Save Wildlife: Nepal’s First-of-its-kind Wildlife Hospital Underway in Chitwan

In a move promoting wildlife conservation, Nepal is welcoming the country’s first-of-its-kind wildlife hospital to ensure proper health check-ups for the injured or diseased wild animals.

The Government of Nepal, Denver Zoo of United States of America and World Wildlife Fund are jointly funding this project estimated at a cost of Rs 30 million.

While 70 percent of construction activity has been completed, the hospital is still to see its full infrastructure potential with regard to required manpower and technology deployment.

“With the construction of the hospital, necessary medicines and technology would be installed which would ease treatment of injured and sick wildlife across Nepal,” says Dr Kamal Gaire of the Chitwan National Park.

Chitwan National Park has been witnessing a gradual rise in death of wild animals in the Park due to injuries or various other health issues.

According to Chitwan National Park Assistant Conservation Officer Narendra Regmi, rhinos in the Chitwan Park are facing such issues and facing deaths due to improper medical facilities.

Besides one-horned rhinos, other wild animals such as leopard, tiger, cheetal, deer, blue bull and Boar have also died due to lack of treatment.

The 2017-18 fiscal alone saw 25 death casualties of one-horned rhinos with around 14 of them reporting infections caused by injuries.

Annually, Chitwan National Park alone is witnessing deaths of more than 50 wild animals naturally with half of them suffering injuries due to lack of proper medical treatment.

Jawalakhel-based zoo has already begun offering medical facilities to injured wild animals.

As his contribution to the hospital, Acting Chief at the National Trust for Nature Conservation Ram Kumar Aryal has agreed to contribute a moving x-ray machine and quarantine facility.

Elated at the announcement, wildlife conservationists, stakeholders and wildlife supporters welcomed the construction of a hospital dedicated to wildlife protection in Chitwan.

The foundation stone for the construction of this Chitwan Wildlife Hospital was laid on March 04, 2015.