A Nepalese Muslim man sweeps a deserted Jame mosque during the first day of Ramadan in Kathmandu, Nepal, April 25, 2020. Muslims across the Asia began marking the holy month of Ramadan under unprecedented coronavirus lockdowns. Faithful Muslims normally fast during the day and then congregate for night prayers and share communal meals. (NIRANJAN SHRESTHA / AP)

It is a Ramadan like never before for Muslims across Asia as mosques that would normally be packed for prayers are deserted and in some places locked up as governments enforced measures to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country, has confirmed 8,882 cases of the coronavirus and at least 743 people have died

At Indonesia’s main Istiqlal mosque, the biggest in Southeast Asia, the call to evening Maghib prayers and a message asking people to pray at home echo in the empty hall - a stark contrast to last year when thousands thronged in to pray.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country, has confirmed 8,882 cases of the coronavirus and at least 743 people have died.

In Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, the gates of the Mayor Mohammad Hanif Jame Mosque were padlocked.

In the Pakistani city of Karachi, police patrolled outside the Faizan-e-Madina, one of the city’s biggest mosques, to stop worshippers from gathering and no one was performing Taraweeh, a special prayer during Ramadan.

A woman walks past the closed gate outside the Imamzadeh Saleh in the Iranian capital Tehran's Shemiran district on April 25, 2020 during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, as all mosques and places of worship are closed due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. (ATTA KENARE / AFP)

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In India, only five worshippers joined an evening prayer on the first day of Ramadan in New Delhi’s imposing Jama Masjid as the call to prayers drifted out over the deserted courtyard.

Last year, worshippers spilled onto the ornate front terrace of the red-brick 17th century mosque.

India has reported 26,496 cases of the coronavirus and 824 deaths.

Esat Sahin, Imam of the iconic Fatih Mosque, holds a prayer held without public due to the coronavirus restrictions in Istanbul, April 24, 2020, during the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan. (EMRAH GUREL / AP)

READ MORE: In shadow of virus, Muslims face a Ramadan like never before

Health experts have warned that the rapid spread of the coronavirus in poor, densely populated parts of South Asia - home to a fifth of the world’s population - could easily overwhelm weak public health systems.