KATHMANDU – Nepal is grappling with the aftermath of devastating floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains, which have left at least 192 people dead and 32 missing. The disaster, caused by a low-pressure system in the Bay of Bengal and neighboring areas of India, has affected large parts of the country.
In the Kathmandu Valley, home to four million people, 56 deaths were reported as rivers overflowed, flooding homes, hospitals, roads, and markets. It is one of the worst floods in recent years for the capital region.
The government is now assessing the damage and estimating the cost of rebuilding. Experts have attributed the severity of the destruction to poor urban planning, with haphazard construction along riverbanks and inadequate drainage systems exacerbating the floods.
Climate change has also been identified as a contributing factor, with scientists warning that extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and intense. In neighboring Bangladesh, over 100,000 people are stranded due to flooding, with large swathes of farmland destroyed. The situation is expected to worsen as more rain is forecast.