Staff Correspondent, Dhaka The Chief Adviser`s Press Wing on Friday called news published on India.com "false and part of an Indian-orchestrated propaganda campaign" against Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus, his family members and the interim government of Bangladesh. Yunus did not donate any money to the Hillary Clinton Foundation as claimed in the report, said its fact-checking wing. His friendship with the Clintons has not benefited his daughter, Monica Yunus, and contrary to the claim, she never held any position in Joe Biden`s administration, said the press wing. The report of Yunus receiving millions of dollars in loans while Hillary Clinton served as US secretary of state is also false, it said in a Facebook post. Yunus also played no role in the World Bank’s decision to scrap any loan deal for the Padma Bridge project, it added.

Staff Correspondent, Dhaka Due to the ample supply of winter vegetables, the vegetable market in Dhaka has stabilized significantly. However, the scenario is quite the opposite in the market for fish, meat and other daily necessities. According to traders, the price of meat may increase further before Shab-e-Barat. This information was gathered during a visit to the Mirpur-1 kitchen market in the capital on Friday. Currently, the prices of almost all vegetables are within a reasonable range, bringing relief to consumers. On Friday, tomatoes are being sold at Tk40 per kg, carrots at Tk40, beans at Tk30–40, long eggplants at Tk40, white round eggplants at Tk50, black round eggplants at Tk50–60, cucumbers at Tk30–40, bitter gourds at Tk70, papayas at Tk40, radishes at Tk20, red radishes at Tk30, turnips at Tk20, ladyfingers at Tk70, pointed gourds at Tk80, ridge gourds at Tk60, snake gourds at Tk60, yardlong beans at Tk60–70, onion stalks at Tk20, taro stems at Tk80, taro roots at Tk80, pumpkins at Tk30, green chilies at Tk50–60, and coriander leaves at Tk50 per kg. Depending on quality, bottle gourds are priced at Tk60–70 each, white pumpkins at Tk40–50, cauliflowers at Tk20 and cabbages at Tk20 each. Additionally, raw bananas are priced at Tk25 per four pieces, while lemons are sold at Tk25–30 per set of four. Compared to last week, the prices of most vegetables have dropped by Tk10–30 per kg, while some have remained unchanged. Shahed Ahmed, a buyer, expressed his satisfaction, saying: "The prices of vegetables have dropped significantly. It should always stay this way. Such prices ensure everyone can afford to eat and live properly.” Vendor Md Shah Alam said: "The quality of vegetables is excellent now and the prices are reasonable. Previously, we used to buy vegetables at higher prices, and they were not as fresh as they are now.” The prices of all varieties of potatoes have decreased, along with a drop in the price of Chinese ginger. On Friday, new local onions are sold at Tk50–55 per kg, with smaller onions priced at Tk50 and larger ones at Tk55. New white potatoes are available at Tk25 per kg, red potatoes at Tk25, and Bogra potatoes at Tk30–35 per kg. Local garlic is priced at Tk240 per kg, Chinese garlic at Tk220–230, Chinese ginger at Tk200–220, and new Indian ginger at Tk120 per kg. Compared to last week, the price of new white potatoes has decreased by Tk5–10 per kg, red potatoes by Tk5–10, and Bogra potatoes by Tk15–20. Additionally, Chinese ginger prices have dropped by Tk20–40 per kg. Meat market stands firm amid price increase Although the prices of broiler and cock chickens have slightly decreased, they remain far from satisfactory. Meanwhile, the prices of beef and mutton remain unchanged, as