Bangladesh Railway is going to expand its online ticketing system enabling the passengers to buy tickets from stations connected to the online network for travelling to any destinations. At present five stations are connected online for ticket selling and the authorities are planning to expand online ticketing facility to 61 more railway
Month: August 2012
Septic tank gas kills 2
Two labourers died after inhaling toxic gas trapped inside a septic tank in a housing plot at Colonel Hat of Chittagong city yesterday morning. The deceased were identified as Abdur Rahman, 50, of Chandpur and Md Kamal, 50. Police could not trace the latter’s residence
Chittagong traffic in grip of severe tailback
Traffic congestion has turned acute on most of the roads, lanes and by-lanes in the Chittagong city, particularly during the iftar hours. Most of the city road started to experience severe tailback since the very beginning of the month of Ramadan even after the recent increase in the manpower of the traffic
Bangladesh to lease Sudanese farmland
Bangladesh yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with South Sudan to take a 10-year lease on Sudanese farmland to grow crops aimed at ensuring food security of both the countries. Bangladesh and Sudan will jointly produce rice, lentil, oil, cotton and other crops on the leased land and share the produces between the two ... Read more
Yearlong golden jubilee progrmme of DU’s Journalism dept begins
The yearlong golden jubilee progrmme of Dhaka University’s Mass Communication and Journalism department began on Thursday. Dhaka University Vice Chancellor Prof Dr AAMS Arefin Siddique formally inaugurated the 50th anniversary programme of the department at TSC in the
‘Rakhi Bandhan’ celebrated at Indo-Bangla border
Sisters of India and Bangladesh along with border forces of two countries celebrated the ‘Rakhi Bandhan’ at Hili border under Hakimpur upazila of Dinajpur on Thursday, setting a unique example of brotherhood. High officials of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and Border Security Force (BSF) of India along with male and female were present at the ... Read more
LPG sold at high price in Sylhet
Liquefied gas cylinders are being sold in Sylhet at almost double the price set by Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation in absence of proper monitoring over the market. A dishonest quarter comprising some officials and employees of BPC distributors—viz. Padma, Meghna and Jamuna oil depots and their authorised dealers—is engaged in creating artificial crisis in
Automation of BRTA to begin next year
The automation of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) under a US$2.7 million project is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2013. Korea International Cooperation Agency (Koica) will fund the “Digital BRTA” project, says a press release. An Implementation Survey Team from Korea visited Bangladesh from July 29 to
Doubt over benefits of FTA with India
Analysts yesterday expressed doubt over a World Bank idea that a free trade agreement (FTA) with India will boost Bangladesh’s exports to the neighbour. Instead of an FTA, they stressed increasing trade facilitation, market access, regional connectivity and investment to raise Bangladesh’s exports to
Eid spurs remittance flow
Remittance inflow rose by 17.55 percent to $1.19 billion in July from a year ago, riding on the upcoming Eid festival. The central bank governor yesterday sat with chief executives of all banks at his office in the capital to discuss ways to increase the flow of remittances. Bangladesh Bank will organise roadshows in the USA ... Read more
BB to analyse health of state-owned banks
The central bank has opened in-depth analyses of the financial health of all branches of the four state-owned commercial banks, to delve into fraudulent loan sanctions, officials said on Thursday. The drastic move by the Bangladesh Bank (BB) came after its investigation team had found irregularities in loans, of up to Tk. 2,638 crore, extended ... Read more
Pay as you talk
Mobile phone users will now pay as much as they talk, according to a new directive from Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC). From August 15, there will be a 10-second pulse applicable to all networks. For example, for call duration of 1 minute and 6 seconds, the charge
StanChart launches Islamic banking for corporate clients
Standard Chartered Bank yesterday launched its Shariah-based product Saadiq for its corporate clients in Bangladesh. Earlier the product was for retail customers only. The Saadiq brand will offer a core comprehensive suite of products related to cash management, trade, term and working capital financing for corporate clients to fulfil their banking
Grameen fettered
Changes to ordinance give govt-appointed chairman almost absolute power to pick MD, Yunus’ income under scrutiny The cabinet yesterday approved a proposal for amending an ordinance to give more powers to the Grameen Bank chairman to choose the managing director of the microlender. The amendment to the Grameen Bank Ordinance 1983 will undermine the autonomy ... Read more
Autonomy curbed
4 leading personalities censure govt move Civil society leaders yesterday condemned the government move to curtail the autonomy of the Nobel winning Grameen Bank as an undemocratic decision that they believe would give negative signals to the world. The cabinet approved of an amendment to the Grameen Bank Ordinance 1983, which would reduce the power ... Read more
Save the bank
Appeals shocked Nobel hero Shocked. Speechless. This is what Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus said after the government empowered the Grameen Bank chairman in choosing a managing director for the microlender. Here is the statement of the Grameen Bank founder:
JU shut after violence
Highway blocked protesting police firing on students; 15 vehicles vandalised Authorities have shut Jahangirnagar University till August 25 as the campus burst into violence over Wednesday night’s police firing on students. Through an emergency meeting yesterday afternoon, the JU Syndicate announced the closure, asking male students to vacate their dormitories by 6:00pm on the day ... Read more
UGC worried
The University Grants Commission (UGC) yesterday expressed deep concern over the current instabilities at different public universities including Buet, Jahangirnagar University (JU), Pabna University of Science and Technology (PUST) and Rajshahi University (RU). At a full commission meeting, the UGC formed a three-member committee to look
Minimum Fitra fixed at Tk 55, highest Tk 1500
This year’s minimum Fitra has been fixed at Tk 55 per head while Tk 1500 at the highest. A meeting on ‘Sadkatul Fitr’ held at the conference room of the Islamic Foundation on Thursday fixed the fitra as per the present market price of 1.650 kg of wheat or ata (flour). Chaired by Khatib of ... Read more
NGOs asked to stop aid to Rohingyas
The government has ordered three non-governmental organisations to stop their charity activities for unregistered Rohingya refugees staying in Cox’s Bazar. The NGOs are the Musilm Aid UK and France’s ACF (Action Against Hunger) and Medecins Sans Frantieres (Doctors Without Borders) which had been providing shelters, food and medical services