bangladesh
Depression over Bay likely to weaken: Met dept
A depression formed over the southwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining areas has moved west-northwestwards and is likely to weaken, according to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD).
The depression has crossed northern Tamil Nadu and adjoining southern Andhra Pradesh coast between Pondicherry and Chennai in India, according to its bulletin.
Also Read: Bangladesh bracing for third Covid wave?
It is likely to move in a west-northwestwardly direction further, weaken gradually and become unimportant, the Met office said.
However, all fishing boats and trawlers in the deep seas have been advised to proceed with caution till the evening.
Also Read: 11 fishers rescued as trawler capsizes in Bay of Bengal
2 killed, 8 injured in separate road accidents in Dinajpur
Two persons were killed and eight others injured in separate road accidents in Dinajpur on Friday.
The deceased were identified as Narayon Chandra Roy, son of Khokaram Roy of Chakarampur village, and Shasodhor Babu Roy of the area.
Also Read: 6 killed in bus-auto collision in Gaibandha
The first accident occurred when a speeding truck hit a rickshaw on the Dinajpur-Fhulbari Highway in the Pachbarirhat area of Fulbari upazila in the early hours.
While Narayon died on the spot, Shasodhor Roy succumbed to his injuries at Dinajpur M Abdur Rahim hospital around 9.30am.
The eight people were injured in a head-on collision between a passenger bus and a truck in the Shibkuri area of Amtoli later in the morning.
Also Read: Thousands of Afghans seek temporary US entry, few approved
Of them, five injured were admitted to Dinajpur M Abdur Rahim Medical College, said the officer-in-charge of Chirirbandar Police Station.
6 killed in bus-auto collision in Gaibandha
At least six people were killed in a head-on collision between a bus and an auto-rickshaw on the Dhaka-Rangpur highway in Gobindaganj upazila of Gaibandha on Friday morning.
Officer-in-charge of Gobindaganj police station Mostafizur Rahman said that the accident occurred when the Rangpur-bound passenger bus of Hanif Paribahan hit the auto rickshaw coming from the opposite side near the Bakchar area of the highway.
The crash left three occupants of the auto dead on the spot.
Also read: Two sisters killed in Laxmipur road accident
"Five other passengers of the three-wheeler were rushed to the upazila health complex by the local fire service. Of them, three died of their injuries at the hospital," said the OC.
The identities of the casualties could not be known yet. "The bus has been seized but its driver and his assistant are absconding," he added.
Also read: 4 killed in Kurigram road accident
'Rohingya crisis an impediment to economic integration of South, SE Asian economies'
Describing the Rohingya crisis as a "big challenge" for the region, Bangladesh's envoy in the US has listed it as an obstacle in the greater integration of South and Southeast Asian economies.
"(However), Bangladesh welcomes any regional initiatives that support the country's development aspirations and bring greater good for the region and beyond," Ambassador M Shahidul Islam said at a webinar on Thursday.
"Bangladesh maintains friendly relations with all countries of the world, including its neighbours, and believes in resolving any bilateral issues through dialogues and negotiations," he added.
Also read: Speakers call for mounting int'l pressure on Myanmar to resolve Rohingya crisis
The webinar titled 'Bangladeshi perspectives on regional economic cooperation' was organised by leading US think-tank Atlantic Council on Thursday in partnership with the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington DC.
During a Q&A session post-discussions, Ambassador Shahidul responded to questions from the moderator and the audience about Bangladesh perspectives on QUAD, RCEP, free-trade zone among the Asian countries, sharing of Teesta water, and killings at the Bangladesh-India border, among others.
Senior advisor of Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center and former US Ambassador to Fiji Osman Siddique, moderated the event.
Ambassador Shahidul also highlighted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s vision for transforming the country into a connectivity hub in South Asia "to foster economic cooperation and people to people contact in the region".
He also highlighted Bangladesh’s proactive role to support cooperation among the regional countries in areas such as power and energy, Covid-19 collaboration, and climate change.
Also read: Indonesia to send strong message to Myanmar over Rohingya crisis, says its FM
The Ambassador also shared his thoughts about the possible role and relevance of the US to promote economic integration of South Asia.
