Amanur Aman

No country for bauls

Bauls in the western part of the country continue to live in constant threat of attacks and humiliation as the attackers enjoy complete impunity.

Islamic University halls run by BCL diktat

It’s the Chhatra League leaders, not the university or the hall administration, who are running the show at the dorms of Islamic University.

Carew made 21% more in alcohol sales between Jul-Dec '22 compared to year before

The lone state-owned alcohol manufacturer, Carew & Company Bangladesh, has earned about Tk 233 crore in sales in six months from July to December 2022 which is said to be 21 percent higher in comparison to the same period the year before.

Betel leaf cultivation creeping up as exports expand

Betel leaf grown in Kushtia is not only popular across Bangladesh, but also beyond the country’s borders with increasing exports in the last several years encouraging more farmers to cultivate the crop.

Carew sees record sales in FY22

The 84-year-old Carew & Co (Bangladesh) Limited, a state-owned distillery located in the Darshana area of Chuadanga’s Damurhuda upazila, registered record sales in fiscal 2021-22 thanks to increased demand for its distillery products.

Amla: A swimmers’ village without a swimming pool

Amla is a small and tranquil village, akin to many other villages in the country, situated twenty-two kilometres away from the south-western Kushtia district.

Bangladeshi hajj pilgrim arrested for “begging” owns land, lost hands “while making bomb”

The story of Matiar Rahman, who was arrested by Saudi police for “begging” in Madinah, has already gone viral on social media. While investigating Matiar’s background, a great deal of information has come to light.

Sugarcane shortage a concern for Carew

Carew & Co (Bangladesh) Ltd, the country’s sole state-owned distillery, could face a shortage of sugar as sugarcane threshing at its mill in Chuadanga hit an all-time low this season.

A self-made man

Jamir Uddin, a landless and homeless day labourer, applied for a house at a government shelter project in 2018. Following his application, he was allotted a two-room house built on two decimals of land at Andulbaria Ashrayan Project under Jibannagar upazila of Chuadanga on June 20, 2021.

Carew plans to double alcohol production

The country’s lone state-run distillery Carew & Company (Bangladesh) is planning to double alcohol production through an automation project and go for market expansion observing a recent hike in sales.

Kaliganga crying out for help

Years of encroachment has left the Kaliganga, which used to be one of the most prominent rivers in the country, in its death throes. But the authorities seem to have turned a blind eye to the crime.

Kushtia hospital overrun with Covid-19 patients

The wave of Covid-19 patients has turned Kushtia General Hospital helpless. Every one and a half hours, someone is losing their life, and many are close to dying at the 250-bed medical facility. Doctors say the situation is truly out of their control.

Gruesome

A police official was arrested after shooting to death a woman, her seven-year-old son, and a man in broad daylight in Kushtia town yesterday.

Graft in Chuadanga Hospital: Probe body visits almost a year later

The probe committee tasked with investigating alleged irregularities in procurement of medicine and medical equipment for Chuadanga Sadar Hospital and four upazila health complexes visited the district for the first time on Sunday, almost a year after its formation.

Illegal border crossings going on in 6 districts

Amid the closure of Indo-Bangla land borders, Bangladeshi nationals are trespassing using several illegal points in six districts of the south.

Amid health risk, illegal border crossing on in 6 Khulna districts

Bangladesh nationals in Khulna division’s six districts have been using some points between Bangladesh and India to cross the border without visa.

Khulna Division’s Water Crisis: Dearth now in all 10 districts

The crisis of pure drinking water is deepening in Khulna division as the underground water level has also gone down in five previously unaffected districts, say experts.

Chuadanga’s date molasses market going strong as ever

The famous 300-year-old date molasses market in Sarojganj of Khulna’s Chuadanga district is enjoying excellent business this year.

Kohinoor Villa Massacre: Blood-soaked house of horror of 1971

The sheer brutality of the massacre shocks the people of Kushtia even today.

Bids opened despite leak of bidders’ names

Bids for the construction work of two student halls at Kushtia Islamic University (IU) for Tk 108 crore have been opened despite the fact that names of the bidders had been leaked a few days ago.

Kushtia Municipality Polls: 100pc ballots cast at one polling centre

Officials in Kushtia are investigating allegations that votes were cast in the Mirpur municipality election using the names of people who had died and those who had been out of the country.

Sculpture of Bagha Jatin vandalised in Kushtia

Some unidentified miscreants have vandalised a statue of British revolutionary leader Bagha Jatin on the campus premises of Kaya College in Kushtia’s Kumarkhali upazila.

