An estimated 1 million people left the Kathmandu valley after the earthquakes[1], at the same time more than 160,000 came to Kathmandu[2] fleeing their villages as houses collapsed and landslides carried away buildings, livestock, land, portions of road, and kin. This macro mobility/migration pattern (MMP) masks the context specific micro MMPs. I have returned to my research site twice since the earthquakes, once reaching only are far as Grang due to road closure after numerous landslides between Grang and the border at Rasuwagadhi (Figures 1 & 2)
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On this present trip (July 17-29, 2015) the road is now open all the way to the Tibet border and relatively stable. While it is easy to jump to conclusions and say that the landslides are a result of the unstable slope conditions after the earthquakes, the reality is during the monsoon this road historically closes from time to time due to multiple landslides ever since it was built in the 1980s. There are several excavators and dozers stationed at the frequent landslide spots and it is sometimes just a matter of hours before the road is cleared and opens again. On this present trip I am visiting my research areas to document what damage and change has occurred and track the MMPs of people in the villages.
2 Mapping Mobility/Migration Patterns (MMPs)
2.1 Introduction
The history of MMPs in my research site is both rich and historically significant. To represent all the embedded traditional trade route MMPs, the pre earthquake pre new Chinese road MMPs, the pre earthquake post new Chinese road MMPs including the micro migration of laborers in and out of the valley as well as micro migrations within villages such as Timure where before the earthquake at any given time there were 200-300 Nepali hydro laborers as well as 150-200 Chinese hydro laborers changing locations and the post earthquake MMPs of all above mentioned populations will require a sophisticated map with several overlays. Just one layer of the complexity, the post earthquake indigenous population migration, is presented in Figure 3. This map is still under construction as it now lacks a comprehensive legend but all the pertinent roads, trails, rivers, villages, and the three chronic seasonal landslide zones at Ramche, Grang, and Thade, form the base layer over which are placed the Internally Displaced People (IDP) camps for the Haku, Syaphru, Mailung, Timure, and Langtang Valley populations as well as the NGO storage facilities for distributing relief materials. To keep this first map simple I have only mapped the different populations migration patterns from their village to the various IDP camps. However, by placing the NGO facility storage units on the map one can also visualize the micro migration of NGO workers and materials that come from Kathmandu to the storage facilities and then are distributed to the various villages in the vicinity of the storage units.
The history of MMPs in my research site is both rich and historically significant. To represent all the embedded traditional trade route MMPs, the pre earthquake pre new Chinese road MMPs, the pre earthquake post new Chinese road MMPs including the micro migration of laborers in and out of the valley as well as micro migrations within villages such as Timure where before the earthquake at any given time there were 200-300 Nepali hydro laborers as well as 150-200 Chinese hydro laborers changing locations and the post earthquake MMPs of all above mentioned populations will require a sophisticated map with several overlays. Just one layer of the complexity, the post earthquake indigenous population migration, is presented in Figure 3. This map is still under construction as it now lacks a comprehensive legend but all the pertinent roads, trails, rivers, villages, and the three chronic seasonal landslide zones at Ramche, Grang, and Thade, form the base layer over which are placed the Internally Displaced People (IDP) camps for the Haku, Syaphru, Mailung, Timure, and Langtang Valley populations as well as the NGO storage facilities for distributing relief materials. To keep this first map simple I have only mapped the different populations migration patterns from their village to the various IDP camps. However, by placing the NGO facility storage units on the map one can also visualize the micro migration of NGO workers and materials that come from Kathmandu to the storage facilities and then are distributed to the various villages in the vicinity of the storage units.
Figure 3: Mobility/migration
patterns of indigenous populations of research site with IDP camps and NGO
relief materials storage sites
Square semi transparent colored boxes represent
population migrations with arrows pointing to the IDP camps to which
populations have migrated. Some populations have migrated multiple times in
which case overlapping boxes with arrows indicate these multiple migrations.
2.2 Research Site Narratives
2.2.1 Timure/Ghattekola
Starting at the top of the map one the simplest MMPs is the
Ghattekola/Timure population. In general this population moved back up the
mountain behind Timure to their traditional village at Khaidi (see Figures
1-2). The houses and buildings in Timure are relatively
new additions that have sprung up after the completion of the Chinese built
road from Syaphrubesi to Rasuwagadi (2012). Most of the residents of Timure who
had moved down from Khaidi still retain ancestral homes in Khaidi to which they
returned when conditions in Timure became too dangerous. Before the arrival of
the road the mobility pattern followed traditional transhumance migration where
Timure being lower in elevation was used for winter habitation, Khaidi served
as the more permanent settlement and further up the mountain served as the
summer grazing area. After
the arrival of the road traditional life styles and MMPs began to change with
many moving down to the road to open businesses, relying less on their
traditional livelihood strategies. Initial interviews during this present field
trip reveal that 50-60-% of the villagers have returned to Timure, with 30%
remaining in Khaidi, and another 10% in Kathmandu. However, more interviews are
needed to confirm this information and fill in other details.
