On a more positive note
Most of Kathmandu's urbanisation woes are management problems. Given the political will and sound administration they can be solved overnight. Just look at how quickly an entire city block can be demolished, street lights fixed, or roads widened. The same goes for air pollution. All it took was the citizens of a Kathmandu suburb to rise up against illegal brick kilns, and the Bull Trenches have been hounded out. Others are still around, especially along the southern fringes of the valley, spewing the acrid smoke of burning tyres. But these too can be exiled. Now, after ignoring local activists and environmentalists for 25 years, the government has finally decided to close down the Chobhar cement factory, which gave Kathmandu the dubious distinction of being only capital in the world with a cement plant in full scale production three km outside city limits. Moral of the story: where there is political will, there is a way.