Nepal faces land classification delays, threatening land administration services

KATHMANDU: Three years after the issuance of the Land Use Regulation, 2079, only 167 out of Nepal’s 753 local governments have completed full land classification, leaving 586 municipalities at risk of halting critical land administration services, including plot subdivision (kittakat), by the end of Asar 2082 (mid-July 2025). The Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives, and Poverty Alleviation has warned that failure to meet this deadline will disrupt land-related transactions, mirroring a similar suspension in 620 municipalities in Bhadra 2081 (August-September 2024).

The Land Use Regulation, introduced in Jestha 2079 (May 2022), mandated local governments to classify land within six months, initially focusing on designating agricultural zones. However, progress has been sluggish. By Mangsir 2079 (November-December 2022), only a handful of municipalities had complied. To address non-compliance, the regulation was amended in Shrawan 2080 (July-August 2023), extending the deadline by one year and allowing plot subdivisions for residential and commercial land up to 80 square meters and agricultural land up to one ropani. Previously, minimum plot sizes were stricter—130 square meters for residential land, 500 square meters for agricultural land in the Kathmandu Valley, and 675 square meters in the Terai and Inner Madhesh.

Despite the first amendment, compliance remained low, with only 133 municipalities completing full classification by Bhadra 2081. This prompted a second amendment on Bhadra 27, 2081, extending the deadline to Asar 2082. According to the Department of Land Management and Records, 167 municipalities have now completed detailed (kittagat) classification, 324 have partially classified land, 47 have passed decisions through local land use councils but have not implemented them, and 215 have made no progress.

Ministry spokesperson Ganesh Bhatt emphasized the urgency, noting that the ministry has repeatedly urged municipalities to prioritize classification. “We sent reminders through the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration in Chaitra 2081,” Bhatt said. “Municipalities must treat land classification as a priority to avoid disruptions.” Failure to comply by the deadline will again halt plot subdivisions and other land administration tasks, impacting property transactions and development activities.

The Land Use Act, 2076, requires local governments to classify land into ten categories—agricultural, residential, commercial, industrial, forest, mining, and others—based on maps and data provided by the government. The regulation aims to streamline land use and ensure sustainable development. However, the Auditor General’s 62nd report highlighted that only 199 municipalities had classified land, though departmental spokesperson Bed Prasad Aryal clarified that only 167 have completed detailed classification, specifying plot numbers for agricultural or residential use.

The persistent delays have raised concerns about enforcement. A senior official from the Ministry of Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs indicated that further amendments to the regulation are unlikely. “We approved the second amendment with the condition that no further changes would be made,” the official stated. The Auditor General’s report stressed the need for better coordination and resources to enable municipalities to utilize land use maps transferred from the Survey Department.

With the deadline looming, the government faces mounting pressure to ensure compliance to prevent widespread disruptions in land administration services.