<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110151112/636d06d69c7e80680e0a5f88jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="3200" height="2133"/><figcaption>All photos: KRISHNA MANI BARAL</figcaption></figure>Monsoon <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/monsoon-submerges-kathmandu-roads/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">floods</a> usually bring death and destruction, but that is not necessarily bad news for the vultures of Pokhara Valley which feed on carrion of dead animals brought down by Himalayan rivers.The vigorous start to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/after-the-deluge-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the monsoon rains</a> has caused floods across central Nepal to overflow, and triggered landslides that have blocked highways. While this has brought misery to humans, the raptors are on a feeding frenzy.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110151112/636d06d99c7e80680e0a5f89jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="3200" height="1546"><figcaption>A dog chases away a flock of Himalayan griffon and White-rumped vultures on the bank of Pokhara’s Fhusre River.</figcaption></figure>Because of its low elevation and proximity to the Annapurna which are over 8,000m high, Pokhara is home to all nine species of the vultures found in South Asia. The temperature is just right, not too hot or cold for the bird.The Valley’s terrain is also ideal for vultures which soar on the updrafts, and circle looking for food on the ground. Paragliders imitate the soaring vultures, often accompanying the birds above Sarangkot, and Pokhara has become a favourite international destination for <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=6573" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the sport</a>.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110151112/636d06dc9c7e80680e0a5f8ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2600" height="1733"><figcaption>Vulture and paragliders on one frame in Pokhara’s Sarangkot.</figcaption></figure>At a Jatayu Restaurant in Kaski’s Ghachok, one can easily spot 5-6 different species of the vultures on a daily basis. Globally critically endangered Slender-billed and White-rumped vultures have been nesting and rearing their young ones in Nirmal Pokhari and Bharat Pokhari areas for years.Although <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17991#.YO0bTy2B0b0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">vulture populations</a> in Nepal’s mountains appear stable, they are declining in the plains and across South Asia. Indiscriminate poisoning of stray animals using lethal pesticides is ending up in the feed of the raptors, leading to their mass deaths.In April, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-vultures-between-existence-and-extinction/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">69 vultures of four species</a> (White-rumped, Himalayan Griffons, Cinereous and Slender-billed), two of them on the IUCN list of critically endangered birds were found dead on the grounds of a college campus in Nawalparasi.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110151112/636d06df9c7e80680e0a5f8bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="3200" height="2133"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>Initial investigation found the cause of the death to be pesticide poisoning of dogs, on which the vultures fed. The incident was a huge setback to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-is-a-model-for-vulture-conservation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepal’s successful effort to protect the birds from</a> the brink of extinction after they started dying mysteriously in the 1990s.An analgesic called Diclofenac used to treat sick livestock was found to be the cause of decline. Just 30ml of Diclofenac can kill as many as 800 vultures. Subsequently, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14763#.YO0b0i2B0b0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the steroid was banned</a> in South Asia and Nepal in 2006.Since then, local communities and nature groups in the country have worked relentlessly to recover the vulture population, the most notable of which is the setting up of ‘vulture restaurants’ that serve safe, uncontaminated meat for the raptors to feed on.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110151112/636d06e39c7e80680e0a5f8cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="3200" height="1917"><figcaption>Vultures feeding on a carcass of an ox by the Fhusre River.</figcaption></figure>There are now over half a dozen <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19320#.YO0bSi2B0b0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">feeding centres ‘Jatayu’ Restaurants</a> in Nawalparasi, Rupandehi, Dang, Kailali, Kaski and Sunsari districts across the Tarai and foothills. The effort saw a significant revival of the vulture population in Nepal, which had declined from 1.6 million to 20,000 individuals.Vultures get a bad rap but are an integral part of the ecosystem, they protect humans and animals alike from various diseases by feeding on carcasses. In recent times, there has been a shortage of food as well as shelter. Death due to high-voltage electric shock is also on the rise.

