29pc of first-dose recipients in Bangladesh are fully vaccinated

Bangladesh has administered a second dose of the coronavirus vaccine to 170,902 people in a day amid the ongoing lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 20 April 2021, 06:35 PM
Updated : 20 April 2021, 06:35 PM

Over 1.67 million people have received their second vaccine shot until Tuesday, which is slightly more than 29 percent higher than the number of first shot recipients, data from the health directorate showed.

It also means more than 29 percent of Bangladeshi adults are now fully vaccinated.

So far, over 5.74 million people have received their first vaccine shot, including 15,938 on Tuesday.

Bangladesh is simultaneously administering the first and second dose of the vaccine during the second phase of the government's mass immunisation campaign.

According to the latest data, more than 7.42 million people have been inoculated with two doses so far while over 7.15 million were registered for vaccination until 5:30 pm on Tuesday.

The government is using the Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India in the mass immunisation drive. The two doses of the vaccine are being administered with an eight-week gap.

A health worker prepares a dose of COVISHIELD as at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University in Dhaka on Thursday, Apr 8, 2021 as Bangladesh rolled out the second dose of the jab. Photo: Asif Mahmud Ove

Bangladesh kicked off the vaccination campaign in February with the second phase starting on Apr 8.

Many were initially reluctant to take the vaccine but a widespread campaign on vaccination has driven interest among the public.

Meanwhile, a team of researchers from the Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, or CVASU, on Monday claimed that many are becoming infected with the coronavirus ever after taking the first vaccine dose but the symptoms are not very severe in such cases.

The seven-member team led by CVASU Vice-Chancellor Professor Gautam Buddha Das ran a study on the health risks associated with the first dose of the vaccine in Chattogram between Feb 8 and April 13.

The researchers said 200 people tested positive for COVID-19 after taking the first dose of the Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine between Feb 7 and April 14. But most of them did not experience much of respiratory distress, one of the most significant symptoms of the coronavirus infection.

The study used the details of 1,752 people who returned positive results out of the 6,146 samples tested for COVID-19 at CVASU's lab from Feb 15 to Apr 14.

In the 47 vaccine centres across Dhaka city, 26,020 people received their second shot of the vaccine on Tuesday while the number of first dose recipients was 2,752.

Division-wise, Dhaka led the way in terms of second vaccine shots with 55,452 followed by 7,076 in Mymensingh, 39,477 in Chattogram, 17,051 in Rajshahi, 14,088 in Rangpur, 20,611 in Khulna, 8,080 in Barishal and 9,087 in Sylhet.