Shaheen Mollah

They are the ones who run towards danger when others run from it. Be it a fire, explosion, road accident, landslide, launch capsize or other natural or manmade calamities, these first responders rush to the spot selflessly.

The prices of fine rice have gone up in the capital’s wholesale and retail markets, aggravating the suffering of the people from middle-income families who are already struggling to meet their household expenses due to spiraling prices of essentials, including edible oil and lentil.

All central prisons across Bangladesh will hold Eid jamaat (congregations) on a large scale this year. Large congregations were prohibited in prisons for two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to prison sources.

Heated arguments and brawls between the shopkeepers of New Market area and Dhaka College students are nothing new. Over the years, the city dwellers suffered their share when both the parties locked into running battles and violent clashes -- most of the time over trivial matters.

For years, slum dwellers have been making a living by operating boats on the lake connecting Karail slum and Gulshan-1. However, these days, they are having an extremely hard time continuing their profession, due to the immense pressure from local extortionists. The boatmen allege that thugs attack them as they are unable to pay the demanded extortion money.

The retail prices of non-bottled and bottled soybean and palm oil have gone up by Tk 10-15 per litre overnight due to a supply crunch in the aftermath of Indonesia’s export ban on crude and refined palm oil imposed on Wednesday.

Justice may remain elusive for Mitu Akter, wife of shopkeeper Morsalin, who died early yesterday from the head injuries he suffered during the New Market clashes on Tuesday. But her main worry now is how to survive with her two children.

It was when they unclothed Nahid Hossain’s dead body for post mortem examination that the morgue staff realised how horrifyingly he had been beaten to death by the sparring Dhaka College students and the New Market shopkeepers.

The rising prices of essentials ahead of Ramadan has dealt a fresh blow to the people with limited income.

It takes Anwar Hossain, a 60-year-old cook at a mess in the capital’s Farmgate, about an hour to make a trip to the nearest deep tube-well, get 10 litres of water, and return home.

Nasima Begum, in the advanced stages of pregnancy and carrying her two-year-old, was waiting for over two hours at the designated point in the capital’s Kazipara Bus Stand for a TCB truck to arrive with daily essentials.

Even though the government on Monday partially removing VAT on edible oils, consumers have yet to get any relief as traders have not reduced prices as of yesterday. 

No matter how hard Md Shaon, a day labourer, and his wife, a domestic help, work, their attempts fall short against the skyrocketing price to make ends meet for their family of five.

A crisis of edible oil, particularly soybean oil, has hit the domestic markets amid retailers and wholesalers stocking up and refiners slowing down delivery, as prices of essential commodities keep climbing in the international market.

Amidst the chaos that is Dhaka, Mirpur-10 stands almost as a perfect representation of the city’s frenzy, albeit with a bizarre aesthetic of its own.

Arrested for marijuana possession, rickshaw puller Abdul Kuddus landed in Dhaka Central Jail in October 2020.

On this day three years ago, 71 people lost their lives in a devastating explosion originating from chemicals illegally stored in Wahed Mansion in Old Dhaka.

It’s a curious term. When you hear of a “band party”, you know it’s different from a musical band, although a band party accomplishes the same function: to provide entertainment through music.

On February 22, 2015, three adolescent boys were shot dead in the capital’s Mirpur area during a violent political movement, on suspicion that they were arsonists linked to the opposition party.

Believe it or not, if someone wants to lease a grave -- even if it’s just around 28 square feet of land -- for 25 years in an area of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC), they’ll have to pay a hefty Tk 20 lakh!