COVID-19 And Vaccines In Nepal 

Overview

COVID-19 and Vaccines In Nepal: The entire world has been poorly affected by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal. Likewise, our country is also an outrageous victim of the global pandemic. However, from the pristine hills of Mustang to the terrain plains of Chitwan Lowland, the virus has dragged us down to our knees, whether in our spirits or the economy.

Similarly, the plan to celebrate 2020 as Visit Nepal 2020 went in vain due to the outbreak of Covid-19. Regarding our country, Nepal is landlocked and settled between two mammoth nations, India and China. Nepal is directly in touch with the international boundary of both India and China. Being connected with both countries, the country of 30 million habitats was exposed openly, and the COVID-19 cases upsurged mainly due to this reason. Thus, Nepal was classified as a high-risk region and the least unprepared country to face this tricky situation and produce its vaccines. Nepal’s government is still providing different companies with COVID-19 Vaccines in Nepal.

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How Did COVID-19 Start In Nepal, And What Consequences Were Brought?

Nepal is categorized into 77 districts and seven provinces whose data on COVID-19 cases and vaccines in Nepal are collected separately. The first COVID-19 case was seen in a student on January 23, 2020, who had recently traveled from China to Bagmati Province. Still, the student recovered due to a meticulous isolation process in Teku Hospital. Throughout the week, suspects were examined deeply, and there were no active cases during the first week of March. But the inflow of Nepali citizens from abroad made the situation more dreadful, and our country registered its 2nd case through a woman who was traveling from France via Qatar when WHO (World Health Organization) declared COVID-19 as a global pandemic on March 11, that alarming situation induced panic in the laypeople of Nepal.

The Nepal government was compelled to initiate a lockdown regarding the dire situation. On March 24, 2020, the lockdown was extended to the whole country with strict rules and regulations. Everything from government work to education and recreation was halted for an extended period. Similarly, all international flights were canceled, and no travelers, even Nepali citizens, were allowed to enter the country.

The international borders were sealed as well. Also, the Tourism Board of Nepal suspended the issue of trekking permits. Despite the lockdown, our country, Nepal, registered the first local transmission of COVID-19 in Kailali, and COVID-19 cases were escalating more and more. The most frightening news arrived May 24 24, 2020, when a 29-year-old female who gave birth to four babies lost her life due to Covid-19. It was confirmed later. This news developed fear among the indigenous people of Nepal, and they took the novel virus Corona as a significant threat. But after a few days, the active cases rose significantly to 1000.

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In the meantime, the government was making insurmountable efforts to provide various testing kits and amenities. The government fabricated a total of 10 laboratories in all the provinces. RDT (Rapid Diagnostic Test) was made available to all districts. In contrast, due to the limited availability of PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), this test was performed on quarantined citizens who had just returned from a foreign land or on people who had shreds of evidence of contact tracing on them.

Thus, by the first week of June, about a hundred thousand people were tested via RDT and PCR. The situation was getting much worse daily, and the total active cases hit a figure of 10,000 in June, and the death tally increased to 30. Apart from this, our government officials diligently worked to deport tourists stuck in Nepal to their home country. In the final week of March, hundreds of foreigners were rescued and transferred to their countries through safe passage.

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End Of Lockdown And A Starting Phase Of The New Everyday Life During COVID-19

Some positive news arrived at our doorstep on July 13: 10,000 people recovered from COVID-19, and the situation was somehow controlled. Following the recovery, the government ended the nationwide lockdown on June 21, 2020. To that date, about 18,000 positive cases have been recorded; unfortunately, 40 deaths have occurred.

The Ministry of Health and Population (MOHP) implemented strict rules and protocols for every sector: Public gatherings should not be allowed, international flights are to be operated with limited frequencies, public transport, business, and hotels should maintain social distancing, the places with more influences of the public like gyms, theatres should remain closed, and the education should be provided through solid safety precautions. Things started to accelerate slowly, and people began to adopt the changes and start a new normal life.

Generally, with COVID-19, people across the streets were witnessed wearing protective gear like masks, gloves, and sanitizers. Hand washing was prevalent in a significant amount. Moreover, the outbreak of the virus brought some abrupt changes in people.

They were more conscious about their health and eating habits as well. Despite all this awareness, the active cases spiked up, and the death tally reached 100 in the 2nd week of August 2020. Besides this, the novel Coronavirus brought major threats; the data from Nepali police indicated that no suicide cases increased by about 10 to 20 per day. As an economically unstable country, it is arduous for everyday people to maintain their livelihood, and people face significant problems, but life goes on no matter what. We have started to live a new daily life.

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The Arrival Of Vaccines And Sudden Rise Of 2nd Variants Of COVID-19.

The New Year brought some rejoicing news in the form of COVID-19 vaccines. While some power-packed nations struggled, we were among the first to initiate a vaccine campaign. The vaccination campaign began when India provided the AstraZeneca vaccine, the CVID-19 shield. The one million doses were first prioritized for frontline health workers, supporting staff, elderly people, and people who were vaccinated accordingly in two phases.

