Bangladesh
Air quality remains 'moderate' in Dhaka
Dhaka's air quality continues to be in the 'moderate' zone, all thanks to intermittent monsoon showers.
With an air quality index (AQI) score of 59 at 9am on Wednesday, the metropolis ranked 30th in the list of world cities with the worst air quality.
Indonesia's Jakarta, Iran's Tehran, Pakistan's Lahore and Peru's Lima occupied the first four spots in the list, with AQI scores of 140, 128, 125, and 118, respectively.
An AQI between 50 and 100 is considered ‘moderate’ with an acceptable air quality. However, there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution.
Read: Global pollution kills 9 million people a year, study finds
An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered 'unhealthy', particularly for sensitive groups.
Similarly, an AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be 'poor', while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered 'hazardous', posing serious health risks to residents.
AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, is used by government agencies to inform people how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for them.
In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.
Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy during winter and improves during monsoon.
With the advent of winter, the city’s air quality starts deteriorating sharply due to the massive discharge of pollutant particles from construction works, rundown roads, brick kilns and other sources.
Read: Solution to pollution: Sprinkling water on Dhaka's roads & construction sites?
Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide. Breathing polluted air has long been recognised as increasing a person’s chances of developing heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases, lung infections and cancer, according to several studies.
As per the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections.
Global Covid cases top 577 million
The overall number of Covid cases has now surged past 577 million amid a rise in new infections in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
According to the latest global data, the total case count mounted to 577,023,105 and the death toll reached 6,407,209 on Wednesday morning.
The US has recorded 92,494,018 cases so far and 1,052,935 people have died from the virus in the country, the data shows.
India's daily caseload further slipped to 14,830 on Tuesday, officials said.
According to federal health ministry data released on Tuesday morning, 14,830 new cases of Covid-19 were reported in 24 hours, taking the total tally to 43,920,451 in the country.
Read: From Dec, only Covid booster dose will be available in Bangladesh
The new cases reported on Tuesday mark a decrease from the Monday's daily caseload of 16,866.
The country also registered 36 new deaths due to Covid, bringing the death toll to 526,110, the ministry said.
Covid in Bangladesh
Bangladesh recorded four more Covid-19-linked deaths with 621 new cases in 24 hours till Tuesday morning.
With the latest figures, the country's total fatalities reached 29,275 and the caseload 2,002,944, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The daily case positivity rate dropped to 6.14 per cent from Monday's 7.84 per cent as 10,053 samples were tested.
Read: 70% of Covid deaths among unvaccinated: DGHS DG
The deceased included two men and two women. Two of them were from Chattogram, and one each from Dhaka and Sylhet divisions.
The mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.46 per cent. The recovery rate rose to 96.78 per cent from Monday's 96.75 per cent.
In June, the country reported 18 Covid-linked deaths and 20,201 new cases, according to the DGHS.
Bangladesh reported its first zero Covid death on November 20 last year since the pandemic broke out here in March 2020.
The country registered its highest daily caseload of 16,230 on July 28 last year and daily fatalities of 264 on August 10 in the same year.
End/UNB/SIS/JM
Joy now a voice of youth in Bangladesh's policy reform circles: CRI
Wishing on his birthday, the Centre for Research and Information (CRI) on early Wednesday said Sajeeb Wazed Joy has become a voice of the youth in Bangladesh's policy reform circles.
"He is now helping policymakers make Bangladesh a knowledge-driven economy and deal with the challenges of the 4IR," CRI said.
Describing Joy as a visionary and strategist, CRI wished him a very happy birthday.
On this day in 1971, Sajeeb Wazed was born in Dhaka, amidst a furious War for Liberation of Bangladesh.
Joy's father was a nuclear scientist and his mother Sheikh Hasina is the prime minister of Bangladesh.
His grandparents were killed in August 1975, and young Sajeeb would be barred from entering Bangladesh by a military regime.
