Salma Chowdhury Ruma, a member of parliament of Rajbari reserved women’s seat,  who tested positive for coronavirus, was flown to Dhaka from Rajbari on Monday by a helicopter of Bangladesh Air Force (BAF).

Salma was flown on an emergency basis to Dhaka by a MI-171SH helicopter of the BAF.

Later, she was taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital for better treatment.

The BAF has been providing emergency air transport and medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) assistance in aid to civil power to tackle coronavirus and continue various activities to affirm its commitment to meet all emergency needs in a professional manner, said  Inter Service Public Releation (ISPR) press release.

In line with this, Chief of Air Staff of the BAF provided necessary guidance to carry out the medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) mission.

Textiles and Jute Minister Golam Dastagir Gazi on Monday said the government is working to ensure that the farmers get the fair price for their produced jute.

The minister said this at a views exchange meeting on the activities of the Ministry of Textiles and Jute and its subordinate departments at his office after the Eid-ul-Azha holiday.

He said the incumbent government is trying to solve all problems in the jute sector. It is also trying to ensure fair pricing, SMS-based jute buying and selling system, increasing production and diversifying jute products, incentives for export of jute goods and increasing domestic use.

The government will also provide all possible assistance for the expansion of jute industry besides motivating farmers considering the demand in the domestic and international markets, he said.

The minister said that in view of the present market and future prospects of diversified jute products, the government is working to re-open the closed mills under the BJMC on an urgent basis by modernising and restructuring the production system.

Country’s jute mills will be brought back to production as soon as possible through government-controlled public-private partnership (PPP), joint venture G2G or lease model. Two high-level committees have already been set up to make recommendations on modernisation and reactivation of mills in a proper manner and rationalisation in light of the changed situation of BJMC’s manpower structure, he said.

He said all the relevant provisions of the Labor Act have been followed while declaring termination of employment of workers and closure of jute mills.

As the employment of the workers has been terminated from July 1, according to the provisions of the Labor Act, they have no claim or dues after the seventh day except for the wages of 60-day notice period, said the minister.

Gazi had announced closure of 25 mills under BJMC on June 28. All workers were released with ‘golden handshakes’.

Health Minister Zahid Maleque on Monday said that although there has been a slight increase in the number coronavirus cases, the country’s health sector now has the capacity to tackle the situation.

“Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is being lauded around the world for being able to significantly reduce Covid-19 mortality rate in a densely populated country like ours,” he said.

The health minister made the remarks at a media briefing after resuming office following the Eid-ul-Azha holiday at the Health Ministry's meeting room at the Secretariat.

Europe and America are being criticised all over the world. Even neighbouring India is struggling to cope with coronavirus. In India, about 50,000 people are infected every day and the country also reported many deaths, he said.

“The mortality rate in our country is now 1.31 percent. On the other hand, the rate of infection is decreasing day by day,” the minister added.

‘Trying to securing vaccine’

Regarding the availability of coronavirus vaccine, he said, “Some countries are in the third stage of the coronavirus vaccine test. The government is working to ensure that Bangladesh will get the vaccine on a priority basis. ”

The death tally from coronavirus in Bangladesh reached 3,184 on Monday with the death of 30 more patients in the last 24 hours.

Besides, 1,356 new cases were detected during the period after testing only 4,249 samples, bringing the total cases to 2,42,102.

Bangladesh reported its coronavirus cases on March 8 and the first death on March 18.

Coronavirus cases were first reported in China in December last year. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a pandemic in March.

The number of globally confirmed cases stood at 18,093,891 as of Monday, according to the Johns Hopkins University. So far, 689,625 deaths have been reported.

The US has the highest number of officially confirmed cases, followed by Brazil and India.

The death tally from coronavirus in Bangladesh reached 3,184 on Monday with the death of 30 more patients in the last 24 hours.

Besides, 1,356 new cases were detected during the period testing only 4,249 samples, bringing the total cases to 2,42,102.

The daily infection rate reached an unprecedented 31.9 percent which is highest in the last two months. 

Against some 12 lakh total RT-PCR tests, 20.2 percent have been found positive for Covid-19. The number of total cases in the country is  now around 6,000 less than that of Italy. 

Additional Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Prof Dr Nasima Sultana came up with the disclosure at the daily health bulletin.

She also revealed that 1,066  patients have made full recovery from Covid-19, raising the total recoveries to 1,37,905. Nearly 57 percent have recovered from the disease in Bangladesh, she said. 

The number of total cases per one million population in Bangladesh has risen to 1,461. 

So far, 2,504 men and 680 women have died from the disease since March 18 in Bangladesh. The country is in the 21st week of infection.  

Two of the 30 new deceased are between 31 and 40 years, three between 41 and 50, four between 51 and 60, 14 between 61 and 70, five between 71 and 80, one between 81 and 90 and one more between 91 and 100 years. 

“Among those who have died in the country so far, 18 are below 10 years, 32 between 11 and 20, 87 between 21 and 30, 209 between 31 and 40, 442 and between 51 and 60 and 1483  are above 60 years,” Dr Nasima said. 

In the last 24 hours 15 patients died in Dhaka division, five in Chattogram division, four in Khulna division, three in Rajshahi division and three more in Mymensingh, Rangpur and Sylhet divisions. 

At present 18,825 people are in isolation while 54,825 are home and institutionally quarantined in the country.

Karnaphuli Tunnel Project has achieved a "breakthrough" with the completion of the left line despite the coronavirus outbreak in the country. 

The project in Chattogram is constructed by China Communications Construction Company Limited (CCCC).

Featured with two-tube four-lane of the shield section, the Karnaphuli Tunnel connects Chattogram city to the other side of Karnaphuli River. 

It is known that the Multi-Lane Road Tunnel Project under the River Karnaphuli is the first underwater tunnel in South Asia, and also the first overseas large-diameter underwater TBM tunnel undertaken by the Chinese company. 

The completion of the project will greatly improve the traffic conditions in Chattogram and promote the economic development of Bangladesh, said a media release on Monday. 

It will also contribute to the improvement of the Asian Highway Network, as well as the connectivity between Bangladesh and it’s neighboring countries.

In February last year, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the works on 3.5-km Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel, the first in the country, under Karnaphuli River at Construction Yard of the Tunnel Project area at Patenga.

The tunnel is being built at a cost of Tk 9,880 crore to turn Chattogram into ‘One City Two Towns’.

The total length of the tunnel will be around 9.092 kilometres, including 3.50 kilometres of tunnel under the Karnaphuli River with an approach road of 4.89 kilometres alongside 740 metres of bridges linking the main port city and western side of the Karnaphuli along with the heavy industry-prone eastern side of the river.

It will cut the road distance between Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar, apart from easing the traffic on Dhaka-Chittagong Highway entering the port city to go to other parts of Chattogram division.

The multilane tunnel will connect Chattogram Port and Anowara Upazila and is expected to make communication between Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar easier in addition to reducing traffic congestions on two bridges over the Karnaphuli River.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Chinese President Xi Jinping jointly laid its foundation stone on October 14 in 2017.