Kathmandu, July 9

After one-and-a-half years of its operation, the electric crematorium at Pashupatinath has stopped functioning due to technical problem.

According to Pashupati Area Development Trust, it is preparing to resume operation of the crematorium by importing new machines from Kolkata of India.  “If everything goes as planned, it will take about a week before we resume operation of the crematorium,” said former member secretary of PADT Dr Govinda Tandan.

As it is cheaper and less time-consuming, more people are opting for the electric crematorium over traditional wooden pyres in Aryaghat of Pashupatinath area in recent days. So the number of funerals conducted on traditional pyres had reduced greatly since the electric crematorium came into operation.

It takes up to four hours to cremate a body on a traditional funeral pyre, but the electric crematorium takes only around 45 minutes. Similarly, while traditional cremation costs more than Rs 10,000, the electric crematorium charges only Rs 4,000.

The electric crematorium building was formally inaugurated on January 24, 2016 by then minister for culture, tourism, and civil aviation Ananda Pokharel. The building was constructed at a total cost of Rs 110 million.

The electric cremation machines were brought from Indomen Engineering Service in Kolkata, India. Engineers from the company had set up the crematorium.