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EDITOR
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Editorial
‘Fortnightly’
পাক্ষিক |
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Enquires About Cyclone Damages In Bengal
Human Rights Report
Cyclone Amphan
made landfall on Wednesday in West Bengal in India
along the coastline of India and Bangladesh leaving
a trail of destruction in the region.
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Sheikh Hasina expressed sympathy to Mamata Banerjee
over the loss of life and property (File)
Dhaka:
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday
spoke with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee and enquired about the damages caused by
extremely severe cyclone Amphan.
"The Prime Minister phoned the West Bengal Chief
Minister at about 11:10 am and enquired about the
damages caused by the cyclone in the state," Dhaka
Tribune quoted Bangladesh PM's Press Secretary
Ihsanul Karim as saying.
Karim said that PM Hasina expressed sympathy to Ms
Banerjee over the loss of life and property due to
the cyclone.
Cyclone Amphan made landfall on Wednesday in West
Bengal in India along the coastline of India and
Bangladesh leaving a trail of destruction in the
region.
Cyclone Amphan wreaked havoc in West Bengal and
Odisha and caused the loss of lives and property. At
least 72 people have died in West Bengal.
In Bangladesh, cyclone Amphan had badly affected 26
districts, causing damage to the tune of 1,100 crore
Bangladesh Taka. It has claimed lives of at least 20
lives in Bangladesh, reported Dhaka Tribune.
As per a report in Dhaka Tribune, around one crore
people in the south-western and north-western
regions have been left without electricity as the
storm disrupted the power supply system.
Prime Minister Hasina has directed the authorities
to take prompt measures to provide money and relief
materials to those affected by the cyclone and
reconstruct their houses.
Shanto-Mariam Chairman dies from COVID-19
Human Rights Report:
Md Imamul Kabir Shanto, the chairman
of Shanto-Mariam University, has died in hospital
care after being diagnosed with COVID-19 at the age
of 66.
Imamul, who also had other preexisting conditions,
including diabetes, passed away during treatment at
Dhaka's Combined Military Hospital early Saturday,
Shanto-Mariam Foundation's Deputy Director Mujibur
Rahman Dilu said.
"My friend, a brave freedom fighter, died during
treatment at CMH. He had tested positive for the
coronavirus infection," he said.
Imamul will be laid to rest beside his parents'
graves in Dhaka's Banani graveyard after a funeral
prayer, according to Mujibur.
He had been hospitalised for four days after testing
positive for COVID-19, said Shahana Ferdousi, a
spokesperson for Shanto-Mariam University of
Creative Technology.
Aside from Shanto-Mariam University, Imamul was also
the founding chairman of Sundarban Courier Service,
Shanto Nibash and Shanto-Mariam Foundation.
Trump terminates
US relationship with WHO
Human Rights Report:
US President Donald Trump has announced that he is
terminating the country's relationship with the
World Health Organization (WHO).
The president has accused the WHO of failing to hold
Beijing to account over the coronavirus pandemic.
"China has total control over the World Health
Organization," the president said while announcing
measures aimed at punishing Beijing.
Washington will redirect funds to other bodies, he
said.
The US is the global health agency's largest single
contributor, providing more than $400m (£324m;
€360m) in 2019.
Mr Trump, who is campaigning for re-election this
year and has been criticised for his own handling of
the pandemic, has blamed China for trying to cover
up the coronavirus outbreak.
More than 102,000 people in the US have lost their
lives to Covid-19 - by far the biggest death toll in
the world.
What did Trump say?
"We will be today terminating our relationship with
the World Health Organization and directing those
funds" to other global public health charities, Mr
Trump said in the White House Rose Garden.
"The world is now suffering as a result of the
malfeasance of the Chinese government," he said.
He added that China had "instigated a global
pandemic that has cost over 100,000 American lives".
The president accused China of pressurising the WHO
to "mislead the world" about the virus.
What's the background to this?
Mr Trump's criticism of the WHO's handling of the
pandemic began last month when he threatened to
permanently withdraw US funding, suggesting the UN
health agency had "failed in its basic duty" in its
response.
"It is clear the repeated missteps by you and your
organisation in responding to the pandemic have been
extremely costly for the world," he wrote in a
letter to WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on 18
May.
He later labelled the WHO a "puppet of China".
Media captionMr Trump has repeatedly criticised
China's early handling of the outbreak
China has accused the US of being responsible for
the spread of the virus on its own soil, attributing
the outbreak to American "politicians who lie".
Earlier this month, Chinese Foreign Ministry
spokesman Zhao Lijian said Mr Trump was trying to
mislead the public, smear China and "shift the blame
for [the US's] own incompetent response".
WHO member states have since agreed to set up an
independent inquiry into the global response to the
pandemic.
BRTA recommends 80 pc
hike in bus fare
Human Rights Report:
Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) has
recommended raising bus fare by 80 percent as owners
have been directed to carry 50 per cent passengers
to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
"Road, Transport and Bridges Ministry will take the
final decision" BRTA acting Chairman Yunus Ali Molla
told the media.
The government on Thursday issued a gazette
notification allowing limited operation of public
transport and offices from May 31 to June 15 amid
the coronavirus outbreak.
It said public transports - buses, trains and
vessels - will have to maintain health
guidelines.The notification also said that all
government, semi-government and autonomous offices
will resume under self-management but ailing staff
and pregnant women have been asked to refrain from
joining work.
50% bus seats must be kept vacant
Road, Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader
on Saturday said 50% seats of buses must be kept
empty while plying on roads from Sunday.
Moreover, passengers will have to maintain 3 feet
distance from each other while travelling, he said
while briefing journalists from his residence.
Stern action will be taken against the people
concerned for failure to abide by the government
directives, he mentioned.
The minister also remarked that passengers, drivers,
helpers, and counter worker must wear face masks
while hand sanitizer, soaps, and hand washing
facilities must be made available at terminals.
He directed bus owners, labourers' organisations,
and other stakeholders to form terminal-based
monitoring team and arrange counselling for drivers
and helpers to prevent the spread of the deadly
virus.
The government on Thursday issued a gazette
notification allowing limited operation of public
transport and offices from May 31 to June 15.
It said public transports-buses, trains and
vessels-will have to maintain health guidelines.
The notification also said that all government,
semi-government and autonomous offices will resume
under self-management but ailing staff and pregnant
women have been asked to refrain from joining work.
CAB terms proposed bus fare hike 'unacceptable'
Human Rights Report:
Terming the proposed
bus fare hike "unacceptable", Consumers Association
of Bangladesh (CAB) on Saturday in press statement
said it is not a considerate decision, and urged the
government to stop the move.
The statement signed by CAB's President Golam Rahman
said, charging
passengers higher fare to minimise the losses of
transport owners due to the shutdown "is not
acceptable".
It also stated that the can announce a
governmentstimulus package -- as it has done for
other sectors -- or give subsidy or low-interest
loans for the transport sector so that owners do not
face losses for carrying limited number of
passengers.
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