Information Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud urged the global community to take united initiative to combat the devastating effects of climate change.

“Bangladesh has become the innocent victim of climate change. According to World Bank, the carbon emission rate of Bangladesh is only 5 tons per capita,” he said at a side event on ‘Climate Change Initiative of Bangladesh’ at COP 25 on Wednesday.

Bangladesh, Korea and Japan jointly organised the side event.

Mahmud said Bangladesh has taken initiatives to tackle climate change and installed over five million solar systems. “It is still one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change,” he reiterated.

The minister said the impact of climate change is now visible in Bangladesh.

“Sea levels are rising and salinity is increasing in coastal areas. Desertification has affected some areas. The ice of the Himalayas, the main source of water in Bangladesh, is melting fast. As a result, Bangladesh is now facing a multi-dimensional threat due to climate change,” he said.

Bangladesh has prepared an action plan for tackling the climate change and undertaken 720 domestically funded projects.

Hasan said Bangladesh is a small country with a large population. “Our priority sectors are education and health but we cannot focus on them due to climate change,” he said.

Two in-laws, who reportedly had an extra-marital affair, allegedly killed themselves at a village in the sadar upazila.

The deceased are Pinki, 19, wife of Ramproshad Pramanik of Batajor village and Sagor Biswas, 22, son of Shyamol Biswas of sadar upazila of Jhenaidah.

Locals said Pinki returned to her house at Batajor from her parent’s residence in Narail on Wednesday afternoon. Sagor, a relative of Pinki’s elder brother’s in-laws, came to Pinki’s house from Jhenidah.

Pinki’s husband Horiproshad returned from the market at night and found their bodies hanging from the ceiling.

Saiful Islam, OC of Magura Sadar Police Station, said they have lodged a case over the incident and sent the bodies to a hospital for autopsy.

He said they are investigating the incident.

Every year, nearly 8,00,000 people kill themselves and there are many more people who attempt suicide, according to WHO.

Data from the police headquarters show that the rate of suicides is increasing. In 2017, about 30 people on average took their own lives every day.

The government has restricted the entry of the people to the National Mausoleum in Savar from December 12 to December 15.

The restriction was imposed on Wednesday, according to a PID handout.

During this period, the mausoleum will be cleaned ahead of the Victory Day.

The people will not be allowed to enter the National Mausoleum until the departure of the President, Prime minister and guests on that day, the handout said.

A couple was found dead at a building in city’s Fakirapool area on Wednesday night.

The deceased were identified as Shahid Ahmed, 27, and Marzina, 21.

After being informed by locals, police found Shahid’s body hanging from the rooftop of a five-story building around 9:30pm, said Sub-Inspector Sujon Chandra Roy.

Police learned the victim’s name from the national identity card kept near the body. They also found a note saying that Marzina’s body was inside a plastic drum on the roof.

Police say they suspect that Shahid had killed his wife and later took his own life over family feud.

Three people, including a woman and her daughter, were killed and two others injured when a bus hit an auto-rickshaw on Dhaka-Kapasia-Monohardi road at Ghagotiachala in Kapasia upazila on Wednesday.

The deceased were identified as Hena Akter, 38, wife of Shafiqul of Barishabar Gao village, her daughter Mansura Akter, 10, of Kapasia upazila and Jibon Chandra Barman, 40, son of Jagadish Barman of Kushadia village in Sripur upazila.

The accident took place around 6:30pm when a bus of ‘Samrat Paribahan’ from Dhaka hit the auto-rickshaw coming from the opposite direction, killing the three on the spot and injuring two others, said Rafiqul Islam, officer-in-charge of Kapasia Police Station.

The injured were taken to Monohardi upazila Health Complex.