With the positivity rate of Covid-19 fast declining, -- below 7.0 per cent, according to the latest report from the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) -- the government's decision to reopen secondary schools and higher educational institutions on Monday and primary schools from March 01 is well-timed. It is also reassuring to know that the government is not going to further extend the pandemic-related restrictions after the last extension that ended on February 21.
Understandably, the government's move is made in line with similar steps taken by the neighbouring as well as other countries of the world. Now, it appears, Bangladesh along with the rest of the world is at long last hoping to see light at the end of the dark Covid tunnel. Undoubtedly, it is going to be an exhilarating and at the same liberating experience for students who lived in a state of virtual confinement during all these days of school closure.
Life returning to complete normality also means the economy will now be able to perform at full steam without further hindrance. But before celebrating all these positive developments, a word of caution will not be out of place here. For withdrawal of the restrictions on movement and gatherings of people does not mean that the pandemic is over. Even if there is no report of any fresh surge in positivity rate, there are still a large number of Covid-19 patients in the country recovering from the ailment. There are still others who are asymptomatic. Both these groups of people have the potential to infect others with the coronavirus disease. There is still another point to take note of. Many are of the view that as the Covid-19 disease is becoming endemic there is scope to take the pathogen less seriously like the people do with influenza, chicken pox and some other infectious diseases. But, according to the infectious-disease specialists, we are still a long way to go before reaching that level. In fact, it will happen when today's children as a result of their exposure to coronavirus will develop enough immunity against it (the virus) in their adulthood in the future. It is exactly how the immunity of the populace developed against other infectious diseases.
So, for the present, it would be wiser to accept the fact that the pandemic is yet to leave the scene and the possibility of its becoming endemic is something still remote in this part of the world. As such, the situation calls for ensuring adherence to the basic health guidelines to ward off Covid infection with particular emphasis on wearing of facemask. At this point, the programme of immunising the population through vaccination should continue.
On this score, the government's idea of vaccinating 10 million people on February 26, as reported, appears to be a well-conceived one. So far so good. But when it comes to the issue of the schoolchildren above 12 joining classes, the government will be required to ensure that they are all vaccinated. At the same time, the issue of immunising children below 12 needs to be settled so they may also be able to attend school as soon as possible. It is necessary because recovering students' precious learning time lost to the pandemic-induced school closures should be among the topmost priorities of the government at the moment.