The statement issued by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations in New York said the NA began the work in Jaalbhanjyang in Tanahun district and Kopche in Siraha district.
The army had laid the mines in Jaalbhanjyang on a steep hillside to protect a strategic telecommunications tower during the insurgency period, said the statement. The mine has already killed a 10-year-old boy and injured a member of the mine clearance squad.
UN Mine Action Team Programme Manager in Nepal, Stephen Robinson, said Nepal could be a mine impact free country “within the next three years”.
“The Nepal Army is rapidly developing the skills and expertise for mine clearance,” Robinson said in the statement. “Ultimately, the Army has the potential to apply these skills to benefit the international community by deploying as United Nations deminers in other mine-afflicted countries, such as Sudan.”
Mine Action Team in Nepal is comprised of UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) and UNICEF. Five minefields have been cleared in Nepal during 2008, the statement said adding that there are 48 military pattern minefields remaining, as well as a number of protective fields consisting of improvised explosive devices.
“UNICEF is working with the Ministry of Education to infuse mine risk education in the school curriculum,” said UNICEF’s Hugues Laurenge. UNICEF is also supporting an information system for victims of landmine and improvised explosive devices.
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