pandemic
Asian tourism sees ups, downs in 2nd year of pandemic
From the Great Wall to the picturesque Kashmir valley, Asia’s tourist destinations are looking to domestic visitors to get them through the COVID-19 pandemic’s second year.
With international travel heavily restricted, foreign tourists can’t enter many countries and locals can’t get out. In the metropolis of Hong Kong, glamping and staycations have replaced trips abroad for at least some of its 7.4 million residents.
Across the Asia-Pacific region, international tourist arrivals were down 95% in the first five months of the year, compared to the same period before the pandemic in 2019, according to the U.N. World Tourism Organization.
New variants of the virus loom — a constant threat to any recovery in even domestic tourism. Warnings of a possible third wave in India worry Imraan Ali, whose houseboat on Kashmir’s Dal Lake is his only source of income.
“Since we are expecting a good influx of tourists, we don’t want that to be affected,” he said.INDIA CAUTIOUS AS OUTBREAK RECEDES
Tourists are returning to the valleys and mountains in Indian-controlled Kashmir, as infections in the Himalayan region and nationwide come down after a deadly second wave earlier this year.
READ: Bangladesh unlocks tourism
The “shikaras,” or traditional Kashmiri houseboats, are back on the calm waters of Dal Lake as Indians travel at home. India is reporting about 30,000 new coronavirus cases a day, down from a peak of 400,000 in May but still enough for many countries to restrict travelers from India.
Nihaarika Rishabh said she and her husband were relieved to finally get away from their home in the city of Agra for their honeymoon, after their wedding was postponed during the second wave. The vacation in Kashmir has helped calm their nerves after months of the pandemic, she said.
Ali, the houseboat owner, is happy that the number of visitors has gone up. “We have been suffering from past two years,” he said. “Our livelihood depends on tourism.”
But mountainous areas like Kashmir have seen an uptick in infections as the number of visitors rises, fueling worries about a third wave.
READ: Europe’s summer tourism outlook dimmed by variants, rules
BANGKOK’S BUSTLE GOES QUIET
Erawan Shrine in the center of Bangkok once bustled with foreign tourists and locals making offerings day and night. Today, it is eerily quiet. Only a handful of people buy incense or flowers from the vendors who set up stalls outside.
“We are still here because we don’t know what else to do,” said one, Ruedewan Thapjul.
As Thailand battles a punishing COVID-19 surge with nearly 20,000 new cases every day, people who depend on tourism struggle in what was one of the most-visited cities in the world, with 20 million visitors in the year before the pandemic.
Suthipong Pheunphiphop, the president of the Thai Travel Agents Association, urged the government to commit to its plan to reopen the country to foreign tourists in October.Currently, the streets are all but empty in Bangkok’s Siam Square shopping district.
Passavee Kraidejudompaisarn, the third-generation owner of a popular noodle shop, wiped away tears as she talked about her fears of losing the family business.
Previously, the 60-year-old restaurant would be filled with locals and foreign tourists, bringing in about $2,000 a day. Now, she said, she earns a little more than $2 on some days.
CHINESE STAY IN CHINA
Strict virus control measures have allowed China to return to relatively normal life. The number of tourists visiting Beijing in June and July tripled compared to the same period last year, while revenue quadrupled, according to Trip.com, China’s largest online travel booking platform.
“I personally feel very safe,” Olaya Ezuidazu, a Spanish national living in Beijing, said on a recent visit to the Great Wall.
But even China is not immune to the delta variant. Outbreaks in July and August prompted authorities to suspended flights and trains to affected cities. Parks and museums reduced the number of visitors to 60% of capacity, down from 75% previously.
Phil Ma felt the resulting dent on tourism at his café in a traditional “hutong” neighborhood, steps away from Tiananmen Square in central Beijing. “It is obvious during the three or four days from the weekend to today that the number of guests has decreased a lot,” he said.
The alley outside his café was quiet, in contrast to the line that formed for a cup of coffee during a major holiday in May.
READ: Pandemic tourism: Thailand launches Phuket ‘sandbox’ plan
GLAMPING IN HONG KONG
The difficulty of traveling abroad has made glamping — or glamourous camping — popular in Hong Kong.
Berina Tam and Vincy Lee went with We Camp, a campsite located in Yuen Long, a rural area in the north of Hong Kong.
