COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal
Overviews of COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal
COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal, The entire world has been poorly affected by the outbreak of the pandemic COVID- 19 in Nepal. Likewise, our country Nepal 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.
How did COVID-19 start in Nepal, and what consequences were brought? COVID-19 and Vaccines in Nepal
Nepal is categorized into 77 districts and seven provinces whose data on the COVID-19 case 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.
Regarding the dire situation, the Nepal government was compelled to initiate a lockdown. The lockdown was extended to the whole country on 24th March 2020 with strict rules and regulations. Everything from government works to education; recreation was halted for an extended period. Similarly, all the international flights were canceled, and no travelers, even Nepali citizens, were allowed to enter the country. The international borders were sealed as well. Not only this, 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 cases were escalating more and more. The most frightening news arrived on 24 May 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.
In the meantime, the government was pulling 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 the quarantined citizen who had just returned from a foreign land or on the 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 own countries through the safe passage.
End of Lockdown and a starting phase of the new everyday life during COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal
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 21 June 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 started a new usual kind of life.
Generally COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal, 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.
The arrival of vaccines and sudden rise of 2nd variants of COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal.
The New Year came up with some rejoicing news in the form of COVID 19 vaccines. While some power-packed nations were struggling, we were one of 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 firstly 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 2nd strain virus increased, and by the start of April 2021, the total number of cases was overwhelming and reached a figure of 300,000, the highest number of cases to date. The government had to impose a lockdown from Kathmandu to other places from April 26. But the condition was much more adverse than the first strain as the virus was more contagious than the first one. Due to our total dependency on India, we lacked oxygen cylinders and health accessories. The advent of COVID lately 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 9 May 2021. Nine thousand three hundred seventeen cases of COVID were recorded, the highest number of cases per day. Not only this, Nepal transcended India’s mortality rate as well, and on 17th May 2021, the total death tally reached 5215. However, we somehow managed to tackle this situation, and the ratio of cases is decreasing. But the government has implemented prohibitory orders with various restrictions till 15th July 2021.
Impact on Tourism due to COVID-19 and Vaccines in Nepal
The small land of the Himalayans 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 economy. Tourism accounts for 8% of the Gross Development Product (GDP) and about 1.5 million jobs. Our country Nepal has welcomed a surreal number of tourists for the past few years, and we hope to amass a more significant number of tourists in 2020 through the Visit Nepal 2020 campaign. Unfortunately, we had to cancel that campaign due to the worldwide spread of the COVID virus. Due to the abolishment of tourism packages, almost ten thousand jobs of tourist guides are lost. 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.
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 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 to help with 8 million doses of Vero Cell. On 12 July 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. Side by side, some efforts are made to entice tourists to our country. In the starting week of July, the government lifted the local flight limit. The number of international flights is going to increase. Citizens from China, India, and Qatar, and Foreigners are allowed to permit 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 if they are vaccinated, they must show proof.
Further mandatory 5-7 days quarantine is needed for a safe passage of travel 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 of COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal :
Lately, we all have gone through the worst period of our life; we have not been able to enjoy our 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 life and rejuvenate again in a small paradise of the world. Still 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 airport in Nepal. You should have double doses of vaccination paper and a PCR report within 72 hours.
However, COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal are already used. No more COVID in Nepal. A lot of people are started to travel to Nepal already. Everyone gets an arrival visa at the Tribhuvan international airport. Please get in touch with us for more information about COVID 19 and Vaccines in Nepal.
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