Bangladesh saw a fall in the number of daily coronavirus infections with the health authorities reporting 6,214 cases in a 24-hour period until Saturday morning.
The number of daily fatalities rose to 134, pushing the local tally to 14,912, the Directorate General of Health Services said in a press release.
So far, the country has confirmed 9,36,256 cases and 8,29,199 recoveries.
The daily infection rate dipped slightly to 27.39 per cent, however, was the fourth-highest recorded in the country.
The daily deaths are in the three-digit mark for the seventh straight day while the mortality rate remains 1.59 per cent.
In light of the deteriorating situation, Bangladesh on July 1 went into a seven-day countrywide strict restriction imposed by the government to curb the upsurge of Covid deaths and infections.
Bangladesh reported its first cases on March 8 last year and the first coronavirus-related death on March 18 the same year.
The total number of tests carried out since the pandemic broke out in the country is 66,93,681, including 22,687 tests in the last 24 hours. The overall infection rate is gradually increasing and currently stands at 13.99 per cent.
Among the latest fatalities, Khulna division saw the highest 39 deaths, followed by 38 in Dhaka, 23 in Rajshahi, 15 in Rangpur and 11 in Chattogram.
Besides, four died in Mymensingh division, 3 in Barishal and 1 in Sylhet.
Strict weeklong restrictions
The government-announced nationwide weeklong strict restrictions came into effect on July 1 morning to combat the growing numbers of infections and deaths from Covid-19 in the country.
Members of Armed Forces and Border Guard Bangladesh along with other law enforcement agencies were seen patrolling the streets to strictly enforce the restrictions.
Earlier on June 25, in light of the worsening condition, the government announced that a strict weeklong countrywide lockdown would be enforced from June 28 to curb the virus’ spread. The decision was revised later on.
The decision came following the recommendation of National Technical Advisory Committee on Covid-19.
NTAC suggested enforcing a minimum of 14-day complete shutdown to stem the tide of infection.
The government had earlier imposed restrictions on movement on April 5 this year. They were extended until July 15 in phases.
Although the number of cases and deaths declined to some extent, the situation went downhill in recent weeks as people are still reluctant to follow basic health rules and continue to flout government-issued guidelines.
The Covid-19 situation in the bordering districts has deteriorated in recent days, prompting the local administration to enforce full-scale lockdown in some areas.
Bangladesh shut its border with India on April 26 as the neighbouring country’s coronavirus situation worsened. The closure was extended in phases until July 14.
Amid the spike in Covid cases triggered by local transmission of the Indian variant (Delta), experts predicted that Bangladesh might see the peak of the current wave of the deadly virus in the third week of July.
