Kathmandu, September 28
The election for the chairperson of the Parliamentary Special Committee on Climate Change in the Himalayas and the Bhotekoshi-Trishuli Disaster has been scheduled for Wednesday.
Speaker Dol Prasad Aryal announced the election date during Monday’s meeting of the House of Representatives. According to him, the election will be held at 2 pm on September 30.
The 15-member special committee was formed on September 21 in the aftermath of the devastating flood in Rasuwa on August 26.
The committee members are Achyutam Lamichhane, Anushka Shrestha, Gangadevi Shrestha, Ganesh Parajuli, Dhananjaya Regmi, Dhruvaraj Rai, Nisha Dangi, Pushparaj Kandel, Mohan Acharya, Mingmagyabu Sherpa, Ramesh Kumar Malla, Rabindra Patel, Saraswati Lama, Sujata Tamang and Sita Thapaliya.
The committee has been given a three-month term, with a provision allowing its tenure to be extended later.
The committee’s terms of reference include studying the impact of climate change in the Himalayan region.
It will review available studies and data on changes in Himalayan temperatures, snowfall, glaciers, glacial lakes and watersheds, as well as the risks arising from such changes. It will also identify gaps in research and monitoring and recommend measures to strengthen scientific research and regular monitoring.
Regarding the Bhotekoshi-Trishuli disaster, the committee will study its causes and impacts, including the origin and sequence of events, immediate causes and factors that intensified the risks, based on expert and scientific evidence. It will also review the possible links with climate change, the impact of transboundary watersheds and the effects on downstream areas.
The committee will also review search, rescue, relief and rehabilitation efforts.
It will assess search and rescue operations, the status of missing citizens, relief distribution, safe temporary housing, basic services and livelihood recovery to ensure a fair response to affected people. It has been authorised to recommend immediate and medium-term measures based on the needs of affected citizens.
The committee has also been tasked with proposing a roadmap for sustainable and safe reconstruction.
It will study disaster risk reduction and early warning systems and make recommendations.
The committee has also been tasked with exploring possibilities for climate diplomacy and cross-border cooperation and recommending legal and institutional reforms.
