Coronavirus – Where can the Bangladeshi general peoples get handwash soap?

By Mrs. Fatema Zinnat

Coronavirus (Cobid-19) is currently the name of one of the great threats of the world. The deadly virus, which originated in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province in China, has been spreading to 176 countries around the world since its writing (date 19/03/2020) and is being attacked daily from country to country.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has already declared the deadly virus an epidemic. It has been advised to take several preventive measures to protect yourself and the environment from the deadly virus.

The first step to prevent this coronavirus (Cobid-1) is:
• Frequently wash hands with Soap or Alcohol.

In the human body these diseases can be entered in four ways:
1. By the mouth – most of the germs and heavy metal enter the body during, taking food and inhalation.
2. Via Nasal congestion: – enters the human body through breathing.
3. With the hair follicles: apparently very low.
4. Through injection: – Through injection syringe/needle

Diseases/Viruses can be entered into the human body mainly in two ways, which are -one is mouth and another is the nose. For this reason, we should careful during taking food, likewise, the virus does not enter into the human body, so that frequently wash your hand and use a mask to prevent the entrance virus through mouth and inhalation.

But we use habitually hands and nose for a little while, as well as to take food and other works. Therefore, the first thing to do is wash hands with water regularly using soap or alcohol to keep the hands free of the virus.

Remarkably, 15 October of every year is celebrating World Handwash Day. But it is observed that several years ago this day was celebrated in Bangladesh but it is no longer being celebrated.

Bangladesh did not realize anymore that when this day comes and when it goes now. Since, as a nation, our position is very poor in the statistics of handwashing especially after using the toilet.

Most of the people in this country are not washing their hands with soap after using the toilet for poverty/ignorance in the rural areas and lack of facilities in the cities.

There are some absurd and unexpected reasons why people in the Bangladesh cities are unable to wash or wash their hands with soap after toilet in below-

Even Government offices of any levels in the country – Whether it is lower level than higher level, except the head of the office and some high officials have washroom only, but no soap or alcohol is usually available for low-level officials/employees and visitors to wash their hands in the toilet/washroom. For Example-

(1) The Bangladesh Secretariat and its subordinate offices, directors, semi-government or autonomous bodies, sector corporations,
(2) Government hospitals
(3) Judicial Offices,
(4) Deputy Commissioner in every district, court buildings,
(5) Airports, launch terminals, bus terminals
(6) Bangladesh Railway Stations,
(7) Nagar Bhaban, city corporations, and municipal/Pourashava offices
(8) Public toilets under City Corporation, Municipality (Soap / Alcohol has seen some modern smart toilets under Dhaka City Corporation recently),
(9) In Governmental-private educational institutions (universities, schools, colleges, madrasas, mosques everywhere)
(10) Commercial buildings, markets All are the same conditions

In addition, there is no hand wash soap or alcohol – not just that there are many public toilets where even there is no toilet door, no water supply, no vessel, and no water tap. In some cases found some but all these are so dirty and completely useless.

But all these institutions have a government allocation in these sectors, even Money is being spent. Only the lack of supervision of the head of the office does not ensure that essential health services are available to the lower-level officials and the general public.

The lower-level employees are serving tea, snacks and other services to the high officials. Because of that, it is not just the officers or the general public that are being harmed, also affecting the high officials of the offices.

Even worse situation is that students of all Schools, Colleges, Madrassas, and University are offering prayers or there are rules for praying in all those institutions.

It is an obvious scenario that Students have to go to school, college while wearing shoes and socks, for pray they need to use the toilet. But there are no such things as sponge or sandal/shoes in the washroom or toilet for the student can use.

So the students usually have to go to the washroom to use the toilet and for “Wadu” without sandals. Without saying that it can imagine how serious the issue is for a healthy life.

Therefore, it is easy to evaluate from above, what extent are we capable of preventing coronavirus (Cobid-19)?