INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(11963, 11963, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">MSI has taken the wraps off the Cyborg 15 AI at CES 2024. MSI has already engraved its name among the greats for manufacturing powerful gaming laptops. The Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK is an effort from MSI to provide a gaming laptop with a standard GPU and chipsets within budget. Does it make it any better to integrate Ai in the features? Let’s find out.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Key Specs and Features of MSI Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Design</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The MSI Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK excels in performance and offers a sleek and functional design. Its translucent black color gives it a modern and professional appearance. With dimensions of 359.36 mm by 250.34 mm by 21.95-22.9mm and weighing just 1.98 kg, it perfectly balances portability and usability. The package includes an MSI Essential Backpack, enhancing its travel-friendliness.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The laptop features a 4-zone RGB gaming keyboard with backlighting, providing both style and functionality. This device has a numeric keypad for convenient data entry. The touchpad is the primary pointing device, but it lacks a dedicated navigation key. Overall, the physical attributes of the Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK&nbsp; contribute to its appeal as a versatile and visually appealing laptop option.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Display</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Cyborg 15 AI offers a good-grade display. With its 16.5-inch FHD LED panel utilising IPS technology, users can enjoy crisp and vibrant visuals with satisfactory color accuracy. The 1920 by 1080 resolution ensures sharp details for work and entertainment purposes. Notably, the display\'s 144Hz refresh rate provides smooth and fluid motion, which is particularly beneficial for gaming and multimedia tasks. While it covers 45% of the NTSC color gamut, it still delivers satisfying color reproduction for everyday uses.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Performance and Hardware</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The MSI Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK boasts an impressive performance thanks to its cutting-edge hardware configuration. Powered by an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, featuring 16 cores and 22 threads, this laptop delivers exceptional speed and multitasking capabilities. With a base frequency of 1.40GHz and a turbo boost reaching up to 4.80GHz, it handles demanding tasks effortlessly. Its 16GB of DDR5 RAM, clocked at 5600 MHz, ensures smooth operation even during intensive workloads.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A1VEK sports a speedy 512GB NVMe PCIe SSD card offering ample space for your files and lightning-fast data access. The Nvidia RTX 4050 graphics card with 6GB of GDDR6 dedicated memory delivers stunning visuals and smooth gameplay for gaming enthusiasts and creative professionals alike. Overall, the MSI Cyborg 15 AI is a powerhouse that excels in performance, making it an excellent choice for users seeking top-tier computing capabilities in a portable package.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ai Features</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The new Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK has tried to organize the laptop\'s overall performance with AI\'s support. The primary functionalities offering AI optimization can be divided into two categories: MSI AI Engine and MSI AI Artist.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The AI engine feature spontaneously optimizes the performance of the chipset, memories, and other parts by the demand of a particular task. AI engine balances performance for tasks that don’t require heavy usage of chipsets and energy. It accelerates the laptop’s performance and picks it up to extreme performance mode during heavy gaming, video rendering, etc.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The MSI Artist is a downloadable software. It comes with an integrated image-generative AI function. Users can get images and graphics from it by prompting in text instructions. One primary difference between the AI Artist and other cloud-based AI software is the AI Artist can be used offline.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Battery and Charging</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The MSI Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK offers reliable performance, power efficiency, and portability. Its 3-cell battery with a capacity of 53.5Wh provides up to 3.5 hours of backup time, ensuring extended usage without frequent recharging.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Its 120W AC adapter ensures quick and efficient charging when needed. This combination of battery life and fast charging capability makes the Cyborg 15 AI suitable for users who require productivity on the go without being tethered to a power outlet for extended periods.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pros and Cons of MSI Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pros</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Fast storage</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Smooth gaming</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Doesn\'t get too hot</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Affordable.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Cons</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Limited 3D performance</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Doesn\'t outperform some comparably priced models.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Price of MSI Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The MSI Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK laptop is available at BDT 189,770 in Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Conclusion</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The MSI Cyborg 15 AI is a high-performance laptop with a sleek design, boasting a good display with a 144Hz refresh rate for smooth visuals. The Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, combined with a powerful graphics card ensures good speed and multitasking capabilities. The AI engine can be a useful feature if a user needs automatic performance optimising capacity.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Despite some minor drawbacks like a grainy webcam and middling display, the Cyborg 15 Ai offers great value for its price. Gamers who prefer a few AI features on their laptop can buy the MSI Cyborg 15 AI A1VEK. If you don’t have a knack for performance-optimizing AI on a laptop, you can check out the other options. According to UNB reports&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"18\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 09:00:36', '2024-04-16 09:00:36'),
(11964, 11964, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">In a new move the Planning Commission seeks to include the goal of building Smart Bangladesh in the government\'s Medium Term Development Plan.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At present, initiatives have been taken to formulate the Ninth Five Year Plan (2026-2030) by the General Economic Department (GED) of the Commission, according to an official document procured by UNB this week.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It said that the possible development philosophies in the Ninth Five Year Plan will be- Implementation of \'Vision 2041\' and construction of \'Smart Bangladesh, successfully addressing the challenges of transition from least developed countries (LDCs), achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Upper Medium income country status by 2031.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The others will be- accelerate growth, strengthen macroeconomic stability, Inflation control, employment generation and poverty alleviation, sustainable use of natural resources and natural disasters and coping with the impact of climate change, ensuring regional balanced development and planned urbanisation, and evelopment of important institutions and establishment of rule of law.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the plan, efforts will be made to implement the promises given in the election manifesto 2024 of Bangladesh Awami League besides incorporating the concept and strategy of building Smart Bangladesh in setting overall and sector-wise development targets, strategies and activities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">These are- keeping prices affordable; ensuring vocational education and employment; Building smart Bangladesh based on modern technology; Increasing efficiency and capacity in the financial sector including banking; making health care affordable for low-income people;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Inclusion of all in the universal pension system; integrated farming systems, mechanisation and with a view to profitable agriculture increased investment in processing; and industries and services by leveraging visible infrastructure and increasing investment expanding the sector.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The document mentioned that current Awami League government has adopted a significant number of development plans in the medium and long term as part of the measures taken with the aim of economic development in the last 15 years (2009-2024).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As a result of the adoption and implementation of all these plans, Bangladesh has now been recognised as a role model for development in the world.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The current Awami League government formulated the \"First Perspective Plan of Bangladesh (2010-2021)\" as a long-term plan to achieve the specific goals of economic and social development of Bangladesh with the aim of \"Vision 2021\" to continue the overall development and progress of the country, one of the goals of which was To promote Bangladesh to an information technology dependent middle income country by 2021.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The government has adopted and successfully implemented the 6th Five Year Plan (2011-2015) and 7th Five Year Plan (2016-2020) as medium term plans to realise the development vision of “Bangladesh First Vision Plan (2010-2021)”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As a result, on July 1, 2015, Bangladesh was upgraded from a low-income country to a lower-middle-income country. An average growth of 7.13 percent was achieved during the 7th Five Year Plan period.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The document said that present government formulated an integrated, centenary master plan, \'Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100\', taking into consideration agriculture, fisheries, industry, forestry, public health, environment and environment etc., to address the impacts of climate change, food security, better water resource management and sustainable development.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The formulation and approval of this master plan in the continuous development journey will be marked as a milestone in the history of development planning of the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The implementation of \'Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100\' has already started. Projects are being taken up and implemented by various ministries/departments in respective fields.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The vision of the \'Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100\' is: \'Building a safe, climate resilient and prosperous delta\'.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The current government has adopted \"Realisation of Vision 2041: Vision Plan of Bangladesh 2021-2041\" to make Vision 2041 a reality with the aim of building Golden Bangla, the dream of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The plan is based on two main objectives, which are: (a) Bangladesh will be a developed country by 2041, with a per capita income of more than 12,500 US dollars at current prices and fully compatible with the digital world; and (b) Bangladesh will be a golden Bengal, where poverty will be a thing of the distant past.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The document stated that the “Vision 2041 or Vision Plan (2021-2041)” will be implemented through a series of four five-year plans, the first of which “8th Five-Year Plan (July 2020-June 2025)” is currently under implementation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In preparing this plan, along with the main goals of Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), fourth industrial revolution, challenges of transition from underdeveloped countries to developing countries have been taken into consideration.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In addition, the 8th Five Year Plan has also recommended some effective strategies to address the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The motto of this plan, formulated with the aim of sustainable development, is \'not leaving anyone behind, but development with everyone\'.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The key themes emphasized in the 8th Five Year Plan are accelerated prosperity and maximum employment generation, inclusive growth, increased productivity and poverty reduction.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In this plan, promotion of labour-intensive, export-oriented manufacturing-based growth, diversification of agriculture, dynamism of cottage, small and medium industries, strengthening of modern service sector, increasing export of non-sector services, acceleration of technology-based enterprises and strengthening of foreign employment are particularly important in this plan. - UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">bnbd24/fas</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 09:25:56', '2024-04-16 09:25:56'),
(11965, 11965, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Informed sources denied to Al Arabiya on Monday Saudi Arabia’s participation in intercepting Iranian drones during its attack on Israel on Saturday.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Israeli news websites had published statements attributed to an official Saudi website stating that the Kingdom participated in the recent defense coalition that confronted the Iranian attacks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There is no official website that published a statement about Saudi participation in intercepting attacks against Israel,” the sources told Al Arabiya.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Iran launched drones and missiles toward Israel on Saturday evening into Sunday morning and described the attack as a response to several crimes, including the strike on its consulate in Damascus on April 1.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tehran indicated that the attack targeted military targets, while the Israeli army announced that it intercepted 99 percent of the Iranian missiles. - Arab News</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">bnbd24/fas</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 09:53:55', '2024-04-16 09:53:55'),
(11966, 11966, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Heavy rains lashed the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, flooding out portions of major highways and leaving vehicles abandoned on roadways across Dubai. Meanwhile, the death toll in separate heavy flooding in neighboring Oman rose to 18 with others still missing as the sultanate prepared for the storm.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The rains began overnight, leaving massive ponds on streets as whipping winds disrupted flights at Dubai International Airport, the world\'s busiest for international travel and the home of the long-haul carrier Emirates.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Police and emergency personnel drove slowly through the flooded streets, their emergency lights flashing across the darkened morning. Lightning flashed across the sky, occasionally touching the tip of the Burj Khalifa, the world\'s tallest building.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Schools across the UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms, largely shut ahead of the storm and government employees were largely working remotely if able. Many workers stayed home as well, though some ventured out, with the unfortunate stalling out their vehicles in deeper-than-expected water covering some roads.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Authorities sent tanker trucks out into the streets and highways to pump away the water.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rain is unusual in the UAE, an arid, Arabian Peninsula nation, but occurs periodically during the cooler winter months. Many roads and other areas lack drainage given the lack of regular rainfall, causing flooding.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Initial estimates suggested over 30 millimeters (1 inch) of rain fell over the morning in Dubai, with as much as 128 mm (5 inches) of rain expected throughout the day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rain also fell in Bahrain, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In neighboring Oman, a sultanate that rests on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, at least 18 people had been killed in heavy rains in recent days, according to a statement Tuesday from the country\'s National Committee for Emergency Management. That includes some 10 schoolchildren swept away in a vehicle with an adult, which saw condolences come into the country from rulers across the region. - AP&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\",\"4\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 10:06:22', '2024-04-16 10:06:22'),
(11967, 11967, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>World leaders, including President Emmanuel Macron, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, and the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, emphasized on Monday the need to prevent escalation in the Middle East following Iran’s failed attack on Israel.</b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They urged restraint and rational decision-making to avoid further instability in the region.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">EU’s Borrell says Middle East on cliff edge</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The European Union’s foreign policy chief said on Monday the Middle East stood “on the edge of the cliff” and called for de-escalation in the conflict between Israel and Iran.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Iran launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel on Saturday night in response to a suspected Israeli attack on the Tehran’s consulate in Damascus that killed seven officers of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards including two senior commanders.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the April 1 airstrike on the consulate in Syria’s capital.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We’re on the edge of the cliff and we have to move away from it,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told Spanish radio station Onda Cero. “We have to step on the brakes and reverse gear.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Borrell said he expected a response from Israel to the unprecedented aerial attack by Iran but hoped it would not spark further escalation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said there was “profound division” within the Israel’s right-wing governing coalition between hardliners seeking fierce retaliation and a “more moderate and sensible” faction.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That faction advocates for retaliation, Borrell said, “but in a way that avoids a response to the response”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Borrell, who spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian late on Sunday, said the EU needed to have the best possible relations with Iran despite the sanctions the bloc has imposed on the Islamic Republic over its disputed nuclear energy programme and other issues.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It’s in everyone’s interest that Iran does not become a nuclear power and that the Middle East is pacified,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">UK\'s Cameron urges Israel restraint after Iran attack</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">British Foreign Secretary David Cameron urged Israel not to retaliate after Iran’s drone and missile attack, saying it should “think with head as well as heart” because Tehran’s strike had been a near total failure.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The strike by more than 300 missiles and drones from Iran caused only modest damage in Israel as most were shot down by its Iron Dome defense system and with help from the US, Britain, France and Jordan. It followed a suspected Israeli airstrike on Iran’s embassy compound in Syria on April 1.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I think they’re perfectly justified to think they should respond because they have been attacked, but we are urging them as friends to think with head as well as heart, to be smart as well as tough,” Cameron told BBC TV.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said he was urging Israel not to escalate the tensions in the Middle East.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“In many ways this has been a double defeat for Iran. The attack was an almost total failure, and they revealed to the world that they are the malign influence in the region prepared to do this. So our hope is that there won’t be a retaliatory response,” he told Sky News.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Cameron said Britain would also work with allies to look at imposing more sanctions on Iran, and it urged Israel to return its focus on agreeing a ceasefire with Iran-backed Hamas in the Gaza war.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Macron says will do everything to avoid Middle East ‘conflagration’</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that France would help do everything to avoid an escalation in the Middle East.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We will do everything to avoid a conflagration that is to say an escalation,” he told the BFMTV news channel.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“For several years now we have had an air base in Jordan to fight terrorism,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Jordanian airspace was violated... We made our planes take off and we intercepted what we had to intercept.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Experts say Israel was able to neutralize most of the missiles and drones.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne on Sunday said he had asked the foreign ministry to summon the Iranian ambassador on Monday to express a “message of firmness.” - AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fsa</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 10:35:57', '2024-04-16 10:35:57'),
(11968, 11968, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A Dhaka tribunal on Tuesday extended bail of Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus and three officials of Grameen Telecom, who were sentenced to six months jail in a labour law violation case, till May 23.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Labour Appellate Tribunal Judge MA Awal passed the order when they filed a petition seeking permanent bail in the case.</div><div><br></div><div>Dr Yunus sought permanent bail to avoid repeated appearance at the Labour Appellate Tribunal, said his lawyer Barrister Abdullah Al Mamun, who filed the petition.</div><div><br></div><div>On January 28, the Labour Appellate Tribunal granted bail to Yunus and three others, who had challenged the verdict of labour court in the labour law violation case.</div><div><br></div><div>On that day, the Labour Appellate Tribunal stayed the sentence of the labour court. At the same time, the court accepted the appeal for hearing.</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier, on January 1, Yunus and three other accused were sentenced to six months’ imprisonment in the case. According to UNB reports</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"42\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 11:43:02', '2024-04-16 11:43:02'),
(11969, 11969, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Lightning and heavy rains have killed hundreds of people across Pakistan and Afghanistan.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At least 50 people have died in Pakistan in storms that have been lashing the country, officials said on Tuesday, as they urged emergency services to remain on high alert. Authorities in Afghanistan also reported a death toll of 50 the same day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Most of the deaths in Pakistan were reported in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where torrential rains and flash floods triggered landslides, damaged homes and uprooted trees.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rains caused dozens of houses to collapse in the northwest and in eastern Punjab province. A spokesman for the provincial disaster management authority said 21 people had died, with more rains expected this week.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A spokesman for the disaster management authority in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, bordering Afghanistan, said 21 people died there.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rain also lashed the capital, Islamabad, and killed seven people in southwestern Balochistan province. Streets flooded in the northwestern city of Peshawar and in Quetta, the Balochistan capital.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in televised remarks that he had ordered authorities to provide relief aid. Authorities have now declared a state of emergency in the southwest of the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has asked emergency services to remain vigilant amid the forecast of severer weather conditions. - Al Jazeera&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 12:11:36', '2024-04-16 12:11:36'),
(11970, 11970, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Russia and Ukraine on Monday traded blame before the United Nations Security Council for the attacks on Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, which the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said have put the world “dangerously close to a nuclear accident.”</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Without attributing blame, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said his agency has been able to confirm three attacks against the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant since April 7.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“These reckless attacks must cease immediately,” he told the Security Council. “Though, fortunately, they have not led to a radiological incident this time, they significantly increase the risk … where nuclear safety is already compromised.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The remote-controlled nature of the drones that have attacked the plant means that it is impossible to definitively determine who launched them, Grossi told reporters after the meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“In order to say something like that, we must have proof,” he said. “These attacks have been performed with a multitude of drones.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Zaporizhzhia sits in Russian-controlled territory in southeastern Ukraine and has six nuclear reactors.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fears of a nuclear catastrophe have been at the forefront since Russian troops occupied the plant shortly after invading in February 2022. Continued fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces — as well as the tense supply situation at the plant — have raised the specter of a disaster.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ukraine and its allies on Monday again blamed Russia for dangers at the site, with the United States saying, “Russia does not care about these risks.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“If it did, it would not continue to forcibly control the plant,” US deputy ambassador Robert Wood told the Security Council, which met at the initiative of the US and Slovenia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia, for its part, said Ukraine was to blame for the attacks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The IAEA’s report does not pinpoint which side is behind the attacks,” Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said. “We know full well who it is.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Over the last few months, such attacks not only resumed,” Nebenzia said, “they significantly intensified.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ukraine’s ambassador to the UN, Sergiy Kyslytsya, called the attacks “a well-planned false flag operation by the Russian Federation,” which he alleged Russia had designed to distract the world from its invasion of its neighbor.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Zaporizhzhia facility is one of the 10 biggest nuclear plants in the world. Fighting in the southern part of Ukraine where it is located has raised the specter of a potential nuclear disaster like the one at Chernobyl in 1986, where a reactor exploded and blew deadly radiation across a vast area.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Neither Russia nor Ukraine in recent months has been able to make significant advances along the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line crossing eastern and southern Ukraine. Drones, artillery and missiles have featured heavily in what has become a war of attrition.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia and Ukraine have frequently traded accusations over the Zaporizhzhia plant.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The most recent strikes did not compromise the facility, which is designed to withstand a commercial airliner crashing into it, the IAEA said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The plant’s six reactors have been shut down for months, but it still needs power and qualified staff to operate crucial cooling systems and other safety features. - AP&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 12:22:33', '2024-04-16 12:22:33'),
(11971, 11971, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has granted a one-day extension to Mustafizur Rahman\'s No Objection Certificate (NOC), allowing him to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL), according to a BCB source.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mustafizur was previously scheduled to leave the IPL on April 30th but can now play for his team, the Chennai Super Kings, on May 1st. He will return to Bangladesh on May 2nd.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh will face Zimbabwe in a five-match T20I series starting May 3rd in Chattogram. Mustafizur is expected to join the national team but may miss the first match. The last two matches of this series will take place in Dhaka.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The left-arm pacer has excelled in the IPL, taking 10 wickets in five matches. He has been one of the main bowlers of Chennai in this edition of IPL.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Following the Zimbabwe series, Bangladesh will travel to the USA for a three-match T20I series in preparation for the T20 World Cup, scheduled in the USA and the West Indies - UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 12:32:03', '2024-04-16 12:32:03'),
(11972, 11972, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The BNP has decided not to participate in upcoming upazila elections saying that Sheikh Hasina government and her subservient Election Commission, civil and police administration cannot organize a free, fair, participatory and acceptable election.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The environment for holding free, fair and participatory polls is not visible.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">BNP took the decision in a standing committee meeting on Monday night. BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman virtually joined in the meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi sent a press release to media over the meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Monday was anyway the last day of nomination submission of the first phase of forthcoming sixth upazila parishad election. According to UNB reports</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 12:34:14', '2024-04-16 12:34:14'),
(11973, 11973, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Former Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla has said Bangladesh-India relationship is a relationship that has to be nurtured and kept moving forward through continuous cooperation.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The relationship is not just moving forward, it is growing by leaps and bounds. We have to continue maintaining the momentum of the relations with fresh impetus,” he said while responding to a question in a podcast.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shringla who served as High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh, joined Pratim Ranjan Bose to discuss global politics and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pratim Ranjan Bose is a media commentator, researcher, and consultant. He writes newspaper columns and appears on national TV.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shringla, Chief Coordinator of India’s G20 Presidency in 2022-23, said Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have developed a very good relationship which is referred to as golden chapter for Dhaka-Delhi ties and two countries have addressed most of the irritants of the relations.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Responding to a question of the possibility of fresh Indian credit, he said every country has credit absorption capacity.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shringla said India-Bangladesh relations are in a satisfactory stage and must move forward in every aspect including the line of credit. “It is very important to work closely for implementation of the projects.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He appreciated PM Modi’s Neighbourhood First policy and highlighted that 50% of Indian line of credit is directed to the neighbourhood. “You cannot expect to prosper and develop if your neighbors are not doing the same.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Cooperation during Covid-19 through sharing vaccines, exemption from recent ban on onion exports and trade facilitations are giving dividends, said the former Indian diplomat.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said electricity cooperation with Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh will flourish and an under-sea electricity cable to Sri Lanka can bring long term stability to the island nation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Responding to a question on reported “Boycott India” campaigns in the Maldives, Shringla said ties are too strong to be disturbed by *Boycott India* campaigns.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I can tell you very safely that people of these two countries by and large have a very strong affinity and positive outlook,” he said, highlighting the engagement through tourism, medical care and education sector.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shringla said the people to people relationship is the most vital PM Modi’s policy is very broad and foresighted when it comes to neighbours.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Asked about joining politics, Shringla said he is not formally in politics but he is happy to support those efforts for his country under the guidance of PM Modi and noted that India witnessed enormous transformation and achievements.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said India wants a multipolar world with it being one of the poles. India surpassed all expectations under Modi and is facing resistance both from outside and inside but ready to move on,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shringla also shed light on India-US relations noting that there are remarkable achievements. “US companies started investing heavily in India. The ties reached a stage where it will remain unaffected.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Indo-Pacific and QUAD are very important to the USA and the cooperation will increase, he observed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shringla said India is committed to ensuring security of maritime trade through the Gulf of Aden and Suez, reports unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said India’s role in providing maritime security will rise in the western Indian ocean and perhaps even in the eastern Indian ocean.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We have to display more robust participation in global security. Today we have been more proactive. Those efforts will continue. We have to ensure that we are part of the solution,” Shringhla said,m adding that, “We hope to see there will be greater stability.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 12:48:44', '2024-04-16 12:48:44'),
(11974, 11974, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Four people died and at least 19 more were missing after a boat ferrying them across a swollen river capsized in India-held Kashmir on Tuesday, officials said.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rescuers in rubber boats joined by marine commandos were scrambling to find survivors as hundreds of worried and mourning family members gathered at the riverbanks after the accident.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The missing included several children who had been on their way to school when the boat overturned in the Jhelum river in the city of Srinagar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We have four dead from the tragedy,” Muzaffar Zargar, the superintendent for the city’s main hospital, told reporters.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Three others were being treated, he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At least 26 people were on the boat when it capsized, a top official in occupied Kashmir told AFP on condition of anonymity, as they were not authorised to speak to media.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Days of rain across the occupied valley had swelled the river.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The small vessel had no motor, but its crew propelled it between the riverbanks by pulling a rope fixed at both ends.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Witnesses said the rope snapped with the force of the fast-flowing water, crashing against a pillar of a partially built footbridge nearby.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I am deeply grieved by the loss of lives due to a boat accident in Srinagar,” Kashmir’s top political official Manoj Sinha said in a post on social media platform X.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“My thoughts are with the bereaved families,” he said, adding that “all possible help” was being provided to relatives of those who died.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Many office workers and schoolchildren take a boat across the river in the morning to avoid road traffic.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Accidents are common on the treacherous roads of the mountainous region but passenger boat disasters are rare. - AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 13:04:31', '2024-04-16 13:04:31'),
(11975, 11975, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>President Mohammed Shahabuddin today asked the university authorities to formulate world-standard and modern curriculums as the newly appointed vice-chancellor (VC) of Chittagong University (CU) Professor Dr. Md. Abu Taher paid a courtesy call on him at Bangabhaban here.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">\"Modern curriculums should be formulated so that the students can establish themselves as competent at the national and international levels,\" President\'s press secretary Md Joynal Abedin quoted the President as saying during the meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Mohammed Shahabuddin, also the chancellor of the universities, said the country\'s higher education needs to be compatible with science and information technology (IT).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The authorities concerned of the universities should take necessary initiatives to expand formal education as well as non-formal educational programs in the field of the higher education, he hoped.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The head of state added that necessary initiatives should be taken so that the students can attain proper knowledge about the country\'s Liberation War, independence, culture and traditions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile, during the meeting, the President was apprised by the VC of the academic and overall activities of the University of Chittagong.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President\'s Office Secretary Md Wahidul Islam Khan, Military Secretary Major General SM Salahuddin Islam and Press Secretary Md Joynal Abedin were present. - BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-16 14:07:47', '2024-04-16 14:07:47');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(11976, 11976, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">At least 11 people were killed and 25 others injured when a speeding truck ran through several vehicles before plunging into a roadside ditch near Gabkhan bridge in Jhalakathi municipality area on Wednesday, police said.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The identities of the deceased could not be known immediately.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The accident occurred around 1:30 pm when the truck ploughed through ten vehicles including an auto-rickshaw and a private car, standing in front of the toll gate. It then hurtled into the roadside ditch, leaving seven people dead and 25 others injured, said Shafiqul Islam, officer-in-charge of Sadar Police Station.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The injured were taken to different hospitals. According to UNB reports&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 09:03:51', '2024-04-17 09:03:51'),
(11977, 11977, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud has attended the \"9th Our Ocean Conference Greece 2024\" held in Athens on April 16-17.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He led a delegation at the Conference which is a regular platform for governments, international organisations, academia, private sectors and NGOs to come together with the aim of sharing&nbsp; a common vision for the protection of oceans and taking actions to support this vision.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The conference was inaugurated by the Greek President through a video message, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the first day, apart from various plenary sessions on greening of the shipping sector, confronting plastic pollution, effective management of marine protected areas, ocean-climate nexus, the foreign minister participated in a high-level segment with the participation of Heads of State/Government, preceded by an event where the Geek Prime Minister delivered the keynote speech.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The foreign minister also took part in a working lunch hosted by the Greek foreign minister in honor of the participating toreign ministers.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the morning of 16th April, on the sidelines of the conference, the foreign minister had a bilateral meeting with the Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ocean plays a key role in human existence; it is essential for people\'s survival, well-being and prosperity.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It provides food, regulates our climate, and generates most of the oxygen we breathe.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It also serves much of the world’s economy, supporting sectors from tourism to fisheries and to international shipping while it is connected to our culture and is a major source of inspiration.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, the health of seas and the ocean, and of marine ecosystems in particular, is threatened by unsustainable practices such as discharges of wastewater and marine litter, unregulated and unreported fishing, unsustainable shipping and tourism activities, said the speakers.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">To mitigate the negative impacts from human interventions and improve the current state of our oceans, it is essential to join efforts on a global scale, they said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Collaboration among nations, NGOs, private entities, academia, professional groups, civil society organisations and more, is of paramount importance for implementing effective solutions, fostering sustainable practices, and safeguarding the delicate equilibrium of oceans.</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 09:13:41', '2024-04-17 09:13:41'),
