Clean Himal Campaign collects about 28,000kg of garbage

Kathmandu. The Nepal Army’s ‘Clean Himal Campaign’has collected 27,671 kg of garbage.

The army had launched a clean-up operation in six mountains. On the occasion of World Environment Day, letters of appreciation were presented to the military team and allied organizations involved in the Clean Himal Campaign on Saturday.

Gokul Bhandari, the superintendent of the army, handed over a letter of appreciation to them at a program organized at the army headquarters.

Led by the army, garbage was collected from Lhotse, Makalu, Dhaulagiri, Pumori and Amadablam Himal, including the highest peak, Everest, from April 16 to June 30.

During the campaign, 25,166 kg of non-decomposable garbage was brought to Kathmandu for treatment and handed over to the concerned organization and 2,505 kg of decomposable waste was handed over to the local level.

According to the Military Public Relations and Information Directorate, the two bodies found at the base camp of Dhaulagiri Himal and the two bodies found at the fourth camp of Everest have been handed over to the concerned authorities for proper management.

Speaking on the occasion, Bhandari said that the campaign was aimed at informing the general public about mountaineering, maintaining the beauty of the mountains as an invaluable policy of the country and expanding civil-military relations and cooperation.

The army had handed over the bodies of four climbers who lost their lives while climbing Mt. Everest in 2019 along with 10 tons of garbage and handed them over to their families.

Himanshu Khadka, director of the Army’s National Parks and Wildlife Reserve Directorate, said that five teams comprising 43 soldiers and 69 civilians led by the army had collected garbage from six mountains during the campaign.

It was informed on the occasion that the campaign launched with the message ‘Keep the mountains as clean as possible as it is our pride’ has been very effective.

Director General of the Environment Division at the Ministry of Forest and Environment, Dhananjay Poudel, said that public awareness about the importance of the mountains and sanitation has been spread through the campaign. During the campaign, three soldiers and two civilians also successfully climbed Amadablam Himal.