\\\'Green energy\\\' gets popularity among companies

'Green energy' is becoming popular among the country's manufacturers due to demand of global business partners, eco-friendliness and cost-efficiency. The business insiders said demand for green products has been on the rise from the global partners resulting in many industries...

Bearish spell continues as political unrest prolongs

The bearish spell continued in the stock market for the fourth week that ended Thursday as investors were in selling binge amid the deepening political turmoil in the country. "The prolonged political strife kept the investors worried and they went...

China makes \\\'peaceful rise\\\'

          China's rise can be seen as a quintessentially political process. Through the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) has sought to shore up its legitimacy after the Cultural Revolution irreversibly changed the nation and caused three crises of ideological belief,...

Tale of a simple girl with lofty dreams

This is my story. It is the story of a simple girl with lofty dreams. A girl who was not born under any lucky star or with silver-spoon in her mouth. But one thing I was certainly born with, that...

Misplaced priority makes a poor commentary

So, the 20-party alliance -better say the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) - relaxed its hartal for 12 hours on Tuesday. The reason why it granted the nation this gracious reprieve is to celebrate the victory of the Bangladesh cricket team...

Sellers versus customers

Brand loyalty is earned by meeting and exceeding expectations. The lesser the customer's expectation is, the easier it is for a seller to meet or surpass the target. Today the nearly perfect information age has opened the eyes of the...

Turmoil in Bangladesh and Delhi\\\'s stand

The question that has been uppermost in the minds of the people since the recent calls from the UN/the US/and the EU to end the spate of dangerous violence that has gripped the Bangladesh nation has been about India's role....

42,500 youths to get govt jobs under NSP this year

Some 42,500 educated youths will get government jobs this year under the National Service Programme (NSP) of the government, officials said.   The NSP will be implemented in 17 upazilas of 17 districts at a cost of Tk 2.42 billion for...

Most blood banks run without supervision, flout govt rules

Lax government monitoring of the operation of blood banks across the country is risking people's lives as unethical practices are allegedly rife in many cases of medical emergency like blood transfusion. A source in the National Expert Council for Safe...

Lower lead time lures cos to go for steel structures

Pre-fabricated steel structures are gaining popularity in cities as corporate houses prefer these types on grounds of safety and convenience, according to people involved in the construction sector. They say these types of buildings require short time to install and...

Debit-card holders still confused about use, service charges of ATM booths

Many debit-card holders are still confused about use and service charges of ATM booths other than the card-issuing banks, which is posing an adverse impact on growth of interbank electronic transactions, sector insiders said. Most of them are even not...

Making the most of microfinance

Microfinance has come into the limelight for quite a few decades but not so conspicuously before Prof. Muhammad Yunus and his Grameen Bank shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006. A prestigious award like this however has shifted the focus...

IMF concerned: Political unrest takes its toll on the economy

The unbending position of the Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is making the prevailing political situation more critical. Foreign diplomats and donor representatives have expressed their concern. Initiatives both at local and foreigners' levels have been taken...

Govt moves to raise fines to stop GSP certificate forgery

The government is going to raise the penalty for any kind of forgery of GSP certificates in a move to prevent the trade offence which casts negative impacts on the country's image and the export facility, too, officials said. Presently,...

Jan credit flow to pvt sector slows

Private-sector credit growth fell in January over the previous month mainly as businesspeople were on the watch over the ongoing political turmoil before deciding on business start-ups, bankers said Wednesday. The growth in the credit flow to the private sector...

High production cost pushes up state sugar mills\\\' losses

Farmers' preference for short-duration crops has created shortage of sugarcane, thus pushing up production costs of state-owned sugar mills, whose accumulated losses hit a new high of Tk 35 billion. "Shortage of raw materials has become a major problem for...

Teaching statistics

Numbers have always spoken to me. It is like a language, with some rules and some procedures, communicated through the constants and the equations. In fact, sometimes numbers have made more sense than any other language with which I can...

Life of a territory officer

Famous American author and political activist Helen Keller has rightly said, "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all." Human psychology tends to evade adventures and risks. But yet there are so many people out there who love...

Towards a second wave of liberation

A strong collective faith and trust on the institutions of modernity is a fundamental ingredient to build a nation. Unfortunately, most people of Bangladesh have lost their faith in, for example, the legal system, politics, business, and most importantly, the...

Is private car a luxury?

The government imposes an exorbitant amount of tax on imported cars to ration their use by people. High taxes raise the price of a car to such an amount that a middle class family can hardly afford it. The classes...

Ports asked to get rid of stockpiled vehicles

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has directed the authorities concerned to take necessary steps to clear the stockpiled cars off the country's sea and land-ports, officials said. They said the country's two seaports - Chittagong and Mongla - and Benapole...

Mediation centre to help settle Dhaka-Beijing trade disputes

The process of settling trade-related disputes between Bangladesh and China through mediation is expected to begin from June next. A mediation centre would help exporters and importers of both the countries to lodge complaints to a panel of arbitrators, local...

Indecision is over, finally

The new VAT (value added tax) Act passed in 2012 will now come into effect from the first day of the fiscal 2017. It was supposed to be enforced from July 01 this year. But staunch opposition from the businesses...

Central bank mulls fixing range of ceiling on debit card charges

The central bank is planning to fix a range of ceiling regarding charges on debit card aiming to protect depositors' interest, officials said Tuesday. "The issue will be discussed at the next bankers' meeting, scheduled to be held on March...

Strengthening film industry: The role of censorship

Film is considered to be an important art form, a source of popular entertainment, and a powerful medium for educating — or indoctrinating — citizens. The visual basis of the cinema gives it a universal power of communication. Some films...

The role of political parties

In a democratic society, a political party is on the input side of a political system, that is, the demands and interests of the people are collected from political parties and analysed by the government before any policy decision is...

Sustaining food security

Can Bangladesh sustain the gains achieved in food security and make further progress towards sustainable food security by 2030? One could be optimistic that Bangladesh can do it. But the government has to provide an enabling environment through continuing investment...

Meeting the middle-income challenges

Bangladesh aims at continuing its healthy growth and poverty reduction achievements, and accelerating economic growth in order to become a middle-income country by 2021. It seeks to continue its high pace of poverty reduction and share prosperity more equitably among...

BoI to sponsor road shows abroad to boost investors\\\' confidence

The Board of Investment (BoI) has taken a number of initiatives including road shows and business meets with foreign entrepreneurs to boost their confidence, officials said. The road shows in England, the Netherlands and France would be held in the...

Small garment makers stand to benefit

The government has decided to issue certificates to small garment makers, allowing them to export to south Asian countries at lower duty, a senior official said. According to the existing export policy, Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) under the ministry of...