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Vultures swing back in Pokhara

<figure><img width="1500" height="842" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101116/636b70529c7e80680e060071jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: SONIA AWALE</figcaption></figure>Michael Eddleston is a professor of Clinical Toxicology at the University of Edinburgh with over two decades of experience in suicide by ingesting pesticide. He is also the director of Centre for Pesticide Suicide Prevention and was recently in Nepal as a principal investigator of a research analysing self-poisoning in the country. Excerpts of his conversation with Nepali Times.Nepali Times: What is pesticide suicide?Michael Eddleston: All of us feel suicidal from time to time. Unless you are very depressed or have a mental illness, you survive the feeling and move on with your life. The green revolution brought highly toxic pesticides into homes that people drank in the moment of impulse without a second thought. Suicide rates went up massively in Asia because spontaneous acts of self-harm became lethal. These are accidental suicides, people don’t really want to die, drinking pesticide or a poison in many parts of Asia is an expression of anger or frustration.What is the burden of pesticide suicide in the region?Pesticide suicides have killed some 15 million people, mostly in this region of South and East Asia since the 1960s. The numbers have come down to about 150,000 people a year. China alone used to have 180,000 pesticide suicides per year back in the 1990s and it has come down to 50,000, partly due to mechanisation and restriction of Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHP). In Nepal, 15-20% of suicides are from ingesting pesticides and about 1,000 people die every year. Read also: <a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/suicide-by-pesticide-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Suicide by pesticide in Nepal</a>, Sonia Awale<a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-suicide-rate-vastly-underestimated/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal's suicide rate vastly underestimated</a>, Sewa BhattaraiDo not shy away from seeking help. If you, or anyone you know, would like to speak to a trained mental health professional, please contact:TUTH Suicide Hotline: 9840021600Transcultural Psychosocial Organization-Nepal Crisis Hotline: 1660 0102005Mental Health Helpline Nepal: 1660 0133666What can we do about it?Ideally we could move away from all pesticides like Sikkim has done with natural farming. But this might take time so for now the simplest answer is to ban HHPs and replace them with less toxic chemicals. So when people take poison, it’s not toxic and they don’t die. There’s a clear data from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and South Korea showing that when you ban just a few particular pesticides which people are commonly using for self-harm, the suicide rate falls rapidly and remarkably without affecting agriculture output. Sri Lanka banned Monocrotophos and Methamidophos in 1995 and in the next 20 years there was 70% reduction in all suicides saving around 93,000 lives at a cost of $50 per lives saved. This is one of the most effective public interventions from anywhere in the world. So legislation does work.What are the most toxic pesticides in Nepal? Dichlorvos and 3g tablets of Aluminium phosphide are the most hazardous pesticides in Nepal and the good news is that both of these have been addressed by the government already, they were recently banned. We are also identifying another toxic compound, a combination of Chlorpyrifos and Cypermethrin. What we have seen from case studies elsewhere is that after each ban something new always comes up but we have also found that they always kill less than those prior pesticides. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dy5SX0RnYhA&amp;feature=youtu.beHow can we be sure people won’t go for another method after the ban?Yes, people often argue that pesticide bans don’t work, they will simply do something else. But that something else is often further away. I can walk to a tree to hang myself or to jump off a bridge but by that time I get there I might get bored, meet a friend on the way or get distracted one way of the other. Pesticides have high toxicity because they are hazardous and close by but if you switch to something else it will always be less toxic. And what we have seen in Sri Lanka is that when you ban pesticides, people don’t switch to other things and don’t attempt suicide again because they are not intended to begin with. But are you not treating a symptom rather than a disease, which is mental illness?Yes I accept that we are not dealing with the cause, but with the symptom but I want people to live. If you don’t live, you can’t see your psychiatrist. And it is not purely mental health. It’s also about culture and communication. If I have no other way of telling people how angry or upset I am, then I will stand in front of you and drink a bottle of pesticide to tell you how I feel. It is the same in the UK, Nepal and Sri Lanka. The only difference is the lethality of method. So I can’t stop suicide or self-harm as an individual but I can stop people from dying after self-harm, which means they get a chance to seek help if necessary.It’s a concept of harm minimisation, it’s not stopping people from self-harm because it’s difficult to change human behaviour and how people direct their anger and violence towards themselves or other people but we can make it safe. Which groups are more vulnerable?When we look at the patterns of self-harm, it’s found among young women between 15-20 years of age more than in anybody else. Women are generally sober and take a very small dose of poison. If you get rid of HHPs, these women suicides fall away and that was the case in China and Sri Lanka. Middle-aged men have more deaths because they tend to be intoxicated when they take poison and they take it in a higher dose so even if it’s a less toxic poison, the higher dose is enough to kill them. Suicide is a combination of people harming themselves and lethality of the method. How has the progress been in Nepal so far?Pesticide suicide in Nepal is comparatively smaller but that is also probably due to the number of bans the government has implemented over the last 15 years. Methyl parathion was a huge problem here in the 1990s and 2000s until it was banned and now there are no cases of suicides using this pesticide. It has been replaced more recently by Dichlorvos but that was also recently banned and will be out of shops in couple of years. There has been a remarkable changes going on here in Nepal to remove the most toxic pesticides and replace them with less hazardous alternatives. Tell us about your work here in Nepal.What we are trying to do in Nepal is work with our clinical colleagues, Nepal Public Health Foundation and the police laboratories to identify the most problematic pesticides that are killing people in Nepal and once we identify those, we will take that information to the concerned authorities and see how they want to move with that. Nepal has made a success and has thought about pesticide suicide carefully. What we are doing is bringing the focus on suicide and showing how to get rid of accidental suicides.

