Nepali shops back in business as lockdown lifted

Nepal’s government on Wednesday ended a lockdown 120 days after it was imposed to control the spread of coronavirus. Information Minister Yuba Raj Khatiwada said the number of cases was declining in Nepal. Government and private offices were allowed to reopen and private and public vehicles were allowed back on the streets.

Markets, malls and shops also reopened.

However, airports and commercial flights will resume only on Aug. 1.

Khatiwada said schools and colleges would remain closed until further notice.

Large public gatherings, religious functions and parties will remain banned, and gyms, zoos and parks will stay closed.

Opinion was divided among businesspeople in Kathmandu.

Anup Agrawal said the lockdown should have ended long ago, as "people would have suffered much less."

Shopkeeper Amul Tuladhar wasn't convinced, saying that reopening society was an attempt by the government to show the pandemic in Nepal was receding, while he believed it was "getting worse and worse."

The lockdown was first imposed in March and was extended several times.

The South Asian country has confirmed almost 18,000 cases of the virus and 40 deaths.