The flooded Mahakali river has started to erode the embankment at Bayalbanda area in Mahakali Municipality-1, Kanchanpur. Bayalbanda residents said the river started eroding the embankment from Sunday.

Several gabion boxes have been damaged in the process.

Paramananda Bhatta, a local man, said they were spending sleepless nights because of flood threat.

Five years ago, the river had breached the embankment

at the same site, flooding the then Chandani and Dodhara VDCs.

Arjundatta Bhatta, the ward member of Mahakali-1, said if the erosion continues, the area could get flooded.

Although security personnel and locals are installing gabion boxes to stop Mahakali from breaching the embankment, their

effort has been hampered due to high water level in the river.

Mahadev Bista, engineer of People’s Embankment Programme, said the embankment was constructed with the assistance of Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) 25 years ago. The first ever maintenance of the embankment was carried out five years ago.

Meanwhile, several settlements in Mahakali Municipality have been inundated with the rise in the water levels in various rivers and rivulets.

Continuous rainfall in the area since Sunday evening has flooded the local rivers in the area, said Police Inspector of Dodhara Area Police Office Narendra Chand.

At least 200 families could be displaced if rainfall continues for a few more days, he added.

Man missing in Jhimruk River

A 45-year-old man is missing after he was swept away by the Jhimruk river in Jhimruk Rural Municipality-7, Pyuthan, on Monday, police said. Batula Sahamat of Tusara in Jhimruk-7 was swept away by the currents while crossing the river. Sahamat was returning home after getting his poverty identity card from Machchhi. Police and locals were searching for Sahamat until late afternoon, but to no avail. In a separate incident,Tara Singh Adhikari, 23, of Barekot-5, Jajarkot, was found dead on the bank of the Nalgadh stream on Monday. (PR)