Covid-19
Gen Z Movement in Nepal: The Coded Message
Nepal’s recent demonstration, daubed as ‘Gen Z Revolution’ took the world by surprise on several fronts. First, it emerged as a spontaneous uprising appealed through the social media, at a time when the media had been banned. Second, it started directly from the climax and reached its denouement in merely two days. It toppled a stubborn regime and threw away an old order. This happened without a leader, without any consorted call, without an announced charter for action, and without any centre to monitor the course of action. Amazing! Truly amazing!
Why are Trump’s threats losing effect
In that sense, these agreements are little more than signatures on paper. Put simply, confronting Trump does not mean submission; rather, identifying his weak spots and striking there will bring results. A far more effective strategy is to put maximum pressure on the US economy.
Reducing prison congestion and costs using technology
This was written shortly after the National Movement for Social Justice conducted a webinar on problems with remanding practices in the aftermath of the neurologist and her daughter being remanded.
Trend of reduced high inflation must be maintained
In recent years, the issue that has raised the most concern in Bangladesh’s economy is the trend of high inflation. There seemed to be no way to curb this trend of high inflation. Just as the post-COVID global economy was recovering, the Russia-Ukraine war broke out. This unexpected war caused major disruptions to the global economy. The global supply chain nearly collapsed. As a result, due to transportation crises, the prices of various products around the world rose abnormally. In the year the Russia-Ukraine war began, food and other product production worldwide were normal. Therefore, there was no opportunity to identify the trend of high inflation as a problem caused by a shortage in production.
Reevaluating agriculture sector and need for an agriculture commission
In recent years, the number of medium and large farmers has been declining, while the number of small farmers has been increasing. This trend has had a negative impact on overall crop production. According to the latest Agricultural Census (2018–19), the number of farms increased by 11.19 percent in 2019 compared to the 2008 census. However, land under the control of large farms decreased by 46.18 percent, while land held by medium farms declined by 36.06 percent. Conversely, small farms have taken control of 32.24 percent more land.
Interim government: Breakdown of trust and crisis of accountability
Following the mass uprising last August, the interim government of Bangladesh came to power with promises to restore democratic order and alleviate the suffering of ordinary people. It presented itself as a reform-oriented and good-governance-committed transitional caretaker government. But nearly a year later, the country is now plunged into deeper uncertainty—where extreme mismanagement, growing inequality, and a widening gap between state power and citizen welfare are becoming increasingly evident. What was supposed to be a bridge to stability is now turning into a fall into the abyss of uncertainty.
How professional is journalism in Bangladesh?
The International Workers’ Day, or May Day, was observed in Bangladesh with considerable fanfare, in step with global celebrations. Various organizations held rallies, meetings, and seminars focusing on labor rights. Everywhere, strong speeches were delivered, and hopeful words were shared. We hear these hopeful promises every year, yet not even a fraction of them gets implemented. In fact, injustices against workers seem to increase with each passing year. A visit to the Department of Labour makes this reality clear—protests by workers with demands and grievances are an almost daily affair.
Strengthening the demand for employment on May Day
Civilization has advanced through the blows of the worker’s hammer. While it is true that one becomes a worker through labor, the term “worker” typically conjures the image of an industrial laborer. Yet, the scope of working people is far broader, because every human being is involved in some form of work, and every task requires labor. In that sense, all people on earth could be considered workers. From a Marxist perspective, the working class is the most modern class, destined to lead the revolution. Karl Marx gave special status to factory workers as a revolutionary class—liberated from feudal bondage, yet united under one roof and one collective interest within the factory system.
Make the right decision through technical query
The government and the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) are apparently in a state of muddle over the reform of the telecommunications sector. In the meantime, mobile operators are trying to ensure the future control of their business by 'seizing the opportunity'. I am using the word 'seizing the opportunity' because despite repeated attempts during the previous two political governments, mobile operators did not get the desired decision in their favor. Now they are trying to cash in on the situation if they can somehow implement their desired decision during the interim government. Such an attempt has clearly been observed since the current government took office. On the other hand, network transmission operators built with domestic investment, interconnection exchanges, international gateways, and international internet gateway operators, want to preserve the existence of their systems.
Curbing inflation is priority over high growth now
cently, Bangladesh Bank announced a new monetary policy. This was the second monetary policy for the current fiscal year (2024-25) and the first one formulated under the present interim government. For quite some time, economists had been discussing the proposed monetary policy. Given the ongoing trend of high inflation in the country for nearly three years, there was significant interest in what kind of monetary policy would be adopted