Bangladesh reports 2 more Covid deaths, 218 cases

Two more people died from Covid, and 218 tested positive for the virus in Bangladesh in the 24 hours to Friday morning.

While the country’s total fatalities reached 29,312, the new number took its caseload to 2,008,500, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

The daily case positivity rate rose to 4.75 percent from Thursday’s 4.45 percent as 4,585 samples were tested.

The mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.46 percent. The recovery rate rose to 97.11 percent from Thursday’s 97.10 percent.

In July, the country reported 142 Covid-linked deaths and 31,422 cases, the highest monthly death toll and caseload since March this year.

Bangladesh registered its highest daily caseload of 16,230 on July 28 last year and daily fatalities of 264 on August 10 in the same year.

Although the current pandemic phase may be characterised by relatively low incidence and risk for hospitalisation and death, the Omicron variant remains highly transmissible.

The potential for surges highlights that “countries cannot afford to ease up” on vaccinating their populations against Covid, “especially their health care workers, the elderly and those with comorbidities,” according to the World Health Organization.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

AL-BNP clash leaves 20 injured in Feni

At least 20 people were injured on Monday in a sporadic clash between activists of the ruling Awami League (AL) and opposition BNP during a protest rally of BNP in the trunk road area of the town on Friday.

The injured are undergoing treatment at a local hospital, said Nizam Uddin, officer-in-charge of Feni Model Police Station.

According to the locals, BNP leaders and activists hold a procession in the town protesting the price hike of daily commodities including oil, gas, fertilizers and the murder of Swechchasebak Dal leader Abdur Rahim and Chhatra Dal president Noor-e Alam in Bhola. When the procession reached the trunk road of the town, Chhatra League and Juba League activists attacked.

The clash ensued around 3:30 pm when BNP activists counterattacked.

Several chases and counter chases took place between the parties that left at least 20 people injured, added the OC.

Police fired 15 rounds of gunshots and rubber bullets to bring the situation under control.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

53 more dengue patients hospitalised

The country confirmed 53 more dengue – a viral infection – cases in the 24 hours to Friday morning.

Fifty new patients were admitted to the hospitals of Dhaka and three outside it, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

Three hundred and forty-six dengue patients, including 274 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.

Thursday, this year’s death toll from the mosquito-borne viral disease rose to 16 with one more death reported from Dhaka.

Of all the deceased, 10 were reported from Cox’s Bazar and six from Dhaka.

On June 21, the DGHS reported the first death of the season from the viral disease. In July, it recorded 1,571 dengue cases and nine deaths.

This year, the DGHS has recorded 3,551 dengue cases and 3,189 recoveries so far.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Samakal Editor Golam Sarwar’s 4th death anniversary Saturday

The 4th death anniversary of eminent journalist and former editor of Bangla daily Samakal Golam Sarwar will be observed on Saturday.

The veteran journalist, who had long been suffering from various diseases, died while undergoing treatment at Singapore General Hospital in 2018. He was 75.

Samakal members will pay homage to Sarwar at his grave at Martyred Intellectuals’ Graveyard in the capital’s Mirpur.

Sarwar’s family and ‘Golam Sarwar Foundation’ will also arrange a doa mahfil and distribute food among orphans at his ancestral home in Banaripara of Barishal.

Journalist Golam Sarwar was born on April 1, 1943 at Banaripara in Barishal.

Golam Sarwar, who also served as chairman of the board of directors of Press Institute of Bangladesh (PIB), obtained his Master’s degree in Bangla literature with honours from Dhaka University. He started his career as a journalist in 1963.

He started his career as a university correspondent at Dainik Azadi in 1962.

He later joined Dainik Sangbad as a sub-editor at the same year and worked there till March 25 in 1971. He actively participated in the Liberation War from his home district Barishal.

He was awarded with the Ekushey Padak in 2014 for his contribution to journalism.

He received the Cultural Journalists’ Forum of Bangladesh (CJFB) Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016 and the Ataus Samad Memorial Trust Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

One killed, three injured on Dhaka-Chattogram highway in car-truck crash

The driver of a speeding car was killed and three of its passengers seriously injured on the Dhaka-Chattogram highway in Chattogram’s Sitakunda Friday after the fire service said a car crashed into a truck.

The deceased was identified as Forkan from Boalkhali upazila, Chattogram. The injured are Md Shahidullah, 55, his wife Jahanara Begum, 45, and son Arafat Hossain, 22, from Noakhali’s Begumganj.

Nurul Alam Dulal, senior station officer of Sitakunda Fire Service, said the port city-bound car rammed into a truck parked along a road at Barabkunda Bazar of Sitakunda.

“Forkan died on the spot. Shahidullah, Jahanara, and Arafat, who were rushed to Chattogram Medical College and Hospital in critical conditions, are not out of danger yet,” he added.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Default bank loans surge to record Tk 1.25 lakh crore in Bangladesh: BB

The amount of default bank loans in the country climbed a record Tk 1.25 lakh crore, according to latest data of Bangladesh Bank (BB) on Thursday.

