Bandh cripples life across nation as Maoist activists engage in vandalism and attacks Nepalnews, 20-Dec-09
Normal life throughout the nation was adversely affected from early morning on the first day of the general strike called by the Unified CPN (Maoist) on Sunday.
Kathmandu's streets looked deserted with no vehicular movement. Long distance buses, too, did not operate. Transportation in other parts of the country has also been obstructed with vehicles mostly preferring to stay off the road. While many people have not been able to make to their work, many others were seen walking to their destinations.
Cadres of UCPN (Maoist) and its sister organizations gathered in variousplaces to impose the bandh.
Schools and colleges across the country also remained closed as was most government and private offices, factories and main market places.
Shops and shopping malls in downtown Kathmandu and major squares remained shut, while few retail stores and tea-shops in the interior parts of the city were open.
There were reports of clashes between the bandh organizers and police in various parts of the country including the capital city with Maoist activists hurling stones at riot police deployed to maintain peace and order during the bandh.
Many parts of the capital city wore a look of a battle-field as activists affiliated with the Unified CPN (Maoist) and their supporters engaged in violent clashes with riot police, resulting in injuries to scores.
The Bandh enforcers burnt tyres, vandalized any passing vehicles including those that were parked, and didn't even spare ambulances and press vehicles.
Places like New Baneshwor, where the Constituent Assembly is located, including Putalisadak, Bagbazaar, Gaushala and few other places saw the most intense clashes between the police and bandh organizers during the Maoist-called strike.
In Baneshwor area, Maoist activists pelted stones on a vehicle carrying State Minister for Tourism Shatrughan Mahato, who was on his way to the airport to welcome Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal who returned from Copenhagen after attending a climate change summit today. Minster Mahato is said to have escaped unhurt in the incident with just minor damages to his vehicles.
Around two dozens persons, including CA lawmaker Yashoda Subedi and DSP Dilip Chaudhary, were injured in a severe scuffle between the Maoist activists and riot police at New Baneshwor. Most of the injured were Maoist activists with few others being police and bystanders. However, no critical injuries have been reported.
The clash reportedly ensued after police tried to bar protestors from removing the road dividers by using water canons. In response the protestors hurled stones at the security personnel. Police had to use batons, water canons and fire tear gas shells to disperse the irate protestors and take the situation under control.
Television images showed by-standers running for cover, squatting at the eves of closed shops or fleeing to narrow alleys as the police charged at the protestors with batons while the latter continued to hurl stones at them.
Similar scuffles were seen in front of Gaushala and Bagbazaar, including few other places too.
The situation in front of Shanker Dev Campus in Putalisadak also turned tense after the protestors started hurling stones at the police. In resulting police action, scores of protestors were injured and many were taken into custody.
Despite promising that they will not obstruct press vans, vehicles carrying diplomats and tourists, ambulances and other emergency services,the Maoist activists attacked a vehicle belonging to Shahid Gangalal Heart Center at Maharajgunj. They mercilessly pelted stones at the vehicle carrying the hospital staffs, injuring four of them. The ambulance driver was severely injured and rushed to nearby Teaching Hospital while other hospital staffs were chased away.
The hospital staffs were going to the hospital to perform an emergency surgery.
The protestors have also vandalized press vehicles in different places of the capital. Few photographers and camerapersons were also injured after being hit by stones hurled by demonstrators while covering the strike.
Meanwhile, reports quoted home ministry spokespersons as saying that that police have arrested more than 60 Maoist activists for engaging in vandalism and trying to enforce the bandh in various parts of the country. More than two dozen bandh organizers is said to have been arrested in the capital while 19 have been arrested in Rajbiraj for engaging in vandalism.
Similarly, the Maoist imposed bandh also paralyzed life in Pokhara, Janakpur, Tansen and Sindhuli with offices, educational institutions and main market centers closed and vehicular movement coming to a grinding halt. There are also reports of mistreatments against journalists covering the bandh by Maoist activists in Kavre.
The Maoists called a three-day general strike at the end of their third phase agitation against the President's move on army chief case in May.
They had organised a torch rally throughout the nation on the eve of the three-day strike Saturday evening. It had turned down the request of the government including political parties like Nepali Congress and CPN (UML) to withdraw the bandh programme.
A large number of security personnel were deployed in Kathmandu from early morning today to avert any damage to property and life. Kathmandu metropolitan police had also issued circulars to all its units instructing them to remain alert throughout the period of bandh to protect property and life.
Food stocks down to week’s supply eKantipur.com, 18-Feb-08
Foodstuffs are running low and the prices of fresh vegetables have shot up as deliveries were disrupted by the tarai banda which has entered its sixth day. Traders warn that if the supply situation worsens, the resulting acute shortage of food and vegetables would lead to further price rises.
“Rice and oil stocks held by major wholesalers in the Kathmandu Valley are down to half of normal levels,” Satish Kumar Bohara, joint secretary of the Nepal Rice, Oil and Pulse Producers Association, told the Post.
According to Bohara, stockpiles of rice and oil have dwindled to 5,000 and 1,500 tons respectively in the marketplace.
“The existing supply can fulfill the needs of the valley's 2.5 million population for hardly seven to 10 days,” he said. “The prices of foodstuffs, which are sourced mainly from the eastern tarai, will skyrocket due to the severe scarcity.”
