DHANGADI, FEBRUARY 16

Long-route vehicles stayed off the road in Kailali and Kanchanpur districts today.

According to Kailali police, only short-route vehicles, motorbikes and autorickshaws plied the road owing to the bandh. 'In view of providing security to the people, we had mobilised our personnel from early morning in order to prevent any unpleasant incident,' said DSP Rabin Bista of Kailali District Police Office.

Further, police informed that transportation was affected in all districts of the province and most of the educational institutions too remained closed.

Citing the government preparation to put the American grant pact MCC through the Parliament and the possible risk the ratification of this pact would bring to the country, a front of six political parties active in Kailali had put out a statement and called a nationwide strike for today.

Meanwhile, a Nepali Army team defused of an improvised explosive device found in the district in the morning.

A pressure cooker sealed with a black tape and wire was found at the bridge over the Dhobini Khola in Ward 3 of Lamkichuha Municipality, Kailali.

A version of this article appears in the print on February 17, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.