Baitadi’s new city project faces cancellation if land pooling stalls

Baitadi: The New City Project in Patan, Baitadi, is at risk of cancellation if land pooling (land consolidation) does not move forward, officials have warned.

According to Project Chief Rudranarayan Das, land pooling is the central plan to curb outmigration, but efforts to secure an agreement with locals have stalled for years. “I have received a call from the ministry. If the land pooling work does not proceed, then there is no justification for that office, all programs will be stopped, and a verbal order has been received saying that the land pooling work cannot be done,” Das said.

The Municipal Development Committee, chaired by the mayor, has yet to reach a concrete agreement with residents, Das added, urging people’s representatives to step up coordination with locals to resolve the deadlock.

Patan-6 Ward Chairman Rajendra Singh Bista expressed optimism that a solution would soon be found. He informed that formal discussions with residents of Nangadibata in Ward No. 6 are scheduled for Thursday. “A decision has already been made on Chaitra 1, 2080 BS regarding the land pooling work here. Preparations were first made in Bishtheuda of Patan-6, but no agreement was reached. Later, residents of Nangadibata showed readiness to provide land. Preparations are being made to hold further discussions with them,” Bista explained.

As per the Urban Development Act, 2045, land pooling requires surveying all land within a designated area and developing wide roads, sewers, open spaces, parks, and community facilities. Landowners receive their plots back after a portion is allocated for infrastructure, with expenses covered by selling a small cut of land from each plot.

“In settlements developed through land pooling, facilities such as roads, electricity, drinking water, communication, security, playgrounds, health institutions, banks, and shopping complexes are expanded,” Bista noted.

Land pooling projects for planned urbanization have been implemented in Nepal for nearly three decades.