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Disarray in BRT project result of flawed planning: Quader
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has said that the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project – from Gazipur to Dhaka – has turned into a major issue for the government.
“There are some complications on this route. The project started before I took office. The current state of this project, which is in disarray, is a result of flawed planning. However, I’ve instructed the project officials to wrap it up at any cost, so that we can open it in March-April next year,” the minister said.
Quader made the remarks while talking to journalists after attending a meeting with departmental heads of his ministry at the Secretariat today.
Also read: Dhaka BRT girder tragedy: Probe body find 12 reasons for the accident.
Asked what actions were taken against the Chinese company responsible for the BRT girder crash (on August 15, 2022) in Uttara, Quader said that although the company has been allowed to complete the construction work, they won’t get any more projects in Bangladesh.
Quader, also General Secretary of the ruling Awami League (AL), added that a total of 100 bridges in different parts of the country will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister in the coming days.
“The bridges will be opened whenever the PM can manage some time. Before the inauguration, three rallies will be arranged in the Chattogram region, where most of the bridges have been constructed. The first phase of MRT Line-6 and Bangabandhu Tunnel will also be completed soon,” the minister added.
Read Dhaka BRT girder tragedy: Probe body find 12 reasons for the accident
Replying to a question, Quader said that although the country is facing various crises, it’s still faring better than a lot of other countries in the world.
“The government isn’t concerned about foreign exchange reserves as we’ll be able to make payments for 5-6 months with the current reserves. There won’t be any food crisis as we are producing ample food. We’ll also discuss the energy issue with Brunei. In a nutshell, we’re ready to face any crisis,” Quader further said.
The minister also reaffirmed the government’s stance that electronic voting machines (EVMs) will be used in the next general election which will be held under the incumbent government.
Read Dhaka BRT girder collapse: HC issues rule on providing TK 5 cr compensation.
Grid Failure: 2 PGCB engineers suspended, Nasrul says
State Minister for Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid has said two engineers of the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) will be suspended over the national grid power failure that caused a nationwide blackout on October 4, 2022.
“The decision will come into effect today,” he told reporters at the secretariat on Sunday after receiving the probe report on the incident.
Read:Action against those behind national grid failure by Monday: Nasrul Hamid
Action has been taken against an assistant engineer and a sub-assistant engineer of PGCB on charge of negligence of duty, said the state minister.
“Action will be taken against others responsible for the power grid failure by this week after identifying them,” he said.
Read:National grid failure: Power Division forms 7-member probe body
On October 6, the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh formed a seven-member committee to identify the reasons behind the national grid power failure on October 4 that caused a seven-hour blackout across most of Bangladesh. The committee had three days to complete the investigation and submit its report.
Indian trucker killed in Benapole road crash
An Indian truck driver was killed after being hit by another truck in front of Benapole Port police station Sunday morning.
The deceased is identified as Shyam Sunder, 57, son of Teji Sunder of Mathura in Uttar Pradesh state of India.
Witnesses said the accident occurred around 8am when the speeding truck driven by helper Shilon knocked down Shyam while he was crossing the road in front of the police station, leaving him dead on the spot.
Police detained Md Shilon, son of Mizanur Rahman of Hakimpur village in Alamdanga upazila of Chuadanga.
Read: Schoolboy killed in Dhaka road crash
Hossain Kamal Bhuiyan, officer-in-charge of Benapole Port Police Station, said on information they recovered the body from the spot.
An unnatural death case was filed in this connection, he added.
Dry weather likely in most parts of country
Weather may remain mainly dry in most parts of the country in 24 hours commencing 9 am on Sunday as monsoon is weak over North Bay.
“Light rain accompanied by temporary gusty wind is likely at one or two places over Chattogram division and weather may remain mainly dry with temporary partly cloudy sky elsewhere over the country,” said a Met Office bulletin.
Read:Low pressure in Bay: More rains likely in 24 hrs
Day and night temperature may remain nearly unchanged over the country.
Meanwhile, a low pressure area may form over the Andaman Sea and adjoining area in next three days, it added.
The mercury reached 34.7 degrees Celsius – the highest – in Bhola of Barishal division while the minimum temperature was recorded at 21.1 degrees in Tetulia of Rangpur division, in 24 hours till 6am on Sunday.
Read:Rains fail to quell Dhaka's 'unhealthy' air quality
Southwest monsoon has withdrawn from Northern part of Bangladesh, said the bulletin.
Global Covid cases near 630 million
The overall number of global Covid-19 cases is gradually nearing 630 million.
According to the latest global data, the total case count mounted to 629,703,913 while the death toll from the virus reached 6,570,866 on Sunday morning.
The US has recorded 98,825,641 cases so far, while 1,090,374 people have died from the virus in the country, both highest counts around the world.
India's daily COVID-19 caseload Saturday decreased to 2,430 from 2,678 of the previous day, officials said.
According to federal health ministry data released on Saturday morning, 2,430 new cases of COVID-19 were reported, taking the total tally to 4,46,26,427 in the country.
