Govt eyes fast recovery to 8.2pc GDP growth next year

[UKBengali]

In order to confirm someone dying of the virus, you need to test them or they already had it. In Bangadesh, it's rarely done on dead and the actual death toll is still much higher. As for healthcare, UK can still service the NHS very well, whereas in Bangladesh, most government medical facilities can't be even called such.

Where are the huge number of corpses like in other countries like Ecuador and Brazil?
Where are those people outside the hospitals begging to be allowed in?

See if 1000 people a day were dying of Covid-19 in BD now, there is no way the government can hide it.

I have relatives in BD and not a single one knows anyone suspected to have died from this virus yet. That is a sample of thousands.

Now let us get back to proven science rather than opinions if you want to carry on this conversation.

 

[DalalErMaNodi]

I am no fan of BAL as I have said countless times over, however what the hell let me say it out loud for posterity's sake.

Anyway now that the preface is done, here's what I really wanted to say :

The ongoing Corona virus pandemic was completely unprecedented and came out of the blue and took the whole world by surprise.
Here is an enemy that one cannot see but an enemy that can kill you nonetheless, an enemy you fight not with weapons but one you fight with science and by adhering to guidelines religiously.

No government in the world could have prepared for something as vicious and frightening as Corona.

Government of Bangladesh initially scrambled to try and avoid mass panic, they did this by addressing the issue (before Corona hit us).

Many people started criticising the government for the perceived 'lies' that the government was spewing before Corona hit. What lies ? Just the bit about being prepared and having adequate supply of PPE and other necessary materials.

Did the government lie ? Yes.
Did they have a choice to tell the truth and admit their lack of preparation ? Not really, you see if the government came clean and told us that they were as clueless about Corona as is the average Joe then there would be widespread panic, rioting and hoarding.

In country of a 160+ Million the above 3 words might as well be substituted with 'chaos'. It would have be pandemonium and a scene from nightmares.

Instead the government played it cool, albeit by lying.
Anyway fast forward, we had the PPE shortage during the initial weeks, however that issue has been solved now. In addition we've even started exporting PPE.

The private sector stepped up to help the government, and they have won my admiration for this. Especially the pharmaceutical companies who have stepped up and are now producing remdesivir, we beat each and every country in the race to produce remdesivir. That says something, does it not ?

The way I see it, the situation was destined to be lot worse. Bear in mind that Bangladesh is a third world country, where people lack basic knowledge of science, you can't expect such people to understand what a virus is or what social distancing is.

The situation is bad but it could be much much worse and don't forget that we had a cyclone amidst all of this.

People are displeased with the government for raising the lockdown but what do you want ? We are staring down the barrel of a gun, no not that of Corona but the barrel of total Economic collapse. The government made the right decision, at least now poor people will be able to put some food on the table. Corona is bad but dying of hunger is the worse thing that could happen to a human being.


It is my opinion, that at this critical juncture, we should all support the government of Bangladesh and try our best to ride out the storm instead of criticising them for something they couldn't prepare for.

The government has handled the situation amicably and for this Hasina has earned my respect.

Let's give up on the negativity and support our government to see us through yet another bad episode in the tumultuous history of our beloved country.

God willing we will see this crisis through and continue our journey as a nation.

I want to thank our Doctors, Nurses, Lab technicians, Scientists, first responders and everyone else, people who are trying their best to protect us the general public.

The situation is bad as it is, let's face it with positivity rather than add negativity to the doom and gloom.

Apologies for the rant, just my two cents, the paragraphs are in no order.....

 

[Bengal71]

I am no fan of BAL as I have said countless times over, however what the hell let me say it out loud for posterity's sake.

Anyway now that the preface is done, here's what I really wanted to say :

The ongoing Corona virus pandemic was completely unprecedented and came out of the blue and took the whole world by surprise.
Here is an enemy that one cannot see but an enemy that can kill you nonetheless, an enemy you fight not with weapons but one you fight with science and by adhering to guidelines religiously.

