31-03-2021

Wednesday

DhAkA : March 31, 2021; Chaitra 17, 1427 BS; Shaban 16,1442 hijri

www.thebangladeshtoday.com; www.bangladeshtoday.net

Regd.No.DA~2065, Vol.17; N o. 347; 12 Pages~Tk.8.00

InternatIonal

More than a dozen

American states to open

vaccines to all adults

>Page 7

sports

Osaka advances while

Barty ousts Azarenka

at Miami Open

>Page 9

art & culture

toma Mirza,

shajal stars in

'Live artist'

>Page 10

Covid-19: Govt

raises bus fares

DHAKA : In the wake of growing Covid-

19 cases, the government has increased

the fares of public transport by 60 percent

across the country, said Road

Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul

Quader. The order will remain in force

for the next two weeks, said Obaidul

Quader while talking to reporters at a

press briefing, reports UNB.

Passengers will have to pay the additional

bus fares from Wednesday, he

said. Earlier on May 31, 2020, the government

raised the fares of inter-district

and long-haul (Dhaka, Chittagong

cities and adjoining areas) buses and

minibuses by 60 percent in order to

compensate bus owners carrying 50

percent less passengers to prevent the

transmission of Coronavirus.

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO)

on Monday issued an 18-point directive

for the next two weeks in an effort to

contain the spread of the coronavirus in

Bangladesh. The Health Ministry has

also proposed partial lockdowns for

some places with higher Coronavirus

transmission rates, Health Minister

Zahid Maleque said Monday.

Partial lockdown, closure of amusement

centres, limiting wedding ceremonies,

picnic, religious gatherings,

strengthening quarantine system, limiting

passengers in public transports,

and limiting attendance in offices are

some of the recommendations.

DMP bans firearms,

agitations in Jatiya

Sangsad area

DHAKA : Dhaka Metropolitan Police

(DMP) has banned carrying firearms

and holding rallies, processions or agitation

in and around Jatiya Sangsad

Bhaban ahead of the 12th session of the

11th parliament, scheduled to begin

April 1, reports UNB.

The DMP's restrictions will be effective

from 12am on Wednesday night,

police said in a press release on

Tuesday. DMP said the ban would be in

force until the end of the session.

The restrictions have been imposed to

maintain law and order in and around

the parliament area to ensure undisrupted

holding of the coming session.

The restricted areas are Mohakhali

crossing of Mymensingh Road to

Bangla Motor crossing via Old Airport

Road, the western part of Bangla Motor

Link Road to Saarc Fountain at

Sonargaon crossing, the eastern part of

Panthapath to Farmgate via Green

Road Link Road, Shyamoli crossing to

Dhanmondi 16 (old 27) Link Road on

Mirpur Road, Rokeya Sarani Link Road

to Bijoy Sarani Parjatan crossing via old

9th division (airplane) crossing, the

eastern part of Indira Road to Manik

Mia Avenue's western part, and

restricted parts of Jatiya Sangsad

Bhaban and all the roads and lanes in

the area.

Zohr

04:36 AM

12:10 PM

04:29 PM

06:18 PM

07:32 PM

5:51 6:15

Public transport will

run with 50pc less

passengers: Quader

DHAKA : Road Transport and Bridges

Minister Obaidul Quader yesterday

said all the public transport would run

with 50 percent less passengers than

capacity from today in order to stem

the spread of Coronavirus pandemic.

"The government has also taken

decision to increase the fare of public

transport by 60 per cent from tomorrow

(Wednesday) to compensate bus

owners for carrying 50 per cent less

passengers than capacity," he said.

"The order will remain in force for

the next two weeks. If the situation is

normal, the rent will be reinstated,

"said Quader, also general secretary of

ruling Awami League while addressing

a press briefing from his official residence

here.

The minister also gave directives to

the owners of public transport to be

strict in keeping half of the seats

vacant, ensuring cent percent maskwearing

and using hand sanitizer in

compliance with the health rules for

containing the spread of COVID-19.

At the same time, he appealed to the

people of all strata of life to abide by the

18-point directives of the government

as the second wave of coronavirus has

already started.

Quader emphasised on managing

half the manpower in all offices and

factories except emergency services

and adhering to hygiene rules in places

of worship and limiting public gatherings

in the wake of ongoing pandemic.

From now on, he also instructed the

Awami League and all its allied organisations

across the country, including

the capital, not to carry out any party

activities.

Pak scholar wants their govt

to apologise to Bangladesh

DHAKA : Internationally renowned

scholar from Pakistan Husain Haqqani

has said the people of Pakistan should

urge their government to offer a formal

apology to the people of Bangladesh for

all the atrocities that were committed in

1971, reports UNB.

"To this day, no apology has been

forthcoming.... an apology is the most

courteous thing ...," he said who served

as Pakistan's Ambassador to the United

States from 2008 to 2011.

Referring to the general elections of

1970 in the then Pakistan and the

Pakistan military, Haqqani, now living

in the United States, said the military's

reaction in the form of imprisoning

Father of the Nation Bangabandhu

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and initiating

genocide against the Bengalis.

He made the remarks in a virtual talk

on "Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur

Rahman: An Iconic Leader of People's

Struggle for Freedom" organised by the

Embassy of Bangladesh to Belgium and

Luxembourg, and Mission to the

European Union in Brussels on

Monday.

Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul

Momen joined the event as chief guest

while Bangladesh Ambassador in

Brussels, Mahbub Hassan Saleh, moderated

the event.

Ambassador Husain Haqqani, currently

a Senior Fellow and Director for

South and Central Asia at Hudson

Institute, a top think tank in

Washington, D.C., United States, said

Bangabandhu is not only the greatest

Bengali of all time, he is one of the

greatest leaders emerging out of South

Asia.

He also said Bangabandhu is a great

leader in the history of the world, and

an iconic figure of struggle for freedom

that the world has seen throughout the

20th century.

Haqqani said Bangabandhu Sheikh

Mujibur Rahman is in the same league

of great leaders like Mahatma Gandhi

and Nelson Mandela.

Ambassador Haqqani divided the

struggle of Bangabandhu Sheikh

Mujibur Rahman's into five distinct

phases.

These are struggle of the young

Sheikh Mujib against the British colonialism;

post-1947 protest against the

imposition of Urdu as the only state language

of Pakistan and movement to

establish Bangla as one of two the state

languages and then the electoral victory

of 'Jukto Front' in 1954; Dissolution of

the 'Jukto Front' Government and

Bangabandhu's continued struggle for

secular and inclusive approach on the

part of the state; Imposition of martial

law by Pakistani rulers and Army Chief

Ayub Khan taking the control in 1958;

and Genocide committed by Pakistan

military from 25 March 1971 and

Bangabandhu's image, ideas and words

were inspiring the Bengali people to

fight the War of Liberation.

preparations are underway at Dhaka's kamalapur railway station to protect Corona. photo : star Mail

Young people want

equal rights and

laws regardless of

gender : Survey

DU CorresponDent

A recent survey has found that the

young generation of the country would

like to largely see equal rights and laws

for both men and women.

The rapid online survey was conducted

recently by AIESEC, WeMen View, and

ProthomAloBondhushava with support

from Plan International Bangladesh to

have a clear understanding of the youth

perception between the ages of (18-25)

on Convention on the Elimination of All

Forms of Discrimination against Women

(CEDAW). The survey was based on the

second and the sixteenth article of

CEDAW.

60% of the respondents came from an

undergraduate background given most

young people in this age range are generally

undergraduate students. The next

major respondents were from HSC backgrounds

and Post Graduate backgrounds.

In the survey, the first question that

was asked was if the respondents

believed men and women had equal

rights. 550 respondents (75.7%)

responded that they indeed believed

that men and women had equal rights.

Approximately 21.7% of respondents

responded that men and women did

not have equal rights with a very small

portion of participants (19) still unsure

if men and women had equal rights.

More than half, 53.8% (391 people)

responded that they were aware of the

CEDAW convention, but the remaining

30.9% (225 people) responded that

they did not know and 15.3% (111 people)

were unsure if they knew about the

convention.

Villagers

joined

forces to

temporarily

stop the

flow of

water.

photo: tBt

Bangladesh's Covid-19

Death toll nears 9,000;

new cases 5,042

DHAKA : Coronavirus fatalities in

Bangladesh rose to 8994 on Tuesday

after health authorities recorded 45

more deaths in the last 24 hours until

Tuesday morning.

Besides, 5,042 more people were

diagnosed with coronavirus, pushing up

the total caseload to 6,05,937, said a

handout of the Directorate General of

Health Services (DGHS).

The cases were reported after testing

26,620 samples, the handout said.

It said the infection rate jumped to

18.94 percent on Tuesday from 18.38

percent on Monday. However, the mortality

rate slipped slightly to 1.48 percent.

During the 24-hour period, 2,162

coronavirus patients recovered, taking

the total number of recovered patients

to 54,0180, reports UNB.

Among the deceased, 37 people died

in Dhaka division, three in Chattogram,

two in Rajshahi, two in Khulna and one

in Sylhet.

As of now, 5,118 people died in Dhaka

division, 1,631 in Chattogram, 501 in

Rajshahi, 579 in Khulna, 273 in

Barishal, 318 in Sylhet, 373 in Rangpur

and 201 in Mymensingh.

Several villages inundated

as dam collapsed

MD. MatiUr rahMan MoDhU, satkhira CorresponDent

Several villages of Ashashuni have been

inundated due to rising tidal water in

Kholpetua river. At around 12:30 pm on

Tuesday, the tidal waters in the Kholpetua

river rose abnormally, causing the temporary

ring embankment on the Asashuni-

Dayarghat road to break at 5 points and

flood several villages, including Dayarghat

and Jelekhali villages in Asashuni Sadar.

On the other hand, Pratapnagar

Harishkhali embankment is overflowing

and water is entering inside.

Hundreds of fish farms and villages in

the area could be inundated at any

moment due to the collapse of embankments

in several unions of the upazila

including Kurikaunia, Ruiarbill and

Subhadrakati.

Officials at the Water Development

Board have not been able to fix a few of

the small points damaged for months.

There is no end to the worries, anxieties

and anger among the locals of the area.

The rainy season has started again. But

Bangladesh reported its first cases on

March 8, 2020 and the first death on

March 18 the same year.

In the wake of the fresh surge in the

Covid-19 infections, the Prime

Minister's Office (PMO) on Monday

issued an 18-point directive for the next

two weeks in an effort to contain the

spread of the coronavirus in

Bangladesh.

The Health Ministry has also proposed

partial lockdowns for some places

with higher Coronavirus transmission

rates, Health Minister Zahid Maleque

said Monday.

Partial lockdown, closure of amusement

centres, picnic spots, religious

gatherings, limiting wedding ceremonies,

strengthening quarantine system,

limiting passengers in public transports,

and limiting attendance in offices

are some of the recommendations.

The ministry also proposed ensuring

a 'no mask no service' policy, increasing

numbers of mobile courts and imposing

fines on health guideline violators.

Bangladesh on Monday recorded its

highest-ever single day infection (5,181)

since the first cases were reported on

March 8 last year.

no visible process of building the dam has

been seen yet. Then everyone came forward

and repaired the damaged ring dam

as if to stop the tidal water.

Meanwhile, locals said that no official

of the Water Development Board has

come to the area. Sadar UP chairman

SM Selim Reza Milon said, "We knew in

advance that it would break up here." I

have repeatedly told the water development

board officials but they did not

take the poison seriously. Yesterday, I

and the locals worked on the embankment.

Today, due to the rising tide, the

ring embankment has broken at about

five points and water is entering several

villages in my union.

Asashuni Upazila Nirbahi Officer

Nazmul Hussain Khan said, "I went

there with the AC land as soon as I came

to know about the matter. The issue has

been escalated to the higher authority

including the DC. We have already started

the work of stopping the dam."

weDNesDAy, MArCh 31, 2021

2

Motorcyclist

crushed

under train

in Jashore

BENAPOLE : A motorcyclist

was crushed under the wheels

of a train in Abhaynagar

upazila of Jashore district on

Tuesday, reports UNB.

The identity of the deceased

could not be known yet.

Noapara rail station master

Mohosin Reza said Dhaka

bound inter-city train 'Chitra

express' hit the motorcyclist

when he was passing through

the unauthorized level

crossing in Mohakal area.

The train dragged the

motorcycle 300 meters off the

level crossing and the biker's

body was found beside the

rail track, he said.

Jashore Railway police

check post Sub-Inspector

Tariqul Islam said they are

trying to know the identity of

the deceased.

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Foreign Minister Dr AK Momen addressing a publication ceremony at National Press Club yesterday.

Photo : TBT

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Fire guts valuables in

Feni plastic factory

FENI : A fire gutted valuables in a plastic factory on Takiya road

of Feni district town on Tuesday.

The fire broke out at 12 pm in the warehouse of the factory

which spread soon to adjacent areas, reports.

Four units of Fire Service and Civil Defence rushed to spot

and doused the flame after two hours of frantic efforts.

No casualty was reported , said Deputy Assistant Director of

Fire Service and Civil Defence Purna Chandra Mutsundi.

The cause of the fire could not be known immediately, he

said.

The fire damaged valuables worth around Tk 45 lakh, claimed

owner of the plastic factory Firoz Bhuiyan.

Germany announces tougher

land border checks

BERLIN : Germany on Tuesday said it would step up random

controls at its land borders to ensure people are carrying a

negative coronavirus test upon arrival, amid concern that

Easter holiday trips could worsen the country's third Covid

wave.

Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said he has asked Germany's

federal police to "intensify" the checks for the next "eight to 14

days". "Regardless where you're arriving from, from Poland,

France, or Denmark, everyone should expect to be checked,

especially with regard to producing a negative test," Seehofer

told reporters.

The checks would occur in a 30-kilometre (19-mile) zone on

German territory after vehicles have already crossed from

neighbouring nations, Seehofer said, meaning nobody will be

sent back if they don't comply.

But police can impose fines on anyone who fails to show a

negative test or did not complete an online registration form

before entry.

Anyone coming from a "high-risk" area such as France must

also quarantine upon arrival.

The only systematic border checks, where each car is stopped

and can be denied entry, are taking place at Germany's frontier

with the hard-hit Czech Republic.

Seehofer announced that the strict checks would be extended

for another 14 days given the Czech Republic's high infection

rate and the prevalence of virus variants.

But Germany will no longer systematically stop each vehicle

coming from Austria's Tyrol region, he added, saying the

pandemic situation in Tyrol "has significantly improved".

Also from Tuesday, anyone arriving in Germany by plane

must show a negative test before boarding, regardless of

whether they are coming from a risk area or not.

Virtual Japan Fest

2021 with Tahsan

Wednesday

DHAKA : The Embassy of

Japan will host "Japan Fest

2021" online on Wednesday

through YouTube channel and

Facebook page, reports UNB.

This year you will see Japan

through the eyes of famous

singer and actor Tahsan Khan.

"Japan Fest 2021 with

Tahsan Khan" will feature

Covid-19 awareness song he

has composed for the festival, a

collaborative song with

Japanese popular singer

Miyazawa Kazufumi, original

scores by Tahsan and also a

musical appearance of

Ambassador of Japan Ito

Naoki. The programme will be

streamed on Embassy of Japan

YouTube

channel

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Saudi Arabia unveils campaign

to tackle climate change

RIYADH : Top crude exporter Saudi Arabia on Saturday

unveiled a sweeping campaign to tackle climate change and

reduce carbon emissions, including a plan to plant billions of

trees in the coming decades.

The OPEC kingpin seems an unlikely champion of clean

energy, but the "Saudi Green Initiative" aims to reduce

emissions by generating half of its energy from renewables by

2030, de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman

said.

Saudi Arabia also plans to plant 10 billion trees in the

kingdom in the coming decades, he said in a statement released

by the official SPA news agency.

Riyadh also plans to work with other Arab states on a "Middle

East Green Initiative" to plant an additional 40 billion trees, in

what would be the world's largest reforestation programme, he

added.

"The kingdom, the region and the world needs to go much

further and faster in combatting climate change," Prince

Mohammed said.

"We reject the false choice between preserving the economy

and protecting the environment."

The statement did not elaborate on how the mammoth plan

would be executed in a largely desert landscape with extremely

limited renewable water sources.

Saudi Arabia currently draws on oil and natural gas to both

meet its own fast-growing power demand and desalinate its

water - which consumes huge quantities of oil daily.

291 28/03/21



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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021

3

Information and Broadcasting Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud was the chief guest at a discussion

meeting titled 'Media Achievements and Challenges in 50 Years' at Dhaka Reporters' Unity in

the capital.

Photo: TBT

BNP-Jamaat joins

Hefajat to carry out

anarchy: Hanif

PABNA : Awami League

Joint General Secretary

Mahbubul Alam Hanif

yesterday said BNP-Jamaat

joined hands with Hefajat to

carry out mayhem across the

country as the alliance

became politically isolated

from people.

He said this while

inaugurating a mural "Janak

Jotirmoy" of Father of the

Nation Bangabandhu

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

marking his birth centenary

at Pabna University of

Science and Technology

(PUST) here.

Hanif said when the

nation was observing a 10-

day grand programme on

the occasion of the birth

centenary of Bangabandhu

and golden jubilee of the

country's

independence,

Hefajat carried out mayhem

and destroyed public

property in the name of

religion.

Former law minister

Abdul Matin Khasru

in ICU

DHAKA : Senior Advocate

Abdul Matin Khasru, newly

elected president of the

Supreme Court Bar

Association (SCBA) and

former law minister, is now

undergoing treatment in the

ICU of the Combined Military

Hospital (CMH) as he tested

positive for Covid-19.

According to family

sources, on March 16

Advocate Khasru was

admitted to CMH as he

tested positive for

Coronavirus. Later, he was

shifted to the ICU of the

hospital on Sunday as his

condition deteriorated.

He is also the Chairman of

the Parliamentary Standing

Committee on Law, Justice

and Parliamentary Affairs.

PM shocked at death

of AL office manager

Md Shahjahan

DHAKA : Prime Minister

and Awami League

president Sheikh Hasina on

Tuesday expressed deep

shock and sorrow at the

death of former member of

office sub-committee of

Awami League and manager

of central AL office Md

Shahjahan, reports UNB.

She prayed for the eternal

salvation of the departed

soul and expressed

sympathy to the bereaved

family.

Md Shahjahan breathed

his last on Monday night at a

city hospital at the age of 58.

He left his wife, two

daughters and a host of

relatives and well-wishers.

Connectivity among BBIN

continues to enhance

RAJSHAHI : Connectivity among

Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal

(BBIN) has significantly been enhanced in

various bilateral fields particularly trade,

business, culture, education and research

during the last couple of years.

