Kathmandu Valley faces water shortage and flood displacement crisis

Residents near Sundarijal, a key water‑storage and treatment site for the Kathmandu Valley, are experiencing acute drinking‑water shortages despite the area’s role in processing water from the Melamchi and Bagmati rivers. Local officials and parliamentarians have raised the issue, but regular supply remains unavailable, forcing people to rely on stone taps, wells and long queues at public taps.

At the same time, a night‑time flood from the Bagmati River inundated a government‑run squatters’ holding centre in Kirtipur, displacing dozens of families who had been relocated there after their river‑bank settlements were cleared. Rescue teams saved 54 of the 154 occupants, while others were moved to temporary shelters and provided with food and water.