United News of Bangladesh

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Baharul Alam on Tuesday emphasised the avoidance of lethal weapons during law enforcement operations saying that the police will not become a 'killer force'. He made the remark while responding to questions from journalists after distributing prizes among the winners of the IGP Cup Cricket Tournament final held at the Police Staff College ground in the city’s Mirpur. '“We will avoid weapons that cause certain death, like rifles that fire lethal bullets,” said the police chief. However, we will finalise this through consultations. But in principle, we believe that the police cannot be a killer force, the IGP added. Highlighting the need for non-lethal weapons in routine operations, the IGP said, “At most, I might carry a shotgun — that’s a reasonable public expectation, isn’t it?” He noted that in special zones where there are insurgencies or possibilities of revolts, different measures are sometimes required there. “But normally, while maintaining law and order, we will try to avoid lethal weapons and use non-lethal ones, which are widely accepted globally,” he added. BCB President Faruque Ahmed and senior police officials were also present at the event. Earlier, the IGP handed over trophies to the champion and runner-up teams of the tournament.

Workers of GK Garments blocked Dhaka-Aricha highway demanding payment of their dues at Birulia in Savar, on the outskirts of the capital on Tuesday. Witnesses said the workers of GK Garments blocked the Birulia road around 10:30am, halting vehicular movement. A long tailback formed on both sides of the highway following the blockade, said officer-in-charge of Savar Police Station Md Jewel Mia. On information, joint forces including members of Bangladesh Army rushed to the spot and asked the workers to leave the road. However, the vehicular movement came to normal around 11 am following assurance from the joint forces. Danish delegation visits ‘Suad Garments’ in Narayanganj EPZ Contacted, the authorities concerned of the factory said the factory authorities were scheduled to provide the salary of April on Tuesday. However, due to various complications, the payment could not be made and a new date of May 18 was set.  Garments factory official dies during protest over unpaid wages in Dhaka Rafiqul Islam Sujan, president of Bangladesh Garments and Industries Workers Federation urged to clear the payment soon.  Challenges and Export Prospects of Bangladesh Readymade Garments Industry for 2024: Reality and Expectations

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus is set to visit his home district of Chattogram on Wednesday morning for the first time since taking office, with a series of engagements planned during his roughly 12-hour stay. Professor Yunus will attend as the chief guest at the fifth convocation of Chittagong University (CU), where he will also deliver the convocation address, officials said. In recognition of his contributions, Chittagong University will confer upon him an honorary Doctor of Letters (D Litt) degree. A former faculty member of CU’s Economics Department and a Nobel Laureate, his return to the campus is being hailed as a historic moment. From Chattogram Circuit House, the Chief Adviser will join the foundation stone-laying ceremony for a new rail-and-road bridge over the Karnaphuli River at Kalurghat apart from his other engagements. He is likely to visit Chattogram port soon after his arrival in Chattogram, an official told UNB. After the convocation, Professor Yunus will travel to his ancestral home in Bathua village of Shikarpur union, Hathazari upazila. Chittagong University will host the largest convocation in the country’s history on Tuesday, awarding degrees to 22,586 students. NBR spilt into 2 divisions to overhaul tax system: Govt The event is set to take place on the university’s scenic 2,300-acre campus nestled in the hills of Hathazari, creating a vibrant and festive atmosphere. The central event will be held at CU’s north campus field, where a 150,000-square-foot pavilion has been erected to accommodate over 25,000 guests. The convocation will be broadcast live on LED screens placed at five key locations across campus. In addition to undergraduate and postgraduate degree recipients, the university will honour 42 PhD awardees and 33 MPhil scholars. CU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Yeahia Akhter described the convocation as “an academic celebration—an apex moment for any student,” noting that CU students have been deprived of this experience for nearly a decade. “Thanks to the success of the anti-discrimination movement, we are finally making this happen,” he told reporters. Education Adviser CR Abrar, Health Adviser Nurjahan Begum, Liberation War Affairs Adviser Farooq-e-Azam and Energy Adviser Dr Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan are also expected to attend.

The Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) has secured investments totaling US$480 million from 32 local & foreign companies in the 2024-25 fiscal year until May 13. The investments secured at the Export Processing Zones (EPZs) and the BEPZA Economic Zone (EZ), reaffirm its pivotal role in driving Bangladesh’s industrial growth, according to a press release on Tuesday. As part of this significant investment drive, BEPZA on Tuesday signed a lease agreement with Qingdao Dongfang Packaging Technology Limited, a Chinese company, to establish a packaging and accessories manufacturing industry in the Ishwardi EPZ. BEPZA introduces employment injury scheme for EPZ workers The signing ceremony took place at the BEPZA Complex in Dhaka, in the presence of BEPZA Executive Chairman Major General Abul Kalam Mohammad Ziaur Rahman. Md. Ashraful Kabir, member (Investment Promotion) of BEPZA, and Song Shiliang, chairman of Qingdao Dongfang Packaging Technology Limited, signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations. Qingdao Dongfang Packaging Technology will invest US$ 4.5 million to produce 5.25 million dozen poly bags, hang tags, and paper tags annually, creating employment opportunities for 240 Bangladeshi nationals. Speaking at the event, BEPZA executive chairman expressed gratitude to Qingdao Dongfang Packaging for choosing Ishwardi EPZ as their investment destination. He emphasised BEPZA's commitment to providing a secure and supportive environment for investors, encouraging the company and other Chinese investors to explore further investment opportunities across diverse sectors.

An electric shuttle bus service has been launched on Dhaka University campus, aiming to ensure safer and more convenient transportation of students. Four electric shuttle cars will operate daily from 8am to 8pm under the initiative  supported by Green Future Foundation.    

The International Farakka Committee on Tuesday called for protests across Bangladesh against India's "water aggression". Speakers made the call at a roundtable organised to commemorate the Farakka Long March organized by Maulana Bhashani on 16 May 1976. The successful long march of lakhs of people helped in the signing of the Ganga Water Sharing Treaty of 1977 with a guarantee clause the following year. The International Farakka Committee, Bangladesh, with the support of the International Farakka Committee (IFC), New York, organized the roundtable at the National Press Club. The speakers called on the people from all walks of life to make a national mass rally organized at the Central Shaheed Minar on 16 May a success to accelerate the movement against water aggression. The speakers at the event called on the interim government to take initiatives at national and international levels for the renewal of the Ganga Water Treaty with a guarantee clause, the conclusion of the Teesta Treaty, the implementation of the Teesta Master Plan and the overall management agreement on the remaining 52 joint rivers to ensure their environmental flows. Former Water Resources Minister, Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram was the chief guest at the function. IFC, Renata PLC partner to boost Bangladesh's pharmaceutical industry Professor Jasim Uddin Ahmad, former VC, Jahangirnagar University and Chief Advisor, IFC; Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed, Senior Joint Secretary General, BNP; Syed Tipu Sultan, Chairman, International Farakka Committee (IFC), New York; Brig. Gen. Md. Hasan Nasir (retd), geopolitics analyst were special guests at the function also addressed by Qazi Mostafa Kamal and many others. IFC Bangladesh President, Mustafa Kamal Majumder, presided over the event. Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin said that the flow of water in Bangladesh has decreased due to the construction of numerous dams on each of the 54 shared rivers. He said that they also want to divert the water of the Brahmaputra river to the Ganges through the mountains. We get 65 percent of our water from this river, he said. He described the bitter experience of various meetings on water distribution and said that they do not want to pay attention to our water needs in the downstream countries. India was a friend of Bangladesh during the Liberation War, but in the following years, it tried more to establish hegemony rather than friendship. In the last 15 years, they turned Bangladesh into a colony by establishing a loyal government. The government that was sitting in this country protected the interests of other countries. The students and the masses of Bangladesh expelled them through a united movement. Interestingly, now when China is building dams upstream of the Brahmaputra, India is seeking Bangladesh's help to protect the rights of the downstream countries, he added. He said that if the 180 million people of Bangladesh are united, they will definitely be able to establish their fair rights to water. Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said that the Indian government is carrying out water aggression against Bangladesh out of the mentality of nurturing their old desires to establish their hegemony. 180 million people live in this country. They are behaving arbitrarily against their natural environment. He regretted that all the harsh language used against India's hegemonic mentality has been created by the leftists. But now they are not speaking out against India's water aggression. Everyone should work to protect the interests of the country. He applauded the people struggling to establish the right to water and called on everyone to raise their voice against water aggression. Brig. Gen (retd)  Md. Hasan Nasir said that the flows of the 54  rivers passing through Bangladesh have been diverted, threatening the geographical security of this country. Except for the Ganga Agreement of 1977, no other agreement has protected the interests of Bangladesh. Syed Tipu Sultan highlighted the history of the IFC water movement and said that when people protest, it also affects the water policy of the Indian government. He said that if necessary, a gathering of lakhs of people will be called again to establish the right to water. Professor Jasim Uddin Ahmad said that only the Ganga Accord of 1977 had a guarantee clause. This indispensable clause of the water agreement was not included in any other subsequent agreement. 

