Kathmandu (dpa) – The prime minister of Nepal on Friday took to the streets broom in hand and sporting a golf cap and breathing mask instead of his usual dark suit and Nepali cap, to launch a week-long cleanup campaign in Kathmandu.
Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai made headlines as he swept the streets in front of the parliament building, flanked by his wife, Maoist leader Hishila Yami and Local Development Minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi.
The clean-up campaign was initiated by the government and the city authorities to encourage people to keep their neighbourhood clean and tackle Kathmandu's growing waste management problem.
"We need to contribute to a clean and healthy Kathmandu, so that we can build a new Nepal, so I request everyone to contribute to this,” Bhattarai said.
The government has called on every household to provide one volunteer, and said it expects to mobilize up to 10,000 pairs of hands for three hours each day for a week. There will also be a clampdown on littering.
Ministers, politicians, students, police officers, soldiers, government officials and residents all turned out for Friday's clean-up.
“This is to make people aware and responsible for their city,” Rayamajhi said. “It’s an example of cooperation between people and government.”
On the last two days of the campaign, the rivers will be cleaned.
Kathmandu has a long-standing garbage management problem, with piles of rubbish left to fester on the streets, and causing water-borne diseases.
The problem has become worse in recent years as authorities struggle to find new landfill sites. Residents of areas around dump sites frequently demonstrate to protest for better conditions.
dpa pt cds
Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai made headlines as he swept the streets in front of the parliament building, flanked by his wife, Maoist leader Hishila Yami and Local Development Minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi.
The clean-up campaign was initiated by the government and the city authorities to encourage people to keep their neighbourhood clean and tackle Kathmandu's growing waste management problem.
"We need to contribute to a clean and healthy Kathmandu, so that we can build a new Nepal, so I request everyone to contribute to this,” Bhattarai said.
The government has called on every household to provide one volunteer, and said it expects to mobilize up to 10,000 pairs of hands for three hours each day for a week. There will also be a clampdown on littering.
Ministers, politicians, students, police officers, soldiers, government officials and residents all turned out for Friday's clean-up.
“This is to make people aware and responsible for their city,” Rayamajhi said. “It’s an example of cooperation between people and government.”
On the last two days of the campaign, the rivers will be cleaned.
Kathmandu has a long-standing garbage management problem, with piles of rubbish left to fester on the streets, and causing water-borne diseases.
The problem has become worse in recent years as authorities struggle to find new landfill sites. Residents of areas around dump sites frequently demonstrate to protest for better conditions.
dpa pt cds
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