KATHMANDU, JANUARY 23

About 10 metric tonnes of waste was managed from the Bagmati River today.

Today is the 402nd week of the Bagmati Clean-up Mega Campaign. As part of the campaign, about 100 volunteers gathered on the Bagmati River banks near Minbhawan area and collected garbage, Govinda Kafle, a volunteer in the campaign, said.

The campaign was being regularly conducted for the past seven years every Saturday, but was disturbed due to the COVID-19 outbreak and its risk.

The campaign was later extended to clean other rivers in the valley, including Bishnumati, Manohara, Rudramati and the Ring Road areas as well.

Bagmati Beautification Programme that is under way with the loan assistance of Asian Development Bank too has not yet concluded. Work related to this programme has been hampered by delay in providing compensation for land and removing the slums constructed by squatters, who had encroached the land on the river banks.

Board member of the High-powered Bagmati Committee Mala Kharel said river beautification works were to be carried out after reaching understanding with the slum dwellers on the banks of the Bagmati River in Naya Baneshwor and Sinamangal areas.