The accused admitted to supplying subsidised rice meant for Karnali to Bhaktapur.

The Health Ministry in April had announced 50 percent allowance for workers deployed to the frontline in the fight against Covid-19.

A week after 56 people were found to be infected, contact tracing has yet to begin. Winter brings seasonal flu, which has symptoms similar to Covid-19 and people may not be aware that they are carrying the coronavirus.

Authorities also restrict the movement of people from outside as well as within the district to contain the virus spread.

Several local units in the two districts have enhanced the institutional capacity of health facilities and initiated ambulance services for people in rural areas.

While villages in Karnali face shortage of food grains, subsidised rice meant for the region are being sold elsewhere.

Police arrested the accused on Tuesday and have remanded him in custody for seven days for a probe.

A truck carrying 250 quintals of subsidised rice on its way to Bhaktapur from Surkhet was seized by police, according to the chief district officer.

Eighty-nine people tested positive for the virus in the past week in the district, signifying a wider spread of the virus.

Despite the high expenditure, the local units did not deliver on their promise, say locals.

A senior doctor of Karnali Provincial Hospital died due to Covid-19 related complications on Thursday.

Locals raise questions about the poor monitoring and evaluation of the development work by the local authorities.

Only a few families have received half the grant announced by the provincial government while the rest have received none.

Every year during the harvest season, traders and businessmen would reach the orchards to purchase apples but no one has come this year, say farmers.

Two-fifths of the bureaucracy positions remain vacant and with the Federal Civil Servant Act still not in place, the province cannot start appointing civil servants on its own.

The Food Management and Trading Company Limited could not transport food to Mugu due to lockdown and disruption of Namga-Gamgadhi road by floods and landslides.

Two persons who were rescued from the incident site have been taken to Jumla-based Karnali Academy of Health Sciences for treatment.

The 50-bed isolation facility built a month ago has a leaking roof and weak walls, say locals.

Local governments say geographical remoteness and human resources shortage have hindered them from running effective virus containment measures.

Many schools in Karnali Province have been left to pick up after the mess left behind by quarantined villagers.