Porimol Palma

The coronavirus pandemic is set to deal a heavy blow to the country’s overseas job market and the remittance flow as a large number of Bangladeshi migrants have already lost their jobs or were receiving low wages amid shutdowns enforced to stem the spread of the virus, say economists and researchers.

The feeling of being a father in indescribable, and it is more so when it’s experienced for the first time. A Bangladeshi migrant in Singapore, whose wife has just given birth, is yet to experience this as for the past two months he has been ill. His physical condition has been worsened by coronavirus infection.

The glittering New York City, a bustling tourist destination, is now a land of worries. New York is the most affected state in the US, now the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic. Of the more than 188,000 people infected by the virus in the country,

An estimated two lakh irregular Bangladeshi migrants in Malaysia are particularly vulnerable to coronavirus infections with the Southeast Asian country enforcing about a-month-long lockdown since March 18.

Ignatius Rozario, a Bangladeshi living in Milan, is acutely depressed. The 45-year-old man who always likes to dress up and look sharp now has a black-and-grey beard after staying home for two weeks amid Italy’s countrywide lockdown.

With no jobs or low wages for months in crisis-hit Lebanon, Bangladeshi migrants are now borrowing money from home for their survival. As coronavirus spreading fast in the middle-eastern country and businesses are closing down, their future has become further uncertain.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will join the birth centenary celebration of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on March 17 through videoconference.

Lego, the world’s largest toy brand with annual sales of more than $2 billion, was established by the Kirk Christiansen family in Billund, Denmark in 1932.

South African anti-apartheid revolutionary Nelson Mandela’s saying “The youths of today are the leaders of tomorrow” remains true in every sense even today. When they aspire to be leaders – be it in politics, economy or society -- or become professionals, they need to learn the skills relevant to their field.

India is pressing upon Myanmar for safe, secure and sustainable return of Rohingyas to Rakhine State, said Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Riva Ganguly yesterday.

The government is considering shelving its plan to shift one lakh Rohingyas to remote Bhashan Char following persistent objections from international aid agencies to the relocation.

Unpaid for five months, over 70 Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia are living at a factory dorm in Balakong with money borrowed from relatives.

The government is going to set up seven special tribunals for speedy trials in human trafficking cases as Bangladesh faces risks of US sanctions for not doing enough in combatting the heinous crime.

Dhaka will seek Riyadh’s assistance in stopping visa trade, an illegal practice that pushes up recruitment cost for Bangladeshi workers going to Saudi Arabia, as a joint commission meeting of the two countries begins in Dhaka today.

Around 1.6 lakh Bangladeshi migrant workers are passing days in uncertainty in crisis-hit Lebanon as most of them have either lost their jobs or remained unpaid over the last few months.

Cancer control in the country requires an integrated approach with emphasis on prevention that can help improve quality of life, reduce the possibility of cancer and thus cut health expenditures, experts have said.

The International Court of Justice has asked The Gambia to file its initial pleadings by July 23 in the case against Myanmar.

Myanmar and its ally China will face mounting pressure after the World Court asked Naypyidaw to stop genocidal acts in Rakhine State, analysts said.

Bangladesh has been sitting on a zero-cost labour recruitment offer that Malaysia made more than a year ago.

The Rohingyas have been facing persecution for decades. They have lived without citizenship and faced restrictions on freedom of movement. They have also been denied basic rights.