DHANKUTA, JULY 20

Four years have passed but the proposed model industrial village in Dhankuta has yet to come into operation for want of a procedure to run it.

With a view to promoting cottage and small industries based on locally available materials, the federal government had set up an industrial village in Dhankuta Municipality for the first time in the country.

Though the village was handed over to the province government upon completion, it has yet to come into operation, thanks to lack of a procedure required to run it.

The industrial village set up in 58 ropani land at a cost of 40 million rupees so far has 48 blocks, access road, walls, ditches and water tanks.

'The village, if it comes into operation, will be a great fillip for promotion of cottage and small industries not only in Dhankuta but in the entire eastern hilly belt,' said Cottage and Small Industry Office Dhankuta Chief Dinesh Dhungana.

Locals have also lamented the apathy of the provincial government to running the village.

'People were happy to see the industrial village being set up long after the government had appropriated land from the public for the purpose, but even after the village was ready, it couldn't be run,' said a local of Dhankuta Municipality.

Land for the industrial village had been acquired by the government about 39 years ago.

A version of this article appears in the print on July 21 2021, of The Himalayan Times.