Context:

Nepal was shook with a massive earthquake of magnitude 7.6 with an epicentre at Barpak in Gorkha district on the morning of 25 April, 2015. It further witnessed many more aftershocks, many of which were more than magnitude 5. This was a shake that Nepal had not experienced in the last 80 years. Apart from losing around 35 per cent of its GDP in a fortnight, Nepal was also left in a state of severe shock and aftermath of lives lost and physical damages that might take them a long time to recover from. It was in this context that a team from Indian Institute for Human Settlements visited the damaged locations to collect evidence from the debris, and assess the kinds and potential causes of damages. This damage assessment was conducted to have insights into a way for Nepal to rebuild a resilient future and other earthquake exposed areas, including India, to learn from this experience. The team visited Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Bhumlutar in Kavre district.