District
Fire at Khulna’s Salam Jute Mill doused
Firefighters managed to douse the fire that broke out at Salam Jute Mill in Rupsha upazila of Khulna district after several hours of efforts.
Faruk Hossain Shikdar, assistant director of Khulna Fire Service and Civil Defense, said the fire broke out at the jute mill, located in Jabusa area of Rupsha, around 5:30 pm on Wednesday and spread soon.
On information, twelve firefighting units rushed to the spot and later a team of Navy personnel joined and brought the fire under control around 12 am.
Fire at jute mill in Khulna under control after 3.5 hours
Firefighters are carrying out dumping work at the mill.
Bashir Ahmed, manager of the jute mill, said the fire might have originated from an electric short circuit and spread to the number one and two warehouses of the mill.
SMA Salam, owner of the mill, said 750 tonnes of produced jute worth Tk 1.50 crore, and 1300 tonnes of raw materials worth Tk 20 crore were kept in the three warehouses of the mill.
Fire breaks out at jute mill in Khulna
He also claimed that the estimated loss was over Tk 100 crore.
Around 400 workers are employed at the mill and now an uncertainty looms over paying their salary and bonus before Eid.
No one was hurt during the fire.
‘Attempted robbery’ at Rampal Power Plant: 5 security personnel injured
Five security personnel, including two Ansar members, at the Rampal Coal-Fired Thermal Power Plant sustained injuries following a “robbery attempt” by a group of assailants on Wednesday night.
The injured are Akram, Saidul Islam, Mintu Bouragi, Brazen Mandal and Habi Kamal Pasha.
The power plant’s Deputy General Manager Anwarul Azim said approximately 50-60 armed individuals attempted to infiltrate residential areas of the power plant around 11:30 pm.
When the security personnel tried to thwart their entry, the armed men attacked them, resulting in injuries.
Of the injured, two were urgently transported to Khulna Medical College and Hospital for medical attention, while the remaining three received treatment at the Rampal Upazila Health Complex, said the DGM.
Somen Das, the officer-in-charge of Rampal Police Station, confirmed that law enforcement agencies are actively pursuing leads to identify and apprehend the culprits. As a precautionary measure, additional police forces have been deployed to secure the power plant and its surrounding areas, aiming to prevent further incidents and ensure the safety of the plant's personnel and infrastructure.
Bagerhat Superintendent of Police (SP) Abul Hasnat Khan said the Ansar members of the power plant opened 30 rounds of bullets to deter the robbers.
In the firing one of the robbers sustained injuries, he said, adding that they have already arrested 11suspects.
The arrestees are being interrogated at Rampal police station and drives are on to arrest others, the SP said.
Suspected KNF members launch coordinated attacks on banks in Bandarban’s Ruma and Thanchi
In a daring escalation of violence, armed assailants, believed to be members of the Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF), carried out robberies at Sonali Bank and Krishi Bank branches in Thanchi upazila, Bandarban, following a similar incident at a Sonali Bank branch in Ruma upazila.
On Tuesday night around 9:00 pm, a group of 70-80 armed men surrounded the vicinity of Ruma Upazila Parishad, overpowering the security personnel at Sonali Bank, resulting in vandalism and looting. The attack extended to abducting the bank manager.
The following day, Thanchi Bazar witnessed a parallel assault around 12:30 pm. The attackers stormed both Sonali Bank and the adjacent Krishi Bank, taking hostages and ransacking the establishments. The raid culminated in the theft of several individuals' mobile phones and the discharge of blank rounds, causing widespread alarm.
Hla Swee Twai, manager of Krishi Bank's Thanchi branch, recounted the terrifying moments when the assailants corralled employees and customers, casting doubt on the security of the bank's assets.
Abdul Karim, Additional Superintendent of Police (Crime) in Bandarban, confirmed the brazen attacks on the banks, highlighting the seizure of cash and the hostage situation involving bank officials.
The sequence of events began with creating chaos in Thanchi Sadar market, where the armed group fired shots and commandeered mobile phones, setting the stage for the bank heists. The total monetary loss remains undisclosed.
In the wake of these incidents, banking operations in Bandarban have been curtailed, with ATM services suspended and enhanced security protocols implemented. Thanchi Upazila Nirbahi Officer Mohammad Mamun confirmed the robberies but could not provide details on the stolen sums.
