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Tag: Bangladesh

  • Payra power plant set to be closed for coal crisis, load shedding likely to increase

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    Source: Dhaka Tribune

    Due to a currency crisis affecting the payment of coal supplier dues, the Payra power station may be temporarily shuttered beginning June 4.

    The power plant, a joint venture between China and Bangladesh, commenced commercial operations in 2020, with the China National Machinery Import and Export Company (CMC) providing loans to purchase coal from Indonesia.

    However, the disruption in coal supply occurred after CMC refused to pay outstanding obligations for coal supplies totaling $390 million till April.

    The Payra Power Plant’s supervising engineer, Shah Abdul Hasib, claimed, “We had to halt power generation of one unit, with a capacity of 660MW, on May 25 due to the coal crisis.” We presently have 40,000 tons of coal reserves and are running the second unit, which produces 300MW, with the conserved coal.”

    “We will be able to operate this unit until June 3-4, at which point the second unit will also have to be shut down,” he added. This is a brief crisis. The Bangladesh government has agreed to provide $100 million, and our Chinese partner CMC has agreed to open a letter of credit for coal.”

    If the letter of credit is opened on June 1, however, it will take an extra 25 days to get the coal supply from Indonesia, perhaps resulting in a power outage. As a result, the country may suffer a power supply shortfall beginning June 4.

    According to Payra Power Plant officials, the production cost per unit is Tk9, including Tk5.50 for fuel charges, making it the country’s lowest-cost alternative after gas-based energy. The cost of electricity generation in this coal-fired plant includes $127 per ton of coal purchased from Indonesia, $90 per ton of coal covered, transportation charges, taxes, and $27 in miscellaneous expenditures.

    The overdue dues for electricity subsidies to the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) totaling Tk6,500 crore, along with a lack of dollars at the Bangladesh Bank, have resulted in delayed coal supply to the Payra power plant. It should be mentioned that oil-fired power facilities cost Tk4 more per unit than coal-fired units.

    The Payra power station generates Tk3 crore units of electricity per day on average. There will be a daily loss of Tk12 crore if the oil-fired power plants are required to compensate for the disruption in supply from the Payra Plant. This equates to a cash loss of Tk300 crore over the course of 25 days.

    “Payra plant has already reduced its production from 1300MW to 300MW and is running with the existing stock of coal,” Bangladesh Chinese Power Company Managing Director AM Khorshedul Alam revealed. This decreased output will be maintained until June 3, after which the plant’s output may be temporarily suspended.”

    He went on to say, “We have informed our partner that the Bangladesh Bank has agreed to pay $100 million within this month to partially settle the $390 billion dues for coal supply.”

    According to Khorshedul Alam, the CMC has received approval from the Chinese government’s Foreign Credit Control Authority to open a letter of credit for importing coal to sustain production for the next two months till the end of July.

    In recent months, the Payra Power Plant has supplied 800MW of electricity to Dhaka. If the Payra Power Plant is shut down, Dhaka’s electrical supply will be cut by 1,244MW per day.

    In the event of a shutdown, Dhaka will be forced to use load shedding. However, increasing production from liquid fuel-based power plants to compensate will result in a significant financial loss.

    —

  • Scientists believe lab-grown babies could be a possibility by 2028

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    Source: UNILAD

    According to a Nature report, Professor Katsuhiko Hayashi, a Japanese scientist at Kyushu University, has developed a method for converting male mice skin cells into pluripotent stem cells, which can possibly evolve into many types of cells or tissues.

    Professor Hayashi and his colleagues then cultivated these cells in the presence of a medication that turned male rodent stem cells into female cells capable of producing viable egg cells.

    “This is the first case of making robust mammalian oocytes from male cells,” said Dr. Hayashi of the study.

    And, given this recent success, he predicted that he might replicate this procedure in people within the next five years.

    Because the scientists were able to create egg-like cells from two male mice, it opens up the possibility of same-sex couples and their reproduction options.

    “It’s a very clever strategy,” Diana Laird, a stem cell and reproductive expert at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not involved in the study, said.

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  • ACC sues nobel laureate Dr. Yunus for alleged involvement in embezzling over Tk 250m

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    Source: The Financial Express

    The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has charged 13 people, including Grameen Telecom Chairman and Nobel Laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus, with embezzling more than Tk 250 million.

    On Tuesday, ACC Deputy Director Md Gulshan Anwar Prodhan filed a complaint with its integrated district office in Dhaka for misappropriating cash from Grameen Telecom’s Workers Profit Participation Fund.

    The information was revealed by ACC Director General (Administration) Razwanur Rahman during a press conference at the commission’s offices in the capital.

    Previously, the anti-graft body received an allegation of misappropriation of cash from Grameen Telecom’s Workers Profit Participation Fund, according to Rahman. The ACC uncovered proof of all 13 defendants, including Dr. Yunus, being involved in the misappropriation of funds after completing a thorough investigation, he said.

    In response to a journalist question regarding whether Dr. Yunus was questioned during the inquiry, Rahman stated that the inquiry team meticulously questioned all of the accused people linked with the graft litigation in accordance with relevant legislation.

    Md Nazmul Islam (50), managing director of Grameen Telecom; Md Ashraful Hasan (63), director and ex-managing director of Grameen Telecom; Parveen Mahmud (62), director of Grameen Telecom; Nazneen Sultana (61), director of Grameen Telecom; Md Shahjahan (65), director of Grameen Telecom; Nurjahan Begum (72), director of Grameen Telecom; S M Haj

    The ACC claims that Grameen Telecom’s chairman, managing director, board members, Grameen Telecom’s Central Bargaining Agent (CBA) leaders, lawyers, and other individuals involved conspired to steal more than Tk 250 million from Grameen Telecom’s Workers Profit Participation Fund.

    As a result, they committed an offense punishable under the relevant sections of the Penal Code of 1860 and the Money Laundering Prevention Act of 2012.

    —

  • ‘Koshai’ will play in India in exchange of Salman’s ‘Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan’’

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    Source: The Daily Star

    The film “Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan” starring Salman Khan has recently been granted clearance to be imported into Bangladesh. The importing company, MS N U Ahmed Traders, had previously applied to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to bring the film to Bangladesh.

    The ministry granted authorization for the film to be imported today. The importer told The Daily Star, “In exchange for importing ‘Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan,’ the Bangladeshi film ‘Koshai,’ by Anonno Mamun, will be exported to India.”

    Previously, the government authorized the import of Hindi films into Bangladesh in response to the demands of several cinema organisations. The requirement allows for a maximum of ten films to be imported this year. Following “Pathaan,” Salman Khan’s “Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan” will be released in Bangladesh.

    Farhad Samji directed the film, which also stars Pooja Hegde, Siddharth Nigam, Shehnaaz Kaur Gill, Bhumika Chawla, and Vijender Singh. Ram Charan from “RRR” will also make a surprise guest appearance in the film.

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  • Xi Jinping replies to letter from Bangladeshi child Alifa Chin

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    Source: Dhaka Tribune

    Recently, Chinese President Xi Jinping wrote back to Bangladeshi girl Alifa Chin. In his letter, he told her to work hard in school, follow her dreams, and keep up the long-standing friendship between China and Bangladesh.

    Noting that Chin’s story in the letter is a good example of the friendship between the two countries, Xi said that the Chinese and Bangladeshis have been close neighbors and good friends for a very long time. According to UNB, which cited Xinhua, these friendly exchanges have been going on for over a thousand years.

