News Brief

       President Md. Abdul Hamid has urged members of Buddhists Religious Welfare Trust to appropriately play their role in further strengthening country’s existing communal harmony. The President made the call as a 10-member delegation of the Buddhists Welfare Trust paid a courtesy call on the President at Bangabhaban in Dhaka yesterday. Referring to his recent visit to Nepal the President said, Nepal government has allocated a plot of land at Lumbini in Nepal where Bangladesh will construct a Buddhist temple. The members of the Board of Trustee also informed the President about their overall activities of the Buddhist community inside the country as well as abroad. Meanwhile, the President yesterday gave his assent to three bills passed in the fifth session of the parliament. The bills are; Bangladesh Sugar Crop Research Institute Bill-2019, Bangladesh Flag Vessels (Protection) Bill-2019 and Bangladesh Industrial Technical Assistance Centre (BITAC) Bill-2019.

            Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will return home tonight wrapping up her four-day official visit to the United Arab Emirates.  An Emirates flight carrying the Prime Minister is scheduled to reach Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka at 11pm Bangladesh time. The Prime Minister while addressing a reception arranged in her of honour by the Bangladesh Embassy at Shangri-La Hotel in Abu Dhabi on Sunday noted that Bangladesh offered the most liberal investment policy in South Asia and the UAE investors may invest in many potential sectors of the country. Stating that there remains a growing need of gas and electricity in Bangladesh owing to rapid industrialization Sheikh Hasina said, energy related cooperation with the UAE would greatly facilitate our industrialization process.

            Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury left Dhaka yesterday for Cambodia to attend Asia Pacific Summit -2019. The four-day summit will be held in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia on November 18-21. The Speaker will return home on November 21.

            Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has urged the authorities concerned not to be aggressive in enforcing the Road Transport Act-2018. The Minister gave the directive while talking to a press conference at his ministry in Dhaka yesterday. The Minister said, realising the money as penalty from the traffic rules violators is not the main objective of the new transport law, but bringing discipline on roads is the main aim of the law and all should abide by the law. Mobile courts are conducting drives in implementing the new transport act, he added.

            Information Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud termed as hollow a BNP letter sent to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina over her recent India tour, saying it reflected the party’s attempt to mislead the people or deliberate lapses on their part in comprehending issues. The Minister said this while talking to newsman at his Ministry in Dhaka yesterday. The Minister blamed BNP for failing to understand that no new agreement was signed with India other than a deal on opening the branch of an Indian bank in Dhaka.

            Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun said, the government as per the election manifesto will create around 1.21 crore employment opportunities within the five years. The Minister said this while speaking at a views exchanging meeting with the local entrepreneurs after visiting the  BSCIC Industrial City in Kushtia yesterday.

            State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam while speaking at a roundtable in the capital yesterday said, legal moves in The Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) and International Criminal Court (ICC) over the Rohingya genocide would mount an expected pressure on Myanmar. He simultaneously expected the development to pave ways of safe return of the tens of thousands of Rohingyas. The State Minister said, the ICC and ICJ member countries those are still supporting Myanmar on Rohingya issue will also be in pressure as the international legal process over human rights violation against Myanmar has started. Meanwhile, Judges of the ICC authorised prosecutors last week to investigate crimes committed against the Rohingyas in Myanmar.

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            The countdown for the observance of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s birth centenary will begin on January 10 next and display boards will be set up in 53 districts for the countdown. The decision was taken at a preparatory meeting in Dhaka yesterday. State Minister for Public Administration Farhad Hossain attended the meeting with the ministry’s Secretary Faiz Ahmed in the chair.

            Information Secretary Abdul Malek while addressing a programme titled ‘Shoto Konthe Egiye Jaoyar Gaan’ jointly arranged by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Research Centre of the UK and ATN Bangla at a auditorium in East London recently said, under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh is moving forward in irresistible way keeping pace with tremendous progress around the world. Bangladesh sets a unique example in the world for economic growth, women empowerment, poverty alleviation, education and food production, he added.

            Deputy Minister for Education Mohibul Hassan Chowdhoury while speaking at a press conference on the overall situation of BUET in Dhaka yesterday said, steps will be taken against those out to create stalemate in the university. He said, none has rights to keep stopped the academic activities of the university which is run with public money. If there is any logical demand, that should be placed but none has rights to create hindrance to academic activities of the students, he added. Terming the BUET student Abrar Fahad killing as tragic incident, Mohibul Hassan said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the Education Ministry are very careful so that the evidences of the murder cannot be destroyed.

            Commerce Secretary Md Zafar Uddin talking to reporters at the Secretariat yesterday assured that the onion market will soon become stable thanks to effective measures taken by the government. He said, legal steps have been taken against 2,500 people for manipulating onion market

            At least seven civilians including a Bangladesh national were killed and 30 injured in an air strike yesterday that hit a biscuit factory in the southern Tripoli in Libya. A number of Bangladeshis are among the people injured in the incident.

            Two probe committees have been formed over the Sunday's gas pipeline explosion in Chittagong's Patharghata area, which left seven people dead and at least fifteen others injured. The committees were formed by Chittagong District Administration and Chittagong Metropolitan Police yesterday.

            The NBR earned over Tk 3.11 billion in taxes yesterday, the fifth day of the ongoing countrywide income tax fair. With this, NBR earned over Tk 16.58 billion as tax from the ongoing countrywide income tax fair against the target of Tk 30 billion.

            The number of Bangladeshi students studying in the USA reached all time high as it increased to 8,249 during the 2018/19 academic year reflecting a 10 per cent rise compared to the last academic year. According to the 2019 ‘Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange’, the number is an all-time high for Bangladeshi students in the USA that is more than tripling since 2009, a press release issued by the US embassy said yesterday.

Surath Kumar Sarker

Principal Information Officer

Phone -9546091