Cholera jab drive in Dhaka from early May

The government has decided to start inoculating people in the city against cholera from early next month.

At the initial stage, the special vaccination drive will be launched in the most diarrhoea-prone areas of the capital having hospitals packed with too many patients suffering from the bacterial disease which normally spreads through contamination of water.

Health and family welfare minister Zahid Maleque said they would start administering oral cholera antidotes in the city from the first week of May. "People of the areas having most cases of diarrhoea will get the jabs initially," the minister disclosed the information after visiting Government Titumir College, which was holding the admission test for Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS).

Calling upon all to get vaccinated against cholera, the minister said the special vaccination activities against the disease will begin across the country after the initial run.

When asked, the health minister said Bangladesh is boosting up for yearly inoculation of people against the coronavirus.

"We're yet to know whether the people need to be vaccinated every year against Covid-19, but we are preparing for it. Measures have been taken to produce the vaccine in the country," he said.

Mr. Maleque said 130 million Covid-19 jabs will be needed to vaccinate 130 million people against Covid-19 every year but the World Health Organization (WHO) has not yet taken a call on the same.

When the minister's attention was drawn about the recent report of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) on alleged irregularity of around Tk 230 billion in Covid-19 vaccine purchase and management, he said they would let their reply through a press conference soon.

The minister said a total of 65,905 students at 28 centres across the country are appearing for the public-private BDS admission test this year.

"The total number of seats is 1,950 this year. Of these, 545 are in government colleges," he added.

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