Others

MNA Life Style Desk: Qurbani is also referred to as the Sunna of Ibrahim in many texts. It follows the true story of father and son, Ibrahim and Ismail, and their unflinching loyalty and devotion to Allah (SWT). The story serves as a means of motivation, education and inspiration to millions of Muslims around the world today. Here, we will talk about this story at length. Qurbani or sacrifice is synonymous with surrender. It symbolizes that the person performing Qurbani is willing to sacrifice everything dear to him for Allah. It symbolizes and strengthens the promise with Allah that the ...

MNA Feature Desk: The 69th birth anniversary of late noted playwright Professor Selim Al Deen is being observed today, reported news agency. Drama and Dramatics Department of Jahangirnagar University has taken a daylong programme to celebrate the birth anniversary on the campus in a befitting manner. The daylong programmes include holding seminar, staging drama, bringing out silent procession, offering ziarat and placing floral wreaths at Selim Al Deen’s grave on the university campus, reported news agency. Besides, Dhaka Theater has drawn up a two-day programme in the city. The two-day programmes include paying homage to Selim-Al-Deen by placing floral wreaths ...

MNA Tech Desk: Finding a clean toilet becomes stressful especially for women children and the elderly people who face the problem during long Eid vacation journey. With Eid travels just around the corner, a ‘Public Toilet Bangladesh’ app is now available for download in Play Store, providing toilet locations across four major highways and selected areas of Dhaka city based on a user’s GPS location or through direct searches, reported news agency. WaterAid has been working with city corporations and local authorities to renovate and build public toilets in Dhaka city and beyond (Sylhet, Khulna, Chattogram) for over 5 years ...

MNA Education Desk: The online registration for admission at Jahangirnagar University (JU) under the academic session 2018-19 began on Thursday, reported news agency. JU vice-chancellor professor Farzana Islam formally inaugurated the online registration process at a programme held at the council room of the VC office on the campus this morning. The online registration for admission under academic session 2018-19 began Thursday and it would continue till 16 September next. The admission seekers will be able to pay registration fee by 21 September while they will have to collect admit card by 22 September. The detailed information about the admission ...

MNA Entertainment Desk: Aretha Franklin, the preacher’s daughter whose powerful voice made her the long-reigning “Queen of Soul” with such hit songs as “Respect” and “Chain of Fools,” died on Thursday at the age of 76, reported news agency. Franklin, who won 18 Grammy Awards and had some 25 gold records, died at her home in Detroit surrounded by family and loved ones, her publicist said. She had been battling advanced pancreatic cancer. Calling it one of the darkest moments of their lives, Franklin’s family said they were unable to find the appropriate words to express the pain in their ...

MNA Education Desk: The Dhaka University (DU) authorities on Wednesday observed the National Mourning Day and 43rd martyrdom anniversary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in a befitting manner. As part of the programmes, pro-vice chancellors, treasurer, senate and syndicate members, deans, provosts, proctors, chairpersons of departments, directors of institutes and office heads led by DU Vice-Chancellor (VC) Professor Md Akhtaruzzaman placed wreaths at the portrait of Bangabandhu at Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi in the morning. The national flag, university and hall flags were hoisted at half-mast atop all main buildings including halls of the university. ...

MNA Feature Desk: The nation paid rich tributes to the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mubijur Rahman with a renewed pledge to materialise his dream to build a “Sonar Bangla” thwarting conspiracies of the anti-liberation and communal forces, reported news agency. President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday led the nation in paying homage to the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman marking the 43nd anniversary of his martyrdom. People of the capital and its adjacent areas paid rich tributes to the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Apart from Awami League, ...

MNA Tech Desk: Facebook has been “too slow” to address hate speech in Myanmar and is acting to remedy the problem, the company said in a statement on Thursday, reported news agency. The acknowledgement came a day after a Reuters investigation revealed how the company has struggled to address a wave of vitriolic posts about the minority Rohingya, targeted last year in what the United Nations has termed ethnic cleansing. More than 1,000 examples of hate speech about the Rohingya and other Muslims were still online as of last week, including posts comparing them to dogs and maggots. “The ethnic ...

MNA Entertainment Desk: Angelina Jolie sought to move forward with her long and sometimes bitter divorce from Brad Pitt, which has yet to be finalised after almost two years, reported news agency. Jolie’s attorney filed papers in Los Angeles Superior Court saying the actress wanted a judgment “returning the parties to single status during calendar year 2018.” The document also said that Pitt has “paid no meaningful child support since separation” and said that although informal arrangements had been made with him, payments “had not been regularly sustained.” Jolie filed for divorce in September 2016, ending two years or marriage ...

