Shakib joins awareness campaign against dengue

Bangladesh cricket superstar Shakib Al Hasan on Thursday joined a campaign to raise awareness against mosquito-borne dengue which has spread all over the country.

The campaign was held at Banani Bidyaniketan School & College.

“Dengue is now nearly an epidemic in the country which has never happened before. The virus is now spreading all over the country. So, I think everyone should be aware about it,” Shakib told the media. 

“Everyone should understand how serious it is.  I am not affected by dengue now but I understand how painful it can be because I suffered once before,” he added.

Under the campaign, Shakib sprayed anti-mosquito medicines on the campus of Banani Bidyaniketan School & College in the presence of its 6,500 students. 

Shakib is currently out of action as he had asked for a leave for personal reasons prior to the just-concluded three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka.

Dengue cases are still surging across the country as 1,712 more people were hospitalised with the mosquito-borne virus in 24 hours till 8am on Thursday.

Of them, 1,150 dengue cases were reported in the capital alone, manifesting that the city is apparently in the grip of a serious outbreak of dengue fever.  Three of these patients were suffering from dengue hemorrhagic or severe dengue.

On Wednesday, the number of dengue cases all over the country was 1,477, while 1,300 on Tuesday 1,096 on Monday, indicating a gradual rise in dengue infection, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

Currently, 5,838 dengue patients are undergoing treatment at different hospitals across the country, it said.

From January 1 till the date, 19,517 dengue patients were admitted to hospitals while 13,661 of them released after treatment.