The government has decided to provide special security to Village Development Secretaries (VDC) secretaries across the country and urge the ones who have resigned to return to work.
A meeting of high-level government officials chaired by home secretary Govind Kusum at Singha Durbar Friday worked out various strategies to ensure security to the VDC secretaries.
The government worked out the special security plan after VDC secretaries in various districts started resigning en masse one after the other citing security reasons.
The meeting has decided to form a special security mechanism comprising of representatives from security agencies, local administration, political parties and VDC secretaries in each districts to facilitate the security and protection of the VDC secretaries.
It has also decided to stipulate a police Inspector in each district as a liaison officer and provide his/her name, telephone number and fax number to all VDC secretaries of the district for reporting any security concerns.
The meeting has also decided to increase police patrol in VDC office areas and around the residences of the VDC secretaries.
Spokesperson at the home ministry Jaya Mukunda Khanal said, the ministry had already instructed the subordinate bodies implement the meeting’s decisions.
The meeting has decided to allow VDC secretaries to work from the district headquarter or a nearby VDC in case of imminent security threats.
According to home ministry spokesperson Jaya Mukunda Khanal, the ministry has instructed subordinate bodies to deploy security personnel for the security of VDC secretaries as required.
The meeting has also decided to conduct joint patrolling of Nepal Police and Armed Police Force (APF) near VDC offices and residences of VDC secretaries.
Secretary at the local development ministry Krishna Khanal, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Ramesh Chand Thakuri and IGP of Armed Police Force (APF) Sanat Kumar Basnet, among others were present at the meeting.
The local development ministry will urge the VDC secretaries who have resigned to return to work.
More than 1500 VDC secretaries from over 20 districts have resigned en masse following threats from an ethnic outfit Samyukta Jatiya Mukti Morcha (SJMM) in the recent months. nepalnews.com
