Thousands of working-class people, especially readymade garment factory workers, on Saturday returned to Dhaka and adjacent areas from distant districts to join their workplaces today, cramming ferries, trucks and other modes of transport and risking Covid infections in the absence of any public transports amid the restrictions.

 
After the sufferings of the people throughout the day, the government Saturday evening resumed the services of public transports, including buses and launches, across the country till 12:00pm today to facilitate the people’s journey, according to a Press Information Department handout.

Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority chairman Commodore Golam Sadeq told New Age that as per an instruction of the Prime Minister’s Office, the authority allowed the services of launches and all other passenger vessels from 7:45pm on Saturday till noon on Sunday to facilitate the journey of workers of export-oriented industries.

Earlier on the day, thousands of factory workers crowded the major ferry channels and highways, defying all health regulations after the government on Friday had announced that all export-oriented industries would remain out of the purview of the Covid restrictions from August 1.

Hundreds of apparel workers held demonstrations blocking the Rangpur–Dhaka national highway for around five hours demanding that they should be given transport facilities to reach their workplaces.

Public health experts expressed concern over the reopening of the industries and movement of thousands of workers without maintaining the health practices, blaming the authorities concerned for taking contradictory decisions.

Swadhinata Chikitsak Parishad president Iqbal Arslan, also a member of the National Technical Advisory Committee on Covid-19, said that the poor factory workers were returning to their workplaces in Dhaka and adjacent areas amid fear of losing jobs.

 
The workers are being pushed to further financial losses as factories are reopened without arranging any public transports for them, he said.

‘As the government took the decision of reopening the industries to keep active the wheel of economy but the rush of workers will increase the spread of Covid-19 by many folds,’ he said, adding that the health sector of the country does not have the ability to take more pressure.

Iqbal blamed a lack of coordination among the agencies concerned in taking decisions like the reopening of factories and implementing the decisions.

‘Reopening factories will cause further increase in Covid infections,’ Directorate General of Health Services director general ABM Khurshid Alam said earlier on Friday.   

Earlier, apparel exporters on July 15 urged the government to allow operation of the export-oriented factories during the Covid restrictions between July 23 and August 5.

A high-level meeting, chaired by home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, at the Cabinet Division on July 27 had turned down the plea and decided to continue the ongoing restrictions on public movement and business activities till August 5, before the decision was reversed on Friday.

On Saturday, the 9th day of the restrictions on public movement and business activities, the violation of the restrictions became widespread with an increased number of people and vehicles coming out on roads and more shops reopened.

Our Manikganj correspondent reported that thousands of passengers on foot from southern districts had crossed the River Padma through the Daulatdia-Paturia and Kazirhat-Aricha channels on crowded ferries since Saturday morning amid huge sufferings due to a lack of public transports.

They had to spend extra fares for alternative transports like trucks, CNG-run auto-rickshaws, bikes and pickup vans to go to their workplaces in Dhaka and its adjacent areas from the ferry terminals

RMG worker Rehana Begum, of Sathia, said that she would lose her job if she did not join her work on Sunday.

‘I had to spend Tk 900 to reach Aricha from Sathia and now, truck drivers are asking for Tk 500 and CNG auto drivers are asking for Tk 800 for taking me to Savar,’ she said, adding that she would struggle due to the additional payment for the transports.

Shohrab Hossain, another worker, said that he came to the Paturia terminal from Kushtia by changing vehicles six times and spending Tk 1,000.

 
‘Now, pickup van drivers are asking for Tk 1,000 for taking me to Dhaka. How can we live? I already have spent all my money,’ he said.

Many people were seen walking to their destinations from the terminals.

‘We’re working here with high risks of infection due to this gathering. Even police cannot do anything to manage the crowd,’ Nasir Md Chowdhury added.

New Age correspondent in Munshiganj reported that amid inclement weather, hundreds of people, especially apparel workers, and private vehicles had reached Shimulia from Banglabazar since Saturday morning on 10 ferries defying health practices like social distancing and check posts of the police.

Most of the people were women and some of them said that they would lose their jobs if they did not join their workplaces on time.

New Age correspondent in Rangpur reported that apparel workers in Rangpur and adjacent districts had gathered at the Modern intersection in Rangpur city since Saturday morning to get on goods-laden vehicles to go to the capital but the police obstructed them.

The agitated workers blocked the Rangpur–Dhaka highway between 11:00am and 4:00pm and held demonstrations, where they said that the authorities concerned should have arranged transports for the workers before the sudden declaration of reopening of the factories from today.

Rangpur Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner Altaf Hossain said that the workers withdrew the blockade when they were assured of arranging vehicles for their journey to the capital maintaining the health protocol.

‘We have arranged some BRTC buses and trucks for them,’ said the police officer.

Our Gazipur correspondent reported that since morning, hundreds of apparel workers had started to return to Gazipur on trucks, pickup vans, and rickshaws, defying health regulations and increasing the risk of Covid infections.

Many of the workers also walked without getting any transports.

Huge crowd of people from northern districts were also seen on the Dhaka-Mymensingh and the Dhaka-Tangail highways.

Maona Highway Police officer-in-charge Kamal Hossain said that they were struggling to tackle the crowd on roads.

 
New Age Tangail correspondent reported that thousands of passengers on foot were seen waiting for vehicles on the Dhaka-Tangail Highway.

Many of them travelled on trucks, pickup vans, auto-rickshaws and motorcycles to Dhaka and adjacent areas.

They said that the government could lessen their suffering by allowing public transports.

Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association president Faruque Hassan, meanwhile, in a statement on Saturday called on the association members to resume productions in their factories with the workers living in the adjacent areas.

He said that no action would be taken against the workers and staff who would not join work for staying at villages during the restrictions.

Since Saturday morning, hundreds of people have entered the capital by trucks, auto-rickshaws, vans, motorbikes, rickshaws and pickups through Gabtoli, Abdullahpur, Signboard and Babubazar Bridge.    

On the ninth day of the restrictions, the DMP arrested 481 more people and fined 202 people Tk 2.06 lakh and 440 vehicles Tk 10.45 lakh on charges of violating the Covid curbs.