“It’s actually a good opportunity for us to really, to try to explore Hong Kong a bit more,” Tam said.
Many glamping sites provide clean beds, showering facilities and barbeque sites for campers to grill kebabs and chicken wings. The typical charge is $65 per person a night.
Bill Lau, the founder of Hong Kong travel platform Holimood, said that glamping offers an alternative for those who find camping too primitive.
“Families and couples need to find somewhere to go during weekends,” he said. “If we are trying to recreate the experience of traveling, it must be an overnight experience.”
Bangladesh unlocks tourism
After a gap of nearly five months, tourist places in Bangladesh finally reopened on Thursday.
The move comes days after the Bangladesh government had eased Covid-19 lockdown restrictions on the movement of public transport services.
However, people will not be allowed to enter the tourist spots without face masks and everyone will have to follow all Covid-safety protocols, as per a government order.
Read:Bangladesh allows resumption of all public transport services from Aug 19
In Rangamati, locals heaved a sigh of relief as they got the opportunity to restart their livelihoods with the reopening of hotels, motels, restaurants and tourist spots in the district.
Local people dependent on the tourists said they would be able to overcome the losses caused by the closure. As per an estimate of the Rangamati Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the tour operators suffered a cumulative loss of Tk 2.15 crore.
Pre-lockdown, Rangamati Hanging Bridge, Polwell Park, Rangamati Sishu Park, Happy Island, Subolong Fountain, Echo Village and all other tourist sports remained abuzz with tourists the entire year.
'India likely to have Covid shot for children by September'
India is likely to have its indigenous Covid-19 vaccine for children by September, Director of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)'s National Institute of Virology (Pune) Priya Abraham said.
Abraham's remarks come amid the ongoing phase II and III trials of Covaxin for the 2-18 age group.
"Hopefully, the results (of the trials) are going to be available very soon. The results will be presented to the regulators. So, by September or just after it, we may have Covid-19 vaccines for children," Abraham told India Science, an OTT channel of the science and technology department.
Read: Bangladesh- India flight operation to resume Aug 20: FM
ICMR and Hyderabad-based vaccine manufacturer Bharat Biotech co-developed Covaxin, India's first indigenous Covid-19 vaccine.
"Apart from Covaxin, Zydus Cadila's vaccine trial is also going on. This can also be applied to children and will be made available. Studies on booster doses have been going on overseas, and at least seven different vaccines have been tried for it," Abraham added.
"Now, the World Health Organisation has put a stop to it till more countries catch up with vaccination. This is because there is an alarming vaccine gap between high-income and low-income countries. But, in future, recommendations for boosters will come," he said.
Read: India hands over 31 ambulences, other medical equipment to Bangladesh
The vaccination programme against Covid-19 started in India on January 16 for people above 18 years. With more than seven months into the drive, so far only 9% of the country's adult population has been fully vaccinated, the figures compiled by Our World in Data showed.
The Indian government aims to vaccinate the entire population above 18 years of age by the end of this year.
India needs to administer 10 million doses a day to achieve its aim of inoculating the adult population by December, experts say.
Gani’s handicraft on pavement goes on despite pandemic disruptions
With his eye-catching craft made of miniature plants, logs and coconut shells Abdul Gani is a familiar face on the pavement in the capital's Kuril Bhatara area.
Gani’s work can hardly be missed by passers-by, especially those who care to add an extra colour to their home decoration. Many stop, bargain and buy his crafty works whose prices range from Tk. 1000 to 4,000 each.
Philippines extends travel ban on Bangladesh, 9 other countries as Delta variant spreads
The Philippines has extended its travel ban for all inbound travelers from India and nine other countries to August 31 as Delta variant cases rise across the country, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said on Friday.
The Delta variant has spread in the Philippines, where 627 cases have been reported, including 11 deaths.
Read: Bangabandhu's birth centenary: Philippines unveils commemorative cover, stamp
Aside from India where the Delta variant was first detected, the Philippines also banned travelers from Bangladesh,Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nepal,Sri Lanka, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates, where the variant has spread.
However, the country allows returning overseas Filipino workers under its repatriation program, but they will be isolated for 14 days upon the arrival.
Read:Philippines weighs extending lockdown as COVID cases top 1M
The Philippines is grappling with soaring COVID-19 infections fueled by the highly transmissible Delta variant, prompting the government to reimpose a hard lockdown in Metro Manila and other regions.
