(Narayan Dhungana)

At a time when the general public are anxious over corona virus, the government has urged all not to panic much over common cold linking it to the corona virus.

Spokesperson at the Ministry of Health and Population, Mahendra Prasad Shrestha, said some hospitals were unnecessarily referring patients to Teku Hospital for lab test. "If anyone contracts with corona virus, he/she may have symptoms within 15 days. So, it is useless to panic after 15 days," he said, bringing reference of a political leader worrying much even after 21 days of his relatives’ arrival to Nepal from China.

Although the Ministry had stated that there was none visiting Teku based hospital on Tuesday, the Ministry was surprised to witness the influx at the hospital on Wednesday for corona virus test. The Ministry reiterated that people with only common cold need not panic at all.

However, only one was suspected of it was taken for observation, the Ministry added. After a person coming from China was detected with corona virus, which is spreading from Buhan city of China, the government has maintained high alert on it since January 23.

The Home Ministry has said Rasuwagadhi and Tatopani border points between Nepal and China have been closed for 15 days with the agreement between the two governments. Similarly, every tourist is monitored at Tribhuvan International Airport, and the hospitals asked to maintain alertness.

The corona virus initially transmitted to human from animal is now communicable among humans as per WHO study. It is a new kind of virus. It can lead to common cold to serious respiratory problem, the doctors said.

Major symptoms of the corona virus are fiver, problem in breathing and chest infection.

The WHO has added that 4593 persons from 14 countries have been infected with coronavirus so far.

The doctors have suggested people avoiding crowd and handshake, maintaining cleanliness and personal hygiene as the preventive measures.

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