KATHMANDU: A couple of weeks before the world’s arguably “the largest animal sacrifice” kicks off, more than 25 organisations advocating animal rights and others in the country and abroad unequivocally called on the government to abolish the practice once and for all. During the Gadhimai Mela, which takes place in every five years during the month of November here at Bariyapur VDC-1 of Bara district, tens of thousands of animal are brutally slaughtered in the name of appeasing deity. The sacrifice is scheduled for November 24 and 25 this time. Ram Bahadur Bomjan dubbed as the Buddha Boy, who stole the limelight for Buddha-like meditation in Bara forests for years allegedly without water and food, has led the campaign. He vowed to stop mass killings of animals at the Gadhimai Mela “to spread the message of world peace”. Though a number of organisations and animal rights activists have spontaneously joined the drive, the Gadhimai Management Committee continues to remain adamant on stopping the age-old tradition to propitiate the deity of power. As always, the organisers are all set to slaughter at least 200,000 animals — including 60,000 buffaloes and 140,000 other animals, including rats, goats, ducks, roosters and pigeons, in the two-day- Mela. While, those spearheading the campaign against the practice claim that the figure used to exceed 500,000 in the yesteryears. The Buddha Boy, whose original name is Palden Dorje Tamang Rinpochhe, already announced that he would switch his meditation ground to Gadhimai Temple premises beginning November 20 in his bid to stop the killings. Speaking at a function organised in the capital today, chairman of Nepal National Tamang Federation (NNTF) DB Bomjan Tamang argued that no religious mythologies, including the Hinduism, had ever suggested their followers to sacrifice the innocent animal to deities. But, the government has released a subsidy budget of Rs 4.2 million to procure animals already. “Instead of halting such practice, the government is encouraging them,” he alleged. Minister of Information and Communications Shankar Pokharel yesterday said that the government would not intervene into the rituals in Gadhimai Mela. Mangal Chaudhary Tharu, head priest of the temple, said that they would not bow to the pressure.