2.2.2 Lingling/Briddhim
This population has mostly chosen to
stay in their villages. This reflects the relative security from landslides
their location affords compared to other villages such as Timure and Old
Syaphrubesi. ,In Briddhim, just 5 km down the road from Timure (see Figures 1-2) the situation is
much different. Briddhim sits about a 2-hour hike up the mountain from the road
in a bowl shaped valley. While almost all of the traditional mud brick houses
sustained major damage, to the point where they are uninhabitable, almost all
of the villagers decided to remain in the village rather than migrate to
another area. Only one person died in Briddhim during the earthquakes and the
villagers are now living under tarps or tents some of which were donated by our
organization Rasuwa Relief. We
have also provided food and solar lighting/ mobile phone recharge systems.
While not intentional, relief work has helped me deepen and further develop
rapport in my research villages. I also see it as a concrete, practical, and
substantially helpful way to give back to these communities where many have
freely given their time to me for extensive interviews.
One of the
differences between Briddhim and Timure is that Timure is low in elevation near
the road and the river, whereas Briddhim is 2 hours walk up the mountain from
the road and Khaidi is a similar 2-3 hours hike up from the road. In both of
these cases the villages up the mountain from the road proved to be more stable
than conditions along the road where the landslides and destruction were more
devastating. But again this pattern is context specific.
2.2.3 Syaphrubesi (a.k.a. Syabrubesi, Syabru, Syafru, Syaprhu)
When I first
visited this area in 1984-85 “Old” Syaphrubesi (on the east side of the river)
was the only settlement along the river. After the road was extended from
Dhunche (the district headquarters) in the 1990s businesses, trekking lodges,
shops, hotels and houses sprung up along the road on the opposite side of the
river from the original (0ld) Syaphrubesi. The earthquake destroyed a large
portion of Old Syaphrubesi and it is virtually deserted now. Most inhabitants
moved across the river to (New) Syaphrubesi. (New) Syaphrubesi consists of
Lower Syaphru near the river and Upper Syaphru along the road. Many of the
traditional mud brick houses in both parts of Syaphru sustained major damage
and most of the modern cement buildings developed cracks in the walls. Of the
approximately 20-30 guesthouses and hotels in Syaphrubesi only one remains
open, the others are not considered safe to stay in. Several MMPs have taken place in
Syaphru for several reasons. First most people did not feel safe staying in
their damaged houses at night so while they may cook in their houses during the
day at night they move up the hill behind the village to sleep in temporary
shelters such as tarps and tents. Those whose houses have been destroyed now
live there permanently. I am currently staying in the only hotel open in
Syaphru. Even though there are no cracks in the walls and none of the windows
were broken the women who work in the hotel during the day still choose to walk
up the road to their temporary tent and tarp village to sleep at night. Lower Syaphru has also been virtually
deserted because of an active landslide zone that periodically showers lower
Syaphru with debris. Most of the residents of lower Syaphru have moved up the
hill to the temporary camp. Those who managed tourist facilities but were not
long-term residents of Syaphru have returned to their home villages further
south.
This reflects an over all MMP change stimulated by the popularity of this
area for trekking. Langtang is the third most popular trekking destination in
Nepal after Annapurna and Everest. Seasonal MMPs of both trekkers and Nepalis
who come to Syaphru and the area to work with tourist during the spring and
fall trekking season have been seriously disrupted by the earthquakes. The
spring trekking season was just beginning when the first quake hit April
25. This essentially put an
end to the spring trekking season and many Nepali lost their jobs and had to
migrate back to their family villages for their own safety and to seek other
employment. Many are hopeful that tourist will return for the fall season but
facilities still need to be rebuilt and are currently on hold until the end of
the monsoon season.
Of
the 150 residents of the village of Langtang only 15 survived the
earthquake-triggered avalanche that buried the village. Another 300-400 residents of the
valley have migrated to Kathmandu inhabiting an IDP camp at the Yellow Gompa
near Swayambhunath. They have made several trips back this their valley to recover
relatives bodies and belongings as the snow melts but return to their IDP camp
after these trips as it is still not safe to rebuild in their previous
locations.
2.2.5 Langtang Village
The village of Langtang (see Figures 1-2), which is a 2-3 day
trek from Briddhim up a side valley with no road, was completely leveled by an
avalanche triggered by the first earthquake. Of the 150 inhabitants of Langtang
village only 15 survived. In the aftermath of this tragedy several hundreds
residents of other villages in the Langtang valley migrated into Kathmandu to
seek safety and shelter. They have settled within the compound of the Yellow
Gompa (Buddhist temple/monastery) near Swayambhunath. Rasuwa Relief has been
actively aiding this IDP (Internally Displaced People) camp for the last 2
months providing tents, tarps, and a septic system for over 300 people. This
contact has allowed me to continue my research in tracking the mobility and
migration patterns of populations within my research site.
We are also working with IDP camps inhabited by populations
from Haku including Thulo Haku, (Sunmaya’s village), Sano Haku, and Haku Besi.