The jump was reported amid the central bank’s recent move to relax the installment of in repaying the loans by the big borrowers.

According to the provisional data of BB, the amount of default loans increased by Tk11818 crore during the April-June quarter with classified loan totalingTk1.25 lakh crore.

Banks have disbursed loans of Tk1398592 crore till June 2022, of which Tk125258 crore is declared as being defaulted. It means 8.96 per cent of loans have been made classified which is the highest ever in the country, said officials familiar with the subject.

Three months ago, in the January-March quarter, default loans were Tk113440 crore.

Besides, defaulted loans have increased by Tk 26063 crore from June 2021 to June 2022. In June 2021, the amount of defaulted loans was Tk990205 crores.

Economic analyst and former caretaker government advisor Dr AB Mirza Azizul Islam told UNB that if the special discount for defaulters is not stopped, the default debt will not decrease.

“The situation has become such that the defaulters now think that if I do not pay the loan, I will get more discounts in the future. Due to this, as long as there is exemption, this default loan amount will continue to increase,” he said.

Mirza Aziz said that the only way to reduce the default loans is to stop the facility and take legal action.

“In reality, it is much more than Tk 1.25 lakh crore as some information is not added,” he noted.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

PRAN Dairy inks deal with ACDI/VOCA

PRAN Dairy Limited and US-based international organization ACDI/VOCA have signed an agreement to strengthen dairy development in the Southern part of the country.

The deal was signed to help the dairy sector in the Southern districts under the USAID-funded ‘Feed the Future Bangladesh Nutrition program’ run by ACDI/VOCA.

PRAN Group Managing Director Eleash Mridha and Chief of Party of the project Muhammad Nurul Amin Siddiquee signed the deal at PRAN Dairy’s head office in the capital on Thursday, the company said in a statement.

It said PRAN Dairy will work on a variety of activities under the agreement including assisting farmers to increase milk production and milk procurement, providing dairy producers with farm management training, supplying milk in the formal market and promoting safe milk production and consumption in Southern Bangladesh.

The activities will be conducted in several districts including Jashore, Khulna, Kushtia, Narail, Satkhira, Faridpur, Barishal, Pirojpur and Jhalakathi.

ACDI/VOCA will help PRAN Dairy through financing and guidelines.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Dhaka, Delhi agree to strengthen defence cooperation

Bangladesh and India Thursday expressed commitment to elevating engagements between their armed forces and reviewed the progress of bilateral defence cooperation initiatives.

At the 4th Bangladesh-India Annual Defence Dialogue, both sides emphasised the need to work closely to implement the $500 million line of credit extended from India for defence items.

Principal Staff Officer of Armed Forces Division of Bangladesh Lieutenant General Waker-Uz-Zaman and Indian Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar co-chaired the dialogue.

Dhaka, Delhi agree to strengthen defence cooperation

Different aspects of defence industrial and capability-building cooperation came up for detailed discussions.

Ajay also invited the Bangladeshi delegation to the upcoming DefExpo 2022.

Both countries have great potential for cooperation in defence trade, co-development and joint production, he said.

The defence secretary commended Bangladeshi for its efforts in UN peacekeeping, according to the Press Information Bureau of India.

During their interaction, the two sides reviewed ongoing defence cooperation between their countries and expressed satisfaction that collaboration is growing despite difficulties imposed by the Covid.

The talks covered the existing bilateral exercises and training, and the countries agreed to increase the complexity of these exercises.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Fishing resumes in Kaptai Lake Wednesday after 108-day ban

Fishing in Rangamati’s Kaptai Lake will resume Wednesday midnight at the end of a ban of more than three months, 108 days, imposed by the local administration to boost fish production.

The decision was taken at a meeting presided over by Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mohammad Mizanur Rahman Wednesday.

Bangladesh Fisheries Development Corporation (BFDC) Manager Lieutenant Commander M Touhidul Islam said: “We usually impose a three-month ban on fishing in Kaptai Lake from May 1 to July 31.

All kinds of netting, marketing, preserving, drying and transporting of fish from the lake are banned during the period to allow the fish population to thrive.

This year’s three-month ban on netting, marketing and transportation of fish from Kaptai Lake had to be extended till August 16 to help breed and rejuvenate fish stocks as the water level in the freshwater lake did not rise enough.

However, the water in the lake is now slowly rising, Touhidul said.

According to BFDC around 7,672 tonnes of fish were caught in the fiscal year (FY) 2015-16, 7,981 tonnes in FY17, 8,123 tonnes in FY18, 8,423 tonnes in FY19 and 8,549 tonnes in FY20, and 8,000 tonnes in FY21 from Kaptai Lake. Around 22,000 fishermen are dependent on the lake.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Govt to be swept away by people’s tsunami: Fakhrul

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Friday warned the Awami League government will be washed away by a tsunami of public anger over what he called its ‘fascist’ rule.

