Headlines

Bangladesh Bank (BB) has approved a Tk 500 crore fund for the country’s cash-strapped sharecroppers. The central bank’s board approved the fund at a meeting on Thursday, said a BB source. The board also decided to disburse the fund through a leading non-government organization (NGO), having enough experiences in small lending in the country. “The ... Read more

Passengers and small traders at the city’s long-route bus terminals are subject to untold harassment and become victims of different kinds of extortions due to lax enforcement of law by the authorities concerned. Terminal labourers having a nexus with local influential ruling party men and associations of transport owners and workers charge the passengers high ... Read more

Khalashpir Coal Mine Project Hosaf’s sketchy study raises questions Govt spends $95,000 for review of study by ex-consultant of Hosaf The techno-economic feasibility study for Khalashpir coal mine project by Hosaf Consortium has finally been trashed by a foreign consultant questioning the study’s scientific basis, methodology and raising a host of other questions, sources said. ... Read more

Decision yet to get govt approval The Dhaka Medical College Hospital authorities have introduced ticket system against money for the visitors’ entry from August 1, much to the sufferings of the poor patients and those attending to them. Tk 20 has been fixed for visiting a free-bed patient, Tk 30 for a paying-bed patient and ... Read more

There is a strong likelihood that Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud was killed along with his wife and bodyguards in a missile attack two days ago, Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik told Reuters. “We suspect he was killed in the missile strike,” Malik said on Friday. “We have some information, but we don’t have material ... Read more

Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) on Saturday enhanced the price of gas by 11.22 percent with immediate effect. According to the increased price chart, residential consumers will have to pay Taka 450 for two burners instead of present Taka 400 and Taka 400 for single burner instead of Taka 350 per month. The last increase ... Read more

After a clean sweep in two-match Test series, Bangladesh also whitewashed West Indies in a record breaking three-match ODI series beating them by three wickets in the 3rd and final match at the Warner Park in St Kitts on Friday. Bangladesh, led by stand-in captain Shakib Al Hasan, remained unbeaten in the month-long Caribbean

At least 20 employees of Proshika were injured on their way to office yesterday in separate attacks carried out in Mirpur by hired men of the NGO’s expelled chief Qazi Faruque Ahmed. Mohammad Abdur Rob, director of microcredit programme of Proshika’s new management, however claimed that around 50 Proshika employees sustained injuries in the attacks. ... Read more

The commerce ministry is waiting for recommendations from the core group on how Bangladesh can gain greater access to the US market through ‘New Partnership for Development Act 2007’ and ‘Trade Relief for Apparel and Textiles bill,’ official sources said. The government recently formed the core group comprising representatives from ministries of foreign affairs, commerce, ... Read more

A Bangladesh parliamentary delegation, now visiting India, on Saturday returned to New Delhi from the Assam state capital of Guwahati as rough weather prevented it from flying to the site of the controversial Tipaimukh dam project on the cross-boundary river Barak, officials said. ‘The members of the delegation returned to New Delhi from Guwahati [Saturday] ... Read more

Over 1 lakh people are illegally living on about 600 acres of the forest department’s hilly land worth about Tk 700 crore under serious threats of landslide during heavy rains. These floating people from across the country live in around 15,000 houses in Baidderghona, Pahartali, Ghonapara, Light House Para, Bus Terminal and other areas in ... Read more

Aug 15 Carnage Month-long mourning begins A month-long mourning programme began yesterday commemorating the assassination of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members on August 15, 1975. The ruling Awami League and various political and cultural organisations have chalked out elaborate programmes to observe the month. Bangabandhu Smriti Sangrakkhan Parishad, Joybangla Sangskritik ... Read more

In protest against India’s plan to construct Tipaimukh dam on common river Barak two organisations will jointly launch a 3-day Long March towards Tipaimukh on August 8 considering its perilous impact on Bangladesh. The two organizations already have approached both the ruling Awami League and the opposition BNP to join the march. Tipaimukh Dam Prevention ... Read more

Forced retirement of 2 judges The emergency meeting of Bangladesh Judicial Service Association (BJSA) scheduled for yesterday morning was postponed in the greater interest of the country, the organisers said.  The emergency meeting was to be held on the Dhaka judge court’s premises yesterday to discuss the next course of action following the forced retirement ... Read more

Former Philippines president Corazon Aquino, whose ‘People Power’ revolution toppled dictator Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy to the nation, died Saturday after a battle with colon cancer. ‘Cory’ Aquino was propelled into the political spotlight in 1986, leading millions of Filipinos in protests against the corrupt regime of Marcos, who jailed thousands of dissidents during ... Read more

Six of a family perished; 50 houses destroyed Incessant rain for the last four days triggered a massive mudslide at Harinmara of Lama in Bandarban early yesterday killing 10 people, including six of a family, and destroying 50 houses. Nine of the deceased were Abul Hashem, his mother Guljar Begum, wife Amena Begum, son Yunus, ... Read more

Shahjahan Khan made minister, Enamul, Mujibur, Promod, Mahbubur, Shirin state ministers raising total strength to 43 Six new members were inducted in the council of ministers of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in a major expansion since her Awami League-led government assumed office on January 6 after the landmark December 29, 2008 general elections. President Zillur ... Read more

Travelling on highways across the country became dreadful and unsafe with an alarming rise in robbery and fatal accidents due largely to a lack of adequate policing, reckless driving and poor maintenance of the roads and bridges. In the month of July alone, at least 20 robberies were reported on the highways connecting cities and ... Read more

The proposed judicial commission set to be formed to investigate corruption taking place in five public universities between 2001 and 2008 has become uncertain as High Court judge Md Muzammel Hossain has been appointed a justice of the Appellate Division in mid-July. ‘The chief justice in early June nominated Justice Md Muzammel Hossain for the ... Read more

Cox’s Bazar hills levelled for construction Hill cutting goes on unabatedly in different areas of Cox’s Bazar town and suburbs for building dwellings, raising fears of landslides. Hilltops are being levelled to collect earth for constructing dwellings and the forest department raids are failing to stop this. During a visit to different hills under the ... Read more