Outgoing US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller has said the relationship between Bangladesh and the United States is "strong and will grow stronger". "As Senator Edward Kennedy said at Dhaka University in 1972, the real foreign policy of America is citizen to citizen, friend to friend, people to people. I hope I contributed in some small way to strengthening our friend-to-friend bonds," he said…

BNP Chaiperson Khaleda Zia, who is now undergoing treatment at Evercare Hospital in the capital, is likely to be taken to home within the next couple of days. Sources said Khaleda Zia doesn't want to stay at the hospital anymore. If everything goes well, her physicians want to give necessary treatment keeping her at home. A source of Khaleda Zia's medical team said the BNP chief was shifted from the…

As the country witnessed a sharp rise of COVID-19 cases in the past few weeks, the Cabinet Division today issued five- point fresh restrictions to contain the deadly virus. The restrictions are as follows: 1. All schools, colleges and equivalent educational institutions will remain closed from January 21 to February 6. 2. The authorities of all universities will take similar measures to prevent the…

BNP standing committee member Dr Khondker Mosharraf Hossain has termed the letter of 12 international human rights organisations to the UN urging to ban the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), from the the peacekeeping missions as "shame" for the entire nation. Dr Mosharraf asked: "Is it a pride for us? It must be an issue of shame for the entire nation. Who has humiliated us internationally? It's this…

US President Joe Biden nominated Nusrat Jahan Choudhury as the first Muslim-American woman to serve on the federal bench as he continues to expand the judiciary, the White House announced in a statement on Wednesday. Ms Choudhury, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois since 2020, has been tapped for the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York. If confirmed…

Avoid outdoor activities. It's hazardous to breathe in Dhaka. Yes, the densely populated capital of Bangladesh has once again topped the list of world cities with the worst air quality. Dhaka's air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 316 at 10.46am on Friday, which is considered ‘hazardous’. India’s Delhi and Kolkata occupied the second and third spots with AQI scores of 210 and…

Bangladesh has received first shipment of Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine, with the arrival of 3,36,000 doses on Thursday. The shipment of vaccine, sent by the United States under the COVAX programme, arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on Thursday morning. "The Johnson & Johnson vaccine arrived in Bangladesh for the first time on Thursday, said Dr Shamsul Huque,…

Health authorities on Wednesday (Jan 19) marked 12 districts, including Dhaka, as 'red zones' in high-level risk category amid the surge of Covid-19 infection rate and death in the country. The 12 districts are Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Jashore, Kushtia, Bogura, Gazipur, Dinajpur, Lalmonirhat, Panchagarh, Rangamati, and Khagrachhari. The average infection rate in these districts is 10%. Besides,…

Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) did not accept the proposals made by different distribution companies for gas price hike--both for household and commercial users. BERC's member (Gas) Makbul-E-Elahi Chowdhury confirmed the media about it on Wednesday evening in the wake of worry among people over the proposals made by the distribution companies. Last week, several distribution companies…

Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Wednesday said Bangladesh would remain open to foreign observers in the next parliamentary elections. Dr Momen conveyed it to outgoing US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller during a farewell meeting at State Guesthouse Padma, reports UNB. The Foreign Minister also briefed Ambassador Miller on the ongoing Union Parishad elections as well as the City Corporation…

India's Covid curve showed marginal improvement today as the country recorded 2,38,018 new cases in the last 24 hours -- 7 per cent lower than Monday's reported 2.58 lakh daily cases, according to the Health Ministry. 310 people have died due to Covid during the past 24-hour period, taking the total death count in the country due to the infection to 486,761. The country's caseload now stands at 3.75…

Bangladesh Awami League, during the talks with President M Abdul Hamid on Monday placed some proposals, including enacting new law, strengthening the Election Commission (EC) and using EVM like technologies in the polls. The ruling party AL led by its president and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina gave the proposals as she led the 10-member delegation to hold talks with the President over forming an acceptable…

The government has fixed the age limit for Covid-19 booster dose to 50 years from 60. Health Minister Zahid Maleque announced the decision on Monday. Bangladesh on December 28 officially began the administration of booster doses of a Covid-19 vaccine. Currently, those over the age of 60 and those working as frontliners are eligible for the third dose. Anyone receiving the booster must have received…