Bangladesh approves Russian vaccine Sputnik for emergency use

DHAKA: The Bangladeshi government has approved the import and use of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19. Major General Mahbubur Rahman, Director General of the country's Drug Administration, made the announcement on Tuesday, the Xinhua news agency reported.

The decision came days after Dhaka suspended the first dosing of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine on a supply crunch. "We've given permission for the emergency use of the Russian COVID-19 vaccine," Rahman told journalists.

Amid uncertainty over timely arrival of the next COVID-19 vaccine shipment from India, the Bangladeshi government halted administering first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine across the country from Monday. Nearly 6 million people have so far received the first dose of the vaccine in Bangladesh.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on January 28 virtually inaugurated the country's COVID-19 vaccination drive. The Bangladeshi government on Monday announced that it decided to extend the ongoing lockdown which began on April 14 for another week.

Bangladesh recorded 112 deaths from COVID-19 on April 19, its highest daily toll from the pandemic, the government said.

On Tuesday, the country's Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) reported 3,031 new cases of COVID-19 and 78 new deaths, bringing the number of total cases to 751,659 and the total death toll to 11,228. (IANS)

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