Md Golam Sarwar has been made secretary of the Law and Justice Division under the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs. The Law Ministry issued a gazette notification in this regard on Wednesday.  He had been performing as the acting secretary of the Law and Justice Division since August 8, 2019. Golam Sarwar joined the judicial cadre service through the 10th BCS examination. He started his career at Dhaka district judge court as an apprentice assistant judge on December 11, 1991. Also read: PM’s press secretary Ihsanul Karim gets another 2-year extension 

The Ministry of Religious Affairs is set to launch a comprehensive programme to promote communal harmony in the country. The year-long outreach project will cost Tk25 crore and be implemented by media and ICT consultant organisations. The implementing organisations will distribute leaflets, posters, and newsletters containing messages of religious harmony among people of different beliefs. They will also create advertisements and audio-visual content. Bangladhol Limited and REVE Systems recently signed an agreement with the religious affairs ministry to implement the project as media and ICT consultants. Read: Communicate anti-terrorism, anti-militancy messages through local mosque: religious affairs ministry State Minister for Religious Affairs Faridul Haque Khan and Religious Affairs Secretary Kazi Enamul Hasan were presented at the agreement signing ceremony.

State Minister for Planning Shamsul Alam Thursday called for setting up a separate ministry or a separate division under the Ministry of Science and Technology to ensure proper use of the blue economy through resource exploration and resource exploitation. He was addressing the hybrid seminar "Blue Economy and Maritime Security: Bangladesh Perspective" organised by the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS). The state minister emphasised the contribution of the blue economy to Bangladesh's future sustainable development efforts. He also highlighted the importance of knowledge mobilisation and conducting research on the area. Major General Mohammad Maksudur Rahman, director general of BIISS, emphasised creating a blue economy belt to use the huge untapped resources of the vast area of the sea. Rear Admiral Md Khurshed Alam (retired), secretary at the Maritime Affairs Unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, attended the seminar as a special guest. Ambassador Kazi Imtiaz Hossain, chairman of BIISS, chaired the inaugural session. Dhaka University Professor Delwar Hossain, Jahangirnagar University Professor Abul Kalam Azad, BIISS Research Director Mahfuz Kabir, and Research Fellow Moutusi Islam also spoke at the seminar.                                    

The government will sell milk, egg, and meat at subsidised rates for mass people at 10 locations in the capital from Sunday. Fisheries and Livestock Minister SM Rezaul Karim will inaugurate the sale at the Livestock Services Department premises in the city, the ministry said in a press release issued on Saturday. The Fisheries and Livestock Ministry decided to implement the mobile marketing system to meet people’s needs of animal protein and nutrition keeping the prices stable and increasing the supply of meat, milk, egg with the assistance of traders, producers and supply chain stakeholders. Also read: Prices of essentials to stay tolerable during Ramadan: PM The sale of the food items will continue till 28th  Ramadan where the government’s mobile vehicles will sell pasteurized milk at Tk 60 per liter, beef at Tk 550 per Kg, mutton at Tk 800 per Kg, dressed broiler chicken at Tk 200 per Kg and four eggs at Tk 30. The mobile sale activities will be launched at 10 locations in the city initially. These are Abdul Gani Road adjacent to the secretariat, Khamarbari Gol Chattar, Japan Garden City, Mirpur 60 feet road, Ajimpur Matrisadan, Noyabazar in old town, Arambagh, Notun Bazar, Kalshi in Mirpur, and Jatrabari. Also read: Ramadan begins in 40 Chandpur villages Livestock and Dairy Development project under the Livestock Services Department will provide overall assistance in the sale activities. Besides, Bangladesh Dairy Farmers’ Association (BDFA) and Bangladesh Poultry Industries Central Council (BPICC) are involved in it.

