Government urges people not to travel abroad except for emergency works

KATHMANDU: The government has appealed to people not to travel abroad except for emergency works, saying that a new coronavirus variant (omicron) is spreading much more rapidly in foreign countries.

Issuing a statement on Wednesday, assistant spokesperson of the Ministry of Health and Population Samir Kumar Adhikari urged the people not to leave the country unless there is an emergency.

The World Health Organization has also classified Omicron as a ‘variant of concern’.

Saying that the new variant has not been detected in the country yet, he said that the government has expanded testing to prevent the virus from entering the country.

First identified in South Africa, Omicron has spread to at least 13 other countries so far.