Kathmandu,: Though peace reigns following a series of pacts between Nepal's multiparty government and Maoist insurgents, about 12,000 unexploded landmines and other makeshift explosive devices planted across the country continue to remain potentially hazardous.

The army planted thousands of mines around the bases of security forces in Nepal's rural areas to safeguard them from Maoist attacks during the decade-old insurgency.

 The guerrillas, too, planted a large number of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) along highways and possible army routes to ambush passing convoys.

Though both sides have now agreed to lay down arms under the supervision of the United Nations, the mines and the devices are yet to be unearthed and defused.

The army is in a better position to deal with its handiwork. It has established a mine action centre at its headquarters in Kathmandu and is readying to establish five more for Nepal Army divisions spread across the country.

At a programme organised in the capital Sunday by an NGO, Ban Landmines Campaign Nepal, Major Prabin Bahadur Khadka told the media that the army's technical team would first carry out surveillance to locate the buried mines and then take measures to destroy them.

However, it's not going to be an easy task. With over 12,000 mines remaining buried, the army itself is unable to keep track of all the dangerous places.

Earlier this year, there were explosions and casualties when soldiers began digging across camp fences, where the explosives lay forgotten.

The IEDs planted by the Maoists pose an even greater hazard due to their instability. While the army uses mostly conventional mines that have some measure of stability, the guerrilla-devised explosives are known to have gone off in the hands of their cadres.

The guerrillas are also known to have left IEDs near markets, schools and residential areas where they were picked up by children, who thought them to be toys, and caused loss of life.

Though the government and the guerrillas have signed an arms accord, agreeing on de-mining and de-commissioning military hazards, it remains to be seen when the rebels swing into action.

There are still places in the villages where a red flag waving from a post or fence is the only warning to residents and passers-by that an explosive lies buried in the vicinity.

While the army is focusing on clearing landmines, Unicef also points out the need for education and rehabilitation of victims.

H Laurenge, a mines consultant with Unicef, has asked the government to evolve a Mine Action Plan that includes educating people about the risks, clearing the hidden hazards and assisting victims caught in blasts.

According to the expert, a national coordination authority should be formed to deal with the task, comprising representatives from the army, the Maoists, the UN and NGOs working on the issue.