BHAKTAPUR, April 25: Along the banks of the Manohara River in Bhaktapur, a quiet but significant shift is underway. Families are packing up belongings, dismantling tin roofs, and preparing to leave behind a settlement many had called home for years—some for more than a decade.
The squatter settlement in Lokanthali, Madhyapur Thimi Municipality–1, is being vacated as part of the government’s renewed push to clear structures built on public and private land. Unlike past crackdowns marked by resistance, this time many residents appear to be leaving on their own.
All 777 households in the settlement have begun vacating, expressing support—at least publicly—for the government’s campaign. By mid-afternoon, around 80 percent had already left with their belongings, according to police.
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Authorities say the process has been largely orderly. Public announcements were made a day earlier, urging residents to move out and calling on genuine landless families to come into government contact for possible support.
The Manohara operation is set to come in the wake of similar actions elsewhere in the Valley. The government has already cleared the Thapathali riverbank settlement and is currently removing another in Tinkune’s Gaighrigau and Sinamangal. Once those efforts conclude, teams are expected to return to clear remaining structures along both sides of the Manohara.
But behind the orderly exit lies a more layered story.
The settlement was not merely a cluster of makeshift huts. Police estimate that around 1,600 people lived here in 777 structures, including more than 50 two-storey concrete houses. Rows of tin-roofed shelters stood alongside block-built homes—some rented out, others reportedly bought and sold over the years.
Residents say an informal housing market had taken root. “Most houses here were rented,” said Sunil Lama, who has lived in the area for 15 years. “At first, huts were built and sold for Rs 300,000 to Rs 700,000. Concrete houses went up to Rs 1.8 million. We bought a hut and stayed. Now we just want proper management from the government.”
Others echoed similar concerns. Some said they regularly paid rent to individuals who managed the plots. Many insisted they had little choice but to live here, even as they acknowledged the harsh conditions of the riverbank—polluted, flood-prone, and uncertain.
Their demands are simple: fair compensation or a viable alternative place to live.
Police say more than 100 personnel from Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force have been deployed to oversee the clearance, with demolition expected to begin soon. Officials describe the cooperation of residents as a positive sign, contrasting it with earlier tensions seen in other settlements.
