United News of Bangladesh

Two people died and three others were injured in a head on collision between a bus and microbus at Kandi area of Pabna’s Ishwardi upazila on Saturday. The deceased were identified as Amit Kumar Kundu, 40, and Nasim Hossain, 45. Three others including the microbus driver were injured in the accident. Ashis Kumar, officer-in-charge of Pakshi Highway Police Station, said a bus of SA Paribahan collided head-on with a microbus around 8:30 am on Saturday. The injured were referred to Rajshahi medical College and Hospital (RMCH) from Ishwardi Upazila Health Complex after their situation deteriorated. Police seized both the vehicles, the OC said.  

Two people including a child died and two others were injured after a bus hit a van they were riding in Rajshahi’s Mohanpur upazila on Saturday. The deceased are van driver Siraj, 50, and Abdullah, 12, one of the passengers of the van. The injured are Abdullah’s father and sister- Abdul Kuddus, 40,, and Nazifa, 14. Horidas Mondal, officer-in-charge of Mohanpur Police Station, said the Naogaon- bound bus lost control and crashed into the van at Shoipara around 12 pm, leaving the two dead on the spot. The bodies were sent to the Rajshahi Medical College and Hospital (RMCH) morgue.    

A 28-year-old man was stabbed to death in Jhikargacha upazila of Jashore The incident happened at Katakhal area of the upazila around 8am on Saturday. The deceased was identified as Toufiq Hossain (28) was killed in Jhikargacha upazila of Jashore. Toufiq worked in a poultry farm. He woke up around 7:30 am and was on his way to work. On the way, when he reached the Katakhal intersection, miscreants stabbed him randomly and fled, said the deceased’s mother Rehana Khatun. Toufiq was taken to Jhikargacha Upazila Health Complex where doctors referred him to Jashore General Hospital as his condition deteriorated. On the way he succumbed to his injuries. Jhikargacha Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Kamal Hossain Bhuiyan said, "I heard that he was killed because of extra-marital related matter. Police are investigating the matter closely. Operation is underway to nab those involved in the murder.”  

 Four people were killed and five others injured in a bus-Laguna collision in Faridpur's Bhanga Upazila.  Three of the deceased were identified as Mehedi Matubbar, 25, Hafizul Islam Habu, 40,  and Sirajul Islam, 25.  The accident occurred on Dhaka-Khulna highway on Friday evening.  Read: BRTA's number of deaths from road accidents in 2023 shows significant departure from JKS Bhanga Highway Police Station Officer in Charge Abu Sayeed Md Khairul Anam said, the accident took place when a Dhaka-bound bus of Sohag Paribahan collided with a leguna coming from the opposite direction.  Two of the injured, Rani Bala, 60, and Pabitra Bala, 35, were taken to Faridpur Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical College Hospital after their condition deteriorated.  Read more: 2 people killed in separate road accidents in Chattogram

Two people were killed and six others injured in a collision between a CNG-run autorickshaw and a minibus in Sadar upazila of Moulvibazar on Friday afternoon. The deceased were identified as auto rickshaw driver Abas Miah, 65, a resident of Brahmanpara under Sadar upazila and passenger Madhu Miah, 60, of the same area. The injured are Madhu Miah’s daughters Sumi Begum, 40, Meghna Begum, 42, granddaughters Mim Akhter, 18, Suma Begum, 12, Faiza, 3, and grandson Fahim, 12. Read: 4 killed, 5 injured in Faridpur accident Quoting locals, Moulvibazar Model Police Station’s Officer-in-Charge KM Nazrul said the accident happened around 2:45 pm when the speeding minibus knocked the autorickshaw from the opposite direction in Durlavpur area, leaving the two dead on the spot and six others critically injured.  Four of the injured were sent to Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital while the rest were undergoing treatment at Moulvibazar 250-bed hospital, he said. All victims except the auto driver were members of a family and they were going to a relative’s house, he added. Read more: Motorcycle accident takes JnU student's life

