Johns Hopkins University (JHU)
Covid-19: Global cases close to 163 million
Amid countries’ efforts to provide vaccines to slow the pace of Covid-19 infections, the global cases are increasing fast and are nearing 163 million mark.
The total case count has stood 162, 778,161 while a total of 3,374,775 people have died so far from the virus, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
Besides, 1,460, 698,425 vaccine doses have been administered worldwide, as per the data.
The US has logged 32,940,470 cases and the country’s death toll mounted to 585,967 as of Monday morning.
Read: Indonesia suspends AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine batch after death
India, which is now a major concern for the world for its new variant, has registered 24,684,077 cases with 270,284 fatalities.
With the experience of new wave of Covid-19 infection, Brazil on Sunday reported 1,036 more deaths from COVID-19, raising the national count to 435,751, the Ministry of Health said.
Meanwhile, 40,941 more infections were detected, raising the nationwide tally to 15,627,475.
Brazil has the world's second highest COVID-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third largest caseload, following the United States and India.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh recorded 363 new Covid-19 cases in 24 hours until Sunday morning as the number of sample tests declined drastically since the beginning of Eid holidays.
Only 5,430 samples were tested during the period which were two or three times higher before Eid-ul-Fitr. So far, 5,707,716 tests have been carried out.
Read: DGHS urges holidaymakers to return to Dhaka after 14 days
Besides, the country saw 25 deaths taking the death toll to 12,149, according to a handout of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Bangladesh has so far confirmed 780,159 Coronavirus cases. The country reported its first cases on March 8 last year and the first death on March 18, 2020.
Lockdown extended till May 23
The government extended the ongoing lockdown for another week until May 23 with two new directives alongside the existing ones to contain the spread of Covid-19.
A circular was issued by the Cabinet Division in this regard on Sunday.
Global Covid cases approach 162 million
The Covid-19 situation is worsening around the world by the day, even with mass inoculations underway. The overall number of corona cases has now topped 161.5 million.
According to Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total caseload reached 161,566,026 while the death toll from the virus mounted to 3,353,630 on Saturday morning.
Besides, 1,410, 840,110 vaccine doses have been administered across the globe to date, said JHU.
The US, the worst-hit country in the world, has so far recorded 32,894,616 cases with 585,225 fatalities, as per the latest JHU data.
Neighbouring India has registered 24,046,809 cases with 262,317 fatalities to date, according to the health ministry.
Read: Global Covid-19 cases top 160 million
India has been experiencing a staggering Covid-19 situation for the past several weeks and the World Health Organization has designated the Indian variant "a variant of concern" that might be more contagious than most versions of the coronavirus.
Brazil on Friday reported 2,211 more deaths from Covid-19, raising the national count to 432,628, the Ministry of Health said.
According to the ministry, Brazil now has a death rate of 205.9 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Meanwhile, 85,536 more infections were detected, raising the nationwide tally to 15,519,525.
Brazil has the world's second-highest Covid-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third-largest caseload, following the United States and India.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh lost 26 more lives to Covid-19, including nine in Dhaka and seven in Chattogram divisions, in the past 24 hours till Friday morning amid muted Eid celebrations in the wake of the pandemic.
Read:Covid death toll hits 12,102 as Bangladesh celebrates another Eid amid pandemic
The latest number – lowest in 51 days – took the country's Covid-related death count to 12,102. However, the mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.55%, according to the Directorate General of Health Services.
Bangladesh has so far confirmed 779,535 Covid-19 cases, with 848 people coming out positive in 7,835 tests in 24 hours till Friday morning.
Another lockdown extension looms
The nationwide lockdown, imposed on April 5 to break the chain of Covid-19 infections and fatalities, has been extended several times to limit public movement or contain the surge in daily infections.
The ongoing lockdown, set to end on May 16, is likely to be extended by another week to keep close tabs on the situation as a mass exodus from the cities before Eid-ul-Fitr has stoked fears of a third wave of infections.
The lockdown measures fell flat as tens of thousands of people left Dhaka and other cities to join their families in home villages to celebrate Eid, despite stark warnings that the exodus could worsen the country's coronavirus outbreak.
The country’s health authorities have expressed concerns that the mass travel will spread the coronavirus and reverse a recent hard-won decline in cases following weeks of nationwide lockdown.
Read: Return to Dhaka after lockdown ends: Mayor Taposh
At least five people died and 50 others were injured in a stampede on Wednesday as thousands of people returned to their native villages from Dhaka and other cities for Eid-ul-Fitr, defying all Covid-19 restrictions.
Another Eid celebration robbed of by pandemic
Muslims celebrated Eid-ul-Fitr in a dull mood for the second year in a row on Thursday and Friday as coronavirus restrictions cast shadows over the festival's mass gatherings and family reunions.
