Nepal Clears Charred Vehicles, Govt Buildings As Damage Assessment Continues

Nepal has started clearing charred vehicles from the streets and parking, with the government building getting a fresh paint following the violent protest of last week.

Inside Singhadurbar, the administrative capital of the Himalayan Nation, cranes have been deployed to tow off the charred vehicles and are being dumped in the federal parliament premises for the time being. Authorities have been marking the vehicles with their registration numbers to ease the insurance claims, as well as to assess the damage inflicted following the violence of September 9.

In the preliminary survey conducted earlier this week, about seven hundred vehicles were torched and permanently damaged. As per the survey by a government staff organisation, more than 250 four-wheelers and more than 450 two-wheelers have been damaged beyond use after being set on fire.

At least 47 four-wheelers and 74 two-wheelers have been torched in the premises of the Prime Minister’s Office only. Amongst the ministries inside Singhadurbar, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Home Ministry, and the Federal Parliament Secretariat have inflicted more vehicular damage during the protest.

The newly appointed Prime Minister of the interim government, Sushila Karki, also had to take charge of office in another building, which was being prepared for the Home Ministry, as the main building housing the Prime Minister’s Office was torched by protestors.

With election dates announced and life falling back to normalcy, the Prime Minister’s Office is getting a new coat of white paint on its exterior. The Rana regime building, which has stood firm for centuries, was set on fire on September 9 following a killing spree by the then KP Sharma Oli-led government, which left nearly two dozen dead in a single day.

In the aftermath of the GenZ protests, insurance claims have also continued to rise, with preliminary claims standing at staggering numbers. 20.70 Billion, which reflects the scale of destruction unleashed during the September 8 and 9 agitations.

According to records with the Nepal Insurance Authority (NIA), a total of 1,984 claims have been filed till Thursday, almost all linked to private businesses and properties. With public structures uninsured, companies are spared from additional exposure except for government vehicles under third-party liability coverage.

Some insurers are facing unprecedented pressure. The oriental Insurance, a private insurance company, alone has received claims worth NRs 5.147 billion. Another private insurance company, Siddhartha Premier Insurance, follows with 258 claims totalling NRs 4.93 billion, while Shikhar Insurance faces 366 claims amounting to NRs 2.39 billion.

The losses have rippled into the government-owned Nepal Reinsurance Company (NRIC), which now carries liabilities of NRs 11.77 billion from 14 non-life insurers. Among its biggest burdens are reinsurance provisions linked to some of the country’s most prominent institutions and businesses.

These include Bhat-bhateni Superstore, Kantipur Media Group, Ullens School, CG Impex, United Distributors, the looting of 18 kg of gold from Rastriya Banijya Bank’s New Baneshwor branch, as well as claims from Pokhara-based Bagaicha Hotel and Hotel Sarobar. (ANI)