Kathmandu, October 17
Pollution level in Nepal has gone high with the onset of winter with the nation's capital Kathmandu being shrouded with thick polluted haze.
"Kathmandu is now shrouded with a thick polluted haze. About three days back, Kathmandu had bore a cleaner look but I have been encountering slight problems due to the increased pollution levels in the air making my daily operation affected," Ram Gurung, a resident of Kathmandu told ANI as he wore a surgical mask to protect himself from the pollution.
"I have prolonged illness with the pollution level rising, I have been experiencing shortness of breath and feel my eyes burning," he added.
As of 1 pm (Nepal time) the Nepali national capital's air quality index (AQI) stood at 151, making the air unhealthy to breathe, as per the recording from the pollution measuring station of US Embassy in Kathmandu.
Another pollution reading station by US Embassy in Phora Durbar, Lalitpur read the AQI at 169, further decreasing the quality of the air and making it unhealthy to breathe without a mask.
In recent years, air pollution in Nepal has become a serious environmental and public health risk, with pollution levels 4.9 times higher than recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Deteriorating air quality in Kathmandu is putting hundreds of thousands of Nepalese at risk of several health problems. The WHO has consistently found air pollution to be the leading risk factor for death and disability in Nepal.
The air quality of the city has been a major public health problem causing air pollution related morbidity and mortality, also placing an economic burden on the country due to loss of productivity and over-utilization of health system resources.
There has also been a lack of health impact assessment data to estimate the health and economic burden of air pollution as well as of the sectoral measures needed to tackle this environmental challenge.
Since last week, Kathmandu has been witnessing drop in the temperature which usually plummets the pollution level to record high. As per the Meteorological Forecasting Division the sudden drop in temperatures to the north-westerly wind which saw thick fog enveloping most parts of the country.
Also, the radiant cooling system that is activated has brought about dip in temperatures in areas like Kathmandu Valley. According to the Meteorological Forecasting Division (MFD) bulletin of Wednesday morning, temperatures have dropped in many places across the country.