Dhaka, May 16 (UNB) – Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has invited Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to attend the 14th Islamic Summit of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to be held at Makkah at the end of Ramadan.…
Year: 2019
Demo in Dhaka demand fair prices for farmers
Dhaka, May 16 (UNB) – Speakers at a human-chain programme here on Thursday urged the government to take steps enabling famers to get the fair prices of their produces as they are struggling with low prices. Students of Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural…
Minimum Fitra fixed at Tk 70
Dhaka, May 16 (UNB) – This year’s minimum Fitra has been fixed at Tk 70 per person. The maximum Fitra has been set at Tk 1,980, said Mohammad Nizam Udin, assistant director of Islamic Foundation. The Islamic Foundation fixed the…
UNDP, Norway sign deal to promote harmony in Cox’s Bazar
Dhaka, May 16 (UNB) – The Norwegian government on Thursday signed an agreement with UNDP for the period 2019-2021 showing its strong commitment to foster peace and harmony in Rohingya camps and host communities in Cox’s Bazar district. Sidsel Bleken,…
Beximco launches satellte tv system AKASH DTH
Dhaka, May 16 (UNB)- Beximco Communications Limited has launched a world standard Direct to Home (DTH) service in the country under the brand name- ‘AKASH’ on Thursday. AKASH, is the first and only legal DTH operator in the country aiming…
Rethinking Europe—a challenge for trade unions
In our ‘Europe2025’ series, setting the agenda for the EU in the new term following the coming elections, Peter Scherrer outlines a project for rethinking Europe from a trade-union perspective. Nearly 700 delegates will be debating the future of our continent at…
Third reference unit of Rooppur NPP connects to Russian grid
Unit-2 of the Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Project-2 for the first time supplied electricity to grid recently. The 3+ generation VVER-1200 power unit was synchronized with the grid and achieved the capacity of 240 megawatts. The unit is considered to be…
Mexico City extends pollution alert, cancels school
Mexico City declared an air pollution alert for the second straight day Wednesday, urging people to stay indoors, canceling school and moving the semi-finals of the first-division football league to another city. The capital, whose sprawling metropolitan area is home…
Smoking kicking despite bans in greece
When George Balafoutis returned home from New York two years ago, he was shocked to see what little impact nearly a decade of anti-smoking laws had made on stubbing out Greece’s favourite guilty pleasure. It was then that Balafoutis, now…
Chinese heartthrob Hu goes to dark side in Cannes debut
Popular Chinese actor Hu Ge, whose suave looks made him the star of small screen imperial dramas, has tapped into a different side of himself for “Wild Goose Lake”, a gritty gangster flick competing for the top prize at the…
Jeff Koons work sells for $91.1 million, record for living artist
A sculpture by American artist Jeff Koons sold on Wednesday for $91.1 million at an auction organized by Christie’s in New York — a record price for a living artist. “Rabbit”, a stainless steel casting of an inflatable rabbit, overtook…
Nazrul singer Khalid Hossain ‘critically ill’
Nazrul Sangeet singer and researcher Khalid Hossain has fallen ‘critically ill’ and is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Dhaka. His sister Mahmuda Hossain told bdnews24.com today that the artiste was admitted to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases and…
River as a companion: Titash ekti nadir naam – II
May 16, 2019 SANDRP Just as all festivities of a fisherfolk life are connected to the river, their dreams and nightmares are riverine too. “For several days I’ve been noticing something different in the river’s flow pattern-familiar calculation just don’t…
A step forward in UN’s efforts against rape as weapon of war
By Rene Wadlow On Tuesday, 23 April 2019, the United Nations Security Council voted resolution N° 2467 concerning the use of rape as a weapon in times of armed conflict. This resolution builds on an earlier resolution of 24 June…
High Court tells of negligence in making Dhaka City livable
Dhaka, May 15 (UNB) – Apparently expressing its displeasure over air pollution, mosquito menace and repeated digging of roads in the capital, the High Court on Wednesday said two city corporations have negligence to make Dhaka as a liveable city.…
