Kathmandu: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Urban Development, Prakash Man Singh, today discussed with local representatives from the Kathmandu Valley regarding projects that are essential for the Valley to be addressed in the upcoming budget. The meeting held at the Minister’s office in Singha Durbar, was attended by mayors and deputy mayors from Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, and Lalitpur districts.
According to National News Agency Nepal, the meeting focused on exploring measures for further systematizing the Kathmandu Valley, making it good enough to live in, improving its river system, and addressing challenges in waste and traffic management. The Deputy Prime Minister underlined the need for collective efforts among the three-level government to restore the rivers in the Valley.
He proposed implementing a ‘septic tank’ campaign to restore the beauty and cleanliness of rivers. The construction of septic tanks will help prevent human encroachment on rivers. He proposed to make it mandatory for newly constructed houses to have a septic tank. For existing houses, facilities for 10-15 families each could be constructed.
The source of underground water in the Kathmandu Valley is depleting, requiring the implementation of the groundwater harvesting system and the septic tank construction campaign. DPM Singh sought cooperation among the three-tier government to this end.
He strongly suggested the need to find an alternative to using rivers for sewage management. DPM Singh urged the local levels to propose action plans capable of enhancing the beauty of the Valley and making it ‘habitable’.