Nepal celebrates new year amidst increasing Covid-19 cases 

Nepal on Wednesday celebrated New Year 2078 as per the ancient Bikram Sambat Hindu calendar amidst a spike in new Covid-19 cases. 

The calendar associated with King Bikramaditya of India is regarded as the official calendar of Nepal and the Nepalese New Year usually starts in mid-April. 

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, in a televised address to the nation, congratulated the people and counted his government's achievements and performances. 

He praised the government's policies in fighting the coronavirus pandemic, saying that the country suffered fewer losses in terms of lives and economy. 

"Keeping the pandemic in mind, the government worked to control the spread of the virus and because of our good policies, we didn't fail," Oli claimed. 

His address came amidst fear of a second wave of the virus transmission. 

Doctors and public health experts are concerned with the rising number of children testing positive for the Covid-19. 

Nepal has so far reported 3,061 deaths due to the contagion. After a decline in the number of new patients, the Covid-19 cases have surged lately. 

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health and Population reported 580 new cases in the last 24 hours, taking the country's tally to 281,564. 

During the same period, 129 people have been discharged. 

Currently, there are 4,056 active patients across the country.