Immediate lockdown less likely: Health Ministry
"The government will be recommended to impose lockdown only after it becomes difficult for our resources and manpower to handle the COVID-19 situation,” Adhikari further said. “We are currently in comfortable position.”
"The government will be recommended to impose lockdown only after it becomes difficult for our resources and manpower to handle the COVID-19 situation,” Adhikari further said. “We are currently in comfortable position.”
KATHMANDU, December 7: At the time when the new Omicron variant of COVID-19 has triggered a ripple of fears of lockdown across the globe and the country, the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) has maintained that lockdown is very less likely immediately.
Nepal, too, on Monday detected two cases of a new variant of Omicron COVID-19 in overseas travellers. With the identification of the new cases in the country and the Omicron spreading rapidly in South Africa, the United Kingdom, Europe and the United States of America among many other countries, the general public are grappling with the fear of lockdown and the third wave of COVID-19.
Sunita Nepal, spokesperson for the COVID-19 Crisis Management Coordination Center (CCMCC) maintained that the top priority of the government will be effectively implementing the COVID-19 safety protocols like maintaining social distancing and wearing masks rather than going for a lockdown and the decisions in this regard has been made accordingly. “The local levels are bracing for the possible outbreaks of the virus and those travelling from abroad will have to stay in quarantine,” Nepal added. “Besides, contracting tracing will be the top most priority.”
Similarly, Dr Sameer Kumar Adhikari, joint spokesperson at the MoHP, stated that the government has not even thought of enforcing lockdown measures as of today. “The government will be recommended to impose lockdown only after it becomes difficult for our resources and manpower to handle the COVID-19 situation,” Adhikari further said. “We are currently in a comfortable position.”
So far, the government has decided to ban entry of travelers from nine countries including South Africa where the first case of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 was detected. These countries include South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Malawi and Hong Kong.
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