DEBRA Efroymson鈥檚 August 23 article, 鈥楯oys of Walking,鈥� presents a compelling vision of urban life in Dhaka as a struggle between pedestrians and the so-called 鈥榯hree-headed monster鈥� of cars, roads and fuel. While her enthusiasm for pedestrian-friendly cities is clear, her analysis is overly idealistic and overlooks the complex realities of urban mobility, social behaviour and...
FOUR Al Jazeera journalists, including globally admired correspondent Anas al-Sharif, were killed in Gaza in an Israeli air strike on Aug 10...
A SINGLE district police memo tells the story. The language of 鈥榩ermission first,鈥� the stress on 鈥榦rders,鈥� the presumption that authority flows in one direction: these are not quirks of one officer on one day. They are the reflexes of a legal order built to govern subjects rather than to serve citizens. Much of Bangladesh鈥檚 day-to-day criminal justice still runs on statutes...
THE statutory audit of financial statements 鈥� mandated by law 鈥� is a critical function to ensure transparency, accountability and stakeholder confidence. Globally, the right to perform statutory audits is restricted to professionals who meet rigorous legal, technical and ethical standards, often under a formal 鈥榗harter鈥� or licensing regime...
ISRAEL war of genocide is not about October 7; it is not about freeing Israeli captives. It is, first and foremost, about preserving a racist Jewish governing coalition and seizing a historic opportunity while a submissive administration in Washington looks the other way. The aim is to advance a biblical expansionist project and create the conditions for 鈥榮elf鈥� ethnic cleansing...
BANGLADESH鈥橲 artisan economy is not a relic of the past; it is a living industrial system spread across Narayanganj鈥揝onargaon鈥檚 Jamdani belt, Tangail鈥檚 saree heartland, Sirajganj鈥檚 handlooms, Rajshahi鈥檚 silk corridor, Rangpur鈥檚 shataranji, and shital pati weaving in Sylhet and Jhalakathi. Framing the Bangladesh Nationalist Party鈥檚 ongoing engagement with these...
EIGHT years after the military purge that forced over 700,000 Rohingya to flee Myanmar鈥檚 Rakhine State, the crisis remains unresolved. On 25 August 2025, refugees in Bangladesh will mark another year in limbo, with more than 1.15 million people still confined to squalid camps in Cox鈥檚 Bazar and the remote island of Bhasan Char. Bangladesh has displayed exceptional...
THE first hint is often a taste 鈥� tea brewed with brackish water, a sting on the tongue after a long walk home from the embankment. In Khulna, Satkhira and Barguna, families now measure seasons not only by rain and harvest but also by the creeping line where salt replaces sweet. Bangladesh鈥檚 coast, once buffered by mangroves and silt-heavy rivers, is becoming...
AS ISRAEL ticks off its list of Nazi-like atrocities against the Palestinians, including mass starvation, it prepares for yet another 鈥� the demolition of Gaza City, one of the oldest cities on Earth. Heavy engineering equipment and gigantic armoured bulldozers are tearing down hundreds of heavily damaged buildings. Cement trucks are churning out concrete to fill tunnels...
MYANMAR鈥橲 military campaign caused more than 700,000 Rohingyas flee to Bangladesh, beginning this day eight years ago.聽 The Rohingyas, the most persecuted ethnic community that time and its defenders the world over observes Rohingya Genocide Remembrance Day today, making it a occasion for reflections on the horrors, the need for justice and accountability...
IN THIS fast-changing economic environment, financial literacy has been elevated from a skill to a critical necessity. Nearly two-thirds of Bangladesh鈥檚 population resides in rural areas, where the lack of聽introductory financial knowledge impedes development and perpetuates poverty cycles. Abecedarian financial literacy is still unknown to millions of people living...
IN RECENT years, Bangladesh has witnessed a significant reform in higher education policy with the introduction of outcome-based education across both public and private universities. This approach, long embraced in advanced education systems around the world, marks a shift from traditional content-heavy curricula to a more learner-centric framework that...
EARLIER this month, scholars working at the London School of Economics argued, 鈥業t鈥檚 time to face up to power in the debate about wealth inequality.鈥� The authors note that of the various ways we could frame the problem of inequality, the framing that has most resonance with people 鈥榝ocuses on the problem of Unfair Influence. That is, it places the emphasis on...
PICTURE a tranquil afternoon in a Himalayan village. The mountains are draped in mist, the air feels crisp and the clouds seem to drift without purpose. Then, in an instant, the heavens rupture. Sheets of water cascade with an intensity that defies belief. Rivers rise like unleashed beasts, hillsides collapse, homes vanish and people flee for their lives. This is no ordinary...
BANGLADESH lives with the harsh reality of climate change every day. In recent years, the country has faced more intense floods, heatwaves, storms and droughts. Climate change is not some distant threat; it is already here, reshaping millions of lives. In rural communities, farmers are struggling to grow crops, coastal families are losing their homes, and children are...