    The Chinese president said that Zheng He, a Chinese explorer from the Ming Dynasty, went to Bangladesh twice and planted the seeds of friendship between the two countries.

    Over 600 years later, during a friendship and humanitarian journey of China’s navy hospital ship “The Peace Ark,” a Chinese female military doctor helped Chin’s mother get through a dangerous time and give birth to her in Chittagong. And Chin’s father gave her the name China, which is the word for China in Bangladeshi. Xi said that the story of how China and Bangladesh became friends was very moving.

    The Chinese president said he was very happy to hear that Chin wants to be a relationship messenger between China and Bangladesh when she grows up. She also wants to go to medical school in China so she can save lives like her “Chinese mother.”

    Xi said that he hoped Chin would make the most of her youth and work hard to make her dream come true. He said that if she did this, she would be able to help her family, give back to society, and serve her country.

    World Children’s Day is coming up, so Xi told Chin that he hopes she stays healthy, has a happy family, and does well in school.

    Chin was born in 2010, and her mother had a hard time giving birth because she had a serious heart problem. At that time, the traveling hospital ship, “The Peace Ark,” got help and sent military doctors to the local hospital to do a caesarean section under a lot of pressure. Mother and daughter were finally safe. The father named the baby “Chin,” which means “China” in Bengali, as a way to show his thanks.

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  • Man held in Dhaka for selling birds online

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    In a drive today, the Wildlife Crime Control Unit (WCCU) of the Forest Department arrested a 22-year-old man from the Basabo neighborhood of the capital on suspicion that he sold wild birds online.

    During the drive, 39 birds of different species and a squirrel cub were saved from Shakil Ahmed’s home in Basabo at around 12:30 p.m., said Nargis Sultana, an inspector with Dhaka’s Wildlife Crime Control Unit.

    A team from the forest department and some police officers went to the Shakil house after getting a tip, an official told our Savar correspondent.

    Shakil has been selling the birds online in the capital and the areas close to it for a long time. He bought them from poachers in Sylhet and Sunamganj and other places.

    Nargis also said that a case was filed against him this afternoon at the Sabujbagh Police Station.

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  • Standard Chartered bank makes record breaking TK 1,655cr in profits in a year

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    Source: The Daily Star

    Standard Chartered kept being the best bank in Bangladesh, and this time it broke all the records by becoming the first bank in Bangladesh’s history to make an annual profit of more than Tk 1,650 crore.

    The British international bank’s branch in Bangladesh made a profit of Tk 1,655 crore, while Islami Bank Bangladesh came in second with a profit of Tk 619 crore.

    Here, Brac Bank came in third with income of Tk 601 crore. After that, HSBC, Dutch-Bangla Bank, and Pubali Bank each gave Tk 588 crore, Tk 566 crore, and Tk 564 crore.

    In 2022, Eastern Bank, City Bank, Sonali Bank, and Prime Bank were also among the top ten banks that made the most money.

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  • Bangladesh’s biggest Thrash Metal Fest to take place on 2nd June at National Library Auditorium.

    Bangladesh Metal Alliance, Trident of Chaos, Cloven Hoof BD, and Coup de Grâce are about to present the first-ever thrash metal festival “Bangladesh Thrashfest 2023”. This historic event brings together six amazing thrash metal bands from Dhaka’s underground scene, marking the first-ever, dedicated thrash metal concert in Bangladesh. With Powersurge being the show-stopper, the audience will also get to see bands like Thrash, Karmant, Goddamn, Burning Democracy, and Kaizen on the same day.

    With several underground and DIY music releases throughout the last decade, thrash metal has garnered enormous appeal in the Bangladeshi metal scene. This gathering of thrash metal performers and fans intends to highlight the genre’s strong history in Bangladesh while promoting it to a wider audience in order to recognize its enduring legacy.

    The “National Library Auditorium” returns to the underground after a five-year hiatus to host the “Bangladesh Thrashfest 2023.” Alongside the Russian Cultural Centre (RCC), the “National Library Auditorium” is a historic venue located at the heart of Dhaka on Sayed Mahbub Morshed Avenue, Agargaon, and has long been a fixture of Dhaka’s underground music scene. The event will take place on June 2 and will cost BDT 400 to enter.

    Metal music and fashion merchandisers such as Metal Freak T-shirts, Bonk T-shirts, and The Rock Shop Bangladesh are supporting the event. Moreover, the country’s leading reseller of musical equipment and accessories, “Guitars & Gears,” is also supporting the event!

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  • Argentina Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez to visit Bangladesh, confirms via Facebook

    Emiliano Martinez, the goalie for Argentina, said on Monday that he is going to Bangladesh through his social media account.

    The winner of the FIFA World Cup 2022 said he was excited to meet Bangladesh fans when he went on a trip of the Indian subcontinent from July 3 to 5.

    “Hello Everybody, From July 3rd to July 5th, I’ll be on my first trip to the Indian subcontinent, where I’ll take part in a lot of charitable activities. I’ll be the chief guest at a charity football match at the Mohunbagan club, among other things, and I’ll also do a lot of fan engagement programs, thank sponsors, and support the beautiful game. I know that there are a lot of Argentina fans in Kolkata and Bangladesh, and I can’t wait to meet them,” he wrote on Facebook.

    Satadru Dutta, a sports promoter from Kolkata who is bringing the goalie from Argentina and Aston Villa to the subcontinent, said he would soon go to Bangladesh to tell everyone about the tour.

    “We all know that Emiliano Martinez is a star in this part of the world, and he is very excited to come to Bangladesh,” Dutta told The Daily Star over the phone on Monday.

    “He will come to Dhaka on July 3 for sure.” But there are some details that need to be worked out, and I will soon go to Dhaka to meet with sponsors and state organizations to talk about protection and the details of his schedule.

    “He will probably meet and talk with a sponsor over lunch, and he will probably do the same with another sponsor over dinner. Then, he would probably meet with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and, if she has time, give her a shirt. If possible, there might also be a stadium event,” said Dutta, who has brought football stars like Pele and Diego Maradona to Kolkata in the past.

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  • Lost necklace found in Titanic wreckage after 111 years, AI to help find owner

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    Source: NDTV

    BBC said that 111 years after the Titanic sank, a necklace made from the tooth of a megalodon shark was found in the ruins of the ship. Magellan, a company based in Guernsey, used two submarines to make the first full-size digital scan of the luxury passenger ship that sank. This led to the finding.
    The project was the biggest underwater scan ever done. More than 700,000 pictures were taken from every point to make an exact 3D model.

    In one of the pictures, a Megalodon shark tooth was seen on a turquoise and gold necklace. Megalodon sharks are dead and were the biggest sharks that ever lived. But because of a deal that was already made, items cannot be taken from the wreckage.

    The company is now betting that a technology based on artificial intelligence (AI) will help find its owner and family members. They are using AI and face recognition to watch video of people getting on the ship in the hopes of seeing the owner of the jewelry. According to Independent, there were 2,200 people on the ship when it hit an iceberg and sank.

    The CEO of Magellan, Richard Parkinson, said in a statement that the find was “amazing, beautiful, and breath-taking.” He also said that the find was amazing because of how big the wreck site was.

    “What most people don’t know is that the Titanic is in two pieces, and between the bow and the stern is a three-square-mile field of wreckage. The team made a map of the field that was so detailed that we could see these things,” he said.

