Troops were given shoot-on-sight orders as Nepal was shut down Tuesday at the start of a three-day strike called by Maoist rebels, two of whom died trying to bomb a government office, officials said.
The only vehicles that dared defy the strike concealed their license plates. Most businesses and schools from the university to kindergarten level closed down in Kathmandu and other major cities.
"The disruption is causing a shortage of fresh vegetables and other essential goods imported from districts outside the capital and from India," said Harendra Bahadur Shrestha, head of the Nepal Consumers Forum.
Two Maoists trying to plant a bomb at the Nepal Electricity Authority branch office at Banepa in Kathmandu's outskirts were killed when the explosive went off, police said.
Heavily armed troops and police were posted across Kathmandu and state radio said they received orders "to shoot on sight anybody obstructing public life."
The rebels, who are fighting to overthrow the monarchy, called the strike in part to show solidarity with opposition parties that have held more than a month of noisy demonstrations in Kathmandu.