Bangladesh
Covid-19: Bangladesh reports highest ever single-day deaths with 96
Bangladesh reported 96 deaths during a 24-hour period until Wednesday morning, shattering all of its previous single-day death counts.
The latest fatalities pushed up the local tally to 9,987 since the first death was reported on March 18 last year, a handout from the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said. The mortality rate stood at 1.42 percent.
However, the number of daily cases fell to 5,185 from Tuesday’s 6,028. Bangladesh reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8. Since then, 703,170 cases have been confirmed.
The country has conducted 5,095,613 covid tests, including 24,825 new ones, since the beginning of the outbreak.
Also read: Fresh lockdown in Bangladesh: Experts skeptical about having any great result
The daily infection rate stood at 20.89 percent.
So far, the health authorities reported 591,299 recoveries (84.09 percent), including 5,333 in the last 24 hours.
Daily cases fall, body count rises
Bangladesh saw a spike in the number of daily cases in recent days that was followed by record single-day death counts.
On Wednesday, the country registered its highest number of deaths from the virus for the fourth time in five days. The figure was 69 on Tuesday, 83 on Monday, 78 on Sunday and 77 on Saturday.
Coronavirus claimed 568 lives in January this year, 281 in February and 638 in March.
Hospitals overflowing
The steady rise in new cases put severe pressure on the health system which is struggling to accommodate so many patients.
Of the 96 deaths reported, 94 had died at hospitals and two at home.
Hospitals treating Covid-19 patients in Dhaka and elsewhere are running out of general and ICU beds.
Hospitals in Dhaka metropolitan area have 4,286 general beds and 59 ICU beds. Of them, only 526 general and 12 ICU beds are available, according to DGHS data.
Also read: Bangladesh put under complete lockdown amid Covid spike
Overall, there are 10,614 general beds for treating coronavirus patients in the country and more than half of them (5,688) are occupied.
There are 792 ICU beds in total but only 137 are available at the moment.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in her new year address, said the ICU facilities are being increased and the areas of coronavirus patient treatment are being expanded.
She said steps have been taken for uninterrupted oxygen supply in public specialised hospitals.
Emphasis on health guidelines
People’s apathy towards health rules has been blamed as one of the main reasons for the sudden rise in coronavirus cases. The infection rate had fallen below 5 percent earlier this year.
Repeated requests of the health experts and the government fell on deaf ears. The people carried on as usual, hardly sticking to basic health rules as they continued to throng shopping malls, places of entertainment and other public gatherings.
Sheikh Hasina urged everyone to be careful and ensure protection for themselves, their family members and neighbours.
“Gatherings have to be avoided and everyone should wear a mask when going outside,” she said. “If everyone follows health guidelines, it’ll be possible to keep the pandemic under control, Inshallah.”
Google celebrates Pahela Baishakh with new doodle
Search engine giant Google is celebrating Pahela Baishakh, the first day of the Bangla new year, by replacing its regular home page graphic with a special doodle for the Bangladeshi surfers.
Today’s Doodle commemorates the festival of Pahela Baishakh, which falls on the first day of the Bengali calendar.
Whether at home or abroad, Bengalis worldwide warmly greet each other with, Shubho Noboborsho, the customary way to wish each other a prosperous and happy New Year.
One of the most traditional Pahela Baishakh celebrations commences after dawn underneath an ancient Banyan tree at Dhaka’s Ramna Park. Mangal Shobhajatra is a radiant carnival procession that begins at the Institute of Fine Arts at Dhaka University.
Also read: Google Doodle pays tribute to Munier Chowdhury on 95th birth anniversary
The festive spirit blends young and old, as they wear colorful masks and parade with massive cutouts of animals as a way to symbolize Bengali cultural diversity, heritage, and identity of the people.
The nation celebrates with street parades, fairs, and grand concerts as a way to unify the Bengalis to welcome another year to come.
But this year, Pahela Boishakh, is being celebrated across the country on Wednesday without outdoor programmes for the second consecutive year due to the coronavirus pandemic. This year, the programmes were cancelled to avoid mass gatherings in a bid to curb the transmission of coronavirus.
