National Road Safety Day / ‘Road deaths cannot be reduced without BRTA reform’
Dr Md Shamsul Hoque, professor of civil engineering at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), talks to Monorom Polok of The Daily Star about the role of systemic failures and corruption behind the alarming rate of traffic fatalities in Bangladesh, and the critical structural reforms required to curb it.
22 October 2025, 03:00 AM
World Mental Health Day / The pain we don’t see
In Bangla, terms related to mental illness are often reduced to one crude word: pagol (a mad person).
10 October 2025, 03:00 AM
International Day of Older Persons / Dhaka is not for old people, but it is their city too
We have built a society where many elderly people are entirely dependent on others to go out.
1 October 2025, 04:00 AM
International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances / When will there be justice for enforced disappearances?
The interim government should have made some headway by now.
30 August 2025, 02:00 AM
'There is no reason not to accept OHCHR assistance'
OHCHR alone cannot prevent atrocities anywhere when there is systematic denial by the concerned state or any authority of its duties, and a failure of the international community to act.
3 August 2025, 03:00 AM
‘Those responsible for custodial torture and death are rarely punished’
Nur Khan Liton, a human rights activist, discusses his experience of dealing with cases of custodial torture and deaths in an exclusive interview with Monorom Polok of The Daily Star.
27 June 2025, 03:00 AM
‘Labour reforms must ensure a dignified life for workers’
Writer-researcher Altaf Parvez discusses the recommendations made by the Labour Reform Commission to improve the state of workers in the country, in a conversation with Monorom Polok of The Daily Star.
1 May 2025, 03:00 AM
An unfinished struggle: Democracy, identity and reform
The interview explores the evolving narrative of democracy in Bangladesh since 1971.
6 April 2025, 02:00 AM
'A fire-proof future depends on total enforcement of regulations'
Dr Tanvir Manzur, professor of civil engineering at Buet, talks about the importance of adhering to the building code to prevent fire incidents.
26 March 2024, 16:00 PM
Anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism, and a cancelled exhibition
Anti-Semitism is defined as hostility or prejudice against Jewish people, while anti-Zionism opposes the movement to create a Jewish state and the occupation of Palestinian land.
27 December 2023, 02:00 AM
Skipping the Coke Studio Bangla concert amidst Gaza Crisis
Coca-Cola’s involvement has sparked a conversation about today’s Coke Studio Bangla concert. An ethical question has emerged in this discourse: should one attend the concert?
10 November 2023, 12:00 PM
Depression: My story in our stigmatized society
The concept of depression was foreign to me, and my limited knowledge of it came from the hushed conversations of elders
12 October 2023, 01:00 AM
A youth forced to censor their thoughts
It is a well-known fact that politicians seek to retain power once they attain it.
24 September 2023, 03:00 AM
Is the metro rail really opening tomorrow?
The limited launch of the metro tomorrow is unlikely to make any real dent in Dhaka's traffic problem
27 December 2022, 10:58 AM
Shonibar Bikel: Yet another captive of the “image” protector
At the very heart of a democratic society rests the freedom to speak, to create, and to choose.
21 August 2022, 17:35 PM
An open letter to the makers of ‘Nikhoj’
Dear Reehan Rahman, My father, photojournalist and editor Shafiqul Islam Kajol, was added to the list of hundreds of Bangladeshi victims of enforced disappearance on March 10, 2020.
20 April 2022, 13:53 PM
‘How is your father?’
An account by photojournalist Kajol’s son.
31 January 2021, 04:09 AM
Disappointment of a son
On 3rd May, after 12 am, I turned on my computer and began to write a short article regarding my missing father. I didn’t know back then that I was about to get a call and would be able to talk to my father in two hours.
11 May 2020, 18:00 PM