IN BANGLADESH鈥橲 ever-evolving political drama, few arenas carry the weight of Dhaka University. For decades, it has served as the crucible of revolutions, the incubator of national leadership and the most sensitive barometer of public mood. The 2025 Dhaka University Central Students鈥� Union (DUCSU) elections, therefore, drew the nation鈥檚 hawk-eyed attention, and...
THIS is a reminder of the silent crisis enveloping maternal health that nearly 77 per cent of pregnant women seeking healthcare services are found to suffer from depression or anxiety and two-thirds endure both the conditions simultaneously. An International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh study, based on data gathered in 2022鈥�2025, shows the alarming...
THE win of the right-wing Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student front of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, in the elections to the Dhaka University Central Students鈥� Union, the yearly event that took place after a gap of six years on September 9, which were by and large free and fair, is a defeat of the centrist and left student political organisations. This needs to be recognised...
IN A viral YouTube clip, a young boy was asked why Bangladesh cannot recover from economic crisis if Sri Lanka, after bankruptcy, managed to rebound. His response was disarmingly sharp: 鈥楽ri Lanka鈥檚 government was corrupt, but its citizens were decent people. That is why the country managed to recover.鈥� He then added with brutal candour: 鈥業n Bangladesh, the...
Exhaustion, irregular periods, sudden weight gain and persistent acne 鈥� these signs are often dismissed as 鈥榡ust part of life.鈥� For a female student balancing studies and part-time work, or a mother managing a household from dawn to dusk, enduring discomfort becomes routine. Yet what if these symptoms refuse to subside? What if they are not simply stress or fatigue?...
THERE is a strange kind of comfort in the scroll. One minute you intend only to check the weather, and suddenly 45 minutes have passed. You find yourself knee-deep in a reel about the collapse of democracy, another about a looming recession, one more about an influencer鈥檚 petty drama and then a final clip of tragedy from halfway across the globe. You pause, your...
TRADEMARK is regarded as the primary method by which the products of one entity are distinguished from those of others. However, in today鈥檚 global trade, a trademark serves four purposes. It provides source identification, ensures product authenticity, advertises the product and shapes consumer perception. Trademark law plays a crucial role in protecting an...
THE Bangladesh Civil Service examination, often dubbed the 鈥榗ivilian lottery,鈥� has for decades been a defining gateway to public service. The three-stage test is known for its unforgiving rigour, shaping the destinies of thousands each year. Successful candidates secure coveted cadre positions, posts carrying prestige, authority and long-term security. For those who...
AN ALARMING increase in motorcycle accidents and consequent fatalities suggests both lax enforcement of traffic regulations and motorcyclists鈥� proclivity to disregard them. The photograph that 抖阴精品 published on September 9 shows three teenagers, in school uniforms and without helmets, riding a motorcycle in the rain near the Teacher-Student Centre on the...
SILENT zones, or no-horn zones, in the capital of Dhaka have almost never been silent. They are, in fact, noisier than other areas where noise is usually high mostly because of a large number of vehicles honking horns. The interim government, after its installation on August 8, 2024 after the fall of the Awami League鈥檚 regime amidst the July uprising, declared the...
THE July uprising stirred a renewed sense of hope that Bangladesh鈥檚 damaging political cycle might finally be broken, paving the way for a governance system that genuinely serves its citizens. 鈥楻eform鈥� quickly became the national watchword. In response, the interim government formed several commissions to draft proposals on constitutional changes, elections...
I ONCE asked Shahriar Kabir: 鈥楢s children, you were our favourite fiction writer. How did such a creative soul become entangled in such barren, uncreative circles?鈥�...
BENEATH Bangladesh鈥檚 rivers and canals lies a latent economic promise capable of reshaping how the nation moves, feeds, energises and sustains itself. Inland water resources 鈥� including rivers, streams, and canals 鈥� function not only as lifelines for transport but also as engines of growth, yet their full potential remains constrained by neglect, mismanagement...
INTERNATIONAL Literacy Day 2025 was observed on September 8 under the theme 鈥楶romoting literacy in the digital era.鈥� This theme resonates deeply with Bangladesh鈥檚 aspirations of becoming a Smart Nation by 2041. Literacy is no longer confined to the ability to read and write words on paper. In the 21st century, it encompasses the skills required to critically engage...
BANGLADESH observed International Literacy Day on September 8 without having any accurate statistics on the literacy rate in the country. During the Awami League regime, the government had manipulated the literacy rate on a number of occasions to falsely claim its success in the education sector. During their three consecutive terms, the literacy rate increased...