(11978, 11978, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Iran said on Wednesday its military was ready to confront any attack by Israel, with the air force saying it was prepared for action.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Iran’s navy commander said also that it was escorting Iranian commercial vessels to the Red Sea.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Iran carried out its first-ever direct attack on Israel last weekend in retaliation for a suspected Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic compound in Damascus on April 1.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel has said it will hit back and its war cabinet was meeting on Wednesday to discuss options.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Any attack by the Zionist regime (Israel) on our soil will be dealt with a severe response,” Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Wednesday at a parade held for Army Day, state media reported.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The commander of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force warned at the same event that its warplanes, including Russian-made Sukhoi-24s, were in their “best state of preparedness” to counter any Israeli attack.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We have full readiness in all fields, including our air coverage and bombers, and are prepared for any operation,” Brig. Gen. Amir Vahedi said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A direct attack on Revolutionary Guards bases or nuclear research facilities within Iran is one of the options Israel has to strike back. Targets outside of Iran are also a possibility.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Admiral Shahram Irani said the Iran Navy was escorting Iranian commercial ships to the Red Sea, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The Navy is carrying out a mission to escort Iranian commercial ships to the Red Sea and our Jamaran frigate is present in the Gulf of Aden in this view,” Irani said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tehran was ready to escort vessels of other countries, he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Red Sea has seen significant disruption to Israel-bound shipping due to attacks from Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On April 13, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards seized the MSC Aries, a Portuguese-flagged container ship in the Strait of Hormuz which Tehran says is linked to Israel, according to Reuters reports&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 10:12:52', '2024-04-17 10:12:52'),
(11979, 11979, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A brutal heat wave sweeping across Bangladesh. could put millions of Bangladeshi at greater risk of heal-related illnesses. Here\'s what you can do to stay cool and safe this week - and throughout the scorching summer months.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Heat exhaustion and heat stroke occur when your body starts to lose the ability to regulate its core temperature. Excessive exposure to heat can cause many symptoms, including:</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">☼ Dizziness</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">☼ Fatigue</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">☼ Headaches</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">☼ Excessive sweating</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">☼ Nausea and Vomiting</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">How to avoid heat exhaustion and heat stroke</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">1. Maintain a healthy weight</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">People who are obese are at much greater risk for heat-related illnesses. Carrying excess weight can affect your body’s ability to regulate its temperature and cause you to retain more heat. Talk to your doctor if you need help managing your weight.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">2. Wear appropriate clothing</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Limit sun exposure when you’re outside by wearing a wide-brimmed hat and light, loose-fitting clothing. Also consider bringing an umbrella, awning, or overhang to protect yourself from the sun.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">3. Stay hydrated</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Staying hydrated is key to maintaining a healthy body temperature, particularly during exercise. Drink plenty of fluids the day before and the day of physical activity. During exercise, keep a drink handy that contains salt, electrolytes, and small amounts of sugar, such as Gatorade or Powerade to replenish those substances you have lost while sweating.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">You tell us: What are your go-to drinks to stay hydrated in the summer? Tag us on Twitter @MedStarHealth #LiveWellHealthy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">4. Get used to the heat</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">If you spend most of your time in the air conditioning and suddenly try to run five miles outdoors, your body might not be ready for that kind of heat exposure. It’s safer to gradually expose yourself to activity outside during the summer.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">5. Be extra careful if you’re sick</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Infections such as the flu can cause your body temperature to spike. If you’ve recently overcome an illness, be cautious about the amount of time you spend outside and spend exercising for a couple of weeks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">6. Use the buddy system</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">If you’re older than 70, you’re more susceptible to heat stroke due to underlying medical conditions that can affect their body temperature. If you live alone or can’t get around well, the risk is increased, especially if your air conditioner breaks. Use the buddy system - find a friend or relative who can help when the temperature rises. - Medstar Health</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">bnbd24/fas</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div>', '<p>&nbsp;\'Heat-stroke\'<br></p>', 'News Desk', '[\"24\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 11:30:55', '2024-04-17 11:30:55'),
(11980, 11980, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Bangladesh is preparing to introduce remote sensing and drones to detect crop damage caused by extreme weather events or diseases, said the Asian Development Bank (ADB).</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Around 20 officers of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) are initially receiving training to learn how to use the state-of-the-art technologies.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Malay Choudhury, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, and Edimon Ginting, ADB Country Director for Bangladesh inaugurated a workshop titled “The Use of Drone and Satellite Image for Crop Monitoring and Crop Damage Assessment” in Dhaka on Tuesday to initiate a seven-day training programme.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">DAE and ADB jointly designed the training programme that will continue till April 25 April, according to ADB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Renowned geospatial experts from the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) will conduct the training.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The trainees will receive four days of classroom training on geographical information systems (GIS) and remote sensing analysis for crop damage detection and participate in a three-day field trip to Sylhet to learn how to collect ground data using mobile devices.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Local DAE officials are expected to participate in the training in Sylhet, where the 2022 floods caused major crop damage.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Proper assessment of crop diseases and losses are critical to take appropriate measures to ensure agricultural productivity and food security in the context of growing threats of climate change in Bangladesh, said Country Director Edimon Ginting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“ADB will continue to bring in innovative solutions including advanced technologies to help Bangladesh tackle climate impacts,” Ginting added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">With advanced geospatial technology, our officers will be able to assess crop damage and provide effective government programs to mitigate the expected damage caused by climate change in the future, said Badal Chandra Biswas, Director General, DAE.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Following the training program, ADB and DAE plan to produce joint reports on crop damage assessment in the Sylhet region, conduct a project evaluation study of an ADB-supported integrated water management project in Gopalganj areas, and implement a nationwide climate disaster assessment in a small local government unit.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific financed by the Government of Japan provided the grant fund for the training program through the Asian Development Bank. - UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 11:48:34', '2024-04-17 11:48:34'),
(11981, 11981, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Finance Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali said that there is nothing to worry about downgrading growth forecast for Bangladesh by IMF for the current fiscal year.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said he is satisfied over the recovery of Bangladesh’s economy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The finance minister said this in response to a question from a Bangladeshi journalist on the sideline of the World Bank-IMF spring meeting in Washington DC on Tuesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The finance minister said that he is not too worried about the GDP growth forecast by the IMF as the country has already started to recover from crisis.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Initiatives taken by the government for economic reforms are working,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Even though people are slowly getting relief, those who see negatively are not happy, he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The International Monetary Fund (IMF) again has revised downward the growth forecast of Bangladesh\'s economy to 5.7 percent for the current fiscal year of 2023-24.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The IMF made the revised projection in its World Economic Outlook released April 16.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The IMF growth forecast highlighted different global and local challenges, including persistently high inflation, unemployment, lower remittance flow, and a fell industrial investment target.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The global lender for the second time cut economic growth forecast for Bangladesh. In October last year, it projected 6 percent growth, cutting down its previous prediction from 6.5 percent for the FY2023-24, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, the IMF growth forecast comes a week after the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Bangladesh\'s GDP will expand 6.1 percent in FY 2023-24, riding on exports.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Early this month, the World Bank said Bangladesh will register subdued growth for reduced private consumption affected by high inflation.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"33\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 12:07:47', '2024-04-17 12:07:47'),
(11982, 11982, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said that the state has been behind the disappearances of BNP central organizing secretary and former member of parliament (MP) M Ilias Ali and others.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>He said this while speaking at a press conference at BNP Nayapaltoncentral office to mark M Ilias Ali’s 12 years of disappearance on Wednesday.</div><div><br></div><div>He said that Ilias Ali went missing along with his driver Ansar Ali from in front of South Point school and college, Banani Road 2, on April 17, 2012.</div><div><br></div><div>The car used by the politician was recovered from Dhaka\'s Mohakhali area the same day, but the two of them could not be traced even after 12 years, reports unb.</div><div><br></div><div>Rizvi said nowadays, it is clear to the country’s people that Ilias Ali was made to disappear by this \"fascist government.\"</div><div><br></div><div>Ilias Ali was a headache for the state and a foreign power as he was the key leader of a mass movement raised in Sylhet area against Tipaimukh Dam and border aggression. He was also active against Hasina’s autocratic rule, Rizvi added.</div><div><br></div><div>After Ilias Ali’s disappearance the government had staged different dramas in the name of finding him by search, Rizvi claimed.</div><div><br></div><div>He said the contents of dramas were sent from the prime minister\'s office.</div><div><br></div><div>Not only Ilias Ali but other BNP leaders like Saiful Islam Hiru, Chowdhury Alam (former councilor), Zahidul Karim Tanvir, Md Mazharul Islam Rasel, Al Amin, Sazedul Islam Sumon, Md Abdul Quader Bhuyan Masum, Jakir Hossain Munna, Mir Ahamed Bin Quasem, Abdullahhil Azami, Iftekhar Ahamed Dinar and many more were disappeared, he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Rizvi ‍said according to the Asian Human Rights Commission a total of 623 people were forced to disappear from 2009-2022 further adding that Bangladeshi human rights organisation Odhikar’s in its last updated report said that from January to June, 2023, 16 people were missing and disappeared.</div><div><br></div><div>He also claimed according to Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) about six hundred people disappeared in the last 15 years.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 12:38:01', '2024-04-17 12:38:01'),
(11983, 11983, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The government has set a target to elevate capital expenditure in the medium term (2025-26 fiscal) aiming to achieve sustained economic growth.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The government has set the target as it thinks that there is no alternative to increasing capital expenditure which has profound impacts on the production level of the economy.</div><div><br></div><div>“In the medium term, capital expenditure has been targeted to increase to 6.68 percent of GDP by FY 2025-26,” according to an official document of the finance ministry obtained by UNB this week.</div><div><br></div><div>The allocation was estimated at 6.41 percent of the GDP for 2024-25 fiscal while 6.50 percent for the running 2023-24 fiscal year.</div><div><br></div><div>The government allocated capital investment through either Annual Development Program (ADP) or the non-ADP capital expenditure.</div><div><br></div><div>It was 6.09 percent of GDP as per the revised budget for FY 2022-23, according to the official document titled ‘Medium Term Macroeconomic Policy Statement (2023-24 to 2025-26)’.</div><div><br></div><div>The document mentioned that the focus of the ADP will be to sharply improve and strengthen infrastructure, build a social protection system, and alleviate infrastructure constraints to private investment by fast-tracking nationally important projects.</div><div><br></div><div>The ADP is the main source of public sector capital formation. Data shows that ADP implementation varies in different fiscal years.</div><div><br></div><div>Between FY 2016-17 and FY 2021-22, ADP implementation as a percentage of budget allocation was between 76.0 and 88.6 percent, and implementation as a percentage of GDP ranged from 3.6 to 4.7 percent.</div><div><br></div><div>The government has taken various steps to increase the implementation efficiency of relevant agencies, the document said.</div><div><br></div><div>The government has also launched the iBAS++ digital platform, bringing all the line ministries together on this platform, and has simplified the process of managing and releasing funds.</div><div><br></div><div>In addition, in the last fiscal year, project directors were given the power to release all instalments of government funds.</div><div><br></div><div>These initiatives will play an important role in ensuring maximum utilisation of project funds, reducing wastage, and expediting project implementation. In the medium term, the size of ADP will be aligned with that of the 8th Five Year Plan.</div><div><br></div><div>The Annual Development Programme (ADP) and Non- ADP capital expenditure are the two major categories of capital formation through government expenditures, reports UNB</div><div><br></div><div>Moreover, capital expenditure includes loans and advances, development programmes financed from the revenue budget, non-ADP projects and Non- ADP FFW (Food for Work) and transfer.</div><div><br></div><div>The estimated size of the development budget is Tk 2,77,582 crore, which is 36.4 per cent of the total budget. Development budget\'s main component is the ADP, and its related expenses are 94.7 per cent.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"33\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 12:53:46', '2024-04-17 12:53:46'),
(11984, 11984, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>US President Joe Biden on Wednesday urged a tripling of tax on Chinese steel and aluminum, citing “unfair competition” as he seeks to win blue-collar votes in November’s election.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Biden’s call comes as the US Trade Representative (USTR) announced it is launching a probe into China’s trade practices in the shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors in response to a recent petition by five US unions.</div><div><br></div><div>The president is preparing to address steelworkers in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, the second day of a three-day trip through the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania.</div><div><br></div><div>Both Biden and his election rival Donald Trump are competing for vital blue-collar voters, promising to revive American manufacturing.</div><div><br></div><div>“Chinese policies and subsidies for their domestic steel and aluminum industries mean high-quality US products are undercut by artificially low-priced Chinese alternatives produced with higher emissions,” the White House said in a statement.</div><div><br></div><div>A senior US official told reporters that China accounts for about half of global steel production, while exporting the metal at a significantly lower cost than US steel prices.</div><div><br></div><div>As the USTR reviews tariffs imposed on China during Trump’s administration, Biden urged it to triple an existing rate under Section 301 of the Trade Act.</div><div><br></div><div>Currently, the average tariff on steel and aluminum under this section is 7.5 per cent.</div><div><br></div><div>The so-called Section 301 investigation was the primary tool the Trump administration used in the trade war with China to justify tariffs.</div><div><br></div><div>The White House added on Wednesday that Biden is also directing officials to work with Mexico to prevent tariff evasion by China. - AFP&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 13:21:14', '2024-04-17 13:21:14'),
(11985, 11985, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced today the appointment of renowned spin bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed to its national team. The former Pakistan leg-spinner and World Cup winner brings a wealth of experience and a proven track record of success to the role.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mushtaq, 53, has previously served as spin bowling coach for prominent cricketing nations, including England, West Indies, and Pakistan. His impressive resume also boasts a stint as Pakistan\'s bowling consultant.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is a great honor for me to be a part of the Bangladesh cricket team as a spin bowling coach,” Mushtaq stated. “I am looking forward to the role and want to pass my experience to the players because they are very coachable and I always believe that they are one of the most dangerous teams around.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mushtaq’s appointment comes ahead of Bangladesh\'s preparation camp for the upcoming T20I series against Zimbabwe later this month. He will be working closely with the team until the culmination of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, set to take place in the West Indies and USA. - UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 13:41:31', '2024-04-17 13:41:31'),
(11986, 11986, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday directed the authorities concerned to keep sharp eyes on the emerging situation of the Middle East following Iran\'s retaliatory attack on Israel.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She also asked them to take necessary preparations to face possible impacts, considering that some sectors of Bangladesh might be affected if this conflict continues for a long time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The premier issued the directives during an unscheduled discussion at the Cabinet meeting. She chaired the meeting at her office here in the city.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Later, Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain briefed reporters at Bangladesh Secretariat in the afternoon after the meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> “The Prime Minister said all concerned should keep an eye on the reality that is emerging in the Middle East. All members of the cabinet and ministries concerned have been asked to keep a sharp eye on the emerging situation,” he said quoting the PM.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ministries concerned were asked to take preparation from right now for possible reactions of the conflict, he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It has been asked to take preparation for how we will deal with the matters or what we can do in facing these things, if the conflict continues for a long-term,” said the Cabinet Secretary.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">If the conflict turns long-term, then it would leave impacts in various sectors, the authorities of the sectors concerned were asked to take plan to face the impacts, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In reply to a question over the sectors that might be affected, Mahbub said all were asked to take preparation in their respective sectors. “If a crisis is created, the price of fuel may go up. So, it was asked to make a plan for what should be done in that case,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 13:47:26', '2024-04-17 16:17:47'),
(11987, 11987, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Turkiye will take steps to strengthen its medium-term economic program and the three main priorities are to increase public savings, prioritize investments and accelerate structural reforms, President Tayyip Erdogan said.&nbsp;</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Speaking on Tuesday evening after a cabinet meeting, Erdogan said his economic team had made preparations for such steps to strengthen the program, MTP, and, “hopefully we will share them with the public very soon.”&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We have three main priorities in strengthening the MTP. These are to increase public sector savings, prioritize investments, and accelerate structural reforms.”&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Speaking to reporters after the cabinet meeting, Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz said both the finance ministry and the budget authority were carrying out studies on public sector savings, with more than 15 articles being worked upon.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We mean not only reducing expenditures, but making existing expenditures more efficient, prioritizing them, and making them contribute more to the economy’s competitiveness, efficiency and social welfare,” state broadcaster TRT reported him as saying.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Erdogan also said on Tuesday evening that economic growth will approach 4 percent this year with a positive impact from exports, and forecast that the current account deficit will be 2.5 percent of gross domestic product at the end of the year.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Official data on Wednesday showed that Turkiye’s current account deficit stood at $3.265 billion in February, less than a Reuters forecast for a deficit of $3.7 billion.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Central Bank Governor Fatih Karahan told a panel in Washington on Tuesday that Turkiye is on track to reach its 36 percent inflation target by the end of the year after peaking at around 75 percent in the coming months. Source: Reuters&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 14:05:58', '2024-04-17 14:05:58'),
(11988, 11988, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The government has decided to arrange universal pension promotion fair across the country to attract people to this scheme.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to the National Pension Authority (NPA), pension fairs will be held in 64 districts of of eight divisions to remove the apprehensions of people and ensure spontaneous participation of all classes of people.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As part of the initiative, the NPA is going to organise a fair in Rajshahi division. The fair will be held at Haji Muhammad Mohsin Government High School premises in Rajshahi city on April 19.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Principal Secretary of the Prime Minister\'s Office Mohammad Tofazzel Hossain Miah will open the fair as the chief guest.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">There will be a total of 70 stalls of different institutions at the fair. There will be also booths of Sonali Bank, Agrani, City, and BRAC Bank for financial transactions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Local administration will assist the NPA to organise the fair smoothly. - unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">bnbd24/fas</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 14:18:40', '2024-04-17 14:18:40'),
(11989, 11989, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Travelers were warned against heading to Dubai International Airport and advised to check the status of their flights with the airline due to the heaviest rainfall in 75 years, Emirates News Agency reported.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dubai Airports said flights continued to be delayed and diverted following the deluge and urged passengers to contact airlines for the latest travel information.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We are working hard to recover operations as quickly as possible in very challenging conditions,” the airport wrote on X.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Emirates Airlines suspended all travel procedures for passengers leaving Dubai on Wednesday, but added they would continue for arrivals and transit passengers. The Dubai airport website showed until midnight. The airport’s website showed extensive delays for some flights.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The UAE witnessed a record rainfall on Tuesday, with the National Center of Meteorology reporting that 254 mm fell in Al-Ain in fewer than 24 hours. This is the highest level since records began in 1949.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Wednesday morning, the authorities were busy clearing up the debris following the downpour, which caused chaos across the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Ras al-Khaimah, the country\'s northernmost emirate, police said one 70-year-old man died when his vehicle was swept away by floodwater.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In neighboring Oman, 19 people died, including children, following three consecutive days of heavy rain. Local media published images of flooded communities and the Times of Oman reported more rain was expected on Wednesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The skies were clear in Dubai, but the roads were quiet in some areas after government employees and all schools were ordered to work remotely for a second day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">UAE media and social media posts showed significant damage in some parts of the country, including collapsed roads and flooded homes. Others included images of roads and car parks under water, with some vehicles completely submerged.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Zayed Road, a 12-lane highway through Dubai, was partially flooded, leaving people stuck for hours in long traffic jams. - Arab News</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 14:51:30', '2024-04-17 14:51:30'),
(11990, 11990, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>“Giving elaborate details of targeting of human rights defenders and journalists in Kashmir, CIVICUS call for release of activists, compliance with international norms.”</b></span></div><div><br></div><div>NEW DELHI: A new CIVICUS Monitor report, published ahead of the India’s 2024 elections, shows that the Indian government used an array of restrictive laws and policies to silence dissent by targeting critics including civil society groups, human rights defenders and independent media.</div><div><br></div><div>In its 11-page report, the CIVICUS Monitor dedicates at least two pages to Kashmir and highlights that human rights work in Kashmir has almost come to a complete standstill due to arrests of activists and continuous harassment of civil society organisations and activists through raids and interrogations.</div><div><br></div><div>Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second term in power was sustained by a pattern of repression to undermine democracy and civic space, the global civil society alliance, CIVICUS, said today.</div><div><br></div><div>Over twenty organisations collaborate on the CIVICUS Monitor to provide an evidence base for action to improve civic space on all continents.</div><div><br></div><div>Civic space in India is rated as “repressed” by the CIVICUS Monitor and it has called upon the government to drop all charges against human rights defenders, activists and protesters, and immediately and unconditionally release all those detained; review and amend India’s criminal laws to conform to international law and standards and take steps to ensure that all human rights defenders in India can carry out their legitimate activities without any hindrance or fear of reprisals.</div><div><br></div><div>Crackdown on Civil Society</div><div><br></div><div>The report highlights how civil society organisations have faced an increased crackdown through the cancellation of their registrations, raids and investigations by law enforcement agencies.</div><div><br></div><div>The authorities also blocked access to foreign funding for civil society groups, critical of the government, through the restrictive Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), which the UN has deemed in contravention of international law and standards, it said.</div><div><br></div><div>Human rights defenders critical of the government were also implicated and jailed in politically motivated cases under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), a draconian anti-terror law. Under the UAPA’s draconian provisions, activists remain in detention for long periods and are often denied bail even on health grounds as exemplified in the Bhima Koregaon case, the report states.</div><div><br></div><div>It also highlights that India also witnessed an increase in attacks and restrictions against independent media and journalists in recent years such as the targeting of NewsClick with raids, searches and seizures by various government agencies.</div><div><br></div><div>“The increasing use of restrictive laws during Prime Minister Modi’s second term to crackdown on civil society, human rights defenders and independent media, highlights a government that has become intolerable of any form of dissent. These laws have become tools for judicial harassment and are incompatible with India’s international human rights obligations as well as India’s Constitution”, said Marianna Belalba Barreto, Research Lead for the CIVICUS Monitor.</div><div><br></div><div>CIVICUS also highlights in the report that since the 2019 elections, major protests in India have been met with arbitrary arrests and excessive use of force by the police, including protests against the discriminatory Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) 2019 and the farmers protests.</div><div><br></div><div>Authorities used Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code, a colonial-era provision, to arbitrarily restrict or deny assemblies.&nbsp; Internet shutdowns were also used to prevent people gathering in protests and fabricated charges were brought against protesters, with some still remaining in detention, it adds.</div><div><br></div><div>Silencing Kashmir</div><div><br></div><div>The CIVICUS Monitor takes a serious view of the crackdown on civil liberties in Kashmir.</div><div><br></div><div>The human rights landscape in Kashmir has drastically deteriorated, with a sharp decline in activism and media freedom, it notes. Since August 2019, the abrogation of Article 370 of the Indian constitution and the subsequent division of Jammu and Kashmir into federally administered territories have exacerbated the situation, it states.</div><div><br></div><div>It highlights that the central government’s actions have led to a stifling environment where dissenting voices are targeted and silenced.</div><div><br></div><div>This crackdown has created a pervasive atmosphere of fear and censorship in the region, the report states.</div><div><br></div><div>The report highlights the case of human rights defender Khurram Parvez from the Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society, who has been detained under the UAPA for more than two years. He was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on politically motivated charges, highlighting the systematic targeting of activists.</div><div><br></div><div>Similarly, journalist Irfan Mehraj was arrested under accusations of terrorism financing, further illustrating the suppression of dissenting voices, the CIVICUS Monitor states. According to Kashmir times reports</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 15:28:09', '2024-04-17 15:28:09'),
(11991, 11991, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Bangladesh Cricket Board\'s (BCB) Cricket Operations Chairman, Jalal Yunus has sparked debate with his statement that star left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman has nothing more to gain from playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL).</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This declaration comes despite Mustafizur\'s strong performance for the Chennai Super Kings, where he has taken 10 wickets in five matches, including a four-wicket haul.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">BCB extended Mustafizur\'s IPL participation by one day, allowing him to play on May 1. He is expected to join the national team camp on May 3.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Mustafizur has nothing left to learn by playing in the IPL. His learning process is over. In fact, many IPL players can learn from Mustafizur. Bangladesh will not benefit from this. Others will benefit from having Mustafizur,” Jalal asserted in Mirpur on Wednesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Jalal emphasised that the IPL is not limited to four-over spells for Mustafizur and expressed concern over the physical demands of the tournament\'s tight schedule, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Our concern is Mustafizur\'s health. His fitness. They (the IPL teams) will want to take 100% from him. They don\'t have a headache about his fitness, but we do,” Jalal added. “What do we need? We need a fresh Mustafizur. We don\'t want an exhausted Mustafizur.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He explained that the decision is part of managing Mustafizur\'s workload due to his recent heavy involvement in cricket.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Jalal\'s comments drew a reaction from renowned Bangladeshi cricket coach Mohammed Salah Uddin, who took to social media with a mocking response: “Nothing (is) expected better than that, brilliant thinking. Best jokes ever (I) heard,” accompanied by laughing emojis.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 15:37:39', '2024-04-17 15:37:39'),
(11992, 11992, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Two members of a notorious criminal gang were arrested by Indian police on Tuesday for firing at the home of Bollywood actor Salman Khan in retaliation for the superstar’s killing of two antelopes.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Bishnoi gang, accused of several murders and extortion rackets, hails from a wider desert-based religious sect that considers the species to be the reincarnation of their guru.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Khan, 58, has been in the crosshairs of the group since 1998 for shooting two blackbucks on a recreational hunting trip. The gang’s jailed leader Lawrence Bishnoi has threatened Khan with assassination in the past.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two men on a motorbike shot at Khan’s first-floor apartment during the early hours of Sunday in the upscale Mumbai neighbourhood of Bandra, also firing several rounds in the air before fleeing.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Khan, who is always guarded by armed policemen owing to threats to his life, was home when the gunshots were fired. The two men aged 24 and 21 were arrested in the western state of Gujarat, police said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We were able to locate the two accused near a temple,” Kutch district police officer Mahendra Bagaria said. “One of our teams reached the temple and nabbed the accused.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Members of the Bishnoi community pursued a criminal case against Khan for the blackbuck shooting for 20 years. Khan was sentenced to five years in jail by a local court for violating the Wildlife Protection Act in 2018. - Dawn&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Entertainment', '[\"13\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 15:50:57', '2024-04-17 15:50:57');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(11993, 11993, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad Ali Arafat today blasted Khaleda Zia government for its decision not to officially observe April 17 (Mujibnagar Day), a historic day memorable for formation of the country’s first government on this day in 1971.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A cabinet division document of 2002 revealed that BNP government decided not to observe April 17 as it found no importance of the day, Arafat wrote in a Facebook post today.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He wrote- Today is a historically memorable day for the nation as first cabinet of independent Bangladesh took oath on this day.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“But from a cabinet meeting today I came to know that the cabinet led by Khaleda Zia adopted a resolution in 2002 not to observe a number of important days including April 17 saying ‘those days do not need to be observed in the present context’, reports BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Can you imagine it? The oath taking day of independent Bangladesh\'s first government (cabinet) was not important to them!” he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is much more that the cabinet of Khaleda Zia which was constituted with war criminals and rajakars did not scrap the celebration of March 26 and December 16 as the Independence Day and the Victory Day,” Arafat wrote.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas&nbsp;</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-17 16:08:49', '2024-04-17 16:08:49'),
(11994, 11994, '<div><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday inaugurated the Livestock Services Week and Fair aimed at promoting poultry and dairy farmers through development of the sector.</span><br></b></div><div><br></div><div>The prime minister formally opened the 2-day fair at the old Trade Fair Ground at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar beside the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC).</div><div><br></div><div>Department of Livestock Services of the Fisheries and Livestock Ministry has organised the fair.</div><div><br></div><div>The fair will remain open from 10 am to 8:00 pm every day. No entry fee is needed for the visitors.</div><div><br></div><div>The farmers of poultry and dairy sector across the country will join the event to display their cattle and birds in the fair.</div><div><br></div><div>Simultaneous fairs have been organized at 466 upazilas of 64 districts.</div><div><br></div><div>The prime minister visited the fairground and stopped at various stalls to see the livestocks displayed at the show.</div><div><br></div><div>According to the organisers, some 25 pavilions and 30 stalls have been set up in the fair ground to showcase the varieties of livestock of the country. Of those, seven pavilions have been dedicated to the government authorities.</div><div><br></div><div>More than 3,000 farmers out of total 55,000 members of the BDFA from Dhaka, Cumilla, Manikganj, Munshiganj, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Bogura, Pabna, Sirajganj, Jashore, Benapole, Kushtia, and Chuadanga, and other districts joined the fair, reports unb</div><div><br></div><div>According to the organisers the fair will provide the grassroot farmers to conduct business with the mega companies.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 09:07:04', '2024-04-18 09:07:04'),
(11995, 11995, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Bangladeshi architect Marina Tabassum has been named in influential US weekly TIME magazine’s list of the 100 Most Influential People in the world for 2024. Tabassum was named in the Innovators section of the list for her commitment to sustainable design that “prioritises local cultures and values, as well as the perils faced by our shared planet.”</span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The citation for Tabassum, written for TIME by Sarah Whiting, dean of the Harvard School for Design, says: “Tabassum’s altruism even extends to buildings themselves. She cares for her creations as creatures partaking in the resources of our earth: describing her Bait Ur Rouf Mosque in Dhaka, Bangladesh, which won the prestigious Aga Khan Award, she said a building “has to be able to breathe without artificial aids.” Elsewhere in the country, which faces increased flood risks due to climate change, she has developed houses that are cost-effective and easy to move—clearly, buildings shouldn’t just breathe; they should avoid getting their feet wet. While she practices very locally, she teaches, lectures, and is recognized internationally, modeling architecture not as an individual signature but as a collective Esperanto.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tabassum\'s work was previously honoured with the 2016 Aga Khan Award for Architecture and with the Soane Medal by the American Academy of Arts and Letters Awards in 2021.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She was also named as the winner of the Millennium Lifetime Achievement Award at the Lisbon Architecture Triennale in 2022.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tabassum is the principal architect of Marina Tabassum Architects, which she founded in 2005. Previously she was at URBANA, which she co-founded in 1995, shortly after graduating from BUET in 1994, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She broke into the limelight with her design for the Bait ur Rauf Mosque in Abdullahpur, that won her the Aga Khan Award, and pioneered a new generation of architects in embracing indigenous design principles for mosques, distinguished by the lack of domes, the use of plinths, the earthen palette, and the intelligent, at times bewitching use of light streaming in through perforations on the roof and walls.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 09:54:09', '2024-04-18 09:54:09'),
(11996, 11996, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Indonesian authorities issued a tsunami alert Wednesday after eruptions at Ruang mountain sent ash thousands of feet high. Officials ordered more than 11,000 people to leave the area.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The volcano on the northern side of Sulawesi island had at least five large eruptions in the past 24 hours, Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation said. Authorities raised their volcano alert to its highest level.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At least 800 residents left the area earlier Wednesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Indonesia, an archipelago of 270 million people, has 120 active volcanoes. It is prone to volcanic activity because it sits along the “Ring of Fire,” a horseshoe-shaped series of seismic fault lines around the Pacific Ocean.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Authorities urged tourists and others to stay at least 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from the 725-meter (2,378 foot) Ruang volcano.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Officials worry that part of the volcano could collapse into the sea and cause a tsunami as in a 1871 eruption there.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tagulandang island to the volcano\'s northeast is again at risk, and its residents are among those being told to evacuate, reports AP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency said residents will be relocated to Manado, the nearest city, on Sulawesi island, a journey of six hours by boat.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 09:59:23', '2024-04-18 09:59:23'),
