KATHMANDU, April 4: The Ministry of Health and Population has stated that coronavirus infection is increasing in Nepal due to the seasonal cold.

KATHMANDU, July 21: 'BF.1', a subspecies of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus has been confirmed in Nepal.

KATHMANDU, July 3: A new subspecies of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, BA Five, has been confirmed in Nepal. A genetic test conducted at Dhulikhel Hospital has found a subspecies of Omicron, BA Five.

While the BA.2 sublineage of the Omicron variant remains dominant in most parts of the world, World Health Organisation chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus raises concerns over subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 that are currently driving the new surge of COVID-19 infections in South Africa.

WASHINGTON, March 11: Two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine greatly reduced the risk of Omicron infection among children aged 5 to 15, according to a study published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday.

Is omicron leading us closer to herd immunity against COVID-19?

As the country is going through the third wave of the pandemic due to both Delta and Omicron variants and with people getting infected every building next door, experts believe the authorities need to take an integrated and multi-strategies approach of control and preventive measures, and continue strengthening the hospital capacity.

Feb 15: A new wave of infections from the Omicron variant of the coronavirus is moving towards the east of Europe, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday, urging authorities to improve vaccination and other measures.

NEW YORK, Feb 9: The discovery of the Omicron variant in white-tailed deer in New York has raised concerns that the species, numbering 30 million in the United States, could become hosts of a new coronavirus strain, a lead researcher said on Tuesday.

JOHANNESBURG, Feb 4: The BA.2 sub-variant of Omicron has been found in five African countries, a World Health Organization scientist said on Thursday, adding she was concerned about the development because samples of BA.2 may not be spotted as a form of Omicron.

Feb 3: Many countries have not reached their peak in cases of the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the coronavirus and measures imposed to curb its spread should be eased slowly, the World Health Organization's technical lead on COVID-19 said on Tuesday.

Feb 2: The emerging BA.2 form of the Omicron coronavirus variant does not seem to be any more severe than the original BA.1 form, an official of the World Health Organization said on Tuesday.

LONDON, Jan 28: COVID-19 boosters increase protection against death from the Omicron variant to 95% in people aged 50 or over, the UK Health Security Agency said on Thursday.

COPENHAGEN, Jan 27: The BA.2 subvariant of the Omicron coronavirus variant, which is dominant in Denmark, appears more contagious than the more common BA.1 sub-lineage, Danish Health Minister Magnus Heunicke said on Wednesday in a national address.

KATHMANDU, Jan 27: In the last 24 hours, the COVID-19 infection rate in Nepal stood at 41.5 percent. The infection rate is 5 percentage points lower than the previous day. Of the total 20,359 samples tested in the last 24 hours, 8,454 were confirmed to be infected with COVID-19.

Jan 26: The Omicron variant appears to result in less severe COVID-19 than seen during previous periods of high coronavirus transmission including the Delta wave, with shorter hospital stays, less need for intensive care and fewer deaths, according to a new U.S. study.

Jan 25: World health officials are offering hope that the ebbing of the omicron wave could give way to a new, more manageable phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, even as they warn of difficult weeks ahead and the possibility of another, more dangerous variant arising.

NEW DELHI, Jan 21: India's capital is set to lift a weekend curfew and allow private offices to be partially staffed after a fall in new COVID-19 infections, a city government official said on Friday.

CHICAGO, Jan 21:The Omicron variant, which is spreading far faster than previous versions of the coronavirus, is not likely to help countries achieve so-called herd immunity against COVID-19, in which enough people become immune to the virus that it can no longer spread, leading disease experts say.

The highly infectious Omicron coronavirus variant causes less severe disease than the Delta strain but it remains a "dangerous virus", particularly for those who are unvaccinated, according to the head of the WHO.

Jan 17: Get ready to learn more Greek letters. Scientists warn that omicron’s whirlwind advance practically ensures it won’t be the last version of the coronavirus to worry the world.

Jan 16: A surge in coronavirus cases caused by the Omicron variant may have peaked in some parts of Europe but medics say the impact will continue to be felt across the region, with hospitals still at risk of facing a rush of admissions.

KATHMANDU, Jan 15: Despite being vaccinated, there are still chances of contracting the COVID-19 virus. However, according to the Ministry of Health and Population, the effects of the coronavirus among vaccinated people is less than others.

Jan 14: A fast-spreading Omicron variant that causes milder illness compared with previous versions of the coronavirus has fueled the view that COVID-19 poses less of a risk than in the past.

NEW DELHI, Jan 13: India reported 247,417 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, the most since late May, according to data from the health ministry.

It’s not yet clear, but some early data suggests people might become contagious sooner than with earlier variants — possibly within a day after infection.

