09-05-2022

Monday, Dhaka: May 9, 2022; Baishakh 26, 1429 BS; Shawal 7, 1443 Hijri
9 Bangladeshi
firms set to
participate in
'Texworld Paris'
DHAKA : Nine Bangladeshi textile, garment
and leather companies are set to
take part in a three-day trade show,
Texworld Paris, scheduled for July 04-06
in the French capital.
The Bangladeshi companies will participate
in the expo, titled 'The Texworld/
Apparel Sourcing/ Leatherworld Paris',
through the Export Promotion Bureau
(EPB) under the Ministry of Commerce.
The business firms are: DD Sourcing
Limited, Nelima Fashion Wear Limited,
Lights Creation, Vertex Wear Limited, DK
Textile Limited, Hossain Dyeing and Printing
Mills Limited, Tosa Creation Limited CBM
International Limited and Anannya Socks
and Inners Industries Limited.
Manufacturers will exhibit various
products on cotton, denim, drapery and
tailoring, embroidery and lace, jacquard,
knitted fabrics, linen and hemp, prints,
shirting, silk, silky aspects, sportswear
and functional fabrics, trims and accessories,
wool and woollen materials.
Apparel Sourcing Paris is a major clothing
sourcing platform for the European
market. The wide range of products for
men, women, children, and accessories
include the entire price spectrum.
Talking to BSS, EPB Director (Fair and
Display) Abu Mukhles Alamgir Hossain
said within the European Union, France is
a major economic partner of Bangladesh.
"Both countries have developed strong
economic cooperation and are enjoying
warm business relationships. In fact,
ready-made garment is the major
Bangladeshi product for export earnings
from France. Export of other products,
such as leather and footwear, shrimps and
frozen fish, ceramic and pharmaceutical
articles, has also increased," he added. He
further said Bangladesh aims to widen
French investors portfolios, advise French
businessmen, secure market access and try
to diversify its export baskets.
He informed that France is the third
largest export destination of Bangladesh
in the European Union for apparel and in
2020-21, Bangladesh exported US$1.78
billion worth apparels.
Cinema hall refinance
scheme deadline
extended to December
DHAKA : Bangladesh Bank (BB) has extended
the loans disbursement schedule under a
refinance scheme to support cinema hall
owners. The Banking Regulations and Policy
Department (BRPD) of the central bank in a
notification on Sunday extended the schedule
to December 31, 2022, from the earlier
deadline March 31, 2022.
In February 2021, the BB formed a
refinance scheme of Tk1000 crore to
support cinema hall owners' for renovation,
technology upgradation and modernization
of halls to ensure time befitting
atmosphere for audience.
The BB later amended the notification
and extended the limit of loan for an owner
of cinema to Tk10 crore, which was Tk 5
crore earlier. A 100-seat capacity cinema
hall owner can avail maximum loan of Tk10
crore with 5 percent interest rate.
The cinema halls in the divisional cities
can avail the loans at 5 percent interest
rate while other cities at 4.5 percent
interest rate. The repayment period is
eight years with 1-year grace period.
BNP will fall in crisis
if it does not join
polls:Quader
DHAKA : Awami League General
Secretary Obaidul Quader yesterday said
if BNP does not participate in the next
parliamentary elections, it will fall in crisis
of existence.
"They (BNP) must join the next general
polls to sustain their existence. We also
want to welcome a strong opposition in
parliament. We want that the opposition
has a stand," he said while talking to
reporters at his Secretariat office here
this afternoon.
Asked whether there would be any initiative
to bring the BNP to polls, Quader
said: "We will ask them (BNP) to join the
polls though it should not be said."
Joining the elections is the right of the
BNP and it is not a matter of chance, he
said. "If the BNP does not exercise its
rights, its existence will fall in crisis. And
I do believe they (BNP) will not create
such a situation," he added.
Quader, also the road transport and
bridges minister, said Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina wants all the political parties
to join the polls.
"We want to hold elections ensuring
participation of all the political parties. It
is being ensured that there will be fair
polls by using electronic voting machines
(EVMs). The Election Commission will
remain neutral," he said.
That is why, he said, BNP secretary
Thai envoy for promoting
deeper people-to-people
ties with Bangladesh
DHAKA : Thai Ambassador to
Bangladesh Makawadee Sumitmor has
said Bangladesh and Thailand should
promote deeper mutual understanding
at the people-to-people level to cultivate
closer contact in all dimensions.
"People-to-people exchange is the
foundation of bilateral relations. After a
50-year-long journey our peoples still
have some unclear picture about each
other," she told UNB in an interview.
Ambassador Sumitmor said cultural
interactivity could enable Thais and
Bangladeshis to feel more acquainted
with each other.
This kind of interaction takes time to
develop but it will be a long-lasting foundation
of our friendship, she said.
