Due to the local administration’s laxity, Rs 2.5 million allocated by the President’s Trust Fund (PTF) and Rs 150,000 collected from the district level remains unused in the bank account of District Disaster Relief Committee (DDRC). Almost a week has passed since the relief amount from PTF was deposited in DDRC’s account.

In a bid to justify their sluggish response, Chief District Officer Shambhu Prasad Regmi claimed that they had not been able to distribute the relief as they were yet to categorise the victims in accordance with the damage sustained.

Stating that they had held discussion over the issue during a meeting held with the participation of all stakeholders on Friday, Regmi said that they will call the victims to collect the relief immediately after reaching a consensus.

Meanwhile, Rs 20 million to be distributed among the victims as per the cabinet’s decision of January 3 is yet to reach the district. Likewise, the declaration of the Ministry of Finance to provide Rs 12.5 million as immediate relief to the victims has been remains a mere lip service. Similarly, 3,000 quintals of rice to be provided by the Nepal Food Corporation has also not reached the district.

“We are flooded with calls of the victims asking about relief every day.

However, after going from one office to another, we have managed to ensure the transportation of 3,000 quintals of rice,” said Khadak Bahadur Shahi of DDRC. Stating that they had been running around for relief since the disaster struck the district, Shahi said that it took two weeks just to implement the directive forwarded by the Finance Ministry to the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies.

The hailstones on October 25 had destroyed paddy planted on about 900 hectares of farmland belonging to approximately 2,300 households in Srinagar, Shreekot, Seri and Karkibada VDCs in the district.