Govt asks offices to run with maximum 50% manpower amid Covid-19 surge

The government on Monday issued an 18-point recommendation including running all government and nongovernment offices and organisations except emergency services with 50 percent of manpower to contain the spread of coronavirus in the country.

Pregnant women, sick and people aged above 55 years will have to do official work staying at their homes, said a gazette notification issued by the government this noon.

The government asked all concerned to limit all kinds of social, political, religious and other events amid the fresh surge of coronavirus infection.

In the gazette, it also asked all people to discourage organising public gathering centring marriage ceremonies or any kinds of fair in the area where the case is detected.

All buses will have to carry passengers with 50 percent of the seat capacity by maintaining the government-imposed health guidelines, it said.

Inter-district bus services in the virus-prone areas will have to be limited and if necessary, the running of buses will have to be halted.

The people who are returning home from different countries will have to ensure institutional quarantine inside selected hotels for 14 days at their own cost, it said.

Health guidelines at health service centres, essential markets, medicine shops and open places including playgrounds will have to be ensured to halt the spread of the virus.

Wearing masks at all health service centres and shopping malls will have to be ensured alongside maintaining health guidelines.

All educational institutions and coaching centres across the country will have to remain closed until the Covid-19 situation improves.

All will have to stop unnecessary outdoor movement after 10:00pm and legal action will be taken if anyone is found in unmasked condition, it said.

The isolation of the people with symptoms of coronavirus will have to be ensured and the quarantine of the people who come to close contact with the infected one will also have to be ensured.

Meetings, seminars, training sessions, workshops and others will have to be arranged online and the presence of people at hotels and restaurants will have to be brought to 50 percent against the accommodation capacity, it said.