United News of Bangladesh

There is one hospital bed against every 990 patients in the country, Health and Family Welfare Minister Samanta Lal Sen told parliament on Thursday. He said that the total number of beds in all the government and private hospitals is 1,71,635. The minister said that the number of beds for every 50 people in the public hospital is 0.0211 and the government has a plan to increase the number of beds in each government hospital in phases. The health minister said this in reply to a query from an independent MP elected from Mymensingh ABM Anisuzzaman. “According to the information of the Health Bulletin of 2022, there are a total of 1,71,675 beds in the country with the number of government beds being 71,660 and the number of private beds being 99,975,”  Sen said. In reply to a query of independent MP Md. Nasser Shahrear Zahedee, the minister informed the House that there are only five graduate pharmacists in all government hospitals. In response to a supplementary question of Opposition Chief Whip and Jatiya Party MP Mujibul Haque Chunnu, the health minister said that if MPs remain with him, he can certainly close the illegal clinics and diagnostic centres. He urged MPs to monitor whether the clinics or diagnostic centres in their respective areas have all the facilities and licenses. The minister said that he is not in favor of closing all hospitals. Hospitals that have the necessary equipment should run. In response to a supplementary question by AL MP HM Badiuzzaman, the health minister said that he will go to all the departments and identify the problems in the hospitals and arrange for quick solutions. “If the treatment of marginalised population is ensured, there will be no crowd of patients in cities like Dhaka and Chattogram and they will not have to lie on the floor,” he also said. In response to the question of AL MP Mahbub ur Rahman, the health minister said that 383 of the 429 functional upazila hospitals in the country have x-ray machines. Out of which 53 are inactive, said the minister. While replying to a query of Muhibur Rahman Manik, Awami League MP elected from Sunamganj, the health minister informed the House that the new Corona variant—SARS-CoV2 variant JN.1 has entered  Bangladesh through international visitors. He also said that the government has taken various measures to contain spread of the new variant of Corona as this variant has already spread to 71 countries of the world including India, Singapore, Indonesia and China. In reply to a query of AL MP elected from Chattogram M Abdul Latif, the health minister said the government has taken various measures to ensure universal health coverage under the health and family welfare ministry by 2030. “Initiatives have been taken to introduce social health insurance for formal sector government employees and garment workers. Necessary preparations are being made for this. In the future, the informal sector will also be covered under this insurance,” he added.

The government has taken initiatives to develop and preserve 10,000 kilometers waterways of the country. State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury said this in parliament on Thursday in reply to a query of independent MP elected from Dhaka Muhammad Saiful Islam. In reply to a query of ruling Awami League MP elected from Lxmipur Nur Uddin Chowdhury Nayan, Khalid Mahmud said the total number of rescue ships of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) is now four-Nirvhik, Pratya, Hamza and Rustom. He also informed the House that process is underway to collect salvage ships having the capacity of lifting 1500 to 2000 tonnes in future. Besides, the state minister also said measures were taken to collect respective machineries including four winch barge for increasing the rescue capacity of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA). Meanwhile, Religious Affairs Minister Faridul Haque Khan informed the House that the ministry has no statistics about the total number of mosques in the country at present. However, during the period of Covid pandemic, the information of the mosques was collected through the divisional and district offices of the Islamic Foundation by the Prime Minister for financial donations to the mosques. Accordingly to the estimate, the number of mosques is 3,31,125, the minister in reply to a query of AL MP Nurunnabi Chowdhury.    

The engagement of common people is crucial to ensure the functionality of community clinics as it is a public-private partnership, according to Professor Syed Modasser Ali, chairman of the Community Clinic Health Service Trust (CCHST). “Where the Community Group (CG) is active, there the community clinic is effective and functional. Strengthening CG is a must to activate and functionalize the community clinics,” he added. He was speaking at a workshop titled “Role of Community Clinics and Local Government Institutions to Sustain Primary Health Care and Nutrition Services” organized by World Vision Bangladesh (WVB) under USAID’s Nobo Jatra Project II (NJP II) at a hotel in Dhaka on Thursday. Line Director of Community Based Health Care (CBHC) Dr. Md. Quiume Talukder presided over the workshop while Suresh Bartlett, National Director of WVB, inaugurated the workshop with his opening remarks while Lima Hanna Daring, Chief of Party (CoP), Nobo Jatra Project II, shared the overview of the project. Workshop highlights crucial role of inclusivity in child development Dr. Mohammad Mahbubur Rahman, Director General (Acting), Bangladesh Nutrition Council (BNNC); Dr. Mahbub Arefin Rezanur, Divisional Chief (Field), Institute of Public Health Nutrition (IPHN); and Mustapha EL Hamzaoui, Director- Humanitarian Assistance Office, USAID Bangladesh, and Prof. Dr. Nahid Ferdausi, Director, Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Eye Hospital & Training Institute, Gopalganj, were present as special guests. Upazila and Union Parishad Chairman, Civil Surgeons of Khulna and Satkhira Districts, Khulna Divisional Health Department head, health officials, representatives of NGOs, journalists, among others, were also present. Suresh Bartlett thanked USAID and the people of the United States of America for funding for sustainability in Bangladesh through Nobo Jatra Project through an effective partnership and collaboration with WVB. In her overview, Lima Hanna Daring informed that minimum dietary diversity of women has increased from 49.0% to 53.6% in the NJP II area in four Upazilas under Satkhira and Khulna Districts. 40.9% mothers received at least four Antenatal Care (ANC) in the NJP area which was 24.1% in the baseline of the project in 2017. Due to the project intervention, exclusive breastfeeding has increased to 57.5% from 29.2%, she added.

