Nepalese people lit candles around the symbol of RED AIDS during Eve of the 33rd World AIDS Day celebrated in Kathmandu, Nepal on Monday, November 30, 2020. World AIDS Day is celebrated worldwide on December 1st of every year to raise the awareness in the fight against HIV. (Photo by Narayan Maharjan/NurPhoto via Getty Images)





A female soldier wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) offers a garland on the body of a coronavirus victim provided by the family members at the crematorium, amidst the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Kathmandu, Nepal, November 11, 2020. Women touching a dead body is still a cultural taboo in Nepal. But rights for women have improved since the majority-Hindu country emerged from a decade-long conflict in 2006 and abolished its centuries-old feudal monarchy two years later on November 25, 2020. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





Krishna Kumari, a 37-year-old sergeant, Rashmi, a 25-year-old corporal, Leela, a 25-year-old private, and Rachana, a 25-year-old corporal, smile as they speak with each other while posing for group pictures after being discharged from quarantine at the premises of army barracks in Kathmandu, Nepal, November 21, 2020. The women carrying corpses in Kathmandu, all soldiers, are being deployed for the first time as the nation of 30 million people tries to manage the bodies of COVID-19 victims amid the growing pandemic. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





Female soldiers pay tribute to the bodies of coronavirus victims at a crematorium in Kathmandu, Nepal, November 11, 2020. “I feel privileged and happy for being given a chance to do the work that was done only by the males so far”, said one of the women, a 25-year-old corporal named Rachana, who asked to be identified by just one name. “Society is changing ... I have not been to my family since I started my new duty, but my friends are happy. They thank me and say, 'You have performed a difficult task carefully and maintained your personal safety. Thank you'. I feel happy”. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





A female soldier's goggles are covered with vapor after handling bodies of coronavirus victims in Kathmandu, Nepal, November 11, 2020. Nepal Army spokesman Shantosh B. Poudyal said the 95,000-strong force was putting women soldiers in new roles, part of a programme to empower them. “Women were deployed in combat duty, hospitals, ordnance, engineers and disasters before. This is the first time they are managing the bodies from hospitals and transporting them to the crematorium”, Poudyal told Reuters. “You can say it is breaking the borders ... breaking the glass ceiling”. Nepal's army is responsible for managing the bodies of coronavirus victims across the nation. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





Krishna Kumari, a 37-year-old sergeant, along with Rachana, a 25-year-old corporal, Leela, a 25-year-old private, and Rashmi, a 25-year-old corporal, eat breakfast before being discharged from quarantine on the premises of an army barracks in Kathmandu, Nepal, November 21, 2020. “It is my duty to remove the dead bodies and I am proud of what I am doing”, said Krishna Kumari. The 37-year-old sergeant added: “The work is physically demanding ... and we have proved that women are capable of doing difficult tasks during the pandemic”. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





Female soldiers load a body of a coronavirus victim inside a truck before heading towards the crematorium in Kathmandu, Nepal, November 11, 2020. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





A female soldier wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) disinfects herself during a training on how to handle bodies of coronavirus victims, amidst the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Kathmandu, Nepal on October 15, 2020. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





Female soldiers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) take rest after handling bodies of coronavirus victims, amidst the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Kathmandu, Nepal on November 11, 2020. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





Rachana, a 25-year-old corporal, who gave only her first name applies sanitizer after handling bodies of coronavirus victims in Kathmandu, Nepal, November 11, 2020. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)





Young Newari girls prepare for an Ihi ceremony in Kathmandu, Nepal, Friday, December 4, 2020. 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). Newari girls are married thrice in their life, to the bael fruit and the sun before marrying a human. (Photo by Niranjan Shrestha/AP Photo)





A Ministry of Health staff collects a nose swab sample for an antigen test amid the ongoing coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic at Kathmandu, Nepal, 02 December 2020. According to local media the test is newly launched at the government level to detect COVID-19 infection in the community. Results will be available within 30 minutes which makes this test much more easier. (Photo by Hemanta Shrestha/EPA/EFE/Rex Features/Shutterstock)





Hindu devotees sit next to oil lamps as they perform rituals in memory of their deceased family members during the “Bala Chaturdashi” festival at the Pashupatinath Templein Kathmandu, Nepal on December 13, 2020. Nepalese Hindu Devotees celebrate the festival by lighting oil lamps and scattering seven types of grains known as “sat biu” along a route at the temple to honors the departed. (Photo by Prabin Ranabhat/SOPA Images/Rex Features/Shutterstock)





Pigeons seen around the Boudhanath stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal on Wednesday, December 09, 2020. Boudhanath Stupa is listed as a UNESCO heritage site in Kathmandu, Nepal. (Photo by Narayan Maharjan/NurPhoto via Getty Images)





Young Buddhist monks play standing next to a fire at a monastery in Boudhanath stupa, Kathmandu, Nepal, Friday, December 11, 2020. The stupa is an important pilgrimage site for Buddhists. (Photo by Niranjan Shrestha/AP Photo)





Nepalese Hindu devotees light oil lamps during Bala Chaturdasi festival on the banks of Bagmati river near Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, Saturday, December 12, 2020.Bala Chaturdashi is celebrated in memory of departed family members by lighting oil lamps and scattering seven types of grain along a prescribed route. Although temples were closed for public small number of people offered their prayers on the Pashupatinath temple premises. (Photo by Niranjan Shrestha/AP Photo)





A Nepalese artist dressed as Lord Narsimha performs traditional dance during Kartik Naach festival at Patan Durbar Square, Lalitpur, Nepal on Sunday, November 29, 2020. Kartik Naach is a dance musical play is performed in Kartik Dabali, Patan Durbar Square every year. (Photo by Narayan Maharjan/NurPhoto via Getty Images)





Nepalese girls playing traditional flute during the celebration of Mahalaxmi Festival at Thankot, Kathmandu, Nepal on Tuesday, December 01, 2020. Mahalaxmi Festival is the annual festival to honor of the goddess Mahalaxmi and Ganesh are carried to the Mahalaxmi temple. A vermillion power and red colored powder, is thrown on participants and chariots as festival is accompanied by traditional music and dance. (Photo by Narayan Maharjan/NurPhoto via Getty Images)





Students of Yuba Pratibha School, wearing a face shield and masks at school during a coronavirus pandemic in Kathmandu, Nepal, 26 November 2020. The head Teacher of Yuba Pratibha School, Yanga Raj Dahal, started to conduct classes for students, who can’t afford and attend online classes, with strict sanitary regime, providing also free face masks and shields for students. However majority of schools have been conducting online classes in Nepal from 19 March 2020 as part of precautionary measures against the spread of the coronavirus Covid-19. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA/EFE)