The Philippines now has more than 1.7 million confirmed COVID-19 cases, including 29,539 deaths.
Inflation slightly falls in July amid pandemic
The inflation rate slightly declined by 0.28 percent on a point-point basis as it came down at 5.36 percentage point in July 2021.
“The general point-to-point inflation rate came down to 5.36 percentage points at the end of July from 5.64 percentage points in June,” said Planning Minister MA Mannan on Tuesday.
The minister disclosed it while briefing reporters after the weekly Ecnec meeting.
Also read: CPD finds 5.3 per cent inflation rate unrealistic as living cost goes up
This time both the food and non-food inflation rates came down simultaneously. “The food inflation rate declined by 0.37 percent, while the non-food inflation rate decreased by 0.14 percent,” he said.
The food inflation rate stood at 5.08 percent in July 2021, coming down from 5.45 percent in the previous month, while the non-food inflation rate was 5.80 percent last month, falling from 5.94 percent in June 2021, according to the BBS data provided to the journalists.
Also read: Inflation declines to 5.26 in May
In rural areas, the general inflation rate declined to 5.53 percent in July from 5.84 percent of the previous month.
But the inflation rate was 5.06 percent in urban areas last month, coming down from 5.29 percent in June 2021.
Covid claims 34 more lives in Khulna division
Khulna division has logged 34 new Covid-related deaths in 24 hours till Thursday morning, as the Delta variant of the deadly coronavirus continues to wreak havoc across the country.
According to the health director's office, nine people died in Kushtia, six in Jashore, four each in Khulna and Meherpur, three each in Magura and Jhenaidah, two each in Bagerhat and Narail, and one in Chuadanga district.
Read: Covid: Khulna aims to inoculate over 1.16 lakh residents
The total death toll in the division has now reached 2,554, officials said.
Besides, some 817 new Covid infections have been detected in 10 districts of the division in the past 24 hours, pushing up the total cases to 97,693.
Earlier, 35 people died of Covid-19 in the division on Wednesday, while 745 people were found infected with the virus.
Read:Khulna div registers another 40 Covid deaths, 880 cases
In Khulna division, the first case of Covid-19 was detected in Chuadanga on March 19, 2020.
So far, 75,320 people have been recovered from Covid in the division.
Many BUET students not ready to sit term final exams online
A number of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) students are worried as the university authority has decided to take the term-final examinations of its undergraduate students online this year.
The students said final exams online cannot be a good option as most students reside in rural areas and face frequent electricity disruption and also a big portion of students haven't got enough logistical support to sit in final exams.
Read: Buet students threaten class boycott if Abrar murder accused continues classes
The decision of holding the exam online came from the academic council meeting of the university held on July 28.
The exams will be taken through LMS and virtual meeting software (Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Moodle) and students will be provided letter grade based on both term-final examination and continuous assessment.
The duration of each exam will be two hours and students will have to submit their answer sheets online through LMS software within 15 minutes of the end of the exam.
Read Challenges of 4IR: DCCI, BUET ink MoC
Exams will be taken, forming a group of up to 35 students for each test room (online meeting app) and two teachers will act as invigilators for each group or team.
Students were asked to use two devices during the exam: one device for video monitoring and another to be used for exam purposes. Students will have to open cameras during the examination.
Talking to UNB, students said most of them cannot manage two devices for exams and Internet connection disruption is a key barrier to sit online exams.
Read: Abrar Fahad murder: Expelled Buet student joins online class after obtaining stay order
The authorities should consider offline exams after ensuring speedy vaccination of all students, they demanded.
Lockdown breaches: Police arrest 343 in Dhaka
Police arrested 343 people in Dhaka for violating lockdown restrictions on the 11th day of the 14-day nationwide lockdown on Monday.
These people were arrested as they failed to show any valid reason for coming out of their homes, said DMP Additional Deputy Commissioner (media) Iftekharul Islam.
Meanwhile, mobile courts realised Tk 1,89,800 as fines from 135 people in the capital.
Besides, the Traffic Division collected Tk 8,24,500 as penalties from 366 vehicles for non-compliance of coronavirus lockdown restrictions.
Bangladesh has been under a fresh lockdown since July 23 last, barring people from leaving their homes except for essential reasons.
