Bangladesh
Foundation stone laid of 1000-bed hospital in Panchagarh
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Saturday laid the foundation stone of 1,000-bed North Point Tertiary Medical College and Hospital in Panchagarh's sadar upazila.
The minister laid the foundation stone and inaugurated the construction work of the hospital at Dariapara area of the upazila.
Tipu Munshi said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has expanded healthcare from the capital to the grassroots level. Now many districts of the country have medical college and hospitals and new ones are being constructed.
He called on government initiatives as well as private organizations and all concerned to contribute from their respective positions through more dynamic and improvement in medical education, treatment, services and research programs to ensure universal health care and the overall development of the country's health system.
The minister said that the health service system has been integrated with information technology, which extends from national-level hospitals to community clinics and rural health workers. He also said that medical services have been introduced through mobile phones and online platforms from upazila and upazila-level hospitals. "As a result, it has become easier for the people of the country to get quality healthcare," added the minister.
This hospital will play an important role in providing better quality health services to the people of Bangladesh and neighboring countries in the border district of Panchagarh. Tipu Munshi thanked the authorities concerned for constructing such a big hospital in this region.
Zhuang Lifeng, chairman of North Point Medical College and Hospital, presided over the groundbreaking ceremony, while Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen was present as a special guest.
Panchagarh-1 Constituency Member of Parliament Mazharul Haque Pradhan was present as the guest of honour.
Bangladesh's youth makes it 'vigorous' in Chinese eyes: Amb. Yao Wen
Chinese Ambassador Yao Wen has said Bangladesh is a vigorous country not only in terms of its robust socio-economic development but because of its promising young generation.
"As per the census in 2022, the country's young population is over 45 million. Youth is power," he said.
It is hoped that with intimate and frequent exchanges, the young talents from both countries would lift higher and pass on the torch of the China-Bangladesh friendship that is "deeply rooted and firmly standing," said the ambassador.
On Friday, the "Ramadan Gathering with China" was held at the Embassy of China in Bangladesh.
Over 70 youth representatives from the Bangladesh government, political parties, military, universities, enterprises, media houses and foreign missions took part in the event.
Ambassador Yao said the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held late last year put forward the roadmap to realise the "Chinese dream of great rejuvenation by way of a Chinese path to modernisation."
Also, dressed in traditional outfits of Bangladesh, three young diplomats from the Chinese embassy delivered presentations and shared their observations and analyses.
They first showed how the Communist Party of China, a political party with a history of more than a century, coped with all kinds of challenges to make its success today.
They elaborated on the "full and rigorous party self-governance and the whole-process people's democracy in practice" and showcased the achievement of the Beautiful China Initiative and the poverty-alleviation campaign.
After case studies on China's efforts to broker a deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran, to promote the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis, and to facilitate the resolution of the Rohingya issue between Bangladesh and Myanmar, the diplomats introduced China's "Peaceful Diplomacy" and the vision for "Human Community with Shared Future" with analyses on the applications on China-Bangladesh relations.
They called for close collaboration between the two developing countries with vast populations to achieve their respective national dreams which share a "significant commonality."
Fraught situation prevails in Bandarban; entire Khyang communuity flees site of shooting
The situation in Khamtang Khyang Para in Rowangchhari remains fraught with tension, less than 48 hours after a running gun battle between two locally-armed outfits that left eight of them dead on Thursday night, and families that reside in the area to evacuate.
According to the locals, Khamtang Para is home to 64 Khyang families -all have left the area in the wake of the firing. The Khyang are one of the smallest ethnic groups in Bangladesh
As the tension escalated, 44 of the families sought shelter in Rowangchhari Government High School, while the other 20 families took shelter at the Bom Community Center in Ruma Upazila after fleeing.
This morning, the army and upazila administration provided dry food and medical care to them.
Meanwhile, Superintendent of Police Md. Tariqul Islam has stated that no case has been filed yet in connection with this incident.
He said this during a media briefing on Saturday regarding an accused individual who was involved in violence and drug dealing and had eight cases hanging over him..
The post-mortem of the eight individuals who were killed in the clashes was completed this afternoon at the Bandarban Sadar Hospital. Their bodies were sent to their respective village homes through the Bom Social Council.
According to Ruma Upazila's Project Implementation Officer Mohammad Shahriar Mahmud Manju, the 20 families sheltering at the Bom Community Centre comprise 31 men, 30 women, and three children.
The PIO mentioned that 5 kg of rice, 1 kg of lentils, and 1 liter of oil per family was distributed among the 20 sheltered families.
