Students from a flood-hit school in Rasuwa have resumed classes in Lalitpur after the Bhotekoshi floods damaged their school and made their village unsafe. Hakubeshi Basic School at ward 1 of Amachhodingmo Rural Municipality has been shifted to the premises of Kitini Secondary School in Godawari. Displaced children are now attending classes at the temporary site.
Kabro Tamang, principal of Hakubeshi Basic School, said 67 students had been enrolled in Rasuwa, of whom 50 are now in Kathmandu. The school, which teaches up to Grade 8, has brought all 10 teachers to Godawari.
According to Buchung Tamang, chair of Amachhodingmo Rural Municipality, the school has been moved for one academic year because floodwater entered the building and the risk of landslides remains high.
“The school building is not fit for resuming classes. There is no bridge across the Trishuli river to the school, so children cannot travel there and back,” he said.
The relocation was decided in coordination with the school, the rural municipality and the Education Ministry. Most parents are staying at a holding centre in Sundarijal, Kathmandu, while the children have been accommodated at Thecho-based Chhorachhori Nepal. The charity rehab is near to Kitini School.
“We looked for a place where the school could operate and found one in Godawari. We have started teaching there,” said Tamang. “We cannot return to the village because of the flood and landslide risks. Wherever the government decides to resettle the community, we will move the school there as well.”
According to Godawari Mayor Gajendra Maharjan, the municipality offered the Kitini school premises following a request from Amachhodingmo Rural Municipality. There were enough classrooms to accommodate the displaced pupils, he said.
“The children are staying with Chhorachhori Nepal in Thecho. The school is nearby, and there are sufficient classrooms, so we agreed to accommodate them,” said Maharjan.
Although teaching has resumed in the Valley, the Education and Human Resource Development Centre has received only verbal information about the temporary relocation, with formal documentation still pending.
More than 200 pupils from seven schools above Syaphrubesi are staying at holding centres or with relatives in Kathmandu, according to the Rasuwa Education Development and Coordination Unit. Around 20 teachers have also come to the Valley and have been assigned to schools enrolling displaced children.
Flood-affected families are staying at Seto Gumba, Manang Gumba and Nubri Gumba in Swayambhu, Kathmandu. Their children have enrolled at Geetamata Secondary School at Dallu and Gyanodaya Secondary School at Baphal, among other institutions.
Shree Prasad Bhattarai, spokesperson for the Education Ministry, said arrangements had been made for around 150 children staying at holding centres to attend school. Other parents had independently enrolled their children in places including Tokha. The ministry has yet to compile a consolidated record of all children who have moved to the Valley to study.
Durga Prasad Silwal, chief of the Rasuwa education unit, said the seven schools above Syaphrubesi are unable to resume classes at their original locations at the time being. Many families remain in Kathmandu, and damaged transport links make it difficult for children to reach school.
“The information we have received is that Hakubeshi Basic School has temporarily shifted to Kathmandu,” said Silwal. He said pupils could return once a Bailey bridge was built across the Trishuli river and travel became easier. Until then, destroyed roads, bridges and footpaths, alongside a lack of suitable land for temporary learning centres, made schooling in the Valley the most practical option for many children.
The Bhotekhoshi floods on August 26 completely destroyed four schools—three community schools and one private school— in Rasuwa. They included Nepal Rastriya Basic School in Timure, Chipleti Basic School in Salletar, Malika Devi Basic School in Pahirebesi and Modern Trinity Boarding School in Betrawati.
The ministry said 23 schools in Rasuwa and Nuwakot were damaged, including 12 completely destroyed and 11 partially damaged. A total of 7,240 students were enrolled in the affected schools. In Nuwakot, six schools were completely destroyed and three partially damaged.
Authorities have arranged classes in neighbouring schools or temporary learning centres, depending on available land and buildings. Surya Bahadur Khatri, chief of the Nuwakot education unit, said some schools were operating from temporary classrooms, while pupils whose school sites had been swept away by the Trishuli had enrolled in nearby institutions.
“Where land is available, temporary classrooms have been built. Where the river has swept away school sites, students have been enrolled in neighbouring schools that are accessible to them,” said Khatri. Local governments have also reassigned teachers to support these arrangements.
The disaster has left children facing losses beyond interrupted schooling. Silwal said figures collected through schoolteachers showed that 62 children in Rasuwa had lost both parents and 262 had lost one parent.
The National Child Right Council, however, reported a different preliminary count last week. Its report said 269 children in Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading had lost one or both parents, including 41 who had lost both. The council said it was still collecting figures from relevant agencies before preparing its final report.
Temporary classrooms are helping children continue their education, but their return to their original schools will depend on safer settlements, restored transport links, and the rebuilding of damaged schools.