Decision on lockdown extension on Sunday

The government on Sunday will announce its decision on extending the ongoing lockdown for another week.

State Minister for Public Administration Farhad Hossain told the media on Saturday that the government is considering extending lockdown, and a notification may be issued on Sunday after discussing the matter with authorities concerned.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina approved the proposal on Saturday, he added.

The ongoing restrictions will remain unchanged.

The nationwide lockdown, imposed on April 5 to break the chain of Covid-19 infections and fatalities, has been extended several times to limit public movement or contain the surge in daily infections.

The ongoing lockdown, set to end on May 16, is likely to be extended by another week to keep close tabs on the situation as a mass exodus from the cities before Eid-ul-Fitr has stoked fears of a third wave of infections.

The lockdown measures fell flat as tens of thousands of people left Dhaka and other cities to join their families in home villages to celebrate Eid, despite stark warnings that the exodus could worsen the country's coronavirus outbreak.

The country’s health authorities have expressed concerns that the mass travel will spread the coronavirus and reverse a recent hard-won decline in cases following weeks of nationwide lockdown.

At least five people died and 50 others were injured in a stampede on Wednesday as thousands of people returned to their native villages from Dhaka and other cities for Eid-ul-Fitr, defying all Covid-19 restrictions.