Though the rescue vessel ‘Pratya’ arrived at Paturia ferry ghat in the Padma River on Friday afternoon, the operation to salvage the sunken ferry ‘Rajanigandha’ has not been started till evening due to overturned position of the ferry in the river. On the other hand, the people who lost their vehicles including trucks and pickup vans in the capsize expressed anger over the headway of the rescue operation by the authorities concerned. One of affected businessmen Mujibul Huq said they were earlier asked that the rest of the sunken vehicles would be retrieved upon arrival of the vessel ‘Pratya’. Though the vessel arrived around 2 pm, the authorities could not start the salvation operation till Friday evening, he alleged. Md Abdul Hamid, deputy director of Fire Service and Civil Defence (FSCD) in Manikganj, said they have so far retrieved three out of nine capsized vehicles from the river in this connection. “We haven’t identified the position of the rest of the vehicles but now we are concentrating on the salvation of the sunken ferry,” he said. Shah Jahan, director of the Bangladesh Inland and Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), said divers of the FSCD, navy and BIWTA were working together to rescue the missing vehicles. He said they haven’t recovered the body one Humayun Kabir who went missing in the capsize till Friday. Asked about the delay of starting the rescue operation, the BIWTA official said the position of a floating ferry and a sinking ferry is not the same. This sinking ferry is completely upside down. So there is a delay in conducting the operation. However, efforts were on to start the visible work of ferry rescue. Commodore Arif Ahmed Mostafa, chairman of BIWTA said they worked to tie several solid parts of the sinking ferry with ropes since Friday morning. Ten air lifting bags were dipped in the ferry while air will be entered in the bags to conduct the salvation operation, he said, adding that the main operation of the rescue has not been started till 4 pm on Friday.   He said they postponed the rescue operation for Friday at 6:30 pm while the rescue will start next morning. On Wednesday morning, the ferry with pickup trucks and covered vans sank in the river. Two separate probe bodies were formed over the ferry capsize on Wednesday. Manikganj District Commissioner Rehana Akhter formed one of the committees while another was formed by the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC).

Police recovered a beheaded body of an unidentified youth from a maize field in Hatibandha upazila of northern district of Lalmonirhat on Friday. Faridul Islam, member of Fakirpara union parishad, said a local woman spotted the body lying in the maize field when she went there in the afternoon. Hatibandha police station’s Officer-in-Charge (OC) Saiful Islam confirmed the matter saying that after being informed they recovered the body from the spot. The body was sent to Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy, he said, adding that the identity of the deceased could not be known immediately.

All educational institutions in Kurigram district have been declared shut due to the ongoing cold spell. A cold wave accompanied by dense fog is sweeping over the district for a few days. So, "We have decided to shut all educational institutions till the situation improves," Mohammad Saidul Arif, deputy commissioner (DC) of Kurigram, said. Kurigram, a northern district of the country, witnessed 9 degrees Celsius on Thursday and 10.2 degrees Celsius on Friday morning. Subal Chandra Sarkar, in charge of Rajarhat Meteorological Office in Kurigram, said that the temperature has been fluctuating between 9 and 13 degrees Celsius in the district for the last one week. The district has not witnessed so much cold in the last 10-12 years. "Such temperature may continue for two more days," he added. Earlier on Tuesday, the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) said in a circular that education authorities in any district can shut down schools in case the temperature drops below 10 degrees Celsius.

A poultry farm with 1,200 chickens has been gutted in a fire at Boalkhali upazila of Chattogram. The fire broke out at Kamal Hossain's poultry farm in Ward-2 of East Kalurghat area of the upazila on Friday morning. 2 people killed in separate road accidents in Chattogram On information, members of the Boalkhali Fire Service rushed to the spot. But before thye could reach, the entire farm was burnt to ashes. “My poultry farm was gutted in a fire around 4:00 am. There were 1,200 chickens in this farm. Everything was burnt to ashes. I have suffered a loss of about Tk 10 lakh,” said Kamal. Election 2024: List of winners from Chattogram division Md Saidur Rahman, acting station in-charge of Boalkhali Fire Service, said, the fire originated from an electric short circuit. 2 people injured as CU shuttle train hit human hauler in Chattogram

A mild cold wave is sweeping over Kurigram. People are not going out of the house without an urgent need. The district administration has announced the closure of educational institutions, as the temperature remained below 10 degrees Celsius in the district on Thursday. According to Kurigram Rajarhat Agricultural Observatory and Meteorological Office sources, the minimum temperature in the district was recorded at 10.2 degrees Celsius at 6 am on Friday. It was 9 degrees Celsius on Thursday, which is the lowest temperature recorded in the district this season. Read: Battling the chill: Kurigram district faces severe cold and dense fog  Md Abdul Aziz, a resident of Kurigram's Hospital Para area, said, "I have not seen such a situation in Kurigram in the last 8-10 years. This year's winter is marked by cold air and fog ,we elderly people have difficulty walking.” Moza Mia of Kathalbari Sinai Village said, "It has been very cold for some time. It's getting colder today. It is very hard to work with water, brick and cement without warm clothes.” Subal Chandra Sarkar, in-charge of Rajarhat Meteorological Office in Kurigram said, “Today it was 10.2 degrees Celsius. Such temperatures may continue for one or two more days.” Read: Rising cold-related cases in Kurigram as chilly weather takes hold  The temperature in the district has been fluctuating between 9 and 13 degrees Celsius for the last one week. In the last 10-12 years, the district has not been affected by such a cold. Because this year, the speed of the northern wind is 8-12 kilometers per hour. As a result, the intensity of cold is being felt more, he said.