Art Competition on Tomorrow’s Rapti City held in Rapti Valley (Deukhuri) Capital City

An Art Competition focused on Tomorrow’s Rapti Valley (Deukhuri) Capital City was organized in Rapti City, the capital city of Lumbini Province, on Wednesday, March 20, 2024. The participants depicted the idea of what the current capital city should be like in the canvases, basically revolving around the concept of a green city based on river civilization. They also stressed the needs of the next generation in the city over the next hundred years. The main objective of the program was to promote awareness among the students regarding how to make a resilient Rapti City that could incorporate the aspirations of the local people. A total of 37 students from 9 secondary schools from Rapti Rural Municipality and Gadhwa Rural Municipality participated in the competition. The participants were students from grades 9 to 12.

The creative event was organized by Provincial Infratsructure Development Authority (PIDA), Lumbini Province, Rapti Rural Municipality and NSET under Tomorrow’s Cities research project. In the competition, Tejal Chand of Rapti Technical Institute, Gobardiha grabbed the title of 1st position, while Hima Adhikari from Janata Secondary School, Kalakate, was declared second, and Pawan Pariyar of Sarbodaya Secondary School, Sishhaniya, secured the third position. Bhuwan Pun Magar, Deepa Pun Magar and Roshan Budhamagar were judged for consolation prizes. The program was concluded with a brief closing ceremony.

Speaking at the program, Mr. Chhabiraj Pokhrel, Chief Executive Officer of the Provincial Infrastructure Development Authority (PIDA), shared that even though the construction of the capital city master plan is in the implementation phase, suggestions received from students can be incorporated into the action plan. "We take the development aspirations of these students seriously, and the vision for the future capital city of Lumbini is greatly enriched by their ideas. We will integrate this into our planning," Mr. Pokhrel said. "It's not just for a year or two; we're thinking about development over the next hundred years when designing the capital city." Considering that future generations will experience the capital city, the concept of city construction has been developed accordingly.

Mr. Prakash Bishta, Chairperson of Rapti Rural Municipality, expressed that everyone should take ownership of the capital city and conveyed through the medium of students that positive messages can reach every household. "We see some cities in our country are somewhat disorganized and chaotic. But our city should not be like that. It should be organized and suitable for living. We will build Rapti City, which is excellent in every aspect," Mr. Bista remarked.

Dr. Ramesh Guragain, Deputy Executive Director of the National Society for Earthquake Technology-Nepal (NSET), emphasized that all stakeholders must come together to make the city of Rapti safe, prosperous, and equitable in the face of disasters. Dr. Guragain further highlighted the need to incorporate the suggestions provided by students into the planning, development, and implementation phases. He stressed that traditional culture, heritage preservation, and the integration of modern precepts and development models should also be considered. "The suggestions of students can also contribute to accommodating all perspectives," he said. "When everyone takes ownership, an environment conducive to achievements, which is highly beneficial, is created in the capital city."

Prior to the Artwork exercise begun, Dr. Ramesh Guragain, Deputy Executive Director of NSET presented the concept and activities of Tomorrow’s Cities project implemented in Rapti City and helped participants with possible ideas for tomorrow’s capital city. Mr. Khadga Sen Oli, Director of Communications and Knowledge Management Division of NSET briefed the students about the objectives of the event as well as the content of the art competition. The art competition was coordinated by Mr. Chandan Dhoj Rana Magar, a Graphic and Fine Art professional at NSET.

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