School-going students, aged 12-17, will be vaccinated in schools across the country, said Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque on Thursday. The minister said, “We have been vaccinating students of four to five schools through one school till now.” “In this case, we see that various complications were being created including registration. So, we decided to go to every school and vaccinate the students,” he added. Read: Vaccination campaign for school students to begin on Nov 1 The minister informed this at a function organized by the Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) in the capital on Thursday afternoon. Asked about when this activity would start, Zahid Maleque said “We're getting ready. We'll be able to start vaccinating in schools in a few days,” the minister added. Besides, this vaccination program will also be conducted regularly in the schools which are already being vaccinated, he said. The minister also said, “Vaccinating school students is a huge challenge.” On November 1, the new campaign to vaccinate school students, aged 12-17, against Covid-19 kicked off at 12 centers in Dhaka. The school students are vaccinated with US-made Pfizer vaccine as it is suitable for them. “However, the catastrophe that awaits us even bigger than Covid-19 is antimicrobial resistance,” said the minister. Read: 112 Manikganj students vaccinated under trial run Stopping consumption of antibiotics unnecessarily is the only solution to prevent antimicrobial resistance, he said. The purchase and sale of antibiotics without a registered physician, dentist and veterinarian should be stopped completely. Zahid Maleque said, "We will enact a law to stop buying or selling antibiotics without a prescription. The law is awaiting final approval." Earlier, the health minister inaugurated the online drug license, a new initiative of the DGDA.

The Centre for Advanced Research in Sciences (CARS) of Dhaka University (DU) will collaborate with AFC-Agro-Biotech Ltd in research, development and production of Covid-19 vaccine (DUBD-vac). A memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the institutions was signed on Monday in presence of DU Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Akhtaruzzaman, a press release said. Read: Pfizer says COVID-19 vaccine more than 90% effective in kids DU Treasurer Professor Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed and AFC-Agro-Biotech's Executive Chairman Major General (Retired) Md Sarwar Hossain inked the MoU. "The nation will be benefited by this inclusive research," hoped Dr Akhtaruzzaman. According to the deal, CARS and AFC-Agro-Biotech will jointly work for innovation of various vaccines including development and production of Covid-19 vaccine (DUBD-vac). Besides, these two institutions will jointly conduct advanced level research on biological sciences including genetic engineering and biotechnology as well as producing various medicines. JND biotech and Emergent biotech, two renowned biotech companies in USA will provide support and cooperation in this regard. Read: FDA OKs mixing COVID vaccines; backs Moderna, J&J boosters Earlier in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak in the country, another local pharmaceutical company - Globe Biotech Ltd - secured the approval of the Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) to produce Covid-19 vaccine candidate "Bangavax". It started the trial of its vaccine on the 56 monkeys they had collected from Safari Park in Gazipur.

The Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) has approved Chinese Covid-19 vaccine ‘CoronaVac’, manufactured by Sinovac Life Science Co Ltd, for emergency use in Bangladesh. The DGDA has given the approval following an application submitted by M/S Incepta Vaccine Limited on June 3, said a DGDA handout on Sunday. Read:WHO validates Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use M/s Incepta Vaccine Limited is the local agent of the vaccine. The Chinese vaccine earlier got approval from the World Health Organization (WHO). It is applicable for people aged above 18. National Medicinal Products Administration (NMPA) of China approved the vaccine on February 9 and it was later approved for emergency use in 22 more countries, said the media release. Read:EU medicine regulator starts rolling review of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine It is 5th vaccine that got approval for emergency use in Bangladesh. Health authorities will administer two doses of the vaccine to a person, and its second dose can be administered within two to four weeks after getting the first dose. Read: Sinovac: CoronaVac vaccine effective in children Earlier, five lakh China’s Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine doses, donated by the Chinese government to Bangladesh, arrived in Dhaka on May 12.  

Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury on Monday said he was diagnosed with coronavirus.

Gonoshasthaya Kendra has finally got the permission to get tested the performance of its Covid-19 rapid testing kits.

Gonoshasthaya Kendra is yet to hand over its coronavirus testing kits to the government formally as the Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) reportedly suggested them to send those to its office.

The government has waived the import duty and taxes on 12 medical items needed for protection from the coronavirus.

The Gonoshasthaya Kendra on Thursday got approval from the authorities concerned to import necessary raw materials for their “easy, effective and cheap” method to test for the novel coronavirus ravaging healthcare systems around the world, or Covid-19.