Officials identified the United People’s Democratic Front (Democratic),a breakaway faction of the original UPDF led by Prasit Kheesa, and the Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF), the military wing of separatist Kuki-Chin National Army, were the two parties engaged in the fight.
Meanwhile, the Upazila Awami League has provided relief assistance at Rowangchhari Government High School.
UNO Md. Khorshed Alam Chowdhury of Rowangchhari upazila said that the upazila administration is providing all-round assistance.
On the other hand, transport workers have reported that the KNF has been blocking the movement of vehicles on some internal roads in Ruma and Thanchi upazilas since this morning in protest of the incident.
Bangladesh reports 1 more dengue case
One more person was hospitalised with dengue in the 24 hours to Saturday morning.
The new patient was admitted to a hospital in Dhaka, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Twenty dengue patients, including 14 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.
So far, the DGHS has recorded 875 dengue cases, 846 recoveries, and nine deaths this year.
The country logged 281 dengue deaths in 2022 – the highest on record after 179 deaths recorded in 2019. Also, it recorded 62,423 dengue cases and 61,971 recoveries last year.
Man arrested with gold bars worth Tk 85 lakh in Jashore
Members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) arrested a man with 2 gold bars worth around Tk 85 lakh in Jashore along the India border on Saturday.
The arrestee was identified as Md Saidul Islam, 25, son of Md Abdul Halim of Panchbhulot village in Sharsha of the district.
According to a media release signed by Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Tanveer Rahman, captain at Khulna Battalion (21 BGB), said tipped-off they came to know that a consignment of gold would be smuggled to India from Bangladesh through Panchbhulot border.
A BGB team detained him when he was heading towards the border by a three-wheeler, it said, adding that the gold bars weighing around one kilogram were recovered from his possession later.
The market price of the seized gold bars is estimated at Tk 85,00,000 lakh, it added.
Bangabazar businessmen disagreed on future plans for the site
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Khandker Golam Faruq has said that there was a dispute between the businessmen of Bangabazar regarding the proposal to build a multi-storied commercial building on the site. Whether that played any part in the fire that razed the market to the ground last week would come out in the investigation, the Commissioner added.
Besides police, the Fire Service and Civil Defense directorate is also investigating the cause of the fire.
The DMP commissioner came up with the remarks responding to reporters' questions after a programme at the FDC in the city on Saturday.
Replying to another question, Commissioner Faruq termed the attack on the nearby FSCD headquarters during the Bangabazar fire as 'pre-planned'.
He also said that a total of 11 people have been arrested since the attack on the FSCD headquarters till today. Investigation is focused on ascertaining the motive behind the attack on the agency, he added.
A massive fire broke out at the Bangabazar Market in Dhaka on April 4 and it spread to some other nearby markets, burning several thousand shops, with mainly readymade clothes and footwear, to ashes.
Bangladesh reports 4 more Covid cases
Bangladesh reported four more Covid cases in the 24 hours to Saturday morning.
With the new numbers, the country's total caseload rose to 2,038,073, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
However, the official death toll from the disease remained unchanged at 29,446 as no new fatalities were reported.
The daily case test positivity rate rose to 0.50 percent from Friday's 0.39 percent as 805 samples were tested.
The recovery rate increased to 98.41 percent. However, the death rate remained unchanged at 1.44 percent.
Bangladesh registered its highest daily caseload of 16,230 on July 28 last year and highest number of fatalities of 264 on August 10 the same year.
Traders of Bangabazar set up around 800 temporary shops at the site
Traders of Bangabazar, whose businesses burned down in the recent fire at the market, set up temporary shops on the streets and footpaths at the site of the incident today.
Around 800 traders displayed their stocks since this morning. They set up their makeshift shops under the flyover, on the south side of Bangabazar Market.
Many traders are sitting with the clothes they were able to save from the devastating fire last Tuesday. Even though there is a crowd around the shops, sales are yet to pick up.
The traders setting up the temporary shops said they were displaying whatever goods they could save from the Bangabazar Market fire.
Aynal Hossain was sitting at his shop under the flyover. He told UNB that he had two shops in Bangabazar Market. Both shops were burnt to ashes.
“I was able to move some stuff. So I brought it here. No sale yet, because our regular customers do not know the address of the shop. Only Allah knows how we will celebrate this Eid,” he said.
Trader Shahidul Islam had a shop in Bangabazar, selling jeans and shirts. The shop burnt to ashes and now he has also set up shop on the footpath.
Read more: Bangabazar fire finally doused after 75 hours
“Everything is over. There is no money for food at home. So, I was forced to set up shop on the footpath,” he lamented.
