Everyday, both in print and digital media, scary stories emerge about robots killing jobs.

In his famous poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, the 18th-century English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge eloquently reflects on the scarcity of water in the sea: “Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink”.

The introduction of the now Primary Education Completion (PEC) (formerly PSC) and Junior School Certificate (JSC) exams have made public schools in Bangladesh more accountable, in a way.

July is less than a month away, and festival fever is beginning to take hold among the estimated 10,000-strong Bangladeshi expatriate community in greater Atlanta. All hands are on deck for the 32nd FOBANA convention, the upcoming Bangladeshi jamboree to be hosted at the World Congress Center in downtown Atlanta. All told, at least 5,000 attendees are expected, by conservative estimates.

The readymade garment (RMG) sector plays a pivotal role in the economy of Bangladesh, accounting for more than 83 percent of the country's exports and contributing approximately 16 percent to the GDP, with around 4,000 factories employing around four million workers.

Bangladesh has been lagging behind in conducting petroleum exploration. In the 1960s, the country gained the position of a natural gas province in the world map when Shell Oil Company drilled and successively discovered five very large gas fields in Sylhet and Comilla areas.

A ghost is haunting the global capitalist elites—the ghost of Karl Marx.

The first United Nations (UN) peacekeepers were deployed in the Middle East on May 29, 1948 and since then, more than a million peacekeepers have been deployed in 71 missions across the globe to guarantee peace to billions of people.

Today, May 28, is Menstrual Hygiene Day. The objective of observing this day is to raise awareness of the challenges women and girls face worldwide due to menstruation and highlight solutions addressing these challenges.

Last year when the news of Rohingya women giving birth in no man's land along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border first surfaced in the media, I heard many men glorifying such births which took place out in the open without any assistance from any birth attendants. They were comparing the Rohingya women's experiences of childbirth with that of our urban women, who can afford quality maternity care during their pregnancy and give birth at quality

News about security forces mowing down several dozen “drug dealers” in the last two weeks has got many of us writhing in moral agony over “shootouts” happening on an increasing tempo. True, drug abuse is highly detrimental to our youth and surely drug dealers need to be checked vigorously, but committing the state-sanctioned “ultimate sin” to rid ourselves of some low-level operatives is quite disturbing, to say the least.

“Why don't you tell the truth?

Besides sending a strong message to shady traders, the picture of RAB destroying 40 tonnes of chemically ripened mangoes felt as if the fruit was on the verge of taking the baton of the “forbidden fruit” from the “infamous” apple. Mango lovers fervently hope that this batch would be a drop in the ocean and that the overwhelming proportion of the harvest would instead bring back the smile on our faces.

The human rights situation of Bangladesh was reviewed at the UN Human Rights Council on May 14, 2018 under the Universal Periodic Review mechanism.

After a praiseworthy journey in implementing MDGs, the next big target for Bangladesh is execution of SDGs.

By announcing the conditional unilateral cessation of pro-active operations by security forces against militants in Jammu and Kashmir during Ramadan, the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken a decision that is fraught with as much risk as a potential turnaround for the better. This is the first such peace initiative by the Modi government since coming to power four years ago.

Cultural heritage refers to the traditions, values, beliefs, and sense of belonging in a community. It's the shared bond that helps shape our identity. It's the material things, and the tangible and intangible both.

An array of recent accidents in the country, as well as another one outside, point to the need for improved regulations and stricter enforcement and oversight in transportation, energy, and aviation sectors. The plane crash in Kathmandu, a train derailment near Tongi, and the sinking of a coal-carrying barge in Khulna were all preventable. Fortunately, there were no human casualties in the latest accident, in which MV Bilash carrying 775 tonnes of coal capsized on April 14 in the Harbaria Channel near the Mongla River Port.

The human rights situation of Bangladesh is going to be reviewed by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on May 14, 2018 through its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism.

Every day when I get to the office, I meet so many amazing, talented people. We brainstorm problems together, we strategise and pursue opportunities together, we go through the ups and downs of our work together. When I take a step back and reflect on the number of women alongside me in the work we do, it fills my heart with pride. As a woman, I see that we've come a long way.