bangladesh
3 more dengue patients hospitalised in 24 hrs
Three more people were hospitalised with dengue in 24 hours till Friday morning.
All of the new patients were admitted to hospitals in Dhaka. No cases were recorded outside of Dhaka in the past 24 hours.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), 127 dengue patients, including 106 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.
So far, the DGHS has recorded 1,362 dengue cases, 1,223 recoveries, and twelve 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.
Winners of 1st International Astronomy Olympiad receive awards at Russian embassy
The Russian Embassy in Dhaka has hosted the ceremony of presenting medals and certificates of the 1st International Astronomy Olympiad.
The competition took place in the city of Saransk (Mordovia, Russia) from September 26 to October 2, 2022 in a remote format.
The award-giving event was organized by the embassy jointly with the office of “Rossotrudnichestvo” (Russian House) in Dhaka on Thursday.
Students from Bangladesh, who participated in the Olympiad, won one silver and five bronze medals: Hritom Sarker Oyon (Adamjee Cantonment Public School), Imdallulah Raji (Notre Dame College), Anhaf Anna Nafi (Chittagong College), Radh Chowdhury (Dhaka Residential Model College), Fijul Kabir Jishan (Ananda Mohan College) and Faiyaz Siddiqui (DPS STS School).
Ambassador of Russia Alexander Mantytskiy and Minister-Counsellor of the Embassy Ekaterina A.Semenova attended the prize-giving ceremony.
Md Abdul Momin, additional secretary of the Ministry of Science and Technology of Bangladesh, noted the role of Russia in the development of a knowledge-based economy in this country and highly appreciated the progress in the implementation of the Rooppur NPP project in this context.
Maxim E Dobrokhotov, director of the Russian House in Dhaka, stressed that such initiatives are important in promoting talented Bangladeshi youth, who can take advantage of participation in scholarship and grant programs in Russia. According to him, the Russian universities train at a high level the specialists in technical areas, which may be relevant for Bangladesh in the light of its successful socio-economic development.
Pray that Bangladesh is safe from man-made or natural disasters: PM to Hajj pilgrims
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday inaugurated the Hajj Programme-2023 (1444 Hijri), urging pilgrims to pray that Bangladesh and its people are protected from any man-made or natural disaster.
“I would like to request you to pray so that any disaster or crisis –either man-made or natural— can’t damage Bangladesh and the people of Bangladesh,” she said.
The premier opened the programme at the Hajj camp in the capital’s Ashkona and later she exchanged greetings with the hajj pilgrims.
Hasina said man-made disaster alongside natural calamity happens in Bangladesh as the people are killed here by resorting to arson violence and setting transport vehicles on fire.
She asked the pilgrims to pray so that the development and the current progress of Bangladesh would continue in future.
“What I want most from you (hajj pilgrims) is that you will pray for my people of Bangladesh so that none could play ducks and drakes with the fortune of them,” she said.
The first hajj flight is scheduled to depart Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport for Saudi Arabia at 2:45am on Saturday.
Read more: PM inaugurates Hajj programme-2023
This year, a total of 122,221 pilgrims from Bangladesh are going to perform the holy hajj. But the number of hajj pilgrims from Bangladesh was 57,585 last year due to Covid-19 restriction.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, 127,198 pilgrims from Bangladesh performed hajj in 2019.
The hajj is expected to be held on June 27, subject to the sighting of the moon.
The PM called upon the country’s people and Aleem-Ulama to come forward to contribute in building a modern and knowledge-based developed nation by standing against militancy and terrorism.
“I urge you (hajj pilgrims) and Aleem-Ulama to stand boldly against militancy and terrorism so our children can stay away from these (social diseases) and equip them with knowledge about modern technology to build a developed nation,” she said.
Describing Islam as a religion of peace and welfare of the people, she said unfortunately Islam gets a bad name due to a handful individuals who engaged in militancy and violence.
Read more: PM Hasina lauds community clinics for reaching healthcare services to common people
“Those who resort to militancy and terrorism as well as kill innocent people have no religion. If someone thinks they will go to heaven by killing innocent people, it will never happen. Almighty Allah never said it and our Prophet (SM) also didn’t say it,” she said.
Noting that Islam is the best religion of the world, she urged all to take initiative on their respective parts and positions to prevent these misguided people from earning a bad name for the best religion.
