pandemic
Tangia Zaman Methila wins Miss Universe Bangladesh 2020
Beauty pageant Miss Universe Bangladesh 2020 crowned Tangia Zaman Methila as the winner on Saturday.Overcoming nine other finalists, Methila was crowned Miss Universe Bangladesh 2020 by Bollywood actress Chitrangda Singh at the grand finale of the pageant arranged at the Radisson Blu Dhaka Water Garden in Dhaka.
A professional model and actress, Methila will represent Bangladesh in Miss Universe 2020 coronation ceremony on May 16, 2021, in Hollywood, Florida in the USA.
Also read: Miss Universe Bangladesh 2020 announces top 50 contestants’ namesFarzana Yasmin Ananya was crowned as the first runner-up and Farzana Akter Ani became the second runner-up out of the top 10.Through winning the pageant, Methila has also become the second representative from Asian countries in the international beauty pageant, which was formed in 1952.
Previously, Methila was the inaugural Miss Supranational Bangladesh 2019. She is a brand ambassador to several national and international brands in Bangladesh including Tresemme and more. She has also been the showstoppers of major fashion week and fashion shows in the country.
Also read: South African crowned Miss Universe 2019
Besides her modeling career, Methila is also an alumna of the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) in Dhaka.
The coronation ceremony was broadcast on Rtv. Bollywood actress Chitrangda Singh joined the grand finale as the guest judge along with Tahsan Khan, Bidya Sinha Saha Mim, Irene Sommer Tilger and Mehruz Munir.
In 2019, Shirin Akter Shela made history as the first-ever Miss Universe Bangladesh, also becoming the first person from a Muslim-majority country in South Asia to compete for the title of Miss Universe. She was unplaced at Miss Universe 2019 that was taken place in Atlanta, Georgia in the USA.
Also read: Tyler Perry's new studio to host 2019 Miss Universe pageant
The Miss Universe 2020 coronation ceremony was not held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making Zozibini Tunzi from South Africa the longest-reigning Miss Universe.
There are now 76 candidates, including Methila, confirmed to compete in Miss Universe 2020.
Shadow of uncertainty hangs over domestic cricket season
The pandemic came and marched on; as it lingered for more than a year the chance of domestic cricket taking place last season withered with that.
Many cricketers, who are not part of the national team set-ups, were left helpless as they have no other source of income other than the one they get from playing in the domestic circuit.
Those cricketers found a flicker of hope when the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) decided to host the National Cricket League (NCL) last month. But the light went out as the NCL was put on hold after two rounds in the wake of a recent spike in Covid-19 deaths and cases.
At least five cricketers, who played the first round of the event, tested positive for Covid-19. So, the board has stepped forward to limit the cricketers' movements off the field.
Earlier, the BCB had decided to host the league in only two venues – Cox's Bazar and BKSP – instead of four. But the Cox's Bazar authority limited the movement of people in the area to stop the spread of the virus.
Unable to manage venues, the board decided to halt the league for one week, which created fresh concerns among many cricketers, who have started thinking that the league might not resume.
"The national team players will be able to survive for a year even if they do not get money from the board. They are established cricketers," Anamul Haque Bijoy, the opener who is out of the national team now, told the media on Saturday.
Also read; Hapless Bangladesh still searching for answers in Test cricket
"But those who are out of the national team set-ups or did not play for the national side yet will suffer a lot if there is no domestic cricket. Those are heavily reliant on cricketing activities at the lower tiers of the game – the first division, second division, third division or the academies— will suffer a lot," he added.
There are at least 20 cricketers in every NCL team, and they also have a few members in the support staff. It means, at least 200 players and support staff take part in NCL. So, it is tough to manage a bio-secure bubble for so many people.
Covid-19: Bangladesh sees 5,638 cases, 58 more deaths
Amid an alarming surge in Covid-19 cases, Bangladesh recorded 5,683 fresh cases and 58 deaths in the last 24 hours until Saturday morning.
The health authorities recorded over 5000 Covid cases on March 29, 30 and 31 while over 6000 cases on April 1 and 2.
The infection rate slightly fell to 23.15 percent from 23.28 percent on Friday when the country recorded 6,830 cases, the highest since the beginning of the pandemic.
On Thursday, the number of new cases was 6,469 and on Wednesday, the number was 5,358.
The number of daily cases and infection rate dropped below 5 percent earlier this year but then infections continue to rise again amid people’s reluctance to maintain health safety rules.
