Chitwan, May 8

As many as 14 candidates are vying for the mayoral post in the local level polls slated for May 14 in Bharatpur Metropolitan City, while 11 candidates are contesting for the deputy mayoral position in Chitwan.

All the candidates for the posts have used prosperity as a canvassing tool during their door-to-door campaign, corner meetings and other mass gatherings. It is said that there will be cut-throat competition among CPN-Maoist Centre’s Renu Dahal, CPN-UML’s Devi Prasad Gyawali and Rastriya Prajatantra Party’s Badri Timilsina for the mayoral position.

Parbati Sah of Nepali Congress, Dibya Sharma Acharya of CPN-UML and Renu Gurung of RPP are vying for the deputy mayoral post.

The ruling CPN-Maoist Centre and Nepali Congress had formed an alliance for the mayoral and deputy mayoral posts in Bharatpur metropolis.

A chunk of Nepali Congress activists have expressed dissatisfaction over the alliance in the area of their stronghold.

As many as 684 contestants are vying for a total of 147 posts in Bharatpur. There are 29 wards in the metropolis which has 1,50,274 voters. It is half of the total voters of the district.

Located on the lap of Narayani River, holy Devghatdham and popular Chitwan National Park, the district has unique historical, social, economic, political, religious and cultural significance for the centuries.

Bharatpur municipality was declared sub-metropolitan city by merging adjoining five VDCs — Mangalpur, Fulbari, Gitanagar, Shivanagar and Patihani — three years ago and it was declared a metropolitan city by including Narayani Municipality, Chitraban Municipality and Kabilas village development committee last year.

‘Will launch pride projects’

Renu Dahal

CPN-MC, mayoral candidate

Significant development in the field of agriculture, education, health, tourism, hydro power, road access, among others, are Dahal’s key election agendas. “As I am a permanent Chitwan resident, I will dedicate my life for the overall development of the district. I will launch several pride projects in the metropolis by developing necessary coordination with the centre. Bharatpur will be developed as a model city of the country with my initiative if I am elected mayor,” said Dahal, who lost the election of the second Constituent Assembly from Kathmandu constituency No 1 five years ago. She is the general secretary of All Nepal Women’s Association (Revolutionary).

‘Bharatpur as a tourism hub’

Badri Timilsina

RPP, mayoral candidate

Timilsina has been assuming the post of district chairperson for the past 15 years now. He claimed that he would launch multiple development projects to change the status of the current metropolitan city. “I am quite familiar with the needs of each corner of the metropolis. Hence, I will launch development projects accordingly. I will introduce concrete plans to develop Bharatpur as a tourism hub, medical city and religious site. Moreover, I assure prosperity of the city by utilising the hydro resource of the Narayani River,” claimed Timilsina.

‘Construction of ringroad’

Devi Prasad Gyawali

CPN-UML, mayoral candidate

Gyawali is a member of the party’s central advisory council. He was elected deputy mayor of Bharatpur Municipality in 1997. He stresses development of education, health, tourism and physical infrastructure. “As the metropolis has potential to generate hydro power from the Narayani River, it can be developed as a prosperous city. Transportation, traffic management, parking facility, tourism, establishment of multiple industries and construction of medical colleges  and outer and inner ring road are my key agenda,” said Gyawali.