Bangladesh
Global Covid cases top 170.5 million
The global Covid-19 caseload has now surpassed 170.5 million, with the world still struggling to contain the second outbreak of the virus.
The total caseload and fatalities from the virus stand at 170,585,283 and 3,546,915, respectively, as of Tuesday morning, as per the latest data released by Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
On the other hand, as many as 1,894,160,537 vaccine doses have been administered across the world.
Read:Indian economy, hit by COVID-19, shrinks by 7.3% in 2020-21
The US has logged 33,264,380 cases and 594,568 fatalities to date, the highest death toll in the world, according to the university.
The US crossed the grim milestone of 30 million cases on March 25.
Brazil has the world's second-highest Covid-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third-highest caseload, following the United States and India.
The South American country has reported 16,545,554 cases with 462,791 deaths to date, according to the country's Health Ministry.
India has been experiencing a fall in daily Covid-19 cases for the past couple of weeks.
Read: India fought first wave of Covid-19 courageously, will be victorious in second round: PM Modi
The country's Covid-19 tally surpassed the 28 million-mark on Monday, with 152,734 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, said the federal health ministry.
Besides, as many as 3,128 deaths since Sunday morning took the overall death toll to 329,100.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh on Monday recorded 1,710 new cases in 24 hours, raising the total caseload to 8,00,540.
During the period, the deadly virus also claimed 36 more lives. With the fresh deaths, the total number of fatalities has risen to 12,619.
Bangladesh reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8 last year and the first death on the 18th of that month.
Border closure continues
Bangladesh on Sunday announced an extension of border closure with India by another two weeks, from June 1 to June 14, as the coronavirus situation hardly shows any signs of improvement.
Read: Covid-19: Bangladesh’s total caseload crosses 8 lakh; 36 more die
The border with India will remain closed till June 14, but the movement of goods will remain uninterrupted, according to officials.
"We've extended it (border closure) for 14 more days and will evaluate the situation further," a senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told UNB on Sunday.
Bangladesh decided to close its border with India for any kind of movement except that of cargo on April 26, which was extended till May 31 to control the spread of coronavirus as the situation in the neighbouring country deteriorated.
The cross-border movement of people between Bangladesh and India has remained suspended since then.
Lockdown in Chapainawabganj extended
The local administration has extended the ongoing lockdown in Chapainawabganj for another week due to the worsening Covid-19 situation.
Read:Lockdown in Chapainawabganj extended for another week
The restrictions will remain in force from June 1 to June 7, said Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Manjurul Hafiz at a press briefing on Monday noon.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s ongoing lockdown period has been extended by another week till June 6 to contain the virus spread.
Besides, district administrations have been given the authority to enforce lockdowns in their respective areas if the Covid situation deteriorates there, the Cabinet Secretary said on Monday.
Electronics goods exports up 8.5 times in 9 months: EPB
Bangladesh's consumer electronics exports jumped 8.5 times in the first nine months of the fiscal year 2020-21, compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year, according to Export Promotion Bureau data.
During the July-March period of the FY2019-20, Bangladesh earned around $1.44 million from the exports of electronics goods – including refrigerator and freezer, air conditioner, LED television, washing machine, blender, rice cooker, gas stove, induction cooker, fan, hot plate, refrigerator compressor and components – according to the EPB.
In the same period of FY21, the country's earnings from the electronics goods export rose to $12.22 million, about 8.5 times higher than the export earnings of the previous fiscal year's same period.
READ: Vision Electronics launches Google-approved Android TV
Industry insiders think that the local electronics manufacturing industry will emerge as the country's major export earning sector like the readymade garment sector if the government provides necessary policy support including export incentives.
One and a half-decade ago, the local demand for electronics products were met with the imported goods. Now the local brands have proved their mettle in capturing more than 90% of the markets by overcoming the foreign brands' complete dominance.
Also, international market analysts said Bangladeshi brands have enough potential to grab a lion's share in the global consumer electronics market.
READ: Domestic electronics, technology products should get priority in govt procurement: Speakers
They said China is the major supplying country of most global consumer electronics brands. But the growing trade tension between the US and China have led the global brands to lean towards establishing business relations with other Asian countries.