Hospitals are struggling to provide treatment to the increasing coronavirus patients with their limited resources. The government is increasing the number of beds and Covid-designated hospitals to deal with the situation.
Bangladesh has so far recorded 630,277 coronavirus cases, according to a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
During the 24-hour period until Saturday morning, 2,364 patients recovered, taking the number of recoveries to 549,775.
Bangladesh reported its first cases on March 8 last year and confirmed the first death from the virus 10 days later.
The country has so far tested 4,752,661 samples, including 24,100 in the last 24 hours, the DGHS said.
Meanwhile, the fatalities rose to 9,213 with the new deaths. The mortality rate fell to 1.46 on Saturday from Friday’s 1.47 percent.
Coronavirus claimed 568 lives in January this year, 281 in February and 638 in March.
Among the latest victims, 39 died in Dhaka division, 12 in Chattogram, One each in Rangpur and Mymensingh, three in Khulna and two in Barishal division.
So far, 5,267 coronavirus patients died in Dhaka division, 1,664 in Chattogram, 508 in Rajshahi, 592 in Khulna, 276 in Barishal, 327 in Sylhet, 377 in Rangpur and 202 in Mymensingh divisions.
So far 6,925 men (75.17) and 2,288 women (24.83) died of Covid-19.
Also read: Govt to enforce 7-day lockdown from Monday: Quader
Govt set to impose ‘lockdown’
On Saturday, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said the government is set to announce a seven-day lockdown from Monday to stem the spread of coronavirus.
Meanwhile, State Minister for Public Administration Farhad Hossain said the decision for a countrywide lockdown for seven days would come within “two to three days”.
In a video message, he said the institutions providing emergency services would be open during the lockdown.
“Industries and factories will remain open too,” he said. “Workers will have to follow health guidelines and work in shifts (during that period).”
Also read: Restriction on gatherings, quarantine rule among PMO’s 18-point directive to contain Covid surge
Govt strengthens protective steps
The daily surge prompted the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to issue an 18-point directive on March 29 to prevent the virus’ transmission.
On the same day, the Health Ministry proposed strict measures like partial lockdowns for some places with higher Covid-19 transmission rates.
Vaccination drive
The government launched a countrywide vaccination campaign on February 7 with doses received from the Serum Institute of India.
Bangladesh inked an agreement with Serum in December last year for 30 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. Serum is supposed to supply the doses between January and June this year – 5 million each month.
Also read: Global Covid cases top 130 million
Global situation
Coronavirus cases were first reported in China in December 2019.
The world hit another grim Covid-19 milestone on Saturday, as the total caseload surpassed 130 million and 2.8 million deaths so far, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
A number of vaccines have been developed to fight the virus. Most notable of them are those made by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Oxford-AstraZeneca.
All professional MBBS final exams postponed
All professional final examinations of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) scheduled to start on Sunday (April 4, 2021) under the Dhaka University affiliated medical colleges have been postponed.
The decision was taken as Bangladesh saw a sudden spike in Covid-19 infection.
The next dates of the exams will be announced later, a press release issued by the Dhaka University said.
But the first and second professional MBBS May-2020 and November-2020 practical and oral examination will be held on time maintaining hygienic rules, the press release added.
Also read: MBBS admission test results published
Tourism suspended in Sundarbans till Apr 15
The Forest Department has banned tourists from entering the Sundarbans till April 15 to tackle the second wave of Covid-19.
However, beekeepers and fishermen will be exempt from the ban.
Forest Conservator of Khulna Zone Moinuddin Khan confirmed this news to UNB.
He said that there are seven tourist spots in eastern and western zones of Sundarban. All of these will be closed effective immediately.
Also read: Covid 19: Movement of tourist ships on Teknaf-St Martin's route suspended
According to him, around 2 lakh domestic and foreign tourists visit the Sundarbans every year.
Although, tourists were suspended for the majority of 2020, records show around 1 lac 72 thousand tourists came to Sundarbans last year despite it.
Moinuddin stated that the reason behind not losing tourists despite suspension was that the main season to visit the Sundarbans is from Nov-Jan, it was when the Covid situation was comparatively back to normal.
Also read: Damage to int'l tourism in 2020 estimated at $1.3 trillion amid pandemic
Earlier on March 19 last year, the Sundarbans was declared closed to tourists.
