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As Sri Lankans faint in day-long queues for fuel and swelter through stifling evening blackouts by candlelight, anger is mounting over the worst economic crisis in living memory, AFP reported.

A critical lack of foreign currency has left the island nation unable to pay for vital imports, leading to dire shortages in everything from life-saving medicines to cement.

Long lines for fuel that start forming before dawn are forums for public grievances, where neighbours complain bitterly about government mismanagement and fret over how to feed their families as food prices skyrocket.

"I've been standing here for the past five hours," Sagayarani, a housewife, told AFP in Colombo while waiting for her share of kerosene, used to fire the cooking stoves of the capital's poorer households.

She said she had seen three people faint already and was herself supposed to be in hospital for treatment, but with her husband and son at work she had no choice but to wait under the blistering morning sun.

"I haven't eaten anything, I'm feeling very dizzy and it's very hot, but what can we do? It's a lot of hardship," she said, declining to give her surname, according to AFP.

Trucks at the port are unable to cart food and building materials to other urban centres, or bring back tea from plantations dotted around Sri Lanka's verdant inland hills.

Buses that normally transport day labourers across the capital sit idle, some hospitals have suspended routine surgeries, and student exams were postponed this month because schools ran out of paper.

"I've been living in Colombo for 60 years and I've never seen anything like this," Vadivu, a domestic worker, told AFP.

"There's nothing to eat, there's nothing to drink," she added. "The politicians are living in luxury and we are begging on the streets."

Sri Lanka will be experiencing 10-hour daily power cuts from Wednesday, announced Public Utilities Commission of the island nation, according to AFP.

The Ceylon Electricity Board said in a statement that they were "compelled to take demand management measures due to inadequate power generation, as a result of fuel shortage and unavailability of generators."

Nepal reported 26 new Covid-19 cases on Wednesday.

According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 3, 940 swab samples were tested in the RT-PCR method, of which 25 returned positive. Likewise, 1, 252 people underwent antigen tests, of which one was tested positive.

The Ministry said that no one died of virus in the last 24 hours. The Ministry said that 77 infected people recovered from the disease.

As of today, there are 1, 146 active cases in the country.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi handed over the ceremonial key of Pokhara Regional International Airport to his Nepali counterpart Narayan Khadka this past week.

But is the airport, built with Chinese assistance, ready for operation? And the answer is a resounding no.

A lot remains to be done, say officials.

According to Binesh Munkarmi, the project chief, decoration and finishing works, procurement of ground vehicles, installation of boarding bridges and construction of fuel storage have not even started.

But the main hurdle to flight operation, he says, lies outside the main project area.

Pokhara’s landfill site, which lies within a 3km radius of the airport, is one of the major obstacles, as it attracts the birds that in turn could hit aircrafts.

Ornithologist Hemsagar Baral says it is an international practice to relocate the landfill site close to a new airport six months prior to its operation.

Pokhara has many species of scavenger vultures and eagles, some of them endangered, Baral says. “It is important to relocate the existing landfill site to protect these birds.”

Rithepani hill, situated east of the airport, presents another hurdle.

 The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has suggested flattening the hilltop by 40 meters for the operation of international flights. But the work for the same hasn’t progressed much. An environmental assessment report (EIA) for clearing the trees on the hill is yet to be approved by the Ministry of Forests and Environment. The hill must be cut down by at least 14 meters to conduct calibration flights.

“We can cut down the hill within a month. But first we need government approval,” says Munkarmi.

Pokhara’s unmanaged sewage and canal system could also hinder airport operation. The airport is located close to an irrigation canal, which overflows during the rainy season.

Last year, the canal was breached following heavy rains. The overflow of floodwater had then led to the erosion of a cliff overlooking the Bijayapur River east of the airport. 

“Without effective measures against flood and erosion, the ground where the airport stands itself is in danger,” says Hemanta Dhakal, a local resident.

There could be a problem in securing international route permits if these problems are not addressed soon.

Project officials say they have already requested Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, Finance Minister Janardan Sharma, Civil Aviation Minister Prem Ale, Gandaki Chief Minister Krishna Chandra Nepali and Pokhara Mayor Man Bahadur GC to remove these hurdles at the earliest.

Bishnuhari Adhikari, Pokhara’s civil-society leader, says obstructions posed by Pokhara’s landfill site, Rithepani hill, and unmanaged sewage and canal system weren’t unforeseen contingencies.

“These hurdles were there all along. But they were not acknowledged on time,” he says.

Brief rain with lightning is likely to occur in some parts of the country in the next three days. 

According to the Meteorological Forecasting Division, brief rain with lightning is likely to occur today at some places of Province 1, Madesh Province, Bagmati Province and Gandaki Province of the country. 

Likewise, the weather will be partly to generally cloudy in Province 1, Bagmati Province and Gandaki Province of the country.

There are chances of brief rain with lightning in one or two places of Province 1, Bagmati Province and Gandaki Province.

Now, the country witnesses a general influence of a low-pressure system based in the surroundings of Bihar and the impact of local wind.

The Division has urged one and all to take precautions against rising temperature in the southern plains.   

According to the Division’s latest details, the minimum temperature in the Kathmandu Valley was 17.2 degrees Celsius and the maximum 26.4 degrees Celsius. 

Likewise, Jumla reported the lowest 6.2 degrees Celsius and Nepalgunj recorded the highest 25.5 degrees Celsius across the country today. RSS