United News of Bangladesh

Students from across Bangladesh will be able to attend International School Dhaka (ISD) with reduced fees under a new scholarship scheme.  The first International Baccalaureate (IB) World School in Bangladesh, ISD, has launched the scholarship programme to mark its 25 years and offer opportunities to diverse groups, according to a press release. Accordingly, it has started accepting applications for terms starting in January and August 2024 for grades 9, 10, and 11, which span students between the ages of 14 and 17 years. "We offer exceptional opportunities for talented and deserving students to join us in our development and be a critical part of our future. As an international school, diversity is significant, which is why we provide more opportunities for families nationwide to benefit from the world-class learning experience,” said Director of the School, Steve Calland-Scoble.  He urged the parents who are ambitious for their children's future to get in contact and discover how they could become part of a "vibrant and successful community." Each scholarship will be offered for a year, with the expectation that it will be extended in the future, subject to student performance and meeting other requirements, said the release. The winners can get up to 90 percent waiver on school fees and also get full waiver on their admission fee, it said. New students will join an international community and benefit from the teaching of the IB curriculum. The students who secure scholarships will need to demonstrate leadership capabilities and a commitment to service learning and co-curricular activities, the release also said. The scholarship details and application form are available on ISD’s official website (https://www.isdbd.org/scholarship-program).

Professor Dr Nizamul Karim was appointed chairman of the Cumilla Board of Secondary and Higher Education on Tuesday. Prior to this role, he served as the director general (DG) of the National Academy for Educational Management (NAEM). The appointment was announced through a notification issued on Tuesday, signed by Chowdhury Samia Yasmin, deputy secretary of the Secondary and Higher Education Division under the Ministry of Education. Born in 1966 in Cumilla’s Chauddagram, Nizamul completed his SSC and HSC examinations from the Cumilla Education Board. He pursued his honour's and master’s degrees in management from Chittagong University. Additionally, he obtained a PhD in management from the Institute of Bangladesh Studies (IBS) of Rajshahi University. Nizamul Karim is a BCS (General Education) cadre officer. He began his career in 1993 as a lecturer in management at Comilla Victoria Government College and achieved the position of professor in 2017. Throughout his professional journey, he worked in the fields of management and education administration, holding various significant positions.    

New textbook distribution among primary and secondary school students began across the country on Monday. The festival was held at 10 am on the premises of National Government Primary School in the capital's Mirpur. State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Ministry Md Zakir Hossain was present at the event as the chief guest. Secretary Farid Ahmed was present as special guest with Director General of the Directorate of Primary and Mass Education Shah Rezwan Hayat in the chair.  Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday launched the distribution of free textbooks for the academic year 2024. According to the Ministry of Education, although there was no central distribution programme for secondary level text books, different institutions across the country are distributing books among the students. Textbook distribution activities will continue until afternoon and all students will get their books, the ministry said. The National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) said that it has delivered 100% books up to class seven to the upazilas. The upazila education office is coordinating and distributing the books as per the demand of the educational institutions. But 20-25% of books for class eight and nine are still not printed. The rest of the books will be printed and delivered to the students this month, NCTB said. The ministries concerned have taken necessary steps to distribute 30,70,83,517 copies of new textbooks among 3,81,28,324 students throughout the country. The government has so far distributed over 464,78,29,883 copies of free textbooks among students up to secondary levels across the country since 2010. Since 2017, the government has been distributing braille books among visually impaired students alongside distributing Chakma, Marma, Tripura, Garo and Sadri version books among students from the ethnic groups to study in their mother languages.  