    On its first trip from Southampton, England, to New York in April 1912, the luxury passenger ship hit an iceberg and sank, killing more than 1,500 people. Since it was found in 1985 about 650 kilometers (400 miles) off the coast of Canada, the shipwreck has been looked at a lot, but cameras have never been able to get a full picture of the ship.

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  • MP says he will commit suicide if BNP returns to power

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    Source: Dhaka Tribune

    Nazim Uddin Ahmed, a freedom fighter and MP from Mymensingh-3 (Gouripur), has threatened to commit suicide by self-poisoning if the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) regains power.

    On Saturday evening, the Awami League MP addressed a gathering in the Master Bari section of Bhutiyarkona village in Mymensingh’s Gouripur upazila, where he was campaigning for his party in the next parliamentary election.

    “The BNP martyred 3 million people and violated the honor of 200,000 women,” stated the freedom fighter. If they retake control, I shall commit suicide in front of you by ingesting poison as a freedom warrior.”

    “I don’t want to live if I hear the boat (the Awami League’s electoral symbol) has lost and Khaleda Zia has won.” “There’s no reason for me to live,” he explained.

    “If you do not vote for the boat, you will be betraying the nation, the 3 million martyrs, and the honor of 200,000 women.” As a result, I encourage you to vote for the boat in the upcoming election, giving Sheikh Hasina another chance and preventing war criminals Al-Badr and Khaleda Zia from regaining power,” he implored voters.

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  • India’s reputed audio and wearable brand ‘boAt’ now officially available in Bangladesh

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    Source: The Daily Star

    A well-known audio and wearables company from India called boAt has made a deal with DX Group to sell their goods in Bangladesh. Because of this, their goods can now be bought legally in Bangladesh.

    Bangladeshi conglomerate DX Group will sell boAt’s goods in all of the country’s major cities, such as Dhaka, Chattogram, Khulna, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Mymensingh, Sylhet, and Barishal.

    There will be true wireless (TWS) earbuds, smartwatches, neckbands, headphones, speakers, charging, and more in the line-up. DX Group will also help boAt bring on local partners, get new customers, and grow its business.

    The company that owns boAt is called Imagine Marketing Ltd. It was started in 2013 and has a wide range of products, including music gear, smart wearables, personal grooming, and mobile accessories. The brand boAt was started by the company Imagine. It sells products with a focus on lifestyle at costs that young people can afford.

    DX is the name of a group of 12 businesses in Bangladesh that work together in the distribution, retail, and service areas. DX was started in 2011.

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  • PM Sheikh Hasina announces introduction of ‘Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Peace Prize’

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    Source: The Financial Express

    Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said that the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Peace Prize will be created to honor people who work for peace at home and around the world.

    “We want peace, and we will definitely move in the direction of peace,” she said at a ceremony on Sunday to mark 50 years since Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was given the Joliot-Curie Peace Medal, according to UNB.

    The prime minister said in a strong voice that Bangladesh does not want any trouble or fights in the world.

    The event was put on at the Bangabandhu International Conference Center (BICC), and the PM was in charge.

    In her speech, Sheikh Hasina said that Bangladesh has made a lot of progress on the social and economic fronts in the last 14 years because it has been a peaceful, free country since 2008.

    She said that her party, the Awami League, which won the election in 2008 and formed the government in 2009, was to thank for the success.

    Hasina said that since her government got the people’s vote in 2008, it has been working in a planned way to help the country grow.

    “As a result, we’ve been able to lower the number of people living in poverty and die during childbirth, as well as improve literacy and life expectancy,” she said.

    “So, for the people to be economically free, they need a peaceful, stable environment,” she said. “Everyone needs to remember that.”

    —

  • Shams Ahmed becomes first Bangladeshi-American to win an Emmy

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    At the 44th Sport Emmys, “Ragged old flag,” a piece from Super Bowl LVII, made Shams Ahmed the first Bangladeshi-American to win an Emmy for music direction. The award was given to him for his work on the piece.

    “Winning this award is an honour and a gift, but it’s hard to believe that I’m the first Bangladeshi or Bangladeshi-American to win an Emmy Award for Music Direction. “Thank you to everyone for always being there for me,” his post said.

    Earlier, he shared that his “Ragged Old Flag” piece for Super Bowl LVII has been nominated for an Emmy. They were mentioned in two categories: one for camera work and the other for our direct contributions to music direction. Shams Ahmed worked on this Super Bowl project with Rachel Neubeck, Ben Bram, and Scott Hoying, who are all on his team.

    “Working on this has been one of the best parts of my year so far, and seeing how many people it helped was a big win. “Congratulations to Rachel Neubeck, Ben Bram, and Scott Hoying, who are all on our team,” said Shams.

    He said that America’s Youth Choir’s piece for Super Bowl LVII was about the beliefs that make America such a great and diverse place.

    “In the past, this piece has felt too political, so this year we decided to focus on what makes this country great: variety, creativity, and the hope for a better future. What better way to show that these values are important than with a beautiful and skilled American youth choir? Rachel’s team did a great job of capturing these values. It’s really cool to be an Ahmed and work on such a proud American piece. “In a country that has had to deal with Islamophobia for decades, this feels like at least a small victory,” said the Music Director.

    Shams Ahmed is a music director, voice producer, and singer from Bangladesh. His amazing songs and musical creations are making waves in the world of Western music. Shams has already left an indelible mark on the music business. He co-founded a girl group called Citizen Queen, a kids’ music brand called Acapop! KIDS, and worked as a producer for the famous a cappella group Pentatonix.

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  • ”World’s Slowest Student” finally graduates after 54 years

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    Source: NDTV

    Arthur Ross started college more than 50 years ago, but it wasn’t until Thursday that he got his Bachelor of Arts from the University of British Columbia (UBC). Mr. Ross, who is 71 years old, is the new record holder for taking the longest time to finish college. It took him 54 years to get his degree.
    “The headline of your story should say, ‘UBC finally graduates its slowest student,’” the 71-year-old retiree told UBC with a laugh.

    In 1969, Mr. Ross went to UBC. Mr. Ross told BBC, “I just wanted to learn because I was interested.” He said that his drive to learn was what made him go back to school after all these years.

    According to a press release from UBC, Mr. Ross’s original plan was to get a degree in English. However, by the end of his second year, his love for the theater had taken over, and he was spending as much time as possible in the theatre department, putting on shows and taking classes to become an actor.

    “At the time, I was crazy about theater. It had a sense of being alive and new at the time. Ross says, “It seemed so electric to me.” Ross would meet famous Canadian actors like Nicola Cavendish, Larry Lillo, Brent Carver, and Ruth Nichol in the area, which made him want to go into theater even more.

    Ross left UBC after two years to finish a three-year study at the National Theatre School of Canada in Montreal. He did this with stars in his eyes. But the actor’s life in the real world and his own evaluation of his skills led him to a sad conclusion.

    “It was too good. I knew it wouldn’t be good for me. I always thought you had to be great to be a good actress.

    So he did what any actor-wannabe in 1975 would have done if they thought they might be behind the times. Ross went to school for three years at UBC and then went to law school in Toronto. After he finished, he worked as a civil litigator in Metro Vancouver for 35 years before he retired in 2016.

    In November 2016, he called UBC and asked for a new student number. By January 2017, he was a part-time history student who was especially interested in the First World War.

    “I just couldn’t understand why so many people were willing to take part in this slaughter,” he says. “However, the big surprise of getting a history degree wasn’t finding the answer to that first question. It was seeing how sad Canadian history is.”

    “I’m glad the students don’t mind that an old man is listening in from space,” he told UBC.

