National
Parsa park closes weigh bridge in buffer zone
Parsa National Park on Wednesday padlocked an illegally operating weigh bridge at Simara of Bara.Bhusan Yadav
Parsa National Park on Wednesday padlocked an illegally operating weigh bridge at Simara of Bara.
The Tarai Transportation Entrepreneurs Association had been operating the weigh bridge near the Tribhuvan Highway for the past 10 years ignoring the prevailing regulation. The association operated the bridge by building infrastructure on four katthas of land belonging to Radha Krishna Community Forest inside the buffer zone. The bridge is said to have been operated in cahoots with some of the PNP employees and local administration.
The park administration said it decided to close the bridge since it was operated without fulfilling required legal provisions while making such infrastructure in the protected area.
The good carriers from Bara-Parsa Industrial Corridor, Birgunj and Dry Port in Parsa had to weigh vehicles at the bridge. Around 1,000 vehicles had been using the bridge on a daily basis. Although the charge for weighing is fixed at Rs50 per vehicle, a truck driver claimed that the association was charging Rs250.
General secretary of the association Shankar Bista said the PNP padlocked the bridge at a time when the association was proceeding towards due legal process.