The district administration, meanwhile, seems to be caught napping in the issue. Over the past ten years or so, dozens of huts and even concrete houses have been illegally built encroaching public land along the roadside. Most of these illegal structures have been used for operating hotels, restaurants and shops. [break]
“The road expansion drive and encroachment of public land is progressing side by side. The saddest part is that the government is turning a blind eye when numerous houses are being constructed illegally within 25 meters of the roadside,” said a local.
He claimed that even Wallepakha Community Forest has encroached roadside public land.
Why is the government not doing anything to address the problem? District Forest Officer of Gorkha Durga Bahadur Karki said that the problem has risen because there is no clear legal provision about the ownership of such roadside land since it neither comes under the jurisdiction of the road department nor the forest department.
“The local people are simply taking advantage of this situation,” said Karki.
But he was quick to add that since the encroachers have started to build permanent structures, the concerned authorities were planning to take action against them.
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