News Watch (17-01-2018)

AL picks Atiqul Islam for DNCC mayoral race
Awami League has picked Atiqul Islam, former president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), as the party's candidate in the upcoming by-election to mayoral post at Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC). The party's Local Government Parliamentary Board endorsed Atiqul Islam at a meeting held on Tuesday night with party president and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair, said AL general secretary Obaidul Quader. The mayoral post has been lying vacant since the death of Mayor Annisul Huq on November 30 last year. — UNB

Over 0.36m posts remain vacant: JS told
The number of vacant posts under various ministries is now 359,261, Public Administration Minister Syed Ashraful Islam told Parliament on Tuesday. "Letters have already been sent to all ministries and divisions requesting to fill the vacancies soon," he said replying to a starred question. Ashraful Islam said recruitment to the vacant posts in government offices is a continuous process. — UNB