This has been attained as a result of

dynamic and visionary leadership of Prime

Minister Sheikh Hasina along with her

farsighted foreign policy.

The observation came in the meeting of

SAARC Peoples Link Forum (SPLF) held at

its office in Rajshahi city on Tuesday.

The forum organized the meeting to mark

the twin celebration of golden jubilee of the

country's Independence and birth centenary

of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Chaired by SPLF President Mustafizur

Rahman Khan, the meeting was addressed

by its General Secretary Kolpona Roy, Vicepresident

Valiant Freedom Fighter Dr Abdul

Mannan and Members Murun Nahar,

Subhash Chandra Hembrom and Arjuman

Lisha.

The discussants observed that unhindered

connectivity among SAARC countries is very

important for boosting cultural relations

besides other regional cooperation, not only

in tourism but cultural and other arenas.

In his remarks, Mustafizur Rahman Khan

said there should be provisions for road and

rail ways connectivity between Bangladesh,

Nepal and Bhutan instead of only the airway

for the sake of welfare of the people.

He stressed on tourism for more bilateral

development and exchange of ideas.

Passports and visas procedure for the people

of aforesaid countries should be made easy

so common people can frequently travel .

Rahman Khan added that easy and

unhindered movement among SAARC

countries is needed saying there is no

alternative to peoples connectivity for

regional peace and progress and he cited

examples of EU countries in this regard.

14-day institutional quarantine

mandatory for travellers from

European countries: CAAB

DHAKA : The Civil Aviation Authority of

Bangladesh (CAAB) on Tuesday made 14-

day institutional quarantine mandatory for

the travellers from the European countries

including the United Kingdom.

The CAAB issued a circular in this regard

which will be effective from Wednesday,

reports UNB.

As per the circular, on arrival in

Bangladesh, all passengers returning from

any European country including the UK

will have to complete 14-day institutional

quarantine at government facilities or

government approved hotels at

passengers' own expenses.

Upon completion of the quarantine

period, Covid-19 PCR test will be carried

out and the passenger will be released if

the test result is negative.

Besides, passengers travelling from other

countries except Europe and UK have to

strictly complete a 14-day home

quarantine if no covid-19 symptoms are

found on arrival health check in

Bangladesh.

But if any Covid-19 symptoms are

detected he/she have to complete 14-day

institutional quarantine at government

facilities or government approved hotels at

his/her own expenses.

Irrespective of the Covid-19 vaccination,

all passengers coming to Bangladesh shall

mandatorily possess and show PCR based

Covid-19 negative certificate during

departure from origin or arrival at the

airport.

The PCR test shall be done within 72

hours of the flight departure time.

Bus fare goes up 60% as it is carrying half passenger from today.

Photo : TBT

Youth killed

in attack by

'Teen Gang'

in city

DHAKA : A teenage boy was

killed and another injured in

an attack reportedly by the

members of 'Teen Gang' in

the city's Sutrapur area on

Monday night.

The victim was identified

as Ananta, 17, a class IX

student of a local school and

a resident of Dholaikhal

area, reports UNB.

Abdul Khan, subinspector

of Dhaka Medical

College and hospital police

camp, said Ananta noticed

that Ferdous along with 10-

12 people beating Saju at

Farashganj Ghat while

returning home after

offering prayers at a mosque

around 11 pm.

At one stage, Ananta tried

to save Saju and protested

the incident. Later, Ferdous

along with his gang hit

Ananta with a sharp

weapon, leaving him

critically injured.

He was then taken to

Dhaka Medical College and

Hospital where doctors

declared him dead.

However, Saju was

undergoing treatment at the

hospital.

New medical

board for UNB's

Bargerhat

correspondent

DHAKA : A new medical

board has been formed for

the treatment of UNB's

Bagerhat correspondent

Bisnu

Proshad

Chakrabortty, who is now

undergoing treatment at

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib

Medical University

(BSMMU), reports UNB.

The head of various

departments of the hospital

have been included in the

board, said BSMMU source.

The reports of different

medical tests of Bisnu will be

placed before the board on

Wednesday.

On March 22, a ninemember

medical board was

formed to check the health

condition of Bisnu.

Prof. Dr. Sohel Mahmud

Arafat, chairman of the

Medicine Department of

BSMMU, was made the

chief of the nine-member

medical team. However, no

specific disease has been

diagnosed yet.

Earlier, Bisnu was brought

to Dhaka by an air

ambulance from Bagerhat

and then admitted to

BSMMU on March 16.

Bisnu developed various

symptoms, including high

fever, shortness of breath,

headache and chest pain,

after receiving the first dose

of coronavirus vaccine on

February 7 at Bagerhat

Sadar Hospital.

He was earlier treated at

Bagerhat Sadar Hospital

and then shifted to Khulna

Medical College Hospital

(KMCH).

AL reshuffles duties of

organizational secretaries

at divisional level

DHAKA : As per the

direction of Awami League

(AL) President Sheikh

Hasina, the responsibilities

of the organizational

secretaries at the divisional

level have been rearranged.

It was informed in a press

release signed by Awami

League office secretary

Barrister Biplob Barua

From now on, Ahmed

Hossain will be in charge in

Sylhet division while BM

Mozammel Haque in

Khulna division, Abu Sayeed

Al Mahmud Swapan in

Chattogram division, SM

Kamal Hossain in Rajshahi

division, Mirza Azam in

Dhaka division, Advocate

Afjal Hossain in Barishal

division, Shafiul Alam

Chowdhury Nadel in

Mymensingh division and

Sakhawat Hossain Shafiq in

Rangpur division.

Media in Bangladesh enjoy more freedom

than many developed nations : Hasan

DHAKA : Information and Broadcasting

Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud today said the

mass media in Bangladesh are enjoying

more freedom than many developed

countries across the globe.

"The publication of 167-year old

newspaper 'News of the World' was shut

down for publishing wrong information in

the United Kingdom. The executive officers

of the BBC were forced to resign for

broadcasting wrong information about a

representative of the House of Commons.

But, there is no such instance in

Bangladesh," he said.

The minister said this while addressing a

discussion 'Achievement and Challenge of

Mass Media during 50 Years' at an

auditorium of Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU)

in the capital.

DRU organised the discussion with its

President Mursalin Nomani in the chair.

Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists

former president Manjurul Ahsan Bulbul

and Jatiya Press Club former president

Showkat Mahmud addressed the discussion

as special guests while DRU general

secretary Mashiur Rahman conducted it.

Hasan said different media have been

fined for publishing fabricated news in the

United Kingdom regularly. "Many news

have been published with wrong and false

information in Bangladesh. But, no

newspaper has been shut down for

publishing wrong and untrue news in the

country," he added.

About Digital Security Act (DSA), the

minister said the act has been enacted to

ensure security for all, not for a special

group. There was no digital issue couple

years ago, so there was no question of digital

security, said Hasan, also Awami League

joint general secretary.

"When any person or a journalist becomes

the victim of a digital attack, how would he or

she get remedy without an act?" he asked.

He said similar provisions of chapter VI of

the act are also in Chapter XI of the

Information Technology Act of India and

Section 16 of the Protection of Electronic

Crimes Act of Pakistan.

He said many countries, including the

United States, the United Kingdom, Nepal,

the United Arab Emirates, Germany and

Singapore, have digital acts, which are

similar to Bangladesh's Digital Security Act.

He said these are only few examples of

some countries. "There are provisions of

arrests and punishments for such crimes

also in many countries. But, like you, I also in

favour of remaining careful in using the act,"

he added.

About the achievement of mass media,

Hasan said a vast revolution has taken place

in the country's media sector during the last

50 years.

"I would like to tell about the last 12 years.

There were only about 450 newspapers and

10 televisions 12 year ago in the country. But,

now there are about 1,250 newspapers and

34 TV channels as the government has given

license to 44 private TV channels," he added.

He said there were few online news portals

before 12 years. But, now there are hundreds

of online news portals across the country, he

added.

DRU former president Shakhawat

Hossain Badsha, convenor of golden jubilee

of Independence celebration committee of

DRU and organizing secretary Mainul

Hasan Sohel and publicity secretary Maidur

Rahman, among others, addressed the

discussion. Later, the minister handed over

prizes among the winners of 'City Bangk-

DRU Badminton Tournament.

Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury addressing a press conference at National Press

Club on Tuesday.

Photo : TBT

Chattogram Civil surgeon tests

positive for Covid-19

CHATTOGAM : Civil surgeon of Chattogram

Dr Sheikh Fazle Rabbi has tested positive for

Covid-19, said senior consultant of

Chattogram General Hospital Dr Md Abdur

Rob, reports UNB.

"Dr Rabbi gave his sample for test on

Monday and the report came positive at

night. He will say in a 14-day home

quarantine," he said.

Dr Rob said Dr Fazle Rabbi received the

first dose of Covid-19 vaccine on February 7.

The country's coronavirus caseload

swelled to 600,895 on Monday after the

health authorities recorded 5,181 new cases

in 24 hours until the morning.

Along with the high number of cases, 45

coronavirus-related deaths were also

recorded, pushing the death tally to 8,949,

the Directorate General of Health Services

(DGHS) said in a handout.

The latest cases were reported after testing

28,195 samples.

The infection rate jumped to 18.38 percent

on Monday from 17.65 percent on Sunday.

However, the death rate stands at 1.49

percent.

During this 24-hour period, 2,077

coronavirus patients recovered. So far,

538,018 patients have made recoveries.

Twenty-eight people died in Dhaka

Division, six in Chattogram, five in Rajshahi,

three in Khulna and one each in Barishal,

Mymensingh and Rangpur.

So far, 5,081 people died in Dhaka division,

1,628 in Chattogram, 499 in Rajshahi, 577 in

Khulna, 273 in Barishal, 317 in Sylhet, 373 in

Rangpur and 201 in Mymensingh.

Bangladesh reported its first cases on

March 8, 2020 and the first death on March

18 the same year.

Language Movement hero

Yusuf Kalu passes away

BARISHAL : Language Movement veteran

and journalist Yusuf Kalu passed away at a

hospital in Barishal on Monday due to old

age complications. He was 91.

Yusuf Kalu, also a freedom fighter,

breathed his last at Barishal Sher-e-Bangla

Medical College and Hospital around 5:45

PM, said his son Md Shohagh, reports UNB.

Born on January 17, 1931 at Miabari in

Razapur Kanudaskathi of Jhalakati district,

Yusuf was the youngest son of his father

Obaidul Karim (Raza Mia) and mother

(Fatema Khatun).

He was a student of Barishal BM College.

Until the death, he was active in works

related to the history of Language Movement

and Liberation War.

Yusuf became involved in the Language

Movement in 1948 when he was a student of

class VIII. After passing Matriculation, he

got admitted to IA at the Commerce

Department of BM College and involved in

Chhattra Union.

He was also a member of the 25-member

'Language Movement Council'.

In 1952, Yusuf joined the Chhatra League

and later got involved with Awami League

politics. He started journalism in 1962 and

joined 'Daily Azad' and 'Daily Paigam'. Yusuf

was also a general secretary of Barishal Press

Club in 1962 to 1973. Yusuf, a freedom

fighter, received training at Hasnabad,

Hingalgarh, Taki Headquarters on May 14,

1971. After returning to the country, he

fought with the Pakistan Army under Sector

- 9 in Kaliganj and Satkhira bordering area.

His house was looted during the Liberation

War.

WEdnEsdAY, MArCH 31, 2021

4

Western sanctions against China violate human rights of people

Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam

e-mail: editor@thebangladeshtoday.com

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Bring back

people's money

Three persons from Bangladesh and also some others facing

the allegations of embezzling thousands of crores of Taka

from different banks, financial institutions and capital

markets are now living abroad in luxury after leaving the country

without any obstacles. Needless to say, people in Bangladesh are

almost one in expressing that these individuals should not be

allowed to enjoy their looted wealth abroad. People's expectation is

that they will be brought back to Bangladesh to stand trial and that

their looted monies will be recovered by the state to alleviate the

grief and miseries of people who suffered in the hands of these

nabobs of atrocious financial crimes.

State agencies are particularly investigating the alleged

irregularities and loan forgeries committed by these three

individuals. These high-profile individuals are Abdul Hye Bachchu,

Abdul Aziz and Prasanta Kumar Halder (PK Haldar).

Abdul Hye Bachchu alone left BASIC Bank almost collapsed. He

is now living in London and New York with family. Sources said he

visits Bangladesh when needed. Abdul Aziz, the owner of Jaaz

Multimedia, left the country allegedly after taking a huge volume of

loans from several banks. PK Haldar allegedly plundered Tk 3,500

million from the country's capital market and at least four non-bank

financial institutions.

PK Haldar is now living in Montreal, Canada after leaving

Bangladesh at the beginning of January this year. Sources said

Haldar floated several companies in Montreal and Toronto after

laundering money from Bangladesh. His brother and wife have

been made directors of these business firms. Apart from Canada, PK

Halder has huge investments out of ill gotten wealth in India,

Malaysia and Singapore, sources added.

Abdul Aziz is also living in Canada. Abdul Aziz left the country

after non-repayment of bank loans by his company Crescent Group.

Five companies-Crescent Leather Products, Crescent Tanneries,

Lexco Ltd, Rupali Composite Leatherwear and Remax Footwear are

owned by Abdul Aziz and his brother Abdul Kader. They owe Tk

3,443 crore (as of October last year) to Janata Bank alone.

Earlier, the ACC imposed travel ban on Haldar and Aziz as part

of its investigation into their alleged involvement in money

laundering and accumulation of wealth illegally. "The ACC usually

sends letter to the Special Branch of Police seeking travel ban on

such people to prevent them from fleeing the country. But how they

could escape dodging the airport immigration remains a big

question. The cases of Haldar and Aziz are similar. Like them, many

of the loan scammers left the country in the past to evade

prosecution," said an ACC official.

" The loan scammers who have been banned from travelling

abroad could not be barred from leaving the country, the luxury life

of the ' financial robbers' is encouraging other scammers, " banking

sector insiders said.

Former chairman of the Association of Bankers Bangladesh

(ABB), Anis A. Khan, said "The culture of fleeing abroad with money

from the banks must be stopped. The robbers need to have their

passports cancelled. At the same time, action must be taken against

them by the countries where these criminals reside. " If it is possible

to cancel their visas, then the culture of escape from the country will

stop forever. The Ministry of Finance, Bangladesh Bank, Security

Exchange Commission, National Revenue Board and Anti-

Corruption Commission should take joint initiatives in this regard,"

he added.

"Many businessmen, influential people, loan defaulters and

corrupt bankers fled the country committing big financial crimes.

They took away thousands of crores of public money from banks

and financial institutions. The state authorities appeared too weak

to put high profile offenders in the dock," said Dr Khandaker

Ibrahim Khaled, a former Deputy Governor of Bangladesh Bank.

He cited that their escape hampers investigation in relevant cases,

wastes precious time of courts and undermines the rule of law in

Bangladesh.

Dr Ibrahim Khaled further said the government should

introduce legal measures to facilitate confiscation of assets of the

financial offenders who fled to foreign countries to escape the law of

the land. He said the ACC must arrest the top-level offenders who

have mishandled general people's money. "These actions by ACC

will play an extremely important role in fighting corruption i

There is hardly disagreement among most quarters in

Bangladesh about the merit side of the move to bring back huge

resources pumped out of Bangladesh by the truly corrupt and

powerful ones under different governments. The Finance Minister

on occasion, in response to queries from the media, commented

that steps would be taken to bring back the siphoned off wealth. But

the finance minister's comments need to be matched by vigorous

activism to raise hopes that justice would indeed be finally done to

bring back these resources which should belong to the people and

spent or utilized for their well being.

Foreign agencies helping the government in these matters say

that resources not in millions of dollars but billions would be

recoverable if only successive governments in Bangladesh

remained steady in pressing for the same. The recovered money

could prove to be a booster for the country's foreign currency

reserve, help significantly the import operations and come as a

powerful aid to support activities towards poverty alleviation and

meeting requirements for spending on distressed people during

emergencies.

When some 30 per cent or more people of the country remain

in the ranks of the poor or very poor, when they fail to meet

minimum calorie requirements for themselves even after every

day's hard toil, in this backdrop righteous indignation cannot but

be created from such knowledge about a small number of

plunderers who are using this country as a springboard to pump

out such vast unearned wealth out of it to be able to enjoy the same

in foreign countries. Indeed, the blood of any upright individual

should come to a boil in anger from such information.

Thus, it is imperative that the present government should look

at this issue with the seriousness it deserves. People in general are

very aware of the looting of this land by interest groups at their

expense. Thus, the incumbents in power must be seen as doing

what must be done in the interest of the people by making all out

efforts to get back the vast wealth of the country siphoned off by a

number of plunderers.

In the remaining part of its tenure, the present government

would be doing countrymen a great service by accelerating the

moves to bring back the stolen resources of the people in bigger

amounts and at short intervals. Apart from the obvious usefulness

of the same for the public exchequer such developments will help to

improve the credibility of the present ruling party in future national

polls.

As

a

coordinated

effort, the

European Union,

UK, US and

Canada have

recently imposed

sanctions on

several Chinese

officials accused of, what the western

countries said, human rights violations

in Xinjiang. The sanctions--travel bans to

asset freezes--were not unpredictable.

The way some western politicians and

their puddle media have long been

running propaganda against China,

anyone could infer that something worse

like sanctions lie ahead.

The western countries have imposed

sanctions on the Chinese officials over

some fake and fabricated allegations of

so-called mass detention at

concentration camps, forced

sterilizations on Uighur women and

separating children from their families,

destruction of religious sites, and forced

labor in the cotton industry in Xinjiang.

Amid western criticisms and

propaganda, many journalists,

diplomats, scholars, politicians,

lawmakers, Islamic clerics, government

and non-government officials, students,

and human rights activists from around

the world have visited Xinjiang and

dismissed allegations of abuses as

rumors. They have highly praised the

initiatives China has taken to develop

and de-radicalize the region once-known

as a hot-bed of terrorists.

Since 2018, more than 1,000 persons

from over 70 delegations and 100

countries have visited Xinjiang. The

delegations included UN officials, foreign

envoys in China, permanent

representatives of relevant countries in

Geneva, and religious groups. All of them

had a good impression of Xinjiang after

witnessing the situations on ground for

themselves.

Most notably, a delegation of UN

envoys from eight countries has visited

Xinjiang to gain a better understanding

of the region's achievements from deradicalization

to poverty eradication. The

diplomats from Yemen, Equatorial

Guinea, Mozambique, Zambia, Côte

d'Ivoire, South Africa, Ethiopia and

Zimbabwe have visited the region. The

five-day tour brought them to the

regional capital Urumqi, and Hotan and

Kashgar in southern Xinjiang, where

they visited factories, bazaars,

communities, mosques and vocational

training centers.

