Author: News Desk

Bangladesh has the highest per capita power subsidies among its four neighbouring countries, including India and Pakistan, despite having the second-lowest per capita consumption, according to an analysis by the Bangladesh Independent Power Producers Association (BIPPA). BIPPA presented its findings to senior government officials yesterday at Rail Bhaban, near the Bangladesh Secretariat. The presentation showed that Bangladesh paid $18.53 in per capita power subsidies in fiscal year 2023-24, which is higher than India’s $14.29, Pakistan’s $8.74, and Vietnam’s $0.0431. Island nation Sri Lanka discontinued such subsidies in 2023. According to the BIPPA analysis, per capita power consumption in Bangladesh is…

Thousands of workers of Beximco Group held a mass rally today in Gazipur, demanding the reopening of all factories located inside the Beximco Industrial Park. They also called for the payment of their outstanding salaries and the extension of banking services to the factories. At the rally in Sunsity, located in Kashimpur’s Sreepur, which began at 2:30 pm, thousands of workers chanted slogans such as: “We want work, not alms. We want to live with our families. Open the factories.” Taslima Khatun, one of the workers, said: “We want our rights. Beximco cannot be closed. It won’t happen. We want…

Cement sales in Bangladesh plunged in 2024 due to political instability, rising production costs, and the deferment of the implementation of government infrastructure projects, leaving the industry operating at less than half its capacity. “The cement sales in 2024 declined due to political instability, macroeconomic challenges, inflation, and the suspension of government infrastructure projects,” said Mohammad Iqbal Chowdhury, chief executive officer (CEO) of LafargeHolcim Bangladesh PLC. Industry experts echoed similar concerns, emphasising that these factors have led to significant disruptions in the construction sector. Mohammed Amirul Haque, managing director and CEO of Premier Cement Mills Limited, highlighted that the suspension…

Global economic growth is on course to improve over the next 12 months, according to nearly 60 percent of CEOs surveyed under the PricewaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) 28th Annual Global CEO Survey. The survey was launched at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, which gathered responses from 4,701 CEOs across 109 countries. It revealed that 42 percent plan to increase headcount by 5 percent or more this year, with only 17 percent expecting reductions. Optimism about emerging technologies like generative AI (GenAI) is driving this outlook as more than half of the CEOs reported employee efficiency gains from AI adoption,…

An unidentified man died after falling from the Panchagarh Express train near the Hili Railway Station in Hakimpur upazila of Dinajpur this morning. The incident occurred around 8:30am in Nawapara, Hakimpur upazila of Dinajpur, about three kilometers from Hili Railway Station, confirmed Md Tajrul Islam, the Hili Raily Police Outpost in-charge. He said, “The Panchagarh Express train was heading from Joypurhat to Parbatipur when the man fell near Nawapara and died on the spot.” Railway police later recovered the body and sent it to Dinajpur Medical College Hospital for an autopsy. The identity of the deceased is yet to be…

The Bangladesh Border Guard (BGB) today prevented the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) from erecting a barbed wire fence at the Uchna border area in Joypurhat’s Panchbibi upazila. BSF attempted to construct a barbed-wire fence within 30 yards of the international zero point, violating border agreements, confirmed a BGB official. According to local sources, BSF personnel from the Chakgopal Camp began building the fence early in the morning amid dense fog, just 25 to 30 yards inside the border on the Indian side, opposite the Bangladeshi land that is under the jurisdiction of the 20-BGB Hatkhola Border Outpost (BOP). Upon…

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir today said that any elected government is better than an unelected government since it will come to power with the people’s mandate. He said this at a programme titled “Grantha Adda” on the occasion of former president Ziaur Rahman’s birth anniversary at Jatiya Press Club today. He said, “We can surely move forward once a democratic structure is established. The elected government will come to power with the people’s mandate. Many problems will be resolved if elections are held after minimum reforms.” “Nothing should be done hastily. It is not right to create…

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed two separate cases against two former state ministers — Meher Afroz Chumki and Zakir Hossain — on charges of acquiring illegal assets and conducting suspicious transactions in bank accounts The cases were filed against Chumki and Zakir today, confirmed Akhtar Hossen, director general of ACC. Chumki, who was the former state minister for women and children affairs, is accused of acquiring illegal wealth worth Tk 5.27 crore. Additionally, suspicious transactions worth Tk 22.31 crore were found in her nine bank accounts. Meanwhile, Zakir, the former state minister for primary and mass education, was accused…

14th January 2025, Dhaka: A delegation of BMCCI led by His Excellency Mohd Shuhada Othman, High Commissioner of Malaysia to Bangladesh and Chief Patron of BMCCI met with H.E. Sk. Bashir Uddin, Hon’ble Adviser, Ministry of Commerce in his office to discuss how to promote bilateral trade and commerce between Bangladesh and Malaysia and to achieve a stronger economic tie between the two brotherly Countries. BMCCI President Mr. Shabbir A Khan together with BMCCI Board members and officials from the High Commission were present at the meeting. One of the key topics discussed was signing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA)…

Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University (MBSTU) recently hosted an inspiring event titled “AI Youth Talk,” organised by the APON Foundation in collaboration with the IEEE MBSTU Branch and the Society of ICT, said a press release. The gathering brought together students from various backgrounds to explore the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in shaping their future careers. The event featured distinguished keynote addresses from Mohammad Mahdee Uz Zaman, Director of Professional Studies at the Washington University of Science and Technology, and the Vice-Chancellor of MBSTU, Professor Mohammad Anwarul Azim Akhand. In his welcome address, Professor Akhand underscored the…