The Kathmandu Metropolitan City has announced that it will take strict action against those who litter the city’s roads.

Chief of the Environment Division at the metropolis Hari Kumar Shrestha said that if the metropolis finds people throwing any form of waste on the city’s roads, they will be fined up to Rs5,000.

“We are currently organising public awareness programmes via various mediums to make citizens more aware about this new policy. The programmes will last for the next three weeks. By the time we finish placing dustbins in different areas, we expect people to adhere to the new rule. If people do not throw waste into dustbins, we will take action,” said Kunwar.

He said the KMC is planning to place dustbins in Durbarmarg, Ratnapark, Sahidgate, Putalisadak, Keshar Mahal, and Old Buspark. In accordance with KMC’s ‘City Beautification’ programme, only a few weeks ago, the metropolis placed ‘smart’ dustbins in over 70 places around the Valley, particularly in busy areas like Ratnapark, Bijuli Bazaar, Baneshwor, Koteshwor, Nepal Airlines, Gaushala, Chabahil.

The metropolis is also planning to resume its plan to give tickets to litterbugs—including hotel owners, hospitals, private households, manufacturing companies. According to the Solid Waste Management Act, 2068 (2011), litterbugs can be fined up to Rs100,000 or face a three-month jail sentence if they are caught littering public property. “The metropolis is ready to take any kind of action to make our metropolis clean,” said Shrestha.

Along with the KMC, Deputy Mayor Hari Prabha Khadgi, who has been leading a five-member inspection team in the metropolis, will also monitor the drive. The team was formed on December 14, 2018, almost 19 months after the election of new representatives.

However, this is not the first time the KMC has attempted to clean the Capital. In December 2017, the metropolis had run a similar drive to book litterbugs with coordination from the then Chief District Officer Kedarnath Sharma and Metropolitan Traffic Police Division; however, the drive faltered before it could any significant change.

KMC removes tree guards

The Environment Division of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City in association with Juddha Barun Yantra has removed 125 tree guards in the Ratnapark area in the past three days.

Personnel from Juddha Barun Yantra and the KMC were deployed to remove the tree guards. Officials at the metropolis said the tree guards have been removed so that the trees can be ‘dusted and cleaned’ and the tree guards repaired.

Spokesperson at the metropolis Ishwor Man Dangol said the removed tree guards have been kept in the Environment Division of the metropolis. He said that once the trees on the footpaths are trimmed, coloured and cleaned, the repaired tree guards will be placed back.

The Metropolitan City has been planting over 1,500 saplings in different sections of the road as part of KMC’s ‘City Beautification’ project.