Dhaka: The number of flights of Biman Bangladesh Airlines on the Dhaka-London route is being increased to 5. For this, the management authority of Biman has applied to the Heathrow Airport Authority for a 5th frequency. If it is approved, 5 flights will be operated on this route soon.

According to Biman sources, the management authority of the company is mainly increasing the number of flights on profitable routes to make the national flag carrier more dynamic. At the same time, the number of flights on loss-making routes is being reduced. In the meantime, the number of flights on the profitable Dhaka-Toronto route has been increased to three.

Meanwhile, the number of flights on the loss-making Dhaka-Narita and Dhaka-Manchester routes has been reduced by one each. In addition, the number of flights on the Dhaka-Kolkata and Dhaka-Delhi routes has been reduced.

Investigations have revealed that Biman is losing Tk. 1 crore 10 lakh on the Dhaka-Manchester route, Tk. 88 lakh on the Dhaka-Rome route and Tk. 20 crore on Narita every month. Until its closure in August 2006, each Dhaka-New York flight was losing Tk. 50 lakh. At that time, Biman had closed loss-making routes like Paris, Netherlands, Manchester, Frankfurt, Narita, and Rome. Later, the Rome, Narita, and Frankfurt routes were reopened.

The Rome flight was closed in two phases due to losses. This route was recently reopened. Frankfurt was reopened in 2014 and closed again within a few days.

Along with this, the number of routes has been reduced in some places to increase the efficiency of the existing routes. Basically, the number of flights has been increased on routes where there are fewer passengers or less demand, while the number of flights has been increased on routes where there is more demand. As a result, Biman's marketing department hopes that the airline's income will increase in the future on profitable routes.

Biman's management authorities said from previous bitter experiences that it is very important to operate the airline's current routes more efficiently. From now on, proper market research will be required in launching any new route. No steps will be taken to launch or expand routes without research.

In addition, Biman is keeping a special eye on promising destinations like Maldives. To increase the connectivity of the Dhaka-Rome route, it is working to enter into code sharing partnerships with various domestic routes from Rome to Italy and various parts of Europe. In the meantime, Biman has finalized an SPA (Sales and Purchase Agreement) agreement with Italy's flag carrier ITA Airways. Biman is also preparing to enter into an SPA with Japan Airlines.

Meanwhile, Biman is planning to land in Rome, Italy, instead of a stopover in Istanbul for efficient crew management. This is because the Istanbul airport authorities have already informed Biman to use a nearby airport instead of the main Istanbul airport.

The Quota Review Committee has recommended the cancellation of the freedom fighter's grandchildren quota from the Dhaka University admission exam for the 2024-25 academic year.

From this year, only children of freedom fighters will be able to apply for the freedom fighter's children quota.

If the seats are not filled in the prescribed quota, the seats will be filled in accordance with the merit list.

These decisions were taken at the meeting of the Review Committee formed to add and amend the freedom fighter quota, ward quota and player quota among the admission quotas for undergraduate programs at Dhaka University on Tuesday (November 5).

This information was given in a notification sent by the University's Public Relations Office.

The notification mentioned about the decision of the meeting:

1. It is recommended to consider only the children of freedom fighters in the freedom fighter's children quota. It is recommended not to consider the grandchildren of freedom fighters in this quota.

2. In the past years, as per the practice prevalent in Dhaka University, if any seat is not filled in any of the prescribed quotas, it is recommended to fill the vacant seats in the order of the original merit list.

It is to be noted here that the above recommendations 1 and 2 are in line with the quota policy for recruitment to various posts issued by the Ministry of Public Administration on 23 July 2024. It is also to be noted here that this notification has been made in the light of the judgment of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (Civil Petition for Leave to Appeal No. 2516, 2538/2024) announced earlier.

3. In accordance with the decision of Agenda 5 of the General Admission Committee meeting held on 21 October 2024, it is recommended to implement these recommendations from the academic year 2024-25 and to make necessary amendments in the admission notification to implement it.

The convener of the Review Committee is Professor Dr. Mohammad Ikramul Haque, Dean of the Faculty of Law. The meeting, chaired by Mohammad Ikramul Haque, was attended by Rasheda Irshad Nasir, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, Professor ABM Shahidul Islam, Chairman of the Marketing Department, Professor Dr. Mostafizur Rahman, Convener of the Online Admission Committee, and the Legal Advisor of Dhaka University.

