Archive for March 13th, 2008
Thursday, March 13th, 2008 In a latest development, a Dhaka Court yesterday directed the government to return the passport of detained Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina to its owner, who has been undergoing treatment in Square Hospital in the capital.A new panel of seven physicians of the hospital was also formed yesterday for Hasina's medical check-up, who already started her medical tests.Hasina's two personal physicians, ophthalmologist Dr Modasser Ali and medicine specialist Dr ABM Abdullah, who had been examining her health for the last couple of months and had been allowed frequently to enter the special jail, were not ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008In a landmark move, the government for the first time has awarded Petrobangla a license to explore Dighipara coal zone in a joint venture with a competent private mine developer, to be selected as the strategic partner through an open tender.The government is letting Petrobangla forge a partnership with a private mine developer to tap into the country's coal resources, with the prospect of needing billions of dollars of investment, if the exploration turns out to be successful, said a competent source.The Bureau of Mineral Development (BMD) on February 27 granted the license to explore the 4,000 hectare Dighipara ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008Over 10 lakh metric tons of rice will be imported through public and private channels chiefly from India and Myanmar by June, Food and Disaster Management Adviser AMM Shawkat Ali said yesterday.Of this, the first consignment of 1 lakh out of 5 lakh metric tons of rice procured from India by the government will start arriving Saturday, the adviser told The Daily Star last night.On March 17, Bangladesh officials will sit with their Indian counterparts to fix the date and other details of importing the rest 4 lakh metric tons from four trading houses nominated by the Indian government, ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008The US Department of State in its annual report "Human Rights Practices 2007" on Bangladesh reveals that human rights record worsened in the country as the state of emergency continued to be in effect with elections remaining postponed.The report mentions the arrests of former premiers Awami League (AL) chief Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia after repeated efforts of the caretaker government in the first six months since assuming power to force the two into exile failed. The two former premiers were kept under unofficial house arrest during this period, it adds.The report says both Hasina and Khaleda were ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008A few species of mammals, reptiles and amphibians are fighting their seemingly last battle to survive in concrete jungles in the capital, either by taking refuge in the diminishing green patches or niches in structures."The city has expanded in such an unplanned way in the last three decades that almost entire wildlife habitat has already been destroyed," Dr Reza Khan, chief of Dubai Zoo and eminent wildlife expert of the country, told The Daily Star.In the remaining green patches of the city, several avian species still flutter, though very few in numbers. Besides birds, some wild monkeys, jackals, mongoose, bats, ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008The government plans to hike the prices of CNG by the end of this month and diesel and electricity after the Boro season to overcome the deficit in national economy.Prof Dr M Tamim, special assistant to the chief adviser and in-charge of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, said this yesterday."The government considers withdrawal of subsidy from the energy sector including CNG, diesel and electricity, which are mainly used in business purpose such as transport and industries," Dr Tamim said.He was speaking at the 'Meet the Reporters' programme arranged by Forum for Energy Reporters of Bangladesh (FERB) at ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008Taking advantage of lax administration and irregularities at social welfare office, 30 fraud NGOs swindled about 10 lakh people out of around Tk 500 crore in eight northwestern districts.Based in Natore, the NGOs stretched business web in the name of voluntary organisations for the poor quite openly over Rajshahi, Naogaon, Bogra, Pabna, Joypurhat, Kustia and Dinajpur since March last year.Even after leading swindler Freedom Unnayan Sangstha (FUS) disappeared with Tk 250 crore, the Natore district administration gave other NGOs green light at a meeting on March 3, ignoring general participants' opinions for arresting some officials.Following that meeting, two more NGOs ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008An attendant of a Dhaka-bound train from Chittagong was killed by a gang of robbers that attacked the passengers and looted money and valuables between Akhaura junction and Imambari station early yesterday.The victim was identified as Md Shamsul Haque, 54, son of Md Abdul Latif of Pashdak village under Ramganj upazila of Lakshmipur. A passenger was also injured during the robbery.According to the Government Railway Police (GRP), the robbers boarded a cabin on the mail train Chittagong Up-1 at Comilla Railway Station in the guise of passengers.The train arrived at Imambari Railway Station in Brahmanbaria at 2:28am yesterday. As soon ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008 Three muggers were beaten to death and four of their gang injured by a mob at Faujdarhat in Chittagong's Sitakunda upazila yesterday.Police said a band of ten muggers on board two CNG-run autorickshaws waylaid a deed writer, who was on his way back home from a Pahartali bank, at Kadamrasul on Dhaka-Chittagong Highway in Sitakunda, snatching Tk 7.5 lakh from him at around 11:30am.Locals chased and caught four thugs from Faujdarhat Bus Station and another three from in front of Bhatiary union parishad office as the deed writer cried for help.They gave them sound beating in which three ...
(read more) Thursday, March 13th, 2008Nine cadres of the outlawed Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) were sentenced to rigorous life imprisonment yesterday for carrying out serial bomb blasts in Barguna on August 17 in 2005.The court also fined them each Tk 5,000, defaulting on which will carry another six months in jail.The convicts are Asadul Arif, Rezaul Karim, Hafez Mohammad Mostafa Hasan, Hafez Al Amin, Shahidul Islam, Masum Billah, Abdul Haque Abbasi, Hafez Abdur Rahman and boxer Shahid.Other accused in the case were three kingpins of the outfit -- Shaikh Abdur Rahman, Siddiqul Islam alias Bangla Bhai and Ataur Rahman Sunny -- who were executed in ...
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