Amid a surge in Covid cases, Health Minister Zahid Maleque yesterday warned that the situation was set to turn grim, putting a strain on the country's healthcare system.

There will be a massive spike in daily cases and deaths in the coming days, he said, citing analyses of the current transmission trend.

"If the situation worsens and we have 40,000 or one lakh patients, where will we treat them?" he asked.

Hospitals across the country have around 20,000 beds in total for Covid patients, he said, urging all to strictly follow the health rules in order to avert a disaster.

Around 1,300 Covid patients were admitted to hospitals as of yesterday, shows DGHS data.

"Patients have already started coming to hospitals. We will see a massive spike in the number of patients over the next five to seven days. It will put pressure on doctors and nurses. People will struggle to get beds and the death rate will also go up."

The minister was speaking at an event in the capital's Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS).

The DGHS reported 2,916 new cases and four deaths in 24 hours till 8:00am yesterday. The positivity rate jumped to 11.68 percent from 2.43 percent on January 1.

Health officials said the transmission rate would be much higher than reported and urged everybody to wear masks outdoors, maintain physical distance, and more importantly, get vaccinated as soon as possible.

Otherwise, the situation might slip out of hand, they warned.

At an online briefing yesterday, DGHS spokesperson Prof Robed Amin said, "Many [infected patients] are not getting tested. If they did, the number of daily cases would be much higher."

He said the transmission has been rising "progressively" since the beginning of this month because of the Omicron variant. "This is alarming for us."

With three new cases reported yesterday, 33 Omicron cases have so far been confirmed in the country. The first two cases were reported on December 9.

First reported in South Africa on November 18, the variant can transmit 70 times faster than the original novel coronavirus that emerged in China's Wuhan in December 2019, studies show.

DGHS data shows the Covid transmission has gone up eight times since January 1.

A total of 4,558 cases were detected last month, whereas 15,766 cases have already been confirmed so far this month.

Most of the fresh cases reported yesterday were detected in Dhaka.

Referring to the latest DGHS weekly analysis as of Sunday, Robed said Dhaka and Rangamati were being considered "red zones" with positivity rates higher than 10 percent each.

Rajshahi, Natore, Rangpur, Lalmonirhat, Jashore and Dinajpur have been labelled "yellow zones", with transmission rates between 5 and 10 percent, he said.

Speaking at the event yesterday, the health minister said the government would step in to curb the Covid infection.

"Anyone outside home without a mask will be fined from tomorrow [today]."

He also said no public event would be allowed from today.

Asked how they would enforce the Covid curbs, he said, "These are government directives. The health ministry can only make suggestions. It is the job of the other ministries to make sure that the suggestions are followed."

The minister also said around 65 lakh students have so far been jabbed against the targetted 1.28 crore.

"People don't go [to the vaccination centres] unless they are forced. Earlier, students showed reluctance to get the shots, but they are now swarming the centres after we told them that they must be vaccinated to attend classes."

He added the government has a stock of some 6-7 crore vaccines. "We have enough vaccines. Along with our hospitals, we too are prepared. But hospitals have a limit."