Dhaka, Sep 23 (IANS) As Bangladesh grapples with an unprecedented measles outbreak, eleven more children died from symptoms of the disease on Wednesday, pushing the overall death toll to 1,076 this year, local media reported.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), the deaths were reported in the 24 hours leading up to Wednesday morning.
The latest eleven fatalities from the disease were identified as suspected cases, Bangladeshi media outlet UNB reported.
Reports suggest that while the number of confirmed deaths remained at 101, the total number of suspected deaths climbed to 975.
The DGHS recorded a total of 1,157 new suspected measles cases during the 24-hour period, bringing the overall tally of suspected cases to 183,449.
Additionally, 113 new confirmed cases were reported, increasing the total to 20,851 during the same period.
Earlier this month, public health experts said that inadequate vaccination coverage and the lack of effective preventive measures have contributed to the situation, leaving infants under six months particularly vulnerable to measles.
The health authorities acknowledged gaps in vaccination coverage, saying additional vaccines were being procured and a short, intensive drive was likely to be launched to reach children who remain unvaccinated, Bangladeshi newspaper The Daily Star reported.
Epidemiologist Prof Mahmudur Rahman, who also chairs the National Verification Committee for Measles and Rubella Elimination, said the government should first constitute an expert panel to examine surveillance and immunisation data and identify gaps in coverage.
Recently, a leading international advocacy group described the 2026 measles outbreak as one of Bangladesh’s worst public health crises in recent history, highlighting the concern that the disease is preventable through vaccination.
In its report titled ‘Preventable Tragedy: Bangladesh’s 2026 Measles Outbreak’, Canada-based Global Centre for Democratic Governance (GCDG) said that although the measles outbreak appeared sudden to the public, it was not an unexpected event from an “epidemiological perspective”.
The report noted that the crisis resulted from a combination of disruptions to vaccine supply and health programs in 2024-2025 during the former interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, along with missed routine vaccinations, cancellations of scheduled supplementary immunisation programmes, administrative delays in vaccine procurement, and a failure to promptly identify at-risk populations.
–IANS
scor/vd