Recovering Harisiddhi

Harisiddhi town is all dust, bricks and stones. The earthquake on 25 April devastated almost all the old brick houses in the area, leaving 23 people dead and 100 injured in the town of over 20,000 inhabitants. As formal and informal institutions around the country ramp up their relief efforts, this old medieval town in Lalitpur illustrates how some areas, especially those located inside the Kathmandu Valley, appear to have transitioned into the second phase of relief efforts, despite the intense scale of destruction.

The town is an example of an area with concentrated relief from several channels – the local Newar community and its extensions throughout Kathmandu, the state in the form of police, private corporate social responsibility relief groups such as Prabhu Insurance, and INGOs such as the Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity. In comparison to Nepal's rural districts, some of which are still waiting for aid and relief, Harisiddhi demonstrates the kind of self-help and reliance on informal and formal networks present within the capital city, which many in affected areas within the Valley have been able to tap into.