Famed US extreme skier gets traditional Nepalese funeral
A famed extreme skier from the United States who was killed after falling from one of the world’s tallest mountains was on Sunday given a traditional funeral at a Sherpa cremation ground as Buddhist monks officiated over a ceremony attended by family, friends and government officials.
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The Latest: Health official: Booster use may be expanded
The National Institutes of Health director says a U_S_ government advisory panel’s decision to limit Pfizer COVID-19 booster shots to Americans 65 and older as well as those at high risk of severe disease is a preliminary step and predicts broader approval for most Americans “in the next few weeks.”.
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The Latest: Michigan makes homeless people vaccine-eligible
Vials of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine sit in the pharmacy of National Jewish Hospital for distribution early Saturday, March 6, 2021, in east Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)DETROIT — People who are homeless will be eligible for COVID-19 vaccines in Michigan starting Monday. The single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine and the two-shot Moderna vaccine are approved for individuals 18 and older. But Limassol city authorities aren’t letting the festive spirit completely wither away, organizing some events that comply with virus restrictions. Ad___COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka has received its first batch of COVID-19 vaccines under the COVAX program.
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Tensions rise as AstraZeneca, EU spar over vaccine delays
The EU has asked AstraZeneca for permission to release the contract, Kyriakides said. The EU’s drug regulator will consider the AstraZeneca vaccine on Friday. “This is this is really, really bad news — not only bad news for the European countries involved,'' he said. Soriot said AstraZeneca had to reduce deliveries to the EU because plants in Europe had lower than expected yields from the biological process used to produce the vaccine. “There are a lot of emotions running in this process right now, and I can understand it: people want vaccine,” Soriot said.
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India starts supplying COVID-19 shots to neighboring nations
FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, file photo, an Indian doctor shows a COVID-19 vaccine at a government Hospital in Jammu, India. India started exporting COVID-19 vaccines to its neighboring countries on Wednesday, Jan. 20. To start with, India will send 150,000 shots of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Bhutan and 100,000 shots to Maldives. Afterwards, vaccines will be sent Bangladesh, Nepal, Indias foreign ministry said. India's Foreign Ministry said the country would send 150,000 shots of the AstraZeneca/Oxford University vaccine, manufactured locally by Serum Institute of India, to Bhutan and 100,000 shots to the Maldives on Wednesday.
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China, Nepal say Everest a bit higher than past measurements
China and Nepal have jointly announced on Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020, a new height for Mount Everest, ending a discrepancy between the two nations. (Tashi Tsering/Xinhua via AP, File)BEIJING – China and Nepal jointly announced a new official height for Mount Everest on Tuesday, ending a discrepancy between the two nations. The height of Everest, which is on the border between China and Nepal, was agreed on after surveyors from Nepal scaled the peak in 2019 and a Chinese team did the same in 2020. A survey team from China then conducted measurements in the spring of 2020 while all other expeditions were canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. China and Nepal will establish an “even closer community of a shared future to enrich the countries and their peoples,” Xinhua quoted Xi as saying.
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Asia Today: S. Korea reports highest daily tally in 9 months
Ihi is a two-day ceremony performed for girls who have not reached puberty and involves purification rituals and marriage rituals with the Bael (or wood apple). (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)SEOUL – South Korea has recorded 629 new coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours, the highest daily tally in about nine months. The cases took the country’s total to 36,332 with 536 deaths. After successfully suppressing two previous surges this year, South Korea has been grappling with a fresh spike in infections since it relaxed stringent social distancing rules in October. India reported 36,595 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, maintaining a downward trend for nearly a month.
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As virus curbs Nepal's festivals, devotees fear gods' anger
The mask of Lakhe, a traditional mask dancer worshipped as a god, is covered with floral garlands after rituals were performed during Indrajatra festival in Kathmandu, Nepal, Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020. A lockdown was ordered around the eight days when the canceled Indrajatra festival would have been held, and instead, a small ceremony to seek forgiveness from Indra, the Hindu god of rain, was held under government security. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)
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The Latest: India reports record 95,735 new virus infections
Due to lockdowns, the cafeteria and nearby cafes have closed, leaving more than 200 staffers, patients and their families without food. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)NEW DELHI India has recorded another one day record increase in new coronavirus infections, logging 95,735 new cases. According to the Health Ministry, Indias number of recorded infections since the pandemic began reached 4,465,863 on Thursday, while total fatalities rose to 75,062 after another 1,172 deaths in the past 24 hours. Experts caution that Indias outbreak is entering a more dangerous phase as the virus spreads to smaller towns and villages. South Korea had seen a spike in new infections since early August, mostly in the greater Seoul area.
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South Asia counts losses from devastating monsoon floods
Across South Asia, more than 17 million people have been affected by this year's monsoon flood. Like him, an estimated 17.5 million people across South Asia are suffering as a result of the devastation of this year's monsoon floods. Bangladesh, which is crisscrossed by 230 rivers, is the last channel through which waters are drained into the Bay of Bengal. Thousands have already been displaced from low-lying islands in the Sundarbans, the worlds largest mangrove forest straddling Bangladesh and India. When upstream countries like India or Nepal flush out waters, a district like Kurigram pays the price.