United News of Bangladesh

BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD), BRAC University, will organise an open discussion on "Forty Days of Uprising: What are People Thinking?" at 3:30 pm on Sunday, at Muzaffar Ahmed Chowdhury Auditorium of Social Science Faculty in Dhaka University. The event will be held to coincide with International Democracy Day. This year the theme of the International Democracy Day is "Empowering the Next Generation." The speakers of the event include Imran Matin PhD, Executive Director of BIGD, BRAC University; Dr. Badiul Alam Majumdar, Secretary of Citizens for Good Governance (SHUJAN); Dr. Samina Lutfa, Associate Professor at the Department of Sociology, University of Dhaka; Mirza M. Hasan PhD, Senior Research Fellow at BIGD, BRAC University; and Dr. Asif Mohammad Shahan, Associate Professor at the Department of Development Studies, University of Dhaka. Representatives from the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and National Citizens Committee (NCC), including Samantha Sharmin, Mamun Abdullahi, Md. Asaduzzaman, and Rownak Jahan. During the event, results of the "Pulse Survey" conducted by BIGD to understand public sentiment, will be presented by the organisers.

Professor Abdul Hannan Chowdhury has been appointed as the new vice-chancellor of North South University (NSU). A press release, signed by Rafe Sadnan Adel, director (Public Relations Office) at the university, confirmed his appointment on Thursday. Professor Chowdhury was the two-time Dean at School of Business and Economics (SBE) of NSU, and also held various leadership roles including Executive Director of External Relations, Director of the BBA Program, Syndicate Member, and Director of Career Services. He previously served as the Vice Chancellor of Primeasia University and as Pro Vice-Chancellor of Eastern University. Professor Chowdhury holds a PhD and an MS in Operations Research from Northeastern University, Boston, USA. He also earned a BSc (Hons) and MSc in Statistics from Jahangirnagar University.

The government has appointed Dr Abu Borhan Mohammad Badruzzaman, Professor of Civil Engineering Department of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) as its new Vice-Chancellor (VC). The Ministry of Education issued a notification on Thursday in this regard saying that he will be appointed for a four-year term. Dr Badruzzaman will receive the same salary and allowances as his current position and will reside on the campus full-time.   The President, also the Chancellor of the university, can revoke the appointment if necessary, said the notification. Besides, Dr. Abdul Hasib Chowdhury, Professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department, has been appointed as the Pro-Vice-Chancellor of Buet for four years. The Education Ministry issued another notification in this regard on Thursday.

Director General (DG) of the Directorate of Primary Education DG Md Abdus Samad has been made Officer on-Special Duty (OSD) on Wednesday. DG Samad has also been transferred to the Ministry of Public Administration as the OSD. A notification, signed by Deputy Secretary Md Alamgir Kabir of the ministry, was issued in this regard. The order will be effective immediately, it reads.

Md Touhidul Islam, an accomplished academic originally from Rajshahi, Bangladesh, has been appointed as an Assistant Professor at Stanford University, marking a historic achievement, US Embassy in Dhaka posted on its verified Facebook page on Tuesday. Touhidul, an alumnus of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), becomes the first Bangladeshi to secure a tenure-track position at this world-renowned institution With a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University, Touhidul's research focuses on the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in medical diagnostics. His work is at the forefront of leveraging AI to enhance healthcare outcomes, making significant strides in the field, the post also said.

