At least 300 local units across the nation remain paralysed as the violent protests left government offices in flames, public records destroyed and elected representatives homeless. Four of the country’s six metropolitan cities—Biratnagar, Birgunj, Bharatpur and Pokhara—have been devastated, with only Kathmandu and Lalitpur escaping major destruction.

“Preliminary estimates suggest that 200 to 250 municipalities have been damaged due to vandalism and arson,” said Kali Prasad Parajuli, spokesperson at the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration. “The municipalities in the urban areas have suffered the worst damage.”

According to Parajuli, around 250 municipalities have been affected, alongside dozens of rural municipalities. “Reports from both Madhesh and hilly districts confirm widespread vandalism,” he said, noting that attacks stretched from Biratnagar in the east to Kanchanpur in the far west.

The National Association of Rural Municipalities in Nepal reported that 29 rural municipality offices were torched or vandalised—18 destroyed and 11 partially damaged. “We collected information by phone, so numbers may rise,” said the association’s Executive Director Rajendra Pyakurel. “Urban areas saw far greater destruction, but even rural wards weren’t spared.”

Koshi Province suffered the heaviest damage of rural municipalities, with offices of eight rural municipalities destroyed, while Karnali Province reported no rural offices attacked. In Bagmati, four rural municipalities were burned completely, and one was partially damaged.

“Thirty-six ward offices of different rural municipalities have been destroyed nationwide, with another 25 partially affected,” Pyakurel said. “At least 12 chairs of the rural municipalities lost their own homes to arson.”

Among metropolitan cities, the destruction was staggering. Biratnagar’s four-storey municipal building was reduced to rubble, while two ward offices were burned. Birgunj saw three of its seven buildings rendered unusable, with 95 percent of municipal properties destroyed.

“Our building burned for two straight days,” said Sunil Kumar Karn, information officer of Birgunj Metropolitan City. “We’re now recovering stolen items with police help, but most records are gone.”

Pokhara Metropolitan City lost 26 of its 33 ward offices to arson. “Nine municipal vehicles were torched, computers and documents looted, then the offices set ablaze,” said Chief Administrative Officer Mukti Ram Aryal. “Damage is beyond calculation. We can’t even start emergency operations properly."

In Bharatpur metropolis, Deputy Mayor Chitra Sen Adhikari said fire destroyed nearly all municipal machinery, including fire trucks and garbage vehicles. “Only the cars parked at the army barracks survived,” he said. “We have nothing left. Restarting work feels impossible.”

Several elected leaders saw their own homes targeted. Pokhara Mayor Dhan Raj Acharya, Birgunj Mayor Rajeshman Singh, Bharatpur Mayor Renu Dahal, and Bharatpur Deputy Mayor Adhikari all reported their residences destroyed.

“They blasted gas cylinders inside my house,” said Adhikari. “I built it with decades of hard work. Now I own nothing but the clothes I’m wearing.”

In Birendranagar Municipality of Karnali, Mayor Mohan Maya Dhakal and Deputy Mayor Nilkantha Khanal also lost homes to arson.

While Kathmandu and Lalitpur metropolitan cities escaped major damage, at least a dozen municipalities in the Valley saw attacks.

Kirtipur Municipality has been the hardest hit. The enraged protesters torched the six-storey municipal building, 10 vehicles, and 22 motorcycles. “Properties worth nearly one billion rupees were lost,” said Deputy Mayor Shubhalaxmi Shakya. “Documents were burned, valuables looted. We have nothing to work with.”

Kageshwori Manohara Municipality saw three ward offices in Gothatar and Mulpani areas attacked, while locals chased away vandals in other areas. In Gokarneshwar, the office of ward 3 in Dakshindhoka was torched while three other ward offices were vandalised.

Tarkeshwar Municipality reported that five vehicles and the municipal office were destroyed. Mayor Krishna Hari Maharjan said only the emergency operations had resumed in the municipality. In Suryabinayak Municipality, offices of wards 4 and 7 were burnt down. The municipal office of Mahalaxmi Municipality in Lalitpur was vandalised. According to Mayor Hari Govinda Shrestha, the office of ward 8 was completely destroyed while the office of ward 3 was vandalised and looted.

Local representatives in Madhesh Province said that some assailants were affiliated with political parties, while others were outsiders unfamiliar to the communities. In Rautahat alone, five municipalities were completely destroyed, officials said.

“The pattern was the same everywhere—first looting, then arson,” said Aryal of Pokhara. “Many attackers were known faces, yet they disappeared before police arrived.”

With offices, vehicles, and records gone, most of the local units remain unable to deliver basic services. Across the country’s 460 rural municipalities, 276 municipalities, 11 sub-metropolitan cities and six metropolises, day to day administrative works have been affected in more than 300 local units. They are reeling under chaos, fear and uncertainty.

“Restarting administration will take time,” Parajuli said. “Damage assessments are ongoing, but restoring public trust after such destruction will be even harder.”

For Deputy Mayor Adhikari of Bharatpur, the loss was deeply personal. “This wasn’t just property. They burned our history, our work, our homes,” he said. “Where do we even begin again?”