Kathmandu, Jun 19 (IANS): Nepal has reported 671 new COVID-19 cases in 24 hours, a record high, with two new deaths as the Himalayan country was witnessing a rapid rise in both coronavirus infections and fatalities in recent days.

With the new 671 cases in the last 24 hours as of Thursday, the overall number of infections in the country has increased to 7,848, Xinhua news agency quoted Health Ministry spokesperson Jageshwor Gautam as saying at a news briefing.

It is the second consecutive day that the Himalayan country reported a record high single day spike in the cases.

It is also the first time that that number of cases in a single day crossed 600.

On Wednesday Nepal reported 586 new cases.

The death toll in Nepal currently stands at 22 after the two new fatalities were reported, according to the Ministry of Health and Population.

"A 46-year-old man and a 43-year-old woman from far-western Kailali district died due to COVID-19," the spokespersonsaid.

According to Gautam, the man had tested positive on June 14 died on Wednesday.

"On the other hand, the woman who was admitted to the local hospital after head injury died on June 16 but her swab was also tested positive a day after her death," said Gautam.

Nepal has witnessed a rapid rise in the cases since May.

After the government relaxed the lockdown on June 10 allowing operation of most of the economic activities, the country has recorded 3,484 new cases, which is 44 per cent of the total number.

As per the Health Sector Emergency Response Plan against COVID-19, Nepal is currently in the third stage of COVID-19 infections where 5,000-10,000 cases are expected.

Despite the recent surge in the number of cases, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said on Thursday that the number of infections in Nepal has remained still low compared to many other countries.

"There has not been large scale community transmission in Nepal yet," he said while responding to lawmakers of the National Assembly.