(11997, 11997, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A day after edible oil refiners demanded an increase of Tk 10 against per litre bottle of soybean oil, the government on Thursday fixed the price of per litre bottle of edible oil at Tk 167, hiking by Tk 4, reports unb.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">State Minister for Commerce Ahsanul Islam Titu said this at a press conference on the reassessment of price of edible oil at the conference room of the Ministry of Commerce on Thursday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Following the government move, a consumer now will have to pay an extra amount of Tk 18 to purchase a five litre bottle of edible oil, which earlier cost Tk 800.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, the government cut the price of per litre of unpacked palm oil by Tk 2 which now will cost Tk 147.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, on Wednesday, the edible oil refiners sought to hike its retail price by Tk 10 per litre, saying that a value added tax (VAT) reduction, which they had been enjoying for the last two months, expired last Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"33\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 10:17:07', '2024-04-18 10:17:07'),
(11998, 11998, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Chief of Army Staff General S M Shafiuddin Ahmed said that Bangladesh Army is doing everything in contributing to achieving Bangladesh’s foreign policy and helping the country become a Sonar Bangla as dreamt by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is our duty to defend our motherland, to maintain sovereignty of the country and we remain prepared for that. We are doing everything,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The army chief said this on Thursday while speaking at a seminar titled “Defence Diplomacy, Strategy for Bangladesh” hosted by the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) at its auditorium.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mentioning Bangabandhu’s foreign policy dictum “Friendship to all, malice towards none” he said they are doing everything to implement this foreign policy</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Diplomacy is nothing but an effort to achieve national interest in any form,” said the army chief, putting emphasis on sustained economic growth with maintaining national security.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He mentioned how the army, in aid to civil power, is doing a lot of nation building activities, disaster management efforts at home and abroad and doing some internal security duties.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The army chief said wherever there is an opportunity, whether it is told and untold, they take the opportunity and do everything for the benefits of Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Talking about military diplomacy, he said they need to enhance the capability by putting in more resources and budget. “We know how to do it but we should have that capability to do it.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Regarding the Myanmar issue, the army chief said some of the military leaders in Myanmar are facing international sanctions and there is a risk of putting themselves in trouble.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“To make one friend happy, we cannot antagonize another. There are dynamics that we have to look into. Practical connotation has also been taken into consideration. We are doing our best and we are on the right track,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">General Shafiuddin said they have indigenously produced some remotely operated vehicles which are good innovations for Bangladesh Army. “Thus, we are saving a lot of foreign currency as earlier we needed to import these equipment.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said military persons not only learn how to fight a war but also know how to prevent or avoid any war to achieve the national interest. “We are on the right track and we will not be failing in discharging our duties.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At the same time, General Shafiuddin said they never forget the main role of military forces which is to protect the sovereignty of the country and they should be ready in doing that, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said intention can change overnight but capability does not change overnight. “You are my friend today but what happens if you are not my friend tomorrow? We should be capable of defending our national interest, our motherland but the main foreign policy dictum says every tone for us.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">BIISS Chairman Ambassador AFM Gousal Azam Sarker and its Director General Major General Md Abu Bakar Siddique Khan, among others, spoke.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"42\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 10:34:17', '2024-04-18 10:34:17'),
(11999, 11999, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The prevailing heat wave condition is likely to continue over the districts of Rajshahi, Pabna, Bagerhat, Jashore, Chuadanga and Kushtia, according to Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD).</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Besides, a mild to moderate heat wave is sweeping over Dhaka, Rangpur and Barishal divisions, rest part of Rajshahi and Khulna divisions and the district of Moulvibazar and it may continue, said a regular bulletin of the Met office.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The heat wave that has been going on will continue and remain unchanged but in some places the temperature may fall due to rainfall activity but there will be no impact of it in the other areas where there is no rainfall activity” Hafizur Rahman, a meteorologist told UNB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile, rain or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely to occur at one or two places over Rangpur, Rajshahi, Dhaka, Mymensingh, Barishal, Chattogram and Sylhet divisions with hails at isolated places, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Weather may remain mainly dry with temporary partly cloudy sky elsewhere over the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Day and night temperatures may remain nearly unchanged over the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Due to the increase of moisture incursion, the discomfort may increase, it said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, a trough of westerly low lies over West Bengal and adjoining area. Seasonal low lies over South Bay.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"4\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 10:54:46', '2024-04-18 10:54:46'),
(12000, 12000, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Google and its ties with the Israeli government are front and center in headlines again, as several workers have been arrested and fired in the US for staging sit-ins at the company’s offices.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Workers have been protesting for years against the tech giant’s work with the Israeli government and military, calling for the shutdown of Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion agreement that also includes Amazon, which they say has made Google an “active arm of the Israeli genocidal war machine” against Palestinians.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Their concerns have been backed by tech experts and analysts such Antony Loewenstein, who believes the controversial project plays a central role in Israel’s oppression of Palestinians.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Project Nimbus is a key asset for Israel’s military-industrial complex in its war in Gaza and across occupied Palestine,” said Loewenstein, author of The Palestine Laboratory, a widely acclaimed book on Israel’s arms and surveillance industry.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Project Nimbus agreement was announced by Israel’s Finance Ministry in 2021 and, on the face of it, related to the tech giants jointly providing cloud computing services and helping Israel build local cloud storage server centers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Other details of the contract were mostly kept secret, but reports from outlets such as The Intercept revealed some startling details, like how the cloud services would give Israel greater AI-powered capabilities for facial and image recognition used for mass surveillance of Palestinians.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It also included enhanced means for tracking objects and sentiment analysis, a discredited technology with high risks of misuse.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Soon after the deal was announced, workers from Google and Amazon came out against it, saying Israel would use it “for further surveillance of and unlawful data collection on Palestinians,” and facilitate the “expansion of Israel’s illegal settlements on Palestinian land.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Over the past three years, protests have continued and workers of Google and Amazon set up groups like No Tech for Apartheid, dedicated to advocacy against projects such as Nimbus, which they say “are helping to make Israeli apartheid more efficient, more violent, and even deadlier for Palestinians.” - Anadolu Agency</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 11:10:45', '2024-04-18 11:10:45'),
(12001, 12001, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Beijing on Thursday accused the United States of hypocrisy in response to accusations by President Joe Biden that China is “xenophobic” and “cheating” on trade.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“I would like to ask him: are you talking about China or the US itself?” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said when asked about the comments.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a speech on Wednesday to union members, Biden called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing it of cheating as he courted blue-collar voters on an election campaign trip to the battleground state of Pennsylvania.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” the 81-year-old Biden said to cheers at the headquarters of the United Steelworkers union in Pittsburgh, reports AFP&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Democrat said Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidising them so heavily”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Biden also said that he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminium if Beijing was confirmed to be using anti-competitive practices.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 11:33:34', '2024-04-18 11:33:34'),
(12002, 12002, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Human-caused climate change contributed to an unusually intense and lethal hot spell throughout West Africa’s Sahel region in April, according to a study by World Weather Attribution (WWA), an international network of scientists focusing on extreme weather events.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The heatwave caused temperatures in Mali and Burkina Faso to climb to more than 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) between April 1 and April 5, an unusual spike for the season that likely led to numerous deaths, said the study published on Thursday.</div><div><br></div><div>The extreme weather also coincided with the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and frequent power cuts, heightening the risk of heat-related casualties.</div><div><br></div><div>“Even minimum temperatures, overnight, remained relatively high, making it so that people did not get a break from the heat,” the study added.</div><div><br></div><div>‘Human-induced’ climate change</div><div>The WWA’s observations and climate models found that “heatwaves with the magnitude observed in March and April 2024 in the region would have been impossible to occur without the global warming of 1.2C to date”, which it linked to “human-induced climate change”.</div><div><br></div><div>Although the Sahel is accustomed to bouts of heat during this time of year, the extreme hot spell in April would have been 1.4C cooler “if humans had not warmed the planet by burning fossil fuels” such as coal and other activities such as deforestation.</div><div><br></div><div>The study noted that the five days of extreme heat was a once-in-a-200-year event.</div><div><br></div><div>But it warned that “these trends will continue with future warming”.</div><div><br></div><div>The WWA recommended that countries formulate heat action plans that would warn citizens when extreme temperatures are imminent and offer guidance on how to prevent overheating.</div><div><br></div><div>It additionally called for strengthening critical infrastructure such as electricity, water, and healthcare systems to adapt to the increasing frequency and intensity of extreme heat. - Al Jazeera</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 11:53:05', '2024-04-18 11:53:05'),
(12003, 12003, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The UK’s House of Lords rejected the government’s plan to send migrants to Rwanda for asylum processing in a vote on Wednesday after it approved two amendments to the legislation.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The upper chamber of Parliament voted in favor of a proposal to exempt Afghans who worked with UK military personnel from being deported to the East African country, and of another that would see a committee established to monitor safety in Rwanda.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The bill will return to the House of Commons early next week, where MPs have previously refused to back amendments made to it by the Lords.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The government of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who has made the Rwanda scheme a core part of his pledge to lower illegal migration across the English Channel before the next general election, says the bill in its current form is “the right way forward.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, a previous version of the scheme was rejected by the UK Supreme Court in 2023 as unlawful.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The plan has also drawn cross-party criticism for its expense, worries about its effectiveness, the government’s inability to implement it and for the way it treats people in need of asylum, including former Afghan soldiers, translators and their families, many of whom risked their lives to assist the UK during operations in Afghanistan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Numerous Afghans have been identified as having been threatened with deportation to Rwanda for entering the UK illegally, with many claiming safe legal routes either don’t work in practice or don’t exist.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Independent highlighted the cases of a former Afghan Air Force pilot hailed as a “patriot” by former colleagues, who crossed the Channel in a small boat, and of two former Afghan special forces soldiers belonging to units known as “Triples” run by the British Army, who were wrongly denied assistance by the UK Ministry of Defence.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Along with reporting by Lighthouse Reports and Sky News, hundreds of other former Triples soldiers have also been identified hiding in Pakistan, awaiting an MoD review after many were refused entry to the UK.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Lords amendment on protections from deportation for former Afghan military personnel was proposed by a former UK defense secretary, Lord Browne of Ladyton, and supported by two former chiefs of the UK’s defense staff.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier on Wednesday Home Office minister Michael Tomlinson said peers should reject the amendments to “send a clear signal that if you come to the UK illegally, you will not be able to stay.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Lord Browne told the Lords: “Now is the time to give these people the sanctuary their bravery has earned.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He added the government needed to be reminded of “the political consequences of their failure not to give either an assurance that is bankable or to accept this amendment. Because there is little, if any, support in your lordships’ House for their failure to do this and there (is) certainly no majority support in the country to treat these brave people this way.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Lord Coaker, shadow home affairs spokesperson in the Lords, added: “Why on earth would the government oppose that particular amendment? It’s one of those things that is completely unbelievable.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Wednesday, Conservative MP Sir Robert Buckland told the Commons: “There is still a class of people who have served this country, who have been brave and have exposed themselves to danger, who have not yet been dealt with, reports Arab News</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Many of them are in Pakistan, and I think that it would have been helpful to have perhaps seen an amendment in lieu to deal with that point.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 12:21:46', '2024-04-18 12:21:46'),
(12004, 12004, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Ukraine\'s prime minister has told the BBC there will be a \"Third World War\" if Ukraine loses its conflict with Russia, as he urged the US Congress to pass a long-stalled foreign aid bill.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Denys Shmyhal expressed \"careful optimism\" that US lawmakers would pass the hotly contested measure, which has $61bn (£49bn) earmarked for Kyiv.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The House of Representatives is set to vote on the package this Saturday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The proposal includes funding for Israel as well as the Indo-Pacific.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia says any fresh American aid for Ukraine will not make a difference on the battlefield, as situation on the front line is looking \"unfavourable\" to Kyiv.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Speaking to the BBC in Washington DC on Wednesday, Ukrainian Prime Minister Shmyhal said of the US security assistance: \"We need this money yesterday, not tomorrow, not today.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"If we will not protect... Ukraine will fall,\" he added. \"So the global, the global system of security will be destroyed... and all the world will need to find... a new system of security.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Or, there will be many conflicts, many such kinds of wars, and in the end of the day, it could lead to the Third World War.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This is not the first time Ukraine has issued such an alarming warning about the consequences of its potential defeat.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Last year, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that if Russia won the conflict, it could next invade Poland, triggering World War Three.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Kremlin officials have ridiculed such claims as Western scaremongering. Last month President Vladimir Putin dismissed suggestions that Russia might one day attack Eastern Europe as \"complete nonsense\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia has never attacked a country within Nato, which includes Poland. Nato\'s collective defence pact means that an attack on one member constitutes an attack on all, reports BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Wednesday\'s interview, Prime Minister Shmyhal was asked about a recent claim by Republican House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul that members of his own party were being \"infected\" by Russian propaganda.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mr Shmyhal said: \"We should understand that disinformation and propaganda is influencing here in the United States on many people, in European Union on many people, such as in Ukraine.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 12:29:13', '2024-04-18 12:29:13'),
(12005, 12005, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The government is going to launch a two-hour international news analysis programme on Bangladesh Television (BTV), said state minister for information Mohammad A Arafat on Thursday.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>He came up with this announcement while talking to reporters after a meeting with Indian High Commissioner Pranay Kumar Verma in his office at the Secretariat on Thursday.</div><div><br></div><div>He said, \" We have discussed cooperation on various issues, particularly about the international news analysis programme on BTV. Discussion was held whether it is possible to cooperate with Indian news agency ANI.\"</div><div><br></div><div>The state minister said, \"Since BTV is shown in India, we will gradually increase the time of this news analysis. We will try to make it an international standard. There will be news from various South Asian countries. We would also try to attract Indian viewers so that they watch them,\" he added.</div><div><br></div><div>“Collaborating with the Indian Film and Television Institute, we have to see whether any more co-productions like ‘Mujib: The Making of a Nation’ film can be done or not.”</div><div><br></div><div>The Indian institutions that are working on checking disinformation and propaganda, their experience, processes and methods will be exchanged between the two countries, he said</div><div><br></div><div>\"We will try to gather as much as possible the experiences that India has in the field of film and television so that we can develop further in these fields,\" added the state minister.</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 12:31:34', '2024-04-18 12:31:34'),
(12006, 12006, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today laid emphasis on ensuring food and nutrition security, calling upon the private sector to step forward for the development of the country’s poultry, fisheries and livestock sectors.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I want the private sector to come forward. I would like to see more entrepreneurs in the private sector. I want to help in every way. Through this, we also want to increase the employment of the people of the country,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The premier said this while addressing the opening ceremony of the Livestock Services Week and Exhibition-2024 as the chief guest at the old Trade Fair Ground in city’s Sher-e-Banglanagar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said that if everyone does business and trade on their own initiative instead of chasing behind the jobs after graduation, then “we can progress a lot”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina urged all to encourage the country’s youth to become entrepreneurs, so that, in future, they don’t need to depend on anyone.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Referring to the attaining of food security, she said, “We believe that we can ensure our nutrition as well.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister also mentioned that buffaloes and sheep are being produced in the country’s char lands, even in Bhasanchar, where the Rohingyas have been given shelter and buffaloes, sheep, poultry and fishes are being farmed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“If we use the land we have, we can meet our own needs,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She urged all to come forward in the country’s dairy and other sectors as well.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We want to further develop our livestock sector. Online systems have already been developed to serve this livestock sector,” she said, hoping that it will be useful enough for it.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">With Fisheries and Livestock Minister Md. Abdur Rahman in the chair, its Secretary Md Selim Uddin delivered the welcome address.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President of Bangladesh Dairy Farmers’ Association Imran Hossain spoke as the representative of the country’s dairy sector while Joint Convener of Bangladesh Poultry Industry Central Council (BPICC) Mashiur Rahman spoke as the representative of poultry sector.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At the outset of the programme, a documentary on the progress and achievement of the present government in the livestock sector was screened.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister said the main aim of her government is to ensure food security first, then ensure nutrition.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“. . . and we’ve taken that step. We’ve given priority on research as it is not possible to produce high yielding varieties without it,” she said, adding no country can advance without proper research works.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina also said the government is working to mechanise agriculture, and for that, they have given special attention on this issue and are providing subsidies.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Besides, we’ve taken huge programmes to increase the production of protein in the country,” she added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The premier said Khaleda Zia announced to arrange rice and pulse for the countrymen during her tenure. But, she (Khaleda) failed to provide rice and pulse for the people, she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Then, during 2007, Caretaker Government’s chief adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed and then army chief Moinuddin Ahmed asked people to have potatoes, she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Someone wanted to feed us pulse and someone wanted to feed us potatoes,” Sheikh Hasina said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mentioning that Bangalees like rice and fishes, she said it is enough for them to get rice and fishes.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We want rice-fishes. We have a look on the issue. Now, there is no shortage of rice-fishes, pulse-fishes,” she added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina also emphasised improving the storage capacity of all products including food grains, and fish and meat items for ensuring food security.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She asked concerned people to provide nontoxic food for the fisheries and livestock animals for ensuring safe food.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The premier encouraged the private entrepreneurs’ to work for improving poultry, fisheries and livestock sectors in the country, reports BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The government will provide all support,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She asked for following international norms in packaging along with cleanliness in agricultural production and its processing.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina, however, said Bangladesh is yet to be able to extract resources from the deep sea although it has attained vast maritime boundaries.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Actually, we’re not getting any entrepreneur for this purpose. This is the reality,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The premier said Bangladesh has attained huge maritime areas, which has been announced blue economy to utilise the marine resources.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“But, it is the matter of unfortunate that we have yet been able to extract resources from the deep sea,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-18 12:42:20', '2024-04-18 12:42:20'),
(12007, 12007, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Friday said the government is depriving many leaders of the party of fresh air and day light by throwing them into the jails.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rizvi said it in a sit-in programme in front of the National Press Club organised by Zia Projanmo Dal (ZPD) demanding the release of BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia and&nbsp; other imprisoned leaders.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The jails have turned into permanent residence for many BNP leaders and activists as without any reason they have been imprisoned for months, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Top BNP leaders like the secretary general, standing committee members, vice- chairman, join secretary general have suffered prison terms for three-four month before their release recently,\" he alleged.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina’s policy to imprison BNP leaders and activists is not finished yet, he charged.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The PM, he said, is afraid of BNP and knows that there is no popular support for her.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A government lacking support of the people turns autocratic, Rizvi said adding, it suppresses the people when they raise their voice for rights.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They resort to all means of suppression such as imprisonment , making ‘Ayana Ghar for torture, use law enforcement&nbsp; agencies to kill opponents&nbsp; and use party cadres to thrash the oppositions,\" said the BNP leader.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Awami League government imprisoned&nbsp; 25 to 26 thousand BNP leaders and activists before January 7 dummy election, he claimed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A large number of BNP men still remains in prison while a few walked out after serving 3-4 months jail terms, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rizvi said does the government has any honest answer as to why so many BNP members are being put in jail.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The prime minister is doing this only to retain her illegally gained state power, he alleged. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'news desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-19 11:40:31', '2024-04-19 11:40:31'),
(12008, 12008, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Severe heat wave is sweeping Khulna division and Rajshahi, Pabna and Tangail districts, according to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The heat wave condition will remain unchanged for the five days commencing 9 am on Saturday, it predicted.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Country’s highest temperature was recoded in Chuadanga at 41 degree Celsius on Friday. The district also experienced&nbsp; the season’s highest temperature in the previous three days.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A mild to moderate heat wave is sweeping&nbsp; Barishal division, rest part of Dhaka and Rajshahi divisions and Chandpur and Moulvibazar districts and it may continue, it said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Besides, rain or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely to occur at one or two places over Mymensingh, Sylhet and Chattogram divisions with hails at isolated places.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Weather may remain mainly dry with temporary partly cloudy sky elsewhere over the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Day and night temperatures may rise slightly over the country. Due to the increase of moisture incursion, the discomfort may increase, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A trough of westerly low lies over West Bengal and adjoining area.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 09:10:03', '2024-04-20 09:10:03'),
(12009, 12009, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>In the wake of the current heat wave condition, the daily assembly at government primary schools across the country will remain suspended until further notice.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The Primary and Mass Education Ministry issued a notice, signed by its senior information officer Mahbubur Rahman Tuhin, in this regard on Saturday.</div><div><br></div><div>The ministry is observing the prevailing heat wave situation, it said.</div><div><br></div><div>A mild to severe heat wave is sweeping different parts of the country for the last several days.</div><div><br></div><div>The highest temperature in the capital was recorded at 38.4 degrees Celsius on Friday while Chuadanga experienced the season’s highest temperature at 41.3 degrees Celsius, reports UNB</div><div><br></div><div>Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) on Friday issued an alert saying that the prevailing heat wave over the country may continue and increase further in the next 72 hours commencing 9 am on Friday.</div><div><br></div><div>“Due to moisture incursion, the discomfort may increase,” said the Met office special bulletin.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 09:30:01', '2024-04-20 09:30:01');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(12010, 12010, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Two people died from heat stroke in Chuadanga and Pabna districts respectively on Saturday as the country continues to experience a heat wave for the past few days, forcing the authorities concerned to close all schools, madrasas and colleges till April 27.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The deceased were identified as Jakir Hossain, 33, son of Amir Hossain of Thakurpur village under Damurhuda upazila of Chuadanga and Sukumar Das, 60, a resident of Shalgaria Jakir Moar in Pabna district town.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Amir Hossain said his son Jakir went to a cropland to irrigate in the village in the morning. After around one hour, they came to know that Jakir fell sick due to the heat.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Later, he breathed his last on the way to Damurhuda Upazila Health Complex, said the father.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The health complex’s Resident Medical Officer D Mohibullah said they heard that a farmer died from the heat stroke while working in the cropland.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pabna General Hospital’s on-duty physician Dr Zahedul Islam said Sukumar suddenly fell sick amid the scorching heat while taking tea at a tea stall in the city’s Rupkotha Moar at noon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Later, locals rushed him to the hospital where physicians declared him dead upon arrival, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, Chuadanga recorded the season’s highest temperature at 42.3 degree Celsius on Saturday afternoon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tahmina Nasrin, weather observer at Chuadanga First Class Meteorological Observatory, said after a continuous intense heat wave, the temperature has increased further and a very severe heat wave has started, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The heat wave is going on because there is no rain. If it rains, the temperature will drop considerably, she said, adding that there is no rain forecast for now. However, if there is a storm, it may rain with it.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Moreover, the season’s highest 41.6 degree Celsius temperature was recorded in Pabna’s Ishwardi on Saturday afternoon.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 12:40:57', '2024-04-20 12:40:57'),
(12011, 12011, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh began talks with Turkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul on Saturday as Middle East tensions run high, Turkish media reported.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Erdogan has sought but failed to establish a foothold as a mediator in the Palestinian conflict that has roiled the region since October 7, with a reported Israeli attack on Iran and Gaza bracing for a new Israeli offensive.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Erdogan has remained discreet about his meetings with the Hamas head.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We will keep the agenda between us and Mr.Haniyeh,” Erdogan said when questioned by journalists on Friday. Hamas said the war in Gaza would figure in the talks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Turkish media reported that the meeting at the Dolmabahce palace on the banks of the Bosphorus began shortly after 2:30 p.m. (1130 GMT).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">With Qatar saying it will reassess its role as a mediator between Hamas and Israel, Erdogan sent Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to Doha on Wednesday in a new sign that he wants a role.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Even if only I, Tayyip Erdogan, remain, I will continue as long as God gives me my life, to defend the Palestinian struggle and to be the voice of the oppressed Palestinian people,” the president said Wednesday when he announced Haniyeh’s looming visit.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hamas - designated a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States and the European Union - has had an office in Turkiye since 2011 when Turkiye helped secure the agreement for the group to free Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Erdogan has maintained links with Haniyeh, who has been a frequent visitor.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fidan was a past head of Turkish intelligence and the country provided information and passports to Hamas officials, including Haniyeh, according to Sinan Ciddi, a Turkiye specialist at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington. This has never been confirmed by Turkish authorities, however.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">If Qatar withdraws from mediation efforts, Turkiye could seek to increase its mediation profile based on its Hamas links.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fidan on Saturday held talks with visiting Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, with both men emphasising the need to deliver more humanitarian aid to devastated Gaza where the threat of famine looms.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel has said it is preparing an offensive against the Gaza city of Rafah and the reported Israeli attack on the Iranian province of Isfahan has only clouded hopes of a peace breakthrough.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Erdogan can only expect a “very limited” role because of his outspoken condemnation of Israel and its actions in Gaza, according to Ciddi.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Last year, the Turkish leader likened the tactics of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to those of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and called Israel a “terrorist state” because of its offensive against Hamas after the militant group’s October 7 attacks on Israel.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ciddi said Erdogan would not be welcome in Israel and at most might be able to pass messages between Palestinian and Israel negotiators.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The expert said that Turkiye would not have a major influence either over Hamas in deciding the fate of hostages it has held since October 7.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The unprecedented Hamas attacks resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people in southern Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Militants also took about 250 hostages. Israel estimates 129 remain in Gaza, including 34 who are presumed dead.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 34,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, reports Arab News</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to press reports, that have never been denied, Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders were in Istanbul when the attacks were launched. They were requested to quietly leave after a photo showed them celebrating the deadly assault, the report said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 12:51:25', '2024-04-20 12:51:25'),
(12012, 12012, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza’s southernmost city killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel’s war against the Islamic militant group Hamas has led to a dramatic escalation of tensions in an already volatile Middle East.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The strike late Friday hit a residential building in the western Tel Sultan neighborhood of the city of Rafah, according to Gaza’s civil defense. The bodies of the six children, two women and a man were taken to Rafah’s Abu Yousef Al-Najjar hospital, the hospital’s records showed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At the hospital, relatives cried and hugged the bodies of the children, wrapped in white shrouds, as others comforted them.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The fatalities included Abdel-Fattah Sobhi Radwan, his wife Najlaa Ahmed Aweidah and their three children, his brother-in-law Ahmed Barhoum said. Barhoum also lost his wife, Rawan Radwan, and their 5-year-old daughter Alaa.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“This is a world devoid of all human values and morals,” Barhoum told The Associated Press Saturday morning, crying as he cradled and gently rocked the body of Alaa in his arms. “They bombed a house full of displaced people, women and children. There were no martyrs but women and children.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">No victims were registered from a second overnight strike in the city.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rafah, which lies on the border with Egypt, currently hosts more than half of Gaza’s total population of about 2.3 million people, the vast majority of whom have been displaced by fighting further north in the territory.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Despite calls for restraint from the international community, including Israel’s staunchest ally, the United States, the Israeli government has insisted for months that it intends to push a ground offensive into the city, where it says many of the remaining Hamas militants are holed up.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Such a ground operation has not materialized so far, but the Israeli military has repeatedly carried out airstrikes on and around the city.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The war was sparked by an unprecedented raid into southern Israel by Hamas and other militant groups on Oct. 7 that left about 1,200 people dead, the vast majority of them civilians, and saw about 250 people kidnapped and taken into Gaza, reports AP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel says about 130 hostages remain in Gaza, although more than 30 have been confirmed to now be dead, either killed on Oct. 7 or having died in captivity.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 13:03:55', '2024-04-20 13:03:55'),
(12013, 12013, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A honey collector died in an attack by a tiger at Notabeki under Satkhira range of the Sundarbans on Saturday.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The deceased was identified as Maniruzzaman Bachhu, son of Abul Kashem Gazi of Dumuria village in Shyamnagar upazila.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Nure Alam, assistant range officer, said Maniruzzaman along with others went to the Sundarbans for collecting honey on April 2 with permission.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Saturday, the tiger attacked Maniruzzaman and tried to drag him to the deep forest, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Another honey collector&nbsp; rescued him from&nbsp; the tiger’s clutches after hitting it but he died shortly.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 13:12:47', '2024-04-20 13:12:47'),
(12014, 12014, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Roads in Bangladesh have become more dangerous with fatalities and injuries almost every day and the two highways from Dhaka to Khulna and Barishal are two of those which have witnessed 320 fatalities in the past one year.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Unskilled drivers, over-speed, negligence of authorities concerned and rules violation are blamed for the frequent road accidents on highways although the highway police claimed that several measures have been taken to reduce road accidents.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The recent deadly road crash on Dhaka-Khulna highway that claimed 15 lives raised question whether these measures were adequate to control the fatal accidents .</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On April 16, 15 people including five members of a family died in a collision between a bus and a pick-up van on Dhaka-Khulna highway at Kanaipur of Faridpur district.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A five-member probe body was formed to investigate the accident and&nbsp; two more members including an expert from Buet were also included in the committee, headed by Additional district Magistrate Ali Siddique.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The committee was asked to submit its report within three working days. At least one representative from the Roads and Highways division, Highway police, district police and Fire Service were also included in the committee.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">National Committee to protect Shipping, Roads and Railways (NCPSRR) said the authorities concerned including police and BRTA can’t avoid responsibility for the Faridpur road crash on Dhaka-Khulna highway.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Condemning the authorities’ negligence, the NCPSRR said although carrying passengers on trucks, pick-up vans and good- laden vehicles is prohibited the vehicle was heading towards Dhaka from Faridpur’s Boalmari with 25-30 passengers on board.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On March 8, three people died and ten others were injured when a bus overturned on Dhaka-Barishal highway in Bhanga.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Besides, nine people died in separate accidents in January.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Roads and Highways division and highway police blame over-speed, unskilled drivers, reckless plying of motorbikes and pedestrians’ desperate bid to cross the highways behind the accidents and fatalities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to Faridpur Highway Police sources, the length of the Bangabandhu Expressway from Jatrabari in Dhaka to Bhanga in Faridpur is 55 kilometers. Of these, 32 kilometers are from Jatrabari to Padma Bridge and 23 kilometers from Janjira to Bhanga.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the last one year, 131 people were killed in 135 accidents on the expressway and of these, 63 accidents occurred in Bhanga portion that claimed lives of 67 people.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">There are five highway police stations, one police outpost and two camps under the 381 km highway in Madaripur region.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Shahinur Alam Khan, superintendent of Madaripur Region highway police, said 320 lives were lost on the two highways in the last one year but a number of measures have been taken to prevent road crashes, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">In the past one year, 28,404 cases were filed and Tk 9,43,26,200 was fined for reckless driving on the two highways, said the SP.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Besides, 271 cases were filed in 432 road accidents on Dhaka-Khulna and Dhaka-Barishal highways, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Morshed Alam, superintendent of Faridpur police, said the owners and transport workers must play a big role alongside the passengers to stop accidents on highways.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">On the other hand, the residents along the highways have to be more responsible while using highways, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 13:17:11', '2024-04-20 13:17:11'),