But Dhaka witnessed the higher movement of vehicles on the 11th day of the countrywide ‘stringent lockdown’ with the reopening of garment and other export-oriented factories.
The reopening of banks after a three-day closure, including the two-day weekly holiday, also contributed to a steep rise in movement of people and private vehicles, reports a UNB correspondent.
After a reality-check at different parts of the capital, including Uttara, Mohahali, Mirpur, Kalabagan, Biijoy Srani, Badda, Farmgate, Shyamoli, Karwan Bazar and Bangla Motor, the UNB correspondent saw an increase in the number of private cars and CNG-run auto-rickshaws on roads.
During office hours, Dhaka almost returned to its usual chaotic look in these places with long tailbacks at times.
Reimposed at 8 am on July 23, the second round of strict lockdown will be in force till August 5, unless extended further.
The government on Friday (July 30) allowed industry owners to reopen all export-oriented factories from 1 August amid countrywide stringent lockdown.
Bangladesh only country to ride over pandemic better than any other nation: IFFRAS
Bangladesh is the only country which has been able to ride over the pandemic better than any other nation, says IFFRAS, an international think tank headquartered in Toronto, Canada.
The country, which former US National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger acerbically referred to as basket case in 1972, has in the last 50 years since its independence performed better than Pakistan, it said.
Bangladesh's growth rate was way above Pakistan, even before the pandemic; in 2018-19 it was 7.8% compared to Pakistan’s 5.8%, said IFFRAS (International Forum for Rights and Security).
IFFRAS, in its article titled "Bangladesh and Pakistan - Formerly one Nation, today a World Apart" described how Bangladesh became a "miracle story" and Pakistan a "disaster tale".
It mentioned in the Covid-19 pandemic and amid major changes unseen in a century, the global economy is mired in its deepest recession since World War II and multilateralism and the international order are confronted with unprecedented challenges, which has created considerable obstacles to South Asian development in the economic and other fields.
Bangladesh and Pakistan are a world apart today because they perceive their national interest very differently, IFFRAS mentioned.
READ: 'Volunteerism, Reimagining Youth Skills Post-Pandemic' webinar Thursday
Bangladesh sees its future in human development and economic growth. Goal posts are set at increasing exports, reducing unemployment, improving health, reducing dependence upon loans and aid, and further extending micro credit, it said.
For Pakistan, according to IFFRAS, human development comes a distant second. "The bulk of national energies remain focused upon check-mating India and nurturing extra state actors in the 1990s."
It said Bangladesh’s economic miracle also benefitted from separation of religion from state and their leaders’ single-minded focus on Bangladesh.
Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves in May 2021 hit a record $45.10 billion amid the Covid-19 pandemic, which is more than double compared to Pakistan’s17.1 USD bn in June 2021.
The real marvel lies in the fact that even in FY '20, when economies around the world contracted as a result of pandemic lockdowns, Bangladesh managed a 5.24% growth, (IFFRAS) said.
In 2021, Bangladesh’s GDP per capita had grown by 9% rising to $2,227. Pakistan’s per capita income, meanwhile, is $1,543. In 1971, Pakistan was 70% richer than Bangladesh; today, Bangladesh is 45% richer than Pakistan.
READ: Pandemic leaves Indians mired in massive medical debts
With macro-economic stability as its cornerstone, Bangladesh’s economy has increased by 271 times over 50 years, IFFRAS said.
Bangladesh’s successful journey is a good example and in just two decades, Bangladesh has overtaken Pakistan on key economic indicators.
Over the past 20 years, Bangladesh’s GDP per-capita increased 500 percent, two and a half times that of Pakistan, said IFFRAS.
There are thousands of garment factories in Bangladesh, a country which does not grow cotton.
But by importing cotton worth a couple of hundred million dollars, Bangladeshi garments factories are exporting it in the form of readymade garments worth $35 billion, it said.
On the contrary, Pakistan – despite being a cotton-growing country – has failed to increase its exports of garments and textile products beyond $10 billion, said IFFRAS adding that even worse, Pakistan is now importing cotton.
READ: Pandemic Yoga: How to strengthen lungs, ease breathing problems with yoga
In fact, a lack of innovation and commitment on the part of the authorities in Pakistan because of its feudal and tribal structures, it is unable to make use of its agricultural resources, particularly cotton, to increase its exports of textiles and textile made-ups, IFFRAS mentioned.