Suicide Watch

<figure><img width="1500" height="1000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101116/636b70369c7e80680e060067jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>A customer buys a bottle of pesticide over a counter in Kathmandu. Photo: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure>Of the 25,308 <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/down-and-out,3158" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suicides</a> recorded by the police in Nepal in the past five years, poisoning was the method of choice of 6,213 and pesticides were the most common form of poison used. Suicide by <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17916#.XhbkaVUzaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pesticides</a> is the easiest, cheapest and the quickest way to kill oneself in Nepal.A <a href="https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-017-4542-y" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2015 study in Chitwan</a> showed that 90% of all poisoning cases resulted from deliberate ingestion of pesticides. Hospital and forensic data over the years reveal that pesticide self-poisoning kills at least 1,000 people in Nepal annually.“Pesticides are in fact a far greater threat than what police records show. There are many people who make the attempt and survive due to insufficient dose or medical treatment,” says Ravi Shakya, a mental health specialist at Patan Hospital. “If we also count attempted suicides, pesticide is the most preferred method of suicide in Nepal.”Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-suicide-rate-vastly-underestimated/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal's suicide rate vastly underestimated, </a>Sewa BhattaraiShailesh Thapa Chhetri of Nepal Police agrees: “Previously, hanging used to be the most common method of suicide, as people had the easiest access to ropes. Now, access to pesticides is even easier. Almost every household has pesticides, whether to kill cockroaches or to spray in the farms.”Do not shy away from seeking help. If you, or anyone you know, would like to speak to a trained mental health professional, please contact:TUTH Suicide Hotline: 9840021600Transcultural Psychosocial Organization-Nepal Crisis Hotline: 1660 0102005Mental Health Helpline Nepal: 1660 0133666And as the import of pesticides increases, the hazardous chemicals will only be more accessible for self-harm. The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development claims that Nepal’s pesticide consumption is 396g per hectare but research by the Netherlands-based Wageningen University shows it to be <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/banned-pesticides-are-widely-used-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2.9kg per hectare in vegetable patches</a>. “Pesticides that kill people are readily available in the market, they do not need prescriptions and anyone can buy it,” says Dilli Ram Sharma, former Director General of the Department of Agriculture. “To make matters worse, farmers <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/pesticide-laced-vegetables-continue-to-poison,1555" target="_blank" rel="noopener">always go for the most toxic ones</a> that kill all pests at once.”Read also: <a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/suicide-watch/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Suicide watch</a> <figure><img width="1500" height="844" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101116/636b70399c7e80680e060068jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>A <a href="http://www.forensic.gov.np/assets/upload/images/pdf/Trends-of-clinical-toxicology-cases-in-Nepal.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2014 National Forensic Science Laboratory study</a> that looked at the trends of clinical toxicology cases in Nepal from 2002-2012 showed that of the total poisoning cases due to insecticides, 71% were by ingesting the organophosphorus compounds Metacid (Methyl parathion) and Nuvan (Dichlorovos). Pyrethroid, carbamate and organochlorine were also used. Some of these pesticides are actually banned in Nepal, but available over the counter. A Central Police Forensic Science Laboratory study conducted over the past three years shows organophosphorus compounds and aluminium phosphide as the most common active ingredients in poisoning cases. Data from seven tertiary hospitals across Nepal found Celphos (aluminium phosphide used to kill rodents) as the most common pesticide in those admitted for poisoning. The <a href="https://www.centrepsp.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Centre for Pesticide Suicide Prevention</a> in collaboration with the University of Edinburgh and Nepal Public Health Foundation is collecting three years worth of hospital and forensic data to analyse self-poisoning. Prof Michael Eddleston of the University of Edinburgh is the principal investigator and was recently in Nepal. “I don’t think it’s ever possible to use pesticide safely. You have to make pesticides non-toxic to humans, animals and the environment. We are trying to identify the problematic pesticides that are killing people here and provide that information to the concerned authorities so that they are banned and replaced with safer pesticides,” Eddleston told Nepali Times.The Nepal Public Health Foundation is also organising a two-day national conference (9-10 January) focussed on <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/rooftop-gardens-kathmandu,1415" target="_blank" rel="noopener">healthy farming</a> and reducing pesticide use.Indeed Bangladesh, Korea and Sri Lanka have shown that removing highly hazardous pesticides from <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/heavy-pesticide-use-and-low-consumer-awareness-affecting-public-health,1394" target="_blank" rel="noopener">agricultural practice</a> is key to preventing suicide deaths without affecting agricultural output. The good news is that some of the most toxic pesticides are being banned in Nepal. In 2019, when the Centre for Pesticide Suicide Prevention pinpointed Dichlorvos and 3g tablets of aluminium phosphide as the most common causes of pesticide suicide in Nepal, the Plant Quarantine and Pesticide Management Centre placed a ban on both the pesticides, to be enforced after a grace period of two years for the chemicals already on the market.  Similarly, before Metacid (Methyl parathion) was prohibited in 2006, up to 68% of Nepalis killing themselves were using the chemical. After the ban, this figure came down to 8%.“Prevention is better than cure and that is exactly what pesticide ban does. And this has a double benefit: it reduces suicide death while also bringing down the rampant use of pesticides in agriculture, leading to a decline in pesticide residue,” adds Sharma, who retired after banning the two pesticides.Despite the ban, however, the smuggling of pesticides across the open border with India remains a challenge, and experts call for crossborder cooperation to fight it.  Says Rakesh Ghimire of Teaching Hospital: “Control of pesticides especially in agricultural areas is important, but as important is pesticide information centres and treatment when the poisoning happens.”

Sonia Awale

Suicide by pesticide in Nepal

Nepal has shut down dozens of social media platforms in a move that is widely seen as an effort to tax the revenue they generate in the country, and to control content critical of government. The sites were blocked as of midnight on Thursday, 4 September and affects all Meta products including WhatsApp and Messenger, Threads, and others. Although YouTube, Google and X are also on the government’s list, they were still working as of Friday midday.&nbsp; The government says it took the action after repeated warnings to the platforms to open offices in Nepal, a Cabinet decision last month setting a deadline, as well as a 17 August Supreme Court ruling also requiring them to register and pay requisite taxes. However, the Bill cited in the ban, ‘The Operation, Use, and Regulation of Social Media in Nepal’ has not yet been passed by Parliament. Some social media platforms which were already paying taxes in Nepal even though they are not officially registered, have also been blocked. The move is the latest in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/big-beautiful-bills" target="_blank">a slew of draft legislations</a> designed to undermine Nepal’s open society. A Bill amending the Print and Publications Act would allow district bureaucrats to shut down media. Another draft Bill would allow political appointees to head a new Media Council with the power to revoke the licenses of journalists.&nbsp; A counter-intelligence Bill would let just about anyone in government to arbitrarily tap phones, read emails and trail citizens. On Wednesday the government announced new immigration requirements that would allow it to track the movement of all foreigners in the country. Yet another draft Bill has been set to Parliament to dissolve the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=10675" target="_blank">Social Welfare Council (SWC)</a> and move registration and monitoring of non-governmental organisations, nonprofits and charities to the Ministry of Social Welfare. Seen in this light, the blockage of social media platforms this week is seen as the latest government attempt to constrict freedom of press. Nepal is one of the few remaining open societies in Asia, and now appears to be drifting towards authoritarianism. The government’s sudden shutdown of social media has been greeted with howls of protest on platforms that still remain open, like Viber and TikTok, as well as in Nepal’s mainstream press. Even senior members of the ruling UML-NC coalition have sharply criticised the move, asking if the government is trying to “turn Nepal into North Korea”.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025090508098_a2ab330e403e8418a7006cd5e915607382628dd6984524332bf7b99c74743656.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="2025090508098_a2ab330e403e8418a7006cd5e915607382628dd6984524332bf7b99c74743656" data-rendition-name="original" width="4280" height="5187" loading="lazy" alt="social media ban in Nepal"> </figure>  The Regional Director of the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) Beh Lih Yi said in a statement: ‘Nepal’s sweeping ban on social media sets a dangerous precedent for press freedom. Blocking online news platforms vital to journalists will undermine reporting and the public’s right to information. The government must immediately rescind this order and restore access to social media platforms, which are essential tools for exercising press freedom.’ Besides undermining press freedom, blocking social media platforms will also hurt commerce and the economy since so many small and medium business trade through Instagram, Facebook and other platforms. Nepal’s vibrant social media has also been a boost or citizens to assert identity, build solidarity against injustice and play an adversarial role when the mainstream media does not do it. Social media platforms have also become the tenuous link for Nepali families scattered across the world to keep in touch with each other — its importance growing with the increasing size of the diaspora. The government wants social media platforms to register, pay taxes and remove posts on their sites that ‘undermine the national interest and Nepal’s territorial integrity, disturb social and religious harmony’.&nbsp; In response, rights activists have said while there is need for the government to regulate extreme content and hate speech, officials appear to be more intent on clamping down on free speech and trying to force platforms to share the revenue. On Friday, the government had allowed WhatsApp back online, but there were reports that it had instructed the Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) to instruct mobile and internet service providers to block by Friday night all platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn, Reddit, Threads, Snapchat, Pinterest, Signal, Clubhouse, Rumble.&nbsp; Platforms that have registered and are allowed include TikTok, Viber, Nimbuzz, Popo Live, WeTalk, Global Diary and the Nepali portal Hamro Patro. TikTok was banned last year for ‘disturbing social harmony’ and it was lifted after the platform registered its office in Nepal. But even while it was banned, many users simply switched to VPN. Telegram was also banned for ‘financial crimes’ and it has since also been allowed back. NTA officials confirmed that some Asia-Pacific regional offices of platforms, including Meta had been in touch overnight inquiring about the registration process.&nbsp; Nepal is not alone in regulating social media. China bans most Western platforms, Russia and Turkey regulate their and require platforms to locate their data servers in the country. Gulf countries allow social media but keep a tight control on dissent.&nbsp; Experts have said even the government will not dare close down YouTube since so many Nepali individuals and companies make money with posts on that platform, and closing it would also impact on Google and Gmail. Facebook had also just launched a monetisation scheme for videos and reels, and Nepalis uploading content would lose revenue.&nbsp; Blocking the platforms has already hit content creators, influencers and cut small businesses from reaching customers. A survey of social media use in Nepal by Sharecast Initiative showed that 94% of those with smart phones used YouTube, followed by Facebook (92%) while TikTok was in the 50-60% range. X and Instagram were in the single digits. A YouTube ban will also hurt the mainstream media since up to 20% of the revenue of Nepal’s main tv channels came through YouTube. Some 11.1 million Nepalis watch YouTube content every day, the survey showed. ‘For global giants like Meta or Google, Nepal is a small market, and they may not even flinch — but for millions of Nepalis, these platforms are central to daily life, livelihoods, and connections across the world,’ wrote AI consultant Naresh Newar in a LinkedIn post. Some experts said the government’s sweeping ban on social media networks was untenable and the government would be forced to rollback sooner or later. Said editor Shiva Gaunle: “The platforms had given citizens a voice and broken the monopoly of the government, legislators, the courts and journalists over public opinion. This is an effort to reassert that monopoly, but Nepal can never be turned into a North Korea.”

Protest grows against Nepal’s social media ban

As arson and violence swept Nepal’s capital, Prime Minister K P Oli resigned on Tuesday. However, this did not stop angry protesters from setting fire to the Parliament building, homes of ministers, hotels and other property. Singha Darbar is also in flames. Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife, Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba were also attacked in their house. As protests spread, Police withdrew from guarding official buildings, and thousands of protesters entered the federal government secretariat at Singha Darbar, ransacking and setting fire to buildings.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250909120916_a86227e5556356134565053699ed9599f8b268d0c22815fa94410ffac52a49fa.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250909120916_a86227e5556356134565053699ed9599f8b268d0c22815fa94410ffac52a49fa" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1042" loading="lazy" alt="de-escalation"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250909120916_995f368b8c372bf2f99b6a9c25c2816e941413b3c19d0f94458c07604391b039.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20250909120916_995f368b8c372bf2f99b6a9c25c2816e941413b3c19d0f94458c07604391b039" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1042" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmandu protests"> </figure>  Kathmandu Valley was shrouded in smoke under heavy monsoon clouds on Tuesday afternoon with an acrid smell covering the capital. The minister’s quarters in Bhaisepati were set on fire, the convention centre in Godavari, the Hilton Hotel and Chhaya Centre in Thamel, and the headquarters of all three main parties were also burning.