United News of Bangladesh

“Language must be free”—guided by this solemn statement, Avro, Bangladesh’s first free and open-source graphical keyboard software, emerged in 2003 and revolutionized the Bengali typing system forever. Marking a groundbreaking leap over traditional intricate and paid methods, Avro shattered barriers and made Bengali input on digital devices effortless and free from commercial constraints. Let’s reminisce about this transformative software's dramatic journey and the story of its visionary innovator, Mehdi Hasan's Team. A Young Dreamer with a Striking Idea . At the 2003 Ekushey Book Fair, Mehdi Hasan Khan, then a higher-secondary student with a passion for programming and technology, attended the “Bangla Linux” display held by a voluntary organization, Bangla Innovation through Open Source (BIOS). There he saw the first Bengali website using a Unicode model named, Unibangla, which was designed for Linux. Moved by the display, young Mehdi began researching “Bangla Linux,” which included an on-screen click-based keyboard for typing Bengali. Overwhelmed by the lack of a similar option for Windows, Mehdi developed the idea of a new simplified multi-platform Bengali keyboard. Read more: How to Verify If Your Smartphone is Truly Brand New and Never Used Before From Ideation to Existence Obsessed with the idea of a unique Bengali typing software, Mehdi Hasan immediately started the project. After looking up the dictionary, he selected “Avro,” which translates to “Sky,” as the project name.  A Windows-compatible prototype of the Avro Keyboard was developed using the Visual Basic programming language. The prototype followed a layout similar to the then-popular Bijoy layout, which was later replaced with Avro Easy, the phenomenal phonetic layout. On March 26, 2003, Mehdi released a primary version of the Avro Keyboard. To provide broad and easy access to the software, he published a new website, OmicronLab. By that time, he had become a student at Mymensingh Medical College and was put under a massive study load. In addition, OmicronLab’s forum section slowly began receiving feedback and advice for further upgradation. To help Mehdi cope with the response, joined Rifat Un Nabi, Tanbin Islam Siam, Shabab Mustafa, and Omar Osman in the development. Read more: 7 Top AI Writing Tools, Software to Generate Human-Like Text Currently, Avro uses Delphi replacing Visual Basic for the Windows version. The Linux version, primarily developed with C++, has shifted to iBus and JavaScript, while the macOS version uses Objective-C.

Posts, Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar, serving in the technocrat (non-MP) quota, submitted his resignation letter on Sunday. Jubo League member injured in cocktail blast at city’s Paltan area “I submitted my resignation letter to the Cabinet Division as per the directive of the Prime Minister,” said Mustafa Jabbar while talking to reporters at his office on Monday. Dhaka Metro Rail Passes: How to Buy and Recharge However, there will be no obstruction in performing duties until the government accepts the resignation, he said. Earlier, the Prime Minister asked the technocrat  ministers to resign from their respective posts ahead of the 12th Parliamentary election, slated to be held on January 7, he added. Three vehicles set ablaze in Dhaka, Rajshahi, Gazipur

Post and Telecommunication Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Thursday said to progress in life students must develop other skills alongside traditional education. “Class education is only a small part of building a career. To progress in life, one must develop other skills along with education. Among them, developing leadership qualities and communication skills are one of them," the minister said while speaking as a chief guest at a symposium titled "Leadership Skills for Smart Bangladesh." UGC-The British Council sign an Operational Alliance Agreement in Dhaka The symposium was held on Thursday at the Dr. Mohammad Habibullah Conference Hall of Dhaka University in an initiative of Actionist Foundation. Dr. Bernd Spanier, charge d’affairs of European Union Delegation to Bangladesh was present at the symposium as a special guest. The event was presided over by Actionist Foundation Founder and Executive Director A.N.M. Fakhrul Amin Farhad. Mohiuddin Bhuiyan and Khadija Akhtar Urmi were responsible for conducting the program. Welcome speech was provided by Raisa Naser, Head of communication of the organisation. UGC, British Council sign deal to enhance quality education Masud Khan, chairman of Unilever Consumer Care Limited said in the discussion, "We are guided by our mind. So our psychology has a lot of influence in our personal and professional life. That is why mental wellbeing is necessary for us. We have to overcome negativity and have a positive mindset." "Along with mental training, our physical training is also important. There is no substitute for physical exercise to stay active," he added. During his speech, Manik Mahmood, head of social innovation at A2I Program said the students are not aware of the huge gap in academic and work life skills. “But at work they face problems (due to lack of work life skills,” he said. EUB holds its first convocation Meanwhile, Star Cineplex Chairperson, Mahboob Rahman said, "We can never ignore the skill issue. Word, PowerPoint, Excel among many skills will be needed in our daily life and we should learn it seriously. Besides this, we must ensure the proper management of social media."  

