Bangladesh
Huawei launches its largest-ever regional Seeds for the Future Program
Leading global technological company Huawei on Friday launched Asia Pacific Seeds for the Future in collaboration with the ASEAN Foundation and Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) to shape the future through inspiring digital talents.
The opening ceremony of the program was attended by distinguished guests, including Jurin Laksanawisit, Honorable Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce of Thailand, Dr Dipu Moni, Honorable Minister, Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Dato Lim Jock Hoi, Secretary-General, ASEAN, Dr Yang Mee Eng, Executive Director, ASEAN Foundation and Simon Lin, President of Huawei Asia Pacific.
This regional round program will bring together 120 outstanding students from 16 countries across the Asia Pacific region including eight students of Bangladesh for a 9-day digital boot camp in Thailand. The participants will get immersed in technologies and cross-cultural experiences and propose technical solutions to address social problems through Tech4Good projects.
Read KUET partners with Huawei to set up ICT academy
56 of the 120 participants this year are women, making the 2022 cohort the most gender-balanced in the region since the program was initiated in 2008.
The students will embark on a cultural and digital journey filled with site visits, including the United Nations Regional Hub in Bangkok, the Metaverse Expo, and the Grand Palace in Bangkok. At the same time, the participants will be provided training in cutting-edge technologies like 5G, AI, and cloud computing from industry-leading experts.
During the digital camp, the participants will be expected to team up and create a “Tech4Good” pitch where they will share their visions for a better digital world. The winning teams will be given a place in an accelerator camp in Singapore that will be held from August 29 to September 4. This camp will allow them to meet top-notch entrepreneurs and investors, further develop their initiatives, and bring their ideas to the market.
Read: Huawei Bangladesh to recruit 60 fresh graduates
Dr. Dipu Moni, Honorable Minister, Ministry of Education of Bangladesh, spoke on how digital talent can bridge historical gender gaps.
“It is increasingly important that we include our female students in STEM-based learning and creates an equal opportunity for them to grow. Seeds for the Future seems very sincere about that. We are excited to have five excellent female young professionals from Bangladesh joining the camp, and I believe their success will empower more women to contribute to Bangladesh’s digital economy,” she said.
President of Huawei Asia Pacific, Simon Lin, reiterated Huawei’s commitment to talent development.
Read Huawei introduces versatile cloud solutions for telecom carriers
“The ‘seeds’ represent hope, passion, and future. As the corporate-level flagship CSR project with the longest history, this program has been brought to nearly 140 countries and regions, reaching over 12,000 students from 500 universities. The ‘Seeds’ have grown to a global ‘forest’,” he said.
Seeds for the Future is Huawei’s flagship Corporate Social Responsibility program, bringing together young talent from top universities worldwide. The program was launched in Thailand in 2008 to inspire ICT talent and encourage them to tackle social challenges with digital solutions. By the end of 2021, the program had been implemented in 137 countries and regions, reaching 12,000 students from over 500 universities.
BCL activists beat up six toll plaza officials in Kushtia
Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activists roughed up six officials of Mas-Ud Rumi bridge toll plaza over collection of tolls on Friday, leaving all of them critically injured.
The injured are receiving treatment at Kushtia General Hospital. A video of the incident that has gone viral showed some BCL activists also snatching away money from the toll plaza.
According to eyewitnesses, some leaders and activists of BCL’s Kumarkhali upazila unit were going to Kushtia Government College in Kushtia Sadar on 30-40 motorcycles to attend a programme.
“Once the motorcycles reached the west side of the Mas-Ud Rumi bridge, one of our officials asked them to pay the toll. This angered the BCL activists, which resulted into the beating,” said Shamim Ahmed, Manager of the toll plaza’s contractor company M/S Micro Dynamic.
General Secretary of BCL’s Kushtia district unit Sheikh Hafiz Challenge denied the allegations, saying that it was the toll officials who had swooped on the BCL activists.
Read: 10 hurt in Chattogram as ‘BCL activists’ attack Student Union’s human chain
“Our activists were in a hurry and toll officials were causing them more delay. At one point, an altercation ensued and they beat up some of our men,” said Challenge.
Officer In-charge (OC) of Kumarkhali Police Station Kamruzzaman Talukder termed the matter as trivial.
“No one has complained yet over the issue. There are multiple CCTV cameras at the toll plaza. Attackers will be identified after analyzing CCTV footage,” said the OC.
