Teetering on the edge of a brutal Covid-19 infection wave, Bangladesh reported 245 more deaths in 24 hours till Monday morning with 11,463 new cases. The new numbers again raised the case fatality rate to 1.68% from Sunday’s 1.67%, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). With the fresh deaths, the country’s total death tally reached 22,897 while the total cases mounted to 1,365,158. The new cases were detected after the test of 47,207 samples slightly lowering the case positivity rate to 24.28% from Sunday’s 24.52%, the DGHS said. Overwhelmed by the Delta variant Covid surge, Bangladesh has been seeing around 250 deaths and 13,000 cases daily on average for a week. Besides, the recovery rate rose to 89.36% in Bangladesh from Sunday’s 89.05% with 14,412 new patients recovering from Covid-19 during this time. Of the recent deaths, the highest 83 people died in Dhaka division, followed by 71 in Chattogram, 25 in Khulna, 19 in Rangpur, 18 in Sylhet, 13 in Mymensingh, 10 in Rajshahi, and six in Barishal divisions. Of them, 128 were men and 117 were women. As per their age breakup, two were between 11-20, 13 between 21-30, 20 between 31-40, 16 between 41-50, 55 between 51-60, 84 between 61-70, 35 between 71-80, 17 between 81-90 and three were between 91-100 years of age. Also read: US to provide additional $11.4 mln as COVID-19 assistance for Bangladesh

As the country battles a brutal wave of pandemic, Bangladesh logged record-high 258 Coronavirus-related deaths in 24 hours till Tuesday morning, shattering the record of 247 single-day deaths a day before. The country has been seeing nearly 200 deaths every day for the past two weeks and breaking records of daily cases and deaths almost every other day. Besides, 14,925 more people came out Covid positive after the test of 52,478 samples, according to a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). The country saw the highest-ever 15,192 Covid cases on Monday. With the new numbers, the death tally from Covid-19 reached 19,779 today while the caseload mounted to 1,194,752. The country has been seeing nearly 9,000 cases on average every day for the past seven days. Meanwhile, the daily test-positivity rate declined to 28.44% from Monday's 29. 82 % while the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a 5% or below rate. Read: COVID-19 vaccination gives 97.4 pc protection from coronavirus infection Besides, the case fatality rate rose to 1.66% during the period after remaining unchanged at 1.65% for a few days, said the DGHS. The recovery rate rose slightly to 85.58% from Monday’s 85.50 % with 12,439 patients recovering during the 24-hour period. Dhaka, the worst hit division, recorded the highest 84 of the deaths today, followed by 61 in Chattogram, 50 in Khulna ,21 in Rajshahi, 13 in Barishal, 11 each in Rangpur and Mymensingh and seven in Sylhet divisions. Of them, 138 were men and 120 were women. As per their age breakdowns, two were between 11-20, eight between 21-30, 16 between 31-40, 31 between 41-50, 54 between 51-60 and 147 were above 60, the release added. Of the deaths, 46.53% were reported in Dhaka division so far followed by 18.37% in Chattogram and 13.20% in Khulna, making them the three worst hit regions of Covid-19 in the country. Read: All will get Covid vaccine shots, reassures PM Hasina Vaccination campaign to gain momentum The Covid-19 vaccination programme at union level will start across the country on August 7, said Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Tuesday. The minister announced the government's decision while talking to reporters after a meeting held at the conference room of the Cabinet division. “The prime minister has ordered speeding up the vaccination drive. One can get vaccinated at the union level showing his or her NID card. Vaccination centres will be set up in unions across the country before August 7,” he said.     Those who do not have any NID will be vaccinated under a special arrangement, he added. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday reaffirmed her government's stance to ensure Covid-19 vaccine doses for all in any case. Read: Vaccination at union level to start on Aug 7: Home Minster The prime minister said she has already given directives to vaccinate the helping hands of a family, including housemaids and drivers, so that all of a family can remain protected. The prime minister said 1.87 crore people have so far been vaccinated and all will be brought under the vaccination programme. The prime minister said Bangladesh will produce vaccines in the future so that the people of the country do not suffer in any way. The national vaccination campaign will now be accelerated at ward, union and upazila levels of the country as per directives of the prime minister, Maleque said while briefing reporters after attending the Cabinet meeting on Monday. An initiative has been taken to vaccinate elderly people from the ward level as they are more reluctant about receiving it, the minister said, stressing the need for ensuring more Covid-19 tests of the samples coming from rural areas.

mphasizing the importance of vaccination for Covid-19 in rural areas, Health and Family Planning Minister Zahid Maleque Monday said 70% of Covid patients in hospitals are older people from villages while the fatality rate among them is 90%. The national vaccination campaign will now be accelerated at ward, union and upazila levels of the country as per directives of the prime minister, Maleque said while briefing reporters after attending the Cabinet meeting on Monday. An initiative has been taken to vaccinate elderly people from the ward level as they are more reluctant about receiving it, the minister said, stressing the need for ensuring more Covid-19 tests of the samples coming from rural areas. Read:Covid-19 Surge: Too many patients for a few hospital beds He said, “Some 90% of hospital beds are occupied with patients and our health workers are now exhausted.” Maleque said the government will appoint 4,000 more doctors and nurses soon to deal the with the situation and urged the authorities concerned to be stricter as the country may face terrible consequences if the lockdown is not maintained properly. “This is unfortunate the way people are moving outside and travelling recklessly just on the fourth day of the lockdown, breaking the rules and risking their lives,” said Maleque. He said the lockdown has to be made successful as there is no alternative to it to contain the Covid-19 spread. Read: Bangladesh to get 21 crore vaccine doses early next year: Minister

