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Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) Mayor Balen Shah has said the mechanical broomers will come into operation within three days.

Mayor Shah shared this information during the executive meeting of KMC he chaired on Sunday. The broomers were left inoperative for two months as the contract with drivers was not renewed. This problem will be solved soon, he added.

According to him, for the mobilization of the municipal police, respective ward chairs could take decisions on their own.

He further said coordination would be made with development partners by holding meeting on the first Monday of every month. Coordination with stakeholders would be widened and strengthened to solve the problems gradually, he reiterated, saying, "Common efforts and participation is key to achieve success."

Similarly, Deputy Mayor Sunita Dongol also observed the meeting of the KMC executive.

Federal health officials said Sunday that kid-sized doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccines appear to be safe and effective for kids under 5, a key step toward a long-awaited decision to begin vaccinating the youngest American children, Associated Press.

The Food and Drug Administration posted its analysis of the Pfizer shot ahead of a Wednesday meeting where outside experts will vote on whether the shots are ready for the nation’s 18 million babies, toddlers and preschoolers. Kids under 5 are the only group not yet eligible for COVID-19 vaccination in the US 

Late last week the FDA posted a similar analysis of Moderna’s shots for children under 6. 

If regulators clear the shots by one or both companies, vaccinations could begin as soon as next week with the drugmakers ready to rapidly ship doses ordered by the government. Parents have been pressing federal officials for months for the opportunity to protect their smallest children as more adults shed masks and abandon other public health precautions.

While only about 3% of U.S. COVID cases are in the age group 6 months to 4 years, hospitalization and death rates in that group are higher than those for older children, according to the FDA’s analysis — one reason experts have said protecting this group is important, according to Associated Press.

The FDA said children who received Pfizer’s shots during testing developed high levels of virus-fighting antibodies expected to protect them against coronavirus. That’s the basic threshold needed to win FDA authorization. But additional testing turned up key differences, with stronger results for Pfizer.

Pfizer’s vaccine, given as a three-shot series, appeared 80% effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19, although that calculation was based on just 10 cases diagnosed among study participants. The figure could change as Pfizer’s study continues.

Moderna’s two-dose series was only about 40% to 50% effective at preventing milder infections, though the two companies’ shots were tested at different times during the pandemic, when different variants were circulating. Moderna has begun testing a booster for tots.

On Wednesday, the FDA will ask an independent panel of vaccine experts to debate both companies’ data before voting. The FDA is not required to follow the group’s recommendations, but the process is seen as a key step in publicly vetting the shots.

The FDA is expected to make its official decision shortly after Wednesday’s all-day meeting. The next step: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommends how to use vaccines, will convene its own expert panel to debate which tots need vaccinations.

It’s not clear how much demand there will initially be for the shots. A recent survey suggests only 1 in 5 parents of young children would get their kids vaccinated right away. Vaccines have been available since November for older US schoolchildren, yet less than a third of those ages 5 to 11 have gotten the two recommended doses, according to government figures, Associated Press reported.

For the youngest children, each company is offering different dose sizes and number of shots, beginning at 6 months through 4 years for Pfizer and through 5 years for Moderna.

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech plan to offer two shots three weeks apart followed by a third at least two months later — each one-tenth the dose given to adults. Pfizer is currently the only company with a COVID-19 vaccine for older US children. 

Moderna is seeking FDA clearance for two shots, each a quarter of its adult dose, given about four weeks apart. 

The FDA currently allows Moderna’s vaccine to be used only in adults. But some countries allow full-size doses for teens and half-size shots for kids ages 6 to 11 — a step the FDA also is considering.

More than 30,000 US children younger than 5 have been hospitalized with COVID-19 and nearly 500 coronavirus deaths have been reported in that age group, according to US health officials, Associated Press reported.

The government allowed pharmacies and states to start placing orders for tot-sized doses last week, with 5 million initially available — half made by Pfizer and half by Moderna.

Sudurpaschim Province has lagged behind in term of economic progress despite having abundant natural resources, according to a latest study carried out by the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB).

There have been challenges in making the country self-reliant on agricultural production though its commercialization due to various factors like lack of agriculture infrastructure and management of natural disasters and barren lands caused by increasing migration, said the study.

The province is low in the industrial and entrepreneurship due to a lack of research and exploration, and study of the potential sectors, it has been said.

Due to geographical difficulties, the province has faced challenges in the expansion of people's access to finance through the development of financial infrastructures and of the increment of financial literacy and in the construction of infrastructures, deposit collection and mobilising qualified human resources for loan mobilisation.

Bridging the gap between the province's low capacity in collecting revenue and capitalizing the available resources also seems to be an uphill task.

Managing required resources to increase the capacity of the local and provincial government in mobilising institutional and technical resources and in the infrastructural development is also another challenge.

Despite several challenges, it is mentioned that expansion of the pocket area of cash crops, determining the appropriate prices and increase in the production by using the modern technology are the possibilities that can be implemented immediately. There is high potential of these activities promoting exports by substituting the imports.

Productivity can be increased by minimizing the dependence on the seasonal rainfall for agriculture if the under-construction project of national pride, the Ranijamara Kulariya Irrigation Project, is completed on time. The project will irrigate a total 38,300 hectares land. Its physical progress has reached around 60 per cent.

Similarly, the province would see a significant contribution in the expansion and development of agriculture sector if the construction of the Mahakali Irrigation Project which has been undertaken with the aim of irrigating 33,520 hectares land is expedited and completed on time.

The Study states that the productivity of farmland and agricultural production would be increased thereby speeding up the industrial development of the province through the timely completion of these two major projects in the province.

It is stated that the province also has immense possibilities for the industrial development provided the construction of the required infrastructures like the industrial zone, industrial village, roads and electricity projects is speeded up for the same.

Likewise, the province has high potential for the promotion of tourism through the development of tourism infrastructures and facilities at the important historic, religious, cultural and natural touristic areas.

Nepal reported 19 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday.

According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 2, 162 swab samples were tested in the RT-PCR method, of which 11 returned positive. Likewise, 1, 291 people underwent antigen tests, of which eight were tested positive.

The Ministry said that no one died of virus in the last 24 hours. The Ministry said that 12 infected people recovered from the disease.

As of today, there are 106 active cases in the country.