The government continued its eviction drive against riverbank settlements on Sunday, moving into the Manohara river area of Bhaktapur, where bulldozers have been deployed to clear houses along the river corridor.

Authorities said 777 structures in the settlement were targeted as part of the operation.

Security has been heavily deployed for the eviction drive. According to the District Police Range, Bhaktapur, 1,300 Nepal Police personnel and 600 Armed Police Force personnel have been mobilised.

Clashes broke out on Saturday evening when locals attempted to resist demolition, leaving at least 14 people, including Deputy Superintendent of Police Navaraj Dhungana of Metropolitan Police Circle, Thimi.

Officials said the operation is part of a broader campaign to remove encroachments along riverbanks in the Kathmandu Valley, with evicted families being shifted to temporary arrangements while verification and relocation processes are prepared.

Earlier on Saturday, settlements in Thapathali, Shantinagar and Gairigaun were demolished in coordinated operations involving municipal authorities, Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force. Residents were instructed to carry only essential belongings as bulldozers moved in, leaving many stranded with limited access to housing and storage for remaining possessions.

The eviction process has affected multiple settlements along the Bagmati river corridor, where residents say they had lived for years or decades after migrating to the city for work and housing. Many reported losing homes built gradually on informal land, while authorities maintained the structures were on encroached public property.

The government has begun registering displaced families at Dasharath Stadium before relocating them temporarily to hotels and designated holding sites in Kathmandu. Officials said a verification process is underway to identify “genuine squatters”, after which selected households are expected to be moved to government housing units in Nagarjun Municipality and other locations.