(12015, 12015, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The landowners along both sides of Mugda Main Road are urging authorities not to proceed with the demolition of their houses and buildings until they receive proper compensation for their land. </span></div><div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><br></span></div><div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">ASM Salahuddin conveyed this appeal at a press conference held at the Bangladesh Crime Reporters Association (CRAB) auditorium yesterday on behalf of the affected landowners.</span></div><div><br></div><div>\"As permanent residents residing on both sides of the main road in Mugda area, our ancestors and we have built houses on our own land with the approval of Rajuk over the years. </div><div><br></div><div>Many individuals sustain themselves by operating shops or renting out commercial spaces. Additionally, several households have availed home construction loans from various financial institutions to build their homes. For many of us, these houses serve as our primary residence, while others rely on the rental income for livelihood,\" Salahuddin mentioned.</div><div><br></div><div>As a landowner himself, Salahuddin stated, \"According to the latest Dhaka city survey, Mugda Main Road is 30 feet wide. However,</div><div><br></div><div> Rajuk\'s notice revealed plans to widen the road to 50 or 60 feet as per the Detailed Area Plan (DAP) (2022-2035) prepared by Rajuk. </div><div><br></div><div>Many of us have received notices from Rajuk requesting building designs, while others have not been officially notified. </div><div><br></div><div>The local administration <span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">including Rajuk officials, have conducted surveys of the constructions/buildings on both sides of the road. </span><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Despite these actions, the authorities have not yet legally acquired the lands.</span></div><div><br></div><div>He further added, \"Authorities have not provided any information regarding the extent of land to be acquired, compensation for the land, or the valuation of buildings and houses on the land. Meanwhile, recent announcements through public address systems in the area have caused panic among residents, stating that all structures along the road will be demolished on Sunday.\"</div><div><br></div><div>Salahuddin emphasized, \"While there are provisions for the acquisition of land for state or government needs, compensation must be provided to the landowners. It appears that the authorities intend to acquire our land and properties illegally without compensation.</div><div><br></div><div> Consequently, we filed a writ petition in the Honorable High Court, which directed relevant authorities, including the Chairman of Rajuk, to engage with us legally within the next month to resolve the issue.\"</div><div><br></div><div>He continued, \"We urge all concerned parties, including the Prime Minister, to refrain from forcibly evicting us without providing compensation for our land and buildings. <span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Illegal evictions will leave us with no choice but to defend our rights with our families.\"</span></div><div><br></div><div>Salahuddin concluded by stating, \"We have no objections to the acquisition of land as long as we receive the compensation we deserve. Many landowners, including Mahbubur Rahman, were present at the press conference.\"</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd/r/fas</div>', NULL, 'staff correspondent', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 20:07:12', '2024-04-20 20:18:43'),
(12016, 12016, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The highest temperature in the capital Dhaka has been recorded at 40.4 degrees Celsius this season, according to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Today\'s highest temperature was recorded in Jashore at 42.6 degrees Celsius, which is also a season\'s high for the country.</div><div><br></div><div>The BMD issued a warning that the heat wave condition will remain unchanged for the five days commencing 9 am on Saturday (20 April).</div><div><br></div><div>Severe heat wave is sweeping Khulna division and Rajshahi, Pabna and Tangail districts. A mild to moderate heat wave is sweeping  Barishal division, the rest of Dhaka and Rajshahi divisions and Chandpur and Moulvibazar districts and it may continue.</div><div><br></div><div>In the face of current weather condition, the government has announced that schools, colleges, madrasas, and technical education institution across the country will remain closed until April 27. - UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"4\",\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 20:12:48', '2024-04-21 12:42:32'),
(12017, 12017, '<div><br></div><div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said children can build themselves as worthy citizens of the country through participation in sports, exercise and cultural events apart from studies.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>“I want that our children will build themselves as the worthy citizens of the country through participating in sports, exercise and cultural events apart of studies,” she said.</div><div><br></div><div>The premier was addressing the prize distribution ceremony of Bangabandhu Gold Cup Primary School Football Tournament and Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib Gold Cup Primary School Football Tournament at the Army Stadium in the capital.</div><div><br></div><div>She said that while in power she tried to make children more interested in sports.</div><div><br></div><div>“Because sports provide physical and mental strength to human beings and teach discipline, obedience and patriotism,” she said.</div><div><br></div><div>Hasina said that through sports the country can be advanced further and make it better known to the whole world.</div><div><br></div><div>“We see that our boys and girls are showing their expertise in sports in the world arena,” she said.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-20 22:58:49', '2024-04-20 22:58:49'),
(12018, 12018, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Israel\'s war against the Islamic militant group Hamas has led to a dramatic escalation of tensions in the Middle East, notably between Israel and Iran in recent weeks. Now attention returns to Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s population of about 2.3 million people are sheltering, many displaced by fighting elsewhere.</div><div><br></div><div>Relatives sobbed and hugged children\'s shrouded bodies at al-Najjar hospital.</div><div><br></div><div>&nbsp;“Hamza my beloved. Your hair looks so pretty,” a mourning grandmother said.</div><div><br></div><div>The fatalities included Abdel-Fattah Sobhi Radwan, his wife Najlaa Ahmed Aweidah and their three children, his brother-in-law Ahmed Barhoum said. Barhoum lost his wife, Rawan Radwan, and their 5-year-old daughter, Alaa.</div><div><br></div><div>\"This is a world devoid of all human values and morals,” Barhoum told The Associated Press, crying as he cradled Alaa\'s body. “The only martyrs were women and children.”</div><div><br></div><div>Israel has insisted for months that it plans a ground offensive into Rafah, where it says many remaining Hamas militants are holed up, despite calls for restraint from the international community including Israel’s staunchest ally, the United States. - AP</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"39\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 05:25:36', '2024-04-21 05:25:36'),
(12019, 12019, '<div><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday (April 21, 2024) inaugurated newly constructed \'Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Battery Complex\' at Halishahar cantonment in Chittagong.</span><br></b></div><div><br></div><div>She inaugurated this complex at the Artillery Center and School in Chittagong\'s Halishahar Cantonment.</div><div><br></div><div>After the inauguration, the Prime Minister visited the Artillery Museum established at the newly constructed \'Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Battery Complex\'.</div><div><br></div><div>She also witnessed sculpture of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman installed at the museum.</div><div><br></div><div>She also saw the historic 3.7 inch howitzer that fired the first shot of Mujib Battery in the War of Liberation, the ammunition used in the artillery regiment and replicas of all the cannons and the glorious history of the remarkable operations of the artillery forces in the great Liberation War, reports UNB</div><div><br></div><div>On the other hand, the Prime Minister attended Darbar there.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 09:06:43', '2024-04-21 09:06:43'),
(12020, 12020, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Bangladesh and Qatar will sign 11 cooperation documents- six agreements and five MoUs as Dhaka is ready to welcome Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Monday.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud came up with the update while briefing the media at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh Ambassador to Qatar Md. Nazrul Islam and MoFA Spokesperson Seheli Sabrin, among others, were present.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said an agreement on prisoners exchange will be signed among the six deals.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"With this visit, the relations between Bangladesh and Qatar will reach a new height. This is the first-ever high level visit from the Middle East after the formation of new government this year,\" said the foreign minister.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Documents on trade and investment, avoidance of double taxation, manpower export will also be signed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Apart from areas of cooperation on bilateral front, global issues including Palestine-Israel will also be discussed where Bangladesh will highlight its position.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Naturally, this discussion can come up. Killings in Gaza should be stopped. Everyone wants it. We want it,\" said the foreign minister.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During his participation in the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Türkiye last month, Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud emphasised the urgent need for a collective effort to end the ongoing genocide in Gaza, holding Israel accountable for committing crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Bangladesh is in favour of peace, not for war,\" he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The emir of Qatar will arrive on Monday on a two-day state visit by a special flight at the invitation of the president of Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The government, in a gazette notification, has already declared the emir as a very important person during his two-day visit to Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Some of the Dhaka streets are seen decorated with the photos of Qatar’s emir, along with Bangladesh president and the prime minister ahead of the visit.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Such a high-level 24-hour visit is taking place from friendly country Qatar nearly after 19 years.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The then Emir of Qatar Shaikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani visited Bangladesh in April, 2005.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">\"The visit will play a significant role in further strengthening the brotherly relations between the two countries,\" said the foreign minister.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President Mohammed Shahabuddin will receive the emir amid gun salute and a wider ceremony at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will receive the emir at her office.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They will have tête-à-tête (one-to-one) meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office which will be followed by bilateral meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The two leaders will witness signing of cooperation documents and join a joint press meet.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">After signing visitors\' book there, the emir will head for Bangabhaban on Tuesday afternoon where the president will receive him.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President Shahabuddin will host official lunch in honour of the emir at Darbar Hall, Bangabhaban.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">FM Hasan Mahmud will also have a courtesy meeting with the emir.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A road and a park of the capital will be named after the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The emir will inaugurate the park in Kalshi area of Mirpur under Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) and a road running from Mirpur ECB Chattar to Kalshi Flyover at 3pm.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The emir will have a private meeting with selected business community members at his place of residence.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He is scheduled to depart Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport by a special flight at 6pm Tuesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The foreign minister will see him off at the airport.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh and Qatar want to expand the existing ties with broader cooperation in the areas of manpower, energy, trade and investment following the planned visit of Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to Bangladesh, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In March last year, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had a meeting with the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on the sidelines of the United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries (LDC5) in Doha.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She sought increased energy, particularly LNG, from Qatar to meet the energy demands.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 10:27:21', '2024-04-21 10:27:21'),
(12021, 12021, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The ongoing heat wave has increased the demand for green coconuts as many are rushing for its water to quench their thirst. They are paying a hefty price too.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The price of green coconut has soared by Tk30 to Tk60 per piece while a small-sized green coconut is being sold at Tk100 in the capital. The medium and large-sized green coconut is selling at Tk150 to 200 per piece even, a record price.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Jusinur, who sells green coconut at Motijheel area on a van, told UNB that the wholesalers have increased prices of green coconut by Tk 30 to 60 per piece after recent Eid vacation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said he has never seen such a big hike in price in the five years he has been in the business. Not even during Covid-19 pandemic.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Imbrahim Sarder, a wholesaler of green coconut and fruits at Badamtoli of Sdarghat told this correspondent the demand, which was low immediately after Eid-ul-Fitr, made a big jump when the extreme heat wave came.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">These retail vendors purchase the green coconut at higher price from the large suppliers of the growers and this raises the price at the wholesale market, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Similar high prices of green coconut were seen outside Dhaka Medical College, in Gulistan, Paltan and Shahbagh areas on Sunday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Karwan Bazar, a wholesale market, also saw a higher price of green coconut. The traders claimed that the prices of green coconut rose at the supply points in Barishal, Bhola, Bagerhat, Noakhali, Faridpur, Jashore and Mymensingh regions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At the supply level, prices of green coconut have increased by Tk30 per piece over the last 10 days.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A wholesaler Surja Ali told UNB that green coconut is being sold in a lot of 100 pieces with price ranging from Tk12000 to 14000. Such a high price was not seen earlier.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prices were less than Tk 2000 to 3000 even during the Ramadan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB), a green coconut sold an average of Tk22 in 2009. In 2020 the price increased to Tk74 per piece.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Currently, the average price does go below Tk100 per piece, said SM Nazer Hossain, vice president of CAB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The production of coconut fell to 510,360 tons in 38,221 hectares of land in FY 2021-22 from 688,691 tonnes in 46,960 hectares of land in FY 2016-17, according to the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Analysing the DAE data, it is found that the production of coconut started to fall after FY 2019-20. The production of coconut was 663,851 tons in FY 2017-18, 650,932 in FY 2018-19, 653,520 tonnes in FY 2019-20, 519,458 tons in FY 2020-21 and 510,360 tons in FY 2021-22, according to the DAE data.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The highest was 88,000 tons of coconut produced in Bhola district in FY 2021-22 while the production in the district was 123,950 tons in FY 2016-17, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dr. Mehedi Masood, project director of Year-Round Fruit Production for Nutrition Improvement under the DAE, said that cultivation of coconut is not increasing to match with the rise in the country’s population.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Because of rising demand, the price of both green coconut and coconut increased sharply in the country,” he said.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 11:41:55', '2024-04-21 11:41:55'),
(12022, 12022, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday said Bangladesh wants to maintain friendship with everyone, but it will do whatever is needed to protect its independence and sovereignty.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We do not want that anyone will undermine our independence and sovereignty. We want to go with friendship, but to protect our country’s independence and sovereignty we will do whatever is needed,” she said, adding “We have to always keep this in our mind.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister declared this while addressing a darbar after inaugurating the newly constructed \'Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Battery Complex\' at the Artillery Center and School in Chittagong\'s Halishahar Cantonment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We want peace with all. Our country is an independent and sovereign one. We have attained victory through war. We have to retain that independence that we have got by winning the war,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hasina said that nowadays war is also fought through digital means and that’s why the country needs to build modern knowledge-based highly trained armed forces.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We want that our armed forces will be more developed, more skilled and more trained and we are working in that direction,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She also said that Bangladesh Army is now a symbol of confidence to the nation as they always remain beside the people whenever is needed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The armed forces will discharge their responsibilities with professional skills, dutifulness, practice, training and be imbued with patriotism,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The premier said the Awami League government has been working to achieve the sustainable development targets by 2030 and build a developed, prosperous and Smart Bangladesh by 2041.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"For this, every member of the Bangladesh Army would have to be smart having knowledge of information technology,\" she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She asked the army personnel to work for maintaining the country\'s glory with dutifulness, professional efficiency and patriotism having confidence on and loyalty to the leadership.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She briefly described the measures taken by her government for the overall development of the army.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As part of the modernisation of the army, she said, ultra-modern aircraft, helicopters, UAV, fourth generation tanks, APCs, missiles to destroy tank and other war weapons have been added to the army.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hasina highly praised the overall activities of the army for the country\'s welfare, saying, \"Bangladesh Army has been well established as the symbol of confidence of the people,\" reports UNB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She told that Bangladesh military have been highly praised at home and abroad for its work efficiency and professionalism in the peacekeeping missions of the United Nations (UN).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Modern light armoured vehicles and mine resistant ambush protected vehicles have been purchased for the army to enhance operational capabilities and ensure their security in the UN missions, she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On her arrival at the venue, the prime minister was received by Chief of Army Staff General S M Shafiuddin Ahmed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 11:57:01', '2024-04-21 11:57:01'),
(12023, 12023, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Very severe heat wave has gripped parts of Bangladesh, with maximum temperatures ranging from 40 degrees Celsius to over 42 degrees Celsius in some areas.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Very severe heat wave is sweeping Pabna, Jashore and Chuadanga districts and severe heat wave is sweeping Dhaka and parts of Khulna divisions and Rajshahi district,” said a bulletin of Bangladesh Meteorological Department on Sunday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The country’s highest temperature was recorded at 42.2 degrees Celsius in Chuadanga on Sunday while Dhaka experienced highest 38.2 degrees Celsius temperature(the temperature recorded till 3 pm), meteorologist Shahinul Islam told UNB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two people died from heat stroke in Chuadanga and Pabna districts on Saturday amid the extreme heat weather due to the prevailing heat wave for the past few days.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The season’s highest temperature in the capital Dhaka was recorded at 40.4 degrees Celsius on Saturday and the country’s highest temperature was recorded in Jashore at 42.6 degrees Celsius, which was also the season\'s high for the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The BMD issued a warning that the heat wave condition will remain unchanged for the five days commencing 9 am on Saturday (20 April).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Over 42 degrees Celsius temperature is considered as very severe heat wave while between 40-41.9 degrees Celsisus is considered as severe and 38 to 39.9 degrees Celsius is considered as moderate heat wave while 36 to 37.9 degrees Celsius is considered as mild heat wave in the country, according to the BMD.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The heat wave condition forced the authorities concerned to close all schools, madrasas and colleges till April 27.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dhaka University authorities also announced to hold classes online due to the scorching heat.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The regular bulletin of Met office on Sunday predicted rain or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind at one or two places over Mymensingh, Sylhet and Chattogram divisions with hails at isolated places.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Weather may remain mainly dry with temporary partly cloudy sky elsewhere over the country, it said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mild to moderate heat wave is sweeping Barishal division and parts of Rajshahi division and Mymensingh, Moulvibazar, Feni, Cox’s Bazar, Chandpur and Rangamati districts and it may continue, the bulletin added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Day temperature may rise by (1-2)°C over Rangpur division and it may remain nearly unchanged elsewhere over the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Night temperature may remain nearly unchanged over the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 12:12:23', '2024-04-21 12:12:23'),
(12024, 12024, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud on Sunday said BNP has continuously been trying to destroy the political system through their efforts to destroy democracy and the election system.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They (BNP) have been continuously trying to destroy the democracy and election system,” he told reporters, highlighting BNP’s destructive role in the last three national elections.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The foreign minister made the remarks while responding to a question during a media briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ahead of the state visit of Qatar’s Emir.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hasan, also Awami league joint general secretary, said the BNP killed people and carried out arson attacks on people and property in an effort to destroy democracy and the election system in the country, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said they want BNP to make a turnaround but BNP has failed to do that. “It’s very unfortunate for the BNP.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 12:27:39', '2024-04-21 12:27:39');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(12025, 12025, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>President Joe Biden can breathe a bit easier, at least for the moment, now that Israel and Iran appear to have stepped back from the brink of tipping the Middle East into all-out war.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel’s retaliatory strikes on Iran and Syria caused limited damage. The restrained action came after Biden urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to temper its response to Iran’s unprecedented direct attack on Israel last week and avoid an escalation of violence in the region. Iran’s barrage of drones and missiles inflicted little damage and followed a suspected Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus this month that killed two generals.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Iran’s public response to the Israeli strikes Friday also was muted, raising hopes that Israel-Iran tensions — long carried out in the shadows with cyberattacks, assassinations and sabotage — will stay at a simmer.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The situation remains a delicate one for Biden as he gears up his reelection effort in the face of headwinds in the Middle East, Russia and the Indo-Pacific. All are testing the proposition he made to voters during his 2020 campaign that a Biden White House would bring a measure of calm and renewed respect for the United States on the world stage.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Foreign policy matters are not typically the top issue for American voters. This November is expected to be no different, with the economy and border security carrying greater resonance.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But public polling suggests that overseas concerns could have more relevance with voters than in any US election since 2006, when voter dissatisfaction over the Iraq War was a major factor in the Republican Party losing 30 House and six Senate seats.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We see this issue rising in saliency, and at the same time we’re seeing voter appraisals of President Biden’s handling of foreign affairs being quite negative,” said Christopher Borick, director of the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion. “That combination is not a great one for Biden.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Biden has staked enormous political capital on his response to the Israel-Hamas war as well as his administration’s backing of Ukraine as it fends off a Russian invasion.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The apparent de-escalation of tensions between Israel and Iran also comes as the House on Saturday approved $95 billion in wartime aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, a measure that Biden has pushed for as Ukrainian forces run desperately short on arms.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, pushed the package forward after months of delay as he faced the threat of ouster by his party’s right flank. The legislation now awaits a vote in the Senate. The new money would provide a surge of weaponry to the front lines, giving the White House renewed hope that Ukraine can right the ship after months of setbacks in the war. - AP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 12:40:58', '2024-04-21 12:40:58'),
(12026, 12026, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b>The Bangladeshi-flagged ship ‘MV Abdullah’ which was released with all 23 crew members after 31 days of captivity by Somali pirates who hijacked the ship in the Indian Ocean, reached Al Hamriya Port of Dubai safely on Sunday.</b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The cargo vessel anchored at the port around 4:30 pm (Bangladesh time), said Mizanul Islam, media advisor KSRM group.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The vessel is now kept anchored at the port, according to the Marine Traffic Website.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The vessel will be taken to the jetty for unloading coals today or tomorrow.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Captain of MV Abdullah, Mohammad Abdur Rashid, said all the 23 crew members are safe and sound and two crew members will go to Bangladesh by a flight while the others will reach the vessel in the first week of May after unloading coal.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Bangladeshi-flagged ship and its 23 crew members were released on April 13.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It took eight days to reach the United Arab Emirates.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A Somali news outlet reported that MV Abdullah was released for $5 million (Tk 55 crore).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier, on March 12 at 1:30 pm Bangladesh time, Somali pirates boarded and took control of the MV Abdullah while it was en route from the port of Maputo, Mozambique, to the United Arab Emirates.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ship was carrying 55,000 tons of coal. All 23 crew members on board are Bangladeshis. The ship is owned by SR Shipping Limited, an affiliate of Chattogram-based Kabir Group. The pirates then took the ship to the coast of Somalia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Nine days after the ship was hijacked, the pirates contacted the ship\'s owner\'s group to demand ransom. There were then negotiations at various levels. The ship\'s owner had hinted that the sailors would be released this month.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">SR Shipping is one of the largest shipping companies in the country. They operate ocean-going merchant ships. The bulk carrier MV Abdullah, with a deadweight tonnage (DWT) of 45,653 tons, has an overall length (LOA) of 185.74 metres and a width of 30.4 metres. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'news desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-21 18:06:18', '2024-04-21 18:06:18'),
(12027, 12027, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday called for increasing adaptive capacity and strengthening resilience to build a safe and beautiful world for future generations.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We aim to build a safe and beautiful world for future generations. Achieving this goal requires increasing adaptive capacity, strengthening resilience, and undertaking coordinated risk reduction initiatives,” she said.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister said this while inaugurating the four-day UN Climate Adaptation Conference National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Expo 2024 at the Bangabandhu International Conference Center (BICC).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In order ro achieve this goal she put forward six stems.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">First, major carbon-emitting countries must take effective action to reduce their emissions to limit global temperature rise to within 1.5 degrees Celsius;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Second, commitments by developed countries to an annual climate fund of $100 billion must be met. This fund must be equally distributed between adaptation and mitigation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Third, developed countries must ensure efficient energy solutions and the transfer of technologies to developing countries.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fourth, during the transition to renewable energy, the development priorities of the countries involved should be taken into account based on their loss and damage;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fifth, all countries must share the responsibility for the rehabilitation of people displaced by sea-level rise, salinity, river erosion, floods, and droughts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Finally, major economies must work globally in partnership with all stakeholders to ensure a sustainable future for generations to come.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Environment, Forest and Climate Change Secretary&nbsp; Farhina Ahmed, UN Resident Coordinator in Bangladesh Gwyn Lewis, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Simon Steele and Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Saber Hossain Chowdhury were among others also spoke at the programme.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister said that although Bangladesh\'s contribution to global carbon emissions is less than 0.48 percent, it is one of the most affected and vulnerable countries to its negative impact.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“These adverse effects of climate change threaten our potential development and economic prosperity. Continued global warming is raising sea levels,” she said.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As a result, she mentioned,&nbsp; a large swath of southwestern Bangladesh, which comprises about 12–17 percent of the country\'s total area, is at risk of submergence by the end of this century.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We have made the call to the developed world to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C,” she said.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina mentioned that in 2015, Bangladesh formulated the Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and submitted it to the UNFCCC in 2021 after updating.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the document, she said, Bangladesh set an unconditional 6.73 percent and a conditional 15.12greenhouse gas emission reduction target.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She also mentioned that Bangladesh has reduced the use of fossil fuels and increased the use of renewable energy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and in 2023 it formulated the Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan (MCPP), which aims to reach from vulnerability to resilience to prosperity while combating the adverse impacts of climate change.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Besides, she said in the adaptation and mitigation programs of the MCPP, emphasis has been laid on the spontaneous participation of local people and stakeholders and nature-based solutions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Bangladesh has already formulated the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) for 2022–2050 and submitted it to the UNFCCC in October 2022. In this plan, 113 priority programs have been identified in 8 sectors across 11 climate risk areas,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She sated that for this purpose Bangladesh needs approximately 230 billion US dollars to implement the action plans adopted in the NAP over the next 27 years.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I urge the rich countries and the international community to provide specific funds and additional financial resources.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister said that developed countries are contributing more to global warming through massive carbon emissions.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is their moral responsibility to protect the people affected by climate change. During our tenure as the chair of the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF), we repeatedly called for implementing the pledge of providing $100 billion per year by developed countries for adaptation and mitigation activities. I hope the developed countries will abide by their promises.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She also urged the international community and wealthy nations to continue providing financial, scientific, and technical assistance to Bangladesh and other countries facing threats from the adverse impacts of climate change, even after graduation to developing countries.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to the COP-26 decision, she said, developed countries should double their adaptation financing by 2025 compared to 2019.&nbsp; She urged rich countries to fulfil this commitment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It should be ensured that countries that have already formulated NAPs can easily and quickly access financial support from all available sources, including the UNFCCC, to implement their NAPs.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hasina said that Bangladesh is taking appropriate actions in adaptation and mitigation to reduce the potential damage caused by climate change.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“In this case, Bangladesh will take the necessary initiatives to access funding from the UNFCCC\'s Loss and Damage Fund.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said that Bangladesh has always been working with the international community to combat the impacts of climate change.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Under the leadership of the prime minister\'s office, she said, Bangladesh has already formed the \"Bangladesh Climate Development Partnership (BCDP\" with development partners where all parties have agreed on this, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She hoped that the BCDP will significantly contribute to implementing the Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan, National Adaptation Plan, National Determined Contribution, and Vision 2041 of Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Let\'s work together to protect this planet more intensively,\" she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">From the programme, the prime minister also launched the Bangladesh Climate Development Partnership (BCDP).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 08:56:11', '2024-04-22 08:56:11'),
(12028, 12028, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The prevailing heat wave condition over the country may continue for 72 hours commencing Monday.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Bangladesh Meteorological Department issued an alert in this regard on Monday.</div><div><br></div><div>It also said, Due to increase of moisture incursion, the discomfort may persists.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 09:11:46', '2024-04-22 09:11:46'),
(12029, 12029, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday inaugurated the four day UN Climate Adaptation Conference National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Expo 2024 at the Bangabandhu International Conference Center.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The NAP Expo is an international forum where countries, organisations and other relevant stakeholders interact and exchange experiences in the formulation and implementation of NAP.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The event will serve as a platform for sharing insights on climate adaptation strategies from around the world, fostering mutual benefits.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Some 383 representatives from 104 countries have registered with UNFCCC to participate in NAP Expo 2024.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Besides, 550 people, including representatives of various ministries, departments and organisations of the country, climate experts, representatives of NGOs and volunteers will participate in the adaptation meet.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The expo will also arrange training sessions to identify gaps and needs related to the process of NAP formulation and implementation in developing countries.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">There will be a total of 23 stalls in this conference where adaptation activities of different countries will be displayed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;Also, at 34 sessions over four days, experts will discuss transformational adaptation, financial mechanism, adaptation activity monitoring and evaluation tools and gender responsive adaptation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A number of 13 stalls allocated for Bangladesh to showcase climate adaptation issues. Bangladesh will showcase its innovative adaptation measures such as rainwater harvesting, solar-powered water extraction in hilly regions, climate-resilient agriculture, and infrastructure development like cyclone shelters and road works.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The event will also celebrate Bangladesh\'s rich history, culture, and heritage, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Simon Steele and Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Saber Hossain Chowdhury were also present at the programme.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 09:57:39', '2024-04-22 09:57:39'),
(12030, 12030, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said that Bangladesh Climate Development Partnership (BCDP) has been created to synchronise with the international stakeholders to face the climate change impacts in their global programmes.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">This BCDP will work with the stakeholders, developed countries and international organisations and fund programmes to mitigate the climate change issues, she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister said this on Monday while Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Simon Steele called on her at a bilateral meeting room at the Bangabandhu International Conference Center (BICC).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to a release from PM’s Press Wing the prime minister said that Bangladesh is taking long-term programmes to tackle the impacts of climate change. </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She briefly described various adaptation and mitigation programmes of Bangladesh including Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan and National Adaptation Plan (NAP) to face the adverse impacts of climate change.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Hasina said that due to the adverse impacts of the climate change Bangladesh is often facing various types of cyclones, heavy rain and heatwaves.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We are encouraging social movement for forestation, created 84000 volunteers and build multipurpose cyclone shelters,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She also said that researchers in Bangladesh have invented saline, flood and drought resilient rice varieties.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina also said that from June next tree plantation programmes will be started across the country during the rainy season.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Staff Correspondent', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 10:12:56', '2024-04-22 15:28:34'),