Post and Telecommunications and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Tuesday told Parliament that state-owned mobile phone operator Teletalk Bangladesh Limited owes some Tk 1694.73 crore to the government. The minister said this replying to a question from Awami League lawmaker AKM Sarwar Jahan. The question-answer session was tabled in the House after the day’s sitting began with Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury in the chair. Of the total outstanding amount, Tk 1585.13 crore is for 3G spectrum assignment fee, while Tk 27.15 crore for spectrum charge, Tk 33.79 crore for revenue share and Tk 48.66 crore for SOF (Service Order Form), said Mustafa Jabbar. He said Citycell has an outstanding payment of Tk 128.698 crore with the government.  

Bijoy keyboard software installation in all android phones not mandatory, said Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Wednesday. Amid criticism over the matter, the minister clarified this while talking to reporters on the 2nd day of Deputy Commissioners Conference 2023 at the Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the capital. Read more: 'Environment for 5G rollout already in place': Mustafa Jabbar “I have an explanation that Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has used a word – ‘Mandatory’. This term is misleading,” said the minister. One can install, uninstall, remove and reinstall any software on any Android phone. So there is no need to use the word ‘mandatory’, he  said. Jabbar said, “What we said that the mobile phone set manufacturers or importers will provide software to facilitate Bangla writing. Whether a user uses the software or not is entirely up to him/her.” Regarding the internet service, he said the 4G service has been provided in more than 98 percent area of the country. “Now we are working with 5G which is 10 times more powerful than 4G.” Read more: Mustafa Jabbar wants fixed rate for internet packages across operators Besides, there are more than 10 crore mobile internet subscribers and some fixed internet subscribers too, he said. “We should give more importance to mobile internet.” “But we are not able to install towers for network in different parts of the country. Some people spread propaganda that towers are emitting radiation. We have tested and found that these are propaganda. People should not obstruct the towers installation work.”

Digital Bangladesh is a resounding success and Nagad, a mobile financial service of Bangladesh Postal Department, is a vivid example of that success, Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar has said. “Bangladesh is an agriculture-dependent country, but many are now envious of its rapid technological development. One of the major positive outcomes of digitalisation is that we have almost moved towards a cashless society,” the minister told journalists at a programme marking Digital Bangladesh Day-2022 in Daak Bhaban, on Monday.  Read more: FY22: Nagad 3rd highest VAT-paying company in service category, says NBR “We can now make all kinds of financial transactions, including cash-out and cash-in and shopping, through mobile financial services,” Jabbar said, adding that Nagad is playing a big role in this regard. Starting off in 2019, Nagad has now become one of the most popular MFS in the country, he noted. Bangladesh Posts and Telecommunications Division organised a “Digital Postal Service Exhibition” to celebrate Digital Bangladesh Day on Tuesday. It also held a meeting with Posts and Telecommunications Secretary Md Khalilur Rahman in the chair. Presenting a keynote, Prof Dr Mohammad Mahfuzul Islam, vice-chancellor of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Digital University, said, “The most digitalisation has happened in Bangladesh’s financial sector. Mobile financial service providers in particular have revolutionised this field. We can mention the name of Nagad as an example.” Read more: Nagad wins Mastercard Excellence Award 2022 in two categories Posts and Telecommunications Secretary Md Khalilur Rahman shared his experience about Digital Bangladesh with everyone and urged all to adapt to the progress. Dr Md Rafiqul Matin, managing Director of Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Ltd, and Brigadier General Md Nasim Parvej, director general of Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, and Shyam Sunder Sikder, chairman of the Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, also spoke on the occasion. Md Harunur Rashid, director general of the Postal Department, gave the welcome address. There were eight stalls at the Postal Department’s exhibition. The visitors were appraised of different digital services, such as electronic money transfer service, postal cash card, online postal life insurance, digital land services, and mobile financial service of Nagad, etc.  Mustafa Jabbar and other guests visited these stalls. Guests came to Nagad’s stall and enquired about cash-out, cash-in and other services. They also learned about how to buy products using the Nagad wallet. Nagad officials gave the guests an idea of how much money is being saved every year as a result of the distribution of various government allowances through Nagad.