No government in the world could have prepared for something as vicious and frightening as Corona.

Government of Bangladesh initially scrambled to try and avoid mass panic, they did this by addressing the issue (before Corona hit us).

Many people started criticising the government for the perceived 'lies' that the government was spewing before Corona hit. What lies ? Just the bit about being prepared and having adequate supply of PPE and other necessary materials.

Did the government lie ? Yes.
Did they have a choice to tell the truth and admit their lack of preparation ? Not really, you see if the government came clean and told us that they were as clueless about Corona as is the average Joe then there would be widespread panic, rioting and hoarding.

In country of a 160+ Million the above 3 words might as well be substituted with 'chaos'. It would have be pandemonium and a scene from nightmares.

Instead the government played it cool, albeit by lying.
Anyway fast forward, we had the PPE shortage during the initial weeks, however that issue has been solved now. In addition we've even started exporting PPE.

The private sector stepped up to help the government, and they have won my admiration for this. Especially the pharmaceutical companies who have stepped up and are now producing remdesivir, we beat each and every country in the race to produce remdesivir. That says something, does it not ?

The way I see it, the situation was destined to be lot worse. Bear in mind that Bangladesh is a third world country, where people lack basic knowledge of science, you can't expect such people to understand what a virus is or what social distancing is.

The situation is bad but it could be much much worse and don't forget that we had a cyclone amidst all of this.

People are displeased with the government for raising the lockdown but what do you want ? We are staring down the barrel of a gun, no not that of Corona but the barrel of total Economic collapse. The government made the right decision, at least now poor people will be able to put some food on the table. Corona is bad but dying of hunger is the worse thing that could happen to a human being.


It is my opinion, that at this critical juncture, we should all support the government of Bangladesh and try our best to ride out the storm instead of criticising them for something they couldn't prepare for.

The government has handled the situation amicably and for this Hasina has earned my respect.

Let's give up on the negativity and support our government to see us through yet another bad episode in the tumultuous history of our beloved country.

God willing we will see this crisis through and continue our journey as a nation.

I want to thank our Doctors, Nurses, Lab technicians, Scientists, first responders and everyone else, people who are trying their best to protect us the general public.

The situation is bad as it is, let's face it with positivity rather than add negativity to the doom and gloom.

Apologies for the rant, just my two cents, the paragraphs are in no order.....

I wholeheartedly agree with you. For a country like Bangladesh, trying to achieve herd immunity is the only option specially when first world countries are struggling. We can deal with a virus killing several hundred thousand in a nation of 160+ million, but the other choice is death of millions through starvation and famine. I choose the later anyday.

 

[bluesky]

Science says heat/humidity, young age and thinness are very effective to fight against the virus and so the probability is that BD will get off relatively lightly.

BD is not getting off relative lightly. See the data published every day, the infection is getting out of hand. We better do not compare with other countries. Other countries have systematically built hospitals/detection centers. But, we have not because it is a poor country and people are callous and irresponsible.

 

[UKBengali]

BD is not getting off relative lightly. See the data published every day, the infection is getting out of hand. We better do not compare with other countries. Other countries have systematically built hospitals/detection centers. But, we have not because it is a poor country and people are callous and irresponsible.

You always talk about going with the science.

Science can do very little to save anyone from the virus - maybe 1-2% of those infected at most will be saved by good medical care. Mostly it is the immune system that saves infected people.

What will save people according to science:

1. Social distancing, masks and hygiene
2. Heat and humidity
3. Being thin
4. Young age

BD scores well on 3 of those metrics.

Virus has been spreading exponentially since 4-5 weeks ago as the lockdown virtually broke down by then and still no mass deaths like in other countries. It is already June and so when is BD going to see them then?
You see BD just happens to be in a fortunate climatic, affluence(lack of it) and demographic position against this virus and so it is riding it relatively unscathed.

 

[DalalErMaNodi]

You always talk about going with the science.

