A solar-powered Farmers Mini Cold Storage has opened at Kalai Hat in Joypurhat to preserve farmers’ vegetables and fruits and help them secure fair prices. The Department of Agricultural Extension inaugurated the hybrid solar-operated facility on Friday afternoon under the 2025-26 agricultural rehabilitation assistance programme. State Minister for Public Administration and Food Abdul Bari attended as chief guest.

Officials said farmers often face losses during periods of surplus seasonal production, when increased market supply pushes prices down. Without sufficient storage, perishable vegetables and fruits can spoil or be discarded when timely sales are not possible. Abdul Bari said the facility would help modernise storage and market management, reduce crop waste, raise farmers’ incomes and strengthen the rural economy.

The facility will be managed cooperatively by 15 to 20 farmers. Kalai Upazila Agriculture Officer Harunur Rashid said products can be stored for between two days and one month, depending on the item. Farmers will be able to assess market conditions before selling, potentially improving their bargaining capacity and reducing losses from perishable produce.

China has issued a high alert over possible major flooding after a landslide created a dam-like lake near the Nepal-Tibet border. The lake formed where the Chochhen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers meet after debris blocked the river’s natural flow. State broadcaster CCTV reported that about 2.5 million cubic metres of water had accumulated in the lake by Friday.

China’s Ministry of Water Resources said water had begun overflowing from the site on Thursday. Officials warned that roughly another 3 million cubic metres of water could enter the lake between Thursday and the weekend, increasing the risk that its banks could collapse.

Authorities temporarily suspended rescue operations because of the dangerous conditions, before restarting them after the situation came somewhat under control. A breach of the lake’s banks could cause fresh flooding downstream, according to the officials’ forecast.

A severe gas shortage is disrupting electricity generation across Bangladesh, increasing load shedding and affecting households, transport and industries. On Thursday, Dhaka faced average outages of one and a half to two hours, while areas outside the capital experienced power cuts lasting eight to 12 hours daily. The reported daily electricity shortfall exceeded 2,300 megawatts, alongside an estimated gas deficit of about 1.4 to 1.6 billion cubic feet.

According to the latest daily figures from Petrobangla and the Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, gas demand stood at 3.8 to 4 billion cubic feet, against supply of only 2.38 to 2.4 billion cubic feet from production and imports. Domestic fields supplied 1.61 billion cubic feet, while regasified imported LNG added 770 to 800 million cubic feet to the national grid.

Gas-based power plants received 930 to 950 million cubic feet of gas, but officials said insufficient fuel has constrained output. Gas-fired plants with capacity of 12,500 megawatts are producing just over 5,000 megawatts, leaving about 7,000 megawatts of capacity idle. CNG users also reported long queues and low pressure.

Nepal’s flood death toll has risen to 552, police confirmed on Friday afternoon. The earlier figure released by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority was 538. The disaster struck after severe mud and ice landslides in northern Rasuwa and neighboring districts on Wednesday morning, triggering sudden flooding in the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli rivers.

The total includes people killed in Rasuwa district and bodies recovered in low-lying districts after victims were swept away by the Bhotekoshi River’s current. Floodwaters rapidly washed away homes, bridges, roads and other infrastructure, leaving wide areas and many travelers completely cut off from the rest of the country.

Authorities said the death toll is not final as rescue and search operations continue and information from different districts is still being coordinated. Hundreds of people remain missing. Nepal Police said 4,473 personnel are working on disaster response and rescue efforts.

Authorities in Bakshiganj, Jamalpur, fined trader Dulal Mia Tk20,000 and seized 72 sacks of fertiliser from his shop and warehouse over allegations of storing fertiliser without a licence and selling it at inflated prices. The operation took place at about 10:30pm on Thursday in the Okuler Mor area of Bogarchar ইউনিয়ন.

Upazila Agriculture Officer Aminul Islam said the raid was conducted following information that Dulal Mia had long been storing fertiliser illegally without a licence and selling it at higher prices. Officials seized 64 sacks of DAP fertiliser and eight sacks of urea fertiliser, amounting to about 3.5 metric tonnes.

The seized fertiliser will later be sold to farmers in the upazila at fair prices, according to the agriculture office. Bakshiganj Assistant Commissioner (Land) Asma Ul Husna and Agriculture Officer Aminul Islam led the operation. Asma Ul Husna said the administration would continue drives against illegal stockpiling and attempts to create artificial shortages in the interest of farmers.

