Govt to ban Aceclofenac, Ketoprofen to protect vultures

KATHMANDU: The government is set to ban Aceclofenac and Ketoprofen, both veterinary non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, to help protect vultures.

The Ministry of Forests and Environment is banning the use of these drugs in treating animal diseases because vultures suffer health problems even leading to death after consuming carcasses of dead animals treated with the drugs, it has been said.

India and Bangladesh have also banned these two drugs.

The decision was taken in the meeting of the Nepal Vulture Rehabilitation Committee under the Ministry, said the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC).

In the meeting organized under the chairpersonship of the Director General of the DNPWC, the vulture conservation action plan (2023-2027) was presented and discussed.

For managing the use of veterinary nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs that have negative effects on the protection of vultures, the meeting also decided to launch public awareness and other coordinated programs with the help of the Nepal Bird Conservation Association and the involvement of the conservation partner organizations targeting the concerned local government and veterinarians.