Hetauda, Dec. 7 -- After years of legal wrangling and disputes, government authorities on Saturday launched a major demolition drive in the Hetauda market area, tearing down structures that had encroached on key sections of the East-West Highway and Tribhuvan Highway.

The Road Division Office in Hetauda began the demolition at around 5:30 am amid heightened security in the area. Nearly half a dozen bulldozers were deployed from Buddha Chowk to remove illegal structures erected along both sides of the road.

"We started the operation early in the morning and worked until 6 pm. Shutters, signboards, roofs and doors of 530 structures were dismantled," said Guru Prasad Adhikari, chief of the Road Division Office. "From Ratamate to Chaukitol ...