VIEWPOINT 2: On Independence Day, we could do better
Independence Day is recognized across America as the day to celebrate freedom. On top of that, regulatory “guidance” — bureaucratic circulars, opinions and even blog posts — adds real but less accountable restrictions on our freedom. Free speech is also under attack by the government and in the private sector. Trying to prevail against corporate speech restrictions leads to referencing impenetrable, seemingly arbitrary terms-of-service legalese. Independence Day is a time for celebrating and cherishing our freedoms.
Source:Daily Sun
July 03, 2022 14:27 UTC
Bangladesh’s exports climb to record $52bn in FY22
In the whole financial year, goods worth $52.08 billion were exported from Bangladesh, which is 19.63 percent higher than the target of $43.50 billion. The target was based on the exports of the fiscal year of FY2021-2022, which was $38.75 billion. “The prime minister kept a close watch on the export sector. The overall situation was good in the aftermath of the pandemic, and the government did everything in its power to support the export sector after reopening [of the economy],” he said. According to the minister, the export authorities are planning to set a combined target of $65 billion for the ongoing fiscal year.
Source:bd News24
July 03, 2022 14:11 UTC
Widow, son found dead with throats slit in Narayanganj
Police have recovered the bodies of a woman and her son, presumed murdered, from a home in Narayanganj's Araihazar Upazila, bdnews24.com reports. Razia Sultana Kakoli, a 42-year-old widow, and her 8-year-old son Talha Islam were found dead with their throats slashed on Sunday, according to Araihazar Police Station chief Azizul Haque. After her husband's death, Razia and her son had been living in the upazila's Gopindi area. The two of them had gone to bed the previous night without any incident but in the morning, neighbours found the front door of the house wide open with broken locks, according to Azizul. As there was no response to their calls, neighbours went inside the house and found Razia's body in the middle of her room while her son’s was lying on the bed next to her, he said.
Source:bd News24
July 03, 2022 12:46 UTC
Bangladesh raises LPG prices as taka weakens against dollar
In July, customers will have to pay Tk 104.52 for LPG per kg, including VAT, up from Tk 103.52 in the month of June, according to the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission. For May, the LPG gas price was set at Tk 111.26 per kg. The price of LPG, which is used for cooking, fell by 7 percent in June in accordance with the price decline in international markets. For July, reticulated LPG has been priced at Tk 101.28 per kg, a Tk 1 increase from last month. Autogas, or LPG used in vehicles, will now cost Tk 58.46 per litre at the retail level, up from last month's Tk 57.91 per litre.
Source:bd News24
July 03, 2022 11:48 UTC
Bangladesh logs 1,902 COVID cases, 2 deaths in a day
The death toll from the disease climbed by two in 24 hours to 29,162, according to the latest government data released on Sunday. As many as 12,246 samples were tested across the country, for a positivity rate of 15.53 percent. Among the eight divisions, Dhaka logged the highest number of cases, with 1,605 infections. Another 307 people recovered from the illness nationwide, bringing the total number of recoveries to 1,908,297. Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019.
Source:bd News24
July 03, 2022 11:07 UTC
Bangladeshi woman dies in Saudi Arabia during Hajj trip
A Bangladeshi woman has died in Saudi Arabia during a visit to perform the Hajj pilgrimage. So far, seven men and four women have died in the Gulf kingdom ahead of the holy ritual. As many as 50,367 Bangladeshis are currently in Saudi Arabia for the Hajj, with 3,802 of them travelling under government management and 49,565 under private management. With the Hajj scheduled to begin on Jul 8, Bangladesh has been operating flights to Saudi Arabia since Jun 5. The last Hajj flight will take off on Jul 5, while the return flights will start on Jul 14 and continue until Aug 4.
Source:bd News24
July 03, 2022 08:59 UTC
UN: 60,000 women pregnant in flood-affected regions
An estimated 60,000 women are pregnant in the flood-affected regions of nine northeastern districts, including Sylhet and Sunamganj. UNFPA Representative Kristine Blokhus disclosed the estimates at a press briefing arranged after a UN Joint Mission visited the flood-affected areas of Sylhet and Sunamganj on Saturday. During the recent floods, 177 women delivered children and these women need special care and treatment, she said. Speakers at the press briefing stressed the need for immediate and concerted relief and rehabilitation operations in Sylhet and Sunamganj districts, devastated by the recent floods. Such floods were not experienced in the last 122 years, they said, adding that women and children are the worst sufferers.
Source:Dhaka Tribune
July 03, 2022 06:16 UTC
SC goes into a 17-day vacation on Sunday
The Supreme Court (SC) is going into a 17-day long vacation from Sunday 3 to July 19, leaving nine benches of the High Court to deal with urgent matters. Detailed information regarding the benches is available on the Supreme Court's website.
Source:Dhaka Tribune
July 03, 2022 02:11 UTC
View from Mars Hill: Some celestial fireworks for the July Fourth holiday
Astronomers today refer to it as GK Persei and have debated its true nature since Thomas Anderson discovered it in 1901. As an adult, Anderson spent long hours gazing at the heavens, mastering the night sky. One of these photographs, captured just two days before Anderson’s discovery, showed the object, but about 10,000 times fainter than when Anderson saw it. Cataclysmic variable stars are binary stars consisting of a white dwarf and a secondary star. This blows the accumulated material off into space and can create a display that would be the star of any July 4th fireworks show.
Source:Daily Sun
July 03, 2022 01:10 UTC
Environmentalists push for taxes on plastic sachets in Bangladesh
The Environment and Social Development Organization (ESDO) has urged Bangladesh to take strict regulatory action on the production and use of single-use plastics and, in particular, plastic sachets after a recent ban in India. Bangladesh produces 192,104 tonnes of plastic sachets, also known as mini packs, a year, according to a new report from the environmental group titled "Plastic Sachet: Small Packet with Huge Environmental Destruction" it released on Saturday. In addition, this study says that the country produced a total of 1.06 million tonnes of single-use plastic waste between June 2021 and May 2022. If we don't regulate it, then the outcome will be similar to polythene.”Syed Marghub Murshed, Chairperson of ESDO said, "Plastic mini packets are hazardous to the environment. He requested the government to strictly implement existing regulatory restrictions on the use of single-use plastic products, especially sachets.
Source:bd News24
July 03, 2022 01:09 UTC
Teacher Utpal was the bedrock of his family. His murder leaves them staring into an abyss
On Jun 25, Utpal was attacked by one of his own students at Haji Yunus Ali School and College. "I saw my younger brother at the college on the morning of the incident. We all relied on my younger brother. Utpal had also found work for his eldest brother Ajay Kumar Sarker and fourth brother Ashutosh Sarker at textile mills in Dhaka. One of Utpal's cousins, Sourendranath Sarker, also a teacher by profession, is worried about the future of his family.
Source:bd News24
July 02, 2022 21:28 UTC
One killed, 15 injured in road crash on Padma Bridge
A visitor was killed as a passenger bus hit a microbus near the toll plaza at Zajira point on the Padma Bridge on Saturday. Besides, 15 other microbus passengers were injured in the accident, said Md Sujon, officer-in-charge of Padma Bridge Dakhin Thana. The deceased was identified as Abdul Haque Mollah, 60, hails from Kishoreganj district. According to police, the victim went to see the Padma Bridge on a microbus when the accident occurred around 2:45pm as the microbus overturned on Dhaka-Mawa-Bhanga Expressway near Zajira end. Abdul Haque Mollah died on the spot while the injured people were admitted to Shibchar Upazila Health Complex and Nowdoba Health Centre for treatment.
Source:Dhaka Tribune
July 02, 2022 20:57 UTC