A large number of residents of Dhaka city have resumed visiting popular hangout spots, especially on weekly holidays, disregarding all health safety rules set by the government forecasting a second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
On October 19, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina instructed authorities concerned to ensure that everyone stepping out of their homes wear face masks and maintain social distancing and, if necessary, enforce the directive using mobile courts.
Local authorities claim that they have tried to raise awareness by using loudspeakers, urging people to maintain social distancing and not to gather randomly at public places.
In some places, authorities also claimed to have distributed face masks but said people continue to disregard health safety rules believing that things have gone back to normal like the pre-Covid period.
During a visit to these spots, this correspondent found that most of the visitors were not wearing face masks and had no regard for social distancing or fear of being infected with the deadly virus.
"Is there any coronavirus here? Can you see anyone fearing it now?... All of us were attacked and we all recovered from the deadly virus silently. Now please leave us alone and give us some space to lead a normal life," a visitor at Dhaka University’s TSC area replied angrily when this correspondent asked him why he was not wearing a face mask.
TSC, Dhaka University
At Dhaka University’s TSC intersection, mass gatherings of people from all walks of life are witnessed almost every day.
"The crowd surges on Friday and Saturday especially, as the days are weekly holidays. Most of the people who come here do not wear face masks," Md Kalam, a temporary vendor at TSC area, told Dhaka Tribune.
"We hardly see the visitors maintaining social distancing, but cannot refuse them as they are our customers," he added.
However, the university’s proctorial team only conducts a drive in the evening asking outsiders to leave the area to avoid crowding.
DU Proctor AKM Golam Rabbani said: "As Dhaka University is a national institution, we did not bar anyone from using the roads inside the campus. However, many people visit the campus to pass leisure time as if this area is an amusement centre and not an educational institute.
"The university is only for its students. We urge the people not to visit the campus, unless they have an emergency or any important work," he added.
"Our proctorial team has been instructed to provide face masks for free to those seen not wearing one. We have restricted the presence of mass people after evening hours, and are trying to do the same during the day time as well," Prof Rabbani added.
Hatirjheel
Dhaka’s inner-city bypass Hatirjheel has again become a buzzing hotspot for visitors, especially in the afternoon hours.
"Gatherings of visitors were halted in late March and so we also had to shut down our business. After Eid-ul-Adha in August, people started gathering here again every day," Md Atik, a street food vendor near Bridge No 1, told Dhaka Tribune.
"Now, we find the regular crowd as we did before the coronavirus pandemic hit the country," he added.
“Some social organizations sometimes carry out awareness raising programs for wearing face masks here, but people do not pay heed to it,” he complained.
Most of the visitors at Hatirjheel are youths.
"We first went to Dhanmondi lake as it was near our home and found a huge crowd there. To avoid a mass gathering, we came to Hatirjheel but it is all the same," said Toufiqur Rahman, a resident of Jhigatola area of Dhanmondi, who came to Hatirjheel with his spouse.
"We will get depressed if we do not roam outside. However, people outside are not following health directives," Toufiqur, a private job holder, stressed.
Dia-Bari, Uttara
Dia-Bari, a neighbourhood located near Dhaka's Uttara area, is another place where citizens find space away from the city's chaotic environment.
But this area, prominently known as a shooting spot for Bangla TV dramas, is also getting crowded day by day.
"I personally went there on Saturday to run a campaign on health safety rules to raise awareness, but the visitors got furious instead,” Turag police station Officer-in-Charge Mehedi Hasan said, while acknowledging that police could not persuade people to maintain social distancing.
“Wearing a mask is a secondary-level safety issue, but people first need to maintain social distancing. Those who were gathering there were not following any hygiene guidelines or norms," he added.
"We have failed to control the crowd during holidays, but we do not allow the visitors to enter the area in the afternoon and force them to leave the place by the evening," OC Mehedi told Dhaka Tribune.
Meanwhile, the National Museum and the National Zoo have reopened from November 1 with limited entry tickets.