‘Still a lockdown’: Deadly floods hit Nepal tourism as peak season begins

Kathmandu, Chitwan and Nuwakot, Nepal – Like every year, Pushpraj Rimal, a tour planner and taxi driver in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, was looking forward to September for his business to boom.But what he got instead was a series of cancellations by tourists after catastrophic floods last month killed more than 1,450 people and destroyed key highways, deeply impacting the Himalayan nation heavily dependent on tourism.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Floods and landslides kill at least 56 people in India, 12 in Nepallist 2 of 4Nepal’s leader labels devastating flood a ‘warning to the world’list 3 of 4‘Orphaned’ by floods, more than 500 Nepali children face uncertain futurelist 4 of 4The Nepal floods question: When the Himalayas collapse, who gets warned?end of list“It is still a lockdown kind of situation,” the 42-year-old told Al Jazeera nearly a month after the disaster.Pushpraj, who speaks Nepali and Hindi, works on commission for several hotels and trekking companies in Kathmandu and the scenic town of Pokhara, known for its lake nestled in the Annapurna mountain range. Pokhara also serves as a base for Himalayan trekkers.Pushpraj Rimal says most foreign tourists ca...