    —

  • Gazipur couple sells their newborn to pay hospital bills, mobile court shuts down the hospital

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    Source: Dhaka Tribune

    A mobile court in Gazipur has told a hospital to stop working because a couple in Sreepur upazila had to sell their baby to pay their bills after they had a caesarean section.

    The thing happened at the New Asia Diagnostic Center in the Sreepur Chowrasta neighborhood. After people complained, the local government punished the hospital’s managers and told them to close the hospital on Friday.

    Priya and Rasel rent a house on the road between Sreepur and Kapasia. They also have two other girls, one who is four and the other who is five. Rasel is a day laborer and Priya is a housekeeper.

    Rasel said that he took his wife Priya to the New Asia Diagnostic Center last Sunday at 11 a.m. because she was having labor pains.

    After looking at his wife, the hospital’s head, Jahangir, suggested a caesarean section on the same day. He warned that if the surgery wasn’t done right away, complications could happen that could put both the mother and the baby in danger.

    Rasel told the hospital director that he didn’t have enough money to pay for the c-section. The director suggested that they sell their baby after the c-section was paid for, offering Tk50,000 for a boy and Tk30,000 for a girl.

    At 7 o’clock that night, Priya gave birth to a girl.

    On Monday, the hospital head sold the couple’s baby to someone she didn’t know.

    When Priya and Rasel asked Jahangir about the person, he didn’t tell them who they were.

    Later, he gave the couple Tk14,000, saying that he had sold their baby for Tk30,000 and that Tk16,000 had been taken out to pay for the hospital bills.

    Wednesday, word got out that the baby was for sale, which created a stir in the area.

    When local reporters went to the hospital to find out more, they tried to lie and avoid answering questions.

    Jahangir said that the surgery was done with the couple’s permission and that they sold their baby to pay for the hospital bills.

    When Sreepur Assistant Commissioner (Land) Al Mamun heard about what happened, he said he held a mobile court at the New Asia Diagnostic Centre on Friday and fined the hospital Tk5,000.

    He also said that because of the hospital’s wrongdoing, the mobile court told all of its operations to stop.

    Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Abdul Bari at the Sreepur police station said they found out about the event on Wednesday night and started looking into it right away.

    Even though this hasn’t been turned into a case yet, the OC said that police are looking into it carefully and have already gathered some information.

    Once a case is made, he said, the right steps will be taken.

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  • Nike, Adidas, Puma materials set to be manufactured in Bangladeshi factories

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    Source: Prothom Alo

    Join Win (Bangladesh) Limited, which is owned by China, will make shoe parts or extras in Bangladesh. The company will make materials for well-known shoe names like Nike, Adidas, Puma, Caterpillar, etc.

    The Join Win plant will be built in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpanagar in the Bepza Economic Zone. At an exchange rate of 105 taka per dollar, the company will put in 1 million US dollars, which is about 105 crore taka. About 900 Bangladeshi people will be able to get jobs because of it.

    Yesterday, a deal was made about this at the capital’s executive office of the Bangladesh Export Processing Zone Authority (BEPZA). Ali Reza Majid, a member of Bepza (Investment Development), and Xu Taihui, the Managing Director of Join Win (Bangladesh), signed the agreement on behalf of their groups.

    A news release from Bepza says that the fully modern and automated factory will make 7 million pairs of shoe accessories every year. There are PU insoles, PU midsoles, PU outsoles, TPU outsoles, rubber outsoles, and PU insoles with open cells.

    Bepza also said that Join Win has been in this business for 30 years and has plants in six different countries around the world.

    So far, 18 local and international companies have signed contracts to set up businesses in the Bepza Economic Zone. This zone is part of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Industrial Park in Mirsrai and has an area of 1,138 acres. The total amount they want to spend is about $41 million USD. Bepza plans to start sending goods out of the Bepza Economic Zone by the end of this year.

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  • TW: Four kittens found with throats slit near DU campus pond, students protest cat cruelty at DU

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    Source: Dhaka Tribune

    After two different rooms at Dhaka University killed cats, students started to speak out against cruelty to cats on campus.

    Before, the throats of four kittens were cut near the pond of Bangabandhu hall, and the body of a cat was found at Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib hall.

    In this case, Jahid Hasan, a resident of Kabi Jashim Uddin Hall, said, “Yesterday on my way to class, I saw those kittens playing in the hall yard, so I wrote a post on Facebook so that someone could adopt them. But I forgot to give the post after that. When I saw a post on Facebook about those dead kittens this morning (Friday), I was shocked.”

    General students also spoke out against abuse to cats and called for the killer to be punished after being found.

    Asif Mahmud, a graduate student at Dhaka University, said, “As far as I know, there is no board that regulates cats or dogs.” If the number of cats is getting bigger, it needs to be managed in a planned way. Killing is never the answer. Whoever killed these kittens must have been crazy, because no one else could cut the throats of such cute animals.

    “I think DU should pay attention to these animals and set up a group to care for them at the university,” he said.

    —

  • Pakistan needs to learn from Bangladesh, says Imran Khan

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    Source: The Financial Express

    Imran Khan, who used to be Pakistan’s prime minister, said that Bangladesh has come a long way from Pakistan and that the country can teach us something.

    “When a country stands up for freedom and its rights, when justice settles in people’s hearts, it doesn’t matter what you do, not even military actions. He said, “Because the seed of justice and freedom is in us.”

    In a live talk that was streamed on YouTube on Friday, Imran Khan, the leader of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, asked for talks with all state institutions right away to find a way to put Pakistan on the path to growth.

    “Pakistan is on the verge of a disaster because hyperinflation is just around the corner. But the current masters don’t seem to care much because they have hidden the stolen money abroad,” he said from his home in Lahore’s Zaman Park.

    Reuters says that Imran Khan, who says that corruption charges are made up, is in a fight with Pakistan’s powerful military. Throughout Pakistan’s past, the military has either ruled directly or supervised civilian governments.

    Khan was arrested and put in jail on May 9. This led to a lot of protests by his followers and made people worry about the stability of the country, which has nuclear weapons and is going through its worst economic crisis in decades.

    In the end, he was let out on bail.

    In the video speech, Mr. Khan said that his call for dialogue shouldn’t be seen as a sign of weakness. He also said that hurting the people of Pakistan physically and financially was not the answer. “The problems of the country will be solved when state institutions do what they are supposed to do,” he said.

    “Every time I ask for a conversation, the people in power think I’m getting weaker, so they start to do more bad things to PTI leaders and workers in an attempt to destroy the party,” he said. He said that no government could get rid of an idea that had been taught to the young people of the land.

    He also told the people in charge to be careful because if they try to crush the PTI, they could end up destroying the country. “No political party has ever seen its leaders do something so cruel,” he said.

    Mr. Khan said that the country had already turned into a banana republic, which is a poor country with a weak government that lives on money from other countries. He said this because the leaders did not even follow court orders to hold elections.

    —

  • Irfan Sajjad and wife devastated after losing twin children

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    Source: The Daily Star

    Sharmin Sajjad, a newscaster and the wife of actor Irfan Sajjad, was expecting their first children, twins, in July. So, they were getting ready to meet their children.

    One twin was supposed to be a boy and the other was supposed to be a girl. The boy and girl were named Priyo and Maya. Sharmin Sajjad had to have surgery in Chennai in 2021 because of some health problems. After getting better, they talked to a doctor and made plans for their family.

