Kathmandu’s public land encroached by landless settlers and VIPs: Over 100,000 ropanis under illegal occupation

KATHMANDU: Public land in the Kathmandu Valley, meant for community use and environmental safety, has been systematically encroached upon by a mix of landless squatters, elite families, influential schools, and even former high-ranking security officials, according to Kathmandu Valley Development Authority (KVDA).

KVDA’s project chief and district commissioner, Subash Basnet, revealed that as many as 2,200 huts of squatters have occupied around 500 ropanis of public land, but the encroachment is not limited to the poor. “One influential person alone has seized 20 ropanis of land and is renting it out for profit. Even inside a former Inspector General of Police’s compound, 1.5 ropanis of public land is being used illegally,” Basnet said.

He disclosed that a prominent school in Kathmandu has grabbed 5 ropanis, continuing to erase KVDA’s demarcation markers and forcibly occupying the land despite repeated warnings.

Public Land the Size of 10 Tundikhels Encroached

Basnet further stated that from Tilganga to Chobhar along the Bagmati River, encroached land equals ten Tundikhels (Kathmandu’s largest open ground). “It is not just squatter huts—renowned schools and institutions are also illegally occupying land. If we calculate carefully, Kathmandu has at least 100,000 ropanis of encroached public land,” he said.

Based on surveys conducted in 1964 (2021 BS), 1987 (2044 BS), and 1999 (2056 BS), around 3,000 ropanis along riverbanks alone have been encroached.

Risky Settlements in Hill Slopes

As habitable flat land has run out, people are now cutting steep hills to construct homes illegally. “By law, no house can be built on land with a slope greater than 30 degrees. But in Kathmandu, houses are being constructed on slopes of 70 to 80 degrees,” Basnet warned.

KVDA has identified 94 cases of illegal land plotting (kittakats) in recent years and stopped them. Thousands of unsafe and unplanned houses have already been built on risky hillsides.

Floods and Environmental Hazards Linked to Land Abuse

Basnet recalled last year’s devastating floods in Lalitpur’s Roshi Khola area, where many lives and properties were lost. “In Lele, uncontrolled stone quarrying dumped useless soil by the riverbanks. When heavy rain fell, the debris clogged the river and diverted water into settlements,” he said, stressing that KVDA has full legal authority to regulate and ban such quarries, but enforcement has been weak.

KVDA’s Crackdown and Bureaucratic Resistance

The KVDA’s governing board, in a meeting held on January 25, 2024 (2080 Magh 12 BS), had directed land revenue and survey offices to stop illegal plotting. “For two to three months, they followed instructions, then ignored them again,” Basnet said.

Since March 16, 2025 (2081 Chaitra 3 BS), KVDA has suspended 1,150 illegal plot registrations. It also published a public notice on December 4, 2024 (2081 Mangsir 19 BS) requiring planning permits for any land development. Further, a high-level meeting chaired by the Secretary of the Ministry of Land Reform on January 27, 2025 (2081 Magh 14 BS) decided to halt illegal subdivisions of public land.

KVDA officials say these measures have blocked illegal plots worth nearly NPR 300 billion, calling it Nepal’s largest-ever operation against unlawful land transactions.

Unsafe Settlements Due to Ignored Urban Standards

As per the 2015 Building Standards, housing projects must leave 20-foot roads and 5% open space for playgrounds, social interaction, and emergency safety. However, Basnet said most projects ignore the law, shrinking road width to as little as 10 feet, leaving settlements unsafe. “The 2015 earthquake forced thousands to seek shelter in Tundikhel. If proper open space had been left, residents could have sheltered within their neighborhoods,” he stressed.

Weak Implementation of Powerful Law

KVDA legal officer Ghanshyam Poudel admitted that though the KVDA Act is powerful, enforcement remains ineffective due to conflicts of interest. “Survey and land revenue offices are supposed to measure land and issue ownership certificates. Instead, they are directly involved in urban expansion and illegal subdivisions,” he alleged.

He said these offices temporarily obey KVDA orders but soon resume opening narrow 13-foot roads, cutting plots on steep hills, and approving unsafe developments.

Special Committee Formed to Tackle Encroachment

To strengthen the crackdown, KVDA has formed an Illegal Plotting Control Subcommittee, led by an under-secretary from the Ministry of Urban Development. The committee includes chief district officers of Kathmandu, Lalitpur, and Bhaktapur as members, with Poudel as legal advisor.

“This committee will review all details of illegal plotting, lack of open space, and risky land use. A three-member expert monitoring team will verify implementation and track how land laws are being bypassed in each district,” Basnet confirmed.