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Kathmandu Saturday January 06, 2001 Paush 22, 2057.
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Birgunj turns filthy for lack of
dumping site
Post Report
BIRGUNJ, Jan 5 - Birgunj has turned out to be a stinking city with 30 to 40
tractorloads of garbages dumped daily in different parts of the Sub-metropolitan city due
to lack of permanent dumping site.
Garbages have been dumped at dozens of places. Disputes have been arising in
different localities from time to time due to the dumping of garbages. However, the
Sub-metropolitan city office never thought about developing a permanent dumping site in
the past.
The garbages disposed at different places also include the hazardous
materials disposed from about half a dozen nursing homes and three hospitals in Birgunj.
Therefore, such wastes of hazardous nature may invite majopr epidemic diseases at any time
in this city.
Until eight months ago, there was plenty of fund with the Sub-metropolitan
city office as it was known as the third richest municipality, but the leadership in the
office never gave priority to finding a dumping site. They started decorating Ghadi Arwa
pond at a cost of nearly Rs 50 million and construction of swimming pool at a cost of Rs
40 million but the provision of a permanent dumping site never figured in their agenda.
After the Ministry of Local Development put a ban on spending the development budget eight
months ago, the prospect for finding a permanent dumping site was altogether lost.
However, as the recent Supreme Court decision has revived the prospect for
using development budget of the office, the issue of dumping site has again figured
prominently among the local populace. They are determined that they must have a permanent
dumping site this time.
"This is too much. A dumping site is the basic need for a town or city.
We must have a dumping site this year. There is no dumping site here only because the
leadership in the town did not think in the right direction. But this time, the town
dwellers will not leave them as long as the dumping site is not found," Town
Development Committee Chairman Shyam Pokhrel said.
"What is more important, dumping site or swimming pool? The swimming
pool was constructed at a cost of Rs 40 million due to the temptation of commission, but
they did not develop a dumping site which would cost merely 5 to 6 million rupees,"
District member of Sadbhawana party, Surendra Kurmi said.
President of the Nepali Congress Parsa constituency No 1 Ram Narayan Kurmi
said construction of swimming pool is the responsibility of hotels and private individuals
but not of the municipality. Making arrangement for a dumping site is the basic
responsibility of a municipality, he added.
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