THE Bangladesh apparel industry, the backbone of the nation’s economy, is caught in the crossfire of a perfect storm. The recent spell of violence, coupled with a nationwide curfew, has dealt a crippling blow to an industry already grappling with the aftershocks of the pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, and the Red Sea crisis. The clock is ticking as international buyers, with the looming Christmas season, pile on the pressure for timely deliveries. Exporters are frantically scrambling to recoup lost time...
Day: July 27, 2024
Staff Reporter : The international community, including the United Nations and the British Parliament, has expressed strong concern over the violence and clashes resulting from the quota reform movement, exerting significant global pressure on Bangladesh. Many global bodies are calling for fair and independent probes into the violence and the publication of findings to clarify what occurred. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk on Thursday called on the Bangladesh government to urgently disclose full details about last week’s crackdown on...
Staff Reporter : Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Shujan) on Friday demanded the formation of a commission comprising neutral persons and experts to investigate each killing during the countrywide violence centered on the quota reform movement. Shujan, a civil society platform, issued a statement signed by its President M. Hafizuddin Khan and Secretary Badiul Alam Majumdar, also demanding the punishment of those involved in these incidents. “We are deeply concerned by the ongoing deadlock caused by the students’ protest to reform the...
Entertainment Desk : Popular singer and television show producer Hasan Abidur Reja Jewel’s health condition recently took a turn for the worse. He has been put on a ventilator in a private hospital in Dhaka. The singer has been battling cancer for 11 years now. Despite receiving treatment at various hospitals in Bangladesh and abroad, his condition has deteriorated. Jewel’s wife, news presenter Sangeeta Ahmed, announced that Jewel is now on life support. Regarding his latest condition, Sangeeta Ahmed told...
Staff Reporter : The country’s export-oriented readymade garment (RMG) industry has faced losses worth over Tk 6,500 crore due to factory closures caused by the recent unrest. From July 18 to July 23, all RMG factories and export-import activities were halted due to clashes between law enforcement agencies and anti-quota protesters. The turmoil led to the deaths of more than 200 people. Apparel exporters reported potential losses of Tk 1,000 crore from late shipment discounts demanded by buyers and the...
Staff Reporter : Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina accused BNP-Jamaat activists of orchestrating widespread chaos to undermine the country’s progress and tarnish its international reputation. She called on citizens to help identify and bring the culprits to justice. “They, who are involved in such incidents, must be identified by searching every nook and cranny of the country,” she said after inspecting the damage at BTV Bhaban in Rampura, Dhaka, where a violent rampage occurred on Thursday. The Prime Minister recounted the...
Staff Reporter : Six people, including a Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal leader, have been arrested in connection with the killing of two police officers in Dhaka during the quota reform movement. At a press briefing held at the DMP Media Centre on Friday, Additional Commissioner Harunor Rashid, Chief of the Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), announced the arrests. A team from the DB’s Cyber and Special Crime (South) unit apprehended six individuals, including Demra Chhatra Dal Convener Masud...
Bangladesh National Women’s Football team will face Bhutan National Women’s Football team in their second FIFA International friendly match today at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimpu, the capital city of Bhutan. The match will kick-off at 6:00pm (Bangladesh Standard Time). Earlier, Bangladesh women thrashed Bhutan women 5-1 in their first FIFA International friendly match at the same venue on July 24....
AFP : Former US president Barack Obama endorsed his fellow Democrat Kamala Harris’ bid for the White House on Friday, delivering a major boost to her campaign to beat Donald Trump in November’s presidential election. “Earlier this week, Michelle and I called our friend Kamala Harris. We told her we think she’ll make a fantastic President of the United States, and that she has our full support,” Obama said on social media platform X. “At this critical moment for our...
City Desk : One more death was reported from dengue in 24 hours till Friday morning, raising the number of fatalities from the mosquito-borne disease in Bangladesh to 51 this year. During the period, 148 more patients were hospitalized with viral fever, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). Some 505 patients are receiving treatment in different hospitals across the country. A total of 5,398 dengue cases have been reported since January 1, 2024. Last year, 1,705 people...
Staff Reporter : A Dhaka court has sent former vice-president of Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (Ducsu) Nurul Haque Nur to jail in a case lodged over vandalizing and setting fire to Setu Bhaban in the capital’s Banani area on July 18. Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Shakil Ahammed passed the order as police produced Nur before the court after end of his five-day remand in the case and pleaded to keep him behind the bars till the end of probe. The...
News Desk : Travel agencies across the country have incurred a loss of Tk 6 billion in six days amid the curfew, holidays, and internet service interruption around the quota protests. According to the members of the Association of Travel Agents of Bangladesh or ATAB, travel agencies make sales of at least Tk 1 billion every day, reports bdnews24.com However, since Jul 18, travel agencies in Bangladesh have incurred huge losses after air ticket sales, hotel bookings and flight date...