Bangladesh
Arrest warrant issued against BNP leaders Minu, 3 others
A Rajshahi court on Wednesday issued warrants for the arrest of four BNP leaders including BNP chairperson’s adviser and former city mayor Mizanur Rahman Minu in a sedition case.
Rajshahi Metropolitan Magistrate Court Judge Saiful Islam issued the warrants in the afternoon.
The other accused in the case are BNP organising secretary Ruhul Kuddus Talukdar, former president of Rajshahi city unit and ex-city mayor Mosaddek Hossain Bulbul and general secretary of Rajshahi city unit Shafiqul Haque Milon.
Earlier, Officer-in-Charge of Rajpara Police Station Majharul Islam, also the investigation officer of the case, submitted a chargesheet while the court issued the warrants after taking the charges into cognizance.
The court fixed April 26 for the next hearing.
Advocate Aslam Sarkar said the accused delivered anti-state statement and threatened to kill the Prime Minister during a rally on March 2.
Awami League Secretary for Legal Affairs Advocate Musabbirul Islam applied to the Home Ministry seeking permission to file a sedition case over the matter.
After getting permission from the Home Ministry, the case was filed with Rajshahi Metropolitan Magistrate Court on March 26.
Obaidul Quader receives first dose of Covid-19 vaccine
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader on Wednesday received the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine.
After getting vaccinated, the minister, also Awami League general secretary, posted seven photos on his verified Facebook account.
Also Read: AL the true champions of women's empowerment: Obaidul Quader
Quader took the vaccine shot at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) at 10:30.
Also Read: AL victim of political plots: Obaidul Quader
On January 28, the Covid-19 vaccination drive was rolled out at capital’s five hospitals first and then across the country on February 7.
Vessels to ply at half capacity, fares to be increased
Vessels will carry passengers half of their capacities and maintain health guidelines to curb the transmission of Covid-19.
State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury disclosed this on Wednesday after a meeting at the Ministry of Shipping.
The fares of river transports will be increased from Thursday and the new rates of fares will be fixed after a meeting with river transport owners today, he said.
The state minister said passengers have to get on the launch in compliance with the health rules and legal action will be taken if the health rules are not followed.
Also read: Launch, steamer services to resume Sunday on 34 river routes
He also added that number of vessels will also be increased alongside fare hike.
The state minister warned that punitive action will be taken against launches owners if they charge more than the amount which would be fixed by the ministry or carry additional passengers.
The carrying of all types of covered vans and trucks in ferries except those carrying essential goods will remain stopped for three days before Eid and the restriction will continue till three days after Eid, said the state minister.
Also read: Govt increases bus fares by 60 pc
Roads from Sadarghat to Bahadur Shah Park should be kept free from traffic jams and Sadarghat terminals and launches should be kept hawker-free, said the state minister.
Passengers traveling on the waterways can contact BIWTA hotline number: 18113 for any emergency and service related matters.
Bangladesh no longer needs to import 4G handsets: Mustafa Jabbar
With as many as 14 electronics makers now producing smartphones in this country, Bangladesh no longer needs to import 4G handsets from abroad.
Minister of Post and Telecommunication Mustafa Jabbar said this at the 'GSMA Roundtable on Bangladesh Achieving Mobile-Enabled Digital Inclusion', a virtual global event, that took place on Tuesday.
"As a result of the current government's technology-friendly policy, 14 companies, including Samsung and Oppo, are currently producing mobile handsets in the country. 4G handsets are also being made in all the factories. As a result we do not need to import the handsets," he said.
"In just three years, our mobile operators have expanded 4G across the country despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The government will take all initiatives to increase the scope of its use," the Minister added.
Also read; Walton offers 4G handsets with 3GB RAM at Tk 6,999
Lauding the role of mobile operators during the pandemic, the Minister said that the development of mobile technology has revolutionised Bangladesh. "80 percent of corona patients in the country have received digital treatment."
At the virtual event, GSMA leaders highlighted the need for joint efforts by the government and stakeholders to create digital skills and awareness in Bangladesh. They also came up with a number of suggestions for developing the mobile handset industry for future.