    They went to India for a checkup, and that’s when her health got worse. She had to be taken to the hospital, and her premature babies, who were six months old at the time, were born through an emergency caesarean section. They were in serious condition.

    Irfan told the news reporters that not only their children but also his wife were in danger. In fact, the doctors told him that the fact that his wife is still alive is “a miracle.”

    Sharmin’s health was very bad, so they had to stay at the hospital. This meant that their children had to be buried in Chennai. The star was told that the couple will soon go home, and that his wife will get more care in Bangladesh.

    Due to his wife’s health problems, Irfan Sajjad has spent all of his time with her for the past year and a half. He was also not in front of a screen. Irfan, who was crying, told the media, “No one is closer to you in this world than your own kid. We were lucky to have two children, but God took them both away at the same time.

    —

  • Sony unveils new handheld gaming device and gaming earbuds

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    Source: The Daily Star

    At the recent PlayStation Showcase, which was a much-anticipated event, Sony took the center stage and announced a number of innovative gaming devices that are sure to please players all over the world. “Project Q,” a long-rumored game streaming device that claims to change the way gamers play their favorite games, was one of the most exciting things that was shown.

    Project Q has a small 8-inch screen and controller attachments on both sides, just like the well-known DualSense joystick. This clever design makes it possible for gamers to play their favorite games anywhere, at any time. In The Last of Us, players fight hordes of infected, and in other highly praised games, they go on epic quests. Players will finally be able to enjoy these immersive experiences even from the comfort of their bathrooms. Sony’s Project Q easily stands out from rivals like the Steam Deck, making sure that gaming is smooth and reliable.

    Even though we don’t know much about the software on Project Q yet, we hope that the device will have a lot more to give than just the ability to connect to the PlayStation 5 (PS5). Fans are looking forward to the possibility of standalone features, which would let users use the device’s features without having to be constantly connected to their PS5 devices. People have also wondered if the famous PS Now service could be used to stream games, which would make the device even more appealing and useful.

    Sony also released a set of cutting-edge, truly wireless earbuds for gamers, in addition to the amazing Project Q. These game earbuds are made to work well with both the PS5 and the PC, and they promise to take the audio experience to a whole new level. Even though there isn’t much known about the earbuds right now, it is believed that they will give players playing their favorite games on the upcoming Project Q and other compatible devices a great audio experience.

    —

  • Shakira is ‘begging’ Tom Cruise to stop hitting on her

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    Source: The Daily Star

    Shakira and Tom Cruise recently crossed paths at the Miami Grand Prix, but it seems that love is not in the cards for them. According to The Mirror, Tom Cruise was completely smitten by Shakira, the talented singer known for her hit song “The Hips Don’t Lie.” After their meetup, the actor believed that there was a deep connection between them and expressed his desire to explore it further. He even compared his feelings to when he first started dating his ex-wife, Katie Holmes.

    In an attempt to impress Shakira, Tom Cruise sent her flowers, hoping to win her over. However, sources close to Shakira have revealed a different side of the story. They claim that Shakira was simply being friendly towards Tom and that he was making assumptions in his own head, mistakenly thinking that she shared his romantic interest. While Shakira appreciates his persuasion and finds it flattering, she has made it clear that she is not interested in him romantically.

    Despite Tom Cruise’s efforts, Shakira did not feel any attraction or spark towards him. She didn’t want to embarrass or upset him, so she continued to be friendly, but her intentions were purely platonic. Shakira remains uninterested in pursuing a romantic relationship with Tom Cruise, as she does not find him attractive in that way.

    —

  • Police constable commits suicide at Banani check post, shoots himself in the chest

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    Source: Dhaka Tribune

    Police say that a police officer killed himself while on duty in a bathroom at a police checkpoint in Banani in the city.

    Ashrafuzzaman Roni, who was a police officer, was found dead. He worked for the ASTF Company in the Public Order Management (POM) South Division. He lived in Mirpur Police Lines before.

    Since the morning, he had been working at the Banani 11 police checkpoint.

    The police said that he killed himself by shooting himself in the chest with the gun that was given to him.

    As soon as Roni went into the bathroom at the checkpoint, his friends heard a gunshot.

    When they opened the door, Roni was laying on the floor, covered in blood.

    Roni was brought to the emergency room of Dhaka Medical College (DMCH) Hospital around 8 a.m., where he was in a very bad way. The duty doctor examined him and pronounced him dead.

    Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Banani police station Md Mostafizur Rahman said that Roni, a constable, killed himself by shooting himself in the chest with the gun he was given around 6:50 a.m. when he went to the bathroom at Banani check post no. 11.

    But no one knows for sure why he killed himself yet.

    Ashrafuzzaman Roni lived in the village of Chandrapara in the upazila of Dhamrai in the district of Dhaka until he died.

    In 2020, he became a constable in the police force.

    —

  • India uses image of ‘Patuakhali Park’ to showcase their development in Kashmir

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    Source: Dhaka Tribune

    In a surprising turn of events, a picture that was widely shared before the G20 Summit as a sign of progress in Indian-controlled Kashmir has been shown to be fake.

    The picture was said to be of a changed Boulevard Road in Srinagar, but it turned out to be a picture of the Jhautola area of Patuakhali.

    Several people and government agencies in India, such as the Department of Information and Public Relations (DIPR) in Budgam and Jammu and Kashmir, shared the photo and praised it as proof of the city’s growth. Even India’s Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture, Meenakshi Lekhi, liked the tweet.

    Wajahat Farooq Bhat, the head of a local NGO, also shared the picture with the same claim, but he has since taken it down. Aquib Mir and others shared the picture on social media, saying that it was from Boulevard Road in Srinagar and that it had been fixed up to welcome G20 delegates.

    But when a reverse image search was done, it was found that the picture had been used as the display picture on a Facebook page for the growth of Jhautola Park in Patuakhali.

    Jhautola Park is a place for fun and relaxation in the town of Patuakhali. The park is meant to be a place for people to have fun and help the area grow.

    Harsh Vardhan Shringla, who is in charge of planning the G20 event, praised how Srinagar has changed, pointing out how awareness efforts and the arrival of guests have helped.

    He said that he thought the meeting would help Jammu and Kashmir’s economy get back on its feet, especially in terms of ecotourism, adventure tourism, and sustainable tourism.

    As the G20 Tourism Working Group meeting gets closer, the incident with the misleading picture has made people question whether or not Indian officials’ claims about progress in Kashmir are true.

    —

  • Netflix will now charge US $7.99 monthly for sharing passwords

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    Source: The Daily Star

    Netflix recently made it harder for people to share their passwords with people outside of their close family. This is because Netflix wants to make more money by charging US $7.99 a month for people to share their passwords.

    “One household can use one Netflix account,” the company said in a statement.

    Netflix said at the beginning of this year that more than 100 million households shared Netflix accounts. This made it harder for Netflix to spend in great new TV shows and movies.

    Netflix has tried out “borrower” or “shared” accounts in a few markets. With these accounts, subscribers can add more users for a higher price or move their watching profiles to different accounts. It just said that the policy would be applied in more than 100 countries.

    Netflix’s growth slowed down last year, so the company, which is based in Silicon Valley, tried to get people who watched for free with shared passwords to start paying for the service without making customers angry.

    —

  • Bangladesh, a happier nation than Canada, Pakistan, India

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    Source: The Daily Star

    A well-known economist from the United States’ Johns Hopkins University has found that Bangladesh is the happiest country in Asia. It is happier than Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Myanmar, and even India.

