At least 47 people were killed after a powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Colombia’s Choco region on Monday, according to reports cited by Al Jazeera. The US Geological Survey and Colombia’s Geological Service said the quake hit near the municipality of San Jose del Palmar, about 400 kilometres west of Bogota. Building collapses and extensive damage were reported in several areas.

USGS data placed the earthquake’s origin about 107 kilometres below the surface. Colombia initially reported the magnitude as 6.6. The US tsunami warning system said no tsunami warning had been issued. Residents in Choco and other areas were being moved to safer locations, while rescue and emergency personnel assessed damage and responded to the disaster.

Local officials reported at least 18 deaths in Pereira, two in Manizales and at least 27 in the Valle del Cauca region. Choco Governor Nubia Cordoba said strong shaking was felt across the province and raised concern about possible aftershocks. Casualties and damaged buildings were also reported in Quibdo. People were evacuated from several buildings in Bogota, and authorities said a preliminary official damage report would be released soon.

Jahangirnagar University Central Students’ Union, or JAKSU, held a protest march against the Education Ministry’s decision to transfer teacher recruitment authority at private educational institutions from the Non-Government Teachers’ Registration and Certification Authority (NTRCA) to institutional managing committees. The march began at the university’s central library area at about 9:15pm on Monday, August 10, 2026, and ended at Bottola.

Students chanted slogans supporting merit and education during the procession. Their slogans included calls against commercialisation of education, objections to what they described as deception over education, and demands for continued struggle.

JAKSU executive member Muhammad Ali Chishti alleged that the government was seeking to politicise recruitment by taking the authority from NTRCA. JAKSU general secretary Mazharul Islam also strongly opposed the decision, saying managing committees of schools and colleges are often staffed by partisan loyalists. He urged the government to withdraw what he called a harmful decision and warned that officials understood its possible consequences.

Fisheries, Livestock and Agriculture Minister Mohammad Amin Ur Rashid said Bangladesh is committed to taking its historical, cultural and economic ties with ASEAN member states to a higher level. He made the remarks on Monday night at a reception marking ASEAN’s 59th founding anniversary at the Renaissance Dhaka Gulshan Hotel in the capital. The ASEAN Dhaka Committee, comprising ambassadors and high commissioners of ASEAN member states posted in Bangladesh, organized the event.

The minister said Bangladesh’s long-standing ties with ASEAN countries rest on history, culture and mutual trust, and have been strengthened by land and maritime connectivity, people-to-people links and trade. He said the government led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman gives the highest importance to relations with ASEAN’s 11 member states. He also expressed hope that the prime minister’s first state visit to Malaysia would positively advance Bangladesh’s relations with ASEAN countries.

Bangladesh has applied to become an ASEAN Sectoral Dialogue Partner, and the minister sought support from ASEAN mission chiefs attending the event. A Bangladesh-ASEAN fisheries and aquaculture cooperation project with a budget of about $1 million is being implemented under his ministry. Additional cooperation projects in tourism, information and communication technology, culture and other sectors are under process.

Bangladesh Bank has removed the maximum two-year term limit for boards of directors it appoints at various banks. The central bank issued a circular on Monday under Section 121 of the Bank Company Act, 1991, allowing such appointed boards to remain in office beyond two years if necessary.

The circular said the provisions of Section 47(2), concerning the duration of orders dissolving boards of directors, would generally not apply to bank companies. Previously, Bangladesh Bank could extend the duration of an order dissolving a board from time to time, but the total term, including extensions, could not exceed two years.

As a result, newly appointed boards installed by Bangladesh Bank after a previous board is dissolved will no longer face a maximum two-year service limit. After the fall of the Awami League government, the central bank dissolved and reconstituted the boards of 14 banks. Their two-year terms were approaching expiry, and Bangladesh Bank was under pressure over their tenure, according to the report.

Leaders of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union, or DUCSU, protested in heavy rain outside the university’s central library on August 10, demanding the withdrawal of a decision to shift entry-level teacher recruitment in private educational institutions from NTRCA to managing committees and governing bodies. Demonstrators chanted slogans calling for merit-based recruitment rather than committee-led appointments.

DUCSU Vice President Sadik Kayem said a stronger movement than the July movement would be built if the decision was not revoked. He called for restoring the previous system under which NTRCA centrally recommended teacher appointments for schools and colleges. DUCSU leaders alleged that local committees could enable political influence, bribery and nepotism, undermining recruitment based on merit and qualifications.

The Education Ministry made the decision at a meeting on August 3, applying it from the 19th teacher registration examination. DUCSU announced a student gathering at 3 p.m. on August 11 outside the central library and urged students and job seekers from colleges and universities to join. Jatiya Chhatra Shakti and some students also announced separate programmes over the same demand.

