Eid travellers continued to flock to the major launch, ferry and bus terminals as well as train stations of the country amid huge sufferings and widespread violation of health rule

Thousands of people were seen, especially at launch terminals in the capital and ferry terminals in Munshiganj and Manikganj, leaving Dhaka city and adjacent districts to destinations in southern and south-western districts on the fourth day of the relaxation of the strict Covid restrictions on public movement and businesses.

Strong current on the River Padma and a huge rush of vehicles delayed ferry movement on the Shimulia-Banglabazar channel while huge traffic gridlocks were seen on some major highways.

Many were seen riding trucks, pick-up vans, motorcycles and three-wheelers on major highways defying the law and risking their lives to travel to their village homes to celebrate Eid-ul-Azha on July 21.

People thronged the markets, shopping malls and also at shops on footpaths across the country while in the capital long queues of customers were found at popular shopping destinations.

Health rules like maintaining social distancing and using hand sanitisers were grossly violated even amid monitoring at some places where people were seen not wearing masks properly or avoided wearing masks altogether.

The government on July 13, relaxed the restrictions for eight days from July 15 to July 22, allowing movement of people and pre-Eid business activities and facilitating the Eid economy amid concerns of the authorities and experts.

On July 14, the National Technical Advisory Committee on Covid-19 recommended extending the restrictions scheduled to end on July 15 for two more weeks after expressing deep concerns over the impacts of easing the curbs.

The Directorate General of Health Services, too, had earlier warned that relaxation of the restrictions would lead to an increase in Covid cases and deaths in the following weeks.

On Sunday morning, Covid cases in Bangladesh surged past 11 lakh.

Bangladesh logged 225 deaths from Covid-19 and 11,578 more infections in the 24-hour period till Sunday morning, with the total death toll reaching 17,894 and infections 11,03,989, as per DGHS statistics.

Since Sunday morning, hundreds of people thronged the Sadarghat River Port in the capital to travel to different southern districts.

While the crowd of people at the terminal was fewer in the morning it increased to a sea of people by the afternoon.

A huge number of people were roaming around the terminal without masks while it was difficult to maintain social distancing.

‘I am going to Barishal by Karnaphuli-10 launch which started around 4:30pm,’ said a passenger named Golam Farukh and added, ‘On the deck, no social distancing is in sight while there is no monitoring by the authorities.’

He also alleged that when boarding the launch no staff sprayed sanitisers on their hands.

Department of Shipping director Badrul Hasan Liton on the day conducted a mobile court at Sadarghat to ensure that the government-set health directives are followed by all venture out of their homes.

The court filed eight cases for operating unregistered and unfit vessels.

They fined Tk 2.63 lakh to a passenger-carrying launch and a number of goods-laden vessels.

He said that they did not find people violating the social distancing norm inside the launches and no one was found without a mask.

The Rapid Action Battalion-10 executive magistrate Md Aktaruzzaman also conducted a mobile court at the same place for not wearing masks.

‘We have been fining Tk 50-100 for not wearing a mask and providing people with masks. As most of them were day labourers, many failed to pay the fines,’ he said.

Meanwhile, on the day the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation suspended a staff — barge lashkar Md Zakir Hossain — for not wearing a mask at a programme held on July 15 where state minister for shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury was present.

In the capital, the busy areas including Sadarghat, Bangshal, Gulistan, Nababpur, Islampur, Gendaria, Motijheel, Panthapath, Science Lab, Moghbazar, Banglamotor, Rampura, Khilgaon, Mirpur, Mohakhali and Kakrail draw huge traffic congestion.

Many city buses were seen taking standing passengers and many were found not wearing masks.

In Gulistan-Phulbaria area, a large number of people were seen not wearing masks while staff of most of the long-route buses were seen not using hand sanitisers.

Fahad Hossain, a student of North South University, who was on his way to Gopalganj, said that many people took off their masks after boarding the buses.

Mohammad Robi Shikder, a counter master at BRTC said, ‘If someone does not wear a mask, what can we do?’

Many city restaurants in the capital’s Old Town area were violating Covid health guidelines where no hand sanitisers were used.

Almost all shops and markets in the city areas like Gulistan, Patuatuli, Bangshal, Nababpur Road and Jonson Road were seen largely ignoring health rules.

Ibrahim Hossain, owner of GM Traders at Dhaka Trade Centre in Gulistan said, ‘Many employees at the market did not want to wear masks while some of the owners also did not show interest in following the government-set health rules.’

Long queues of people were seen in front of the outlets of popular shopping destinations in the capital in areas including Asad Gate, Gulshan and Moghbazar.

New Age correspondent in Munshiganj reported that since morning hundreds of people thronged to the Shimulia ferry terminal to cross the River Padma to go to 21 southern districts from Dhaka and adjacent districts.

The ferry terminal area was crowded with vehicles especially the goods-carrying ones which were waiting to go to Banglabazar end.

A huge crowd of passengers was seen at the launch terminal in the area as they crowded the launches defying health rules right in front of the launch staff and the authorities concerned.

Strong current on the river and pressure of vehicles delayed ferry movement on the channel while in the morning more than 500 vehicles stuck at Shimulia point and some several hundred trucks on Dhaka-Mawa expressway.

BIWTC official at Shimulia terminal Ahmed Ali said that the ferries were taking amost double their normal time to cross the river due to strong current.

New Age correspondent in Manikganj reported that the authorities on the day struggled to carry vehicles from Aricha to Kazirhat due to the huge pressure of vehicles, especially cars and trucks.

In the morning, at Aricha, vehicles in a long queue were seen stranded for hours on end.

On the Paturia-Daulatdia channel, the pressure of vehicles was also high where long queues of vehicles were also seen.

New Age correspondent in Tangail reported that a 20-kilometre tailback was created on the Dhaka-Tangail-Bangabandhu Bridge Highway from the east side of the bridge to Ashokpur bypass under Sadar upazila since early hours of Sunday, causing immense sufferings to the Eid home-goers.

Toll collection at both sides of the bridge was halted several times worsening the congestion.

Abdul Barek, the driver of a Rajshahi-bound Shohag Paribahan bus, said that the road remained fully congested for two hours in the morning.

The situation became normal at noon.

Inspector Yasir Arafat, in-charge of Elenga highway police outpost blamed a huge rush of homebound people for the tailback.

Meanwhile on the day, Bangladesh Railway brought more than 800 sacrificial animals on three special trains from Chapainawabganj, Rajshahi, and Jamalpur districts to Dhaka ahead of the upcoming Eid.