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The number of COVID-19 infected people has reached 464,218 after additional 9,198 new cases were detected positive in Nepal on May 17, 2021. According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 345,523 of the total infected have recovered, and the recovery rate has reached 74.4% along with the 5,767 latest recovered.

According to the Ministry, 21,653 swab tests were conducted in the past 24 hours. Out of the total number of tests conducted on May 17, 42% were diagnosed positive and overall there were 16.6% people diagnosed positive till now. On May 17, 856 people below the age of 19 were diagnosed positive for COVID-19.

Till now, the death toll has reached 5,215. According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 214 people died on May 17. There are 113,480 in isolation. There are more than 500 active cases in Morang, Sunsari, Jhapa, Rautahat, Dhanusha, Parsa, Mahottari, Bara, Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, Chitwan, Kavrepalanchowk, Makwanpur, Dhading, Nuwakot, Sindhupalchowk, Sindhuli, Kaski, Nawalparasi East, Gorkha, Tanahu, Syangja, Dang, Rupandehi, Banke, Palpa, Bardiya, Kapilbastu, Arghakhanchi, Nawalparasi West, Surkhet, Kailali, Kanchanpur, Baitadi and Achham.

According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 74 districts have been following complete or partial prohibition till May 17, 2021.

In Province 1,

In Morang, Ward No. 2 of Letang Municipality has mobilized staff on the streets after the locals came out of the house unnecessarily without following the prohibition order issued by the local administration. According to the ward chairperson, the teachers of the community schools and the employees of the cooperatives in the ward area have been mobilized since May 17. Thirty-five employees of government schools and cooperatives have been deployed at four checkpoints in the ward from 5 am to 6 pm. In Taplejung, the District Administration Office has extended the prohibition order till May 24 due to the increase in Covid-19 infection in the district.

In Solukhumbu, Thulung Dudhkoshi rural municipality has decided to treat the Covid-19 infected in the Covid Hospital of the village. The meeting decided to run a 10-bed hospital with oxygen. It has decided to give a 50 per cent risk allowance to the health workers working in the rural municipality. Itahari Sub-metropolitan and Dharan Sub-metropolitan have decided to close banks and financial institutions until May 21 due to the increase in Covid-19 infections in the district.

In Province 2,

In Dhanusha, the hospital administration has admitted that the death rate of Covid infected people have increased in the hospital as the oxygen cylinders from the industry go to private hospitals for the covid special hospital operated at the provincial hospital Janakpurdham. The hospital administration has accepted this after 14 infected people died in the provincial hospital. According to Dr Pramod Yadav, Medical Superintendent of the Janakpur Provincial Hospital, the oxygen cylinders sent by the Dhalkebar Gas Industry for the Covid Ward reached the private hospital. The oxygen cylinders sent by the industry have been reaching private hospitals since May 15. Dr Yadav has alleged that the SP, DSP and CDO of Dhanusha did not do not pay attention to the arrival of oxygen cylinders in the hospital.

In Saptari, there has been a problem in the treatment of Covid infected as ventilators are not operated despite the connection at Gajendra Narayan Singh Hospital in Rajbiraj. There are four ventilators with intensive care unit for the treatment of Covid patients but it could not come into operation due to lack of manpower.

In Gandaki Province,

In Tanahu, the Bhanu Municipality has made Purandihi Hospital in Ward No. 5 of the municipality a COVID hospital of 15-beds on May 16, 2021. Ten local levels of Baglung have jointly set up a covid fund of Rs 5.5 million to fight the pandemic. A meeting of rural municipality chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the district was held on May 17. In Myagdi, a 26-bed isolation room has been set up at Beni Hospital in collaboration with the District Covid-19 Crisis Management Center (DCCMC), Beni Municipality and Beni Hospital. In Kaski, a 15-bed isolation with oxygen has been prepared for the treatment of Covid-19 at Rupa Hospital in Rupa Rural Municipality-6, Bhirchowk.

In Parbat, a team from the District Covid Crisis Management Centre monitored the Parbat District Jail. A team including Chief District Officer Devi Pandey Khatri monitored the situation saying that there could be a threat of pandemic in the prisons. During the monitoring, it was found that there were 106 inmates in the 25-capacity Parbat District Jail and so far there was no COVID-19 infection. Chief District Officer Devi Pandey Khatri said that arrangements have been made to keep the bought goods outside for 24 hours and keep a distance of about 10 meters to meet the relatives.

In Lumbini Province,

The prohibitory order issued in Banke has been extended for the fourth time due to the excessive increase in the case of COVID-19. Among 852 people admitted at Bheri Hospital from April 14 to May 17, 466 have recovered and 153 have died. The prohibition order issued in Palpa has been extended till May 29. Chief District Officer Pandey said that coordination is being held with the Chief District Officers of Bara, Rupandehi and other potential districts for oxygen supply in the district.

In Sudur Paschim Province,

The prohibition, which was issued in Kailali district, has been extended for another week due to the increasing number of covid infections. Although more than 700 of the 870 active infected people in Baitadi district have been living in home isolation, the risk of infection is increasing in the district as they do not follow the health standards. Chief of the Health Office, Yogesh Prasad Bhat, said that the infected people need to stay in isolation as a restraining order has been issued to break Covid chain. According to Bhatta, more than 50 percent of those tested in the village tested positive for Covid-19. Although there are about 400-bed isolation rooms in the district, the number of people living in isolation is 195. Ten people have lost their lives in the district due to Covid-19.

Click here to read the report of May 17, 2020

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