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The air quality of Kathmandu Valley worsened on Sunday and reached an 'unhealthy level'. 

As per the Air Quality Index (AQI), air pollution level of the Kathmandu Valley has reached an unhealthy level with 175 this afternoon.  

Kathmandu ranked the seventh among the most polluted cities in the world today. Cairo has been listed in the top rank of the most polluted cities during the period with 273 AQI. 

Director General of the Department of Environment, Gyan Raj Subedi, shared that dry weather, operation of factories and industries and speedy development construction are reasons behind the air pollution, adding there is possibility of more air pollution until rainfall occurs.

Bodies concerned have been suggested to lay emphasis on environment-friendly development, he underlined. 

Disaster Management Expert Dr Dharma Raj Upreti said air quality from 0-50 AQI (green sign) is  categorized good while 51-100 AQI (yellow signal) moderate, 101-150 AQI unhealthy for sensitive group, 151-200 AQI unhealthy, 201-300 AQI very unhealthy and above 301 AQI hazardous. 

As per the Air Quality Management Procedure, 2076 for Kathmandu Valley, the government has made provision to consider a situation where AQI exceeds above 300 as a disaster.

The government has started a nationwide ‘Human Papillomavirus’ (HPV) vaccination campaign for girls studying in grade six from today.

According to the Child Health and Vaccination Branch of the Department of Health Services, vaccination has begun for girls studying in grade six and out-of-school girls aged 10 years and above across the country from today. 

The campaign will run until February 27.

During the campaign, girls currently studying in grades seven to 10 and out-of-school girls aged 11 to 14 who missed out on last year’s HPV vaccination campaign will also be vaccinated.

Girls studying in grade 6 will be vaccinated at schools and other girls at vaccination centers.

Chief of the Branch, Dr Abhiyan Gautam urged everyone to get vaccinated as the vaccine is 100% effective. Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women in Nepal, and it is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women.

Last year, around 1.7 million girls in grades six to 10 and out-of-school age groups of 10 to 14 across the country were vaccinated. 

According to the branch, about 350,000 children will be vaccinated against cervical cancer during the 20-day campaign.

The weather in the hilly and mountainous regions of Koshi, Bagmati, Gandaki, and Sudurpashchim Provinces will be partly cloudy, while it will be mainly fair in the rest of the country today. 

There is a possibility of light rain and snowfall at one or two places in the high hilly and mountainous regions of Koshi Province, according to the Meteorological Forecasting Division.

In addition, fog and mist will occur in some places of the Tarai region.

Later tonight, mist will occur at a few places in the Tarai region. 

The weather in high hilly and mountainous regions of Gandaki Province, along with Karnali and Sudurpashchim Provinces, will be partly cloudy, while the rest of the country will experience mainly fair weather, says the 8 am bulletin by the Division.

Furthermore, the Meteorological Analysis by the Division says that at present there is partial influence of westerly winds in the country.

International Day of Zero Tolerance for Genital Mutilation is being observed on Friday. 

In 2012, the United Nations General Assembly had decided to observe February 6 every year as the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation. 

The objective of the day celebration is to further consolidate the efforts underway to end the practices around female genital mutilation. 

The day empathizes with continuous engagement and investment from all-country governments, civil society organizations, communities, philanthropic agencies and international organizations. 

According to the UN, over 230 million girls and women alive today have been subjected to FGM and require access to appropriate care services. 

The stakes are high: an estimated 22.7 million additional girls are at risk of undergoing FGM by 2030 unless action is accelerated. 

Every year, approximately four million girls are subjected to this practice, with over two million occurring before the age of five.

In his message on the day, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for renewing our promise to protect the rights of women and girls everywhere, and ensure that they can live free from violence and fear. "Together, we can end this injustice once and for all", he noted. 

While progress has been made, half of the progress over the last 30 years was achieved in just the last decade, it is not enough, the UN said. 

The rate of decline must be 27 times faster to meet the Sustainable Development Goal target by 2030.

Ending FGM requires sustained investment. For every $1 invested to end FGM, there is a return of $10. 

Conversely, inaction is costly; treating the health complications of FGM costs health systems an estimated USD 1.4, it is stated. 

Female genital mutilation is a human rights violation that infringes on the fundamental rights of girls and women. The injury of female genitalia for non-medical reasons can have short-term to lifelong health impacts on physical, sexual, and mental health, spanning from childhood, reproductive years, and into old age.