Stocks swing as peace talk hopes wobble

HONG KONG, April 27 (AFP): Oil prices rose Monday while stocks were mixed with the United States and Iran no closer to ending their eight-week-old war after Donald Trump cancelled his envoys' trip for peace talks at the weekend.Hopes that...

Speech-impaired man held for allegedly killing mother

NATORE, Apr 27 (UNB): Police detained a speech-impaired man over the alleged killing of his mother in Natore's Mallikhati Ghoshpara area on Sunday night.The deceased was identified as Shahida Begum, wife of the late Shariful Huda.Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Sadar Police...

Crocodile caught in fishing gear sparks curiosity in Faridpur

FARIDPUR, Apr 27 (UNB): A crocodile was caught in fishermen's gear in the Padma River in Charbhadrasan upazila of Faridpur early Monday, drawing a large crowd to the riverbank.Fishermen said the crocodile became entangled in a fishing hook near Gopalpur...

Maheshkhali betel leaf enjoys global acclaim

OUR CORRESPONDENTCOX'S BAZAR, Apr 27: The famed sweet betel leaf of Maheshkhali, Bangladesh's only hilly island, is gaining recognition beyond national borders, but local farmers say they are struggling to secure fair prices locally due to weak marketing system and...

Sylhet low-lying areas brace for flash flood

Heavy to very heavy rainfall could trigger flash floods in the low-lying areas of Sylhet, Habiganj, and Moulvibazar districts starting on April 30 (Thursday)Thursday, the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) has warned, according to bdnews24.com.The state-run agency issued a...

Afghan authorities say Pakistani fire kills 3 along border

KABUL, April 27 (AFP): The Pakistani military killed at least three people and wounded 45 others in an Afghan border province on Monday, the Taliban authorities said.Hundreds of people have been killed since the two neighbours went to war in...

Modi's BJP gains ground

NEW DELHI, April 27 (Reuters): Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP party strengthened its position in parliament's upper house after seven opposition lawmakers joined it, a parliamentary list showed on Monday, a shift that could ease the government's passage of...

Trump calls suspect in press dinner attack 'pretty sick guy'

WASHINGTON, April 26 (Reuters): US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the suspect accused of trying to attack administration officials at a black-tie gala on Saturday night was a "pretty sick guy" who had been flagged to law enforcement...

CITY BANK, WATER.ORG LAUNCH JOINT INITIATIVE FOR SAFE WATER, SANITATION

CITY BANK, WATER.ORG LAUNCH JOINT INITIATIVE FOR SAFE WATER, SANITATION City Bank and Water.org launched a two-year partnership initiative in Bangladesh to expand access to safe water and sanitation through innovative MSME financing and community engagement. Under this initiative, small...

MTB FOUNDATION DISTRIBUTES GRANT TO FISHING COMMUNITIES OF CHANDPUR

MTB FOUNDATION DISTRIBUTES GRANT TO FISHING COMMUNITIES OF CHANDPURMTB Foundation, as part of its project titled 'Creating Alternative Livelihood for Vulnerable Fishing Communities through Income Generating Activities (IGAs)' distributed livelihood assets grant to households of the vulnerable fishing communities at...

BSEC bans 3 firms over Ring Shine audits

The securities regulator has taken punitive action against three audit firms and their three partners over serious irregularities in the auditing of Ring Shine Textiles Limited.The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has imposed a three-year ban on the audit...

Envoy Textiles bets on recycled cotton to scale up production, cut costs

Envoy Textiles has decided to invest in resource mobilisation, through which recycled and recovered cotton will be used to produce yarn at scale.The implementation of the plan will improve waste management as well as expand production capacity, helping the company...

Freedom of expression vs. digital decadence: The new frontier of democratic integrity

Freedom of expression is widely recognised as a foundational pillar of democracy and an essential safeguard of civic liberty. A democratic state cannot function without the free exchange of ideas, criticism and dissent. However, when this freedom is weaponised to...

Addressing Dhaka's traffic crisis with data-driven solutions and persuasive strategies

Everyday life in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, is largely defined by the city's traffic. Vehicles are stuck in cataclysmic gridlock on Dhaka's streets as the city's traffic situation deteriorates with each passing day. The average time lost to commuting...