Science can do very little to save anyone from the virus - maybe 1-2% of those infected at most will be saved by good medical care. Mostly it is the immune system that saves infected people.

What will save people according to science:

1. Social distancing, masks and hygiene
2. Heat and humidity
3. Being thin
4. Young age

BD scores well on 3 of those metrics.

Virus has been spreading exponentially since 4-5 weeks ago as the lockdown virtually broke down by then and still no mass deaths like in other countries. It is already June and so when is BD going to see them then?
You see BD just happens to be in a fortunate climatic, affluence(lack of it) and demographic position against this virus and so it is riding it relatively unscathed.

You're both missing out on science.

While I agree with UKBengali's point about Bangladeshis being young and thin, this to be quite honest does very little for us.

Most people dying in Bangladesh are older people over 50, and they're all dying because of one reason we're overlooking; Comorbidities.

Essentially, what it means is that multiple health condition are building up on the damage done by each other to adversely affect the patient.

People in Bangladesh, have very very poor health, diabetes is prevalent among the older sections of our society as are a host other serious health conditions. Covid - 19 is killing a large number of people by just exacerbating their existing health conditions.

And this is not only restricted to old people, Bangladeshis generally are of poor health irrespective of age. There is no concept of fitness among our masses, people don't choose to be thin, that's just a consequence of them being poor.

Almost every Bangladeshi male over the age of 35 has a tummy that protrudes beyond the normal range.

Given our poor healthcare system, I think it'd be realistic to say neither a young population nor a thin population will be able to minimise the impending chaos that is coming our way.

Bangladesh has a lot to do when it comes to raising the quality of healthcare provided, make its average citizen healthier and to instill in people through programs the importance of eating a healthy balanced diet and staying fit.

The Covid - 19 has gone out of hand, and there's nothing to be done about it. We can only wait for it to dissipate in due course of time.

However, the government must take a few steps now to address this going forward, namely :

x - Increase expenditure on public healthcare

x - Improve the quality of healthcare provided

x - Establish a nationwide network of ICUs and CCUs with top of the line equipment

x - Encourage healthy lifestyle and eating habits by organising a large scale public awareness campaign, similar in scale to their campaign promoting family planning.

x - Bump the budget for the education system, because no matter in which facet of Bangladesh society to care to look into, all our problems could be solved with better education.

These are all in the long term, the only think we can do in relation to the Covid - 19 crisis is to follow government guidelines religiously and to keep our wits about us.

 

[UKBengali]

You're both missing out on science.

While I agree with UKBengali's point about Bangladeshis being young and thin, this to be quite honest does very little for us.

Most people dying in Bangladesh are older people over 50, and they're all dying because of one reason we're overlooking; Comorbidities.

Essentially, what it means is that multiple health condition are building up on the damage done by each other to adversely affect the patient.

People in Bangladesh, have very very poor health, diabetes is prevalent among the older sections of our society as are a host other serious health conditions. Covid - 19 is killing a large number of people by just exacerbating their existing health conditions.

And this is not only restricted to old people, Bangladeshis generally are of poor health irrespective of age. There is no concept of fitness among our masses, people don't choose to be thin, that's just a consequence of them being poor.

Almost every Bangladeshi male over the age of 35 has a tummy that protrudes beyond the normal range.

Given our poor healthcare system, I think it'd be realistic to say neither a young population nor a thin population will be able to minimise the impending chaos that is coming our way.

Bangladesh has a lot to do when it comes to raising the quality of healthcare provided, make its average citizen healthier and to instill in people through programs the importance of eating a healthy balanced diet and staying fit.

The Covid - 19 has gone out of hand, and there's nothing to be done about it. We can only wait for it to dissipate in due course of time.

However, the government must take a few steps now to address this going forward, namely :

x - Increase expenditure on public healthcare

x - Improve the quality of healthcare provided

x - Establish a nationwide network of ICUs and CCUs with top of the line equipment

x - Encourage healthy lifestyle and eating habits by organising a large scale public awareness campaign, similar in scale to their campaign promoting family planning.

x - Bump the budget for the education system, because no matter in which facet of Bangladesh society to care to look into, all our problems could be solved with better education.

