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Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balen Shah held a meeting with Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. Shah, who had reached Baluwatar on Monday evening to meet Prime Minister Deuba, asked for the government’s support to remove the squatters’ settlement. Earlier on Monday, a clash broke out between the squatters and the KMC police personnel who had reached Thapathali area to remove the settlement. SP Raju Pandey of the KMC among others were injured in the clash. Mayor Shah had questioned the role of central government through social media after the squatters staged a demonstration carrying home-made weapons.

Squatters residing along the bank of Bagmati river staged a demonstration in Thapathali on Tuesday. They had also staged a demonstration outside the office of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) this morning. They staged the protest demanding proper management of the squatters and also the resignation of KMC Mayor Balen Shah. Earlier on Monday, a clash broke out between the squatters and police personnel of the KMC when the latter reached Thapathali to remove the squatters’ settlement. SP Raju Pandey along with 18 others were injured when the squatters hurled stones at the police personnel. The squatters had staged the demonstration carrying sticks and home-made weapons.

Ram Krishna Chaudhari from Tikapur Municipality-6 of Kailali was standing in line for his turn to get chemical fertilizer from a cooperative, but its office got closed without providing the supply. In the morning, he was in line for the chemical fertilizers needed for winter crops. He was however denied the fertilizer showing it dearth. “Chemical fertilizer is the one we get most worried about when it is time for cultivation. It is difficult to cultivate after shortage of fertilizer,” he said, adding that the cooperatives only provide it to their share holders. Laxman Chaudhari from the same locality shared similar plight, “It has been more than a week the land is tilled, but chemical fertilizer is not received. If the problem persists, I will not continue cultivation.” Similary, Suresh Kathariya from Bhajani Municipality-6 is planning for foreign employment said, “He had been able to sow wheat seeds only in five bighas out of 15 bighas of land. It was because of the lack of fertilizer.” He further said if the chemical fertilizer was available in market on time, he could cultivate all his land and sow wheat seeds. These are representative cases how the farmers are afflicted with unavailability of essential during the cultivation time. Manager of the cooperative, Govind Rawat, admitted that they were not able to distribute the chemical fertilizers to all farmers. Even the farmers growing seeds could not be provided the fertilizers, he added. The time for cultivation of winter crops is fleeting. Similarly, Dhansinghpur Agriculture Cooperatives of Tikapur Municipality-8 also said it was unable to distribute chemical fertilizers. Cooperatives’ Chairperson Dhansing Saud said, “The fertilizer selling depot provides only 50 to 60 packs which is too little to address the growing demand.”

SP Raju Pandey of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City was injured following a clash between squatters and police personnel in Thapathali on Monday. The clash broke out after the KMC police personnel tried to remove the people living along the bank of Bagmati river in Thapathali. The squatters are chanting slogans against the government and KMC Mayor Balen Shah at present. Some are also seen carrying sticks and home-made weapons. The KMC sent a dozer in Thapathali this afternoon as part of the government’s preparations to remove them from the area. Earlier, Nepali Congress leader Prakash Man Singh had assured them that they will not be removed from the area without finding any alternative. But, the KMC in coordination with the Bagmati River Basin Development Project Committee had decided to use the dozer in the area before the implementation of Singh’s assurance.