The elections to 204 union parishads and two municipalities and by-polls to the Laxmipur-2 constituency are going to be held today amid coronavirus fears.

Bangladesh has called for an incentive-based and long-term graduation package for the graduating and graduated countries from LDC status as they are at a high risk of sliding back -- both due to the Covid-19 impacts and the loss of LDC support measures.

Bangladesh Medical Research Council has sought documents of the homegrown Bangavax Covid-19 vaccine to further proceed towards allowing its clinical trial.

The Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) has issued emergency use authorisation (EUA) to Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine “Janssen” in the country.

Education Minister Dipu Moni yesterday said there was no conducive atmosphere for reopening educational institutions as the Covid transmission rate was still high.

A recruiting agencies’ platform yesterday demanded that the government immediately arrange Covid-19 vaccines for migrant workers to ensure their smooth migration and save money spent on hotel quarantine.

Transparency International Bangladesh yesterday said instead of terming its report on the government’s Covid-19 response “false and motivated”, the government could better combat the pandemic by taking the measures recommended in the report.

The numbers of Covid-19 deaths and confirmed cases continued to increase and the situation in the border districts kept on getting worse.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Friday that emergency department visits for suspected suicide attempts by teenage girls rose significantly last year compared to 2019, highlighting the mental health impact of the pandemic.

The latest TIB report on the government’s response to Covid-19 consisted of “wrong information from the first to the last”, Health Minister Zahid Maleque said yesterday.

The Election Commission has postponed polls to 163 union parishads in Khulna, Bagerhat, Satkhira, Noakhali, Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar districts due to a surge in Covid-19 cases.

Bangladesh remains among the countries ranked highest for Covid-19 risk by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as the US national public health agency lowered restriction levels of 110 other countries and territories.

For long-term solution to Covid vaccine supply, Bangladesh needs to go for vaccine production as the crisis for the shots is worldwide, experts said at a webinar yesterday.

People in general are neglecting rules of the lockdown in some districts, despite the operations of mobile courts.

Health Minister Zahid Maleque yesterday said the government would look into overcharging Covid patients at private hospitals.

Bangladesh has made a strong call for a temporary waiver from certain TRIPS obligations for the production of vaccines, medicines and health technologies to effectively respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

In the wake of skyrocketing Covid-19 cases in bordering areas, partial lockdown and night-time travel restrictions were imposed in three more districts yesterday, while Satkhira will go into a seven-day lockdown from tomorrow.

As Bangladesh continues to fight against the pandemic with rising infections in frontier districts, it recorded 30 more deaths from Covid-19 in 24 hours till yesterday morning, raising the death toll to 12,724.

The Election Commission will hold all postponed elections, including the by-polls to Laxmipur-2 constituency, the first phase of union parishad, and the sixth phase of municipality polls, on June 21.

Students of public and private universities will get Covid-19 vaccines on priority once they are available, Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque said yesterday.