Also read: Bangladesh put under complete lockdown amid Covid spike
All television channels aired a special programme in the morning to digitally celebrate the day.
Colorful figures of animals—like the Bengal tiger seen in today’s animated Doodle.
Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google’s homepage that is intended to celebrate holidays, events, achievements and people. The doodle was introduced in 1998.
Bangladesh inks over $1 b deal with World Bank for responding to COVID-19 pandemic
The government of Bangladesh signed three financing agreements totaling $1.04 billion with the World Bank to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and to build resilience to future crises including vaccination against COVID-19.
The agreements were signed by Economic Relations Division secretary Fatima Yasmin and World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan Mercy Tembon on behalf of the Government and the World Bank, respectively.
The credits are from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), and have a 30-year term, including a five-year grace period.
The $500 million additional financing to the COVID-19 Emergency Response and Pandemic Preparedness Project will help Bangladesh vaccinate about 54 million people against COVID-19, according to a WB press release issued on Wednesday.
Also read: Govt inks $100 mn grant deal with WB to support Rohingys, host communities
It said that it will help the government procure vaccines; expand storage facilities; and distribute and deploy the vaccines.
The project will also continue to provide support to strengthen the national health systems to detect, prevent, and treat COVID-19 cases as well for preparedness for future health emergencies.
The $500 million Private Investment and Digital Entrepreneurship (PRIDE) Project will promote and attract about $2 billion direct private investments and strengthen social and environmental standards in selected public and private economic zones and software technology parks.
It will develop the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpa Nagar II in Mirsarai-Feni and establish Dhaka’s first digital entrepreneurship hub in the Janata Software Technology Park and turn it into a green building.
Also read: WB, Bangladesh sign $200m deal for improved sanitation, water access
By creating more jobs and attracting domestic and foreign private investment, including in the IT and ITES sectors, the project will help the economy to rebound from the impact of COVID-19.
The $40 million Additional Financing to the Digitizing Implementation Monitoring and Public Procurement Project (DIMAPP) will help Bangladesh expand electronic government procurement (e-GP) to all public procurement entities with new features to respond to the COVID-19 challenges.
Last year, during the general holiday for the COVID-19 pandemic, e-GP played a critical role in continuing development works throughout the country.
To respond to the challenges of COVID-19 pandemic and any other future emergencies, the financing will help add features to the e-GP system, including international bidding, direct contracting, framework agreement, electronic contract management and payment, procurement data analytics, geo-tagging, and others.
“The COVID-19 pandemic continues to be an enormous challenge around the world. So far, Bangladesh has tackled the challenges well through fiscal stimulus and social protection programs. However economic recovery would depend on vaccination for those who need it most, and actions to increase efficiency and boost productivity,” said Mercy Tembon, World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan.
These projects, he said, will help vaccinate about one-third of the population, attract direct private investment in specialized economic zones and expand as well as upgrade the electronic government procurement system.
ERD secretary Fatima Yasmin said that these financings will help Bangladesh provide vaccination to mass people and thus help the economy to turn around and remain resilient.
Bangladesh currently has the largest ongoing IDA program totaling over $14 billion.
The World Bank was among the first development partners to support Bangladesh and has committed more than $35 billion in grants, interest-free, and concessional credits to the country since its Independence.
Pandemic dampens Pahela Boishakh celebrations in Bangladesh
For the second year in a row, Pahela Boishakh celebrations remained muted across Bangladesh due to the lockdown enforced by the government to curb the rising cases of Covid-19.
All television channels aired a special programme on Wednesday morning as people stayed indoors on the first day of the Bangla calendar.
Pahela Boishakh is celebrated every year in Bangladesh on April 14. But this year, all programmes have been cancelled to avoid mass gatherings in a bid to break the chain of the virus transmission.
Pahela Boishakh celebrations have become an integral part of the Bangalis since it began more than six centuries ago.