Read: Sajeeb Wazed to hand over Joy Bangla Youth Award to young masters Tuesday
He then did his schooling in India and moved to America to pursue his computer science undergraduate and public policy graduate studies at the University of Texas and Harvard University respectively.
In his 30s, he became an advocate for democracy in Bangladesh when an unelected military-backed regime ruled over Bangladesh in 2007.
He helped restore a politically elected government.
He would start advocating for a new progressive tech-advanced Bangladesh.
Sajeeb became the ICT affairs advisor to Bangladesh's Prime Minister.
He is regarded as the mastermind of the Digital Bangladesh initiative, which would accelerate e-governance and transform the country's IT industry in 15 years.
FM’s book on Padma Bridge unveiled
Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury unveiled the cover of the book titled “Amader Aurthey Amader Padma Setu” (Our Padma Bridge by Our Own Funds) in the capital on Tuesday.
The book edited by Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen was unveiled at a programme organised by “Chandaboti Academy” at auditorium of Foreign Service Academy.
Foreign Minister Momen, Law, Justice and Parliament Affairs Minister Anisul Huq, State Minister for Foreign Minister Md Shahriar Alam and Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam were present at the ceremony.
Read: MoFA, Technical and Madrasa Education Division vow to modernize technical and madrasa education
Speakers at the programme said the Padma Bridge is the symbol of the capability of the country as the bridge was implemented under determination of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
They also said the book will be a document in the history of Bangladesh’s development as several aspects of the implementation of the bridge was scripted in the book.
Foreign Minister Momen dedicated the book to the premier.
The 400-page book contains 67 articles written by the prominent writers on various aspects of the recently inaugurated Padma Bride which is the symbol of pride and self-confidence of the Bangladeshi nationals.
MoFA, Technical and Madrasa Education Division vow to modernize technical and madrasa education
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Technical and Madrasa Education Division on Tuesday jointly organized the second webinar on “Role of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Bangladesh Missions in Technical Education and Technology Transfer”.
Md Kamal Hossain, Secretary of Technical and Madrasa Education Division, joined as the chief guest in the webinar.
Ambassadors and High Commissioners, senior officials of the Technical and Madrasa Education Divisions, senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Bangladesh Missions abroad participated in the virtual meeting.
Through the "MoFA Telegram Series", the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has taken initiatives for greater exchange of views between Bangladesh Missions abroad and various government Ministries, divisions, departments and other private institutions in the country.
It is expected that through this telegram series it will be easier to coordinate the execution of various functions at the government and private levels and important issues can be resolved easily, said MoFA.
In the webinar, the Secretary of the Technical and Madrasah Education Division highlighted the structure of his department, ongoing projects, initiatives taken and future plans.
Read: MoFA creating data-driven intelligent architecture for faster service across globe: FS
He mentioned that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has given importance to technical education and for this reason the work of setting up one technical education institute in each Upazila is going on.
Also, the government is building technical training institutes with modern facilities in 100 Upazilas of Bangladesh.
He mentioned that initiatives have been taken to build four new Engineering Colleges and four Women Polytechnic Institutes are being constructed for the expansion of women's education.
The Secretary of Technical and Madrasah Education Division also mentioned that various institutions have adopted several language teaching measures to improve the linguistic skills of the students.
Md Kamal Hossain shed light on modernization of technical and madrasa education, addition of emerging technologies in the curriculum of technical education, agreements with various foreign institutions regarding training, introduction of internationally recognized evaluation certificates in Bangladesh for the acceptance of certificates issued by educational institutions of Bangladesh and he sought the help of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Bangladesh Missions to achieve modern technology in Bangladesh.
The webinar was conducted by the Director General (International Trade, Investment and Technology) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dr. Syed Muntasir Mamun.
Ambassadors/High Commissioners of Bangladesh appointed in Bahrain, Egypt, United Arab Emirates and Ethiopia, Director General of Technical Education Directorate, Director General of Madrasa Education Directorate also spoke at the meeting.
The participants present in the meeting expressed their conviction for the development of technical and madrasa education system in keeping with the modern world.
