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OPPO A17 now available at Tk 16,990
Reaffirming OPPO's commitment to offering cutting-edge technology at an accessible price, the global smart technology company has announced a significant price drop on its popular OPPO A17 smartphone, bringing it closer to the hearts and pockets of users.
The price of the sleek and feature-packed OPPO A17 smartphone has been lowered to Tk 16,990, down from its previous price of Tk 17,990, said a press release issued on Monday.
This move aims to enable more Bangladeshi consumers to experience the powerful capabilities of OPPO's state-of-the-art smartphones without compromising their budget.
Oppo Reno10 5G Review: Is it a balanced phone?
The OPPO A17 smartphone, now available at an even more attractive price, is a testament to OPPO's dedication to bringing innovation to everyone.
Packed with advanced features and cutting-edge technology, the OPPO A17 offers users an exceptional experience at a fraction of the cost.
From its stunning design to its impressive performance, the OPPO A17 delivers style, substance, and value in one sleek package.
The OPPO A17 smartphone boasts a premium leather-feel design, a 50MP AI camera, a 5000mAh long-lasting battery, and up to 4GB extended RAM. The smartphone's screen size is 6.56 inches, and the screen ratio is 89.8 percent. The pixel density is 269 PPI. The phone has a refresh rate of 60Hz and a touch sampling rate of 60Hz.
OPPO ranks first in Chinese smartphone market in H1 of 2023
The OPPO device supports fingerprint, facial recognition, and two nano SIM cards. The system is fueled by ColorOS 12.1. In the box, each owner of the smartphone gets one phone, one charger, one Micro USB data cable, one SIM ejector tool, one safety guide, one quick guide, and one protective case.
Oppo Reno10 Pro+ 5G: Premium mid-ranger on the go
The newly priced OPPO A17 smartphone is available for purchase at all authorized OPPO stores across Bangladesh. OPPO encourages tech enthusiasts, smartphone aficionados, and everyone in between to take advantage of this offer and experience the best of technology at an unbeatable price.
APBn detains Biman staff with 68 gold bars at Dhaka airport
Airport Armed Police Battalion (APBn) on Sunday detained an employee of Biman Bangladesh Airlines along with 68 gold bars weighing around 8 kg at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport .
The detainee is Shafiqul Islam, 33, a resident of Khulna's Daulatpur Thana.
Read more: 28 gold bars recovered in Chuadanga, 1 arrested
He joined Biman Bangladesh Airlines as a casual staff in 2013 and became a permanent employee in 2017.
Additional SP of Airport Armed Police (AAP) Mohammad Ziaul Haque said they detained Shafiqul Islam with the gold bars stashed around his waist around 10pm on Sunday.
Read more: 3 held with gold bars worth Tk 1.74cr in Benapole
A Boeing 777 flight arrived at Dhaka airport at 7:30pm from Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur.
When All the staff in charge of cleaning and maintenance left the aircraft, Shafiqul went inside it at 10 pm and his movement appeared suspicious to a team of APBn agents, ASP Ziaul said.
APBn found the gold bars after searching him in the presence of other law enforcers, the ASP said.
“During interrogation, he didn’t give any clear answer about the source and the destination of the gold bars,” he added.
Read more: Man arrested with gold bars worth Tk 85 lakh in Jashore
According to the APBn, the market value of recovered gold is Tk7.80 crore.
Preparations are underway to file a case against him, the APBn official said.
It was a state-sponsored conspiracy to kill Hasina: Witness and injured Nazib recalls horror of Aug 21 carnage
Recalling the moments of heinous 21 August grenade attack, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s cousin and her former personal security staff Nazib Ahmed has said the killers actually wanted to do what they could not do on August 15, 1975 killing the then opposition leader and other Awami League leaders.
“It was a state-sponsored final conspiracy (to complete the unfinished job of killers),” he told UNB, adding that the court verdict in this case should be implemented by bringing back the killers including BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman who are fugitives now.
“If the court verdict is implemented, their souls - the leaders and activists of AL whom we have lost- will find peace,” Ahmed said.
The August 21 grenade attack was carried out on an anti-terrorism rally organised by then opposition AL in 2004 in front of its central office in the Bangabandhu Avenue when the BNP-Jamaat alliance was in power. The then opposition leader and current PM Sheikh Hasina was the main target.
Read: No doubt Khaleda, Tarique and their men were completely involved in Aug 21 grenade attack: PM Hasina
The horrendous attack left 24 people killed and nearly 1000 injured. AL President and also then opposition leader Sheikh Hasina luckily escaped death, but her hearing was impaired by the repeated grenade blasts. Among the dead was Awami League’s women affairs secretary and late President Zillur Rahman’s wife Ivy Rahman.
