Border between friends shouldn’t be this deadly

At a director general-level border conference, the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) director general termed the killings along the Bangladesh-India border as unfortunate deaths.
16 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Another hardship on migrant workers in Malaysia

We are dismayed to learn about the proposal that will allow Malaysian employers to deduct 20 percent of migrant workers’ salaries to prevent them from fleeing workplaces. The disturbing news came to light when two rights bodies submitted a petition to the Malaysian human resources
15 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Expired drugs in pharmacies ‘not unusual’!

The comment of the president of the Association of Pharmaceutical Industries would have been passed off as a pun were it not for the fact that it has to do with the health of the public. He wants us not to be worried that there are time-expired medicines in the pharmacies
15 June 2019, 18:00 PM

When hospital wards become death traps

When parts of the ceiling of a paediatric ward falls on child patients and their attendants, it cannot be dismissed as an accident.
14 June 2019, 18:00 PM

New budget fails to address old concerns

The proposed budget for fiscal 2019-20 did not throw up any big surprises, but that itself is perhaps somewhat of a surprise.
14 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Myanmar reneging on its promise

While briefing foreign diplomats in Dhaka on Tuesday, the foreign minister lamented the mendacious position of Myanmar regarding the Rohingya issue, particularly its position on the repatriation of Rohingyas.
13 June 2019, 18:00 PM

No big surprise in new budget

There is no big change in the new budget, but it has promised many new reforms and development initiatives.
13 June 2019, 18:00 PM

A cancer hospital sitting idle for 12 years!

While care facilities for the large number of cancer patients in the country are severely inadequate, Rajshahi Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, the lone cancer care facility in Rajshahi division, is sitting idle with no cancer patients to avail treatment.
12 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Budget should include cash subsidies to rice farmers

It has been a disheartening realisation that farmers of our country, despite their back-breaking work in the fields to grow paddy that provides
12 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Is it really that hard to make our roads safe?

Words are not enough to describe our frustrations at the anarchy that is going on in our transport sector which leads to dangerous road
11 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Another ominous sign for the banking sector

Defaulted loans soared to the highest ever in the country’s history, totalling Tk 110,874 crore as of this March after another Tk 16,962 crore—also a new record—was added to the tally in the first quarter of this calendar year. Defaulted loans now account for 11.87 percent of total outstanding loans, up from 10.30 percent last December, which itself was alarming enough.
11 June 2019, 18:00 PM

The sorry state of Bailey bridges

We are not really surprised to know that frequent collapses of Bailey bridges have been reported across the country. Truckers, overloading their vehicles, go into these decades-old bridges causing them to fall apart. Although there are signs warning drivers of the dangers
10 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Revive the Mosquito Control Department

At a time when the residents of Dhaka are suffering from the unending menace of mosquitoes, the Mosquito Control Department, situated in Old Dhaka, is sitting idle with its limited authority to control the problem. A Daily Star report published on June 9 reveals that the office building
10 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Good govt initiative, if implemented well

We welcome the government’s plan to allocate Tk 100 crore for the rehabilitation of victims of river erosion which annually leaves around 50,000 people—who comprise around 30 to 40 percent of the homeless in the country—without a home.
9 June 2019, 18:00 PM

ASEAN’s clean chit to Myanmar

A leaked report prepared by the regional body’s Emergency Response and Assessment Team (ASEAN-ERAT) on the Rohingya issue exposes a preposterous attempt to hide the facts about the brutality committed by the Myanmar army in Rakhine.
9 June 2019, 18:00 PM

A major threat to the environment

It makes absolutely no sense as to why illegal stone extraction in Sylhet, Bandarban and other hilly regions in the country would continue despite directives from the High Court and calls from environmentalists and the local people to stop this dangerous practice.
8 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Who will answer for the ‘shootout’ killings?

The deaths of five persons in “shootouts” in different districts, and the manner in which those were explained away by the responsible agencies, show how this method of dealing with alleged criminals has become a law enforcement tool in Bangladesh.
8 June 2019, 18:00 PM

When fishermen cannot fish

Several fishing villages in Barishal did not take part in the usual Eid festivities like most parts of the country. It was like any other day, a day of struggle and hardship. Fishermen who have been in this profession for generations were barred from throwing their nets into the river to fish because of a government ban
7 June 2019, 18:00 PM

Road accidents mar Eid festivities

We are deeply saddened to know from news reports that at least 30 lives have been lost in road accidents around the country during the last three days of Eid holidays. The number of injured is as high as 104 till the time of writing this editorial. It is a matter of regret that despite the passionate road safety
7 June 2019, 18:00 PM

A promising start at the World Cup

We couldn’t be prouder of the Bangladesh cricket team for its stunning victory over South Africa at The Oval on Sunday.
3 June 2019, 18:00 PM