KATHMANDU, Nepal

Nepal on Sunday announced the extension of one-day weekly holiday in government offices and academic institutions into two days, as a measure to cope with the deepening fuel crisis in the country amid the ongoing Middle East conflict which has disrupted energy flows into Asian countries.

In an emergency Cabinet meeting on Sunday, the government decided to extend weekly holidays to cover both Saturdays and Sundays.

“Government offices and academic institutions will remain closed for two days in a week – Saturday and Sunday,” government spokesperson Sasmit Pokharel told reporters after the meeting.

The government has also made a policy decision to allow the conversion of old diesel and petrol vehicles into electric vehicles.

Nepal, a mountainous South Asian country, has no oil well or other sources of fossil fuel, and the state-run oil monopoly, Nepal Oil Corporation, imports all of its fuel from India, while the fuel crisis is deepening in India as well, due to the prolonged war in the Middle East.

Last week's nearly doubled aviation fuel prices have raised fears of a fresh blow to Nepal's tourism-dependent economy. Steep hikes in the price of aviation fuel have impacted travelers as airline companies operating domestic and international flights have increased airfare.

Tensions in the Middle East have escalated since the US and Israel launched a joint offensive against Iran on Feb. 28, while Tehran has retaliated with waves of drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets, inflicting casualties and infrastructure damage while disrupting global markets and aviation.