Rajshahi district administration has ordered closure  of shops, shopping malls, recreation centers, restaurants and all business establishments by 8 pm amid an alarming surge in Covid cases in the district. The directive will be effective from January 29 along with all other directives imposed by the government to curb Covid-19 until any further notice, according to a notice issued by Abdul Jalil, Deputy Commissioner of the district. DC Abdul Jalil said the decision was taken on Friday night in an emergency meeting of the district Covid control and prevention committee. Also read: Covid breaches BPL, Dhaka’s Isuru tests positive The decision it was announced through mike on Friday, he said. Besides, a team was formed and police administration was informed to enforce the decision. On Friday the case positivity rate in the district stood at 64.52 per cent after detecting 120 cases among 186 sample tests, said Brigadier General Shamim Yazdani, director of Rajshahi Medical College and Hospital (RMCH). Also read: Environment Minister contracts Covid again On Thursday the positivity rate was at 74.84 per cent, he said. Four more people died of Covid at RMCH in the last 24 hours till Saturday morning, he said

Many people are overjoyed as the government is going to partly lift the prolonged lockdown, aiming to maintain a balance between the life and the livelihood. But health experts are worried that the move may worsen the coronavirus pandemic as the Delta variant has already engulfed the country.  They said the restrictions are going to be relaxed when the country has been seeing over 200 deaths a day for the last three weeks. The caseload is also on the rise. Also read: Govt eases lockdown from Aug 11 with some guidelines to follow Bangladesh recorded 166 Covid deaths and 6,364 cases when the lockdown was imposed on July 23 and the country witnessed 264 deaths and 11,164 cases on the 20th day of lockdown (Tuesday) as the deadly Delta variant continues to wreak havoc.

Legal action will be taken if any industrial factory is found open amid the strict lockdown imposed to prevent the spread of coronavirus, State Minister for Public Administration Farhad Hossain said on Monday. He was speaking to journalists after the cabinet meeting on Monday. Read:UNO breaks up picnic organised in brazen breach of lockdown The state minister said all government-private offices should be closed except for the factories involved in the production and processing of food products, the preservation of rawhide and the pharmaceutical industry. He said "I am monitoring the industrial mills whether they are open or not. And if we find any evidence, legal action will be taken against those who are running factories." Moreover, Farhad said the government has so far no plan to open garment factories. The state minister further said, "When people are roaming on the streets for the sake of work, we are actually trying to check the veracity of what they are saying." Read: Lockdown returns; most streets in Dhaka fall silent When asked about the implementation of strict lockdown, he said, "Since we have shut down the garment and export-oriented industries, the movement of workers has decreased. There are many other reasons why people are coming out unnecessarily and they have to face the law enforcers." In addition, people are able to move freely for emergency services such as hospital service. Asked if the prime minister had given any instructions in the cabinet meeting, the state minister said issues on the worsened Covid situation have been discussed. Read:Lockdown Day 3: Banks reopen, 587 arrested, Tk 12.7 lakh fined "We have issued the notification strictly," he said. The current restrictions came into force on July 23 and will continue till Aug. 5 midnight, unless extended again.

Streets in capital Dhaka now look much quieter than normal after the government reenforced the nationwide lockdown following an eight-day break to protect people from the coronavirus transmission. The lockdown restrictions came into force at 8am today and will continue till August 5 midnight, unless extended again as announced by the government on Thursday, upping its guard against the devastating Delta variant of Covid-19. Today (Friday), the first day of the restarted lockdown, the number of vehicles seen in the capital was much lower than any other day during the last week. Also read: Strict lockdown from Friday, againEven then, many were seen in the morning returning to Dhaka through different ways as public transports were not operating following the fresh order. The government’s order for everyone was to stay in their respective areas as offices, courts, garment factories and all other export-oriented industries will remain closed during the period.Rab and army personnel, deployed to enforce the strict restrictions, were seen checking the movement of people and vehicles at different points of the capital in addition to the duties performed by the police.

