Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today (March 19, 2023) said that India can use ports in Chattogram and Sylhet if they want. The Prime Minister said this while Member of the Governing Council of India Foundation, Ram Madhav, called on her at her official residence Ganabhaban. PM’s Deputy Press Secretary KM Shakhawat Moon briefed reporters after the meeting. Sheikh Hasina said that the government puts emphasis on regional connectivity which will result in better people-to-people ties. Also read: Teen gangs must be stopped: PM The PM conveyed her greetings to the Indian Prime Minister during her meeting with Ram Madhav. The member of the Governing Council of India Foundation highly appreciated the socioeconomic advancement of Bangladesh under the leadership of PM Sheikh Hasina. He said that Bangladesh and India have excellent friendship as neighbouring countries and hoped that the relation will continue in the coming days. Ambassador at Large M Ziauddin, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam and Principal Secretary M Tofazzel Hossain Miah were present during the event. Read More: Be vigilant against food hoarding, black-marketing: PM

The Election Commission has filed a case against a Jubo League leader on charge of snatching an Electronic Voting Machine’s ballot unit panel from a polling centre during the Boalkhali Upazila Parishad election in Chattogram. Presiding officer of the centre, Sajal Das, filed the case with Boalkhali Police Station last night against Nirmalendu Dey Sumon, the joint general secretary of Sreepur-Kharandwip Union Jubo League and son of late Gaurang Dey of ward-9. Confirming the case, Boalkhali Police Station Officer-in-Charge Md Abdur Razzaque said, an investigation is underway regarding the matter. Also Read: Pabna rickshaw-puller murder: Jubo League activist put on 3-day remand Earlier yesterday, the Boalkhali Upazila Parishad by-election was held. However, there was no voter turnout throughout the day. Almost all the centres were empty. In the meantime, around noon, Sumon entered room-5 of Jaistyapura Ramni Mohan High School centre in Sreepur-Kharandwip union and took away the EVM ballot unit panel from the polling room. Assistant Presiding Officer Harunur Rashid protested, but the Jubo League leader did not pay heed to it. Later, Union Awami League President Ratan Chowdhury recovered the EVM ballot unit panel and returned it to the centre. Police detained Ratan for questioning in this connection and later released him.    

The fire that broke out at a cotton godown in Sitakunda upazila of Chattogram district yesterday (March 11, 2023) morning was brought under control this morning, around 22 hours after the incident.   Sultan Mahmud, senior station officer of Kumira Fire Service and Civil Defence, confirmed the development, saying that the fire was brought under control with the help of Bangladesh Army and Navy around 8 am this (March 12, 2023) morning. Members of the army, navy and fire service are tirelessly working to douse the blaze completely, he said. The army will brief about the incident when the fire is extinguished, the fire service officer added. Read more: Sitakunda cotton godown fire: Army, Navy join efforts to control the blaze On Saturday night, members of the army and navy joined the fire service in fighting the fire.   Meanwhile, a 10-member probe committee, headed by Chattogram district administration’s deputy director Badiul Alam, was formed to investigate the fire. The committee was asked to submit a report within 5 working days, Md Towhidul Islam, executive magistrate of the district administration, said. He said there were 2700 tonnes of cotton inside the warehouse which made it difficult to bring the fire under control. Read More: Sitakunda cotton godown fire: Army, Navy join efforts to control the blaze The fire started at the cotton warehouse of Unitex Group in Chhoto Kumira area around 10:30 am yesterday. On information, five firefighting units from two stations responded to the fire and almost brought the blaze under control around 12 pm. But as the fire flared up again, firefighters struggled to douse the fire due to a lack of a constant supply of water in the area. Six more firefighting units joined in around 8 pm last night. Read More EU releases €1 million in emergency aid for people affected by fire in Rohingya camp in Bangladesh The origin of the fire and the extent of damage could not be ascertained immediately. Earlier on March 4, six people were burned to death and around 33 sustained injuries in a fire after a massive blast at Seema Oxygen Plant in the upazila.

A case was filed last night, implicating 16 people including three managing directors of Seema Oxygen Plant in connection with the deaths of seven employees of the plant in a massive fire in Chattogram district’s Sitakunda upazila on Saturday.   Rokeya Begum, widow of victim Abdul Quader, filed the case against the 16 people at Sitakunda Model Police Station around 11:30 pm on Monday, Tofail Ahmed, officer-in-charge of the police station confirmed. Read more: Sitakunda oxygen plant fire: Death toll rises to 7 He said the investigation into the case will be launched very soon.   The accused include three MDs of the oxygen plant — Mamun Uddin, Parvez Uddin Santu and Ashraf Uddin Baffi — and Manager Abdul Aleem, plant operator in-charge Samsuzzaman Shikdar, plant operators Khurshid Alam and Selim Jahan, among others. According to the case statement, victim Quader, who worked at the oxygen plant for around 13 years, died due to “negligence and irresponsibility” of the accused, including the owners. Read more: Probe committee formed over Sitakunda oxygen plant fire At least seven people died in the fire that erupted from an explosion in Seema Oxygen Plant in the Keshabpur industrial hub of Sikakunda on Saturday.  Apart from this, over 50 people sustained burn injuries in the devastating fire. Meanwhile, the Chattogram district administration formed a seven-member probe committee to investigate the fire and asked to submit a report within five working days. Read more: Govt announces financial aid for Sitakunda oxygen plant fire victims  

The port city of Chattogram is set to host Bangladesh-England's third ODI and first T20 matches, and the ticket prices have been announced for the event. All the matches will be played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium. The grandstand and rooftop hospitality tickets have been priced at Tk1,500, international stand tickets at Tk1,000, club house at Tk500, eastern stand at Tk300, and western stand at Tk200. Also Read: Bangladesh's ODI series winning streak at home ends with a massive defeat to England Tickets can be purchased from the Shagarika Ticket Counter near Bitac Circle and the MA Aziz Stadium Ticket Counter. The tickets for each format of matches will be available on the previous day of the match (March 5 and 8) and on the match days (March 6 and 9) from 9:30am to 7:00pm. Bangladesh lost the ODI series with consecutive defeats in the first two matches in Mirpur. However, the Tigers will look to win the last ODI to end the series on a high note. After the ODI series, both teams will compete in a three-match T20I series. The last two matches of the series will take place in Dhaka.    

