Rajbiraj, February 16

Service seekers could not get their work done after staffers of different local bodies of Saptari district halted their daily official work to pressurise the government to heed their demands.

Today marked the fourth day of the protest.

Staffers of District Development Committee, municipalities, and VDCs of the district have halted daily work from February 13 in the offices demanding that the employees be prioritised and managed while reconstructing the local bodies. They have also sought local level elections soon.

The staff had not allowed the chiefs of the offices to enter their respective offices.

Local Development Officer Sudev Pokhrel and other officers in the five municipalities have been barred from their offices.

Due to the protest, service seekers could not get works related to birth registration, citizenship cards, and marriage registration done in the offices.

Nepal Municipality Staff Association Chairman Umesh Prasad Yadav said they were forced to protest as the government paid no attention to their demands. “We have drawn the government’s attention to our demands, but it has ignored us till date,” he informed.

Similarly, DDC Local Body Staff Union Chairman Shyam Sundar Yadav said that they were compelled to protest strongly after their demands were ignored. “The protest will continue until the demands are addressed,” he informed.