Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is manifesting her humanitarian gesture towards the needy people hit hard by the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic as she did during the first wave last year. She is extending humanitarian support to the low-income people, including extremely poor, workless, day labourers, rickshaw and van pullers, transport workers and farmers who are bearing the brunt of the pandemic. More than Tk 1,500 crore has already been allocated to ease the sufferings of the marginalised people during the second wave of coronavirus. As part of her humanitarian assistance, the Prime Minister is going to provide cash support of Tk 2,500 to each 36.5 lakh low-income families engaged in different occupations so that they can survive this tough time. On Sunday next, she will inaugurate the disbursement of the financial assistance for these marginalised families. Also read: People’s lives come first: PM Hasina “Soon after the second wave of coronavirus got visible, the Prime Minister instantly directed to start humanitarian assistance activities,” said Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Secretary Md Tofazzel Hossain Miah. Noting that the Prime Minister sent cash support of Tk 2,500 to each 36.5 lakh families during the first wave, he said, “This time, she directed us to make cash transfer for the second time. The Prime Minister will launch the cash support disbursement among 36.5 lakh poor and helpless families on May 2.”   She has kept aside Tk 912.50 crore to provide cash support to 36.5 lakh families across the country, said the Secretary. Each family will directly receive Tk 2,500 through G2P (Government-to-Person) as the cash money will be sent through mobile financial services (MFS) – Nagad, bKash, Rocket and SureCash. Since the Covid-19 lockdown is enforced from April 14 last, marginalised people like temporary workless, destitute, day labourers, rickshaw and van pullers, transport workers, Hijra and beggars in urban and rural areas, said the PMO Secretary. As per the PM’s directives, the Disaster Management and Relief Ministry instantly sent Tk 590 crore to the field-level administration to provide support to the needy people and now the disbursement of the money continues, he said. Also read: Covid vaccines should be declared as global public goods: PM Hasina Besides, the Prime Minister allocated Tk 10.5 crore against the deputy commissioners from her relief and welfare fund to provide emergency assistance to poor and destitute people, said the PMO Secretary. In addition, different government agencies continue their social safety net activities and expedite the activities in some cases so that the general people would not suffer, PMO Secretary Miah said. The Prime Minister with own initiative has provided Tk 10 crore to the Journalist Welfare Trust as assistance for the journalists who are facing hardships due to the fallout of the pandemic, he said. He said the government introduced a call centre (333) service mainly targeting the middle class people who feel hesitation or ashamed to seek assistance publicly. If anyone seeks help by calling 333, the local administration would send assistance to his or her home secretly, said the secretary. Tofazzel Hossain said harvesting of paddy in the Haor region is being completed quickly as per the Prime Minister’s directives and 80 percent paddy has already been harvested. He said the local administration took initiative to hire workers from other regions for harvesting paddy in the Haor region, while the ministry concerned supplied harvesters and reapers to the region.

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, who was infected with coronavirus, will be taken to Evercare Hospital tonight (Tuesday night) for some medical tests, including CT scan, said her personal medical team member Dr AZM Zahid Hossain.   "Madam (Khaleda) will be taken to Evercare Hospital around 8 pm for a few tests, including CT scan. All the arrangements have been made in this regard at the hospital,” he said. Also read:Khaleda temporarily released after over 25 months ... Zahid said the BNP chief will return to her Gulshan house right after the tests. He said though Khaleda tested positive for Civid during the second test on April 24, she has no symptoms of the virus. On April 14, Khaleda was taken to the Evercare Hospital for the CT scan and later doctors said a very nominal infection was found in her lungs. Khaleda Zia tested positive for Covid-19 on April 10 as eight people at her residence were infected with the virus. Also read:Khaleda undergoes fresh Covid test She underwent the second Covid-19 test on April 24 and her report came out to be positive.

