Stakeholders have expressed concern that women, pregnant women, children and marginalized communities are more affected due to air pollution. Calling a healthy environment as everyone's right, they have demanded the government to ensure the constitutionally established right in practice.
The Women's Rehabilitation Center (OREC), which works in the field of women and children, submitted a letter to the Minister of Forest and Environment, Ain Bahadur Shahi, on Friday and demanded that air pollution be declared a public health emergency and the air pollution control program be implemented effectively.
On Friday, OREC program coordinators and rights activists Savitri Vick, Kamala Pokharel, Anupama Pokharel and Ambika Amatya met Forest Minister Shahi and submitted a memorandum. "The dangerous level of air pollution seen in the Kathmandu valley for the past one week has created a serious health risk, especially for women, children, pregnant and lactating mothers and senior citizens and street laborers," the attention letter said, "The Constitution of Nepal has provided every citizen with the fundamental right to live in a clean and healthy environment. However, the current air pollution crisis has violated this constitutional right and created a serious threat to public health.'
They say that the pressure of patients seen in hospitals in Kathmandu also indicates an increase in respiratory emergencies.
They have declared air pollution as a public health emergency and demanded immediate implementation of mitigation measures. Similarly, they called for effective monitoring mechanisms and strict enforcement of environmental regulations, implementing gender responsive policies to address the disproportionate impact of air pollution on women and marginalized communities.
Similarly, he emphasized on the need to invest in long-term, sustainable solutions such as air quality management, promotion of renewable energy, and expansion of urban greening, to establish regional cooperation with neighboring countries to control air pollution, and to be sensitive to human rights and environmental justice.
