Bangladesh tightens bars as COVID cases rise, Dhaka and ‘red zone’ | Coronavirus Plague News

Dhaka, Bangladesh – Bangladesh has enacted new laws and regulations to monitor the sharp rise in COVID-19 infections last week.

South Asia reported 3,359 new cases and 12 deaths related to COVID on Thursday, with a risk of 12 percent, according to a daily report released by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

The DGHS has declared the capital, Dhaka, and the southeastern province of Rangamati a “red zone” as the prevalence of these diseases is estimated to be between 10 and 19 percent.

“We have seen a dramatic increase in COVID-19 cases. The daily risk has now exceeded 10 percent in the past three days,” DGHS spokesman Dr Robed Amin told Al Jazeera.

Amin said more than 80 percent of COVID-19 cases found in Bangladesh still differ from Delta. “Cases of Omicron range but it is still growing, ”he said.

Bangladesh, home to 180 million people, confirmed its first Omicron case in the second week of December when two female athletes returned from Zimbabwe.

The latest figures put the total number of deaths in the country to 28,123 while the total number reached 1,604,644. On January 1, Bangladesh received only 370 cases with 2.43 percent per day.

“The growing number of diseases indicates that the spread of Omicron has already begun,” Health Minister Zahid Maleque told reporters Wednesday.

He warned that the situation could worsen and could lead to serious health problems in the country in the coming days. He encouraged people to wear masks, stay away, and receive vaccinations as soon as possible.

Just one day after its warning, the government issued 11 directives, including the approval of COVID-19 and banning activities and transportation.

The ban prohibits people from wearing protective masks in shops, shops, markets, hotels, restaurants and all other places. All public, political and religious meetings in the open are prohibited until further notice.

Trains, buses, and starters are advised to carry halfway passengers. The law also stipulates that students over 12 years of age will not be allowed to attend private classes without a vaccination certificate.

To enforce the ordinance, the government has set up courts to travel to Dhaka, despite reports from local media that the law is not being properly enforced in the city.

“We are probably entering the third coronavirus because of Omicron diversity,” Dr Tahmina Shirin, director of the Dhaka-based Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR), told Al Jazeera.

“It ‘s a global phenomenon. The whole world has been witnessing an ever-increasing number of cases. The Omicron brand is the most contagious,” he said.

During the second phase of the epidemic in July and August last year, Bangladesh saw more than 200 people die every day for nearly a month. Many died from oxygen shortages.

“At the moment, caseloads are supposed to be higher than the second wave as Omicron is spreading rapidly. At the moment, we cannot be sure of the risk of death as global events show that Omicron is not as deadly as Delta,” Shirin told Al Jazeera.

However, he said people should be clean and follow the guidelines of COVID-19.

“Wearing masks and staying away from others is still the best way to reduce the spread of the disease.”