Teenager's silence after earthquake
For Anjali Darain — still traumatized by the loss of her family in the 2015 earthquake — cash relief from the government could offer a much-needed chance at education and a step towards healing
Salyantar, Dhading, 3 June 2015: Anjali Darain sits quietly in a dark classroom of Jana Jyoti Lower Secondary School in Salyantar Village Development Committee in Dhading district, more than 100 kilometres west of the capital Kathmandu. That classroom is one of the few still left standing after the 7.8 magnitude earthquake on 25 April and subsequent aftershocks, including a strong one of 7.3 magnitude on 12 May.
Schools across Nepal opened on 31 May for the first time since the earthquake. On the third day of school, the 13-year-old sits by the window of the classroom and tries to blend in with her other seventh grade friends. The students are talking about the earthquake and why it happened and what the aftershocks are all about.
On the day of the earthquake, her mother, father and her little brother had gone to the nearby forest to gather firewood and fresh water. Although Salyantar is only 28 kilometres from Dhading Besi, the district headquarters, it takes about four hours to get to the village via a very rough road. The village has no running water, and the residents have to go to the stream near the forest. On the morning of 25 April, Anjali stayed home because she wanted to take a bath and already had some water ready. Her mother, father and little brother said goodbye to Anjali and promised to come back with some more water and firewood. That was the last time she ever saw them.
When the earthquake hit, Anjali’s mother and brother were at the base of a big hill. A landslide triggered by the quake engulfed her brother, and then her mother was buried under the mud and debris falling from the hill. Her father was still alive, but injured. Eyewitness (and Anjali’s maternal uncle) Sanju Darain said that they saw Anjali’s father going in to save his wife and son but was also eventually buried under the rubble. The three never stood a chance.
Six weeks since the earthquake, their bodies have still not been found. No excavator has been able to reach the area. And no one has ventured to retrieve the bodies due to the fear of continuing landslides.
“My son, my daughter-in-law and my little grandson are the only casualties of the earthquake from this village, but the deaths of three people do not seem to be a priority for the government,”
Anjali is still too traumatised to talk. She holds her grandfather’s hand and sits next to him, letting him speak for her.
Dil Bahadur hasn’t performed the last rites of the deceased because their bodies have not been extracted.
The government has provision of providing NPR 40,000 (approximately USD 400) as cash compensation to perform the last rites of each person who died during the earthquake. Dil Bahadur would not receive any compensation from the government as long as his family members are not verified as dead.
“Who do I talk to about this? Where do I go?”
And the answer came a week later.
When the Darain family’s plight was relayed to the UNICEF office in Kathmandu, the issue was featured in Bhandai Sundai (Saying Listening) programme that UNICEF has been airing over Radio Nepal following the earthquake. The programme contacted Basu Dev Ghimire, Chief District Officer of Dhading, and made him aware of Anjali’s situation.
Mr. Ghimire confirmed on air that he would treat this as a special case and would initiate process to provide relief fund once he received official request from the family. Ghimire made good on his promise a few days later. Anjali received NPR 220,000 (USD 2,200) from Ghimire on 11 June from the Nepal government’s District Disaster Relief Committee. The amount, deposited in Anjali’s account, can be used by her when she reaches 16.
Meanwhile, the Darain family’s immediate needs are financial. Although their house was not destroyed by the quake, they have lost their only breadwinner, Anjali’s father.
“We are eating relief rice and lentils,” says Dil Bahadur.
Anjali prepares food for her grandfather and herself before going to school in the morning. She also cooks for the two of them at night.
Before the earthquake, the family had planted some corn and vegetables in their field but they are all wilting in the scorching sun. Dil Bahadur looks up to the sky, squints his eyes and says, “The entire village will have nothing to eat for the rest of the year if the rains don’t come soon.”
Nepal’s meteorologists say monsoon, slated to arrive next week, will be delayed by another week.
For now, Dil Bahadur only thinks of his granddaughter Anjali. “All I want before I die is to see that Anjali is taken care of, that she gets to go to school and fulfil her dreams,” he said.
With the little help from Nepal government that came in the form of cash relief on 11 June, Anjali will actually be able to do just that.