&nbsp; The widespread arson was sparked by the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-s-8-september-massacre">killing of at least 19 young protesters</a> as they tried to storm Parliament on Monday. A peaceful rally by youth against corruption and nepotism by Nepal’s GenZ movement in Kathmandu escalated after the killings. With the prime minister out of the picture, the government not visible and the security forces in retreat, protesters have had the run of the three cities of Kathmandu Valley.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250909120916_207c3c25f8aa9bd0934b8c98ccee1221e3a062815cfcb1e211deddb4dccd6511.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250909120916_207c3c25f8aa9bd0934b8c98ccee1221e3a062815cfcb1e211deddb4dccd6511" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1042" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmandu protests"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250909120920_bb2c0f273dc95ef62c58b5f55045c58cbddc4b3b8f619e938be76ef2cda69468.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250909120920_bb2c0f273dc95ef62c58b5f55045c58cbddc4b3b8f619e938be76ef2cda69468" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1042" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmandu protests"> </figure>  Nepal’s celebrity cricket captain Paras Khadka has appealed to to call off the agitation, saying: “The prime minister you wanted to kneel has already knelt.” Former prime minister and Maoist ideologue Baburam Bhattarai called for the formation of an interim government that included some young student leaders. He called for the agitating groups to find a solution from within the Constitution and a directly elected presidential system. All members of the opposition RPP and the RSP have resigned from Parliament, while party supporters entered the Nakkhu Jail and freed the RSP leader Rabi Lamichhane who had been detained for the past 8 months by the Oli government on charges of embezzlement. Some of the protesters also want an end to federalism, which was also the demand of opposition parties like the RSP and the pro-monarchist RPP. Chief Minister Satish Kumar Singh has stepped down. Many of the protesters have voiced support for Kathmandu Mayor Balen Shah, who &nbsp;posted on Facebook calling on the GenZ protesters to “be ready to talk to the Army … but only after Parliament has been dissolved”. Army Chief Ashok Raj Sigdel and the heads of security agencies have called on the protesting groups to excercise restraint and to find a solution through talks.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250909120912_cd93a827631d987ee52723aa270faf45aa42e4322eb8f06304b28215e3cea28a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20250909120912_cd93a827631d987ee52723aa270faf45aa42e4322eb8f06304b28215e3cea28a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1042" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmandu protests"> </figure>  Although the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-s-gen-z-protest-turns-deadly">protests were sparked by the GenZ campaigners</a>, disparate groups, including monarchists, anti-federalists, disgruntled Maoists, dissidents from the mainstream parties, and others have joined the protests. But one thing that united them is extreme frustration with the mainstream parties and their leaders past and present who have taken turns running and ruining the country.

Kathmandu burns despite PM resignation

A rally organised by young Nepalis across the country against corruption, impunity and restrictions on freedom of expression on Monday turned into one of the deadliest days in the country's recent history. As of Monday evening, the death toll from the protest had reached 19, with 17 killed in Kathmandu and two in Itahari. More than 350 people were injured. Police have arrested more than 40 protesters. Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak of the Nepali Congress resigned, and there have been calls from opposition parties for the entire NC-UML coalition to step down and announce early elections. The protest followed a growing online movement led by young Nepalis exposing the ostentatious display of privilege by the offspring and relatives of politicians and other public figures, which had sparked discourse about nepotism, corruption and the wealth gap in Nepal. Confronted with joblessness and corruption, Nepali youth looked to the recent street movement in Bangladesh, where a student uprising against quota-based recruitment for government jobs expanded last year and toppled the autocratic Sheikh Hasina government. In Indonesia, public frustration with government apathy boiled over into a national movement last month after it emerged that elected officials and the political elite enjoyed perks while citizens faced a cost of living crisis. In the Philippines, as disaster mitigation-infrastructure projects failed to work, citizens began to question where the funds for such projects were actually going. This prompted social media users to look deeper into the lives of the politically-connected figures who flaunted their lavish lifestyles online. In Nepal public outrage has been building up against nepotism, corruption and impunity in government. Facing unemployment at home, nearly 10% of Nepalis, mostly youth, toil overseas or leave Nepal in search for better lives abroad. Meanwhile, the well-connected posted images online of themselves enjoying holidays abroad paid with the ill-gotten wealth of relatives in high places. Young GenZ Nepalis, frustrated with establishment politicians, had called for an anti-corruption, anti-government movement across the country. This coincided with the Nepal government’s decision on 5 September to ban 26 social media sites for failing to register and pay taxes in Nepal.  