A child who suffered burn injuries in a gas cylinder blast at Bhashan Char Rohingya camp on Saturday died at Chattogram Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) on Wednesday night, taking the death toll from the incident to five. The deceased was identified as Rosmina, 5, daughter of Abdus Shukkor. Gas crisis: Indefinite transport strike underway in Sylhet Rosmina succumbed to her injuries while undergoing treatment at CMCH around 11:30 pm on Wednesday, said Assistant Sub-Inspector Nurul Alam Ashique, in-charge of Chattogram Medical College and Hospital police outpost. The child suffered 50 percent burn injuries and her trachea was also severely affected.   On Saturday, nine people including five children were injured when a gas cylinder exploded at the Rohingya camp. Gas cylinder blast in Bhashan Char: Four Rohingya children dead so far Of them, seven were taken to Chattogram Medical College and Hospital for treatment where Russel, 3, succumbed to his injuries on that day. Three other injured children died later. Besides, Jobaida, 22, and Amena Khatun, 24 are undergoing treatment at the hospital, said Director of Chattogram Medical College and Hospital, Brigadier Shamim Ahsan. Of them, Amena suffered 8 percent burn injuries and Jobaida 25 percent.  

Police recovered the hanging bodies of a man and his son in the capital’s Badda area on Wednesday. The deceased were identified as Gias Uddin, 70, a retired school teacher aad his son Rakib Hossain, 30, an electrician, hailing from Narayanganj’s Araihajar upazila. They used to live in a house near Beraid Jele Para of Badda Police Station. 2-month-long ban on fishing in Padma-Meghna sanctuary starts March 1 Badda Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mohammad Yasin Gazi on Thursday said Rakib was supposed to go to a wedding ceremony yesterday, but he did not go and his classmate one Harun went to his house at 8:15 pm. Seeing the door of the house closed, Harun and his other classmates broke open the door only to find them hanging from the ceiling, said the OC quoting relatives. On information, police recovered the bodies and sent those to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital morgue for autopsy, he said. Man gets life term for raping university student in Khulna Initially, it was known from the locals that both father and son often got involved in disputes over small issues, the OC added. Legal action will be taken in this regard, OC Yasin said.

Power tariff will be increased from February 1 instead of March 1, said State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid on Thursday (February 29, 2024). Gazette notification will be issued today in regard to the power tariff adjustment, he said while briefing reporters at his ministry. Earlier he said the new tariff will come into effect from March 1. He said the power tariff will be hiked between Tk 0.34 and Tk 0.70 per unit for all kinds of consumers depending on their volume of consumption while gas price will go up by Tk 0.75 per unit only for power plants. Govt raises gas prices for power plants by Tk 0.75 per unit He also said that a dynamic fuel pricing will be introduced for the consumers from March 1 under which price of petroleum fuel will go up and down in line with international market price. “Each month fuel price will be declared for the consumers”, he said adding neighbouring India do this every day. He noted that the steps have been taken to minimise the government losses caused by the increase in dollar rate. “This year the government will incur loss of Tk 43,000 crore due to sale of electricity at lower price,” he said. This step has been taken as part of the government move to come out of the subsidy now being given to the power sector, said the minister. According to the BPDB’s Annual Report 2022-23, the fiscal year saw the production of 87,024 million kilowatt hours of electricity at a total cost of TK 98,646 crore.    Its per unit production cost was Tk 11.33, while it was selling electricity at Tk 6.7 per unit — incurring a loss of about Tk 4.63 per unit. Electricity price to go up from March 1: Nasrul This imbalance has led to a staggering loss of Tk 47,788 crore for the fiscal year, as the government grapples with purchasing power from private and international sources at significantly higher rates. With this huge loss, the government has been facing great trouble as it has to purchase electricity worth Tk 82,778 crore from private sector power producers, while it generates electricity worth Tk 13,307 crore from its own generation plants. The annual report also shows that the BPDB’s average per unit production cost from its own plants is Tk 7.63, while it is Tk 14.62 at the independent power producers or IPPs (private sector), at rental plants Tk 12.53, at public plants Tk 6.85, and imported power from India at Tk 8.77. The government purchases electricity from the private sector and India in dollars. Read more: Bangladesh seeks ITFC cooperation to modernise power distribution, transmission system

Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will procure 1.10 crore litres of edible oil and 10,000 metric tons of lentil to sell through its open market sale (OMS) programme. Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) approved two separate proposals in this regard in a meeting on Thursday, presided over by Finance Minister Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali. Don’t listen to rumours involving commodity prices: PM  The Commerce Ministry placed the proposals on behalf of the TCB. According to proposals, the TCB will import 1.10 crore litres of Soybean oil through open tender from  City Edible Oil Ltd. at a total cost of Tk 174.66 crore with each litre at Tk 165.25. Jatka conservation week to begin March 11 The TCB will procure 10,000 metric tons of lentil at a cost of Tk 83.12 crore from Nabi Naba Food Limited with each kg at Tk 103.09.

A roundtable workshop on ‘Valuing Women in the Financial Markets in Bangladesh’ was held in Dhaka on Thursday highlighting the importance of investing in women.  In celebration of the International Women’s Day, the High Commission of Canada in Bangladesh joined hands with the Embassy of France, the Embassy of Sweden, the High Commission of the United Kingdom, the High Commission of Australia, the Embassy of the Netherlands and the United Nations Resident Coordinator to jointly host the event at the official residence of the High Commissioner of Canada. The objectives of the event were to highlight the benefits of Gender Lens investing (GLI) in Bangladesh; and introduce the Orange Movement creating a world where gender equality is the norm and paving the way for a sustainable future in alignment with the Smart Bangladesh Vision 2041. The presenter Prof. Durreen Shahnaz is the founder and CEO of Impact Investment Exchange (IIX), a social stock exchange supporting businesses providing development solutions.  It's responsibility of youth to steer towards green, sustainable, peaceful world: Indian President tells Bangladesh youth delegation IIX, is a pioneer and global leader in impact investing and sustainability, transforming the financial system so that women and underserved communities are finally given value and a voice in the global market. Bangladesh is Asia-Pacific’s fastest-growing economy with an average annual GDP growth of ~6.5%. The Smart Bangladesh Vision 2041 aims for a Smart Society and Smart Economy. This workshop introducing the Orange Movement campaign and raising awareness of the benefits of GLI may help Bangladesh close the gender gap in labour force participation, elevating GDP per capita by 0.5-0.7% on average, said the Canadian High Commission in Dhaka. A 10% rise in female employment could boost GDP by 3.1%. 

The President's wife Professor Dr. Rebecca Sultana on Wednesday urged the Police Women's Welfare Association (PUNAK) to play an effective role in accelerating the advancement of women by enacting various strategies for women's empowerment. She was speaking at the "Annual Rally and Anand Mela 2024" of Bangladesh Police Women's Welfare Association (PUNAK) on the occasion of ongoing Police Week 2024 at Rajarbagh Police Auditorium in the capital on Wednesday. “The priority of women in various socio-economic sectors is widely recognised today. There are still many opportunities to increase the involvement of women in the economic activities of the country. Consolidating and mainstreaming the participation of women in the mainstream economy of the country is now very urgent and times demand,” she said. On the second day of Police Week 2024, Dr Rebecca said that the government led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is now a role model in the world for women's development and empowerment. The government is implementing multifaceted programmes to involve women in the mainstream of development, she added. She also thanked PUNAK and all concerned for playing a role in economic development, providing legal assistance to distressed and helpless women in addition to women's empowerment.

Foreign Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud on Wednesday urged the Chattogram Samiti, Dhaka leadership to work as an agent and to some extent as a "pressure group" for further development of Chattogram which helps grow the country’s economy as a whole. Highlighting massive development in Chattogram and Cox's Bazar over the last 15 years, he suggested Chattogram Samiti leaders to arrange productive seminars and symposium on Chattogram development issues. Hasan, also Bangladesh Awami League Joint General Secretary, said Chattogram should not be treated as other divisions of the country as Bangladesh's key seaport is located in Chattogram. Minister Hasan was speaking as the chief guest marking the journey of the new committee of Chattogram Samiti, Dhaka. He said sometimes they see lack of understanding among some people and it takes time to make them understand why development is essential. Showcasing progress to foreign diplomats: Hasan Mahmud on MoFA’s Outreach Programme The minister credited Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her leadership for the massive development that Bangladesh witnessed over the last 15 years. Referring to Bangabandhu Tunnel, he said it has become a reality today. "Nobody did think that tunnel will be a reality." He mentioned that he recently visited Chattogram and Cox's Bazar with around 34 diplomats. "The journey from Chattogram to Cox's Bazar by train was close to Europe," he said. Noting that the entire country has gone through massive development, the foreign minister said he is trying his best for carrying out the next phase of development in Chattogram. Hasan said things were Dhaka centric during military regimes and said there is a need for decentralisation for a balanced development in the country. He said Chattogram will see metrorail like Dhaka and within the city it will be underground Metrorail. BNP was behind BDR mutiny: Hasan Mahmud