Mohammad Tarikul Islam Tarik, joint general secretary of the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal central committee, arranged the return of two missing boys from Terokhada upazila in Khulna to their family after they were found in Agargaon, Dhaka. The boys, 12-year-old Raihan and 8-year-old Rafi, had gone missing from their home on Wednesday, August 12. The report was published on August 17, 2026.

Saiful Islam Shipon, a first-year anthropology student at the University of Dhaka, spotted and rescued the children at the National Institute of Ophthalmology and Hospital in Agargaon. After Tarik was informed, he contacted Terokhada police station and arranged communication with the boys’ family.

The children’s father was brought to Dhaka, where Raihan and Rafi were handed over to him at the University of Dhaka. The boys said they had left home after feeling hurt by scolding and verbal abuse from family members. Tarik spoke with their parents and advised them to treat children with tolerance and friendship. He said the primary goal was to ensure the children’s safe return and that he would continue trying to assist people in distress.

The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education has prepared a draft notice containing 14 instructions for transfer applications by MPO-listed teachers working at private schools and colleges. Under the draft, teachers seeking transfers under the policy must apply online through ngttdshe.teletalk.com.bd using user IDs and passwords sent to their mobile phones. Applications will be accepted from August 21 to August 27.

An applicant may apply to a maximum of three institutions in order of preference. Applications will be processed through automated software under the transfer policy, after which the authorities will issue placement orders. Teachers must apply first for transfers within their home district; if no vacancy exists there, they may seek vacant posts in any district within their division. Applications may also be made for a spouse’s home district or work district under specified institutions.

Teachers become eligible to apply after completing two years from their first appointment. After joining a new workplace through transfer, they must work there for at least two years before applying again. Transferred teachers will not receive TA or DA. Institution heads must release transferred teachers within 10 days of an order, and teachers must join the new workplace within the following 10 days. Incomplete or false applications will not be considered.

All 10 fishers aboard a trawler owned by Sohel Mir of Chalitabunia Union in Rangabali upazila, Patuakhali, were rescued alive after it sank in the Bay of Bengal on Monday afternoon. Seven fishers were initially rescued by one trawler, while the remaining three, who had been missing, were found by another trawler several hours later.

The rescued fishers were identified as Mehedi, Riyan, Masum Mir, Farid, Md Mostafa, Md Majnu, Md Shakil, Abdur Kha, Md Sohel and Md Monir. Owner Sohel Mir said they had gone to sea from Koralia on Friday. While returning to the landing point on Monday amid worsening weather, the bottom of the trawler cracked in the middle of the Bay of Bengal.

Acting upazila fisheries officer Md Jahirunnabi said all those missing had been rescued alive and officials were checking on their condition. Rangabali Upazila Nirbahi Officer Md Nazmul Hasan said the matter had been reported to higher authorities and confirmed that all 10 fishers had been rescued alive.

East West University’s English Department and the Japanese Universities Alumni Association in Bangladesh jointly held a seminar titled “Unlock Your Global Future: Research & Study in Japan” on August 16 at the university’s Manzur Elahi Auditorium. The event aimed to inform students, teachers and researchers about opportunities for higher education, research and career development in Japan.

Professor Dr Mohammad Farashuddin, chairperson of East West University’s Board of Trustees, attended as chief guest. JUAAB President Dr A T M Zafrul Azam was the special guest, while Professor Dr Sheikh Mohammad Fazle Akbar was an honoured guest. East West University Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Shams Rahman chaired the seminar.

The programme sought to advance academic links between Bangladeshi students, researchers and academics and Japanese higher education and research institutions. Six educators from Japan, including Professor Shinjiro Ogita of Prefectural University of Hiroshima and Professor Hiroki Hamada of Okayama University of Science, discussed research trends, English-medium programmes, Japanese-language preparation, contacting supervisors, admissions preparation and research proposals. Participants also exchanged views with the visiting experts during a question-and-answer session.

Education and Primary and Mass Education Minister Dr. A N M Ehsanul Haq Milon said nearly 77,000 teachers need to be recruited for high schools and madrasas nationwide. Speaking to journalists after an event in Dhaka on Monday, he said the government would first arrange transfers for teachers posted in distant locations. He said the transfer process was expected to begin within days, after which authorities would move toward new recruitment.

Asked how transparency in transfers would be ensured, the minister said it would be seen after the system was launched. He also said retirement allowances for teachers had begun to be provided across the country. According to him, broad preparations for teacher recruitment have started in all areas.

Milon said teacher shortages had persisted for a long time, including 32,000 vacant head teacher posts in primary schools. He said litigation related to those posts had been resolved. He added that a case filed after written examinations for institution heads at public schools had also concluded. Authorities would arrange viva examinations for that recruitment process within a few days, he said.

