Kathmandu, October 23

The rise in the number of dead animals in Kathmandu has become a problem as no landfill site has been provided for the carcasses.

An organisation called Green Nepal, which won a contract of Rs 1.8 million from Kathmandu Metropolitan City to collect and manage the carcasses of animals from the city, said that carcasses have increased these years, but lack of proper landfill sites has hindered the management of dead animals.

Officials of Green Nepal said that sometimes they have had to bury carcasses wherever they found favourable places. Subodh Raj Acharya, Managing Director of Green Nepal said, “We have buried carcasses on the road side, river banks and open spaces.” He added, “We need to work according to the situation, once we had to leave a carcass on the road after piling mud over it because the body was so decayed we could not move it.”

Green Nepal, though, claims that they also have a proper place to bury carcasses at a certain place in Chobhar, they refused to give the exact location of the place. Officials at the organisation said, “We do not want to give the exact location because revealing the location could cause locals of the area to protest, which would eventually bring the work we are doing to a halt.”

KMC also seems to be unaware of the location of the place where carcasses are buried. Head of the environment department of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City said, “The third party won’t reveal the location where carcasses are managed, saying it might trigger a protest among locals if they find about the location.”

Officials of Green Nepal said, they collect as many as 200 dead animals each month from Kathmandu metropolis and neighbouring municipalities like  Chandragiri, Nagarjun and Budhanilkantha. They also said they are providing services to manage pet animals charging owners money. According to workers at Green Nepal, dogs killed in road accidents comprise the maximum number of dead animals, which is followed by dead calves. Similarly, number of dead animals double in the monsoon season.

Environmentalist Bhusan Tuladhar said, “Dead animals are very hazardous to public health if the carcasses are not managed properly, but we can also turn the carcasses into compost.”

Green Nepal claims they have successfully changed carcasses into compost but is not possible to do so on a large scale at the moment.