Shopkeepers in Damphu town in Tsirang will not receive commercial plots from the government. This was made clear by the Works and Human Settlement Minister, Yeshey Zimba, in a meeting with the business community and local leaders in Tsirang yesterday.
Earlier, the business community members in Tsirang requested the government to provide the shopkeepers with the government land. This issue was once again raised in a meeting with the minister.
“You are not entitled to receive government plot just because you are running a shop. If you need business license then we will issue. There is no entitlement for shopkeepers to receive government land. It is same for the shopkeepers in other towns in the country,” said the minister.
According to the shopkeepers, they have waited for more than a decade, hoping that the government would issue plots to them. They said, the government has issued land to the shopkeepers in Bajo and Khuruthang towns. 
“We have not issued plots to every shopkeeper in Bajo, Khuruthang and Bumthang towns. We have given plots to only those who had to shift to a new town. They had to shift because government ordered them to move to a new and better town. To them we have issued plots,” clarified Lyonpo Yeshey Zimba.
Meanwhile, Lyonpo said the Ministry will speed up the demarcation works for the Local Area Plan II, which includes the core town area. Currently, the construction works are frozen in the core town area due to lack of proper planning. Once complete, the housing crunch and soaring house rents are expected to ease in Tsirang town.