    The professor of applied economics looked at how happy or unhappy people were in 157 countries around the world. He found that Bangladesh is even better than Belgium, Canada, Ireland, Finland, Bahrain, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, and Sweden.

    Steve H. Hanke used figures on the country’s unemployment rate at the end of the year (multiplied by two), inflation, and bank lending rates, minus the annual percentage change in real gross domestic product per capita, to create the Hanke’s Annual Misery Index (HAMI).

    In the most recent report for 2022, Bangladesh was ranked 115th, while India was ranked 103rd, Nepal 63rd, Myanmar 39th, Pakistan 35th, and Sri Lanka 11th.

    The Hanke’s Annual Misery Index (HAMI) says that a country is happy the higher it ranks and more miserable the lower it ranks.

    Bangladesh got a score of 20.107 on the misery index, and Hanke said that unemployment is the main reason why the country can’t be the best country in the world.

    India got a score of 22.58, and unemployment is also a big cause of the country’s problems.

    With a score of 414.7, Zimbabwe won the index and became the worst country in the world. The HAMI says that triple-digit inflation is the biggest problem for the Zimbabwean economy.

    Professor Hanke says that Venezuela, which was once thought to be one of the richest countries in the world, is now mostly suffering from hyperinflation and is the second worst place to live in the world.

    Vietnam and China, two major players in the global clothing business, have done much better than Bangladesh.

    Vietnam was ranked 139th with a score of 14.839, while China was 142nd with a score of 13.1.

    Switzerland is the happiest country in the world and has the lowest HAMI score.

    Hanke said, “The Swiss debt brake is one reason for that.” The debt brake has been very effective. Switzerland is not like most countries in that its debt-to-GDP ratio has been going down over the last 20 years.

    The second, third, fourth, and fifth happiest countries in the world are Kuwait, Ireland, Japan, and Malaysia, respectively.

    Hanke said that Arthur Okun, a well-known economist who was head of the Council of Economic Advisers when President Johnson was in office, came up with the idea for the misery index.

    Okun made the first version of the suffering index for the US. Okun’s measure is the same as the sum of the unemployment rate and the inflation rate.

    Robert Barro, a professor at Harvard, later changed Okun’s index. He added the 30-year government bond rate and the output gap for real GDP to the misery index. Barro’s index was a way to measure how bad things got during a president’s time in office.

    Hanke changed Barro’s version of the misery index even more by changing the output gap with the growth rate of real GDP per capita and the 30-year government bond yield with lending rates.

    —

  • From ‘Happily Married’ to ‘Happily Taxed’: Dhaka dwellers might have to pay taxes to get married

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    Source: The Daily Star

    People who want to get married in the southern part of Dhaka city are about to have a little more trouble than normal. Those who are getting married for the first time can relax, but those who are getting married for the second, third, or fourth time should be worried.

    In order to raise more money, Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) wants to put a tax on weddings. The tax will be collected according to the Municipal Corporations (Taxation) Rules of 1986.

    Ariful Haque, the chief revenue officer of DSCC, said that the tax is expected to be put in place at the start of the next financial year.

    “This will be done in line with the 1986 Act. Even though the act gives the city corporation the right to charge this tax, it couldn’t be done for a number of reasons. “We are now moving toward putting it into place,” he said.

    Rule 50 of the Municipal Corporations (Taxation) Rules of 1986 says, “When it has been decided with the prior approval of the Government that a tax on marriage should be imposed, the City Corporation shall, at a meeting, determine the rate of tax not to exceed the amount specified in the Model Tax Schedules.”

    The 2016 City Corporation Model Tax Schedule has different tax rates for a person’s first, second, third, and fourth marriages.

    In Section 152 of the Schedule, it says, “For the first marriage or marriage after the death of the first wife, the groom will pay Tk 100.”

    The husband will pay Tk 5,000 for the second marriage during the first wife’s life, and Tk 20,000 for the third marriage during the lives of the first two wives.

    The Schedule says that the man will pay Tk 50,000 for the fourth marriage.

    If the wife is emotionally unstable or doesn’t have any children, these rules don’t apply. Instead, the groom will have to pay Tk 200.

    The DSCC initiative has been accepted by the law ministry, which is in charge of marriage registration right now. It has already sent a letter to the office of the Registrar General, Birth and Death Registration of both city companies.

    Mokbul Hossain, who is in charge of public relations for the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC), said that there is no plan to charge people a marriage tax.

    —

  • BTS’ V set to make his debut in Cannes Film Festival

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    Source: The Daily Star

    Kim Taehyung, better known as BTS member V, is getting ready to make his long-awaited debut on the red carpet of the famous Cannes Film Festival. Monday, the international artist revealed on his Instagram stories that he would be on the red carpet at Cannes 2023, representing a well-known luxury brand.

    V posted a picture of a sign that said, “Welcome to Cannes! We look forward to seeing you. Warmest, Peter Utz.” In the second shot, V was sitting on the beautiful French Riviera with Peter Utz while wearing a stylish leopard-print shirt and black pants.

    Taehyung’s exciting showing at Cannes comes after news that BLACKPINK’s Jennie will also be there this year. BTS V and Jennie were said to have been seen walking around Paris holding hands, which made people wonder if they were dating.

    In the meantime, V has been hard at work on his first solo record, which will come out later this year and is very much anticipated. As he starts his solo career, the talented musician is likely to make songs that fans will love.

    —

  • Six Bangladeshi peacekeepers to be honoured posthumously at UN HQ

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    Source: The Daily Star

    On Thursday, the 75th anniversary of UN Peacekeeping, six Bangladeshi soldiers who died in the line of duty will be given the Dag Hammarskjold medal.

    The International Day of UN Peacekeepers will be celebrated at the UN Headquarters on that day.

    The six Bangladeshi peacekeepers who are among the 103 awardees are: Sainik MD Sharif Hossain, Sainik MD Jahangir Alam, and Sainik MD Jasim, who served with the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA); LCPL Kafil Majum DER, who served with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS); SGT MD Manjur Rahman, who served with the UN Interim Security

    According to the UN Information Centre in Dhaka, Bangladesh sends the most armed people to help keep the peace for the UN.

    It sends more than 7,200 soldiers and police officers to Abyei, the Central African Republic, Cyprus, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lebanon, Mali, South Sudan, and the Western Sahara to help keep the peace there.

    In 1948, an important decision was made to send military monitors to the Middle East to watch how the Israel-Arab Armistice Agreements were carried out. This was the start of what would become the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization.

    Since then, more than 2 million peacekeepers from 125 countries have served in 71 actions around the world.

    At the moment, 87,000 men and women are serving in 12 war zones in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

    Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is going to lay a wreath at the United Nations Headquarters during a formal ceremony to honor the more than 4,200 UN troops who have died since 1948.

    He will also be in charge of a ceremony in the General Assembly Hall where 103 military, police, and citizen peacekeepers who died last year while working for the UN will be given Dag Hammarskjold Medals.

    In 2002, the UN General Assembly set up the International Day of UN Peacekeepers as a way to honor all the men and women who work in policing and to remember those who have died for the sake of peace.

    —

  • Construction of Bangladesh’s first underground metro line begins in July

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    Source: Dhaka Tribune

    A bilateral deal has been made with the contractor to start contract package-1 (land development of depot area) of Bangladesh’s first underground metro line, MRT line-5, on the Uttara route. The work is likely to start in July.

    On Tuesday, the deal was signed by Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL), TOA Corporation (Japan), and Spectra Engineers Limited (Bangladesh) at DMTCL Bhaban in the capital’s Uttara.

