KESHAV ADHIKARI

Dhading, November 13- The Chepang Community of Benighat Rural Municipality in Dhading hasn’t received the government grant even though it was in the list of beneficiaries due to lack of landownership certificates.

Sixty-nine households from Palark and Bangkurti villages of the rural municipality could not receive the government grant for reconstruction of houses. Purna Bahadur Chepang, a local, said a team of technicians deployed from the National Reconstruction Authority did not make a grant agreement even though the team had inspected houses destroyed by the 2015 earthquake. “The problem was not solved even though I visited the ward and rural municipality offices time and again,” he added.

Chepangs of these two villages did not have land ownership certificates. The land at Palark and Bangkurti was surveyed under ward no 4 in Lothar Kandrang Panchayat, Dhading district, Bagmati Zone in 1975.

The Chepangs faced problems due to lack of evidence as documents of the measured land were sent to Chitwan after some parts of Lothar and Kandrang Panchayat was merged in Lalti Panchayat of Dhading.

Tanka Bahadur Thapa, a local of Rorang Rural Municipality said the problems started after some parts of the land in Dhading were measured from Chitwan.

The problem is not confined only to the Chepangs, locals of Gajuri, Rubi Valley, Nilkantha Municipality, Dhunibenshi Municipality among other local levels also don’t have landownership certificates.

Data of the beneficiaries without landownership certificates will be collected. District Project Implementation Unit of Reconstruction Authority said it has started sending updated data to the centre.

District Project Implementation Unit Dhading Chief Engineer Rajendra KC said data of victims would be collected and sent to the department of Reconstruction Project Land Management and Geological Study.

It is said the government will provide grant amount to victims for land if they did not have land in places where the beneficiaries were listed. The unit said the government has already provided the amount to buy land to victims who could not construct houses as their settlements were located at high risk areas.

A total of 388 households are at high risk of landslides in the northern part of the district in Rubi Valley, Khaniyabas and Gangajamuna rural municipalities. Of them, 176 victims have received the grant while the process of providing grant amount to the remaining 221 victims is under way.

• HIMALAYAN NEWS SERVICE