Many Covid-hit countries, including Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Malaysia and Indonesia, imposed curbs and shut shops and even some mosques.
Earlier, Bangladeshi authorities urged everyone not to congregate to offer special prayers for the festival on Friday and instead offer prayers in phases at local mosques following health guidelines.
Read: Beware of Indian covid variant: Quader
In Dhaka, devotees attended the first congregation of Eid-ul-Fitr prayers at Baitul Mukarram National Mosque. Four congregations took place there till 10.15am.
'Variant of concern'
The new Indian variant of coronavirus has been detected in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, prompting authorities to axe travel corridors with India. The World Health Organization has designated it "a variant of concern" that might be more contagious than most versions of the coronavirus.
In Bangladesh, the South African variant is "widely present" and the UK variant has also been detected.
Viruses mutate constantly, and an upsurge in infections in a country could result in more opportunities for new versions to emerge, according to experts.
Vaccination drive
In late January, countries including Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka started receiving vaccine doses through donations from India and other countries and commercial deals.
Read: Shortage of vaccines a 'temporary' problem, follow health guidelines: President
Bangladesh launched its vaccination drive on February 7 with Oxford-AstraZeneca doses it acquired from India's Serum Institute.
The government had signed an agreement with Serum for 30 million doses. But India temporarily halted exports of vaccines on March 24 to prioritise domestic requirements, following an explosion in Covid cases and fatalities in the country. The move has left the region with a serious shortage of vaccines.
Global Covid-19 cases near 159 million
The Covid-19 pandemic continues to devastate countries across the world, as cases approach 159 million.
According to Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total Covid caseload reached 158,616,717 while the death toll from the virus surged to 3,299,694 on Tuesday.
The US has logged 32,743,300 cases and 582,150 deaths as of Tuesday morning, and the country has expanded the use of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine to children as young as 12, in an effort to protect them.
Brazil on Monday reported 889 more deaths from Covid-19, raising the national count to 423,229, the Ministry of Health said.
Read:India reports 366,161 new COVID-19 cases
According to the ministry, Brazil now has a death rate of 201.4 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Meanwhile, 25,200 more infections were detected in the South American country, raising the nationwide tally to 15,209,990.
Brazil has the world's second-highest Covid-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third-largest caseload, after the United States and India.
The South American country is experiencing a new wave of infections, which has resulted in an increase in cases and deaths as hospitals are overwhelmed by Covid patients.
India, which has been experiencing a new surge in Covid-19 infections and deaths for the past several days, has so far registered 22,662,575 cases with 246,116 fatalities.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh’s coronavirus fatalities are nearing another grim milestone even as deaths from the virus infection slow down.
Health authorities on Monday reported 38 more Covid-19-related deaths in 24 hours, pushing up the total number of fatalities to 11,972.
However, the mortality rate remained static at 1.54 percent for the last four days, said a handout of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Meanwhile, 1,514 new cases were detected after testing 16,848 samples, pushing up the total case count to 7,75,027. Bangladesh has so far carried out 5,647,742 tests.
Read:Covid-19 death toll in Bangladesh nears 12000
The country reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8 last year and the first death on the 18th of that month.
Extended lockdown
The government has issued a notification extending the ongoing lockdown till May 16 with six fresh directives alongside the existing ones to contain the spread of Covid-19.
According to the notification issued by the Cabinet Division, officials of all government, semi-government, autonomous and private organisations, as well as banks and financial institutions have been asked to remain at their respective workstations during the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr holidays.
Shops and shopping malls will remain open from 10am to 8pm maintaining strict health guidelines. If any violations are seen, the shopping malls and shops will be closed instantly, says the notification.
Inter-district transport services will remain suspended though intra-district transport services resumed from Thursday. However, launch and train services will remain suspended.
Vaccination drive
Bangladesh launched its vaccination drive on February 7 with Oxford-AstraZeneca doses it acquired from India's Serum Institute.
Bangladesh signed an agreement with Serum for 30 million doses. But a record number of cases in India has made the delivery of the doses uncertain.
India has tried to ward off its Covid crisis by ramping up the production of vaccines and banning their export, cutting off supplies to neighbours such as Bangladesh and Nepal as they struggle with infection surges.
Read:Sinopharm begins shipment of its vaccine to Bangladesh
However, DGHS DG Prof ABM Khurshid Alam recently assured that Bangladesh would get 2.1 million doses of vaccines by May.
Global Covid-19 cases surpasses 157 million
Amid mass inoculation drive in many countries, Covid-19 cases crossed 157 million across the globe.
According to the data compiled by Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total case count reached 157, 266, 867 while the death toll from the virus mounted to 3,278,651 as of Sunday morning.
The US has logged 32,685,864 cases and 581,511 deaths from the highly contagious virus.
