The death of an Ansar member stationed at the Bangladesh Computer Council (BCC) has prompted fears of coronavirus among the authorities concerned.
According to BCC officials, the deceased, Rezaul Karim, was suffering from cold and fever, which are also initial symptoms of Covid-19 infection, and went on leave to his ancestral home in Rangpur where he died.
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Mohammod Rashedul Islam, secretary of BCC said: “Rezaul recently went on leave to his ancestral home on March 4 after suffering from fever and cold. Later, he died at home on March 11. His death has raised a lot of concerns for us amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.”
“We then got all the Ansar members examined for the virus. We were able to identify another Ansar member who was showing the same symptoms as Rezaul. He was sent back to his village immediately for recovery after primary treatment on March 12. He is better now and will return to work soon,” added Rashedul.
Meanwhile, after being notified regarding the incident, a letter was issued on March 15 by the Minister of State for Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Junaid Ahmed Palak, urging BCC authorities to take necessary steps in response to the incident.
According to the letter, the incident was reported to the directors of Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and Research (IEDCR), the deputy commissioner and civil surgeon of Dhaka and Sirajganj, as well as the Rangpur district commandant of Ansar and VDP.
Rashedul said: “We have decided to install thermal scanners as soon as possible in a bid to fight the Covid-19 outbreak.”
