Asraful Islam Asraf
Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque, MP, said, “School-going children between the ages of 12 and 17 will be vaccinated soon from all over the country. The vaccination program will start from November 1 in 12 centers in Dhaka and 21 centers outside Dhaka. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has directed to increase the number of vaccination centers.”

According to him, in places where there is no air-conditioning facility, immediate ventilation facilities have been set up in Dhaka and vaccination centers have been set up in all the districts of the country. Health Minister Zahid Maleque, MP, said this in response to various questions of the ­journalists present at the end of the cabinet meeting at the Secretariat yesterday afternoon. Pfizer vaccines will be given to 12-17 year old school going children. Pfizer vaccines require air-conditioning. Therefore, the work of vaccinating children aged 12-17 years will be started in all the districts of the country, gradually by fixing the required air conditioning system, said the Health Minister. The Pfizer vaccine is now in hand. The health minister also said that another 35 lakh doses of Pfizer vaccine will arrive in the country next November.

Mentioning that there is no vaccine crisis in the country at present, the Health Minister further said, “With this we now have about 20 million doses of vaccine in stock. I hope that the vaccine will continue to come in the future. Therefore, it will be possible to meet 50 percent of the government’s target for vaccination by December.”

Apart from vaccinating students aged 12-17, immunization activities for the general public will also continue, the minister said.
In this context, the Health Minister said, “Today, tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, the common people of the country will be given about 6 million vaccines as the second dose of corona. In addition to the general public, immunization activities for school-going children will continue as usual.”