How coronavirus situation is worsening in India’s neighbourhood

NEW DELHI: As India is battling a vicious second coronavirus wave with more than 3 lakh new cases coming to light every day, there are also concerns about the worsening coronavirus situation in its neighborhood. In the last few days, countries like Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Maldives have seen a whopping surge in the number of coronavirus cases. Here’s a look.
Pakistan
On May 10, Pakistan added 3,084 new cases, pushing its total confirmed tally to 8,64,557. Nearly 10 per cent of the cases in the country are active. The positivity rate stands at 7.93 per cent, reported Dawn. Worse, the children are falling victim to the pandemic. According to reports, in the month of April, as many as seven children succumbed to the coronavirus.

A 10-day countrywide lockdown from May 8 has been imposed in the country. Further, the government has declared May 8 to 15 as Eid holidays and a complete ban on unnecessary movement of people and gathering of any kind at any place during this time.
Nepal
Wedged between India and China, the little Himalayan nation has been witnessing a record rise in daily coronavirus cases since mid-April. On May 11, Nepal added 9,317 new coronavirus cases, which is a staggering 3,000 per cent increase from a month ago. This has taken its total confirmed tally to 413,111 cases and death toll to 4,084.
The country's situation mirrors India's: Hospitals running out of beds, covid wards at full capacity and many people dying due to lack of oxygen.

To deal with the crisis, the nation has extended lockdown in Kathmandu and neighbouring districts till May 12. Domestic flights have also been suspended.
The nation has vaccinated more than two million people with India’s AstraZeneca and China's Sinopharm. However, vaccination programme hit a roadblock last month after the country failed to secure fresh dispatches from both the countries.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka achieved some early success in battling Covid-19 pandemic but saw the total number of confirmed cases rising past the 40,000 mark as the year 2020 came to an end. However, after a brief lull the upward trajectory of the cases continued. On April 24, the country registered over 1,000 new cases for the first time since the pandemic began. In a matter of days, the number of new cases doubled. On May 11, the country recorded 2,568 fresh cases. At 22,092, the active cases in the country are at an all-time high.

Country’s health minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi has attributed the recent surge in infections to the crowded celebrations for traditional New Year last month.
Maldives
With 1,501 new cases coming to light on May 11--the highest so far since the onset of pandemic and double of what was recorded a week ago--the total coronavirus tally of the tourist nation has climbed to 38,520 while the death toll stands at 87. The family gatherings during Ramadan, and the onslaught of tourists from abroad are being blamed for a sudden spike in the coronavirus cases across the island nation.

Maldives’ President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has ordered the closure of all government offices till May 15 in the Greater Male region. A ban has also been imposed on group prayers at mosques.