Pollution in Kathmandu
When Republica titled a recent photo-essay on Kathmandu ‘Dustmandu’, it was done only half in zest. For the air that we are breathing right now in the national capital is not just unhealthy but also dangerous. All the air quality monitoring stations in Kathmandu have in recent times recorded roughly double the recommended concentrations of cancer-causing small particulate in the valley air. There are many reasons for this. One is seasonal variation: during the winter the cool air in the valley traps more pollutants than is the case in the summer. But this is not why the valley air is so polluted right now. This has more to do with one, complete absence of monitoring of vehicle emissions and two, the never-ending pipe-laying works of the Malamchi Water Supply Project. It is an open secret that the green ‘pollution free’ stickers, which is mandatory for all vehicles in Kathmandu, can be bought in the black market for Rs 100 a piece without ever having to take your vehicle for an inspection. Thus it is a joke when traffic police stop and fine vehicle owners for failing to get up-to-date ‘pollution free’ stickers.
There also seems to be no system to the Malamchi project madness. Perfectly good black-topped roads have been dug up in the name of laying the pipes. But perhaps the valley would not be half as dusty if, instead of digging up at one place and laying the pipes in another, they could complete the process at one spot and only then move on to destroying another stretch of road. The same with another seemingly interminable project: expanding valley roads. Anecdotal evidence suggests that those involved in demolition and rebuilding of roadside infrastructure to accommodate expanded roads are working at snail’s pace. First of all, there aren’t enough workers available. Even the few that are available are paid by the day and not on the basis of their actual work. So they take their own sweet time. This has also badly disfigured major and minor roads in Kathmandu alike, added to air pollution and hindered free movement of people. All in all, Kathmandu right now is in one big mess.
Figuring out what needs to done to improve things is not rocket science. Swiftly repair the vehicle-exhaust testing machine that has been lying idle for the past four years and then make all vehicles that run on fossil fuel pass through it. Vehicles that are over 20 years old should then be taken off the roads, something successive governments have promised but failed to implement. The Melamchi works could also be done a lot more efficiently (and without producing so much dust) if its administrators put their mind to it. It also doesn’t make any sense to pay road contractors on a daily basis when their workers routinely idle away their time, clearly to increase work duration and with it their pay.
Already valley denizens are inhaling unsafe levels of carcinogens and other dangerous particulates. At this rate, it might not be long before the air of the national capital becomes unbreathable.
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