KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court has overturned its earlier decision requiring an additional 20-meter buffer zone along the Bagmati River and its tributaries in the Kathmandu Valley.
The full bench of justices Sunil Kumar Pokharel, Bal Krishna Dhakal, and Nripa Dhwoj Niraula ruled that the previous order by a joint bench did not align with legal and judicial principles, and therefore annulled it. A brief order was issued on Sunday.
Previously, on Poush 3, 2080, a joint bench (Justices Anand Mohan Bhattarai and Vinod Sharma) had directed that, in addition to the government-mandated 20-meter minimum setback, an extra 20 meters must be left along rivers for map approval and construction permits. The order also declared the additional area as a “no-construction zone.”
After the government filed a review petition, the full bench re-examined the matter and reversed the earlier decision.
The brief order states that provisions such as “leaving an additional 20 meters before map approval, setting minimum setbacks for rivers without clear boundaries, declaring the area as no-construction, and acquiring land through compensation if needed” were deemed inappropriate from a legal and judicial perspective.
The detailed text of the full judgment will take time to prepare. Meanwhile, the additional 20-meter buffer along the Bagmati and its tributaries is no longer mandatory.
Comment