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Covid-19: Bangladesh logs 17 more cases, zero death
Bangladesh reported 17 more Covid-19 cases in 24 hours till Saturday morning.
With the new number, the country's total caseload rose to 2,037,433, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
However, the official death toll from the disease remained unchanged at 29,441 as no new fatalities were reported.
The daily case test positivity increased to 0.54 percent from Friday's 0.41 percent as 3,134 samples were tested.
Also Read: Bangladesh sees 4 more Covid cases, zero death
The mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.45 percent while the recovery rate rose to 97.71 percent.
Bangladesh reported its highest daily caseload of 16,230 on July 28 in 2021 and daily fatalities of 264 on August 5 of the same year.
Bangladesh Poverty Watch Report 2022 launched; regular monitoring of progress emphasized
Regular monitoring of progress is important to assess the degree of convergence between the left behind and the relatively advanced population groups and the lagging and the well-off regions of Bangladesh, says the Bangladesh Poverty Watch Report 2022 on Saturday (January 21, 2023).
The report, jointly prepared by Institute for Inclusive Finance and Development (InM) and Center for Inclusive Development Dialogue (CIDD), aimed to ensure that grassroots voices of ‘left behind’ and extremely poor population groups are heard and these are reflected in policies.
Chairman, CIDD Dr. Mustafa K. Mujeri and Chairman InM Dr. Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad, among others, spoke at the launching event for the Bangladesh Poverty Watch Report 2022.
The Poverty Watch Report 2022 summarised some current aspects of poverty including testimonies, reflections and ‘stories’ of individuals from selected ‘left behind’ population groups belonging to seven plain land ethnic minority groups (Santal, Mal Paharia, Garo, Hajong, Mandi, Oraon and Munda) and the transgender community.
Also read: Poverty forces Thakurgaon day-labourer to put 7-month-old baby girl up for sale
In their ‘stories’, the participants shared their experience of having found themselves in poverty, exclusion and extremely difficult conditions reinforced by systemic errors and structural inequalities.
The Report suggests several priority actions for speeding up their catching up process in society.
The key will be to craft these policies/actions within the broader inclusive development strategies of the government that cover cross-cutting and national level issues, such as strengthening inclusive growth, ensuring financial inclusion, reducing income and social inequality, accessing quality education, health, nutrition and other basic services, adopting appropriate macroeconomic policy, addressing pockets of lagging social groups/regions, and adopting initiatives at the local level along with effectively managing micro-macro transmissions, according to the report.
These left-behind communities have issues that are directly or indirectly related to the daily work of the local governments and local institutions, said the report.
Also read: EU to provide €23 million to PKSF for extreme poverty reduction
For implementing the agenda, one important element will be to utilise the potential of local action to drive development and create appropriate legal and financial frameworks to support all local partners in playing their part in the achievement of the integrated and universal inclusion agenda.
The key is to empower all local stakeholders, especially the local government institutions, aimed at making sustainable and inclusive development more responsive, and therefore, relevant to local needs and aspirations.
The goals will be reached only if local actors including these left-behind communities fully participate, not only in the implementation, but also in the agenda-setting and monitoring processes.
Participation requires that all relevant actors are involved in the decision-making process, through consultative and participative mechanisms, at the local and national levels within the overall inclusion framework, according to the report.
Read More: Colombia seeks Yunus' advice on poverty reduction, 'total peace'
Cost of living in Dhaka increased by 11.08 percent in 2022: CAB
The Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) said that the cost of living in the capital Dhaka increased by 11.08 percent in 2022.
The report released on Saturday said that around 17 products have directly contributed to the rise in inflation as well as the cost of living last year.
The urban lower-income group of people has compromised their diet chart and lifestyle due to the increase in the prices of essential commodities, fish and meat.
The report was presented on behalf of CAB by Mahfuz Kabir, research director of the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS).
Read More: Inflation report could show another month of cooling prices
According to the report, the cost of living in the capital increased by 6.88 percent in 2020 and 6.5 percent in 2019.
Dr Kabir has prepared the result, which was collected from 11 markets across Dhaka (Dhaka North and South City Corporation). It has covered 141 food items, 49 non-food items and 25 services.
Rice, flour, pulses, bakery products, sugar, fish, eggs, domestic poultry, edible oil, imported fruits, tea and coffee, local and imported milk, washing and personal hygiene items, and transport costs are included in the CAB price monitoring.
The CAB has proposed policy recommendations in the analysis of inflation trends. In the recommendations, the association said the government has increased support under subsidised food aid and social protection to reduce inflationary pressure on the poor and disadvantaged.
But the government should extend social protection schemes in urban areas to protect low and middle-income consumers from rising inflationary pressures.
