Kathmandu, October 7, 2016:Â The number of people leaving Kathmandu Valley for the Dashain holidays is increasing by the day.
More than 650,000 people have left the Valley in the last six days, with over 100,000 leaving on Thursday alone, according to the Kathmandu Metropolitan Traffic Police Department.
The volume of people leaving for their hometowns to celebrate Dashain is expected to double from Friday, when the holidays begin in many offices.
According to the Home Ministry’s estimate, two million people are expected to leave the Valley this festival season.
Superintendent of Police Lokendra Malla, spokesperson of the department, said more than 10,000 buses are exiting the Valley daily.
Despite increased number of daily bus departures–the government has added extra buses on long routes for Dashain– hundreds of people are still struggling to get tickets. Many people were seen travelling in the back of trucks to get to their hometowns on Thursday.
The department has issued a strict warning against carrying passengers beyond vehicle’s capacity and charging high transport fare.
It has also set up 12 help desks inside the Valley where passengers can report complaints if they are being charged more than the normal fare by transport operators.
