The government has decided to enforce a seven-day toughest nationwide lockdown from Thursday (July 1) engaging the Armed Forces, BGB and Battalion Police in a bid to check the coronavirus transmission in the country.

“There’ll be no pass for movement this time…. no one can go outside as they’ll have to stay indoors,” Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam said this on Monday while briefing reporters at the Secretariat after the weekly Cabinet meeting.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina chaired the meeting held at the Cabinet room of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban.

The Cabinet Secretary said a notification will be issued on Tuesday to inform the government’s orders regarding the lockdown.

“We’re going with a very tough view to execute the lockdown from 6am on July 1 to 12 am on July 7,” he said, replying to a question from reporters.

Only those who are engaged in emergency services are allowed to move during the restrictions, he added.

Noting that all forces, including the Armed Forces, BGB and Battalion Police, will remain engaged there, Anwarul Islam said, “They (forces) will patrol and take legal action if anyone violates (restrictions).” 

The forces have been given the authority to take all necessary measures to enforce the restrictions and asked to remain alert so that the people can no way break the lockdown, he said.

Also read: Public transports go off streets, malls shut as ’ strict lockdown’ begins in Bangladesh

At the cabinet meeting, the State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief was given a clear directive to work out a programme to ensure proper assistance for the poor, particularly in urban areas, during the upcoming lockdown as it did in the last year, said the top bureaucrat.

Mentioning that a meeting was held with the Home Minister in the chair on Saturday last to discuss the lockdown issue, he said they will sit in another meeting to discuss it in detail and then the government’s orders will be informed through a notification on Tuesday.

He said the government cannot go for a strict restriction till June 30 on some realistic grounds. “So, it’ll start on July 1,” he added.

Anwarul Islam said the Covid infection rate has declined significantly in Chapainawabganj due to the strict execution of restrictive measures there.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet gave the final approval to the draft of the Special Security Force Bill, 2021, which will replace the Special Security Force Ordinance, 1986. “No major change was brought in it (bill),” said the Cabinet Secretary.

Besides, the Cabinet gave the final approval to the draft of the Highways Bill, 2021 in order to have a full-fledged law replacing a century-old small law in this regard.

“There’s a law of 1925 (The Highways Act, 1925), which has only five clauses and is no adequate law to deal with maintenance, management and construction (of the highways),” he said.

Also read: Bangladesh ready to go into ‘strict lockdown’ from Monday

Anwarul Islam said provisions of punishment have been kept as well in the case of violation of the proposed law. “The punishment would be a maximum two years’ jail or Tk 5,000-Tk 5 lakh fine for breaching the bill,” he said.

“There’s no comprehensive highway management law in Bangladesh. The 1925 law is not good enough. So, the proposed law was brought,” said the Cabinet Secretary.