Submit your Article

Air pollution across the country including the Kathmandu Valley has gone rampant in the past few days, and the condition is expected to high remain for three more days. Wind and rainfall are unlikely in some days, thus resulting in the continuation of the atmospheric pollution, said the Meteorological Forecasting Division (MFD). A lack of rainfall and wildfires in most parts of the country in the past few days are blamed for air pollution, said Shankar Prasad Paudel, Spokesperson for the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology. Satellite pictures have showed that air pollution has increased in the Kathmandu Valley (Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur), Bara, Parsa and Chitwan districts in particular, he said, adding that the Valley witnessed air pollution due to failure for the wind flowing into and accumulated in the Valley from Bara, Parsa and Chitwan through the Bagmati corridor to blow elsewhere. The Department has urged people to take precautions and not to step outside home and to use facemasks and sunglasses. It will take some days for the clearance of air pollution, said meteorologist and disaster expert Dr Dharma Upreti. Air pollution increases risks of diseases like pressure, heart problems and cancer, said Paudel. As a result of air pollution, flights have also been affected. Domestic flights were affected on Sunday due to low visibility, according to the Tribhuvan International Airport Office. However, international flights are generally operating. The Kathmandu Valley has been ranked as the most polluted city in the world, according to the WHO with the Air Quality Index (AQI) reading above 200. Bhaktapur, and Patan of Lalitpur district were mostly polluted. Similarly, Kirtipur and Ratnapark in Kathmandu district, Madhyapur Thimi in Bhaktapur, Hetauda in Makawanpur and Dhankuta district were also among polluted cities with the AQI reading around 200. Air quality with AQI between 51 and 100 is considered to be normal, and air quality with AQI above is said to be unhealthy. Air quality with AQI above 300 is considered to be dangerous and detrimental. Generally, people with deteriorating health are prone to air quality with AQI above 50, and air quality with AQI above 100 is unhealthy to all.  

At least nine loan shark victims were injured in a clash with police at Shantibatika on Monday. They are receiving treatment at the Trauma Center. Information Officer at the Trauma Center Arjun Prasad Bhetuwal said that they are undergoing treatment at the Emergency Ward of Trauma Center. According to him, most of the injured have sustained injuries on their head and various parts of the body. The injured have been identified as Kul Bahadur Thapa, Akbar Miya of Nawalparasi, Lok Narayan Subedi of Ilam, Krishna Nanda Mahato of Sarlahi, Pradeep Nepal of Okhaldhunga, Til Ram Chaudhary of Nawalparasi, Sitaram Tamang of Balaju, Yam Kumari Tadel of Rukum and Devi Devisa. It has been learnt that police have taken 25 loan shark victims under control. Some police personnel were also injured in the clash. The clash broke out after the loan shark victims, who had been staging a sit-in inside Shantibatika, tried to head towards Bhadrakali this afternoon. Police baton charged the loan shark victims and also lobbed tear gas shells to take the situation under control.

A clash broke out between loan shark victims and police in Shantibatika on Monday. The clash broke out after the loan shark victims, who had been staging a sit-in inside Shantibatika, tried to head towards Bhadrakali this afternoon. Some loan shark victims and police personnel were injured in the clash. Police said that they have arrested some of the demonstrators from the scene. It has been learnt that the police baton charged the loan shark victims and also lobbed tear gas shells to take the situation under control. A large number of security personnel has been deployed in and around Shantibatika.  

A team of Nepal Army, which has joined a mountain cleanup campaign, has scaled the Annapurna I. The team led by Captain Suman Pandey reached atop the tenth highest mountain (8,091 meters) in the world at 8:55 am today, according to the Directorate of Public Relations and Information, Nepal Army. The mountaineering team, who conquered the mountain, included Lance Corporal Man Singh Chaudhary, army men Nabaraj Rana and Gyanendra Dangi and five Sherpa guides led by Tshering Jangbu Sherpa. A mountain cleanup campaign on an annual basis is underway under the leadership of the Nepal Army. It aims to conserve the biodiversity and ecology; it has been said. As part of the campaign, a cleanup drive is going on in mountains including Mount Everest, Lhotse, Baruntse and Annapurna. Meanwhile, a 13-member team led by Lieutenant Colonel Kishor Adhikari, who set out to tidy up Mount Everest and Lhotse, has reached the Second Base Camp, it has been said. Similarly, a team that has set out to clean up Baruntse is reaching the Base Camp. This year, it aims to collect around 35 tons of garbage from Mount Everest, Lhotse, Annapurna and Baruntse.