Kathmandu: Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balendra Shah (Balen) has announced that more than 208 ropani of public land—worth around Rs 23 billion—has been reclaimed under his leadership so far.
On Thursday, Balen said his next target is to clear encroachments on 1,859 ropani of land valued at approximately Rs 200 billion.
He stated that a committee has been formed to implement this plan, following recommendations from a report prepared by a commission led by former secretary Ram Bahadur Rawal. The goal is to bring back 1,859 ropani and 14 aana of encroached land into public use. The committee will begin work from Friday.
Balen’s Statement:
“After assuming office in Kathmandu Metropolitan City, we have already reclaimed over 208 ropani of public land worth around Rs 23 billion. Our goal is to remove encroachments on 1,859 ropani and 14 aana of land worth about Rs 200 billion.
The Local Government Operation Act, 2017, has given local governments full authority over the protection, management, and recovery of public land and property. From our first day in office, we have been working with the policy of increasing public access to public assets.
As part of this campaign, we have been taking strong action to end the practice of encroaching, occupying, and seizing public land. So far, more than 208 ropani of public land worth over Rs 23 billion has been restored for public use.
To ensure that the reclaimed land is not reoccupied, we are developing it into open parks, sports grounds, skateboard parks, resting areas, green zones, and other public spaces. In this process, some encroached river corridors have also been cleared.
To advance the protection of public land with higher priority, we have adopted the report prepared by the commission led by former secretary Ram Bahadur Rawal as a policy base and formed an implementation committee. This committee aims to bring back 1,859 ropani and 14 aana of encroached land for public use.
The committee will begin work tomorrow. To make this campaign successful, we sincerely request full cooperation and coordination from all citizens, concerned bodies, communities, and institutions within the metropolis.
With the success of this campaign, we expect to recover public and government land worth over Rs 200 billion from land mafias. We know this task cannot be achieved by the metropolis alone, but we are confident that with the support and voice of true citizens, it will be possible.”
Balen also made public the details provided by the Rawal Commission, listing the names, addresses, plot numbers, and encroached areas of individuals who have illegally occupied public and government land.
He said the report clearly shows that the misuse of valuable public and government property in urban areas was carried out by influential policymakers themselves.
To address this, the metropolis has included land recovery as a top priority in its policies, programs, and budget for the current fiscal year.
Balen further requested that if anyone has information about individuals, organizations, NGOs, or groups encroaching on public property, they should report it to the Urban Management Department of Kathmandu Metropolitan City.
“This struggle is not only to make public land free from encroachment but also to ensure public access to public property, to uphold the people’s right to use it, and to protect our collective dignity,” he said.
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