At least 13 people, including children, were killed and 39 others injured in a Ukrainian drone strike on Nizhnekamsk in Russia’s Tatarstan region, Russian officials said. Reuters reported the information on Monday, citing Russian officials. Ukrainian military authorities said the strike targeted Tatneft’s Taneko oil refinery in Tatarstan, about 800 kilometres east of Moscow. Local authorities described it as one of the largest recent attacks in Russia in terms of civilian casualties.

A fire spread at the refinery after the attack, while videos circulating on social media showed thick smoke rising above the facility. Russian investigators opened a criminal investigation, calling the incident a terrorist act. They alleged that Ukrainian forces had also targeted residential areas. Nizhnekamsk’s mayor said in a Telegram message that Tatarstan leader Rustam Minnikhanov expressed condolences over the deaths.

The Taneko refinery had previously been hit by a Ukrainian drone attack in early June. The report said Ukraine has been striking oil refineries and energy infrastructure across Russia for months to increase pressure on its energy sector, creating fuel-supply strain in some Russian regions. Russia and Ukraine both deny intentionally targeting civilians.

Students and members of the influential Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP) protested outside the Mizoram Public Service Commission (MPSC) office in Aizawl, Mizoram’s capital, on Monday. They demanded administrative reforms in recruitment, additional staffing, and the withdrawal of the contested One Time Registration (OTR) system. Protesters staged a sit-in outside the office and prevented officials and employees from entering.

According to a Press Trust of India report, some protesters scuffled with police when officials attempted to enter the office, although the demonstration was peaceful overall. MZP alleged that repeated administrative weaknesses and errors in recent recruitment processes had reduced job seekers’ confidence in the commission. The organisation said the OTR system had also created concern among applicants.

The protesters called for structural reform of the MPSC and for more staff to make its operations more efficient and credible. They also sought separate application forms based on requirements and posts instead of the current OTR system. MZP demanded a one-time offline document-submission opportunity for applicants rejected over incomplete OTR uploads, and reconsideration for written-test qualifiers disqualified during document verification because of missing papers.

University Teachers Link, or UTL, has strongly opposed an initiative to place responsibility for entry-level teacher recruitment at private schools, colleges and madrasas in the hands of institutional management committees. In a statement sent to the media on Monday, UTL President Professor Dr Md Atiar Rahman and General Secretary Professor Dr Zubair Muhammad Ehsanul Haque called on the government to immediately cancel the decision.

UTL leaders said implementing the move could restore opportunities for political and local influence, nepotism, bribery and irregularities in teacher appointments. They said recruiting talented, qualified and skilled teachers is a principal condition for ensuring quality education. The group maintained that teacher recruitment should not be subject to political, personal or financial influence and should instead be based on merit, qualifications, skills and professional capability.

The statement said the NTRCA-based system used since 2015 for recruitment at private MPO-listed educational institutions has enabled competitive examinations and merit-based appointments, while ensuring transparency and accountability to a considerable extent. UTL said any limitations in that system should be reformed and modernized rather than returning to an older arrangement that could create room for irregularities. It urged stronger, more effective NTRCA recruitment mechanisms and safeguards for transparency and accountability.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has condemned and protested an Education Ministry initiative to give managing committees authority to recruit entry-level teachers at private schools, colleges and madrasas. In a statement sent to the media on August 10, the party’s secretary general, Mia Golam Parwar, urged the government to cancel the proposed process for MPO-listed private educational institutions.

Parwar said the matter was reportedly decided at an August 3 meeting at the Education Ministry conference room on the overall activities of the Non-Government Teachers’ Registration and Certification Authority, or NTRCA. He warned that implementation could revive corruption, nepotism, partisan influence and bribery in teacher recruitment. He said appointing qualified, meritorious and skilled teachers is a key condition for ensuring quality education.

The Jamaat leader said the existing NTRCA recommendation process gives greater weight to merit, qualifications and competitive examinations, helping improve transparency and accountability. He called for shortcomings and complexities in that system to be addressed rather than restoring recruitment authority to managing committees. He also proposed, if necessary, an independent and neutral institutional framework similar to the Public Service Commission for appointments in MPO-listed private institutions.

Education Minister Ehsanul Haque Milon said no final decision has been made on returning teacher recruitment authority to managing committees at private schools and colleges. He conveyed the government’s position to the media on Monday, August 10, 2026.

The minister said there has been no conclusive decision to give managing committees the power to appoint teachers. The process for appointments will be determined after the selection of 77,000 teachers is completed.

His clarification followed recent reports in several media outlets that recruitment authority could be restored to the managing committees or governing boards of private educational institutions. The minister outlined the government’s position amid that discussion.

The National Citizen Party (NCP) has demanded that the interim government reverse its decision to scrap the expanded Essential Drugs List-2026 and Drug Price Determination Method-2026. In a joint statement issued Monday by convener Nahid Islam and member secretary Akhtar Hossain, the party called the move contrary to public interest and warned of a broader public movement if it is not withdrawn. The report was published on August 10, 2026.

