Dwindling university autonomy in Bangladesh
Our recently published study has found several alarming factors contributing to declining academic freedom in the universities of Bangladesh.
Muhammad Shahidullah’s 135th Birth Anniversary: Shahidullah, a linguist and language activist
By the time Muhammad Shahidullah was old enough to begin his secondary education, he already knew five languages. Besides his mother tongue of Bangla, he not only learnt Urdu, Persian and Arabic—perceived to be the languages of Muslims—but he also became proficient in Sanskrit, the primary liturgical language of Hinduism.
Social media and fake news: The beginning of the end?
When the Internet came, media outlets were faced with two contrasting choices: provide a web version for people to read content freely or risk descending into irrelevance.
From victims to villains: The changing discourse on Rohingyas
Yet another attempt to send Rohingyas back to Myanmar ended up in an embarrassing debacle last week: Not a single Rohingya
Tax the rich
September last year, a ranking of countries prepared by Wealth X, a global financial intelligence company, calculating the rise of ultra-rich individuals in their respective populations put Bangladesh on top.
Vigilante justice or what?
On January 17, police in Khagan, Savar recovered the bullet-hit body of a man who was later identified as Ripon. Ripon, a line chief at a local garment factory, was the prime accused in a gang-rape case involving a female worker from his factory.
Loan default increases because of bad management
The new finance minister, Mustafa Kamal, has vowed to address the longstanding concerns regarding increasing non-performing loans in banks. Khondkar Ibrahim Khaled, a noted banker and former deputy governor of Bangladesh Bank, talks to The Daily Star's Nazmul Ahasan about the issue.
Choking social media is not the answer
It's common knowledge that many opposition candidates were unable to campaign for themselves in the recently concluded elections
August 10, 2018
How an unrestricted press could help assuage violence
There's an increasing inclination, both globally and domestically, among those in power to impede the media.
August 2, 2018
An uneven battlefield
Among all ruling party-backed candidates in the three-city elections, Khairuzzaman Liton, in Rajshahi,
July 23, 2018
Defining Tajuddin's place in history
Tajuddin Ahmad was the one who filled a crucial void in leadership during Bangladesh's most important nine months in 1971 after Bangabandhu had been taken prisoner by the Pakistani army.
July 14, 2018
What does the US-China trade war mean for Bangladesh?
Professor Shakhawat Ali Khan, a veteran journalism professor at Dhaka University, often invokes a Second World War-era story in his classes to make his students realise just how important international affairs is. When the war persisted, many Indians were faced with an increased price of some of their essential commodities.
July 12, 2018
Why women migrant workers are compelled to come back
From the human rights perspective, the treatment received by thousands of Bangladeshi female workers at the hands of their employers constitutes a grave violation of their rights. Can a human being work for 17–18 hours tirelessly without any day-off—that too at very low wages?
June 25, 2018
The race between 'development' and 'justice'
A politician for nearly four decades, Hasan Uddin Sarkar, the opposition candidate in the Gazipur mayoral election, is well aware of the odds against him.
June 13, 2018
Prioritising effective social safety net projects
The idea of the universal pension scheme is new, but it's just a good idea. With our bureaucratic inefficiency, it's highly unlikely that we would be able to make headway in this regard in the near future.
June 9, 2018
Why digitising our public services is so important
It is hardly a subject that is discussed in the public domain nowadays, but one recalls “Digital Bangladesh” being the centrepiece of the ruling party's electoral campaign in 2008 and onwards. The aim was to transform the bureaucracy-ridden system, making it faster, more efficient and of course less prone to graft. But such a grandiose mission, till now, remains largely unaccomplished.
June 1, 2018
Our environmental saviour?
As global concerns continue to rise with 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags being produced every year around the globe, a number of eco-friendly companies come up with a seemingly wonderful idea: biodegradable bags.
May 27, 2018
Efficacy of the anti-drug war
“Why don't you tell the truth?
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