    In order to finish MRT Line-5 from Hemayetpur to Bhatara by 2028, 10 contract deals have been set up. As part of this, a land development work deal for the depot area was signed on Tuesday as part of contract package-1.

    This package will be worked on by TOA Corporation (Japan) and Spectra Engineers Limited (Bangladesh), as per the deal. Also, actions related to processing bids for other packages are being done at different stages.

    From Hemayetpur to Bhatara, this project will build a metro train line that is 13.50 km underground and 6.50 km above ground. In between, there will be 14 stops for people to get on and off (nine underground and five above ground).

    MRT Line 5 goes from Hemayetpur to Boliarpur to Bilamalia to Amin Bazar and Gabtoli. From there, it will go through Darus Salam-Mirpur 1-Mirpur 10-Mirpur 14, Kachukhet, and Banani to get to Banani.

    The line will then go through Gulshan 2 and Natun Bazar on its way to Bhatara. From Hemayetpur to Amin Bazar and Bhatara, this part of the metro train will be above ground. From Gabtoli to Natun Bazar, there will be underground metro train.

    The Road Transport and Highways Division has projected that the MRT Line-5 project will cost Tk41,238.55 crore. Out of this, Tk12,121.50 crore will come from the Government of Bangladesh (GOB), and Tk29,117.5 crore will come from project aid.

    The Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will pay for the project.

    —

  • AI reimagines Bangladeshi actors as superheroes

    Source: The Daily Star

    In recent years, the world has been amazed by how quickly Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been making progress. Deepfakes, DALL-E 2, ChatGPT, and other related developments have sparked a lot of debate about the ethics of AI, its possible uses, and where it’s headed in the future.

    Now, a creative Facebook user named Kazi Shahriar Ahmed used AI methods while he was traveling to make pictures of the biggest stars in Dhallywood dressed as superheroes. People on social media are interested in what he comes up with.

    The ad showed four pictures of Jaya Ahsan, Arifin Shuvoo, Bidya Sinha Saha Mim, and Shakib Khan that were very beautiful. He also asked his followers a question that made them think: “If Bangladesh had a Superhero Cinematic Universe, what superpowers would you want them to have?”

    In the pictures, Jaya Ahsan’s short purple hair gave her a fierce look, while Bidya Sinha Mim’s short blue pixie cut gave her a foreign look.

    The creative use of AI technology in these images has brought the idea of Bangladeshi superheroes to life, opening up a world of possibilities and fueling fans’ imaginations.

    —

  • Team from Bangladesh qualifies for World Cup of Pokémon

    Source: The Daily Star

    A team from Bangladesh has qualified for the World Cup of Pokémon, a worldwide online tournament put on by Smogon, the biggest competitive Pokémon community in the world.

    At this year’s World Cup of Pokémon qualifiers, more than 200 players from 17 teams competed for the last three spots in the major knockout series. Each team represented a country or continent. Each player played two opponents, and the top three teams, based on their total score, moved on to the main game.

    Team Bangladesh did the best in the qualifiers, beating countries like the UK, China, Brazil, Argentina, Greece, and South Korea with a 12-4 record. Starting on June 4, Team Bangladesh will be in the main rounds of the tournament with 15 other teams from the US, Latin America, Oceania, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, India, and more.

    This tournament is being held by Smogon, an online community that runs and promotes a number of large-scale competitive Pokémon tournaments every year. About 18.5 million people visit their website every month. The matches are played on Pokémon Showdown, a browser-based game where anyone can make their own Pokémon teams and face each other. Every month, more than 10 million matches are played on Pokémon Showdown. There are more than 100 current formats, and each has its own sub-community.

    As of May 2021, Pokémon is the most profitable media brand in the world, with a total income of $76.4 billion. Since November 18, 2022, when Pokémon Scarlet and Violet came out for Nintendo Switch, they have sold more than 22 million pieces.

    Even though The Pokémon Company International and Nintendo host official Pokémon events called VGC (Video Game Championships), they are usually hard for Bangladeshis to get to because they are held all over the world. So, online fan groups like Smogon hold tournaments that anyone from anywhere in the world can join by using a browser-based simulator.

    Bangladesh is trying for the 5th time to get past the qualifying round for the World Cup of Pokémon. The team members are all members of a Facebook group called “Bangladeshi Pokémon Battlers.” Since its start in 2012, this group has been a hub for local Pokémon fans and professional players.

    —

  • Popular Korean TV show ‘Squid Games’ getting its own reality show

    Source: The Daily Star

    Fans of the popular Netflix show “Squid Game” are eagerly waiting for the second season, but the show itself is getting its own reality show this year. “Squid Game: The Challenge” is the name of the television show based on the original show.

    Media sources say that “Squid Game: The Challenge” will have 456 contestants play different games based on the original “Squid Game” series, plus many new games, for a grand prize of $4.56 million.

    Stephen Lambert, Tim Harcourt, John Hay, and Toni Ireland, among others, will be in charge of this reality show version of the “Squid Game” series that doesn’t involve killing.

    The first episode of “Squid Game: The Challenge” is set to air on Netflix in November. But there hasn’t been an official date set for the reality show yet.

    —

  • Digital Security Act set to be amended, says Law Minister

    Source: Prothom Alo

    Sunday, the law minister, Anisul Huq, said that the Digital Security Act will be changed in order to stop people from misusing it. This was reported by UNB.

    “The Digital Security Act was not passed or is not being used to control freedom of speech or the media. Several things have already been done to stop people from abusing the rule. As part of these answers, the Digital Security Act will be changed in a few ways,” he said.

    The minister said these things at a meeting in the Mohakhali neighborhood of the city called “Digital Security Law in Bangladesh and Freedom of Expression.” The program was put together by the UN’s Coordinating Office in Bangladesh and Brac University.

    The government talked with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Office for a long time about the DSA and got some ideas, which are now being looked at, the minister said.

    “Women are often abused online, and this is something that needs to be fixed. “The digital space will not be used in a way that hurts the reputation of the country, the government, or any individual,” Anisul Huq said.

    The minister also said, “We need to protect our national interests and those who are targeted by digital threats and are most likely to be hurt by them. We need a DSA because of this.”

    So, there is no chance that this law will be changed, the law minister said. “However, changes to the law are being looked at.” It needs to be thought about.”

    —

  • US Embassy in Dhaka warns citizens to exercise caution ahead of general election

    Source: Prothom Alo

    Before the next general election, which will happen before or in January 2024, the US embassy in Dhaka told all US people living in the country to be careful.

    Sunday, the embassy sent out a news release called “Demonstration Alert” with an important message.

    In the release, the embassy asked US citizens to be careful because peaceful protests can turn violent if they turn confrontational.

    So, they are asked to stay away from protests and be careful around big gatherings. They are also asked to review their personal security plans, stay aware of their surroundings, including local events, and listen to local news stations for updates.

    It also said that political rallies and other events connected to the election had already started. As the general election gets closer, political gatherings and protests may happen more often or with more force.

    —

  • ‘Maa’ director and producer walked streets of Cannes wearing lungi-panjabi

    Source: The Daily Star

    Today, Aranyo Anawer’s picture “Maa” will have its world premiere at the 76th Cannes Picture Festival. Before the opening, the director, Aranya Anawer, and the producer, Pulak Kanti, were seen in the streets of Cannes wearing a panjabi and a lungi.

