When Nepal asks the world to pay up, whose bill is it?

In June 2022, Nepal's Prime Minister Balendra Shah embarked on his maiden foreign journey, leading a delegation to the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. The purpose of the visit was to demand financial restitution from industrialized nations that have significantly contributed to global greenhouse gas emissions.

The focus of Nepal's plea was the devastating flash floods that struck the country on August 26, resulting in over 1,450 deaths and nearly 6,000 people still unaccounted for. The catastrophic event occurred when a massive surge of water, mud, and ice cascaded down from the Nepal-China border, ravaging numerous villages and critical infrastructure.

Following the calamity, Nepal observed a nationwide period of mourning lasting 13 days. In the aftermath, China acknowledged 43 fatalities and over 500 individuals reported missing on its side of the border. Rescue operations, led by dedicated crews, managed to extricate survivors from the wreckage, including a man who was rescued from a tunnel at a hydropower plant and a 64-year-old woman who was recovered from the upper floor of a building buried by mud.

India's involvement in the crisis extended beyond sympathy; the South Asian nation had several Indian nationals listed among the missing, constituting the largest foreign contingent among the affected populations. Moreover, the floodwaters reportedly carried bodies of victims approximately 240 kilometers downstream into Indian territory, leading Indian rescue teams to join the rescue efforts as well.