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Good boro yield deserves good harvesting: Zahid Faruk
There is a very good boro production in the country this time and that has to be harvested properly before the flood hits the country, said State Minister for Water Resources Zahid Faruk on Sunday.
The junior minister came up with the advice while addressing a meeting of his ministry on taking precautionary measures to control flood in vulnerable areas during the upcoming monsoon.
Zahid Faruk said the projects, especially that of dams in haor areas, need to be there in focus to complete those before the monsoon sets in.
Referring to the shutdown enforced in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, Deputy Minister for Water Resources AKM Enamul Hoque Shameem told the meeting that the boro crop is very important for the country at this time of unprecedented scale of pandemic. “So, farm workers have to be hired from other districts, if needed, for harvesting the paddy.”
He also sought cooperation from local MPs in bringing workers under the current relief programmes of the government.
Enamul Hoque said directives have also been given to ensure social distancing and other safety measures in harvesting.
Electronics manufacturing company Minister to make ventilators
Bangladeshi electronics manufacturing company Minster has taken an initiative to make ventilators in the country due to growing demand following coronavirus outbreak .
The worldwide coronavirus pandemic caused a huge crisis of ventilators or oxygen machines which is extremely essentials for saving lives.
The Ministry of ICT, apex trade body FBCCI, some public-private hospitals and biomedical engineers from BUET are assisting Minister in the process of making ventilators.
Minster Hi-Tech Park Electronics Limited's experienced engineers along with research and development (R&D) team are in overall charge of the process, said a media release on Sunday.
State Minister for ICT Division Zunaid Ahmed Palak said, "With the help of the world-renowned medical device manufacturer, Medtronic, several local electronics manufacturers including Minster have come forward to produce ventilators. We are extremely optimistic that ventilators will be produced within the shortest time in our country.”
President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Sheikh Fazle Fahim said the Bangladeshi company Minster Hi-Tech Park Electronics Limited has developed a prototype of ventilator which, after the permission of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and they will start production of it in full.
4 more people infected with coronavirus in Cox’s Bazar
Four more people were diagnosed with Covid-19 in the district on Sunday.
Assistant professor of Cox’s Bazar Medical College and Hospital Dr Mohammad Shahjahan said of the infected people--three are from Maheshkhali upazila while one from Teknaf upazilas of the district.
With these, a total of five people tested positive for coronavirus in the district.
SSC examinee shot ‘by BSF men ’ in Panchagarh
A Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examinee was shot and injured by Indian Border Security Force (BSF) members along Ratinibari Prodhanpara bordering area in Sadar upazila on Sunday.
The victim is Shumun Roy, 16, son of Paresh Chandra Roy of Ratinibari Prodhanpara village in the upazila. He appeared in this year’s Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examination.
Quoting local people, Lieutenant Colonel Mamunul Haque, commanding officer of BGB-65 Battalion, Nilphamari, said Shimun along with some others were erecting fence with net near the border in the morning.
At one stage, the BSF members from Khayerbari went to the spot and asked them not to do so, he said.
At one stage of altercation the BSF members shot Shimun, leaving him critically injured.
Later, he was taken to Panchagarh Modern Hospital and then shifted to Rangpur Medical College Hospital as his condition deterrioated.
Coronavirus: Two disinfecting tunnels installed in Magura
Magura Municipality authorities on Sunday installed two disinfecting tunnels at the two entrances to the town in an attempt to curb the coronavirus transmission.
Md Mahbubur Rahman, assistant engineer, Magura Municipality, said they have installed the tunnels for spraying water mixed with disinfectant on people riding two and three wheelers.
Members of Bangladesh Army helped in setting up the tunnels at Bhaina intersection and Dhaka road area with funds from municipality, he added.
He also said that detergent and a type of medicine are being used with water for disinfecting people entering the town.
Meanwhile, another disinfectant tunnel was set up in front of Magura 250-bed Hospital under the supervision of Saifuzzaman Shikhor MP.