Bangladesh to host D-8 ministerial conf in hybrid format Wednesday
Taking into account the recent surge in COVID-19 cases worldwide, Bangladesh has decided to host the 20th session of the D-8 Council of Ministers on Wednesday in a hybrid format.
The level of participation of the meeting has been augmented with the presence of the Foreign Ministers of Iran, Pakistan and Turkey who are expected to join the meeting virtually, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday night.
Meanwhile, Deputy Ministers of the other D-8 Member States are expected to join the meeting in-person.
Food and energy security, trade, tourism and climate change are some of the areas that will get focus at the 20th session of the Council of Ministers of D-8, also known as Developing-8.
While briefing the media on Sunday, Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said energy and food security is a global issue that will be discussed at the meeting as there is much scope for cooperation in these areas.
“We are giving much importance on food security. Food security issue will be discussed largely. We would like to share our expertise with other friends. There is a much scope for cooperation,” he said.
Read: D8 has huge potential to develop as a strong economic block, says PM
On energy security, Momen said it is being discussed everywhere and it remains a hot topic globally. “We must ensure energy security. It will be discussed.”
He said though some of the D-8 countries showed maturity in the tourism sector, Bangladesh has scope to do more and gain through cooperation.
Momen said though the intra-trade is growing the D-8 countries can do more on this front.
“We will discuss on how the trade can further be expanded,” he said, adding that the intra-trade is likely to be boosted through proper implementation of the D-8 Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA).
The D-8 Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA), signed on 13th May, 2006 in Bali, Indonesia is regarded as one of the most tangible outcomes of D-8 cooperation in trade.
The foreign minister said the D-8 meeting to be held on July 27 will take decision about Azerbaijan’s membership.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to inaugurate the meeting joining it virtually, Momen said.
Bangladesh also hosted the 45th session of the D-8 Commission from July 25 to 26.
The D-8, also known as Developing-8, is an organization for development cooperation among Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.
The establishment of D-8 was announced officially through the Istanbul Declaration of Summit of Heads of State/Government on June 15, 1997.
The objectives of D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation are to improve member states’ position in the global economy, diversify and create new opportunities in trade relations, enhance participation in decision-making at international level, and improve standards of living.
Tenth-grader attacked for protesting eve-teasing; three arrested in Chandpur
A class ten girl reportedly sustained severe injuries in an attack by goons for protesting against eve-teasing on her way to school in Haimchar upazila of the district Tuesday.
Police arrested three goons including the prime accused within a few hours of the incident.
Read: Khulna BCL leader jailed for eve-teasing
The arrestees were identified as prime accused Habib Talukdar, 20, Shipon, 20, and Al Amin, 20. They were residents of Mohjampur area in Uttar Algir union of the upazila.
Quoting the victim and her school teachers, Ashraf Uddin, officer-in-charge (OC) of Haimchar police station, said the prime accused and his cohorts teased her and threw abusive words at her on her way to school from home at Chhoiyal intersection around 10 am.
When she protested, in a fit of rage, the goons thrashed her and hit with brick on head leaving her critically injured, said the OC.
Hearing screams, locals rushed to the spot and rescued her from the clutches of the goons, he said, adding that the victim is now undergoing treatment at Upazila Health Complex.
Police arrested three culprits so far from different areas of the upazila in the afternoon, the police officer said, adding legal action against the detainees was underway as of filing this report.
Seminar on nation branding held
Bangladesh Security Exchange Commission (BSEC) in partnership with Bloomberg L.P organised a seminar titled “Nation Branding: Attracting New Talent & Investments Worldwide” on Monday.
BSEC Chairman Professor Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam chaired the seminar while Prime Minister’s Private Industry & Investment Advisor Salman Fazlur Rahman was the chief guest.
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen was the special guest at the function while Andrew Boggs, Regional Strategy Lead, Bloomberg presented the keynote paper.
In the panel discussion, speakers focused on the foreign investment interest and the full-fledged shift to digital and digital services which may eventually lead to Digital Bangladesh.
