Nepal closes schools as Covid cases spike

Schools across Nepal will close for nearly three weeks after a spike in coronavirus cases, a government spokesman said on Monday, forcing more than seven million students to stay at home.

Nepal reported 841 new cases on Sunday, the biggest single-day jump since September last year, taking its total to 832,589 since the pandemic began. Its death toll from the coronavirus is 11,604.

Education Ministry spokesman Deepak Sharma said schools would remain closed until Jan. 29 although a campaign to vaccinate children aged 12 to 17 at their schools would go ahead.

“Schools must notify students about the time and date when they need to go to schools and receive the shots,” Sharma told Reuters.