Shawdesh desk:

The health authorities on Saturday reported the record high 32.55 percent COVID-19 infection rate, registering 195 deaths and detecting 6,780 patients in the past 24 hours that suggest the pandemic has extended again its claws after an apparent brief recess.

“You can see deaths and infection cases are on the rise again. . . the virus claimed 1,000 lives in only past five days,” a directorate general of health services (DGHS) spokesman said.

He added that  the infection rate stood at 32.55 percent on Saturday, compared to 31.05 on Friday while a Total of 20,827 samples were tested in the past 24 hours.

According to the official data the total number of deaths now reached 19,046 and caseloads rose to 1,153,344.

The previous highest infection rate was 32.19 percent  which was recorded on July 22.

The DGHS on Friday reported lowest daily death toll in 17 days saying coronavirus claimed 166 lives in the previous 24 hours when 6,364 people were tested COVID-19 positive.

The routine DGHS report came two days after the government re-imposed a nationwide shutdown after a week-long recess when tens of millions of people headed back to their villages to celebrate Eid-ul-Azha.

Experts earlier feared the eased restrictions could severely hit back the country’s already strained health system.

The “stricter lockdown” was ordered for 14 days while state minister for public administration Farhad Hossain said “this lockdown will be stricter than the one imposed last time”.

Bangladesh earlier kept industrial plants beyond the shutdown’s purview but the renewed one will keep them including the export-oriented garment factories under lock and key alongside government and private offices and courts.

Dhaka streets were mostly deserted as army troops, paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), elite anti-crime Rapid Action Battalion joined hands with police to enforce the movement restrictions setting up makeshift checkpoints in the capital and other cities.

The DGHS statistics shows that of the people infected from the beginning, 85.69 percent recovered and 1.65 percent died.

According to the data, the coronavirus kept marks of its higher rage in Dhaka vision claiming 8,978 lives and killed 3,472 in Chattogram, 1,464 in Rajshahi, 2,465 in Khulna, 581 in Barishal, 672 in Sylhet, 930 in Rangpur and 484 in Mymensingh division.

Bangladesh’s COVID-19 confirmed cases crossed 5,000 mark on March 29, 2021; 6,000 mark on April 1, 202; 7,000 mark on April 4, 2021; 8,000 mark on June 24, 2021; 9,000 mark on July 5 and 11,000 mark on July 6.

The beginning of the current year witnessed a drastic fall of coronavirus cases in the country but the trend lasted for only two months — 21,629 cases were detected in January and 11,077 in February.

But the upbeat trend reversed when the health authorities reported 65,079 cases in March, 2021 and 1,47,837 cases in April and again after a brief recess, from the beginning of June, 2021, the country continued to witness a sharp rise in terms of deaths and caseloads.

To receive information and treatment facilities on COVID-19, the contact hotline and mobile numbers are 16263; 333; 10655 and 01944333222.

Source: BSS