Also Read:Global Covid-19 cases near 157 million
Besides, India, which has been undergoing a devastating 2nd wave of coronavirus, has recorded over 4 lakh new Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours till Saturday morning, taking the country’s total caseload to over 2.18 crore. With 4,187 new deaths, the toll now stands at over 2.38 lakh.
So far, India registered 21,892,676 caess with 238,270 deaths, as per the university data.
Brazil reported 2,202 more deaths from COVID-19 on Saturday, raising the national count to 421,316, the Ministry of Health said.
The ministry said that 63,430 more cases were detected, raising the nationwide tally to 15,145,879.
Brazil has the world's second highest COVID-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third largest caseload, after the United States and India.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh reported 45 more Coronavirus related deaths with 1285 new cases in 24 hours until Saturday morning amid concern after the detection of first case of highly contagious Indian Coronavirus strain in the country.
The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said the new fatalities pushed up the country’s death toll to 11,878 while the mortality rate remained static at 1.54 percent.
Also Read:Covid-19: Bangladesh sees 45 more deaths with 1285 new cases
Besides, the DGHS said, 1,285 new cases were detected during the period after the test of 14,703 samples, taking the total case count to 772,127.
Also, the country's infection rate fell to 8.74%, which was 9.89% a day ago, according to the DGHS.
Bangladesh has so far carried out 5,613 ,979 nationwide tests since reporting its first coronavirus cases on March 8 last year and the first death on the 18th of that month.
Indian Coronavirus strain detected
A confirmed case of Indian Coronavirus strain has been detected in Bangladesh on Saturday, confirmed Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research(IEDCR).
The Indian strain of Coronavirus was detected in a sample test at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka and it has been published on Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID), said chief scientific officer of IEDCR ASM Alamgir.
Also Read:Indian Covid Strain: Two more cases identified in Jessore
The new strain was detected in samples collected from recent India returnee passengers in Bangladesh.
Global Covid cases top 154.7 million
The pandemic continues to devastate countries across the world. And with new variants of Covid-19 spreading faster than ever before in several nations, the global corona cases have now topped 154.7 million.
In fact, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total case count and fatalities surged to 154,788,122 and 3,237,808, respectively, on Thursday.
The US, the world's worst-hit country in terms of cases and deaths, has so far logged 32,557,299 infections and 579,265 fatalities, respectively, as per the JHU data.
The Centers for Disease Control is now reporting an average of about 350,000 new cases each week, 35,000 hospitalisations and over 4,000 deaths, reports AP.
With Covid-19 deaths, hospitalisations and cases plummeting since January, many states and cities are already moving to ease or lift restrictions on restaurants, bars, theaters and other businesses and talking about getting back to something close to normal this summer.
Also Read:Global Covid cases near 154 million
Brazil registered 2,811 more deaths from Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, raising the country's death toll to 414,399, the Ministry of Health reported Wednesday.
Meanwhile, tests detected 73,295 new Covid-19 cases, taking the national tally to 14,930,183.
Brazil has the world's second-highest Covid-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third-largest outbreak, behind the United States and India.
Meanwhile, India has recorded 20,665,148 cases as of Thursday morning, with 226,188 fatalities.
India’s hospitals are packed with Covid-19 patients and the shortage of oxygen is only intensifying the woes of patients and their relatives.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh on Wednesday recorded 50 more deaths from Covid-19 in 24 hours, showing a marked fall in the fatality rate.
With the new death data, the mortality from coronavirus has risen to 11,755, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said in a handout.
Also Read:Covid’s daily death toll in Bangladesh falls to 50
Health authorities recorded 1,742 new infections during the period, pushing up the caseload to 7,67,338.
Vaccination Drive
Bangladesh kicked off its vaccination drive on February 7 with Oxford-AstraZeneca doses it acquired from the Serum Institute of India.
Bangladesh signed an agreement with Serum for 30 million doses. But a record number of cases in India has made the delivery of the doses uncertain.
However, DGHS DG Prof ABM Khurshid Alam has said that Bangladesh will get 2.1 million doses of the vaccine by early May.
In the past 24 hours, 38 people have received the first dose and 83,540 have received the second dose of Covid vaccine, according to the DGHS handout.
Also Read:Covid vaccine stock running out: DGHS
So far, a total of 72,48,829 people have received the vaccine, of which 31,06709 got their second dose.
Lockdown extended
The government has issued a notification extending the ongoing lockdown until May 16 with six fresh directives alongside the existing ones to contain the spread of Covid-19.
According to the notification issued by the Cabinet Division, officials of all government, semi-government autonomous and private organisations, banks and financial institutions have been asked to remain at their respective workstations during the Eid-ul-Fitr holidays.
Shops and shopping malls will remain open from 10 am to 8 pm maintaining health guidelines. If any violations are seen, the shopping malls and shops will be closed instantly, says the notification.
Also Read:Officials asked not to leave workstations during Eid holidays
Inter-district transport services will remain suspended, while only intra-district transport services will operate adhering to health guidelines from Thursday.
