KATHMANDU, Oct 3: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) and the Kathmandu Valley Development Authority (KVDA) have announced plans to clear around 168 ropanis ( approx 920,000 sq feet) of government land encroached upon along the Dhobikhola Corridor.
Issuing a joint seven-day public notice last Friday, the metropolis and the KVDA asked individuals to remove illegal structures or vacate occupied public land by November 7. KVDA officials warned that dozers will be mobilized to clear the encroachments if the land is not vacated voluntarily within the given deadline.
“If the encroached land is not cleared on its own, the process of removing structures will begin after seven days,” said KVDA Commissioner Januka Dhakal. “Preliminary details indicate that about 168 ropanis of land have been encroached around the Dhobikhola Corridor. To verify the actual figures, our field staff have begun on-site measurements since October 8.”
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The joint public notice stated that infrastructures built contrary to Chapter 7 and Section 45 of the Local Government Operation Act 2017 were illegal. The notice warned that legal action will be taken against those failing to comply within the stipulated time.
The move follows an agreement signed on October 6 between KMC and KVDA to vacate encroached land along the corridor. The agreement was inked by the then KVDA District Commissioner Subash Basnet and KMC’s Ghanshyam Poudel. Basnet has since been transferred, with Sunita Shrestha now serving as his replacement.
During Basnet’s tenure, a study conducted by the Kathmandu District Commissioner’s Office revealed that government land had been encroached along the approximately 13 kilometers of the Dhobikhola Corridor — stretching from Bhangal to Bagmati Dobhan. The study found that many of these lands had been used to build houses and commercial establishments.
According to Basnet, much of the encroachment occurred under the pretext of “river uplift” — areas where the river has naturally shifted its course over time, leaving dry land behind. “Middlemen often exploit this situation, influencing officials in the survey and land revenue offices to register such ‘uplifted’ land in private names,” he said.
In response to growing concerns, the Ministry of Urban Development has formed a special task force led by Deputy Secretary Mahesh Singh to study the extent of encroachment in the corridor. The team, which includes Dorkaji Shrestha and surveyor Sharad Rijal from the KVDA, has already submitted its report.
An official from the KVDA said that Urban Development Minister Kulman Ghising has personally shown interest in the issue and instructed KVDA to immediately reclaim encroached government and public land if verified. The authority has since expedited the process as per the minister’s directive.
Although KVDA had previously issued several notices urging the public to return encroached land, those efforts largely went unheeded. Commissioner Dhakal emphasized that this time, the operation will be carried out “at any cost.”
Kathmandu Valley has undergone multiple land surveys over the past six decades, beginning in 1962. Officials acknowledge that during these surveys, middlemen and corrupt practices often led to the illegal transfer of government and public land into private ownership.