(12031, 12031, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Israeli strikes on the southern Gaza city of Rafah overnight killed 22 people, including 18 children, health officials said Sunday, as the United States was on track to approve billions of dollars of additional military aid to Israel, its close ally.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel has carried out near-daily air raids on Rafah, where more than half of Gaza\'s population of 2.3 million has sought refuge from fighting elsewhere. It has also vowed to expand its ground offensive against the Hamas militant group to the city on the border with Egypt despite calls for restraint, including from the U.S.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“In the coming days, we will increase the political and military pressure on Hamas because this is the only way to bring back our hostages and achieve victory. We will land more and painful blows on Hamas — soon,\" Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. He didn\'t give details.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The first Israeli strike in Rafah killed a man, his wife and their 3-year-old child, according to the nearby Kuwaiti Hospital, which received the bodies. The woman was pregnant and the doctors saved the baby, the hospital said. The second strike killed 17 children and two women from an extended family.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“These children were sleeping. What did they do? What was their fault?” asked one relative, Umm Kareem. Mohammed al-Beheiri said that his daughter, Rasha, and her six children, the youngest 18 months old, were among those killed. A woman and three children were still under the rubble.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Israel-Hamas war has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, at least two-thirds of them children and women. It has devastated Gaza\'s two largest cities and left a swath of destruction. Around 80% of the territory\'s population have fled to other parts of the besieged coastal enclave.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The $26 billion aid package approved by the U.S. House of Representatives on Saturday includes around $9 billion in humanitarian assistance for Gaza, which experts say is on the brink of famine. The U.S. Senate could pass the package as soon as Tuesday, and President Joe Biden has promised to sign it immediately. According to AP reports</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">bnbd24/fas</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 10:32:10', '2024-04-22 10:32:10'),
(12032, 12032, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Land Minister Narayon Chandra Chanda today stressed the need to ensure optimum use of land and people-friendly services related to land while formulating the Annual Performance Agreement (APA) action plan for the fiscal year 2024-2025.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Land Minister Narayon Chandra Chanda said this while inaugurating a workshop on the preparation of draft APA for the fiscal year 2024-25 of the Ministry of Land and its offices/agencies at the conference room of the Ministry of Land at the Secretariat today.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Chairman of Land Appeal Board AKM Shamimul Haque Siddique, Additional Secretary (Acting Secretary) of the Ministry of Land Md. Abbas Uddin and Additional Secretary (Development) Ziauddin Ahmed NDC were present on the occasion.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Land minister said that people\'s involvement with land management is very high and direct. Most of the rural disputes and litigations are related to land tenure. The government is working to provide more efficient land-related services to the people through efficient, modern, public welfare-oriented, and sustainable land management. APA\'s role in bringing good governance to this process is important.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the workshop, the Land Minister emphasized the important role of the Annual Performance Agreement (APA) in increasing transparency and accountability in government offices.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Land Minister also highlighted the importance of APA for a result-oriented mentality, institutional transparency, accountability, proper use of resources, and organizational efficiency in government institutions.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He underscored the need for effective implementation of the objectives of the Ministry of Land in citizen service to create seamless synchronization between the ministry and the field-level offices.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Narayon Chandra Chanda emphasized that the APA introduced by the Government in 2014-15 has been instrumental in bringing the activities of the ministries and agencies from procedural to result-oriented activities.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The minister also directed the Ministry of Land and its affiliated offices/agencies to prepare their respective strategic objectives and activities for the next fiscal year in line with the overall vision and mission of the Ministry of Land.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/ri/s</div>', NULL, 'Staff Correspondent', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 11:06:01', '2024-04-22 11:06:01'),
(12033, 12033, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) formed a committee to investigate the alleged corruption of former inspector general of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed and his family.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">ACC secretary Khorsheda Yeasmin informed the update at a briefing held at the headquarter of the Commission on Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said a report of illegal acquisition of wealth against former IGP Benazir Ahmed was published in a national daily newspaper on March 31 while similar complaints were published in some other electronic media on April 1 and 2.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mentioning the reports, ACC secretary said proceedings were initiated under Rule No. 3 of the Anti-Corruption Commission Rules, 2007 regarding the complaints. </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She also said \"The decision to investigate the fomer IGP was taken on April 18 in the first meeting after the long Eid Holiday.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to the relevant laws and regulations, legal action will be taken by completing the investigation within the prescribed time frame, she added, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier, a writ was filed in the High Court seeking a corruption probe into former IGP of Police Benazir Ahmed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Monday (April 22), Supreme Court lawyer Salahuddin Regan filed the writ in the relevant branch of the High Court. In the writ four persons including ACC chairman and secretary were made defendants. </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"42\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 12:25:14', '2024-04-22 12:25:27'),
(12034, 12034, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A race car veered off the track during a competition in Sri Lanka on Sunday and rammed into a crowd of spectators and race officials, killing seven people and injuring 20 others, officials said.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Thousands of spectators looked on as the mishap took place during a race in the town of Diyatalawa in the tea-growing central hills, about 180 kilometers (110 miles) east of the capital Colombo.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It wasn\'t immediately clear what caused the mishap.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Police spokesman Nihal Thalduwa said one of the cars veered off the track and crashed into spectators and officials of the event. Seven people, including four officials, were killed and another 20 were being treated at a hospital, said Thalduwa. He said three of the injured were in critical condition.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Thalduwa said police have launched an investigation into the accident, which was the 17th out of 24 events scheduled. The race was suspended after the accident.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">About 45,000 spectators had gathered at the race circuit at a Sri Lankan military academy. The event was organized by the Sri Lankan army and Sri Lanka Automobile Sports.&nbsp; - AP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 12:37:37', '2024-04-22 12:37:37'),
(12035, 12035, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The Biden administration wants to start moving weapons and equipment into Ukraine within days of the anticipated passage this week of legislation that includes $60 billion in military aid to Kyiv, a long-delayed lifeline for the embattled nation.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The aid would arrive much later than Ukraine - running low on ammunition and staggering under a renewed Russian onslaught - had hoped, and analysts caution that there is no guarantee that more will be forthcoming.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But officials and experts agree that the artillery rounds, precision-guided missiles and air defenses will change the military outlook for Ukraine.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"With the boost that will come from military assistance, both practically and psychologically, the Ukrainians are entirely capable of holding their own through 2024 and puncturing Putin’s arrogant view that time is on his side,\" CIA Director William Burns said on Thursday at the Bush Center Forum on Leadership in Dallas.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ammunition, interceptors for air defense systems and long-range weapons can begin moving \"within days\" once the bills become law, said a U.S. official.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"There won\'t be any delays or bottlenecks on the U.S. side,\" the official said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than two years into Russia\'s full-scale invasion, Ukraine has lost territory in the eastern part of the country and Russia has ramped up its bombardment of cities and towns behind the front lines amid a slowdown in Western military assistance.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Aid for Ukraine had been held up for months over objections from hard-right Republican lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Saturday, the House passed a $95 billion legislative package providing security assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. It now heads to the Senate and passage is expected this week, clearing the way for President Joe Biden to sign it into law.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Over the weekend, Zelenskiy welcomed the advancing of the aid package in the House of Representatives, and repeatedly urged lawmakers to swiftly pass the bill in the Senate so the transfer of weapons can happen quickly. Source: Reuters</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 12:57:38', '2024-04-22 12:57:38'),
(12036, 12036, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A 23-year-old Bangladeshi youth was killed in firing by Indian Border Security Force (BSF) members on Monday along the Putia border in Kasba Upazila of Brahmanbaria.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The deceased Md Hasan was the son of Jaru Mia of Kaimpur village of Kaimpur union of the upazila. He was a farmer by profession.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to eyewitnesses and BGB, victim Hasan along with some of his friends went to the zero line area of the Indian border in Putia around 9am.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A member of BSF from Gate No. 3 of that area opened fire, leaving Hasan injured.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">His friends Md Yasin and Emon Mia with the help of locals rescued him and brought him to Kasba Upazila Health Complex where doctors declared him dead.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Raju Ahmed, officer-in-charge of Kasba police station, said that the body of the youth killed in BSF firing was kept in the upazila health complex. It would be sent to the district Sadar hospital morgue for post-mortem, he added, reports unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sultanpur 60BGB Captain (CO) Javed Bin Jabbar said that they are investigating the matter.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile, a meeting was held between BGB and BSF in the afternoon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the meeting, BGB formally protested the incident.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Expressing sorrow over the incident, BSF assured that such an untoward incident should not happen again.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 13:11:52', '2024-04-22 13:11:52'),
(12037, 12037, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>In fake videos that have gone viral online, two of India\'s A-lister Bollywood actors are seen criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and asking people to vote for the opposition Congress party in the country\'s ongoing general election.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a 30-second video that shows Aamir Khan and another 41-second clip of Ranveer Singh, the two Bollywood actors purportedly say Modi failed to keep campaign promises and failed to address critical economic issues during his two terms as prime minister.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Both AI-generated videos end with the Congress election symbol and slogan, \"Vote for Justice, Vote for Congress\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The two videos have been viewed on social media more than half a million times since last week, a Reuters review shows.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Their spread underlines the potential role such AI (artificial intelligence)-generated content can play in the mammoth Indian election that started on Friday and will continue until June. AI and AI-generated fakes, or deepfakes, are being increasingly used in elections elsewhere in the world, including in the U.S., Pakistan and Indonesia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Campaigning in India has long focused on door-to-door outreach and public rallies, but extensive use of WhatsApp and Facebook as campaigning tools started in 2019. This year\'s general election - in which Modi is expected to secure a rare third term - is the first in which AI is being used.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A Congress spokesperson, Sujata Paul, shared actor Singh\'s video with her 16,000 followers on X on April 17 and by Saturday afternoon, her post had been reshared 2,900 times, liked 8,700 times and received 438,000 views.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Paul told Reuters by telephone she was aware the video was marked \"manipulated media\" by X, but she did not want to delete it as, while posting, she thought the person was a look alike of Singh and \"it has creativity for sure\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The post was no longer visible on X on Sunday, hours after Reuters sent a request for comment to Congress\' head of social media cell, who did not respond. Source: Reuters&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 13:40:01', '2024-04-22 13:40:01'),
(12038, 12038, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>President Mohammed Shahabuddin welcomed Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Monday afternoon as Bangladesh rolled out the red carpet complete with gun salute at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Emir of Qatar arrived at 5pm for a two-day state visit at the invitation of the president of Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The president and the emir exchanged flowers at the airport on his arrival and exchanged greetings with the representatives of Bangladesh and Qatar in the presentation line after receiving the salute.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During the trip, President Shahabuddin will host an official lunch in honour of the emir at Darbar Hall followed by a cultural programme at Bangabhaban on Tuesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, the visiting emir will sign the visitor\'s book after the courtesy meeting with the president.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh and Qatar will sign 11 cooperation documents- six agreements and five MoUs, Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud came up with the update while briefing the media at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Such a high-level 24-hour visit is taking place from friendly country Qatar nearly after 19 years.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The then Emir of Qatar Shaikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani visited Bangladesh in April, 2005.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will receive the emir at her office.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They will have tête-à-tête (one-to-one) meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office which will be followed by a bilateral meeting, witness the signing of multiple cooperation documents between the two nations, including 6 MoUs, and join a joint press meet.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">After signing the visitors\' book there, the emir will head for Bangabhaban on Tuesday afternoon where the president will receive him.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Alongside, the emir will inaugurate the park in Kalshi area of Mirpur under Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) and a road running from Mirpur ECB Chattar to Kalshi Flyover at 3pm, which will be named after the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, the visiting emir\'s father and predecessor.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He is scheduled to depart Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport by a special flight at 6pm Tuesday while he foreign minister will see him off at the airport.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Qatar recognised Bangladesh as a sovereign state on March 4, 1974 following the 2nd OIC Summit held in February 1974.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh opened its diplomatic mission in Doha on June 25, 1975. The State of Qatar reciprocated by opening its diplomatic mission in Dhaka in 1982, reports unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, More than 400,000 Bangladeshis work in Qatar and they are appreciated as dedicated and hard working.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 13:55:24', '2024-04-22 13:55:24'),
(12039, 12039, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>BNP has postponed its rally scheduled for April 26 due to the extreme heatwave.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The party announced the postponement of the rally in a statement on Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The rally was supposed to be held in front of the party’s central office in Dhaka\'s Nayapaltan, reports unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">BNP Dhaka Metropolitan South Unit’s office secretary, Saidur Rahman, said a new date for the rally would be announced later.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 14:18:43', '2024-04-22 14:18:43'),
(12040, 12040, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>From April 27, next Sunday, If Aedes mosquito larvae are found in any establishment falling under the jurisdiction of Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC), the owners will face not just fines as before but also jail terms, DNCC Mayor Md Atiqul Islam said Monday.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Furthermore, if larvae are discovered in a government office, the person in charge of that office will also be sued and fined. Even if larvae are found in any office within the DNCC, action will be taken against the officials of that office.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The DNCC mayor disclosed this information while inaugurating a month-long public awareness campaign in 54 wards of DNCC simultaneously to prevent dengue in the Mirpur Rupnagar area of the capital on Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"My clear message is, if larvae are found, a case will be registered, and individuals may be jailed and fined. The amount of the fine will also be substantially increased. We have already informed the Ministry of Local Government to provide us with more magistrates,\" the DNCC Mayor added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Atiqul Islam further stated, \"If you (city dwellers) are aware, there is no need for jail sentences or fines. Dispose of accumulated water every three days. Clean areas where Aedes mosquitoes can breed. Stay aware and keep yourself and others safe,\" the DNCC Mayor said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Among others, Dhaka-14 Constituency Member of Parliament Md. Mainul Hossain Khan Nikhil, DNCC Chief Engineer Brig Gen Md Moin Uddin, Chief Health Officer Brig Gen Imrul Kayes Chowdhury, Regional Executive Officer of Region-4 Md. Abed Ali, Councilor of reserved seat Shikha Chakraborty, and other senior officials were present. According to UNB reports</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"39\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 14:29:13', '2024-04-22 14:29:13');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(12041, 12041, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">In keeping with the previous years, Bangladesh is participating in the prestigious Venice International Art Biennale.</span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy under the guidance of the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is taking&nbsp; part in this event. The overarching theme of this year’s biennale is ‘Foreigners Everywhere’, according to press release received here.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Bangladesh pavilion under the caption ‘Yearning for Harmony: In the Crisis of the Civilization’ has been formally inaugurated in the touristic city of Venice on 18 April 2024 in presence of a huge number of artists, art lovers and critics, journalists, member of expatriate Bangladeshi community, educationist, and high officials.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A 6-member Bangladeshi delegation led by the Director General of Shilpakala Academy Mr. Liaquat Ali Lucky attended the inauguration ceremony. Consul General of Bangladesh in Milan Mr. M J H Jabed, Honorary Consul of Bangladesh in Venice Avv. Fabrizio Ippolito D\'Avino, Curator of Bangladesh pavilion Ms. Viviana Vannucci also attended the ceremony. In his address to the foreign audience, the Director General of Shilpakala Academy said that Bangladesh is a proud participant at the Venice Biennale which is the world\'s premiere art event. The artworks displayed at the Bangladesh pavilion are done by both celebrated and promising artists of the country. He informed that Bangladesh also hosts Asian Art Biennale which has drawn attention of art connoisseurs from across the world. He invited the Italian artists and art critics to attend the future art events to be organized in Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Consul General of Bangladesh in Milan noted that during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s last visit to Italy a cultural Cooperation Agreement was signed between Bangladesh and Italy under which two friendly countries are expected to broaden cooperation in the cultural domain. He also noted that Bangladesh has a rich history in art which needs to be showcased before the global community.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mr. Jabed also stated that Cultural Diplomacy is one of the priority areas in the Public Diplomacy endeavour of the present government. From the Bangladesh delegation Ms. Nafriza Shayma, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Cultural Affairs and Ekushey Padak awardee artist Professor Shahjahan Ahmed Bikash spoke on the occasion, reports nnb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This is the 5th consecutive time that Bangladesh has been participating at the Venice Biennale.The 6-month long event will continue till end November-2024.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Entertainment', '[\"13\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 15:01:03', '2024-04-22 15:01:03'),
(12042, 12042, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Huq said that workers of any factory can form a labor union from now on.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>He said this while talking to reporters after a meeting with the US trade delegation in his office at the Secretariat on Monday.</div><div><br></div><div>“They mainly discussed the labor laws of Bangladesh, workers\' rights and what we are doing. Their important question was - what is the current situation of the amendment of the Bangladesh Labor Act, what is being done? They wanted to know about eleven issues and how much progress has been made in this regard,” the minister said.</div><div><br></div><div>The delegation’s first question was about the threshold (percentage of workers required to form a trade union).</div><div><br></div><div>The minister also said, they informed the delegation about the new decision of keeping no threshold for forming a trade union, reports UNB</div><div><br></div><div>“First, around 2016, it was 30 percent. When we went to the International Labor Organization (ILO) conference in 2017, it was decided to bring this threshold to 20 percent,” he said.</div><div><br></div><div>“During the last amendment, the first proposal was to bring it down from 20 percent to 15 percent. But there was a caveat, it would be applicable only for factories employing 3,000 or more workers,” said Anisul Huq.</div><div><br></div><div>But that limit has also been lifted, said the law minister, adding “We have informed the US representatives that too.”</div><div><br></div><div>The minister also said that after hearing about the labor laws and rights, the US representative expressed satisfaction. “After this discussion, the US representatives told me that they were satisfied.”</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Staff Correspondent', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 15:12:43', '2024-04-22 15:12:43'),
(12043, 12043, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is facing accusations of spreading hatred against Muslims after controversial comments on Sunday wherein he equated the community to “infiltrators” and peddled anti-Muslim tropes in the middle of the country’s general elections.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Speaking at a crowded rally in the western state of Rajasthan, Modi said if the opposition led by the Congress party came to power, it would distribute the country’s wealth among “those who have more children”, in an apparent reference to Muslims, whom he had spoken about just before.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Should your hard-earned money be given to infiltrators?” he said to the cheering crowd, before alleging that the opposition would take away even mangalsutras - the auspicious necklace that a husband ties around his wife’s neck in Hindu weddings - if given a chance.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Local poll officials in Rajasthan confirmed to Al Jazeera that they had received at least two complaints against Modi, calling for his election campaign to be suspended and for his arrest.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Renu Poonia, a nodal officer of the Election Commission of India (ECI) in the state capital, Jaipur, revealed that the complaints were received from the Azad Adhikar Sena, a regional political party, and a local non-profit organisation.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">India’s election code bars parties and politicians from engaging in speeches and campaigns that aim to perpetuate religious or caste differences. But independent watchdogs and activists have long complained that election officials act too slowly, if at all, especially when cases involve powerful officials in the government.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Many leaders in Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies in India’s Hindu-majoritarian right have long portrayed the country’s 200 million Muslims effectively as outsiders. Muslim asylum seekers and refugees from Bangladesh and Myanmar are in particular targeted as “infiltrators”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The BJP and its partners have also long pushed a conspiracy theory that suggests that Indian Muslims produce more children intending to eventually outnumber Hindus in the country.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In reality, government data shows that the Muslim fertility rate in India is dropping the fastest among all communities and has almost halved in the past three decades.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Modi has himself promoted this stereotype - in 2002, after an anti-Muslim massacre in the state of Gujarat, where he served terms as chief minister - infamously mocking relief camps as baby-producing factories, reports Al Jazeera</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Yet, in recent years, while others in his party and its coalition partners have often engaged in open Islamophobic commentary and even violence, Modi has focused on his government’s claimed accomplishments in the fields of the economy and social development. That had been the principal thrust of his 2024 re-election campaign too.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 15:30:11', '2024-04-22 15:30:11'),
(12044, 12044, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b><br></b></span></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Two students of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) were killed after a speeding bus knocked down their motorcycle on Kaptai road in Chattogram on Monday.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The victims were Shanta Saha (ID-2001100), a student of the 20th batch of Civil Engineering Department and Toufiq Hossain (ID-2101006), of the same department of \'21 batch.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shanto Saha was the son of Kajal Saha of Narsingdi and Taufiq Hossain was the son of Mohammad Delwar of New College Road of Noakhali\'s Sudharam.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The crash occurred around 3:30pm in the area adjacent to Selina Quader Chowdhury College on Chattogram Kaptai Road on Monday (April 22), reports unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fazlur Rahman, Deputy Director (Public Relations) CUET, said Shanto Saha\'s body was kept at Chittagong Medical College Hospital while Taufiq\'s body was in Evercare Hospital.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The bodies would be handed over to their families after due procedures, he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 15:49:10', '2024-04-22 15:49:10'),
(12045, 12045, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The country experienced about 1000 MW of load shedding in electricity supply on Monday against soaring demand. According to the National Load Dispatch Centre (NLDC) at the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB), the country’s demand was recorded at 15,220 MW at 3pm on Monday, when the load shedding was 996 MW.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, the demand forecast for Monday evening was 15,666 MW and supply forecast was 16,200 MW.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to official sources, maximum burden of the loadshedding was diverted to rural areas, as part of a policy to avert power outages in capital Dhaka and other large cities. Reports from different areas said the extent of loadshedding is aggravating the plight of the rural people amid the sweltering heat this summer.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Meanwhile, state-owned Petrobangla’s official data shows that the country’s gas production was 3,046 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) against a demand for 3,760 MW.<br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It shows that a good number of power plants, specifically those using gas as their primary fuel, remained off generation due to gas shortage.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The power plants received a supply of 1349.9 MMCFD gas against their demand for 2316.9 MMCFD, the data shows. Source: UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-22 16:02:15', '2024-04-22 16:02:15'),
(12046, 12046, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>There had been \"no significant changes\" in the human rights situation in Bangladesh during the year 2023, the United States has said in a new report.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The country reports in the 2023 Human Rights Report (HRR) do not draw legal conclusions, rank countries, or draw comparisons, said the US Embassy in Dhaka on Tuesday.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">There were numerous reports of widespread impunity for human rights abuses, said the report in its Bangladesh chapter.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In most cases, it claimed, the government did not take credible steps to identify and punish officials or security force members who may have committed human rights abuses.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The U.S. Department of State released the 2023 Human Rights Report, which the US Embassy described as a \"factual and objective\" record on the status of respect for human rights worldwide.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 2023 Human Rights Report (HRR) covers 198 countries and territories.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The individual reports in the HRR detail \"credible factual information\" on human rights abuses and violations, providing a tool used by governments, advocates, journalists and others concerned about the state of human rights and democracy in specific countries and territories, said the embassy.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The United States has issued these reports for nearly five decades. &nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The HRR represents several months of work performed by U.S. Department of State colleagues in our missions abroad and in Washington, D.C. &nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The HRR informs U.S. foreign policy decisions and assists the U.S. Congress, Executive Branch, and immigration courts when accurate information on human rights conditions is needed.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The HRR also informs the work of civil society - including human rights defenders-lawmakers abroad, scholars, immigration judges and asylum officers, multilateral institutions, and other governments. According to UNB reports</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">bnbd24/fas</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 09:22:40', '2024-04-23 09:22:40'),
(12047, 12047, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Bangladesh and Qatar on Tuesday signed 10 cooperation documents - five agreements and five MoUs - to strengthen ties on multiple fronts and help the relations reach a new height.&nbsp;</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani witnessed the signing of the documents.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The five signed agreements are: agreement for cooperation in the legal field between Bangladesh and State of Qatar, agreement on promotion and protection of mutual investments; agreement on the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes in income between Qatar and Bangladesh; agreement on maritime transport; and agreement on the establishment of Joint Business Council (JBC) between FBCCI &amp; QCCI.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The five MoUs are: MoU on cooperation in the fields of sports and youth between Bangladesh and Qatar; MoU on cooperation in the field of manpower employment (Labour) between Ministry of Labour, State of Qatar and Bangladesh; MoU on cooperation in diplomatic training between Bangladesh and Qatar; MoU for cooperation in the field of education, higher education and scientific research between Bangladesh and Qatar; MoU between Qatar Ports management Company “MAWANI QATAR” and Chittagong Ports Authority.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier in morning PM Hasina warmly welcomed and received Emir Sheikh Tamim at her office.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They had tête-à-tête (one-to-one) meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office, which was followed by a bilateral meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">After signing visitors\' book there, the emir will head for Bangabhaban on Tuesday afternoon where the president will receive him.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A high-level Qatari delegation headed by Qatar’s emir is paying the state visit to Bangladesh at the invitation of the president and the prime minister of Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At the ceremony, a road and a park in the capital Dhaka were named after Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The park, built in Kalshi area of ​​Mirpur under Dhaka North City Corporation, and the road from Mirpur ECB point to Kalsi Fly Over were named after Emir of the Qatar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Now, the road and park are known as Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani Avenue and Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani Park. - UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 09:46:27', '2024-04-23 09:46:27'),
(12048, 12048, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>One hundred and seventy-three Bangladeshi nationals will return home on Wednesday from Sittwe prison in Rakhine State of Myanmar.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The returnees will be carried by the ‘Myanmar Naval Ship Chin Dwin’ which is visiting Bangladesh to bring back members of Myanmar defence force who were forced to cross the border into Bangladesh due to conflict in Rakhine state, said the Bangladesh Embassy in Yangon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ship is expected to reach the Bangladesh territory by Wednesday and handover of the Bangladeshi citizens to the relevant authorities of Bangladesh will take place at that time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Out of the 173 people,&nbsp; 129 are from Cox’s Bazar district, 30 are from Bandarban district, seven are from Rangamati district, one each from Khagrachari, Noakhali, Narayanganj, Chattogram, Rajbari, Narshingdi and Nilphamari district.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh Embassy in Yangon, upon receipt of the information of the tentative visit of the Myanmar ship to Bangladesh, took up the issue with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs of Bangladesh and relevant Myanmar authorities to seize the opportunity to send back the maximum number of verified Bangladeshi Nationals who were in different prisons of Myanmar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Embassy also pursued the relevant host authorities to bring the 144 ‘verified and jail term completed or pardoned’ returnees in Sittwe prison for smooth return and pursued for releasing the 29 verified Bangladeshi nationals who were still serving their jail terms or under trial. Pursuant to the Mission’s efforts the 29 persons were pardoned and sent back to Bangladesh, reports unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, Bangladesh Embassy in Yangon and Bangladesh Consulate in Sittwe have been working “steadfastly” for this return since the last return of Bangladeshi citizens that took place on October 3, 2023 when 29 Bangladeshis returned home through a flag meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 10:00:38', '2024-04-23 10:00:38'),
(12049, 12049, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Severe heat wave prevailed in Rajshahi, Pabna, Khulna, Bagerhat, Jashore, Chuadanga and Kushtia districts on Monday, disrupting normal life.&nbsp;&nbsp;</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to Bangladesh Meteorological Department(BMD). besides, mild to moderate heat wave continues to scorch Dhaka, Rangpur and Barishal divisions and&nbsp; parts of Rajshahi &amp; Khulna divisions, Mymensingh, Moulvibazar and&nbsp; Rangamati districts and it may continue.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rains or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely at one or two places over Sylhet division with hails at isolated places, it said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Met office also predicted rains in Sylhet and Chattogram on Wednesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Weather may remain mainly dry with temporary partly cloudy sky elsewhere over the country in 24 hours commencing 9am on Tuesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Day temperature may rise slightly and night temperature may remain nearly unchanged over the country. Due to increase of moisture incursion, the discomfort may persist.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 10:19:51', '2024-04-23 10:19:51'),
