COUNTRY’S leading business conglomerate Bashundhara Group has submitted a proposal to Prime Minister to build a 5,000-bed hospital to treat the coronavirus patients. The Group wanted to convert its four convention centres and a trade centre in capital’s Kuril area into a hospital which could be ready within a week if prompt initiatives are taken. They also donated Tk10 crore to the PM’s coronavirus fighting fund. On the other hand, the construction work of a specialised hospital by another big business house Akij Group is going on in Dhaka’s Tejgaon area on Sunday. It would provide free treatment to coronavirus patients. We express our heartiest gratitude to the groups for their extraordinary initiatives. It becomes a moral duty of country’s rich and affluent persons to come forward with financial help and other cooperation when country has entered into a battle with super-fast spreading deadly coronavirus. In the meantime, 27 national cricketers including ODI captain Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim have donated half of their monthly salaries amounting to Tk 31 lakh (including tax deduction) to fight the COVID19.
Not only that, all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has launched a charity organisation under which he will raise funds from well-off people at home and abroad to assist a project titled ‘Mission Save Bangladesh.’ Apart from it, several small business farms and individuals have come forward to provide food and other essentials to the marginalised people in their own localities. The government though has taken some initiatives to support the vulnerable population, it is not sufficient to meet the vast need of several million confined and jobless people. We fear the situation might get worse in the future as a number of private businesses and factories have announced forced leave to their employees in line with government’s policy. Money cannot be a big problem in present context of Bangladesh, if there is a strong will to help the coronavirus patients and also the jobless quarantined people.
Government recently has confiscated crores of taka and gold from casino dons, drug mafias and smugglers. This money can also be used as emergency funds to tackle coronavirus situation. It needs only sincerity of the government.
