Study underway as Gandaki rural municipality faces surge in cancer and renal diseases

Pokhara, August 29 — Gandaki Rural Municipality in Gorkha has drawn attention recently following reports that many individuals receiving cancer treatment from the rural municipality are farmers.

A team of experts, including those specializing in pesticides, agriculture, and health, visited various wards in Gandaki on Wednesday. They collected samples from agrovet shops, vegetables, fruits, soil, and water. The government has established a task force, coordinated by Manoj Pokharel, senior Plant Protection Officer at Plant Quarantine, and Pesticide Management Center under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, to investigate the situation.

The task force includes Scientist Kashinath Chiluwal from the Food Technology and Quality Control Department, Officer Bibek Sunar from the Central Agricultural Laboratory, and Plant Protection Officer Madhav Bhatta. The group has been given one month to produce a report after testing the local vegetables, fruits, pesticides, soil, and water.

Rijesh Uparkoti, Administrative Officer of the rural municipality, stated that while there is no confirmation that the cancer and kidney disease are caused by the excess use of pesticides in vegetable cultivation, the high number of sick farmers raises concerns. He acknowledged that the cancer statistics are accurate, but it is not yet confirmed if pesticides are the cause.

Uparkoti added that, along with the task force, they aim to determine the cause of the health issues. He also noted an increase in disabilities in the region, including among young people aged 20-25 and newborns.

The municipality has been conducting awareness programs for the past 4-5 years to investigate if pesticides are the cause. Despite spending significant amounts annually, there has been no improvement.

Lalita Adhikari, Vice Chair of the rural municipality, noted that while problems exist throughout the rural municipality, they are more prevalent in wards 6, 7, and 8. She emphasized that there is no study confirming that these issues are caused by pesticide use.

Public Health Officer Bimal Regmi added that although pesticides are widely used in Khyalchowk, it cannot be definitively stated that cancer and kidney disease are caused by them. He pointed out that Ward No. 2, which does not engage in vegetable cultivation, has a high number of cancer patients, raising questions about the cause.

Regmi also informed that the number of cancer patients has nearly doubled in the past year, from 38 in the financial year 2022-23 to 61 in the last year. The specifics of how many of these patients are farmers have not yet been determined. Most cases involve lung, uterus, and ear cancers, not skin cancer, which might be expected from pesticide poisoning. He mentioned that there are 15 renal disease patients in the rural municipality.