Chiefs of three services call on PMChief of Army Staff General Waker-Uz-Zaman, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral M Nazmul Hassan and Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan met with the Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at his Cabinet Division office in the Bangladesh Secretariat. Photo : PIDDHAKA, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS) - Chiefs of the three services today paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. Chief of Army Staff General Waker-Uz-Zaman, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral M Nazmul Hassan and Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan met the Prime Minister at his Cabinet Division office in the Bangladesh Secretariat here this morning. Prime Minister’s Additional Press Secretary Atiqur Rahman Rumon confirmed the matter. Earlier, on his arrival at his Cabinet Division Office, Tarique Rahman was welcomed by the Cabinet Secretary Dr Nasimul Ghani and Principal Secretary ABM Abdus Sattar.

Anduril was rewarded through the One Big Beautiful Bill with a monopoly on border surveillance towers, to the tune of $6 billion. Experts in government surveillance have consistently noted that surveillance towers enrich contractors and deliver little true security, instead increasing the burden on taxpayers and accelerating human rights violations. This Thursday, Feb. 19, Cornell Career Services has invited Anduril to our campus. Students have passed Assembly resolutions and marched across campus with a clear message to our university administrators: Stop all recruitment for ICE and its collaborators. Adriana Vink Adriana Vink '27 is an Opinion Columnist and a student in Cornell's School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

Photo : BSSRANGPUR, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS) - At an awards ceremony, speakers called for astronger unity among the youth against corruption, so that they are inspiredto become patriotic citizens with human values to build a corruption-free,clean future nation. They also emphasized on including separate chapters in the curriculum andorganizing debates and other extracurricular competitions to inspire youngstudents to prevent corruption and develop their anti-corruption mindset. The District Corruption Prevention Committee (CPC) organised the year-longcompetitions in three categories for the primary and secondary level studentswith the assistance of Rangpur District Combined Office of Anti CorruptionCommission (ACC). The male and female students of the city's ten reputed educationalinstitutions, including Rangpur Cantonment Public School and College, ZillaSchool, Rangpur Police Lines School and College, Shishu Niketan High School,Rangpur Government Girls High School, Rangpur Collectorate School andCollege, Lions School and College, RCCI School and College, Samaj KalyanBidya Bithi Girls' School & College and Salema Girls High School participatedin the competitions. "Corruption cannot be prevented through lawmaking alone," he advised,suggesting an effective social movement involving every citizen to eradicatecorruption from every level of society.

Every second spent along the route is a risk for passenger Esneyder Gomez, a46-year-old Indigenous candidate hoping to win election to Colombia'sCongress on March 8. AFP recently followed Gomez as he trudged village to village along muddyroads, trying to win the votes of Indigenous communities. "The risk is constant," Gomez says, noting wryly that in the decade-and-a-half since Colombia's biggest armed groups signed a peace deal, peace remainselusive. Along the road, armed rebels man checkpoints where travellers must identifythemselves. The area will be a test of whether Colombia's elections can be free, fair andsafe across the whole country.

NEW DELHI, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Artificial intelligence must beaccessible and inclusive, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told worldleaders and tech CEOs on Thursday, at a summit focused on the fast-evolvingtechnology. The AI Impact Summit is the fourth annual international gathering to discusshow to handle it, following previous meetings in Paris, Seoul and Britain. - 'Must belong to everyone' -This year's AI summit -- the largest yet -- has been attended by tens ofthousands of people from across the sector, including dozens of world leadersand ministers. On Thursday, ChatGPT maker OpenAI and Indian IT giant Tata ConsultancyServices (TCS) announced a plan to build hyperscale AI data centre capacityin the South Asian country. AI data centres are under construction worldwide on a massive scale, ascompanies race to develop super-intelligent systems.

State Minister for Fisheries and Livestock, Agriculture and Food Sultan Salahuddin Tuku today spoke as chief guest at the inaugural ceremony of the subsidised sale during Ramadan at the Livestock Research Institute in Mohakhali. Photo : BSSDHAKA, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS) - State Minister for Fisheries and Livestock, Agriculture and Food Sultan Salahuddin Tuku today said the government will supply protein-rich food items - milk, eggs, meat, and fish - at subsidised prices to low-income families during the holy month of Ramadan. He said the initiative reflects the government's commitment to public welfare under the leadership of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. Sultan Salahuddin Tuku also said initiatives will be taken to introduce family cards, agriculture cards and health cards to implement the government's electoral commitments. BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia endured suffering in establishing democracy and people's rights but did not bow down to injustice, he mentioned.