Local law enforcement, including Jasim Uddin, Officer-in-charge of Thanchi police station, and Saikat Shahin, Superintendent of Bandarban Police, point to KNF's involvement in these orchestrated attacks.
Deputy Commissioner Shah Mojahid Uddin communicated ongoing efforts to recover the abducted bank manager and restore peace, while Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun, having assessed the situation firsthand at the Sonali Bank branch in Ruma, vowed to take decisive measures against the perpetrators.
In March alone, 42 people died in road accidents in Sylhet
In the month of March alone, at least 42 people died, and 98 others were injured in 36 road crashes in the Sylhet division.
Nirapad Sarak Chai (NISCHA), a voluntary social organisation dedicated to ensuring safe roads, revealed this information in a statement signed by Zahirul Islam Mishu, co-organising secretary of the NISCHA Central Committee, member secretary of the Sylhet Divisional Committee, and convener of Sylhet District.
Of the deceased, Sylhet district witnessed the most casualties, with 20 deaths and 45 injuries in 15 road accidents. In Sunamganj, eight people died, and 17 were injured in eight road accidents, while in Moulvibazar, six people died, and three were injured in six road accidents.
21 shops burned down in Khagrachari
Additionally, road crashes left eight people dead and 33 injured in seven road accidents in Habiganj district.
NISCHA provided this information based on reports published in local dailies, online portals, national dailies, and their own sources from the Sylhet branch.
Among the 42 deceased were 13 motorcyclists and pillion riders, eight CNG-run autorickshaw and Laguna drivers and passengers, and six pedestrians who died in road accidents in Sylhet division in March.
Apart from this, six people died in five accidents due to the loss of control of vehicles, 17 people died in nine accidents due to head-on collisions, and four people died in five accidents due to hitting trees and electric poles.
KNF stages armed robbery at Sonali Bank branch in Bandarban; manager abducted, Tk 1.5cr looted
Among the victims were 28 men, nine women, and five children, read the statement.
In February, 26 people died, and 66 were injured in 25 accidents in the Sylhet division.
Newborn baby sold for Tk 1 lakh, rescued, and returned to parents
Police rescued a newborn baby after the mother was forced to sell the baby as she could not pay her hospital bills in Kurigram’s Ulipur upazila on Wednesday.
A team from Ulipur Police Station rescued the newborn within two hours from Rajarhat upazila’s Nazim Khan union and returned the child to his parents, said Golam Mortuza, officer-in-charge of Ulipur Police Station.
According to Ulipur Police Station, Shirina Akhtar, wife of Golam Hossain from Monarkuti village, gave birth to a boy through a caesarean section at the Doctors Clinic in Ulipur on March 23. The total bill amounted to TK 30,000.
Forced to pay the bill alone as her husband was missing, she decided to sell her newborn at an unknown location on March 26.
Later, upon learning of the matter, the baby's father lodged a complaint at Ulipur Police Station on Wednesday afternoon.
The dispute between the couple was resolved later, added the OC.
21 shops burned down in Khagrachari
Twenty-one shops were gutted in a fire which broke out at Merung Bazar in Dighinala upazila of Khagrachari district early Wednesday.The fire broke out at a shop around 3:30 am and spread soon, said Md Rubel, leader of Khagrachari Fire Service and Civil Defense.On information, a firefighting unit rushed to the spot and extinguished the fire after one hour.
Fire on several parked buses in Dhaka’s Demra under controlThe affected shop owners estimated the loss caused by the fire at Tk 1.5 crore.However, the origin ofthe fire could not be known immediately.
Inquiry committee formed over fire on 14 buses in Dhaka’s Demra
Man stabbed to death at arbitration in Sylhet
A 35-year-old young man was stabbed to death during an arbitration meeting over family feud at Baghmara village in Fenchuganj upazila of Sylhet district on Tuesday night.
The deceased was identified as Monai Mia, son of Burkan Ali of Ghilachhara union.
Local people said an arbitration meeting was arranged at the house of Manai over settling the family feud between his sister-in-law and Kalam Mia of the village around 8 pm.
2 killed as truck hits bicycle in Meherpur
At one stage, Belai Mia, brother of Kalam stabbed Monai with a knife and fled the scene, leaving him injured.
Later, he was taken to the Fenchuganj Upazila Health Complex where the doctors declared him dead.
Minor boy killed in Dhaka road crash
On information, police sent the body to the Sylhet Osmani Medical College and Hospital morgue for autopsy.