The students from Jagannath University (JnU) Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib Hall have declared nine female activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) as 'unwanted', unofficially persona non grata. This was declared in a banner with their name, batch and photo in front of the only girls hall of Jagannath University (JnU) on Saturday. In the banner, they wrote, “Chhatra League activists who are against the July Revolution and support the genocide have been declared permanently unwanted on behalf of the general students of Bangmata Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Hall.” They are Eva Rahman, a student of 11th batch of psychology department, Swarna Patwari, a student of  13th batch of zoology department, Maitri Barai of 13th batch from film and television department, Afia Ananjum Supti of 14th batch from Bengali department, Nipun Islam of 13th batch from Mathematics department, Munia Akhter Juthi of 14th batch from Islamic studies department, Rishat Ara of 14th batch from Philosophy department, Srija of batch 16 frm political science department, Farhana Oishi of batch 17 from Institute of Education and Research. Among them, Afia Ananjum Supti said: “I have not been coming to the hall for 4-5 months. My graduation is completed. I will not do a Masters from Jagannath University. I will do it from outside. Declaring my hall seat unwanted is acceptable, because my graduation is over. But two more girls' seats of the 17th batch are declared unwanted. The Provost and VC Sir have the sole authority to declare this. This unsolicited declaration will never be valid.” “This is the biggest disparity,” she added. Swarna Riya, a third-year student of the Public Administration Department who was one of the leaders of the Anti- discrimination Student Movement, said: "We could not make any official application due to the absence of a provost of the hall. These nine Chhatra League activists have been declared unwanted from the hall by the general students. Later, when the new provost will join, we will apply to cancel their seats from the student hall.”

New vice-chancellors (VCs) were appointed at Rajshahi University (RU), Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Noakhali Science and Technology University (NSTU) and Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University on Thursday. The appointments were made by President Mohammed Shahabuddin, also the chancellor of the universities. The Ministry of Education issued a separate notification in this regard on Thursday. In Rajshahi University (RU), Prof. Saleh Hasan Nakib has been appointed as new vice-chancellor of the university. Saleh Hasan is a professor at the Department of Physics of the university. His appointment will come into effect from the day of his joining, according to the circular. Prof. Muhammad Masud of the Department of Mechanical Engineering of Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET) has been appointed as the vice-chancellor of the university for four years. Prof. Masud will enjoy other benefits attached to the post as per rules. Meanwhile, Prof. Muhammad Ismail, a faculty member from Dhaka University's Department of Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, has been appointed as the vice-chancellor ofNoakhali Science and Technology University (NSTU) for four years. Prof. Md Abdul Latif from the Department of Entomology was named vice-chancellor of Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University (SAU). The orders were issued in public interest, read the notifications.

Kamrul Ahsan, professor of the Department of Philosophy at Jahangirnagar University, has been appointed as the Vice Chancellor (VC) of the university. The appointment was made by President Mohammed Shahabuddin, also the chancellor of the university. Education Adviser urges people to stop forced resignation, harassment of teachers The Ministry of Education issued a notification in this regard on Thursday. According to the notification, during this time he would be entitled to emoluments equal to the existing post. Prof Sayema Haque Bidisha appointed pro-VC of Dhaka University Prof Ahsan will enjoy other benefits attached to the post as per rules.

Education and Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud on Tuesday urged all concerned to refrain from forcing teachers to quit and harassing them. He said it has been observed that incidents of forcing teachers to resign and various forms of harassment are still continuing in educational institutions across the country, which is absolutely unacceptable. “Such activities must be refrained from.” He made the call during a meeting with officials of the Ministry of Education at the Secretariat. The Education Adviser said the authorities concerned will investigate the allegations of corruption and misconduct against any teachers and officials and take action. “The administration of educational institutions has been instructed to take action against those who violate discipline,” he said. Instructions have already been given to the local administration to address any illegal and criminal activities, said the adviser adding, “Students must protect the peaceful environment of their respective educational institutions in their own interest.”

Professor Sayema Haque Bidisha, professor in the Department of Economics of Dhaka University, has been appointed as the pro-vice chancellor (administration) of the university for four years. The appointment was made by President Muhammed Shahabuddin, also the chancellor of the university. The ministry of education issued a notification to this end on Monday. According to the notification, during this time she would be entitled to emoluments equal to the existing post. She will enjoy other benefits attached to the post as per rules and would be permanently stayed in the university campus. The order was issued in public interest, read the notification. Prof Sayema Haque completed her bachelor's and master's degrees in economics from DU, followed by an MSc from the University of Bath, UK, and a PhD in Labour Economics from the University of Nottingham, UK. She also contributed in preparing various policy documents and government flagship objects. Prof Sayema has worked with various international and UN agencies. She has published a good number of scholarly publications including journal articles, book chapters and scientific reports.