The animal slaughterhouses in Kathmandu Valley are not operating with standard health measures and have been deemed harmful to public health.

At a workshop on Animal Slaughterhouse Management organized by Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC), participants called for banning all animal slaughterhouses as they are against the law and do not meet the set criteria.

KMC CEO, Ishwor Raj Poudel, said the authorities would carry out inspection at the animal slaughterhouses and brand them qualified and unqualified by tagging them with stickers.

Livestock Ministry's Joint Secretary Banshi Sharma, stressed on the urgency to build cold stores for preservation of meat.

The Kathmandu Valley consumes around 600 to 700 buffaloes, 1500 to 2000 goats and 200,000 kilos of chicken meat and 300 pigs.

The valley receives a daily 60 tons of waste from slaughtering animals and lack of proper management of the waste poses hazard to human health, said Animal Slaughterhouse Entrepreneurs Association Chairman Dr Navin Sharma.

There are eight animal slaughterhouses in Tarai, but none in the valley that meets the criteria, KMC Public Health Division Chief, Hari Kumar Shrestha said. RSS