Poor and damned

State must act to extricate the poor from the teeth of loan sharks.

It has been over a week since people haunted by loan sharks came to Kathmandu seeking justice . Some are farmers, while others are business owners and parents who sent their children abroad for better educational and employment opportunities. Their background and location might be different, but their problem is real: They needed loans, but seeking a quick and easy option, they turned to loan sharks. The lenders, in turn, made the lives of their loanees a living hell by multiplying the loan amount with exorbitant interest rates. The victims say that no matter how much they continue to pay, the loan does not seem to get over. The victims went to their ward offices, municipal offices or police stations, but to no avail. They have now assembled at Maitighar Mandala, the centre of hope for people from all across the country to amplify their voices when all their pleas have fallen on deaf ears.