Dhankuta locals continued their protests for the third consecutive day on Friday demanding the district be announced as the capital of Province No 1.

Normal life in the district has been affected due to the protest. General public have been facing the brunt of the ongoing strike.

In a bid to intensify their demand for state capitalhood Dhankuta locals have enforced transport strikes and shut down markets. 

With the general strike in effect, vehicular movement along the Koshi Highway that links Dharan and Dhankuta has been completely halted.

The police have informed that security agencies facilitated in sending the vehicles stranded along the highway at various places including Mulghat, Hile, Sidhuwa among other areas to their respective destination. However, travelers are facing hard time as vehicles leaving from Dhankuta to Bhojpur, Sankhuwashaba and Terathum districts have been halted due to the strike.

Meanwhile, the protesters padlocked the Eastern Regional Administration office on Thursday and have been staging protests at Zero Point, Atmara Dhat, Debrebas, Kagate among other places in the district.

Protest coordinator Sundar Babu Shrestha said that they had to opt for protests as Dhankuta is being left out as a potential prospect for provincial capital despite the district being adequately equipped with physical infrastructure and the district has been a major administrative hub in the east since the Rana regime.

Likewise, Federal Parliament member Rajendra Rai said that the government can make Dhankuta the temporary capital of Province-1 until the provincial assembly decides on the provincial capital. Issuing a press statement leader Rai said that the government must not overlook the district while announcing the temporary capital of the province and urged demonstrators to opt for peaceful means of protest.