Bangladesh

    Bangladesh's pace bowling coach Heath Streak has said that there will be a conscious effort to avoid tinkering too much with Mustafizur Rahman's natural bowling abilities. Mustafizur broke Brian Vitori's record of ten wickets in his first two ODIs when he took 6 for 43 in the second ODI against India in Mirpur on Sunday. By taking 5 for 50 in his first ODI, he became only the second Bangladesh bowler to take a five-for on debut, after Taskin Ahmed. The unprecedented start to his international career means Mustafizur has garnered a lot of attention on his bowling methods, which are unique among the pace bowlers in Bangladesh. The last bowler to offer something different was Rubel Hossain who started off with a pronounced round-arm action. Though he has regained some of...

    People will have to pay for renewal and correction of any information in their National Identity (NID) cards from September. The Election Commission (EC) on Sunday issued a gazette notification imposing the new charge for this service, which are not provided free of cost. As a new rule, any person will have to pay Tk 100 for renewal of NID card or Tk 150 for emergency delivery. If the card is lost or damaged, the person will have to pay Tk 200 (emergency Tk 300) for first time, Tk 300 (emergency Tk 500) for second time and Tk 500 (emergency Tk 1,000) to get a new copy. As per existing law, all the NID cards must be renewed after 15 years from the date of its issuance, said Brig Gen Sultanuzzaman Md. Saleh Uddin, Director General of NID wing of the EC. Besides, the EC...

Akanda Muhammad Jahid: Two major aspects of Ramadan are self control and charity. The Holy Qur'an says: "Turn to your Lord when you are free from your affairs." In Bangladesh, Ramadan also means an increased traffic on the roads. And with everyone rushing to finish shopping before Eid comes knocking at our doors, traffic jams waste away our entire day and all our plans. Here’s how The Daily Star Online thinks you can make the best out of the Ramadan traffic jam and shopping: MAP OUT YOUR ROUTES Select at least two alternative ways besides the straight route to your destination. You can get help by reviewing maps, both online and offline. For example, if you want to go to Dhanmondi from Karwan Bazar, you may take either Manik Mia Avenue or Panthapath. SWITCHING ROUTES Find out ways so ...

    Saudia Arabia has rejected Bangladesh’s proposal to increase the quota of Hajj pilgrims. The religious affairs ministry, however, said in a statement on Tuesday that they were continuing their efforts to increase the quota fixed by the Saudi government last year. A total of 101,758 pilgrims from Bangladesh will be able to perform Hajj this year. But online applications of aspirants exceeded the quota by around 30,000. So, Dhaka had written to Riyadh to accommodate another 25,000 pilgrims. The ministry has asked ‘qualified’ aspirants to complete all formalities by June 18. On Dec 8 last year, the Cabinet approved Hajj packages for 2015. The government will give opportunity to 10,000 Bangladeshi pilgrims to perform Hajj in 2015. The cost of government packages will be be...

S Dilip Roy: Ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bangladesh visit, the people living by the Teesta River are hopeful that the Teesta water sharing agreement will be signed during his visit. The people believe that the Indian premier, alike the Land Boundary bill, will show positive attitude towards the water sharing agreement. Thousands of people live in different basins (char areas) of the river in Lalmonirhat. Most of the people's livelihoods are dependent on the river water and their lives become vulnerable when the river dries up. The farmers cannot cultivate crops properly as they do not get enough river water due to the crisis. Not only the farmers but also boatmen and fishermen, who depend on the river for their livelihoods, become jobless for eight to nine months a y...

    The ruling party in Bangladesh is using state mechanisms to curb the media, says a report published by London-based rights group Article 19. The report finds that violation of freedom of expression in Bangladesh rose alarmingly to over 33 percent in 2014, what was 12.5% in the previous year. “An overall 23% were carried out by the police, special forces such as the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and detective branch of police,” the report said. The report was released today on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, reflecting on how the past year went for journalists in Bangladesh. “The report did not record a single conviction for violence against journalists in 2014,” it reads. “The report worrying patterns of insufficient legal action against attacks on journalists...

    It is a special treat, especially for Tigers’ supporters when Bangladesh cricket team is firing on all cylinders, and in the process, stamping their dominance on the cricket field. After ending their 16-year jinx by beating Pakistan in the first game of the three-match series, Bangladesh romped to another resounding victory in the second match by seven wickets and 71 balls in the bag at Mirpur Stadium yesterday. Bangladesh did not just win the matches, they blew away their opponent with their remarkable all-round performance, in batting, bowling and fielding. Playing at home after a successful world cup campaign down under, Tigers adapted incredibly well to the pace and bounce of Mirpur’s wicket when they began batting in the first ODI of the current series. Tamim Iqbal to...