Cox's Bazar
Depression in Bay: Avoid Cox’s Bazar beach, say tourist police
Cox’s Bazar tourist police have warned visitors to avoid the beach area as the sea remains rough due to the impact of a depression in the Bay of Bengal.
The Met office has advised the maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Mongla and Payra to keep hoisted local cautionary signal No. 3.
Under its influence, light to moderate showers accompanied by squally winds have been occurring in Cox’s Bazar since Wednesday morning.
Md Rezaul Karim, additional superintendent of Cox's Bazar Tourist Police, said they are discouraging tourists from entering the beach area to avoid any untoward incident.
The tourist cops patrolling the beach have been making announcements and creating awareness among the tourists.
Abdul Hamid Mia, chief meteorologist at Cox's Bazar Meteorological Office, said all fishing boats and trawlers over the North Bay have been advised to remain close to the coast and proceed with caution until further notice.
Read:Swelling rivers inundate low-lying areas of Barishal city
The depression over coastal Odisha and the adjoining Northwest Bay moved westwards and weakened into a well-marked low on Wednesday.
On Thursday, the well-marked low over Chhattisgarh and adjoining areas of India moved westwards, weakening into a low pressure area over Madhya Pradesh and adjoining areas.
Steep pressure gradient persists over the North Bay and adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh.
Squally weather may affect the maritime ports, the North Bay and the adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh, as per the bulletin.
4 rescued from Cox's Bazar cottage; 11 extortion gang members held
Police claimed to have arrested eleven extortion gang members and rescued two children and youths from their captivity at a Kolatoli cottage in Cox's Bazar Sunday night.
The children are from Dakshin Dikkul of Cox's Bazar and youths from Shahpari Dwip and Satkania of Teknaf.
The arrestees are Md Alamgir, Md Salim, Akash Das, Md Jobair, Md Mamun, Nazir Hossain, Sekander Ali, Md Sohail, Md Jahangir Alam, Md Jasim and Md Parvez.
Read: Fugitive death-row war criminal held in city
A team of Tourist Police raided Sheuli Cottage at night and rescued four people from captivity, Rezaul Karim, additional superintendent of Tourist Police, said.
However, the gang members managed to flee through a secret route. Later, they were arrested during separate drives.
"Two of the rescued people came to Kolatoli with patients and went to Sheuli Cottage to spend the night as some of the gang members offered them rooms at low rates," Rezaul said.
"But they later asked the tourists for higher room prices. The gang members locked the rooms from outside as the tourists refused to pay the extra price."
Hundreds of Jellyfish carcasses wash ashore on Cox’s Bazar beach
More than a hundred carcasses of Jellyfish were reported to be washed ashore at different points of Cox’s Bazar beach on Thursday morning.
These dead jellyfish have been washed ashore with the tidal water since this morning at several points along the 50 km long area of the beach including Labani, Sugandha, Simon Beach and Darya Nagar points up to Himchari.
Around 100 small and large jellyfish carcasses were found stuck in the sand at various points of the beach.
But no one could tell the reasons behind this huge number of deaths of jellyfish.
Cox's Bazar District Fisheries Officer Badruzzaman said this is not the season for this fish to die.
These jellyfish might have come close to the shore and got caught in the fishermen's nets. Later, the carcasses started washing up on the beach as the fishers threw those away, he added.
Read: Whale carcass washes ashore on Cox’s Bazar beach
However, Bangladesh Marine Research Institute Senior Officer Abu Syed Md Sharif said Jellyfish usually die in winter and float in the sea.
“For several days we have examined the jellyfish carcasses floating in the sea. These jellyfish are getting caught in the fishing net and dying as fishing in the Bay started. There is nothing to worry,” he said.
2 held with crystal meth, yaba worth Tk5.91 crore in Cox's Bazar
Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Friday claimed to have arrested two men from Cox's Bazar's Teknaf on charges of smuggling yaba pills and crystal meth worth around Tk5.91 crore from Myanmar to here.
