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. According to sources at Nepal Police Headquarters, police currently possess 30,000 expired tear gas shells. For some time now, police have been using the same expired tear gas for crowd control.
"Government has not given permission to purchase equipment including tear gas shells, they will use what the police have. It is the responsibility of police to control the crowd," said an official from the police headquarters. As the government did not provide the budget, police could not purchase the essential equipment for crowd control.
Inspector General of Police Basanta Kunwar informed the former Home Minister Narayankaji Shrestha about this matter but he did not show any interest. Last December, the police used expired tear gas to control the protestors in Lalitpur's Balkumari. The police also informed the then Home Minister Shrestha that expired tear gas was used during crowd control in Lalitpur's Balkumari, resulting in ineffective crowd dispersal and the unfortunate loss of two protestors' lives.
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“However, instead of addressing the equipment shortage, political leadership continues to blame the police, they do not allow the police to purchase the necessary materials. Due to the lack of tear gas and equipment, the police are not able to control the crowd in time,” said an officer of the police headquarters. Personal protective equipment (riot control gear) shields and many other materials have expired.
Inspector General of Nepal Police Kunwar also admits that the police lack crowd control equipment. The government is aware of this matter. The government also knows how many years there has been no purchase," Kunwar said. According to another police officer, the police force finds itself in a precarious situation, tasked with maintaining peace and security with limited resources. "We lack adequate training and equipment for crowd control. At times, we are compelled to rely on other security forces," said a police source.
In July 2022, the government was going to purchase weapons worth Rs 840 million on commission. But the process was halted after the Republica reported on the irregularities in arms procurement. At that time, the government started the process of purchasing weapons worth about Rs 840 million by transferring funds meant for other headings rather than from the regular budget.
The procurement process was halted following reports that the government intended to purchase arms at significantly inflated prices. But the government failed to address the urgent need for crowd control materials and equipment. There is a situation where the police have to deal with crowd control without equipment. Nepal Police has repeatedly sent information about the lack of non-lethal security materials to the Ministry of Home Affairs, but they have not received permission for their procurement.
It is widely recognized that Nepal Police bears the responsibility for maintaining peace and security, including crowd control. If the crowd is not controlled, the police will not only be scolded, but also punished. However, the government's focus is only on transfer and promotion rather than addressing the critical issue of procuring necessary equipment for law enforcement, " said the police officer.
Tensions often arise between Hindu and Muslim communities during the sale of idols of Durga and Saraswati in Terai. Similar clashes have been observed during Biswakarma Puja over idol worship. According to the police head office, it is becoming difficult to control the recent anti-regime protests, loan shark, microfinance and cooperative victims' protests.
Jaishankar Shah was shot dead by the police during the arrest of the protestors in Sarlahi's Barahathawa in January. If the police had non-lethal equipment, there would be no need to use lethal weapons in crowd control. Sources say that the police sent a proposal to replace the expired tear gas and old equipment to the Ministry of Home Affairs in January, but the then Home Minister did not approve the proposal.
"The crowd control materials have expired, and the police have made repeated requests to purchase new ones. Unfortunately, the government has not approved the procurement due to budget constraints," explained a source at the police headquarters.
The list of equipment in the proposal includes 8,800 rounds of tear gas, 24,000 rounds of tear gas, 100,000 'blank rounds' intended for crowd deterrence, 200,000 rounds of rubber bullets, and 200,000 rounds of rubber bullets. Additionally, a proposal has been submitted to procure 'hand smoke grenades', approximately 5,000 multi-gas gun shells, pepper spray, and other related items. As per the police headquarters, acquiring them would alleviate current shortages for the time being.
