The health authorities confirmed 17 new coronavirus-related deaths and 528 new cases. With the new fatalities, the death toll rose to 8,072.

“The mortality rate is now 1.51 percent,” DGHS said.

Meanwhile, the new cases pushed up the national tally to 533,444.

The current overall detection rate is 14.82 percent.

Until this morning, 477,935 patients (89.59 percent of the total reported cases) have recovered.

So far, 3,600,508 samples have been tested, including 15,932 in the past 24 hours.

Bangladesh reported its first Coronavirus cases on March 8 and the first death on March 18 last year.

Also read: Countrywide Covid-19 vaccination drive from Feb 7: Health Minister

Global Covid situation

Coronavirus cases were first reported in China in December 2019 and continue to devastate countries across the world, as the global caseload crossed the grim milestone of 100 million.

According to Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the Covid case count reached 100,348,783 as the death toll climbed to 2,160,154 in the morning.

The US remained the world's worst-hit country, with 25,443,876 cases and 425,227 fatalities.

India's Covid tally rose to 10,689,527 in the morning, while the death toll mounted to 153,7240, the Health Ministry said.

Brazil on Monday registered 218,878 deaths from Covid and 8,933,356 infections so far.

Brazil, which is experiencing a second wave of Covid, began mass vaccination last week.

Also read:  PM to launch Covid-19 vaccination Wednesday
 

Mass vaccination

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday inaugurated the much-desired Covid-19 vaccination programme at a city hospital to check the coronavirus pandemic in the country.

She virtually launched the Covid-19 vaccination drive at Kurmitola General Hospital, joining the inaugural function from her official residence Ganobhaban.

Five persons were vaccinated in presence of the Prime Minister.

Nurse Runu Veronica Costa, a senior staff nurse at Kurmitola General Hospital, was the first person who got the jab in the country.

Also read: Vaccine distribution in Bangladesh: PM Hasina outlines who to get and how many

In the function, Health Minister Zahid Maleque said now seven million doses of Covid-19 vaccines are available in the country.

Bangladesh first received two million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine from India as gift and then received five more million doses from the Seram Institute of India.

The treatment facilities are there in case of any side-effects, said the Minister.

To get registered for vaccination, one will have to do that through www.suokkha.gov.bd, said PMO Secretary Md Tofazzel Hossain Miah while conducting the event.

Beside, a countrywide mass Covid-19 vaccination campaign will start from February 7, Minister Maleque said Tuesday.