Nepal’s police confirmed that the death toll from devastating flash floods in the country’s north has risen to 469 after rescuers intensified searches for bodies and survivors in river basins and downstream areas. The disaster struck on Wednesday morning after severe mud and ice slides in Rasuwa and neighboring districts triggered sudden flooding in the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli rivers. Many people remain missing.

The torrent swept away homes, bridges, roads and other infrastructure within moments, cutting off broad areas and many travellers from the rest of the country. Authorities said the full scale of destruction remains unclear as casualty and missing-person reports continue to be collected and coordinated across districts.

The Nepal Tourism Board said at least 667 tourists and travellers, including 127 Nepalis, remain missing in flooded areas. Thirty-one foreign nationals were rescued alive. The Nepali Army, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force are conducting rescue and evacuation operations with helicopters and ground teams, though severe damage to roads and infrastructure is hindering aid delivery. The cause of the sudden flooding remains under investigation.

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) plans to invest $1 billion to modernise and expand Eastern Refinery, Bangladesh’s only state-owned oil refinery, amid an acute fuel crisis. IsDB Chairman Dr Mohammed Al Jasser is scheduled to visit Dhaka for three days from September 2, when major energy-sector investment agreements are expected to be discussed.

During the visit, Al Jasser will meet Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, and Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku. An agreement may also be signed for a 220-megawatt solar power and livelihood development project in Sonagazi, Feni, valued at $143 million.

Bangladesh’s annual fuel-oil demand is about 7 million tonnes, with 95% dependent on imports, according to the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation. Eastern Refinery receives about 1.5 million tonnes of crude oil for processing, while 5-5.2 million tonnes of refined diesel, furnace oil and octane are imported directly. The refinery normally processes 4,500 tonnes of crude daily, but output has been reduced because of the crisis.

A massive mud-and-rock collapse in the Himalayas triggered catastrophic flooding across Nepal and China’s Tibet region on Wednesday, killing more than 390 people and leaving over 1,500 missing. Nepalese authorities confirmed the recovery of 392 bodies, while at least three deaths were reported in Tibet. The collapse struck a river and rapidly swept away valleys and settlements.

Nepal’s tourism department said 668 foreign trekkers from 34 countries are missing, including 177 Indians, 90 Americans, 34 Australians, 33 Britons and 25 Canadians. China said 100 Chinese citizens were among those missing in Nepal. In Tibet’s Gyirong County, 558 people, including 260 foreigners, were reported missing.

Destroyed roads and bridges have hindered rescue access, with helicopters evacuating survivors and delivering supplies. More than 5,000 Nepal Army personnel are involved, and 350 workers and residents trapped in the Upper Trishuli hydropower project tunnel were rescued alive. At least 15 hydropower projects were damaged, stopping about 431 megawatts of generation. The United States, United Nations, Canada, Australia and India have announced or provided assistance.

A large natural lake formed near the confluence of the Chochhen Khola and Purepu Sangpo rivers in Nepal’s Rasuwa district has breached, raising fears of another sudden surge in the Bhotekoshi River. Rasuwa Chief District Officer Narendra Pariyar confirmed the development on Friday, citing the Nepali Army. The lake is located near the Nepal-China border.

Chinese authorities had warned on Thursday that water was overflowing from the lake and that it could collapse at any time. Nepal’s disaster management authority said water levels in the Bhotekoshi River had risen. Helicopters stationed in Dhunche and Rasuwa were being prepared for an aerial survey of the river and surrounding areas.

China’s Ministry of Water Resources estimated that the lake held about 2 million cubic metres of water on Thursday morning, with a further 3 million cubic metres expected to enter over the following three days. Flooding on Wednesday damaged roads, bridges and other structures in Timure and Syafrubesi, while many people remain missing. Authorities have not yet confirmed how much water was released by the breach.

A magnitude 5 earthquake struck northern Tibet around midnight on Thursday, as the region was still dealing with the effects of a severe glacier collapse and sudden flooding. Germany’s Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) confirmed the tremor and said its origin was about 10 kilometres below the surface.

According to GFZ, the epicentre was several hundred miles north of areas near the Nepal-China border. The quake followed another earthquake of magnitude 4.7 that hit Tibet’s Nagqu area on Wednesday, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center, with Xinhua confirming that report.

Authorities are also concerned that a naturally formed barrier lake in Tibet could breach. China has activated a level-four flood response to prepare for rising water. The Ministry of Water Resources instructed local authorities to monitor the lake’s water level and rainfall around the clock, while an expert team was sent to Gyirong County to assess conditions and provide necessary support.