The SME Foundation has proposed unified 10 percent VAT for SME sector industries and 1.0 percent surcharge on profit gain in the upcoming national budget of FY26. This came in a views exchange meeting on ‘SME Friendly Budget Proposal 2025-26’ with the Economic Reporters’ Forum (ERF), held at ERF Auditorium in Paltan on Tuesday. “The budget for the next fiscal year requires policy support for the development of the country's SME sector. For this, 140 proposals have already been submitted to the National Board of Revenue (NBR), said SME Foundation Chairperson Md. Musfiqur Rahman, while speaking as the chief guest at the event.  SME sector should encourage more women entrepreneurs: Seminar He also said since its establishment in 2007, the SME Foundation has been implementing various activities including the implementation of Industrial Policies 2016 and 2022, SME Policy 2019, SDG 2030, and other policies of government, strategy papers and instructions. In addition, the Foundation is implementing various activities including creating an SME-friendly business environment and entrepreneurship development, research and policy advocacy, cluster development, technology transfer, ICT support, skill development, women-entrepreneur development, and financing on easy terms, said Rahman.  Danish delegation visits ‘Suad Garments’ in Narayanganj EPZ The SME Foundation chairman stated that the direct beneficiaries of these activities are about 2 lakh and the indirect beneficiaries are about 2 million entrepreneurs. However, according to the 2024 Economic Survey, this rate is very low compared to the 11.8 million entrepreneurs in the country. The SME Foundation Managing Director Anwar Hossain Chowdhury said that around 70 percent of SME entrepreneurs are outside Dhaka. But the SME Foundation does not have any office outside Dhaka. He said in such a situation, regular allocation of funds in favour of the SME Foundation is required in the budget of each fiscal year to bring more entrepreneurs under loan for the development of the SME sector in the country, implement the SME Policy 2025, and implement programs for the development of the SME sector and entrepreneurs.   Along with this, the SME Foundation has sought an allocation of at least Tk 500 crore in the next budget, he pointed out. With ERF Acting President Ashraful Islam in the chair, SME Foundation Director and Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers Entrepreneurs’ Association president Samim Ahmed, SME Foundation Deputy General Manager Muhammad Morshed Alam among others, spoke at the event. ERF General Secretary Abul Kashem moderated the workshop.  Drain work, encroachment renders Narayanganj footpaths unusable

On the busy roads of Dhaka, discipline often takes a backseat. The capital’s streets, witness a daily routine of buses stopping abruptly in the middle of the road to pick up or drop off passengers — completely ignoring designated bus stops.   Photo: Tahiyat Nazifa Noor Photo: Tahiyat Nazifa Noor

The upcoming national budget will not be based on large-scale borrowing from banks or money printing, Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed said on Tuesday. “We will implement the budget in a fairly realistic manner. We will not design it with a huge gap. We won’t go forward with massive deficit financing for mega projects by borrowing heavily or printing money. Of course, there will be some deficit, but we plan to negotiate project-related support with the IMF and the World Bank,” Dr Ahmed said. Businesses, experts call for business-friendly policies in upcoming budget Speaking to journalists following a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Government Procurement at the Cabinet Division of the Secretariat, he stressed a more restrained fiscal approach. When asked if the forthcoming budget would be smaller than the previous one, he responded, “That will be clear in due time.” Procurement and Project Approvals Addressing procurement-related issues, Dr Ahmed noted a slight shortfall in edible oil and confirmed discussions about importing rice bran oil, and mentioned that most procurement proposals were from the Ministry of Water Resources. “Our riverbanks have eroded significantly, so we’ve approved six projects for river protection. If we preserve our rivers, it will prevent roads from being damaged during the monsoon season,” the adviser said. Additional projects were also approved concerning food storage and liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports. Next budget to focus on removing non-tariff barriers: NBR Chairman NBR Ordinance Safeguards All Interests Commenting on the newly introduced ordinance involving the National Board of Revenue (NBR), Dr Ahmed claimed it upholds everyone’s interests. Customs officials had raised concerns, claiming their views were overlooked in drafting the ordinance. In response, Dr Ahmed said, “We don’t want to comment on that. Let them say what they will. But I encourage you to read the ordinance thoroughly …you’ll see their interests have been protected. There’s no need for concern.” He elaborated that in line with international practice, policy and implementation functions should remain separate. “Policy formulation requires professionals with a strong grasp of economic statistics and GDP. The NBR’s role is implementation. If the same body both creates and enforces tax policy, there could be conflicts of interest.” He went on to say, “The ordinance has been thoughtfully prepared. It’s not true that there was no discussion. While we can’t consult every single NBR official, discussions were held with key members and administrative personnel.” Revenue Performance Remains Stable On the question of revenue collection, Dr Ahmed said, “Revenue has already increased by 2 per cent compared to the previous year. That’s not disappointing. So I’m hopeful that it will at least match or exceed last year’s figure.”    

