Nepal: Thick smog covers Kathmandu, reduces visibility

Apr 17, 2023

Kathmandu (Nepal), Apr 17 (ANI): Nepal’s capital city of Kathmandu, was shrouded in thick smog that caused reduced visibility, said locals on Sunday. Nepal, with a population of around 30 million people, is located in the Himalayas between China and India, two of the world's biggest polluters. Buildings were seen engulfed by smog as the U.S. Embassy pollution monitoring station showed the AQI crossing the 190 mark. In a report released by IQAir, a Swiss air quality tech company, declared Kathmandu as the most polluted among 101 cities in the world. Earlier this week, the Nepal government attributed the rising pollution in Kathmandu and the central and eastern parts of the country to forest fires and the burning of agricultural residues. Experts say Dust from construction works, exhaust from old, poorly maintained vehicles and smoke from coal-burning brick kilns blend in a murky haze that hangs over Kathmandu city, raising the risk of cancer, stroke, asthma and high blood pressure.