MNA Science & Tech Desk: Tech magnate Elon Musk’s SpaceX vowed Monday to send its first astronauts into orbit on schedule next year—part of a drive to restore America’s dominance of the space race, reported news agency. Gwynne Shotwell, the aerospace manufacturer’s president, told journalists in Los Angeles an unmanned flight to the International Space Station in November would pave the way for a manned mission in April 2019. NASA awarded contracts to SpaceX and Boeing in 2014 as part of its commercial crew programme, aimed at helping private industry build spaceships to reach low-Earth orbit. On 3 August the ...

MNA Life Style Desk: New research showed that fruits and vegetables in the diet, after finding that eating up to seven servings per day, can lower the risk of psychological stress for middle-aged women. Here are a list of some fruits and vegetables to eat. Moderate daily vegetable intake alone was linked to lower stress levels but moderate fruit intake alone appeared to show no significant benefit. The most potent effect was seen when fruit and veg like apples, bananas and oranges and potatoes, cucumber, lettuce and carrots were eaten together, and particularly in women. The findings, published in the ...

MNA Education Desk: The committee formed by the government to review the existing quota system recommended for abolition of almost all the quotas in public services, cabinet secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam said on Monday. However, court directives will be sought before any decisions are made about the freedom fighter quota, he told a press briefing after the weekly cabinet meeting, reported news agency. On July 2, the government formed the seven-member committee with Shafiul Alam as its convener, to review the existing quota system in public services. The other committee members are secretaries of the: Public Administration, Finance Division, Liberation ...

MNA Feature Desk: The 7th death anniversary of renowned filmmaker Tareque Masud and cinematographer and broadcast journalist Mishuk Munier is being observed today. Different socio-cultural organisations are holding various programmes while television channels will be airing special programmes on them and their works marking their tragic death, reported news agency. On 13 August 2011, Tareque and Mishuk along with three others were killed in a road accident on Dhaka-Aricha highway in Ghior Upazila of Manikganj while returning to Dhaka from Manikganj after visiting a shooting location. The accident happened when a microbus carrying the two celebrities collided with a bus ...

MNA Entertainment Desk: Netflix’s new series “Insatiable,” hitting screens Friday, was touted by the streaming service as a dark comedy meant to spark debate on society’s ills, reported news agency. Instead, critics have slammed it as fat-shaming, homophobic and denigrating to transgender people. The offbeat show follows the story of overweight teen Patty, who is mocked and bullied incessantly until she has an accident that requires her jaw be wired shut — which causes her to shed significant weight. With her new svelte figure, she vows to seek revenge on all those who attacked her, notably by participating in beauty ...

MNA Entertainment Desk: British author VS Naipaul, who won the Nobel Prize in literature, has died at his home in London at the age of 85, reported news agency. Sir Vidia, who was born in rural Trinidad in 1932, wrote more than 30 books including A Bend in the River and his masterpiece, A House for Mr Biswas. On social media, fans paid tribute to Sir Vidia and expressed their sadness. Sir Vidia, who as a child was read Shakespeare and Dickens by his father, was raised a Hindu and attended Queen’s Royal College in Trinidad. He moved to Britain ...

MNA Feature Desk: When almost all countries across the world are celebrating International Youth Day with the theme ‘Safe Spaces for Youth’, many Bangladeshi youths say spaces for them are narrowing. August 12 was designated as the International Youth Day by the United Nations in 1999 to recognize the role of young women and men as essential partners in change, and raise awareness of challenges and problems faced by them. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said the United Nations is strongly committed to listening to the voices of young people – and opening pathways for meaningful participation in decisions that ...

MNA Education Desk: A total of 229 students of Dhaka Division have received the ‘Mercantile Bank-Abdul Jalil Education Scholarship-2017’ at the awarding programme organised by Mercantile Bank limited (MBL) at FARS Hotel & Resorts in the capital on Saturday. Governor of Bangladesh Bank Fazle Kabir attended at the ceremony as the chief guest, while Mercantile Bank Chairman AKM Shaheed Reza was present at the occasion as the special guest, said a press release. Chairman of Mercantile Bank Foundation Shahidul Ahsan presided over the programme, while MBL Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kazi Masihur Rahman delivered welcome  address the ...

MNA Tech Desk: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd unveiled the Galaxy Note 9 “phablet” in New York in a key product launch that it hopes will attract younger customers with stepped-up features and services for gamers and music-lovers, reported news agency. Launching the Note 9 at 11:00am in New York, or Friday midnight in Seoul, Samsung also announced partnerships with global hit game Fortnite and music-streaming service Spotify Technology SA in a stepped-up challenge to Apple Inc in the premium-phone race. Samsung’s new focus marks a shift away from its previous positioning of the Note as a multi-tasking device popular with ...