Vladimir Voronkov, under-secretarygeneral

of the UN Office of Counter-

Terrorism, has also visited Xinjiang,

while several Egyptian media delegates

have also been provided a detailed

Iran's militias push Middle East toward all-out war

What were earlier simply claims

that Iran's regime was using its

loyalist armed militias in Iraq,

Syria and Yemen as bargaining chips to

gain more leverage in any prospective

nuclear negotiations with the US are now

acknowledged facts requiring no further

proof.

Instead, the discussion now is about the

extent to which Tehran is willing to deploy

its proxy militias across the region and

instruct them to launch devastating

offensive operations, ultimately leading to

all-out war. Are the Gulf states militarily

and socially prepared to counter the

ramifications of such a catastrophic war?

And what would be the role of the US,

Europe and the wider international

community if this scenario played out?

Since January, multiple drone and

missile attacks have been launched

against Saudi Arabia from the northern

part of Yemen, with a militia known as the

"Right Promise Brigades" claiming credit

for the attacks that targeted Riyadh.

Regardless of the Iranian regime

constantly creating new militias with

multiple names to distract from the

activities of its main loyalist militias, these

attacks mark a major transformation in

Iran's strategy. In addition, the regime

provoked further hostilities on the Iraqi

front by deploying across the region the

massive militia reserves it has been

amassing on Iraq's territories for years.

Some now estimate the number to be as

many as 70,000 fighters.

Through these attacks, Iran seeks to

achieve multiple objectives

simultaneously, including opening a new

front on the northern border of Saudi

Arabia in addition to continuing its

hostilities on the southern front, where

the Houthi militia threatens the Kingdom

and the Arab coalition in an effort to

strengthen support for the Houthis'

claims of legitimacy in Yemen. This is

alongside putting pressure on US forces in

insight of the situation in the

northwestern region of China.

Diplomatic envoys posted in China

from 20 Arab states and the Arab League

have toured Xinjiang. They have visited

local companies, schools, poverty

alleviation projects and grassroots

communities, and talked to villagers to

get an in-depth understanding of social

stability, ethnic equality and unity,

improvement in people's livelihood and

economic development. They have also

visited Islamic institutes and mosques to

learn about the protection of freedom of

religious belief in Xinjiang.

Senior diplomats from seven countries

and an international organization have

visited Xinjiang. During the trip, the

diplomats from Myanmar, Algeria,

Morocco, Vietnam, Hungary, Greece,

Singapore and the mission of the League

of Arab States in China, visited various

places across the region and interacted

extensively with local residents. They

said they were impressed by Xinjiang's

openness, inclusiveness, ethnic unity, as

well as its achievements in improving

people's livelihoods.

The 46th session of the Council of

Foreign Minister of the Organization of

Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has adopted a

resolution on Xinjiang. The resolution

commends China's efforts for the wellbeing

of the Muslims. It vindicated

China's position on Xinjiang, rejecting

the negative propaganda of some

Western countries to this effect. The OIC

has also expressed its willingness to

strengthen cooperation with China.

Prior to adopting the resolution, a

delegation of the General Secretariat of

the OIC visited Xinjiang to see the

conditions on ground by themselves. The

Council welcomed the outcomes of the

visit and commended the efforts of China

in providing care to its Muslim citizens

including Uyghurs in Xinjiang.

Ambassadors and envoys from seven

more countries have visited Xinjiang.

The diplomats from Laos, Cambodia, the

Philippines, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bahrain

and Nigeria have visited the cities of

Urumqi and Turpan, getting to know the

region's economic and social

development.

Most recently, Ambassadors of the

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and State of

dr. MoHAMMEd Al-sulAMI

Iraq and making America feel powerless

in the face of the Iran-backed militias, as

well as sending a clear but unspoken

threat to other Gulf states. Iran has

announced its ability to target Gulf

territories from Iraqi soil and made it clear

that, no matter their distance from the

war in Yemen, they are not immune from

attacks.

All the aforementioned factors are

intended to impede Saudi-Iraqi

rapprochement, especially following the

reopening of the Arar border crossing and

the initiation of trade exchanges between

the two countries. Iran, through its

escalation in Iraq, has attempted to

weaken Mustafa Al-Kadhimi's

government and hinted at its ability to

spoil the next Iraqi parliamentary

election.

By ordering its loyalist militias in Iraq to

work toward securing the aforementioned

objectives, Iran is risking the initiation of

militia-style guerrilla warfare in the

region. Such attacks by Iraqi militias are

unjustified on any grounds, with Saudi

Arabia uninvolved in any military

confrontation with them. It is well known

that any conflict involving militias does

not need an official proclamation of war,

but can be triggered merely by their

repetitive offensive operations.

With Iran pursuing a policy of denial,

the region's countries and their allies have

three options, namely: Adopting the same

approach through establishing militias of

their own and pursuing a policy of denial;

Md EnAMul HAssAn

Palestine to China have visited Xinjiang.

They have also lauded Chinese efforts for

the welfare of Muslims and rejected

western propaganda of human rights

violations in the northwestern region of

China.

At the most recent session of the

United Nations Human Rights Council

in Geneva, Belarus and Cuba have

respectively delivered the joint

statements of 71 and 64 countries in

support of China's policy in upholding

human rights. These states have

denounced unfounded allegations of

some western countries aimed at curbing

the growth of developing countries.

However, nothing could stop western

politicians and the media from running

propaganda against China over Xinjiang.

They are so pledged-bound to smear

China that whatever the truth is, never

will they accept it. As such, western

anxiety over losing their supremacy to

China has forced them to take a staunch

Amid western criticisms and propaganda, many journalists, diplomats,

scholars, politicians, lawmakers, Islamic clerics, government and nongovernment

officials, students, and human rights activists from around

the world have visited Xinjiang and dismissed allegations of abuses as

rumors. They have highly praised the initiatives China has taken to develop

and de-radicalize the region once-known as a hot-bed of terrorists.

position against the truth.

The sanctions have proved that they

have intentionally been running smear

campaigns against China despite

knowing the truth. Their intention was to

create a backdrop for taking measures to

hamstring and withhold the rise of

China. The campaigns were designed to

deceive their peoples into espousing their

illegal actions against China.

The sanctions have nothing to do with

human rights and are motivated by

political interests of maintaining western

supremacy on earth. This has now been

an open secret as many western leaders

are expressing their acute desire in public

without any ambiguity to stop China

from becoming the largest economy of

the world. Though the western sanctions

have been imposed on China on the false

pretexts of human rights violations in

Xinjiang, the sanctions themselves will

violate economic, cultural, and other

human rights of the people in the region.

The sanctions will bring about suffering

to the officials and their innocent family

members with the freezing of their

assets.

The employees and their innocent

family members will have to bear the

ultimate brunt of sanctions imposed on

the companies. If the employees lose

their jobs owing the sections, they will go

responding directly to the central actor

controlling these militias and sparking

catastrophic conventional warfare in the

region; or continuing with imposing

diplomatic and economic pressures on

Iran.

Choosing any of these options depends

to a great extent on the level of escalation

mounted by the pro-Tehran militias on

Saudi territories. It is important to note

that Iran's regime has been diversifying its

targets. In some attacks, its militias have

fired rockets at Irbil airport or targeted

This is alongside putting pressure on us forces in Iraq and making

America feel powerless in the face of the Iran-backed militias,

as well as sending a clear but unspoken threat to other Gulf

states. Iran has announced its ability to target Gulf territories

from Iraqi soil and made it clear that, no matter their distance

from the war in Yemen, they are not immune from attacks.

military columns in Baghdad, while in

others they have fired drones and missiles

at Riyadh. Iran has also ordered the

Houthis to mount an extensive ground

offensive in Marib, despite the militia not

being prepared for such an offensive.

Maybe not launching repeated attacks

on one target or area is one of the reasons

why the affected parties have not

responded strongly, considering the

attacks to be nothing more than a foe

employing limited military aggression to

secure a political objective or provoke a

response. Whatever the reasons for this

restraint, there is no doubt that the region

is experiencing asymmetrical warfare,

with Iran using loyalist militias against

countries that use conventional warfare to

defend themselves.

For several reasons, we cannot be totally

sure that any potential negotiated

settlement regarding the outstanding

issues between Iran and the international

community will lead to Tehran's loyalist

through abject sufferings, resulting in

serious violations of their human and

fundamental rights of education,

treatment, clothes, shelter and food.

The sanctions on the cotton industry

prove that human rights never bother the

western countries. They have sanctioned

the industry based on some cock and bull

stories spun by themselves and their own

media. Though they have brought

allegations of forced labor to the

industry, Most of cotton is planted and

harvested by machines.

Almost 70 percent cotton was

harvested by machine in 2019. Of them,

more than 90 percent of the cotton

production in northern Xinjiang is highly

mechanized, while southern Xinjiang has

raised its mechanization rate to about 40

percent in cotton harvesting.

There is no question of forced labor in

the cotton industry. Rather many people

struggle to get a job in the industry as one

general employee can earn handsome

money an average of nearly 6,000 yuan

(about $895) in only two months, while a

cotton picker pockets some 23,000 yuan

during the same period. When the higher

income in the industry allures so many

people to find a job, there is not an aura

of truth in the allegations of forced labor

there.

The western countries know the truth

well and that they have targeted the

industry to hit the economic backbone of

China. They also know that the industry

offers some 600,000 local jobs,

producing around 19 percent cotton of

the world. They further know that China

wants to transform Xinjiang into a textile

hub and create one million textile jobs by

2023.

They have sanctioned the industry

knowing the facts. The sanctions are

simultaneously aimed at making China

economically loser and Xinjiang people

jobless, pushing the region back into

turmoil. The western countries want to

make the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)

a failure by destabilizing Xinjian that is at

the heart of the initiative to Central Asia.

It is now crystal clear that the western

sanctions against China have nothing to

do with human rights. Rather they will

violate the human rights of millions of

Xinjiang people by leaving them jobless,

causing inhuman sufferings to their

innocent family members. The sanctions

are also sheer violations of the UN

Charter and international laws on noninterference

as, with them, the western

countries have interfered in the domestic

affairs of China and violate its sacred

sovereignty.

Md Enamul Hassan is a news

editor and broadcast journalist at

China Media Group (CMG) in

Beijing, China.

militias suspending their operations. Iran

will be keen to continue using and

deploying these militias to achieve other

strategic objectives. Also, it is hard to

reintegrate fighters into society and

rehabilitate them after years of

involvement in militias, even if Iran

planned to dismantle its proxies.

For these reasons - as well as

considering the fact that the presence of

pro-Iranian militias has become a fait

accompli on Iraqi soil, geographically

adjacent to Gulf territories - it is

imperative for the Gulf states to prepare

themselves militarily and socially to deal

with this reality.

It is neither natural nor acceptable that

Gulf territories should continue to be

targeted by unknown parties without the

finger of blame being pointed at Iran.

It is neither natural nor acceptable that

Gulf territories should continue to be

targeted by unknown parties without the

finger of blame being pointed at Iran,

which continues to hide behind a policy of

denial.

Iran's use of terrorism and sectarianism

to achieve its objectives is dragging the

entire region into an expanded militiastyle

warfare unprecedented in modern

history.

What emboldens Iran to use its militia

tool is the fact that the US, Europe and

even the wider international community

consider its establishment and

deployment of proxies across the region to

be of lesser significance when compared

to dealing with its nuclear program. This

is despite the fact that this issue is of

primary importance to the region's

nations and they cannot accept that this

issue is neglected any longer.

Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami is

President of the International

Institute for Iranian Studies

(Rasanah). Twitter:

@mohalsulami

wEDNESDay, MarCH 31, 2021

5

UK deviating from Paris climate

goals in some sectors

wet turkey tail fungi after a rain storm.

Photo: Stephen Hyde

A peek into the world of fungi

PHoEBE wESToN

Ahost of otherworldly characters are

squatting in the wood. Conventional

toadstools make way for more

gelatinous bodies slopping around

fallen trees, dead wood and tree stumps

during the coldest months of the year.

Many are wood-decaying fungi - things

that look like crusts, skin, slime and bits

of brain that use enzymes to break down

and digest wood and other dead plant

material.

For the past few months I have

conducted an out-of-season exploration

of this strange and underrated world.

The Seek app - made by iNaturalist -

identifies species using artificial

intelligence (AI). I identified 15 species

of fungi (with the help of a fungi

identification book at home) and was

baffled by many more. As I discovered,

fungi do not like being categorised.

Slimy finds include yellow brain fungi

(Tremellamesenterica), crystal brain

fungus (Myxariumnucleatum) and

amber jelly fungus (Exidiarecisa). As

spring approaches these gelatinous

fungi start to shrivel up. The tougher

shelf fungi include things such as oak

mazegill (Daedaleaquercina), mustard

yellow polypore (Phellinusgilvus) and

chicken of the woods

(Laetiporussulphureus).

Then there are delicate ones that fan

out of rotting wood like frills on the hem

of a layered dress. These include hairy

curtain crust (Stereumhirsutum),

crowded

parchment

(Stereumcomplicatum) and turkey tail

(Trametesversicolor). Some of these

species can be spotted all year round but

they are particularly visible in winter,

when vegetation is bare.

"Most people like to go out in autumn

because they like to see the fleshy

toadstool things, but most of my work is

on wood-decay fungi," says Lynne

Boddy, professor of microbial ecology at

Cardiff University. "To me, this is a good

time of year - there is masses out there

to be seen. I just went for a walk with my

six-year-old granddaughter this

morning, and we must have seen 10

different species, and we were just

making a very quick charge through the

woods to get to the swings."

The bit of fungi we see is the fruiting

body, and it is part of a much larger

structure laced through the soil, plants

and trees. Unlike animals, fungi put

their bodies in the food they eat, so they

are invisible to us most of the time.

Fungi produce fruiting bodies

throughout the year - so even during the

quiet, leafless months of winter, there

are always some species to see.

Fungi challenge our traditional

taxonomic system because their world

is about processes and relationships,

where one species can be almost

indistinguishable from another. They

can also look very different depending

on the day. For example, hairy curtain

crust sometimes seems to morph into

turkey tail, which explains its other

name, false turkey tail. But then there is

another false turkey tail, called golden

curtain crust (Stereumostrea), which is

slightly different.

It can all be a bit of a headache, and in

the past few years fungal taxonomy has

got even more complicated because

molecular DNA has shown that many

species thought to be the same are not.

Mycologists believe chicken of the

woods - a type of shelf fungus - might be

different species on oak and yew trees,

even though they look identical. There is

much disagreement about yellow brain

fungi and witches' butter - some arguing

they are the same, others say they are

different.

Their tendency to trick means fungi

can be a hard group to get into.

Plantlife's Dave Lamacraft, who

previously worked with the RSPB, says:

"In [the bird] world, you can say, 'oh, it's

a robin', 'oh, it's a song thrush' - there's

very little doubt. In the fungi world

suddenly you don't know if what you're

calling something is what it is."

"Once you get into ID, it's really hard;

it's hard to avoid having to use

microscopes if you want to know for

sure," adds Lamacraft. His advice is not

to worry too much about identification

when starting out. He recommends just

looking at fungi and working out what is

special and different about them.

"You're transported into a whole other

world - it's like Gulliver's travels through

a hand lens," he says.Just learning the

name of something does not necessarily

give you knowledge about a fungus,

agrees Boddy. She encourages people to

look for mycelium - the hidden network

of tiny filaments - when going on fungi

walks. These threads can be excavated

by gently turning over rotting wood and

pulling apart soil.

"You can trace them for quite a long

way. Some of them are quite fine, but

other ones are really big, thick and juicy,

and you can follow them for many

metres. So that's an exciting thing to

do," she says. "I don't want to take away

from the importance of fruit bodies, but

it's equally important that we find out

what they're doing, because they are the

things that are keeping our ecosystems

going."

Nine out of 10 plants have fungi

associated with their roots, and

although people understand the

importance of plants in terrestrial

ecosystems, they rarely appreciate the

work of fungi. Despite recent interest in

fungi since the publication of the

biologist Merlin Sheldrake's book

Entangled Life, taxonomic work on

fungi is at its lowest point since the

1930s in the UK, according to written

evidence submitted to a House of Lords

select committee in 2008.

A lot of data collected by the British

Mycological Society is from amateurs

who contribute to a range of research

and provides information for Red List

conservation assessments. A five-year

citizen science fungi conservation

project run by Kew Gardens, which

started in 2014, resulted in the

discovery of species that had not been

seen for up to 100 years.

"We need these records, we need

these amateurs to be identifiers," says

Boddy, who adds that joining a local

fungi group is the best way to learn.

While in lockdown, however, posting

images on the British Mycological

Society's Facebook page could be a

good substitute. "People are very

happy to help," she says. The more

people use iNaturalist - which is

created by the California Academy of

Sciences and the National Geographic

Society - the better the AI will become

at identification, and the more this

data will be useful to scientists.

Already more than 23m observations

have been made.From never really

noticing fungi I am now seeing them

everywhere.

The success of Scottish windfarm

shows global potential

Paul BrowN

It took 10 years to develop the first

floating windfarm and it seemed to

some a dangerous gamble to put it 15

miles off Aberdeen in the stormiest

waters of the North Sea. But after three

years of being in operation it has

broken world records for maximum

output. Its success even outstrips the

The Norwegian company Equinor, which took the gamble on

Hywind, Scotland.

Photo: Xinhua

speed with which Europe's other

offshore windfarms, those standing in

shallow water, have gone from being an

expensive renewable option to a

mainstream power source. Floating

windfarms' worldwide potential is even

greater.

The scale of the first five floating

turbines is staggering- 175 metres

above the sea with another 75 metres

below to balance the weight of the

tower and the rotor blade with a

diameter of 154 metres. The

enormous height makes them a

commercial success because further

out to sea they can catch a steadily

blowing wind and deliver more

power.

The Norwegian company Equinor,

which took the gamble on Hywind

Scotland, has said the experience has

allowed them to cut costs by 40%. The

company is now building an even

bigger floating windfarm off their home

coast before looking for more sites

around the UK.

They will have competition: firms are

already scrambling to bid for floating

wind sites off the Welsh coast and

Cornwall.

FIoNa HarvEy

Prominent scientists and lawyers have

said the UK government's decision to

ignore the Paris climate agreement

when deciding on major infrastructure

projects undermines its presidency of

UN climate talks this year.

