NEARLY six months have passed since the Bangladesh Tree Protection Movement began a sit-in inside the partially destroyed Panthakunja Park, one of the capital鈥檚 last parks, calling for a halt to the construction of a section of the Dhaka elevated expressway from the Film Development Corporation to the Plassey crossing. Protesters say that the construction of the elevated...
A BRIEF spell of moderate rainfall brought vast areas of Dhaka to a standstill on May 22 as a grim reminder of the city鈥檚 chronic water stagnation problem. Roads went under water, forcing people to wade through knee-high water. Rickshaw pullers struggled...
THE chief adviser of the interim government, Professor Muhammad Yunus, has reasons to be unhappy about certain recent developments, political and otherwise, leading to his discontent to the extent of contemplating his resignation. The developments...
ANY assault on teachers is unacceptable as it happened when students of the National University attacked the vice-chancellor on May 21. And, further unacceptable is the reason that prompted the event as the students on the day assaulted the teacher, soon after he had got off his car at the administrative building on the university campus in Gazipur, demanding...
PERSISTENT food inflation, largely caused by a fragmented, inefficient market system, has placed millions of fixed- and low-income people in a precarious situation. Market experts, the consumers鈥� association and independent studies have for long pointed out the issue. Now, the Bangladesh Bank says that an inefficient market system, characterised by supply chain...
THE health sector reform report, of all the reforms commission reports, is better poised for a fast implementation, having faced little criticism and barriers as there is almost no contention about the report that recommends steps for the improvement in the health sector. What the authorities now need to do is to set strategic priorities and identify enablers and barriers to...
DHAKA continues to remain a very happening place in terms of protests that diverse groups hold to push for their demands. The rallies, demonstrations, gatherings, blockade and processions keep taking place on most of the weekdays, causing immense sufferings to people who need to go to work or do some other chores. The groups that are now out on the roads...
THE Roads and Highways Department鈥檚 finding that at least 712 bridges and culverts across the country are in urgent need of repairs is alarming. The figure, drawn from inspections in six of the department鈥檚 10 zones, paints a deplorable picture of the state of national infrastructure. An additional 1,319 structures are on the brink of degradation, pending maintenance, and at...
THE Bureau of Statistics quarterly update on labour force shows an increase in unemployed people to 2.73 million in the fourth quarter of 2024 compared with 2.4 million in the corresponding period of 2023. The document, made public on May 18, also shows a decline in the overall work force to 69.1 million in the 2024 October-December quarter from 71.1 million...
THE detention of actor Nusraat Faria in an attempted murder case filed in connection with the shooting of protesters in early days of the July 2024 uprising that toppled the Awami League government is worrying. The actor, who played the role of Sheikh Hasina in the 2023 biopic Mujib: The Making of a Nation, was detained by immigration officials at Dhaka airport..
ACADEMIC activities in institutions of tertiary education are yet to get back on a good footing as the atmosphere in the institutions still goes through hiccups that began in July 2024. It has already been more than 10 months since the universities began facing disruption in academic activities when public university teachers began abstaining from work in protest at...
AN EXPONENTIAL increase in Caesarean sections, or C-sections, which should be reserved for high-risk pregnancies or medical emergencies, is highly worrying. The increase in C-sections is also evident in rural areas, where earlier natural birth mostly happened. A study, published in the international medical journal BMJ Open, based on a survey of new mothers...
WALKING is a good exercise. But this is not so when it becomes involuntary, especially amidst a poor environment for walking. An increased share of walking in daily trips in the greater Dhaka area 鈥� which is composed of, wholly and partly, five districts of the Dhaka division which are Dhaka, Narayanganj, Gazipur, Narsingdi and Munshiganj 鈥� appears to be no sign...
PNEUMONIA having been a reason for the death of more than 12,000 children aged under five, which comes down to more than a child every hour, appears gravely worrying. The disease kills more than one in 10 children under five. In 2018, the disease, which is caused by bacteria, viruses or fungi leaving children fighting for breath, was responsible for more than 13 per cent...
WOMEN from all walks of life gathered on May 16 in a solidarity march demanding equality, dignity and justice at a time when democratic transformation of the state and society is said to be the national priority. The rally was organised in the context of recurring attacks on women in public places, especially after the targeted attack on members of the women鈥檚 affairs reforms...