Indian Shasastra Seema Bal (SSB) has obstructed the opening of a road in Bhimdutta-10, Kanchanpur district.

The Indian border security personnel did not allow the municipality to construct road saying the road lies in no-man’s land. On Tuesday morning, a team of SSB men obstructed the road construction while municipal officials were trying to open the road using a bulldozer.

Although the technicians from the municipality told Indian SSB that they surveyed the area before opening the road, the SSB did not allow Nepali authorities to open it.

Locals have requested municipality office to open road from Gaddachowki in Bhimdutta-10 to Jimuwa area.

“We have provided our registered land to open the road track,” said Bhuwan Nath, a local man, adding that the Indian SSB has been obstructing to construct the road.

“If the land lies in no-man’s land, how did we receive land ownership certificates?” he asked.  

As there is no transport facility, people said they face difficulty while transporting goods by walking long distances.

“We have not touched no-man’s land area. We have provided our land to open the road,” said a ward member of Bhimdutta-10 Prem Bahadur Chand, adding that more than 40 families have provided their own registered land and demanded to open the road section.

Superintendent of Police Binodraj Shrestha of the Armed Police Force 35 Number Battalion in Jhalari said the road could not be opened in the no-man’s land area without the permission of Indian authorities.

“We have been co-ordinating with Indian officials regarding the matter,” said Shrestha, adding the road construction has stopped as of now.

Last year, the SSB men also prevented the installation of a hume pipe in Tumadani, Bhimdatta Municipality-9, along the Bhramadev-Gaddachowki road. The hume pipe was being laid along the under-construction road to drain water.

On March 2017, Indian SSB in Punarbas Municipality had shot a Nepali man due to the tension over the construction of a culvert on the Nepali side.