NEW DELHI, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - French President Emmanuel Macron told a global artificial intelligence summit in India on Thursday he was determined to ensure safe oversight of the fast-evolving technology. "We are determined to continue to shape the rules of the game... with our allies such as India," Macron said in New Delhi. At last year's AI summit in Paris, US Vice President JD Vance had warned against "excessive regulation" that "could kill a transformative sector". Under EU laws, regulators can ban AI systems deemed to pose "unacceptable risks" to society, such as identifying people in real time using cameras in public spaces. "One of our G7 priorities will be, as well, children's protection against AI and digital abuse," Macron said Thursday.

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Dario Amodei, head of US artificial intelligence startup Anthropic, has warned that the technology could wipe out half of all entry-level white-collar roles. - Bad robots -The Delhi summit is the fourth in a series of international AI meetings. The International Energy Agency projects that electricity consumption from data centres will double by 2030, fuelled by the AI boom. In 2024, data centres accounted for an estimated 1.5 percent of global electricity consumption, it says. The European Union's Artificial Intelligence Act allows regulators to ban AI systems deemed to pose "unacceptable risks" to society.

Photo : BSSRAJSHAHI, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS) - United efforts of all the government and non-government organizations are crucial to adapt to climate change in the region, particularly the water-stressed Barind area. Climate change is posing serious threats to agriculture, fisheries, livestock, and the livelihoods of marginalized communities. If the government and the people work together, it is possible to make the Barind region climate-resilient. Speakers noted that the drought situation in the Barind region is intensifying day by day, severely affecting food production and livelihoods. They highlighted sustainable agricultural practices, water conservation, and the use of local knowledge as effective ways to address the impacts of climate change.

Photo : CollectedNARAIL, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS) - the 123th birth anniversary of ‘Ekushey Padak’ winning renowned folk singer Bijoy Sarkar will be celebrated here tomorrow (Friday) in a befitting manner. A day-long programme has been chalked out to mark the birth anniversary of the folk singer on his birth place Dumdi village under Bashgram union in the district. "The programmes include placing flower wreaths at the singer's portrait and cultural show featuring rendition of Sarkar's songs. Leading a very simple life, the selfless singer spent most of his life completely engrossed in ‘Harmonium’, ‘Dram’, ‘Khol’ and ‘Banshi’ (Flute). Bijoy Sarkar, a legendary singer of Bangladesh awarded ‘Ekushey Padak’ in 2013.

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Photo : BSSRAJSHAHI, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS) - To make healthcare services more accessible, faster, and modern for teachers, students, and officers and staff, a new medical automation software and online portal has been launched at the Medical Centre of University of Rajshahi. Through this new service, users can now book doctors' appointments online, view physicians' schedules, and collect reports of various pathological tests. The Vice-Chancellor said that automation would play an important role in making the Medical Centre's services more user-friendly and effective, ensuring faster healthcare delivery. Under the supervision of the ICT Centre, a team of students from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering developed the software. In addition, the facility to view and download pathological reports online will significantly reduce the need for in-person visits.

Foreign minister Dr. Khalilur Rahman. File photoDHAKA, Feb 19, 2026 (BSS) - Nepalese foreign minister Bala Nanda Sharma congratulated his Bangladeshi counterpart Dr. Khalilur Rahman on his appointment and held bilateral talks in Dhaka, focusing on expanding cooperation in trade, energy, connectivity and tourism. The congratulatory message was conveyed during a meeting with foreign minister Rahman held at the state guest house Padma in the capital last evening. Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam, Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam and Director General Israt Jahan were present at the meeting. The Nepalese Foreign Minister was accompanied by Nepal Ambassador to Bangladesh Ghanshyam Bhandari, among others.

The DroneGun can then use directional concentrated radio wave energy to disrupt the control, navigation and video of multiple drones simultaneously. -DroneShield is now Australia's highest-valued defence firm, with a market cap of AUD$3.01 billion ($2.13 billion). - Year of the drone -And he points to the growing use of drones by drug cartels in South and Central America. Australian financial firm Bell Potter has declared 2026 to be the "Year of the Drone" in a bullish note backing DroneShield. The real challenge for firms like DroneShield is keeping up with this "moment of disruption" in warfare, he said.