Mughal Emperor Akbar introduced the Bangla calendar in the year 1556 of the Gregorian calendar in a bid to streamline the timing of land tax collection in the then ‘Subah Bangla’ region, much of which now falls in Bangladesh.
Also read :Online celebrations of Pahela Baishakh continue under shutdown
The day is a public holiday.
Renowned cultural organisations and institutions, including Chhayanaut, the Faculty of Fine Arts (FFA) of Dhaka University, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) and Liberation War Museum Bangladesh (LWM), have all lined up online events to welcome the new year 1428.
The marquee events of the day -- the traditional Borsho-Boron programme by Chhayanaut and the Mangal Shobhajatra parade by FFA, Dhaka University -- have all been cancelled. Both Chhayanaut and FFA broadcast pre-recorded programmes on national TV.
First observed in 1989 by FFA as a colourful procession celebrating the Bengali New Year with the participation of people from all walks of life, the annual Mangal Shobhajatra received the recognition of UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage on November 30, 2016.
Also read: Coronavirus: Chhayanaut cancels Pahela Baishakh programme at Ramna
Unfortunately, the plan to organise the event this year had to be shelved this year due to the Covid pandemic.
"Initially, the Dhaka University authorities decided to arrange a symbolic event on the FFA premises on Pahela Boishakh, as it has always been culturally very significant and this year marks the Golden Jubilee of our Independence. As per the government's lockdown restrictions, we pre-recorded a symbolic Mangal Shobhajatra for 1428 with the participation of our State Minister for Cultural Affairs and fewer than 20 people, showcasing our banner and 100 prop items made by our students and teachers, including face shields and masks," Nisar Hossain, Dean of the FFA, told UNB on Tuesday.
On Monday, Chhayanaut general secretary Laisa Ahmed Lisa said, “As we could not celebrate Pahela Boishakh 1427, we had been preparing to organise the programme this year without the crowd at the venue.
But sadly this time too, we have decided to broadcast this year’s event on Bangladesh Television (BTV)."
“The programme showcase a compilation of some of the new and previous performances of Chhayanaut artistes, and this year we are featuring performances focusing on the Golden Jubilee of our glorious Independence. Apart from BTV, Chhayanaut will also broadcast the programme on its YouTube Channel Chhayanaut Digital - Platform," she added.
Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) also broadcast a live webinar and cultural programme on its official Facebook page and YouTube channel, which was joined by former Cultural Affairs Minister and eminent thespian Asaduzzaman Noor.
BSA Director General Liaquat Ali Lucky presidedbover the virtual event, which was also be joined by prominent educator Prof Syed Manzoorul Islam, Nazrul Sangeet maestro Khairul Anam Shakil, folk singer Akramul Islam and Rabindra Sangeet singer Lily Islam.
Liberation War Museum and Wrishiz Shilpi Goshthi also held online programmes on Facebook on the occasion.
This year, April 14 also marks the first day of the holy month of Ramadan in Bangladesh and some other Muslim countries in the world.
On the occasion, President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina issued separate massages greeting the countrymen and all Bangla-speaking people across the globe.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday urged everyone to follow health guidelines and celebrate Pahela Boishakh at home, in the wake of a surge in Covid-19 cases.
"We have to remember that the lives of the people come first. If (we) survive, we’ll be able to rearrange everything," she said, while addressing the nation on the eve of Pahela Boishakh.
Global Covid-19 case surpassed 137 million
More than 137 million people have been found infected with Covid-19 globally with 2.95 million fatalities on Wednesday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
The total case count reached 137,442,147 while the death toll from the virus mounted to 2,959,078 as of Wednesday morning.
The US has logged 31,345,312 cases while the country’s total death tally reached 563,440 on Wednesday morning.
With the overburdened hospitals, Brazil on Tuesday reported 3,808 deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, raising its pandemic death toll to 358,425.
According to the Ministry of Health, during the same period, tests detected 82,186 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total infections to 13,599,994.
Besides, India’s national tally reached 13,873,835 with 172,085 deaths.