However, launch and train services will remain suspended.
Global Covid cases top 153 million
The global Covid-19 caseload surpassed 153 million on Tuesday morning, with the world literally struggling to contain the second outbreak of the virus.
According to Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total case count and fatalities now stand at 153,185,370 and 3,209,657, respectively.
The US is the world's worst-hit country in terms of cases and deaths. The country is expected to authorise Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine for youngsters aged 12 to 15 by next week.
Read Also: ‘Horrible’ weeks ahead as India’s virus catastrophe worsens
The US has logged 32,470,823 cases, with 577,500 fatalities, as of Tuesday morning, according to the university data.
India’s total Covid tally is fast approaching the 20-million mark, second after the US.
The total case count in the South Asian country has reached 19,925,604, while the death toll from the virus mounted to 218,959, according to the health ministry.
Brazil's Covid-19 death toll reached 408,622 after 983 more deaths were registered in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health said on Monday.
Meanwhile, tests detected 24,619 new infections during the same period, taking its nationwide tally to 14,779,529.
Brazil has the world's second-highest Covid-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third-largest outbreak, behind the United States and India.
Covid-19 situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh on Monday reported 65 more coronavirus-related deaths in 24 hours, raising the death toll to 11,644.
The health authorities recorded 1,739 new infections after examining 13,431 samples, according to data available at corona.gov.bd.
A handout from the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) put the number of tests at 19,431, including antigen tests.
Read Also: Covid-19: Bangladesh records more 65 deaths, 1,739 new cases
Bangladesh has been recording less than 70 virus-related deaths since Friday. The body count soared to over 100 during April 16-19 and on April 25 but since then the daily fatalities have been falling gradually.
With the latest figure, 7,63,682 cases have been recorded in the country so far, the Directorate General of Health Services said. This puts Bangladesh at 33rd in the list of countries with highest cases, according to Johns Hopkins tally.
Bangladesh reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8, 2020, and the first death on March 18 that year.
Lockdown continues till May 16
The ongoing lockdown, imposed on April 5, has been extended till May 16.
People, however, are hardly following health safety rules. They are still crowding shopping malls and markets ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr, the biggest festival of the Muslims.
Photos and videos shot by UNB lensmen show overcrowded shopping places and total indifference towards health guidelines.
There will hardly be any positive outcome if people don’t follow health rules to protect themselves and others around them from coronavirus, according to experts.
Meanwhile, intra-district public transport services will be allowed to resume from May 6.
Read Also: Lockdown to continue until May 16, intra-district public transport services from May 6
Vaccination drive
Bangladesh kicked off its vaccination drive on February 7 with doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine it acquired from the Serum Institute of India.
Bangladesh signed an agreement with Serum for 30 million doses. But a record surge in Covid cases in India has made the delivery of the doses uncertain.
DGHS DG Prof ABM Khurshid Alam has assured that Bangladesh will get 2.1 million doses of the vaccine by the first week of May.
In the past 24 hours, 53 people have received the first dose and 1, 30,547 have received the second dose of the Covid vaccine, said the DGHS handout.
However, the registration process for receiving the vaccine jab remains shut.
Read Also: Vaccines to be procured at any expense, says PM Hasina
Vaccine production
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on April 28 approved in principle a proposal for producing Russian and Chinese Covid-19 vaccines in Bangladesh.
The government on April 29 approved the emergency use of Sinopharm, a Chinese Covid-19 vaccine, a day after approving the emergency use of Sputnik V vaccine of Russia.
“We’ll get 5 lakh doses of the Chinese vaccine as gift within 7-10 days. Then we’ll start distribution. Then the government will start buying those on G2G basis,” Mahbubur Rahman, Director General of DGDA, told reporters.
Incepta Pharmaceuticals, Popular Pharma and Health Care Pharma have the capacity to produce Covid vaccines, and the Chinese vaccine could be produced locally, Mahbubur Rahman said.
On April 28, Dr Shahida Aktar, additional secretary of the Cabinet Division, said the government will purchase vaccine technology from Russia and China through direct procurement method (DPM).
Covid-19: Global caseload nearing 100 million, as travel bans loom in reaction to new variants
More than 99 million people have been infected with Covid-19 across the world, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
Global Covid-19 cases surpass 90 million
Amid the rise in Covid-19 infections across the globe, over 90 million people have been infected with the virus until Monday, according to the Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
Bangladesh’s Covid-19 mortality rate 1.48pc
The Covid-19 death toll in Bangladesh rose to 7,626, raising the mortality rate to 1.48 percent.
Covid-19 in Bangladesh: 23 more die, 684 newly infected in 24 hrs
Bangladesh has witnessed deaths of 23 more people from Covid-19 and 684 new infections in 24 hours until Saturday.