20 October, Pokhara. Landslides have occurred in places from Kushma Bazar to Maldhunga and Beni Bazar. In some places, the landslide has washed away the road, while in some places, stones have been piled up on the roadside. The stuck stones of Bhir look like they are ready to fall.

At Sahasradhara and Maldhunga-Beni roads of Parbat's Kushma Municipality, vehicles have started to drive on the damaged roads, but passengers are coming and going while looking at the mountain like a mountain from above their heads.

Floods and landslides after incessant rains from October 8th caused huge loss of life and property in Gandaki region. The flood of Kaligandaki river destroyed the old pavement market of Jaljala rural municipality. From Beni, the headquarters of Myagdi, to Kushma, the mountain headquarters, Kali seems to have cut in places.

Conservation engineer RK Adipta Giri believes that a greater calamity has been avoided when Kaligandaki has destroyed settlements and land.

Kaligandaki has destroyed the settlements and land in this way, as if our settlements were barely saved. A huge human loss has been avoided,'' Giri bites his tongue while looking at the damaged area. A strange and unexpected scene is still visible from Kushma to Jaljala.

Maldhunga bridge access road collapse, impact upto western region

The flood that occurred in Kaligandaki on October 11 cut off the access road of the Maldhunga bridge connecting the mountain and Baglung. The citizens of Parbat West in the mouth of Chadbad have faced a big problem when the part of the Maldhunga bridge towards the mountain was cut by soot.

When the Maldhunga bridge was cut down by Kaligandaki, the communication from Baglung and Burtibang to Rukum East, Rukum West, Jajarkot, Dailekh, Achham to Baitadi (Jhulaghat) in the far west was cut off.

Mainly traveling through Burtibang area of ​​Baglung or this highway directly connected with western and mid hill districts like Rukum East, Rukum West, Rolpa, Jajarkot, Dolpa etc. According to Chief District Officer of Baglung, Krishna Prasad Acharya, thousands of citizens have been affected at the mouth of Chadbad when the river cut the access road to Maldhunga.

Maldhunga bridge is the first arch bridge in Nepal. In 2048, a bow-shaped bridge was built with the help of China. At present Muglin, Dijjibazar above Dhobikhola and Ramdi Bridge above Kaligandaki river have also been built in a similar shape.

The load of the arch bridge is not only transferred directly to the pillars but also through the curvature of the arch to the strong foundations on both sides. Its main feature is that there is no need to place pillars in the middle of the river.

Experts say that since long spans can be built without pillars, the possibility of falling trees, geysers, or bulrushes during floods will damage the pillars or the bridge itself will be at risk.

Access road damage due to exploitation

However, the flood of Kaligandaki, which comes like every year, has cut off a part of the road next to this arch bridge. Engineers say that it was cut in a part due to river exploitation.

The flood of October 11 caused a lot of damage in many places. There has been encroachment of the river in some places. There is also exploitation of the river by the crushers," said Engineer Dhruv Pokharel, Information Officer of the Road Division Office, Pokhara, "It seems that the access road has been damaged by the current of the river. It can and should be studied.

Even now, excavators are seen in the river, while tippers and dozers are found digging and transporting river materials. Locals are worried that the businessmen who are running the crushers have not stopped mining despite such a calamity.

It is confirmed by the statement of Chief District Officer of Parbat, Ganga Bahadur Chhetri, that they are misleading the administration as well. Locals are complaining that the settlements and bridges along the river have been eroded due to the exploitation of structures. The reason for the excavation is also seen in the fact that the river is changing its course and entering the settlement,' says Sidio Chhetri, 'We will strictly monitor, treat, make illegal and bring it under the scope of action. However, it seems that the businessmen here have arranged all the settings, we are in the process of studying.

The goal is to be repaired before Dashain

When the Online Khabar team reached the Maldhunga bridge on Sunday, a dozer was being used to remove the soil from the cut area. Even as Dashain was approaching, the citizens were confused about when the bridge would be built. Engineer Dhruv Pokharel said that the road division office in Pokhara is working with an effort to open it before Dashain through the emergency fund.

"When construction started suddenly after cutting by the river, it was difficult when there was 8 to 10 meters of water in some places in the early days. Now we are making a suitable platform for construction," Pokharel told Online News. "The foundation construction work has also reached its final stage. Now it has to be made 18 meters high. Preparations are being made to open at least before Dashain.

Since the Maldhunga bridge is not built, they have not been able to travel to Pokhara, Narayangadh, Kathmandu and other major cities. Ganesh Acharya, a local resident, says that even though the vehicles have started moving from Kushma to Beni towards the mountain, the accident has not happened.

This bridge connecting the Madhyapahari Highway has affected the life of the people in West Nepal, while the Beni-Jomsom road has also been damaged by floods and landslides. Corolla Naka, which is an alternative to Rasuwa Naka, is also blocked due to the road.

Locals are saying that since it will take some time for the bridge to be operational, there is a shortage of food, petroleum products and gas. Because of this, Hari Khadka of Baglung is worried that there will be a shortage during Dashain.

Baglung and mountain dwellers are now alternatively using Asia's long-claimed Gandaki Golden Suspension Bridge (Baglung-Paravat) and other high suspension bridges in Kushma. Passengers cross the river on foot from these bridges and reach the mountains and from there catch other vehicles and head towards their destination.

Subedi, who is a journalist based in Pokhara, is the head of the Gandaki province bureau of Online News.