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Health guidelines issued by the authorities to prevent a resurgence of Covid infections are being widely disregarded across the country despite fears that the Covid situation may take a serious turn again.

On June 11, the Directorate General of Health Services issued the 11-point guideline following the emergence of new omicron sub-variants of coronavirus responsible for a fresh surge in Covid infections in the country.

The DGHS directives suggest avoiding public gatherings, wearing face masks and maintaining frequent hand hygiene, among others.

Officials stressed the urgency of compliance, citing a rising positivity rate both domestically and in neighbouring India.

However, public responses to the guidelines remain lax, raising concerns about the country’s preparedness for another outbreak.

Amid the situation, the DGHS said that one more people died of Covid and 26 others were infected with the virus in the past 24 hours till Sunday morning. The man aged between 41 and 50 years died in Dhaka, said a DGHS release.

On June 13, two days after the warning, the DGHS reported that at least two people died of Covid and 15 others were infected.

This year a total of four people were died of Covid. Two of them died on June 13 and a man living in Dhaka aged between 81 and 90 years died on June 5.

Bangladesh first detected Covid in the country on March 8, 2020, amid a global outbreak.

So far, at least 29,503 people have died of Covid in Bangladesh, according to the official account, and the cumulative number of Covid patients has reached 20,51,833.

In 2024, at least 22 people died of Covid and 5,253 people infected. In 2023, at least 59 people died of Covid and 14,420 people were infected.

While the cases and fatalities on the rise across the country, people were seen not to follow the preventive measures.

At offices, bus, train and launch terminals, public buses and other spaces people were seen ignoring the guidelines.

As the offices, banks and factories opened on Sunday after a 10-day Eid-ul-Azha holiday, almost all of the government instructions to contain the rising trend of Covid infections were largely ignored across the country as gatherings at public places, different offices and roads remained unchanged as the public in general was ignoring the health

guidelines.

The majority of people in public places in Dhaka as elsewhere across the country were seen without masks and not maintaining social distancing, raising the risk of the virus

infection.

From roads to government and non-government offices, shopping malls, places of worships, tourist spots and, hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues and public places, people were roaming around defying the health

guidelines.

Md Aminul Hasan, a businessman while traveling by bus from Mirpur to Karwan Bazar in the capital, said that he no more cared about Covid because earlier he was tested positive twice and nothing

happened to him.

‘There is nothing to fear about Covid… I feel suffocating by wearing mask,’ he said while asked why he did not wear a mask.

Pedestrian Rubel Miah, an electrician, said that he was afraid of Covid but felt discomfort with a face mask.

Earlier in 2021, the government had imposed Covid health directives with the help of different law enforcement agencies.

Professor Md Sayedur Rahman, special assistant to the chief adviser, said that the virus remained an unpredictable threat that could worsen in any time, especially with the rising number of infections.

‘As part of our preparedness, we are urging people to follow health guidelines.’

‘We are making preparations for facing any unpleasant situation. This includes strengthening treatment facilities and raising awareness among the general public,’ he said.

DGHS additional director general Sheikh Sayidul Haque added that the current situation was not yet severe, so the government would not enforce strict health guidelines.

‘We are alerting the public about the rise in Covid cases so that vulnerable individuals can take necessary precautions,’ he said.

¶¶Òõ¾«Æ· staff correspondent in Sylhet reported that two people, including an 80-year old man, were admitted to Shaheed Shamsuddin Ahmed Hospital in Sylhet on Saturday and Sunday with coronavirus infection.

‘Health condition of the elderly person was critical. He is undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit at the SSAH,’ said heath department’s Sylhet divisional officer Md Anisul Haque.