Every year, thousands of Bangladeshi students go abroad for higher studies. Researches show that the number of students going abroad has tripled over the last 15 years. With such a huge volume of students going abroad, there is a natural question: How are the living costs or the tuition fees transferred from Bangladesh? This is where the student file comes in.  What is a Student File?  According to the regulation of Bangladesh Bank, there is no direct channel to send money to a foreign account from an existing local savings/current account. There is also a limit on how much foreign currency can be carried in each foreign trip (US$ 12,000) as well as a limit on credit card payments.  In such a scenario, a student opting to study abroad faces an imminent challenge regarding tuition fee payment or remitting the cost of living. Some European universities require students to maintain a “Block Account” which essentially withholds the entire cost of study and disburses locally to the students as per their need.  Read more: Study in Ireland: Application process, cost for international students A student file essentially bypasses this regulation legally where the bank remits the payment on behalf of the student. A student file is the only authorized way through which a student can send their tuition fee or remit the living cost abroad.  How to Open a Student File?  The process of opening a student file is pretty straightforward. At first, the student or their legal guardian needs to open a savings account with a relevant bank that offers the student file service. After that, the bank can entertain the request for opening a student account.  Typically, a student account can be opened on the same day as that of the application. The cost of opening a student file and the documents required vary from bank to bank. Read more: Study in Thailand: Admission process, cost for International Students But first, here’s what’s needed to open a savings account.  - Passport-size picture of the account holder (to be attested by the introducer)- NID/ Passport copy - Passport-size picture of the nominee - NID/Passport copy of the nominee - Utility bill copy (for address verification). Typically, the following documents are required for opening a student file in any bank.  - All academic certificates (original and copy)- All academic transcripts (original and copy)- IELTS certificate - Copy of passport - Visa document - Acceptance letter from the university - Tuition and living cost certificate - Detailed information about the financer. Read more: Higher Study Opportunities in Turkey for International Students: Process, Cost Which Banks Provide Student File Service?  Several leading banks in Bangladesh provide student file service including some government banks. However, it is important to note that due to the recent dollar crunch and new regulations from Bangladesh Bank, some banks are not opening new student files but are continuing to operate the existing ones. Also, having a savings account in the relevant bank is a key prerequisite for opening a student file. 

The Election Commission (EC) has allowed the Ministry of Education to celebrate the new book distribution programme (Boi Utsav) on January 1, 2024. "As it is a routine work of the government to distribute new textbooks across the country on the first day of the academic year on January 1, 2024, as in other years, the EC has given its consent to celebrate the programme," according to a letter signed by Md Atiar Rahman, deputy secretary of the Election Commission. "Divisional commissioners, district commissioners, upazila executive officers and all concerned will regularly distribute books among the students of various educational institutions of their respective places," it said. It will continue if the Prime Minister also gives her kind consent to start the book distribution programme officially. Only Suaganj Tafajjal Ahmed Chowdhury High School and College under Sadar Dakshin Upazila of Comilla District won't be allowed to arrange this programme, but the letter did not divulge any reasons for this. The EC requested to take further necessary action in this regard.

The 43rd BCS result aspirants continued their sit-in programme in front of the Bangladesh Public Service Commission (BPSC) demanding the cancellation of the current non-cadre circular and separate publication of cadre and non-cadre results. The candidates have been continuously protesting against the non-cadre circular of the 43rd BCS, claiming it to be farcical and discriminatory   They started today's program at 10am in front of BPSC wearing shrouds demanding the publication of a new non-cadre circular by increasing the number of non-cadre posts. The candidates have announced to continue the program until their demands are met. The job seekers chanted various slogans demanding cancellation of non-cadre notification and publication of cadre and non-cadre results separately and increasing the posts in line with the previous BCS. Earlier, they held various programs including press conferences, human chains in front of PSC wearing shrouds and sit-in programmes to meet their demand. Earlier, on Thursday, the result aspirants formed a human chain and staged a sit-in program in front of the Public Service Commission (PSC) demanding the re-publication of the non-cadre circular of 43rd BCS increasing the number of non-cadre posts. More than 200 job seekers took up positions in front of the PSC from 10:30 am and chanted slogans. At that time, many candidates were seen taking up their positions wearing shrouds. Earlier on Monday, the result aspirants held a press conference at Maulana Akram Khan Hall of the National Press Club demanding the cancellation of the circular and separate publication of cadre and non-cadre results. The result aspirants alleged that the meritorious job seekers are losing confidence in the PSC. The PSC is trying to publish cadre and non-cadre results of the 43rd BCS together. But out of the 1342 posts in the non-cadre circular, only 360 posts are for general candidates where six to seven thousand general candidates will be forced to return empty-handed, they said.    

The MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) admission test for the next academic year will be held on February 9 while the admission test for Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) will be held on March 8, 2024. The decision was taken at a meeting on the MBBS and Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) admission tests for the academic year 2023-24 held at the Health Ministry on Sunday. Read: Human chain formed demanding cancellation of 43rd BCS non-cadre circular  Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque presided over the meeting. Talking to reporters after the meeting the Health Minister said all medical coaching centres across the country will remain shut for one month from January 9. Like the previous year, the minimum pass mark was fixed at 40. Meanwhile, foreign students can apply to appear in the admission test on January 4 while students from the country can apply from January 11 online. A circular on the admission test will be issued on January 10, he said. The application submission deadline will end on January 23 and the students can pay fees till January 24, said the minister adding that the roll number and seat plan will be known by January 26 while the admit card will be provided on February 5. The exam will begin at 10 am and the government fixed Tk 1,000 as admission fee, said the minister. Read: DU admission test: Students demand cancellation of  transgender quota MBBS admission test will be held against 11,728 seats—of these, 5,380 seats are available for government medical colleges while 6,348 seats are available in private medical colleges while 375 seats are available in army-run colleges. Replying to a question over leakage of question paper, the minister said “There was no complaint about the medical admission test question in the past five years. We have brought many developments in medical admission tests as  the system has been modernised and all are controlled digitally.” Read: Govt primary school assistant teachers' written test result published  Earlier, the MBBS admissions test for the 2022-23 session was held on March 10, 2023. A total of 1,39,217 applicants competed for 11,122 seats in the medical college admission test.

The 43rd BCS result aspirants have been continuously protesting against the non-cadre circular of the 43rd BCS, claiming it to be farcical and discriminatory. The candidates formed a human chain at the Central Shaheed Minar on Saturday demanding the cancellation of the current circular and separate publication of cadre and non-cadre results. Earlier, they held various programs including press conferences, human chains in front of PSC wearing shrouds and sit-in programmes to meet their demand. In today's human chain, the job seekers again demanded to cancel the non-cadre choice list of the 43rd BCS and publish a new circular with more posts and no discrimination in line with the previous BCS. Read: Non-cadre aspirants stage sit-in in front of PSC The BCS result aspirants said that although there is no rule to publish cadre and non-cadre results together, the PSC has announced to publish the results together for the 43rd BCS. As a result, the number of non-cadre posts has decreased significantly. Speakers at the human chain also said their movement will continue until their demands are met. “We have no choice but to protest.” Earlier, on Thursday, the result aspirants formed a human chain and staged a sit-in program in front of the Public Service Commission (PSC) demanding the re-publication of the non-cadre circular of 43rd BCS increasing the number of non-cadre posts. More than 200 job seekers took up positions in front of the PSC from 10:30 am and chanted slogans. Read: 43rd BCS: Demand to increase the number of posts by canceling non-cadre circular At that time, many candidates were seen taking up their positions wearing shrouds.

Police recovered the body of a 61-year-old man body underneath a bridge in the Nakaihat area on the Gobindaganj-Gaibandha road on Saturday. The body was recovered around 11:30 am on Saturday. Shakib’s election campaign in Magura in full force The deceased was identified as Dhirendranath Saha, of Choto Narayanpur village of the upazila. Gobindaganj Police Station Officer-in-Charge Shamsul Alam Shah confirmed the matter. According to his family, he went missing a few days ago, and they filed a case at the police station on Friday, said the OC. Khulna Cancer hospital project sees slow progress The process of filing a case over the matter is underway, added the police official.

The  Vice-Chancellor of Jagannath University (JnU), Prof. Sadeka Halim on Friday expressed her desire to see the Awami League in state power again. The newly appointed Vice-Chancellor said this while talking to reporters after paying tribute at the mausoleum of Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in Tungipara on Friday. After paying respects, she stood in solemn silence for one-minute as a mark of profound respect to the memory of Bangabandhu and prayers were offered for the repose of the souls of Bangabandhu and his family members. She also prayed for Bangabandhu's worthy daughter Sheikh Hasina, so that we can complete the upcoming elections properly. “Let this government come to power again. We made this promise.” Regarding the Jagannath University, the first female Vice-Chancellor of Jagannath University (JnU) said, the accommodation problem is evident in this university.  "It is very important to quickly construct some residential halls for the students in the new campus," she said, adding: 'Also, it is regrettable that there is no sports ground here. There is a field but now it is no longer the asset of the university. So, I will appeal to the Prime Minister from Tungipara to allot a playing ground for my students.”  Commenting on the university's desire to progress in the academic sectors, the Vice-Chancellor said, "I will take necessary steps to encourage teachers in research and increase the research allowance. I want to start the “Bangabandhu Fellowship Program” at this university very soon. “Dean's Award” has been approved. But the “Vice Chancellor Award” has not prevailed. I will work on them step by step in a well-thought-out plan.” At that time, she also expressed her desire to work as a teammate with Deans. Among others, Jagannath University Treasurer Professor Dr. Md. Humayun Kabir Chowdhury, Deans of various faculties, directors of institutes, departmental chairmen, Teachers' Associations, proctors, university teachers, and members of Journalists' Associations, officers and employees were also present.