Also read: Walton launches affordable new 4G phone
Representatives of BTRC, Teletalk, Robi, Banglalink and MTB, ITU's Asia Pacific Region Representative and A2I Senior Policy Advisor Anir Chowdhury participated in the roundtable discussion moderated by GSM officials Rahul Shah and Julian Garmen.
World starts looking at Bangladesh in a new light: FM
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Wednesday said it is evident that the rest of the world has started looking at Bangladesh in a new light.
He said the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Fellowship will again enhance opportunities with Germany and other European countries for academic studies and exchange focusing on Bangladesh and South Asia.
“There is likely to be growing academic interest in our nation’s history, culture and politics to understand the dynamics these phenomena bring into play across the wider region and beyond,” Dr Momen said while addressing a virtual briefing to announce the final selection for the “Bangladesh Chair: Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Professorial Fellowship”.
Prof Kazi Shahidullah, Chairman, University Grants Commission of Bangladesh and Peter Fahrenholtz, Ambassador of Germany to Bangladesh also joined.
“I feel happy to inform you that we have reached the final stages of setting up the Bangladesh Chair titled Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Professorial Fellowship at the South Asia Institute under the Centre for Asian and Transcultural Studies at the Heidelberg University in Germany,” Dr Momen said.
D-8 Summit on April 8; focus on trade, investment, Rohingya crisis
Bangladesh will host the 10th D-8 (Developing-8) Summit on April 8 virtually in the context of Covid-19 new normal scenario that will focus on trade, investment, mineral resources, tourism, ICT, climate and Rohingya issues.
“These are the things we’ll try to focus on through dialogue and discussions,” Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen told reporters in a virtual media briefing on Wednesday. Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, among others, was present.
Responding to a question, the Foreign Minister said they will seek support from all for a “durable solution” to the Rohingya crisis and addressing the challenges posed by climate change.
On trade issues, he said there is a lot of potential to boost trade among the D-8 member states which remained untapped.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will lead the Bangladesh delegation at the Summit to be participated by the leaders of Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.
The Prime Minister attended the first D-8 Summit held in 1997 and Dhaka successfully hosted the second D-8 Summit in 1999, said the Foreign Minister.
Also read: Dhaka to host 10th D-8 Summit virtually in Dec or Jan
The theme of the D-8 Summit is “Partnership for a Transformative World: Harnessing the Power of Youth and Technology” and the Summit will adopt two documents “D-8 Decennial Roadmap 2020-2030” and “Dhaka Declaration 2021.”
Bangladesh’s GDP to increase by 3.6 % in 2020-2021, WB forecasts
World Bank on Wednesday forecast that Bangladesh’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will increase by 3.6% in 2020-2021 fiscal year, due to better than expected remittance inflows.
The international lending agency said this in its twice-a-year-regional update that released on Wednesday.
It also forecast that the GDP growth will be 5.1% and 6.2% in 2021-22 and 2022-23 FYs respectively.
Earlier in January, 2021 the WB projected that the GDP in 2020-21 and 2021-22 FYs will be 2%, and 1.7% respectively.
Read WB okays $250 million for Bangladesh to respond to COVID-19 pandemic
It said that prospects of an economic rebound in South Asia are firming up as growth is set to increase by 7.2 percent in 2021 and 4.4 percent in 2022, climbing from historic lows in 2020 and putting the region on a path to recovery.
But growth is uneven and economic activity well below pre-COVID-19 estimates, as many businesses need to make up for lost revenue and millions of workers, most of them in the informal sector, still reel from job losses, falling incomes, worsening inequalities, and human capital deficits, says the World Bank in its twice-a-year-regional update, it added.
Also read: WB projects 1.6 pc GDP growth for Bangladesh in 2020-21
The latest South Asia Economic Focus South Asia Vaccinates shows that the region is set to regain its historical growth rate by 2022.
Electricity consumption and mobility data is a clear indication of recovering economic activity.
The outlook for Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan has also been revised upward, supported by better than expected remittance inflows: Bangladesh’s gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to increase by 3.6 percent in 2021; Nepal’s GDP is projected to grow by 2.7 percent in the fiscal year 2021-22 and recover to 5.1 percent by 2023; Pakistan’s growth is expected to reach 1.3 percent in 2021, slightly above previous projections.
Read Bangladesh to boost spending in next two fiscals to offset Covid impact.