Bangladesh has so far reported 91 deaths and 2,456 cases of coronavirus.
No new dengue case reported in 24 hrs
No new dengue case was reported in the last 24 hours till 8am on Sunday, said the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
According to the daily update from DGHS, four patients are being treated at hospitals in the capital.
Since the beginning of the year, 290 dengue cases were reported. Of them, 286 had been discharged from hospitals.
Bangladesh experienced a massive dengue outbreak last year when 101,354 people were hospitalised. Of them, 101,037 made full recovery.
According to official figures, the mosquito-borne disease killed 179 people in 2019.
Chattogram man dies at isolation unit of BITID
A man who was undergoing treatment at the isolation unit of Bangladesh Institute of Tropical and Infectious Diseases (BITID) died here on Sunday morning.
Civil Surgeon Sheikh Fazle Rabbi said the man aged about 56 of Sagarika area in the city came to the BITID on Saturday with cold, cough, fever and respiratory problem.
The authorities concerned of the hospital took his samples for test but the man died around 7:30 am at the isolation unit of the hospital.
Coronavirus so far claimed five lives in the district and 35 people tested positive for the virus.
Navy provides medical, safety equipment to five hospitals
Bangladesh Navy has provided medical and safety equipment to five hospitals in the capital to fight coronavirus.
The five hospitals are-- Kuwait Bangladesh Friendship Government Hospital, Mugda General Hospital and Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College hospital, Combined Military Hospital and Armed Forces Medical College Hospital.
COVID-19: UNHCR provides PPE, support for intensive care treatment in Cox’s Bazar
United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) says it has provided significant amount of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other urgently needed medical supplies to the Government of Bangladesh to support preparedness and response to COVID-19 in Cox’s Bazar.
The donations, which include gowns, masks, goggles, gloves, hand sanitizer and disinfectant equipment, have been made to both the Civil Surgeon’s Office and the Sadar Hospital in Cox’s Bazar district, said the UN refugee agency on Sunday.
Despite global shortages of PPE due to the unprecedented scale of the COVID-19 pandemic, it said, massive efforts are underway in Bangladesh to provide the necessary protection to front line health workers, who are serving the needs of both local Bangladeshis and Rohingya refugees.
“We are grateful for this timely and critical support from UNHCR, when we need it most,” said the Dr Md Mohiuddin, Medical Superintendent of Sadar Hospital in Cox’s Bazar.
UNHCR said it is also supporting the authorities to increase the intensive care capacity of Sadar Hospital, with 10 ICU beds as well as 8 high dependency beds, and provision of staffing.
The government of Bangladesh has taken steps to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus locally and nationally and is engaged in intensive efforts to source and ensure the delivery of PPE, as well as other vital medical supplies.
The UN and humanitarian partners are, wherever possible, supporting these efforts and seeking additional resources, including further PPE, said the UNHCR.
In Cox’s Bazar, UNHCR said, it is working in close collaboration with the national authorities in a race against time to prepare medical facilities to respond to those who may be affected by the virus.
This includes establishing an Isolation and Treatment Centre, which is currently under construction in Ukhiya, that will serve those who require care among the local Bangladeshis and the Rohingya refugee community.
This is one of several facilities being prepared by humanitarian partners and the Government of Bangladesh.
“The outbreak is a global challenge that must be addressed through international solidarity and cooperation. We continue to work hand-in-hand with the Government authorities to ensure the best response possible for all affected communities,” said Sandra Harlass, UNHCR’s Senior Public Health Officer in Cox’s Bazar.
UNHCR and partner agencies have provided additional resources to local health centres in the sub-districts of Ukhiya and Teknaf, as well as to primary health centres within the camps.
3 UP chairmen, 9 members suspended for relief embezzlement, irregularities
The Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Ministry has suspended three Union Parishad(UP) chairmen and nine members for irregularities in distribution of relief among poor due to coronavirus outbreak.