Speakers the webinar praised the impressive economic growth that Bangladesh has registered in recent years despite various challenges, including the pandemic and the Rohingya crisis
Osman, on his part, highlighted the tremendous socio-economic development that Bangladesh has achieved since her independence by comparing some of the economic indicators between the past and the present.
Wild Asian elephant calf found dead near Sherpur border
A wild Asian elephant calf was found dead near the Panihata border of Sherpur's Nalitabari upazila Friday, forest officials said.
This is the second carcass of a wild elephant that has been recovered from the area in the past 10 days.
Nalitabari Upazila Nirbahi Officer Helena Parvin and Modhutila range officer Md Abdul Karim from the forest department confirmed the recovery of the carcass of the two-year-old elephant.
Forest official Md Shah Alam said they recovered the male elephant calf's carcass early on Friday after being informed by locals.
Also read: Case against 4 in Sherpur over killing Asian elephant
Meanwhile, president of Bird Conservation Society of Sherpur, Sujoy Malakar, said the locals were trying to bury the elephant calf.
On November 11, the forest department of Sreebordi upazila for the first time in the district filed a case against four farmers for killing an endangered Asian elephant by electrocution on November 9.
The elephant had died while searching for food after being trapped in electrified wires installed by local farmers around their farms at Sonajhuri Hillock in the upazila.
Trainer of elephant response team in the district, Adnan Asif, said the large area under Garo Hill tracts in Sherpur has been reduced to a small portion in the past 20 to 30 years.
Due to increasing human invaders in the hill area, the number of wildlife has decreased and the remaining few elephants are facing food crisis, he said.
Also read: Another Asian elephant found dead, this time in Chakaria reserved forest
According to forest officials, in the last two decades some 30 wild Asian elephants have died in the hilly area of Sherpur district.
Of them many died by gunshots, electrocution and poisoning, while some died due to accidents, ageing and sickness, said the officials.
Global Covid cases top 255 million
The overall number of Covid cases now crossed 255 million amid the global race to vaccinate masses against the infectious disease.
According to Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total case count mounted to 254,998,932 while the death toll from the virus reached 5,131,160 on Friday morning.
The US has recorded 47,530,897 cases to date and more than 768,684 people have died so far from the virus in the country, as per the university data.
Also read: Pfizer asks US officials to OK promising COVID-19 pill
Brazil, which has been experiencing a new wave of cases since January, has registered 21,989,962 cases so far, while its Covid death toll rose to 612,177.
India's Covid-19 tally rose to 34,485,517 on Thursday, as 7,000 new cases were registered in 24 hours across the country, as per the federal health ministry data.
Besides, as many as 92 deaths were recorded since Wednesday morning, taking the death toll to 464,715.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh logged five more Covid-linked deaths and 244 fresh infections in 24 hours till Thursday morning.
The daily case positivity rate slightly declined to 1.25 percent from Wednesday’s 1.35 percent.
Also read: Bangladesh bracing for third Covid wave?
The fresh numbers took the total fatalities to 27,939 while the country’s caseload mounted to 15,73,458, said the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
All the five deceased were men.
Dhaka division logged three Covid-related deaths while Chattogram and Rangpur divisions logged one death each during the period, said the directorate.
However, the mortality rate remained static at 1.78 percent.
The fresh cases were detected after testing 19,570 samples, the DGHS added.
Besides, the recovery rate increased to 97.72 percent, with the recovery of 294 more patients during the 24-hour period.
So far, 3,39,95,948 people have fully been vaccinated in the country, while 5,29,83,555 received the first dose as of Wednesday, according to the directorate.
Case against 4 in Sherpur over killing Asian elephant
In a first for the district, Forest Department of Sreebardi upazila in Sherpur filed a case against four people on November 11 over killing an endangered Asian elephant by electrocution.
In-charge range officer of the Balijuri range Rabiul Islam filed the case under the Wild Life Act at the Sreebardi court followed by a general diary lodged at the Sreebardi police station, confirmed Robiul Islam from the district Forest Department on Thursday.
The accused in the case are Amej Uddin, his brother Somej Uddin, Md Ashraful and Md Shahjalal, all farmers from the Malakocha area in the district.
On November 9, an elephant got electrocuted and died while searching for food after being trapped in electrified GI wires installed by local farmers around their vegetable farming lands at Sonajhuri Hillock in the upazila.
