People above 18 yrs to be vaccinated to continue academic activities: Health minister

Health and family welfare minister Zahid Maleque on Thursday said people aged above 18 years would be brought under Covid-19 vaccination coverage to continue academic activities in the country, reports BSS.

“Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is firmly committed to bring all people under vaccination coverage to protect them from coronavirus,” he told the inaugural function of newly extended ICU beds and outpatient department of Dhaka Medical College Hospital at Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS) in the capital.

There are 4.5 million (45 lakh) doses of vaccine in the country, the health minister said nearly 15 million (1.5 crore) shots of vaccine including AstraZeneca will arrive in Bangladesh very soon, an official release said.

The people, who have already received first doses of AstraZeneca vaccine, will get second doses, he added.

Bangladesh has so far approved eight Covid-19 vaccines to control the deadly disease.

These vaccines are -- Covid-19 vaccine Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, “CoronaVac”, manufactured by Sinovac Life Sciences Company Limited, Pfizer mRNA Covid-19 vaccine, Covishield produced by Serum Institute of India, Sputnik V manufactured by Generium Joint Stock Company of Russia, AstraZeneca manufactured by Sweden and Sinopharm produced by Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co. Ltd. of China.