The loss of forest cover has been blamed on villagers' need for firewood and fodder. But cremation is also a significant factor, even though some officials and environmentalists understandably shy away from this delicate subject. One important reason for the receding treeline in the hills surrounding Kathmandu Valley is the demand for wood in the burning ghats of Pashupati and Sankhamool.
In Kathmandu, one response has been to build electric crematoria, but sociological and cultural factors make this remedy doubtful, according to some. In the meantime, elsewhere in Nepal and in the Indian hills, voluntary organizations and individuals have figured out ways to save precious firewood by burning more for less. "After all, why should you not try appropriate technology in the burning ghats?" asks a Nepali forester.
In Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, appropriate cremation technology takes the form of two low brick walls three feet apart and six feet long, with vents along the sides. Steel rods at six-inch intervals are placed a foot above the ground between the two walls. A wire mesh is sometimes placed above the rods. The design was perfected by the Indo-German Dhauladhar Project.
During cremation, firewood is placed atop the rods and the body above. Traditional funeral pyres involve piling up firewood on a rock platform, with no space underneath for a draft. The Palampur design, on the other hand, provides for sufficient aeration so that cremation is quicker and more efficient. The new design has passed muster with the people of Palampur, who bring their dead to one of two crematoria there.