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Despite a month and half of lockdown, the number of novel coronavirus cases in Nepal continues to rise. As of May 5, the number of infected has climbed to 82. Of them, 61 are male and 21 female.

Banke district’s Nepalgunj, which lies on the border with India, has emerged as the hotspot in Nepal, with 24 new infections reported in the past couple of days. In the past 24 hours, seven new cases were detected there. Local authorities have imposed a curfew to contain the virus. Authorities fear the outbreak in Nepalgunj could reach a community-transmission level.

According to data provided by the Ministry of Health, 31 people have been infected in Province 1, 13 in Province 2, 7 in Bagmati Province, 1 in Gandaki Province, 24 in Province 5, 0 in Karnali Province, and 5 in Sudurpaschim Province. 

According to the ministry, around 21,000 people are currently quarantined in various parts of the country, with 120 people in isolation. “The health condition of all infected people is normal and they continue to undergo treatment,” said Dr. Bikas Devkota, spokesperson at the ministry.

Authorities attribute the increasing number of corona cases to flexible lockdown. Even during the nationwide lockdown, people have been traveling. There has been a growing movement of people in and out of Kathmandu as well as along the Nepal-India border.

As the prolonged lockdown has badly hit the country’s economy, authorities are working on multiple models to ease the lockdown. Speaking at a parliamentary committee, Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa said that the government was contemplating easing the lockdown as it could create a potential economic crisis.

Public health experts warn that easing lockdown without a massive expansion of testing could lead to a second wave of transmissions. In Nepal, the testing process has been slow. Due to the delay in purchasing testing kits, government hospitals are struggling to expand testing. It has been over a month since the decision on buying corona kits through a Government-to-Government (G-2-G) process was made. But there has been little progress since. 

The national flag of Nepal was illuminated brightly on the Matterhorn, a mountain in the Swiss Alps, on April 25, as a display of solidarity amid the global Covid-19 pandemic. The initiative of light artist Gerry Hofstetter has seen the mountainside in the village of Zermatt, Switzerland, illuminated every day with flags of different countries since March 24.

 “Nepal is not only the country with friendly people but also the country with the highest mountains in the world. Therefore, Zermatt as a mountain village feels particularly connected. We send a strong sign of our solidarity,” Zermatt Tourism said in a Twitter post.

Every night, the popular mountain is lit up with projections of images, including flags of countries across the globe, that have been hit with the deadly disease. Words such as ‘hope’, ‘solidarity’ and ‘stay home’ have also been displayed.

Kathmandu: The number of the novel coronavirus cases in Nepal has reached 14, including one person who has been cured of the disease. According to the Ministry of Health and Population, the number of positive corona cases has been increasing gradually in line with the greater number of tests carried out. 
In a press conference, Dr. Bikas Devkota, spokesperson at the ministry, informed that new two cases had been spotted in the past 24 hours, one in Rautahat district and another in Kailali district. A 19-year boy in Rautahat district, who was in quarantine, tested positive. Likewise, a 65-year-old woman from Kailali district tested positive.
Urging people to follow the lockdown, Devkota said the number of cases in Nepal has been rising.  The ministry has informed that contact tracing of previously infected people has been completed, and the process is underway for the two new infections. Till April 11, there had been over 10,000 tests in 52 districts. Similarly, 103 people are in isolation, nine in Kathmandu valley and 94 outside.  Around 7,000 people are in quarantine.

Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has dismissed the demand for an all-party political mechanism to deal with the novel coronavirus pandemic.

In a video-conference with chief ministers of seven provinces on Saturday, April 11, the prime minister ruled out such a mechanism as a separate entity from the government. The PM’s message came when his Nepal Communist Party co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal has been asking for such a mechanism to discuss and decide on vital corona-related measures.

Some fringe parties are also demanding such a mechanism, even as the main opposition Nepali Congress is divided on it.

“The government is carrying out its duties effectively. There is no need for another mechanism to direct it,” Oli said. Oli and his supporters see Dahal’s demand as a ploy to weaken the government. But Dahal’s supporters counter that at a time of crisis like this, inter- and intra-party consultations are vital, and something that Oli is allegedly avoiding.

In a separate context, PM Oli hinted at the extension of the lockdown beyond April 15. Next-door India, which is witnessing a rapid surge in number of Covid-19 patients, is preparing to extend the lockdown.

PM Oli told chief ministers that it would be unwise to lift the lockdown when the number of cases in India is going up. The PM also told the chiefs ministers to work towards restricting movements along Nepal-India border.