Delta variant
Merkel: Europe ‘on thin ice’ amid delta virus variant rise
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday that Europe is “on thin ice” in its battle against the coronavirus, as the highly contagious delta variant threatens to undo progress made in reducing infections.
In what may be her last government declaration to the German parliament, Merkel said the further response to the pandemic would be a main topic of discussion among European Union leaders at a meeting in Brussels on Thursday.
She noted that the number of COVID-19 cases in the 27-nation bloc continue to decline, while vaccination rates climb.
“But even though there is reason to be hopeful, the pandemic isn’t over, in particular in the world’s poor countries,” she said. “But in Germany and Europe we’re also still moving on thin ice.”
“We need to remain vigilant,” Merkel added. “In particular the newly arising variants, especially now the delta variant, are a warning for us to continue to be careful.”
EU health officials predicted Wednesday that the delta variant will make up 90% of all cases across the bloc by the end of August, showing the need for as many people to be fully vaccinated as possible.
In Germany, the delta variant now makes up about 15% of new cases, according to the country’s disease control agency.
The country has pressed for EU countries to form a joint position on quarantine for travelers from areas where variants of concern are particularly prevalent. This includes England, where the delta variant — first detected in India — already makes up a majority of cases.
What should I know about the delta variant?
What should I know about the delta variant?
It’s a version of the coronavirus that has been found in more than 80 countries since it was first detected in India. It got its name from the World Health Organization, which names notable variants after letters of the Greek alphabet.
Viruses constantly mutate and most changes aren’t concerning. But there is a worry that some variants might evolve enough to be more contagious, cause more severe illness or evade the protection that vaccines provide.
Also read: Bangladesh ill-equipped to cope with Delta variant of Covid: Experts
Experts say the delta variant spreads more easily because of mutations that make it better at latching onto cells in our bodies. In the United Kingdom, the variant is now responsible for 90% of all new infections. In the U.S., it represents 20% of infections, and health officials say it could become the country’s dominant type as well.
It’s not clear yet whether the variant makes people sicker since more data needs to be collected, said Dr. Jacob John, who studies viruses at the Christian Medical College at Vellore in southern India.
Also read: Delta variant behind spike of cases in Portugal
Studies have shown that the available vaccines work against variants, including the delta variant.
Researchers in England studied how effective the two-dose AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines were against it, compared with the alpha variant that was first detected in the U.K.
The vaccines were protective for those who got both doses, but were less so among those who got one dose.
It’s why experts say it’s important to be fully vaccinated. And it’s why they say making vaccines accessible globally is so critical.
Alarming Covid surge in Bangladesh, 60 more die
Bangladesh recorded 60 Covid-related deaths and 3,956 new cases in 24 hours till Wednesday morning, showing an alarming sign of deterioration in the pandemic situation.
With the new figures, the death toll jumped to 13,282 while the death rate stood at 1.59 percent, said a handout of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Bangladesh’s fight to tackle the second wave of coronavirus has become tougher after the detection of the Delta variant of the virus in different parts of the country.
The higher infection rate in frontier districts and limited capacities in district hospitals have become a challenge amid the worsening situation.
The total caseload reached 8,37,247 with the new cases while the daily infection rate climbed to 16.62% in the 24-hour period.
However, the overall positivity rate stood at 13.41%.The daily positivity rate was 14.27% on Tuesday and 14.80% on Monday.
Among the deceased, 36 were men and 24 women.
Of them, three were between 11-20 years of age, one was between 21-30, seven between 31-40, 10 between 41-50, 16 between 51-60 and 23 were above 60 years’ old, according to the handout.
Besides, eight of them were from Dhaka division, another eight from Chattogram, 17 from Rajshahi, 14 from Khulna, six from Sylhet, four from Rangpur and three from Mymensingh divisions.
The numbers were found after testing a total of 23,807 samples across the country.
Read: Biotech's Covid vaccine to get conditional approval for human trials: BMRC
Besides, 2,679 Covid-19 patients recovered in the last 24 hours.
The total number of recoveries now stands at 7,73,752, while the recovery rate at 92.42%.
Lockdown extended
The government has extended the ongoing countrywide lockdown till 15 July as the Covid-19 situation continues to worsen in the country.
