Despite a significant rise in the number of cases in many nations, including neighbouring India, Nepal has been able to contain the spread of the pandemic till now. The country has reported only few cases of COVID-19. The successful enforcement of the ongoing nationwide lockdown and various other measures adopted by the federal, state and local governments are the main reasons for this encouraging situation. Until now, the COVID-19 pandemic has killed more than 108,000 people worldwide since its emergence in China in late last December. The United States of America (USA) has overtaken Italy in terms of the number of the coronavirus-induced deaths. As of Sunday, the developed nation has lost more than 20,000 lives to the pandemic despite taking different measures, including social distancing. Most of the nations that have been reeling under the problem of COVID-19 have applied the lockdown as a preventative measure. However, the virus seems to have continued to infect more people.  

It goes without saying that the lockdown has not only caused inconveniences to people but also hit the national economy hard. However, the lockdown has come in handy in controlling the transmission of the contagion. If the Government of Nepal had not gone for the nationwide lockdown some three weeks back, COVID-19 may have infected more people. In the initial days, the government even faced criticisms from various quarters for implementing the lockdown. As the three-week long lockdown expires tomorrow (Tuesday), the federal and state governments have initiated discussions about the possible measures to be adopted to cope with the virus. As part of this process, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli held extensive interactions with Chief Ministers (CMs) of all the seven states via video conferencing on Saturday. All the states, especially those sharing their borders with India, are facing the threat of the pandemic. However, the southern neighbour has also decided to extend the lockdown. This will definitely help check the movement of people between Nepal and India through the porous border.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, while addressing the video conference, said that the restriction was not imposed to cause problems to people but to save their lives. The Prime Minister hinted that the government would extend the lockdown for some time taking the increasing threat of the COVID-19 pandemic into serious consideration. He called on the CMs to seal off the border to contain the virus transmission. It may be recalled here that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has been alerting many nations, including the USA and Italy, against premature lifting of lockdowns. It has been learnt from experiences of several coronavirus-hit nations like China that imposition of the lockdown is the most effective measure to contain the virus. Maintaining personal health and hygiene is equally essential for keeping the virus away. The Prime Minister also emphasised the need to implement the lockdown, social distancing and other measures in a coordinated manner. He also called on people not to be swayed by misleading and fabricated information. He assured that the government was working with confidence to control the virus. It is the responsibility of every citizen to strictly follow the measures taken by the government at a time when the nation is fighting the deadly virus.