BIRATNAGAR, Jan 29: Following the death of a girl who was mowed down by a tipper-truck at Sundar Haraincha-9 of Morang district on Monday morning, the District Administration Office imposed a curfew from 11 am to contain surging protests and agitations by the locals. The curfew was lifted at 8 pm.
Laxmi Dhakal, 11, was killed when a tipper-truck (Na 3 Kha 3355) en route to Biratnagar from Biratchowk hit her while she was crossing the road. She died on the spot. District Police Office Morang said the truck was speeding at the time.
Letang Incident: Nine arrested for investigation, curfew still...
The tipper-truck tried to escape after hitting the child but it crashed into a tree at Belpur Chowk. Irate locals set the truck on fire and also started torching all other tipper-trucks on the road. Six other tipper-trucks were burnt down.
Following the incident, locals along Belpur and Sisaughari took to the street in demonstrations. They demanded an end to ‘tipper-truck terror’.
As the protests grew more violent, the local administration clamped an indefinite curfew at 11 am in the areas between Biratchowk and Belepur.
An all-party meeting was held the same day at Sundar Haraicha. The participants included family members of the deceased child, the local administration, town residents and local representatives of political parties.
The meeting decided to ban tipper-trucks along the Biratchowk-Biratnagar road section, provide appropriate compensation to the bereaved family and track down the driver of the killer truck, among other things, informed Manoj KC, chief of the DPO. A seven-point agreement has been reached with the family of the deceased.
