UDAYAPUR: Prem KC of Pokari-1, Sallebazaar, Udaypur, has lost his appetite for food and has been spending sleepless nights. His eyes are moist after he lost Rs 4.5 lakh in cash and goods worth Rs 40 lakh in the fire that broke out on Wednesday morning.

He was involved in a business for the last five years. He had started the business with a bank loan and some money he got after selling his share of family property. He said that he had never dreamt of such incident in which all his property would be destroyed.

Another victim Santosh Shah, who was running a tea shop, is also worried about his bank loan. He said he cannot go back to his home in Siraha. He said, "I do not have any alternative source of income as well."

The plight of Sherjung Khatri, Raj Kumar Rai, Premdev Shah, Devraj Shrestha, Man Bahadur Rai, Chitra Bahadur Khatri, Naina Bahadur Khadka, Indra Bahadur Rai and Raj Kumar Rai, who lost their source of income, is also similar.

Local entrepreneurs used to hide money in the paper cartoons for the fear of being robbed. Victim Man Bahadur Rai said that he could not collect his cash as he did not notice the fire in time. According to the District Police Office, Udaypur, the loss of property in the fire was around Rs 30 million.