A massive landslide at Someshwor hill in Madi Municipality, Chitwan, has dammed the Parui stream, leaving downstream settlements at risk of flooding.

According to local residents, the water flow along the stream has been blocked after the fragile topography of Sete Paharo caved in and buried the stream along a stretch of 500 metres.

Ram Bahadur Acharya, ward member of Madi-7, and Dhaka Mohan Timilsina, a resident of Devendrapur in Madi-7, reached the incident site on Friday. According to Timilsina, the Parui stream originates in Someshwor hill and empties into the Riu stream that finally mixes with the Rapti river.

“The Parui stream is not a big one but there is a high risk of floods if the artificial lake formed due to the landslide is not drained out immediately,” said Timilsina.

He said the massive landmass fell into the stream on Thursday night.

Krishna Bahadur Rana of Madi-7 emerged from his house early Friday morning to irrigate his wheat field.

“But the irrigation canal was completely dry. I was shocked when I reached the stream, as it had no water,” said Rana.

The landslide also damaged the pipeline of a local drinking water project.

“Three hundred taps in Madi-7 run dry now due to the damage caused by the landslide. Local residents are having a hard time managing water for drinking and irrigation purposes,” said Krishna Paudel, a member of Ayodhyapuri Buffer Zone Consumers’ Committee. He urged the authorities concerned to remove the debris of the landslide from the stream and repair the damaged water pipeline.

According to Jhalak Sharma, inspector at the Area Police Office in Madi, the artificial lake is around five to seven metres deep as of Saturday.

“A security team reached the site immediately after they were informed about the incident,” said Sharma. “We are discussing with Mayor Thakur Dhakal to invite geologists and act as per their suggestions.”

However, the local residents are terrified, as they fear that the artificial lake might burst and flood their settlements.

“Water in the lake should be drained as soon as possible. We have informed the people’s representatives, technicians and other government authorities about the incident and requested them to address the issue at the earliest,” said Shivaji Gayak, the chairman of Ayodhyapuri Buffer Zone Consumers’ Committee.