Nawalpur, Dec 20 (RSS):
-Basudev Poudel
The vulture restaurant that was established in 2006 AD in Pithauli, Nawalpur for the conservation of rare bird species, vulture, is being developed as a tourism destination.
The site has been developed as a destination for those aspiring to study birds, particularly vultures and enjoy eco-tourism. As part of the campaign for vulture protection, the local community of Pithauli took the initiative to establish the world’s first vulture restaurant in 2006.
Conservationist and chairperson of Nawalparasi Vulture Conservation Committee DB Chaudhary said the community-managed restaurant has gradually become a tourism hotspot, especially for those interested in bird tourism and eco-tourism.
Claiming that the number of vultures has increased with the setup of the restaurant; he said domestic and foreign tourists from different countries are increasingly turning to the restaurant for vulture observation and research.
Research has shown that the trend of vulture extinction however has increased over the past two decades.
The use of diclofenac in the treatment of ailing cattle has been one of the main reasons behind the extinction of vultures, conservationists said. Vulture conservation has seen trouble in the lack of their peculiar food of late. The trend of rearing livestock has sharply declined lately and the cattle once dead are being disposed of in a different manner. It has resulted in a crisis of food for vultures, conservationists added.
It is shared that nine out of 23 species of vulture are found in Nepal. —