Fatalities in the country reached 6,159 and the death rate stood at 1.44%. Also, total confirmed cases rose to 428,965, the Directorate General of Health Services said.

And 13,539 new samples were tested in the past 24 hours. The daily infection rate stood at 13.05% and the overall rate at 17.05%.

However, 1,519 people recovered from the disease in the past 24 hours. So far, 346,387 patients – 80.75% – have overcome it.

Bangladesh is seeing 2,518.78 infections, 2033.90 recoveries, and 36.16 deaths per million.

So far, 3,226 people have died in Dhaka division, 1,209 in Chattogram, 481 in Khulna, 376 in Rajshahi, 276 in Rangpur, 257 in Sylhet, 206 in Barishal, and 128 in Mymensingh.

Bangladesh reported its first cases on March 8. The infection number reached the 300,000-mark on August 26. The first death was reported on March 18 and the death toll crossed 6,000 on November 4.

The country has extended the closure of educational institutions, which were last open in March, until December 19 amid the risk of a second wave of Covid-19 infections during the coming winter.

Global picture

The global Covid-19 cases rose to 53,198,401, and the death toll climbed to 1,301,384 until Friday evening, according to Worldometer.

The US had the highest case tally, reporting 10,873,936 cases so far.

"The virus is blamed for more than 242,000 deaths and over 10.5 million confirmed infections in the US, with the country facing what health experts say will be a dark winter because of disregard for mask-wearing and other precautions, the onset of cold weather and crowded holiday gatherings," reports AP.

Covid-19 cases were first reported in China in December last year and the World Health Organization declared it a pandemic in March.

Also read: Coronavirus & Agenda 2030: Dhaka seeks meaningful global partnership