Kathmandu, Aug. 5 -- The Ministry of Health and Population has sent a proposal to the Cabinet for a "semi-lockdown" in Kathmandu Valley.

The ministry proposal comes in the wake of a rise in the number of cases in the Valley at an exponential rate after the lockdown was lifted in the third week of July.

"To prevent the situation from going out of control, we have proposed semi-lockdown immediately," a senior official at the ministry, who did not want to be identified, told the Post. "We hope that the Cabinet will heed our proposal to prevent a possible catastrophic situation."

According to the official, the ministry's proposal to impose semi-lockdown entails shutting down public transportation services, hotels, restaurants and roadside ...