As Bangladesh has been experiencing an upsurge in Covid-19 cases recently, the government is formulating various strategies, including instructing the hospitals to keep beds ready for Covid-19 patients to resist the viral infection ahead of summer.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), the country registered over 1000 cases for two days in a row. Some 1,051 new cases were identified on Thursday, the highest since January 10.
Expressing concern over the recent rising trend of Covid-19 infections in the country, Health Minister Zahid Maleque said the ministry had asked the private and government hospitals to be ready by allotting beds for Covid-19 patients.
The minister was speaking after attending a program at the National Institute of Ophthalmology and Hospital on Thursday morning.
“We held meetings with government and private officials at various levels across the country on Wednesday,” he said.
“Letters have been issued at the district level so that the local Covid-19 prevention committees take appropriate action. They should organize programs in a limited way. We have asked them to postpone programs which are less important,” he added.
Besides, all other arrangements regarding treatment had been made, the minister said.
Zahid Maleque has repeatedly been issuing warnings for the last few days, saying that people were flouting health safety rules.
“The daily infection rate in the country had come down to 2%. Now it has risen again to close to 6%,” he said.
The minister said: “This is concerning. People are not using masks or using them less than before. They are reluctant to maintain social distance. People are also attending a lot more social events, which is contributing to the rise in infections again.”
Mentioning that people had become reckless since the vaccine came to the country, Zahid Maleque said: "We have to be vigilant again."
Maleque expressed his confidence about ensuring a regular supply of the Covid-19 vaccine for the continuation of the vaccination program and said the third consignment from Serum Institute of India (SII) was scheduled to arrive within this month.
PM's new directives
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also issued new directives for the next three months to contain the spread of the viral disease at a cabinet division meeting on Tuesday, fearing a worsening situation.
Cabinet Secretary Khandaker Anwarul Islam after the meeting told the reporters that these directives had come keeping in mind that the country had reached the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic last summer.
So the authorities were taking preparations for the months of April, May and June to tackle the pandemic, he added.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Zahid Maleque has said 40 million people will be vaccinated as the authorities have set the age limit at 40.
He expressed his satisfaction over the ongoing vaccination program and said if the vaccination program continues to run smoothly, the age limit may be reconsidered.
According to the DGHS, 5,462,165 people had completed vaccine registration till 5:30pm on Thursday while 4,218,127 people have been vaccinated in the country.