Not panicked but worried about rising Covid cases: Health minister 

Health Minister Zahid Maleque has said that the government is not panicked but worried about the rising Covid-19 cases in the country.

"We are focusing more on Covid testing. We have almost finished giving the second dose of vaccine. Vaccination of 70% of people will be completed by today," he said while inaugurating the vaccination campaign for cholera at International Centre for Diarrhea Research Bangladesh (icddr,b) in Mohakhali Sunday (26 June).

The minister also urged people to take booster doses who are yet to receive it.

The oral vaccination campaign to reduce the incidences of diarrhoea and cholera began Sunday at 700 centres in the capital.

The campaign will continue till 2 July. 

Under the campaign, the health directorate will vaccinate around 23 lakh people with the first dose of vaccines in five diarrhoea-prone areas of the capital.

"We are giving this vaccine on a large scale for the first time in the country. The prevalence of cholera has been significantly reduced in the areas where we had vaccinated people before," Zahid Maleque said.

Mentioning that cholera outbreaks caused deaths of thousands of people before, the minister said now the scenario has been changed and the government and icddr,b have significant contributions behind this. 

"The government has provided safe water and sanitation throughout the country. The government has taken measures to prevent infection as well as adequate treatment. We have directed the authorities concerned to start cholera-diarrhea unit in every district and upazila hospital," he added.