Lalitpur: Mayor Chiribabu Maharjan of Lalitpur Metropolitan City has acknowledged that the Asoj floods of last year exposed major gaps in the city’s disaster response system, despite its reputation as one of Nepal’s best local governments in disaster management. Speaking at a program on Tuesday, he said the city has since taken important steps toward improving disaster preparedness and risk reduction.

“We learned a big lesson from the floods that occurred in Asoj last year,” said Maharjan. “We realized we were not as prepared as we thought, and now we are working to fix that.”

According to the mayor, the city is currently training security personnel, managing disaster response equipment, and taking stock of resources that are still lacking. He stressed the importance of continuous training and investment in infrastructure, noting that disasters can strike at any time.

Despite being praised among the 753 local levels of the country for its disaster management initiatives, Lalitpur Metropolitan City was unable to respond effectively to last year's floods, which caused significant damage and hardship.

“Disasters never stop,” Maharjan stated. “So we must never stop preparing.”

In response, the metropolis has now intensified efforts to fill the gaps exposed by the 2023 floods and build a more resilient urban disaster response system for the future.