KATHMANDU, Oct 7: As the Dashain festival approaches, approximately 50,000 people have been leaving Kathmandu Valley each day for the past few days. The Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police (KVTP) reported that about 450,000 people have left the valley in the past eight days to return to their hometowns to celebrate the Dashain festival.
The main highways were blocked due to the recent floods and landslides across the country on September 28. Both BP Highway and Tribhuvan Highway, the main highways connecting the valley to outer districts, were completely closed for two-days. The BP Highway is still not fully operational. Some people have been traveling through alternative routes as the roads have been affected by the floods and landslides. This has caused an increase in the number of people leaving the valley as Dashain approaches.
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In previous years, around 70,000 people would leave Kathmandu every day after Ghatasthapana. However, this number has now barely reached 50,000. According to the traffic police, as many as 446,909 have left Kathmandu Valley from September 30 to 9:30 am on October 7. Although schools and colleges are closed for Dashain, the number of passengers leaving Kathmandu is lower than compared to the previous Dashain due to the condition of the highway.
Currently, the highest number of people leaving the valley are passing through Nagdhunga. So far, as many as 290,000 passengers have already left the valley through the checkpoint. According to the police, more than 1.5 million people used to leave Kathmandu Valley during Dashain. This time the number of people leaving the valley for their hometown to celebrate Dashain is expected to decline.
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