Nepal Emergency & Helpline Numbers: Police 100, Ambulance 102, Fire 101

Nepal uses short three-digit codes for its life-threatening emergency services, and the three you should memorise first are Police 100, Ambulance 102 and Fire 101. Dial 100 to reach the Nepal Police control room, which functions much like 911 in the United States or 112 in Europe: it dispatches officers for crimes, accidents, violence and any situation that needs immediate police response. Ambulance 102 connects you to emergency medical dispatch, and Fire 101 reaches the fire brigade for fires and many rescue situations.

All three numbers are toll-free and answered around the clock. You can dial them from any Nepal Telecom (NTC) or Ncell mobile, from a landline, and typically even from a phone with no balance. Because these are national short codes, they route to the nearest control room based on your location, so the same number works in Kathmandu, Pokhara, Biratnagar or a rural district headquarters.

When you call, stay calm and give three things quickly: what happened, exactly where you are (landmark, ward, municipality or district), and a callback number. In cities the police control room can usually respond in minutes, but in remote areas response times depend on the nearest post and road access, so it is worth also saving the direct number of your local police station or hospital where you live or trek.

A practical caution about ambulances: while 102 is the standard dispatch code, ambulance coverage varies widely across Nepal, and in many areas people call a nearby hospital, the local Red Cross, or a private ambulance service directly for the fastest pickup. For fire and serious medical emergencies in the Kathmandu Valley, response is generally quicker than in the hills and mountains, where you may need to arrange transport yourself.

For road incidents, traffic jams and vehicle emergencies, dial Traffic Police 103. The Metropolitan Traffic Police Division and its counterparts handle accidents, hit-and-run reports, road obstructions and drink-driving. If you are involved in a road accident, calling 103 (or 100) and staying at the scene until police arrive is important, as leaving can complicate insurance and legal matters.

Tourist Police 1144 is the dedicated helpline for foreign visitors. Nepal's Tourist Police is a specialised unit of Nepal Police working with the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation; it was first established on 26 January 1979 (13 Magh 2035 BS) and now runs units across the Kathmandu Valley, Pokhara and other tourist areas. Officers speak English and help with scams, theft, lost documents, trekking problems and disputes with hotels, guides or vendors. The central office sits at Bhrikutimandap in Kathmandu, inside the Nepal Tourism Board premises.

Two further security forces have their own short codes. The Nepal Police Headquarters line is 1113, and the Armed Police Force (APF) — which handles border security, riot control and disaster rescue — can be reached on 1114. For missing-child cases specifically, Nepal Police also publicises 104, and the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), Nepal's main anti-corruption body, uses 107.

If you are unsure which force to call in a fast-moving situation, dialling 100 is always a safe default; the police control room can escalate to traffic units, the APF or the fire brigade as needed.

Nepal operates 24-hour protection helplines for its most vulnerable citizens. The Child Helpline number is 1098, a free, round-the-clock line run in Nepal by CWIN (Child Workers in Nepal Concerned Centre), a pioneering child-rights organisation founded in 1987. Child Helpline 1098 is part of the global Child Helpline International network and responds to reports of child abuse, exploitation, trafficking, child labour, missing children and children in crisis, coordinating with police and child-protection authorities.

For women facing violence, abuse or rights violations, the helpline 1145 is associated with the National Women Commission of Nepal. It offers support, referral and information for survivors of gender-based violence and domestic abuse. Like the child line, it is intended to be reachable free of charge, though callers in remote areas may find local police (100) faster for an immediate physical threat.

These helplines exist because a phone call is often the safest first step for someone who cannot walk into a police station. Where there is an immediate danger to life, always call 100 first for police, then follow up with the specialised helpline for ongoing protection, counselling and case support. Human-trafficking cases are also handled through the Nepal Police bureau, and additional helpline numbers for trafficking and other issues are publicised by telecom operators and government agencies from time to time.

For disasters — earthquakes, floods, landslides, fires at scale and other large emergencies — Nepal's coordinating body is the National Emergency Operation Center (NEOC), which operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Its toll-free hotline is 1149. NEOC was inaugurated on 17 December 2010 (1 Poush 2067 BS) to strengthen national emergency and seismic response, and it runs 24/7 as the hub that collects disaster information and coordinates the response across security forces, ministries and district emergency operation centres.

In a widespread disaster such as a major earthquake, ordinary lines like 100 can become overwhelmed, so knowing the NEOC line (1149) and the Home Ministry's general line (1112) is useful for reporting large incidents, requesting rescue coordination and getting official information. NEOC's landline numbers include +977-1-4200105 and +977-1-4200258, with the email neoc@moha.gov.np.

Note one common source of confusion: some third-party lists label 1149 as an electricity or NEA line. Authoritative government sources tie 1149 to the NEOC disaster hotline under the Ministry of Home Affairs. The Nepal Electricity Authority's own fault line is different (see the utilities section below). When in doubt during a disaster, 1149 for NEOC and 100 for police are the reliable choices.

Beyond life-threatening emergencies, several utility and health helplines use short codes. For health emergencies and information, Nepal has publicised the number 1115, and Patan Mental Hospital operates a mental-health line on 1166. For blood in an emergency, the Nepal Red Cross Society blood bank and Nepal Police blood bank (01-4225344) are common contacts, alongside major hospitals. Because health provision is decentralised, saving the number of your nearest hospital or clinic is strongly recommended, especially outside the Kathmandu Valley.

For electricity faults and outages, the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) runs a call centre on 1150. Callers within the Kathmandu Valley can report power cuts, faulty lines and transformer problems through this line. Reporting the exact location and, if possible, your consumer or meter number helps NEA dispatch a repair team.

For drinking-water problems in the Kathmandu Valley, the utility is Kathmandu Upatyaka Khanepani Limited (KUKL). KUKL does not use a national three-digit short code; instead, contact its head office (for example, 01-4117356 / 01-4117358) or your local branch office for supply complaints, leaks and tanker requests. Water services elsewhere in Nepal are handled by local water-supply offices and user committees, so numbers vary by town.

Finally, for non-emergency public grievances against government offices, Nepal runs the 'Hello Sarkar' complaint line on 1111, operated through the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. This is for service complaints and suggestions — not a rescue line — so never use it in place of 100, 101 or 102 in a genuine emergency.

Save the core numbers before you need them. On a mobile, add 100 (police), 102 (ambulance) and 101 (fire) as contacts, and keep 1144 (Tourist Police) if you are a visitor. On this page's mobile view, each number is tap-to-call, so you can dial directly from a card. Because Nepal's short codes are toll-free and answered in Nepali, a foreign visitor with no Nepali may find 1144 easier for non-life-threatening help, but 100/101/102 still work for true emergencies.

When you call, lead with your location. Nepal's addressing can be informal, so give the nearest well-known landmark, the ward number, the municipality or rural municipality, and the district. If you are trekking, note the trail, the nearest village and, if you have it, your GPS coordinates. Keeping your phone charged and carrying a power bank matters, as does knowing that mobile coverage drops in remote mountain areas where a satellite phone or your trekking agency's contacts may be the only option.

Tourists should also keep their embassy's contact details and their travel-insurance emergency line, especially for helicopter evacuation, which insurers must usually pre-authorise. For any serious incident, the sequence police first, then the relevant helpline, then your embassy or insurer generally serves best.

Numbers and coverage can change over time, and third-party lists online sometimes carry outdated or mislabelled entries. This directory prioritises codes confirmed by Nepal Police, the Ministry of Home Affairs / NEOC, telecom operators and CWIN. If a number does not connect, dial 100, which can route you to the right service.