Nepal is vulnerable to various forms of natural calamities that often wreak havoc on lives and properties belonging to people and the government. Every season brings one or another kind of calamity while the country's difficult topography and terrain heighten the severity of natural disasters. Our rivers swell during monsoons bringing floods, while heavy rains trigger landslides. Snowfall and plummeting temperatures affect common life across the nation. Owing to a lack of timely preparedness to tackle these challenges, almost all kinds of calamities affect the people badly. However, the government and its line agencies have done their utmost to save the people, and public and private properties falling victim to natural calamities. Parts of the country are currently reeling from plummeting temperatures created by widespread snowfall and cold waves, which has affected people in mountains, hills and the Terai region.

The destitute has found it hard to negotiate with the cold weather as they lack a warm environment within their homes and warm clothes. Every year, people lose their lives in Terai due to the cold wave and in high hills and mountains owing to exposure to the extreme cold caused by snowfall. Against this backdrop, Minister for Home Affairs Bal Krishna Khand, during an interaction with the concerned authorities and officials the other day, made it clear that the government was serious about preventing human casualties from natural disasters. The government, according to him, is highly cautious that no one in the country would become a victim of natural calamities, as the safety of the citizens is its top priority.

As the government has cautiously and seriously been engaged in protecting the lives of its people, it had some two months ago authorised all district administration offices and chief district officers to release the required budget to protect the poor citizens from the cold wave. The budget, needless to say, has been utilised to save locals from Terai and high mountainous regions from cold waves and snowfall. The Home Minister also instructed the concerned authorities to take all measures for the sustainability of any physical infrastructure built to protect poor masses. In the meantime, he rued that the government had not been able to do as much as it had needed before any calamities struck people. It has been extra cautious to carry out all post-disaster rescue and relief programmes.

We all know that every year, natural disasters in the form of floods, landslides, and extreme cold affect citizens in many parts of the country. For this, we need to be vigilant and make all preparations to tackle such challenges. The authorities would do a hell of a lot of services to the people if they remained prepared before such calamities hit the nation. The government should do well if it releases budget on time for the authorities to make all preparations, from building physical infrastructure to sheltering the poor and buying commodities to be distributed among the helpless groups. Authorities must remain cautious in disseminating accurate and timely information to people in the areas where disasters are lurking to affect them. These are but a few of the ways to protect the lives and properties from natural calamities.