Air pollution has increased in various parts of the country including the Kathmandu Valley has increased lately due to incidents of forest fires.
According to the Department of Forest and Environment, polluted air has got accumulated in the Kathmandu Valley.
The atmosphere of the bowl shaped Kathmandu valley has been affected following the arrival of polluted air from the western part, it said.
Issuing a statement the Department said that forest fires in 140 locations including in Bara, Parsa and Chitwan have contributed to the air pollution at the excessive level in the Valley and in the central and eastern regions of the country. It is more intense in the mornings and evenings, according to the Department.
The Department has urged people mainly children, senior citizens, the people with breathing problems and with heart diseases to stay indoors as much as possible and wear masks, and glass and take all the possible safety measures in case of urgency to go outside.
The Air Quality Index showed that the air quality in most of the places in Kathmandu district has already crossed the danger line. Besides Kathmandu the air quality has worsened in Butwal, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, Kirtipur, Madhyapur Thimi, and Hetauda. The problem of high levels of air pollution facing major cities of Nepal including Pokhara and Kathmandu has also affected domestic flights, according to officials.
