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🇳🇵 Nepal /Culture & Society

Food aid ends at holding centres as displaced families face uncertainty

From Kathmandu Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Ongoing story
  • Hundreds of displaced families in Nepal face fresh uncertainty as food aid ends at government-run holding centers.
  • Canteen staff cited funding issues and sympathy for residents as reasons for continuing service beyond the official end date.
  • Displaced individuals report losing homes and belongings, with some not receiving promised government financial assistance, exacerbating their plight.

Hundreds of displaced families in Nepal are facing renewed hardship as food aid has ceased at holding centers, leaving them uncertain about their future. Staff at a Nepal Red Cross holding center in Banepa informed residents that the canteen would serve its last meal, urging them to make their own arrangements.

From tomorrow, the canteen will be closed. Please make your own arrangements.

— Canteen staffAnnouncing the end of food aid at the Nepal Red Cross holding center in Banepa.

Canteen staff explained that their funding for food provision officially ended on July 3, but they had extended services out of sympathy for the displaced squatters. "We were ordered to stop from Friday. We only had funding until then. We carried on for a few more days because we felt for you. From tomorrow, we simply can't continue," residents recalled being told.

We were ordered to stop from Friday. We only had funding until then. We carried on for a few more days because we felt for you. From tomorrow, we simply can't continue.

— Canteen staffExplaining the reasons for ending food service to residents at the Banepa holding center.

The announcement has intensified the plight of families already uprooted by the government's riverbank clearance drive. Many include elderly people, children, and individuals with health conditions, making the loss of food support particularly alarming. Residents also questioned the government's assistance, noting that not all families received the promised Rs25,000 payment. Even for those who did, the amount is insufficient to cover basic needs after losing their homes and belongings.

There are sick people here. There are children. Our situation is going from bad to worse, and no one is listening to us.

— Rima PokharelDescribing the alarming situation for vulnerable residents at the Banepa holding center.

Similar distress is reported at a hotel near Kathmandu's New Bus Park, where displaced families were staying under a government arrangement. Hotel management pressured residents to leave, forcing them onto the streets. Residents alleged mistreatment, insults, and the serving of stale food. Some families were provided only one room for up to six members, forcing them to send children elsewhere. At another holding center in Kharipati, Bhaktapur, residents were urged by officials to vacate the premises, adding to their growing uncertainty.

Some families haven't received the money at all. Even for those who have, what can Rs25,000 cover? We lost everything when our homes were demolished.

— Rima PokharelQuestioning the adequacy of government financial assistance for displaced families.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Kathmandu Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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