News

Bangladesh parliament dissolved ; Yunus agrees to be chief adviser : reports

Published

9 months ago

August 6, 2024

editor

Bangladesh’s parliament has been dissolved, according to a statement from the president’s office.

It was a key demand made by student protest coordinators, who had set a deadline of 15:00 local time (09:00 GMT).

Student protesters have said they will not accept a military-led government.

Meanwhile, Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus has agreed to a call by students in Bangladesh for him to be chief adviser to an interim administration promised by the military following Sheikh Hasina’s resignation as prime minister.

“When the students who sacrificed so much are requesting me to step in at this difficult juncture, how can I refuse?” Mr Yunus said.

Mr Yunus, who is in Paris at the moment, will head back to Dhaka shortly, Lamiya Morshed, the executive director of the Yunus Centre, told the BBC.

Also, a picture is starting to emerge of how Sheikh Hasina came to be in Delhi on Monday, with Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar revealing she had made a request to come to India at “very short notice”.

“She arrived yesterday evening in Delhi,” Jaishankar confirmed in his first public statement since Hasina’s resignation.

Exactly when she made that request was not clear.

He also did not elaborate on what the next steps would be, or how long she would be staying in India. He simply said it was “for the moment”.

The minister added that India remained “deeply concerned till law and order is restored” in Bangladesh.

“Our border guarding forces have been instructed to be exceptionally alert in view of this complex situation. In the last 24 hours, we have been in touch with authorities in Dhaka,” he said.

News

Measures to formulate national road safety plan

Published

1 hour ago

April 30, 2025

editor

A discussion on preparing a national-level road safety plan under the “Clean Sri Lanka” programme was held today (April 30) at the Presidential Secretariat.

The incidence of road accidents in Sri Lanka is on the rise, leading to a growing number of fatalities and injuries.

Recognizing the urgent need to raise public awareness on accident prevention and promote discipline in road use, this national plan is being formulated as a key initiative under the “Clean Sri Lanka” programme.

The programme aims to uplift society by fostering social, environmental and moral consciousness. A central focus is placed on building a disciplined society and responsible citizens.

The discussion was attended by the senior officials representing the Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka, the National Council on Road Safety, the Independent Television Network (ITN), representatives from the Ministry of Health and Mass Media (Social and Ethics Divisions), Dr. Indika Jagoda, Director of the National Hospital (Accident and Emergency Department), Prof. Sivakumar and Prof. H.R. Pasidu from the University of Moratuwa, the Deputy Inspector General of Police (Traffic) and other relevant officials.

(President’s Media Division (PMD)
30. 04.2025

News

Fuel prices slashed

Published

1 hour ago

April 30, 2025

editor

The CPC has reduced fuel prices with effect from midnight today (April 30).

The price reductions of a litre of fuel are as follows :
Octane 92 Petrol – reduced by Rs.06 to Rs.293
Octane 95 Petrol – reduced by Rs.20 to Rs.341
Auto Diesel – reduced by Rs.12 to Rs.274
Super Diesel – reduced by Rs. 06 to Rs.325
Kerosene – reduced by Rs.05 to 178

BIZ

Laugfs Gas says no price revision in May

Published

1 hour ago

April 30, 2025

editor

Laugfs Gas PLC, one of the two largest liquefied petroleum (LP) gas suppliers in the country, announced that the company will not revise domestic LP gas prices for the month of May 2025.

This was communicated by the Cluster Director/CEO of Laugfs Gas PLC, Dr. Niroshan J Peiris.