43 billion compensation was distributed to those affected by the Budhigandaki project

"Only those who missed out and didn't get the money due to various problems have yet to receive compensation," said Shrestha, "Preparations are being made to distribute compensation to the rest soon." Residents of 27 villages will be affected. 3,560 families will be completely displaced by the project. The height of Budhigandaki dam will be 263 meters. A 63 square kilometer wide reservoir will be formed on 2,566 hectares of agricultural land that will be flooded from Gandaki Rural Municipality to Arughat Rural Municipality in Gorkha. Land has also been frozen in various areas of Gorkha and Dhading for the resettlement of those displaced due to the

project. But the process of rehabilitation and restoration has not been able to proceed. The residents of the affected areas say that after completing the work including compensation distribution, the project should be taken to the construction phase. Residents of Ailani and Guthi lands have not yet received compensation, said Dinesh Dhakal, the coordinator of Budhigand's Reservoir Concern Committee.

'Still 15 percent of the affected people have not received compensation, even those living in Ailani and Guthi have not received compensation, no one has received compensation for registration exemption and those who live on other people's land,' he said, 'ordinary people spend 5/7 lakh on other people's land. He said that the residents of the area whose land has been withheld for rehabilitation are also in trouble. "They said that 4/6 ana land would be given rehabilitation facilities, but the land has been withheld, and the withheld land could not be sold," he said. Residents of the area are in demand. Dhakal says that the construction work in the flood-affected areas has come to a standstill. "The people of the village are suffering, the market is becoming deserted, there is a situation where two or four maunds of milk are not being sold," he said. According to Hareram Dhakal, the coordinator of Budhigandaki Sarokar Samiti, the construction of the project should be carried out only after completing the remaining works such as restoration, construction of ring road. "Budigandaki should be built, it is too late to take it to the construction stage," he said, "but the problem of the affected people should be solved first."