Situation in Bangladesh
The number of Covid-19 deaths in Bangladesh fell slightly in 24 hours till Tuesday morning, after registering a record breaking single-day death count for the past two days.
The country saw 83 Covid-related deaths on Monday and 78 on Sunday.
Also read: Covid-19: Hasina for balancing livelihoods and public health
Now the fatalities from Covid-19 rose to 9,891 with the new deaths but the mortality rate remained static at 1.42 percent for the fourth consecutive day, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said in a handout.
The deadly virus claimed 568 lives in January this year, 281 in February and 638 in March.
Lockdown in Bangladesh
The government has enforced a fresh strict lockdown for eight days from Wednesday in an effort to stop the spread of the deadly Coronavirus.
Under the fresh lockdown all government, semi-government, autonomous, private offices and financial institutions will remain closed but the officers and employees will have to stay in their respective work stations.
The Cabinet division issued a notification in this regard on Monday. The lockdown will remain in force from 6:00 am Wednesday (April 14) till April 21 midnight.
Also read: Govt considering complete lockdown from April 14: Quader
Covid-19 Vaccine
The government launched a vaccination campaign on February 7 with doses received from the Serum Institute of India.
Experts are calling for ramping up the drive and urging people to follow the health guidelines to keep themselves and others around them safe.
On April 8, Bangladesh began its second phase of inoculation amid uncertainty over vaccine availability.
Bangladesh put under complete lockdown amid Covid spike
The government has enforced a fresh strict lockdown for eight days from Wednesday in an effort to stop the spread of the deadly Coronavirus.
Under the fresh lockdown all government, semi-government, autonomous, private offices and financial institutions will remain closed but the officers and employees will have to stay in their respective work stations.
The Cabinet division issued a notification in this regard on Monday. The lockdown will remain in force from 6:00 am Wednesday (April 14) till April 21 midnight.
But the employees and staff of air, maritime and river and land ports will remain out of the preview of the lockdown.
All modes of public transports, including those of road, river, railway and air, will remain suspended during the lockdown. But Emergency services, carrying of goods, production services will remain out of the purview of the restriction.
Also read: Ongoing lockdown extended upto Apr 13: Quader
However, the restriction will not be effective in the case of carrying goods, emergency services and production. But industries and factories will remain open on condition of maintaining health protocols.
The offices, staffers and vehicles of the organisations providing emergency services, including law enforcement, agricultural products (fertilizer, seeds, pesticides, machinaris), crops, food laden vehicles, relief distribution, health services, health workers involved in mass innoculation, power, water, gas, fire services, port activities, media (print and electronic media), private security mangement, telephone, and postal services will remain out of the purview of the restriction.
People’s movement will be restricted and no one will be allowed to go outside except for emergency needs (to purchase medicines, daily essentials, to take medical services and burial/ cremation of dead bodies, taking Covid-19 jabs etc).
Factories, industries to operate
All industries and factories will be allowed to continue their operation following health guidelines and the respective industries must take measures to carry their employees in their own vehicles.
Hotels and restaurants to remain open
Hotels and restaurants can operate with takeaway/online services only from 12 pm to 7 pm and 12 am to 6 am. No one will be allowed to have food sitting in hotels or restaurants.
All shopping malls and markets will remain closed during this period.
Also read: Police to issue movement pass during lockdown
Daily essential items including kitchen items can be sold and purchased from open spaces from 9 am to 3 pm to maintain health protocols. Local administrations and the authorities concerned will ensure it.
The government imposed an apparently lose nationwide lockdown for one week from April 5 as part of its tougher move to contain the spike in both coronavirus infections and fatalities.
But the government allowed the resumption of public transport in city corporation areas from April 7 as well as reopening shops and shopping malls for five days from April 9 in the face of protests against the lockdown.
The lockdown remained in force until April 13 (Tuesday).
US Embassy to remain closed for routine US citizen services during lockdown
The US Embassy in Dhaka has reminded all US citizens to practice sound personal security measures which include following the laws of Bangladesh and local government decisions; and to always carry a fully charged work or personal cell phone.