BGB Battalion-2 conducted a drive on the banks of the River Naf River near Hnila BOP of the upazila and detained Riaz Uddin, 20, and Saddam Hossain, 19.
Read: Cox's Bazar man held with crystal meth, yaba pills worth Tk5.57 crore
Around 1.063 kg of crystal meth and 20,000 yaba pills, a boat, and illegal fishing nets were recovered from the possession of the duo, Lieutenant Colonel Sheikh Khalid Mohammad Iftekhar, commanding officer of BGB Battalion-2, told UNB.
The detainees were later handed over to Teknaf Model Police Station, he added.
BCL leader hacked to death in Cox's Bazar
A leader of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) was allegedly stabbed to death by miscreants in Sadar Upazila of Cox's Bazar in the early hours of Thursday.
The deceased was identified as Emon Hasan Mowla, joint general secretary of ward No.4 unit BCL and son of businessman Mohammad Hasan of North Tekpara.
Family members of the deceased said Emon went for a ride on his father's motorcycle at Siko Borof Kol point of the Bakkhali River in Peshkar neighborhood on Thursday morning.
At one stage, a group of assailants, including Abdullah Khan, Syed Akbar, Ramzan, Iman, Sunny and Farhad waylaid Emon and stabbed him indiscriminately, leaving him seriously injured.
Read: BCL leader stabbed dead in Cox’s Bazar
He was immediately rushed to Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital where the doctors referred him to Chittagong Medical Hospital. He succumbed to his injuries around 3am while undergoing treatment there.
Police recovered the body after being informed, said Sheikh Munir-ul-Ghiyas, officer-in-charge of Cox's Bazar Sadar Model Police Station.
"Efforts are on to nab the culprits," added the OC.
Cox's Bazar man held with crystal meth, yaba pills worth Tk5.57 crore
Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) detained a 25-year-old man with 1.055kg crystal methamphetamine (ice) and 10,000 yaba pills from Teknaf upazila, Cox's Bazar Wednesday.
BGB seized drugs worth Tk5.57 crore from Forkan of Teknaf.
Also Read: Yaba pills worth Tk 3cr seized in Cox's Bazar
BGB-2 conducted a drive at Obrang Post near the River Naf after learning that three people were trying to smuggle drugs into Bangladesh from Myanmar around 1:15am.
They caught Forkan during the drive, but the two other smugglers managed to flee.
NOVOAIR offers two nights free hotel in Cox's Bazar
NOVOAIR announced two nights of the free hotel on purchasing two return tickets to Cox’s Bazar route.
To enjoy this offer, tickets must be purchased from the NOVOAIR sales counter by June 30, and travel must be completed by July 31, said a media release.
NOVOAIR offered free room hotels in Cox's Bazar are:
Ocean Paradise Hotel & Resort, Hotel The Cox Today, Seagull Hotel, Neeshorgo Hotel & Resort, Windy Terrace Hotel, and Grace Cox Smart Hotel. Apart from this offer, NOVOAIR announced attractive holiday packages with other renowned hotels.
Also Read: NOVOAIR celebrates its 9th anniversary
NOVOAIR operates daily flights from Dhaka to Cox's Bazar at 7:45am, 8:45am, 10am, 11am, 2:20pm, and 4pm.
Similarly, flights from Cox's Bazar to Dhaka are operated daily at 9:20am, 10:20am, 11:35am, 12:35pm, 3:55pm and 5:35pm.
Apart from Cox's Bazar, NOVOAIR operates daily flights from Dhaka to Chattogram, Jashore, Saidpur, Sylhet, Barishal, and Rajshahi and international destinations in Kolkata, it added.
Read Novoair may resume flights to Kolkata from March 27
Need to be tougher on drugs: Home Minister
Mentioning that 24 types of drugs are smuggled to Bangladesh from neighboring India and Myanmar, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said the authorities have to be tougher on drug smuggling.