The experts - including the former

Nasa scientist Jim Hansen, the former

UK government chief scientist Sir David

King and the economist Prof Jeffrey

Sachs - have written to ministers and

the supreme court about a recent ruling

that the government need not take the

UK's obligations under the treaty into

account when setting policy, made in a

case concerning the proposed

expansion of Heathrow airport.

Green campaigners took the

government to court in 2019 over its

decision to allow the expansion of

Heathrow, arguing that the increase in air

travel it would enable was incompatible

with the UK's obligations under the Paris

agreement to try to hold global heating to

well below 2C above pre-industrial levels.

The court of appeal agreed in

February 2020 that the government

should have taken the Paris goals into

account, but the supreme court reversed

that ruling last December.The UK is due

to host the Cop26 summit in Glasgow in

November, regarded as one of the last

chances to put the world on track to

meet the Paris goals.

"The highest court in the UK has set a

precedent that major national projects

can proceed even where they are

inconsistent with maintaining the

temperature limit on which our

collective survival depends," says the

letter, signed by more than 130

scientists, legal and environmental

experts. "Indeed, the precedent goes

further still. It says that the government

is not bound even to consider the goals

of an agreement that is near universally

CHrISToPHEr FlavEllE

The idea of artificially cooling the

planet to blunt climate change - in

effect, blocking sunlight before it can

warm the atmosphere - got a boost on

Thursday when an influential scientific

body urged the United States

government to spend at least $100

million to research the technology.

That technology, often called solar

geoengineering, entails reflecting more

of the sun's energy back into space

through techniques that include

injecting aerosols into the atmosphere.

In a new report, the National

Academies of Sciences, Engineering,

and Medicine said that governments

urgently need to know whether solar

geoengineering could work and what

the side effects might be.

"Solar geoengineering is not a

substitute for decarbonizing," said

Chris Field, director of the Woods

Institute for the Environment at

Stanford University and head of the

committee that produced the report,

referring to the need to emit less carbon

dioxide and other greenhouse gases

into the atmosphere. Still, he said,

technology to reflect sunlight "deserves

substantial funding, and it should be

researched as rapidly and effectively as

possible."

The report acknowledged the risks

that have made geoengineering one of

the most contentious issues in climate

policy. Those risks include upsetting

regional weather patterns in potentially

devastating ways, for example by

changing the behavior of the monsoon

in South Asia; relaxing public pressure

agreed. Not only does that undermine

the UK's status as a champion of the

Paris agreement just ahead of Cop26. It

also substantially reduces humanity's

prospects of maintaining that limit and

hence averting disaster."

The letter urges the government and

the supreme court to rethink. "We

remind the court of its own obligations

under the Human Rights Act 1998 to

safeguard the right to life. That entails

taking all reasonable measures to

ensure respect for the entirety of the

Paris agreement." Tim Crosland, the

director of Plan B, the campaigning

group that brought the original case, has

been the subject of contempt of court

proceedings as he revealed the supreme

court judgment early, and the letter also

refers to his case. "With all that is at

stake in the UK and beyond, we urge the

court to take appropriate steps to

mitigate the profound harm its

judgment has caused and to consider

the actions of Tim Crosland in this

light," it states.

King told the Guardian he was

particularly concerned about the

treatment of Crosland and its

implications for protest and dissent,

amplified by the police and crime bill

now passing through parliament that

could in effect outlaw most forms of

public demonstration. "It's extremely

worrying, as we pride ourselves in

Britain on having developed a true

democracy," he said. "Any democracy

needs to give voice to dissent. There's a

real danger that we're going down a

pathway that leads away from

Green campaigners took the government to court in 2019 over its decision

to allow the expansion of Heathrow airport. Photo: Jack Taylor

to reduce greenhouse gas emissions;

and even creating an "unacceptable risk

of catastrophically rapid warming" if

governments started reflecting sunlight

for a period of time, and then later

stopped.

But the authors argue that

greenhouse gas emissions are not

falling quickly enough to avoid

dangerous levels of global warming,

which means the world must begin to

examine other options. Evidence for or

against solar geoengineering, they

found, "could have profound value" in

guiding decisions about whether to

deploy it.

That includes evidence about what

the authors called the social risks: For

example, if research showed that the

side effects would be concentrated in

poorer nations, Dr. Field said, it could

be grounds not to pursue the

technology, even if it benefited the

world as a whole.

The report also argued that by

publicly funding geoengineering

research, the United States could

ensure that the work is transparent and

accountable to the public, with clear

rules about when and how to test the

technology.

Some critics said those safeguards

weren't enough.The steps urged in the

report to protect the interests of poorer

countries - for example, accounting for

farmers in South Asia whose lives could

be upended by changes in rain patterns

- could fall away once the research

begins, according to Prakash Kashwan,

a professor of political science at the

University of Connecticut.

"Once these kinds of projects get into

democracy." Sachs said: "The idea that

[government] decisions should be

consistent with the Paris agreement is a

general principle for the world, and the

world is looking to the UK this year for

leadership at Cop26.

What will happen if the solar

system is blocked

Mount Sinabung in Karo, Indonesia.

Photo: aP

the political process, the scientists who

are adding all of these qualifiers, and all

of these cautionary notes, aren't in

control," Dr. Kashwan said.

Jennie Stephens, director of the

School of Public Policy and Urban

Affairs at Northeastern University, said

that geoengineering research takes

money and attention from the core

problem, which is cutting emissions

and helping vulnerable communities

cope with the climate disruptions that

are already happening.

"We need to double down on bigger

transformative changes," Dr. Stephens

said. "That's where the investment

needs to be."Solar geoengineering has

bipartisan support in Congress, which

in late 2019 gave the National Oceanic

and Atmospheric Administration $4

million to research the technology.

"America needs to be on the cutting

edge of climate research,"

Representative John Curtis,

Republican of Utah, said in a

statement. "More knowledge is

always better."The calculation could

be more difficult for President Biden,

who has tried to gain the support of

the party's progressive wing, some of

whom are skeptical about

geoengineering. Senator Bernie

Sanders of Vermont has called it a

"false solution," grouping it with

nuclear power or capturing carbon

dioxide and burying it underground.

Asked for comment on the report, a

White House spokesman, Vedant

Patel, said by email that President

Biden "has been clear about

addressing the climate crisis." He

added, "innovative solutions that can

help accomplish this should be

looked into and studied."

Tylar Greene, a spokeswoman for

NASA, which helped fund the report,

said in a statement that "we look

forward to reviewing the report,

examining recommendations, and

exploring how NASA and its research

community can support this effort."

Ko Barrett, deputy assistant

administrator at NOAA, which also

helped fund the report, said in a

statement that the agency looked

forward to "carefully reviewing" it. The

Department of Energy, another funder,

didn't respond to a request for

comment.

The endorsement by the National

Academies might make some

lawmakers feel more comfortable

supporting the technology, according

to Michael Gerrard, director of the

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

at the Columbia Law School and editor

of a book on solar geoengineering.

wedneSdAY, MArCh 31, 2021

6

Workshop on environmental pollution

and remediation held at Mohadevpur

M ShAkhAwAth hoSSAin,

MohAdevpur CorreSpondent

A day-long workshop on environmental

pollution and remedies has been

held at Mohadevpur with people

from different walks of life. Zion

rabbi Samaddar, project officer,

pure earth, presented the keynote

address at a workshop organized by

the Hunger project Bangladesh

and pure earth at the Upazila

Agriculture Hallroom on Sunday.

Naogaon Zilla parishad Member

razia Sultana presided over the

function while among others

Mohadevpur Upazila parishad

Vice Chairman rabeya rahman

polly, former patitla Upazila

parishad Vice Chairman Shefa,

Mohadevpur Upazila Social

Service officer Jahangir Arif

pramanik and Mohadevpur

thana press Club General

Secretary M Sakhawat Hossain

were among others present at the

occasion.

Members of Bangladesh Coast Guard Station Chandpur in a drive seized 1,200 kg (30 mound)

of jatkas in the area adjacent to harina Ferry Ghat on tuesday. ` photo: Courtesy

Bangladesh Coast Guard seizes large

quantity of jatkas in separate drives

Bangladesh Coast Guard Station

Chandpur conducted a special

operation in the area adjacent to

Harina Ferry Ghat and arrested 3

people including 1,200 kg (30 mound)

of jatka and 1 pickup on tuesday, a

press release said.

the operation was led by Lt. M

Ashmaduzzaman on the basis of secret

information. during the operation,

they searched 1 pickup and arrested 0

people including 1,200 kg (30 mound)

jatkas. the seized jatkas were

distributed among the local

orphanages and the poor in the

presence of executive Magistrate Kazi

Holy Shab-e-Barat

observed in rangpur

rANGpUr: the holy Shab-e-

Barat, largely known as the night of

fortune, was observed in the city

with due religious fervour, devotion

and solemnity on Monday night,

reports BSS.

the Muslims offered 'nafal' prayers

and participated in special munajats

at mosques, homes and reciting from

the holy Quran throughout the night

to observe one of the most

meaningful nights of forgiveness,

fortune, hopes and aspirations.

Most of them maintained the

health directives while offering

'nafal' prayers and participating in

special munajats at mosques in the

wake of the hastily rising trend in the

coronavirus (CoVid-19) infection

rate.

in their munajats, they sought

divine blessings of Almighty Allah

for long life, peace, progress, good

health and happiness and

forgiveness, eternal peace for the

soles of their departed parents,

generations, nearer and dearer ones.

they sought divine blessings of

Almighty Allah for ending the

CoVid-19 pandemic at the earliest

for safety of the whole humankind

Md. Meshkatul islam and Assistant

Fisheries officer Ashikur rahman. A

mobile court headed by Chandpur

district executive Magistrate Kazi

Mohammad Meshkatul islam

sentenced the three detainees to one

year imprisonment and ordered to

keep the seized pickup (dhaka Metro

13-5340) station commander

Chandpur until further orders.

on the other hand, on the

instructions of Station Commander

pagla Lt. M Ashmadul islam, an

operation was conducted in the area

adjacent to Sowari Ghat and

approximately 1500 kg (38 mound) of

on the earth.

the Muslims visited Munshipara

Central graveyard, Nurpur

graveyard, tazhat graveyard, purbo

Shalbon graveyard, Mahiganj

graveyard and other graveyards and

offered Fateha and special munajats

for eternal peace to their departed

relatives.

in addition, milad and special doa

mehfils and 'zikrs' were organised

and 'tobaraks' distributed at most of

the mosques, including the historical

Keramotia Jam-e-Mosque in the

city.

the olamaye-Kerams, islamic

thinkers and imams delivered

lectures in the special discussions

arranged at the mosques after the

esha prayers narrating spiritual

significance of one of the most

sacred nights "the holy 'Shab-e-

Barat.'

they conducted special munajats

seeking divine blessings and

kindness of Almighty Allah for

getting rid of the CoVid-19

pandemic and welfare, prosperity,

peace and good luck of the country

and its people, humanity and the

Muslim Ummah as a whole

A painting competition has been organized at Bochaganj upazila on Monday.

jatkas were seized on early tuesday.

the real owner of Jatka could not be

apprehended as the unscrupulous

Jatka traders fled after realizing the

presence of the Coast Guard during the

operation. the seized jatkas were later

distributed among the local

orphanages and the poor in the

presence of Assistant Fisheries project

officer Md. Jamal Uddin. regular

operations will be carried out in the

areas under the jurisdiction of

Bangladesh Coast Guard to ensure law

and order, curb robberies and ensure

public safety as well as prevent illegal

fishing and killing of jatkas.

painting

competition held

in Bochaganj

SUMAN CHANdrA,

BoCHAGANJ CorreSpoNdeNt

A painting competition has been

organized at Bochaganj in

dinajpur. the painting

competition was held with 28

sponsored children and was

organized at the office of Good

Neighbors Bangladesh

Bochaganj Cdp on Monday.

Bochaganj Cdp project

Manager Bipul remar presided

over the function while Nishith

Chandra roy, headmaster of

Bakultala Girls High School was

present as the chief guest at the

occasion.

Among others, Good Neighbors

Bangladesh Bochaganj Cdp

Senior officer (program) Johnny

Bairagi, Senior Admin officer

Lawrence dhali, Bochaganj

Upazila press Club member

Sumon Chandra and others were

the special guests.

it is to be mentioned that in the

first phase, a drawing

competition was organized with

the help of 350 sponsored

children in different dream

School Centers.

photo: tBt

A day-long workshop on environmental pollution and remedies has been held at Mohadevpur on

Sunday.

photo: tBt

Friendly cricket match held

in Jamalpur

M SULtAN ALAM, JAMALpUr

CorreSpoNdeNt

A friendly cricket match

between Jamalpur Zila

press club and Jamalpur

district police teams was

held at police lines filed in

the district on Monday.

Superintendent of police,

Md Nasir Uddin Ahmed

inaugurated the friendly

competition to mark the

birth centenary of

Bangabandhu and golden

jubilee of the independence.

in the match, Jamalpur

district police team

overpowered Jamalpur Zila

press club with a large

margin of run and won the

champion trophy.

Additional uperintendent

of police, Sima rani Sarkar

handed over trophies

among the champion and

runner up.

president, Zila press club,

Advocate eusuf Ali and

journalist MA Jalil were

present at that time.

Community support

imperative to mitigate

drugs-abuse

rAJSHAHi: Full-length support of the

community in general and leaders of

influences in particular can be the effective

means of freeing the society from abuse of

drugs along with its illicit trade and

trafficking, reports BSS.

Creation of mass-awareness about the

curse of drug-abuses coupled with its fatal

consequences has become crucial to

mitigate the social disease.

Social watchdogs and development

activists came up with the observations

while addressing the 'district Civil Society

organization (CSo) Network Consultation

Meeting' at Hotel Warisan in rajshahi city

on Monday.

Light House Consortium hosted the

meeting under its 'drug Abuse resistance

and Understanding- dArAU' project in

association with promoting Advocacy and

rights (pAr) project.

SM Monwar Hossain, Manager of

dArAo project, gave an overview of the

project along with its aims, objectives and

implementation strategy during his

multimedia presentation.

He told the meeting that Light House

Consortium, dhaka Ahsania Mission

(dAM), Ashakta punarbashan Sangstha

(ApoSH) and Nari o Shishu Kalyan

Society (NSKS) are jointly implementing

the dArAo project.

Counterpart international is extending

technical support while USAid and

UKAid financial support to the project

Jamalpur district police team overpowered Jamalpur Zila press club with a

large margin of run and won the champion trophy on Monday. M Sultan Alam

being implemented in eight wards of

rajshahi City Corporation and all nine

upazilas in rajshahi district and all six

upazilas and four municipalities in Natore

district.

Chief executive of Light House Harunor-rashid

addressed the meeting as focal

person with Network Convener prof

dipakendra Nath das in the chair.

Former Additional registrar of rajshahi

University Ahmed Safi Uddin, executive

director of Barendra Unnayan prochesta

Foyzullah Chowdhury, Chairman of Save

the Nature and Life Mijanur rahman,

former deputy director of the department

of Social Services pear Baksha and

Monitoring, evaluation & Learning

Coordinator of dArAU project Subrata

Kumar paul also spoke.

the discussants opined that collective

participation of all government and nongovernment

organizations concerned has

become an urgent need for freeing the

society from abuse of drugs.

As a whole, there is no alternative to

make all the existing movements and

efforts of preventing drug abuse effective

and fruitful to protect the young generation

from further degradation.

in his remarks, prof dipakendra Nath

das said the present government has a

declaration of zero tolerance against drugaddiction

and urged all quarters to come

forward to protect the young generation

from the grip of social crime.

New committee

of Feni Samity

France formed

FeNi CorreSpoNdeNt

A newly formed 121

member committee of Feni

Samity France has been

formed recently.

Khan Babu has been

elected as the president

and Alamgir Alam has

been elected as the

general secretary of Feni

Samity France.

WEDNEsDAy, MArCh 31, 2021

7

More than a dozen states will open vaccine eligibility to all adults this week in a major expansion of

COVID-19 shots for tens of millions of Americans amid a worrisome increase in virus cases and concerns

about balancing supply and demand for the vaccines.

Photo : Internet

More than a dozen American states

to open vaccines to all adults

More than a dozen states will open vaccine

eligibility to all adults this week in a

major expansion of COVID-19 shots for

tens of millions of Americans amid a

worrisome increase in virus cases and

concerns about balancing supply and

demand for the vaccines, reports UNB.

Meanwhile, the director of the

Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention said Monday that she had a

recurring feeling of "impending doom"

about a potential fourth wave of infections

after cases in the U.S. rose 10%

over the last week. She pleaded with

Americans not to relax preventative

practices such as social distancing and

mask-wearing.

"Just please hold on a little while

longer," Dr. Rochelle Walensky said

during a White House briefing. Several

Northeastern states and Michigan have

seen the biggest increases, with some

reporting hundreds or thousands more

new cases per day than they were two

weeks ago.

A new study by the CDC concluded

that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines

were 90% effective after two doses, a

finding that Walensky said should offer

hope.

States opening eligibility to anyone

ages 16 and older on Monday included

Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Ohio,

North Dakota and Kansas.

The rapid expansion has fueled concerns

that the number of eager vaccine

seekers will far outstrip the available

supply of shots, frustrating millions of

newly eligible people who have waited

since late last year for a chance to get an

injection. Other officials have put their

faith in a promised glut of vaccines and

instead turned their attention to the

next challenge: pressing as many people

as possible to get the shots so the nation

can achieve herd immunity at the earliest

opportunity.

Vaccination rates in Texas have

lagged behind much of the U.S., and

although state officials put at least part

of the blame on delays in data reporting,

they also acknowledged that appointment

slots are going unfilled.

Demand "has definitely decreased

over the past couple of weeks," said

Imelda Garcia, head of the state's expert

vaccine allocation panel.

Texas is supposed to receive more

than 1 million new doses this week. On

Monday, the state launched a new

online vaccine scheduler and phone

number, taking a bigger role in efforts

that had largely been done at the local

level.

In Kansas, where some local health

officials have said they are also struggling

to find people to vaccinate, an

additional 400,000 people are now eligible

for shots. Democratic Gov. Laura

Kelly has been criticized by Republicans

for a slow, disorganized vaccine rollout,

and she faced more criticism Friday

when she announced the plan to expand

eligibility. One Republican lawmaker

said people with chronic medical conditions

could be left behind.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has

said the state will soon have enough

shots for everyone who wants one and

that the challenge now is to make sure

people want to get vaccinated.

Some counties in Illinois are being

allowed to expand eligibility to all this

week if they find doses are going

unused. But in Chicago, the vaccine will

not be available to everyone until at least

May 1 because the city does not have

enough shots on hand.

