Scott Rosefield

While India's second wave has alarmed the world, the situation is equally dire across the border in Nepal, which has now surpassed India's per capita death rate.

Desperate Need for Supplies, Oxygen as Cases Surge

Country appeals for international help, with vaccines in short supply and a reported 47% positivity rate.

Authorities in Nepal were grappling to contain the rapid rise of COVID-19 cases with experts fearing that thousands of people in the Himalayan state have caught the more infectious mutant strains emerging out of India.

The decision comes amid rising number of cases in the Valley, which reported more than half of the total new infections across the country.

With the country reporting 13 new deaths and the daily count of 496, concerns have grown over a repeat of last year’s cycle if authorities fail to ramp up measures to contain the spread.

Nepal is experiencing its worst fire season in almost a decade, officials said Tuesday, as huge blazes rage across the country's forests, engulfing the Himalayan nation in a shroud of brownish haze.

Nepal has ordered schools to close for four days after air pollution climbed to hazardous levels, forcing millions of students to stay home across the country.