The government’s decision to relax the lockdown from July 15 to July 22 on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha has been welcomed but panic about the follow up surge in pandemic related deaths and infections is all-pervasive. Public bus, launch and railway services will run at half capacity, shopping malls will function at limited hours. Cattle market will operate throughout the country. So our fear is that the easing of restrictions would simultaneously lead to an alarming level of surge. Many however wonder that the relaxation is ill-planned and intriguing.
If people go home braving the risks, they have to return to the city or their places of residence on the following day because the restriction will be back in force from July 23. This break will only badly aggravate the situation without serving any big beneficial purpose. Only transport workers and other jobless people would benefit for a short time. After all, we have to keep the restrictions for more time till the surge comes down. We should have a system to give food and cash to jobless to keep the restrictions to continue.
Many wonder the decision to lift the restrictions has been caused by pressure from powerful quarters to allow cattle trading without restrictions throughout the country before the Eid festival which is highly rewarding to ruling party leaders and their local cadres. They collect crores of taka from commission on sales and tolls. The two Dhaka City corporations have set up 18 makeshift cattle markets making the city vulnerable to high infection risks.
We apprehend crowds of home-bound people at bus, launch and railway stations and the long journeys may badly accelerate spread or coronavirus down to the countryside. Despite the restrictions the infections and deaths surged five to six times in the past week. The health authorities have sounded alarm that there will be no bed available in government hospitals in the next 7 to 10 days when patients may come all over the city and the villages. Our limited health system is close to breaking down and we don’t know how we are going to tackle the crisis. We must enforce strict observance of mask and social distancing norms.