On Tuesday, Minnesota opens eligibility,

followed by Indiana and South

Carolina on Wednesday, Connecticut

and Montana on Thursday, and New

Hampshire and Colorado on Friday. In

New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo

announced that residents over 30 will

be eligible for vaccinations starting

Tuesday, and everyone over 16 can sign

up starting April 6.

Connecticut officials said "priority

access" will be given to people with high

medical risks or developmental disabilities

once everyone 16 and up is eligible.

That could include some hospitals

organizing dedicated clinics or reserving

appointment slots for people with those

conditions, officials said.

Arizona opened up eligibility to all

adults last week, but it has since been

dealing with an unintended consequence:

Interest in volunteering at four

state-run vaccination sites plummeted

almost immediately. Since February,

thousands of volunteer shifts filled up

within an hour.

US eyes additional

UN action on

N. Korea after

missile tests

WASHINGTON : The

Biden administration said

Monday it's looking at

"additional actions" that the

United Nations might take

to respond to North Korea's

recent missile tests.

U.S. Ambassador to the

United Nations Linda

Thomas-Greenfield wasn't

specific about what those

actions might entail, but

noted that the UN Security

Council had met last week

and renewed the mandate

of experts who monitor

sanctions against the

North. The council is also

expected to hold closeddoor

discussions on North

Korea on Tuesday, reports

UNB.

On Monday, North Korea

accused the UN of a "double

standard" over its reaction to

the launches, which violate UN

sanctions, warning of serious

consequences. Last week,

North Korea fired two shortrange

ballistic missiles into the

sea in a defiance of U.N. resolutions

that ban such launches

by North Korea. Some experts

say North Korea's missile

launches, the first of their kind

in a year, were aimed at applying

pressure on the Biden

administration.

Past short-range missile

launches by North Korea have

typically drawn U.N. Security

Council condemnations, but

not fresh sanctions.

Rebels leave beheaded bodies in

streets of Mozambique town

JOHANNESBURG : Fierce fighting for control

of Mozambique's strategic northern

town of Palma left beheaded bodies strewn

in the streets Monday, with heavily armed

rebels battling army, police and a private

military outfit in several locations.

Thousands were estimated to be missing

from the town, which held about 70,000

people before the attack began last

Wednesday.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility

Monday for the attack, saying it was

carried out by the Islamic State Central

Africa Province, according to the SITE

extremist monitoring group.

The rebel claim said the insurgents now

control Palma's banks, government offices,

factories and army barracks, and that more

than 55 people, including Mozambican army

troops, Christians and foreigners were killed.

It did not provide further detail on the dead.

Earlier this month the United States

declared Mozambique's rebels to be a terrorist

organization and announced it had sent

military specialists to help train the

Mozambican military to combat them.

Palma is the center of a multi-billion dollar

investment by Total, the France-based oil

and gas company, to extract liquified natural

gas from offshore sites in the Indian Ocean.

The gas deposits are estimated to be among

the world's largest and the investment by

Total and others is reported to be $20 billion,

one of the largest in Africa.

The battle for Palma forced Total to evacuate

its large, fortified site a few miles (kilometers)

outside of the city.

The fighting spread across the town

Monday, according to Lionel Dyck, director

of the Dyck Advisory Group, a private military

company contracted by the

Mozambican police to help fight the rebels.

"There is fighting in the streets, in pockets

across the town," Dyck told The Associated

Press. The Dyck group has several helicopter

gunships in Palma which have been used to

rescue trapped civilians and to fight the

rebels.

"My guys are airborne and they've engaged

several little groups and they've engaged one

quite large group," Dyck said. "They've landed

into the fight to recover a couple of

wounded policemen. ... We have also rescued

many people who were trapped, 220

people at last count."

He said those rescued were taken to Total's

fortified site on the southern African country's

Afungi peninsula, where chartered

flights flew many south to Pemba, the capital

of Cabo Delgado province.

The rebels are well-armed with AK-47

automatic rifles, RPD and PKM machine

guns and heavy mortars, Dyck said.

"This attack is not a surprise. We've been

expecting Palma to be whacked the moment

the rains stopped and the fighting season

started, which is now," he said.

"They have been preparing for this.

They've had enough time to get their ducks

in a row. They have a notch up in their ability.

They're more aggressive. They're using

their mortars." He said many were wearing

black uniforms.

"There have been lots of beheadings. Right

up on day one, our guys saw the drivers of

trucks bringing rations to Palma. Their bodies

were by the trucks. Their heads were off."

Dyck said it will not be easy for the

Mozambican government to regain control

of Palma.

"They must get sufficient troops to sweep

through the town, going house-to-house and

clean each one out. That's the most difficult

phase of warfare in the book," Dyck said. "It

will be very difficult unless there's a competent

force put in place with good command

and control to retake that town. It can be

done. But it ain't going to be easy."

Asia, Pacific must

avoid K-shaped

recovery: UN report

DHAKA : The Asia-Pacific

region needs large, yet attainable,

investments in resilience

to protect development gains

amid a fragile and inequitable

post-COVID-19 economic

recovery, says a report

released on Tuesday, reports

UNB.

The report was released by

the United Nations Economic

and Social Commission for

Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)

in Bangkok.

The Economic and Social

Survey of Asia and the Pacific

2021: Towards post-COVID-

19 resilient economies forecasts

that, on average, developing

Asia-Pacific economies

are expected to grow by 5.9

per cent in 2021 and 5 per cent

in 2022, after having experienced

an estimated contraction

of 1 per cent in 2020.

Despite a reasonably strong

rebound expected in 2021, a

"K-shaped recovery" is likely,

with poorer countries and

more vulnerable groups marginalized

in the post-pandemic

recovery and transition period.

The Survey estimates that

because of the pandemic, an

additional 89 million people

in the region could have been

pushed back into extreme

poverty in 2020 at the $1.90

per day threshold, erasing

years of progress in poverty

reduction.

Working-hour losses in

2020 equaled 140 million fulltime

jobs, while severe disruptions

of economic activity and

education are likely to have

caused a significant setback to

human capital accumulation

and productivity in the region.

Trash scavengers who help keep

cities clean plea for vaccine

NEW DELHI : The scavengers wait patiently

for a dump truck to tip the trash on the summit

of the landfill outside New Delhi. Armed

with plastic bags, they plunge their bare

hands into the garbage and start sorting it,

reports UNB.

Every day, more than 2,300 tons of

garbage is dumped at the landfill at Bhalswa

that covers an area bigger than 50 football

fields, with a pile taller than a 17-story building.

And every day, thousands of these informal

workers climb the precarious slopes to

pick through what can be salvaged.

They are among the estimated 20 million

people around the world - in rich nations and

poor - who are pivotal in keeping cities clean,

alongside paid sanitation employees. But

unlike those municipal workers, they usually

are not eligible for the coronavirus vaccine

and are finding it hard to get the shots.

The pandemic has amplified the risks that

these informal workers face. Few have their

own protective gear or even clean water to

wash their hands, said Chitra Mukherjee of

Chintan, a nonprofit environmental research

group in New Delhi.

"If they are not vaccinated, then the cities

will suffer," Mukherjee said.

Manuwara Begun, 46, lives in a cardboard

hut behind a five-star hotel in the heart of

New Delhi and feels the inequity keenly.

Chintan estimates that each year, those like

her save the local government over $50 million

and eliminate over 900,000 tons of carbon

dioxide by diverting waste away from

landfills.

Still, they are they not considered "essential

workers" and thus are ineligible for vaccinations.

Begun has started an online petition pleading

for vaccines and asking, "Are we not

human?" Sanitation workers employed by

local governments in South Africa and

Zimbabwe are likely to be in line for the

COVID-19 vaccine after health workers,

unlike those who sort through the trash. At

the Dandora landfill in Kenya's capital of

Nairobi, some of the scavengers who are not

eligible for a shot wear medical gear discarded

by hospitals and health clinics, saying it

especially protects them from the weather

during the rainy season.

Trash workers look for recyclables at Bhalswa landfill on the outskirts of

New Delhi, India, Wednesday, March 10, 2021. An estimated 20 million

people around the world help keep cities clean by scavenging through

landfills and dumps. Experts say these trash pickers, who sometimes toil

alongside paid municipal sanitation workers, provide a vital service, yet

they usually are not on a priority list for coronavirus vaccines. Photo : AP

Fierce fighting for control of Mozambique's strategic northern town of Palma left beheaded bodies

strewn in the streets Monday, with heavily armed rebels battling army, police and a private military

outfit in several locations.

Photo : Internet

Brazil's Bolsonaro

reshuffles govt, six

ministers depart: official

BRASÍLIA : Brazilian

President Jair Bolsonaro

overhauled his government

Monday, changing six cabinet

members including the

foreign, defense and justice

ministers, the administration

said in a statement.

The far-right leader, who

is gearing up to run for

reelection in October 2022,

is facing mounting pressure

from a deadly surge of

Covid-19 in already hard-hit

Brazil, where the average

weekly death toll has nearly

quadrupled since the start of

the year, pushing hospitals

to breaking point.

The shake-up comes the

week after Bolsonaro

replaced former health minister

Eduardo Pazuello, an

army general, with cardiologist

Marcelo Queiroga, his

fourth health minister of the

pandemic.

While speculation had

been swirling that Bolsonaro

was about to fire foreign

minister Ernesto Araujo,

who faced criticism for the

government's problems

securing more Covid-19 vaccines,

many of the other

changes came as a surprise.

The president named army

General Luiz Eduardo Ramos

as his new chief of staff, career

diplomat Carlos Franca as his

new foreign minister.

Canada pauses AstraZeneca

vaccine for under 55

TORONTO : Canada on Monday suspended

the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus

vaccine for people under age 55 following

concerns it might be linked to rare

blood clots.

The National Advisory Committee on

Immunization had recommended the pause

for safety reasons and the Canadian

provinces, which administer health in the

country, announced the suspension

Monday.

"There is substantial uncertainty about the

benefit of providing AstraZeneca Covid-19

vaccines to adults under 55 given the potential

risks," said Dr. Shelley Deeks, vice chair

of the National Advisory Committee on

Immunization, reports UNB.

Deeks said the updated recommendations

come amid new data from Europe that suggests

the risk of blood clots is now potentially

as high as one in 100,000, much higher

than the one in one million risk believed

before.

She said most of the patients in Europe

who developed a rare blood clot after vaccination

with AstraZeneca were women under

age 55, and the fatality rate among those who

develop clots is as high as 40%.

Dr. Joss Reimer of Manitoba's Vaccine

Implementation Task Force said despite the

finding that there was no increase risk of

blood clots overall related to AstraZeneca in

Europe, a rare but very serious side effect has

been seen primarily in young women in

Europe.

Reimer said the rare type of blood clot typically

happens between four and 20 days

after getting the shot and the symptoms can

mirror a stroke or a heart attack.

"While we still believe the benefits for all

ages outweigh the risks I'm not comfortable

with probably. I want to see more data coming

out of Europe so I know exactly what this

risk benefit analysis is," Reimer said.

The AstraZeneca shot, which has been

authorized in more than 70 countries, is a

pillar of a U.N.-backed project known as

COVAX that aims to get COVID-19 vaccines

to poorer countries. It has also become a key

tool in European countries' efforts to boost

their sluggish vaccine rollouts. That makes

doubts about the shots especially worrying.

"This vaccine has had all the ups and

downs. It looks like a roller coaster," said Dr.

Caroline Quach-Thanh, the chair of the

National Advisory Committee on

Immunization, when asked if the latest news

will lead to further vaccine hesitancy.

Health Canada said it has not received any

reports of blood clots in Canada, and the

department's chief medical adviser, Dr.

Supriya Sharma, said she still believes the

vaccine's benefits outweigh the risks.

Last week, the department changed its

label on the vaccine to warn about the rare

risk of blood clots.

Only those 60 and above have received

AstraZeneca in Ontario, Canada's most

populous province. "We have no concerns

with those who have received it so far," said

Dr. David Williams, Ontario's chief medical

officer. Mark Mendelson, a 63-year-old

Toronto man who has had heart surgery,

said that he has no regrets about getting his

first AstraZeneca dose two weeks ago and

that he will get the second. "Get what you

can," Mendelson said. "I had no ill effects at

all from the AstraZeneca. I am in a better

position than those who don't have any vaccine

at all.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2021 8

Standard Bank Limited has entered into an agreement with RIA, one of the world's leading money transfer companies,

to send hard-earned money of expatriate Bangladeshis safely to Bangladesh. On the occasion, Khondoker

Rashed Maqsood, Managing Director & CEO of Standard Bank and from the UK, Suhail Shamsi, Business

Development Director of RIA Money Transfer, inaugurated the service by joining a virtual meeting held on March 29,

2021. Deputy Managing Director of Standard Bank Mohammad Rafiqul Islam, Head of Remittance Division Rebeka

Sultana and Country Representative of RIA Money Transfer Bangladesh, AKM Nazmul Hossainalso joined the meeting.

From now on, remittance sent through 13 money transfer companies including RIA can be received by the beneficiaries

from any of the 138 branches and 28 Agent Outlets of Standard Bank.

Photo : Courtesy

China’s central bank conducts

10 bln yuan of reverse

BEIJING : China's central bank

Tuesday conducted 10 billion yuan

(about 1.52 billion U.S. dollars) of

reverse repos to maintain

reasonably ample liquidity in the

banking system.

The interest rate for the sevenday

reverse repos was set at 2.2

percent, according to a statement

on the website of the People's Bank

of China.

A reverse repo is a process in which

the central bank purchases securities

from commercial banks through

bidding, with an agreement to sell

them back in the future.

China will adopt a prudent

monetary policy that is flexible,

precise, appropriate and moderate

in 2021, according to this year's

government work report.

Bank Asia has launched phone call based (any phone) banking service "Voice Banking" on the occasion

of Golden Jubilee of Independence of Bangladesh. Rumee A Hossain, Chairman of Board Executive

Committee of the bank inaugurated the service on 26 March 2021. Romana Rouf Chowdhury, Helal

Ahmed Chowdhury, Directors, Md. Arfan Ali, President & Managing Director of the bank and Zubair

Ahmed, Managing Director, Mr. Fayadan Hossain, COO, Ms. Mio Ahmed, Chief Sales Officer and Hiroki

Watanabe, Chief Evangelist Officer, HISHAB Limited, were present in the program. Photo : Courtesy

Samsung launches a joint

campaign with AKASH

Country's leading consumer

electronics brand Samsung

Bangladesh has initiated a

strategic agreement

between AKASH (a concern

of Beximco Communication),

Fair Electronics Limited,

and Electra International

Limited to launch a joint

campaign with the view to

enhance the customers' TV

viewing opportunities and

experiences. The

agreement was signed on

March 28, 2021, at The

Westin Dhaka in the

capital, a press release said.

Under the campaign,

customers will get up to a

25% discount if they buy an

AKASH connection with

Samsung's UHD or QLED

TV. At the same time, they

will get 100% cashback on

the first recharge, up to

BDT 1,200. The cashback

amount will be disbursed

into the customer's AKASH

account. Offers will be

available at 40 Fair

Electronics outlets and 46

Electra International

Limited outlets. The offer

will run for two months,

from April 1 to May 31,

2021.

On this occasion,

Mohammad Julfekar Ali,

Chief Manager, Product

Planning, Samsung

Consumer Electronics, said,

"As time goes by, people

demands and lifestyle

changes. In the fast-paced

world, people want

everything in one hub and

at their fingertips. Being the

No. 1 Global Brand in the

Television industry for 15

years, Samsung has always

tried to keep up with our

users' changing demands.

Thus, we are extremely

pleased to initiate a

collaboration between

AKASH, Fair Electronics

Limited, and Electra

International Limited to

bring over 120 channels to

our customers' fingertips."

He added, "Moreover, to

ensure topmost service

quality to our customers,

Samsung Bangladesh has

30 service centers and 9

service vans nationwide. To

further make lives easier,

the company also delivers

the television to the

customers' home with free

mount and installation.

Besides, if the customers

tackle any problem or have

any query, then they can

avail the 24/7 call centers

service. Samsung has

always tried to provide the

best products and services

to the customers."

Lutfor Rahman, Chief

Financial Officer, Beximco

Communication, was

present during the

ceremony along with other

officials from the

organization, including

Muhammad Abul Khair

Chowdhury, Head of

Marketing and Business

Development; and Shah

Mohammad Maksudul

Gani, Head of Sales and

Distribution.

Md. Mahbubul Akram,

Product Manager, CE Biz

Group, Samsung

Bangladesh, had also

attended the event along

with Shahid Ahmed

Abdullah, Executive

Director, Electra

International Limited; and

Firoze Mohammad,

Director Operation, Fair

Electronics Limited.

AKASH, the country's

only legal DTH service

provider, started to provide

its service using the feed of

the Bangabandhu Satellite-

1 from May 2019. The onetime

retail price of AKASH

Basic and regular

connection is BDT 3,999

and BDT 4,499

respectively.

In both the connections,

more than 120 channels are

available with a monthly

package subscription of

BDT 399 and more than 70

channels with a package of

BDT 249.

AKASH connection is

available at 8000+ retail

outlets throughout the

country in all 64 districts.

Pandemic pushed

Spain's deficit to

11-yr high in 2020

MADRID : Spain's budget

deficit widened to its highest

level in 11 years in 2020 as

the pandemic battered its

economy, the government

said Monday.

Spain is one of the worsthit

countries in Europe by

the coronavirus crisis, which

has left 75,000 people dead

in the country and caused

the economy to sink by 11

percent last year.

The country's public deficit

soared to 10.1 percent of

output last year, compared to

2.9 percent in 2019.

"The increase in public

spending to fight the

pandemic, combined with

social measures to help

families, workers and

businesses are the main

reasons for this increase,"

the budget ministry said in a

statement.

The ministry said 85

percent of the increase in

public spending in 2020 was

due to "measures adopted

expressly to mitigate the

socioeconomic effects of the

pandemic".

These include a furlough

scheme for people laid off

from their jobs because of

the pandemic which was

recently extended until May,

and financial aid for selfemployed

workers.

The government's budget

for this year includes record

spending on health and

social care, and a hike in

infrastructure investment,

aimed at supporting an

economic recovery following

a steep recession due to the

pandemic.

LONDON : The OPEC+

grouping of oil producers

will hold its third ministerial

summit of the year via

videoconference Thursday

to discuss output cuts in the

face of fresh price volatility.

"The expectation is that

the group will hold

production steady also in

May given current physical

oil market weakness,"

according to Bjarne

Schieldrop, analyst at SEB.

