After a vaccination drive at Korail slum in Dhaka, health authorities have started giving Covid jabs to the slum dwellers of Chattogram city on Sunday. Some 2,000 residents of Jhautala slum in Khulshi area will get the jabs under the programme which started around 2 pm, according to the Civil Surgeon’s office. The dwellers of all other slums in the city will be brought under the vaccination programme in phases, it said. Read:Covid jabs for city’s slum dwellers start on Tuesday: Health Minister Apart from the slum dwellers, the third gender  people will also be brought under the vaccination programme, and it will start on Monday. The dwellers of Jhautala slum will be allowed to get vaccinated without registration and the campaign will continue till Thursday. According to the Civil Surgeon office, the vaccination drive will continue till 5 pm, and a three-member medical team is there to provide vaccine doses to the slum dwellers. Dr Ilias Hossain, the District Civil Surgeon, said the Jhautala slum residents will be able to get their Covid shots on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Read:7.5 crore people to be fully vaccinated by Jan: Health Minister Already some 300 doses of Astrazeneca vaccine have been allocated for the transgender people  and the number of doses will be increased depending the number of vaccine seekers. The vaccination drive for the residents of Korail slum in Dhaka started on November 16. According to the slum census conducted by the Bangladesh Statistics Bureau (BSS), in 2014, some 1.28 lakh people are living in 2,216 slums in Chattogram city corporation area.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday distributed newly-constructed flats among 300 low-income families as they were living in slums, enabling them to avail of civic amenities. She handed over the allocation papers of the new flats in 14-storey three buildings on rental basis. Read: PM likely to join 76th UNGA in person The flat distribution programme was held at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre. The prime minister joined it from her official residence Ganobahban. The flats have all the facilities of a modern urban residence like lift, generator, solar power, wide walkways, power substations, open spaces and beautification through illumination. The daily rent for every 672-sqf flat, having a drawing room, one kitchen and separate bathrooms, has been fixed at Tk 150, while the monthly rent at Tk 4,500. The Ministry of Housing and Public Works implemented the project at Mirpur 11 in the capital from its own financing. This is the first phase of relocating slum residents to better housing.