Mokammel Shuvo

Security has been beefed up along the Myanmar-Bangladesh border areas in Cox’s Bazar as the ongoing conflict has intensified in Rakhine state on the other side of the fence.

The Bangladesh Land Port authorities held no one responsible for the weight tampering of imported goods at its weighbridge scales, more than six months after the massive scam was unearthed.

At least eight new resorts have been built illegally, while eight other existing ones have extended their structures in St Martin’s Island between April and September without approval.

Saint Martin's Island off the southern coast of Cox's Bazar is usually abuzz with tourists this time each year, but the ongoing nationwide strikes and blockades have put a damper on the local tourism industry.

Cox’s Bazar Express started its maiden journey to the capital from Cox’s Bazar Railway Station yesterday.

The Rohingya community living in Cox’s Bazar refugee camps has an alarmingly high exposure to HIV, said health professionals and NGO workers.

The recently constructed Cox’s Bazar rail station aims to attract more tourists to the country’s renowned destination, the Cox’s Bazar sea beach.

Importers expressed grave concerns as bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Myanmar through the Teknaf land port has halted since November 14 due to the ongoing conflict between the Arakan Army (AA) and Myanmar’s military junta in the Rakhine state.

Months after an eviction drive that demolished over 200 structures illegally built along the bank of Bakkhali river in Cox’s Bazar town, the area has been grabbed yet again.

Rohingya refugees who interacted with the Myanmar delegation in Cox’s Bazar at the end of last month expressed their resolve to return to their original homes, not to the villages or camps set up for them in the Rakhine State.

Farmers in the Moheshkhali upazila of Cox’s Bazar, famed for its evergreen betel leaves, were the worst sufferers of Cyclone Hamoon, leaving them staring into the abyss as they wonder how to cover up massive losses.

For over six years, vested quarters have been illegally extracting sand from a more than 3km stretch of land in the hilly area of Kalirchhara Reserve Forest in Cox’s Bazar, resulting in extensive damage to the forest, hills, and wildlife.

Sharmin Akhter and her husband salvaging the ravaged fences and wrecked tin roofs of what was once their home in Samitypara area of Cox’s Bazar -- this is what this correspondent saw during his visit to the area yesterday.

Salt farmers in Chaufaldandi union under Cox’s Bazar sadar upazila are preparing their fields early this year as they aim to secure higher profits before imports potentially dampen the market.

Tourists who recently visited Cox’s Bazar have likely seen a few young men, in yellow t-shirts and red shorts, keeping a close eye over them as they ventured out into the waters. They only have a ring buoy on their backs and constantly roam the beach or survey it from mobile watch towers, keeping visitors safe from drowning, between the morning and evening.

The floods that hit Bandarban, Cox’s Bazar and parts of southern Chattogram early this month left a trail of destruction in their wake.

It was October 2017. A 13-year-old Kahed Ullah had to leave his home in Buthidaung, Rakhine with 13 other family members in the face of a brutal crackdown by the Myanmar military.

While Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury’s Gonoshasthaya Kendra has continuously caught the eye of the public during any crisis in the country, some of it’s remarkable works have been going on for year without much publicity.

“Only God knows how we survived. First, it was the cyclone, and then came the fishing ban, and then another depression. We could only hope for better days soon. But the wait was too long.”

Over 60 percent of the third graders and 70 percent of the fifth graders don’t have the proficiency in maths, appropriate for their grades, finds a government assessment depicting a grim picture of the quality of the country’s primary education.