Bangladesh reported 78 more coronavirus-related deaths and 3,031 new cases on Tuesday morning, showing a downtrend. The country witnessed over 100 deaths from April 16 to 19 and April 25 as the second wave of the virus hit Bangladesh. The daily infection rate slipped to 12:51 percent from Monday’s 12.82 percent while the mortality rate remained static at 1.49 percent. So far, 751,659 cases and 11,228 deaths have been confirmed, the Directorate General of Health Services said in a handout. The number of recoveries now stands at 666,927 including 5,234 new cases which indicates 88.73 percent of the patients have recovered. Also read: FM to join China-led virtual meeting on vaccine cooperation  The new cases were confirmed after testing 24,237 samples in the last 24 hours until morning. Bangladesh has so far tested 5,395,524 samples. Bangladesh reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8 last year and the first death on the 18th of that month. Deaths, cases soar in April In the last 27 days, the country witnessed 2,182 fatalities and 136,882 new cases, making it the most fatal month since the outbreak began last year. The virus claimed 568 lives in January this year, 281 in February and 638 in March. Registering most of the deaths – 6,564 or 58.46 percent, Dhaka division remains the worst-hit region. Of the latest fatalities, 50 were reported from Dhaka division and 10 from Chattogram division. Six each died in Khulna, Rajshahi, three in Sylhet, one in Barishal, and two in Mymensingh divisions. Lockdown extended A rapid increase in Covid infections prompted the government to enforce a lockdown from early April which failed to achieve the intended result.  

India's Election Commission Tuesday banned all electoral victory rallies in the country, a day after a higher court held the constitutional body responsible for the ferocious second wave of Covid-19 and threatened to book top poll officials for murder. The results for assembly elections in five Indian states -- West Bengal in the east, Assam in the northeast, and Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry in the south -- are due on May 2. "Not more than two persons shall be allowed to accompany the winning candidate or his/her authorised representative receive the certificate of election from the Returning Officer concerned," the Election Commission said in a notification. Also read:Covid-19 turns India into vaccine importer from exporter The move comes a day after the poll panel got a rap on the knuckles from the Madras High Court in Tamil Nadu for failing to enforce Covid safety protocols during campaigns for the assembly elections in the five states. "Your institution is singularly responsible for the second wave of Covid-19. Your officers should be booked on murder charges probably," the court told the Election Commission on Monday, in the wake of a plea against crowded election campaigns in Tamil Nadu. "You have failed to enforce Covid safety rules like masks, sanitisers and distancing during campaigning despite court orders. Were you on another planet when the election rallies were held," a two-judge bench, led by Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee, had said. The court had also threatened to halt the counting of votes on May 2 "if a blueprint is not in place by then". The court's rebuke came on a day when India recorded a whopping 3.52 lakh new Covid-19 cases in 24 hours amid an acute shortage of oxygen in hospitals across the country. In fact, the oxygen crisis in India, particularly in the national capital, is worsening with each passing day. Hospitals after hospitals in Delhi are sending out SOS messages to health authorities daily, seeking adequate supply of the life-saving gas. Last week, at least 50 Covid patients on life support died at two leading Delhi hospitals due to oxygen shortage. Also read:'No place for you': Indian hospitals buckle amid virus surge Jaipur Golden Hospital, a dedicated Covid medical facility in Delhi, said on Saturday morning that 25 Covid patients died around midnight on Friday due to "low-supply oxygen" to critical patients on ventilator. "We had been allotted 3.5 metric tonnes of oxygen from the government. The supply was to reach us by 5 in the evening, but it reached around midnight. By then, 25 patients had died," Dr DK Baluja, the hospital's Medical Director had said. On Friday morning too, another leading hospital in Delhi announced the deaths of 25 patients in 24 hours due to a shortage of oxygen. In a statement, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital had said, "25 sickest patients have died in last 24 hours. Oxygen will last another two hours. Major crisis likely. Lives of another 60 sickest patients at risk, need urgent intervention." It may also be mentioned here that 24 Covid patients on ventilator at a government hospital in the western Indian state of Maharashtra died on Wednesday after their oxygen supply ran out following leakage of the life-supporting gas from a tanker. The tanker was brought to Zakir Hussain Municipal Hospital in the state's Nashik district to replenish the oxygen cylinders at the medical facility for continuous supply to the 150-plus Covid-19 patients on life support. The US, the world's worst-hit country, has, meanwhile, assured India of all assistance, in its hour of crisis. "Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, we are determined to help India in its time of need," US President Joe Biden said in a tweet Sunday.