    The movie will be shown at the Palais de Festivals of Cannes theater at 6:45 pm local time as part of the festival’s “marché du film.”

    The director and producer of the movie “Maa” proudly waved the Bangladeshi flag as they walked the streets of Cannes. They wore traditional Bengali clothes like Punjabi, Lungi, and gamcha to honor their roots. This one-of-a-kind display was meant to show the world the rich history and uniqueness of Bangladeshi film.

    Aranyo Anawer also wrote about his feelings on his Facebook page. He said, “Marche means to sell, and Marche du Film means the film market. Yesterday, I wore a lungi and Punjabi and spent the whole day in that market area. I was happy to sit in the booth for Bangladesh.

    People who thought he walked the red carpet in traditional clothes were also wrong, he said.

    “Please correct yourself if you call it the red carpet by mistake. I want to be true to myself. Please help me or don’t say anything.”

    The movie “Maa” is about Bangladesh’s Liberation War, and Pori Moni plays a grieving mother in the main part.

    Before, “Maa” was supposed to come out in the U.S. on May 19. But the rules say that a movie can’t come out in theaters before it’s shown at a festival. So, “Maa” couldn’t come out in local theaters until May 26.

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  • Bangladeshi filmmaker writes book on BTS titled “BTS: Seoul to Soul”

    Source: The Daily Star

    The essay book “BTS: Seoul to Soul” by filmmaker Anarya Murshid about the famous Korean pop music group BTS came out on Friday.

    A press statement said that the book about the rise of the Korean pop band is now on sale.

    The book has stories about the trials of seven BTS members and lists their shows, albums, and awards. In the book, there was an important piece about the Korean Cultural Wave and the use of “soft power.”

    “I’m making a movie about a Bangladeshi BTS fan’s cultural problem. “When we were getting ready to make the movie, I felt like I needed a book about K-pop,” Anarya said.

    The book’s editor said that he also wanted to put out books that were about culture and diplomacy. His publishing house has also put out books like this in the past.

    “I hope the book will help Bangladesh and Korea build a culture bridge that will last for a long time. “The book will also help the older generation see this generation in a good light,” Anarya said.

    Fans of BTS can buy the book at Tobuo Proyas, Lalan, or Chandal Books.

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  • OpenAI launches an official ChatGPT app for iOS

    Source: The Verge

    OpenAI has put out a ChatGPT app for iOS and said that an Android version will be out “soon.” The app is free to use and syncs your chat data with the web. You can also use your voice to send messages, which is made possible by the open-source speech recognition model Whisper from OpenAI. The app can be downloaded from the App Store here and works on both iPhones and iPads. OpenAI says that the app will be released first in the US and then in other countries “in the coming weeks.”

    OpenAI didn’t say before that there would be a mobile app, but given how famous ChatGPT is, it makes sense. The AI assistant came out in November, but its use took off quickly. Some outside reports say that by January of this year, the app had 100 million users, but OpenAI has never confirmed these numbers.

    The launch of the app is interesting, given that OpenAI isn’t sure how to place ChatGPT in the market. Even though the chatbot started out as an experiment, it quickly found a consumer audience that uses it for everything from cheating on college writings to business applications. In February, OpenAI released ChatGPT Plus, a paid version of the app that gives users priority access and answers made with the company’s most recent language model, GPT-4. Each month, it costs $20.

    Up until now, the best way to use OpenAI’s language models on a mobile device was to use the Bing app from Microsoft, which gives you access to the company’s GPT-4-powered robot. Microsoft has been using access to its chatbot as a way to get people to use Bing and Edge. If ChatGPT makes an official app, it’s possible that some of these users will switch to it instead. The start of an official ChatGPT should also stop people from signing up for the many spam and fake apps that claim to give access to the chatbot on mobile.

    ChatGPT has the same problems on mobile devices as it does on the web, of course. These include the fact that the bot is likely to make up information and be sure of it, and worries about privacy. OpenAI just recently gave users the option to make talks private, and the app’s homescreen (shown above) still tells users not to share “sensitive info” on the app.

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  • ‘Deora’ breaks YouTube records, goes international

    Source: The Daily Star

    The fifth song of the second season of Coke Studio Bangla, “Deora,” came out on May 7 and has been the most popular thing on YouTube ever since. Incredibly, the song got over 21 million views in just 11 days, which was a new record for the site.

    Before, “Bhaber Pagal” by Nigar Sumi and Jalali Set had 24 million views, making it the most watched song on Coke Studio Bangla.

    But it’s important to remember that this song came out a year ago, while “Deora” got a crazy 21 million views in just 11 days. It is rare for any Bengali song, not just Coke Studio Bangla, to become so popular so quickly.

    When “Deora” came out, it quickly went to the top of YouTube’s popular list and stayed there for a few days. As of right now, it is still a strong rival. It is currently the third most popular video on YouTube. The crowd doesn’t seem to be getting tired of the song.

    “Deora” is popular outside of Bangladesh, which is an interesting fact. The song has gotten a lot of interest in India, and it’s even been heard in Tanzania, which is in Africa.

    Kili Paul, a popular African content maker, used the song in a TikTok video that got over 1.2 million views in just one day. Also, social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are still full of reels, videos, and other artistic works that were inspired by the song. This huge number of responses shows how much of an impact the song has had on the internet.

    “Deora” is a great mix of modern and traditional music. It was written by Fazlu Majhi and played by Pritom Hasan, Islam Uddin Palakar, and the Ghaashphoring Choir.

    A few new lines have been added to the original song, and Pritom himself wrote the new parts.

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  • Dhaka University fixes rickshaw fares for campus, effective from Sunday

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    Rickshaw fares have been fixed for Dhaka University (DU) campus, addressing the long-standing complaints of the teachers and students.

    The new fares are set to be effective from Sunday.

    Initially, one hundred rickshaw pullers will be provided with prescribed clothes to implement prescribed fares. Fare lists will also be posted at specific stops

    The minimum fare has been set at Tk15 and the maximum at Tk40.

    The University Chhatra League has worked proactively with the administration on this demand of ordinary students.

    According to the prescribed fare, students can go to TSC, Neelkhet Mukti and Gonotantrik Toran for Tk20 and Shaheed Minar, Curzon Hall for Tk30 from Hall Para.

    The rickshaw fares from TSC Shahidullah Hall, Bakshibazar, and Neelkhet have been set at Tk20, while fares from Sufia Kamal Hall and Amar Ekushey Hall have been fixed at Tk30.

    From TSC Shahidullah Hall, Bakshibazar, Neelkhet Tk20 and Sufia Kamal Hall, Amar Ekushey Hall Tk30 has been fixed.

    Dhaka University Proctor Professor Dr Md Akhtaruzzaman said that this initiative is not new; it was implemented during the pandemic.

    “Due to Covid-19, there was a delay in its effective implementation. University students had been complaining for a long time, especially female students, about being charged extra fare by rickshaw pullers. Our teachers also raised complaints about this issue,” he added.

    Former Dhaka University Central Students Union (Ducsu) member and General Secretary of DU unit Chhatra League Tanvir Hasan Saikat said after being elected in 2019, the initiative was taken to regulate rickshaw fares in the Dhaka University area by holding discussions with rickshaw pullers and students.

    As part of this effort, a list of fixed fares was established at various important locations on the campus, and 16 zones were identified for rickshaw parking.

    He added Dhaka University proctor has handed over the list of fixed fares.

    Source: https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2023/05/18/dhaka-university-fixes-rickshaw-fares-for-campus

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