Rebuilding Nepal: The rubble must goRebuilding Nepal: The rubble must go

Kathmandu, Nepal - Nepal faces a monumental task to rebuild after the powerful April 25 earthquake, which killed more than 8,000, destroyed tens of thousands of homes and displaced more than two million.

With only a small window of time between the end of the rainy season in September and the beginning of winter, which will be particularly brutal for mountain communities living in temporary shelters, the task of reconstruction is an urgent one.

The earthquake destroyed over 600,000 homes and damaged nearly 300,000, according to the latest government figures.

Amidst the rubble and debris of flattened buildings in many of the affected areas, schools and shops have reopened and people have built makeshift dwellings.

Yet, the debris still blocking streets and the slow pace of demolition are among the biggest impediments to rebuilding the country.

Sluggish debris clearing coupled with hazy government guidelines about how to reconstruct could hinder the country's objective to "Build Back Better".

One of four priorities enshrined in the Sendai Framework, adopted by the UN General Assembly in March, is "Build Back Better," which entails reconstructing to safeguard against future disasters.

Nepal's April earthquake was the first large-scale disaster to occur after the framework's adoption, and the country will serve as a test case of sorts.

Slow demolition

Slow demolition

In many rural areas and historical urban centres of Nepal, where houses are built of brick and mud, homeowners themselves are largely undertaking the demolition.

Some municipalities have provided bulldozers and dump trucks, but most people have been left to their own devices.

In such cases, Nepalese have only basic handheld tools, such as levers and chisels, at their disposal, Amod Mani Dixit, executive director of the Nepal-based National Society for Earthquake Technology (NSET), told Al Jazeera.

"There is no expert supervision, no demolition expertise being used, and the resulting risk is high for workers, bystanders and adjacent property," Dixit said.