The Ambassador said Bangladesh and
Thailand share ancient linkages. For
example, she said, it is a surprising
knowledge for her to learn that Thai and
Bangla languages have many similarities
through Sanskrit and Pali.
Some Bengali words have the same
meaning in Thai, such as 'sikkha' which
means 'education' and 'banijya' which
means 'commerce.'
In this respect, Ambassador Sumitmor
said, it could be said that Thailand and
Bangladesh are not just 'friends' but are
general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has
no reason to get worried.
Responding to a statement of Fakhrul
that the unelected government must quit
power, the AL general secretary said it is
an old doggerel, while there are the members
of BNP in the House too.
"The BNP has sent its members to parliament.
Are they unelected?... Mr
Fakfrul makes himself less important. If
he (Fakhrul) remained in the House, he
would have spoken strongly," he said.
About the national conference of the
Awami League, Quader said AL
President Sheikh Hasina has stated that
the AL conference will be held on regular
basis. The AL's existing committee will
expire in December next and it is expected
that the party's next conference will be
held in the month of victory, he said.
The AL general secretary said the AL
president has asked all the party men to
get prepared for the upcoming elections
and the conference.
She instructed to arrange the programme
of the AL founding anniversary
on June 23 and also directed to prepare
election manifesto by updating the existing
one, he said.
The conferences of the AL's expired
district-upazila committees must be held
before its national conference, the AL
general secretary said.
'relatives' with shared cultural root and
diverse common interests.
Another cultural link is the traditional
New Year celebration, said Ambassador
Sumitmor. While 14 April marks the date
for Bengali traditional New Year or
'Pahela Boishakh' Thai people also celebrate
Songkran festival, their traditional
new year in the same period.
A series of events will be organized
throughout the year with focus on
enhancing understanding between the
peoples marking the 50th anniversary of
diplomatic relations between the two
countries that falls on October 5.
The commemorative logo for this occasion
was launched on 1 March 2022 at
the 2nd Bangladesh-Thailand bilateral
consultations in Bangkok.
It features number 50 in Thai and
Bengali with gold borderline, signifying
the golden jubilee of relations.
Number five in Thai and Bengali script
has some similar line and curve so it is
designed in a way that it could be looked
either way.
"Our national flags are also part of the
logo. It is jointly designed by the Royal
Thai Embassy in Dhaka and the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh," said
the Thai Ambassador.
a mobile
court of Dhaka
South City
Corporation
has conducted
a drive on
Hawkers
Market in
Gulistan of
the capital city.
More than
500 illegal
establishments
and shops have
been evicted.
Photo :
Star Mail
Slow traffic movement witnessed on Dhaka-Tangail-Bangabandhu Bridge highway yesterday. Photo : Star Mail
4 teen girls go
missing in
Laxmipur
LAXMIPUR : Four teenage girls have
been missing since Saturday morning
in Badamtoli in Kamalnagar upazila of
Laxmipur district, police said on
Sunday.
The victims were identified as
Zobaida Akter, 12, Mitu Akter, 12,
Samia Akter Niha, 13 and Shimu Akter,
14.
General diaries were lodged with
Kamalnagar Police in connection with
the disappearance of four girls on
Saturday night, said Mohammad
Solaiman, officer-in-charge of
Kamalnagar Police Station.
The four girls went out on Saturday
morning telling their mothers they
were going to their maternal grandfather's
house but on Saturday night,
Niha's family came to know that they
had not reached their destination.
Police are conducting a drive to find
them, said OC.
Khulna City mayor
to be taken to S’pore
for better treatment
KHULNA : Khulna City Corporation
Mayor Talukdar Abdul Khaleque was
brought to Dhaka on Sunday as he will
be taken to Singapore for better treatment,
reports UNB. He was shifted to
Dhaka's CMH from Shaheed Sheikh
Abu Naser Hospital by air ambulance
at 4.30 pm.
He will be undergoing treatment at
CMH for the next 15 days and then he
will be taken to Singapore for
advanced treatment, said District
Awami League general secretary MDA
Babul Rana.
He also said that Sheikh Salahuddin
Jewel, member of Parliament from
Khulna-2 constituency, has taken all the
responsibility for the treatment of the
mayor and wished good health to the
mayor.
He is accompanied by his wife Begum
Habibub Nahar, deputy minister of
Environment, Forests and Climate, and
his nephew Meghla.
The 69-year old KCC mayor was admitted
to Shaheed Sheikh Abu Naser
Specialised hospital in Khulna around 11
am on Saturday, said Prakash Chandra,
Residential Medical Officer (RMO) of the
hospital.
He has been suffering from heart disease,
diabetes, high blood pressure and
last year he underwent a surgery in the
prostate gland, said RMO Prakash
Chandra.