Rajshahi University has barred Associate Professor Dr Sujan Sen from all academic and administrative activities for five years and demoted him to assistant professor. The decision, involving the Department of Drawing, Oriental Art and Printmaking, was made at the university’s 548th syndicate meeting on Thursday. Registrar Professor Iftikharul Alam Masud confirmed the action on Monday morning, citing allegations of incompetence, corruption, arbitrariness and giving advantages to preferred students.

Masud said Sen will be eligible to rejoin as an assistant professor after five years. He may apply for promotion to associate professor only four years after that, leaving him nine years behind in his career progression. He also will not receive any increments during the five-year period.

Students declared Sen unwelcome in the department on August 25 last year. On September 8, they submitted a written complaint of about 200 pages, including evidence of alleged corruption and irregularities, to the vice-chancellor, student adviser and department chair. An emergency meeting suspended him from departmental activities on September 9, and the administration formed an inquiry committee on September 18. Its report found his conduct amounted to ethical misconduct.

Education Minister A N M Ehsanul Haque Milon said the government’s first 180-day “honeymoon period” after taking office has ended, and problems across the education sector have been identified. He said the government is now placing emphasis on resolving those issues. Milon made the remarks while speaking at the QS Bangladesh Forum 2026 on Monday, August 17.

The minister questioned why QS ratings should remain limited to universities in developed countries. He said Bangladesh’s universities could have achieved better positions if universities from SAARC member countries were included in the ratings. He also raised questions over the lack of PhD programmes at private universities in the country despite many years having passed, asking why no effective initiative had been taken.

Milon expressed concern about research capacity at Bangladeshi universities. He said many talented researchers are applying their knowledge and skills to development and research abroad, while Bangladesh has failed to identify and use them effectively at home. The government is working to strengthen university research capacity, use talented researchers domestically, and improve education and research standards, he said.

Several hundred school students in Debiganj, Panchagarh, took a red-card pledge against drug use, juvenile crime and the misuse of smartphones. The programme was held on Monday morning, August 17, 2026, at Nripendra Narayan Government High School মাঠ in Debiganj upazila. Lal Sabuj Unnayan Sangha, a volunteer organisation run through savings from tiffin money, organised the event.

At a discussion meeting on juvenile crime and drugs, students were administered pledges aimed at building character and preventing social degradation. Upazila Nirbahi Officer Indrajit Saha, the chief guest, led the pledge for students to avoid drugs, juvenile crime and smartphone misuse. Head teacher GM Rahul Amin chaired the programme.

Police Inspector (Investigation) Prabir Sarkar, organisation founder and central president Kawsar Alam Sohel, and Wasim Akram also spoke. Sohel said the organisation has worked for 15 years in all 64 districts and has encouraged about 4.5 million students through awareness activities. Saha described the initiative as commendable and called for collective efforts to keep the younger generation away from social degradation and crime.

Online voting has begun on the migration of students from seven government colleges affiliated with the University of Dhaka to relevant academic programmes at Dhaka Central University. The vote covers students from the 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24 academic years. Voting opened at 10am on August 17 and will continue until 10pm on August 19, for a total of 60 hours.

Students can vote through a link on Dhaka Central University’s official website. A one-time password will be sent to the phone number registered in the University of Dhaka database during examinations, and only one vote can be cast from each number. Students must provide their name, college, department, academic year, registration number, phone number and date of birth to verify identity and information.

The university administration said the opinions received will be reviewed with due importance when making a final decision, while collected information will remain confidential. After migration, it plans to finalise an online student management system to complete examinations, publication of results and other activities on time. Authorities also said they plan to prevent session delays and introduce a double-examiner system to avoid inconsistencies in results.

Allegations have emerged that expired cement and relatively lower-priced steel rods are being used in a 10-storey administrative building under construction at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology. The Tk53 crore project is being built by Desh Unnayan Corporation under the university’s Further Development Project-2, according to a report published on August 17. The same contractor is also constructing another 10-storey residential hall under an Tk87 crore contract.

The report said expired cement bags were found at the materials storage site, with some expiry dates falling in April, September and December of last year and January of this year. Workers alleged that such cement was being used. Exposed rods were also observed at several roof locations where concrete appeared insufficient, while students alleged the use of low-quality stone and sand.

Project Manager Ariful Islam denied using expired cement, saying the firm uses running Lafarge cement and that the rods are listed by the PWD. As of August 9, about 30 percent of work had been completed, although the UGC deadline is December 11. Professor HMA Mahjuz said expired cement may not provide required strength and exposed reinforcement can rust and cause concrete cracking.

