Vaccine crisis in Chattogram: only SMS recipients asked to go to centre
The victims complained that they were not being vaccinated after standing in line for hours in front of the centres.
Due to the lack of Covid-19 vaccine in Chattogram, only people who received a confirmation SMS have been requested to go to the centre for taking vaccines.
Chattogram Civil Surgeon Dr Sheikh Fazle Rabbi made the request in a video message posted on the Facebook page of the Civil Surgeon's Office on Monday morning.
He made the announcement following protest incidents amid the vaccine crisis at different centres in Chattogram city on Sunday.
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In the video message uploaded on the Civil Surgeon said, "We will continue our vaccination programme till Eid with the vaccines we have. As you know, we have been provided 70 percent of the amount we gave in the first dose as a second dose, and this policy applies to the whole country. As many as 16 lakh people are not getting the second dose at the moment."
Dr Sheikh Fazle Rabbi said, "Hopefully we will be able to complete the second dose after the new vaccines arrive after Eid. At this moment we will request the people of Chattogram, only those who get SMS will come to the vaccine centrs, we will be able to give them the vaccine properly. I am telling those who are not getting the vaccine at the moment to be patient. They will definitely get vaccinated, we assured them. We have been reassured by the highest level of government."
Earlier on Sunday morning, vaccination programmes at several centres in the city, including Chattogram Medical College Hospital and City Corporation General Hospital, were suspended due to the vaccine crisis.
When the news spread, people started to protest and blocked roads.
The victims complained that they were not being vaccinated after standing in line for hours in front of the centres.
According to the Chattogram Civil Surgeon's Office, the vaccination programme for the second dose of Covid-19 vaccine started on 8 April. A total of 3,11,377 people have received the second dose of vaccine till Saturday and 4,53,760 people got the first dose of vaccine till the programme closed.
About 1.5 lakh vaccine recipients who have received the first dose have not yet received the second dose. However, the Chattogram health department has only 27,380 doses in stock.
Chattogram Divisional Health Director Dr Hasan Shahriar Kabir told The Business Standard, "We don't have the vaccines. A limited number of people are being vaccinated in the upazilas. The vaccination programme at Chattogram Medical College Hospital is almost closed. The programme at the General Hospital in Anderkilla will continue for a day or two."