Masud Bin Momen spoke about the digital shift of the Foreign Office for greater competence in serving the various line ministries and also the expatriates for greater economic and other benefits.
Read: BSEC Scholarship introduced at DU
He shared the engagement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the a2i and the ICT Division to bring efficiency in mission services around the world along with creating substantial and substantiative contributions in the narrative epistemology of cutting-edge technology by cultivating imaginative minds and the nimble hands of people and connecting them globally.
Connecting the markets and providing a strong support platform to global supply chain solutions is a core facet of the government’s economic diplomacy.
The Foreign Secretary spoke about the role of private equity and other modes of finance in underwriting this huge architecture.
He also highlighted the role of freelance developers in connecting Bangladesh to the creative economy paradigm.
Masud emphasized bridging institutional voids and articulating inchoate demands.
Delegates and dignitaries from the government and regulatory authorities, financial institutes, and the business community of Bangladesh joined the programme.
Shohoz files writ with HC challenging legality of Tk 2 lakh fine
E-ticketing platform Shohoz.com on Tuesday filed a writ petition with the High Court (HC) challenging the legality of the Tk 2 lakh fine by the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection (DNCRP) after receiving a complaint from Dhaka University student Mohiuddin Rony over irregularities in ticket sales.
Lawyer Tanjib-ul Alam filed the writ petition on behalf of Shohoz.com.
In the writ, Shohoz.com has appealed to the court to suspend the fine by the DNCRP and issue a rule declaring the fine illegal.
Four including the commerce secretary and DNCRP have been made respondents to the rule.
On July 20, DNCRP fined Shohoz.com, an online ticketing platform of the country, Tk 2 lakh after finding evidence of its mismanagement in selling tickets for Bangladesh Railways.
Read: Rail mismanagement: Roni suspends movement
The DNCRP organised a hearing after receiving a complaint from Mohiuddin Rony, a 4th-year student of Dhaka University's Theatre and Performance Studies Department, over irregularities in ticket sales by Shohoz.com.
On Monday, Shohoz claimed there was no negligence while providing service.
In a statement, the company said service was provided to Mohiuddin Roni following the terms and conditions mentioned on the ticketing website of Bangladesh Railway (www.eticket.railway.gov.bd).
Later on Monday night, Mohiuddin Roni suspended his movement against various irregularities of Bangladesh Railway and for meeting his six-point demand after a meeting with the high officials of Bangladesh Railway including the Railways secretary and Director General at Rail Bhaban.
Poverty forces Thakurgaon day-labourer to put 7-month-old baby girl up for sale
Forced by poverty, day-labourer Matiur Rahman, 46, from Baliadangi upazila of Thakurgaon, has decided to sell his seven-month-old baby girl Sammi to arrange money to run his family.
In his family of six members, he always struggles to earn bread for all due to poverty. Eldest daughter Parul, 14, is in ninth grade, Sumaiya Akhtar, 9, is in 3rd grade in a local school and Suraiya Akhtar, 6, is studying in a madrasa next to the house.
He was not able to bear the education expenses of three daughters and the expenses of 7-month-old baby girl Shammi which forced him to take the baby to a local market for sale or adoption on Sunday.
But when the locals got to know this they suggested him not to sell the child and father Matiur brought the child back home.
Read:Govt. seeks higher growth for lower poverty, says budget document
Father Matiur said, “I have no son. I am the only earning member in the family. Three meals a day is not enough with the daily wage.”
Mother Nazma Begum, 39, said, “Our eldest daughter is studying in class IX and she will be married off soon. But we have no property to educate the girls and get them married.”
“So my husband took my youngest daughter to the market to sell to people,” she added.
In this regard, UP member of Bara Palashbari Union Harun Or Rashid said he will arrange assistance for Motiur from the Union Parishad and the government.
Baliadangi Upazila Executive Officer (UNO) Moha Jobair Hossain also assured Matiur of financial assistance.