He said they had a single goal that was to shift her to a safer place. “We could do that. We were committed politically and we had a responsibility to protect her. We did not flee keeping her alone. It is the biggest success of my life that we could protect her from the killers taking the risk of our own lives.”
Ahmed said he is satisfied today to see Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina alive. “I am ready to go for any war to keep her protected. Still I have that strength and courage.”
He, however, thinks Almighty Allah protected her and people have no such power.
Ahmed said it could have been another lifelong pain for him if he was not there for Prime Minister Hasina on that violent day.
Read: Mahbubur Rashid's parents want to see killers punished
“In my body, I feel like splinters of grenades keep walking from one place to another. We who are bearing the splinters can only understand the pain. Nobody can make others understand this pain. We, who are bearing splinters in our bodies, can’t even do MRI (Magnetic resonance imaging),” he said.
Going back to the dangerous moments of the first blast, Ahmed said, “At one stage, all leaders completed their speeches. Leader Hasina was at the last part of her speech. She uttered Joy Bangla and was about to utter Joy Bangabandhu. Exactly at that moment, I noticed a black object flying towards us from the City Hotel front. Within a second, the blast occurred.”
He claimed to be senior most among those who were deployed for her safety and security all the time.
“Usually, at Bangabandhu Avenue, police and AL leaders come together but one that particular day, no AL leaders and activists were allowed to be there on the rooftop. No police were deployed on the rooftop. We did not take it much seriously at that time but it came to our notice,” Ahmed said.
Read: 19th anniversary of Aug 21 grenade attack today
When within seconds there were a number of blasts, three sides surrounding Sheikh Hasina were covered immediately by the senior AL leaders and activists, he recalled and said, “We were on the truck. Hanif bhai, Maya bhai and Squadron Leader Mamun shielded Apa [Hasina] from three sides.”
“There was something like a table on her front side exposing her half of the body. I blocked the front side as her front side was open to a large extent. We built a human shield to protect her at any cost,” Ahmed said.
He said Sheikh Hasina kept telling him to remember Almighty Allah. “Only Alah can protect us. We were reciting Doa Yunus together as she asked. We were again attacked and the splinter hit me and others.”
They got down from the truck and managed to take Hasina to the SUV. Maj Mamun ran to the vehicle and opened its left door. Hasina huddled inside it. Nazib, Tarique, Shoyeb, Mamun and Maya followed.
They saw the frightening scenes and some of the injured lay on the street, bleeding profusely, while some groaned sitting on congealed blood and some motionless bodies lay scattered.
Read: Grenade attacks and targeted killings among methods then BNP-Jamaat govt applied in their attempt to decimate AL, tweet reminds
"I saw Ivy chachi (Ivy Rahman) lying in a pool of blood, motionless. I also saw my cousin Bahauddin Nasim trying to stand up amid blood, but failed," he said.
Getting off the car, Hasina gave some money to her party men and asked them to go to the spot immediately.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday stressed the need for expediting the implementation of the trial court’s verdict of the August 21 grenade attack case.
“Our leaders and activists including Ivy Rahman were brutally killed in broad daylight on this August 21. The trial has been held. Its (trial court) judgment has been handed out. This verdict should be implemented soon,” she said.
A Dhaka court had already convicted and sentenced 49 people – 19 of them to death and 19 to life imprisonment. Eleven others were sentenced to jail on different terms.
Eighteen convicted people, including BNP leader Tarique Rahman, have remained fugitives.
Appeals against the judgment are now being heard in the high court.
Hasina, while presiding over today’s discussion, said some convicted people of the grenade attack case are now in jail but the main mastermind stays outside the country.
No doubt Khaleda, Tarique and their men were completely involved in Aug 21 grenade attack: PM Hasina
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday stressed the need for expediting the implementation of the trial court’s verdict in the August 21, 2004 grenade attack case.
“Our leaders and activists, including Ivy Rahman, were brutally killed in broad daylight on August 21. The trial has been held. Its (trial court) judgment has been handed out. This verdict should be implemented soon,” she said.
The premier was addressing a discussion arranged by Bangladesh Awami League (AL) at Dhaka’s Bangabandhu Avenue, marking 19th anniversary of the August 21 grenade attack.
The grenade attack was carried out on an anti-terrorism rally organised by the then opposition AL on August 21, 2004 in front of its central office on Bangabandhu Avenue.
