Financial constraints keep many plants shut; PDB seeks to buy offshore gas from Santos Although the extra need for power for Boro season irrigation is over, the level of load shedding remains unchanged due to the authorities’ financial inability to operate many idle rental power plants. A top official of the Power Development Board (PDB) ... Read more
dhaka
HC for action against errant 3-wheelers
Private Yet Not Private HC for action against errant 3-wheelers The High Court (HC) yesterday asked the government to explain in three weeks why it should not be directed to take action against “private” CNG-run three-wheelers illegally operating on a commercial basis in and around the capital. Issuing a suo moto rule, the HC asked ... Read more
Ashulia calm
Factories resume production The Ashulia industrial belt on the outskirts of the capital returned to normal yesterday after a two-day shutdown for violence over a rumour of a garment worker’s death. Workers of all readymade garment factories in the area joined work yesterday morning. During the agitation programmes on Saturday and Sunday, workers vandalised over
10-month export growth slumps to 8.41pc
The country’s export growth in first 10 months of the current fiscal year slumped to 8.41 per cent compared with the same period of the last fiscal year when the export growth was 40 per cent year-on-year. Officials of Export Promotion Bureau said that the economic crisis in Europe and sluggish market in the US ... Read more
RMG workers on rampage
100 injured, 4,500 Ashulia workers sued At least 100 people were injured and more than 300 apparel factories were closed for the day as garment workers fought pitched battles with the police at Ashulia on the outskirts of the capital for the second consecutive day on Sunday. More than 20 factories were vandalised during the ... Read more
Igniting the imagination
Debashis Pal’s solo ceramic exhibition at Galleri Kaya If we look at our history, we detect the use of ceramic and terracotta. Clay has been used in various artistic purposes in our country. It has become popular from ancient times, as the material has been easily found in our surrounding. Flexibility of clay makes it ... Read more
Fatema moves audience with Nazrul songs
It was a perfect beginning of a Nazrul Geeti evening as noted singer Fatema Tuz Zohra with her mellifluous voice began to render raga based Sandhya godhuli logoney narrating the exquisiteness of a beautiful evening, two distinctive features of Nazrul songs. The Nazrul devotee paid a tribute to the great bard by singing various styled Nazrul ... Read more
Private yet up for hiring
Unscrupulous operators of CNG three-wheelers find a way as govt not registering commercial ones since 2004; bribery keeps lawmen’s eyes shut A large number of private CNG-run three-wheelers ply the city streets as vehicles for hire, flouting their registration rules. With the word “private” inscribed on their bodies, the grey vehicles wait at bus stops ... Read more
100 hurt as police, apparel workers clash at Ashulia
At least 100 people were injured, more than 200 apparel factories closed for the day and more than 50 factories were vandalised as the police and the workers clashed at Ashulia of Savar on the outskirts of the capital on Saturday. Kamrun Nahar, 30, an operator who worked at an Opex Group factory, was run ... Read more
Rash driving puts people’s lives in peril
Nine people are killed daily Reckless driving by a legion of greenhorn drivers has shot up the number of road accidents in the country, but due to lack of enforcement of rules and no real punishment for killing people on the roads, careless drivers are still at large on the roads, experts observed. Data from the ... Read more
Private sector women get less maternity leave
Discrimination in maternity leave entitlement for working women resulting from inconsistencies between the Labour Act 2006 and the amended Bangladesh Service Rules is a cause of significant concern, according to working women and lawyers. Non-implementation of the existing laws particularly related to maternity leave and lack
Hit hard by summer heat
Frequent power cuts make Dhaka life all the more difficult The scorching heat, high humidity, frequent power cuts and perennial water crisis have made life miserable in the capital in the last few days. The situation is also contributing to the spike in diarrhoea cases. More than 500 people are getting admitted to the International ... Read more
Emon-Monalisa in new TVC
Popular TV models and actors of present time Emon and Monalisa have worked together in a private mobile phone operator company’s television commercial recently. The TVC was directed by reputed TVC maker Amitav Reza. Emon and Monalisa’s works got huge popularity from the viewers earlier. Lastly they performed together in a television commercial of a product of ... Read more
Danger lurks on roads
Wild driving inspired by poor enforcement of traffic rules and soft penalty have made the highways across the country and the streets of the capital death traps. Fifteen people died in road accidents across the country yesterday alone. Last year, the number of road casualty in the country was 2,467 while the number of the
Tremor jolts Bangladesh
A moderate earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale yesterday jolted the capital and other parts of the country. A good number of structures in different areas of the country shook heavily due to the tremor that hit around 6.41pm when people out to the street in panic. However, there was no immediate report of damage or
Call for more allocation for social safety net programmes
Pre-budget discussion Call for more allocation for social safety net programmes Speakers at a pre-budget discussion on Wednesday urged the government to increase the budget allocation to social safety net programmes (SSNP) and ensure that it would be provided to poor people without corruption. They also called upon the government to formulate an integrated national ... Read more
Bottled water safety come into question
Bottled drinking water in Bangladesh is no longer safe as it does not comply with international safety standards, thus becoming a threat to public health. Supply of bottled drinking water is a rapidly growing business in the country. A large number of people have turned to bottling drinking water, reflecting the diminishing confidence of people ... Read more
They beg but don’t like to be called beggars
Title of rehabilitation programme to be changed Beggars in the capital who are being rehabilitated by the government under a social safety net programme will not be identified as beggars. Finance minister AMA Muhith at a meeting yesterday asked the social welfare ministry to change the title of the programme — formerly referred to as ... Read more
Rabindra Fair held
Sadi Muhammad honoured Celebrities of the country participated in the Rabindra Fair organised by private TV channel Channel-i, at its office premises on Tuesday, celebrating the 151st birth anniversary of Bengali literature titan Rabindranath Tagore. This year’s fair was the seventh arrangement of its kind. Eminent artists like Hashem Khan, Biren Shome and Moniruzzaman painted ... Read more
Rajuk razes Wonderland
Rajdhani Unnayan Kartipakhha began an eviction drive on Monday to demolish Wonderland amusement park at Gulshan in the capital. Tearing down the main entrance to the amusement park, Rajuk started the drive, led by magistrate Rokon-ud-Doula, following a court order that declared illegal the lease of the land by the