Nepal to mobilize over 1,300 engineers to rebuild houses damaged by quake

Nepal is set to mobilize over 1, 300 engineers in the worst-hit districts this week as part of the post-quake reconstruction campaign, Prime Minister Sharma Oli said on Wednesday.

"We are entering into reconstruction but the nation cannot be rebuilt until people and leaders are fully determined. I am hopeful that the engineers will work with honesty to rebuild the quake-resistant houses," he told a two-day orientation for engineers.

The prime minister further said a large number of volunteers will be called in the 14 affected districts to assist the engineers in reconstruction.

"I would like to request all the political parties to mobilize their party cadres and volunteers for one month so that reconstruction drive will be intensified," he said.

The National Reconstruction Authority is in support of the Ministry of Urban Development at a time when it has recently started distribution of housing grant to the quake victims. The authority is releasing 50,000 rupees (470 U.S. dollars) as the first installment of a 200,000-rupee (1,880-U.S. doolar) aid per household to build houses.

Beside the 1,346 engineers, the ministry is mobilizing 560 sub- engineers and 575 assistant engineers to rebuild quake-resistant infrastructure.

"It is not an easy task to rebuild over a half million houses at the same time. So, we will start from the people who are still living under tents," Sushil Gyawali, CEO of the National Reconstruction Authority, said.

The government has trained the engineers to reconstruct the damaged houses, with priority given to the poor and marginalized people.

"I am excited to be a part of government's reconstruction drive. I will share my technical knowledge with the locals in selecting models and building quake-resistant houses," Nitisha Parajuli, a 24-year-old civil engineer, told Xinhua.

More than a half million houses were damaged by the devastating 7.9-magnitude earthquake last year. The international community has pledged 4.1 billion U.S. dollars in financial aid.

The engineers and architects, who are selected on the basis of merit and interview, will remain in their designated areas for two years. They will begin the task in the affected districts from the end of this week.

(APD)