The Bangladesh government is likely to extend the ongoing restrictions on public movement and overall activities by another week from May 17 to contain the spread of Covid-19.
‘The restrictions may be extended by a week as huge number of people have left cities, mainly Dhaka and Chattogram, for village homes to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr despite a ban on public transports,’ said state minister for public administration Farhad Hossain.
He told New Age that the government would strengthen measures to ensure mandatory use of masks to check the spread of Covid-19 as the crisis might linger for several years.
The police would be empowered to execute the government order for mandatory use of masks, he added.
The Cabinet Division on April 4 issued an 11-point instruction restricting public movement outside home between 6:00pm and 6:00am without an emergency, closing all markets and shopping malls, banning the operation of all modes of public transport, including domestic flights, limiting the banking hours and the selling time at kitchen markets and shops of essentials between April 5 and April 11.
The restrictions were extended later and, lastly on May 5, the government extended the restrictions till May 16.
The government, however, this time allowed intra-district movement of buses.
The government, meanwhile, allowed to open shops and shopping centres from April 25 ahead of Eid.
