Kathmandu: Despite protests from locals of Nuwakot and Dhading districts, 60 trucks of waste from Kathmandu Valley were disposed at Sisdole Landfill Site with the support from police today. According to Solid Waste Management Technical Support Centre (SWMTSC), more than 600 metric tonnes of waste is produced daily in Kathmandu Valley, including five municipalities.

The waste generated from Kathmandu and Lalitpur has been disposed at the Sisdole Landfill Site since 2005. The Sisdole area falls under bordering zones of Nuwakot and Dhading districts. Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN) has called a three-day general strike in the country since Sunday, demanding ethnic based states in the federal constitution of Nepal. NEFIN is in favour of making Kathmandu Valley a Newa State while Dhading and Nuwakot fall under Tamsaling State.
Locals of Sisdole, who obstructed waste disposal yesterday, said if the state is divided on the basis of ethnicity, disposal of waste produced in Kathmandu Valley won’t be allowed at Sisdole. More than 350 metric tonnes of waste is generated every day from KMC alone. “We collected more than 50 per cent of the waste from the streets and brought it to Teku Transfer Station today despite the strike,” said Shanta Ram Pokhrel, chief of the Environment Management Department at Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). “Our vehicles were not stopped by demonstrators. However, all the workers including drivers could not collect waste from the streets due to closure,” he said. According to the Census 2011, there are about 2.6 million people in the Kathmandu Valley. However, the Valley lacks waste management site.

Source: The Himalayan Times, May 23, 2012