Food, medicine and leather factories will be open during lockdown

Factories dealing with food, medicine, oxygen and leather will remain operational during the 14-day strict lockdown starting from July 23.

However, the apparel factories along with other export-oriented factories will remain closed during the same time.

The Cabinet Division issued a notification regarding this on Monday.

Also Read - Daily Covid deaths hit record 231 in Bangladesh as toll tops 18,000

According to the notification, the factories dealing with food and food processing, rawhide transportation, protection and processing, and industries manufacturing essential products for the prevention of Covid-19 remain out of the purview of the lockdown restrictions.

Earlier, the government relaxed the Covid-19 restrictions for eight days to keep the economic activities related to the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha moving after 14 days of strict lockdown from July 1. 

Then the Cabinet Division announced another 14-day strict lockdown from 6am of July 23 amid a surge in Covid-19 infections across the country. 

Earlier on Thursday, apparel manufacturers sent a letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, pleading to keep apparel factories out of the lockdown restrictions like before. 

On Monday, Bangladesh reported its highest 231 deaths from Covid-19 and 13,321 fresh cases in the 24 hours till 8am on Monday.