Bangladesh to ease curbs for Eid despite virus surge in lockdown

The government has decided to extend the ongoing coronavirus lockdown by easing the restrictions from Jul 15 to Jul 22 due to Eid-ul-Azha despite a record surge in deadly infections.

The harsh curbs will be reimposed after the festival.

The Cabinet Division will announce the new rules in details on Tuesday, the government said in a statement on Sunday.  

The railways ministry has also decided to resume services by adhering to the coronavirus health protocols ahead of the Eid.

The trains will be allowed to take passengers at half the capacity from Jul 15 to Jul 22. Tickets will be available only online from Tuesday.

Muslims in Bangladesh are set to observe the Eid on Jul 21 as the number of coronavirus infections and deaths from COVID-19 are setting new records in daily counts.

People hopped on rickshaw-vans to travel to their destinations from Dhaka’s Jatrabari as the public transport services are suspended due to the lockdown on Monday, Jul 12, 2021. Photo: Asif Mahmud Ove

A year into the coronavirus outbreak, the country is now embroiled in the worst phase of the pandemic, compounded by the community transmission of the Delta variant of the coronavirus, first found in neighbouring India.

In a bid to curtail the spread of the virus, the government has enforced various restrictions on daily life since April. But as the pandemic curbs failed to have the desired results, the government imposed its harshest lockdown yet on Jul 1.

Following the advice of the National Technical Advisory Committee on COVID-19, the government extended the lockdown by a week to Jul 14.

But with the festival ahead, the lockdown appears to be easing in Dhaka and elsewhere in Bangladesh as stores are reopening with more people and cars venturing out.

Dhaka North and South City Corporations have decided to allow 20 cattle markets to trade sacrificial animals for the Eid from Jul 17 to Jul 21.

Officials said the market authorities will have to ensure adherence to health ministry instructions.  

In a grim assessment of the COVID-19 crisis, the Directorate General of Health Services on Sunday warned that the pandemic could worsen over the next seven days as infections continued to soar despite the imposition of a stringent lockdown.

Due to the increase in infections, hospitals have been burdened with a heavy patient load in the district and Upazila level. ICU beds are also in short supply.

If the current trend continues, hospitals will run out of ICU beds within a week, according to health officials.

On Monday, Bangladesh reported 13,768 COVID-19 cases, a new daily record, taking the tally to 1,034,957. The death toll surged by 220 to 16,639 in a day.