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The wet season, like the winter, comes with very many challenges and dengue is one of them.

Caused by the dengue mosquito (Aedes aegypti), this vectorborne disease has emerged as a major seasonal public health threat, especially in urban areas of Nepal.

A number of factors like rising temperatures resulting from climate change, the lack of proper drainage systems, rapid urbanization, potholes resulting from shoddy road construction works, lack of public awareness about the disease and inefficiency on the part of ‘responsible’ government authorities are behind this scourge.

Some reports point out that while the first case of dengue was reported in Nepal as a travel case in 2004, indigenous cases of the disease have become quite common since then.

Province-wise, as of 10 Sept 2022, the Bagmati had the highest number of dengue cases (6205), followed by Lumbini province (1284), Koshi province (282), Sudurpaschim (206), Gandaki (150), Madhes (144) and Karnali (56).

In 2022 and 2023, dengue emerged as a major threat, with 54,784 and 51,243 cases reported.

Are these data not enough to indicate to our responsible authorities that dengue is a clear and present danger?

If they are, what are these authorities doing to bring down dengue cases this time around?

Have they begun de-watering the pits and puddles, and started patching the holes that have become integral parts of our roads? Will they even bother to make sure that stagnated pools of water do not become breeding grounds for these mosquitoes?

While all three tiers of the government have a vital role to play in dengue control and management, blaming the government will not make us safe and secure. The onus is also on us to make sure that our homesteads and localities do not become breeding grounds for the dreaded vector like the mosquito, posing a threat to our health and well-being.

Interestingly, according to a study, mosquitos account for 725,000 deaths every year, followed by people (4.75 lakh), snakes (50,000), dogs (25,000), freshwater snails (10,000), hippos (500), elephants (100) and sharks (10).

According to the World Health Organization, the highest number of dengue cases was recorded in 2023, affecting over 80 countries in all regions of WHO. Since the beginning of 2023 ongoing transmission, combined with an unexpected spike in dengue cases, resulted in a historic high of over 6.5m cases and more than 7300 dengue-related deaths reported.

Water holding containers such as bird baths, pet water dishes, plant saucers, children's pools, boats and junks such as old tires, and discarded appliances are ideal breeding spots for this vector. As the vector lays eggs on water, getting rid of stagnated water is a wise step along with the use of mosquito nets and repellents.

As prevention is better than cure, let’s channelize our energies on keeping this dreaded vector away. Together, we can—and we should. 

For more than 20 years, the only Living Planet found thus far in a vast universe has been celebrating the World Environment Day on June 5 to draw the attention of humanity toward pressing environmental concerns. This time, the world is celebrating the big day under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Program with a very relevant theme: #BeatPlasticPollution. The Republic of Korea (RoK) is hosting the global celebrations geared toward ending plastic pollution, not an easy undertaking (to say the least), given a pervasive use of plastics in our lives.

The World Environment Day 2025 states in its homepage: For decades, plastic pollution has seeped into every corner of the world, leaching into the water we drink, into the food we eat, and our bodies. While plastic pollution is a major concern, it is also one of the most fixable of today’s environmental challenges, with some obvious solutions at hand.

Together with the UNEP, this year’s celebrations will spotlight the growing scientific evidence on the impacts of plastic pollution and drive momentum to refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle and rethink (4Rs) plastics use, apart from reinforcing the global commitment made in 2022 to end plastic pollution through a global plastic pollution treaty.

Plastic pollution is a key factor behind three major crises facing life on Earth: the crisis of climate change, the crisis of nature, land and biodiversity loss, and the crisis of pollution and waste. An estimated 11m tonnes of plastic waste leak into aquatic ecosystems each year, while microplastics accumulate in the soil from sewage and landfills, due to the use of plastics in agricultural products. The annual social and environmental cost of plastic pollution ranges from $300-$600bn.

While Nepal has a very nominal pollution footprint compared to global economic powerhouses, plastic pollution is becoming increasingly visible in our daily lives. As our water bodies, sewage systems, forests and even our streets show, plastic pollution is emerging as an all-pervasive problem, contaminating the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we partake, with severe consequences not only for us but for the entire living planet.   

As a famous quote goes: If you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem. While celebrating the big day with the rest of humanity, let us not forget that the onus is also on us to end plastic pollution. Together, we can beat plastic pollution—and all other forms of pollution—and we must, for there’s no other living planet in this vast universe. 