Trader fined for
stocking 2,328
litres soybean oil
CHATTOGRAM : A mobile court fined
a trader Tk40,000 on Saturday night
for illegally stocking 2,328 litres of soybean
oil at South Gizaria village under
Bhujpur thana of the district.
Based on secret information, the
mobile court led by Executive
Magistrate S M Alamgir conducted the
drive in the house of trader Akhter
Hossain and found 2,326 liters of illegally
stored soybean oil around
10:30pm last night.
The recovered edible oil was sold in
the open market yesterday morning.
BNP won't join election
under AL : Fakhrul
Safiqul iSlaM (JaMi)
BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul
Islam Alamgir has said that there is no
question of BNP going to the polls without
the resignation of the present Awami
League (AL) government. He outlined
BNP's position at a press conference on
SMay 8 at the Gulshan office of BNP
chairperson in the wake of the ruling party's
decision to hold elections at a meeting
of the AL's executive committee on
Saturday.
The BNP secretary general said, "We
are clear about the next election. If the AL
government does not resign and power is
not handed over to a completely neutral
government, there will be no question of
an election. We do not want to talk about
this. We will not go to the polls if Sheikh
USAID Deputy Administrator
Coleman in Bangladesh
HAKA : USAID's Deputy Administrator
Isobel Coleman is now visiting
Bangladesh as part of her tri-nation
tour, reports UNB.
After wrapping up her Bangladesh
tour (May 7-11), she will travel to
Thailand and Laos, according to USAID.
During her Asian tour, she will assess
the needs of regional humanitarian
crises, including the Rohingya refugee
problem. The United States appreciates
Bangladesh's compassion and humanitarian
response to support over one million
Rohingya refugees currently living
in Cox's Bazar district and Bhasan Char
Island.
On April 4, USAID's Administrator
Samantha Power met with Foreign
Minister AK Abdul Momen and discussed
Rohingya refugee policies, joint
climate action to promote clean energy
solutions, and methods for improving
Bangladesh's business environment and
galvanizing investment.
Hasina is in power."
The first condition is that they should
resign and hand over power to a neutral
non-partisan government. They will
form an election commission to conduct
the elections based on the views of the
people and a government and parliament
representing the people will be formed by
the election commission, Fakhrul added.
Mirza Fakhrul said, "I don't think anything
will happen until the AL government
resigns." He also blamed the government
for the rampant surge of soybean
oil price.
However, BNP secretary general
condemns and protests the attack on
the house of party standing committee
member Dr. Khandaker Mosharraf
Hossain in Daudkandi on Saturday by
local miscreants.
Administrator Power and Minister
Momen commemorated 50 years of
Bangladesh-US bilateral relations and
reaffirmed their longstanding partnership
on development.
The Administrator celebrated the
strides Bangladesh has made in health
and economic development with the
United States at their side, and noted
Bangladesh's promising path to achieve
upper middle-income country status
over the next ten years.
During her trip, Coleman will also
advance the United States' partnership
with ASEAN member countries, including
Thailand and Laos, on the shared
priorities of COVID-19, climate action,
economic recovery efforts, and inclusive
development.
Throughout the trip, she will also meet
with women leaders and entrepreneurs,
and local climate and health experts on
the frontline of the global COVID-19
response.
Brace for showers with intense
lightning : Met Office
DHAKA : Showers with intense lightning
flashes and temporary gusty wind is likely
to occur across the country in the next
24 hours as the Cyclonic Storm "Asani"
over Southeast Bay and adjoining South
Andaman Sea moves Northwestwards,
reports UNB.
According to Met Office, "Showers are
likely to occur at many places over
Khulna, Barishal and Chattogram divisions
and at a few places over
Mymensingh and Sylhet divisions along
with one or two places over Rangpur,
Rajshahi, and Dhaka divisions."
Meanwhile a mild Heat Wave is sweeping
over Sylhet division and the districts
of Madaripur, Rangamati, Cumilla, M.
Court, Feni, Khulna and Jashore and it
may abate from some places, said
Bangladesh Meteorological Office in a
buletine. It said day temperature may fall
slightly and night temperature may
remain nearly unchanged over the country.
In an extended outlook for the next
three days BMD said "Thunder showers
activity may increase".
The cyclone was centered at noon on
Sunday about 1205 Kms South-Southwest
of Chattogram port, 1125 kms South-
Southwest of Cox's Bazar port, 1185 kms
South of Mongla port and 1145 kms South
of Payra port, said a Met office bulletin . It
is likely to intensify further and move in a
Northwesterly direction, it said.
Maximum sustained wind speed within
54 Kms of the cyclonic storm centre is
about 62 Kph rising to 88 Kph in gusts or
squalls. Sea will remain very rough near
the cyclonic center.
Maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox's
Bazar, Mongla and Payra have been
advised to hoist distant warning signal No
2. All fishing boats and trawlers over the
North Bay and deep sea have been
advised to remain close to the coast and
proceed with caution.