Banke residents in home quarantine

Nepalgunj, March 23

High alert was sounded in Banke district to prevent the coronavirus infection from spreading.

All the eight local levels in the district urged people not to come out of their houses unless there was an emergency, effectively putting the district residents in home quarantine. The government has locked down the main bazaar — Nepalgunj and Kohalpur of Banke. All the shops, factories, businesses, government and non-government offices, except for some essential services, have been closed. People’s movement in the bazaar areas is almost zero.

Medical shops, hospitals and essential service are, however, being operated. Long route transportation service has been closed, but the emergency vehicles are plying.

People’s representatives have been distributing masks and sanitisers and urging people not to come out of houses. Nepalgunj sub-metropolis Mayor Dhawal Shamsher Rana said the sub-metropolis closed all services except some essential services till April 3. “We have requested residents of the sub-metropolis not to come out of houses unless it was urgent.”

The local government has bought the required equipment and materials for health workers. The government also directed all the wards of the local levels to prepare masks and distribute them to the poor. Meanwhile, a 40-bed isolation ward was prepared in Dental Hospital to prevent the possible spread of coronavirus.

Isolation ward with six beds each were readied in Bheri Hospital, Nepalgunj Medical College Teaching Hospital and Kohalpur Hospital.