The country also logged 17 more related deaths, pushing the overall death toll to 528,874 since the beginning of the pandemic, the ministry said.
Covid in Bangladesh
Bangladesh reported two more Covid-19-linked deaths and 295 fresh cases in 24 hours till Saturday morning.
The country's total fatalities rose to 29,395 with the new deaths. The new cases raised the country's total caseload to 2,032,092, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The daily case test positivity rate rose to 7.78 per cent from Friday’s 7.15 per as 3,794 samples were tested during the period.
The mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.45 percent and the recovery rate rose to 97.12 per cent.
DSCC to launch special five-day anti-dengue drive Sunday in five wards
Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) will conduct a special anti-dengue drive in its wards from October 16 to October 20.
The five-day drive will be carried out to destroy the breeding grounds of Aedes mosquitoes, the carrier of the dengue virus, and control the dengue outbreak, Md Abu Naser, DSCC public relations officer, said.
These special drives will be conducted on October 16 in Ward 6, on October 17 in Ward 2, on October 18 in Ward 3, on October 19 in Ward 56 and on October 20 in Ward 15, he added.
Eighty-nine people died of dengue and 24,326 were affected by the virus till October 15 of this year, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Doctors and health experts say that measures taken by the city corporations and other authorities are not proving to be effective. The publicity and drives carried out by the authorities to destroy larvae of the Aedes mosquito, the vect pare appearing to be inadequate.
Public health expert Dr Mohammad Abdus Sabur Khan said although dengue intensity usually decreases in September, this time the situation has reversed. "It's October now, but dengue is showing no sign of retreating. It seems like dengue will prevail till mid-November this time."
Bandhan Society forging ahead with pre-Covid promises and plans
Bangladeshi social activist and chairman of Bandhan Society of Bangladesh Seema Hamid has expressed her determination to fill the entire territory of the country with greenery to keep the promise of Mujib Year.
A project called 'Mujib's Sabuj Bangladesh' has been taken up to contribute to the development of the environment from the grassroots level. Different types of trees including fruits, forest and medicinal plants in rural areas and rooftop gardens in urban areas will be aided through this project.
She said this at a tree plantation program held at Chunkutia Girls High School and College in Keraniganj under the "Perennial (2022-2034) Mujib's Green Bangladesh Project" organized by Bandhan Society on Saturday.
Passenger dies after being pushed off moving bus
A 35-year-old man died after being allegedly pushed off a moving bus by the helper during an altercation over fare in the capital's Jatrabari area on Saturday evening.
The deceased was identified as Abu Sayem Murad, son of late Hedayet Ullah of Dakshin Jatrabari area. He worked for a buying house in Dhaka.
The incident took place around 6:00pm at Shaheed Faruk Sarak area, said Ashraful Islam, Sub-Inspector (SI) of Jatrabari police station.
Abu Sadat Sahed, the elder brother of the victim, said his brother boarded the bus at Motijheel area to return to home.
He claimed that an argument broke out between Sayem and the helper of the bus over the fare. In a fit of rage, the accused pushed Sayem off the moving bus that soon ran over him, leaving him dead on the spot, he added.
Read: Schoolboy killed in Dhaka road crash
Enraged by the incident, locals set the bus on fire and beat up bus driver, Shah Alam, 40 and helper Mohon, 22, and handed them over to police, the police officer said.
The body was kept in the morgue of a hospital for an autopsy, SI Ashraful Islam added.
Bangladesh reports 2 more Covid deaths, 295 cases
Bangladesh reported two more Covid-19-linked deaths and 295 fresh cases in 24 hours till Saturday morning.
The country's total fatalities rose to 29,395 with the new deaths. The new cases raised the country's total caseload to 2,032,092, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The daily case test positivity rate rose to 7.78 per cent from Friday’s 7.15 per as 3,794 samples were tested during the period. .
The latest deceased were a man and woman from Chattogram and Mymensingh devisions.
The mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.45 percent and the recovery rate rose to 97.12 per cent.
In September, the country reported 40 Covid-linked deaths and 13,251 cases.
Bangladesh registered its highest daily caseload of 16,230 on July 28 last year and its highest number of fatalities of 264 on August 10 the same year.
Action against those behind national grid failure by Monday: Nasrul Hamid
The Power Division will take action against those responsible for the recent national power grid failure within the next two days.
State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid said this today following a public meeting at his constituency in Keraniganj, a suburb of Dhaka city.
On October 6, the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh formed a seven-member committee to identify the reasons behind the national grid failure that caused a seven-hour blackout across most of Bangladesh.
The committee had three days to complete the investigation and submit its report. Referring to it, Nasrul Hamid said the Power Division is yet to receive the written probe report.
"However, we were informed that the grid failure was more of a management error," he added.
The state minister said they had asked the Power Division to suggest the names of those behind it. "We will terminate all of them and take divisional action."
Nasrul Hamid also hoped that a bilateral contract would be signed with Brunei to import energy from the country. Brunei Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah is now in Bangladesh.