These IDP camps are fascinating MMPs in their own right. Due to evolving
government regulations and land ownership issues some residents of larger IDP
camps near Betrawati have had to relocate to smaller IDP camps further up the
road above Kalikastan on the way to Dhunche (see Figure 1). We visited one of
these newly established Haku IDP camps on our previous field trip to ascertain
their living conditions and distribute solar lighting and recharge systems.
Again this relief work has been actively supporting
my research by allowing me to track MMPs with my research population.
2.2.6 Haku VDC
This population’s MMPs are one of the
most complicated and overlapping of any in my research area. The three villages
of Thulo (“Big”) Haku, Sano (“Small”) Haku, and Haku Besi (“below” Haku) make
up a total population of roughly 1,000 people. In the aftermath of the earthquake
their MMPs have spread them out over an area stretching from Dhunche to
Kathmandu. There are at least 4 Haku IDP camps in and around Dhunche and within
these camps MMPs are taking place to establish other smaller IDPs in other
areas around Dhunche. These internal IDP MMPs reflect several trends that
overlap other MMPs. As relief materials are distributed IDPs have evolved from
mainly tarp structures, to tent structures, to the current phase, which is
bamboo pole frames with metal tin roofs and walls. Distribution of initial
stage tarps structures reflected a MMP pattern of relief distribution from
Kathmandu to specific villages. As the roads became more stable, relief
organizations established headquarters in Dhunche creating a wave of relief
staff migration from Kathmandu to their new District HQ offices in Dhunche.
This coincided with the tent distribution phase, which was followed by
establishing relief organization warehouse storage facilities in various
locations where materials could be stockpiled for distribution closer to
affected areas. The current tin roof /solar lighting distribution phase has
been greatly facilitated by having storage warehouses where stockpiles of these
materials can be brought from Kathmandu along with winter distribution materials
such as blankets and stored for distribution by the large presence of temporary
relief staff in-migrants. The complexity of these overlapping and interrelated
MMPs suggests a coupled systems framework would be extremely useful for
analysis, which is an ongoing part of my research.
A good example of this evolving
overlapping complexity is the evolution of the states response to the disaster
and how it has affected IDP camps. The Haku populations current MMPs reflect
this state response. Initially there was so much chaos that no knew how was
doing what where and it was basically “anyting goes”. Then once the state began
it extremely slow and ineffective response rules and regulations were put in
place and these are still evolving as the government also attempts to push
through a new constitution. The Haku population at the Betrawati IDP camp has
had to move part of its population to a new IDP camp above Kalikastan (see Figure 3). This is due to new
government regulations about IDP camp size and land ownership issues. The new
IDP camp above Kalikastan has a mixture of structures reflecting the mixture of
various relief organizations that distribute materials at IDPs. In addition to
the Dhunche, Betrawati, and Kalikastan Haku IDP there are also several Haku
IDPs spread out in parts of Kathmandu. These Kathmandu IDPs camps also have
evolving MMPs as again government evolving government regulations force camps
to change locations and size.
2.2.7 Mailung Corridor
The village of
Mailung was virtually eliminated by a landslide and many of the houses in the
surrounding villages of Simle and Siruchet were also destroyed. Most of this
population has migrated to an IDP camp that has been set up in the Trishuli 3 A
Hydropower Project labor/office camp in Shanti bazar (see Figure 3). The hydro project
office/labor camp was recently constructed but after the earthquake all the
staff and workers left creating their own MMP exodus followed by an in MMP of
Mailung corridor earth quake affected people (EAP) who are allowed to live in
the vacated buildings and in tent and tarp structures on the property.
2.2.8 Chilime
Chilime is a very interesting case because at the time of the earthquake
it already had a recently in-migrated population of 17 families from Sumte, a
village five kilometers up the valley where the Upper Sangjin hydro project is
under construction. The 17 families were relocated because they are project
affected people who were provided new houses in Chilime by the hydro
project. The housing built from them is concrete and built to earthquake
standards. There are two schools in Chilime, a government school which was
damage by the earthquake and which is now holding classes in temporary learning
centers built by several NGOs. The private boarding schools is building a new
building but it is not complete so some of the students rent rooms in the
houses occupied by the Sumte villagers, which are right next to the boarding
school. The general population of Chilime did not migrate after the earthquake
because in general the villages in the Chilime River valley were relatively
safe after the initial two earthquakes even though most houses sustained major
damage and people are now living either in tents or under tarps.
2.2.9 Goljung Goljung's story is similar to Chilime's in that there was very little out migration because of the relative stability of the valley after the initial earthquake. Goljung also has temporary learning centers built by various NGOs.
Gatlang had very little
outmigration as with the two villages mentioned above. Gatlang also has
temporary learning centers.
[1] http://www.ekantipur.com/2015/05/23/business/power-demand-in-valley-halves-post-quake/405570.html
[2] http://myrepublica.com/society/item/20469-traffic-police-s-heroic-response-post-quake.html
