KATHMANDU: The Ministry of Health and Population has appealed to the general public to be aware of the new variant BF-7 of the coronavirus. The ministry issued a press release today asserting that although the new variant of Covid-19 has not been confirmed in Nepal so far, due to its growing influence in neighboring countries, […]
KATHMANDU: Omicron variant of coronavirus has been detected in Nepal.
Organizing a press conference on Monday, the Health Ministry shared that two people arriving in Nepal from South Africa tested positive for the new variant of the virus.
According to Dr Sameer Kumar Adhikari, joint spokesperson for the ministry, the virus was confirmed during a gene sequencing test carried out at the National Public Health Laboratory in Teku on Sunday.
According to the ministry, a 66-year-old foreign national and another 71-year-old person are found to have contracted the virus.
A new variant of the Delta strain of the coronavirus has been detected in Norway, which is assumed to be no more infectious than other strains, the NRK broadcaster reported Monday, citing the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH).
This week the World Health Organization named a new variant of interest of the coronavirus, called the Mu variant. It was first found in Colombia in January 2021 and has been found in about 39 countries so far.
KATHMANDU, July 26: Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) has projected that the third wave of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) may begin from October 1 later this year.
Presenting a brief description of the efforts made by the government for the prevention and control of COVID-19 at the Education and Health Committee of parliament on Monday, the officials at ministry said that the third wave of infection could begin by the first week of October.
According to Ganga Lohani, a joint secretary of the ministry, the infection rate may increase again in November and December.
“However, the nature of the new variant, availability and administration of the vaccine, social activity and adherence to basic public health standards could impact the rate,” he added.
KATHMANDU, June 3: The World Health Organization (WHO) said that it is not aware of any new variant of the coronavirus in Nepal.
Refuting the claim made by Daily Mail, a British tabloid, on Thursday, that Nepal variant has been a threat to the British tourists wishing to go for holidays. The paper reported that the scientists have alerted ministers to the mutant strain – thought to have originated in Nepal and claimed that the strain has spread to Europe. “They fear the strain is resistant to vaccines,” wrote the paper.
“WHO is not aware of any new variant of SARS-CoV-2 being detected in Nepal. The three confirmed variants in circulation are: Alpha (B.1.1.7), Delta (B.1.617.2) and Kappa (B.1.617.1). The predominant variant currently in circulation in Nepal is Delta (B.1.617.2),” the WHO took to Twitter on Thursday.
WHO is not aware of any new variant of SARS-CoV-2 being detected in Nepal. The 3⃣confirmed variants in circulation are: Alpha (B.1.1.7), Delta (B.1.617.2) and Kappa (B.1.617.1). The predominant variant currently in circulation in Nepal is Delta (B.1.617.2).@mohpnep @PandavRajesh
— WHO Nepal (@WHONepal) June 3, 2021
Nepal’s Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP)also said that three variants B.1.1.7, B.1.617.2 and B.1.617.1 were confirmed through a gene sequencing test carried out in India in collaboration with the WHO.
KATHMANDU, May 18: The Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) has confirmed that three variants of the coronavirus have been detected in Nepal.
Ministry assistant spokesperson Dr Sameer Kumar Adhiakri,on Tuesday, said that the result of gene sequencing of samples collected from 35 districts showed that the B.1.617.2 variant was detected in 34 samples while the B.1.617.1 variant was confirmed in a sample.The gene sequencing was performed at CSIR Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology in India.
Adhikari added that the B.1.617.2 is the variant detected in India in recent days while B.1.617.1 is a UK variant. Nepal first reported the Chinese variant last year.
The World Health Organization (WHO) earlier on May 10 classified the coronavirus variant first found in India as a "variant of global concern".
Issuing a public statement earlier on Tuesday, the ministry urged the people to adhere to public health protocols as the new variant is more infectious and deadlier to all age groups.
