Covid deaths cross grim 10,000 mark

Bangladesh reported 94 more deaths from Covid-19 infections in the last 24 hours till Thursday morning, taking the country's pandemic death toll beyond the grim 10,000 mark.

With the death toll now standing at 10,081, the daily infection count however remained lower than the previous days with 4,192 fresh cases recorded in that 24-hour period, said a press release of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

The death rate now stands at 1.43%.

The total number of people infected now stands at 7,07,362 with a positivity rate of 21%.

Besides, 5,915 Covid-19 patients have recovered in the 24-hour period. The total number of recoveries now stands at 597,214, and the recovery rate stands at 84.43%.

Among the latest day's victims, 64 were men and 30 were women. 90 of them died in different hospitals across the country, while four at home. Moreover, 19,959 samples were tested in 257 labs across the country in the 24-hour period.

The country's maiden cases were reported on 8 March last year, and the first death from the virus was reported on 18 March.

Vaccinations continue amid lockdown

Covid-19 vaccinations continued at all centres across the country on Thursday – the second day of the stricter lockdown. People received their vaccine shots after showing the confirmation message without any disruptions.

Responding to a query, Dhaka Medical College Hospital's Director Brig Gen Nazmul Haque said, "The vaccination drive is continuing as usual amid the lockdown. Almost everyone who received messages from us showed up on Thursday.

"They might have faced problems while journeying to the centre, but they showed up in the end."

Commenting on the people who need the 2nd vaccine dose, but are currently far from any vaccination centres, DGHS' Additional Director General Dr Meerjady Sabrina Flora on Wednesday said, "People must get the 2nd dose of Covid-19 vaccine after 8 to 12 weeks of the first dose.

"Those who received the first dose just eight weeks ago have nothing to worry about. They can get the 2nd dose within 12 weeks. If the lockdown extends in the coming days, the authorities will figure out a way to continue vaccinations."

Flora also said if a person tests positive for Covid-19, he or she must wait a month after testing negative to get vaccinated, and this rule applies to both the first and second doses.

Dr Meerjady added that the DGHS had sought recommendations from the Islamic Foundation on whether a person can get vaccinated while fasting and the foundation said there are no restrictions against it.

They added that Covid-19 vaccination drives are continuing in various Muslim countries, including the Saudi Arabia.