Buddha's birthplace facing major environmental threat: Experts

Lumbini (Nepal), June 9 (ANI): Lord Buddha's birthplace is being polluted by noise and heavy industry, environmentalists have warned.

According to the New York Daily News, at least eight cement factories are in operation on a main road linking Lumbini in Nepal with the nearest city of Bhairahawam.

Air and noise pollution from stone crushers operating on both sides of a 14-mile stretch of road known as the "peace corridor" also has the locals worried.

member of Soka Gakkai International, a Buddhist organisation promoting peace in Nepal, was quoted as saying that the "government should take care to preserve this place. They should take initiatives and get involved in projects to make Lumbini free of pollution and noise."

Lumbini was nominated as a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1997 and is one of the four pivotal places in the life of Buddha, the others being Kushinagar, Bodh Gaya and Sarnath in India.

The Lumbini Development Trust is planning to ban the use of plastics and other polluting materials in the area and also wants to plant local species of trees and preserve the existing egetation to protect the environment. (ANI)