The gruesome attack left 24 people killed and nearly 1,000 injured. AL president and then opposition leader Sheikh Hasina luckily survived, but her hearing was impaired by the repeated grenade blasts. Among the dead was Awami League’s women affairs secretary and late president Zillur Rahman’s wife, Ivy Rahman.
A Dhaka court had already convicted and sentenced 49 people, including 19 to death and 19 to life imprisonment. Eleven were sentenced to different prison terms.
Read: 19th anniversary of Aug 21 grenade attack today
Eighteen of the convicted, including BNP leader Tarique Rahman, remain fugitives.
Appeals against the judgment are now being heard in the High Court.
Sheikh Hasina, while presiding over today’s discussion, said some of those convicted in the grenade attack case are now in jail but the main mastermind remains outside the country.
Without mentioning Tarique Rahman, she said that he went abroad signing a bond. “If he has courage, why doesn’t he come back? We’ve transformed the country into Digital Bangladesh. He is now talking big, taking its advantages… He should come back, if he has courage. People of Bangladesh will not spare that killer,” she said.
Recalling the grisly grenade attack, the premier said Khaleda Zia was the prime minister at the time, and the question remains what role she played at that time.
Read: It was a state-sponsored conspiracy to kill Hasina: Witness and injured Nazib recalls horror of Aug 21 carnage
She questioned why Khaleda obstructed police (from taking appropriate measures) and didn’t take any initiative to protect evidence of the attack.
“What does it prove? There is no doubt that Khaleda, Tarique and their men were completely involved in the grenade attack. It was also revealed in the investigation,” said the AL president.
Universal Pension Probash Scheme: Registration Process for Expatriate Bangladeshis
The Universal Pension Scheme 2023 has been launched with the aim of fostering socio-economic growth and ensuring social security for the citizens of Bangladesh. The notification was issued by the Finance Department under the Ministry of Finance of the Bangladesh Government on August 13, 2023. It was followed by the formal inauguration of the pension scheme by the Prime Minister on August 17, 2023. The scheme categorizes individuals into four primary groups based on their income patterns: private employees, workers in the informal sector, low-income individuals, and Bangladeshi expatriates. This article will discuss how Bangladeshi expatriates can register for the Probash package of the Universal Pension Scheme. Prior to that, let’s get familiarized with the fundamental regulations of this initiative.
General Rules of Universal Pension Scheme 2023
In recent years, the growing elderly population due to increased life expectancy has resulted in heightened dependency ratio. It potentially leads to future challenges. Simultaneously, financial instability has implications for the productivity of the working population. Addressing these concerns, the Universal Pension Management Act of 2023 was made as a solution.
The following are the general regulations pertinent to the wider public encompassed by the scheme:
- Bangladeshi citizens aged 18 to 50 can engage in this scheme with their national identity cards (NID). Citizens above 50 may participate with special consideration, limited to the 10-term scheme. It entails a lifetime pension after ten years of subscriptions.
- Applicants can enroll in any of the schemes through the online platform. But those already benefiting from the social security program must relinquish their prior benefits.
- Bangladeshi expatriates can join the program, registering with their passport if they lack a National Identity Card (NID). However, prompt preparation and submission of the NID is required.
- Each contributor will have a separate pension account created at the outset of the scheme.Should a pensioner pass away before reaching the age of 75 during the pension period, the remaining pensions will be disbursed to nominated heirs.
- If a contributor passes away before completing 10 years of contributions, the entire deposited subscription amount will be returned. The amount, along with accrued profit, will be given to the nominated heir.
- Pension contributions will be viewed as investments, subject to tax concession. Subsequent monthly pension payments will be exempt from income tax.
- It is noteworthy that a standardized service charge for mobile financial services was fixed on August 16, 2023. The existing cash out charge of 0.70% applicable to government services will also be imposed on this program.
Read more: Universal Pension Scheme: How will it work? What's in it?
Probash Pension Scheme for Bangladeshi Expatriates
Table: Monthly Pension against Installment Rate under the Probash Scheme for Bangladeshi Expatriates
Monthly Subscription Rate
BDT. 5,000
BDT. 7,500
BDT. 10,000
Total Period of Subscription (in years)
Potential Monthly Pension (BDT. )
42
1,72,327
2,58,491
3,44,655
40
1,46,001
2,19,001
2,92,002
35
95,935
1,43,902
1,91,870
30
62,330
93,495
1,24,660
25
39,774
59,661
79,548
20
24,634
36,951
49,268
15
14,472
21,708
28,944
10
7,651
11,477
15,302
Source: Bangladesh Gazette, Extra, August 13, 2023
Read more: Pragati Universal Pension Scheme: Registration Process for Bangladeshi Non-Government Employees
19th anniversary of Aug 21 grenade attack today
The nation is observing the 19th anniversary of the gruesome August 21 grenade attack on an Awami League rally in Dhaka with various programmes today and pledges to resist such acts of terror.
