Pokhara, March 23

Gandaki Province decided to halt all vehicular movement other than essential ones in the province from March 24.

The High Level Direction Committee formed to prevent the spread of coronavirus today decided to stop plying vehicles from March 24. The meeting also decided to close the border points of the province at Nawalpur’s Triveni, Tanahun’s Aanbukhaireni, Syangja’s Ramdi and Baglung’s Burtibang. Nawalpur’s Triveni links with India.

The committee decided to close down everything except vehicles carrying essentials through the Triveni border.

The meeting appealed to traders to shut shops, businesses and market places. Vegetable shops, fruit shops, groceries, dairy and petroleum stations will be allowed to operate.

The province is working to set up a 60-bed hospital for the treatment of coronavirus patients at Lekhnath Community Lions Hospital in Pokhara. A decision was taken to build a quarantine to keep 60 people at the Agriculture Training Centre at Malepatan, Pokhara, according to Province Health Director Dr Binod Bindu Sharma.