No coronavirus patient detected yet in Bangladesh: Minister

No coronavirus case has yet been detected in Bangladesh, marking a positive sign for the country, Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque said on Tuesday.

“Our medical teams are working at all the airports and land ports to screen those coming from abroad to prevent the entry of the virus into the country,” he said while talking to reporters after receiving 500 ‘Real-time PCR kits’ donated by the Chinese government to detect coronavirus.

Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Li Jiming handed over the kits to the minister at the Secretariat, reports United News of Bangladesh.

After receiving the kits, Zahid Maleque said, “The Bangladesh government has donated some medical equipment to China as a goodwill gesture and the Chinese government, in return, has donated the kits to detect coronavirus.”

Some 80,000 people have so far been affected by coronavirus in different countries, including China, while some 2,618 have died of the virus, he said.

“Over 3 lakh people, coming from different countries, went through thermal screening but no-one was tested coronavirus positive,” the minister said, adding that they have all-out preparations to tackle any situation.

More cases of the virus, which causes respiratory disease Covid-19, continue to emerge, with outbreaks in South Korea, Italy and Iran causing concern.

However, most infections are in China, the original source of the virus, where more than 77,000 people have the disease and over 2,600 have died.

Over 1,200 cases have been confirmed in about 30 other countries and there have been more than 20 deaths. Italy reported four more deaths on Monday, raising the total there to seven.

Kamruzzaman