Water supply to Gupsipakha in Laprak has been disrupted after the pipelines of the recently built water project suffered damages. The Rs60 million drinking water project, which was inaugurated on November 1, 2020, suffered damages in the last week of the same month.

Suka Bahadur Gurung, chairman of Bhumlechet Drinking Water and Sanitation Consumers Committee, said that the main pipeline made of galvanised burst in Andrekhola.

“Three pipes of the water project burst in Andrekhola,” said Gurung. “There could be several reasons for the bursting of the pipes like the use of substandard construction materials, high water pressure or pipe freeze due to the cold. We will need a technical team to go to the site and have a look.”

The water source at Bhulmechet is 19 kilometres from Gupsipakha.

The disruption of water supply has affected the reconstruction work of an integrated settlement at Gupsipakha in Ward No. 4 of Darche Rural Municipality. Twenty-four families displaced by the 2015 earthquake, who were not included in the housing reconstruction aid list in the past, had finally started the construction of their houses after complaint hearings.

Buddhiraj Gurung, a resident of Gupsipakha who is building his house in the integrated settlement, says he has to spend Rs 800 to source water for construction.

“I had only just started constructing my house. Within five days, I have spent over Rs 10,000 on water alone,” Gurung said.

The Non-Resident Nepali Association has built an integrated settlement for 573 earthquake-affected families at Gupsipakha. The 24 families currently building their houses in the settlement are doing so with the housing reconstruction grant of Rs 300,000 fixed by the government.

“Some of the families have been bringing in water in tractors from Kalkang stream,” Gurung said. “We have to frequent a tap in Rinjuli to manage water for daily household purposes.”

Another Ganesh Gurung, a resident of Gupsipakha, said, “Some houses built by the NRNA are still without toilets and with plaster works yet to be done. The construction work has stopped due to water shortage.”

The Drinking Water and Sanitation Division Office in Gorkha will soon conduct a field inspection to identify the problem, according to Dev Bahadur Lama, an engineer at the division office.

“Damaged pipes should be replaced with polyethene pipes. But first, we have to conduct a field inspection to identify and address the problem,” Lama said.