Headline
Sand trading or river grabbing?
Govt launches drive to protect Turag, locals sceptic
In a drive against river grabbing often under the cover of sand trading, the Dhaka district administration yesterday removed heaps of sand from the foreshore of the Turag river, but did not arrest or fine anyone.
Administration officials, who conducted the drive at Sinnirtek in the capital’s Mirpur, said they did not find the grabbers. But this correspondent found on the spot four people who admitted doing sand trade there.
All the four men claimed they were lawful owners of the foreshore, and alleged Read more »
City News
Locals move to widen road as DNCC sits idle
Local people with businesses and homes alongside a three-kilometre road in Mirpur have given up land for free in order to allow the road to be widened by ten feet so that vehicles can pass each other with ease.
‘We started the demolition of the structures two years back and so far we have convinced 95 per cent of the house owners to provide the land for free,’ said M Humayoun Rashid Jony, convener of the Committee for Road Widening, formed by the land and house owners in West Read more »
Nation
Unauthorised fishing puts existence of Muria Haor in jeopardy
The existence of Muria Haor in Biyanibazar of Sylhet is now under threat for lack of a fish sanctuary along the vast water body, once bountiful with fish resources.
Unabated fishing through use of current nets and mosquito nets not only disturbs fish breeding in the haor but it has also denuded the water body of majority of the fish species once it had.
Once upon a time, the haor was home to at least 115 species of fish, most of which are now absent here.
Several spices of fish Read more »
Column
CSR and a new order of business
From being seen as mere philanthropy and ‘doing good’, corporate social responsibility is now at the heart of business sustainability and ethical and accountable corporate behaviour
Bitopi Das Chowdhury
CSR or corporate social responsibility has been a buzz phrase for quite some time now. Not a day goes by without it being mentioned, albeit in passing, in daily business discourse. Even during the last decade, CSR was looked upon by big businesses as “doing good” — something that was “extra” to their day-to-day effort of profit maximisation, a great public relations (PR) tool to generate empathy among their customers and favouritism from the powers that be. Not anymore.
Companies today realise Read more »
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Business
Govt considers raising tax-free income limit
The government is considering an option to raise tax-free income ceiling for individual taxpayers in the coming national budget for fiscal year 2013-2014 considering high pressure of inflation and falling purchasing power of the consumers with fixed income. National Board of Revenue officials said although (more...)
Tech & Web
Mobile phone celebrates 40th anniversary
The first mobile phone call was made 40 years ago today, on 3 April 1973. Martin Cooper, a senior engineer at Motorola, called a rival colleague at another telecoms company and announced he was speaking from "a 'real' cellular telephone". In 2012 a report carried out by the International Telecommunication Union found that there were six billion mobile phone subscriptions worldwide. (more...)
Health
Creating an inclusive and accessible world
International Day Of Persons With Disabilities Creating an inclusive and accessible world Dr Tamanna Afroz Around 15% of the world’s population, or one billion people, live with disabilities. And the rates of disability are increasing due to population ageing and increases in chronic health conditions. People with disabilities have less access to health care services and therefore experience unmet health care need. However, financing more in rehabilitation services and timely intervention can prevent many these disabilities (more...)
Environment
Warming trees limit warming – a little
Warmer temperature prompts trees to release aerosols which in turn stimulate cloud formation. And that can help to cool the temperature, at least modestly. Trees may provide the Earth with a little shade from global warming - indirectly. European and Canadian researchers report that they have found what engineers like to call a negative feedback loop above the forests of Europe and North America. It works like this. Trees - those natural chemical factories that routinely deliver complex aromatic compounds such as (more...)
Earth
Cheetah the best sprinter on earth
The fastest cheetah on Earth has done it again, breaking her previous world record for the 100-meter dash and setting a new best time of 5.95 seconds. This feat surpasses the fastest of all human 100-meter sprinters by almost four seconds. Usain Bolt, a Jamaican sprinter now competing at the 2012 London Olympics, holds the human world record at 9.58 seconds in the (more...)
Variety
Man forces lover to wear chastity belt
A 29-year-old man from China has forced his girlfriend to wear a chastity belt. Events leading to her wearing the chastity belt began in August when the man, surnamed He, suspected that his live-in lover, known only as Xiao Tian, was seeing another man. He assaulted Xiao Tian and locked her in the bedroom. The next day, He bought (more...)
