Govt agreement with locals not implemented

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, August 25

The agreement on a development package made three weeks ago between the Sisdole locals and the government could not come into practice despite commitment to implement within two weeks.

A package of development projects was agreed on July 31 with the Sisdole locals after they disrupted garbage disposal at the landfill site for a week. The agreement was divided into two phases—short and long terms for the implementation between two weeks and seven years.

“Publication of notice to pool land for the proposed Banchare Danda landfill site should have been published by mid-August as per the agreement. However, it is yet to be published,” said Ramesh Prasad Paudel, coordinator of the Sosdole Sanitary Landfill Site Struggle Committee. “The initiation for other projects to be implemented in the current fiscal year is a far cry now,” he added.

The package of agreement includes construction of roads, 5-bed hospital, skill-oriented training for 50 local youths, bridge, drinking water, additional allocation of teacher in government schools, initiation for long term waste management project at Banchare Danda, expansion and management of Sisdole landfill site.

“Eight plans in the agreement were mentioned to be effective this year. But nothing has been done yet,” said Paudel. “More than a dozen of agreements, which are still being repeated, were made in the past with the locals when the locals obstructed the garbage in the site.” The garbage disposal was halted at Sisdole more than 50 times during the period of last five years.

Dr Sumitra Amatya, General Manager at the Solid Waste Management and Resource Mobilisation Centre under the Ministry of Local Sevelopment, said that the notice for the land pooling of Banchare Danda could not be published due to the delay approval prom the National Planning Commission. “We will publish it within two days,” she added.

Amatya said that the majority of projects were already launched and some were at the final stage. “A total of Rs 430 million was spent at Sisdole that includes Rs 220 million for infrastructure and Rs 210 million for compensation and development in the local area,” she said.

Paudel, however, said that 30 quota of teachers in about a dozen of private schools was assured in the office of the then Chief Secretary about 13 months ago. “No quota has been given yet. The agreement on teacher, road and hospital has been repeatedly made but in vain,” he blamed.

Amatya said it was unjust to blame on the government. “They do not come to us with sound proposal by forming necessary committees for implementing the demands. We called them but no official committee came to us,” she added. ‘It is their weakness.”