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With the likely continuation of the nationwide lockdown for the foreseeable future, the education institutions in the country are having a challenging time completing their courses on time. All schools and colleges have now been closed for nearly a month. The Secondary Education Examinations (SEE) and board examinations of XI and XII grades have been postponed.

However, thanks to technology, students and teachers are now able to connect through various online platforms such as Google Classroom, Zoom, and even Facebook. Some private colleges, but not the schools, are already using these tools to run classes online during the Covid-19 lockdown. 

For Nikisha Basnet, a bachelor’s level student of psychology at the Kathmandu-based St. Xavier’s College, the only difference between online and regular classes is that “while you stare at the screen during online classes, you look at the whiteboard during regular classes.”

Resham Krishna Poudel, a teacher of managerial accounting at Lord Buddha Education Foundation, also believes that online classes have made things easier for both students and teachers. He says he now has enough time to prepare for his classes, as he no longer has to spend time commuting to the college. “Class timing can also be adjusted. We can run classes even during the night,” Poudel says. 

Online classes, according to him, are beneficial for students outside Kathmandu. “The expertise of teachers in Kathmandu Valley can be taken to remote areas, and students can learn from the comfort of their houses. They also save on costly rents they would have had to pay in Kathmandu,” he says. 

Yet online classes are not possible without supportive technology; they need multimedia devices and stable net connection. Sadikchya Adhikari, a student of dental surgery at Kantipur Dental College, complains about erratic audio and video quality during her online classes. “Though we can record the video and refer to it again and again, asking questions is not as easy in online classes,” she adds.  

Pukar Shakya is currently giving online classes for SEE appearing students. He says it is difficult to measure individual productivity online. “It’s not possible to engage everyone online. Lack of physical presence makes communication challenging,” Shakya says. He is also concerned that students may get easily distracted as they are free to surf the net during the classes. “Technology and gadgets are not sufficient to run a class effectively. I look forward to continuing online classes anyway.” 

“Regular classes are preferable to online classes as teaching calls for a particular environment,” in the view of Rahul Shrestha, who is pursuing a master's degree in Professional Accounting at Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia. “Lying on your bed with pajamas is not the best way to learn. There are also many other things at home to disturb your study,” Shrestha says. Yet he thinks having online classes is still a much better idea than having no classes at all and discontinuing regular study.  

Meanwhile, the government and public colleges have been unable to conduct online classes.

“In Nepal, those who can afford hefty fees go to private colleges whereas the ones who cannot go to government colleges,” says educationist Devendra Upreti. “Those in private colleges have the advantage of getting their lectures online. But government colleges do not have the infrastructure to run online classes.” 

Even our universities are not well equipped and teachers not ready for an online learning environment, Upreti adds. 

Sadly, the corona pandemic threatens to further widen the gap between the quality of education offered by private and public education institutions.

The novel coronavirus pandemic could have a lasting impact on the functioning of the Nepali state. First, there is now a risk that the government of KP Oli could clamp down on dissent and cement its hold on power on the excuse of tackling Covid-19. Even within the ruling Nepal Communist Party, co-chair Oli could use the pandemic to push back the party’s general convention slated for the second week of April 2021. Or that at least is the fear of party co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal camp. Without the general convention, Dahal cannot stake his claim on the party’s sole chairmanship.

Yet there are also those who believe that if PM Oli cannot properly handle the corona crisis, and if he is seen intent on clinging to power by hook or by crook, the tide in the party could turn against Oli. Says NCP leader Deepak Prakash Bhatta: “If PM Oli tries to cover up his weaknesses instead of correcting them, it will lead to growing polarization within the party, with the eventual weakening of incumbent leadership.” Likewise, with political activism around the country coming to a standstill, incumbent Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba could also try to delay the party’s general convention.

Another interesting issue the pandemic has thrown up is the role of the Nepal Army. The national charter allows army mobilization during national emergencies. But even though the pandemic has the country under its grips, the federal government is yet to declare a state of emergency. So how might the army be used? One way would be for the national force to follow the leadership of the Health Ministry, the lead agency in the country’s anti-corona efforts. In fact, even here, there is a big grey area.

This is partly because the National Security Council that can recommend army mobilization to the President has not met in a long time. The NSC could have met at this time of national crisis and charted out a role for the army, which hasn’t happened. Instead, the army has been given the controversial responsibility of importing vital medical equipment, when there was no need to involve the army. “The army could have told the government that it does not want to be involved in such business deals,” says Bhatta, who is also an expert on national security.

There is before us the herculean task of defeating the novel coronavirus that has challenged even the best healthcare systems in the world. This task is made harder still without a clear roadmap, and given the unclear roles of vital state institutions like the Nepal Army and the Armed Police Force. Without working out who is responsible for what and without ensuring a semblance of check and balance, the corona crisis could turn into a catastrophe.  

The novel coronavirus pandemic could have a lasting impact on the functioning of the Nepali state. First, there is now a risk that the government of KP Oli could clamp down on dissent and cement its hold on power on the excuse of tackling Covid-19. Even within the ruling Nepal Communist Party, co-chair Oli could use the pandemic to push back the party’s general convention slated for the second week of April 2021. Or that at least is the fear of party co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal camp. Without the general convention, Dahal cannot stake his claim on the party’s sole chairmanship.

Yet there are also those who believe that if PM Oli cannot properly handle the corona crisis, and if he is seen intent on clinging to power by hook or by crook, the tide in the party could turn against Oli. Says NCP leader Deepak Prakash Bhatta: “If PM Oli tries to cover up his weaknesses instead of correcting them, it will lead to growing polarization within the party, with the eventual weakening of incumbent leadership.” Likewise, with political activism around the country coming to a standstill, incumbent Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba could also try to delay the party’s general convention.

Another interesting issue the pandemic has thrown up is the role of the Nepal Army. The national charter allows army mobilization during national emergencies. But even though the pandemic has the country under its grips, the federal government is yet to declare a state of emergency. So how might the army be used? One way would be for the national force to follow the leadership of the Health Ministry, the lead agency in the country’s anti-corona efforts. In fact, even here, there is a big grey area.

This is partly because the National Security Council that can recommend army mobilization to the President has not met in a long time. The NSC could have met at this time of national crisis and charted out a role for the army, which hasn’t happened. Instead, the army has been given the controversial responsibility of importing vital medical equipment, when there was no need to involve the army. “The army could have told the government that it does not want to be involved in such business deals,” says Bhatta, who is also an expert on national security.

There is before us the herculean task of defeating the novel coronavirus that has challenged even the best healthcare systems in the world. This task is made harder still without a clear roadmap, and given the unclear roles of vital state institutions like the Nepal Army and the Armed Police Force. Without working out who is responsible for what and without ensuring a semblance of check and balance, the corona crisis could turn into a catastrophe.  

Kathmandu: The number of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) cases in Nepal has reached 30, with 14 new cases reported in the past 24 hours.

According to Ministry of Health and Population, 12 news cases were reported in a mosque in Udayapur district, and two cases in Chitwan district.  The ministry has not disclosed the details of people infected. This is most number of cases reported in a single day in Nepal. 

In recent days, the government has expedited testing of suspected people and deployed rapid medical test teams in almost all of the 77 districts.