Mohsin Abdur Rahman — a charismatic teacher

Teaching inside a classroom is a tedious yet challenging experience. A teacher has to be a great artist and teaching might be the greatest of the arts. His main job is to stimulate his students into learning; he has to...

Bangladesh set to emerge as a middle income country

The story of the Bangladesh economy exemplifies that of an underdog which had been continuously berated and belittled by the naysayers, as it struggled to maintain its growing population and at the same time, keeping away from myriad obstacles to...

Artificial structures — eyesore on Gulshan Lake

Water bodies in Dhaka city are crucially important for recharging and replenishing the underground water. Gulshan Lake is an invaluable water reservoir in the city. It helps to control temperature and moisture in the surroundings and supports large varieties of...

Whither rural credit market?

For the sake of simplicity, an expression of willingness on the part of a household to borrow money from any source would be taken as a proxy for demand for credit by that household. During a census by BRAC in...

Indian election: Teesta and land boundary issues

As India is in the midst of national elections, speculations are galore about the shape of its relations with Bangladesh in the coming days. Indo-Bangladesh ties are being discussed in the context of a possible change of guards in the...

Of conspicuous consumption

Conspicuous consumption, as most people know, is that which is out of the ordinary. It is not needed for day-to-day living, nor for survival. Consumption becomes conspicuous when its superfluity and excess become apparent. It comes with a hefty price...

New building code to see a number of changes

The updated Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC), aiming to avoid disasters, is likely to receive approval by June this year. A good number of changes will take place for the first time after twenty years since the drawing up of...

Stocks return to green

Stocks returned to the green Monday, a day after negative trend with turnover improved slightly as investors took position on large cap stocks amid optimism. The market opened with a positive note and the uptrend continued till the market closure....

DSE, CSE open positive

Share prices on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed positive trend in early hours of trading on Monday, the second trading day of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by...

Govt bides time to make ICT at Pangaon fully operational

The government is likely to take a few measures to make the Pangaon inland container terminal (ICT) fully operational if existing measures fail to yield any tangible results in next two months, officials have said. "The government will observe operational...

BB raises export dev fund allocation to $ 1.2b

The central bank has increased the allocation for the export development fund (EDF) by 20 per cent to US$ 1.2 billion from $ 1.0 billion to meet the growing demand from the country's exporters. "We've enhanced the allocation for the...

Govt set to ink FTA with Macedonia boost trade, investments

The government is set to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Macedonia as part of its efforts to explore the comparatively slow but potential markets across the globe, sources said. According to the sources, the FTA between the two...

Percentage of ADP funds for RHD keeps falling

The yearly development budget for the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) kept declining in terms of percentage over the last three years despite importance attached to development of road infrastructure to spur economic growth. Officials say it seems the RHD...

Govt moves to form lawyers\\\' panel for protecting RMG workers\\\' rights

The government has moved to form a panel of the lawyers for the workers, especially in the readymade garment (RMG) sector, to protect their legal rights, sources said. Formation of the lawyers' panel for the workers will facilitate, among others,...

Revenue earnings from DSE decline 25 per cent

The month-on-month revenue earnings of the government from the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) dropped by 25 per cent in March as the trading volume was on the decline. The government bagged tax worth Tk 107.48 million in March which was...

Relief in Afghanistan after largely peaceful election

Afghanistan's presidential election closed on Saturday amid relief that attacks by Taliban fighters were fewer than feared for a vote that will bring the first-ever democratic transfer of power in a country plagued by conflict for decades. It will take...

Nepalese premier shows the way

If political stability and personal integrity of people in power have ever remained illusive in most of the countries of South Asia, incumbent Nepalese Premier Sushil Koirala stands apart as a soothing exception. A bachelor aged 75, his down-to-earth attitude...

Storm over central bank\\\'s \\\'autonomy\\\'

Is the Bangladesh Bank (BB) independent?  The answer is both 'yes' and 'no'.  The incumbent finance minister feels that the BB enjoys enough autonomy. But the central bank's honchos seem to be not that satisfied with their current level of...

Narendra Modi and Indian elections

It all started with an obliquely floated remark from veteran Congress MP Mani Shankar Aiyar. At a conclave of the Indian National Congress in January, Mani Shankar Aiyar made the remark about the opposition politician Narendra Modi, who is from...

Stocks slip into red after four days

Stocks slipped into the red Sunday after four session’s gains with turnover declined slightly as investors booked marginal profit from their previous purchase.The market opened with a positive note and remained positive till mid- session, but it went down slowly...

Stocks open positive

Share prices on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) saw positive trend in early hours of trading on Sunday amid modest seesaw, the first trading day of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the...

T20 finale today: It’s a triumph of south Asian cricket

The contest between two cricket giants of the world in the finale of the 20/20 cricket tournament in the capital city of Bangladesh today (Sunday) is a triumph of south Asian cricket since both the teams are from this region....

BB creating Tk 2.0b jute sector refinance fund

The central bank is going to create its own refinance fund to the tune of Tk 2.0 billion for the jute sector following refusal of the government to provide a payment guarantee against the scheme, officials have said. A complete...

Reclaiming Dhanmondi Playground

A large number of local residents-men women and children-thronged Dhanmondi Playground in the city on March 28 last to voice their protest against illegal occupation of this decades'-old open space. They demanded of the authorities concerned to restore the playground...

Ananda Group to build container port, luxury hotel with investment of Tk 18b

Ananda Group, a leading conglomerate, is going to build a container port and a luxury hotel in the country with an estimated investment worth about Tk 18 billion, its high official said. "The group has already obtained license of the...

Cash incentives may lead to 70pc growth in furniture export in next fiscal year

Furniture export may register 70 per cent growth in the next fiscal if the sector gets cash incentives from the government, industry insiders said. Due to new contracts with Japan, US, Korea and other countries the export will increase 20...

Leather sector launches website today to help the industry grow

The leather sector is going to open a website named 'Promote Bangladesh Leather' with a view to helping grow the industry and connecting buyers and stakeholders across the world. Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu will inaugurate the website today (Sunday)...

Sale of electrical appliances jumps by 70pc

Sale of electrical appliances like fans, air conditioners (ACs), refrigerators and instant power supply (IPS) systems increased by about 70 per cent in the last three weeks due to hot weather, industry insiders said. Increasing demand also caused a price...

Redefining small and medium enterprises

The Bangladesh economy has undoubtedly passed through a considerable transformation over the last few decades from an agricultural base to an industrial thrust. Now the economy needs to intensify its industry-based activities. In order to achieve Vision 2021, we also...

Afghanistan votes on its future

The coverage on the impending Afghan presidential elections has been filled with death and chaos - the tragic shooting at the Serena hotel where an international election monitor was killed, the shocking attack on the Afghan Election Commission's headquarters, the...