The NBR Unity Council, a platform of officers and employees from Customs, VAT and Income Tax wings of the National Board of Revenue (NBR), on Tuesday announced a three-day work abstention beginning tomorrow (Wednesday). The protest comes in response to the government’s decision to split the NBR, allegedly bypassing the recommendations of the NBR Reform Committee. NBR spilt into 2 divisions to overhaul tax system: Govt Additional Commissioner Sadhan Kumar Kundu announced the programme following a sit-in demonstration held in front of the NBR headquarters. According to him, the work abstention will take place from 10am to 1pm on Wednesday, 10am to 3pm on Thursday and 10am to 3pm on Saturday. Joint Commissioners Monalisa Shahrin Susmita and Fazle Elahi also addressed the gathering. The sit-in began at 4pm. During the protest, NBR Chairman Md Abdur Rahman left the premises to attend a meeting elsewhere. The NBR Unity Council wanted the ordinance to be cancelled as the report of the NBR Advisory Reform Committee was not made public and the discussions the committee had with the Unity were not reflected in the ordinance. They also alleged that there were no discussions with the relevant stakeholders. As per the decision, international passenger services, budget activities and export activities will remain out of the purview of the work abstention programme. For the past few weeks, NBR officials have been staging protests demanding that the provision allowing admin cadre officials to be appointed under the new law be scrapped. The law, which splits the NBR into two entities -- Revenue Policy Division and Revenue Management Division-- has become a point of contention. The government formed the NBR Reform Committee on October 9 last year, comprising former NBR chairmen Muhammad Abdul Mazid and Nasiruddin Ahmed, and former members Delwar Hossain and Aminur Rahman. The ordinance was published secretly at midnight yesterday (Monday). Under the new law, the government can appoint any suitably qualified government officer as secretary or senior secretary of the newly formed Revenue Policy and Revenue Management Divisions. Besides, the Customs, Excise and Value Added Tax Appellate Tribunal and the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal will now fall under the Revenue Policy Division of the Finance Ministry. The interim government, led by Professor Muhammad Yunus, recently approved the draft law to divide NBR into Revenue Policy Division and Revenue Management Division. As per the law, various posts in the Revenue Policy and Management Divisions will be filled by officers with experience in income tax, value added tax, customs, economics, business administration, research and statistics, administration, audit and accounting, and legal work. According to the law, it is necessary to separate the government's revenue policy formulation activities and revenue collection management activities. It mentioned that it is appropriate and necessary to establish a Revenue Policy Division and a Revenue Management Division by restructuring the existing structure to increase transparency, accountability and dynamism of revenue collection activities. “Various posts in the administrative division of the Revenue Management Division will be filled from the Bangladesh Civil Service (Administration) cadre and employees working in the Revenue Management Department,” the proposed law says. Whereas Parliament is in a state of dissolution and it appears to the President to his satisfaction that the circumstances exist which require immediate action, the President, by virtue of the powers conferred by Article 93(1) of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, will promulgate the Ordinance, which will be called The Revenue Policy and Revenue Management Ordinance, 2025. After the promulgation of this Ordinance, the Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, establish a new division called the Revenue Policy Division, which shall be under the Ministry of Finance. Govt abolishes NBR, splits it into two new revenue divisions