Side by side, the government instituted other vaccines from India and China and promised to vaccinate other millions till late August. After vaccination, the tests were limited and only performed on people returning from abroad, and even isolation was practiced in their own homes. The situation seemed somewhat controlled, and laypeople were seen practicing festivals in public places; gatherings frequently occurred even when film halls started to open for the public.

However, as of May, Nepal was again alarmed when another dominant strain of Coronavirus devastated our adjoining country, India. Due to the open border between the two nations, the second strain of the virus increased, and by the start of April 2021, the total number of cases was overwhelming and reached 300,000, the highest number of cases to date. The government had to impose a lockdown from Kathmandu to other places for April 26 26.

However, the condition was much more adverse than the first strain as the virus was more contagious. Due to our total dependency on India, we lacked oxygen cylinders and health accessories. The advent of COVID-19 recently brought chaos to our health system. The hospital beds were occupied, and we lacked oxygen cylinders, ventilators, and other critical equipment.

Deadly consequences were noticed on May 9y 9, 2021. Nine thousand three hundred seventeen cases of COVID were recorded, the highest number of daily cases. Not only this, Nepal transcended India’s mortality rate as well, and may 17y 17, 2021, the total death tally reached 5215. However, we somehow managed to tackle this situation, and the ratio of cases is decreasing. However, the government has implemented prohibitory orders with various restrictions on July 15ly 15, 2021.

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Impact On Tourism Due To COVID-19

The small land of the Himalayas is gifted with mystic natural beauty, a diversified landscape, trekking adventures, snow-capped mountains, and impeccable art explored by millions of people across the globe. The heavenly country welcomes thousands of visitors from across the world. Thus, tourism is one of the significant sources of economic growth. Tourism accounts for 8% of the Gross Development Product (GDP) and about 1.5 million jobs.

Nepal has welcomed a surreal number of tourists for the past few years, and we hope to amass a larger number in 2020 through the Visit Nepal 2020 campaign. Unfortunately, we had to cancel that campaign due to the worldwide spread of the COVID-19 virus. The abolishment of tourism packages has also resulted in the loss of almost ten thousand tourist guide jobs.

According to The Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation, our country had to bear a loss of around 3 million in revenues due to the prevailing lockdown in the country. However, after the end of the first lockdown, Boundless Adventure was able to conduct Everest Base Camp Trekking, Everest Helicopter tour, Manaslu Trekking, Upper Mustang trekking, and Culture tour; however, have to follow the quarantine rule strictly; the visitors stayed compulsory ten days quarantine, and after they were tested negative, they were allowed to visit the country.

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The Overall Scenario Of COVID-19 And Vaccines In Nepal Till Now

The situation is unimaginable to date; around 9,000 people are the prey to this virus, the economy is sinking, people are going through tough times, and the nation is in a state of fallen spirits. However, the government is trying to get rid of this lethal virus. It is estimated that 2.61 million people were vaccinated with the first dose of the COVID-19 shield. Similarly, we have received 1 million doses of COVID shield from India and 1 million doses of Vero cell from China, which has been vaccinated to about 5% of the total population. Another great news arrived late at the start of July.

The Chinese government pleaded for help with 8 million doses of Vero Cel. On July 12, 2021, the US ambassador handed about 1.5 million doses of Johnson and Johnson vaccines to the Ministry of Health and Population (MOHP). It is estimated that around 10 million people will be affected by those available vaccines. Some efforts are also made to entice tourists to our country.

The government lifted the local flight limit in the first week of July, and the number of international flights is going to increase. Citizens from China, India, Qatar, and Foreigners are permitted in Nepal, and an additional number of nations will be added soon. However, travelers must follow the strict protocol; they must exhibit a negative PCR test within 72 hours and show proof that they are vaccinated.

Further mandatory 5-7 days quarantine is needed for a safe travel passage in the country while you are double vaccinated. If you are non-Covid-19 vaccinated, you cannot travel to Nepal. There are some positive signs ahead of us to travel freely.

The Sun Will Shine Brightly In The Future :

Lately, we all have gone through the worst period of our lives; we have not been able to enjoy life to the fullest. But these times will eventually end. We will travel more in the serene land of Nepal, and together, we will forget every Low of our lives and rejuvenate again in a small paradise of the world. Still, we have to check out COVID-19 and Vaccines in Nepal.

Nepal Is Open For Travel.

Does anyone think of traveling to Nepal recently? It is open, and you can get an arrival visa at the Nepal airport. You should have double doses of vaccination paper and a PCR report within 72 hours.

However, COVID-19 is already used. There is no longer COVID-19 in Nepal. Many people have already started to travel to Nepal. Everyone gets an arrival visa at the Tribhuvan International Airport. Please contact us for more information about COVID-19 and Vaccines in Nepal.