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Ex-cantonment sought for estate
Entrepreneurs in Chitwan have urged the government to convert an abandoned cantonment used by former Maoist combatants into an industrial estate. Factories in the district are scattered all over and industrialists want to bring them together in one place for greater efficiency.Bimal Khatiwada
Entrepreneurs in Chitwan have urged the government to convert an abandoned cantonment used by former Maoist combatants into an industrial estate. Factories in the district are scattered all over and industrialists want to bring them together in one place for greater efficiency.
Local entrepreneurs have sought the area bounded by Shaktikhor Road in the east of ward 4 of Kalika Municipality, Thankhola in the west, Mangala Devi Community Forest in the north and wards 5 and 11 in the south for the proposed manufacturing zone.
“We submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Industry Minister Nabindra Raj Joshi a few days ago demanding that the former cantonment be converted into an industrial zone,” said Bhim Bahadur Pandey, president of the Chitwan Industries Association. “We have been asking for the land for the last two years.”
He added that Prime Minister Dahal seemed to be positive during their meeting. There are 2,000 factories with a combined investment of Rs10 billion operating in the district. They are providing employment to 50,000 people. “Farming is not good in Shaktikhor, and the rivers are less likely to be polluted with the establishment of factories in the area,” said Pandey. “We selected the area after holding discussions with locals and leaving the community forest aside.”
The dispersed factories are worried by spreading residential areas close by. “We need an industrial zone to be recognized as an important district once federalism is implemented,” said Rajan Gautam, president of the Chitwan Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
He added that an industrial estate could be developed in any appropriate place in Chitwan, and Shaktikhor was be an ideal site.