As many as 62 cargo vessels – both incoming and outgoing – have been stranded at the Chittagong port as the only port channel was shut on Wednesday following the sinking of a clinker-laden coaster ship in the estuary, port and shipping sources said. Of them, 43 ships with import cargoes remained stranded at the ... Read more
Dhaka Mirror
JS body recommends legal action against Sircar, Delwar
The Sub-Committee of Parliamentary Probe Committee on the alleged corruption of former speaker Barrister Jamir Uddin Sircar will recommend for taking legal actions against the former speaker and BNP Secretary General and former whip Khondoker Delwar Hossain for their corruption in medical bills. After a meeting of the Sub-Committee, SK Baker, convenor of the committee ... Read more
Tk 3,424cr stimulus plan rolled out
The government yesterday announced a Tk 3,424 crore stimulus package to cushion the blow of global economic downturn. The fund meant to be used over the last quarter of the current fiscal year includes Tk 450 crore in cash subsidies for the export industries already hit by the recession. Unveiling the plan at a press ... Read more
Stimulus package frustrates a section of trade bodies
Few trade bodies have expressed their frustration over the financial stimulus package the government announced Sunday to help face the recession challenges and demanded reconsideration of the incentives. “I can’t consider it a complete stimulus package… it only addressed the concerns of three sectors from the recession-hit ones,” FBCCI president Annisul Huq told UNB in ... Read more
JS body probes minister’s ‘unlawful’ expenses
A parliamentary panel has questioned the expenditure by a minister for decoration of his official chambers and the attempt to have a luxury Sports Utility Vehicle purchased for his official use, a member of the parliamentary watchdog told New Age. ‘We asked the ministry’s officials to explain under which law they had spent so much ... Read more
Diarrhoea has now attained epidemic form: ICDDR,B
Diarrhoea, which has broken out in alarming proportions in Dhaka, has claimed the life of a six-year-old girl and afflicted more than 700 others till 5:00pm on Sunday. The ICDDR,B received 908 patients on Saturday, 775 on Friday and 899 on Thursday. According to the health control room, the number of patients in the last ... Read more
No down payment to reschedule loan: Lending rate fixed at 13 pc
Bangladesh Bank issued a circular Sunday asking commercial banks to reduce the maximum limit of their annual lending rate to 13 percent to help industries face the challenges of the global recession. The rate will be applicable for term loans of agriculture credit, large and medium industries, financing housing and commercial transactions. The instruction comes ... Read more
Frequent power cuts: HSC examinees, farmers worst hit
No remarkable improvement of power situation is seen in the ongoing summer season that causes huge suffering for the HSC examinees and Boro farmers. Residents and boro farmers yesterday experienced ten to sixteen hours electricity cut, according to sources. There was 1,800MW of load shedding yesterday against the demand of 5,500MW, sources said. In Dhaka ... Read more
Four BCL men injured in infighting at JU
Four activists of the Bangladesh Chhatra League, the student wing of the ruling Awami League, were injured in infighting on the Jahangirnagar University campus Sunday. The injured were Ullash, Bitu, Faisal and Arnab of the Sagor-Sumon group of the BCL at the JU. All of them were residing at the Bhashani Hall of the university. ... Read more
Saifur retires from politics
Many BNP leaders likely to retire Veteran politician and founder member of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) M Saifur Rahman resigned from the party standing committee as well as retired from active politics. Many standing committee members are likely to go to self-retirement following him. The size of standing committee will be smaller for these retirements ... Read more
NSI official arrested over Ctg arms haul case
The Criminal Investigation Department of police on Saturday night arrested a field officer of the National Security Intelligence in connection with the April 2004 Chittagong arms haul case. The court remanded Akbar Hossain Khan, the NSI official, in CID’s custody for two days for interrogation. The court also ordered a fresh two-day remand for Mohsin ... Read more
Ten-day art exhibition begins at Shilpangan
Artist Golam Faruque’s second solo painting exhibition, ‘Touch the Reality’, began on Friday at the Shilpangan Gallery in Dhanmondi. The exhibition was inaugurated by Ahmed Al Shourbagy, the deputy chief of Mission, Embassy of Arab Republic of Egypt. And Professor Farida Zaman, the chairperson of the Department of Drawing and Painting in the Faculty of ... Read more
6 killed as Bijli sweeps over
662 houses, about 650 hectares of cropland damaged At least six people were killed in Cox’s Bazar, Chittagong, Noakhali and Bhola and scores injured as cyclonic storm Bijli, the first of the 2009 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, crossed past Bangladesh early Saturday, levelling several hundred houses and standing crops on a vast tract. According ... Read more
India warns Dhaka of assassination plot
India has warned Bangladesh’s political leadership, including prime minister Sheikh Hasina, of a possible assassination plot, an Indian newspaper reported on Saturday. The Indian Express said foreign secretary Shiv Shankar Menon had informed Dhaka of the threat during a recent visit. Menon arrived in the capital on an “unscheduled visit” on Apr 12. Bangladesh foreign ... Read more
Largest flour mill set to start operation
The country’s biggest-ever flour mill is set to start production at the end of this month. Shampa Flour Mills, a Tk 250-crore project of the City Group, will produce premium grade and packed flour and semolina (suji). A visit to the factory at Rupshi under Rupganj upazila in Narayanganj last week
Experts suggest regulatory reforms for businesses
The initiative to bring regulatory reforms for improving business climate is yet to draw attention of the new government, the chairman of Regulatory Reforms Commission said, regretting lack of demand for business reforms from the stakeholders. Akbar Ali Khan, addressing the presentation ceremony of a survey report on business reforms on Friday, added that delay ... Read more
Earthen seal with ancient inscription found
Archaeologists recently found a broken clay seal with illegible ancient inscriptions during excavation at “Paharpur Buddhist Monastery” site in Naogaon district. They also dug out other artefacts including unknown earthen pots from the world heritage site. The Department of Archeology carried out the month-long excavation at the site that ended on April 16. Naheed Sultana, ... Read more
1.5 lakh families in Bhola outside cyclone shelter coverage
Many offshore islands have no shelter Several lakh people living in the coastal areas of Bhola district are highly vulnerable to cyclones and tidal surges as the shelters constructed the purpose are too inadequate to accommodate the large number of people during natural disasters. Around 1.5 lakh families living in chars (island) of high-risk coastal ... Read more
Potato, pulses, edible oil prices up
Meat, chicken, fish, eggs prices remain high Potato, pulses and edible oil prices increased further in the past week in the city because of shortage in ready stock. The prices of other vegetables remained stable, but meat, chicken, fish and eggs remained exorbitantly high. Consumers observed fresh increase in prices of several essential goods during ... Read more
Use of wood at kilns posing serious threat to public health
The owners of brick-kilns in the district are using wood instead of coal for baking bricks violating government restrictions resulting pollution of environment and posing a serious threat to public health. District administration sources said, under the Brick Burning Control Amendment Ordinance, 1992, setting up of brick fields on crop land and near human settlements, ... Read more