Factories reopening amid strict lockdown
On Friday, a few hours after the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) disclosed its recommendation to extend the current strict lockdown, the government's cabinet division issued a circular stating that export-oriented factories will be able to operate as per usual starting today, August 1. Regarding this, the Directorate General (DG) of the DGHS acknowledged that the government is facing pressure to open the factories, but that, if the infections rise higher, they "will not be able to accommodate patients at the hospitals."
According to a report in this daily, no sooner had this news broken than the ferry terminals became overpacked with Dhaka-bound commuters yesterday. Reportedly, around 20,000 people were waiting to board the ferries at 10 am yesterday. No vehicles could board the three ferries which left the Kazirhaat ferry ghat around the same time, due to the rush of passengers. Needless to say, there was no space for social distancing, and people were also not paying heed to wearing masks since there was no one there to enforce such health guidelines.
Besides being a potential contributor to a higher rate of infections, this hasty reopening of factories also makes evident a total disregard for the safety of millions of workers. Most of them were given barely a day's notice to reach their workplaces in Dhaka division, while the positivity rates for Covid-19 in all divisions are at their worst yet.
This past week, Dhaka experienced a positivity rate of 35 percent, while other industry- and transport-heavy districts such as Narayanganj, Manikganj, Munshiganj and Gazipur had rates of 39 percent, 45 percent, and 44 percent respectively. We cannot criticise the workers for rushing to their workplaces as this is the only way they can survive.
Wouldn't it have been better if the workers had been vaccinated first before reopening factories? Unfortunately, there has been a consistent lack of planning and foresight when making sweeping decisions such as this during each of the country's worst Covid-19 phases this year, and it seems this trend will continue.
We sincerely hope—given that the worst surge following the eight-day easing of the lockdown for Eid-ul-Azha was not enough of a lesson—authorities have a plan to manage the higher rate of infections experts are predicting as a result of reopening of factories.
We also hope healthcare personnel will be provided with as many resources as possible so they can continue to not only treat others but also protect themselves on duty. We hope the government soon finds a solution which will allow citizens to save their lives without having to risk their livelihoods.
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