The World Habitat Day is being celebrated on Monday with the theme ´Urban Mobility´. [break]
Nepal started to observe the habitat day from the year 2004, though the UN Habitat, an UN agency for human settlement started observing the day since 1986.
To mark the day, the government has formed a steering committee under the coordination of Suresh Prakash Acharya, a joint secretary at Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD).
The committee is holding discussing programs in the capital where urban planners, policy makers and other stakeholders will discuss to overcome the challenges to urban mobility such as air pollution, traffic congestion, habit of piling solid wastes on the road, narrow sidewalks and poor road lighting.
“We are holding discussions with the stakeholders for developing a sustainable transportation system," said Shyam Kishor Singh, chief of Housing Section in Department of Urban Development and Building Construction (DUDBC).
"Due to traffic congestion created by unsustainable transportation system, people in the urban centers have not been able to reach to their work place and other desired destinations safely and quickly. It has led to a huge economic loss to the nation, besides fueling pollution,” he added.
He said the discussion will also dwell on measures to be taken to make the urban centers beautiful, besides friendly to the physically challenged, the elderly and women.
“Currently, the road infrastructures and public vehicles are not friendly to the elderly and physically disabled. Likewise, women are facing sexual harassment in public vehicles due to unsustainable transportation system, Acharya said. “By developing a sustainable transportation system, we want to encourage people to enhance public transportation and also develop walking culture in the cities."
Officials from all concerned authorities related with urban development, including the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Nepal Traffic Police, the Nepal Police, and Kathmandu Valley Development Authority, members from UN Habitat, journalists, transportation entrepreneurs, cyclists, representatives from various urban development related non-governmental organizations will be giving their inputs for ensuring urban mobility.
Meanwhile, the government´s steering committee, in coordination with 25 organizations, has also organized a two-day exhibition which showcases the representation of the concept of ´Urban Mobility´.
The exhibition was inaugurated by Urban Minister Chhabi Raj Panta.
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