he Supreme Court has cleared the way for the removal of squatter settlements on the river banks of the valley. With the publication of the full text of the decision of the Supreme Court’s joint bench of Justices Annad Mohan Bhattarai and Vinod Sharma on January 3, the way to remove the squatter settlements has been opened. The Supreme Court has identified the real residents of Sukum and asked them to relocate to the accommodation built in Ichangunarayan. If that place is not enough, the Supreme Court has also instructed the government to arrange accommodation elsewhere. The Supreme Court has also asked to remove the encroachment by providing cash as immediate relief to facilitate the relocation of the real squatter families who do not want to move to those places and have no immediate alternative arrangements.
Similarly, in the first phase, it has been asked to remove the roofs of the houses that are at risk of flooding, maintain the river bank, build an embankment, support border wall, and then gradually occupy the green area between the river bank and the road to remove the residents. The Supreme Court has asked for coordination and cooperation under the leadership of the empowered Bagmati Civilization Integrated Development Committee, saying that coordination between all local levels within the valley is necessary to carry out this work.
Similarly, when the Melamchi project is fully constructed, the Supreme Court has also mandated that some percent of the water entering the valley be stored directly or in ponds and then sent to Bagmati, Bishnumati and other rivers flowing through the city. Similarly, in the judgment of the Supreme Court, it has also been asked to arrange that garbage cannot be thrown directly into the river for the purpose of cleaning the rivers of the valley.