However, he added that

"Russia and Kazakhstan are

likely to lift production yet

another notch and the group

in total is probably fine with

that."

The OPEC cartel's largest

producer is Saudi Arabia but

the OPEC+ grouping also

includes Russia, which

produces even more crude

oil.

Under its current

agreement the OPEC+

group is enforcing a drastic

Dhaka Bank Limited has

been honored with the

highly esteemed "Best

Corporate and Investment

Bank of Bangladesh 2021"

award from Asia

Money(The Leading Global

Financial Publication under

the global media group Euro

money Institutional

Investor PLC), for its

comprehensive coverage

from corporate clients to

investment banking and the

capital markets, combined

with its ability to ride out the

coronavirus pandemic, a

press release said.

Having been focused on

the Corporate Business,

Dhaka Bank has its

footmark in almost every

business segment and

works with all the top tier

business conglomerates of

the country. The Bank's

syndications and structured

finance unit also offer

tailored solutions for its

customers' business needs.

The Bank also has various

Most markets rise in Asia on recovery

optimism, worries remain

HONG KONG : Most Asian

markets extended gains

Tuesday following another

record on Wall Street though

investors remain torn

between vaccine-fuelled

optimism over the economic

outlook and fears over a

surge in inflation the

recovery is expected to bring

with it.

With a number of big data

announcements coming this

week, analysts said traders

were largely biding their

time awaiting the next

catalyst to drive buying,

though most tip the yearlong

rally across equities to

continue this year despite

recent stutters.

The major call is Friday's

government employment

report, which will give the

latest snapshot of the world's

top economy as it slowly

emerges from the crisis,

while private jobs and

unemployment claims are

also due, along with readings

on manufacturing activity.

"With a lot of growing

optimism in the price,

economic data will need to

do much heavy lifting in the

future," said Stephen Innes

at Axi. "And as we all know,

nothing is a sure bet in the

markets, especially when it

comes to banking on lofty

economic

data

expectations."

Also in focus is Joe Biden's

much-anticipated

infrastructure bill, which is

tipped to be worth $3 trillion

- some reports have

output cut, meaning seven

million barrels that could be

shipped to markets every

day are being left in the

ground.

The aim has been to avoid

oversupplying a market

suffering from a collapse in

demand due to the

coronavirus pandemic.

Without the production

cuts, limited storage

capacity could be saturated

and the danger of a fall in

prices - currently hovering

around $60 per barrel - is

real.

Indeed, the two

benchmark contracts,

American WTI and

Europe's Brent, have

undergone a drastic price

correction in recent weeks

and have been subjected to

fresh price instability over

the last few days, a sign of

serious market tension.

At the beginning of the

year the arrival of effective

credit lines with multilateral

agencies through which it

suggested $4 trillion - and

which follows just months

after his vast stimulus

package.

The expected spending

spree by the US government

comes as the president

pledges that 90 percent of

American adults will be

eligible for vaccination by

April 19. Meanwhile, his goal

of getting 200 million people

jabbed within his first 100

days also appears to be well

on course.

Innes added that with the

Federal Reserve promising

to keep monetary policy

ultra-loose - and interest

rates at record lows - for as

long as needed, markets

could be in for another

strong advance.

Still, the threat that the

economic reopening will see

a huge jump in spending

continues to weigh on

market sentiment as traders

fret it will force the Fed to

tighten its belt earlier than

2024, as flagged.

US inflation remained

stabilised for now, with data

last week coming in below

expectations.

But markets analyst Louis

Navellier said: "China is

starting to raise the price of

some of their goods, so that

we do have inflation out

there brewing.

And it's going to be very,

very interesting, because raw

commodity costs like copper

and everything are going up

as well."

However, Esty Dwek, at

OPEC+ to reconvene to navigate

crude market volatility

coronavirus vaccines had

led to hopes that widespread

lockdowns, and with them

the collapse in demand that

has been a nightmare for the

cartel, might soon be over.

But then came the third

wave surge in Europe and

the spread of the virus in key

crude consumer markets

such as India and Brazil.

"Oil demand trends are

not only pressured by

renewed lockdowns on the

(European) continent but

also chaos with its

vaccination program," said

Stephen Brennock, analyst

at PVM.

The International Energy

Agency (IEA) reflected this

more downbeat outlook in

forecasts contained in its

last report this month.

It estimated that global

demand could take another

two years to get back to its

pre-crisis levels.

can cater to its clients'

foreign currency needs.

Natixis Investment

Managers, remained

confident.

"The ongoing smooth

vaccination in the US and

extensive fiscal support is

lifting the growth outlook,

and with it, inflation

expectations," she said.

The rise in yields "has not

led to flows out of equities.

The fundamental support for

risk assets is in place."

Hong Kong, Shanghai,

Seoul, Singapore, Taipei and

Wellington all rose, though

Tokyo, Sydney, Manila and

Jakarta struggled.

Observers were tracking

the fallout from the sale of

billions of dollars' worth of

stock by troubled US fund

Archego, which left several

creditor banks exposed to

huge losses, including

Nomura of Japan and

Switzerland's Credit Suisse.

Nomura was down around

three percent in Tokyo, a day

after plunging 16 percent.

Oil investors were awaiting

Thursday's meeting of OPEC

and other major producers

as they discuss output, with

market-watchers tipping

them to maintain the status

quo following recent price

volatility and concerns about

demand, particularly from

Europe.

Crude initially tumbled

Monday on news that traffic

resumed on the Suez Canal

after a massive container

ship blocking the waterway

was freed.

Shams Abdullah

Muhaimin promoted

as Deputy Managing

Director of Prime Bank

Shams Abdullah Muhaimin

has been promoted as the

Deputy Managing Director

of Prime Bank Limited, a

press release said.

Prior to this new role,

Muhaimin was working as

Senior Executive Vice

President and Head of

Transaction Banking &

Structured Finance at Prime

Bank. He has more than 22

years of working experience

in leading multinational

banks like Standard

Chartered Bank and Eastern

Bank Limited.

Dhaka Bank wins the Prestigious Asia Money "Best Corporate

and Investment Bank of Bangladesh 2021" Award

Dhaka Bank, since its

inception, has been the path

maker of various

technology-based solutions

for corporate clients. In

recent times, for the first

time in Bangladesh, a series

of tech-based products and

services were introduced by

the bank - namely, Dhaka

Bank Trade Cloud, a webbased

service with

blockchain security features

for trade customers, and

Dhaka Bank Bills2Cash, an

automated invoice and

distributor financing

solution. It also re-launched

its internet banking

platform with improved

features and security

options aimed at supporting

its valued customer

base.The Bank is offering a

full range of advisory,

financing and operational

services to its corporate

clients combining trade,

treasury, investment and

transactional banking.

WEDNESDAy, MARCH 31, 2021

9

Naomi Osaka of Japan hits a forehand against Elise Mertens of Belgium (not pictured) in the fourth

round in the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium.

Photo: Reuters

Osaka advances while Barty ousts

Azarenka at Miami Open

SPORTS DESK

Reigning US and Australian Open

champion Naomi Osaka advanced to

the Miami Open quarter-finals on

Monday, stretching her win streak to

23 matches by defeating Belgian 16th

seed Elise Mertens 6-3, 6-3, reports

BSS.

The second-ranked Japanese star will

next face Greek 23rd seed Maria

Sakkari, who outlasted US 29th seed

Jessica Pegula 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (8/6) at the

WTA and ATP Masters Series event.

"I started off really well and then for

some reason I became a little sluggish.

My speed didn't really feel the same,"

Osaka said. "I thought it was really

mental from then on. In the end, it was

who fought the hardest."

Four-time Grand Slam champion

Osaka broke at love for a 2-0 lead and

broke again for a 5-1 edge but Mertens

broke Osaka at love in the seventh

game and denied four set points for

Osaka to hold in an eighth game that

lasted almost 10 minutes.

Osaka, seeking her first Miami

crown, saved a break point with her

third ace and finally finished off the

first set on her seventh chance with a

service winner. In the second set, Osaka

needed her fifth chance of the third

game to break Mertens, only for the

Belgian to quickly break back to 2-2

Winning start for

Rajshahi, Ansar in

women's football

SPORTS DESK

Rajshahi football team and

Bangladesh Ansar and Village

Defense Parry made a

winning start in the women's

football event of

Bangabandhu 9th

Bangladesh Games that has

begun Monday at

Birshreshtha Shaheed Sepoy

Mohammad Mostafa Kamal

Stadium in the city's

Kamalapur, reports BSS.

In the day's first match,

Rajshahi football team

crushed Khulna football team

by 9-0 goals. In the

proceeding, Shaheen Akter

slammed a brilliant hat-trick

with four goals in the 3rd,

17th,

27th and 59th minutes and

Srimoti Kornofuli supported

her also scoring hat-trick with

three goals in the 9th, 21st

and 76th minutes while

Sonhkriti Bala and Arkon

added one goal each for the

winners' in the 14th and 36th

minutes respectively in the

one-sided affairs.

In the day's another match,

Ansar defeated Mymensingh

football team by 3-1 goals. In

the day's match, Thuianu

Marma struck twice in the

16th and 57th minutes while

Serat Sabrin supported her

with a lone goal in the 68th

minute for Ansar. Sadia Akter

pulled one back for

Mymensingh in the 81st

minute.

Earlier, Bangladesh

Football Federation members

Tipu Sultan and Elias

Hossain jointly inaugurated

the meet as the chief guest.

and hold to 3-2 before requiring

treatment for a right shoulder injury.

Osaka won the last four games after

that, breaking at love in the seventh

game, holding at love in the eighth and

breaking again to end matters after 88

minutes when Mertens netted a

forehand.

Top-ranked defending champion

Ashleigh Barty battled into the quarterfinals

by outlasting former world

number one Victoria Azarenka 6-1, 1-6,

6-2. Australia's Barty broke five times,

the last when Azarenka netted a

forehand volley to end matters after

one hour and 52 minutes at Hard Rock

Stadium.

Barty, who had to save a match point

on the way to a three-set victory over

Kristina Kucova in the second round,

plays Tuesday against seventh seed

Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, who

downed Czech 19th seed Marketa

Vondrousova 6-1, 6-2.

"I'm just excited I get to be in another

quarter-final of a big event," Barty said.

"I still feel like there's a lot better

tennis left out there for me. I still don't

feel like I'm playing my very best just

yet, but I'm fighting through and I'm

finding ways to win, which is great."

The 2019 French Open winner

dominated the first set but Azarenka

broke for a 2-0 lead in the second, then

fought back from 0-40 down to hold for

3-0 on the way to forcing a third set.

After an early exchange of breaks,

Azarenka denied Barty on two break

chances in the fourth game but the 24-

year-old Queenslander broke in the

sixth game and again on the last point.

"First two sets probably had some

pretty big momentum swings," Barty

said. "But I think the third set was a real

tussle." Ukraine's fifth-seeded Elina

Svitolina rallied to defeat Czech ninth

seed Petra Kvitova 2-6, 7-5, 7-5.

"I'm really happy with how I bounced

back from being a set down," Svitolina

said. "I'm happy with how I'm playing

and handling the pressure. I had to

bring my best game to win." Svitolina's

quarter-final foe will be Latvia's 57thranked

Anastasija Sevastova, who

eliminated Croatia's 338th-ranked Ana

Konjuh 6-1, 7-5.

Tsitsipas, Rublev win - On the men's

side, Greek second seed Stefanos

Tsitsipas defeated Japanese 28th seed

Kei Nishikori 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 after an hour

and 56 minutes to reach the last 16.

Tsitsipas will next face Italian 24th

seed Lorenzo Sonego, who dispatched

Colombian Daniel Galan 7-6 (8/6), 6-3.

Russian fourth seed Andrey Rublev

routed Hungarian 29th seed Marton

Fucsovics 6-2, 6-1, to reach the fourth

round. "I've played some great tennis

last couple of months," Rublev said.

"We'll see if I can keep going."

New Zealand has taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the T20I series.

New Zealand seal Bangladesh

T20 series with 28-run win

SPORTS DESK

New Zealand wrapped up a seventh series

win of their home summer with a 28-run

victory over Bangladesh under the

Duckworth-Lewis method in the second

Twenty20 in Napier on Tuesday, reports

UNB.

A downpour at McLean Park brought a

premature end to New Zealand's innings on

173 for five and Bangladesh were placed in

the unusual position of starting their chase

without knowing what tally they needed to

win.

Scorecard They were finally apprised of

their victory target -- 171 runs in 16 overs -- in

the second over of the innings but fell well

short of the tally they needed to keep the

three-match series alive with 142-7.

Soumya Sarkar scored a bright 51 off 27

balls and opener Mohammad Naim chipped

in with 38 but once their 81-run partnership

was broken, the writing was on the wall.

Paceman Adam Milne (2-34) bowled

Photo ICC

Bangladesh skipper Mahmudullah and Afif

Hossain in the space of three deliveries to

drive home the advantage and help ensure

the Black Caps would win all of their series in

all formats over the home summer.

"It's nice to have another series in the bag,"

said New Zealand captain Tim Southee, who

took 2-21.

"It's been a very, very good summer, and

been great to be part of. We're very privileged

here in New Zealand to have teams come in

here and help make a great summer."

Earlier, Glenn Phillips hit 58 not out from

31 balls to breathe life into New Zealand's

innings after the visiting bowlers had taken

wickets with enough regularity to peg back

the hosts early on.

His unbeaten 62-run partnership with

Daryl Mitchell (34 not out) looked like it

would take New Zealand past the 200-run

mark but the rain intensified to send them

off the pitch after 17.5 overs.

The final match in the series takes place at

Eden Park in Auckland on Thursday.

Pandemic blamed

for lack of VAR in

World Cup qualifiers

after Ronaldo fury

SPORTS DESK

UEFA has said the impact of

the Covid-19 pandemic

meant plans to use VAR in

the European 2022 World

Cup qualifiers had to be

abandoned after a weekend

in which Cristiano Ronaldo's

anger at being denied a late

winner for Portugal against

Serbia highlighted the lack

of technology to help

officials, reports BSS.

"In 2019, UEFA had

proposed to FIFA the

implementation of VAR in

the current World Cup

qualifiers. The impact of the

pandemic on operational

and logistical capabilities led

UEFA to delay the

implementation of VAR in

the Europa League group

phase as well as to withdraw

the proposal to implement

VAR in the 2022 European

qualifiers," UEFA said in a

statement.

Video assistant referees

are now set to come into the

Europa League group stage

as of next season.

"VAR was also not in use

in the UEFA Nations League

group stage in the autumn of

2020 and has therefore todate

never been used in

UEFA national team

qualifying group stage

matches," European

football's governing body

added.

It follows several moments

of controversy since the start

of qualifying last week for

the Qatar World Cup, with

the Ronaldo flashpoint

casting a light on the lack of

any goal-line technology

(GLT).

'Proud' Aguero to leave

Man City

SPORTS DESK

Argentina striker Sergio Aguero said on

Monday he was "proud" of his time at

Manchester City after announcing his

departure when his contract runs out this

July, reports UNB.

Aguero joined City from Atletico Madrid in

2011 and has 257 goals in 384 games since,

making him their record goal-scorer.

He scored the dramatic winning goal as

they edged local rivals Manchester United to

the 2012 Premier League.

"When a cycle comes to an end, many

sensations arise," he posted on social media.

"A huge sense of satisfaction and pride

remains in me for having played with

Manchester City for a whole ten seasons -

unusual for a professional player this day

and age. "I will continue to give it my utmost

for the rest of the season to win more titles

and bring more joy to the fans," he added.

In a club statement, City chairman

Khaldoon Al Mubarak said he would reserve

any farewell speeches until Aguero leaves,

but revealed he had commissioned a statue

of the striker.

"Sergio's contribution to Manchester City

over the last 10 years cannot be overstated,"

Al Mubarak said.

"This is not yet the moment for farewell

words and speeches. There is still much to

achieve," he said with City in the running for

their first ever Champions League and hot

favourites to win the Premier League.

"In the meantime, it gives me great

pleasure to announce that we will be

commissioning an artist to create a statue of

Sergio to live at the Etihad Stadium," he

added.

Newspaper Manchester Evening News

said City were planning a farewell party for

Aguero after their final game of the Premier

League season against Everton May 23.

The 32-year-old contracted Covid-19 in

January after a season already ravaged by

injury and he has played 14 games for City

this term, scoring three times.

Aguero missed the end of last season and

the start of the current campaign after

undergoing knee surgery last June.

Since then he has had another lay-off after

suffering a hamstring injury in October.

City coach Pep Guardiola said last week he

may not be able to give Sergio Aguero much

time on the pitch before his contract expires.

Back in the goals: Sergio Aguero scored on his return from injury for

Manchester City.

Photo: AP

Patient Brathwaite on 99 against

'disciplined' Sri Lanka bowling

SPORTS DESK

Antigua and Barbuda, March 30, 2021

(BSS/AFP) - Kraigg Brathwaite batted

through the day for an unbeaten 99 as

the West Indies reached a respectable

287 for seven at stumps on the opening

day of the second and final Test against

Sri Lanka at the Sir Vivian Richards

Stadium in Antigua on Monday,

reports BSS.

Personifying patience and

perseverance in a manner so typical of

the right-handed opening batsman,

Brathwaite did all he could to defy a

bowling attack in which senior seamer

Suranga Lakmal again led the line.

Put in on a pitch which offered some

assistance to the seam bowlers,

Brathwaite's gritty defiance was

necessary after Lakmal had claimed the

early honours for the visitors with two

early wickets and added the scalp of the

struggling Jermaine Blackwood in the

afternoon session to end the day with

three for 71 from 20 overs.

With opening partner John

Campbell gone along with first Test

century-maker Nkrumah Bonner

Bangladesh's hopes

shattered as Nepal clinch

Tri-Nation Cup title

SPORTS DESK

Bangladesh's hopes of winning

the Tri-Nation Cup title

shattered after losing a 1-2 goal

to host Nepal in the final match

held on Monday at Dasharath

Stadium in Kathmandu,

reports BSS.

Many expected the

footballers will bring trophy

from Nepal for the country on

the occasion of golden jubilee

of independence. It was also

repeatedly heard from the

footballers that they want to

give a trophy to the country on

the occasion of fifty years of

anniversary of independence

and the birth centenary of

Bangabandhu. But, Nepal has

shattered all Bangladesh's

hope after beating Bangladesh

in the final match.

In the day's match, Sanjog

Rai and Bishal Rai scored one

goal each to secure victory for

Nepal who played a much

better football in the final

compared to their previous two

matches of the tournament.

within the space of a few deliveries to

Lakmal in the first hour, West Indies

captain Brathwaite was content to let

the attacking Kyle Mayers have his way

in a third-wicket partnership of 71.