The US Embassy said it will remain closed for routine US citizen services from Wednesday for the duration of the lockdown.
All US citizen services appointments already scheduled for the week will be rescheduled, said the Embassy.
Also read: US Embassy in Dhaka to remain closed Dec 16
In the event of an immediate need for service or an emergency, the US citizens have been requested to email ([email protected]) for an emergency appointment.
The Embassy will reopen US citizen services appointments after the lockdown is lifted.
The government of Bangladesh announced a continuation of the countrywide lockdown from April 14 to 21 to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
Also read: US Embassy to remain closed Sunday
The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) also announced a weeklong suspension of all international passenger flights to and from Bangladesh beginning April 14.
Expats to receive better services abroad with easier access: FS
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen has said the expatriate Bangladeshis living abroad will receive necessary services more easily and Bangladesh Missions abroad will ensure better services for the expatriates.
He said the representative of the Bangladesh government in the Missions abroad will more effectively and efficiently represent Bangladesh through the scheme of identical website.
The Foreign Secretary on Tuesday inaugurated a two-day training session on management and maintenance of the identical websites for 78 Bangladesh Mission.
The training session was organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with the a2i of the ICT Division.
Also read: FM seeks cooperation from diplomats in bringing back Bangabandhu's killers
Secretary (West) and Secretary (East) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Joint Project Director of a2i and the trainees from the Bangladesh Mission attended the inaugural ceremony.
The Foreign Secretary mentioned that with the development of identical websites, integrity and immutability of data and services would be ensured.
He instructed the concerned officials that the interface of the websites need to be user-friendly and must have a feature of evolution.
Also read: Foreign Minister asked to place a report on stranded expats
A real-time feedback loop would help the websites evolve through time because there would be constant interaction between potential users and site developers.
He thanked the trainers and trainees for their consistent efforts.
Joint Project Director of a2i highlighted the achievements and works of a2i in recent times.
He mentioned that our national portal was named by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina herself.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina directed in 2015 that all government websites ought to be identical and uniform, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday.
Since then, a2i has been working relentlessly to implement the directives of the Prime Minister.
The first day of the training session successfully concluded with the participation of more than two hundred representatives from the Bangladesh Missions abroad.
Bangla New Year- 1428 celebrated in Brussels
The Embassy of Bangladesh in Brussels has virtually celebrated the Bangla New Year 1428 in advance with the participation of more than eight thousand Bengali and foreign guests from Europe and different corners of the world.
Singer Nobonita Chowdhury performed songs from different regions and genres of the country in the event held on Monday, said the Embassy of Bangladesh in Brussels on Tuesday.
She rendered songs including Rabindra, Nazrul and Lalon Sangeet, songs of Hasan Raja, Vijay Sarkar, and Bhawaiya, which showcased the richness of Bengali songs to the world.
There was a narration in English by the singer on the theme and background of each song for foreign guests.
Ex-law minister Abdul Matin Khasru on life support
Former law minister and current president of Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Abdul Matin Khasru was put on life support at Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Dhaka on Tuesday as his condition deteriorated.
His nephew Taslim khan, also a lawyer, confirmed the development to the media, asking everyone to pray for the quick recovery of his uncle.
Barrister Ruhul Kuddus Kajol, newly elected general secretary of SCBA said that Khasru was put on life support as his condition worsened due to low blood pressure.
Abdul Matin Khasru has been receiving treatment at the Combined Military Hospital in Dhaka since March 16, the day he tested positive for Covid-19 from a sample taken the day before.
Towards the end of March, and right at the start of April, Khasru seemed on the road to recovery. He was out of the ICU, and a Covid-19 test result came out negative on April 1- that however would be the last of the good news. His physical condition started worsening after that, and on April 6th had to be shifted back to the ICU.
Abdul Matin Khasru is also the 5-time MP for Comilla-5 (Brahmanpara-Burichang) constituency.
He served as the law minister during the Awami League led government of 1996 to 2001.