A beacon of hope in Januka’s village
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Authors
Yugdeep Thapa
Issue Date
05/09/2017
Type
Language
en
Keywords
Construction , Disasters , Technology
Alternative Title
Abstract
Januka Neupane, 50, was left with nothing but her four children when her husband passed away 20 years ago. She moved back to Banuwa, the village where she was born, and her family gave her a small patch of land with a small stone hut to start a new life. She worked tirelessly to provide for her children, but even this came at a price. Januka developed severe nerve damage on her spine, and can barely walk. As her condition worsened so did her misfortune. Her house, the only asset she had, was completely destroyed in the 2015 earthquake. Despite receiving the first tranche of the national housing reconstruction grant, Januka struggled to begin rebuilding. Some of her able-bodied neighbours started saving on labour costs by collecting and preparing stone themselves, and others used additional savings to supplement the grant, but for her this was out of the question. The grant could not cover all the extra help that Januka would need to transport and manage a build. Fortunately, Januka was chosen to be one of the first people in her village to demonstrate a new, more affordable earthquake-resilient construction method. Concrete Stabilized Earth Blocks (CSEBs) are being promoted as part of Practical Action’s UKAID-funded earthquake reconstruction efforts, and the program even helped cover the labour costs for Januka’s new home, saving her NRs. 250,000. In a village where over 80 percent of all homes were destroyed by the 2015 earthquakes, Januka’s house – now almost complete – and the simple, affordable technology used to rebuild it stands as a beacon of hope for her and the other villagers who have not yet been able to begin the daunting task of rebuilding.
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