The Gen Z uprising and business
The September 2025 youth uprising, the businesses it burned and the slow recovery that followed.
The government ordered 26 social media platforms, including Facebook, X, YouTube, Instagram and WhatsApp, to be blocked for failing to register by a deadline.
Scroll.inYoung protesters marched in Kathmandu against the ban and corruption. Police used live rounds, tear gas and rubber bullets, and at least 19 people were killed.
Al JazeeraThe government withdrew the social media ban after an emergency cabinet meeting.
Prothom Alo English (AFP)Protesters defied a curfew and set fire to the Singha Durbar government complex and the homes of several politicians. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned the same day.
Al JazeeraProtesters set fire to the offices of Kantipur Media Group and the daily Annapurna Post, and several broadcasters were forced off air.
Committee to Protect JournalistsTwelve Bhat-Bhateni Supermarket outlets and its Baluwatar warehouse were destroyed or gutted, and 21 of its 28 outlets were affected. The company reported losses of more than Rs 11 billion (about $71 million).
The Kathmandu PostAbout two dozen hotels, including Hilton Kathmandu, were set on fire or damaged on 9 and 10 September. Hotel Association Nepal put hotel losses at around Rs 25 billion (about $161 million).
Online Khabar EnglishFormer chief justice Sushila Karki was sworn in as interim prime minister, the first woman in the post. Parliament was dissolved and elections were set for 5 March 2026.
AP via ClickOnDetroitThe stock market reopened after about ten days and fell 6 per cent, triggering circuit breakers that halted trading for the day.
Himal PressNepal Rastra Bank let businesses hit by the protests restructure or reschedule loans until mid-January 2026 by paying 5 per cent of accrued interest, and raised the loan-to-value ratio for replacing destroyed vehicles to 80 per cent.
Himal PressNepal Insurance Authority data showed 3,099 claims worth Rs 23.22 billion linked to the protests, of which insurers had paid Rs 1.58 billion.
Himal PressA government committee reported Rs 84.45 billion (about $545 million) in physical damage, Rs 33.54 billion of it in the private sector, as well as 77 deaths and 2,353 jobs lost.
RepublicaIn the general election, the Rastriya Swatantra Party won 182 of the 275 seats in the House of Representatives, according to counts announced on 13 March.
RTHKBalendra Shah was sworn in as prime minister.
B360 NepalA year on, the Nepal Insurance Authority said 3,390 claimants had sought Rs 23.19 billion, and insurers had paid Rs 8.82 billion, or 38 per cent, by 6 July. Hilton Kathmandu had not been paid on its Rs 5 billion claim.
Online Khabar EnglishHilton Kathmandu was still being rebuilt, with a hotel source expecting work to take another one to one and a half years.
Online Khabar EnglishBhat-Bhateni had rebuilt and reopened 10 of its 12 badly damaged outlets, with Damak due to reopen in December and Hetauda in January.
The Kathmandu Post
How this timeline was made: compiled by The Standard’s desk with AI assistance from the sources linked under each event, and checked against them. Allegations are allegations; an arrest or charge is not a finding of guilt. Spotted an error? Write to [email protected].
Our reporting
One year after the uprising, insurers have paid less than two-fifths of claims
The September 2025 protests cost the private sector Rs 33.5bn (about $216m) by official count. Businesses are still waiting for most of the money.
Bhat-Bhateni has reopened ten of its twelve burned sites in a year without cutting a job
The supermarket chain reported losses above Rs 11bn, about $71m, when its stores burned in the Gen Z uprising. A rebuild costing about Rs 15bn is nearly complete, with Damak due in December and Hetauda in January.
Kailash Sirohiya's Kantipur survived an arrest and a fire. Its business model is the harder test
Nepal's largest media house came through its chairman's 2024 arrest, which ended without charge, and an arson attack. Revenue down about 70% in a decade and its heir's exit over the newsroom's journalism are harder problems.
Binod Chaudhary, Nepal's only billionaire, a year after the fire
The uprising burned his home and the election that followed took his seat, yet Forbes still values Nepal's only billionaire at $2.1bn and the new prime minister has invited him to talk investment.