Reconstruction united a family in Dhading
L
ike many others, Ram Bahadur Sarki of Nigalpani, Nilkantha-9,
Dhading had also lost his house due to 2015 earthquake and was forced to settle in a temporary shelter. His family of four, faced troubled times when he got into drinking habit and his family was on the verge of splitting. But the fate of the family took a turn, when the government announced a list of beneficiaries eligible for the government grant. Ram’s name was included. Despite getting the first tranche of the grant, he could not reconstruct his home largely
Ram Bahadur Sarki’s house after construction in Nilkantha, Dhading. Photo by: Saroj Maharjan/Oxfam
due to his drinking habits. When
support in construction of a permanent house, Ram’s
Considering the amount of work required and the
all the money from the grant was
name was there. Oxfam had adopted an owner-driven
final product, Ram reached out to his wife and kids.
gone, Ram Bahadur realized how his
approach, requiring the owner to take the lead in the
He persuaded his wife to come back home and start
construction was affected in absence
reconstruction of the house. The houses would be built
everything afresh. So, to construct the house, the family
of a stable income.
using compressed stabilized earth bricks (CSEB), made
got together and built their house. Their family is united
by the community itself. The house owner had to arrange
again. Oxfam in Nepal, until March 2018, has helped
And when Oxfam started collecting
labor for the construction and Oxfam would provide the
families build 95 such houses.
names of the beneficiaries to
construction materials, technical expertise.
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