Metropolitan

Bangla Academy, the organiser of month-long Amar Ekushey Book Fair, on Thursday announced Bangla Academy Literary Award 2013. The academy director general, Shamsuzzaman Khan, at a press conference at the academy premises announced the names of ten authors who won

The 28th National Poetry Festival will begin on the Dhaka University campus at 9:00am on Saturday with the slogan ‘Kabita Sahena Danab Jatana.’ Poet Syed Shamsul Huq will inaugurate the two-day programme in front of the DU central library, organised by the National Poetry Council.

Former English Department students of Dhaka University will have a meeting at their annual get-together today. The reunion will begin at 3:00pm at the Teachers-Students Centre (TSC) where the graduates are expected to get together. This will be the 28th reunion of the English Department Alumni Society (EDAS) since its inception in December, 1986. Organisers ... Read more

The German ambassador in Dhaka, Albrecht Conze, on Wednesday said that his government would continue its support to ensure fire safety in the Bangladesh’s apparel factories as there was huge public pressure in the western world to ensure safety standard in the factories. ‘I do not think we would lose the momentum

The Bangla Academy authorities have taken all-out preparation to arrange the month-long Amar Ekushey Book Fair scheduled to begin in the capital on February 1, reports UNB. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to inaugurate the book fair at 3 pm, deputy director of Bangla Academy Murshed Anwar told. Bangla Academy hopes this year’s book ... Read more

Sylhet City Corporation (SCC) has started drives to evict the illegal shops and establishments from the city’s footpaths. In the recent past, hawkers would take possessions on all the major sidewalks and roads in the Sylhet city and set up shops and establishments illegally. The footpaths of Bandar bazaar Surma Market point to Chauhatta, Shubhanighat, ... Read more

The government has given private universities failing to move their own, permanent campus for the third time, asking them to do so by September 15, 2015. If private universities that are in operation for more than seven years fail to move to their own campus by third deadline, they will lose their provisional approval to ... Read more

The measles-rubella vaccination campaign started on Saturday all over the country. According to the Directorate General of Health Service officials, the three-week long vaccination campaign will continue till February 13 and about 5.20 crore children will be given measles-rubella vaccine while 2.20 crore children the polio vaccine during the

The Detective Branch (DB) of police arrested six drug peddlers and confiscated six pounds of cocaine from Nikunju of Gulshan area in the city on Thursday. The drug peddlers are Md Kamrul Alam (40), a director of Madina Pharmaceuticals, Spanish expatriate Taher Mondol alias Zoba (30), pharmacy owner Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan (46), stock market trader

Green activists urged the government to take effective measures to check dust pollution in the capital. They made the demand in a human-chain programme jointly arranged by the Poribesh Bachao Andalan and Bangladesh Centre for Human Rights and Development in front of the National Museum. POBA joint secretary Md Abdus Sobhan urged the government to

Professor MA Matin has been appointed acting vice-chancellor of Jahangirnagar University for a month and directed to arrange VC panel election. President Abdul Hamid, also chancellor of the university, on Wednesday appointed statistics department professor, also Pro-VC (education) Professor MA Matin,

A survey conducted on Tuesday at different spots on the Buriganga River — from Sadarghat to Pagla — showed inadequate presence of dissolved oxygen (DO) in the water to support the existence of fish and other living organisms, reports UNB. The survey conducted by a group of experts under Poribesh Bachao Andolon (Poba) collected water ... Read more

Elections to the 15-member executive committee of Jahangirnagar University Teachers Association (JUTA) will be held on January 29. Chief Election Commissioner Prof Md Akter Mahmud announced the polls schedule on Sunday. The teachers will elect president, vice-president, general secretary, joint secretary along with eleven members of the executive committee. The voting

The 45th anniversary of embracing martyrdom by Asaduzzaman in the 1969 mass upsurge against the Ayub regime will be observed today. Asad’s supreme sacrifice ignited the struggle of Bengalis for self-rule which eventually led the nation to the war of independence. On January 20, 1969,

The water flow of Padma and Jamua rivers in Bangladesh is likely to fall by one-third if India implements its national river-linking project. The drop in the water flow will have an adverse impact on navigability, biodiversity and environment. Environment and water experts expressed the concern at a press conference at Dhaka Reporters’ Unity yesterday. ... Read more

Dense fog in winter has caused ‘late blight’ in potatoes, particularly in the northern districts, growers and agriculturists have said. Potato plants, infected with the disease, would certainly yield less production, they said. Department of Agriculture Extension officials said they were giving necessary advice to the potato growers to control late blight. A senior

A two-day ‘Amal fair’ marking the 11th anniversary of death of Tebhaga movement leader Amal Sen began at Bankri Primary School ground in Bagharpara on Friday. The fair features discussion meetings, art competition, recitation, dramas and cultural programmes. Civil aviation and tourism minister Rashed Khan Menon, MP, inaugurated the fair as the chief guest. Workers ... Read more

The Bangladesh Railway on Thursday inaugurated train tracking and monitoring system through mobile phones. The system, launched on a trial basis, would display locations and timings of trains on mobile phones instantly via short message service using geographic information system, better known as GIS, said officials. Railways minister Mohammad Mazibul Hoque

Bangla Business Partner (BBP), Japan in association with Daffodil Institute of Information Technology (DIIT) has organised the ‘IT Talent Contest-2014’ in a bid to create employment opportunity in Japan for the country’s young IT students. Toru Okazaki, managing director of Bangla Business Partner (BBP), Japan informed the journalists about this through

Academic life of students seeking admission to the public universities stands in limbo as many universities are yet to complete the admission process while 14 of them are yet to take admission tests. Rescheduling of admission tests for several times might prolong the academic life of the students concerned as well as impact adversely on ... Read more