Jhapa – Continuous rainfall for the past two days has severely disrupted daily life in Jhapa district. Floods in the Kankai, Mai, and Mechi rivers have displaced around 25,231 people from 5,481 households, according to the District Police Office, Jhapa.

DSP Khagendra Khadka said residents living along the riverbanks were moved to safer areas after floodwaters entered their homes. The floods displaced families across several localities, including Shivasatakshi Municipality (wards 4, 5, 6, and 7), Gaurigunj Rural Municipality (wards 1 and 2), Arjundhara Municipality (ward 7), Gauradaha Municipality (ward 5), and Bhadrapur Municipality (ward 5).

The worst-hit areas include Jhapa Rural Municipality, where over 1,500 houses in Sudukhuttu, Milanbasti, Situmari, Lasunganj, and Salmara were affected. Another 2,100 houses in Sugam Bathan, Kuwadi, Sadakbari, Baluwatar, Sirjana Basti, Haldar Basti, Raut Danda, and Nabiral Tole were displaced. Similarly, 1,500 houses in Simlabari, Jhanti, and Gairigaun (Jhapa-3) and dozens more in Yuwa Tole, Bal Bathan, Tintolia, Tappu, and Chaudhary Tole have been flooded.

“The majority of displaced families are from Jhapa Rural Municipality,” DSP Khadka said, adding that some victims have taken shelter at relatives’ homes while others are staying in nearby schools. He noted that water levels in the Kankai and Mechi rivers remain high, and security personnel are carrying out rescue and relief operations in affected areas.

The Kankai River has eroded about 200 meters of the embankment along the Hulaki Highway in Gaurigunj Rural Municipality-2, flooding 114 houses in Hoklabari village and damaging 500 hectares of paddy fields.

According to the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, about 1,500 meters of embankment have been eroded, causing an estimated loss of Rs 100 million. In Jhapa Rural Municipality-2 (Kuwadi), another 200 meters of embankment were washed away, damaging around 25 hectares of land, with losses estimated at Rs 7.5 million. Meanwhile, the Mechi River destroyed several river protection structures (spurs), causing additional damage of about Rs 5 million.