AgrotechNorth South University and the Shykh Seraj Initiative have launched a joint initiative to systematically collect, verify, preserve and analyse field-level agricultural data, to support researchers, evidence-based decision-making and policy development in Bangladesh and to bridge the field and the academy.
EnvironmentAhead of the dry season, Environment Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo told housing developers' body REHAB to enclose sites, cover materials, spray water at least twice a day and use eco-friendly blocks instead of bricks; developers asked the government to watch block quality and cost.
HealthOn Breast Cancer Awareness Day, specialists say breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among Bangladeshi women, with about 12,764 new cases and 6,844 deaths a year according to IARC, and call for a national screening policy.
AgribusinessHigher transport costs after the recent fuel price rise, and high paddy prices at the wholesale hubs, have pushed up retail prices of fine and medium rice in Dhaka by up to Tk 3 a kilo in a week and a half; coarse rice is steadier.
HealthIn a Jagannath University Press Club survey of 600 students, only 7 went to bed before midnight and only 16 per cent ate three meals a day; a university doctor warns of long-term health risks.
Environment Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo said national climate policy and plans must be turned into coordinated programmes, quality projects, suitable financing and measurable outcomes, because today's development decisions will set climate risk for decades.
HealthEntomologist Dr Kabirul Bashar says cases are unlikely to fall in November either, and that spraying alone will not work: breeding sites must be targeted with larvicides and public help.
VegetablesFloating beds made of empty plastic bottles and coconut coir tied to bamboo frames now grow taro, taro stolons, Malabar spinach and red amaranth; the growers eat what they need and give the rest to neighbours cheaply or free.
HealthAfter a health ministry meeting, Dhaka hospitals were told to add beds for dengue patients; some DMCH patients will move to the burn institute and Kurmitola Multidisciplinary Hospital is to stand ready for patients from outside the capital.
HealthAt a Power of She Trust event at a Mohammadpur school, doctors spoke to girls about menstrual health, PCOS, breast cancer and mental health, and the school received a sanitary pad bank.
IslamJamia Kashiful Uloom in Matuail teaches science and general subjects with the Quran, hadith and Dars-e-Nizami; its founder, Maulana Syed Anwar Abdullah, told Desh Rupantor this is a return to an old tradition of Islamic learning.
At least 350,000 children in Bangladesh have cerebral palsy, yet the national neuroscience institute's outpatient department treated only 3,300 last year; a pilot in Korail slum is serving about 300 children.
HealthAt a DAB seminar in Dhaka, state minister Dr MA Muhit said there are probably three candidate vaccines worldwide and every dengue variant is found in Bangladesh; for now the focus is on destroying larvae, early diagnosis and treatment.
GalleryRows of white kash flowers sway in the soft autumn sun and breeze at Aftabnagar, and city dwellers come with family, friends and loved ones to see them.
