Gas crisis: long queue in filling stations as supplies fall short
Long queues of vehicles have been seen waiting outside compressed natural gas (CNG) filling stations in different areas of the capital, including Moghbazar, Mohakhali, and Rampura for the past month. CNG-powered autorickshaws and private cars are taking the biggest hit as, even after long waits, they have to leave the filling station with their cylinders half empty. We have to come to the filling station [and are in] a serial for hours. My car can carry gas worth Tk 300. But the filling stations are offering gas worth only Tk 100-120.
Source:bd News24
April 30, 2025 05:18 UTC
14 dead as fire breaks out at Kolkata hotel
At least 14 people have died in a fire at a hotel in central Kolkata of the Indian state of West Bengal. The fire has been brought under control, NDTV reports citing Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Kumar Verma. He called for "stricter monitoring" of fire safety measures to prevent such tragic incidents in the future. Reacting to the incident, West Bengal Congress president Subhankar Sarkar also slammed the Kolkata Corporation. "This is a tragic incident.
Source:bd News24
April 30, 2025 04:58 UTC
Blaze in hotel in India's Kolkata kills 14
Firefighters douse the flames as people stand on parapets to escape the fire at Rituraj Hotel in Kolkata. Source: The Indian ExpressFirefighters douse the flames as people stand on parapets to escape the fire at Rituraj Hotel in Kolkata. Source: The Indian ExpressAt least 14 people, including two children, died in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata late on Tuesday when a fire blazed through a six-storey hotel in a congested neighbourhood, authorities said. The fire was reported around 8:15pm (1445 GMT) and was first detected in a room close to the kitchen on the first floor of the Rituraj Hotel, police sources said. Many guests of the hotel managed to escape on time but one person jumped from the roof out of fear and died, Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim told reporters.
Source:bd News24
April 30, 2025 04:28 UTC
Pakistan says intelligence suggests Indian military action likely soon
REUTERS/Pawan KumarPakistan said on Wednesday it has "credible intelligence" that India intends to launch military action soon, as tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours escalate following a deadly attack on tourists in Indian Kashmir. Modi has told his military chiefs they have the freedom to decide the country's response to the Pahalgam attack, another government source said. The Pakistani military did not respond to a request for comment. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to speak soon with his counterparts in India and Pakistan. Britain has called for calm between its Indian and Pakistani communities, and advised against all travel to Jammu and Kashmir, with exceptions.
Source:bd News24
April 30, 2025 04:14 UTC
Two accused men escape from Chattogram court
Two accused men have escaped while being transferred back to prison following a court appearance in Chattogram. According to police, the incident occurred on Tuesday outside the holding cell on the ground floor of the district court building. Police said the two men had been brought from jail to the court earlier that day. After their hearings, they were placed in the holding cell, from where they managed to flee. Md Russell, additional superintendent of Police (DB and Media) for Chattogram, told bdnews24.com that a search operation is underway and the matter is being thoroughly investigated.
Source:bd News24
April 30, 2025 00:09 UTC
Reforms a ‘disappointment’ for police as ‘fear’ looms over taking effective action
Yet beneath the surface, morale remains bruised as frustrations over stalled reforms persist, compounded by a lingering "fear" of taking decisive action in incidents involving political, religious groups, or student bodies. A crippling "fear" has gripped the police force, fuelled by the arrests of officers accused of killings during the mass uprising. They say the “misdeeds” of their past weigh heavily on them as they look forward to a fresh political rule. Referring to the long-pending proposal from the Police Headquarters for an independent police commission, he said the Police Reform Commission had yet to provide any structural framework. The Police Reform Commission also collected public views while drafting its recommendations.
Source:bd News24
April 29, 2025 22:20 UTC
Short of supplies, Gaza's vital community kitchens may soon shut, halt free meals
But finding food may be about to get even tougher: Gaza's community kitchens -- lifelines for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians after 18 months of war -- may soon have no more meals to provide. At the Al-Salam Oriental Food community kitchen in Gaza City, Salah Abu Haseera offers what he fears could be one of the last meals for the 20,000 people he and his colleagues serve daily. Community kitchens vary from one-room businesses to regular restaurants. "We have 70-80 community kitchens still working in Gaza...In four to five days, these community kitchens will close their doors," Amjad Shawa, the director of the Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations Network (PNGO) in Gaza, told Reuters. Shawa put the number of operational community kitchens in Gaza before the crossings closed at around 170.
Source:bd News24
April 29, 2025 18:31 UTC
ACC to seek Interpol’s assistance to bring members of Sheikh family back to Bangladesh
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has said it will move to issue arrest warrants through Interpol to bring back to Bangladesh deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and seven members of her family accused in a corruption case over land allocation. They face charges involving the allocation of plots in the Purbachal project of Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK), according to bdnews24.com. In addition to Hasina, her son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, daughter Saima Wazed Putul, sister Sheikh Rehana, nephew Radwan Mujib Siddique, nieces Tulip Siddique and Azmina Siddique Ruponti are among the accused. Bangladesh has requested India to return Hasina under the existing extradition treaty, but there has been no official response. 27 of the Purbachal New Town project.