MNA Feature Desk: Ethnic minorities in Bangladesh today observed the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples with a call for recognising them as indigenous people in the constitution. Today, Thursday 9 August 2018, is the 24th International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples since its creation by the United Nations in December 1994. The date was chosen because it marks the first meeting of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations in 1982. The 2018 theme of “Indigenous People’s Migration and Movement” illustrates the consequences of the persecution and economic disenfranchisement many indigenous peoples face. Whether they are fleeing ...

MNA Tech Desk: Facebook has asked major US banks to share customer data to allow it to develop new services on the social network’s Messenger texting platform, reported news agency. Facebook had discussions with Chase, JPMorgan, Citibank, and Wells Fargo several months ago, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. The Silicon Valley-based social network also contacted US Bancorp, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news. Facebook, which has faced intense criticism for sharing user data with many app developers, was interested in information including bank card transactions, checking account balances, and where purchases were ...

MNA Education Desk: The examinations of Junior School Certificate (JSC) and Junior Dakhil Certificate (JDC) of this year will commence from November 1 across the country, reported news agency. Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Dhaka and Bangladesh Madrasah Education Board published the routines of the examinations. Talking to journalists, Abu Ali Mohammad Sajjad, deputy secretary of Education Ministry (Secondary and Higher Secondary Division)  confirmed the information. JSC and JDC examinations will begin from November 1 and continue till November 15. The routines of the examinations are now available on the websites of the education boards.

MNA Entertainment Desk: Priyanka Chopra and Chris Pratt’s “Cowboy Ninja Viking” has been indefinitely delayed. Universal Pictures has taken “Cowboy Ninja Viking” off its schedule and undated the movie, which was previously set to release on 28 June, 2019, reported news agency. According to several sources, the film is still in active development with Pratt, Priyanka and director Michelle MacLaren remaining on board. The studio said it will be re-dated at a later time to accommodate production scheduling. Sources say the studio delayed the film rather than rushing it out to make the 28 June deadline. The novel revolves around ...

MNA Life Style Desk: Turmeric, otherwise known as the golden spice, originates from the East. It’s good for more than spicing up curries though this spice has long been used in India to beautify the skin. Ancient China also valued turmeric for its medicinal uses, including its anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, antioxidant, and antiseptic properties. Correct oily skin In order to prevent the skin from becoming too dry, oils and waxes are secreted by the sebaceous glands. This helps the epidermis retain moisture while keeping the skin soft and supple. Excessively oily skin, usually due to overactive sebaceous glands, can lead to ...

MNA Feature Desk: The nation is observing the 88th birth anniversary of Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib, wife of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, in a befitting manner on Wednesday. Fazilatunnesa, who played a pivotal role in nation building activities and the struggle for independent Bangladesh staying beside Bangabandhu, was born at Tungipara village of Gopalganj district on this day in 1930. Fazilatunnesa, a pride of the Bangalee nation, was assassinated brutally with Bangabandhu and most of her family members by a disgruntled group of army officers on August 15, 1975. President M Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister ...

MNA Education Desk: The 38th Bangladesh Civil Service or BCS written examinations will begin on Wednesday, reported news agency. The candidates will not be allowed to carry any kind of watches, books, calculators and other electronic tools during the tests, according to Bangladesh Public Service Commission (BPSC) press release issued on Tuesday afternoon. A sufficient number of watches will be provided in all examination halls for the candidates to see the time, the press release also added. According to the notice, violators of the rules will have their instruments seize, even their candidacy might be cancelled and declared unqualified for ...

MNA Tech Desk: Online ticketing platform, bdtickets.com, has offered online ticket for the upcoming Eid-ul-Adha, said a press release on Saturday. People planning to travel, can easily purchase tickets through this online ticketing platform from the comfort of their homes. Interested customers can place purchase request on the platform for their desired destinations along with return tickets and make payment conveniently using their debit/credit cards or mobile wallet (such as bKash, Rocket etc.). Customers can also call directly to the bdtickets.com’s contact center by dialing 16460. The call center agents will process the ticket purchase requests. Having started its journey ...

MNA Entertainment Desk: In her first public comments since an overdose put her into the hospital, singer Demi Lovato says she remains committed to overcoming addiction, reported news agency. “I will keep fighting,” Lovato wrote Sunday in a post on Instagram. She also thanked her fans, family, team and staff at Cedars-Sinai hospital in Los Angeles. She reportedly overdosed on drugs at her Hollywood Hills home on 24 July. She said she’s learned that the illness of addiction doesn’t fade and is something she “must continue to overcome,” and needs time to heal and focus on her sobriety and recovery. ...