Kathmandu, August 6
Kathmandu Metropolitan City and local reconstruction activists have been engaged in a blame game over who should lead the reconstruction of historic Kasthamandap temple that collapsed in the magnitude-7.6 earthquake in April 2015.
Their differences have widened after newly elected people’s representatives in the KMC denied giving any role to Kasthamandap Reconstruction Campaign formed by locals to carry out the rebuilding process.
Whereas the Campaign has accused the KMC of trying to contain public efforts to conserve the archaeological heritage, the KMC says it is the local government’s responsibility to reconstruct earthquake-hit structures.
The campaigners say the government bodies including the KMC did not understand the historical and archaeological importance hence they could not rebuild the structure, the KMC claims it is competent enough to take the historical building back to its old structure.
Earlier, on May 12, two days before Kathmandu held elections to elect new local leadership, National Reconstruction Authority, Kasthamandap Reconstruction Campaign, Department of Archaeology and KMC had signed an agreement, according to which the public-led Reconstruction Campaign was allowed to lead the reconstruction process assisted by KMC and the Department.
However, the elected leadership of KMC decided that it was wrong to handover the reconstruction task to a group representing a handful of people and withdrew from the agreement. After that, the NRA also agreed to give the task to the KMC.