The improved economic outlook reflects South Asian countries’ efforts to keep their COVID-19 caseload under control and swiftly roll out vaccine campaigns.
Governments’ decisions to transition from widespread lockdowns to more targeted interventions, accommodating monetary policies and fiscal stimuli—through targeted cash transfers and employment compensation programs—have also propped up recovery, the report notes.
“We are encouraged to see clear signs of an economic rebound in South Asia, but the pandemic is not yet under control and the recovery remains fragile, calling for vigilance,” said Hartwig Schafer, World Bank Vice President for the South Asia Region.
He said that Going forward, South Asian countries need to ramp up their vaccination programs and invest their scarce resources wisely to set a foundation for a more inclusive and resilient future.
Read It's time to change the mindset on taxpaying: Salman F Rahman.
While laying bare South Asia’s deep-seated inequalities and vulnerabilities, the pandemic provides an opportunity to chart a path toward a more equitable and robust recovery.
To that end, the report recommends that governments develop universal social insurance to protect informal workers, increase regional cooperation, and lift customs restrictions on key staples to prevent sudden spikes in food prices.
South Asia, which grapples with high stunting rates among children and accounts for more than half of the world’s student dropouts due to COVID-19, needs to ramp up investments in human capital to help new generations grow up healthy and become productive workers.
Noting that South Asia’s public spending on healthcare is the lowest in the world, the report also suggests that countries further invest in preventive care, finance health research, and scale up their health infrastructure, including for mass and quick production of vaccines.
Read Bangladesh to see 7.5pc growth in FY2021: ADB
“The health and economic benefits from vaccinations greatly exceed the costs involved in purchasing and distributing vaccines for all South Asian countries,” said Hans Timmer, World Bank Chief Economist for the South Asia Region.
He also said that South Asia has stepped up to vaccinate its people, but its healthcare capacity is limited as the region only spends 2% of its GDP on healthcare, lagging any other region.
"The main challenge ahead is to reprioritize limited resources and mobilize more revenue to reach the entire population and achieve full recovery.
Read China's GDP expands 2.3 pct in 2020.
Two UK returnees jailed for violating quarantine rules in Sylhet
A special mobile court in Sylhet has sentenced two UK returnees to a week in jail for violating quarantine rules.
The court has also imposed a fine of Tk 10,000 on each of the violators -- Abdun Nur, a 42-year-old resident of Goyashpur in Sunamganj's Chhatak, and Alam Hasan Rauf, 36, of Chanpur in Biswanath upazila.
Police said Wednesday the duo returned to Bangladesh from the UK on March 22, along with 140 other passengers.
As per the government's Covid rules, they checked into Gates Hotel Star Pacific Hotel in the city for a seven-day mandatory quarantine for foreign returnees.
Also read: UK returnees to Bangladesh must stay in quarantine: Minister
During the quarantine period, the samples of both the UK returnees were collected but they managed to flee from the hotel before getting their Covid-19 report.
Being informed, a mobile court led by Executive Magistrate Mohammad Mezbah Uddin tried them and sentenced them to seven days in jail for violating the quarantine rules.
Also read: 9 UK-returnees escape from quarantine in Sylhet, return after 12 hours
On March 22, nine UK returnees of a family disappeared from a Sylhet hotel, which has been converted into an institutional quarantine centre. However, the nine people returned within 12 hours, the management of Britannia Hotel told UNB.
Also read: New Covid-19 strain found in 10 EU returnees: Maleque
Five adults in the group were fined Tk 18,000 each by a magistrate for violating the quarantine rules.
Report on origins of Covid-19 'inconclusive'
The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has described a report on the origins of Covid-19 as "a welcome start, but far from conclusive".
According to the findings of the report by a team of scientists assembled by the UN health agency, the novel coronavirus that causes Covid-19 possibly spread to humans from animals. The report was published by WHO on Tuesday.
“This report is a very important beginning, but it is not the end," said WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “We have not yet found the source of the virus, and we must continue to follow the science and leave no stone unturned as we do.”
He welcomed the findings of the 34-member team, which in January, visited the Chinese city of Wuhan where the first cases of the then new coronavirus came to light at the end of 2019, reports UN News.