Potato growers and traders blocked the Rangpur-Lalmonirhat-Kurigram highway in the Nabdiganj area of Rangpur city on Thursday, demanding that cold-storage charges be fixed at Tk5 per kilogram. Hundreds of participants gathered before placing wooden logs on the road, halting traffic in both directions and causing long congestion.

Protesters said an agriculture department report put the cost of storing potatoes in cold storage at Tk3 to Tk4 per kilogram, while cold-storage owners were unwilling to charge below Tk7. They said the higher fee would deepen losses after spending heavily on potato production, transport and storage, particularly if market prices fall below production costs.

Farmer leaders including Altaf Hossain and Sarwar Ali spoke during the blockade. The protesters warned that if their demand is not accepted by Saturday, they will go to all cold storages in Rangpur on Sunday, pay Tk5 per kilogram and remove their own potatoes. They also warned of responsibility for any deterioration in law and order. The blockade was withdrawn after about two hours, and traffic resumed.

More than 2,000 concrete blocks have allegedly been removed from the Charhaizda crop-protection embankment in Dingapota Haor, Mohanganj upazila of Netrokona. Local people said the removals began during the night of August 18 in front of Korachapur village in Gaglajur union and have continued on many subsequent nights. Farmers fear the loss of blocks could weaken the embankment and endanger boro crops if early flooding or water pressure rises.

The Bangladesh Water Development Board said the permanent embankment was built in 2019 across 5.3 kilometres of highly vulnerable areas at a cost of Tk39.64 crore to protect boro crops. Its sub-assistant engineer Md Enayet Hossain filed a general diary at Mohanganj police station on August 23. Residents also said parts of the embankment had previously been cut at night, but they saw no effective action.

Police and the upazila administration said they visited the site, identified people involved and instructed them to return the blocks within two to three days. Mohanganj police warned that legal action would follow otherwise. Farmers have demanded prompt inspection and repairs of damaged sections, along with stronger monitoring to prevent further damage or theft.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will visit Turkey in November to attend the United Nations World Climate Conference, COP-31, Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humayun Kabir said. He conveyed the information during a meeting with Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Musa Kulaklikaya on the sidelines of the 23rd OIC Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Thursday.

Representatives of Bangladesh and Turkey exchanged views on a range of regional issues and expressed readiness to work closely on matters of mutual interest. Both sides voiced satisfaction with existing bilateral cooperation and discussed their shared interest in expanding collaboration in trade, investment, diplomacy and other important areas.

The meeting emphasized the need to elevate Bangladesh-Turkey relations to a higher level. During the discussion, Humayun Kabir informed the Turkish deputy foreign minister that the Bangladeshi prime minister would travel to Turkey for the upcoming COP conference.

Bangladesh’s Water Resources Ministry on Thursday appointed Hasan Mahmud as project director of the Padma Barrage (First Phase) project, one day after Amar Desh reported slow progress in its implementation. Mahmud, superintendent engineer of the Feni Water Development Circle, received the assignment as an additional responsibility.

The report said more than three months had passed since Executive Committee of the National Economic Council approval, but visible progress was absent because a project director, deputy project director and required staff had not been appointed. Ministry and Finance Ministry sources said the staffing organogram had been approved, but disagreement between the Public Administration Ministry and Bangladesh Water Development Board over the project director appointment created complications and also delayed consultant recruitment.

The Tk34,500 crore, seven-year project was approved on May 13. The government says it could address water shortages, revive dying rivers, improve irrigation and protect biodiversity across 163 upazilas in 26 southwestern districts, while its proposal cites about 927,000 permanent jobs. Water experts called the barrage a national necessity amid India’s unilateral water withdrawal, while urging international-standard technical and environmental studies before implementation. The government hopes the prime minister will inaugurate construction in January-February next year.

Actress Rakhi Sawant said she made special prayers during a spiritual visit to the holy city of Mecca, seeking protection, better education and employment opportunities for young people in her country. She also prayed for the country’s safety from people who mislead others and urged political leaders to carry out their responsibilities with honesty and dedication.

During her prayers, Sawant referred to a recent tragic incident in which three members of a family died by suicide following domestic unrest linked to a demand for an iPhone. Addressing young people, she advised them to become self-reliant and not cause hardship for their parents over expensive items or iPhones.

She called on young people to work hard, earn independently and build their own futures and lives. Speaking about her religious identity, Sawant said she was born Hindu, later became associated with Christianity and now follows Islam, while respecting all religions equally. Her Mecca visit emphasized education, honesty and children’s sense of responsibility toward their parents.