A virus state of emergency began Monday in Japan’s capital, as the number of new cases is climbing fast and hospital beds are starting to fill just 11 days ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. Here’s a look at the state of emergency and how it will affect the Olympics. WHAT RESTRICTIONS ARE THERE? The six-week emergency is Japan’s fourth since the pandemic began and will last until Aug. 22. The main target of the new state of emergency is alcohol served at bars and restaurants as authorities want people to stay home and watch the games on TV and not gather in public. Like past emergencies, most of the measures are requests because the government lacks a legal basis to enforce hard lockdowns. Authorities have recently given themselves more power to issue binding orders for businesses to close or shorten hours in exchange for compensation. They can also now fine businesses that violate those orders. Also read: Japan to declare virus emergency lasting through Olympics The new state of emergency requests that restaurants, bars, karaoke parlors and other entertainment outlets either close or not serve alcohol. It asks liquor stores to suspend business with restaurants and bars that defy the request, but liquor stores say that would hurt their business ties. Schools will stay open during this emergency, while theme parks, museums, theaters and most stores and restaurants are requested to close at 8 p.m. Tokyo residents are asked to avoid nonessential outings, work from home and stick to mask-wearing and other safety measures. Measures for the general public are non-mandatory. WHAT AREAS DOES IT COVER? The latest state of emergency covers Tokyo’s nearly 14 million residents, while less-stringent measures focusing on shortened hours for restaurants and bars affect 31 million other people in nearby cities of Chiba, Saitama and Kanagawa that are home to some Olympic venues. The measures also cover Osaka, which was hit hard by a virus surge in April, and the southern island of Okinawa. HOW WILL THIS AFFECT THE OLYMPICS? The state of emergency will cover the entire duration of the July 23-Aug. 8 Olympics and its main impact will be in barring fans from stadiums and arenas in the Tokyo area. While the state of emergency mainly covers Tokyo, Olympic officials have decided to bar fans from events hosted in Tokyo’s three neighboring prefectures, while allowing limited fans at other outlying venues. Soccer events in Hokkaido and baseball and softball games in Fukushima, however, will also bar fans due to virus concerns. Also read: Tokyo shapes up to be No-Fun Olympics with many rules, tests The games have already been postponed from 2020 by the pandemic, and fans from abroad were banned months ago. With the new restrictions, the games will now be a largely TV-only event. HOW BAD IS JAPAN’S VIRUS SITUATION? Japan has weathered the pandemic better than many other countries, logging about bout 820,000 cases and 15,000 deaths. But the situation has grown more serious in recent weeks, and Tokyo hit a two-month high of 950 new cases on Saturday. Experts have warned that the delta variant, which is thought to be more contagious, is spreading fast in offices and classrooms and without tough measures the numbers could skyrocket by August. About 16.8% of the population has been fully vaccinated, a number that has picked up since May but is still far short of where officials hoped to be before the Olympics. Younger people are largely unvaccinated. WILL THE PUBLIC COMPLY? Experts worry whether the latest state of emergency requests will be followed when many people are already fatigued by the restraints and grown less cooperative. Health Minister Norihisa Tamura has said that effectively preventing people from going out drinking amid festive mood of the Olympic will be a headache. Also read: Tokyo Olympics to be held mostly without spectators due to pandemic Young people are already gathering in streets and parks to drink after restaurants and bars close at 8 p.m. Tokyo metropolitan officials have started nighttime patrolling to chase them away. Experts say Japanese roaming around during their summer vacations and the Olympics could be a greater risk than athletes and other participants whose activity will be closely monitored.

Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) has now imposed restriction on foreign flights due to the increasing rate of Covid-19 infection rate in the country. Flights from eight countries - India, Nepal and South Africa, Botswana, Mongolia, Namibia, Panama and Tunisia under Group- A, would not be able to enter Bangladeshi airports, said a circular Monday. The restrictions would be effective until further notice. READ: Domestic flights to operate for international passengers only Bangladeshis who visited the eight countries in the last 15 days could travel to Bangladesh over special permission from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Bangladeshi engineers of ships who left the Group- A countries within past 15 days of travel to Bangladesh could return showing valid documentary evidence about their profession and signing off. Arriving to the country, 14-day institutional quarantine at government-nominated hotels at their own expense must be maintained READ: Domestic flights resume Wednesday People from Group-B countries were permitted to travel to and from Bangladesh. The countries in Group-B are - Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Georgia, Kuwait, Malaysia, Maldives, Oman, UAE, UK and Uruguay. Vaccinated passengers would have to stay at a 14-day strict home quarantine, upon arrival. In contrast, passengers not vaccinated must stay at a 14-day institutional quarantine at a government nominated hotel at their own cost. READ: Stringent lockdown: Biman's domestic flights suspended till July 7   Passengers from counties other than Group- A and B would have to complete a 14-day home quarantine as well. Incase of Covid-19 symptoms detection on the arrival, the passenger would be sent to a government hospital and might be sent to isolation at government-nominated hotels, depending on the intensity of it.

All shops and markets in the port city except medical stores have been ordered to close by 8 pm from Wednesday as the administration imposed new restrictions to combat increasing corona virus. The decision was taken on Tuesday considering the health risks posed by Covid-19, said deputy commissioner Mominur Rahman. All types of public gatherings including mezban, wedding parties will remain suspended during this period in the district. Restaurants and eateries will operate at half the capacity. At least 12 mobile courts will conduct drives to ensure that people wear masks and follow health protocols. Anyone violating the restrictions face penalty, The devotees have been asked to maintain social distance while offering prayer and enter the mosques only after hand sanitization. Also read: 8-day lockdown in Fatikchhari begins tomorrow The community centres located in city corporation areas and different upazilas have been warned to refrain from arranging any marriage or other social programmes and if found involved in violating the order they will be penalised. The entrance of Patenga sea beach will also remain shut from Wednesday as no one can enter the area, said DC. Besides, the mobile court drives of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) will ensure the health guidelines on public transport. Chattogram Civil Surgeon Dr. Sheikh Fazle Rabbi, said so far 662 people have died of Covid-19 and of them, 643 died in the city while the rest died in different upazilas of the district. Covid-19 situation As the Coronavirus situation continues to worsen in Bangladesh creating new hotspots outside capital Dhaka, health authorities logged 4,846 more new cases with a positivity rate of 19.36% in 24 hours until Tuesday morning. Also read: Covid-19: Bangladesh reports 76 more deaths, 4,846 fresh cases The positivity rate in the country rose to 19.36% from Monday’s 19.27 per cent, said a handout of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). Besides, the deadly virus claimed the lives of 76 more people during the 24-hour period, bringing the national tally to 13,702. The fresh cases pushed up the total caseload to 8,61,150, the handout added. However, the mortality rate remained static at 1.59%.

Japan’s department stores, bars and theaters shuttered Sunday as part of emergency measures to slow a surge in infections. The 17-day restrictions are declared for Tokyo, Kyoto, Hyogo and Osaka, ahead of the “Golden Week” holidays, when Japanese usually travel extensively. There’s doubt about the effectiveness of the effort, which focuses on eateries and theme parks staying closed or limiting hours. Trains and streets remain as packed as ever, and schools will stay open. Japan has already declared three emergencies over the coronavirus. The vaccine rollout has been slow, with barely 1% of its population inoculated. Also read: Japan to start releasing Fukushima water into sea in 2 years One setback is that Japan requires additional testing for vaccines approved overseas, and only the Pfizer vaccine is now in use. Experts say the unfolding wave of infections includes more deadly variants. Japan has attributed about 10,000 deaths to COVID-19, among the worst in Asia. A domestically produced vaccine is not expected until next year or 2023.

A 54-hour ban imposed by the Election Commission (EC) on the movement of motorcycles in the capital ahead of the Dhaka city election will come into effect from Thursday midnight.