September 6: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of waste management to the Ministry of Urban Development.

The issue of waste management has become a major challenge, especially in the main cities across the country, including the Kathmandu Valley.

During a meeting held at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM) on Tuesday, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said that the responsibility and coordination of waste management will be handed over to the Ministry of Urban Development.

"The federal government is taking serious measures for waste management across the country, including the Kathmandu Valley. We will take a decision to hand over the waste management responsibility across the country to the Ministry of Urban Development in the next cabinet meeting," said Prime Minister Dahal.

Prime Minister Dahal emphasized that waste management is a joint responsibility of the federal, provincial and local governments. He also instructed the concerned authorities to do the homework for the long-term management of waste, stating that a legal system and a long-term mechanism will be created for the waste management.

During Tuesday’s meeting, the participants expressed their views on various aspects of the long-term solution to waste management. The issue of waste management at Bancharedanda, demands raised by the local affected by dumping, purchase of land for dumping site and other issues were also discussed during the meeting.

Stakeholders pointed out the need to form a high-level mechanism for this. In addition, the participants said that legal arrangements are necessary.

Minister for Urban Development Sita Gurung, Chief Secretary of the Government of Nepal Dr Baikuntha Aryal, Prime Minister's Office Secretaries Eknarayan Aryal and Maniram Gelal, Urban Development Ministry’s Secretary Rabindraman Shrestha, Investment Board Nepal’s Executive Director Sushil Bhatta, Kathmandu Metropolitan City’s Chief Administrative Officer Basanta Adhikari, Lalitpur Metropolitan City’s Chief Administrative Officer Birendradev Bharti and others were present during the meeting