Here are some of the big stories from today's The Kathmandu Post.
Nepal government puts all tourist visas on hold and cancels all spring climbing expeditions
The Nepal government, late Thursday night, decided to temporarily stop issuing on-arrival tourist visas to all countries and has put an end to all spring mountaineering expeditions, including Everest ascents.
The decision comes a day after the World Health Organization declared the Covid-19 outbreak a pandemic and urged countries to take precautionary measures.
“The visa suspension, which excludes diplomatic and official visas, will come into effect on March 14 and last until April 30,” a government official told the Post on condition of anonymity.
Central laboratory is equipped to test 500 Covid-19 cases a week, but that is far too low, say public health experts
With the World Health Organization’s declaration of the Covid-19 outbreak as a pandemic, countries across the world are springing into action, bolstering their public health systems and preparing for the eventual arrival of the virus.
Nepal’s authorities, after dithering for long on proper preventive and control measures, are slowly swinging into action, releasing public statements and holding press meets to educate the public.
In Oli’s absence, two ruling party factions vie for Madhav Nepal’s favour
When the Nepal Communist Party Secretariat decided to send party vice-chair Bamdev Gautam to the National Assembly earlier this month, party chair Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli was noticeably reluctant. The decision from the nine-member Secretariat came at the behest of Pushpa Kamal Dahal, the other chair in the party. There were speculations of a head-on confrontation between the two camps led by Oli and Dahal.
However, before the situation could escalate, Oli went for a second kidney transplant and the following Secretariat meeting failed to take up the issue of Gautam’s nomination.
As India steps up measures to control coronavirus spread, smaller border points with Nepal likely to be closed
As India has stepped up measures to control the spread of coronavirus, issuing a travel advisory for foreign and Indian nationals, its embassy in Kathmandu said on Thursday that the current measures are solely for the purposes of managing public health safety and that these measures do not have any impact on normal travel of Nepali nationals to India.
“Keeping in view the ramifications of current global spread of Covid-19 on public health and safety, certain health safety measures are being implemented for foreign and Indian nationals entering into and exiting from India,” the Embassy of India said in a statement. “The primary intention is to ensure the health and safety of both Indian as well as foreign nationals with bare minimum inconvenience to travel and mobility. These measures would be continuously reviewed depending on the evolving situation.”
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