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The Ministry of Health and Population has instructed various health facilities to remain on standby in view of increasing cases of COVID-19 in the country. The direction came as the daily graph of fresh COVID-19 cases is going up lately. Cases of mutated Omicron sub-variant XBB1.16.1 of COVID -19 found in neighboring India have been recorded lately in Nepal as well. According to Director of Epidemiology and Disease Control Division, Dr Chuman Lal Das, the latest variant of COVID-19 is more infectious and hospitals are directed to be in ready position to respond to the possible situation ahead. Bir Hospital, Shukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital, TU Teaching Hospital, Patan Academy of Health Sciences, Civil Service Hospital, Armed Police Force Hospital and Nepal Police Hospital are among those health facilities directed to be prepared for handling the untoward situation. On Wednesday, a person succumbed to COVID-19, the first death from the virus in over three months. Bir Hospital director Dr Santosh Poudel said they have been directed to be prepared for the response to COVID-19 in view of its soaring cases lately. Shukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital chief consultant physician Dr Bimal Chalise said they are alert to possible risk of infections and are prepared accordingly. "There is no need to panic, but we must be alert to possible risk," he said, adding that the hospital reported a ventilator case of COVID-19 and two ICU cases at the moment. On Wednesday, 106 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in the country.  At present, 24 are in isolation, 13 in ICU care and five on ventilator support for COVID-19.  The Division has said it has tightened COVID-19 checks along the Nepal-India border since Wednesday.

Nepal reported 121 new Covid-19 cases and one death on Wednesday. According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 620 swab samples were tested in the RT-PCR method, of which 58 returned positive. Likewise, 1, 757 people underwent antigen tests, of which 63 were tested positive. The Ministry said that 81 infected people recovered from the disease. As of today, there are 445 active cases in the country.

Mahesh Paudyal is a Nepali author, translator, and literary critic, whose works vary from poems to novels to short stories, in both Nepali and English language. His first published writing was a poem called ‘O Chair, My Chair’, that came out in the year 1995. ‘My Share’, ‘Anamik Yatri’, ‘Sapanako Pul’, and ‘Tadi Kinarko Geet’ are some of his other notable works. Anushka Nepal from ApEx talked to Paudyal to know more about his writing journey so far. What pushed you to pursue writing as a career? I think it was my family background that got me interested in writing. My father was a teacher and he always encouraged me to read. Even my birthday gifts used to be books. My siblings were into literature too. Most of my father’s friends were writers or someone from a literary background. Growing up surrounded by these people has had the biggest influence when it comes to my career. But I didn’t come to that realization until I was done with high school. I used to write but not because I was interested in becoming a published author. I just loved to write. When I decided to pursue my bachelor’s in major English that was when I realized I wanted to become a writer. Your works vary from novels to poems to short stories. What genre are you the most comfortable with? I feel like writing stories is what I prefer the most, especially fiction. A part of it is also influenced by the fact that I teach literature at a university and I often discuss stories from the curriculum with my students. So, writing stories comes to me easily, be it short or long. That doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy working on novels and poems. But I think of myself as more of a storyteller than anything else. What books do you have on your to-be-read list? There are many. Being a teacher, I need to stay updated with new works that get published. Not that I don’t enjoy reading either but I think my teaching profession keeps me from slacking off. From my recent visit to Delhi, India, I have bought ‘The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida’ by Shehan Karunatilaka, and ‘Tomb of Sand’ by Geetanjali Shree, which I am looking forward to reading. ‘Shunya ko Mulya’ by Dr Nawaraj KC, and ‘Yashodhara’ by Hari Bol Kafle are also on the list. Are you working on something new? I’m currently working on publishing a short story collection. I have come up with plots for around 20 stories but I will choose around 15 of them to publish. It might take me a year or more to complete this work. I’m also in the process of publishing a poem collection, which will include poems from young and aspiring writers. Currently, I’m collecting and editing their works. The name of this collection will be ‘Extended Light’, which will hopefully be out around October 2023. Since you are also a translator, are there any books you would like to translate in either Nepali or English language? There are a few Nepali books, I think, that need to reach international platforms. One of them is ‘Sharanarthi’ by Krishna Dharabasi. It’s an incredibly well-written book that needs to be read by more people. It would be an honor to be able to translate this book. ‘Madhabi’ by Madan Mani Dixit is one of the best fiction written in the Nepali literature. I’m also quite interested in translating this book. As a literary critic, what improvement do you think Nepali literature needs? I think it’s necessary to preserve Nepali culture, tradition, and its uniqueness through our literature. We need to focus on highlighting our civilization, history, and things that can only be found in Nepal through our writings. I think that’s one thing we need to maintain in order to improve the current scenario of Nepali literature. Also, after the People’s Movement II, a lot of works that have come out are mission writings or propaganda literature. They are all based on current political or social scenarios, which might not be as relevant 20-30 years down the lane as it is now. We need to stop that. Writing should be relevant despite when it’s written. I think it’s time we move on from writing about political and social instability and focus on things that will not die down no matter how many years have gone by. Paudyal’s picks The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka  The Booker Prize 2022 winner written by the Sri Lankan writer Shehan Karunatilaka is a satirical book. It’s actually historical fiction based on the murderous mayhem during the civil war in Sri Lanka. Shunya ko Mulya by Dr Nawaraj KC ‘Shunya ko Mulya’, written by Dr Nawaraj KC, is based on the gruesome reality of women living in Karnali, including but not limited to the suffering and health issues they endure. Tomb of Sand by Geetanjali Shree Tomb of Sand is a Hindi-language novel by Geetanjali Shree, whose English translation (translated by Daisy Rockwell) won the International Booker Prize in 2022. Yashodhara by Hari Bol Kafle Yashodhara by Hari Bol Kafle tells the story of Yashodhara, wife of Siddhartha Gautama, and the sacrifices she’s made in his journey to become the Buddha.

Three Sherpa climbers have gone missing near the Mt Everest Base Camp. The incident occurred while they were heading towards Camp 1 from the base camp. A source at the Tourism Ministry said that Dawa Tshiri Sherpa, Pemba Tenzing Sherpa and Lakpa Rita Sherpa of Theso, Pasanglhamu Rural Municipality went missing after being buried by a mound of snow. Details about the incident are yet to come.