Kathmandu. The Maitighar-New Baneshwor road section, considered the busiest in Kathmandu, has been in turmoil for the last 20 days. Even though teachers have launched a peaceful protest with various demands, millions of people are suffering every day because of the teachers.
The teachers who have been protesting with various demands from the government are not ready to negotiate with the government due to its policy of leaving their demands unfulfilled and not reaching an agreement. They have continued informal discussions for now. As the main road is blocked every day during the ‘peak hour’, students, employees, businessmen and other passengers have been affected.
Ram Prasad Dahal, 35, a resident of Lokanthali, Bhaktapur, says that his own schedule has been disrupted due to the teachers’ protest. He uses the Tinkune-Maitighar road section to go to work from Lokanthali to his office in New Road every day at 9:30 am.
It usually took him half an hour to reach the office today, but it took him more than an hour and a half. ‘He always reaches the office in half an hour. Today, he missed the spot. It would have been a relief for us if this movement had ended sooner,’ he said.
28-year-old Meena Lama, a resident of Old Baneshwor, also has the same problem. She also has to reach the office by 11 am. She says that she has to stand in long traffic jams in the scorching sun of Baisakh to reach the office. He believes that it is not right for the protesters to cause suffering to the general public to fulfill their demands.
While thousands of human resources are deployed every day for the safety of teachers, traffic management has become a headache for the traffic police. The teachers’ protest rally has added challenges to the security arrangements and vehicle movement in the capital.
After the teachers, who were peacefully protesting from 12 noon to 3 pm until April 6, changed their schedule from April 7 to 9 am and made it 12 am to 12 pm, students, employees, businessmen and other passengers in a hurry to reach the office have been the biggest victims. People are forced to walk from Maitighar to Tinkune, adding to the challenge of vehicle ‘diversion’.
According to Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office spokesperson and Superintendent of Police Deepak Giri, commuters are suffering a lot due to the agitation. He said that they are also facing problems reaching their offices on time as the road is blocked during office hours.
‘When people gather in Baneshwor-Maitighar, vehicles are being diverted from various places. Vehicles have been diverted from Tinkune, Ranodwip, Krishna Pauroti and other places,’ the police said. Due to the diversion, vehicles plying through Old Baneshwor, Setopul, Singha Durbar Dakshindhoka, Maitighar, Anamnagar, Hanumansthan, and Thapagaun have been operated in ‘Q’.
Police say that due to the increased number of vehicles during peak hours, vehicles plying through Koteshwor, Gaushala, Jayabageshwori, Mitrapark, Chabahil, Sohrakhutte, Lainchaur, Ranodwip, Tripureshwor, Teku, Kalopul, Thapathali, and Kupandol in the Kathmandu Valley are also operating in ‘Q’.
Teachers who have concentrated in Kathmandu from various regions in the country also have their own problems. Some teachers are taking shelter with relatives as they are struggling to meet their expenses while staying in Kathmandu for a long time.
In the scorching heat of Chait and Baisakh, teachers are expressing their demands, sometimes by singing songs and sometimes through poetry. They are also making the protest rallies exciting through various songs and dances. Due to their protest rallies, areas such as Singha Durbar, Koteshwor, Tinkune, Naya Baneshwor, Shankhamul, Maitighar and others have not been able to return to normal.
The academic schedule of the school has been affected due to teachers coming to Kathmandu from different parts. When the new academic session begins, teachers who are supposed to be working in schools for admission and other processes have participated in the Kathmandu-centered protest, affecting teaching and educational activities in community schools.
To fulfill their demands, the officials of the Nepal Teachers’ Federation have met Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Speaker Devraj Ghimire separately on Baisakh 5 and called for addressing their demands.
The General Secretaries of the Nepali Congress, Gagan Kumar Thapa and Bishwaprakash Thapa, and the General Secretary of the Nepal Communist Party (UML), Shankar Pokharel, and others have also taken initiatives to address their demands.
In addition, along with high-level political initiatives, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and It is reported that informal talks are underway between the federations. Ministry spokesperson Shiva Kumar Sapkota says that preparations are being made to address the practical and judicial demands that have not been met by the School Education Bill, 2081 through a package based on mutual dialogue.
Nepal Teachers Federation President Laxmikishore Subedi said that despite the informal talks, concrete achievements have not been achieved, so the situation remains that the agitation will have to continue for a few more days. He said that they have moved forward with the policy of fulfilling the demands at any cost.
Since the movement is called mandatory, teachers are present on the streets, representing all 77 districts and 753 local levels. The government, however, has urged teachers to come to the talks and return home. The teachers, however, are adamant that they will not return based on assurances. Meanwhile, due to traffic jams, students, employees, and the general public are forced to walk to their destinations in the heat and scorching sun.
प्रतिक्रिया दिनुहोस्