NCP said the list had contained 117 medicines before the July mass uprising, claiming that about 40 percent had become ineffective in practice. It said reforms expanded the list to 295 medicines and introduced strict price controls, and claimed those medicines could meet the primary treatment needs of about 80 percent of people. The party also said earlier policy required companies to produce and supply essential medicines equal to at least 25 percent of annual sales.

The party alleged that the government reduced the list back to 117 medicines and weakened price controls in the interests of drug companies. NCP said higher prices could particularly affect patients with chronic illnesses and raise treatment costs for middle- and lower-income families. It sought effective price controls for 295 medicines, government control over maximum retail prices, and a science-based, public-oriented national drug policy.

Bangladesh has formed a 22-member National Task Force on Deregulation and Ease of Doing Business to simplify the business and investment environment. Chaired by the finance and planning minister, the body was established through a Cabinet Division notification issued on August 9. The government says the initiative aims to identify and reform unnecessary rules, approvals and administrative complexities affecting businesses and investors.

The task force will approve sector-based reform road maps and review implementation progress. It will identify excessive licences, approvals, clearances and administrative steps in areas including taxes, duties, banking, capital markets, construction, environmental services and local services, and direct measures to reduce them. It will also provide policy guidance on introducing a single window, service level agreements, deemed or automatic approvals and online tracking systems.

The panel includes ministers, advisers, the Bangladesh Bank governor, the executive chairman of BIDA and senior officials from relevant ministries and agencies. Presidents of major business bodies, including FBCCI, FICCI, DCCI, MCCI, BGMEA and BKMEA, are also members. A dedicated website is planned through the Invest Bangladesh Authority to monitor complaints, irregularities and service delays. The task force will review reform progress every three months.

Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam has condemned a decision to hand managing committees authority to recruit teachers at MPO-listed schools and colleges, calling it a blueprint to destroy the country’s education system and impose extreme partisan control. In a post on his verified Facebook page on Monday, reported on August 10, 2026, he demanded the decision be withdrawn immediately.

Islam said the move would take away what he described as the last refuge for educated unemployed youth. He alleged that recruitment in schools and colleges would no longer be possible without bribery, nepotism and political considerations. According to him, qualified and talented young people would be deprived while unqualified people could be appointed through political influence and corruption.

He also warned that appointing unqualified teachers would seriously harm educational standards. Islam said the foundation for building the knowledge and skills of future generations would weaken, potentially bringing severe long-term consequences for the nation. The lawmaker urged the immediate withdrawal of what he called a plan pushing young people’s futures and the education system toward destruction.

Fire Service and Civil Defence’s Dhaka Division held a preparatory meeting with stakeholders for post-earthquake firefighting and coordinated rescue operations. The meeting took place at 11am on August 10 at the Fire Service EOC Centre conference room in Mirpur. Owners and representatives of public and private institutions with cranes, excavators and other heavy rescue equipment from six districts attended.

The meeting covered Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Manikganj, Munshiganj and Narsingdi, as Dhaka was described as among the country’s most earthquake-vulnerable areas. Director of Operations and Maintenance Lt Col Md Mahmudul Hasan instructed zone commanders and district officials in the six districts to strengthen coordination and communication with stakeholders. He also offered views on planning firefighting and rescue operations and arranging training.

Participants in the open discussion expressed commitment to support rescue operations during national disasters. Heavy Equipment Association Bangladesh President Md Afzal Hossain said the association would work jointly with the Fire Service and proposed forming an “Emergency Equipment Support Team.” Dhaka Division Deputy Director Md Saleh Uddin called for greater coordination, training and drills after presenting images of the Rana Plaza collapse and recent earthquakes in Turkey and Myanmar. About 70 owners and representatives attended.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman urged every citizen to fulfil their responsibilities from their respective positions to build the Bangladesh envisioned by martyrs of the July mass uprising. He made the call on Monday at the Cabinet Division meeting room in the Secretariat during a ceremony honouring and providing financial assistance to family members of Bangladesh Scouts martyrs from the uprising. Deputy press secretary Sujauddoula conveyed the matter.

Rahman said those who sacrificed their lives for the country in 1971 and 2024 sought to establish people's rights. Their goal, he said, was a Bangladesh where basic needs are met and everyone can live in peace. He said no one can repay the debt owed for the martyrs' sacrifices, adding that honouring them requires more than remembrance and demands work for the country by those who remain alive.

The prime minister urged Bangladesh Scouts members to serve the country and its people, stand beside others and develop a sense of responsibility toward nature. Ten members of martyrs' families received special honours, financial grant cheques and medals. Bangladesh Scouts President Nasimul Gani called for the martyrs' contributions and sacrifices to be included in the national curriculum.