The government of Bangladesh has announced that it will provide 3 crore doses of COVID 19 vaccine to people free of charge.

Briefing media after the Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam said that the government has already given the consent to procure 3 crore doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID 19 vaccine from the Serum Institute of India (SII) for which Taka 735.77 crore has been allocated.

Giving details about the distribution of the vaccine, the Cabinet Secretary said that the government will follow the protocol set by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to select the people to be vaccinated. He said that frontline workers like health service providers and police personnel will be given priority in vaccination.

Expressing the resolve of the government to take tough measures against people not wearing masks in public places, Khandker Anwarul Islam said that the government is mulling the option of sending errant people to jail for flouting government directive on wearing of a mask. The government has already enhanced the number of fines against people who don’t wear masks in public places.

In the meanwhile, on Monday, Bangladesh reported 35 deaths and 2525 new Corona cases over the last 24 hours. According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), the death toll due to COVID 19 in Bangladesh has gone up to 6644. The total number of people infected by the coronavirus has also gone up to over 4.60 lakh.