The environment required for rolling out 5G services in the country is already in place, Post and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar said on Tuesday. The minister was speaking at a roundtable discussion on '5G Technology: Prospects and Actions' organised by Telecom Reporters' Network, Bangladesh (TRNB) and  mobile operator Robi at a city hotel. “Along with the business purpose of 5G, we all need to work towards solving the problems of the people,” he added. Read more: '5G can change the face of industry in Bangladesh' Speaking at the same event, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) Chairman Shyam Sunder Sikder said an integrated market survey needs to be conducted to understand how the 5G services can be rolled out commercially. Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) can play a leading role in this regard, he added. However, Hossain Sadat, corporate affairs officer of Grameenphone, said the ecosystem needs to be transformed to roll out 5G here. Besides, the towers will need a lot of electricity. “5G spectrum needs to be rolled out, we have 700 and 3.5 spectrum ready,” said BTRC system and service division director general Brigadier General Md Nasim Parvez "If necessary the existing policies will be changed for the welfare of all. Even if there is a need to share the spectrum, initiatives will be taken," he added. Read more: Modi unveils 5G mobile internet services in India At the event, the managing director of the state-owned Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL) Md Rafiqul Matin said, “We are connecting the economic zones. We are trying to use a 5G connection when it rolls out. Working together with all the operators, we will move forward through infrastructure sharing.”

Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Sunday urged mobile operators to come up with a fixed rate for the internet packages they provide. Currently, the package rate is not acceptable and mobile data should be provided at a fixed rate, he said after inaugurating the latest benchmarking system at the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) to monitor the quality of service of mobile operators in the city. Read more: 5G internet within December: BTRC “Operators introduce and sell packages as they wish, there must be an acceptance when you sell the package,” Jabbar said. The minister also said the operators are unable to meet customer demand because 2018 spectrum and 2022 spectrum purchases are yet to be rolled out, he added. “And so, the customer service has to be questioned. We have put the operators under pressure. They have never before been under such pressure,” he added. Read more: Palak calls for Global Internet Governance Council & Frontier Technology Guidelines under UN The minister urged the BTRC to take steps to resolve the data package rate issue.

Minister for Posts and Telecommunications Mustafa Jabbar wants inclusion of ‘Cyber Security’ in primary school curriculum of Bangladesh. Jabbar came up with the remarks while addressing, as chief guest, a discussion on ‘Youth workshop for safe internet-2022’ organised to create awareness on cyber security at the Conference Centre of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) on Thursday (October 13, 2022). BTRC Chairman Shyam Sunder Sikdar presided over the programme where Cyber Crime Awareness Foundation President Kazi Mustafiz delivered welcome speech, Director General of BTRC’s System and Services Division Brigadier General Md Nasim Parvez presented the keynote speech.   Read: Workshop on digital literacy for cyber security held Urging the Home Ministry to underscore digital crimes, Jabbar said every police station should have a cyber or digital crime unit with trained officials. The BTRC chairman said they took an initiative to set up a cyber-observation lab to ensure security. He said the Education Ministry should take steps to initiate class on cyber security, one day a week, to generate awareness among students. Read Specific policy needed to ensure cyber security of power sector: Nasrul Hamid “Though none should refrain from using technology, we should be more careful and protect our families and society from digital crime,” the BTRC chairman observed. He said BTRC has already submitted an outline to bring owners of social media platforms under law to the ministry. Daffodil International University’s Computer Science and Engineering department Head Prof Dr Touhid Bhuiyan, Digital Security Agency Director Tarique M Barkatullah and Additional Commissioner of Cyber Security department of police Nazmul Islam, among others spoke at the discussion on ‘Youth workshop for safe internet-2022’.    Read Cybersecurity Career Guide: How to Become a Cybersecurity Expert?

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) in its latest crackdown on online gambling and betting has blocked 331 websites. On September 24, Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar said the government had permanently blocked 6,000 gambling sites. In a notice issued Monday, the telecom regulator BTRC said it also reported gambling and betting apps and links to Google, Facebook, and YouTube for blocking. Read BTRC: Compensation for call drops from Oct 1 "Google blocked 14 gambling-related apps in Bangladesh after receiving more than 150 complaints. The multinational technology company is taking steps to review the other complaints," the telecom watchdog said. The BTRC reported 27 links to Facebook and 69 to YouTube for gambling and betting lessons. The two social media giants blocked 17 links each and are reviewing the rest. Credit or debit cards are required to buy game chips. As it has become easier to get credit or debit cards in Bangladesh, many have turned to online gambling or betting. Taking advantage of this, criminal groups are siphoning off crores of taka from Bangladesh, the BTRC said. Read BTRC launches new unlimited data packages The country's laws do not allow gambling and betting in Bangladesh. However, completing registration through credit or debit cards or mobile financial services, many are getting involved in online gambling or betting through diverse apps or websites during domestic or international football, cricket, tennis, and other matches after.  Shutting down the gambling and betting websites in Bangladesh, BTRC aims to continue Bangladesh government's sucess in removing harmful contents from the virtual world.