He attributed the disruption in supply to the tarai unrest, fuel shortage and load-shedding, which has brought production to a complete halt at rice mills.
The banda in the tarai has also impacted the transport of vegetables, and fewer shipments are arriving at the marketplace.
According to Binaya Shrestha, planning officer of the Kalimati Fruits and Vegetables Market Development Board (KFVMDB), the inflow of vegetables at the Kalimati wholesale market has plummeted to around 500 tons per day from over 750 tons a week ago.
Vegetables from India and the tarai account for 25 percent of the total supply during this season.
“The delivery of fish and lemons from India was almost nil during the past week,” Shrestha said.
However, traders said that the prices of popular vegetables, barring some items, had not gone up because of the bumper harvests in the districts around the Kathmandu Valley.
Tarai farmers are supplying vegetables at throwaway prices to the valley, which is the only major market for them.
“But this state of affairs will not last for long. If the transport situation does not improve immediately, a hike in vegetable prices is inevitable because of the exorbitant freight charged by carriers,” said Bhoj Raj Rimal, a wholesaler of fresh vegetables at Kalimati. According to him, truckers have jacked up their rates to Rs 27,000 from Rs 15,000 previously for carrying a load of vegetables to Kathmandu from Lahan, a major vegetable trading hub.
The collection, processing and delivery of dairy products have also been thrown into chaos by load-shedding and the acute fuel shortage which has resulted in fewer vehicles plying on the roads, said dairy producers.
“Despite the problems, we have managed to get by so far,” said Sumit Kedia, general secretary of the Dairy Producers Association. He added that milk collection, processing and delivery would come to a complete halt if the fuel supply did not improve soon. Private dairies collect around 350,000 liters of milk daily from more than half a dozen districts.
Banda continues to paralyze east tarai eKantipur.com, 8-Oct-07
The indefinite banda called by various groups on the threshold of Dashain festival paralyzed normal life in the eastern part of the country. People have been facing more hardship as the local administration clamped curfew to control the situation from deteriorating after the fierce scuffle between the protestors and police.
Federal Limbuban State Council, Khumbuwan National Front, Federal Republic Front, Tamang Saling Autonomous State, Madhesi People's Rights Forum (MPRF) led by Kishwor Kumar Biswas among others called the indefinite strike demanding proportional electoral system, declaration of republic from the interim parliament, among other demands.
The strike mostly affected daily-wage workers, farmers, patients and consumers. There have been the short supplies of LP Gas and petroleum products, milk and vegetables in the areas.
Biratnagar dairy distribution project stopped to produce milk and ghee at Biratnagar recently.
In Saptari, patients are deprived of treatment in time and there is the shortage of medicine. Four persons died in the district due to the outbreak of diarrhea.
Meanwhile, farmers producing milk and vegetables in Dhankuta are affected due to the closure of transportation. Similarly, our correspondent from Sunsari reported that the daily-wage workers are living hard and unable to arrange essential goods for the coming festivals.
Meanwhile, Kishwor Kumar Bishwas faction of MPRF called off strike for three days, on Monday. Bishwas informed that they would again launch the banda after three days. Likewise, Limbuban-Khumbuban Federal Loktantrik National Forum on Monday decided to call off their strike for three days. "We have not withdrawn the protest because we are tired but we took the decision as per the request of public," said forum's chairman Kamal Chharhang.
Curfew affects life in Damak
Locals in Jhapa district have been facing difficulties due to the continuation of curfew imposed by the local administration. People at Maidhara are compelled to excrete inside their houses due to the curfew for the last three days. The locals are terrorized now after security force killed a youth on Sunday. People in the area do not have toilets inside their poorly built huts. One has to go to the nearby forest to answer nature's calls. Rights activist KP Subedi said the people are facing such difficulties for the last three days.
TARAI BANDA: Highways closed, vehicles vandalized eKantipur.com, 4-Oct-07 POST REPORT
The major highways were obstructed and normal life partially affected due to separate bandas called by different agitating groups in the tarai, Thursday.
Normal life was crippled from the Mechi river in the east to Dhangadhi in the west by the general strikes called by the Nepal Sadbhavana Party (NSP) led by Rajendra Mahato, the Federal Loktantrik National Forum (FLNF) and the Samyukta Tharu Rastriya Morcha (STRM).
Five vehicles were vandalized on the Urlabari-Damak road section during the banda called by FLNF in the eastern tarai. Bus driver Raju Lama sustained serious head injuries as protestors hurled a stone at his bus (Na 2 Kha 7534) heading east from Urlabari.
Lama is undergoing treatment in Silgudhi, India. Police detained 10 demonstrators in connection with the incident and released them later.
Meanwhile, FLNF said Thursday that they could withdraw the indefinite strike in the east if the government addressed their three-point demand.
Similarly, activists of STRM vandalized two passenger buses during their strike at Dhangadhi and Baliya in Kailali district Thursday.
Police held STMM district member Binaya Chaudhari and district chairman of Tharu Welfare Council Bhanuram Chaudhari at Dhangadhi as they were forcing the market to close. STMM resumed their protest as talks with the government failed.
The Mahato faction of NSP called its strike protesting the Election Commission's decision not to recognize them as the main party. The rest of the agitating groups are demanding federal states and a proportional electoral system among other things.
Day 5 (May 6)
