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Kathmandu Sunday November 25, 2001 Marga 10, 2058.
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Pokhara’s fading beauty
By Birodh Pandey
POKHARA- The panoramic view of glorious mountains that stand
firmly before you will submerge you in nostalgic experience. But once you look down at the
valley that nestles on the lap of magnificent beauty, you will see the proclaimed
coordination of the valley forgetting the snow-capped fishtail. Scenes of the mountains
are breath-taking from the Pokhara Valley but the Valley itself is not in a good shape any
more. Its beauty has been eroded by rapid urbanisation and faulty developmental practices
by the local and the government bodies.
Every time I visit my hometown, I keep my fingers crossed at
the thought that nothing such imprudent activity has existed here that would engulf its
beauty. However, to my dismay, at the gateway of the city - the Seti Bridge- I see heaps
of municipal waste waiting to be dumped into the white waters of the holy Seti river. Had
the Seti been a surface river like the Bagmati, it would have shown signs of scars of
unethical practices. Nevertheless, she has hidden her face by only flowing deep through
the gorge of the Valley.
Few hundred metres west to the bridge, you can see meat shops
and adjacent to it stands the most unmanaged buspark probably in the country. Imagine the
scene - dumping site, unmanaged meat shops and the buspark, all within few metres at the
gateway of the city. And what would be a tourist’s first impression on the city? Will
they be able to eat meat without any hesitation after they have seen where the
butcher’s shop lies ?
Phewa lake no longer tempted me to swim in its water. Until
few years I used to swim in the lake but not any longer after seeing urban drainage being
directly dumped into the lake. It is an irony how the municipality came up with an idea to
ruin the property that has earned Pokhara fame and played a major role in promoting the
financial status of the valley. What Pokhara is today is because of mountains and lakes.
Had it not been for its lakes and mountains, Pokhara is not home to any historically
famous architects or places like Kathmandu and other towns.
Pokharelis express surprise at the municipal decision to pour
drainage water into the lake,on the one hand, and ,on the other, raising their voice
against such activities. If this trend continues, hardly any tourist will visit Pokhara
for sightseeing. Even in this case, they can still find alternatives in Nagarkot and
Dhulikhel – both close to the Capital. The typical beauty the valley possesses is the
reflection of mountains on the lake waters and that is what has lured many visitors. What
is lacking in hotel entrepreneurs of Pokhara is the sense of responsibility and
belongingness. To add to the wrong drainage system of the valley, the hotels are also
helping to deteriorate the lake by discharging their waste. Shame on all that are involved
in this cynical act of destroying the beauty of nature after obtaining much of benefit
from it.
There are hardly any good roads left in Pokhara. Roads are
not maintained in time and what Pokhara has now is only dusty tracks. Some roads have big
pot holes and one has to be careful while walking in the street. It seems the government
has shifted its Road Department from Pokhara. It makes me think over the motto of our
municipality: "Our Responsibility – Clean Beautiful Pokhara." I have come
to the conclusion that they must have framed the phrase a decade ago when Pokhara was a
picturesque city.
I have witnessed the growth of this place from a small town
to a new city. The progress was definitely triggered by its natural beauties.
The travellers from the Terai and other parts of hills en
route to Kathmandu escaped the Valley for the fear of malaria. Nevertheless, within
decades, Pokhara saw its face lift up. With the pace of time, however, the valley has seen
its natural beauty dissolving into the heat of urbanisation. God bless Pokhara and help it
to restore its beauty!
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