RU BCL leader ‘beats’ student and ‘snatches’ money
Rajshahi University Motihar Hall general secretary of Bangladesh Chhatra League Vashkar Saha allegedly beat a student and snatched around Tk 20,ooo from him.
Economics department 4th-year student and a residential student of Matihar Hall Shamsul Islam alleged this in a written statement to the student adviser of the university.
According to the statement, Vashkar on 15 August summoned Shamsul and demanded extortion money as he earns his livelihood doing some mobile servicing works in the hall. When he was unable to pay the extortion, the BCL leader asked him to go to his room on Friday afternoon and snatched around 20 thousand taka. Later, he was beaten with a rod and cricket stumps when he told them that he will complain about this to the university authority and the journalists.
He was also threatened that he will be victimized as Abrar of BUET if he complains to anyone about this.
Accused leader Vashkar Saha said to UNB, “No such incident happened with Shamsul what he alleged. I have just talked to Shamsul about servicing two of my juniors' mobile phones.”
Read: Another DU student 'assaulted by BCL leader'
Tareq Nur, student adviser of the university said, “We have been informed about this matter. Legal action will be taken after the investigation.”
Faisal Ahmed Runu, general secretary of BCL of Rajshahi University said, “If the accused is found guilty then our organization will take action against him.”
The victim was not found on the phone call.
11 fishermen missing as another trawler sinks in Bay
At least 11 fishermen went missing in the Bay of Bengal Friday after another fishing boat carrying them capsized due to rough weather near Nazirartek Channel in Cox's Bazar, according to the Bangladesh Coast Guard.
Nineteen fishermen boarded the boat that got caught in a ferocious storm around 1pm and at least 8 of them were rescued by the Coast Guard members, said Jane Alam Putu, President of the Fish Traders Association.
The missing fishermen had gone into the Bay of Bengal in the fishing boat 'FB-Mayer Doa' to bait and catch fish for their businesses.
"A search and rescue operation is underway for the missing fishermen," BCG added.
However, the identities of the missing men could not be confirmed.
Earlier, the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) advised the maritime ports, including Payra, to hoist the local cautionary signal three to alert vessels of a deep depression in the Bay of Bengal.
Read: Bay of Bengal trawler capsize: 4 bodies recovered
A depression over the northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining area has moved west-northwestward and intensified into a deep depression.
At 12pm, the depression was centered over northwest Bay and adjoining Bangladesh and India's West Bengal. It is likely to intensify further and move more northwestward.
The BMD advised all fishing boats in the northern Bay of Bengal and deep sea to take shelter immediately.
IBBL Mymensingh holds Shariah compliance webinar
Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) Mymensingh recently organised the webinar "Compliance of Shari'ah in Banking Operations."
Professor Qazi Shahidul Alam, director of IBBL, spoke at the webinar as chief guest.
Mohiuddin Rabbani, a member of the Shariah supervisory committee of the bank, was the key speaker at the programme.
Md Shamsuddoha, executive vice-president of the Shariah secretariat, also spoke.
Md Anisul Haque, head of Mymensingh zone, and Md Khalilur Rahman, senior vice-president of IBBL, were present.
IBBL is a joint venture public limited company engaged in commercial banking business based on Islamic Shariah. It is listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange and Chittagong Stock Exchange.
Read: IBBL Mymensingh holds business development conference
Bangladesh's continental shelf: MoFA secretary discusses amended submission with CLCS chair
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Maritime Affairs Unit Secretary Rear Admiral Md Khurshed Alam (retired) and Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) Chair Adnan Rashid Nasser Al-Azri have discussed Bangladesh's amended submission to the CLCS.
Khurshed has said the final recommendation of the United Nations would provide a basis for the exploration, conservation and development of living and non-living natural resources that would help ensure Bangladesh's sustainable development, energy needs and prosperity of the people.
Muhammad Abdul Muhith, ambassador and permanent representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations, was also present.
Based on the binding verdicts of the international tribunals, the Bangladesh government reviewed its submission and lodged a fresh version to the Commission on October 22, 2020.
Read: Bangladesh shares updated info on continental shelf in Bay with UN
In the amended submission, delimitation lines prescribed by the tribunals were used to determine the limits of Bangladesh's continental shelf.
The purpose of the CLCS is to facilitate the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea regarding the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.
Under the Convention, a coastal state is supposed to establish the outer limits of its continental shelf where it extends beyond 200 nautical miles based on the recommendation of the Commission.