Fans set police car on fire ahead of Italian cup final
Rome, May 16 (AP/UNB) — A police car was set on fire as Lazio fans clashed with local authorities near the Stadio Olimpico before the Italian Cup final on Wednesday. Italian national news agency Ansa reported that the two policemen…
Pursue basin-wide plan for Ganges: IFC leaders on Farakka Long March Day
Dhaka, May 15 2019 – An appeal has been made to the government of Bangladesh and all others concerned to start the process of renewal of the Ganges Water Treaty for a basin-wide integrated regional management of the river to…
Eiffel Tower’s 130th birthday: Laser show for Iron Lady
Paris, May 16 (AP/UNB) — Paris wished the Eiffel Tower a happy birthday Wednesday with an elaborate nighttime laser show retracing the monument’s 130-year history. Earlier in the day, the monument invited 1,300 children to a giant “snack time” beneath…
Spotlighting the ‘abilities’ in ‘disabilities’
UNITED NATIONS, May 14 2019 (IPS) – The power of sport can help make global sustainable development a reality, and such power transcends cultural, linguistic and even physical barriers. In recent years, disabled athletes have gained greater visibility—an essential step in…
Unlocking the power of women
NEW YORK, May 15 2019 (IPS) – This June, thousands will flock to Vancouver for a global dialogue on how to accelerate progress for girls and women under the banner of power, progress and change. At the Women Deliver 2019 Conference, the…
Mystery of the death of widow, her daughter and son
Dhaka, May 15 – The doctor in charge of conducting post mortem on the three mysterious dead bodies in the capital’s Uttarkhan area said there might be cases of both murder and suicide in the incident. Dr Sohail Mahmud, the…
BD Standards Institution cancels licence of 25 food products
Dhaka, May 15 -The Bangladesh Standard and Testing Institution (BSTI) pn Wednesday cancelled and suspended licenses of a total of 25 products of 22 companies for their failure to come up with answers against the show cause notices served by…
Food import bill to fall, but poorest unlikely to benefit
Geneva, May (Kanaga Raja) – The global food import bill is set to decline by 2.5 percent in 2019 to USD 1.472 trillion, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has projected. In its latest Food Outlook…
UN chief outlines ‘intertwined challenges’ of climate change
Visiting Fiji for the first time as Secretary-General, António Guterres outlined two “fundamental challenges” facing leaders attending the Pacific Islands Forum on Tuesday, namely climate change and the world’s rising ocean, which threatens to submerge low-lying nations. “The Pacific region…
39th National Junior (U-20) Chess begins Wednesday
Dhaka – The Walton 39th National Junior (Under-20) Chess Championships (Open and Girls) began at the Chess Federation hall-room of National Sports Council here on Wednesday. Dr Md Jafar Uddin, Secretary in Charge of Youth and Sports Ministry inaugurated the…
BFF celebrates AFC Grassroots Football Day
Dhaka – Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) celebrated the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Grassroots Football Day on Wednesday at BFF artificial turf in Motijheel area of the capital. Some 185 budding footballers including 158 under-12 boys and 27 under-13 girls took…
Abu Jayed bags 5 wkts as Ireland post 292 against Tigers
Dhaka – In the last league stage match of the ongoing Tri-Nation Series, hosts Ireland posted a big total of 292 for 8 in 50 overs against finalist Bangladesh at Castle Avenue, Dublin on Wednesday. Abu Jayed Rahi, the right-arm…
BD Parliament caucus on child rights formed
Dhaka, May 15 (UNB) – A parliamentary caucus on child rights was constituted with Deputy Speaker Fazle Rabbi Miah and Shamsul Haque Tuku, MP as its chief adviser and president respectively on Wednesday. The parliamentary caucus was formed at a…
Chittagong ship-breaking yard worker burnt to death
Chattogram, May 15 (UNB) – A worker at a ship-breaking yard was burnt to death and five others sustained injuries while dismantling a ship in Sitakunda upazila on Wednesday. The deceased was identified as Mohamamd Rubel, a cutting worker of…
Fakhrul off to Bangkok for medical treatment
Dhaka, May 15 (UNB) – BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday went to Bangkok for medical treatment. Fakhrul along with his wife Rahat Ara Begum left Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport for the Thai capital by a flight…