The left-hander riding his luck to 49

only to fall in the first over of the

afternoon to Vishwa Fernando.

Dhananjaya de Silva, fellow spinner

Lasith Embuldeniya and Sri Lanka's

other seamer, Dushmantha Chameera,

took a wicket each to then have the

West Indies languishing at 222 for

seven in the final session of the day.

However Brathwaite found another

resolute partner in Rahkeem Cornwall,

the burly off-spinner enhancing his

claims to becoming a genuine allrounder

with an unbeaten 43 in a

partnership which has realised 65 runs

so far for the eighth wicket.

Brathwaite's innings has spanned

six-and-a-half hours in which he faced

239 balls and struck 11 fours.

"Sri Lanka are a very disciplined

bowling unit so for me it was about

capitalising on the few bad balls and

taking my time, letting the ball come to

me," said Brathwaite in reflecting on an

effort which takes him to the verge of a

first Test century for 19 matches.

"I think we have lost two wickets too

many, but I am still happy with the

position although the first session on

the second day will be crucial."

Fresh from career-best Test innings

figures of five for 47 a week earlier at

the same venue, Lakmal wasted no

time in justifying the decision by his

captain, Dimuth Karunaratne, to put

the West Indies in.

Campbell fell to a straightforward

catch by wicketkeeper Niroshan

Dickwella while Bonner, who defied

the Sri Lankans for seven hours in

compiling an unbeaten century to

ensure a draw in the first Test, fell

without scoring, playing on to the

cunning fast-medium bowler.

Both teams are unchanged from the

first Test where the tourists rallied from

a 102-run first innings deficit to seize

the initiative, only for the home side to

bat through the final day to

comfortably ensure the stalemate.

Sri Lanka are seeking a first-ever Test

series triumph in the Caribbean.

Some medical experts

unconvinced about

holding Tokyo Games

SPORTS DESK

The Tokyo Olympics open in under four

months, and the torch relay has begun to

crisscross Japan with 10,000 runners.

Organizers say they are mitigating the risks,

but some medical experts aren't convinced,

reports UNB.

"It is best to not hold the Olympics given the

considerable risks," Dr. Norio Sugaya, an

infectious diseases expert at Keiyu Hospital in

Yokohama, told The Associated Press. "The

risks are high in Japan. Japan is dangerous,

not a safe place at all."

Sugaya believes vaccinating 50-70% of the

general public should be "a prerequisite" to

safely hold the Olympics, a highly unlikely

scenario given the slow vaccine rollout in

Japan.

Fewer than 1% of the population has been

vaccinated so far, and all are medical

professionals. Most of the general public is not

expected to be vaccinated by the time the

Olympics open July 23.

"Tens of thousands of foreigners are going to

be entering the country, including mass media,

in a short period of time," Sugaya said, "the

challenges are going to be enormous."

The Japanese government and local

Olympic organizers have said vaccination is

not a prerequisite for the Olympics, although

the International Olympic Committee is

encouraging the 15,400 Olympic and

Paralympic athletes to be vaccinated when

they enter Japan.

The number of COVID-19-related deaths in

Japan is about 9,000 - far fewer than many

countries - but Sugaya stressed the number is

among the highest in Asia.

Hospital systems are stretched, especially in

hardest hit areas such as Tokyo.

Japan never pushed PCR testing, meaning

few mechanisms are in place to prevent

infection clusters. There hasn't been a national

lockdown, but the government has periodically

issued a "state of emergency," urging people to

work from home and restaurants to close

early.

Dr. Toshio Nakagawa, who heads the Japan

Medical Association, expressed serious

concern about what he called "a rebound" of

coronavirus cases.

WeDNesDAY, MArcH 31, 2021

10

TBT reporT

Jaya Ahsan has won the National Film

Award more than once in Bangladesh.

Although she has acted in Kolkata

movies, she has garnered a lot of praise

and recognition. She has also received

the highly respected Bollywood

Filmfare Award.

In 2018, Jaya received India's'

Oscar'-famous Filmfare Awards. She

won the Best Actress award for her

performance in 'Bisarjan'. She is

critical and popular; She was

nominated for 'Best Actress' in both the

categories. Later she won the award in

the popular category.

Bollywood's Filmfare Awards

ceremony was held recently. This time

Tollywood's Filmfare Awards is going

to be held. Joy Filmfare Award

(Bangla) -2020 will be given to Kolkata

Bangla movies released in 2019. The

names of the nominees were released

on Monday. Bangladeshi actress Jaya

Ahsan is ahead after getting

nominations for two movies.

Jaya nominated for Filmfare award

The list includes Raima Sen

(date), Sohini Sarkar (Vinci

Da), Subhashree Ganguly

(Parineeta) and Ishaa Saha

(sweater).

Jaya Ahsan has been

nominated for Best Actress

(Critic) for 'Rabibar' and

'Bijoya'.

The list of best movies

nominated

includes

'Gumnaami', 'Kantho', 'Mitin

Masi', 'Parineeta', 'Sanjhbati',

'Vinci Da'. Prosenjit Chatterjee,

Parambrata Chatterjee,

Shiboprosad Mukherjee, Abir

Chatterjee, Dev and Rudranil

Toma Mirza, Shajal stars

in 'Live Artist'

TBT reporT

Toma Mirza, a Bangladeshi film actress has won

Bangladesh National Film Award for Best

Supporting Actress for the film Nodijon (2015).

Toma Mirza acted in a web series two years ago.

Later, she also acted in movies. After a break, she

acted in a telefilm titled 'Live Artist'. It was directed

by Sanjid Khan Prince and the story was also

written by him. Director Prince informed that

shooting of the telefilm took place in different

locations in the capital's Uttara area

recently. Popular actor Abdun Noor

Shajal acted opposit to Toma in the

telefilm. Shajal and Toma played roles

of Fahim and Faria respectively.

The telefilm will be aired on

Channel i soon. In the telefilm,

Toma paired up with Shajal for the

first time. She said, "I earlier

performed with Shajal in the stage

show. For the first time, I acted

opposite to him in the telefilm. As

an actress, I am always sincere

about my works. Though 'Live

Artist' is a comedy story based

telefilm but while acting I tried to

give my best effort to portray

my role as Faria properly. I hope viewers will enjoy

the telefilm. Including Shajal everybody of the

telefilm co-operated me well." While acting in the

telefilm Shajal said, "This telefilm is the reflection

of present time.

Toma Mirza acted in role of my wife. Toma is a

popular artiste of present time. I was really

satisfied to perform with her in stage show because

she is a skilled dancer.

I enjoyed performing with her on the stage.

Therefore, she is a good actress. She has

intention to read script properly before

taking part in the shooting. Toma

and I tried our level best to

portray our roles properly while

working in the telefilm. I give

thanks to Sanjid to make such a

nice telefilm. I believe viewers

will enjoy the telefilm."

Actor Fatima Sana Shaikh on Monday

said she has tested positive for Covid-19

and is under home quarantine.

Shaikh, 29, took to Instagram and

said she is following all the health and

safety protocols after contracting the

virus.

"I have tested positive for Covid-19

and currently following all the

precautions and protocols and have

been home quarantining myself.

Thank you for all your wishes and

concerns. Please stay safe guys," the

actor wrote. On Sunday, Mumbai

reported the highest rise in Covid-19

cases so far by adding 6,923 new

infections, taking the tally to

3,98,674.

Recently, Vikrant Massey, Paresh

Rawal, Kartik Aaryan, Ranbir

Kapoor, and Rohit Saraf were

among those who had tested

positive for Covid-19.

Earlier, actors Amitabh

Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan,

Arjun Kapoor, Malaika Arora,

were among those infected with

the virus.

In March 2020, Bollywood

singer Kanika Kapoor, who

rose to fame with her song

Hollywood actor Russell Crowe

has joined Marvel Cinematic

Universe's Thor: Love and

Thunder, as per Deadline.

Crowe was photographed with

the film's leading star

Hemsworth at a rugby game

over the weekend which led

many to speculate that Crowe

might be a part of the film.

Hemsworth had earlier

shared photos from the game

with the caption, "Great game

last night, congrats

@ssfcrabbitohs on the win!

Thanks for the hospitality

# r u s s e l l e c r o w e

@elsapatakyconfidential."

The Gladiator shared also

shared one of the photos on his

Twitter timeline.

Crowe's role is being kept

under wraps and the details of

his character are yet to be

known.

Thor 4 brings back Natalie

Portman as Jane Foster. Tessa

Fatima Sana Shaikh tests

positive for Covid-19

Baby Doll, became the first Bollywood

celebrity to get infected with Covid-19.

Fatima will be next seen in Karan Johar's

production venture Ajeeb Daastaans. The

collection of four short films will stream on

Netflix on April 16, this year. She was last

seen in Anurag Basu's 2020 crime comedy

Ludo and Manoj Bajpayee-led Suraj Pe

Mangal Bhari, which had a theatrical

release. In a recent chat with Hindustan

Times, Fatima revealed the real reasons she

took up the films.

"I never think of it as me wanting to try a

different genre. Of course, I do want to

experiment with different roles so it's more

about how interesting the project is to me.

Like with Ludo, I wanted to do the film

because of Dada (Basu) and with Suraj Pe

Mangal, because of the amazing star cast.

There are so many actors and all of them

are so good. From Manoj sir to Seema

Pahwa, Manoj Pahwa, Annu Kapoor, Diljit,

Supriya Pilgaonkar...I mean it's a heavy

duty cast. And then Abhishek, who has

made Tere Bin Laden, so comedy is his

thing. So I felt like I want to be a part of it

because it is going to be a learning

experience. I don't know when I will get to

work with Manoj sir again so I had to jump

into it," she said.

Source: Hindustan Times

Russell Crowe joins Chris Hemsworth

on Thor Love and Thunder

TBT reporT

Actor and singer Fazlur Rahman

Babu's new song 'Chande Bosot

Koiro Koinna' has been released

on online channel Love TV. This

song has been composed on the

occasion of the golden jubilee of

independence. Its words and

melody are by playwright Shimul

Sarkar. The song was composed

by popular lyricist and composer

Milton Khandaker.

Apart from this, Shah Alam is

the executive producer of the

song 'Chande Bosot Kairo

Koinna' produced under the

patronage of Sky Bangla Media

and Soukhin.tv. The event was

Thompson will return as

Valkyrie, who is now leading the

Asgardians. Christian Bale is set

to be the villain of the film. Matt

Damon and Jeff Goldblum are

also returning after their

appearance in Thor Ragnarok.

The Guardians of the Galaxy

cast members Chris Pratt, Dave

Bautista and Karen Gillan will

also be reprising their MCU

characters.

Taika Waititi, who also

directed Thor Ragnarok, is

returning to the director's chair

for the film. The film is set to hit

the screens on May 6, 2022.

Source: Indian Express

Babu's

new song

was

released

presided over by AM

Kamruzzaman Sagar, the

current General Secretary and

Producer of the Directors Guild.

In this context, playwright

Shimul Sarkar said, " Fazlur

Rahman Babu is very popular all

over the country for his folk songs.

It is equally acceptable to Bengali

speakers all over the world. This

new song is also a folk song. '

Regarding the content of the

song, he said, "The story of this

song is based on the joys and

sorrows of a young man involved

with Chander Koinna. He also

said that Fazlur Rahman Babu is

very optimistic about this new

song.

H o r o s c o p e

ArIes

(March 21 - April 20) : There's an

emotional intensity inside you today that's

squirming to find a way out, Aries. Sudden

outbursts are likely, so take care to hold

your temper in check. Surround yourself with good

friends who can support your erratic feelings. Don't be

clingy. Seek friends who are thoughtful listeners, not

permanent crutches. They may be feeling the same strong

tension and don't need an extra burden.

TAUrUs

(April 21 - May 21) : Today may have

some crazy emotional ups and downs,

Taurus. There seems to be an intense

cloud seeping into every part of your day.

Don't try to fool people. They will see right through

you. Bursts of positive energy will pop out of nowhere

to remind you of your more important purpose. Try

not to get so bogged down in the heaviness of the day

that you fail to spot opportunities that arise.

GeMINI

(May 22 - June 21) : This day will be filled

with many exciting surprises for you, Gemini.

Approach it with gratitude and you will be

amazed at the number of things that just

naturally seem to flow your way. Your generous heart will be

rewarded in unexpected ways. Old friends are likely to show

up. Open yourself up to conversations. Act spontaneously

and with a great deal of passion.

cANcer

(June 22 - July 23) : There's a larger

trend operating in your life, Cancer. It's

asking you to break the rules and enter a

new realm - a new mindset or way of

living. Today that trend comes into focus, as emotional

outbursts call attention to the changes. Your heart may

want to go one way while your brain wants to go

another. Take deep breaths and infuse a wave of calm

into the situation before you proceed.

Leo

(July 24 - Aug. 23): Pour yourself a

comforting cup of tea today, Leo. Take

a hot shower or a long bath. In short,

pamper yourself. You may be picking

up on the extra tension of the people around you.

Be conscious of this and make a mental note to

strip away the garbage that others dump on you.

You're a sensitive individual. Pat yourself on the

back and look out for sudden moves from others.

VIrGo

(Aug. 24 - Sept. 23): It may be that people

are a bit upset by some of your recent actions or

words, Virgo. The offhand remark you made a

couple weeks ago is catching up to you. What

you may consider friendly, lighthearted sparring may actual do

a bit of damage to someone's sensitive emotions, especially

today. Think before you speak. Others might not have as tough

a skin as they seem to have.

LIBrA

(Sept. 24 - Oct. 23): This is an exciting

day for you, Libra. You can accomplish

quite a bit. Your intuition is especially

acute and your sensitivity is strong.

Computers might irritate you today. It's possible to

get all worked up if your laptop crashes. Save your

work often. Keep in mind that it's just a machine.

Don't let it get the better of you.

scorpIo

(Oct. 24 - Nov. 22) : You might be a bit

jittery, even without caffeine,

Scorpio. Sudden actions may cause

people to freak out, since people will

be on edge in general today anyway. Save the

surprises for another time. If you need to tell your

boss that you're going on vacation for a little

while, now isn't the time. There's a rough edge to

the astral energy. Relax to soothe your soul.

sAGITTArIUs

(Nov. 23 - Dec. 21): Things may be

coming at you from all angles today,

Sagittarius. Sooner or later you will be

forced to take action. It may seem like

the walls of the room are slowly caving in. The

pressure is building and the air is getting stagnant.

Go out for a run. Exercise will help you release some

of that pressure you feel.

cAprIcorN

(Dec. 22 - Jan. 20): You may be excited

about an idea today, Capricorn, but

unfortunately no one else may be. You

spring up with enthusiasm only to

smack into a brick wall. One side of you may be

communicative and witty while the other is

confused. The two sides aren't really connecting well,

so perhaps you should just lay low. Hold on to your

ideas, and save their presentation for a later day.

AQUArIUs

(Jan. 21 - Feb. 19) : Much of today will

be a continuation of yesterday, but

with perhaps a bit more intensity for

you, Aquarius. There's an added buzz

in the air, like static on a radio. This background

noise may not provide the best environment to

work in, but you should be able to navigate with no

problem. Tune out the chatter and move on.

pIsces

(Feb. 20 - Mar. 20) : Today is one of those

days when you might feel like four people

have a hold of each of your limbs, Pisces. The

people are tugging and you're getting

stretched in every direction. Someone wants you to go there,

someone wants you to come here. Take some time out for

yourself and clearly state your needs to others. Make it known

what the best situation for you would be.

SpaceX says

no Starship

launch on

Monday

WASHINGTON : SpaceX

has postponed the latest test

flight of its prototype interplanetary

Starship rocket

from the company's south

Texas facility, Elon Musk

said Monday, reports BSS.

"FAA (Federal Aviation

Administration) inspector

unable to reach Starbase in

time for launch today," the

company's founder and CEO

tweeted.

"Postponed to no earlier

than tomorrow."

No launch window has so

far been provided for

Tuesday.

The company is hoping to

finally perform a successful

test flight after the last three

attempts ended in spectacular

explosions, and had been

granted a five hour window

for spaceflight activities by

local authorities on Monday.

SN11 is the 11th prototype

of Starship, which SpaceX

hopes will one day be able to

fly crewed missions to the

Moon, Mars and beyond.

Donors face $10bn

aid appeal at Syria

conference

BRUSSELS : International

donors met by video conference

Tuesday to raise desperately

needed funds for wartorn

Syria and refugees in

neighbouring countries, with

the UN calling for $10 billion in

aid.

"For ten years, Syrians have

endured death, destruction,

displacement and deprivation,"

United Nations

Secretary General Antonio

Guterres said in a video message.

"And things are getting

worse, not better. More than 13

million people need humanitarian

assistance to survive this

year. That's over 20 per cent

more than last year, and the

majority of the population is

now facing hunger."

The fifth Brussels Conference

on Syria, co-hosted by the

European Union and the UN,

brings together more than 50

countries and 30 international

organisations in the biggest

annual drive for pledges to

assist those hit by the war.

GD-556/21 (8x3)

Former minister Md Mostafizur Rahman Fizer distributed free agricultural machinery among farmers'

groups under the Rangpur Division Agriculture and Rural Development Project at Phulbari in

Dinajpur on Tuesday.

Photo: PBA

Stepping up Myanmar coup penalties,

US suspends trade deal

WASHINGTON : The United States on Monday suspended

a trade deal with Myanmar until a democratic government

is restored in the Southeast Asian country after a Feb. 1 coup

followed by a violent crackdown on protests.

The military overthrew the elected government, jailed

Aung San Suu Kyi and other civilian leaders and has killed

and imprisoned protesters in the country also known as

Burma.

"The United States supports the people of Burma in their

efforts to restore a democratically elected government," U.S.

Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in a statement.

"The United States strongly condemns the Burmese security

forces' brutal violence against civilians. The killing of

peaceful protestors, students, workers, labor leaders,

medics, and children has shocked the conscience of the

international community."

Tai's office said the United States was immediately suspending

"all U.S. engagement with Burma under the 2013

Trade and Investment Framework Agreement." Under the

agreement, the two countries cooperated on trade and

investment issues in an effort to integrate Myanmar into the

global economy, a reward for the military's decision to allow

a return to democracy - a transition that ended abruptly

with last month's coup.

Tai's announcement Monday doesn't stop trade between

the two countries.

But the United States is separately imposing economic

sanctions on Myanmar. In response to the military takeover,

for instance, the United States and the United Kingdom had

earlier imposed sanctions on two conglomerates controlled

by Myanmar's military, Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd.

and Myanmar Economic Corp.

