So much for social distancing

Social distancing is a must to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. 

World Health Organization (WHO) prescribed people around the world to stay at least two metres from other people to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

If any coronavirus infected person coughs, small droplets - packed with the virus, spreads into the air. So you have to stay away from crowed places and all sorts of gatherings as these will increase the risk of coronavirus spread to community transmission level. 

But here in Bangladesh, people are tend to visit the crowded places ignoring the advice.

Let's check some such incidents here in Bangladesh – 

The same trawler, owned by local Sahara Enterprise, is waiting to unload the passengers, who rushed to their village as the government declared 10-day general holiday so that people can stay home and maintain social distance. But the picture says something else – "No social distancing"!

Same people, who got down from the trawler, are returning home walking side by side keeping no social distancing amid the fears of Covid-19 spread.

Now let's see few pictures of Dhaka. Here we can see a good number of people are surrounding BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, who just been released from jail for six months. Though some of the people are seen wearing gloves and masks, but not everyone wearing protective gears. Same thing here, no social distancing. And hundreds of leaders and activists of the party were waiting outside of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, where Khaleda was undergoing treatment. Many of them wore neither mask, nor hand gloves.

This a line in front of a truck of Trading Corporation of Bangladesh. Rice, onions are being sold from the vehicle as prices of daily necessaries went up amid the coronavirus fears. Of course this is a good initiative by the government. But there was no one to tell the people, who stood in the queue, about the social distancing. The TCB staff did not wear any gloves too, so do the people in the line. They did not maintain the required social distancing.

Home-bound people are seen moving to and fro to get board on the bus at Mohakhali bus terminal in Dhaka and getting closer to each other "unconsciously" risking own life. Even the buses are crowded as they are struggling to carry huge passengers like the Eid days. 

Now, check this video. People are rushing towards their village ahead of 10-day holiday from the Shimulia Ferry Ghat in Mawa. Yes you have been asked to stay home, so you are going to your village home, yes you can, you have the rights; but where's social distancing? 

If things continue to go this way, either you can come into contact with the virus or risking the lives of other people if you are already infected with the virus.

The coronavirus situation has brought a change to the popular saying – "United (together) we stand, divided we fall", and in this circumstance – "Divided (Stay at home) you stand, united (gatherings) you fall (can die from the coronavirus)".

The less time people spend together, the less chance there is for COVID-19 to spread.

The army has started fanning out across the country on Wednesday to enforce social distancing rules and all public and private offices will remain closed until April 4 as the government gears up its fight against the coronavirus pandemic.