Ten more people died from  Covid-19 in Cumilla in the last 24 hours till Monday morning, pushing the death toll in the district to 536. The district has also recorded 451 new cases during the time, taking the tally to 17,559. Among them, 171 are from the city corporation area. Read: Covid shatters all records in Bangladesh with 230 single-day deaths, 11,856 cases The positivity rate in the district now stands at 41.07 %, said Civil Surgeon Dr Mir Mobarak Hossain. "Of the deceased, 5 were men and 5 women. All of them were aged between 60 and 85 years," he added. The Covid-19 situation in Bangladesh is getting more fatal with every passing day, as the country saw the highest-ever 230 deaths and 11,856 new cases till Sunday morning. Read:Covid nightmare in Barisal division: Record caseload of 710 reported With the new numbers, Bangladesh’s death tally hit 16,419 while the caseload 1,021,189, according to a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). Earlier, Bangladesh reported its highest daily Covid-19 fatality of 212 on July 9, and 11, 651 cases on July 8. However, the country’s daily case positivity rate fell to 29.67% from Saturday’s 31.46%, as 40,015 samples were tested during the period. Read: 1200-bed Covid dedicated hospital to be set up in BSMMU The fatality rate today rose to 1.61% from Saturday’s 1.60%, said the DGHS. Bangladesh has been seeing over 150 deaths for a week since its logging 164 deaths on July 4. Also, the average new daily detected cases remained over 10,000 for the last seven days.

Covid-19 claimed 31 more Covid deaths, including 10 each in Dhaka and Chattogram divisions, in the past 24 hours till Friday morning, pushing up the country's fatalities to 12,511. Also, 1,358 people came out positive in 14,606 tests carried out during the same period, taking the country's caseload to 796,343. The daily positivity rate rose to 9.30% from Thursday's 8.12%, said the Directorate General of Health Services. Read: COVID-19: Bangladesh to receive over 1 lakh Pfizer vaccine on Sunday The fatality rate remained static at 1.57% and the recovery rate stood at 92.45%. The country has carried out 5,901,874 sample tests so far after reporting its first cases on March 8 last year and the first death on the 18th of the month. Vaccination drive The administration of the first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine has remained suspended in Bangladesh since April 26. Also, the country, the prime recipient of Oxford-AstraZeneca shots, has suspended the registration for Covid-19 jabs due to vaccine shortage amid a delay in the timely arrival of shipments from India. However, recently two other vaccines, Russia's Sputnik V and China's Sinopharm, got approval from the Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) for emergency use in Bangladesh. Read:Cabinet body okays proposal to procure 1.5 crore Chinese Sinopharm vaccine The administering of the first doses of the Sinopharm vaccine started Tuesday. Bangladesh launched its vaccination drive on February 7 with Oxford-AstraZeneca doses bought from India's Serum Institute. Bangladesh to receive 1 lakh-plus Pfizer vaccine Sunday  A flight of Qatar Airlines carrying a consignment of 100,620 doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine will arrive in Bangladesh Sunday.  On Thursday, Bangladesh approved the emergency use of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine. Cabinet body okays procurement of 1.5 crore Sinopharm vaccine The Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase Thursday gave final approval to a proposal of the health ministry to procure 1.5 crore Chinese Sinofarm Covid-19 vaccine. As per the approval, the Health Services Division will procure a 1.5 crore vaccine in the next three months – June, July and August. Read: Bangladesh approves emergency use of Pfizer vaccine "Each month 5 million doses of vaccine will be imported from the Chinese firm," Dr Shahida Aktar, additional secretary to the Cabinet Division, told reporters. Covid vaccination to get priority in budget FY22 A massive vaccination of the population for protection against Covid-19 infection will be the major focus of the Tk602,880 crore budget of the fiscal year 2021-2022. There will be a Tk10,000 crore special allocation for facing the impacts of Covid-19. Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal will place the budget in Parliament on June 3. 'Bangladesh to see worst Covid outbreak by June-end' With Covid cases keep soaring in frontier districts apparently because of the highly contagious Indian variant, experts fear that Bangladesh may face the worst outbreak of Covid-19 at the end of June next. They said if the Indian variant can make its way into other areas from the bordering districts, Bangladesh is likely to witness more than 20,000 daily cases in early July, raising the fatality rate sharply. Read: Bangladesh braces for worst Covid outbreak by June-end: Experts Lack of necessary oxygen supply and other healthcare facilities may aggravate the situation, according to the experts. They suggested putting the frontier districts, particularly where the virus infection rate has already gone up, under strict lockdowns like Chapainawabganj and halting inter-district public transport services to contain the virus locally.