However, all government, semi-government, autonomous private offices, banks and financial institutions will remain open maintaining health protocols.
Biotech vaccine to get go-ahead
The National Research Ethics Committee of Bangladesh Medical Research Council (BMRC) on Wednesday decided to approve Globe Biotech's Covid-19 vaccine, Bangavax, for human trials.
Globe Biotech will get the final nod on conducting clinical trials on humans only after meeting some conditions set by the BMRC, its director Prof Dr Ruhul Amin said this after a virtual meeting.
Read: 9 more Covid patients die in Khulna division
Bangladesh to set up international vaccine institute
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said the government is going to set up an international vaccine institute to produce vaccines, including the Covid-19 ones, in Bangladesh.
She said the government will sign an agreement with South Korea to set up the vaccine institute and the issues relating to ratification, accession and approval of the agreement by the Cabinet are under process.
The Prime Minister said the government has taken an initiative to produce Covid-19 vaccines in the country alongside collection from foreign sources to check the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.
Hasina said government-to-government (G2G) negotiations are underway with the countries that have developed vaccines for transferring technology to this end.
14 die in Khulna, 17 in Rajshahi
Khulna continues to be one of the hardest hit frontier districts as 14 more people died of coronavirus in the district, according to the DGHS handout.
Besides, 139 patients are currently undergoing treatment at Khulna Corona Dedicated Hospital, said Dr Suhash Ranjan Haldar, the nodal person for the corona unit.
Of them, 70 people are receiving treatment in the red zone of the hospital, 21 in the yellow zone, 20 in ICU (intensive care unit), and 28 in HDU (high deficiency unit), said Dr Suhash.
Read: Bangladesh extends ‘lockdown’ till July 15
In Rajshahi, 17 more died of Covid-19 in the last 24 hours, the highest in the country during the period.
Meanwhile , director of Rajshahi Medical College and Hospital (RMCH) Brigadier General Shamim Yeazdani on Wednesday told UNB that as many as 48 people have been admitted to the corona unit of the hospital during the time.
Currently, some 344 people are undergoing treatment at the hospital against its capacity of 305 beds in the corona unit.
To deal with the pressure of Covid patients, the hospital authorities have added 34 beds, including two ICU beds, to the hospital's existing capacity, he said.
Besides, a letter has been sent to the Department of Health Services to send 15 more physicians to the hospital. Some 15 doctors have joined the hospital in the past week.
Test at home
The district administration of Bagerhat has introduced mobile Covid testing booths for collecting swab samples at the doorsteps of people.
Sheikh Sarhan Naser Tonmoy, Bagerhat-2 MP, took the initiative, following a sudden surge in Covid-19 cases in the district.
To avail of the opportunity, people have to make a call on the hotline numbers -- 01920-922229 and 01400-305405.
Bangladesh ill-equipped to cope with Delta variant of Covid: Experts
As the highly contagious Delta variant of Covid-19 has made its way into Dhaka and other districts from frontier ones, experts fear an impending health catastrophe in the coming weeks since there is no strict measure in place to stop it.
They said half-hearted preventive measures, lack of seriousness of local administrations, reopening of intra-district transport services and people’s apathy to maintain health safety guidelines are the major reasons behind the worsening Covid situation in the country.
The Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and Research has recently found 80 percent of a randomly selected sample of 50 Covid patients infected with the Delta variant.
It also said the deadly variant has spread to parts of central Bangladesh, including the capital, while seven workers of Ashrayan Project in Nawabganj upazila of Dhaka have been detected with the same virus strain.
The sudden spike in virus cases has put a severe strain on four major hospitals ---Rajshahi Medical College, Khulna Medical College, Chapainawabganj and Kushtia General Hospital--with increasing patients from 11 nearby districts.
Also read: IEDCR study of 50 samples finds 40 are Delta
Experts said the government should immediately increase the number of beds, doctors and nurses and treatment facilities, in these hospitals to cope with the pressure of Covid patients.
The virus infection has been showing an upward trend in Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj, Dinajpur, Joypurhat, Naogaon, Kushtia, Jashore, Satkhira, Khulna, Bagerhat, Natore, Noakhali and Cox's Bazar districts for several days.