1 lakh-plus Pfizer vaccine doses reach Dhaka
The first batch of 1.06 lakh doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine arrived in Dhaka Monday night under the global vaccine initiative Covax facility.
A regular flight of Emirates landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 11:10pm with the doses and Md Shamsul Haque, a line director at the Directorate General of Health Services, received them, Dr Nasrin Akhter, a medical officer at the airport's health centre, confirmed.
COVAX, the facility set up by the World Health Organization and several non-profits to deliver Covid-19 vaccines to developing nations, is working in partnership with Unicef, developed and developing country vaccine manufacturers, the World Bank, and others.
READ: European regulators OK Pfizer vaccine for children 12-15
On May 27, the Directorate General of Drug Administration approved the emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine.
So far four vaccines – Oxford-AstraZeneca (Covishield), Sputnik-V, Sinopharm, and Pfizer-BioNTech – have got emergency use authorisation in the country.
The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was the first coronavirus jab to show promising results in the latter stages of its testing process.
It is a new type called an mRNA vaccine that uses a tiny fragment of genetic code from the pandemic virus to teach the body how to fight Covid-19 and build immunity.
READ: COVID-19: Bangladesh to receive over 1 lakh Pfizer vaccine on Sunday
The US Food and Drug Administration has authorised the storage of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at standard refrigerator temperatures for up to one month, to make the vaccine more widely available.
Bishwanath UNO to construct Expatriate Square honouring expatriates
Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Sumon Chandra Das on Monday evening announced the construction of Expatriate Square in honour of expatriates in the Sylhet’s Bishwanath upazila.
The long-neglected square of Notun Bazar area would be turned into the Expatriate Square, he wrote over a Facebook post.
READ: Expatriate Bangladeshis in South Korea urged to come forward to build "Sonar Bangla"
“The currencies of different countries will be inscribed on the pillar of the square but above all will be the Bangladeshi currency”.
The monument has been designed to recognize the contribution of the expatriates.
READ: 14,000 expatriate workers left country in five days: CAAB
UNO Sumon’s alternative initiative was praised by many on social media.
8 Indian variant cases identified in Jashore
Genome Centre of Jashore University of Science and Technology (JUST) Monday found the Indian variant of the coronavirus among eight local patients.
The patients- seven men and a woman, were all under 56.
None of them had been to India or contact with any India returnee.
A team of researchers led by Associate Director of the Genome Center Prof. Dr. Md. Iqbal Kabir Zahid came up with the results through genome sequencing.
READ: Covid patient infected with Indian variant held in Chandpur
The local administration, Ministry of Health and IEDCR were immediately informed.
The samples were collected from Abhaynagar Upazila Health Complex, Jashore General Hospital and Jhikargachha Upazila Health Complex to find out whether the Indian variant had spread over the district.
The research team advised the India returnees to stay in institutional quarantine until they are tested negative for coronavirus.
READ: Covid-19: Three more cases of Indian variant reported in Bangladesh
In addition, they suggested to strictly maintain health guidelines at the border.
Prioritise saving lives, tackling inequality in budget: CPD
The national budget for the fiscal year 2021-22 should focus more on tackling inequality through redistribution and saving lives amid the pandemic, rather than economic growth, according to the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).
The budget should set targets on employment and growth in income at the household level rather than GDP growth or per capita income.
Institutional weaknesses and the inability to implement the reform agenda have undermined Covid responses in FY2021.
While the government did come up with several initiatives to mitigate the sufferings of the people and overcome the adverse effects on the economy because of the pandemic, the much-expected turnaround is still not there.
A large portion of people, who are poor and in dire need, did not receive any form of support from the government – whether in the form of relief items, liquidity support or fiscal stimulus.
Stimulus packages provided through banks created new avenues for corruption and malpractices. Liquidity support and fiscal stimulus packages rolled out without prior assessment of the ground realities may not be able to address the needs of the most vulnerable people in society.
READ: CPD: Integrated database needed for COVID-19 relief distribution
Inherent weaknesses in the banking sector are undermining the government's efforts to trigger economic recovery through bank-dependent stimulus packages.
Attempts to trigger private sector investment through subsidies, incentives and working capital support have been unable to compensate for the inherent challenges that continue to undermine the competitiveness of the private enterprises.
