Mostafa Yousuf

The public administration ministry is seeking 700 acres of protected forest, an ecologically critical area, in Shuknachhari of Cox's Bazar to build a civil service academy.

Intermittent drizzling and rain in the last two weeks in Chattogram is creating a congenial atmosphere for spawning in river Halda, a unique and possibly lone natural spawning ground of carp fish in South Asia.

In gross violation of the tobacco control law, sale of cigarettes is rampant on the peripheries of hundreds of schools and hospitals in Chattogram, a research shows.

Waste from large factories and a housing estate are polluting the Halda river in Chattogram to the extent that it caused fish die-offs, according to a report of the Department of Environment.

Selim Uddin, 50, had been a farmer all his life like his father and his father before him. Until a few years ago, he earned his living by farming on a small piece of land and fishing in canals in and around his South Madrasa union in Chittagong's Hathazari upazila.

The government is supposed to increase forest land to 20 percent of the country's total landmass by 2030, but the reality is, it is losing land every year to different government agencies who demand land for their establishments and development projects.

The government is mulling an online registration system for tourists willing to travel to Saint Martin's Island, in an effort to conserve biodiversity of the unique island.

The second phase of the eviction drive launched to rid the Karnaphuli of illegal occupation has become uncertain as authorities do not have a plan for the reclaimed land.

The Water Development Board (WDB) is implementing an embankment project along the Halda river causing severe damage to the natural breeding ground of carp fish.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will launch the boring for Karnaphuli tunnel and construction of the country's longest elevated expressway in the port city's Potenga today.

Two workers were killed and another was injured in an oil tanker explosion at a ship-breaking yard in Chattogram's Sitakunda upazila yesterday.

The gas outage in a vast area of Chattogram continued for the second consecutive day yesterday, causing untold sufferings to the port city dwellers and partially disrupting industrial production and power generation.

On the banks of the Halda at Uttar Mohra point, within the boundaries of Chattogram city corporation area, a lone brick kiln emits plumes of poisonous smoke.

Dried fish producers in Cox's Bazar's Nazirar Tek village, the largest dried fish producing village in the country, are still using toxins even though an NGO has been putting in efforts to make them switch to organic fish-processing methods.

Chittagong Development Authority's (CDA) decision to rent out space under Aktaruzzaman flyover's ramp -- on dividers of a major road of the port city -- in an apparent bid to manage maintenance cost of the flyover, has drawn flak.

About 400 indigenous people of Tripura Palli, a remote village in Chattogram, were elated to have finally gotten electricity in their homes, 47 years after Bangladesh gained independence.

For the last one week, dwellers in various parts of the port city have been experiencing low pressure of gas in their burners due to the inadequate LNG supply.

Sayed Mohammed Ibrahim, candidate of Jatiya Oikyafront from Hathazari (Chattogram-5) came under attack on Wednesday afternoon, while he was campaigning at Forhadabad area of the upazila. At least seven people, including a woman, were injured in the attack, while five vehicles were vandalised.

The arson attack on Hindu houses in Banshkahli's Muhuripara area nearly six years ago still haunts the villagers.

Known as the stronghold of BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami, Banshkhali (Chattogram-16) is likely to see a hard-fought contest this time as all four heavyweight candidates have a strong presence in election campaign.