Kathmandu, March 21

The number of people leaving Kathmandu valley has increased amidst the global COVID-19 threat in the last couple of days.

As of 3:00 pm today, a total of 130,000 people, especially school and college students, left the valley for their home towns. It is expected that additional 50,000 might leave the valley tonight, according to Metropolitan Traffic Police Division, Singha Durbar. Yesterday, 130,000 people and on Friday 108,000 people had left Kathmandu valley. On an average 80,000 to 85,000 people are leaving the valley on a daily basis, according to traffic police.

The number of people (especially students) going outside the valley has increased after the government decided to shut down all academic institutions until April 12 as a measure to contain possible outbreak of novel corornavirus.

People, who wish to travel outside Kathmandu, have time until tomorrow as the government has put a ban on long-route public vehicles from March 23 onwards.

SP Jeevan Kumar Shrestha, spokesperson for MTPD, said traffic police were conducting awareness programme about possible outbreak of the virus at the bus park. “We have also asked all public vehicle operators to disinfect the buses and take preventive measures,” Shrestha added.