(12050, 12050, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The scorching heat waves can pose serious health risks, especially for people who stay outdoors for long hours due to occupation. During hot weather situations in summer, people working under the sun may suffer from heat-related illnesses like dehydration, heatstroke, etc. Let’s explore some effective tips to safeguard outdoor workers from the debilitating effects of heat waves.</span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">What is Heatstroke?</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Heat stroke is a severe heat-related illness characterised by a body temperature of 104°F (40°C) or higher. It arises when your body overheats and the body\'s internal temperature regulation system fails, typically due to prolonged exposure to high temperatures or strenuous physical activity and dehydration. It is most prevalent during the summer season.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Immediate medical attention is necessary for heatstroke. If left untreated, it can swiftly lead to damage to vital organs such as the brain, heart, kidneys, and muscles. Delaying treatment exacerbates the damage, heightening the risk of severe complications or even death.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Symptoms of Heat Stroke</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The most common symptoms of heatstroke include:</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b><i>- High body temperature (above 104°F or 40°C)</i></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b><i>- Altered mental state, such as confusion or disorientation</i></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b><i>- Nausea and vomiting</i></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b><i>- Flushed or red skin</i></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b><i>- Rapid breathing</i></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b><i>- Rapid heartbeat.</i></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Summer Tips for Outdoor Workers to Prevent Heat Stroke&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hydrate Regularly&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is important to make sure to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of fluids throughout the day, even if you do not feel thirsty. It is crucial to prevent dehydration, which can increase the risk of heat-related illnesses.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Aim to drink around 500 ml of water before starting your work, and then aim for 150 to 200 ml every 15-20 minutes, especially when working in hot and humid conditions. It would be helpful to carry a refillable water bottle with you and take frequent sips throughout the day to maintain hydration levels.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Avoid Dehydrating Drinks</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is highly recommended to avoid caffeinated beverages like coffee, tea, and soft drinks, as these products can worsen dehydration. Similarly, sugary drinks should be avoided. Instead, replenish lost electrolytes by opting for sports drinks or electrolyte tablets, especially if you are sweating profusely. These options can help maintain hydration levels and support your body\'s needs during hot weather conditions.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Schedule Breaks</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Try to take breaks in shaded or cool spots to rest and cool down. One should refrain from working during the peak heat hours. Seek shade or air-conditioned areas for frequent breaks. Additionally, schedule physically demanding tasks for cooler periods like early mornings or evenings.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">One can use cooling methods such as misting fans or cooling towels to lower one’s body temperature. Prioritising these measures helps prevent overheating and maintains productivity in hot weather conditions.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dress Appropriately&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is necessary to dress appropriately for hot weather by wearing loose-fitting, lightweight clothing in light colours, ideally made from breathable materials like cotton. Steer clear of dark-coloured clothing, which absorbs heat.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">You should also protect yourself further by wearing a wide-brimmed hat to shield your head and face from the sun, and donning sunglasses to safeguard your eyes from harmful UV rays. These measures help you stay cool and comfortable while working outdoors in the heat.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Use Sunscreen&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Using sunscreen is one of the most important things in summer. Prepare in advance and shield yourself from the sun by applying sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or above to exposed skin. Ensure to apply it at least 20 minutes before going outdoors and reapply every two hours, or more frequently if sweating or swimming.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This precautionary measure helps prevent sunburn, which can hinder your body\'s ability to regulate temperature effectively. This will keep you safe and comfortable in the heat.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Know the Signs&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is essential to be aware of the signs of heat stroke, such as high body temperature, confusion, nausea, and rapid heartbeat. Additionally, monitor your urine output as dark-coloured urine indicates dehydration.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">If your urine appears dark, it is crucial to increase your fluid intake to prevent dehydration and reduce the risk of heat-related illnesses. Stay vigilant and take prompt action to safeguard your health in hot weather conditions.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Stay Indoors During Peak Hours&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Where feasible, it is better to refrain from outdoor activities during the peak heat hours, usually between 10 am and 4 pm. Stay informed about the heat index, which considers both temperature and humidity levels to gauge how hot it feels.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A higher heat index indicates an increased risk of heat-related illnesses. By being mindful of these factors, you can better protect yourself from the adverse effects of hot weather conditions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Eat Light Meals</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is essential to opt for light, easily digestible meals to prevent exerting additional strain on your body in hot weather. Incorporate fibre-rich fruits and natural juices into your diet while avoiding high-protein foods.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">You need to prioritise foods that aid hydration and provide energy, such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Try to avoid heavy meals that may leave you feeling lethargic, ensuring you stay nourished and refreshed in warm conditions.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Acclimatise&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Experts suggest gradually acclimating to hot weather by increasing outdoor activity levels over several days. This gradual adjustment allows your body to adapt to working in the heat more effectively and reduces the risk of heat-related issues.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Monitor Co-workers&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is vital to support your colleagues by monitoring their well-being and prompting them to take regular breaks and maintain hydration. Try to be vigilant for signs of heat stroke, including headaches, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, confusion, and slurred speech.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Also, encourage prompt medical attention if these symptoms arise. If you or a co-worker experience symptoms of heat stroke, seek medical assistance immediately. Heat stroke necessitates immediate medical attention.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Final Words</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During the summer heat waves, many people work in the sun due to their occupational needs. Protecting outdoor workers from heatstroke requires a multifaceted approach that addresses both preventive measures and emergency response protocols.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">By implementing these tips and raising awareness about heat-related risks, employers can safeguard the health and well-being of their workforce, even in challenging climates like heat waves in Bangladesh. According to unb reports</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', '<p><b><font color=\"#e79439\">Heat Stroke</font></b><br></p>', 'News Desk', '[\"24\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 11:03:18', '2024-04-23 11:03:18'),
(12051, 12051, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will leave Dhaka on Wednesday for Bangkok on a six-day official visit to Thailand at the invitation of her Thai counterpart Srettha Thavisin.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The visit is aimed at to strengthening&nbsp; the bilateral ties between the two countries, officials said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A special flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, carrying the premier and her entourage, is scheduled to depart Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 10:00am on Wednesday, said PM’s Speechwriter Md Nazrul Islam.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The fight is to land at Don Mueang International Airport, Bangkok at 1:30pm local time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"It\'s both a bilateral and multilateral visit,\" said Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud said at a media briefing on Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The bilateral part of visit&nbsp; will be the first-ever visit at the level of head of government from Bangladesh to Thailand since establishment of diplomatic relations in 1972.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp; It is also Hasina’s&nbsp; first bilateral visit to a country after winning the general election in January.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During her visit from April 24 to 29, the Bangladesh premier will hold bilateral talks with PM Thavisin and also attend the 80th Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh and Thailand will sign a number of cooperation documents including a letter of intent on negotiations for a free trade agreement between the two countries, said the foreign minister.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The two countries&nbsp; are likely to sign an agreement on visa exemption for official passport holders, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on energy cooperation while two more MoUs on tourism sector cooperation and duty related mutual cooperation to expand the relations, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh will seek support from Thailand regarding Rohingya repatriation as well as increased investment from Thailand, said Hasan Mahmud adding that the issue of shipping connectivity will also be discussed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On April 26, PM Hasina will be formally received by her Thai host Srettha Thavisin while a ceremonial guard of honor will be accorded to her.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the same day, the Bangladesh premier will hold bilateral talks with PM Thavisin at the Government House (Prime Minister’s Office) following a tete-a-tete between the two leaders, witness the signing of the documents, participate in a joint press conference and then attend a state lunch to be hosted by her Thai counterpart in her honour there.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During the visit, the prime minister will have a Royal audience of Maha Vajiralongkorn Phra Vajiraklaochaoyuhua and Suthida Bajrasudhabimalalakshan, King and Queen of the Kingdom of Thailand at the Palace.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In her multilateral engagement, PM Hasina is scheduled to attend the 80th Session of ESCAP and deliver a speech there on April 25.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the same day, the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and ESCAP Executive Secretary Armida Salsiah Alisjabana will call on the prime minister.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Guided by the theme “Leveraging digital innovation for sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific”, the eightieth session will be an opportunity to strengthen region-wide cooperative action on leveraging digital innovation for the accelerated implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The session will bring together government leaders and ministers from across Asia and the Pacific and other key stakeholders to discuss how digital innovation can more inclusively contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals across multiple disciplines.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 11:41:32', '2024-04-23 11:41:32'),
(12052, 12052, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Tuesday said the 2023 Human Rights Report released by the US has exposed the \"injustice and brutality” of Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“The report expressed deep concern over the horrific human rights violations in Bangladesh, including the incidents of enforced disappearance, assassination and torture. It has also pointed out that the citizens’ right to bring a change in the government through a free and fair election has been taken away,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Speaking at a press conference at BNP’s Nayapaltan central office, Rizvi said the US report objectively depicted the deteriorating human rights situation in Bangladesh, including the arrest of opposition leaders and obstruction to their peaceful gatherings.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said a certain truth regarding the human right condition in Bangladesh has come out in the report by highlighting the visible incidents of injustice and cruelty.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The BNP leader said Robert S Gilchrist, senior official in the US State Department\'s Bureau of Democracy Human Rights and Labor, described Bangladesh’s human rights situation as alarming during the briefing on the human rights report.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said Gilchrist also mentioned that BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia was removed from the electoral process through plots.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rizvi said 15 cases were filed against Sheikh Hasina while only four cases were filed against Khaleda Zia during 1/11 political changeover.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">When Sheikh Hasina came to power, he alleged that all the 15 cases against her were hurriedly withdrawn while Khaleda was convicted in the ‘false’ cases using the judiciary.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We talked about these things many times…it has now come up in US reports. People used to believe that Begum Khaleda Zia was a victim of political vengeance of the government…the democratic world has now pointed it out through their very objective observation,” the BNP leader said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Monday, the U.S. Department of State released the 2023 Human Rights Report, which the US Embassy described as a \"factual and objective\" record on the status of respect for human rights worldwide.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 2023 Human Rights Report (HRR) covers 198 countries and territories.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">There were reports of widespread impunity for human rights abuses like extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture, arbitrary detentions, restrictions on freedom of expression and media and peaceful assembly, said the report in its Bangladesh chapter, reports UNB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In most cases, it claimed, the government did not take credible steps to identify and punish officials or security force members who may have committed human rights abuses.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rizvi said BNP has long been reportedly talking about the repression, brutality, enforced disappearances, murders and other misdeeds of the government.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There is nothing more now to hide in a bag. The incidents of injustice, bloodshed and various misdeeds by Sheikh Hasina are slowly coming out to the democratic world. The entire world is condemning it,\" he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 12:50:08', '2024-04-23 12:50:08'),
(12053, 12053, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani left Dhaka for Kathmandu, Nepal on Tuesday afternoon wrapping up his 24-hour state visit which will “significantly contribute” to the consolidation of ties and elevate the Bangladesh-Qatar bilateral relations to the next level.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud saw him off at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, said a senior official at the ministry.</div><div><br></div><div>Held in a cordial and amicable environment, the Qatari emir’s visit is expected to generate goodwill and understanding between the two countries, said the Bangladesh side.</div><div><br></div><div>At the invitation of the President Mohammed Shahabuddi, the emir of Qatar paid the&nbsp; state visit to Bangladesh.</div><div><br></div><div>He led a delegation that included, among others, Qatar’s Minister for Commerce and Industry, State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Chairman of the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, member of Qatar Investment Authority.</div><div><br></div><div>On Monday, the president received the emir at the airport while Bangladesh Minister for Liberation Affairs, Home Affairs, Expatriates\' Welfare and Overseas Employment, Foreign Affairs and State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources also welcomed him in presence of the senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.</div><div><br></div><div>This highest-level visit took place after around 19 years from the Qatar side which coincides with the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and Qatar.</div><div><br></div><div>During the visit, Bangladesh and Qatari delegations led respectively by the prime minister and the emir held fruitful bilateral talks at the Prime Minister’s Office on Tuesday.</div><div><br></div><div>During the bilateral talks, both sides reviewed the whole gamut of bilateral relations and underlined the need for enhancing&nbsp; the bilateral cooperation through exchange of visit and increased interaction at all levels and strengthening bilateral engagements between Bangladesh and Qatar.</div><div><br></div><div>The areas that came up for discussion on cooperation included bilateral trade and investment, energy and power, manpower, defense, education, agriculture, food security and culture. Both sides also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interests in the meeting.</div><div><br></div><div>In the opening remarks, the prime minister deeply appreciated the incredible advancement and transformation of Qatar as an advanced knowledge-based multi-cultural society and Qatar’s role in mediation and multilateral diplomacy under His Highness’s stewardship.</div><div><br></div><div>Qatari emir appreciated remarkable achievements of Bangladesh under the dynamic leadership of the prime minister and commended Bangladesh as an investment destination and expressed his keenness to invest in diverse potential sectors.</div><div><br></div><div>He also appreciated the expatriate community in Qatar who are making positive contributions to the economies of both the countries.</div><div><br></div><div>Both the leaders expressed satisfaction at the level of understanding and cooperation in the energy sector adding that both sides are working together to forge this cooperation to the partnership level in the near future.</div><div><br></div><div>The emir had an audience with the president the same day. The president extended a warm welcome to the emir on his visit to Bangladesh and praised him for his leadership and vision.</div><div><br></div><div>They held discussions on wide ranging issues related to the bilateral ties of friendship and cooperation as well as on regional issues of mutual interest.</div><div><br></div><div>Later, the emir joined an official luncheon at Bangabhaban hosted in his honour&nbsp; by the president.</div><div><br></div><div>The luncheon was attended by PM Hasina, members of the cabinet and other dignitaries. A cultural programme, representing Bangladesh’ tradition, heritage and culture, was also held. - UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 13:22:56', '2024-04-23 13:22:56'),
(12054, 12054, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A five-member probe body was formed on Tuesday to look into the death of a Dhaka University student who drowned in a swimming pool&nbsp; of the university on Monday.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Headed by Prof. Maksudur Rahman, proctor of Dhaka University, the committee was asked to submit its report within seven working days.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The other members of the committee are—DU assistant proctor Abdul Muhit, Chairman of Philosophy Department Prof Dr Shah Kawsar Mustafa Abdul Ulayee, assistant professor of Information Science and Library Management Department Prof. Mohammad Sharif Ul Islam and assistant professor of Bangla Department Jashim Uddin.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The committee was asked to investigate whether there was any negligence of those who were responsible for the management of the swimming pool, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, Muhammad Soad&nbsp; Haque ,19, a student of Dhaka University’s Philosophy department, drowned in the swimming pool of the university on Monday.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"34\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 13:55:11', '2024-04-23 13:55:11');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(12055, 12055, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Land Minister Narayon Chandra Chanda has directed the authorities concerned to implement all necessary measures to ensure that the landowners within the BDS survey area are adequately informed about the ongoing survey.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Land Minister Narayon Chandra Chanda gave this direction to the concerned at the progress review meeting of EDLMS project (Establishment of Digital Land Management System Project) of Bangladesh Digital Survey (BDS) program at Bhumi Bhavan in the capital today.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Director General of Department of Land Record and Survey Anis Mahmud, Additional Secretary (Development) of the Ministry of Land Ziauddin Ahmed, EDLMS Project Director Md. Zahurul Haque and officials of the Ministry of Land, Land Record and Survey Department and EDLMS Project were present at the meeting. Besides, officials of the project partners from South Korea were present at the meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Land Minister emphasized the lack of information among landowners during the survey process, resulting in harassment. He noted that this often occurs when the rightful owner is absent during the survey, leading to completion without their knowledge.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Citing past incidents, the minister mentioned instances where landowners, upon selling land for personal reasons, discovered incorrect surveys had been conducted, resulting in the land\'s Record of Rights (ROR) being issued in someone else\'s name. Consequently, legal owners endure years of legal and economic challenges in reclaiming their property rights.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The minister directed the BDS survey officers to publicise the about the ongoing survey locally and nationally so that people living in and outside the area can know that the survey is being conducted in their area. But we also have to keep regular inquiries about our valuable resources, our own land,\" the minister added.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The land minister hoped that the BDS program of the first phase of the ongoing survey in six areas under the EDLMS project will be completed by 2026. With the necessary output from the first phase, it will be possible to launch the BDS program simultaneously throughout Bangladesh in the second phase.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Note that, Bangladesh Digital Survey is underway in Chattogram, Narayanganj, Rajshahi City Corporation, Manikganj Municipality, and Dhamrai and Kushtia Sadar Upazilas through the EDLMS project.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During the meeting, BDS officials informed the land minister, the installation of ground control points is nearing completion, marking the final stage of preparation. Shortly, the mapping process utilizing state-of-the-art equipment such as aircraft and drones will commence, aiming to swiftly finalize the project.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Staff Correspondent', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 14:04:18', '2024-04-23 14:04:18'),
(12056, 12056, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Columbia canceled in-person classes, dozens of protesters were arrested at New York University and Yale, and the gates to Harvard Yard were closed to the public Monday as some of the most prestigious U.S. universities sought to defuse campus tensions over Israel\'s war with Hamas.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators who had camped out on Columbia\'s green were arrested last week, and similar encampments have sprouted up at universities around the country as schools struggle with where to draw the line between allowing free expression while maintaining safe and inclusive campuses.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At New York University, an encampment set up by students swelled to hundreds of protesters throughout the day Monday. The school said it warned the crowd to leave, then called in the police after the scene became disorderly and the university said it learned of reports of \"intimidating chants and several antisemitic incidents.\" Shortly after 8:30 p.m., officers began making arrests.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"It\'s a really outrageous crackdown by the university to allow the police to arrest students on our own campus,\" said New York University law student Byul Yoon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">\"Antisemitism is never OK. That\'s absolutely not what we stand for and that\'s why there are so many Jewish comrades that are here with us today,\" Yoon said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The protests have pitted students against one another, with pro-Palestinian students demanding that their schools condemn Israel\'s assault on Gaza and divest from companies that sell weapons to Israel. Some Jewish students, meanwhile, say much of the criticism of Israel has veered into antisemitism and made them feel unsafe, and they point out that Hamas is still holding hostages taken during the group\'s Oct. 7 invasion.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tensions remained high Monday at Columbia, where the campus gates were locked to anyone without a school ID and where protests broke out both on campus and outside.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">U.S. Rep. Kathy Manning, a Democrat from North Carolina who was visiting Columbia with three other Jewish members of Congress, told reporters after meeting with students from the Jewish Law Students Association that there was \"an enormous encampment of people\" who had taken up about a third of the green.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"We saw signs indicating that Israel should be destroyed,\" she said after leaving the Morningside Heights campus. Columbia announced Monday that courses at the Morningside campus will offer virtual options for students when possible, citing safety as their top priority.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A woman inside the campus gates led about two dozen protesters on the street outside in a chant of, \"From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!\" — a charged phrase that can mean vastly different things to different groups. A small group of pro-Israel counter demonstrators protested nearby.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">University President Minouche Shafik said in a message to the school community Monday that she was \"deeply saddened\" by what was happening on campus.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"To deescalate the rancor and give us all a chance to consider next steps, I am announcing that all classes will be held virtually on Monday,\" Shafik wrote, noting that students who don\'t live on campus should stay away.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Protests have roiled many college campuses since Hamas\' deadly attack on southern Israel, when militants killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and took roughly 250 hostages. During the ensuing war, Israel has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to the local health ministry, which doesn\'t distinguish between combatants and non-combatants but says at least two-thirds of the dead are children and women. - AP </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 14:35:08', '2024-04-23 16:02:05'),
(12057, 12057, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The probe bodies formed by the Islamic University authorities and the Lalon Shah Hall administration have found the involvement of three activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League(BCL) in torturing a student of Al-Fiqh and Legal Studies Department on the campus on February 7.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The investigation committees submitted their reports to the university administration on Monday afternoon, sources at IU VC office said on Tuesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The BCL activists Physical Education Department’s second year student Mudassir Khan Kafi, Islamic History and Culture Department second year student Mohammad Sagor and Uzzal Hossain, supporters of IU BCL unit general secretary Nasim Ahmed Joy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The probe bodies recommended the university administration to take proper action against the accused involved in the incident.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Action will be taken against the accused as per the University Act in the next disciplinary committee meeting as the probe bodies found their involvement in torturing the student, IU acting registrar HM Ali Hasan said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to the probe bodies, a group of Chhatra League activists led by Mudassir Khan Kafi and Mohammad Sagor called the victim at room 136 of Lalon Shah Hall.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They undressed the victim and tortured him there from midnight to 4:30am on February 7. The accused, at one point, assaulted the victim with a steel stick as he refused to perform as they ordered, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The BCL activists tortured the victim both physically and mentally, IU law administrator and also a member of the probe body formed by the university administration professor M Anisur Rahman said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, On February 12, 2023 night, a first-year female student of Finance and Banking department, was tortured by the IU Chhatra League vice-president Shanjida Chowdhury Ontora and her associates, including Tabassum, Mim, Urmi and Maobiya Jahan, at Deshratna Sheikh Hasina Hall on the campus in Kushtia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 14:40:53', '2024-04-23 14:40:53'),
(12058, 12058, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>An expatriate student, drowned after falling into the river while trying to board a launch in Bhairab upazlila of Kishoreganj on Monday (April 22, 2024).</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The incident happened at the Bhairab Bazar Launch Terminal around 8:30 PM on Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The deceased was Al Islam (30), son of Alauddin, director of the Bhairab Chamber of Commerce and Industry.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bhairab River Police Sub-Inspector Rafiqul Islam confirmed the matter.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said, after being informed, a police team reached the spot and rescued Islam with the help of local divers after 40 minutes. He was taken to the Upazila Health Complex, where doctors declared him dead.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Islam had gone to Germany for studies on a scholarship about a year and a half ago. He came home on vacation a few days before Eid, reports unb.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Family members said Al Islam was going to board a ferry to hang out with his friends by the riverbank. At that time, he slipped and fell into the river.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"34\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 15:03:25', '2024-04-23 15:03:25'),
(12059, 12059, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Bangladesh Police FC smartly reached the semifinal of the Federation Cup Football Tournament 2023-24 eliminating former BPL champions Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club by 3-0 goals in the 3rd quarterfinal at the Sheikh Fazlul Haque Moni Stadium in Gopalganj on Tuesday, reports unb</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier, defending champions Dhaka Mohammedan SC and league champions Bashundhara Kings also qualified for the semifinals eliminating Sheikh Russel KC (2-1) and Rahmatganj MFS (2-0) respectively in the quarterfinals</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Six times BPL champions Dhaka Abahani Ltd will face Fortis FC in the 4th and last quarterfinal on April 30 also at the Sheikh Fazlul Haque Moni Stadium in Gopalganj.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the day\'s 3rd quarterfinal, all the three goals of the match were scored in the first 23rd minute of the match.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Uzbek midfielder Javokhir Sokhibov put the Police team ahead in the very 2nd minute of the match by a good header, capitalizing a Mithu free kick (1-0).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Police FC doubled the margin by a gifted goal while Sheikh Jamal defender S. Kholmatov sent the ball to his own net in the 9th minute while he trying to foil an attempt of Shah Quazem (2-0).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Uzbek defender Azamat Abdullaev sealed the fate of the match scoring the 3rd and last goal in the 23rd minute, off a Shaheed Miah\'s cross (3-0).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'Sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 15:18:30', '2024-04-23 15:18:30'),
(12060, 12060, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The extent of load shedding in the country crossed 1000 MW on Tuesday in electricity supply against soaring demand.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This is first time in recent days the power shortage crossed such a level while the highest load shedding was recorded at 966 MW on Monday although the power generation set a new record with the figure at 16,233 MW.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to the National Load Dispatch Centre (NLDC) at the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB), the country’s demand was recorded at 15,200 MW at 3pm on Tuesday, when the load shedding was 1049 MW.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, the demand forecast for Tuesday evening was 16,800 MW and supply forecast was 16,530 MW.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to official sources, maximum burden of the loadshedding was diverted to rural areas, as part of a policy to avert power outages in capital Dhaka and other large cities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Reports from different areas said the extent of loadshedding is aggravating the plight of the rural people amid the sweltering heat this summer, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile, state-owned Petrobangla’s official data shows that the country’s gas production was 3,056 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) against a demand for 3,760 MW.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It shows that a good number of power plants, specifically those using gas as their primary fuel, remained off generation due to gas shortage.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The power plants received a supply of 1330 MMCFD gas against their demand for 2316.9 MMCFD, the data shows.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"39\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 15:42:29', '2024-04-23 15:42:29'),
(12061, 12061, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">“Shanto told me after he completes study, he will go abroad and then I can start my treatment. Now what will happen, where did my son go? Bring back my child please.”</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">These are the words of the bereaved mother of Shanto Saha, who died yesterday (22 April) in a road crash.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shanto was a promising third-year student of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology’s (CUET) Civil Engineering department.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“My kid is no more, I do not want to live anymore,” Sheuli whispered brokenly through tears.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">After Shanto’s dead body reached his house in Narshingdi’s Sheba Sangha area, this morning (23 April), his mother Sheuli was crying out those words.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“My son told me ‘I will pass engineering and go abroad, I will take you abroad for treatment. Who will tell me this now?”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shanto\'s father, Kajal Saha, a cloth trader in Shekherchar Bazar, struggles to find words amidst his grief. “Shanto was our hope. A road accident destroyed everything. Our son said, ‘When I finish studying, you will not have to suffer any more.’ But today, everything is over.”&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shanto went to the university campus on Sunday after spending the holidays of Eid-ul-Fitr and Pahela Baishakh. Shanto\'s classmates informed his elder brother Kaushik Saha, a bank official,&nbsp; the news around 4:30pm on Monday.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shanto was the youngest of three brothers. His elder brother Prartha Saha is a student of a university in India. Prartha is coming to the country from India. Shanto\'s body will be buried on the bank of the Meghna River in the city as soon as his brother arrives home.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shanto, and another student of CUET were killed after a speeding bus knocked down their motorcycle on Kaptai road in Chattogram on Monday, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The crash occurred around 3:30pm in the area adjacent to Selina Quader Chowdhury College on Chattogram Kaptai Road on Monday (April 22).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">After the autopsy, the university authorities brought Shanto\'s body to Narshingdi in a freezing car at around 6:30 am. Two assistant provosts and seven classmates of Shanto brought the body.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"34\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 16:01:20', '2024-04-23 16:01:20'),
(12062, 12062, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) in statement has said that the arbitrary announcement of certain bank mergers, coupled with concerns among well-performing banks involved in the process and unwillingness of some underperforming banks, has worsened anxiety, unrest, and uncertainty within the banking sector.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The TIB believes that such instances have cast doubts over the entire process even before it started.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The central bank has initiated steps to merge underperforming banks with stronger counterparts in order to save weak banks in the sector, which is supposed to be considered as being in line with global practices related to tackling crisis in the financial sector,” TIB opined.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, global standards and policies including the Bangladesh Bank’s own policies have been ignored to complete this sensitive and complex task hastily, said the statement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The anti-corruption organisation asserts that the lack of transparency in the bank merger process, particularly concerning the management of default loans and issues of accountability within weak banks burdened by default loans, essentially sidesteps the main problem of the crisis and gives impunity to the factions responsible for loan defaults and forgery, reports UNB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to the merger policy issued by the Bangladesh Bank, underperforming banks are allowed to express their interest to merge with financially sound banks following the assessment of assets and liabilities by an auditor firm enlisted by the central bank and disclosing the details in the current year.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Considering the evaluation of assets, there are provisions for good banks to voluntarily express interest in initiating mergers with weaker banks.Highlighting that the central bank can only resort to forceful mergers if the initial steps fail, said the statement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">TIB Executive Director (ED) Dr Iftekharuzzaman stated, “Based on media reports, only one weak bank has shown interest in voluntary merger, and conversely, it\'s not necessarily the case that the financially sound banks mentioned in the process have willingly and consciously engaged in it.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This suggests that the entire process has been imposed on them arbitrarily, which is a clear violation of the declared policies, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Moreover, how fair and reasonable is it to transfer the burdens of default loans and forgeries to good banks without first assessing the assets and liabilities of the weaker ones? It appears that the ongoing actions are akin to prescribing paracetamol for cancer treatments, said Dr Iftekhar</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“On one hand, the culture of loan defaults is exacerbated by shielding factions responsible for them and forgery under the guise of mergers. Contrarily, significant attempts are underway to compel good banks to digest weaker ones as a result of their success. This has fostered an atmosphere of anxiety and restlessness across the entire sector,” he pointed out.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Expressing apprehensions that attempts to salvage weak banks might backfire, the TIB ED remarked:</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Government-government, private-government, and private-private mergers are all being considered. However, it remains unclear on what basis these banks have been prioritised, or how the decision was made regarding which financially sound banks would merge with which weak ones,” said Dr Iftekhar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Additionally, some banks not yet mentioned in the merger process have been kept afloat through liquidity assistance. However, two government-owned banks, known for their strong performance, are slated to absorb two underperforming banks despite having significant amounts of default loans themselves, he urged.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Given these circumstances, it is unrealistic to believe that simply merging banks, without ensuring effective accountability-based good governance to address the basic challenges in the banking sector, will resolve the problem or safeguard the interests of clients,” he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"33\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-23 16:47:55', '2024-04-23 16:47:55'),
(12063, 12063, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A red carpet was rolled out as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina arrived in Bangkok on Wednesday afternoon on a six-day official visit to Thailand at the invitation of her Thai counterpart Srettha Thavisin.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On her arrival at Don Mueang International Airport, Bangkok at 1:08pm (local time),Puangpet Chunlaiad, Minister attached to the Prime Minister\'s Office received the Bangladesh Prime Minister at the airport.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She was given a static guard of honour and a 19-round gun salute at the airport.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier, the Bangladesh premier left Dhaka by a flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines at 10:13am on the six-day tour, which is both a bilateral and multilateral visit.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The bilateral visit of the prime minister will be the first-ever visit at the level of head of government from Bangladesh to Thailand since establishment of diplomatic relations in 1972.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During her visit from April 24 to 29, the Bangladesh premier will hold bilateral talks with PM Thavisin and also attend the 80th Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh and Thailand will sign a number of cooperation documents including a letter of intent on negotiations for a free trade agreement between the two countries.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh and Thailand are likely to sign an agreement on visa exemption for official passport holders, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on energy cooperation while two more MoUs on tourism sector cooperation and duty related mutual cooperation to expand the relations, said Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud&nbsp; at a media briefing on Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh will seek support from Thailand regarding Rohingya repatriation as well as increased investment from Thailand, he said, adding that the issue of shipping connectivity will also be discussed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On April 26, PM Hasina will be formally received by her Thai host Srettha Thavisin while a ceremonial guard of honor will be accorded to her.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the same day, the Bangladesh premier will hold bilateral talks with PM Thavisin at the Government House (Prime Minister’s Office) following a tete-a-tete between the two leaders, witness the signing of the documents, participate in a joint press conference and then attend a state lunch to be hosted by her Thai counterpart in her honour there.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During the visit, the prime minister will have a Royal audience of Maha Vajiralongkorn Phra Vajiraklaochaoyuhua and Suthida Bajrasudhabimalalakshan, King and Queen of the Kingdom of Thailand at the Palace.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In her multilateral engagement, PM Hasina is scheduled to attend the 80th Session of ESCAP and deliver a speech there on April 25.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the same day, the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and ESCAP Executive Secretary Armida Salsiah Alisjabana will call on the prime minister.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Guided by the theme “Leveraging digital innovation for sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific”, the eightieth session will be an opportunity to strengthen region-wide cooperative action on leveraging digital innovation for the accelerated implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, The session will bring together government leaders and ministers from across Asia and the Pacific and other key stakeholders to discuss how digital innovation can more inclusively contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals across multiple disciplines.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas&nbsp;</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 08:22:16', '2024-04-24 08:22:16'),
(12064, 12064, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed deep shock and sorrow at the death of Labour Affairs Secretary of Gopalganj District Awami League Rezaul Haque Shikdar Raju.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Raju was also the President of Gopalganj District Sramik League and former elected Mayor of Gopalganj Municipality.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister prayed for the eternal salvation of the departed soul and expressed sympathy to the bereaved members of the family.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 08:39:38', '2024-04-24 08:39:38'),
