Twenty-three more people of five districts in Rangpur division were tested for coronavirus (COVID-19) positive at the two COVID-19 Laboratories located at Rangpur and Dinajpur on Monday.
Health officials said 19 persons of four districts were detected for COVID-19 positive after testing 188 samples of suspected patients at the COVID-19 Laboratory at Rangpur Medical College (RMC) in Rangpur city.
Besides, four persons of three districts were detected for COVID-19 positive after testing 84 samples of suspected patients at the COVID-19 Laboratory at M Abdur Rahim Medical College ((MARMC) in Dinajpur on Monday.
“We detected 19 new COVID-19 patients after testing 188 samples at the COVID-19 Laboratory at RMC on Monday,” said chief of the Divisional Coronavirus Service and Prevention Task Force and principal of RMC professor AKM Nurunnabi Laizu.
The newly detected 19 COVID-19 infected patients at RMC are hailing from four districts of Rangpur division, including two physicians of Rangpur Medical College Hospital.
“The 19 new patients include nine of Rangpur (five of Rangpur Sadar, three of Taraganj and one of Badarganj upazilas), eight of Thakurgaon (four of Haripur, two of Pirganj and one of Baliadangi upazilas), one of Hakimpur upazila in Dinajpur and two of Debiganj upazila in Panchagarh districts,” physicians Laizu said.
Talking to BSS today, principal of MARMC professor Shibesh Sarker said, “After testing 84 collected samples at the COVID-19 Laboratory at MARMC, four persons of three districts were detected for coronavirus positive on Monday.”
The newly detected four COVID-19 infected patients include two males and two females aged between 18 and 22 years and all of them recently returned from Narayanganj and Dhaka.
“Among the four newly infected patients, two are from Jaldhaka upazila in Nilphamari and one each from Bochaganj upazila in Dinajpur and Haripur upazila in Thakurgaon districts,” physician Shibesh added.
Talking to BSS, focal person of COVID-19 and assistant director (health) for Rangpur division ZA Siddiqui said the total number of COVID-19 infected positive sharply rose to 107 with the detection of 23 more coronavirus positive patients on Monday.
The district-wise break of detected COVID-19 patients now stands at 30 in Rangpur, 12 in Nilphamari, 16 each in Dinajpur, Gaibandha and Thakurgaon, two in Lalmonirhat, six Panchagarh and nine in Kurigram districts of the division.
“Among the total 107 COVID-19 infected patients of Rangpur division, the highest numbers of 30 patients are hailing from Rangpur district alone, and of them, 14 are from different areas in Rangpur metropolis,” he added.
Divisional director (health) Md. Amin Ahmed Khan said the administrations have enforced lockdown in Rangpur division to prevent community transmission of COVID-19 and urged the people to stay at home and abide by the health directives.