Ports to get permanent isolation, quarantine centres by August

• The screening, isolation and quarantine centres will be set up at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Dhaka, Osmani International Airport, Sylhet, Shah Amanat International Airport, Chattogram, and Chattogram and Mongla seaports
• The World Bank will cover the cost of setting up labs, purchasing equipment, renovating quarantine and isolation centres
• DGHS will provide doctors, virologists, medical technologists and nurses for these centres

 The government plans to set up permanent screening, isolation and quarantine centres at the ports to prevent the entry of new variants of Covid-19 or other viral diseases into the country.

The centres will be set up at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, Osmani International Airport in Sylhet, Shah Amanat International Airport in Chattogram, and Chattogram and Mongla seaports by August this year.

The World Bank's Covid-19 Emergency Response and Pandemic Preparedness project will cover the cost of the setting up of labs, purchasing equipment, renovating quarantine and isolation centres. The Directorate General of Health Services will provide doctors, virologists, medical technologists and nurses for these centres.

Project Director Dr Shah Golam Nabi Tuhin told The Business Standard, "If a person entering the country tests positive for a virus or shows symptoms of infection, he will be placed in isolation. People coming from countries with a high risk of virus infection will be placed in quarantine at the port."

"We have talked to the port and aviation authorities and selected places for setting up the isolation and quarantine centres. The work is expected to be completed by August," said Dr Shah Golam Nabi Tuhin.

Currently there are plans to screen 400-500 people per day and quarantine 20 people at a time at the centres, he said.

Zafar Alam, member (admin) of Chattogram port, told TBS, "Under international rules, there should be a system of screening at the seaports. We already have a screening system and a separate health department at our port. I have heard that another permanent screening, quarantine and isolation centre will be set up at the port."

Dr M Mushtuq Husain, adviser at Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and Research, told TBS, "Having permanent screening, isolation and quarantine centres at the ports of entry will be a very good initiative since in addition to Covid-19, there are various infectious diseases, such as influenza, yellow fever and monkeypox."

"If there is a system of permanent screening and quarantine at the ports of entry, people infected with these diseases can be detected and quarantined quickly, which will prevent the spread of infection," said Dr M Mushtuq Husain.

Following the outbreak of Covid-19 in China in 2019, questions were raised about the weakness of screening systems at Bangladesh's ports of entry. A problem arose about quarantining 300 Bangladeshi students who returned from Wuhan, China, on 1 February 2020. They were later quarantined at the Ashkona Hajj camp.

However, when the government decided to quarantine 126 passengers arriving from Italy at the Hajj camp, the latter protested so vigorously that the authorities were forced to send them to their homes.

After that, returnees had to stay in quarantine at different hotels in the capital at their own expense. Once coronavirus infection rates dropped, quarantine and isolation of returnees were no longer required.