With a view to ward off any possibility of the spread of diseases, these self-motivated youths have been hauling away the dead animals, braving the stinking smell given off by rotting carcass.
Although it started with only seven youths from Kathmandu, many people joined later and now over 40 volunteers are at work in Bhotechaur area of Sindhupalchowk district. The same group of young volunteers had cleared the carcasses from the outskirts of the valley.
Sadly, the youths neither have any knowledge about animal rescue nor training or tools to dispose dead animals properly. They are solely driven by the motivation to do all they can to prevent the spread of any kind of infection from dead animals to humans.
"We wanted to help the injured people but we had no money to offer relief materials. But we thought cleaning up the dead bodies would be even greater help," said Naresh Regmi, a student at Ratna Rajya College.
"We realized letting these carcass rot openly could have grave consequences for human health," he added.
A day after the mega earthquake on April 25, Regmi and his friends Dilip Singh Thakuri, Pratik Gurung, Basudev Regmi and few others started their work from Dhakal Gaun, a remote village in Sankhu.
According to Regmi, It was JAYCESS Nepal that had first helped them reach the village with some medical supplies.
"We have been clearing up dead carcass every day since we reached Sankhu," said Regmi.
For the last one week, they have been camping out at Bhotechaur and reaching out to villagers who inform them about their dead animals. Most recently, they had cleaned off 200 dead chickens out of a collapsed poultry farm.
"Pulling out dead buffaloes is the hardest job. First, they are heavy than others and it is a lot of muscle work. At least ten people are needed to pull out a dead buffalo and the smell is unbearably bad," said Regmi.
Inspired by the works of Regmi and his friends, another student from R R College, Sunita Shakya has joined the group to offer any possible help.
"In such troubled times, it is our responsibility to help those in need. I might not be strong enough to pull out heavy carcasses but I can always help in spotting the areas where livestock have been largely affected," said Shakya.
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