Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)-Bangladesh has made health check-up mandatory for Hajj pilgrims to see whether they could resist infection of deadly Mers virus in Saudi Arabia.
The development comes following a letter sent by Saudi Arabia to the Bangladesh government asking it to send only those pilgrims capable of resisting Mers, religious affairs secretary Babul Hasan said, reports Gulf Times.
He told newsmen that the Saudi foreign ministry sent the letter on Tuesday.
So far 354 people have been detected with the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (Mers) in Saudi Arabia, the letter said.
Of them, 111 people including two Bangladeshis have died.
Bangladeshi Hajj pilgrims will be sent after ensuring that they can resist Mers, the secretary said.
“If the virus infects those who are 60 years or above, they are likely to die,” the letter from Saudi Arabia said.
It also urged the Bangladesh government to take special preventive measures for children and old people.
The letter informed that no antidote for Mers has been invented yet.
The strain of coronavirus that causes Mers was first identified in 2012 in Saudi Arabia and has remained a global concern since then.
It has spread to 22 countries, including Bangladesh, from the Middle-East.
Early this week Bangladesh confirmed the first case of Mers, said the IEDCR (Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research).
Based on the appearance of the moon, Hajj is supposed to begin on October 4. The Hajj flights will operate between August 27 and September 28.
As many as 98,705 Bangladeshis are expected to perform Hajj this year on packages offered by government and private operators.
BBN/ANS-19June14-9:50pm (BST)
