Kathmandu, Dec. 10 -- A 45-year-old man from Kalanki visited chest physician Dr Dirgha Singh Bom's private clinic, on Monday, complaining of coughing and shortness of breath. The man was diagnosed with bronchial asthma.

"He was suffering from bronchial asthma because of long exposure to dust pollution," Bom told the Post, over the phone. The doctor then prescribed him some medicine and asked him to stay indoors, use masks while going out of the house, and take other precautionary measures to avoid dust pollution.

"The number of such cases has increased by several folds in recent years," Bom added. "I examined four such cases this morning alone."

With a dip in temperature, the number of people suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonar...