Coronavirus: Bangladesh needs to be very cautious

The rate at which the coronavirus is spreading is very alarming. It is not only a matter of concern for China, where it has originated, but also for the whole world. According to media reports, the virus has caused at least 80 deaths while China confirmed 2,744 cases by midnight Sunday. Chinese president Xi Jinping during a politburo meeting on Saturday said that China was facing a "grave situation".
The first case of coronavirus was detected in 1960. However, how it came into being could not be known. According to Wikipedia the name "coronavirus" is derived from the word corona, meaning crown or halo. This refers to the characteristic appearance of virions (the infective form of the virus) by electron microscopy, which have a fringe of large, bulbous surface projections creating an image reminiscent of a royal crown or of the solar corona. Both human beings and birds or animals may be victims of the disease, which can be transmitted by sneezing or coughing.
China has locked down Hubei in the country's centre, an unprecedented operation affecting tens of millions of people and intended to slow transmission of the respiratory virus, according to AFP. Drastic travel restrictions have been imposed outside the epicentre, with Shandong province and four cities -- Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an and Tianjin -- announcing bans on long-distance buses entering or leaving. They have also set up a hospital in a week to treat coronavirus patients. However, these steps were not enough, as it has already spread to Canada, France, Japan, Australia, Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam and the US.
Media reports say they were diagnosed with this disease on their return from China. Which means Bangladesh is not safe either. A big number of Bangladeshis are studying or working in China, including at least 500 in Wuhan. On behalf of some students, Sajib Hossain, an assistant teacher at Yangtze University in Wuhan province, posted a letter on Facebook addressing the foreign ministry in which he sought assistance from the Bangladesh authorities. Prime minister Sheikh Hasina has already directed the authorities concerned to bring back Bangladeshis from China who are willing to return.
Airport sources said a health centre has already been set up to screen passengers arriving from abroad. There are three thermal scanners at the airport and the authorities are noting down names of people complaining of fever or other such symptoms, even if they had returned from Hong Kong, Singapore or Thailand. Physicians recommend washing hands every now and then, wearing masks while going outside and not touching nose and face with the hand.
These steps as precautions are good. But the authorities need to have a plan to contain the spread if a single person is diagnosed with the disease. In a densely populated country like Bangladesh, it will be very difficult to stop spread of such a disease. We have already seen how China is struggling. We have to remain very very alert.