Kathmandu: A five-day blockade preventing the disposal of Kathmandu Valley’s garbage at the Bancharendanda landfill site has been lifted, allowing stranded waste trucks to resume operations following assurances from Minister of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Kulman Ghising.
The obstruction ended after Minister Ghising led a high-level delegation—including Urban Development Secretary Gopal Sigdel, Chief District Officers from Kathmandu, Nuwakot, and Dhading, and Kathmandu Metropolitan City’s Executive Officer—to the site on Sunday morning. The team conducted an on-site inspection and held direct talks with local leaders from Dhading’s Dhunibesi Municipality, Nuwakot’s Kakani Rural Municipality, affected ward chairs, and residents.
Ghising committed to implementing past agreements within 15 days and urged locals to end the protest. “I have studied all previous accords—not here to give assurances, but to deliver,” he said. “Do not obstruct waste management; send a message of cooperation. We will resolve this amicably through dialogue, not force.”
Key pledges include:
Forming a multi-stakeholder committee under the Urban Development Ministry to address leachate management, with immediate activation of recycling pumps (currently non-functional).
Establishing a monitoring committee with representatives from the ministry, Kathmandu Metropolis, and affected local bodies to prevent haphazard dumping.
Installing lighting at the site starting Monday to enable nighttime operations, with directives already issued to Nepal Electricity Authority officials.
Cabinet approval to transfer identified public lands to local governments for waste segregation facilities.
Conducting a supplementary Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) across four seasons to accurately delineate affected areas, paving the way for land acquisition.
Long-term solutions will involve resolving legal hurdles in the Investment Board’s waste-to-energy project, with inclusion of the Kathmandu Valley Mayors’ Forum.
Local leaders, including Dhunibesi Mayor Balkrishna Acharya and Kakani Chair Suman Tamang, emphasized recurrent disruptions due to unimplemented agreements. They demanded a clear action plan for sustainable waste management, physical separation of dumping zones from residential areas, and strict adherence to prior commitments.
With the blockade cleared, garbage trucks—piled up on roadsides and loaded within the capital—have begun heading to the site, providing immediate relief to Kathmandu’s mounting waste crisis.
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