Ten India returnees, who tested positive for coronavirus, have reportedly escaped from an isolated ward of the Jashore General Hospital. The escapees have been identified as Fatema, 19, Ruma, 30, Shefali Rani, 42, Moni Mala, Nasima Begum, 50, Amirul, 52, Sohail, 17, Pradeep Biswas, 37, Vivekananda, 52, and Milon. Also read:India records world's highest single-day spike in Covid cases Hospital supervisor Dilip Kumar Roy told UNB that only two patients had fled and blamed the 'irresponsibility' of police for the incident. Kotwali Police Station’s Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Tajul Islam said they are yet to receive an official complaint over the incident. “We’ll look into it after getting a complaint," he said. Civil Surgeon Dr Sheikh Abu Shahin said the matter is being taken “very seriously”. Also read:Covid-19 turns India into vaccine importer from exporter He said he went to the hospital on Sunday after hearing about the incident to talk to the supervisor. “It’ll be possible to trace them if the names and addresses given to the hospital authorities during admission are correct," he said.

The government has decided to extend the current lockdown by another week until May 5 as there is no improvement in sight in the Covid-19 situation. A notification in this regard is expected to be issued on Tuesday, said State Minister for Public Administration Farhad Hossain. Also read:Lockdown: Shops, shopping malls to reopen from Apr 25 However, shopping malls will remain open from 10 am to 8 pm during the lockdown, he said. The decision has been taken considering the global Covid situation and the suggestions of health experts, said the state minister.

As many as 25 patients have died at a leading hospital in the Indian capital in the past 24 hours due to "low pressure oxygen". The deaths were announced by Sir Ganga Ram Hospital on Friday morning, soon after it sent an SOS to the Indian government flagging acute shortage of oxygen at the national capital's premier medical facility. Also read: Covid-19 turns India into vaccine importer from exporter "25 sickest patients have died in last 24 hours. Oxygen will last another two hours. Ventilators and BiPAP (ventilators for invasive treatment) not working effectively. Resorting to manual ventilation in ICUs and Emergency" the hospital authorities said in a statement. "Major crisis likely. Lives of another 60 sickest patients at risk, need urgent intervention," the statement added. A top hospital official attributed the deaths to low pressure oxygen. "Low oxygen concentration likely contributed to deaths of critical patients. Critical patients need high pressure, stable oxygen supply," Satendra Katoch, the medical director, told the media. Some 500 Covid patients are currently being treated at Ganga Ram. Of them, as many as 142 are on life support, according to the hospital. On Wednesday also, 24 Covid-19 patients on ventilator at a government hospital in the western Indian state of Maharashtra died after their oxygen supply ran out following leakage of the life-supporting gas from a tanker.  