Hasina asked the hajj pilgrims to pray during their holy hajj for her younger sister Sheikh Rehana and other family members.
Wishing the pilgrims good health during the hajj, Hasina said, “You people are going to the house of Allah as guests of Allah as well as to Makkah-Madinah Sharif. We pray that you may perform hajj in a safe, healthy and beautiful manner as well as that you can return safely to the near and dear ones in the country.”
The PM said they have introduced “e-hajj management” to reduce the suffering of hajj pilgrims.
Focusing on her government’s steps to improve hajj and umrah management, she said now, all the activities of hajj management such as pre-registration, registration, refund, Makkah road service, e-health, e-visa, flight, help desk, call centre, agency profile management are being done to ease the hajj system for Bangladeshi pilgrims.
The premier said the hajj related notification is being provided to each hajj pilgrim through SMS and there is also a call centre where from the pilgrims can know everything through dialing call to 16136.
She said her government enacted the Hajj and Umrah Management Act-2021 which has made the hajj management easier.
State Minister for Religious Affairs Md. Faridul Haque Khan presided over the inaugural function.
State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Mahbub Ali, Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Essa Yussef Essa Al Dulaihan, local lawmaker Habib Hasan (Dhaka-18), Religious Affairs Secretary Kazi Enamul Hassan and president of Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) Shahadat Hossain Taslim also spoke on the occasion.
At the outset of the event, a video documentary on the hajj management was screened.
Rain or thundershowers likely in Dhaka, other divisions
Dhaka and other divisions may experience rain or thundershowers in 24 hours from 9 am on Friday.
“Rain or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely to occur at many places over Dhaka, Mymensingh, Khulna, Barishal, Chattogram & Sylhet divisions and at a few places over Rangpur, Rajshahi divisions with hails at isolated places over the country,” said a bulletin of Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD).
Day and night temperature may remain nearly unchanged over the country.
The country’s highest temperature was recorded at 33.5 degrees Celsius on Thursday while the highest rainfall was recorded at 57mm in Mongla.
Jubo Dal leader arrested under DSA for alleged caricatures of Bangabandhu in Kurigram
A Jubo Dal leader was arrested on Thursday night in a case filed under the Digital Security Act, on charge of making caricatures of of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, in Nageshwari upazila of Kurigram.
The arrestee is Saidul Islam, convener of Kachakata Union Jubo Dal, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Kachakata Police Station Golam Mortuza confirmed the matter on Friday.
Mobile phones, parody pictures of Bangabandhu were seized from the Jubo Dal leader. He will be produced before a court on Friday, said the OC.
According to the FIR, Saidul used to make caricatures of Bangabandhu and campaign on various issues targeting Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The matter came to the notice of Ataul Rahman, general secretary of Kachakata Union Awami League and assistant professor of Kachakata Degree College. Later, he filed the case on Thursday.
PM inaugurates Hajj programme-2023
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday morning opened the hajj programme 2023 (1444 hijri) in the capital’s Ashkona area.
The premier later exchanged greetings with the hajj pilgrims here at the Hajj camp in Ashkona.
Read more: PM Hasina to attend Qatar Economic Forum May 23-25
The first hajj flight is scheduled to depart Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport for Saudi Arabia at 2:45am on Saturday.
This year, a total of 122,221 pilgrims from Bangladesh are going to perform the holy hajj. But the number of hajj pilgrims from Bangladesh was 57,585 last year due to Covid-19 restriction.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, 127,198 pilgrims from Bangladesh performed hajj in 2019.
The hajj is expected to be held on June 27, subject to the sighting of the moon.
Read more: PM Hasina lauds community clinics for reaching healthcare services to common people
State Minister for Religious Affairs Md. Faridul Haque Khan presided over the inaugural function.
State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Mahbub Ali, Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Essa Yussef Essa Al Dulaihan, local lawmaker Habib Hasan (Dhaka-18), Religious Affairs Secretary Kazi Enamul Hassan and president of Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) Shahadat Hossain Taslim also spoke on the occasion.
Man arrested with 1,400 Yaba pills at Damdamia checkpost in Teknaf: BGB
Members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Teknaf Battalion have arrested a man with 1,400 Yaba pills from Teknaf’s Damdamia checkpost.