Later, after almost seven months of suspension, instructions were given to conduct tourism in compliance with the hygiene rules in October.
Chattogram EC official dies of Covid-19
An official of the Chattogram Election Commission died at a hospital in Dhaka on Friday, three days after testing positive for Covid-19.
Ataur Rahman, 45, was an election officer with the Chattogram EC district office.
He died while undergoing treatment at the Dhaka hospital, said Md Kamrul Alam, the Additional Election Officer of Chattogram.
Ataur was flown to Dhaka for treatment on March 25 after he complained of breathing difficulties and had high fever and cold. And he tested positive for Covid on March 29, Kamrul Alam said.
Meanwhile, for the third time in four days, Bangladesh recorded its highest daily coronavirus cases as the health authorities confirmed 6,469 new infections on Thursday afternoon.
The infection rate jumped to 22.94 percent from 19.9 percent of Wednesday’s when the country recorded 5,358 cases, the highest in months.
On Tuesday, 5,042 cases were recorded and the number was 5,181 on Monday. The fatalities reached 9,105 with 59 new deaths.
World leaders call for pandemic treaty, but short on details
More than 20 heads of government and global agencies called in a commentary published Tuesday for an international treaty for pandemic preparedness that they say will protect future generations in the wake of COVID-19.
But there were few details to explain how such an agreement might actually compel countries to act more cooperatively.
World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and leaders including Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain, Premier Mario Draghi of Italy and President Paul Kagame of Rwanda proposed "a renewed collective commitment" to reinforce preparedness and response systems by leveraging the U.N. health agency's constitution.
"The world cannot afford to wait until the pandemic is over to start planning for the next one," Tedros said during a news conference. He said the treaty would provide "a framework for international cooperation and solidarity" and address issues like surveillance systems and responding to outbreaks.
International regulations governing health and implemented by WHO already exist — and can be disregarded by countries with few consequences. Despite an obligation for nations to share critical epidemic data and materials quickly with WHO, for example, China declined to do so when the coronavirus first broke out.
And with no enforcement powers, WHO officials had little means of compelling them to share details, an AP investigation last year found.
Steven Solomon, WHO's principal legal officer, said the proposed pandemic treaty would need to be ratified by lawmakers in the participating countries.
"Specifics about enforcement will be up to member states to decide on," Solomon said.
European Council President Charles Michel first laid out the idea of a pandemic treaty at the U.N. General Assembly in December. Joining Tedros at Tuesday's briefing, Michel said the global community needs to "build a pandemic defense for future generations that extends far beyond today's crisis. For this, we must translate the political will into concrete actions."
Gian Luca Burci, a former WHO legal counsel who is now a professor at the Graduate Institute of international affairs in Geneva, described the proposal as an attempted "big fix" involving information sharing, preparedness and response, saying the concept is "like a Christmas tree, frankly."
"But to me, the risk is that it diverts attention from the tool that we have" — WHO's existing International Health Regulations, Burci said recently. He said his fear was those regulations would get short shrift and receive "cosmetic improvements, but fundamentally remain a weak instrument."
Although the 25 signatories of the commentary called for "solidarity," and greater "societal commitment," there was no indication any country would soon change its own approach to responding to the pandemic. China, Russia and the United States didn't join in signing the statement.
WHO legal officer Solomon said the pandemic treaty might also address issues such as the sharing of vaccine technology and vaccine supplies, but gave no indication how that might happen. Despite WHO's calls for patents to be waived during the pandemic, rich countries have continued to oppose efforts by poor countries to compel them to share vaccine manufacturing technology.
Tedros pleaded with rich countries last week to immediately donate 10 million COVID-19 vaccines so that immunization campaigns could start in all countries within the first 100 days of the year. Not a single country has yet publicly offered to share its vaccines immediately. Of the more than 459 million vaccines administered globally, the majority have been in just 10 countries — and 28% in just one. WHO didn't identify the countries.
UN-Habitat calls for post COVID-19 cities to lead the way to a healthier future
A new report on pandemics and cities from UN-Habitat, points the way to how hard-hit urban centres can reduce the impact of future outbreaks and become more equitable, healthy and environmentally friendly.
‘Cities and Pandemics: Towards a more just, green and healthy future’, launched on Tuesday, describes how urban areas have been at the forefront of the COVID-19 crisis.
“95 per cent of all cases” were recorded in cities in the first months of the pandemic, Maimunah Mohd Sharif, UN-Habitat Executive Director, said.