Last Tuesday, (April 4) at 6:10 am, a terrible fire broke out in Bangabazar complex in the capital. Bongo Market, Gulistan Market, Mahanagar Shopping Complex, Adarsha Market and Annex Tower were burnt down. Businessmen claim that they have lost around Tk 2000 crore in the fire.
Brahmanbaria road crash leaves 2 dead
Two people including a teenage boy were killed in a collision between an auto-rickshaw and a truck in Sarail upazila of Brahmabaria on Saturday.
The deceased are auto-rickshaw driver Al Amin, 17, son of Alamgir Miah of Shahbajpur village in the upazila and passenger Apon Chandra Das, 14, son of Amolesh Chandra Das of Dhitpur village of the same upazila.
Witnesses said the auto-rickshaw collided with the truck on Shahbajpur-Shahjadapur regional road in Jadavpur area, leaving the auto driver dead on the spot and the passenger injured critically.
He was rushed to Upazila Health Complex where physicians declared him dead upon arrival.
Aslam Hossain, officer-in-charge of Sarail Police Station, said no case has so far been filed in this connection.
Adani Power starts commercial electricity supply to Bangladesh keeping tariff issue unsettled
Though commercial operation of Adani Power’s Godda Jharkhand plant started on April 7 to import about 800 MW of electricity by Bangladesh, the tariff dispute has not been settled yet.
Initially, Adani started its power export to Bangladesh on March 9 on a test basis.
According to official sources, state-owned Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) approved a commercial operation date (COD) following its inspection by a 3-member technical team, headed by a superintendent engineer (energy audit).
“The technical team went to India in the third week of March and returned home in the first week of April spending about 10 days in Apani’s Godda power plant,” a source told UNB on condition of anonymity as the issue is highly sensitive.
“But the issue of the tariff was not settled. After objection from the Bangladesh side, the Adani Power offered to lower the coal price, still it is not complying with Bangladesh’s stand,” he said.
He mentioned that Adani uses GAR of ICI-5000 coal which is low quality coal, but wants to quote the price GAR of ICI -6500.
“For instance the price of an ICI-6500 is $179.84, while the price of ICI-5000 is $95.50. In this case, Adani is seeking to quote the coal price at $179.84 which is not acceptable to Bangladesh,” he added.
He also mentioned that following the recent discussion between Adani and BPDB in Bangladesh, Adani has agreed to lower the price and wanted to keep it between the tariffs of Payra power plant and Rampal power plants.
“But they don’t stick to a certain formula of coal pricing which is problematic for Bangladesh as every month BPDB will have to negotiate with Adani on the tariff issue which is not desirable for Bangladesh”, said the senior official of the BPDB.
Earlier, a high level team of Adani Group came to Dhaka on February 23 and discussed resolving the issues on "coal pricing mechanism of the power purchase agreement (PPA)”.
Both the sides heard each other and they presented their points in favour of their respective sides on the issue. Adani's representative informed them that they would communicate BPDB's stance on the coal pricing mechanism of the PPA to their top management and they will sit in more follow-up meetings.
Read more: Adani Group starts discussion with Bangladesh to resolve issues on coal pricing
The visited Dhaka as the Bangladesh government sought a revision to the power purchase agreement (PPA) it signed with Adani Power Ltd for importing electricity over a 25 years of period from its thermal power plant in Jharkhand, India.
It seems the price of coal to be purchased as fuel for the project has emerged as the prime bone of contention.
The BPDB sent a letter to the Adani Group following a request it received in relation to opening LCs (in India) to import the coal that will be used as fuel for the 1,600 MW plant in Jharkhand,” a highly-placed official of BPDB told UNB.
Since practically all the power generated by the plant located in the Godda district of Jharkhand state will be exported to Bangladesh, Adani Power requires a demand note from BPDB that it can present to Indian authorities before opening LCs against the coal import.
The cost incurred to import the coal, including transport from port to plant, will ultimately be borne by Bangladesh, with the price factored into the PPA's tariff structure.
At that time when a huge volatility was prevailing on the global market with soaring fuel price, Adani Power recently sent a request for BPDB to issue the demand note, where the coal price is quoted at $400 per metric ton (MT) - far above what BPDB officials believe it should be given the present state of the international market.
“In our view, the coal price they have quoted ($400/MT) is excessive - it should be less than $250/MT, which is what we are paying for the imported coal at our other thermal power plants," the official said.
The BPDB official referred to the coal procurement of Rampal Power Plant where the supplier Bashundhara Group won the contract to supply coal at $232.33 per ton to reach the product to the jetty. However, later the coal price declined substantially.
The same sources also said Bangladesh’s stance on the issue was communicated to Adani Power officials during the visit of a delegation led by State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid to the site of the power plant that took place in the first week of January.