The minister said this while addressing a drug eradication function at the BGB Cox's Bazar Regional Ground in Ramu as the chief guest on Friday morning.
All offenders will be brought to justice, no matter who they are, he said.
"In our country, 50 percent of drug addicts are youth. To save this generation of the country, we have no choice but to be tough against the drugs. So our goal is to implement zero tolerance against drugs," the minister added.
While addressing the programme, the minister said there are huge swathes of Bangladesh's area bordering India and Myanmar and many of them are in extremely remote areas where border guards can't easily travel. So BGB is using modern technology including helicopters and the government is constructing border-roads, which will be completed soon, he hopes.
The minister also officially razed to the ground drugs worth Tk 395.76 crore seized over the past one year in Cox’s Bazar.
The destroyed drugs include 90,80,477 pieces of Yaba, 23.752 kg crystal meth ice, 6,767 cans of beer, 1,339 bottles of alcohol, 154 bottles of Phensedyl; 206 liters of local alcohol; 17 kg cannabis; 48,019 different types of tablets; 10,984 packets of cigarettes and sever bottles of ammonium sulfur.
Besides, 1979 arrested drug peddlers and drugs worth Tk 510.90 crore were handed over to police.
A documentary on the BGB's drive against drugs was screened at the programme and BGB Cox's Bazar Regional Commander Brigadier General Nazam-us-Sakib, AFWC, PSC delivered the welcome note.
Government officials, reporters, BGB officials and members were present at the event.
Also read: BGB destroys seized drugs worth Tk 395 crore in Cox’s Bazar
2 Rohingyas nabbed by APBn in Ukhia
Members of Armed Police Battalion (APBn) on Sunday arrested two suspected Rohingya criminals from Kutupalong camp area of Ukhia in Cox's Bazar district.
The law enforcers also recovered one local made pistol, one 24-inch ramda (local variation on cleaver) and 495 pieces contraband yaba pills from their possession.
Based on secret information, a team of Kutupalong camp under the ApBn-14 battalion arrested the two armed Rohingya at around 5:30 pm, says Additional SP Mohammad Ziaul Haque of Airport Armed Police (AAP) here on Sunday evening.
The arrestees were identified according to a message received here In connection with the arrest of two armed Rohingya terrorists with a domestic pistol, a 24-inch Ramada and 495 pieces of Yaba tablets based on intelligence information.
One country made pistol, a 24 inch Ramda and 495 pieces of yaba tablets were recovered from their possessions. They were secretly conducting drug activities in the camp area, including conducting terrorist activities. A case is being filed in this regard with local police station, he said.
However, names of the two arrested armed Rohinghya nationals were not being disclosed immediately.
Also read: Rohingya man held with 1.06kg crystal meth in Cox’s Bazar
Nor'wester destroys school in Maheshkhali; 3 students hurt
Three school children were injured as a nor'wester, locally called Kalbaisakhi, blew down a school in Cox's Bazar's Moheshkhali Saturday.
The storm destroyed Bangabandhu Private Primary School in Hoanak Purbo Horiar Chara.
The injured are kindergarten students Muntaha Begum, Mobasshera Begum; and first-grader Faria Sultana.
Classes started at Bangabandhu Primary School, as usual, in the morning.
Thirty minutes later, heavy rains, thunderstorms and strong winds pounded the primary school made of wood and corrugated iron sheets, causing widespread damage and leaving three students injured, Rahamat Ullah, headteacher of the school, said.
The critically injured Muntaha was first taken to Maheshkhali Upazila Health Complex and then to Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital.
Mobasshera and Faria are now undergoing treatment at Maheshkhali Upazila Health Complex.
The upazila administration will give financial assistance to the school for its reconstruction, Maheshkhali Upazila Nirbahi Officer Mohammad Yaseen said.
Also read: Nor’wester claims two lives in Bogura