Also read: UN Chief for ensuring equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccine
Cities on the frontline
“Throughout this pandemic, it has been up to local governments and communities to move quickly and decisively to stop the spread of COVID-19 and ensure an effective response,” Ms. Sharif added.
Despite these pressures, many local governments and community leaders responded quickly and effectively to prevent the spread of the pandemic and mitigate its effects.
The UN-Habitat report recommends actions for a sustainable recovery based on evidence from more than 1,700 cities.
Life and death inequalities
It found that patterns of inequality, due to a lack of access to basic services, poverty and overcrowded living conditions, have been key destabilising factors in increasing the scale and impact of COVID-19.
Eduardo Moreno, Head of Knowledge and Innovation at UN-Habitat, said that due to the pandemic, an estimated “120 million people in the world will be pushed into poverty and living standards will reduce by 23 per cent”.
“The conclusion is that income matters”, he added.
According to the text, urban leaders and planners must rethink how people move through and in cities, using lessons learned from the last year of COVID-19.
This includes an increased focus at the local level on planning neighbourhoods and communities that are multi-functional and inclusive.
Also read: UN chief calls for action to ensure human rights for all
Planning, affordability
The report explores how well-planned cities combining residential and commercial with public spaces, along with affordable housing, can improve public health, the local economy and the environment.
It calls for cities to be at the forefront of moves towards a Social Contract between governments, the public, civil society and private sector.
The new social contract should “explore the role of the state and cities to finance universal basic income, universal health insurance, universal housing”, said Sharif.
For one real-world example, Claudia Lopez Hernandez, Mayor of Bogota, explained how in the Colombian capital, their new social contract prioritises women and children.
It is a “social contract that includes women, that provides them with time, with time to take care of themselves, with time to educate themselves, and with time and education skills to come back to the labour market”.
“To have self-sustainable women is to have self-sustainable societies”, Hernandez explained.
Also read: UN chief calls for immediate attention to 3 global emergencies
New priorities
The Report outlines how a new normal can emerge in cities “where health, housing and security are prioritised for the most vulnerable, not only out of social necessity, but also from a profound commitment to human rights for all.”
This requires governments to focus on policies to protect land rights, improve access to water, sanitation, public transport, electricity, health and education facilities and ensure inclusive digital connectivity.
The Report recommends strengthening access to municipal finance to enable city leaders to build a new urban economy that reduces disaster risk as well as addressing climate change by developing nature-based solutions and investing in sustainable infrastructure to enable low carbon transport.
The Cities and Pandemics Report makes it clear that the way urban environments recover from the pandemic, will have a major impact on the global effort to achieve a sustainable future for all – in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Trash scavengers who help keep cities clean plea for vaccine
The scavengers wait patiently for a dump truck to tip the trash on the summit of the landfill outside New Delhi. Armed with plastic bags, they plunge their bare hands into the garbage and start sorting it.
Every day, more than 2,300 tons of garbage is dumped at the landfill at Bhalswa that covers an area bigger than 50 football fields, with a pile taller than a 17-story building. And every day, thousands of these informal workers climb the precarious slopes to pick through what can be salvaged.
They are among the estimated 20 million people around the world — in rich nations and poor — who are pivotal in keeping cities clean, alongside paid sanitation employees. But unlike those municipal workers, they usually are not eligible for the coronavirus vaccine and are finding it hard to get the shots.
Also read: Virus variants, vaccine inequity responsible for rising Covid caseload: WHO
The pandemic has amplified the risks that these informal workers face. Few have their own protective gear or even clean water to wash their hands, said Chitra Mukherjee of Chintan, a nonprofit environmental research group in New Delhi.
“If they are not vaccinated, then the cities will suffer,” Mukherjee said.
Manuwara Begun, 46, lives in a cardboard hut behind a five-star hotel in the heart of New Delhi and feels the inequity keenly. Chintan estimates that each year, those like her save the local government over $50 million and eliminate over 900,000 tons of carbon dioxide by diverting waste away from landfills.
Still, they are they not considered “essential workers” and thus are ineligible for vaccinations.
Begun has started an online petition pleading for vaccines and asking, “Are we not human?”
Sanitation workers employed by local governments in South Africa and Zimbabwe are likely to be in line for the COVID-19 vaccine after health workers, unlike those who sort through the trash. At the Dandora landfill in Kenya’s capital of Nairobi, some of the scavengers who are not eligible for a shot wear medical gear discarded by hospitals and health clinics, saying it especially protects them from the weather during the rainy season.
