United News of Bangladesh

Five students of a madrasha were stabbed allegedly by a fellow student in Sreepur upazila of Gazipur on Thursday. The injured were identified as Rifat, Nadim, Muhin, Rifat, and Rashidul, students of Gararan Khaliliya Bahumukhi Fazil Madrasa. The victims said their final examinations were underway when a scuffle broke out between Siam and Muhin on Wednesday over seating arrangements in the exam hall. The madrasa teachers later resolved the matter.Enraged by the previous altercation, Siam entered the madrasa premises on Thursday afternoon when students were leaving after their exams. He suddenly attacked them with a knife, injuring five students. Garment factory closure notice sparks protests in Gazipur They were rescued and taken to the Sreepur Upazila Health Complex from  were Nadim, Muhin, and Rifat were referred to Dhaka for better treatment. Mohammad Abdul Barik, officer-in-charge (OC) of Sreepur Police Station, said legal action will be taken following an investigation into the incident.    

Nurses in Barishal staged demonstration on Thursday to press home their eight-point demand including the formation of a National Nursing Commission. They also observed a sit-in programme in the morning wearing black badges at 11am in front of the administrative building of Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital, protesting the inclusion of the independent Nursing and Midwifery Directorate under a different department. Barishal district unit of the Bangladesh Nurses Association (BNA) organised the programme. The protesters, including nurses and midwives, also brought out a procession on the hospital premises carrying banners, festoons and chanting various slogans. Speakers at the sit-in said the nursing and midwifery sector is one of the most vital pillars of the country’s healthcare system yet it has long remained neglected. They said the decision to abolish the independent nursing directorate is a major obstacle to professional dignity, skill development and desired progress. Such a decision will not be accepted under any circumstances, they said. BNA Barishal district president Ali Azgar, vice-president Md Shah Alam, general secretary Nure Alam Talukder, Treasurer Shamima Yasmin, Anwara Khanam and Hafiza Akhter were present there. Nurses and midwives from Barishal Nursing College and Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital also expressed solidarity with the protesters.

Sylhet’s rail communication with the other parts of country which was suspended after an engine went out of order in Madhabpur upazila in Habiganj district was restored after three hours on Thursday afternoon. Monir Hossain, Noapara Station Master, said the Dhaka-bound inter-city ‘Kalni Express’ train from Sylhet went out of order near Itakhola Station in Madhabpur upazila around 10:30 am, halting train movement. Later, a relief train from Akhaura rushed in and train movement was restored around 1:30pm following the recovery of the train, he said.  

Three Baul performers were seriously injured when unidentified assailants launched a sudden attack on them in front of a tea stall at the Thakurgaon district court premises on Wednesday afternoon. The incident occurred around 2pm. The identities of the attackers remain unknown. Local sources said the Bauls had gathered at the court premises to join a protest scheduled for 2:30pm demanding the release of Baul Abul Sarkar, who is under arrest on charges of hurting religious sentiments. The protest also aimed to condemn an attack on Bauls in Manikganj that took place this week, but the group was assaulted before the program could start. Sarwar Alam Khan, Officer-in-Charge of Thakurgaon Sadar Police Station, said police were already stationed at the city’s crossroads to prevent any untoward incident during the Bauls’ program. However, a small group of Bauls, who were at a tea stall in the court area, were attacked by some unidentified people. Police later brought the situation under control. The OC added that legal action would be taken if any complaints are filed regarding the attack.

A 24-year-old housewife was found dead at her residence in Kamargaon in Sonargaon upazila of Narayanganj district on Wednesday. The deceased was identified as Riya Mony, wife of Adil Hossain. Imran Hossain, Additional superintendent of Narayanganj Police, said Adil married to Riya, nine months ago and then used to live at the staff quarter of Rangs factory. Body of unidentified young man recovered from Shitalakshya river in Narayanganj On Wednesday morning, Adil went out to buy food for his wife and when he returned home Adil found his wife lying in a pool of blood. On information, police recovered the body and sent it to the local hospital morgue. Police detained Adil for interrogation.          

Police on Wednesday recovered the body of an unidentified man with his face burnt from a paddy field at Ramchandrapur Bilpara village in Bheramara upazila of Kushtia . Locals spotted the body of the man aged about 40 lying in the field in the morning and informed police. Officer-in-Charge Abdur Rob Talukder of Bheramara Police Station said they recovered the body and sent it to Kushtia 250-bed general hospital morgue for autopsy. He said  miscreants might have dumped the body after killing him. An investigation is underway to uncover the motive and identify those involved, he added.

