Republica Morning Brief: Oct 11

As many as 5,008 more people were diagnosed with the novel coronavirus disease in Nepal on Saturday. This is the highest single-day COVID-19 jump in the country since the first case was reported on January 23 this year. According to the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP), the total caseload in the country has risen to 105,684 including 74,252 recoveries and 614 fatalities.

The Kathmandu Valley recorded the highest single-day spike of 2,672 new cases in the past 24 hours, taking the Valley’s COVID-19 case tally to 40,170. Of the 5,008 new cases detected across the country on Saturday, 2,672 were detected in the Valley which accounts for 53.35 percent of the total cases. According to the latest data from the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP), 2,100 new cases in Kathmandu, 203 in Bhaktapur and 369 in Lalitpur districts were detected on Saturday.

The Nepal Police headquarters has directed the police chiefs in the Kathmandu Valley, provinces and districts to formulate a special security plan in view of COVID-19 and the approaching festivals. As per the direction of Inspector General of Nepal Police, Shailesh Thapa Chhetri, all 77 district police offices have begun devising the special security plan considering both the COVID-19 and the upcoming festivals, according to Nepal Police Spokesperson, SSP Kuber Kadayat. Some of the districts reported that they had already formulated the plan.

The United Nations in Nepal has urged the government of Nepal to take urgent action to address the increasing mental health problems in the country due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On the occasion of the World Mental Health Day on Saturday, the United Nations in Nepal suggested to the government to strengthen the actions to minimize the deteriorating mental health situation among the Nepali population citing the rise in suicide cases among youths in Nepal.

Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Yogesh Bhattarai was diagnosed with the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Saturday. Posting on Facebook on Saturday, Minister Bhattarai shared that he has had fever since Friday evening. “I do not have any health issues rather than mild fever,” he wrote.