram Bahadur Rawat, a resident of Dhulachaur, Himali Rural Municipality-6, said that after the municipality repaired the water supply system with its own resources over two months, locals now have some relief in accessing drinking water.

Rawat added that municipal work has become challenging, and residents are also facing difficulties charging mobile phones at home due to the lack of electricity.