(12065, 12065, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The United Nations called Tuesday for “a clear, transparent and credible investigation” of mass graves uncovered at two major hospitals in war-torn Gaza that were raided by Israeli troops.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Credible investigators must have access to the sites, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters, and added that more journalists need to be able to work safely in Gaza to report on the facts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier Tuesday, U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk said he was “horrified” by the destruction of the Shifa medical center in Gaza City and Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis as well as the reported discovery of mass graves in and around the facilities after the Israelis left.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He called for independent and transparent investigations into the deaths, saying that “given the prevailing climate of impunity, this should include international investigators.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Hospitals are entitled to very special protection under international humanitarian law,” Türk said. “And the intentional killing of civilians, detainees and others who are ‘hors de combat’ (incapable of engaging in combat) is a war crime.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">U.S. State Department spokesman Vedant Patel on Tuesday called the reports of mass graves at the hospitals “incredibly troubling” and said U.S. officials have asked the Israeli government for information.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Israeli military said its forces exhumed bodies that Palestinians had buried earlier as part of its search for the remains of hostages captured by Hamas during its Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war. The military said bodies were examined in a respectful manner and those not belonging to Israeli hostages were returned to their place.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Israeli military says it killed or detained hundreds of militants who had taken shelter inside the two hospital complexes, claims that could not be independently verified.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Palestinian civil defense in the Gaza Strip said Monday that it had uncovered 283 bodies from a temporary burial ground inside the main hospital in Khan Younis that was built when Israeli forces were besieging the facility last month. At the time, people were not able to bury the dead in a cemetery and dug graves in the hospital yard, the group said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The civil defense said some of the bodies were of people killed during the hospital siege. Others were killed when Israeli forces raided the hospital. - AP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 08:54:01', '2024-04-24 08:54:01'),
(12066, 12066, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Train communication between Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar routes remained suspended since Wednesday morning following the derailments of two compartments and engine of the train at Dulahazra station in Chakaria upazila of Cox’s Bazar district.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Golam Rabbani, Station master of Cox’s Bazar Rail Station, said the engine and two bogies of Cox’s Bazar-bound Eid special train from Dhaka veered off the tracks while entering into the station around 10 am, halting train movement on the route.</div><div><br></div><div>On the other hand, no casualty was reported. The authorities concerned are working to salvage the derailed bogies.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 09:13:55', '2024-04-24 09:13:55'),
(12067, 12067, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The 11th anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse, the worst-ever tragedy in the country’s multi-billion-dollar ready-made garment (RMG) industry, is being observed on Wednesday.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Different right bodies, worker organisations and left-leaning political parties, including Rana Plaza Survivors’ Association, usually arrange various programmes every year, remembering the victims of the tragedy, reports UNB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On April 24 in 2013, Rana Plaza, an illegally-constructed building in Savar which housed five garment factories, came down crashing, killing 1,138 people and injuring over 2,000 others.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Later, police filed the murder case accusing Sohel Rana who has been in jail since his arrest.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Trial in the murder case filed over Rana Plaza collapse began officially on January 31, 2022 by recording statements of the witnesses.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On July 18, 2016, Dhaka District and Session Court Judge SM Kuddus Zaman framed charges against the accused and passed an order to begin the trial.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But it got barred as most of the accused appealed to the higher court challenging legality of the order.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On January 31, 2022, after clearing the appeals, District and Sessions Court Judge AHM Habibur Rahman Bhuiyan recorded the statement of plaintiff, then Sub-Inspector of Savar police station Wali Ashraf.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 09:26:01', '2024-04-24 09:26:01'),
(12068, 12068, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Humanitarian workers have no knowledge of plans to evacuate Palestinians from Gaza’s southernmost city ahead of an expected Israeli assault, but such a transfer would not be “possible” under current conditions, a Red Cross official told AFP .</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The rumor is that the probability of a major operation in Rafah is increasing,” Fabrizio Carboni, Middle East regional director for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), said on the sidelines of an aid conference in the United Arab Emirates.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“When we see the level of destruction in the middle area (of Gaza) and in the north, it’s not clear to us where people will be moved to, where they can have decent shelter and essential services,” he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“So today, with the information we have and from where we stand, we don’t see this (massive evacuation) as possible.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel is poised to send troops into Rafah, the Gazan city it sees as the last bastion of Hamas, Israeli media reported on Wednesday, saying preparations were under way to evacuate war-displaced Palestinian civilians who have been sheltering there.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Rafah sweep, postponed for several weeks amid disputes with Washington, will happen “very soon,” the mass-circulation Israel Hayom newspaper said, citing a decision by the Israeli government after ceasefire talks with Hamas stalled.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Several other Israeli media outlets carried similar reports. Some noted footage on social media that appeared to show the erection of a tent city for Rafah evacuees.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office and the Israeli military spokesperson’s office had no immediate comment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 1.5 million of Gaza’s population of 2.4 million had sheltered in Rafah, the last major population center in Gaza that Israeli ground troops have yet to enter, though thousands have been seen heading back north.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has for two months talked of sending troops into Rafah to go after Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that runs Gaza.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Sunday, he said the Israeli military would increase pressure to “deliver additional and painful blows” to the group behind the October 7 attack on Israel which triggered the ongoing war.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Israel’s allies including Washington have warned against a Rafah operation, fearing a worsening of Gaza’s already catastrophic humanitarian conditions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We don’t see for the time being any plans for civilian evacuations,” Carboni said during the interview on Tuesday at the Dubai International Humanitarian Aid and Development Conference (DIHAD).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But “there is no condition for a military operation without devastating humanitarian consequences,” he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Considering the level of destruction, considering that people are tired, some of them wounded and sick, and the limited access to food and essential services, I see (evacuations) as extremely challenging.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Israeli government said it was planning different evacuation scenarios, including the creation of tent cities that would be spared the fighting and would be set up with international support.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Citing Egyptian officials briefed on the Israeli plan, the Wall Street Journal reported that the evacuation operation would last two to three weeks and be carried out in coordination with the United States and Arab countries, including the UAE as well as Egypt.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Carboni said an evacuation would be “difficult” to complete in that time frame.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Also speaking to AFP at DIHAD on Tuesday, the head of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said that “everybody seems to be on a countdown to war across the largest displacement camp on earth, which is Rafah.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Describing a Rafah onslaught as an “apocalyptic situation,” Jan Egeland said aid workers operating inside Gaza have not been briefed on plans to mitigate civilian suffering during a Rafah offensive.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There is no information, no consultation with the humanitarians, no advice, no hope,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Humanitarians in Gaza are “not hearing from the donors. They’re not hearing from the Western sponsors of Israel, and nothing from Israel itself,” Egeland said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“What they hear is that Netanyahu says that he will attack but not plans for where should the civilians go, how can aid be provided or how can access be secured.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We are completely in the dark on how to mitigate this countdown to a catastrophe.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The little aid that is entering Gaza is being distributed in real time leaving no buffer stock that could be used in the event of a massive population movement, Egeland said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There is no stocks, there is no fuel and more importantly, there is no liquidity. There is no money, we cannot pay our staff salaries. We cannot pay those who deliver the services,” the NRC chief added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,183 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. - AFP/Reuters</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 09:46:39', '2024-04-24 09:46:39');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(12069, 12069, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A sweeping foreign aid package easily passed the US Congress late on Tuesday after months of delay, clearing the way for fresh Ukraine funding amid advances from Russia’s invasion force and Kyiv’s shortages of military supplies.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Senate approved by 79 to 18 four bills passed by the House of Representatives on Saturday, after House Republican leaders abruptly switched course last week and allowed a vote on the $95 billion in mostly military aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and US partners in the Indo-Pacific.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The four bills were combined into one package in the Senate.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The largest provides $61 billion in critically needed funding for Ukraine; a second provides $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid for civilians in conflict zones around the world, and a third mandates $8.12 billion to “counter communist China” in the Indo-Pacific.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A fourth, which the House added to the package last week, includes a potential ban on the Chinese-controlled social media app TikTok, measures for the transfer of seized Russian assets to Ukraine and new sanctions on Iran.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Biden has promised to sign the measure into law as soon as it reaches his desk, and his administration is already preparing a $1 billion military aid package for Ukraine, the first to be sourced from the bill, two US officials told Reuters.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Senate’s Democratic and Republican leaders predicted that Congress had turned the corner in putting Russian President Vladimir Putin and other foreign adversaries on notice that Washington will continue supporting Ukraine and other foreign partners.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“This is an inflection point in history. Western democracy perhaps faced its greatest threat since the end of the Cold War,” Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in the Senate.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The aid package could be the last approved for Ukraine until after elections in November when the White House, House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate are up for grabs.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Much of the opposition to the security assistance in both the House and Senate has come from Republicans with close ties to former US President Donald Trump, a Ukraine aid skeptic who has stressed “America First” policies as he seeks a second term.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, a strong advocate for assisting Ukraine, expressed regret about the delay, largely due to hard-line Republicans’ objections to adding more to the $113 billion Washington had authorized for Kyiv since Russia began its full-scale invasion in February 2022.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I think we’ve turned the corner on the isolationist movement,” McConnell told a news conference.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Some of the Ukraine money — $10 billion in economic support — comes in the form of a loan, which Trump had suggested. But the bill lets the president forgive the loan starting in 2026. - Reuters</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 10:23:15', '2024-04-24 10:23:15'),
(12070, 12070, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A majority of Americans do not see the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as a foreign policy priority, according to two new concurrent surveys by the Pew Research Center.&nbsp;</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Americans identified as their top four of 22 foreign policy priorities protecting the country from terrorism (71 percent), reducing illegal drugs (64 percent), preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction (63 percent) and maintaining a military advantage over foreign powers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Finding a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict drew 29 percent, ranking only 14th among the 22 priorities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The question of “supporting Israel” ranked even lower at 20th with 22 percent, with 31 percent opposing that support.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Overall, a majority of Americans say that all 22 long-range foreign policy goals we asked about should be given at least some priority. Still, about three in 10 say supporting Israel, promoting democracy in other nations (28 percent) and supporting Ukraine (27 percent) should be given no priority,” Jacob Poushter, Pew associate director of research, told Arab News.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Even with these priorities, 83 percent of Americans say it is more important for President Joe Biden to focus on domestic policy, compared with 14 percent who say he should focus on foreign policy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“In 2019, 74 percent wanted then-President Donald Trump to focus on domestic policy, and 23 percent said he should focus on foreign policy.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pew researchers said finding a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was previously “a priority that saw no partisan difference at all” in a 2018 survey.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But the new surveys show a “partisan gap” emerging, with twice as many Democrats (36 percent) today than in 2018 calling the conflict “a priority,” while the share of Republicans (20 percent) has remained constant.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Twenty-nine percent of Americans say they have a great deal or fair amount of confidence in the UN’s ability to provide effective humanitarian aid to Gaza. Fifty-one percent do not have confidence and 19 percent are unsure.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Only 15 percent of Americans say they have confidence in the UN’s ability to enforce a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Sixty-seven percent have no confidence and 17 percent are unsure.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A recent Pew survey found that only 12 percent of Americans believe that lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians is at least somewhat likely. - Arab News</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 11:37:46', '2024-04-24 11:37:46'),
(12071, 12071, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Women should be made skilled in the ICT sector for the progress of the society and the country, State Minister for Education Begum Shamsun Nahar Chapa said.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The demand for freelancing is increasing in a significant way but it is unfortunate that the participation of women in this sector in our country is very low,\" she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The state minister was speaking at the discussion titled \"Empowering girls with ICT skills and employment: challenges and opportunities\" organised by Bangmata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Center for Gender and Development Studies of the University at Muzaffar Ahmed Auditorium of Dhaka University.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Keeping in mind the future employment opportunities and needs, a vocational education system is being developed for women, she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The state minister also said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has adopted a plan to further develop Bangladesh in technology. According to this plan digital technology is included in both public and private sectors.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dr. Monjur Hossain, research director of Bangladesh Development Research Institute, presented an article at the meeting while professor Tanya Haque, director of Bangmata Sheikh Fazilatun Nescha Center for Gender and Development Studies, gave the welcome speech. Source: UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 11:48:17', '2024-04-24 11:48:17'),
(12072, 12072, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Dhaka\'s air quality was categorised as ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’ this morning.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">With an air quality index (AQI) score of 134 at 8:59 am, Dhaka ranked 11th on the list of cities worldwide with the worst air quality.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">India’s Delhi, Egypt’s Cairo City and Thailand’s Chiang Mai occupied the first three spots on the list, with AQI scores of 193, 171 and 170 respectively.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">When the AQI value for particle pollution is between 101 and 150, air quality is considered ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’, between 150 and 200 is ‘unhealthy’, between 201 and 300 is said to be \'very unhealthy\', while a reading of 301+ is considered \'hazardous\', posing serious health risks to residents.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, informs people how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is and what associated health effects might be a concern for them.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The AQI in Bangladesh is based on five pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2, and ozone.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As per World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, mainly due to increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and acute respiratory infections.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"> bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"39\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 11:56:11', '2024-04-24 11:58:05'),
(12073, 12073, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Around 370 tonnes of potatoes, which are waiting to be unloaded four days after being imported from India have started to rot, due to severe heat sweeping across the country.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to the port authorities  the consignments arrived at Benapole from India’s Petrapole by 16 trucks on the night of April 21.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But still no initiative has been taken to unload the goods. Due to a long delay, the potatoes have started to rot.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rangpur Integrated Food and Beverage imported the potatoes from the export-oriented institution PepsiCo India Holdings.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Masum Billah, representative of Transmarine Logistic Limited, said the potatoes have not been uploaded yet due to lack of necessary documents.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shahadat Hossain, a truck driver said they will take the potatoes to Rangpur after unloading and if the authorities concerned do not take steps immediately, the potatoes will get rotten.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kamal Uddin Shimul, vice-president of Benapole C&F Agent Association, said the importer will face a financial loss if the authorities concerned do not take any measures to unload the goods, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rezaul Karim, director of Benapole port, said necessary assistance is being provided to unload the goods.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"33\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 12:01:55', '2024-04-24 13:51:24'),
(12074, 12074, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A group called the NYU Palestine Solidarity Coalition led New York University students to walk out of classes Tuesday following violent anti-Israel protests that unfolded there last night.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Students and others gathered in Washington Square Park in Manhattan \"to reflect, debrief [and] strategize,\" the group said.</div><div><br></div><div>Anti-Israel protests at New York University\'s campus turned violent Monday night when demonstrators hurled bottles at police officers who were sent to the scene to disperse a large unruly crowd, officials said.</div><div><br></div><div>NYPD sources confirmed to Fox News on Tuesday that 133 demonstrators were arrested by police using zip ties and flex cuffs to remove the protesters from campus. They were taken on a bus to police headquarters, where they were charged with trespassing, the sources added.</div><div><br></div><div>The NYU Palestine Solidarity Coalition said in an Instagram post that NYU students in their group set up a \"Gaza Solidarity Encampment\" on Monday.</div><div><br></div><div>The group is demanding to \"end all war profiteering and investment in genocide,\" a \"complete academic boycott of Israel,\" the removal of NYPD on campus and that NYU \"must protect free speech on campus and provide full amnesty to all students and faculty penalized for their pro-Palestinian activism.\"</div><div><br></div><div>They said the arrests last night were \"violent\" but \"the violence we faced is only a fraction of the violence that Palestinians face on the ground every day.\"</div><div><br></div><div>NYU did not immediately respond Tuesday to a request for comment from Fox News Digital regarding the walkout. According to yahoo.news</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 12:26:37', '2024-04-24 12:26:37'),
(12076, 12076, '<div><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Russia has arrested Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov on organised corruption charges in the most high-profile case since the start of the country’s all-out war on Ukraine.</span><br></b></div><div><br></div><div>A brief statement by Russia’s Investigative Committee citing a statute for accepting bribes “on a particularly large scale” said on Wednesday that the arrest was made a day earlier.</div><div><br></div><div>State media showed brief footage of the military official standing in a Moscow court. He faces 15 years in prison if convicted.</div><div><br></div><div>Ivanov will be held under a detention order for two months, according to the TASS news agency, which said a man named Sergei Borodin has also been taken into custody on suspicion of complicity in receiving bribes by Ivanov.</div><div><br></div><div>The 48-year-old deputy defence minister oversaw military construction and repairs and is accused of taking part in a “criminal conspiracy” in managing contracts that greatly benefitted him personally, reportedly contributing to a lavish lifestyle.</div><div><br></div><div>The Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu had been informed about Ivanov, who had been present at a meeting of top defence officials chaired by Shoigu earlier on Tuesday.</div><div><br></div><div>In 2022, the Anti-Corruption Foundation, which is run by the allies of late Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, released the findings of an investigation that found Ivanov and his family had funnelled off millions of dollars to buy property and yachts.</div><div><br></div><div>Maria Pevchikh, the chairwoman of the foundation, wrote, “Today is a good day,” in a post on X after news of Ivanov’s arrest was publicised.</div><div><br></div><div>The official was arrested by the Federal Security Service (FSB), which was directed last month by Putin to root out corruption in state defence organisations.</div><div><br></div><div>The RBC news service in Russia quoted unnamed sources as saying investigators are carrying out searches in multiple regions in relation with the case. - Al Jazeera&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 13:27:44', '2024-04-24 13:27:44'),
(12077, 12077, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>One hundred and seventy-three Bangladeshi nationals who were imprisoned in Rakhine, Myanmar, and whose citizenship were verified, returned to Bangladesh from Myanmar by sea on Wednesday.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In addition, the repatriation of 288 Myanmar BGP, army members , immigration officials and others who have taken shelter in Bangladesh in the context of the ongoing internal conflict in Myanmar will be completed on April 25 and 26, according to a press release.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The repatriation process of the Myanmar nationals has been organised at BIWTA Ghat in Cox\'s Bazar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Myanmar ship Chin Duin carrying the returning Bangladeshi citizens has arrived in Bangladesh and will leave Bangladesh carrying the Myanmar’s BGP, military and others.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">MP of Cox\'s Bazar Sadar Shaimum Sarwar Kamal was present at the Jetty Ghat to welcome the returning Bangladeshi citizens.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Out of the 173 people, 129 are from Cox\'s Bazar, 30 are from Bandarban, seven are from Rangamati, one each from Khagrachari, Noakhali, Narayanganj, Chattogram, Rajbari, Narshingdi and Nilphamari.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Bangladesh embassy in Yangon, upon learning of the tentative visit of the Myanmar ship to Bangladesh, took up the issue with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs of Bangladesh and relevant Myanmar authorities to seize the opportunity to send back the maximum number of verified Bangladeshi Nationals who were in different prisons of Myanmar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The embassy also pursued the relevant host authorities to bring the 144 \"verified and jail term completed or pardoned\" returnees in Sittwe prison for smooth return and pursued for releasing the 29 verified Bangladeshi nationals who were still serving their jail terms or under trial. Pursuant to the mission\'s efforts, the 29 persons were pardoned and sent back to Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh embassy in Yangon and Bangladesh consulate in Sittwe have been working for this return since the last return of Bangladeshi citizens that took place on October 3 last year when 29 Bangladeshis returned home through a flag meeting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Representatives of the Bangladesh embassy in Yangon and consulate in Sittwe were physically present to coordinate with the local authorities, conduct verification process and issue travel permits in favour of the returnees.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The necessary activities for the arrival of Bangladeshi citizens by ship, including immigration, health checks and other related activities, and for the dispatch of Myanmar military and other members have</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">been carried out with the assistance of the Ministry of Home Affairs, BGB, Coast Guard, district administration, district police,civil surgeon and other authorities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">After completing the necessary formalities, the Bangladeshi citizens will be handed over to their relatives. - UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 13:50:10', '2024-04-24 13:50:10'),
(12078, 12078, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A leading Jewish peace activist in Berlin has criticized German authorities for suppressing the Palestine solidarity movement in the country.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Udi Raz, a 34-year-old Israeli national, has been at the forefront of the solidarity movement, which has been calling on the German government to suspend weapons sales to Israel.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Anadolu met Raz at a protest march against a proposed regulation that would see students lose their degrees and qualifications if they participate in pro-Palestine rallies and demonstrations.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said the government is trying to silence them.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"For months, we\'re witnessing how the German government does everything it can to silence us. Not only to silence us, but also to brutally attack and violate our civic rights, our very democratic rights that were promised to us by the virtue of the so-called Democratic Republic of Germany,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Besides that, we also witnessed how universities here in Berlin are restricting academic freedom. For example, we are now waiting here, gathering here, in order to demonstrate against a new proposal for a law that would allow universities to exmatriculate students, for example, for calling for a cease-fire, for calling for the implementation of international law also for Palestinians,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), German weapons accounted for 47% of all Israeli weapons imports last year, closely behind the US, with 53%. Germany has been Israel\'s second-largest weapons supplier for the last 20 years.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Raz belongs to a rising number of anti-Zionist Jews in Germany who have been actively campaigning against Israel\'s brutality in Gaza since Oct. 7, where it has now killed more than 34,000 Palestinians.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He is also a board member of the Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Middle East, a non-governmental organization which has been branded anti-Semitic and has had its bank accounts frozen by the German state.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The NGO, which has been calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and the suspension of German weapons sales to Israel, had also organized a three-day conference on Palestine which was shut down and banned by Berlin police last weekend.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The conference, which was supposed to kick off last Friday with notable speakers such as former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis and leading British-Palestinian surgeon Ghassan Abu Sitta, was canceled by Berlin police within the first two hours.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Following the cancellation, Raz was briefly arrested by police.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In recent months, several Jewish intellectuals, academics, artists and campaigners have faced backlash in Germany with many losing their jobs.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Recently, a leading Jewish American philosopher, Nancy Fraser, was disinvited from taking up a professorship at the University of Cologne after signing a letter expressing solidarity with Palestinians and condemning the killings in Gaza carried out by Israeli forces.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Responding to the crackdown, Raz said: \"Since months, we are witnessing how those who are in power do everything they can to silence us for speaking up for democracy, for everyone who lives between the river to the sea, for speaking up for human rights which should also be applied for Palestinians, for speaking up for the implementation of international law, also in the case of Gaza and the West Bank.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Whenever we speak up, those in power point at us and accuse us of being antisemites, Islamists, extremists. To my understanding, six months into an ongoing genocide, those who point at us and accuse us of being Israel haters are nothing less than genocide lovers,\" he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Responding to a question on whether Germany should differentiate between Israel and Jews, he said: \"Of course, Germany must differentiate between the state of Israel and Jews in general. Israel cannot speak in the name of Jews. Whoever claims otherwise, to my understanding, this is an antisemitic claim. Jews are diverse. Jews live in diverse and different geopolitical contexts and national contexts. We Jews who live here in Germany, of course we care about other Jews who live elsewhere, but it does not mean that we are ambassadors of a racist state called the state of Israel.\" - Anadolu Agency</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 13:54:24', '2024-04-24 13:54:24'),
(12079, 12079, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Though power generation set a new record, there is no sign of decrease in power outages across the country.&nbsp;</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rather, the extent of load shedding increased by almost 50 percent compared with the previous day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The records at the National Load Dispatch Centre (NLDC) in the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) show that the country experienced about 1,500 MW of load shedding on Wednesday while it was 1049 M on Tuesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The NLDC data also show that Wednesday started with 1,468 MW at 1 am. However, the level of power shortage decreased in the day time and it came down to 542 MW in the morning at 7 am.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But again the extent of load shedding took negative turn and increased to 821 MW at 3 pm on Wednesday.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Both the data of the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) and PGCB show that the country\'s evening peak generation was recorded at 14,473 at 5 pm against demand for 15,200 MW leaving a shortage of 694 MW.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, the demand forecast for Wednesday evening was 16,800 MW and supply forecast was 16,530 MW.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to official sources, maximum burden of the load shedding was diverted to rural areas, as part of a policy to avert power outages in capital Dhaka and other large cities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Reports from different areas said the extent of load shedding is aggravating the plight of the rural people amid the sweltering heat this summer.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile, state-owned Petrobangla’s official data shows that the country’s gas production was 3,056 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) against a demand for 3,760 MW, reports unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It shows that a good number of power plants, specifically those using gas as their primary fuel, remained off generation due to gas shortage.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The power plants received a supply of 1330 MMCFD gas against their demand for 2316.9 MMCFD, the data shows.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 14:39:32', '2024-04-24 14:39:32'),
(12080, 12080, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Students at a growing number of U.S. colleges are gathering in protest encampments with a unified demand of their schools: Stop doing business with Israel — or any companies that empower its ongoing war in Gaza.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The demand has its roots in a decades-old campaign against Israel’s policies toward the Palestinians. The movement has taken on new strength as the Israel-Hamas war surpasses the six-month mark and stories of suffering in Gaza have sparked international calls for a cease-fire.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Inspired by ongoing protests and the arrests last week of more than 100 students at Columbia University, students from Massachusetts to California are now gathering by the hundreds on campuses, setting up tent camps and pledging to stay put until their demands are met.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We want to be visible,” said Columbia protest leader Mahmoud Khalil, who noted that students at the university have been pushing for divestment from Israel since 2002. “The university should do something about what we’re asking for, about the genocide that’s happening in Gaza. They should stop investing in this genocide.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Campus protests began after Hamas’ deadly Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, when militants killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and took roughly 250 hostages. During the ensuing war, Israel has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to the local health ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between combatants and noncombatants but says at least two-thirds of the dead are children and women.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">WHAT DO THE STUDENTS WANT TO SEE HAPPEN?</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The students are calling for universities to separate themselves from any companies that are empowering Israel’s military efforts in Gaza — and in some cases from Israel itself.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The demands vary from campus to campus. Among them:</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">__ Stop doing business with military weapons manufacturers that are supplying arms to Israel.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">__ Stop accepting research money from Israel for projects that aid the country’s military efforts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">__ Stop investing college endowments with money managers who profit from Israeli companies or contractors.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">__ Be more transparent about what money is received from Israel and what it’s used for.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Student governments at some colleges in recent weeks have passed resolutions calling for an end to investments and academic partnerships with Israel. Such bills were passed by student bodies at Columbia, Harvard Law, Rutgers and American University.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">HOW ARE COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES RESPONDING?</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Officials at several universities say they want to have a conversation with students and honor their right to protest. But they also are echoing the concerns of many Jewish students that some of the demonstrators’ words and actions amount to antisemitism — and they say such behavior won’t be tolerated.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sylvia Burwell, president of American University, rejected a resolution from the undergraduate senate to end investments and partnerships with Israel.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Such actions threaten academic freedom, the respectful free expression of ideas and views, and the values of inclusion and belonging that are central to our community,” Burwell said in a statement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Burwell cited the university’s “longstanding position” against the decades-old Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Protesters in the movement have drawn parallels between Israel’s policy in Gaza — a tiny strip of land tucked between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea that is home to about 2.3 million Palestinians — to apartheid in South Africa. Israel imposed an indefinite blockade of Gaza after Hamas seized control of the strip in 2007.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Opponents of BDS say its message veers into antisemitism. In the past decade alone, more than 30 states have enacted laws or directives blocking agencies from hiring companies that support the movement. Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos called it a “pernicious threat” in 2019, saying it fueled bias against Jews on U.S. campuses.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Asked this week whether he condemned “the antisemitic protests,” President Joe Biden said he did. “I also condemn those who don’t understand what’s going on with the Palestinians,” Biden said after an Earth Day event Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At Yale, where dozens of student protesters were arrested Monday, President Peter Salovey noted in a message to campus that, after hearing from students, the university’s Advisory Committee on Investor Responsibility had recommended against divesting from military weapons manufacturers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President Minouche Shafik at Columbia said there should be “serious conversations” about how the university can help in the Middle East. But “we cannot have one group dictate terms,” she said in a statement Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">MIT said in a statement that the protesters have “the full attention of leadership, who have been meeting and talking with students, faculty, and staff on an ongoing basis.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">HOW MUCH MONEY ARE THE SCHOOLS RECEIVING?</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On many campuses, students pushing for divestment say they don’t know the extent of their colleges’ connections to Israel. Universities with large endowments spread their money across a vast array of investments, and it can be difficult or impossible to identify where it all lands.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The U.S. Education Department requires colleges to report gifts and contracts from foreign sources, but there have been problems with underreporting, and colleges sometimes dodge reporting requirements by steering money through separate foundations that work on their behalf.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to an Education Department database, about 100 U.S. colleges have reported gifts or contracts from Israel totaling $375 million over the past two decades. The data tells little about where the money comes from, however, or how it was used.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Some students at MIT have published the names of several researchers who accept money from Israel’s defense ministry for projects that the students say could help with drone navigation and missile protection. All told, pro-Palestinian students say, MIT has accepted more than $11 million from the defense ministry over the past decade.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">MIT officials didn’t respond to an emailed request for comment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“MIT is directly complicit with all of this,” said sophomore Quinn Perian, a leader of a Jewish student group that is calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war. He said there’s growing momentum to hold colleges accountable for any role they play in supporting Israel’s military.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We’re all drawing from the same fire,” he said. “They’re forcing us, as students, to be complicit in this genocide.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Motivated by the Columbia protests, students at the University of Michigan were camping out on a campus plaza Tuesday demanding an end to financial investments with Israel. They say the school sends more than $6 billion to investment managers who profit from Israeli companies or contractors. They also cited investments in companies that produce drones or warplanes used in Israel, and in surveillance products used at checkpoints into Gaza.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">University of Michigan officials said that they have no direct investments with Israeli companies, and that indirect investments made through funds amount to a fraction of 1% of the university’s $18 billion endowment. The school rejected calls for divestment, citing a nearly 20-year-old policy “that shields the university’s investments from political pressures.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE STUDENTS?</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Students at Harvard and Yale are demanding greater transparency, along with their calls for divestment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Transparency was one of the key demands at Emerson College, where 80 students and other supporters occupied a busy courtyard on the downtown Boston campus Tuesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Twelve tents sporting slogans including “Free Gaza” or “No U.S. $ For Israel” lined the entrance to the courtyard, with sleeping bags and pillows peeking out through the zippered doors.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Students sat cross-legged on the brick paving stones typing away on final papers and reading for exams. The semester ends in a couple of weeks, reports AP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I would love to go home and have a shower,” said Owen Buxton, a film major, “but I will not leave until we reach our demands or I am dragged out by police.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"34\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 14:43:59', '2024-04-24 14:43:59'),
