A study has shown that the risk of domestic human trafficking and sexual exploitation has been increasing in Bharatpur with the rapid expansion of spas, hotels, and the entertainment businesses.
According to a study prepared by 'Samari Utthan Sewa' and shared with journalists in Bharatpur, 85 percent people from the Dalit, gender, and sexual minority (queer) communities who face caste discrimination, violence, and exclusion have suffered from internal human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
Program manager of the organization, Shivahari Gyawali, shared that there were three spas operating in Bharatpur Metropolitan City in 2024/25, and that number has gone up to 21 in 2025/26.
He mentioned that the risk of trafficking and sexual exploitation is increasing because there is no separate law to regulate the hotels, the entertainment sector like dance bars and dohori pubs, and spas, and the monitoring powers given by the Local Government Operation Act have not been effectively implemented.
Sixty-nine percent of Dalit queer participants in the study complained that the media didn’t give enough attention to the violence and discrimination they faced.
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