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A large number of people have left the Kathmandu Valley for their hometowns in different parts of the country to take part in the local level elections taking place at all 753 units simultaneously tomorrow, Friday.

According to police, the Valley witnessed an exodus of 83 thousand people on Wednesday alone, two days before the voting day. Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office’s deputy superintendent of police Bal Narsingh Rana said over 550 thousand people left the Valley between May 4 and 11. Today too, a more number of passengers were seen home-bound in different places of the Valley than the number of those entering here.

Political parties have reportedly managed the travel of voters to their hometowns in this election and some have managed on their own.

People are observing public holidays for consecutive four days beginning from tomorrow as the government has announced a holiday on the voting day on Friday and it will be followed by a new provision of a two-day public weekend: Saturday and Sunday, a holiday for the Buddha Jayanti on Monday. It seems that people want to utilize the time to exercise their franchise to choose their representatives to the local government for the next five- year term.

The total number of voters for this election is 17 million 733 thousand 723 and a total number of voting stations is 10,756 followed by 21,955 polling booths. The government categorized 2,946 polling stations as highly sensitive, 4,423 as sensitive and 3,387 as less sensitive and the security arrangements are in place accordingly.

Following a large exodus of the people, roads in the Kathmandu Valley have sparse traffic than usual days. Thapathali, Singhadurbar, Tripureshwor, Maitighar, Koteshwor, Gaushala and Kalanki Chowk areas which used to see heavy traffic flow and traffic jam in usual days have sparse traffic.

Drivers say that they did not face a frequent traffic jam lately and a limited number of traffic police personnel have been mobilized to deal with the Valley traffic system.

Rescuers in India's western Gujarat state are picking up dozens of exhausted and dehydrated birds dropping everyday as a scorching heatwave dries out water sources in the state's biggest city, veterinary doctors and animal rescuers say, Reuters reported.

Large swathes of South Asia are drying up in the hottest pre-summer months in recent years, prompting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to warn of rising fire risks.

Doctors in an animal hospital managed by non-profit Jivdaya Charitable Trust in Ahmedabad said they have treated thousands of birds in the last few weeks, adding that rescuers bring dozens of high flying birds such as pigeons or kites everyday.

"This year has been one of the worst in the recent times. We have seen a 10% increase in the number of birds that need rescuing," Manoj Bhavsar, who works closely with the trust and has been rescuing birds for over a decade, according to Reuters.

Animal doctors at the trust-run hospital were seen feeding birds multi-vitamin tablets and injecting water into their mouths using syringes on Wednesday.

Health officials in Gujarat have issued advisories to hospitals to set up special wards for heat stroke and other heat-related diseases due to the rise in temperatures, Reuters reported.

At least 30 persons were injured when a bus met with an accident in Doti on Thursday.

The bus (SuPaPra 01 001 Kha 3108) belonging to the Malika Travels) was heading towards Bajura from Dhangadhi when the incident occurred at Sanagaun in Purbichauki Rural Municipality-4, Doti at around 6 am today, DSP Bhola Bhatta of the District Police Office, Doti said.

Nepal Army and Nepali Police personnel have been deployed to carry out rescue operations.

Among the injured, 16 are undergoing treatment at the District Hospital in Doti while 13 are receiving treatment at a local clinic, police said.

DSP Bhatta said that the bus driver fled the scene after the incident and they are searching for him.

The bus fell some 20 meters down the road, police said.

A powerful bomb exploded ahead of local level elections in Miklajung Rural Municipality, Morang on Wednesday.

Police suspect that the bomb may have been planted.

According to Madan Shrestha, a teacher at the  Saraswati Basis School, the blast was heard at around 11 pm yesterday.

Meanwhile, a suspicious object was found at Barkhe in Miklajung on Thursday.

A pressure cooker was found on the road around 50 meters from the school, this morning, DSP Deepak Shrestha of the District Police Office, Morang said.

Police suspect that the people who were against the elections may have detonated the bomb and placed a suspicious object on the road.