Bangladesh has announced it will impose a new hard blockade from Monday, following a “dangerous and alarming” wave in Delta variant coronavirus cases.
All government and private offices will be closed for a week and only medical transportation will be allowed, the government said last Friday.
“No one can leave their home except in emergencies,” a statement added.
Health department spokesman Robed Amin said police and border guards would be deployed to enforce the closure and that, if necessary, the army would be involved.
“It is a dangerous and alarming situation. If we do not contain it now, we will face a similar situation in India,” Amin told AFP, referring to an increase in cases in neighboring India in April. and May.
Infection rates have risen sharply since mid-May in Bangladesh, where some 170 million people live.
On Friday, the government recorded nearly 6,000 new cases and 108 fatalities, the second-highest death toll in the pandemic.
Authorities say the situation in the districts near the border with India is catastrophic, with hospitals in the cities of Khulna and Rajshahi overflowing.
The number of infections in India has fallen sharply in recent weeks, with less than 50,000 new cases on Friday, from more than 400,000 daily in early May.
But authorities in the western Indian state of Maharashtra tightened restrictions on Friday over concerns over a new variant, Delta plus, of which about 50 cases have been reported in all. the country.
© 2021 AFP
Citation: Rising “alarming” virus causes new Bangladesh blockade (2021, June 26) recovered on June 26, 2021 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-06-alarming-virus-surge- prompts-bangladesh.html
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