Most students at Bangladesh’s public universities face a housing shortage because residential hall capacity falls far below demand. The University Grants Commission’s latest published 2023 annual report says 50 public universities have 162 male and 100 female halls, providing accommodation for only 39.65 percent of students. Nearly 60 percent therefore live in nearby messes, rented homes or with relatives, facing higher costs, longer commutes and disruption to their studies.

Bangladesh Agricultural University, Patuakhali Science and Technology University and Kishoreganj University have full residential coverage, while 10 universities have no residential facilities. Coverage stands at 21.87 percent at Chittagong University, 26.14 percent at Islamic University, 43.97 percent at Dhaka University and 46.71 percent at Rajshahi University. Jagannath University has only one female hall and no male hall, despite having about 20,000 students.

Stakeholders have called for new halls, expanded capacity in existing halls and merit-based seat allocation. Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Obaidul Islam said projects are underway for new halls and additional seats. Chittagong University is arranging housing for about 300 students and has a proposed 10-storey hall awaiting a Tk690 crore ministry budget process. Two male halls at Jagannath University are expected to be completed in December, accommodating 1,600 students.

The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education has finalized preparations to receive transfer applications from MPO-listed teachers working at private schools and colleges. Under a draft plan, applications are scheduled to open on August 21 and continue through August 27. An official notice will be issued only after approval from the education ministry.

The director general of the directorate, Professor Dr Khan Moinuddin Al Mahmud Sohel, met Education Minister Dr A N M Ehsanul Haque Milon on Sunday to discuss the matter. The meeting decided that a notice should be issued quickly to begin accepting transfer requests. The director general is expected to submit the draft to the ministry on Monday, and the notice could be published this week if approval is granted.

The draft allows seven days for submissions, followed by screening that may take seven to 10 days. Teachers may apply only for their own district, their spouse's home district, or their spouse's workplace. The software will not accept applications outside these three areas and will display a notification stating that the applicant is ineligible.

Biman Bangladesh Airlines cancelled its BG372 flight from Kathmandu, Nepal, to Dhaka after a technical fault was detected before takeoff. The flight was scheduled to depart for Dhaka at 4pm on Sunday. The aircraft had left the terminal with passengers aboard and was moving toward the runway when the problem was identified. It was returned to the terminal, passengers were disembarked and kept waiting, causing hardship for about 127 travellers.

Passengers told media outlets that, even after waiting for nearly two hours, they initially received no clear information on when the flight would leave or what alternative arrangements would be made. The delay raised concerns for elderly passengers, children and people who were ill.

Babul Akhtar, Biman Bangladesh's Kathmandu country manager, told media that it was not immediately possible to say how long repairs would take. Business-class passengers were given access to a lounge, while other passengers were being provided facilities under applicable rules. The airline was preparing to send a larger aircraft to Kathmandu to carry all passengers from the cancelled flight to Dhaka together.

A viral social media video claiming that a woman chased a power office worker over an electricity bill is not a real incident, according to fact-checking organization The Descent. An Amardesh Online report published on August 16, 2026 said the footage was an acted production made for entertainment or awareness purposes.

The video was first posted on August 12 by a Facebook account named Munnau Molla, which regularly publishes similar acted or scripted content, the investigation found. Later, parts of the video were collected and circulated by various pages and accounts with altered captions portraying it as an actual confrontation involving an electricity bill distributor.

Sources including NEWS NOW Bangla and Showkat Hossain Khan shared the clip with claims that a power office employee had faced trouble while delivering a bill paper. The Descent concluded that the footage was a dramatized segment, and said it had been spread on social media as a real event either carelessly or deliberately.

Bangladesh’s Public Works Department transferred and posted 409 engineers through a lottery on Sunday at the Public Works Building conference room in Segunbagicha. The group included 152 assistant engineers in civil works, 67 assistant engineers in electrical and mechanical works, 135 sub-divisional engineers in civil works, and 55 sub-divisional engineers in electrical and mechanical works.

Among assistant engineers, 100 were posted to offices in Dhaka division, 20 to Rajshahi, 34 to Chattogram, 20 to Khulna, 12 to Barishal, seven to Sylhet, nine to Mymensingh and 17 to Rangpur. For sub-divisional engineers, postings included 79 in Dhaka, 18 in Rajshahi, 32 in Chattogram, 20 in Khulna, 10 in Barishal, nine in Sylhet, seven in Mymensingh and 15 in Rangpur.

The lottery was arranged to ensure transparency, neutrality and discipline in transfers and postings. Housing and Public Works Ministry Additional Secretary Md Sarowar Alam and several department and ministry officials attended. Earlier, the department transferred 767 sub-assistant engineers in civil works through a lottery on July 30 and 254 sub-assistant engineers in electrical and mechanical works on August 3.