The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested four more members of the newly formed militant outfit ‘Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya’ from Chattogram’s Patiya.  They were arrested in a drive conducted by RAB in Patiya’s bypass area on Tuesday night, the elite force told a news conference on Wednesday. The law enforcement agencies have been conducting an anti-militancy operation throughout the country since October last year.  The arrested 4 militants are – Hossain Ahmed (22), Nihal Abdullah (19), Al Amin (22), and Al Amin alias Partha Kumar Das (21).  Among them, Hussain Ahmed's home is in Dasmina in Patuakhali, Nihal and Al Amin's in Sadar in Cumilla and Al Amin alias Parth's home is in Dumuria in Khulna. The arrestees left their home as part of ‘Hijrat’ under the influence of newly introduced ‘Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya’ and took part in armed training in Chattogram Hill Tract,   said Commander Khandaker Al Moin, RAB’s Director (Law and Media). In the press conference at Chandgaon RAB-7 Media Centre in the city on Wednesday morning, Commander Moin said that eight young men went missing from Cumilla Sadar area on August 23 last year.  Later, their families filed general diaries at the city’s Kotwali Thana police station. During their investigation, RAB got information about their affiliation with a new militant organisation called 'Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya.' At the same time, RAB also learned that the members of that organisation were receiving armed training with the help of separatist organisations in Chattogram Hill Tract area. Based on the information, the elite force conducted an operation and arrested 10 people including seven members of the newly launched militant outfit and three members of Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF) from Bandarban and Rangamati.  Since then, RAB has conducted dozens of operations across the country and arrested more than 30 members of the militant outfit as well as the separatist organisation.  “We’ve arrested five members of the new militant outfit during an operation in Bandarban’s Rowangchhari  and Thanchi on January 11,” Commander Moin said. “On January 23, we arrested the head of the military wing, Ranbir --  also a Sura member in the militant organisation --  and the explosives expert, Bashar, from an area adjacent to the Kutupalong Rohingya camp in Cox's Bazar,” he said. RAB has so far arrested 55 members and leaders of Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya. At least 17 members of KNF, which is based in the Chattogram Hill Tract, were also arrested for assisting the militants in training and other activities in the hills. 

Chattogram, Dhaka, Khulna, and Rajshahi divisions reached the semifinals of the girls' hockey of the Sheikh Kamal 2nd Bangladesh Youth Games 2023 after winning their matches at the Maulana Bhashani National Hockey Stadium in the capital Sunday. Chattogram Division crushed Barishal Division 8-0 and Dhaka outplayed Sylhet 8-1 in today's last two matches. Earlier in the day's first match, Khulna beat Rangpur 5-4 in the penalty shootout as the match ended 4-4 after regular time. In the day's second match, Rajshahi defeated Mymensingh 3-1 in the penalty shootout as the match ended 1-1 after regular time. Four boys' group matches will be held Monday at the same venue.

Two people were dead as a wall collapsed at Jamal Khan in Chattogram city on Wednesday. The deceased were identified as Jashim and Rounak. Zahidul Kabir, officer-in-charge of Kotwali Police Station, said some workers were demolishing an old building near Shikdar Hotel in the area. Read more: 2 workers killed, 5 hurt as under-construction building's roof collapses in Gazipur Around 4 pm, a portion of the wall of the building collapsed on two pedestrians, leaving one dead on the spot and another injured. The injured man were taken to Chattogram Medical College and Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries around 7 pm.

A freedom fighter was tied to a tree and tortured allegedly by his neighbors over a land dispute in Hathazari upazila of Chattogram. The attackers ransacked freedom fighter Ahmed Hossain’s house and later built a boundary wall on his land. Police have arrested Ahmed’s neighour Nahida Sultana in this connection. Her husband Lokman, and other main accused went into hiding. After a video on his torture caused a stir in social media, police and the UNO of Hathazari upazila went to the victim’s house. Also read: Son masterminded freedom fighter's killing in N'ganj for money: PBI Shahidul Islam, the UNO of Hathajari upazila, said, “Upon receiving information, I, along with police officers and other freedom fighters, went to the spot. The boundary wall was demolished at my command.” Also Read: Freedom fighter in Lalmonirhat murdered Ruhul Amin Sabuj, officer-in-charge of Hathajari Model police station, said a case was filed. “We detained the main accused’s wife. Steps are being taken to detain Lokman and his cohorts,” he said.    

By-election to the Chattogram-8 constituency – left vacant following the death of Awami League MP Moslem Uddin Ahmed – will be held on April 27, 2023. Election Commission (EC) Secretary Jahangir Alam announced the schedule of the by-election today. Read more: All parties should assist to conduct a participatory election: Hasan Mahmud According to the schedule, the last date for submitting nomination papers is March 27, while the date for scrutinising nomination papers is March 29, and the last date for withdrawal of candidature is April 5. Voting will start at 8 am on April 27 and will continue till 4 pm. Moslem Uddin, a freedom fighter and also president of Chattogram South unit of Awami League, breathed his last at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka on February 6. He was 75. He was elected as an MP on January 13, 2020 – in the vacant seat following the death of former Chattogram-8 MP Moinuddin Khan Badal.