Covid curbs eased despite health worries
The government on Tuesday relaxed the ongoing restrictions on public movement and businesses for eight days from Thursday, reopening all businesses and public transports ahead of Eid-ul-Azha despite concerns that such relaxation would further worsen the Covid situation.
The restrictions have been relaxed from July 14 midnight to 6:00am on July 23 for the celebration of the Eid festival, movement of people, pre-Eid business activities and also for keeping the economic activities normal, according to a Cabinet Division circular.
The government move for relaxing public movement came two days after the Directorate General of Health Services had warned that hospitals might run out of space in a maximum of one week if Covid cases continue to increase.
DGHS line director Robed Amin said that the decision to withdraw movement curbs goes against the measures they had requested the government to adopt.
‘Lifting restrictions at this point in time cannot be considered,’ said Robed Amin, adding that imposition of the restrictions so far remained incomplete and was thus unsuccessful in containing the spread of the virus.
‘The decision of how people behave during the pandemic is not being taken by the country’s health experts,’ lamented Robed.
The ongoing restrictions would, however, resume from 6:00am on July 23 and would continue till August 5 midnight when all offices both public and private and shops and markets including shopping malls would remain closed.
The ban on operations of public transports on roads, railways and waterways and domestic flights would remain in force during the period.
Factories, which are allowed to operate during the ‘strict restrictions’ enforced since July 1, would remain shut from July 23 to August 5, according to the Cabinet Division circular signed by deputy secretary Rezaul Islam.
People have been asked to remain alert and strictly follow the health rules including wearing masks.
Public health experts fear that the number of Covid cases would increase further once the restrictions are relaxed ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, one of the biggest festivals of Muslims to be celebrated on July 21 due to the massive movement of people across the country on the occasion.
National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine former microbiology professor Benazir Ahmed said that the government added fuel to fire by lifting movement curbs.
People will get infected with Covid-19 in their thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, as people would travel outside Dhaka, mingle with each other during the Eid holidays and would return to the capital after Eid, said Benazir.
‘The infection will spread like wildfire,’ warned Benazir.
On Tuesday, 203 more people died of Covid-19 and 12,198 new people were found infected, taking the country’s Covid death toll to 16,842 and cases to 10,47,155, according to official statistics.
It is for the fifth day that the number of daily deaths crossed 200 from the viral disease.
‘The government missed every opportunity to contain the spread of the Delta variant which is currently wreaking havoc in many parts of the world,’ said Benazir.
About 1.5 lakh people were officially declared Covid infected in the first half of the month, he said, adding that the number would jump at least four times immediately after Eid.
He feared that Bangladesh may witness distressing images as has been seen in India where people were crawling on the streets begging for oxygen support.
Nazrul Islam, a member of the national technical advisory committee on Covid-19, said that the number of Covid cases would jump if the ongoing movement restrictions were relaxed.
The government on June 30 ordered the countryside restrictions effective from July 1 for a week, shutting all government and non-government offices except the ones involved in emergency services and all motorised public transports with the deployment of army and Border Guard Bangladesh personnel along with the police to enforce the curbs.
The strict restrictions were later extended till July 14 amid widespread violations including a huge presence of private vehicles on roads and movement of people almost everywhere including journeys of home-bound people ahead of Eid.
The first three days of the restrictions saw strict enforcement and there were fewer people and vehicles on roads, but after that people started to venture out on streets in growing numbers on flimsy grounds.
In the capital on Tuesday, the 13th day of the restrictions, the number of vehicles increased, creating traffic congestions in some areas including Karwan Bazar, Farmgate, and Green Road areas.
The Dhaka Metropolitan Police on Tuesday arrested 552 more people for violating the restrictions, taking the number of people arrested in the past nine days of the restrictions to 8,504.
Mobile courts of the DMP fined 119 people, realising Tk 2,14,400 while the traffic police fined 696 vehicles Tk 14,38,000 for breaching the restriction rules, a DMP press release said.
Tourism centres, resorts, community centres and entertainment centres will again be closed from July 23 to August 5.
The government staff will stay at workplaces and conduct all official work virtually during the restriction period.
All related to law and order, emergency services, like agricultural products and inputs, food grains and food transportation, relief distribution, health services, Covid vaccination, revenue collections, NID distribution works, power, water, gas/fuel, fire service, telephone, internet and postal services, pharmacy, mass media (print and electronic media) along with other emergency services will be allowed to move with their identity cards.
No one will be allowed to move outside their houses without emergency which includes obtaining medicines, essentials and receiving health services and attending funerals otherwise legal actions will be taken.
People who obtained vaccine cards will be allowed to get vaccines.
Kitchen markets and sale of essentials will remain open from 9:00am to 3:00pm in open spaces maintaining the health guidelines while restaurants will sell food online or for takeaway only from 8:00am to 8:00pm.
In the ongoing restrictions, kitchen markets and the sale of essentials are allowed between 9:00am and 5:00pm.
Goods-carrying vehicles — truck, lorry, covered van, cargo vessel, freight train and ferry — ports (air, sea, river, land) would remain out of the purview of the restrictions.
International flights will remain open and passengers going aboard will be able to use vehicles provided that they would show air tickets for the movement.
All social functions such as marriage receptions, birthday parties, picnics and political and religious events that lead to public gatherings will also be suspended.
The Armed Forces Division will provide army troops necessary to ensure effective patrolling under the provision of the ‘army in aid of civil power’ and the district magistrates will hold coordination meetings with officials concerned to fix jurisdiction and procedure for the deployment of army, Border Guard Bangladesh, police, Rapid Action Battalion and Ansar members.
The public administration ministry will ensure the deployment of the executive magistrates in the field.
Bangladesh Railway is going to resume services of 38 intercity and 19 mail and commuter trains from July 15 to July 22, carrying passengers at half capacity, said officials.
Bangladesh Inland Water Transport in an urgent press release issued on Tuesday also said that all passenger vessels will run from July 14 midnight till July 23 morning with 50 per cent passengers against capacity and following health regulations.
Last year, the government announced a general holiday, shutting down all government and non-government offices and businesses excepting those providing emergency services from March 26 to May 30, 2020 following the detection of the novel coronavirus on March 8 in the country.
News Courtesy:
https://www.newagebd.net/article/143596/covid-curbs-eased-despite-health-worries