do those of layer and local chickens. On Friday, beef is sold at Tk780 per kg, while mutton is priced at Tk1,150 per kg. Depending on weight, broiler chicken is priced at Tk193–200 per kg, cock chicken at Tk305–315, layer chicken at Tk288–290, and local chicken at Tk550 per kg. Farm chicken eggs (both red and white) are sold at Tk130 per dozen. Compared to last week, broiler chicken prices have decreased by Tk3–10 per kg and cock chicken by Tk15–35 per kg. However the prices of beef, mutton, local chicken, and layer chicken remain unchanged, as do egg prices. Vendor Shahjahan explained: “Prices have decreased, but they fluctuate. We cannot control this; we sell at a slight profit margin above the purchase price.” Meat sellers said the usual reasons for high beef and mutton prices: higher demand and lower supply. They also predicted further price hikes before Shab-e-Barat. On Friday, fish prices were as follows: hilsa at Tk700–2,200 per kg, rohu at Tk350–550, katla at Tk400–600, kalibaus at Tk450–600, shrimp at Tk800–1,500, kachki at Tk400, koi at Tk220–1,200, pabda at Tk400–600, shing at Tk400–1,000, tengra at Tk500–800, boal at Tk600–1,200, shol at Tk800–1,100, meni at Tk600–700, chital at Tk600–900, sarputi at Tk250–400, and rupchanda at Tk800–1,200 per kg. Grocery market remains unchanged Grocery prices have remained stable, except for chickpeas, which have dropped by Tk10 per kg. Small lentils are priced at Tk135 per kg, coarse lentils at Tk110, large mung beans at Tk140, small mung beans at Tk170, khesari at Tk110, chickpea lentils at Tk135, mash beans at Tk190, split peas at Tk70 and chickpeas at Tk120. kitchen-market-mahmud-hossain-opu-16 File image of kitchen market. Photo: Mahmud Hossain Opu/Dhaka Tribune Packet polao rice costs Tk150 per kg, while loose polao rice ranges between Tk110–140. Bottled soybean oil is priced at Tk175 per liter, loose soybean oil at Tk157, packet sugar at Tk125 per kg, loose sugar at Tk125, two-kilogram flour packets at Tk150, two-kilogram atta packets at Tk115 and mustard oil at Tk190 per liter. However, the supply of soybean oil has not yet normalized. Vendors claim companies are linking the sale of oil with other products, which limits their ability to sell oil properly. Md Selim, a vendor at Selim General Store, commented: "We are still unable to sell soybean oil as usual. Companies are not supplying us as before, and they are forcing us to purchase other products to get oil.”

Staff Correspondent, Dhaka The government of Bangladesh and the World Bank have signed an agreement as additional financing on the Enhancement and Strengthening of Power Transmission Network in Eastern Region Project amounting to $30 million. The Power Grid Bangladesh is implementing the project to ensure reliable power supply and meet the growing demand for electricity in the greater Comilla, Chittagong, and Noakhali. Economic Relations Division Secretary Md Shahriar Kader Siddiky and World Bank acting country director Gayle Martin signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides. The initial financing agreement of this project, amounting to $450.64 million was signed on 10 April 2018 under the Scale-Up Facility (SUF) of the World Bank. $50 million was cancelled from the original amount to repurpose for the Covid-19-related projects during the pandemic period. The loan repayment period is 30 years with a grace period of 5 years. The interest rate for this loan agreement is 1.25% and the service charge is 0.75%. The maximum commitment charge is 0.5%. However the World Bank Board decided to waive the commitment charge for this year.