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250908120956_53f97cf0de3ddc8d5c823686f56e71981df922d0ecd2989ad842245acdf71aa6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250908120956_53f97cf0de3ddc8d5c823686f56e71981df922d0ecd2989ad842245acdf71aa6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1600" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Gen Z protest"></figure>  Faced with the government's social media blockade, the protests took to the street. The movement was supposed to be apolitical, and focused against corruption. It garnered support from public figures and opposition leaders, some of whom conveniently forgot that they had been in government when the TikTok ban was imposed in Nepal in 2023. On Monday morning, protesters showed up at Maitighar with slogans and placards, many of them college students, even school children. The organisers had called for young Nepalis to join in their uniforms, believing that it would protect them from violence that might occur during the course of the day. By mid-morning, thousands of Nepalis had gathered at the Mandala intersection, playing music and chanting slogans. The mood was almost festive. Shortly after noon, however, a rally that had begun peacefully descended into violence after protesters broke the police barricade in Baneswor to storm Parliament. Police first began firing tear gas and water cannons, and then live ammunition at demonstrators. The Kathmandu district administration is said to have authorised full use of force against protestors who vandalised public property after protestors infiltrated the Parliament grounds.  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025090818090_84e4a5bdcf19aa3cbf03831140120c88d9f3fe5a12d47041588fea7409988e67.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025090818090_84e4a5bdcf19aa3cbf03831140120c88d9f3fe5a12d47041588fea7409988e67" data-rendition-name="original" width="1200" height="1600" loading="lazy" alt="Gen Z protests"><figcaption>Photo: SUDIKSHA TULADHAR</figcaption></figure>  Organisers Hami Nepali had requested demonstrators to go home as the protests turned deadly, saying that those who stormed Parliament were not associated with them, hinting that the rally had been infiltrated by radical groups. But by that time, the demonstration had got too large to contain. In the ensuing violence, hundreds were left injured, including journalists, and 17 dead so far in Kathmandu. Nepal’s leadership and security forces do not seem to have learnt their lessons about managing mass protests after the pro-monarchy demonstrations in March in which two people were killed. The indiscriminate use of force against unarmed Nepalis turned into a massacre. The emergency wards in Kathmandu are filled with those with bullet wounds on their legs, arms and heads. Hospitals have called for blood donations. At the time of publishing, there has been no statement from the Prime Minister, who before the protest on Monday had belittled GenZ youth as being naive, wet behind the ears, and their movement being ‘led by provocateurs’. Oli has presided over a slew of Bills to constrain the press, social media, and civil society, he has silenced and mowed down competitors and critics within his own party. This week, the UML got rid of age and term limits for party chairmanship, effectively clearing the way for 74-year-old Oli to head the party for the foreseeable future. Also feeding into the anger in the GenZ protest was a CCTV clip of a young woman being hit on Saturday at a zebra crossing by the car of a provincial minister in Godavari. The video of the car speeding away without stopping went viral on TikTok, one of few social media platforms still functioning.  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025090818090_35799a98e5a7f5f865bb6f94633059d2baa66ec57ea0d396ab020f2f8f912387.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="2025090818090_35799a98e5a7f5f865bb6f94633059d2baa66ec57ea0d396ab020f2f8f912387" data-rendition-name="original" width="854" height="641" loading="lazy" alt="Gen Z protest"><figcaption>Photo: SANGYA LAMSAL</figcaption></figure>  Oli fuelled the outrage by dismissing the victim’s injury as “minor”, and accusing political rivals of magnifying the issue. Opposition leaders and members of civil society have called for the government to resign en masse, and the fourth-largest party in Parliament, the RSP, has called for a snap election. As per his agreement with the NC, Oli is supposed to hand over power early next year to its leader ’s Sher Bahadur Deuba. Some analysts have suggested that if Oli did the handover now, he could help defuse the situation and earn brownie points ahead of the 2027 elections. But such political calculation would belittle the tragedy that has befallen the families of the 19 who were killed on Monday. Nepal’s political leadership cannot think that just reshuffling its three-card prime ministerial deck will quell public anger now. Nepal’s next generation wants to uproot the rot of corruption from politics, governance, and the bureaucracy. It wants elected leaders to deliver services, provide jobs and raise living standards. Monday’s massacre has only made them angrier, and bolstered their resolve to lead from the front.