Lalon Academy struggling to spread the word of the bard

For almost 200 years, Fakir Lalon Shah’s philosophy has transcended borders and enriched the minds of Bauls and lovers of his immortal songs across the world. Yet, Lalon Academy that is meant to spread the word of the bard seems to be faltering in doing so.

Awful drainage a nuisance at Kushtia General Hospital

Believe it or not, it takes just a moderate rain to flood the main entrance and the road leading to Kushtia General Hospital with the dirty water and waste from the adjacent drains.

‘An honourable man’: Locals unaware of Haji Kamal’s ‘human trafficker’ identity

According to Rab, Kamal Uddin alias Haji Kamal (55) has trafficked more than 400 people to Libya over the last decade. But locals of Kushtia Sadar, where Haji Kamal is from, claim they were unaware of his “misdeeds”.

New bridge lies unused due to lack of approach road

A bridge built seven months ago at Poltadanga Point of the Mathabhanga River in Chuadanga’s Alamdanga upazila cannot be opened for vehicular movement due to lack of approach road on one side.

10 Dists of Khulna Division: Banned three-wheelers continue plying highways

Five years into a High Court directive to withdraw poorly engineered three-wheelers from highways in 10 districts under Khulna division, there is no noticeable progress in this regard.

A Chuadanga market just for patali gur

It’s a distinct sugary sweetness hanging in the air that gives away what’s in store at Sarojganj Haat. Sitting Fridays and Mondays year-round, the market is now hustling and bustling with activity from noon and into the night.

Fall armyworm worries maize farmers in Chuadanga

Fall armyworm (FAW) has affected maize crop on 40 hectares of land in Chuadanga, much to the worry of farmers in the south-western district famous for cultivation of the winter crop.

Rice gets pricier

After soaring prices of onions, consumers now have to deal with rice prices creeping up over the last few weeks.

I don’t know how, bring back my son

“Bring back my son alive.” This is all Rokeya Khatun could say as her relatives tried to console her in her home on Kushtia town’s PTTI Road.

Construction of multipurpose buildings in full swing

Construction of the multipurpose complex in front of the Shilaidaha Kuthibari in Kushtia, where Rabindranath Tagore lived a part of life, is going on in full swing.

Level crossings a trouble for Chuadanga townspeople

There are six level crossings in Chuadanga town through which trains pass 34 times a day, contributing to intense traffic jam, which is eating up almost five hours of townspeople every day.

A different Eid entertainmen in remote Kushtia village

A Kabadi match held between two teams, comprising five male players each, has made a day blissful for the people of Mirpur upazila as those having one wife were in a team and those having two wives in another team.

Boro Farmers: Kushtia DC brings smiles to some

Moyen Uddin was overjoyed after being able to sell his Boro paddy at a government procurement installation at a fair price, thanks to the proac-tive initiative from the Kushtia district commissioner.

Bangladeshi Farmers hurriedly harvest paddy

Price woes for rice growers

Although paddy farmers are poised to get a bigger harvest this year, low prices have sapped their joy in the 10 south-western districts of the country. The amount of paddy the government plans to buy directly from farmers would not help them much as well, they said while talking to The Daily Star yesterday.

Padma chars see bumper tomato yield after floods

After last year's catastrophic flood, farmers in vast chars (sandy land mass in a river) of Padma in Rajbari are now hoping to make up for the loss by growing tomato this year.

A school with a difference

A “smart school” in Pirpur village of Chuadanga has created quite a buzz within two months of being transformed.

'Don't stay home'

“I am requesting all leaders and activists of the BNP and its front organisations and alliance partners not to stay at home or go to work. Also, don't sit at any tea stall or any crowded place near the streets and campaign after evening until further instruction.”

BNP out of scene

Stepping into Chuadanga on Sunday afternoon, the first thing that stood out was the absence of “sheaf of paddy”, the electoral symbol of the BNP.

Into the mystic

The three-day death anniversary programme in memory of mystic poet Lalon Shah ended with speakers emphasising the need to look back to Lalon's philosophy, especially the humanitarian aspect, through more research.

Tears of a 156-yr-old rly station

Now it is afternoon. There's sunshine and everything is glowing. The beauty of nature shines in every nook and cranny in the entire area, except a nearby railway station lying in an uncared state for years. Where once flowers and leaves were swaying in the wind, there is now the kingdom of weed and grass.