Gossip
Will Smith plans comedy with son
Hollywood star Will Smith said Friday that he will probably shoot a comedy with his son Jaden when they team up for the third time in film-making, reports Hindustan Times. Smith, who arrived in Taiwan on Thursday on a promotional tour, said it was fantastic to work with the 15-year-old in their second movie together, the sci-fi flick After Earth, set to hit cinemas in June. (more...)
Cinema
Amin Khan to perform in historical character
Popular Dhallywood actor Amin Khan will take on the part of Muhsinuddin Ahmad Dudu Miyan, who was one of the great leaders of Faraizi Movement, in his upcoming film titled Dudu Miyan. Khan has been paired with actress Nawshin for this movie. The film, directed by Dial Rahman, will portray Dudu Miyan’s contribution to the Faraizi movement founded by Haji (more...)
World
Austrian going to jump from space
For 23 miles up on the edge of space, and wearing only a pressurised suit and a parachute, Felix Baumgartner will pause at the hatch of his tiny capsule as it ascends into the heavens beneath one of the biggest balloons ever made. The sponsor Red Bull Stratos announced on Friday that the jump by extreme athlete Baumgartner, 43, have been moved from Monday to Tuesday. The jump can only be made (more...)
Sports
Women set for football fiesta
The Group-B qualifying round of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup kicks off today in Dhaka with four teams, including hosts Bangladesh, vying for a place in the final round scheduled to be held sometime next year. The competition will get underway with a match (more...)
Entertainmnt
Salman Khan, the philanthropist
Following the footsteps of other Bollywood stars into the business of food joint chains, actor Salman Khan is planning to open restaurants and hospitals but insists it is not all for business but for a noble cause. "We will start restaurants in metros first...We will open first in Mumbai and Pune and so on. Profits earned from them will go to the need of people living in metros. We will tie-up with someone (more...)
Showbiz
Bollywood stars visit Sanjay Dutt
As actor Sanjay Dutt is slated to surrender before the TADA court here tomorrow in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case, several Bollywood personalities today met him at his residence in suburban Bandra PTI, reports Hindustan Times. As actor Sanjay Dutt is slated tosurrender before the TADA court here tomorrow in the 1993 Mumbai blasts (more...)
Life Style
Women Peak At 28 Men At 33
Women enjoy the best sex of their lives when they are 28. And they have the most sex when they are 25 – eight years after losing their virginity. Men, meanwhile, wait until they are 33 before having their best sex – and have their most sex when they are 29. The findings – in an exclusive poll of 1,281 people for Britain’s biggest online sex toy retailer lovehoney.co.uk – go against research which says that men reach their sexual peak at 18 and women (more...)
Women
Sleeping beauty
Your beauty routine needn't stop when you go to bed Do you know just how much the hours of sleep can contribute to your beauty regime? We're all aware that sleeping well is essential for both physical and mental health and well-being, but good nocturnal cosmetic habits are also important. So if you want to rise and shine and greet the morning with radiant skin, take a look at our recommendations: The importance of cleansing Before bed, a thorough cleansing routine is essential to clean the skin and leave it free of all traces of make up and (more...)
Art & Culture
European film festival begins
Two films screened on the opening day The two-week European Film Festival began with screening of two films on Sunday at the Star Cineplex of Bashundhara Garden City market in the capital. Information minister Hasanul Haq Inu inaugurated the festival as the chief guest. Each of the films will be (more...)
Feature
BRAC University: The World Champions
On January 3, members of 400 participating teams along with distinguished guests gathered at the Main Hall of Technische University, Berlin. Thousands if not millions watched the live feed online, from all around the world, eagerly and anxiously waiting for an announcement, the results of the World Universities Debating Championship 2013(WUDC 2013). The tournament is dubbed as the World Cup of debating and it is also considered as the largest (more...)
Other Headlines
Taher’s hanging cold blooded murder: HC
The execution of independence hero Lieutenant Colonel Abu Taher, Bir Uttam, in 1976 was a clear case of extra-judicial killing, said the High Court in its full verdict released on Monday. Lt Col Taher, a sector commander during the 1971 War of Liberation, was tried for high treason in secret by a tribunal inside Dhaka Central Jail on July 17, 1976. (more...)
Metropolitan
Govt fails to protect rivers around city from pollution
Shipping minister Shajahan Khan has admitted that the government has not been able to stop Dhaka City Corporation and the Water Supply and Sewerage Authority from dumping the city’s solid and liquid wastes into the rivers. Expressing particular concern over the dumping (more...)
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