Measles outbreaks - a wakeup call

Bangladesh is now facing one of its most serious measles outbreaks in recent years. The infection has spread across different parts of the country, with young children being the most affected. Hospitals have been flooded with cases, raising growing concern...

Overuse of antibiotics needs control

The use of antibiotics is rising alarmingly in Bangladesh. With the growing number of patients in the capital, the expansion of specialised medical centres, and easier access to healthcare, antibiotic consumption has increased significantly. However, this trend is not solely...

Removing trust-deficit in banking sector

The Bank Resolution Ordinance, 2025 was issued on May 9 last year (2025) by the Dr Yunus-led interim government with the objective of restoring stability in banking sector that was teetering on the brink of collapse. The ordinance granted the...

A test of resolve against militancy

The latest intelligence warning issued by Bangladesh Police is not merely a routine security update; it is a reminder of a deep and persistent challenge that the country cannot afford to ignore.According to reports, Bangladesh Police has issued an intelligence...

No alternative to restoring EPI

The breakout of measles has all the constituents of an epidemic now. One of the reasons, health experts and epidemiologists first pointed out, behind the proliferation of measles cases and the consequent deaths is the disruption of the Expanded Programme...

Gaps in CIB reporting: A concern for credit risk management

In Bangladesh's banking sector, the Credit Information Bureau (CIB) report of Bangladesh Bank is a cornerstone of prudent lending decisions. Before approving any loan or credit facility, banks rely heavily on this report to assess a borrower's creditworthiness. It provides...

Bipartisan politics augurs well for Bangladesh democracy

Democratic culture, practised in Bangladesh since inception, has been marked by marginaisation of opposition. Towards the end of the autocratic rule that ended in a violent overthrow in July movement in 2025, the main opposition was completely throttled, its leaders...

DMP files 1,399 cases against traffic rule violators in Dhaka

The Traffic Division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has filed 1,399 cases against traffic rule violators during drives conducted in different areas of the capital on Sunday, reports UNB.According to DMP, the highest number of cases-285-was filed in the Motijheel...

Court refuses to shift BUET student Sunny murder case

A Dhaka court has directed the River Police to expedite their investigation and submit the probe report in the murder case of Tarikuzzaman Sunny, a student of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET).Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Mahbubur Rahman passed...

Eight children die in 24 hours

At least eight more children died of measles and measles-like symptoms in the past 24 hours, including one from confirmed measles, taking the total death toll to 259, health authorities said on Sunday.Of the total fatalities, 43 were confirmed measles...

Govt seeks justice, in touch with US agencies

Bangladesh has expressed strong expectations that those responsible for the killing of two Bangladeshi PhD students in the United States will be brought to justice, as authorities in Florida proceed with murder charges against a key suspect.The victims -- Jamil...

Scrutinise projects, maintain austerity in spending

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman instructs officials to maintain austerity in spending and scrutinising development projects to check to what extent they are beneficial to the people.The direction was given Sunday at the second meeting of the Executive Committee of the...

Apparel leaders demand policy perks for MMF, solar panels

Apparel and associated industries have put forward a slew of pre-budget proposals to the government, including reducing source tax on exports and withdrawing tax on cash incentives and policy perks for solar panels and MMF garments. Leaders of textile, garment,...

Fuel loading into country's N-power plant Apr 28

Hope of having cheaper clean electricity rises as the much-awaited fuel loading into Bangladesh's maiden nuclear power plant takes place tomorrow amid global fuel crisis."Everything is set for fuel loading into Bangladesh's first nuclear unit, the 1,200-megawatt Rooppur-1, on Tuesday...

Slow spending drags RADP execution to 36pc in 9 months

Core ministries responsible for human development have utilised less than one-third of their Revised Annual Development Programme (RADP) allocations during the first nine months of the current fiscal year, according to the latest data from the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation...

Fuel rationing for emergency services lifted

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has announced that fuel rationing imposed on police and other emergency services has been lifted, aiming to ensure normal law-enforcement activities and uninterrupted public movement.He made the announcement in parliament on Sunday while responding to a...