Bangladesh Declares Area Near Rohingya Refugee Camps As Red Zone

Bangladesh has declared the area near the Rohingya camps as a red zone due to high concentration of coronavirus cases.

(Representative Image/ Getty)

New Delhi: Bangladesh has declared the area near the Rohingya camps as a red zone due to an increase in coronavirus cases. Authorities have put the Cox's Bazar Municipality under lockdown as some areas in the district have a high concentration of coronavirus. According to Md Kamal Hossain, the district administrator, the decision as taken during an emergency meeting on Friday. Bangladesh has decided to lift its lockdown despite rising numbers. The district which houses the world’s largest refugee camp has recorded 877 COVID-19 patients so far with Cox's Bazar Sadar Upazila having the highest number of infections, 364. In the Rohingya camps, 35 refugees have tested positive for the new virus. On Tuesday, a death was reported from the refugee camp. Reports by IANS Mahbubur Rahman, the health chief of Bangladesh's southern Cox's Bazar district said "A Rohingya man died of coronavirus in an isolation center of the camp. He was 71 and had co-morbidity." In the new lockdown order, the authorities have banned all sorts of private, family, social, and political gatherings. Staying at home is mandatory and all modes of public and private transports are prohibited. Only vehicles carrying essential goods will be allowed from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Shops selling groceries and kitchen items will remain open for eight hours on Sundays and Thursdays. Social distancing and other precautions for curbing the spread of coronavirus has to follow. All other shops and establishments will remain closed. The new regulations also said that Organisations providing emergency services will remain open on a limited scale. Banks and financial institutions will be open on Sundays and Thursdays, while transport terminals will operate outside the red zones. Mass Gatherings will also be not allowed.