Procurement

White House press secretary Jen Psaki noted that the U.S.

has also slapped export controls on Burma and added several

Burmese businesses to a trade blacklist. "We, of course,

continue to work with our allies and partners and like-minded

institutions, as we condemn the actions of the military,

call for the immediate restoration of democracy, and hold

those who seize power accountable," she said.

Two-way trade between the two countries doesn't amount

to much: Myanmar last year was the United States' 84th

biggest partner in the trade of goods such as automobiles

and machinery. U.S. goods exports to Burma came to just

$338 million; imports to $1 billion.

But the U.S. and other wealthy nations are major

importers of garments and other household items from

Myanmar factories, mostly owned by companies from other

countries, that have led the modernization of the impoverished

country's economy, helping provide millions of jobs.

Polish diplomat chosen as

new UN envoy to Lebanon

UNITED NATIONS : Poland's ambassador to the UN has

been chosen to be the new envoy for Lebanon, diplomatic

sources told AFP on Monday.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres "has informed the

Security Council of his intention to appoint Joanna

Wronecka… as UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, and the

Council has given its 'consent,'" one diplomat said, speaking

anonymously, reports BSS.

There was no objection from the Security Council, and a

green light for the nomination was given late last week, other

diplomats told AFP.

The formal appointment will be announced soon.

Wronecka will succeed Slovakia's Jan Kubis, who recently

took office as the new UN envoy for Libya.

The Polish diplomat, 63 on Tuesday, has spent much of her

decades-long career in northern Africa and the Middle East.

Since 2017, she has been in New York, where she was

tasked by the UN General Assembly with reviving endless

negotiations on reforming the Security Council to expand it

to include new members.

Three women polio workers

shot dead in Afghanistan

JALALABAD : Gunmen

killed three Afghan women

involved in a nationwide

polio immunisation programme

Tuesday, officials

said, a day after authorities

launched a new drive against

the crippling disease.

The three women were

killed in two separate attacks

in the restive eastern city of

Jalalabad, officials said.

"They were all on duty

going from house to house to

vaccinate children," supervisor

Wahidullah, who like

many Afghans uses only one

name, told AFP.

An official at the Nangarhar

governor's office confirmed

the incidents.

A relative of one of the victims

told AFP his niece had

joined the immunisation programme

to earn some money

for her family.

"Gunmen shot her dead

this morning when she was

on duty giving vaccines to

children," said Haji Maqbool.

Farmer Saifullah, who witnessed

the killing of the other

two workers, said three gunmen

had followed them

before shooting them.

"The girls had stopped in

front of a house and were

knocking the door. They

were carrying a medical box

and some papers," he said.

"The gunmen then came

closer and shot the girls

before fleeing."

A spokesman for the ministry

of health said the vaccination

drive had been temporarily

suspended in

Nangarhar.

The top US envoy to Kabul,

Ross Wilson, condemned the

killings.

"Such attacks are a direct

affront to Afghans' dream of

building a better life for their

children," he said on Twitter.

"Attacking vaccinators is as

heartless as it is inexplicable."

Polio has been eradicated

across the world apart from

Afghanistan and Pakistan,

where distrust of vaccines is

rife.

Officials say the Taliban

won't allow door-to-door

campaigns in areas they control.

The Taliban and religious

leaders often tell communities

that vaccines are a

Western conspiracy aimed at

sterilising Muslim children,

and they also suspect immunisation

drives are used for

spying on militant activities.

The attack on the three polio

workers comes amid a surge

in violence across

Afghanistan and despite

peace talks launched

between the Taliban and

government last year.

AvB Gm wc Avi/wewea/152

29/03/21 GD-557/21 (3x3)

GD-552/21 (5x3)

GD-555/21 (7x3)

weDnesDAy, MARch 31, 2021

11

UK variant hunters lead global

race to stay ahead of COVID

LONDON : On March 4, 2020, when there were

just 84 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the

U.K., professor Sharon Peacock recognized that

the country needed to expand its capacity to analyze

the genetic makeup of the virus, reports

UNB.

The Cambridge University microbiologist

understood that genomic sequencing would be

crucial in tracking the disease, controlling outbreaks

and developing vaccines. So she began

working with colleagues around the country to

put together a plan. Within a month, the government

had provided 20 million pounds ($28 million)

to fund their work.

The initiative helped make Britain a world

leader in rapidly analyzing the genetic material

from large numbers of COVID-19 infections,

generating more than 40% of the genomic

sequences identified to date. These days, their

top priority is finding new variants that are more

dangerous or resistant to vaccines, information

that is critical to helping researchers modify the

vaccines or develop new ones to combat the

ever-changing virus.

"They've show the world how you do this,"

said Dr. Eric Topol, chair of innovative medicine

at Scripps Research in San Diego, California.

Genomic sequencing is essentially the

process of mapping the unique genetic makeup

of individual organisms - in this case the virus

that causes COVID-19. While the technique is

used by researchers to study everything from

cancer to outbreaks of food poisoning and the

flu virus, this is the first time authorities are

using it to provide real-time surveillance of a

global pandemic.



Wednesday, Dhaka, march 31 2021, Chaitra 17, 1427 BS, Shaban 16, 1442 hijri

Cox's Bazar, the longest beach in the world, now has zero tourism. On the other hand, the beach is now turbulent

due to the rough weather, so tourists are not allowed to go out to sea.

Photo: PBa

Guterres urges 'decisive action' to

avoid debt crisis in developing world

Asia, Pacific must avoid

K-shaped recovery: UN

DHAKA : The Asia-Pacific region needs

large, yet attainable, investments in

resilience to protect development gains

amid a fragile and inequitable post-

COVID-19 economic recovery, says a

report released on Tuesday, reports

UNB.

The report was released by the United

Nations Economic and Social

Commission for Asia and the Pacific

(ESCAP) in Bangkok.

The Economic and Social Survey of

Asia and the Pacific 2021: Towards post-

COVID-19 resilient economies forecasts

that, on average, developing Asia-Pacific

economies are expected to grow by 5.9

per cent in 2021 and 5 per cent in 2022,

after having experienced an estimated

contraction of 1 per cent in 2020.

Despite a reasonably strong rebound

expected in 2021, a "K-shaped recovery"

is likely, with poorer countries and more

vulnerable groups marginalized in the

post-pandemic recovery and transition

period.

The Survey estimates that because of

the pandemic, an additional 89 million

people in the region could have been

pushed back into extreme poverty in

2020 at the $1.90 per day threshold,

erasing years of progress in poverty

reduction.

Working-hour losses in 2020 equaled

140 million full-time jobs, while severe

disruptions of economic activity and

education are likely to have caused a significant

setback to human capital accumulation

and productivity in the region.

For a more robust and inclusive recovery,

the Survey calls for a more synchronized

COVID-19 vaccination programme

across countries and highlights

opportunities to leverage regional cooperation.

At the same time, it recommends that

fiscal and monetary support should be

sustained, as premature tightening

could increase long-term scars.

DHAKA : Though significant steps have

been taken to prevent debt crises across

the world sparked by the COVID-19 crisis,

they have not been sufficient to

restore economic stability in many

developing countries, according to a policy

brief issued by the UN Secretary-

General on Monday, reports UNB.

More than a year into the pandemic,

the fiscal impacts of the crisis are triggering

debt distress in a growing number of

countries and is severely limiting the

ability of many, to invest in recovery and

the Sustainable Development Goals

(SDGs), including urgently needed climate

action, Secretary-General Antonio

Guterres said.

According to the policy brief, 42

economies borrowing from capital markets

have experienced sovereign downgrades

since the start of the pandemic,

including 6 developed countries, 27

emerging market economies, and 9 least

developed countries.

Sovereign downgrades cause borrowing

costs to rise, especially for developing

countries, which can, in turn,

increase the risk of more nations taking

on unsustainable debt - especially if the

Covid-19 pandemic is more protracted

and deeper than expected.

"Unless we take decisive action on

debt and liquidity challenges, we risk

another 'lost decade' for many developing

countries, putting the achievement

of the SDGs by the 2030 deadline definitively

out of reach," Guterres said.

The policy brief, entitled Liquidity and

Debt Solutions to Invest in the SDGs,

takes stock of the global policy response

"COVID-19 is a shock like no other

and it requires a response like no other,"

said Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, United

Nations Under-Secretary-General and

Executive Secretary of ESCAP.

"The time is now for the Asia-Pacific

region to seize this opportunity to speed

up and make its transition towards

more resilient, equitable, and green

development the centerpiece of the

post-pandemic economic recovery."

Looking beyond the pandemic, the

Survey examines the broader risk landscape

facing Asia-Pacific countries,

including epidemics, natural disasters

and financial crises.

It finds that adverse shocks, both economic

and non-economic, result in permanent

economic, social and environmental

losses, and advises countries to

take a more comprehensive approach to

building resilience against future

shocks.

Specifically, the Survey proposes a

"build forward better" policy package for

resilient post-COVID-19 economies that

aims to ensure universal access to

healthcare and social protection, close

the digital divide and strengthen climate

and clean energy actions.

It estimates that the package would

reduce the number of people living in

poverty in the region by almost 180 million

people and cut carbon emissions by

about 30 per cent in the long run.

Notably, the package would result in a

modest fiscal and debt burden if accompanied

by bold policy actions, such as

ending fossil fuel subsidies and introducing

a carbon tax.

Among other potential financing solutions,

the Survey also recommends debt

swaps-for-development initiatives for

countries with special needs and those

with limited fiscal space.

It also calls for international assistance

to least developed countries burdened

with significant "resilience gaps."

since April last year, assess remaining

gaps and challenges for their implementation,

as well as propose updates to the

recommendations, presented last year,

in light of developments over the past 12

months.

The brief highlights the need for debt

relief to create space for investments in

recovery and for achieving the SDGs.

Even in the cases of elevated debt,

new borrowing can lead to improved

creditworthiness if it finances productive

investments, it noted,

adding that debt relief can also free

up resources, create conditions

under which countries can return to

voluntary market access, and may

lower a country's overall borrowing

costs, with positive impacts across

the whole economy.

S Korea sees brighter

ties with Bangladesh

with multifarious

success stories : Envoy

DHAKA : South Korean Ambassador

to Bangladesh Lee Jang-keun has said

the future of Bangladesh-South Korea

relations "looks very bright and it will

get brighter" with diversified success

stories with a significant one already

created by Youngone, reports UNB.

"We see the future of our relations

very, very bright. The reason is very

simple...," said Ambassador Lee

responding to a UNB question sitting

beside Chairman and CEO of

Youngone Kihak Sung at Korean EPZ.

The South Korean Ambassador

noted that the shining accomplishment

that Bangladesh has shown not

only to its people but the entire world

is something that offers many opportunities

ahead.

Both Sung and Ambassador Lee welcomed

the members of Diplomatic

Correspondents Association, Bangladesh

(DCAB) at the KEPZ to show the facilities

there. KEPZ President Jahangir Saadat

was also present.

Referring to South Korean Prime

Minister Chung Sye-kyun's recent

remarks, the Korean envoy said his

Prime Minister's message captured all

the elements of the bilateral relations

and Korea's assessment over the

future of bilateral relations.

"We'll be the most trusted friends to

Bangladesh, ushering in a shining

future together," Korean Prime

Minister Chung recently said, mentioning

that Bangladesh, with its

remarkable economic development

and rapid emergence in the heart of

Asia, is echoing the miracle on the

Han River, a major river in South

Korea.

He said the international community

has been deeply impressed to see

that Bangladesh, even in the midst of

the Covid-19 pandemic when the

world economy has slowed down, succeeded

in achieving the greatest level

of economic growth.

Digital Healthcare

Over 450,000 women

get treatment costs

DHAKA : Digital Healthcare

Solutions has recently celebrated

the International Women's Day

by supporting over 450,000

women in Bangladesh with

maternity free health cashback,

access to doctors and specialists,

reports UNB.

Since its inception, DH has

been relentlessly working to mitigate

the gap between rich and

poor, rural and urban people in

the health sector of Bangladesh,

said a press release.

Women are largely marginalized

in the society compared to

men in cases of accessing the

basic needs such as healthcare

while DH through its innovative

and affordable services providing

them healthcare. The women

can also get both general practitioner

and specialist consultations

by just making a call.

Through various campaigns

and projects, DH has registered

over 450,000 women under various

health plans and packages

which provide free consultations

and free health cashback to its

members along with their families.

In the last few months alone,

DH has also provided over 1300

consultation with general practitioners

for free along with over

1100 consultations with specialists

including gynecologists and

DHAKA : A new report on pandemics

and cities from UN-

Habitat, points the way to how

hard-hit urban centres can reduce

the impact of future outbreaks and

become more equitable, healthy

and environmentally friendly.

'Cities and Pandemics: Towards a

more just, green and healthy

future', launched on Tuesday,

describes how urban areas have

been at the forefront of the COVID-

19 crisis.

"95 per cent of all

cases"?were?recorded in cities in

the first months?of the pandemic,?Maimunah

Mohd Sharif, UN-

Habitat Executive Director, said.

"Throughout this pandemic, it

has been up to local governments

and communities to move quickly

and decisively to stop the spread of

COVID-19 and ensure an effective

response,"?Ms. Sharif added.

Despite these pressures, many

local governments and community

leaders responded quickly and

effectively to prevent the spread of

the pandemic and mitigate its

effects.?

pediatricians.

This year, in an effort to

acknowledge the achievements

of the women of DH, the management

of DH conducted a virtual

session with all the female

employees on 8th March.

In an effort to ensure that the

female employees of DH are

comfortable and happy and

based on this year's theme

'Choose to Challenge', DH also

conducted a virtual session with

them on 1st March where they

discussed about the challenges

they face and proposed various

innovative solutions.

Dr Sharmin Zahan, head of

ecosystem and business development

said,

"We are determined to use our

privilege in making digital health

accessible for all, particularly for

the women and their families as

COVID-19 pandemic has flashed

light on the inequality across the

health and other areas."

Dr Tanhar Islam, Manager of

clinical team said "I'm proud to be

a part of DH family where I can

flourish myself without facing any

negative force and doing something

meaningful for the society as

well."

More details about DH can be

availed by calling 08 000 111

000 or visiting its website -

dh.health

UN-Habitat calls for post

COVID-19 cities to lead the

way to a healthier future

The UN-Habitat report?recommends?actions

for a sustainable

recovery?based on?evidence

from?more than 1,700 cities.

It found that patterns of inequality,?due

to?a?lack of access to basic

services, poverty and overcrowded

living conditions, have been key

destabilising factors in increasing

the scale and impact of COVID-

19.?

Eduardo Moreno, Head of

Knowledge and Innovation at UN-

Habitat, said that due to the pandemic,

an estimated?"120 million

people in the world will be pushed

into poverty and living standards

will reduce by 23 per cent".?

"The conclusion is that income

matters",?he added.

According to the?text, urban

leaders and planners must rethink

how people move through and in

cities, using lessons learned from

the last year of COVID-19.

This?includes?an increased focus

at the local level on planning

neighbourhoods and communities

that are multi-functional and

inclusive.?

Holy Shab-e-

Barat observed

DHAKA : The holy Shab-e-Barat, the

night of fortune and forgiveness, was

observed in the country on Monday

night with due religious fervor, reports

UNB.

According to Muslim belief, Shab-e-

Barat is the night when Allah arranges

the affairs of the following year. On this

night, Allah writes the destinies of all

the creations for the coming year by

taking into account their past deeds.

Muslim devotees offered special

prayers, recited from the Holy Quran

seeking divine blessings for the wellbeing

of mankind.

They passed the whole night offering

prayers. This year worshipers offered

prayers following health protocols amid

a growing number of coronavirus cases

and an alarming uptrend in the daily

infection rate. Bangladesh Television,

Bangladesh Betar and private TV channels

and radio stations aired special

programmes while newspapers published

articles highlighting the significance

of the night.

Meanwhile, President Abdul Hamid

and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

issued separate messages on the occasion.

PSC extends

deadline for 43rd

BCS application

Shafiqul iSlam

The Public Service Commission (PSC)

has extended the deadline for the 43rd

BCS application. The application period

has been extended to June 30 from

March 31. This information was given in

a press release on the website of PSC on

Monday (March 29). According to the

press release, the time of the 43rd BCS

application has been rescheduled till

June 30 instead of March 31. Interested

candidates can apply online till 6 pm on

June 30.

The notification of the 43rd BCS was

published on November 30 last year.

1,814 officers will be taken in different

cadres in this BCS. Of these, 300 will be

appointed in administration, 100 in

police, 25 in foreign, 843 in education,

35 in audit, 22 in information, 19 in tax,

14 in customs and 19 in cooperatives.

Meanwhile candidate has to take part

in the preliminary examination. The test

time is two hours and total 200 marks.

The preliminary examination will have

200 questions. Candidate will get 1

mark for each correct answer. However,

in case of wrong answer, decimal 50

(zero point five zero) number can be

deducted from the total number

obtained for each wrong answer. The

preliminary thematic syllabus can be

found on the PSC website.

The results of the 42nd BCS (Special)

Preliminary Examination have been published.

Six thousand twenty two candidates

have passed the special BCS. This

information has been informed in a press

release of PSC on Monday afternoon.

The preliminary examination of the

42nd BCS was held on February 26

from 3 pm to 5 pm. The PSC issued the

notification of the 42nd Special BCS in

November last year for the appointment

of 2,000 Assistant Surgeons

(Physicians). Total 31,026 applications

were submitted in PSC. Of these 27,565

candidates participated in the test.

40th BCS' oral exam has been postponed

due to the rise in coronavirus

infection. The decision was taken in a

meeting of the PSC on Monday (March

29) afternoon.

members of

RaB-4 in a

drive arrested

2 drug peddlers

along with

580 bottles of

phensedyl from

Gabtoli area

under

Darussalam

police station

of Dhaka on

monday.

Photo:

Courtesy

Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam, Executive Editor : Sheikh Efaz Ahmed, Managing Editor: Tapash Ray Sarker, News Editor : Saiful Islam, printed at Sonali Printing Press, 2/1/A, Arambagh 167, Inner Circular Road, Eden Complex, Motijheel, Dhaka.

Editorial and News Office: Bangladesh Timber Building (3rd Floor) 270/B, Tejgaon I/A Dhaka-1208. Tel : +8802-8878026, Cell : 01736786915; Fax: + 880244611604, Email: Editor : editor@thebangladeshtoday.com, Advertisement: ads@thebangladeshtoday.com, News: newsbangla@thebangladeshtoday.com, contact@thebangladeshtoday.com, website: www.thebangladeshtoday.com

31-03-2021

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