KATHMANDU- Preparations are being made to extend the lockdown by another week in the Kathmandu Valley. As coronavirus cases are on the rise, necessary preparations will be made to add another week of lockdown, according to a source.
Chief District Officer of Lalitpur, Janak Raj Bhatta, informed that a meeting will be held on Wednesday to make a decision on the extension of the lockdown. He pointed out that there is no other option now that COVID-19 cases have been on a constant rise, and there is no other option other than a lockdown in order to contain the spread of the virus.
“The CCMC meeting will be held on Wednesday. The meeting will discuss and decide whether to add Lockdown or not,” CDO Bhatta said to Kathmandu Pati.
Home Ministry spokesperson Chakra Bahadur Budha stayed that although the lockdown has rendered the economic sector to a stalemate, there was no possibility of loosening the restrictions given the current transmission status of the virus.
“The long-running lockdown has stalled the economy and there is a demand to ease it down a little, thus the Home Ministry will be discussing the matter later,” Budha said to KathmanduPati. “Easing the restrictions would increase the chances of transmission so we will have to be careful while making decisions.”
The lockdown, which had been imposed on September 20, has been tightened due to the ever growing number of coronavirus cases. The second phase will end at 12 pm on Wednesday.
A meeting of the CDOs of Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, Lalitpur and heads of security agencies, including health experts, will take further decisions on the lockdown.
Apart from essential services, public transportation has also been banned. Emergency services such as food transportation, health care and security have been allowed to operate.