WASHINGTON, Jan 13: COVID-19 hospitalizations in the United States have increased by about 33% and deaths are up by about 40% from a week earlier, the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Wednesday.

KATHMANDU, Jan 12: The newly detected Omicron variant of COVID-19 is said to be more transmissible than the previous Delta variant.

DAMAULI, Jan 12: The Gandaki provincial government has decided to tighten security at the major transits to the province in view of Omicron risks. As its part, the health protection and surveillance center at Aanbukhaireni Rural Municipality in Tanahun district will be equipped with required health equipment and necessary human resources.

KATHMANDU, Jan 12: The third wave of COVID-19 has now been seen in Nepal. However, the minimum health standards are not being strictly followed in the means of public transport operating in the Kathmandu Valley.

KATHMANDU, Jan 12: The Delta variant has been found in 78 percent of the samples that had COVID-19 infection recorded between mid-December and mid-January, according to the National Public Health Laboratory (NPHL).

Jan 12: Scientists are seeing signals that COVID-19′s alarming omicron wave may have peaked in Britain and is about to do the same in the U.S., at which point cases may start dropping off dramatically.

MAHOTTARI, Jan 11: With the rising cases of coronavirus infection in various cities of neighboring India, the Nepalis gone there for employment are returning home in large numbers.

NEW DELHI, Jan 11: More than 1 million Indians received their third COVID-19 vaccine dose on Monday as the country rolled out boosters for frontline workers and vulnerable elderly, with the Omicron variant fuelling an eight-fold rise in infections in 10 days.

FRANKFURT, Jan 10: Germany will study how reliable rapid antigen tests are in detecting the fast-spreading Omicron variant of COVID-19, Health Minister Karl Lauterbach said on Sunday.

KATHMANDU, Jan 10: The COVID-19 Crisis Management Center (CCMC) has recommended the Ministry of Health and Population to ensure effective control, prevention and treatment of coronavirus.

MUMBAI, Jan 9: India reported 159,632 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, as the Omicron variant of the coronavirus continues to spread rapidly in the country, nudging several state governments to impose fresh restrictions.

KATHMANDU, Jan 8: The Ministry of Health and Population has decided to provide a third dose (additional dose) of COVID-19 vaccine to frontline workers and senior citizens above 60 years of age beginning the third week of January.

BIRGUNJ, Jan 8: The scope of COVID-19 tests in all major border entry points with India in Parsa district have been expanded amid growing risk of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

Jan 8: Swabbing the nose with a rapid antigen test will not reliably detect the Omicron variant in the first few days of an infection, so manufacturers should seek U.S. approval to allow users to safely collect samples from the throat as well, according to an infectious diseases expert.

BAITADI, Jan 7: The province is at high risk of infection with the Omicron variant with growing numbers of Nepalis returning from Delhi and States such as Karnataka and Gujarat in India having higher infection with the same variant.

KATHMANDU, Jan 7: Nepal recorded 968 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday along with 262 recoveries and zero deaths, according to the latest information provided by the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP). As many as 27 new cases of Omicron variant have been detected across the country as of Friday.

KATHMANDU, Jan 7: The Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) has urged hospitals across the country to prepare themselves for another possible wave of COVID-19 infection. Issuing a press release on Friday, the health ministry said that the country has recorded as many as 24 cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 and has directed everyone to follow the safety protocols.

BAITADI, Jan 7: Far Western Province is reporting an increasing number of COVID-19 lately in wake of rapid spread of COVID-19 infection with Omicron variant in New Delhi in India.

A couple of factors are at play, starting with the emergence of the highly contagious omicron variant. Omicron is more likely to infect people, even if it doesn’t make them very sick, and its surge coincided with the holiday travel season in many places.

NEW DELHI, Jan 4: Authorities in Delhi on Tuesday ordered people to stay home over coming weekends having seen COVID-19 cases quadruple in a week, with its chief minister saying he had caught the virus just a day after he addressed an election rally without a mask.

MAHENDRANAGAR, Jan 4: With the increasing number of Omicron virus infection cases in India, initiatives have been taken at the Gaddachauki checkpoint along the Nepal-India border to prevent the spread of the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus. New Delhi is 352 kilometers away from the Gaddachauki checkpoint of Kanchanpur.

Akshay Kumar's next 'Prithviraj' that was scheduled to release on January 21 has been postponed due to Omicron and the steep rise in Covid cases in India.

COPENHAGEN, Jan 4: The Omicron coronavirus variant is better at circumventing vaccinated peoples' immunity than the Delta variant, according to a Danish study published last week, helping explain why Omicron is spreading more rapidly.

Jan 3: Over 4,000 flights were cancelled around the world on Sunday, more than half of them U.S. flights, adding to the toll of holiday week travel disruptions due to adverse weather and the surge in coronavirus cases caused by the Omicron variant.