First secretary of Bangladesh Consulate General in Jeddah Md Jamal Uddin is all but certain to be withdrawn from his station for allegedly assaulting a Foreign Service Ministry assistant secretary, Tanvir Kabir, at Jeddah Hajj Camp on July 1. According to sources concerned, based on a report from the Consul General of the Consulate Nazmul ... Read more
Month: July 2013
US to consider GSP facilities for Bangladesh: Quader
Communications Minister Obaidul Quader on Wednesday said the United States (US) is sincere to consider Bangladesh’s Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) for readymade garment (RMG) sector of Bangladesh. “I have got assurance in this regard from Charge d’affaires of the US Embassy in Dhaka Jon Danilowicz during a meeting,” he told journalist after a meeting ... Read more
Al-Badr killed Dr Alim Chy, says victim’s wife
The Al-Badr had killed prominent ophthalmologist Dr Abdul Alim Chowdhury on the instruction of their chief, Motiur Rahman Nizami, just a day before the victory day in 1971, said Shyamali Nasrin Chowdhuy, the victim’s wife, at the International Crimes Tribunal-1 (ICT-1), on Wednesday. A group of Al-Badr cadres picked up Alim from his Purana
Qamrul lambasts TIB report
State Minister for Law Advocate Qamrul Islam on Wednesday came down heavily on the Transparency International, Bangladesh (TIB) saying that the TIB report which showed political parties as most corrupt is aimed at assassinating characters of political leaders. The minister said, conspiracy is going on against the country and a vested quarter has been working
Orders to arrest Brotherhood chief, Morsi in ‘safe place’
Egypt on Wednesday ordered the arrest of the Muslim Brotherhood’s supreme leader Mohammed Badie over violence in Cairo that left dozens dead while charging another 200 people over the bloodshed, judicial sources said. Badie and other senior Brotherhood leaders are
Bangladesh to drop cases against labour leaders
The Bangladesh government ordered criminal cases be dropped against top union leaders on Wednesday, a ministry official said, a move hailed by labour activists who say they are routinely harassed and threatened. A home ministry official told AFP that the cases of inciting violence during wage-hike protests in 2010 against Kalpona Akter and
Tk 42cr Japanese fund for disaster-hit areas
The government of Japan has confirmed a contribution of Tk 42 crore to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to support some of the disaster-prone areas of Bangladesh. This was confirmed at a handover ceremony at the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives in Dhaka on Wednesday. The government of Bangladesh
National Art Biennale ends tomorrow
The 20th National Art Biennale going on at the National Art Gallery of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy will end tomorrow. What is most noticeable in this year’s exhibition is that most of the awarded artworks in particular and other entries on display in general showcased contemporary social issues. The works on display address
Tough terms put brake on taxicab companies
Only one, out of the eight interested companies to run cabs in the capital, was able to fulfil all the conditions of the Taxicab Service Guidelines of 2010, said a member of the taxicab selection committee. The communications ministry is yet to make its decision
Govt urged to improve service at its hospitals
Health experts and physicians on Wednesday urged the government to improve standard of government hospitals by renovating the hospital buildings and making mandatory working in village for promotion of doctors. At a workshop they emphasised that existing health
KCC starts market surveillance to contain price hike
The Khulna City Corporation starts market surveillance today with a view to curbing price hick of essential commodities on the occasion of Ramadan. Two teams have been formed by the KCC to watch if prices of essential commodities have soared up unusually or not. One of the two teams comprises twenty
Khulna Univ students withdraw fast-unto-death
Students of seven disciplines under life science school at Khulna University withdrew their fast-unto-death programme on Wednesday after the authorities assured them of meeting their demand for holding term final examinations. The term final examinations will now be held on July 24 as
Prices of essentials continue to go up in Sylhet markets
Prices of essentials are continuing to skyrocket in the kitchen markets and grocery shops in Sylhet ahead of Ramadan, the month of fast for Muslims. Sources in the city markets said prices of spices, vegetables, pulses and chickpeas increased by 40-80 per cent in the past three days.
Case filed against JCD men in Rajshahi
A case was filed against 45 Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal activists in Rajshahi on the charge of carrying explosives substances and barring public works on Wednesday. The Motihar police subinspector, Momin Sarker, filed the case. The arrestees were granted one-day remand in this connection.
VAT rate to be cut by 2015: Muhith
Finance minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith on Wednesday said value-added tax rate would be lowered significantly by 2015 to facilitate business expansion in the country. ‘I think the existing VAT rate at 15 per cent is little bit high and hope the rate will be lowered enough,’ he said at a programme on National VAT ... Read more
Import payments fall by 9pc in July–May
The country’s import bill payment registered a negative growth in the first 11 months of the immediate past financial year on year-on-year basis as the import of capital machinery, industrial raw materials, food grains and petroleum products declined sharply. According to the latest BB data released on Wednesday,
BTRC selects UK-based expert as 3G auction consultant
An UK-based telecom expert, Abdullah Ferdous, was selected as the individual consultant for the coming 3G auction for mobile phone operators scheduled on September 2. BTRC officials said the committee which was assigned for evaluation of the proposals finalised the selection on Tuesday from eight other applicants.
Stocks hit 9-month high
Dhaka stocks gained for the second trading session on Wednesday with the old key index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, DGEN, hitting a nine-month high thanks to the optimistic participation of the investors. The DGEN gained 1.85 per cent, or 86.73 points, on the day to finish at 4,770.48 points, the highest since September 25 ... Read more
Domestic manufacturing capacity key to dev: Muhith
Finance minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith on Wednesday said development of a country largely depended on its capacity of domestic manufacturing. So, he said, his government has taken special initiatives including giving tax incentives to the local manufacturers for boosting the industrial sector of the country.
BEF seeks more donor fund for workers’ dev
The developing partners should allocate more funds for skill development of workers in Bangladesh for increasing workers competitiveness on the international market, said the Bangladesh Employers’ Federation in the fourth global review of Aid for Trade Development organised by the World Trade Organisation.