KATHMANDU, Feb 19: All the 175 Nepali nationals evacuated from China's Hubei province who have been kept in quarantine at Kharipati of Bhaktapur since Sunday morning have tested negative for the coronavirus, the Ministry of Health and Population said on Wednesday.
At a press conference organized at the ministry, Health Secretary Khagaraj Baral said that no Nepali nationals repatriated from China have been found infected by the novel virus. "The samples tested for coronavirus infection in the laboratory turned out negative," Baral said.
According to him, the coronavirus test reports of Nepali nationals provided by the National Public Health Laboratory (NPHL) have turned out negative. The coronavirus test was carried out on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday at NPHL.
Government releases 175 Nepalis from quarantine facility
The laboratory had borrowed reagents for comprehensive tests of the virus from Kathmandu-based Centre for Molecular Dynamics Nepal.
According to Mahendra Prasad Shrestha, the spokesperson at the Ministry of Health, 210 coronavirus suspects had undergone medical tests in the past one month. Of them, one had tested positive and returned home after being cured, according to Shrestha.
On January 24, Nepal had confirmed first coronavirus case. The fast-spreading epidemic has already claimed over 1700 lives and left over 66,500 others infected across China.
