Dhaka, Sept 8 (bdnews24.com)--A baby has died of swine flu, the IEDCR director said on Tuesday. A three-month-old infant died last Thursday, pushing the official death count from the H1N1 virus to two, with a third reported death as yet unconfirmed by IEDCR.

Thirty-six more cases were detected since last Thursday, taking the total tally to 311.

"According to our confirmed cases, two people have died of swine flu," said Mahmudur Rahman, director of the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research.

"Although it was not possible to examine a patient who also died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital last Friday night, he had all the symptoms of the virus," Rahman added.

Twenty-year old Abdus Sobhan Sagar died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital after being admitted to the swine flu ward with high fever and respiratory problems, the tell-tale symptoms of the potentially deadly flu.

The first H1N1 fatality, 35-year old Mitali Chakrabarti, died in Lab Aid Hospital on Aug 30.

Declining to disclose the name of the dead baby, Rahman said: "It is better not to disclose the names of the affected people or dead. The family will have to face many troubles during the formalities like namaj-e-janaza and burial."

As many as 16 observation team of IEDCR are working for collecting samples in Dhaka and outside Dhaka, Rahman said.

Four more companies were allowed to produce Oseltamivir capsule, a drug of the virus, he added.

The government-run pharmaceutical company Essential Drug Company Limited and four private companies Popular, Beximco, Square and SKF produced the drug.

The hospitals of the capital informed the IEDCR control room of the swine flu patients through SMS, the IEDCR director said.

The World Health Organisation declared a global H1N1 flu pandemic on June 11. Bangladesh's first case was detected on June 18.

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