Read more: Keep essentials' prices within reach: CAB
The government has significantly increased OMS activities during Covid-19, which has been extended further in 2022 to protect these consumer groups from the economic slowdown and inflationary woes.
But there is an inadequacy of food supply through OMS against extremely high demand and a lack of proper monitoring to ensure equitable distribution of OMS food products among low-income people.
The CAB recommendation has also opposed the decision to increase gas and fuel oil prices at the retail level as the bulk price hike of gas and oil would affect lower-income people.
CAB President Golam Rahman. Vice President SM Najer Hossain, General Secretary Advocate Humayun Kabir Bhuiyan, joint secretary Dr. Md. Shahnewaz Chowdhury, and Md. Qazi Abdul Hannan were also present at the press conference held virtually.
Read more: CAB urges govt to readjust edible oil prices
Bangladesh reports one more dengue death, 11 new cases
One more dengue patient died and 11 people were hospitalised with dengue in 24 hours till Saturday morning.
With the new number, the official death toll from dengue rose to six this year, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Read more: 2022 becomes second-deadliest year for dengue on record; Oct second-deadliest month
Of the new patients, nine were admitted to hospitals in Dhaka and two outside it.
Seventy-four dengue patients, including 37 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country, according to the DGHS.
So far, the DGHS has recorded 466 dengue cases and 386 recoveries.
The country recorded 281 dengue deaths in 2022 – the highest on record after 179 deaths recorded in 2019.
Also, the DGHS recorded 62,423 dengue cases and 61,971 recoveries last year.
Power cut hits Khulna after production halted at Rampal plant over coal crisis
Khulna division has been experiencing acute load shedding even in the winter due to suspension of power production at Rampal Power Plant amid shortage of coal caused by the dollar crisis.
The production came to a halt on January 14, only after 27 days the coal-fired plant in Bagerhat started electricity generation by adding 660MW of electricity to the national grid produced from its first unit.
Khulna West Zone Power Distribution Company (WZPDC), which distributes power in Khulna and Barishal region, authorities have been struggling to meet the electricity demand although the demand for electricity comes to half in the winter.
Read more: Hasina, Modi jointly unveil Rampal Power Plant’s unit 1
On Thursday, the Khulna region experienced 24 MW load shedding in off-peak hours while during peak hours it was four MW. On Friday, the load shedding was 5 MW while the residents of different areas in the city experienced power outages, officials said.
Anwarul Azim, deputy manager of Bangladesh-India Partnership Power Company Ltd (BCPCL), said import of coal was suspended due to the crisis of US dollar that cut production by half on January 14.
BCPCL is a joint venture of the Chinese firm China National Machinery Import & Export Corporation (CMC) and Bangladeshi state-owned North-West Power Generation Company Bangladesh Limited (NWPGCL).
Rampal Power plant’s Unit-1 has a capacity of producing 660MW of electricity . Before suspension of production, its Unit-1 used to produce 560-570 MW.
Read more: Rampal Plant starts electricity production, 660MW from unit-1 added to nat’l grid
Of this, 400MW was added to the national grid via Aminbazar-Gopalganj transmission line and 260MW was added to Khulna-Bagerhat.
Around 5,000 tonnes of coal are needed for the operation of the power plant and all are imported from Indonesia but due to the dollar crisis the import of coal was suspended.
Anwarul Azim said banks did not allow opening of Letter of Credit (LC) for importing coal due to the dollar crisis.
“Already, a coal-carrying vessel from Indonesia is ready to leave for Bangladesh but we are trying our best to import coal. We hope the problem will be resolved soon,” he added.
‘Became a big victim of medical crime,’ Taslima Nasrin says
Bangladeshi writer in exile, Taslima Nasrin, has once again made news – saying she “became a big victim of medical crime” in India.
The internationally renowned writer, who is often embroiled in controversies, tweeted on her verified account on January 19, 2023: “I fell on the floor at my home and went to a private hospital for the internal fixation of my simple femoral neck fracture. Doctors did not want to do fixation, they have done my total hip replacement without any indication. Handicapped forever.”
Taslima then tweeted, “I have seen my Xray report today (January 21, 2023). My Xray shows no fracture on my femur or anywhere. I came to a city private hospital to treat my knee pain after I fell on my knee. I never had any joint pain or any joint disease. But my total hip replacement was done.”
Read more: Charges pressed against author Taslima Nasrin, 2 others in ICT case
She tweeted by saying, “I became a big victim of medical crime. I was a healthy and fit person. In the name of treating my knee strain, they cut the parts of my healthy body off; my healthy hip joint, my femur were thrown away and a metal was put inside me. They have made me permanently handicapped”.