There is no doubt that these people provide an essential service, says Louise Guibrunet, a researcher at National Autonomous University of Mexico who has studied the issue.
Also read: Leaders of "Quad" agree to aid vaccine delivery to developing nations
In Mexico, scavengers help municipal workers on garbage trucks and often collect trash from neighborhoods not served by authorities. The work is dangerous, and injuries are common, so governments have an incentive to not recognize them or provide benefits like health care, she said.
They often are already poor, moving to unfamiliar cities to eke out a living by sorting garbage, says Robin Jeffrey, a professor at the Institute of South Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore. That many of these workers in India belong to poor Muslim or Dalit communities, who once were known as “untouchables” at the bottom of the country's caste system, adds a layer of prejudice.
“The vaccine is just another, and very dramatic, example of an exclusion that has prevailed before COVID-19 came on the horizon,” said Jeffrey, who co-authored a book on waste in India in 2018.
India said it will give vaccines to everyone over 45 starting April 1. At private hospitals, each shot is sold for 250 rupees ($3.45), but they are free at government hospitals.
Because the pandemic sent the price of oil crashing, it became cheaper to make new plastic than to recycle it. In many countries, closed borders brought recycling markets to a halt, lowering demand for reused materials that the workers collect.
In New Delhi, a pound of plastic bottles sells for the equivalent of 11 U.S. cents, half of what it brought before the pandemic. Sahra Bano, 37, who lives near the Bhalswa landfill and sells what she can scavenge, says she used to earn about 400 rupees ($5) per day. Now, getting even half that is difficult.
Toxic runoff from the landfill infiltrates the groundwater, so she must spend 40 rupees (5 cents) per day on bottled water; the rest of what she earns goes for food. To earn enough to get one shot of the vaccine, she said she would have to collect and sell an additional 31 pounds of plastic bottles.
“We are struggling to feed our family. How can we buy vaccines?” she asks.
Also read: UN launches ‘Only Together’ campaign to support global vaccine equity call
To get the free vaccine from an overburdened public hospital, she would have to wait there for days, and each day away from work is one without food on the table. Moreover, the stigma associated with waste workers in India means they are often turned away from such facilities.
“They don’t treat us well,” Bano says.
Any illness means visiting a drugstore, not a doctor, for medicine.
If they’re lucky, the person recovers, she says, adding: “If not, what can we do?”
Restriction on gatherings, quarantine rule among PMO’s 18-point directive to contain Covid surge
In the wake of the fresh surge in the Covid-19 infections, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on Monday issued an 18-point directive for the next two weeks in an effort to restrict the spread of the coronavirus in Bangladesh.
The directives have taken immediate effect throughout the country and those will remain in force for two weeks until further order, according to a notification signed by Principal Secretary Dr Ahmad Kaikaus.
All the ministries, divisions and agencies concerned have been asked to take necessary measures to implement the directives.
Also read: 14-day institutional quarantine mandatory for travellers from European countries: CAAB
The directives are related to restriction on public gatherings, using face-masks, ensuring the 14-day quarantine rule, and maintaining the Covid-19 health protocols.
“In the current situation of the Coronavirus infection, the government has taken the following decisions (directives),” said the notification.
The 18 directives are:
1) All types of public gathering (social, political, religious and others) will have to kept limited . All types of public gathering are prohibited in areas with highly-infection rate. Public gatherings on the occasion of any social event, including wedding and birthday ones will have to be discouraged.
Also read: UN-Habitat calls for post COVID-19 cities to lead the way to a healthier future
2) It has to be ensured that the health rules are properly maintained in all places of worship, including mosques.
3) Public gathers will have to be limited in tourist, recreation spots, movie houses and theatres, and all kinds of fairs should be discouraged.
4) The health rules will have to be maintained in public transports, and the number of passengers cannot exceed 50 percent of the capacity of a vehicle.
Also read: Covid-19: Secret filming exposes contamination risk at test results lab
5) Inter-district traffic should be restricted and if necessary, prohibited in the areas having the high Covid-19 infection risk.
6) Passengers from foreign lands must stay in 14-day institutional quarantine (with own expenses at hotel).
7) Arrangements have to be made for the sale of daily essentials in open places maintaining the health rules. It will have to be ensured that the health rules are maintained in pharmacies.