Waste piling, cops may get into action


Wednesday, 27 January 2010 (http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/)


Kathmandu: Garbage collection in the Kathmandu Valley was disrupted for the fifth consecutive day today owing to a strike called by local bodies’ unions. About 600 metric tonnes of waste, including about 350 metric tonnes from the Kathmandu Metropolitan City, is produced in the valley every day.






“We were unable to collect garbage from streets and dispose them in landfill sites after cleaners did not report for work,” said Rabin Man Shrestha, chief of the Environment Management Department at the KMC. “We cannot do anything unless the workers get back to work,” Shrestha said. Indra Prasad Adhikari, president of the Nepal Municipal Employees’ Association, said they will not allow garbage collection until and unless their demands are met. “We will immediately call off our strike if the government approves a draft of the proposed amendments to the Local Self Government Regulations,” he added.


According to the KMC, about 1,500 metric tonnes of garbage has piled up in the Kathmandu streets. Krishna Gyawali, secretary at the Ministry of Local Development, said the government has been looking for alternative ways to manage waste. “We are likely to mobilize the police force to dispose garbage from tomorrow,” he said. “Consultations in this regard are on,” he added.



Source: The Himalayan Times; Annapurna Post, January 26, 2010