New infections fall in N’ganj, unchanged in Gazipur 

The number of new Covid-19 infections in Narayanganj on Thursday was low compared to that in the last couple of days. Meanwhile the number of infections in Gazipur is soaring with no sign of slowing down.

A total of 332 people were infected with the virus until Thursday morning in Gazipur, while local people fear that the recent reopening of factories might further fuel the spread of the virus.    

According to the Narayanganj Civil Surgeon's office, 13 people tested positive to the novel coronavirus in the last 24 hours until Thursday, raising the tally of the infected in the district to 895. Among them, 42 people have died of the virus infection. 

Narayanganj Civil Surgeon Imtiaz Ahmed said that they have collected and sent the medical samples of those who contacted their control room to the IEDCR. Two teams collect samples in Narayanganj, and they send an average of 150-160 samples per day to the IEDCR in Dhaka. 

The civil surgeon said they have collected 2,870 medical samples so far, and 895 of them have tested positive to the virus.   

Meanwhile, 44 patients are being treated at the 300-bed Narayanganj Khanpur hospital while another 36 are being treated at Siddhirganj Sajeda Hospital.

On Thursday, the 23rd day of the lockdown, both the crowds and the number of vehicles increased noticeably on the roads in the district. Apart from private vehicles, numerous three-wheelers were also seen at key points on the roads on Thursday morning, while law enforcers were in a relaxed mood.

Health workers stage demo for arrears pay

Nearly 50 upazila health workers formed a human chain and held a demonstration demanding one-year arrears pay on Thursday. The demonstration was held in front of the Narayanganj Press Club under the banner of the Narayanganj Outsourcing Health Workers Association.  

Al Imran, the president of the association said that even though they have been working for one year on a contractual basis, their arrears pay has not been cleared.

"We are in a dire situation with our families. We are doing our duty amid the risk of a virus infection, and five of our fellows have got infected already," he claimed.

Gazipur

There are health workers, doctors, journalists, law enforcers and government officials among the 332 people infected with the virus in the district.

Gazipur Civil Surgeon Md Khairuzzaman said they have detected cases in five upazilas so far. Gazipur Sadar tops the infected areas with 114 confirmed Covid-19 cases, including 40 medical personnel of Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Memorial KPJ Specialised Hospital. 

A total of 16 people have recovered from the virus as of Thursday, while two people have died of Covid-19 in Gazipur so far.