By A Staff Reporter

Bhaktapur, June 19: Madhyapur Thimi Municipality of Bhaktapur is conducting mass antigen tests on 10,000 people of nine wards on Saturday simultaneously.
The test is being planned by the municipality and managed by the Nepal Korea Friendship Municipality Hospital, said Mayor Madan Sundar Shrestha.
According to the municipality, the antigen tests will be conducted in all nine wards of the city at the same time. For that, 11,000 kits have been provided by the District Public Health Office.
According to Mayor Shrestha, the tests will be conducted in all the wards of the city. “This is the first time a mass antigen test is going to take place and the representatives from World Health Organisations (WHO) will be present at the campaign,” he said.
“Results of all those tested will be given on the same day. Arrangements will be made to keep the infected persons in home isolation and isolation centre,” Mayor Shrestha said.
He said that the municipality was conducting large-scale tests to get analytical data at a time when the number of COVID-19 infections is declining across the country. It will also help the government ease the lockdown, he added.

He informed that antigen tests are being carried out at the community level to find out whether the COVID-19 cases were actually declining.
Out of the nine wards, Nirmal Banquet of Ward No. 1, Mahendra Basic School of Ward No. 2, Ward Office of Ward No. 3, Balkumari Health Center of Ward No. 4 and Bhalakhel of Ward No. 5 have been identified as antigen testing centres.
Similarly, tests will be conducted at Thimi Health Centre of Ward No. 6, Nagdesh Health Centre of Ward No. 7, Bode Urban Health Centre of Ward No. 8 and the Health Centre of Ward No. 9.
According to the municipality, the testing will be conducted from 10 am to 4:30 pm. Meanwhile, The Municipality has decided to provide Rs. 2.2 million to the flood-hit Melamchi and Helambu Municipalities of Sindhupalchowk district.
Mayor Shrestha said that Melamchi and Helambu municipalities have been affected by the floods in the neighbouring districts, so they decided to provide the amount for relief and rescue works.