Also read: WHO team: More studies needed of virus origin
But the WHO chief was clear that overall, it raises “further questions that will need to be addressed by further studies, as the team itself notes in the report".
He noted that although much data had been provided, to fully understand the earliest cases, they would need access from Chinese authorities “to data including biological samples from at least September” 2019.
“In my discussions with the team, they expressed the difficulties they encountered in accessing raw data. I expect future collaborative studies to include more timely and comprehensive data sharing.”
Animal markets’ role, ‘still unclear’
Tedros welcomed the recommendations for further studies to understand the earliest human cases and clusters, and to trace animals sold at markets in and around Wuhan, but “the role of animal markets is still unclear".
Also read: WHO report says animals likely source of COVID
The team confirmed there had been widespread contamination in the large market of Huanan but could not determine the source of this contamination.
“Again, I welcome the recommendations for further research, including a full analysis of the trade in animals and products in markets across Wuhan, particularly those linked to early human cases," he said.
He agreed that farmers, suppliers and their contacts should be interviewed, and that more study was needed to identify what role “farmed wild animals may have played in introducing the virus to markets in Wuhan and beyond".
Lab leak theory not ruled out
The team also visited several laboratories in Wuhan and considered the possibility that the virus had entered the human population as a result of a laboratory incident, noted Tedros.
“However, I do not believe that this assessment was extensive enough. Further data and studies will be needed to reach more robust conclusions," he said.
“Although the team has concluded that a laboratory leak is the least likely hypothesis, this requires further investigation, potentially with additional missions involving specialist experts, which I am ready to deploy.”
As far as WHO is concerned “all hypotheses remain on the table”, he told the Member State briefing on the report in Geneva.
“Finding the origin of a virus takes time and we owe it to the world to find the source so we can collectively take steps to reduce the risk of this happening again. No single research trip can provide all the answers.
Rohingya relocation: 2,495 going to Bhasan Char in 6th phase
About 2,500 Rohingyas are being relocated from the camps in Cox’s Bazar to Bhasan Char island in the 6th phase.
Cox's Bazar Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC) Shah Rezwan Hayat said 47 buses carrying the Rohingyas have reached Chattogram.
Rohingyas willing to go to Bhasan Char were brought to the temporary transit point at Ukhiya Degree College ground and given necessary items including food, water and medicine.
Rohingya Majhis (leaders) said many forcibly displaced Myanmar nationals are now willing to move to Bhasan Char after learning about the facilities and quality of life there.
Also read: Rohingya relocation: 1,778 more heading towards Bhasan Char
Cox's Bazar Additional RRRC Shamsuddoza Nayan said the Rohingyas would be taken to Bhasan Char from Patenga under the Navy’s management on Wednesday.
In five phases, over 14,000 Rohingyas were shifted to Bhasan Char.
Bangladesh is currently hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas in camps in Cox’s Bazar and Bhasan Char. Most of them came here since August 25, 2017 when the Myanmar military launched a brutal offensive targeting the mainly-Muslim ethnic minority.
Where is Bhasan Char?
It surfaced 20 years ago 34 kilometres off the mainland and was never inhabited.
Bangladesh spent millions of dollars to develop Bhasan Char and plans to relocate 100,000 Rohingyas there in phases in the face of growing concerns over the extreme congestion in Cox’s Bazar camps and to avert any untoward incident.
Also read: Don’t worry about Rohingya relocation to Bhasan Char: Dhaka to UNHCR
Contractors say the island’s infrastructure is like a modern township. A police station was also set up there recently.
Who are the Rohingyas?
The Rohingyas are one of the most persecuted minorities in the world.
Members of this ethnic minority are denied citizenship by Myanmar and many are forced to live in squalid camps in apartheid-like condition. State-sponsored discrimination against the Rohingyas stretches decades back.
Also read: Don't undermine, misinterpret genuine efforts: Dhaka on Rohingya relocation
Rohingya crisis and Bangladesh
Bangladesh has long been urging the global community to take effective steps to put pressure on Myanmar to create a congenial atmosphere for Rohingya repatriation but there has been little progress so far.
The presence of the huge number of Rohingya refugees in the coastal district has put them on a collision course with the locals. Many Rohingyas have allegedly got involved in various criminal activities.