On this day in 2004, a heinous grenade attack was carried out on an anti-terrorism rally organised by the Awami League at Bangabandhu Avenue.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the then leader of the opposition, was apparently the target when the BNP-Jamaat alliance government was in office.
At least 24 people, including Awami League’s women affairs secretary and late President Zillur Rahman’s wife Ivy Rahman, were killed. Three hundred others were also injured. Sheikh Hasina survived but suffered hearing impairment.
Read: Zia was behind August 15 killings, Tarique behind August 21: Hasan Mahmud
Fourteen years later, a Dhaka court sentenced 19 people, including the then BNP government’s state minister for home affairs Lutfozzaman Babar, to death in the grenade attack case.
Tarique Rahman, the eldest son of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia and the party's current acting chairman, and 18 others were sentenced to life in prison for their involvement in the grenade attack.
Marking the day, Awami League and its associate bodies have chalked out elaborate programmes across the country.
Tributes will be paid to the grenade attack martyrs by placing wreaths at the altar built in their memory in front of the party's Bangabandhu Avenue office in Dhaka at 11 am.
Read: Grenade attacks and targeted killings among methods then BNP-Jamaat govt applied in their attempt to decimate AL, tweet reminds
Later, a discussion will start at 11:15 am in memory of those killed in the August 21 grenade attack. Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will preside over it.
Meanwhile, General Secretary of Awami League Obaidul Quader called upon the leaders, activists, supporters and well-wishers of Awami League and its allies at all levels to observe the Grenade Attack Day on August 21 along with the countrymen.
Among those killed in the grenade attack were: the then opposition leader's personal security guard Lance Corporal (retd) Mahbubur Rashid, Abul Kalam Azad, Rezina Begum, Nasir Uddin Sardar, Atique Sarkar, Abdul Kuddus Patwari, Aminul Islam Moazzem, Belal Hossain, Mamun Mridha, Ratan Shikdar, Liton Munshi, Hasina Mamtaz Reena, Sufia Begum, Rafiqul Islam (Ada Chacha), Mostaque Ahmed Sentu, Md Hanif, Abul Kashem, Zahed Ali, Momen Ali, M Shamsuddin and Ishaque Miah.
Read: August 21 grenade attack: HC starts hearing on death references, convicts’ appeals
Those who suffered serious splinter injuries included Sheikh Hasina, Amir Hossain Amu, Abdur Razzak, Suranjit Sengupta, Obaidul Quader, Advocate Sahara Khatun, Mohammad Hanif, Prof Abu Sayeed, and AFM Bahauddin Nasim.
Mahbubur Rashid's parents want to see killers punished
Hasina Begum, mother of Mahbubur Rashid, who was killed in the August 21 grenade attack, and father Harun-or-Rashid are waiting for the execution of the killers of their son.
Mahbubur Rashid was the sole breadwinner of this family. In his absence, Harun-or-Rashid's grief goes beyond description. Due to old age-related diseases, medicines worth Tk 15,000-16,000 are required per month. Their family now survives by selling cow's milk.
Read: 19th anniversary of Aug 21 grenade attack today
When asked how the days were going, elderly Harun-or-Rashid said the verdict has been done for a long time but the punishment of the killers has not been implemented. Still, he wants to see the execution of the killers before he dies.
Mother Hasina Begum is also hopeful that the killers of her son will be executed.
Read: ‘Be vigilant so that war criminals, grenade attackers, corrupt individuals can’t come to power again’On August 21, 2004, Sheikh Hasina's bodyguard Mahbubur Rashid died of injuries sustained by a bomb sprinter during a grenade attack on an Awami League rally on Bangabandhu Avenue in Dhaka.
BGMEA delegation meets Iraqi trade chamber to explore business potential
A delegation of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) led by President Faruque Hassan met with Engineer Haidar Al-Athari, Chairman of the Najaf Chamber of Commerce in Iraq on Sunday ( August 20, 2023) to discuss possible avenues of bilateral trade and investment.
The BGMEA delegation was accompanied by Fazlul Bari, ambassador of Bangladesh to Iraq.
The delegation includes Mohammed Nasir, former Vice President (Finance) of BGMEA, Nazrul Islam, former Director of BGMEA, Sharmeen Hassan Tithi, director of Giant Group; Mohammed Shohel, managing director of Bangla Poshak Ltd, Mohd Shawket Hossain, director of Bangla Poshak Ltd and Nisher Khan, managing director of Banika Fashion Ltd.