(12081, 12081, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Global immunization efforts have saved at least 154 million lives in the past 50 years, the World Health Organization said Wednesday, adding that most of those to benefit were infants.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That is the equivalent of six lives saved every minute of every year of the half century, the UN health agency said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a study published in the Lancet, WHO gave a comprehensive analysis of the impact of 14 vaccines used under the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI), which celebrates its 50th anniversary next month.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Vaccines are among the most powerful inventions in history, making once-feared diseases preventable,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Thanks to vaccines, smallpox has been eradicated, polio is on the brink, and with the more recent development of vaccines against diseases like malaria and cervical cancer, we are pushing back the frontiers of disease,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“With continued research, investment and collaboration, we can save millions more lives today and in the next 50 years.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The study said infants accounted for 101 million of the lives saved through immunization over the five decades.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Immunization was the single greatest contribution of any health intervention to ensuring babies not only see their first birthdays but continue leading healthy lives into adulthood,” WHO said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Over 50 years, vaccines against 14 diseases — diphtheria, Haemophilus influenza type B, hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, measles, meningitis A, pertussis, invasive pneumococcal disease, polio, rotavirus, rubella, tetanus, tuberculosis, and yellow fever — had directly contributed to reducing infant deaths by 40 percent, the study found.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">For Africa, the reduction was more than 50 percent, it said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The vaccine against measles — a highly contagious disease by a virus that attacks mainly children — had the most significant impact.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That jab accounted for 60 percent of the lives saved due to immunization, according to the study.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The polio vaccine means that more than 20 million people are able to walk today who would otherwise have been paralyzed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The study also showed that when a vaccine saves a child’s life, that person goes on to live an average of 66 years of full health on average — with a total of 10.2 billion full health years gained over the five decades, reports AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“These gains in childhood survival highlight the importance of protecting immunization progress,” WHO said, pointing to accelerating efforts to reach 67 million children who missed at least one vaccination during the Covid pandemic.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"6\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-24 14:53:54', '2024-04-24 14:53:54');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(12082, 12082, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday called for speaking&nbsp; out against all forms of aggression and atrocities, and to say ‘no’ to wars.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We must speak out against all forms of aggression and atrocities, and say ‘no’ to wars,\" she said, adding that Bangladesh supports the UN Secretary General’s ‘New Agenda for Peace.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister was addressing the 80th Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) held at the ESCAP Hall (2nd floor), United Nations Conference Center (UNCC)here.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She arrived in Bangkok on Wednesday on a six-day official visit to Thailand.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister also urged the world leaders to stop all wars and conflicts saying that people are suffering and women and children are the worst sufferers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“War is going on and genocide is going in Palestine. It must be stopped. War can’t bring any solution,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Referring to the “Chittagong Hill Tract Peace Accord” in Bangladesh during her first regime from 1996-2001, PM Hasina said she restored peace among people in the region.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said the pre-condition for sustainable development is lasting peace and security.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We must settle regional disputes and tension through dialogue. Our mutual respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity must remain paramount,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hasina called upon the Asia-Pacific region, especially ASEAN, to redouble their efforts to end Rohingya crisis as all efforts at regional connectivity, integration, and prosperity will continue to be marked by a missing puzzle without it.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The origin of their crisis has been in Myanmar, and its solution also lies in Myanmar,\" she declared.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"As long as that solution remains out of reach, all our efforts at regional connectivity, integration, and prosperity will continue to be marked by a missing puzzle. Let us redouble our efforts to put that puzzle back in place,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said that in August 2017, when thousands of Rohingya men, women, and children from Myanmar fled to Bangladesh, Bangladesh offered them temporary shelter.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“With an ever growing population, this has now become one of the largest humanitarian situations in the world,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina said that In the backdrop of ongoing armed conflicts in Myanmar, the Rohingya repatriation process is also getting delayed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“This is creating serious security risks within and beyond our territories,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She called upon the Asia-Pacific region, especially ASEAN, to play a proactive role in resolving the volatile situation in Myanmar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We must ensure that the Rohingya can go back home in safety and dignity at the earliest possible,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister said that the Asia-Pacific region must stand united against its common enemies of poverty and hunger.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said&nbsp; Bangladesh has reduced poverty from 41.51 percent to 18.7 percent between 2006 and 2022.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It also reduced extreme poverty from 25.1 to 5.6 percent during the same period.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We remain confident about eradicating extreme poverty by 2030,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She mentioned that Bangladesh has made notable progress on food security, with focused interventions on maternal and child nutrition.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Our current priority is to address inequalities through income distribution, asset ownership, and social protection,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister said that Asia-Pacific region must put up a united front in tackling the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and transboundary pollution.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We need to push for ambitious climate financing goals beyond 2025 at COP-29. We need to cooperate on cross-border water management and air quality improvement. We must all prepare for growing extreme weather events,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In this connection, she suggested looking into Bangladesh’s experience in disaster risk reduction.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We appreciate UN-ESCAP’s support in improving our early warning capabilities,” she added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Briefly describing various development programmes and achievements of her govebrment, the prime minister said that much of the development gains are affected by climate impacts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“As a low-lying delta, Bangladesh has no option but to invest heavily in climate resilience,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She mentioned that Bangladesh is already recognised as a global leader in climate adaptation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We are happy to share our traditional and innovative solutions with other vulnerable countries,\" she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said that Bangladesh has urged developed and emerging economies in the region to raise their time-bound emission reduction targets.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“For economies in transition, it is important to have a just energy transition.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Bangladesh, she said, \"we are working on long-term energy security with a sound mix of clean and renewable energy.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We shall continue to do our part in pursuing a circular and low-carbon economic growth pathway.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She underscored the need for increased and easy access to financing and technology from both the public and private sectors.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I invite UN-ESCAP to help build the capacity of climate-vulnerable countries to mobilise adequate international climate financing.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">PM Hasina said that Bangladesh now provides critical links to the Trans-Asian Highway and Railway networks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Our physical and digital infrastructures are being developed to foster regional trade and connectivity.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said Bangladesh offers access to the Bay of Bengal for land-locked territories in its neighbourhood.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We stand ready to work together with all regional partners through mutual understanding and cooperation,\" said the prime minister.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier, on her arrival at the conference hall of the United Nations Conference Center (UNCC), Bangkok, the audience welcomed her with a standing ovation. The audience applauded her speech with loud clapping repeatedly, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Prime Minister also visited “Smart Bangladesh Pavilion” installed by the ICT Division on the venue after her address.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, United Nations Under-Secretary General and also Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) Executive Secretary Armida Salsian Alisjahbana met the Bangladesh prime minister&nbsp; at the meeting room of the United Nations Conference Centre (UNCC).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 08:23:36', '2024-04-25 08:23:36'),
(12083, 12083, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) has issued a warning that the ongoing heatwave is likely to persist for 72 hours starting Thursday (April 25, 2024) morning.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The BMD cites increased moisture incursion as a factor contributing to the sustained uncomfortable conditions.</div><div><br></div><div>This announcement follows earlier alerts issued on April 19 and April 22, as the BMD continues to monitor and respond to the challenging weather patterns affecting the region. Source: UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 08:38:50', '2024-04-25 08:38:50'),
(12084, 12084, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Bangladesh will play Lebanon in their last Group I away match of their Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on June 11 at a neutral venue—Al Saad Club Stadium in Doha, Qatar.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The match between the two teams will kick-off at 7: 00 pm local time and 10: 00 pm Bangladesh time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two war-torn Arabian nations—Palestine and Lebanon—had to play their home matches in neutral venues due to security reasons.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Before the last group match, Bangladesh will play Australia in their home match on June 6 at the Bashundhara Kings Arena in Dhaka.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On completion of four group matches each, Australia dominated the group table to qualify for the next round with an all-win record, securing a full 12 points, War-torn Palestine is in the distant second, collecting seven points with two wins, one draw, and one defeat.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Lebanon are in the third slot, securing two points with two draws and two defeats, while Bangladesh remained at the bottom with one point from four matches after making a 1-1 draw with Lebanon in their home match in Dhaka.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier, Bangladesh suffered a 0-7 goal defeat against World Cup playing Australia in their away match, drew 1-1 with Arabian nation Lebanon in the home match, suffered a 0-5 defeat against Palestine in their away match in Kuwait, and conceded a shocking 0-1 goal defeat in the dying moment against Palestine in their home match in Dhaka. - UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'Sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 09:03:18', '2024-04-25 09:03:18'),
(12085, 12085, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Bangladesh has criticised the recently released US State Department’s 2023 Human Rights Report, noting that the report “fails to appreciate, rather undermines” a number of valued State institutions, including the independent judiciary and certain statutory bodies, which is detrimental to the morale and functioning of such institutions.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Regrettably, many of the improvements and achievements of the government have not been acknowledged in the report. On the other hand, isolated and unfounded allegations continue to be flagged as part of a systematic trend,” Spokesperson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Seheli Sabrin, told reporters on Thursday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">While briefing reporters, she said a thorough reading of the report would make it evident that it is replete with references to individually reported or alleged incidents that were used to draw broad, generalised inferences.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The government of Bangladesh reiterated its concerns about the continued trampling of human rights in Gaza by the Israeli occupation force and hopes that the US will play a leadership role in the ongoing efforts of the international community to stop serious human rights violations, killing of innocent women and children, and crimes against humanity in Palestine.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">One of the grossly missing items in the report is the systematic campaign launched last year by the anti-state and anti-government elements in the lead up to the 12th National Election in order to create unrest, violence and anarchy under different pretexts and using diverse interest groups, said the foreign ministry spokesperson.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sabrin said it is also apparent that the report mostly relies on assumptions and unsubstantiated allegations drawn from local and international non-government organisations (including anonymous sources), many of which are supported by the US government or related entities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“As such, some of the inherent biases in the reporting pattern are quite evident,” she said</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The government of Bangladesh, however, appreciated the continued interest of the US administration in the Human Rights situation across the globe.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“No matter how much we aspire, the human rights situation is not perfect anywhere in the world. Though human rights are non-hierarchical, fulfillment of them can be incremental as socio-economic constraints often put limits to the pace of realising those rights,” said the spokesperson.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said the government of Bangladesh has been doing its best to uphold human rights of its citizens. “Indeed, under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the human rights situation has significantly improved in Bangladesh.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mindful of the areas that need further improvement, the current government, during its consecutive terms in office since 2009, continued to invest in realising meaningful advancement in the human rights situation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Any discerning observer would notice that such efforts resulted in significant improvement in women’s empowerment, gender parity, children’s rights, rights of elderly persons, workers’ rights, grievance redressal, access to justice, religious freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of association, freedom of assembly and so on and so forth,” the spokesperson observed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">While the report alleges the law enforcement for use of excessive force in some cases, it fails to reflect the violence and vandalism perpetrated by BNP and its political allies, which often disrupted lives of general people and resulted in damage of public and private property.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is ironic that when the State was engaged in protecting public life, order and property against such orchestrated campaign, it has been held responsible in the report for even taking recourse to some lawful actions and remedies,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The spokesperson said it must be registered that the law enforcement agencies of Bangladesh exercised utmost restraints and dealt with any law-and-order situation with full professionalism.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Coupled with government’s sincere support and professional conduct of elections by the Election Commission, 28 of 44 registered parties participated in the 12th National Election with 42% people exercising their voting rights despite boycotts from BNP and some other parties,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is unfortunate that despite having a series of dialogues with the US authorities on human rights and labour rights issues, a number of recurrent complaints or allegations have been flagged in the report discounting the state/ government perspective on those matters, Seheli Sabrin said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">For instance, she said, the Rohingya people continue to be termed as ‘refugees’ or ‘stateless persons’, thus undermining their legitimate claims to be recognised as the citizens or residents of Myanmar.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In another instance, certain ethnic minority groups continue to be labelled as ‘indigenous peoples’ contrary to the constitutional provisions of the country, which often amounts to attempts to incite unwarranted tension and divisions, she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Again, in certain cases, the report tends to omit or neglect substantive evidence or information shared with the US authorities on individual cases.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">For instance, in the alleged killing of Messers Shaheen Miah and Mohammad Raju, information had been shared on the judicial proceedings that found the incidents to be within the purview of law.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Yet again, she said, the judicial processes undertaken in the case of Jesmin Sultana were not adequately reflected in the report, especially the issue of ongoing due process.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Along similar lines, a number of cases have been flagged in the report concerning labour rights issues, especially on trade union registration and activities, that have been discussed with the relevant US officials on a number of bilateral or plurilateral platforms,” said the spokesperson.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As usual, she said, the report wrongfully characterises lawful actions taken by the law enforcement authorities in case of unwarranted obstructions or vandalism carried out in the name of workers against factories, establishments, public properties, or management staff.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The report continues to maintain the trend of projecting incidents committed by private individuals or entities as part of systemic abuse of human rights, without often elaborating on the subsequent administrative and judicial measures taken to ensure redress and accountability, she noted.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In general, the government of Bangladesh takes note of the overall report and looks forward to remaining engaged with the UN Human Rights mechanisms, the US and other international partners, and stakeholders towards upholding its commitment to ensure the full enjoyment of human rights by all citizens under any circumstances, reports UNB.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 10:28:03', '2024-04-25 10:28:03'),
(12086, 12086, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The United States wants Bangladesh to become a “net security provider” in the region in a “responsible way”, and wants Bangladesh to be able to respond to natural disasters and other issues positively with its growing capabilities.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Bangladesh has made a lot of progress over the years, and we are proud to be part of that effort. We would hope that the Bangladesh government sees the Indo Pacific Strategy (IPS) as an opportunity to cooperate with us and our partners to help address some of Bangladesh\'s security concerns,” said Maxwell Martin, an IPS expert at the US Embassy in Dhaka, on Thursday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">While briefing a select group of journalists at the embassy on “Indo-Pacific Strategy (IPS) and its implications for Bangladesh”, he said Bangladesh-US cooperation to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific is just one aspect of their wide-ranging bilateral relationship.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The US-Bangladesh relationship is driven by our nations’ shared history, common values, and future potential. It is not defined by India, China, Russia or any third country,” Martin said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Responding to a question, he said, they look at their relationship with countries in the South Asia region and Indo Pacific in general, on a bilateral basis.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We don\'t look at our relationship with other countries through the lens of another country. This is something that we hear sometimes in Bangladesh, in the media and kind of just in the commentary, that the United States looks at Bangladesh through the lens of India. And I don\'t think that\'s true,” said the IPS expert.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said they look at their relationship with Bangladesh in terms of a set of shared interests and bilateral priorities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Martin said the increased and renewed engagement with Bangladesh is definitely part of the Indo Pacific Strategy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Responding to a question from UNB, he said the US wants to ensure a free and open region, drive prosperity, build connections, bolster security, and advance reliance.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We will remain engaged with the government of Bangladesh on all of these issue sets and make clear opportunities for partnership exist within all five pillars,” said the IPS expert.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said the Indo-Pacific Strategy is a “positive, progressive vision, comprised of five equally important and interconnected pillars.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Talking about the role of civil society, private sector, and academia for the promotion of a free and open Indo Pacific, he said they see all of these entities and institutions playing an important role.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Martin said the IPS is not aimed at countering China but it is just a vision of how they think the region should look and what they think a region that is free and open, prosperous, secure, connected, and resilient should look like and how that can benefit the people and the countries of the Indo Pacific region.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Of course, we have a China strategy. It\'s separate from the Indo Pacific Strategy and has to do with investing, aligning and competing. China is a major player here in the region,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The IPS expert said they want people to understand what the Indo Pacific Strategy is as sometimes there is confusion about it.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We want to expand and grow our cooperation and engagement with Bangladesh. We always say we are ready to move as quickly as the government of Bangladesh is, and will continue to have those discussions,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Responding to a question, he said QUAD is not an alliance. “I want to emphasize that the QUAD is not an alliance. It\'s not a military alliance. It\'s a flexible grouping of nations with shared interests in the region. They can come together and think of ways to tackle issues and problems of shared interest in a variable way. So that\'s what the quad is.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Martin said he does not think that the QUAD is something Bangladesh should be afraid of. We understand that Bangladesh balances its relationship with us and others in the region.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said they are very focused on the idea that good governance here in Bangladesh equals prosperity. “That is one of the key goals of our political engagement here in Bangladesh. “</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Martin said they want to see a region where no country dominates and no country is dominated and this principle applies everywhere.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As the world\'s most dynamic and fastest-growing region, the Indo-Pacific is a leading priority for US foreign policy and essential to shared global security and prosperity, he said in his opening remarks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The US welcomed the release of Bangladesh\'s Indo-Pacific Outlook in April 2023. “We have many common interests and look forward to engaging in them, particularly in building inclusive economic prosperity and environmental and social resilience in the face of 21st century transnational threats,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The US Indo-Pacific Strategy is not a military alliance, nor does it seek to become one. It is defined by what we stand for, not what we are against. It is not a club one can join, but a vision shared by any nation and people,” Martin said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Our vision is not about forcing countries to choose between the United States and any other partner. It is about ensuring that the region is free and open so countries can freely make their own choices,” he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The US Indo-Pacific Strategy, released in February 2022, lays out a commitment and shared vision for an Indo-Pacific region that is free and open and becomes ever more connected, prosperous, secure, and resilient.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Many countries and peoples in the Indo-Pacific share aspects of this vision for the region. When we work together, we can build a better future together,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Regarding relations in the region, many countries, including the United States, have vital economic or people-to-people ties with China that they want to preserve.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Every nation will navigate its bilateral relations and interests differently. We do not expect every country to have the same assessment of China as we do,” Martin said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President Biden has made clear that the United States and China can and should work together on global challenges like climate change, macroeconomic stability, health security, and food security.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We seek to manage competition in the US-China relationship responsibly and are determined to avoid confrontation or conflict,” said the IPS expert.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, managing competition responsibly takes willing parties, he said, adding that it requires strategic maturity to accept that they must maintain open lines of communication even as they compete, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Martin said the United States works closely with partners to ensure the Indo-Pacific region remains free, open, and accessible, to build connections within and beyond it, to drive regional prosperity, to bolster regional security, and to advance regional resilience to 21st century transnational threats.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There are many specific examples of this work in Bangladesh and across the region,” the IPS expert added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 11:08:21', '2024-04-25 11:08:21'),
(12087, 12087, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The 115th edition of traditional ‘Jabbarer Boli Khela’ (wrestling competition) kicked off at historic Laldighi ground in the port city of Chattogram on Thursday afternoon amid the countrywide scorching heat.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Like every year, interested competitors submitted their names to the organising committee to participate in this year\'s Boli Khela. Their names were taken till 11 am on Thursday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">For the competition, the stage of \'Boli-Khela\' was built on 165 poles at Laldighi ground, said organisers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Though the main event started today, a ‘Baishakhi Mela’ centring the competition started Tuesday. The crowd at the fair venue started to increase from Wednesday noon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the other hand, organising the Boli Khela amid the prevailing heat wave sparked criticism on social media. Although some are in favour of continuing the game others are suggesting its postponement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Jahar Lal Hazari, president of the Abdul Jabbar Memory Wrestling Competition and Boishakhi Mela Committee, said the stage where the wrestling will be held was prepared and the fair will continue till the night of April 26.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The entire area of Laldighi Par from the city\'s Anderkilla intersection has been decorated. Traders from different parts of the country thronged the fair venue with a variety of products along with local businessmen, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Renowned local merchant Abdul Jabbar Sawdagar of the city’s Badorpati area introduced wrestling in 1909 (Bangla 1316) with the aim to organise youths against British government .</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However the 111th and 112th editions of the game and fair were canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 11:38:30', '2024-04-25 11:38:30'),
(12088, 12088, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A major fire that engulfed a restaurant and hotel in eastern India on Thursday killed at least six people and injured 20, a local fire officer said.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The fire began when a cooking gas cylinder exploded while diners were eating in the restaurant, and it soon spread into an adjacent hotel in Patna, the capital of Bihar state, said Satya Prakash, the officer.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At least 40 people were rescued from the two buildings by firefighters who doused the blaze using more than a dozen fire engines, Prakash said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The hotel is in a congested area next to Patna\'s railroad station. Several vehicles parked at the hotel were gutted, Prakash said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said some guests in the hotel jumped from their room windows and were injured. Other details were not immediately available.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fires are common in India, where builders and residents often flout building laws and safety codes.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In 2019, a fire caused by an electrical short circuit engulfed a building in the Indian capital and killed 43 people. In 2022, a fire in a four-story commercial building in New Delhi killed at least 27. - AP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 11:44:14', '2024-04-25 11:44:14'),
(12089, 12089, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh said, \"If Aedes larvae are found in the construction sites of buildings, the work will be stopped if necessary.\"</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>\"Our surveys found that under construction buildings are ideal sources for breeding of Aedes mosquitoes, tougher action will be taken against owners and authorities of under construction buildings if they ignore the directives to destroy breeding grounds of Aedes Mosquito,\" he said .</div><div><br></div><div>He said this while talking to reporters after visiting renovation works of Dr Kazi Bashir Auditorium in the capital\'s Gulistan on Wednesday.</div><div><br></div><div>He urged all developer organizations and their association REHAB to play their due role in destroying breeding grounds of mosquitoes.</div><div><br></div><div>He said, \"We have taken all necessary measures to tackle any outbreak of dengue disease, we will launch our drives from the beginning of next month to prevent the mosquito-borne disease.\"</div><div><br></div><div>According to the action plan, the campaign to control dengue will be conducted from May and view exchange meetings will be held with all stakeholders, said Taposh.</div><div><br></div><div>The main purpose of the meeting is to regularly keep all the buildings and residences under their control neat and clean.</div><div><br></div><div>\"All relevant organizations have to work in a coordinated manner to combat mosquito-borne diseases as the country witnessed a severe outbreak of dengue last year,\" he added.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"39\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 12:09:45', '2024-04-25 12:09:45'),
(12090, 12090, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has made seemingly contradictory decisions regarding two of its star players.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mustafizur Rahman has been recalled from the Indian Premier League (IPL) for national duty, while Shakib Al Hasan has been granted permission to prioritize Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League matches during a T20I series of Bangladesh against Zimbabwe.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">While justifying the recall of Mustafizur due to workload concerns, BCB\'s Jalal Yunus, the cricket operation chief, surprisingly stated that “Mustafizur has nothing to learn from IPL.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The BCB recently announced a 17-member preliminary squad for a training camp in Chattogram, excluding both Shakib and Mustafizur.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Initially, chief selector Gazi Ashraf Hossain indicated Shakib\'s unavailability, leaving his participation in the Zimbabwe series uncertain.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We will announce the team on 28th April,” Gazi Ashraf said. “That is when you will find out exactly how many matches Shakib will be available for.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, Shakib himself clarified the situation during a public interaction in the USA, where he currently resides.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I will definitely play in the Zimbabwe series,” Shakib affirmed. He explained that the decision to miss the initial two or three matches was made after discussions with the coach and captain, with the coach suggesting that playing two matches would suffice.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shakib dismissed the speculation surrounding his prioritization of the Dhaka League as “irrelevant.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">While Shakib remains a crucial member of the Bangladesh team across all formats, his regular participation in national team matches has been a subject of debate over the last few years. This latest decision further fuels the discussion surrounding the balance between club and country commitments for star players. - UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">bnbd24/fas</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div>', NULL, 'Sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 12:51:48', '2024-04-25 12:51:48'),
(12091, 12091, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (Cuet) was declared closed for an indefinite period on Thursday as students burst into protests demanding road safety after the deaths of two fellows in a fatal road accident on April 22.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The decision to close the university was taken in the 151st emergency meeting of the academic council led by Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Mohammad Rafiqul Alam, said the university’s Deputy Director (coordination) Fazlur Rahman.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">All academic activities including exams will remain suspended during the period, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The male students were asked to vacate dormitories by 5pm on Thursday and the female students by 9am on Friday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two Cuet students—Shanto Saha, a 3rd year student and Tawfiq Hasan, a 2nd year student of Civil engineering department, died when a bus of ‘Shah Amanat’ paribahan hit a motorbike on Chattogram-Kaptai road at Zianagar in Rangunia upazila on Monday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As soon as the news spread, some Cuet students vandalised three buses and set one more on fire on that day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The students took to the streets boycotting classes and examinations and continued their protests till Wednesday blocking the Chattogram-Kaptai road by setting fire on logs and tyres to press home their 9 point demand for safe road.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They demanded arrest of the bus driver and his assistant and their exemplary punishment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The other demands include providing compensation to the deceased and bearing the medical expenses of the student injured in the accident, establishment of modern treatment centre with all facilities on the campus, proving ambulances with modern equipment, stopping movement of all local buses including Shah Amanat and AB Travels on the road, examining liscences of the buses and CNG-run auto-rickshaws that ply the road , making the Student Welfare Council under accountable and forming students representative group, reports UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bus driver Md Tazul Islam was arrested from the Kotwali area of Chattogram city on Wednesday afternoon,</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"34\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 12:59:59', '2024-04-25 12:59:59'),
(12092, 12092, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Thursday accused the Awami League government of pursuing a \'destructive\' development policy in the name of development, causing environmental degradation across the country.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The scorching heat in Dhaka has surpassed all the previous records. This was not supposed to happen as there are many rivers like Turag, Buriganga and Shitalakshya around Dhaka. The reality is that encroachers have grabbed these rivers. They have filled up almost every river in the country. It is possible during the rule of an autocratic regime.” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Expressing concern over the public suffering caused by a severe heatwave sweeping the country, the BNP leader also said the rising temperatures are a result of the current regime\'s anti-environmental activities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rizvi came up with the comments while distributing bottled water, saline, and juice to pedestrians, day labourers, rickshaw pullers, street vendors, and other working-class of people in front of BNP’s Nayapaltan central office.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The BNP\'s Dhaka South City unit organised the programme to alleviate public suffering as temperatures reach unprecedented levels. The unusually high temperatures pose grave risks to public health, especially heat-related illnesses such as heatstroke and dehydration-induced diarrhoea.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rizvi said the green experts and scientists have repeatedly advised the government not to set up coal-based power plants. “But the anti-mass prime minister has ignored their advice and instead embarked on mega projects in the name of development for indulging in massive corruption.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He also said the government is setting up a coal-based thermal power plant in Patuakhali\'s Kalapara area by ignoring the opinion of environmental experts which poses a serious threat to the biodiversity of the entire Barishal region.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Due to the construction of thermal power plants, coconut trees are no longer bearing fruit in the coastal areas of Patuakhali and adjacent regions of Barishal. There was a time when coconuts grew abundantly in those areas, but now even the rivers lack fish,\" the BNP leader said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He also highlighted the extreme damage caused to the biodiversity of the Sundarbans by the Rampal coal-fired thermal power project.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The Sundarbans, often referred to as the lungs of Bangladesh, is now struggling for survival alongside its iconic inhabitants like the world-renowned Royal Bengal tiger, crocodiles of the Pasur River, and the graceful deer due to Rampal power plant,” Rizvi said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said the government has no focus on creating a livable environment for the people of the country as it does not think that people are the source of power. “So, they can do anything, including destroying our environment, forest and rivers”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">About the upcoming upazila polls, the BNP leader said the government is now going to hold \'upazila elections with dummy candidates similar to the 12th parliamentary elections, reports unb</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said the ruling party MPs have created their own reigns in every parliamentary area ahead of the upazila elections. “Even, the Awami League leaders are also not getting any chance to contest the elections. The MPs\' reigns have been established with the wives, brothers, and brothers-in-law of ministers and MPs.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2024-04-25 13:33:45', '2024-04-25 13:33:45');