Cox’s Bazar: The Arakan Army, a rebel group from Myanmar's Rakhine State, has abducted 20 fishermen from the Naf River in Teknaf, Cox's Bazar.

The fishermen were abducted from the Jaliapang Naf River in Teknaf on Tuesday (November 5) evening.

Teknaf Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Adnan Chowdhury confirmed the matter to Barta24.com.

He said that he has learned that the Arakan Army has abducted 20 fishermen while fishing in the Naf River. The BGB is working to rescue them.

The names and identities of the fishermen were not immediately available.

Earlier, on October 9, the Myanmar Navy abducted 58 fishermen along with 6 trawlers from the Bangladesh side of the Bay of Bengal between St. Martin's Island and Myanmar. Among them, one died and 2 were injured in the firing by the Myanmar Navy. Later, on October 10, the Myanmar Navy returned the fishermen in two batches, along with the body of one. In this regard, Teknaf-2 BGB Commander Lieutenant Colonel Mohiuddin Ahmed said, "We have been informed about the capture of 20 fishermen along with a fishing trawler. We are in contact with the Myanmar authorities regarding this incident. Efforts are underway to bring them back."

In view of the changing political landscape of the country, the government has instructed government employees to take special precautions. The Ministry of Public Administration has sent 9-point instructions to all secretaries.

A recent letter signed by Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Public Administration Dr. Md. Mokhles Ur Rahman provided information about these instructions.

The instructions have asked the secretaries, heads of divisions and organizations, and top officials of the field administration to inquire about a few things before attending the event.

The instructions signed by Senior Secretary of the Ministry Dr. Mokhles Ur Rahman include whether the invitation has come from any organization, who is behind the event. It has also been suggested to seek the cooperation of intelligence agencies if necessary to get a clear idea about these issues.

The Ministry of Public Administration also said that due to the lack of elected public representatives at the top level and the lack of advisers to the interim government, government employees are having to lead the secretariat and field administration. In the meantime, news of embarrassment due to exceptional incidents at some events has come to light. The nine-point instructions were mainly given to avoid these problems.

In this letter containing instructions from the Ministry of Public Administration, he mentioned that considering the current political situation in the country, it is necessary for government employees to perform their duties with greater caution. Recently, news of the activities of some field-level offices have been published in various media outlets, which has created an embarrassing situation, which is undesirable. In the existing situation, I think that an instruction can be issued for the attached offices and field-level offices under your ministry/department on the following issues or adding some more issues as per your consideration.

>> Before accepting the final invitation to attend any event within your jurisdiction, collect information about the activities of the organizing institution/organization and finalize the invitation.

>> In order to avoid controversy, collect information about other guests invited to the event; if any controversial person is on the guest list of the event, avoid that event.

>> Check whether there is any objectionable/controversial material in the invitation/banner/leaflet/flag/any other printed paper description, logo or slogan etc. of the organized event.

>> Take the help of law enforcement and intelligence agencies to ensure the security of the event.

>> Check the invitation/banner/letter/Power Point presentation/decoration/certificate/trophy-medal/souvenir etc. of your own event carefully; ensure that all these documents or mementos do not contain any objectionable or controversial material or statements.

>> Be careful not to celebrate the days that have been declared canceled by the government through a gazette notification.

>> Take measures to remove all the memorials/crests/pictures/souvenirs etc. of the previous years of the days declared canceled by the government from all offices.

>> Prepare and read written statements for each formal meeting/event; Refrain from saying any words/slogans/exclamations/phrases outside the written statement as much as possible.

>> Keep yourself and all your colleagues in your jurisdiction away from any kind of rumors.

He further mentioned in the letter, I hope that if you issue an informal letter to your departments/organizations and field offices under the above mentioned matter, your colleagues will be more careful in performing their duties. I request your personal initiative in this regard.

The instructions of the Ministry of Public Administration further state that it is necessary to ensure that the days that have been canceled after the current government took office are not observed. It has also been instructed to remove any books, souvenirs, crests, memorials related to the canceled days or individuals in the office.

The Ministry of Public Administration has said that any slogans or exclamations outside the written statement should be refrained from at all types of events. In addition, instructions have also been given to ensure that employees of their respective departments and organizations are not misled by rumors.

The instructions of the Public Administration Secretary sent to all government secretaries state that the concerned secretary will issue a non-formal letter to inform everyone in the departments, organizations or offices under his jurisdiction about these government instructions, so that government employees at all levels can know the details about the issues.