Bird Conservation Nepal (BCN) and
animalrightsnepal.org jointly organised a photographic exhibition on the plight
of vultures in Nepal. The solo photo exhibition showcases pictures of the
vultures taken by a professional photo journalist Krishna Mani Baral.
Inaugurating the opening ceremony, Mr. Shyam
Bajimaya, Director General of the Department of National Parks and Wildlife
Conservation said that vultures play a key ecological role in maintaining the
healthy ecosystem. Mr. Bajimaya stated that the Government of Nepal has given
high priority to the conservation of vultures in Nepal and informed that the
Vulture Conservation Action Plan is being prepared jointly with the support of
BCN and the National Trust for Nature Conservation.
Similarly, Mr. Shree Ram Subedi, President of
BCN, remarked that as the oldest and largest civil society organisation, BCN is
dedicated to the continued survival and conservation of birds and their natural
habitat, and added that with the help from national and international partners,
BCN has been implementing several innovative programmes to conserve four out of
eight critically endangered vulture species through management interventions
such as the Jatayu Restaurant and the vulture conservation breeding centre. Mr.
Subedi added that the Jataju Restaurant offers clean, safe and diclofenac-free
healthy food to vultures, and BCN has been replicating the successful
initiatives to other parts of Nepal also.
The
inaugural programme of the exhibition was participated by over 50 vulture
enthusiasts, conservationists, journalists and the general public. The
week-long exhibition "Save Vulture, Save Environment" was open to
public at Nepal Art Council, Babarmahal, Kathmandu until April 29, 2009.
Vultures are a vital part of the natural world
and clean the environment by disposing of carcasses. Among the eight species of
vultures found in Nepal, four species are globally threatened. Main reason for
their decline is the rampant use of the veterinary drug Diclofenac and loss of
their nesting sites.
