GANDAKI: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has announced a campaign to clear encroached land at the Pokhara Bus Park area in Prithvi Chowk and along the Firke Khola corridor flowing through the city centre.
In a public notice issued on Wednesday, the metropolitan office directed individuals and organizations to remove both permanent and temporary structures built within the Firke Khola riverine area, which stretches from Pokhara-18 (Andherikuna) through several wards and merges with Fewa Lake.
The city said its technical team will conduct measurements of all structures in the affected area. It warned that if encroachments are not removed within the stipulated deadline, the municipality will carry out demolition itself and recover the associated costs from the concerned parties.
The notice also follows earlier directives instructing the removal of illegal structures from the river corridor. The issue has also been challenged at the Pokhara High Court, which declined to issue a writ of mandamus in the case, according to officials.
The city administration is also preparing to reclaim encroached land for the proposed modern Pokhara Bus Park. It has asked landless Dalits, squatters, and unorganized settlers to submit their details to Ward No. 9 for record-keeping and verification.
Required documents include citizenship certificates, family details, previously issued municipal documents, and self-declaration forms verifying household relationships.
According to municipal records, around 205 ropanis of land were acquired in 2031/32 BS in Prithvi Chowk-9 for the construction of a modern bus park. However, encroachment has reduced the usable area to about 60 ropanis.
Mayor Dhanraj Acharya said the bus park project will proceed once encroached land is cleared, with the site owned by the Pokhara Valley Urban Development Committee.
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