Bhaktapur, May 13

An emergency meeting of Madhyapur Municipality today decided to completely close all roads and shops except two main roads after two persons tested positive for coronavirus in Bhaktapur last night.

Mayor Madan Sundar Shrestha said all roads would be closed except Araniko Highway and road to Bhaktapur via Pepsicola and Sanothimi.

“All vehicles except those involved in essential services — ambulances, fire engines and those carrying drinking water and food — will not be allowed to ply. Entry of people from outside into Madhyapurthimi has been restricted, he added.

Shrestha said, “Small negligence can lead to big loss.

Landlords will face action if they allow people from outside without certificate of having tested negative for coronavirus.”

Shops selling daily essentials can open till 9:00am.

The municipality will depute 125 volunteers, along with police, to implement the lockdown.

The decision was taken after police sealed 20 houses at Shankhadhar chowk after a 25-year-old woman tested positive for coronavirus there.

An Armed Police Force soldier from Changunarayan municipality, Duwakot, also tested positive for coronavirus. He is undergoing treatment at Teku Hospital. His family members have been sent to Teku for test.

Coronavirus test is being carried out on locals of the sealed areas of Shankhadhar chowk at Bhaktapur hospital.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on May 14, 2020 of The Himalayan Times.