Generating domestic resources to underwrite the needed resources has been weakened in the absence of the much needed fiscal reforms.
Revenue generation figures remain way below the targets, and redistributive functions of fiscal policies cannot be activated because of the low enforcement capacities and failure to implement long-awaited fiscal reforms.
FY2021 export growth remains way below target. Even during the pandemic, the much needed expansionary fiscal-budgetary policies could not be implemented because of continuing and endemic weaknesses of implementing agencies and line ministries. No tangible change could be brought in terms of the capacity to both earn and to spend.
Although positive developments were observed in cases of export earnings, remittance inflow and foreign exchange reserves, disquieting trends were evident as regards overseas migration, import of capital machinery and FDI inflow.
Instead of designing a Covid-specific budget, the government largely opted for a business-as-usual one in 2020. The assumption was that managing the fallout from Covid-19 will be easy, and the economy will bounce back within a short period in FY21.
Recovery from the entire fallout will take much longer than expected – susceptible to changes like Covid-19 and the availability and effectiveness of vaccines. The government needs to formulate a medium-term recovery plan.
The observations came up at the virtual briefing organised by CPD on "The State of the Bangladesh Economy in FY2020-21" Monday, organised ahead of the budget to be announced this week.
CPD also called for a focus on the formulation of a medium-term recovery plan, pursuance of expansionary fiscal policy; putting supportive macroeconomic and sectoral policy measures in place and enhancing institutional capacity and collaborative efforts.
READ: CPD survey: Almost all who lost jobs in first wave back working, but earning less
From the public expenditure side, priority has been urged for social safety net expenditure, health and education, and Cottage, Micro and Small Enterprise-oriented investment-augmenting measures.
The transparency and accountability of Bangladesh's Covid-19 stimulus plan will be key to its successful operationalisation and implementation, CPD said.
VAT Intelligence seizes 2 lakh illegally manufactured cigarettes
VAT Intelligence seized nearly two lakh illegally manufactured cigarettes during a raid in Gazipur's Koultia Monday.
The cigarettes were manufactured using fake tax stamps or band rolls, depriving the government of huge money, said the VAT Audit, Intelligence and Investigation Directorate officials after raiding Virgo Tobacco.
Moinul Khan, VAT Intelligence director-general, said the factory had been manufacturing illegal cigarettes and evading tax for a long time.
READ: House approves bill to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes
"On information, the VAT intelligence team raided the factory today and seized 199,000 sticks of cigarettes with fake band rolls. The illegally manufactured cigarettes were being sold to remote parts of Sylhet, Barishal and Cumilla," said Moinul.
VAT Intelligence Deputy Director Tanvir Ahmed, who led the raid, said: "The factory was being operated in two shifts. During night shifts, illegal cigarettes were being manufactured. The government would suffer a revenue loss of Tk40 lakh if the seized cigarettes were sold to markets."
The National Board of Revenue sources said 73% value added tax (VAT) and supplementary duty (SD) are imposed on cigarettes of the lower tier.
The industry insiders said most companies are violating the law and evading taxes while manufacturing low tier cigarettes.
READ: 150 cartons of contraband cigarettes seized at Sylhet airport
VAT Intelligence officials said local markets are now being flooded with cigarettes of different illegal brands. Remote and underdeveloped regions are the biggest market for locally produced illegal cigarettes.
Realme discussion features Black Zang, SamZone to inspire youths
Chinese smartphone manufacturer realme has crafted the 8 Pro Illuminating Yellow handset "to encourage youths to break traditional concepts" – like youth icons Black Zang's and SamZone.
Hip-hop artiste Black Zang's objective is to not only talk about the problem but also the solution and YouTube tech SamZone's believes in promoting others to chase their dreams and explore beyond conventional career options.
Read Best Upcoming Phones in June 2021 in Bangladesh: Official and Unofficial
The speciality of 8 Pro Illuminating Yellow is that fluorescent technology has been used in its back shell. So after being in the light for a while, its backshell glows even in the dark.
On closer inspection, it gets clear that this special design reflects people's strength of holding on to their efforts without giving up in difficult times.
Inspired by this idea, Black Zang (aka BZ) and SamZone participated in a realme discussion.
