World Immunization Week । 2072 Earthquake Rememberance day

24 to 30 April is World Immunization Week 2024

World Immunization Week, celebrated in the last week of April, aims to highlight the collective action needed and to promote the use of vaccines to protect people of all ages against disease.

Through its convening power, WHO works with countries across the globe to raise awareness of the value of vaccines and immunization and ensures that governments obtain the necessary guidance and technical support to implement high quality immunization programs.

The ultimate goal of World Immunization Week is for more people – and their communities – to be protected from vaccine-preventable diseases.

2072 Earthquake Remembrance Day

How fast are these days passing?
Today is the ninth year of the 2072 BS earthquake. The terror of that great earthquake remains. And the structures it destroyed are yet to stand. The earthquake taught many other lessons and caused loss of life and property, all of which are being reviewed today.

In that great earthquake and aftershock that took the lives of thousands, human structures were on their knees with nature and people were just in survival mode for their lives, and human relations and numbers were not the floors of the house but the contentment of the mind. When we see the same structure and construction methodology in less than 6 years now, it seems that we have easily and quickly forgotten the great earthquake.

Gorkha earthquake
The Nepal earthquake of 2015, also called the Gorkha earthquake, severe earthquake that struck the city of Kathmandu and other cities in central Nepal on April 25th. 9000 people lost their lives and several thousand were injured, damaging millions of infrastructures including heritage sites and ancient structures. Felt throughout central and eastern parts of Nepal, northern India, northwestern Bangladesh, and western Bhutan till the southern parts of the plateau of Tibet.

The initial shock of 7.8 magnitudes stuck shortly before local noontime on Saturday afternoon followed by two huge aftershocks of 6.6 and 6.7, and several dozen aftershocks occurred during succeeding days. Today is the fifth annual day of the devastating earthquake, recalled as Mahavukampa or the remarkable earthquake of Nepal.

The terror of the Baishakh 12 earthquake of 2072 BS is still in our minds in various forms. Fear has not stopped us from panicking, we fear even when a heavy vehicle passes by our street and we feel some shakes, our hearts still beat like a drum when people shout for some other reason; and, the aftermath of the earthquake remains in the psychological, economic,c and social dimensions of our lives. Finally, construction of Dharahara reached some tangible edge. Starting from this positive news, let's remember how we survived and sustained the Mahavukampa of 2015 AD.

It seems necessary to move forward by embracing the destruction, assimilating the reasons for devastation, and implementing the knowledge of the earthquake.

The earthquake of 2072 BS not only damaged the structure but also our identity and historical heritage.

The quake-hit cities, villages, and capital still hold the hope of rebuilding its identity and originality with the townspeople.

The wooden mandapa, after which the city of Kathmandu was named, was reduced to dust by the earthquake. Similarly, the Dharahara tower was also reduced to dust, where hundreds of people were killed. , This earthquake brought a lot of tragedies and demanded commitment and solidarity for an earthquake-resilient value and system.

Nepal is also a high-risk country in terms of seismic risk. Despite the high seismic risk, less initiative has been taken to reduce the risk. Since earthquakes don't alarm before coming, in the present day, it is necessary to concentrate on the construction of the structure and focus on the awareness to reduce quake-related destruction. Even if we cannot cope with nature, let us all be aware of the risks involved.

Earlier, the stories of the 1990 BS earthquake have been replaced by the 2072 BS quake stories. Due to the mobility of the underground plates, the next generation will also have to bear the risk of earthquakes.

Even if we can't stop the earthquake, let's construct solidarity for everyone to reduce its risk. Today, we also want to pay tribute to the unknown souls who lost their lives in the earthquake.

Remembering and loving everyone.

-Suyog Dhakal