In a joint drive by the district administration and the Department of Environment to stop the use and marketing of banned plastic shopping bags, around two tons of plastic bags were seized in Faridpur. The raid was conducted Tuesday afternoon at Al-Amin Enterprise in Velabaz, Anandnagar, under the jurisdiction of Faridpur Sadar. The operation was led by Assistant Commissioner and Executive Magistrate Md. Atikur Rahman. Speaking about the operation, Executive Magistrate Atikur Rahman said that the initiative aimed to curb the sale and distribution of banned plastic shopping bags in the Sadar upazila. He added that approximately 2,000 kilograms of banned plastic shopping bags were confiscated from Al-Amin Enterprise. Noticing the authorities’ presence, the warehouse staff reportedly fled the scene. Cox’s Bazar gets its first plastic recycling plant to reuse waste The operation was carried out in the presence of Md. Jihad Hossain, Inspector of the Faridpur Department of Environment, along with members of the Ansar Battalion. Executive Magistrate Atikur Rahman said such drives by the Department of Environment would continue to prevent the sale, storage, use, and marketing of banned plastic shopping bags in Faridpur.    

The Department of Environment (DoE) on Tuesday demolished nine illegal brick kilns and destroyed raw bricks worth about Tk 1 crore in the Char Sadipur area of Kumarkhali upazila in Kushtia. The drive was led by DoE Executive Magistrate Md Asifur Rahman. Kushtia DoE Deputy Director Md Emdadul Haque, Senior Chemist Md Habibul Bashar, Inspector Nasrin Sultana and other officials were present. Members of BGB Battalion-47, Kushtia police, Civil Defence and the Fire Service assisted in the operation. Speaking after the drive, Executive Magistrate Asifur Rahman said that Char Sadipur is a remote, river-surrounded area where access is difficult and operations are challenging. “Still, we are firm in removing illegal brick kilns. Today we demolished nine, and more have been identified. All illegal kilns will be removed in phases,” he addded. Kushtia DoE Deputy Director Emdadul Haque informed that Kushtia has around 185 brick kilns, but only 17 have clearance from the Department of Environment. Dhaka-Aricha highway remained suspended for 3-hrs as brick kiln workers block road “Every year these illegal kilns operate by violating rules. We will continue our drives and shut down all illegal kilns,” he said. According to local residents, the illegal brick kilns had been harming the environment for years. They welcomed the operation, saying it brought relief to the area.  

The body of a  Sramik Dal leader who had drowned in the Padma River nine days back was recovered from the Padma River on Monday night. The deceased was identified as Abedur Rahman Annu, 53, general secretary of Kusthia Sadar thana unit of Sramik Dal. According to family members, on November 16 Annu went to Mohan area under Hatsher Haripur union to buy fish. Around 11 am, a boat carrying him collided with a sand-laden bulkhead trawler near Char Bhabanipur in the river. Though local fishermen rescued the boatman, Annu went missing. Officer-in-charge Mosharaf Hossain of Kushtia Model Police Station, said Annu’s wife Ziasmin Ara Ruma lodged a general diary the following day. Despite a two-day rescue operation by the Fire Service and divers from Khulna, Annu could not be located, he said. Nasim Ahmed, inspector of Kotwali River Outpost in Faridpur Sadar, said on in formation, a team rushed to the spot and retrieved the body from Dikir Char. The body bore no marks of injury and it would be handed over to the family after completing legal procedures, Nasim said.

A Jashore court on Monday convicted two people and sentenced them to death for killing their own cousin over a land dispute in 2023. Judge Jewel Odhikari of Jashore Additional District and Session Judge Court-5 handed down the punishment. The condemned convicts are—Osman and Ali Hossain—two sons of Sabed Ali Sardar of Choto Podaulia village in Jhikargacha upazila. The court fined them Tk 10,000 each. The court also acquitted another accused Khadiza Khatun, wife of Osman as allegations brought against her could not be proved. According to the prosecution, the convicts had an enmity with their cousin Quamrul Amin, son of Nurul Haque of Choto Podaulia village over the ownership of a piece of land. On September 7, 2023, the convicts had an altercation with Quamrul over demarcation of the land. At one stage, Osman and Ali carried out an attack on Quamrul and his family with sharp weapons, leaving Quamrul, his two sister-in-laws Anwara and Parvin and nephew Ataur Rahman injured. Later, the injured were taken to Jhikargacha Upazila Health Complex from where they were taken to Jashore 250-bed General Hospital. Quamrul succumbed to his injuries at the hospital on that day. Ruhul Amin, father of Quamrul, filed a case in this connection. Police submitted a chargesheet against two siblings on July 3, 2024.