Staff Correspondent, Dhaka Agriculture Adviser Lieutenant General (Retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury has emphasized the importance of delivering agriculture-related information directly to people’s doorsteps to enhance productivity and benefit farmers. “The dissemination of accurate and timely agriculture-related information to people’s doorsteps is essential. Farmers will benefit significantly from receiving precise information on time, ultimately boosting productivity,” the adviser said while speaking as the chief guest during his visit to the Agriculture Information Services (AIS) wing of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) at Khamarbari on Thursday. Highlighting the critical role of agriculture, the adviser said: “During independence, the country’s population was 75 million. Today, it has risen to nearly 180 million, while arable land has been shrinking over the years.” He addressed the challenges faced by farmers and officials in the agricultural sector, highlighting the need to meet the food demands of the growing population despite these difficulties. Jahangir urged journalists to increase their coverage of agricultural issues, noting that investigative reporting can prompt swift actions to resolve challenges in the sector. He called upon the media to prioritize broadcasting agricultural news with the importance it deserves. Regarding the recent rise in rice prices, the adviser assured that the government is committed to stabilizing prices. He said while the price of coarse rice has decreased, the cost of fine rice varieties remains high. The adviser added that the Food Department has yet to procure sufficient quantities of paddy directly from farmers, despite raising procurement prices compared to last year. On the presence of syndicates in the rice market, Jahangir said: "We have not yet identified any visible syndicates. However, if such entities are discovered, necessary action will be taken against them.” The adviser praised officials for the successful implementation of the Open Market Sale (OMS) program of vegetables during the recent price hike. He announced that the initiative would likely continue during the upcoming Ramadan. He also directed agriculture marketing officials to intensify their efforts to ensure fair prices for farmers’ produce.

Staff Correspondent, Dhaka Journalists, staff members, and leaders of the daily Bhorer Kagoj held a sit-in on Thursday demanding the acceptance of all their demands and the reopening of the closed office to continue publication. They held the protest in front of the HR building in Kakrail, Dhaka. At this time, the newspaper`s staff expressed their demands, saying they want their rightful dues, adding that the ones who embezzled millions from Bhorer Kagoj and conspired to shut down the publication should be brought under the law. They raised accusations against several individuals at the newspaper, saying that Editor Shyamal Dutta, News Editor Ikhtiar Uddin, Chief of Accounts AK Sohag, Advertising Manager SA Razzak, and Admin Manager Sujon Nandi Majumder colluded to shut down the main office of Bhorer Kagoj. The protesters called them allies of the previous government, the Awami League, adding that now that the Awami League is out of power, they are attempting to shut down the newspaper. At the sit-in, the chief reporter of the newspaper, Khondkar Kawser, moderated speeches by leaders of various journalists` organizations. During the speeches, the leaders demanded that the Bhorer Kagoj office be reopened as soon as possible, and that all dues owed to the journalists and staff be settled. President of the Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ), Shahidul Islam, said: "I want to tell the Bhorer Kagoj authorities, you have committed many injustices. The injustices you have been committing for the past 15 years. We do not want to bring them up again. During the July movement, you tried to label the revolutionaries as terrorists. "We wanted to forget those words. We wanted you to become an ideal media outlet in solidarity with the new revolutionary government. But instead, you closed the office without settling the journalists` dues. We don`t want any media outlet to be shut down. We want you to remove the fascist allies from every media outlet. Instead of doing that, Saber Hossain Chowdhury has shut down the newspaper without paying the dues of nearly 1,000 staff members." Addressing the newspaper`s owners, the DUJ president added: "You should discuss with the journalists of Bhorer Kagoj and reopen the newspaper. Settle their dues. If not, we will take tough actions in the future." Abu Saleh Akon, president of the Dhaka Reporters Unity, said: "A newspaper office cannot be closed without notice like this. You know that for a long time, a fascist government has been oppressing the media in this country. We have just emerged from that oppression. Now, we have the freedom to work, write, and speak. At this moment, a fascist former owner has closed down his newspaper like this. It is highly reprehensible." The sit-in was attended by journalists and staff members of Bhorer Kagoj; organizational secretary of the Dhaka Journalists Union (DUJ), Saeed Khan; former vice-president Amirul Islam Kazi; DUJ executive member Abdullah Majumder; the office secretary of the Bangladesh Federal Journalists Union, Abu Bakkar Mia; the literary editor of the newspaper, Saleh Nasir Uddin; joint news editor, Mukul Shahriar; journalist SM Mizan, among others. On Monday, the owners issued a notice announcing the closure of the newspaper`s main office. The notice, signed by the executive editor, said that the authorities of Bhorer Kagoj had decided to close the main office for reasons beyond the owner`s control, as per Section 12 of the Bangladesh Labour Act of 2006, effective immediately.