These are all in the long term, the only think we can do in relation to the Covid - 19 crisis is to follow government guidelines religiously and to keep our wits about us.

Where are the thousands of deaths daily in BD so far?
Just when are they coming? It is June already.

What you say is not be backed up with what is happening on the ground. BD never had a proper lockdown in the first place and the virus has been spreading exponentially for the last 4-5 weeks. It takes 3-4 weeks for someone to die after they get infected in worse case scenario.

People have been predicting mass deaths in BD in May, then June. Now you want to predict for July?

And to say BD is full of fat people -only 20% of the BD population is overweight. Fact is BD is not affluent enough to be fat.

Science says BD will get off relatively lightly according to empirical evidence and so best to go with that.

PS - I agree with your points on health spending but BD government can only manage to extract 12% of GDP and so will be next to impossible to increase without raising this level.

 

[DalalErMaNodi]

Where are the thousands of deaths daily in BD so far?
Just when are they coming? It is June already.

What you say is not be backed up with what is happening on the ground. BD never had a proper lockdown in the first place and the virus has been spreading exponentially for the last 4-5 weeks. It takes 3-4 weeks for someone to die after they get infected in worse case scenario.

People have been predicting mass deaths in BD in May, then June. Now you want to predict for July?

And to say BD is full of fat people -only 20% of the BD population is overweight. Fact is BD is not affluent enough to be fat.

Science says BD will get off relatively lightly according to empirical evidence and so best to go with that.

PS - I agree with your points on health spending but BD government can only manage to extract 12% of GDP and so will be next to impossible to increase without raising this level.

For Bangladesh's sake, let us hope your optimism isn't misplaced.

Coming to people being fat.... Yes, its true, just take a look at our middle class men.

My point being that thin or fat doesn't make a difference, Bangladeshis are unhealthy period, no balanced diet, no concept of fitness, blissful ignorance when it comes to maintaining a healthy lifestyle and so on.

What happens now is anybody's guess but let's just hope the deaths don't rise exponentially.

I'm most worried about the economy, for If there is an economic collapse, millions could starve.

 

[bluesky]

https://www.newagebd.net/article/107640/covid-19-infects-2423-claims-35-more-in-bangladesh

COVID-19 infects 2,423, claims 35 more in Bangladesh
Staff Correspondent | Published: 14:40, Jun 04,2020 | Updated: 16:02, Jun 04,2020




Bangladesh logged 2,423 more COVID-19 infections and 35 deaths in last 24 hours until 8:00am Thursday.

With the latest update, the death toll in the country hit 781 and the infections totalled to 57,563.

A total of 12,694 samples were tested among 13,788 specimens in the last 24 hours at 50 labs across the country.

Nasima Sultana, director general of Directorate General of Health Services, said this on the daily online bulletin on the COVID-19 situation in the afternoon.

Some 571 more people were declared recovered from the virus infection during the timeline as they did not show any symptoms of the highly infectious disease. The number of the declared recovery is 12,161.

Bangladesh on March 8 confirmed its first COVID-19 infections and on March 18 the first death.

COVID-19 situation in Bangladesh until June 4, 2020. Source: Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research
The country is in the 13th week of infections and passed 89th day on Thursday. Bangladesh tested 3,58,277 samples so far until the date.

Among the deceased persons, 29 were males and six were females. Among them, 22 died at hospitals, 12 at their residences and another was brought dead to the hospital.

The age ranges of the deceased are— two in 71-80 years, 11 in 61-70, fourteen in 51-60, three in 41-50, three in 21-30 and one in 31-40 years.

21 of them were from Dhaka division, nine from Chattogram, two from Sylhet, and one each from Barishal, Khulna and Rajshahi divisions.

@UKBengali, @DalalErMaNodi