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The government on Tuesday formed steering committees at all tiers – from the national level to the grassroots – across the country to check spread of anthrax among cattle and humans as well and contain the situation ahead of Eid-ul-Azha when Muslims would sacrifice hundreds of thousands of animals. An inter-ministerial meeting at the secretariat took ... Read more

Three Bangladeshi expatriates were killed and three others critically wounded in a road accident in Madinah of Saudi Arabia early Monday. The deceased were identified as Mohammad Kutub Uddin, 42, owner of a residential hotel, his eight-year-old son Minhaz Uddin, his business partner Hazi Rafique Ahmed, 40, and

Buckling seatbelts while driving and wearing helmets when riding motorbikes have been made mandatory in the country in a bid to curb road accidents. The 33rd meeting of the Road Transport Advisory Council has also decided to impose a ban on talking over mobile phones while driving. The meeting was held yesterday at the

The Department of Environment (DoE) yesterday fined two factories a total of Tk 16 lakh for polluting Turag and Dhaleswari rivers with untreated liquid waste. The dyeing plants, Rakef Apparels Washing and Packaging Industries Limited in Kaliakoir and Towel Text Limited in Savar are more than ten years old and process around two

Heavy rainfall in Cherrapunji yesterday has caused Surma and Kushiyara rivers to swell worsening the flood situation in Sylhet and Moulvibazar, while conditions improved in other flood-hit districts. The Kushiyara was flowing 150cm above danger level at Amalshid point yesterday while the Surma was flowing 99cm above the red mark at Kanaighat point, said an ... Read more

Seeks 5 years’ jail for or fine of 5 lakh taka for polluting environment The government on Monday placed the Environment Court Bill 2010 in the Parliament, seeking provisions for allowing citizens to file cases against polluters and for setting up at least one environment court in each district. The government has also placed the ... Read more

Officials forecast Around 18,000 thousand tonnes of aman rice might be damaged in the floods that have submerged 53,000 hectares of cropland in 12 districts. About 1.20 lakh tonnes of rice could be produced on the transplanted and broadcast aman fields now under flood waters. About 15 percent of the possible yield will be

A youth stabbed his girlfriend and then tried to commit suicide yesterday after the girl’s parents refused his marriage proposal at Bangshal in the capital. The youth, Saidur Rahman, 19, works at an electric wire factory at Sat Raowza, while the girl, Sharmin Akhter, 15, is a class eight student of Yusuf Sarder High School. ... Read more

The government will formulate a National Steering Committee tomorrow to streamline its efforts for total control of anthrax infection before the Eid-ul-Azha. Fisheries and Livestock Minister Abdul Latif Biswas informed newsmen at his office yesterday about the government’s steps to fight nationwide anthrax

The Institute of Epidemiology, Diseases Control and Research on Sunday confirmed 63 cases of anthrax infection in last three days across the country. The institute officials said the cases of anthrax infection were reported from Chitagong and Laxmipur districts. They did not have any report of anthrax infection in Gazipur last

Rehana Akhter, a 22-year-old medical technician, who suffered appalling burns to her face and chest after acid was thrown on her allegedly by an army soldier and his accomplices on September 14, is fighting for life in the burn unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Her family demanded the prime minister’s intervention to bring the ... Read more

Muggers shot a policeman at Gulshan-1 in the capital last night. Police constable Asaduzzaman, 28, was rushed to National Institute of Diseases of the Chest and Hospital at Mohakhali with bullet injuries to his chest. Constable Mominul told The Daily Star that he along with Asaduzzaman hearing screams

Says CEC The long-awaited polls to Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) will be held by December this year, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda said yesterday. “The commission will soon finalise the date for the election,” CEC Huda told reporters after a meeting of the EC. However, it might not be possible to hold the ... Read more

Two siblings were killed when a launch hit them as they were trying to get on a boat from another vessel in the middle of the river Buriganga off Sadarghat launch terminal in the city Sunday morning. Sources said Nasima, 12, died on the spot while her brother Al-Amin, 9, died at Dhaka Medical College ... Read more

A covered van driver was on Sunday sentenced to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment on charges causing the death of a student by reckless driving at Moghbazar in the capital on October 26, 2007. The metropolitan magistrate, Munshi Abdul Mazid, sentenced to jail Nurul Islam on three charges of reckless driving, hurting and

The government has this year produced only 19 lakh vaccines which could vaccinate about 5 per cent of about 8 crore cattle, the country now has, against anthrax infection that broke out in Sirajganj in mid-August. Forty-three cows and 56 goats have so far died of the infection or have even been slaughtered after being ... Read more

At least 31 more case of human anthrax infection were detected at Charkadira of Kamalnagar in Lakshmipur on Saturday. The Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research is, however, yet to confirm the cases as anthrax infection. The institute till date also did not confirm two anthrax infection

The spreading of anthrax and the people’s consequent avoidance of beef have reduced the slaughtering of cattle by more than 80 per cent in the past three or four weeks, said traders of hides. The scarcity of cow skins, which make up at least three-fourths of the supply of local rawhides, has hit hard the ... Read more

Buriganga Clean Up Polluters must pay Seminar seeks integrated approach for river drive The government must make the polluters pay for cleaning up the river Buriganga and undertake an integrated and scientific approach to this end, demanded leading environmental activists and experts at a seminar in the city yesterday.

The melting brass glows in the dimly lit workshop where a coal furnace rages at around 900 degrees Celsius. By the fire, a master carefully casts molten brass into an earthen mould. As soon as the molten metal touches the mould, it ignites with a burst of flame burning a layer of soil and burnt ... Read more