Public vehicles to hit road as restrictions eased in Nepal’s Kathmandu Valley

KATHMANDU, June 28– The authorities in Nepal’s Kathmandu Valley on Monday decided to reopen public transport service for the first time in two months as restrictive measures against COVID-19 are eased further along with the ongoing lockdown being extended for one more week till July 5. “We decided to allow operation of certain public vehicles as per the’…

KATHMANDU, June 28 (Xinhua) — The authorities in Nepal’s Kathmandu Valley on Monday decided to reopen public transport service for the first time in two months as restrictive measures against COVID-19 are eased further along with the ongoing lockdown being extended for one more week till July 5.

“We decided to allow operation of certain public vehicles as per the ‘principle of necessity’ amid decreasing cases of COVID-19,” Kali Prasad Parajuli, chief district officer of Kathmandu, told Xinhua.

“The move was taken to help ease people’s lives as not all have their own private vehicles and many of them cannot afford taxi bills to travel,” said Parajuli.

The Himalayan country logged 1,353 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, a sharp decline from the peak of 9,317 infections recorded on May 11.

According to notices issued by the Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Lalitpur districts, public vehicles with at least 25 seats can operate within the valley under odd-even rules from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. starting Tuesday by following necessary health protocols.

Private vehicles and taxis were permitted to ply on the road last week amid a relaxed lockdown in the valley.

The Kathmandu region has been put under a lockdown since April 29 in efforts to curb the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic that hit Nepal in early April.

As the prohibitory orders are prolonged again, shops dealing in foods, dairy products, fruits and vegetables, meat and stationery can operate till 6:00 p.m., compared with the current deadline of 11:00 a.m.

Likewise, department stores, shopping malls and shops handling garment, footwear, cosmetics, gift items, utensils, kitchenware, electronic goods and construction materials, among others, can open from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. every day.

Over the past week, these shops were allowed to operate only on alternate days.

As per the new rules, a maximum of 15 people can attend a wedding ceremony, previously the capacity was 10.

Since April 1, the death toll from the pandemic in Nepal has nearly tripled to 9,009 as of Sunday.

Parajuli said the authorities would monitor whether health protocols have been followed. “It is also the duty of all the people to follow the health protocols strictly,” he added. Enditem