Source:bd News24
April 29, 2025 17:37 UTC
Modi grants Indian military ‘full freedom’ to respond to Kashmir terror attack
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given the armed forces “full operational freedom” to decide how and when to respond to the recent terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam. The Indian broadcaster said the prime minister held a high-level meeting at his residence on Tuesday with Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, and the chiefs of the three armed forces. In response, Pakistan cancelled visas for Indian nationals and placed multiple bilateral agreements, including the Simla Agreement, on hold. A top Pakistani defence official Khawaja Muhammad Asif warned the country’s media that the coming days were “crucial”, further increasing tensions. In his public comments, Prime Minister Modi vowed that India would not allow “terrorism’s evil agenda” to succeed.
Source:bd News24
April 29, 2025 17:01 UTC
‘Nearly 500,000 children in Bangladesh miss vaccination doses’
In cities, 79 per cent of children received all doses while 2.4 per cent were not administered a single dose and 9.8 per cent missed at least one. In rural areas, 85 per cent of children received full immunisation. The statement noted that despite improvements in immunisation coverage, the issue of nearly 500,000 children missing routine vaccinations is “concerning”. UNICEF’s OIC Representative in Bangladesh Stanley Gwavuya urgent steps are needed to reach every child and woman in remote and impoverished urban areas. UNICEF will continue its support to Bangladesh immunisation programme to reach the last mile through the provision of technical support to planning, supply chain, cold chain, digital innovations and demand generation, he added.
Source:bd News24
April 29, 2025 15:47 UTC
Spain, Portugal switch back on, seek answers after biggest ever blackout
A worker assists a customer with a torch at a supermarket during a power outage which hit large parts of Spain, in Barcelona, Spain Apr 28, 2025. REUTERS/Nacho DoceA worker assists a customer with a torch at a supermarket during a power outage which hit large parts of Spain, in Barcelona, Spain Apr 28, 2025. The sudden outage had seen the equivalent of 60% of demand in Spain drop in five seconds around midday on Monday. Spain is one of Europe's biggest producers of renewable energy, and the blackout sparked debate about whether the volatility of supply from solar or wind made its power systems more vulnerable. He said demand at the time of the blackout was relatively low and that there was ample supply.
Source:bd News24
April 29, 2025 04:07 UTC
Misunderstandings are creating a bottleneck for better relations with India, says BNP's Mirza Fakhrul
Misunderstandings are creating a bottleneck for better relations with India, says BNP's Mirza FakhrulBNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has said the problems with India are created by India itself by providing shelter to the deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and other Awami League leaders. On differences with Jamaat and NCP over reforms, Fakhrul said: “The political parties will define their different opinions, and that's democracy basically. According to him, the real problem lies not within student politics itself, but in the system that has allowed these issues to fester. “If there were fair and healthy student politics in the universities, it would foster the emergence of strong leadership.”“This happened in the past when we were students; student politics was active, and leaders emerged from it. “It’s not student politics that’s to blame — it’s the nature of governance and the government's attitude.
Source:bd News24
April 28, 2025 14:12 UTC
Rain to continue until Friday: Met office
While a persistent heatwave continues to blanket much of the country, rainfall has started to make its way across Dhaka and several other areas, providing temporary relief from the sweltering conditions. The Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) forecasts that this trend will last through Friday, offering hope for cooler days ahead, reports bdnews24.com. “There is rain, more or less, across most parts of the country,” he added. “There will not be much rain in Dhaka, it will remain like this. Until 6am on Monday, the highest recorded rainfall was 41mm in Rangpur and Panchagarh’s Tetulia.
Source:bd News24
April 28, 2025 13:56 UTC
Putin announces May 8-10 ceasefire, Ukraine wants truce now
Police officers inspect the site of a building hit by a Russian ballistic missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine Apr 24, 2025. REUTERS/Valentyn OgirenkoPolice officers inspect the site of a building hit by a Russian ballistic missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine Apr 24, 2025. The White House said President Donald Trump wanted a permanent ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. Russia believes that the Ukrainian side should follow this example," the Kremlin said in a statement on the May 8-10 ceasefire. Russia accuses Ukraine of being unwilling to make any concessions and of seeking a ceasefire only on its own terms.
Source:bd News24
April 28, 2025 13:28 UTC
India bans 16 Pakistani YouTube channels including Dawn, warns BBC
India has banned 16 Pakistani YouTube channels, accusing them of spreading inflammatory and divisive content following the militant attack in Kashmir. The banned channels include major Pakistani news outlets such as Dawn, Samaa TV, and ARY News, along with individual channels operated by journalists Irshad Bhatti, Asma Shirazi, Umar Cheema, and Muneeb Farooq. According to NDTV, the banned channels were allegedly promoting misinformation, false narratives against India and its law enforcing agencies. Along with Pakistani news outlets, the Indian government has expressed strong objections to the BBC over a headline regarding the visa suspension, reported NDTV. According to NDTV, Indian officials have claimed the headline misrepresented the incident and implied India is responsible for the attack.
Source:bd News24
April 28, 2025 12:04 UTC