Nepal’s 8 September massacre

At least 15 were killed in a nationwide rally called by Nepal’s youth via social media on Monday to protest corruption and impunity in government. Hundreds of others have been injured in Kathmandu and other cities across Nepal. Fifty of them in Kathmandu are said to be in critical condition, and emergency wards of hospitals ran out of essential supplies to treat them.&nbsp; Two journalists, Dipendra Dhungana and Shyam Shrestha of Kantipur were among those injured as they covered the protesters trying to storm Parliament building. Earlier in the day, tens of thousands of protesters gathered at the Mandala intersection in Kathmandu for what was supposed to be a peaceful gathering to voice outrage against corruption. Rallyists were responding to a call via social media.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250908120948_2652b268dac74e9524a2ca11f320391a33d02233e212e21c1a8ed17210c19a96.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250908120948_2652b268dac74e9524a2ca11f320391a33d02233e212e21c1a8ed17210c19a96" data-rendition-name="original" width="1200" height="1600" loading="lazy" alt="Gen Z protest"> </figure>  However, the rally soon went out of control of the organisers as public anger against the government boiled over because of unpunished corruption in high places, an unresponsive government, and the blockade of social media platforms on Saturday that shut down 26 sites, including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X, and other messaging apps. That appears to have been the last straw, and public outrage over the social media ban spilled over into the streets. On Monday, protests turned violent after demonstrators stormed Parliament, set fire to one of its gates, and vandalised property.&nbsp; The police responded with tear gas and water cannons before Kathmandu’s Chief District Officer ordered them to open fire. The government has since imposed curfew in parts of Kathmandu until 10PM. “I didn’t expect the crowd to be this massive. I just came to observe,” said Sanchit Maharjan, a bystander caught in the middle of the violence. “I’m not even Gen Z, but I was hit by tear gas earlier. Still, it feels powerful to see young people standing up.” <div class="embed-block"><div style="max-width: 56vh;"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 177.7778%;"><iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fshorts%2FTfzT9WjPOxM&key=87ca3314a9fa775b5c3a7726100694b0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"></iframe></div></div></div> Graphic images have since flooded the still functioning social media sites like TikTok: students in uniforms soaked in blood, protesters being carried to the nearby Civil Service Hospital, which itself was engulfed in teargas.&nbsp; Young people, some of them students in college uniform, had started gathering at Mandala as early as 9AM, flashing placards with slogans denouncing government corruption. Popular rapper OMG Spark was performing live music at one point. The GenZ protest is only the latest in a series of demonstrations against Nepal’s career leaders who are seen to be incompetent and corrupt. The international #Nepobaby trend on TikTok gave the protests momentum, and Nepalis used it to expose the scions of powerful politicians and politically-connected influencers who were exhibiting their flashy lifestyles on social media while citizens struggled with joblessness, corruption and poor service delivery.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250908120956_0f8ba149e43922fb551ebd63036701e646704dca4277a7e47c7ee4810c3c36ff.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250908120956_0f8ba149e43922fb551ebd63036701e646704dca4277a7e47c7ee4810c3c36ff" data-rendition-name="original" width="2576" height="1932" loading="lazy" alt="Gen Z protest"> </figure>  Young Nepalis on social media were posing questions such as: ‘Where does our tax money actually go?’ or ‘Why does the budget vanish into thin air?’ Public anger reached a tipping point when the UML-NC coalition led by Prime Minister &nbsp;K P Oli announced a sweeping ban on major social media platforms citing tax revenue, cyber security, and lack of content moderation.&nbsp; Netizens, civil society and media however saw it as the latest authoritarian attempt by the government to clamp down on free speech, increase surveillance of citizens and clamp down on Nepal’s open society.&nbsp; “Politics is everywhere,” said 22-year old student Susmita Khadka who was at the protest. “Gen Z has the most platforms, and we want a revolution. I believe as long as protests remain peaceful, they can be incredibly effective. But when it turns violent, it creates a Cobra Effect—where it actually makes it worse.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250908120948_cb24f18c947f13e5df9fb4f6ac28e77c7188f0eaa2390b57810b91cd8e66488a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250908120948_cb24f18c947f13e5df9fb4f6ac28e77c7188f0eaa2390b57810b91cd8e66488a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1200" height="1600" loading="lazy" alt="Gen Z protest"> </figure>  She added that the protests could have been more peaceful. “I wish there were more organised banners, collective sit-ins where people actually ask for our opinions and listen to our needs. Repetitive slogans and one-day marches won’t bring real change.” As the violence went out of control, the Nepal Army was deployed outside Parliament and a curfew was declared on the road leading to the airport. Organisers Hami Nepali requested demonstrators to go home, and said that those who stormed Parliament were not associated with them, hinting that the rally had been infiltrated by radical groups. Demonstrations have also erupted in major cities including Butwal, Chitwan, Pokhara, and Birtamode. The District Administration Office (DAO) in Kaski has imposed a similar curfew in Pokhara where the police have opened fire, injuring some protesters. Says Ronesh Pradhan of Hami Nepal who led the protest: “The voices of young people matter. We can’t keep being ruled by the same old men. Our generation is the future and if there are older leaders in government, they need to be competent and accountable. We are ready to lead this country forward.” <div class="embed-block"><div style="max-width: 56vh;"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 177.7778%;"><iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fshorts%2FTfzT9WjPOxM&key=87ca3314a9fa775b5c3a7726100694b0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"></iframe></div></div></div> &nbsp;