more-in A group of 60 families in Orang VDC of Dolakha district of Nepal, who lost their houses in the 2015 earthquake, will get permanent earthquake-resistant houses this April. All this thanks to the efforts of ‘Bengaluru Cares for Nepal’, an initiative by Project Vision, an NGO. Led by Fr. George Kannanthanam, founder of Project Vision, a group of volunteers under Bengaluru Cares for Nepal mobilised funds to take up relief and rehabilitation work in Nepal. With the experience of rehabilitation work during several natural disasters, like the tsunami in 2004 and the floods in north Karnataka in 2009, Project Vision floated the idea of creating a platform where interested individuals, organisations and several congregations came together. Apart from providing 450 temporary houses to the affected families, the volunteers have readied 60 permanent houses that will be handed over directly to the beneficiaries on April 11. Each house has been built at a cost of ?3 lakh. “An agreement to build the 60 permanent houses was signed with Caritas Nepal on December 8. The amount of ?3 lakh was handed over to the beneficiaries in three stages. Caritas had already imparted training to the community in building the houses and also supervised the work,” Fr. George told The Hindu. Recalling the relief work taken up soon after the earthquake, Fr. George said a hundred shelter boxes were provided to residents in a remote village called Tipling, which was cut off due to the earthquake. Each box contained 51 items that were meant for survival of a family that had lost everything due to the disaster. It included two tarpaulins, bucket, clothes, toilet articles, food materials and basic crockery. As many as 2,750 tarpaulins were given, providing shelter to over 10,000 people. However, with the onset of the monsoon, tarpaulins proved to be of limited use. Hence, the volunteers built temporary homes for 450 families. Residents of Budaneelkanta, a village on the outskirts of Kathmandu which was deserted, was the first to get the tin roof houses, Fr. George said. Higher education for students Most students in the affected area were not able to continue their education after 12th standard. Thirteen such students were identified and admitted to a hotel management school in Bengaluru. This is a collaborative effort between Bangalore Cares for Nepal, ECHO and Shanthi (Kathmandu). One girl student is doing a nursing course with the Holy Cross Sisters. “The whole batch has now completed their studies. They were placed in five-star hotels for their three months of practical experience. Most of them are already selected for work in different hotels. They will be able to support their families economically and help them get over the earthquake. More than two dozen students have come to India for studies so far,” Fr. George said. These apart, a science lab and a library was constructed for Sri Jan Kalyan Madhyamik Vidyalay in Madurapatti Phulbari, Kavre district, about 50 kilometres from Kathmandu, he added.

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