Nanda Lal Pun's Journey through the Jajarkot Earthquake

Nanda Lal Pun, a 40-year-old farmer from Maide, Jajarkot had always cherished a peaceful life with his beloved family (his wife, two sons and a daughter). They were living a regular basic life doing farming and household works. Their world, however was altered on the night of November 3, 2023 when a powerful earthquake measuring 6.4 struck their village.

In their simple home, the earthquake hit hard, shaking the ground violently. The strong mud-brick walls fell apart under the shaking. Inside, beehives that were hanging from the ceiling crashed to the floor and the bees buzzed around, confused. The destruction was sudden leaving behind a scene of chaos. Amid the chaos, Nanda Lal was scared but stayed focused on keeping his family safe. With great effort, he led them through the broken doorway to safety outside. When they got outside, their peaceful village was in ruins. Homes were destroyed, aftershocks continued and cries for help filled the air. Nanda Lal kept his family close and found a safe spot away from the damaged buildings, where they stayed together through a long terrifying night. When morning came, the full scale of the disaster was clear. Even with their injuries and losses, Nanda Lal was relieved that his family had survived. In the following days, the community came together, facing tough times without shelter until help finally arrived.

Hope arrived when Caritas Nepal, CRS Nepal and YARCN joined forces to construct resilient shelters for families in need. This initiative brought Nanda a sense of hope and happiness, allowing him to stay with his family in a safe and secure environment and begin a new life.

Caritas Nepal embarked on a mission to provide transitional shelters to the affected communities, made possible through financial support from Caritas Austria, Caritas Australia, CRS, Caritas Germany, MISSEREOR and Caritas Macau. Each shelter, built within a modest budget of Rs. 50,000, measures 20 by 16 feet with a height ranging from 8 to 9 feet. The layout includes two rooms, a kitchen and a veranda, providing a functional living space. Privacy is addressed with well-partitioned rooms, ensuring that families have the necessary privacy in their new homes. The overall expenses are significantly lower compared to the market price of Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 1,500 per log. Each shelter is built on a concrete plinth to enhance durability and safety. These thoughtful measures, combined with community involvement, have resulted in well-accepted shelters that provide a sense of security to the earthquake-affected families.

Additionally, a total of 400 vulnerable households have received socio-technical assistance in shelter reconstruction. This support is provided to vulnerable households (single women-headed, child-headed, elderly people-headed, disabled-headed and households from marginalized communities) who received transitional shelter grants as per the Nepal government’s directive. The assistance covers labor wages and technical guidance in shelter design, ensuring that those lacking resources and capacity can effectively utilize the grant funds for shelter construction.