MP Devraj Pathak Demands End to Fear Among Squatters, Addresses Education and Development Issues

Kathmandu. Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) MP Devraj Pathak has demanded that the government immediately end the atmosphere of fear created among squatters and unorganized residents. Speaking in the House of Representatives meeting on Tuesday, MP Pathak strongly objected to local levels and various government offices creating fear among citizens through correspondence. He mentioned that while the government is preparing to permanently solve the squatter problem by forming an authority, efforts are being made at the local level to spread the fear of displacement. He emphasized that the problem should be solved based on methods, procedures, and criteria, and the government should issue clear information to immediately stop the act of creating fear among citizens. In the meeting, MP Pathak expressed deep sorrow over the suicide case of Principal Baldev Singh Dhami of Dadeldhura, commenting that the incident exposed the political maneuvering prevalent in the education sector. Stating that such an unfortunate incident occurred due to an attack on the self-respect of an honest person, he demanded the strictest punishment for those who abetted the suicide. Welcoming the government's policy clarity and transformative reform plans, he opined that policies to upgrade Nepal to a middle-income country, improve public services, expand double taxation avoidance agreements, and attract diaspora investment are commendable. However, he argued that a weak administrative mechanism and legal complications could be the main challenges for this. MP Pathak drew the special attention of the government to the problems of his constituency, Dang-1, stating that although geographically it is in the Terai, this area is very backward in development. He informed the house that local people are being intimidated by strictly enforcing border controls without connecting the roads in the border areas with the main roads of Nepal. Speaking about the dire state of the health sector, he presented the fact that with a population of about 240,000, Dang-1 has not a single hospital, forcing citizens to travel to Butwal and Nepalgunj even for basic treatment. He demanded that the central government take ownership of the under-construction trauma center, which the provincial government has stated it cannot operate, and bring it into operation immediately. Similarly, MP Pathak strongly urged the government to ensure that the Badhkapath Praganna irrigation scheme, under construction for 25 years, does not suffer the same fate as Melamchi, and to allocate sufficient budget for the control of Rapti-Babai river erosion. He expressed confidence that a fair budget will be allocated this time for the expansion of technical education and infrastructure development in his constituency as per the demands made to various ministries.