Security was beefed up in and around important government offices and installations. Additional police and Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) personnel were deployed at different strategic points in the city.

Heavy traffic congestion occurred as police blocked many roads to check passing vehicles in the first half of the day.

The number of vehicles on roads however sharply decreased in the afternoon as the panic gripped people returned home following the bomb blasts at 28 points.

Various rumours spread following the blasts and newspaper offices were flooded with telephone calls asking whether the government has advised people to return home by the afternoon. Many people wanted to know if the government is announcing an emergency situation in the city.

Markets and shopping malls were almost deserted. Most young people stayed home to avert untoward situations.

"I have come to take my nephew from school. But police searched my bag extensively," said Mostafa Jamil, in Dhanmondi area.

The law enforcers were conducting body and bag search of young people in particular. Security check posts were seen in Motijheel, Press Club, Fakirapul, Dhaka University, Shabagh, New Market, Dhanmandi, Gulshan, Airport, and Secretariat areas and also in old part of the city.