Read: BGMEA remembers Bangabandhu with deep love and respect
BGMEA President Faruque Hassan presented an overview of the readymade garment industry of Bangladesh, especially its manufacturing capabilities, product offerings, and the features that make global buyers prefer the garments made in Bangladesh.
He highlighted the importance of establishing connections between the traders of Bangladesh and Iraq so that they could explore business opportunities that lie ahead for both countries.
He also called on the members of the chamber to explore the potential of trade and investment in Bangladesh, especially import of more garments from the country.
Read: Bangladesh RMG sector committed to sustaining safety accomplishments: BGMEA President
He invited Iraqi businessmen to visit Bangladesh to explore trade and investment opportunities offered by the country.
Chairman of the Chamber Haidar Al-Athari gave a brief presentation of the range of services offered by the Chamber and investment opportunities in the Governorate and its economic features at the Iraq level.
He invited the delegation to establish partnerships with their peers in Iraq to establish clothing factories.
Recovery from rare SMA disease is now possible in the country at low cost: Dr Mohammad Sahidullah
Chairman of the management board of Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute and president of Bangladesh Society of Medical Genetics Professor Dr. Mohammad Sahidullah on Sunday said the recovery of incurable disease Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) is possible in the country at low cost.
"Currently the treatment of this disease has started in the country. Still its treatment and medicines are very expensive. Our medical system is much better than before. With the planning and goodwill of the government and the wealthy people come forward, it is possible to prevent incurable diseases like SMA," he said.
He said this at an event titled 'Advances in the Treatment of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA): SMA is Curable' was organized at Shisju Hospital auditorium to mark the anniversary of receiving the first dose of the medicine by Olivia Sanchari Navani.
The event was jointly organized by Bangladesh Society of Medical Genetics and Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Bangladesh Society of Medical Genetics.
The programme was presided over by Director of Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute Professor Dr. Mohammad Jahangir Alam. The programme was conducted by the National Institute of Neuro Sciences and the head of the pediatric neurology department of the hospital Narayan Saha.
Prof. Dr. Narayan Saha expressed hope that it will be possible to start diagnosis of SMA disease in the country within the next one year.
On March 20, 2022, at the age of nine months, baby Olivia Sanchari received her first dose of oral SMA medication under the supervision of assistant professor of Pediatric Neurology at Bangladesh Shishu Hospital Dr. Shaoli Sarkar.
She said " Navani is undergoing treatment under government. This medicine is provided by Roche Bangladesh Limited completely free of charge."The social organization 'Cure SMA Bangladesh' has been formed with the aim of creating awareness about SMA disease in the country and ensuring various services to affected patients and their family members. Shahadat Hossain is the president of this organization. Her child Olivia Sanchari Navani has been taking the medicine.It was informed in the event that Navni has improved unexpectedly as a result of taking medicine.
According to medical history, children with type-1 SMA usually die before 24 months of age. But Navani is two years and two months old. He can move arm and legs. Doctors called it an unexpected improvement.Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a disorder affecting the motor neurons—nerve cells that control voluntary muscle movement. These cells are located in the spinal cord. Because the muscles cannot respond to signals from the nerves, they atrophy — weaken and shrink — from inactivity.
TIB urges involvement of relevant stakeholders in revising guidelines for foreign election observers
As the Election Commission took the initiative to revise the foreign election observer policy for the upcoming national elections, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) urged to amend the policy in light of the opinions of experts, media workers and other stakeholders and international practices.
In a statement issued on Sunday, TIB Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman said, "The existing policy must be amended, because the spontaneous presence and free movement of local and foreign observers is essential in a fair, impartial and participatory election."
Read: TIB guardedly welcomes Cabinet’s decision to scrap DSA
“If policies are formulated only through the opinion-based decisions of government institutions, on the one hand, the ongoing crisis of confidence in the Election Commission will deepen, and on the other hand, it will discourage foreign observers again like 2018,” he added.
Dr Iftekharuzzaman also called for the consideration of the free presence of foreign observers as an important means of ensuring a level-playing field in making the policy "contemporary".
He said "one the one hand, the Election Commission is not solely responsible to hold a fair election, one the other hand, it should not be forgotten that organizing a transparent and acceptable election is a constitutional responsibility of the commission.
Read: TIB disappointed over two city corporations' initiatives to prevent dengue in Dhaka
Therefore, the policy should be formulated in the light of international practices including the opinions of non-party experts, media personalities and other stakeholders and the positive and negative experiences of Bangladesh in the past, Dr Iftekharuzzaman added.