She followed that with another tweet: “I became a big victim of medical crime. I was a healthy and fit person. In the name of treating my knee strain, they cut the parts of my healthy body off; my healthy hip joint, my femur were thrown away and a metal was put inside me. They have made me permanently handicapped.”
Earlier in a Facebook post from her verified profile, Taslima said that the doctor imposed several restrictions, which included avoiding sitting in a normal chair, carrying heavy things, and sitting cross-legged.
Read More: Freedom fighters receiving free medical treatment: Liberation War Minister
On Friday (January 20, 2023), in another Facebook post she wrote, “Returned home from the hospital after being made paralyzed in exchange of lakhs of taka”.
Mild to moderate cold wave may persist for 2/3 days more: Met Office
Mild to moderate cold wave is sweeping over parts of the country and it may continue for two to three days more, said Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) on Saturday (January 21, 2023).
Monwar Hossain, a meteorologist of BMD, said temperatures may rise after Tuesday (January 24, 2023).
According to the regular bulletin of Met office, “Mild to moderate cold wave is sweeping over Rangpur division and the districts of Faridpur, Madaripur, Gopalganj, Rajshahi, Pabna, Naogaon, Sirajganj, Moulvibazar, Rangamati, Feni, Chuadanga, Jashore, Kushtia, Barishal and Bhola, and it may abate in some places.”
Also read: Mild to moderate cold wave sweeps parts of country
Moderate to thick fog may occur at places over the river basins and light to moderate fog may occur at places elsewhere over the country during midnight to morning, it said.
The lowest temperature in the country was recorded at 6.5 degrees Celsius in Tetulia of Panchagarh district in 24 hours till 6am today (January 21, 2023). The highest temperature was recorded at 29.0 degrees Celsius in Teknaf during this time.
Weather may remain dry with temporary partly cloudy skies over the country. Night temperature may rise by 1-2 degree C and day temperature may remain nearly unchanged over the country.
Read More: BGMEA urges the wealthy to help cold-stricken low-income people
Dhaka tops global list of cities with worst air quality this morning
Dhaka has topped the list of cities around the world with the worst air quality this morning (January 21, 2023).
With an air quality index (AQI) score of 249 at 8:55 am on Saturday, Dhaka ranked first in the list of cities with worst air.
An AQI between 151 and 200 is said to be ‘unhealthy’ while 201 and 300 is considered ‘very unhealthy’, and 301 to 400 is considered 'hazardous', posing serious health risks to residents.
Also read: Dhaka's air quality turns ‘very unhealthy' this morning
India’s Kolkata and Iraq’s Baghdad occupied the second and third places with an AQI of 220 and 218 respectively.
In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants - Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.
Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.
Read More: Air pollution 2nd biggest cause of deaths in Bangladesh in 2019, cost about 3.9-4.4% of GDP: World Bank
As per the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections.
Nursing College student commits ‘suicide’ in Barishal
A student of DWF Nursing College apparently committed suicide by hanging herself in the dormitory of the nursing college on Friday night.
The deceased was identified as Lamia Akter Saima, 22, a third-year student of the college and daughter of Shajahan Molla.
Sudip Kumar Nath, a teacher at the college, said that Lamia did not go to the Sher-E Bangla Medical College and Hospital for her internship with her batchmates due to sickness. She was alone in her room.
Other inmates of the hostel found Lamia hanging from the ceiling in her room at around 8 p.m. and rushed her to the hospital, where doctors declared her dead.
“The reason behind the apparent suicide could not be known. We informed her family,” he said.
SI Moinul of Sher-E Bangla Medical College and Hospital Police Camp said police recovered the body and sent it to the hospital morgue.
A police case will be filed over the unusual death, he added.
Taradevi Foundation distributes wheelchairs, winter clothes, IPS in Chuadanga
Taradevi Foundation has distributed 20 wheelchairs and thousands of blankets to people with disabilities and cold-stricken people in Chuadanga.
Besides, the foundation has distributed three IPS to Chuadanga Govt Orphanage Home.
Dilip Kumar Agarwala, founder chairman of Taradevi Foundation and MD of Diamond World, distributed these materials on the office premises of Taradevi Foundation at 4:30 pm on Friday.
Dilip Kumar, also the General Secretary of Bangladesh Jewelers Association (BAJUS) and Director of FBCCI said, Taradevi Foundation always stands beside people.
If someone needs a wheelchair, Taradevi Foundation will provide, he said, adding that it has also introduced scholarships.
"We are working for people through Taradevi Foundation and the humanitarian activities of this foundation will continue, " he hoped.
BAJUS assistant secretary and vice-chairman of Standing Committee on Law and Membership Masudur Rahman and BAJUS executive member and member of Standing Committee on Law and Membership Pabitra Chandra Ghosh, Executive Member Jaydev Saha were present as special guests.