No first dose of Covid-19 vaccine after October 3: Health Minister

The government has decided to stop administering the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine by October 3, Health Minister Zahid Maleque said today.

"Nearly 33 lakh people did not receive their first jab yet while 94 lakh people did not receive their second shot of Covid-19 vaccine across the country," he said while speaking at a workshop over Covid-19 vaccination for children, aged 5-11 years, held at a Dhaka hotel.

He also urged people, who have not taken their first Covid-19 vaccine dose yet, to take the shot as soon as possible.

"After the month of October, there is a possibility of first and second doses of Covid-19 vaccine being out of stock. If some remain, those will be expired. So, those who did not receive first, second and booster doses, have been asked to take their respective vaccine immediately," said the health minister.

Currently, 2.5 lakh people are working to ensure Covid-19 vaccination and of them, 60,000 are administering the vaccines, he said, adding that 30 crore doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered across the country so far.

Talking about administering Covid-19 vaccine among children, Maleque said 10 lakh children have received Covid-19 vaccine and some 2.15 lakh children are waiting to receive it.