'Shortage of supplies in Nepal threatens children's life'

United tions, December 1: Over three million children under the age of five in Nepal are at the risk of death or disease this winter due to a severe shortage of fuel, food, medicines and vaccines, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has said. Over the past 10 weeks, vital imports of essential commodities were restricted at Nepal’s southern border due to unrest over the country’s new constitution, Xinhua reported.

The government’s regiol medical stores have already run out of vaccines against tuberculosis, while stocks of other vaccines and antibiotics are critically low, Monday’s report said. UNICEF cautioned that children still recovering from earthquakes in April and May could be the worst hit.

Earlier this month, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed his growing concern over the blocking of essential supplies on the Nepal-India border, and called on all sides to lift these restrictions without further delay. Over 200,000 families affected by the tremors are still living in temporary shelters, at an altitude above 1,500 metres where weather conditions would be harsh in winters. (IANS)