Tirtha Raj Bhattarai, mayor of Diktel Rupakot Majhuwagadhi Municipality in Khotang, was admitted to Bir Hospital on Wednesday night after his health deteriorated during an indefinite hunger strike.

Bhattarai had been on a peaceful protest for three days, demanding government action on a seven-point agenda focused on bamboo promotion. When his demands remained unmet, he resorted to an indefinite hunger strike starting Wednesday.

According to the municipality’s spokesperson Dinesh Ghimire, Bhattarai is currently receiving treatment in the emergency ward.

Bhattarai’s demands include incorporating bamboo into the national building code, promoting local materials, establishing small-scale household industries using bamboo, and protecting the environment by leveraging bamboo’s role in soil conservation and carbon sequestration.

Since his election in 2022, Bhattarai—widely known as the ‘Bamboo Mayor’—has been advocating government policies to promote bamboo use and production. Despite multiple meetings with ministers and submitting formal requests to Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, no policy has been adopted.

Frustrated by inaction, Bhattarai began his Satyagraha in Kathmandu, after presenting bamboo furniture and products to prominent national figures to demonstrate bamboo’s value. The municipality passed a resolution backing his protest and warned of an indefinite hunger strike if demands were ignored.

Bhattarai emphasises that bamboo promotion can create local employment, reduce corruption through transparent supply chains, and contribute to climate change mitigation.

The Ministry of Forests and Environment acknowledges that the mayor’s demands align with environmental goals and existing bamboo promotion strategies but says formal policy development is ongoing.