Government aims to appoint new operators at 3 Chattogram Port terminals by year-end, BIDA chief saysBangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun has said the government aims to appoint the “first” operator at three terminals of Chattogram Port by the end of this year. We intend to appoint the first operator for all the port terminals, especially NCT, Laldia Char, and Bay Terminal, by the end of this year.”Since Jul 7, the Navy-run Chittagong Dry Dock Limited (CDDL) has been operating the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) of Chattogram Port. Government staff have at various times expressed their intention to hand over port operations to foreign operators, particularly the UAE-based company DP World. Currently, the Saudi Arabia-based company Red Sea Gateway Terminal (RSGT) operates the Patenga Container Terminal at the port. Ashik said, “RSGT is the first international port terminal operator to come to Bangladesh.

Journalist Mozammel Babu has been placed under arrest in an extortion case filed by Boishakhi TV. On Sunday, Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ziadur Rahman ordered his arrest in the case after a hearing. The case's investigation officer, Banani Police Station Sub-Inspector Rajiul Amin, had recently applied to have Babu listed as a suspect and placed under arrest. “During the military-backed caretaker government [in 2007], a group led by Babu demanded Tk 100 million in extortion at the Boishakhi TV office. On Jan 11, Chowdhury Md Humayun Kabir of Boishakhi Media Ltd filed the case with Banani Police Station against Babu and two others.

Government moves to revise DAP again, with Floor Area Ratio set to ‘increase’The interim administration has decided to revise the Detailed Area Plan (DAP), initiated during the previous government, to make Dhaka more livable. This involves introducing changes, such as increasing the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) in certain regions. A RAJUK officer, REHAB Vice President Abdul Latif, and Bangladesh Institute of Planners President Adil Muhammad Khan confirmed the DAP revision decision to bdnews24.com. “With more housing units, population density will rise, putting pressure on services. On Jan 16 last year, the ministry amended the DAP, increasing FAR benefits for public and private housing, unplanned areas, block-based housing, and integrated plots.

Trade between Bangladesh and Pakistan has surged 20 percent in the 2024-25 fiscal year to $865 million, driven by a political thaw and stepped-up business contacts after the shift in power in August last year. Bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Pakistan totalled about $865 million in FY2025, up from $711.7 million the year before. Three months after the change of power, a Pakistan-flagged cargo vessel docked at Chattogram Port for the first time from Karachi. The National Board of Revenue says imports from Pakistan are dominated by garment raw materials, leather, clinker, fabrics, cotton, onions, and potatoes. Bangladesh mainly ships tea, ready-made garments, and raw jute to Pakistan.

Fatema Begum, an assistant commissioner in Dhaka’s Tax Zone 25, has been suspended after verbally abusing a traffic sergeant on duty. A video of the encounter, which later spread widely on social media, shows Fatema berating the sergeant. According to the notification, Jamal stopped the couple’s Toyota around 8pm on the day of the incident. The ministry said it decided to take departmental action against Fatema for misconduct. She has been temporarily suspended under the Government Servants (Discipline and Appeal) Rules.

The Election Commission has rejected the bids of 129 out of 145 parties to register for parliamentary polls, clearing only 16, including the National Citizen Party. An EC Secretariat committee met on Sunday to review the submissions, which were allowed time to correct errors and fill information gaps until Aug 3. Additional Secretary KM Ali Newaz said the 16 surviving parties will face on-the-ground investigations to verify their central and local offices, committees and other submitted details. Officials said 59 applications lacked required documents, while a further 69-70 failed to correct errors despite being given the opportunity. The EC will decide the next steps after receiving field investigation reports and commission approval.

The note, written in Bengali, read: “Be ready, Razakar. Joy Bangla, Joy Bangabandhu”. According to Milu, the assailants poured petrol and lit a fire outside his house around 11:30pm, moments after he returned home. Police later recovered the shroud and note from the scene. “Because of the rain, the house was wet and the fire didn’t spread,” Milu added, claiming the message’s “Joy Bangla” slogan indicated who was behind it.

