In the budget for the fiscal year 2020-21, Taka 10,000 crore has been allocated for combating the corona pandemic.
On Thursday (June 11), Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal will outline the government's future plans to combat corona and prevent corona outbreaks, along with the fund, in Parliament.
On this day, a budget of Taka 5 lakh 68 thousand crore for the next one year will be presented which is 44 thousand crore more than last year's budget. Taka 5 lakh 23 thousand 190 crore was proposed for the previous 2019-20 financial year.
According to the Bangladesh Economic Association (BAE), an organization of economists, about 3 crore 60 lakh people lost their jobs in the first 66 days March 26 – May 31) of the lockdown in the face of Covid-19. The president of the organization Prof. Abul Barkat said a total of 6 crore 1 lakh people had employment in the country at that time. The country's GDP has lost Taka 2 lakh 96 thousand 742 crore.
Highlighting the statistics, Prof. Barakat said the lockdown has caused a loss of Taka 1, 69,938 crore in the service sector, Taka 1,02,041 crore in the industrial sector and Taka 26,065 crore in the agricultural sector. The expected GDP at this time was 4 lakh 56 thousand 26 crore which is 35 percent of the total GDP. The loss has been estimated at 65 percent.
Among the job losses, 1 crore 53 lakh people lost their jobs in the service sector, 93 lakh people in the industrial sector and 1 crore 14 lakh people in the agricultural sector. On the other hand, the income of 5 crore 95 lakh belonging to the upper middle class and middle was reduced and forced to become poor.
In order to get out of this situation, 48 percent of the low-income people will have to pay a grant of Taka 20,000 for each person at a time.
Mentioning that the budget for the fiscal year 2020-21 will be to tackle corona BAE president Prof. Abul Barakat said that the government’s corona services have not reached to 82 percent of the people of the country including village level. The services were done just as face wash.
Strong health care is needed at the moment. But our health care is extremely fragile. To get out of this situation, I have demanded an allocation of Taka 40,000 crore in the next budget for the health sector.
It is to be mentioned that 74 thousand 856 people have been infected by corona in Bangladesh so far. One thousand 12 people have died.