United News of Bangladesh

Measures to improve energy efficiency could save Bangladesh US$460 million a year in the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to meet growing domestic demand, said a new report by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA). According to the report, the initiative to improve energy efficiency can help wean the country off its expensive import dependence as well. The report surveys 51 industries with 124 gas-fired captive generators with a combined generation capacity of about 250 megawatts (MW) to find solutions to reduce the country’s increasing LNG demand. “An insatiable appetite for gas could lock Bangladesh into a vicious cycle of spiralling prices and supply issues pertaining to LNG, and threaten to stall its economic transformation,” says the report’s author, Shafiqul Alam, Lead Analyst – Bangladesh Energy, IEEFA. He examined the nation’s brief, turbulent relationship with imported LNG, and how the once cheap fossil fuel quickly became an economic burden. Bangladesh started importing cheap LNG in 2018 and began to unravel a year later with COVID-19 and its supply-chain disruptions. Then came the global fuel price shocks brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, compounded by domestic economic woes, he said. The report found that by replacing the vast stock of ageing, inefficient generators with more efficient models already available, and harnessing the waste heat produced by generators for other applications, Bangladesh could reduce the demand for imported LNG by a massive 50.18 billion cubic feet a year, or 21%, representing an annual saving of $460 million.  While replacing generators will require significant upfront investment, this capital outlay can be recouped within 1.5 to five years. The payback of investment in waste heat recovery is only about one year, the study found. The alternative is to spend far more in building additional infrastructure to cope with the increasing local demand for fossil fuel imports against a global backdrop of tightening regulations to produce environment-friendly products. Shafiqul Alam observed that the plan to import sufficient energy for development was not designed to cope with the high level of volatility in the international fuel market, depreciation of the local currency and weak fiscal conditions.  “Low efficiency in gas-fired captive power generation consumes a significant amount of gas annually. This is despite the average efficiency in captive generation increasing to 35.38% from 30% in the last decade,” he said. “Additionally, a significant percentage of industries do not utilise the waste heat released by these generators.”

Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) forecast rain or thundershowers in seven divisions including Dhaka in 24 hours commencing 9 am on Monday. “Rain or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely at one or two places over Rangpur, Rajshahi, Dhaka, Mymensingh, Khulna, Barishal and Sylhet divisions,” it said. Dhaka’s air ‘unhealthy’, 4th most polluted in the world this morning Weather may remain mainly dry with temporary partly cloudy sky elsewhere over the country. Day temperature may rise by 1-2°C and night temperature may rise slightly over the country.

One hundred and thirty candidates have withdrawn their candidacy from the third phase Upazila Parishad election scheduled to be held on May 29,  said the Election Commission (EC) on Monday. Md. Shariful Alam, Director (Public Relations) of the EC, due to the withdrawal of candidacy six will be elected unopposed.  Health Minister in London to attend conf on “International Response to Antimicrobial Resistance” Of those who have withdrawn candidacy, 73 are chairman candidates, 43 vice-chairman candidates and 14 vice-chairman candidates for posts reserved for women, he said. Besides, six candidates who will be elected unopposed are Pirojpur’s Bhandaria upazila candidates in all 3  posts, Shariatpur’s Gosaithat upazila vice-chairman candidate and candidates if Feni’s Sonagazi and Daganbhuiyan upazila vice-chairman posts reserved for women, he added. The Election Commission will allocate symbols for 3rd phase Upazila Parishad polls and the candidates will be allowed to start campaign from today.   In the third phase of upazila parishad polls, 570 candidates submitted nomination papers for chairman post, 618 for vice-chairman post and 400 for vice-chairman post reserved for women. According to the EC announced schedule, the  3rd phase upazila election will be held  in 112 Upazila Parishads on May 29 while second phase polls in  160 upazila will be held on May 21. Twenty-eight  candidates were elected unopposed in the first phase of Upazila Parishad polls while 21 in the second phase. Wonder when BNP will turn to amulets and spells: Hasan Mahmud The first phase of the sixth Upazila Parishad Election was held in 139 upazilas of 59 districts in the country on Wednesday amid allegations of irregularities and poor voter turnout.

Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs has urged the UN agencies, international non-government organisations (INGOs) and NGOs involved in the Rohingya response to beef up their efforts to attract more support and keep international community's attention on the Rohingya crisis. The UN agencies, international non-government organisations (INGOs), NGOs, district administration, and security agencies of Cox’s Bazar met the committee members on Sunday. The committee thanked them for their continued humanitarian support. They sought cooperation of all so that the Rohingyas can return to Rakhine State at the earliest possible time to attain the ultimate solution of the Rohingya crisis. The members of the standing committee had their second meeting in Cox's Bazar. Eight Members of Parliament, including the Chairman of the committee Dr AK Abdul Momen and Foreign Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud, joined the meeting. The committee members visited Rohingya camps and the Khurushkul Special Ashrayan Project in Cox’s Bazar. In the camps, they visited WFP food distribution centre, learning centre, registration centre, repatriation centers, and office of the Camp in Charge. They also exchanged views with Rohingya representatives, where Rohingyas expressed a strong desire to return to Rakhine State. Acting Foreign Secretary, officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Parliament attended the programme.