The recent spate of intense pre-monsoon rains has come as an alarm for a polity that has not been quite effective when it comes to protecting lives and properties during disasters, natural or otherwise. 

The rains that have been lashing different parts of the country of late may be an indication that monsoon rains might be more intense this year than in the past, resulting in increased loss of lives and properties than in previous years if the level of our disaster preparedness is not notches in comparison to the past.
Keeping a worst-case scenario in mind, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority has prepared a draft Monsoon Preparedness and Response National Action Plan that estimates that monsoon disasters this year are likely to affect as many as 2m people—in a country with a population of barely 30m—from 4.5 lakh households.The action plan is reportedly based on analysis of relevant data from the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology and also includes suggestions coming from stakeholders. As these disasters are likely to affect all seven provinces, NDRRMA has assigned sectoral tasks to relevant sub-national authorities.     
Preparing a disaster preparedness plan is indeed a good start, it is the way to go when it comes to minimizing injuries as well as the loss of lives and properties. Obviously, its effective execution can make a difference between life and death. A plan that remains on paper is not worth the paper it is written on.  
In Nepal, the weather phenomenon generally sets in around mid-June and withdraws with the start of October.
By the way, even if the monsoon were to stick strictly to its usual dates of onset and withdrawal, that too in this day and age of erratic weather patterns, has this action plan not been a bit late in coming? If yes, what caused the delays? Should not a democratic state tasked with protecting lives and limbs not answer this question? Should not it make sure that such delays do not happen again?
Will our authorities not be running against time while making necessary arrangements for protecting lives and properties from monsoon-induced disasters like landslides, floods, inundation, etc, given chances of an early onset of monsoon? One more thing: Our action plans look great, but their poor implementation leaves much to be desired. ‘Action’ has been the missing part in most of our grandiose plans. Let’s hope that this does not happen with a plan that aims to reduce the risk of monsoon disasters and manage them better. 

The first edition of Sagarmatha Sambaad, Nepal’s initiative to draw global attention to the impact of climate change on the mountains and humanity, begins tomorrow. Themed Climate Change, Mountains and the Future of Humanity, one of the promotional materials for the summit features a nugget of wisdom in Sanskrit, in a smaller print: Vaade vaade jaayate tatwabodha. 

A rough translation of the line would be: Only through relentless deliberations can one get to the essence. It’s just like extracting butter by churning milk, though the process of getting to the essence can be a very long and excruciating, especially in this day and age of global warming, climate change and climate deniers. 

Despite a very small carbon footprint, Nepal has been bearing disproportionate effects of climate change and these effects are most severe on the Himalayas, one of the very few priceless sources of freshwater and a lifeline for billions of people living downstream.  

Notable absences from the neighborhood and beyond aside, diplomats, politicians, climate scientists and experts from around the world are gathering on the lap (literally) of the Sagarmatha, the world’s highest mountain, for the summit. Apart from possible shortcomings on the part of the host, these absences perhaps point out at an alarming level of indifference on the part of the political top brass of respective countries toward a smorgasbord of issues that have a most profound impact on the future of humanity. They seem to forget that while humanity can now explore the vastness of Space in fancy vessels, it cannot bring water from there to quench the thirst of parched living beings.  

Indeed, the summit has become all the more important as it is taking place at the time of a major withdrawal from the Paris Agreement and a fresh round of hostilities between two nuclear-powered countries in the immediate neighborhood and major wars in other parts of the world, activities that take a massive on the environment.
It comes barely a month after the host country nearly choked as air pollution worsened due to drought and raging wildfires, resulting mainly from climate change and global warming.     

As for preparations vis-a-vis the summit, some critics as well as skeptics argue that the government should have adopted a bottom-up approach, by initiating discussions at local, provincial and central levels, identifying issues and presenting them at the forum. Such a grounded approach, they say, would have prevented the conclave from becoming a purely academic exercise and a mere talk shop, taking it further away from the lived experiences of local communities. They are perhaps right, also in their stance that much more could have been done to rally the whole nation behind this common cause.
Criticism and a bit of skepticism aside, the dialogue is a good beginning and here’s hoping that those at the helm of affairs around the world get to the essence soon enough—and act—before this Living Planet ceases to be as a result of our climate-unfriendly ways of life.