Sinkhole opens up near hostel building in Pokhara

POKHARA: Sinkhole has appeared in a Pokahra Polytechnic Institute’s hostel building in Lamachaur of Pokhara.

The incident occurred around 2 am early on Friday. While there were no human casualties, the kitchen area of the hostel has been damaged.

According to Thir Bahadur Thapa, a local resident owner of Pokhara Montessori School, rainwater seeped into the ground and created a hole. “At around 2 am, the southern part of the building where the kitchen is located sank,” Thapa said.

The affected building is a single-story structure made of blocks.

According to the District Police Office, Kaski, they were working with the locals to prevent further damage to the building.

The hostel houses about 40 students and is located just above Gandaki College of Engineering and Sciences and slightly below Indrarajya Laxmi Secondary School.

A road near Batulechaur’s Dandathok area had caved in in July last year. The collapse of the paved road had put the entire settlement at risk. A tipper truck that came to fill the hole created by the sunken road had also stuck in it.

Ground subsidence had also occurred in Pokhara’s Armala area. Road collapses during the rainy season have become a common issue in Pokhara. According to local residents, the drainage system in Pokhara is poor. During the rainy season, drains often overflow causing streams to flow on the roads.

Geologist Prof Dr Krishna KC explained that the soil in this area contains limestone. “When it dissolves in water, the limestone melts, reducing the soil’s load-bearing capacity which leads to ground subsidence,” he added.