The government has appointed Mehdi Hasan, currently serving as the Director General (Administration) at the Ministry, as the next Ambassador of Bangladesh to Sweden. Ambassador-designate Mehdi Hasan is a career diplomat belonging to the 17th batch of the BCS (Foreign Affairs) cadre, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday. Also read: Two newly-appointed Bangladesh ambassadors call on President Hamid In his diplomatic career, he served as the Consul General in Hong Kong and Counsellor in Manama. He also served at Bangladesh Missions in Moscow and New Delhi in different capacities. Mehdi Hasan did his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and Masters in Water Resource Engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering & Technology (BUET). Also read: Nazmul Islam new Bangladesh Ambassador to Oman He obtained a ‘Diploma’ (Masters) in International Relations from the International Institute of Public Administration in Paris.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday directed the Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry to make the overseas employment process very transparent and conduct massive campaign to raise the jobseekers’ awareness. She asked authorities concerned to promote overseas jobseekers to take loans from Probashi Kallyan Bank instead of selling lands to go abroad. Sheikh Hasina gave the directives while chairing the virtual Cabinet meeting from her official residence Ganobhaban. The other concerned were connected with the meeting from the Bangladesh Secretariat. “The Prime Minister has instructed that the process will have to be made very precise and transparent for those who would go abroad,” said Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam while briefing reporters at the Secretariat after the meeting. Also read: 90pc Cabinet’s decisions implemented in 3 years “The Prime Minister also instructed to carry out massive campaign in media – television channels, radios and newspapers—informing them (overseas jobseekers) about the exact authority and the amount of expense and asking them to go abroad taking loans from Probashi Kallyan Bank, if they need money, as the bank doesn’t provide a loan without job confirmation letters. So, they will be safe… they will not be deceived,” he said. The ministry also asked to take steps so that Bangladeshi workers  need not to pay extra money for getting  the overseas jobs and they can go abroad contacting the ministry and its directorates concerned, said the Cabinet Secretary. Because, many Bangladeshi workers go abroad making direct payment and knowing nothing about the jobs upon assurance by a class of middlemen, he said adding  some such cases were also discussed in the Cabinet meeting. “If they take loans from the bank instead of selling lands, the bank would not pay money until confirmation of their appointment. So, they would remain safe,” he added. Some Bangladeshis went to Malaysia spending Tk 3-4 lakh, but many of them could not recovered their cost in two years and returned home empty handed, said Anwarul Islam. Also read: Cabinet clears draft law over EC formation In the meeting, the Prime Minister also instructed the authorities concerned to raise another issue before the jobseekers that tens of thousands of workers will be required in the 100 industrial parks including Mirsarai economic zone which are now being constructed at different places in the country. In order to get a job with handsome income in the country, the jobseekers can be asked to build their capacity and take training knowing the job requirements in the industrial parks, she said. The Cabinet approved in principle the draft of Bangladesh Forest Industries Development Corporation Act, 2022, aiming to run the corporation under a time-befitting law. The meeting also endorsed the draft of Bangladesh National Conservation Strategy 2021-2036, formulated in both Bengali and English in a bid to conserve the natural environment and resources properly. “Some 10-12 ministries are involved here who will sit regularly to take plans as per the strategy and implement the programmes to protect our environment,” said Anwarul Islam. Besides, the Cabinet approved the Import Policy Order, 2022-2025, aiming to make the policy a time-befitting one. As per the policy, the retailers can import goods of maximum US$ 0.5 million instead of US$ 0.2 million through TT (Telegraphic Transfer of money) instead of LC.

The cabinet committee formed over e-commerce issues by the Commerce Ministry has sought the opinion of the Law and Justice Division for retrieving Tk 214 crore stuck in the payment gateways and returning it to the customers. Additional Secretary of the ministry and coordinator of the committee AHM Shafiquzzaman said this to journalists after attending the third meeting of the committee held at the secretariat on Tuesday. AHM Shafiquzzaman said letters had already been sent to the Public Security Division and Crime Investigation Department (CID) of police for returning the amount stuck in escrow or the gateway. Also read: 49 e-commerce platforms are blacklisted, refund of customers’ money in process: Commerce Ministry In the meantime, the Cabinet Secretary held a meeting with CID, Bangladesh Bank and another involved to discuss the process of returning money, he said. Following the meeting, legal opinion from the Law and Justice Division was sought as a huge amount is stuck due to pending cases. Depending on the opinion, they might be able to return the amount which is out of legal issues, he said. Also read: E-commerce firms must get registered within 2 months: Cabinet Replying to a question the secretary said, “It is taking time to return the money because CID has freezed it.”

The Ministry of Education is planning to take classes one day a week after the reopening of schools and colleges on September 12, said Deputy Minister for Education Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel on Saturday. Nowfel said this while talking to journalists after attending a function at Chattogram Medical College and Hospital. “We’re hopeful of starting physical classes following the Education Minister’s announcement and our primary plan is to take classes one day a week but it may be changed,” he said. Also read: Schools, colleges to reopen on Sept 12: Dipu Moni  Efforts will continue to take the SSC and HSC exams through in-person presence with a brief syllabus but the assignment works will continue as before, he said.   The long closure of schools and colleges due to the Covid-19 pandemic has created a mental pressure on the students and there had been efforts to continue education online but that was not enough, Nowfel added.

No unauthorised kits can be used for coronavirus test, said the Health and Family Welfare Ministry on Saturday.   Md Habibur Rahman Khan, additional secretary to the Health Services Division and convener of the media cell formed by the ministry, came up with the information while replying to a query from reporters about unauthorised kits available in the market during a briefing.   “No coronavirus testing kits without government’s approval will be accepted,” he said, adding that coronavirus test is being conducted under government arrangement only with approved kits following the instructions of the World Health Organization (WHO).   The government is working as per the WHO directives over rapid testing kits, the media cell chief said.   A number of 44 officials of the Health Ministry are monitoring the health services in all hospitals of the country to prevent the coronavirus, he said.   The government is also working to appoint another 2,000 doctors and 6,000 nurses, Habibur said, adding that two separate vehicles are there in every district for using in coronavirus testing process.   Meanwhile, Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury, one of the founders of Gonoshasthaya Kendra, on Saturday said they will hand over their coronavirus testing kits to the government formally on Sunday.   However, a representative of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, (BSMMU) received some testing kits on Saturday from Gonoshasthaya Kendra’s Dhanmondi office.   Gonoshasthaya Kendra has developed an “easy, effective and cheap” method to test coronavirus or Covid-19.

More than 27 million people have been benefitted by relief schemes undertaken by the government to mitigate the sufferings of people amidst the coronavirus outbreak.   The Disaster Management and Relief Ministry made the disclosure in a press release on Thursday.   “Of the 92,480 metric tonnes of rice allocated for 64 districts, 71,098 MT have so far been distributed. This has benefitted 6,090,090 families and 27.6 million people,” it said.