LGRD Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan has said the government is moving away from a submissive foreign policy towards India. Instead, the foundation of bilateral relations between Bangladesh and India will now be based on equality and justice, he said at the closing ceremony of a training workshop in Cumilla on Wednesday. 'Tarunner Utsab' aims to rebuild nation and strengthen unity: Asif Mahmud Bangladesh Rural Development Academy (BRDA) organized the workshop titled "Achieving Sustainable Development Goals: Financial Inclusion & Rural Transformation" Saif Uddin Ahmed, director general of BRDA, chaired the closing ceremony. "After the July Uprising, the Interim Government has moved away from a submissive foreign policy with India; the bilateral relations between the two countries will now be built on the basis of equality and justice,” said Asif. Govt committed to ensuring cost-effective, high-quality energy: Rizwana He also expressed strong discontent over the attack at the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in India’s Agartala, saying that the Interim Government had officially protested over the matter. The adviser reiterated that national development could be achieved through financial inclusion and rural development. He lauded the event by LGRD ministry, BRDA, and the African-Asian Rural Development Organization (ARDO), encouraging more such programs and expressed his optimism that participants would use the knowledge gained to contribute to rural development. Cumilla to be made division soon: Asif Mahmud  

There are no legal barriers for cricketer Shakib Al Hasan to return to Bangladesh, said Asif Mahmood Sojib Bhuiyan, adviser to the Ministry of Youth and Sports on Tuesday.“There are currently no legal obstacles to Shakib Al Hasan coming to the country,” said Asif. We have a responsibility to ensure the safety of every player, and we will do it,” he said while speaking at the “BSRF Exchange of Views” event at the media centre of the Secretariat. Shakib Al Hasan ‘sorry for silence’ during student movement He further explained that he had sought clarity on the legal situation over Shakib's potential return, given the ongoing murder case against him.When asked whether Shakib would be arrested upon his arrival, Asif said, “Legal matters are legal matters; I cannot comment on that. The case is sub judice, and the Ministry of Law is the appropriate authority to address any concerns related to it.”“If the court issues any order that are a matter for the court. So far, there are no legal barriers,” he said. BFIU seeks bank account information of Shakib Al Hasan, his wife BSRF General Secretary Masudul Haque conducted the session, while Fosiha Uddin Mahtab presided over the event.

Youth and Sports Affairs Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan on Wednesday stressed the need for building social awareness to restore order on the streets. “We could not yet create awareness among our people. You should abide by traffic rules and laws. We don’t follow traffic light signals in most cases. We will have to build social awareness in this regard,” he said. The adviser made the remark while addressing the inaugural session of a workshop (phase-II) on traffic management and social awareness at the auditorium of the National Sports Council in the city’s Purana Paltan area. The Youth Development Department arranged the workshop to impart training to some 2,100 youths in phases. Committee to address labor issues and complaints formed: Adviser Asif Pointing at the trainees, Asif asked them to play a strong role in building social awareness over traffic rules and signals. He hoped that the trainees would gather field-level experiences from this training. Asif thanked the youth as they have been helping the government and traffic police to restore order on the streets since August 5 last. Youth and Sports Secretary Rezaul Maksud Jahedi also spoke at the function presided over by Director General of Youth Development Department Dr. Gazi Md. Saifuzzaman.