KATHMANDU, Nepal — When COVID-19 came to Nepal, attention turned to an unlikely group of victims: hundreds of monkeys, cows and pigeons.
Normally, the animals are fed by thousands of devotees at the country’s most revered Hindu temple, Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu. But last month Nepal’s government ordered a complete lockdown to stop the spread of the coronavirus. People were forbidden from leaving their homes. Temples closed. And the animals risked starvation.
Now, every morning and evening, a few guards, about a dozen staff and some volunteers come out to ensure that the animals survive.
“We are trying to make sure that these animals are not starving and they are taken care of,” said Pradeep Dhakal, an official of the Pashupatinath Development Trust, which controls the temple and surrounding areas.