“Their (govt’s) fall is inevitable as people have woken up. People will take over the streets with a mass wave, triggering a tsunami. This terribly fascist and monstrous Awami League regime will be washed away by the tsunami,” he said.

The BNP leader was addressing a rally arranged by Bangladesh Sammilita Peshajibi Parishad in front of the Jatiya Press Club protesting the fuel price hike, rising prices of daily essentials, power crisis, killing of political leaders in police firing and demanding the unconditional release of Begum Khaleda Zia.

He urged the leaders and activists of different professional bodies to organise the people from their respective positions to save the country from ruination.

“The nation is now at stake as they (govt) have destroyed the democratic soul of Bangladesh. We all have to unite and carry out a movement to restore that soul. There’s no alternative to a movement. We must take over the streets to remove this regime,” Fakhrul observed.

He said people are now seriously struggling to run their families due to the soaring prices of the commodities caused by the fresh hike in fuel prices. “There is now no need to tell what the condition of the country is. Ask the bus passengers on the streets about how much fare has been increased. All people, including the rickshaw pullers, farmers and teachers are going through immense miseries.”

The BNP leader also observed that the middle-class people, who neither can express their miseries nor can afford the exorbitant prices of commodities, are the worst victims of the fuel price hike.

He said the government is now allowing BNP and other opposition parties and platforms to hold rallies and political programmes without much hassle due to pressure from different countries ahead of the election. “They’re now pretending to be a democratic and modest party. This is nothing but trickery. Deception is embedded in their character.”

The BNP leader alleged that the government is destroying the country’s economy in a planned way. “The banks are getting depleted due to widespread plundering. Bangladesh Bank was also looted.”

He said the government was dreaming of turning Bangladesh into Singapore and Malaysia a few days back, but it is now asking for loans as the dollar reserves are decreasing. “They stole and robbed our assets and siphoned off huge money abroad. According to an international organisation, up to $827 million are being laundered from Bangladesh every year.”

Under the current situation of the country, Fakhrul urged the government to quit, dissolve the parliament, hand over power to a neutral administration paving the way for holding a credible election and establishing a people’s government.

He alleged that Awami League is seeking the use of Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) in the next polls to cling to power by manipulating the results. “EVM is a tool of deception. Awami League has no other alternative to EVM to hang onto power. If you vote for the sheaf of paddy through the EVMs, it’ll be counted for the boat. That’s why they want the use of EVM.”

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Bangladesh video does not show 2022 fuel protests, it dates to 2013: Reuters

Social media users discussing August fuel hike protests in Bangladesh have mistakenly shared unrelated footage from 2013, suggesting it is from 2022, according to the Reuters Fact Check team.

The video shows people looking at objects on fire in the street and launching projectiles, as well as police officers deploying tear gas.

“Bangladesh… protests and hard clashes have erupted in several cities after the government has decided to increase petrol prices by 51 percent and diesel by 42 percent effective midnight…. Huge lines are reported at petrol stations all over Bangladesh,” wrote one Twitter user who shared the video on August 7.

A Facebook post said: “Bangladesh protests and hard clashes have erupted in several cities after the government has decided to increase petrol and diesel prices.”

Bangladesh increased fuel prices by more than 50 percent on August 6, a move that will trim the country’s subsidy burden but put more pressure on inflation.

People have indeed been protesting against the hike. However, a reverse image search shows that the video is not related to the 2022 demonstrations. It can be traced back to May 2013 and a violent protest against an anti-blasphemy law in Bangladesh.

On May 6, 2013, at least 20 Bangladeshis were killed in clashes between police and Islamists who were demanding religious reforms.

The clashes began on May 5 after 200,000 Islamist supporters marched in Dhaka to press demands that critics said would amount to the “Talibanisation” of a country that maintains secularism as state policy.

However, the protesters were met by lines of police firing teargas and rubber bullets, the Reuters Fact Check team said.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

AL won’t let BNP set the stage for another August 15: Hasan

Information and Broadcasting Minister Hasan Mahmud Friday said BNP is trying to set the stage for another “August 15,” when Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members were assassinated in 1975.

“Also, they want to brand Bangladesh as a terrorist country in the world. But the Bangladesh Awami League (AL) will never let these things happen,” he added.

Thursday, at a meeting in Rajshahi city, the AL leader said the ruling party will take control of the streets in September and keep it occupied until the national polls.

“At a public rally in Dhaka’s Nayapaltan, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir today (Thursday) said they will have to take control of the streets,” the minister said.

“In reply, I would tell my party leaders and activists: August is a month of mourning, which we are observing through different programmes. When the mourning ends, we will occupy the streets in September,” he added.

Source: United News of Bangladesh