Alert issued at airports, land ports and seaports

In response to the discovery of the new sub-variant BF.7 of the Omicron in China and India on Sunday, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) issued a notice at airports, land ports, and seaports.

In a notification, the DGHS ordered airport, land port, and sea port authorities to take all necessary actions, including screening suspects and adhering to health regulations, to stop the spread of the novel COVID-19 variant that had infected numerous persons in several countries.

As the national advisory committee issued an alert for a new COVID-19 strain on Sunday, the DGHS recommended the public to wear masks in crowded locations, wash their hands often, and get booster shots.

According to Additional Director General of DGHS Professor Dr. Ahmedul Kabir, "the novel sub-variant BF.7 of the Omicron found in China and India... the new variation already infected a considerable number of people in China while many persons were detected with the new variant in India."

The new version has the capacity to infect lots of people quickly. Wearing masks and taking a booster are therefore essential, especially for people who are vulnerable, he continued.

According to Kabir, the new sub-variant of Omicron is four times more transmissible and has a shorter incubation period, allowing it to infect several people at once.