The identity of the arrestee could not be known immediately.
According to a press release sent by BGB-2, a patrol team of Damdamia BoP under Teknaf Battalion (2 BGB) of BGB was conducting regular search operations at Damdamia checkpost. In continuation of this, a bus of Palki Paribahan from Teknaf to Cox's Bazar came to Damdamia checkpost yesterday and it was stopped for search.
A search dog of BGB’s K-9 unit identified a man with suspicious behaviour. Later, the patrol team conducted a thorough search and found 1,400 yaba pills from under the passenger’s seat, the press release reads.
A case was filed in this regard and the arrestee has been handed over to Teknaf Model Police Station.
Dhaka’s air 2nd most polluted in the world Friday morning
Dhaka city's air has been ranked the second most polluted in the world on Friday morning.
With an air quality index (AQI) score of 166 at 9:00am, Dhaka's air is deemed "unhealthy".
India’s Delhi and Pakistan’s Lahore occupied the first, and third spots, with AQI scores of 169 and 161.
Read more: HC summons N’ganj DC, DoE officials for not complying with directives to control air pollution
An AQI between 151 and 200 is considered ‘unhealthy’ while between 201–300 is ‘’very unhealthy’, and 301–400 is 'hazardous', posing severe health risks to residents.
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.
The AQI in Bangladesh is based on five pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2, and ozone.
Dhaka, the overcrowded capital city of Bangladesh, has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.
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.
Dhaka-Ctg highway to remain closed for 2 hours on Saturday
Vehicular movement on the Dhaka-Chattogram highway will remain suspended for two hours on Saturday due to the installation of the beam of the pedestrian bridge at Bashbaria area of Sitakunda in Chattogram.
The highway will be closed from 5:30 am to 7:30 am at RR Textile Mills area of Bashbaria union of the upazila, said Chattogram Roads and Highways authorities.
Rokon Uddin Khaled Chowdhury, sub-divisional engineer of Sitakunda office of Roads and Highways department, said the Dhaka-Chattogram highway will be closed to avoid any kind of accident while installing the beam of the under-construction pedestrian bridge.
Relevant departments have already been notified, he said.
Read more: Eviction drive at Salimpur: Local residents block Dhaka-Ctg highway for 5 hrs
Khaled also said that the beam was supposed to be installed on Saturday. But it was delayed because of cyclone Mocha.
Belal Uddin Jahangir, officer-in-charge (OC) of Bar Aulia Highway Police Station, said they will close the Dhaka-Chattogram highway for some time while removing the beams.
“We’ve asked the executive engineer to increase the manpower and complete the work quickly,” he said.
17 including 4 women arrested for alleged fraud using mobile apps
Police arrested 17 suspected operatives including four women of a fraud gang involved with realising money from people through several mobile phone applications from different areas of Dhaka, Gazipur and Narayanganj.
The arrestees are Md Mohiuddin Mahri, 31, Bani Saad Monihaj, 23, Md Sana Miah, 35, Md Latin, 43, Md Mehedhi Hasan, 23, Md Hasan Imam Proncy, 33, Md Belayet Hossain, 28, Md Maruf Ahmed, 27, Sabbir Hossain Loyin, 26, Shahabul Islam Nishu, 22, Faizul Islam, 24, Md Sohan Khan, 21, Abdul Wadud, 25, Iti Akter, 20, Sriti Shah Soumik, 21, Ayesha, 21 and Rubaya, 20.
According to a media release signed by Md Rafiqul Alam, an additional deputy commissioner (Media) of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police (RMP), police in association with Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU) arrested the 17 people from Dhaka and two other districts.
Initially the members of the fraud gang asked people to install a mobile phone application ‘Rapid Cash’ for taking a loan of Tk 30,000 and sent some money to the mobile phone user in cash, it said.
Later, the app users were asked to refund the money with a huge amount of interest, otherwise their naked pictures will be shared on social media including Facebook as they provided their pictures and relevant information from the NID card , it reads.
After being deceived by the gang, one Abul Ahsan lodged a case with the RMP’s Boalia police station in this regard on May 14.
Later, the police and the ATU arrested them from different areas of the country and recovered 11 laptops, 10 mobile phone sets, 5 pen drives and cash.
The suspects landed in jail following an order by a Rajshahi court on Thursday, the press release said.