Bangladesh is unlikely to see any improvement in the Covid-19 situation before June next as the country is still in the grip of its second wave, predicted by a group of local and international health experts. Using a mathematical model, Bangladesh Como Modelling Group, a group of experts from both Bangladesh and Oxford University, also projected that the country will witness a similar infection rate intermittently till the end of May while the situation may improve in June. However, some local experts think the virus is yet to reach its peak as it is spreading fast in newer areas alarmingly since many people had returned to their village homes from corona hotspots before the government enforced the lockdown. Talking to UNB, Dr Abu Jamil Faisel, a member of Bangladesh Como modelling group, said: “We’ve a projection that the current uptrend in Covid deaths and cases will continue erratically until the end of May. The situation may improve in June.” He said they think the country is going through the peak of the fresh wave of the virus. “As per our projection, there’ll be a month of plateau and the country will witness the similar infection rate for two more weeks and then it’ll start flattening.” Faisel said they projected that the infection rate will not substantially fall till the end of May. “But we couldn’t clearly project the death rate as it often fluctuates, and it depends on hospital management and some other factors. But it’s my personal assumption that the total death toll may surpass 12,000 at the end of May month.” He said they shared their projection with the government. “We’re going to update the projection as we’re working on it.” Dr Faisel, also a member of the public health expert team for the eight divisions formed by the government, said they recommended taking a coordinated and effective plan to break the cycle of the corona transmission. “Cent percent mask use must be ensured and the number of the daily tests must be increased so that the positive cases can be detected fast for putting them in isolation. We also need to focus on contact tracing,” Dr Faisel said. Also read: No risk of contracting Covid-19 due to vaccination: DGHS Besides, he said, they suggested setting up field hospitals for ensuring better patient management at the initial stage of infection. “There should be dedicated ambulances for carrying Covid patients to hospitals.” Strengthening preventive measures Meerjady Sabrina Flora, additional director general of the health directorate, said the peak of the virus depends on some factors. “If we can strictly maintain the preventive measures we’ve taken now, then we can expect to see a gradual fall in virus infection rate.” She said the number of deaths is high but not the virus death rate. “As the infection number has increased, the number of deaths has also soared.” Flora said the Coronavirus death rate was 1.53 before the fresh wave of the virus, but this has now come down to 1.43. “That means the number of deaths increased due to the rise in the number of infections.” She said there is no alternative to controlling the transmission of the virus to lower the number of deaths. “We must strengthen our preventive measures to check the virus infections.” Read Brac to launch antigen testing Saturday

A week ago, a crisis hit the family of Shahed Alam's best friend -- there was no donor available to donate blood for his pal's cancer-stricken father. After unsuccessfully knocking the doors of blood banks across the city for two days, Shahed finally decided to harness the power of social media on Saturday, but to no avail. "I have been trying hard to arrange blood for my friend's father -- a cancer patient admitted to Mohakhali Cancer Hospital -- since last week. But finding donors is turning out to be a Herculean task amid the nationwide lockdown. Due to strict movement restrictions and the fear of Covid, blood donors are just not stepping out of their homes," he told UNB. Yes, the Covid-19 lockdown has severely affected the movements of donors across the country, triggering a massive shortage of blood. Most blood banks in the capital as well as other parts of Bangladesh are running short of life-saving blood. "Blood donors are just reluctant to come out these days. And those who do are often subjected to grilling at police check posts across the city. This is because the Good Samaritans don't possess the mandatory movement passes, and convincing the sentry at a police check post is also a time-consuming affair," said another city resident. Also read: PCR machine reaches RMCH for COVID-19 test Bangladesh's annual demand for blood is around 8 lakh units. About 25% of the nation's annual blood requirement come from voluntary donation, 20–25% from paid donors, and 50–55% from one-time donation for a particular patient. But the country has seen a drastic fall in both voluntary and direct blood donations in recent weeks. The decline in blood donations has triggered a chain reaction -- plasma collection has been hit hard. Plasma is the liquid portion of blood that contains antibodies. Many countries have already allowed the use of plasma therapy to treat severely ill Covid patients. The therapy involves the use of plasma of recovered Covid patients as a potential treatment.

Bangladesh recorded 98 coronavirus-related deaths in the past 24 hours as the deadly second wave of the virus overwhelms hospitals and pushes the health sector to its limits. The virus also infected 4,014 others during the period, the Directorate General of Health Services said in a handout. Coronavirus deaths now stand at 10,781 with a mortality rate of 1.46 percent, according to DGHS. The daily infection rate fell to 14.63 percent from Wednesday’s 15.07 percent. On Monday, the country had broken all the previous records of Covid-19 deaths registering 112 fatalities. It saw over 100 deaths on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Bangladesh reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8 last year and the first death on the 18th of that month. Health authorities have so far confirmed 736,074 cases. Among them, 642,449 people - 87.28 percent of all patients – have recovered. Also read:Covid-19 vaccine not a 'silver bullet': WHO 1.2 mln infections in April April has been the deadliest month since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic with 1,735 deaths and 121,306 new cases recorded in the last 22 days. The virus claimed 568 lives in January this year, 281 in February and 638 in March.