Valley
Vegetable market in Baneshwor demolished
Around 250 shops of Baneshwor Vegetable Market were demolished on Saturday after the vendors refused to vacate the land belonging to the Citizen Investment Trust (CIT) as per a court order.Anup Ojha
Around 250 shops of Baneshwor Vegetable Market were demolished on Saturday after the vendors refused to vacate the land belonging to the Citizen Investment Trust (CIT) as per a court order.
According to CIT, the lease period of five ropani land ended in 2011.
CIT officials said they were forced to demolish the market after vendors refused to vacate the land despite court order.
“Vegetable vendors who had installed shops there did not vacate the area even our repeated requests,” said Sushil Kumar Aryal, spokesperson for the CIT.
According to officials, the CIT has had purchased the land from the government in 2005. The land earlier belonged to Nepal Trolley Bus Service and it had leased the land in 2001 for 10 years for a vegetable market there.
After the lease agreement expired in 2001, the CIT had asked the vegetable vendors to vacate the space.
“Then Patan Appellate Court had issued an order to the vendors to vacate the space,” said Aryal.
On Saturday, it was pandemonium at the vegetable market as excavators started to demolish structures. The vendors then started throwing vegetables on the main rod in Minbhawan, around 200 metres from the market.
“We have nowhere to go, this is the only means of income for us,” said Kopila Tamang, who has been running a vegetable shop for nearly a decade.
Vegetable vendors also shouted slogans against the government and the CIT after their shops were demolished.
With forceful evacuation, over 1,000 people, including the vendors, porters and manual labourers have lost their source of income.
“The government should provide us with an alternative,” said Bir Bahadur, father of three children.
Kathmandu Valley Fruits and Vegetable Traders Association’s Vice-chairman Maniram Phuyal said vegetables worth millions of rupees were destroyed in the demolition drive.
Phulman Thami, who also had a vegetable shop, and others said they were ready to evacuate the place had the government provided them with an alternative.
“This is a forceful evacuation, we have nowhere to go,” said Thami. More than a dozen vegetable vendors, who were arrested by police, were released later in the evening.