 Health Minister Dra Lal Sen is paying an official visit to the United Kingdom (UK) to attend the conference on “International Response to Antimicrobial Resistance.” The UK government and the Royal Society are hosting the conference. Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK Saida Muna Tanseem received the Minister at Heathrow International Airport on Saturday, said the High Commission on Sunday. During his visit, the Minister will also deliver a parliamentary talk on ‘Expanding Health Sector Collaboration between Bangladesh and the UL’ and attend a Dialogue titled ‘Leveraging Diaspora for gainful employment and health sector collaboration.' Both will be hosted by Bangladesh High Commission, London at the British Parliament, and the Mission’s Bangabandhu Lounge, respectively. Minister Sen will be meeting UK Minister for Health and Secondary Care Andrew Stephenson CBE MP and Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Wes Streeting MP to explore the possible areas of cooperation between Bangladesh and the UK in health sector. He will leave London on May 17.  

The High Court on Sunday dismissed the bail application of Mian Zahidul Islam Arefy, who falsely claimed to be an “advisor to US President Joe Biden.” Arefy is charged with treason for allegedly attempting to destabilize the country through deceit. The ruling was delivered by a bench comprising Justice Md Habibul Gani and Justice Ahmed Sohel. Representing the state, Attorney General Md Asaduzzaman Monir opposed the bail, while Advocate Zainul Abedin defended the petitioner. On October 28, 2023, Arefy appeared at BNP’s central office in Dhaka’s Naya Paltan. There, in the presence of reporters and BNP leaders, he falsely introduced himself as an adviser to President Biden and claimed that the US president supported the reinstatement of a caretaker government in Bangladesh. The following day, as Arefy attempted to depart for the United States from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, he was detained by the police. On the same day, Mohiuddin Shikder filed a case at Paltan Model Police Station against Arefy, along with BNP leaders Ishraque Hossain and Lt Gen (retd) Hasan Sohrawardi, for endorsing Arefy’s assertions. Subsequently, on October 30, Arefy was sent to jail.

Foreign Minister and Joint General Secretary of the Awami League, Hasan Mahmud, has expressed skepticism about BNP's political strategies following their boycott of the last national election. Speaking to journalists on Sunday before a meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, he responded to BNP's claims of "invisible powers" running the country. Hasan highlighted that the Awami League government, led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has been democratically elected by the people four times in a row. "People's leader Sheikh Hasina is running the country with great efficiency and success," he stated, contrasting this with the BNP's current state of disarray. Reflecting on the opposition's behavior since the election boycott, the Foreign Minister remarked, "After boycotting the last election, their desperation has reached such a level that they have started believing in invisible forces." He further alluded to the BNP's occasional appeals to foreign entities for support, quipping, "You know, they go to foreigners every now and then, now I wonder when they will rely on amulets and spells."

At a press conference today, State Minister for Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, announced strict directives to hold mobile phone operators accountable if they fail to deliver promised services. The press event marked the celebration of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day at the Secretariat. Addressing the ongoing issues of call drops that consumers frequently encounter, Palak highlighted the necessity for rigorous monitoring by the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC). “To understand the call drop issue, BTRC needs to conduct external IT and financial audits. There is a technological error here that has become a regular problem,” he explained. During the discussion, Palak questioned the compensation mechanisms available to consumers affected by service disruptions, pondering the availability and transparency of BTRC records on these incidents. He further outlined the actions to be taken against non-compliant operators: “I have instructed that if such incidents occur, we will enforce the full extent of our licensing guidelines. This could range from financial penalties to restrictions on services. We have issued strong directives to BTRC to implement these measures.”

Under the directive of Bangladesh Bank, the Bangladesh Development Bank Limited (BDBL) signed a memorandum of understanding on Sunday, May 12, to merge with another state entity, Sonali Bank. The signing took place at the central bank's headquarters, amid mixed feelings from the stakeholders involved. Combating inflation: Bangladesh Bank raises policy interest rates, ends SMART rate system Md Afzal Karim, Managing Director of Sonali Bank, and his counterpart at BDBL, Habibur Rahman Gazi, were the signatories. The event was attended by high-ranking officials including Bangladesh Bank Governor Abdur Rouf Talukder, BB Adviser Abu Farah Md Nasser, and the chairpersons of both banks, Ziaul Hasan Siddiki and Shamima Nargis. BDBL has been hesitant about the merger due to its struggling non-performing loan (NPL) ratio, a key area of concern among its performance metrics. Shamima Nargis noted that this was the bank's primary weak point and suggested that more time might have allowed the bank to address this issue effectively. Bangladesh Bank introduces Crawling Peg System; dollar rate set at Tk 117 with immediate effect Despite these reservations, the merger has been endorsed as a step towards strengthening the bank's position in the market. Nargis stated that the merger is expected to fortify their operations and that the bank sees no reason for employee concern over the merger. While the central bank has committed to a fair and transparent merger process and has engaged an audit firm to oversee the integration, insiders convey a palpable sense of unease about future changes. New board of National Bank mirrors position of dissolved board against merger with UCBL As part of a broader consolidation strategy aimed at stabilizing the banking sector, Bangladesh Bank has identified several banks for potential mergers, including Padma Bank, RAKUB Bank, and BASIC Bank, although some have resisted the push towards consolidation. The merger of Sonali Bank with BDBL is touted to create a larger and more robust financial institution, yet the ramifications for employees and customers remain a topic of concern, hinting at broader challenges in the banking sector's ongoing restructuring efforts.

Chief of Air Staff of Bangladesh Air Force Air Chief Marshal Shaikh Abdul Hannan returned home on Saturday after an official visit to Australia. Chief of Air Staff of Bangladesh Air Force visited Australia from May 06-09 at the invitation of the Chief of Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force Air Marshal Robert Chipman, said an ISPR release on Sunday. During the visit, Chief of Air Staff attended the ‘Air and Space Power Conference-2024’ at Canberra, Australia. Mentionable that, respected Chief of Air Staff left Dhaka for Australia on May 5 for the said official visit along with his spouse and three entourages.