Nepal has been frequently confronted by forces beyond its control. They include, among others, earthquakes, floods, and glacial disasters, which have exposed the country’s vulnerabilities. Moreover, Nepal has been reeling under political instability and economic uncertainty that have weakened its capacity to prepare for and respond to a crisis of the magnitude of the August 26 floods. The extent of the devastation is such that it has become difficult for the government to provide exact casualty figures. Mass burials are being conducted and planned.
The scale of devastation is huge. Yet Nepal is fortunate enough to receive tremendous international support in various forms: Money, technical assistance, and moral support. We need the same level for the reconstruction phase as well. Without the support of neighbours like India, as well as the rest of the international community, Nepal may not have been able to handle the crisis. The estimated $4-5 billion needed for reconstruction is equivalent to one-tenth of a national economy that depends on remittances and tourism. Nepal has also lost around 12 per cent of national electricity generating capacity.
Glacier-related flooding has become frequent in the Himalayan region. The climatic and ecological consequences will inevitably have to be borne by countries like Nepal. Scientists have held that greenhouse gases and human activities are the primary causes of the rise in global temperatures. But Nepal, for all practical purposes, has not contributed in this regard. Nepal produces less than 0.1 per cent of global emissions. Aren’t we, then, paying an extraordinarily disproportionate price for a crisis to which we have contributed almost nothing?
Nepal’s vulnerability to climate change has been intensified by the mainstream developmental model built around a philosophy that treats mountains, rivers, and forests as resources to be exploited and conquered, rather than ecosystems to be sustained. The neoliberal economic policies that Nepal has emulated over the years have dismantled the natural ecosystem. Perhaps it is time for Nepal to rethink the “mountaineering industry,” which has increased human activities in the Himalayan region. Moreover, the developmental projects planned in the region — railways and roadways, among others — should be controlled. This is what we have to do if we really want to protect the Himalayan ecosystem. The Himalaya is no longer merely the “roof of the world”, as they say, but it is becoming one of the world’s most important ecological and geopolitical frontiers. The region has turned into Rana Bhumi (strategic land) from Punya Bhumi (spiritual land), and human activities have the potential to turn vikas (progress) into vinas (destruction).
All said, a series of crises (both political and natural) have already weakened the “body and soul” of the Nepali state, and in the long run, they can weaken the resilience of our society. Nepal cannot change geography, but it can alter the nature of the developmental model that has been imposed from outside and introduce climatic discourses rooted in the interconnectedness between humans, nature, and other living creatures.
The writer is a political scientist based in Kathmandu
