Nepal crisis: Kolkata Consulate officials reconnect with families, hope situation will improve soon

Kolkata, Sep 11 (PTI) Officials at the Consulate General of Nepal in Kolkata, who spent sleepless nights after violence broke out back home three days ago, heaved a sigh of relief after communication lines reopened and the ban on internet and social networking sites was removed, helping them connect with families again.

The seven officials, who are currently posted in the Consulate General office on the National Library Avenue in the Alipore area of Kolkata, were hopeful that the situation would return to normalcy within a few days.

"That is a big relief for us after we spoke to our family members in Nepal. They are all safe. The protestors only targeted the corrupt leaders," a senior official of the Consulate General of Nepal told PTI.

"We were under terrible stress; we were unable to contact our family since communication lines were down. Now, as things are slowly creeping back to normalcy, we could talk or text them," he said.

Another official, who has spent five years in the city, expressed hope that a stable government would be formed in his country.

"Things have improved much in the last 24 hours. We are hopeful that a temporary government will be there soon. Hopefully, a strong government will be formed," he said.

Protests by youths, termed the Gen Z agitation, against a government ban on social media sites rocked Nepal on Monday, with police's use of force leaving at least 19 people dead and over 300 injured.

Nepal plunged into a political crisis as Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli resigned on Tuesday in the face of the protests, prompting the Nepal Army to take over the law and order situation.

The agitations have since snowballed into defiance of orders, loot, arson, rampant vandalism and attack on government institutions at a scale unseen. PTI SCH NN