19kg boal fish netted in Bagerhat
Fishermen caught a giant boal fish (helicopter catfish) weighing 19 kg from the sea on Wednesday night.
On Wednesday night, some fishermen from Patharghata in Barguna district went to the sea to catch fish and netted the huge boal fish, said Zafar Ali, one of the fishers of FB Alauddin trawler.
Later, the fish was auctioned at Bagerhat KB Bazar on Friday.
Al-Amin, a fish trader of KB Bazar bought the fish for Tk 85,000, said Anup Kumar Biswas, general secretary of Bagerhat KB Bazar Matsya Artdar Samiti.
Read: 140kg boal fish netted in Cox's Bazar
He said that if the fish was a male species, it would have been sold at a price of around Tk 2 lakh.
Abed Ali Sheikh, president of Bagerhat KB Bazar Artdar Samiti, said the price of that fish is high because various medical equipment including surgical thread used in operations is made from the lungs of the fish.
Meanwhile, people crowded to see the giant fish at the Bazar
Moscow reaffirms its commitment to strengthen cooperation with Dhaka
Russian Deputy Defence Minister Colonel-General Alexander Fomin has reaffirmed Russia's commitment and readiness to make maximum use of the existing potential for further development of cooperation in the military and military-technological fields.
"Over this period, a unique experience of working together, based on many years of friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation, has been accumulated," said Colonel General Alexander Fomin, adding that there are no contradictions or unresolved issues between the countries
The Russian Deputy Defence Minister met with PM's Security Affairs Adviser Major General (Retd) Tarique Ahmed Siddique on the margins of the 10th Moscow Conference on International Security, said the Russian Embassy in Dhaka on Friday.
"This year is a special year. This is the year of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between our states," said Alexander Fomin.
Read: I can understand PM Hasina’s pains: Bachelet
In turn, Tarique Ahmed Siddique thanked Russia for its help over 50 years of bilateral relations.
"We are grateful for all the help you have given us during this time. We remember with particular warmth the help that you provided to our country during the liberation struggle, a lot of countries turned away from us, but you supported us and we still remember this with warmth," he said.
The two sides gave a positive assessment to bilateral cooperation in the military and military-technical fields and outlined steps for their further expansion.
16 fishermen go missing after boats capsize in Bay
At least 16 fishermen went missing in the Bay of Bengal Friday as five fishing boats carrying them capsized due to rough weather near Payra Port in Patuakhali, according to Bangladesh Coast Guard.
Seventy fishermen boarded the boats that got caught in a ferocious storm and at least 54 of them were rescued by other vessels, Ansar Uddin Mollah, president of Kuakata-Alipur Fish Storehouse Owners' Association, said.
The missing fishermen, residents of Mohipur and Bhola's Hazariganj, had gone into the Bay of Bengal in the fishing boats MV Mamoni-3, FB Saiful, FB Al Mamun, FB Kulsoom, and FB Rafique Mizhi to bait and catch fish for their businesses.
Nizampur Coast Guard Contingent Commander Selim Mandal said: "We are conducting a search and rescue operation for the missing fishermen."
However, the identities of the missing men could not be confirmed.
Read: Two dead, two others missing in Noakhali trawler capsize
Earlier, the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) advised the maritime ports, including Payra, to hoist the local cautionary signal three to alert vessels of a deep depression in the Bay of Bengal.
A depression over the northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining area has moved west-northwestward and intensified into a deep depression.
At 12pm, the depression was centred over northwest Bay and adjoining Bangladesh and India's West Bengal. It is likely to intensify further and move more northwestward.
The BMD advised all fishing boats in the northern Bay of Bengal and deep sea to take shelter immediately.
Chandpur: Coast Guard seizes 1MT shrimps inflated with jelly
Bangladesh Coast Guard (BCG) Friday confiscated 1,000kg (1 metric tonne) of shrimps injected with a harmful jelly-like substance to artificially increase their weight from Chandpur Sadar upazila.
Earlier, on information, a team of BCG carried out a raid in Harina and Alu Bazar Ferry Ghat, Lieutenant Commander Khondker Munif, Coast Guard media officer, said.
Read: 5 to hang in Ctg naval base blasts case
During the drive, the law enforcers searched a Chattogram-bound bus that was loaded with shrimps injected with the jelly-like substance.
BCG could not detain anyone as they could not find out the real owners of the shrimps immediately, Munif said.
The seized shrimps were later destroyed.