KNF stages armed robbery at Sonali Bank branch in Bandarban; manager abducted, Tk 1.5cr looted
Members of the militant group Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF) looted approximately Tk 1.5 crore from Sonali Bank's branch in Ruma, Bandarban, in a brazen robbery that will surely ramp up tensions in the hills.
The incident occurred during Taraweeh prayers. The robbers looted 14 weapons from the Ansar members guarding the bank and abducted the bank manager, Nizam Uddin, from the mosque on the bank premises.
An eyewitness said that at 8pm on Tuesday, a group of KNF men on motorcycles arrived in the Hathimatha Para area of the upazila. One group went to the bank, while another group split off and went to the mosque and the upazila officer's quarters. They broke into the bank vault and looted the cash. Bank officials believe that 1.5 to 2 crore taka was looted.
The eyewitness, who requested anonymity, said that the terrorists looted 14 weapons from the Ansar members guarding the bank and abducted Nizam Uddin, the manager of Ruma Upazila Sonali Bank, from the mosque during Taraweeh prayers. They also entered the officers' quarters in front of the bank and took hostage the upazila engineer, Md. Saiful Islam, and took away the money kept for various works.
Ruma Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Muhammad Shahjahan said that the 'hilltop-based armed terrorists' looted the bank's money and weapons and abducted the bank manager. He said that he was at the scene of the incident and that members of the law enforcement forces and the army were present in the area.
Confirming the incident, Sonali Bank Bandarban District Branch Manager Rajan Kanti Das said that he was informed of the incident but had not yet been able to contact the bank manager.
He said that on Tuesday, the salaries and bonuses of the employees for Eid were taken to the bank. At night, the armed terrorist group attacked Sonali Bank. They looted the cash from the bank, along with 14 weapons and the bank manager, Md. Nizam Uddin. However, it is not yet known how much money was taken from the bank. It is believed that the terrorists looted Tk 1.5 to 2 crore.
Bandarban District Police Additional Superintendent of Police (Administration and Finance) Hossain Md. Raihan Kazemi said that the incident of bank robbery, arms looting and abduction had taken place. He said that an emergency meeting was underway with the district police and the army. He said that further details would be provided later.
3 die in separate road accidents in Ctg
Three people including an imam, died in separate road accidents in Chattogram's Raozan and Hathazari upazilas on Tuesday.
The deceased were identified as Syedul Haque, 45; Md Miraz, 24; and Md Faruk, 26.
Two die in separate road accidents in Ctg
In Raozan, Imam Syedul Haque died and another Imam was injured after their motorcycle collided with a CNG-run autorickshaw.
Syedul Haque was the Pesh Imam of the Aylikhil Baytun Noor Jame Mosque in Raozan.
According to an eyewitness, the autorickshaw collided with the motorcycle, causing the autorickshaw to overturn and fall into a ditch.
Locals block Sylhet-Tamabil highway protesting rising road accidents
Zainal Abedin, sub-inspector of Raozan Police Station, Said, “We went to the spot after receiving the information. One was found dead, and the other was sent to the hospital. The two vehicles were impounded."
In Hathazari, two motorcyclists, Miraz and Faruk, died after being hit by an ambulance.
Cop among 3 dead in Sylhet, Habiganj road accidents
They were declared dead after being brought around 8:30 pm, said Dr Arefin Azim of the Hathazari Upazila Health Complex.
Arrest warrant issued against Hashem Foods MD, DGM
Labour court in Narayanganj issued arrest warrants against Managing Director Abul Hashem and Deputy General Manager Mamunur Rashid of Hashem Foods Limited, owned by Sajeeb Group.
Labour Court Judge Kiran Sankar Halder issued the warrants in a case filed by the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments, said Court Police Inspector Asaduzzaman.
On June 30, 2021, Nesar Uddin Ahmed, inspector of the Narayanganj district branch of the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments, filed the case, alleging several irregularities, including a lack of adequate safety measures in the factory, inconsistency of the factory's machine layout plan with the approved design, an unsafe electrical system, and the employment of child labourers.
Just one week after this case was filed, a devastating fire broke out at the Hasem Foods Limited factory located in Narayanganj’s Rupganj, which claimed the lives of 54 workers, including women and children.
A murder case was filed on July 10, 2021, at Rupganj police station against eight people. On September 4, 2023, the CID submitted the charge sheet to the court, excluding Abul Hasem and his four sons.