Their discussion commenced with Black Zang reminiscing about the journey that helped him break his old comfort zones. As a youth, BZ had been immensely motivated by the realm of hip-hop, yet could find no mentor to learn from.
Read Walton Primo RX8 Review with Price in Bangladesh
But soon the likes of BZ got together and started teaching each other, eventually, all evolving, some as musicians and others as lyricists, composers, sound engineers, graphic designers etc. Over the years, the artiste wearing a jacket that glows as he performs has seen milestones like taking Bengali hip-hop music to international platforms like Netflix.
Black Zang has motivated many to listen and practice hip-hop and become part of global trends. His style and attitude have inspired many to grow an affinity for the hip hop culture, which is very popular abroad. He has numerous followers on his Facebook page and also among the hip-hop community of Bangladesh.
READ: realme 8 Pro Illuminating Yellow Review: Price, Features, Camera, Performances
Sharing quite the same vibes, SamZone revealed to the audience how he dared to step out of his conventional day-to-day job and pursued his passion for doodling with gadgets, which eventually established him as one of the most popular YouTubers of his time.
SamZone currently has more than 1 million subscribers, and can humbly claim that instead of looking for a job, now he can offer jobs to others. The journey for him hasn't been easy, but with a patron like realme, he has found what he always loved in life.
Read Earning with Mobile Phones: Know the Best and Worst Ways
2 killed, 10 injured in Cox's Bazar gunfight
Two people were killed and 10 others injured in a gunfight at Rumaliarchhara Shikder Bazar in Cox'sBazar on Monday.
The deceased were identified as Mohammad Shahed, 28, son of Mujibul Islam of Tekpara area of the district and Raihanul Islam, 25, chief of Raihan group and son of Nurul Alam of Bacha Mia Ghona area.
Also read: Sahinuddin murder accused killed in gunfight with RAB in Mirpur
A clash ensued between two groups of terrorists, one led by Raihan group and another by Ashu Ali group, over establishing supremacy at Rumaliarchhara Shikder Bazar at 6:30 pm.
The two groups exchanged gunfire during the clash, leaving the two dead on the spot.
On information, a team of police from Cox's Bazar Sadar Police Station brought the situation under control.
Also read: 3 Rohingya 'bandits' killed in 'gunfight' with RAB Teknaf
Cox's Bazar sadar police outpost in-charge Inspector Anwar Hossain said the miscreants fled the scene as police reached the spot.
The bodies of the two were sent to the District Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy.
Fully cooperating with ICJ to “ensure justice” for Rohingyas: NUG
Myanmar's National Unity Government (NUG) has said they are fully cooperating with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to “make sure that justice is delivered to Rohingya brothers and sisters” and to all from every ethnicity who have suffered so much for so long under the brutal military generals’ reign of terror in Myanmar.
“Together, we’ll end this reign of terror once and for all. Justice will prevail,” said Dr Sasa, Union Minister of International Cooperation and Spokesperson of Myanmar's shadow government in a post shared on his verified Facebook page.
Also read: UNHCR seeks adequate medical assistance for Rohingyas affected in Bhasan Char
Dr Sasa also shared an official statement that reads, "The National Unity Government is taking every step to cooperate with the International Court of Justice, the world's highest court…to ensure that we comply with Myanmar's international legal obligations.”
The NUG said they are concerned about the difficult situation of the Rohingyas, especially those who fled to Bangladesh in 2016-17.
Bangladesh is now hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas both in Cox’s Bazar district and Bhasan Char.
Also read: General Assembly has not forgotten Rohingya people: Bozkir
Earlier, The Gambia, on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), filed a genocide case with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at the Hague.
The NUG statement says it is among its duties, as lawful government of Myanmar, to ensure the continuity of representation before the ICJ, and to be mindful of the timetable established by the Court.
Also read: Rohingyas rights to return, citizenship must be respected: UNGA President
It said the NUG is also actively considering accepting the exercise of jurisdiction by the ICJ over the killings, torture and other crimes against the civilians that have occurred since the "attempted" coup on February 1.
The NUG reaffirmed that it will continue to work closely with the Court and all relevant stakeholders for benefits of the country and all people in Myanmar, the statement adds.