Helemul Alam

With Eid-ul-Azha just a month away, cattle farmers are in fear of incurring huge losses during the festival, as they are sensing a sharp drop in the demand for sacrificial animals due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Though the number of dengue cases reported is so far low compared to last year, experts are warning of an outbreak as July to September is the period when cases are likely to peak.

Every day, Rubel Hossain, a staffer at Bangladesh Water Development Board, would get ready and keep on waiting for a bus to reach his Motijheel office from his Keraniganj residence. But the pandemic has changed his lifestyle, maybe for the better, as he started commuting on his bicycle for the last few weeks.

The country may face an acceleration in the already growing number of Covid-19 cases if the government fails to ensure the maintenance of health guidelines in cattle markets across the country ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, public health experts warned.

Almas Bepari, a canteen staff of Bangladesh Bank was living in the capital’s Chittagong road for the past decade, until the pandemic forced his family to shift to Cumilla earlier this month.

When Tariqul Islam, a resident of the capital’s Kathalbagan area, received the copy of his apartment’s electricity bill for March, he was caught off guard.

People busy with Eid shopping at markets and shops in the capital are too reluctant to maintain physical distancing and health guidelines. Such an act is not only putting them at the risk of contracting coronavirus, but also spreading it to others.

For the last three months, Belal Hossain (30) failed to pay his house or shop rent as the salon owner’s livelihood has been seriously hampered since the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak in the country in March.

A large number of garbage management workers in the capital have been working without any protective gear, putting themselves at grave risk of contracting coronavirus and other diseases.

Dhaka North City Corporation Mayor Atiqul Islam takes charge of office today while his counterpart for south city corporation Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh will assume office on May 16.

The government has started using the Rayerbazar graveyard as the designated place of burial for Covid-19 victims in the capital since April 30 as the previously assigned Khilgaon-Taltola graveyard has a waterlogging problem.

For traders, Eid is the busiest time. From shop owners to vendors on the street, the two Eids are the occasions for the most volume of sales in a year. A lot of plans and life goals rely on making a good profit during the festivals.

For over two decades, charity organisation Hamza Al-Markazul has been involved in the burial process of the deceased, among other social works.

When the whole country is fighting to check Covid-19 spread, the current spell of rain may increase the density of Aedes population in the absence of enough anti-mosquito drives in the capital, say experts.

The historic iftar market in capital’s Chawkbazar area remained almost empty on the first day of Ramadan amid shutdown for coronavirus.

Clear and stagnant water at construction sites are the most hospitable breeding ground for Aedes mosquitoes and steps should be taken immediately to address the problem, experts said.

To ensure social distancing, the capital’s Dhupkhola kitchen market -- which usually sits on the roadside -- was shifted to Dhupkhola playground on Sunday.

The streets of Dhaka have been deserted by humans, but one thing has remained constant there even during the shutdown. The city’s resident strays are still roaming the streets, some scampering about by themselves, some sprinting in groups.

Sporadic rain and a relatively empty capital will make for an ideal breeding environment for the dengue-causing Aedes mosquitoes.

Five years ago, Dhaka Wasa announced the discovery of a natural underground water reservoir in Savar’s Bhakurta.