The pavement and greenery around the lake at Dhaka’s Ramna Park captivate visiting tourists. In this polluted city, the park offers fresh air and tranquillity. Photo: Photo: Abdullah al Momin

CHITTAGONG, Aug 10: Chittagong Port authorities have detected a radioactive element in a container of scrap iron shipped from Brazil.The "Megaport Initiative Radiation Detection System" installed at the port detected the presence of the material in the container.Chattogram Customs temporarily halted the unloading of the container after the alert sounded. A decision on what will be done with the container will be taken after it has been examined by officials from the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC).The "Megaport Initiative Radiation Detection System" was installed with funds from an American organisation and is used to scan for radioactivity in containers coming from abroad.An alarm regarding the presence of radioactive material sounded during the container's inspection, said Mohammad Marufur Rahman, joint commissioner of Chattogram Customs.He delivery of the container was halted after that and it was placed at a separate location, he said.A letter has been sent to the BAEC and a check has been requested to determine the radioactivity level, he said.Chittagong Port Secretary Md Omar Faruk said the container had been detained for the time being, reiterating that it had set off the radiation alarm and would be tested by a BAEC team.Chattogram Customs officials said that a Al Aqsa Steel Limited, an iron-making company based in Dhaka's Demra, imported five containers of scrap iron from Brazil.The containers were loaded onto a ship headed for Chattogram, at the Manaus port in Brazil. The containers stopped at ports in Panama, the Netherlands, and Sri Lanka before arriving in Chittagong Port on Aug 3.It had arrived on the MV Mount Cameron at Chattogram. �"bdnews24.com

The government has sent nine Dhaka Metropolitan Police inspectors, all former chiefs of various police stations during the Awami League’s rule and each with 25 years of service, into compulsory retirement. The home ministry issued nine separate notifications on Aug 7 ordering their retirement. The officers-in-charge (OCs) are Sikder Md Shamim Hossain, Abdul Latif, SM Kamruzzaman, Abdul Quddus Fakir, Mamun Or Rashid, Nurul Islam, Kamal Hossain, Md Selimuzzaman and Abu Bakar Siddique. This section also says the government can retire an officer with a pension at any time after they have completed 25 years of service. During this period, the officer will continue to receive all facilities, benefits, and pension.

Two more people injured in the jet crash at Milestone School and College in Dhaka's Diabari have been discharged from hospital. Yusha, a third-grader, and Sumaiya Lorin, a teacher, returned home on Saturday after making a full recovery, according to Dr Shawon Bin Rahman, resident surgeon at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery. Following their release, the number of victims released from hospital now stands at 14. On Jul 21, a Bangladesh Air Force training aircraft crashed into a building on the campus and went up in flames. Following the incident, 56 were admitted to the burn institute.

Home Adviser Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury has said armed Ansar personnel will be deployed to protect presiding officers during the upcoming parliamentary polls. On Sunday, he stressed that the Ansar, a paramilitary auxiliary force, plays “the most important role" during elections. “This time we are doing something different… Often, people try to attack [presiding officers], so we are ensuring an armed guard so no one can harm them.”His comments follow Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus’s announcement that the national election will be held before Ramadan in February. Yunus’s office has sent a directive to the Election Commission to prepare for the election. Law enforcement readiness for a fair and free election has since come into focus.

The Ministry of Railways has formed an inquiry committee to scrutinise the specifications, involving technical, electrical capacity, and operational capacity, in the purchase of 30 metre-gauge locomotives for Bangladesh Railway. The purchase of these metre-gauge locomotives is under the project titled “Conversion of Chattogram-Dohazari Metre Gauge Railway to Dual Gauge Railway” being implemented by Bangladesh Railway. The release also said that Bangladesh Railway has already prepared draft specifications for the purchase. The member secretary of this committee is the additional director general of Bangladesh Railway. and submit a report to the Ministry of Railways within the next 15 working days.

Man gets death for 2002 murder of wife in Dhaka's KamrangircharA Dhaka court has sentenced a man to death for killing his wife in Kamrangirchar over a dowry demand of Tk 50,000 in 2002. Dhaka's Fourth Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal Judge Judge Munshi Md Moshiar Rahman delivered the verdict on Sunday. According to the case dossier, after marrying Dalia in 1997, Titu and his family members began harassing her with dowry demands. When the demand was not met, on Sept 7, 2002, Titu poured kerosene on Dalia and set her on fire. His brother Shah Alam, sister Jiboni, brother Mostafa, and mother Amena Begum were also accused of assisting in the attack.

Lawyer Saiful Islam Alif (pictured) was killed on 26 Nov 2024 during violence that erupted after a Chattogram court denied bail to Hindu preacher Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari. Lawyer Saiful Islam Alif (pictured) was killed on 26 Nov 2024 during violence that erupted after a Chattogram court denied bail to Hindu preacher Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari. A Chattogram court has issued a summons for the plaintiff to attend a hearing on the admissibility of the chargesheet in the murder case of lawyer Saiful Islam Alif. “The plaintiff in this case, the father of the slain lawyer Alif, could not appear in court due to illness from old age. The murder took place during a violent episode on Nov 26, 2024, in the aftermath of a court hearing that denied bail to Chinmoy.