The government has decided to upgrade all existing 31-bed and 50-bed upazila health complexes to 101-bed facilities to ensure quality healthcare services at the grassroots level.

Prime Minister’s Information and Broadcasting Adviser Dr. Zahed Ur Rahman disclosed the information at a weekly press briefing held at the conference room of the Press Information Department (PID) at the Secretariat today.

He highlighted major field-level achievements of various ministries over the past few weeks, including developments in the health sector.

The adviser said that only eight upazilas across the country currently have 100-bed upazila health complexes. To expand and improve healthcare services, the government has undertaken a programme to upgrade all remaining 31-bed and 50-bed upazila health complexes to 101-bed facilities, he added.

He said the government has also taken an initiative to manufacture electric ambulances using local technology to provide emergency healthcare services more quickly at people’s doorsteps. The ambulances will be developed with technical assistance from the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), he said. 

At a high-level meeting chaired by the Prime Minister on June 6 with officials concerned from the Health Ministry, a decision was taken to begin the project by selecting one upazila as a model, he said.

Considering the dengue situation in the country, Dr Zahed said the “National Training Programme on Clinical Management of Dengue” has been formally launched. The first phase of training was held on June 7 at Bangladesh Medical University with the participation of physicians from different regions. Similar specialised training workshops will be organised gradually in the remaining seven divisions outside Dhaka and in all districts of the country, he said.

At the briefing, the adviser said a study is underway to modernise the national grid system as part of preparations for the nuclear power era. The price of a 12-kilogram LPG cylinder has been reduced to Tk 1,885. The increased electricity tariff for lifeline and first-tier consumers has been suspended, and previous rates have been retained, he said.

The adviser also said a training programme for 12,000 teachers has been launched to incorporate career-oriented education into the curriculum of the National University. Over 2.2 million students participated in the Primary School Gold Cup Football Tournament, he said. 

He said subsidised food products are being sold through 1,100 centres nationwide under the Open Market Sale (OMS) programme. Government warehouses currently hold more than 1.874 million metric tonnes of food grains, he said. 

In addition, he said, 100 percent of the demand for sacrificial animals during this year’s Eid-ul-Azha was met through livestock produced by local farmers.