Forest official Robiul Islam said the lands were actually owned by the Forest Department and the farmers were cultivating there illegally.
He said due to increasing farming activities occupying forest lands, wild elephants started coming into the locality.
The case was filed for violating schedule-1 of the Wild Life (Preservation and Security) Act, 2012 under section 36 of the act, he said.
The court has summoned the four accused and set December 12 to hear the case, said range officer Robiul Islam.
Trainer of elephant response team in the district, Adnan Asif, said the large area under Garo Hill tracts in Sherpur has been reduced to a small portion in the last 20 to 30 years.
Due to increasing human invaders in the hill area, the number of wildlife has decreased and the remaining few elephants are facing food crisis, he said.
According to forest officials, in the last two decades some 30 wild Asian elephants have died in the hilly area of Sherpur district.
Of them many died by gunshot, electrocution, poisoning while some died due to accidents, aging and sickness, said the officials.
Bangladeshi architect Marina Tabassum scoops Soane Medal
In her journey from bricks to bamboo, Bangladeshi architect Marina Tabassum added another feather to her cap Tuesday – the 2021 Soane Medal presented by Sir John Soane's Museum in London.
Marina was honoured with the prestigious architecture award – which celebrates a leading architect's career and body of work – for her work in designing low-cost temporary homes for refugees and victims of climate change.
Introduced by Sir John Soane's Museum in 2017, the Medal "recognises architects, educators and critics who have made a major contribution to their field through practice, history or theory."
Before Marina, the founder and Principal Architect of Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA), the award was given to Denise Scott Brown, Rafael Moneo, and Kenneth Frampton.
The Bangladeshi architect, who is also a pioneer of "the architecture of relevance," appeared in a live digital event at the museum and gave the fourth Soane Medal lecture upon receiving the honour.
CMCH student Akib recovers from injury after 19 days, returns home
Chattogram Medical College student Mahadi J Akib returned home on Thursday after recovering from the severe head injuries he suffered during a clash between two factions of BCL on October 30.
Akib, 21, a second-year student of the medical college, was being treated at the hospital for the last 19 days after he got injured in his own campus.
The medical board formed for his treatment decided to release him from the hospital on Thursday afternoon.
Also read: ‘My son victim of dirty politics’, bemoans injured Akib’s father
Later his father and brother took him to his village home in Burichong in Cumilla.
Director of CMCH Brigadier General SM Humayun Kabir said, “Akib’s condition has recovered a lot so we approved the release paper. But within a month and a half he will have to undergo another small surgery.”
On October 29, two BCL factions -- one led by a former mayor and another by a junior minister -- locked into a clash. They reengaged in clashes the next morning, leaving Akib and two others injured.
Akib, with a damaged skull, was first taken to the one stop centre of the hospital and later received primary treatment at neurosurgery ward-28 of the CMCH.
A photo of the injured medical student in the ICU with an instruction on the bandage that said, “There is no bone, don’t put pressure,” went viral on social media.
Also read: CMCH student Akib recovers from injury after 19 days, returns home
Later, he underwent a surgery for over three hours under a five-member expert medical team led by Prof Dr Noman Khaled Chowdhury, head of the Neurosurgery department of the CMCH.
In a second surgery the doctors managed to replace the broken bone successfully.
Meanwhile the two conflicting factions of BCL have filed three cases against each other.
Not right to enact EC formation law in a haste: Law minister
Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Huq on Thursday said it would not be right to enact a law for forming the Election Commission in a haste.
The minister said this in a conversation with the journalists today at his Gulshan office.
Earlier, a representative team led by Dr Badiul Alam Majumdar, secretary of civil rights organization Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Shujan) handed over the copy of ‘Draft Election Commission Enrolment Law’.
Also read: EC to be constituted through search committee: PM
The Minister said, “It won’t be right to put the law into practice sidestepping the parliament,” after Dr Badiul Alam suggested issuing an ordinance to enact the law.
Anisul Huq said the tenure of current EC will end by February next year while the next parliamentary session is scheduled for February.
“It is impossible to formulate the law for EC formation within this short time,” he said.
Also read: Forming EC by enacting law not possible now: Law Minister
He reiterated that the current rule of forming EC through a search committee is almost a law as it is constituted by the president himself.