KATHMANDU, March 10 -- Nepal Police, tasked with upholding peace and security in the nation, is grappling with an acute shortage of crowd control equipment including tear gas shells. The force has not procured such supplies in a decade, resulting in the present scarcity.

Due to the lack of tear gas shells and riot gear used in crowd control, the Nepal Police has to cooperate with the armed police in some cases, while in some cases police personnel are reluctant to use the equipment that are available with them. "Policemen deployed in the field are not confident about the equipment they are using," said an officer from the Operation Department of Police Headquarters.

The tear gas in stock held by the Nepal Police has already expired. Acc...