Five people were killed and at least four others injured in three separate road accidents on the Cumilla section of the Dhaka-Chattogram Highway on Wednesday, April 1. The incidents occurred between early morning and mid-morning in Daudkandi, Nimsar, and Chandina areas. Two autorickshaw drivers, Barek and Mostafa, died in Daudkandi when an unidentified speeding vehicle hit their autorickshaw. Four others were injured and hospitalized.

Earlier, around 3:45 a.m., two men, Mohammad Zohirul Islam and Sohel Rana, were killed near the Nimsar market U-turn when their vehicle crashed on the Dhaka-bound lane. Police recovered the bodies and are working to identify the vehicle involved. Later in the morning, a ninth-grade student, Ibne Taim, died after being hit by a truck while crossing the road in Chandina.

Police officials from Daudkandi and Mainamati Highway Stations said legal procedures are underway, injured victims are receiving treatment, and the deceased have been handed over to their families.

The government of Bangladesh will begin a measles vaccination campaign at the upazila level from Sunday, April 5, in response to a worsening outbreak across the country. Health Minister Sardar Sakhawat Hossain announced the initiative at a press conference in Dhaka on April 1, stating that vaccinations will start first in the most affected areas. Vaccines will reach those regions within two days, and all health workers’ leave has been canceled to ensure full participation.

According to the Directorate General of Health Services, measles has spread rapidly in Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj, Pabna, Barishal, and Mymensingh, with more than 700 infections and over 50 deaths reported. Public health experts have urged immediate government action, warning that a single patient can transmit the disease to 16–18 others if left unchecked.

Bangladesh’s routine immunization program provides two doses of the measles vaccine to children at nine and fifteen months of age through about 120,000 vaccination centers. The last national measles campaign was conducted in December 2020.

A Chattogram-bound train named Udayan Express, which departed from Sylhet, left three of its coaches behind near Hasanpur station in Nangalkot upazila of Comilla on Wednesday morning. The incident occurred around 6 a.m. when the coaches became detached, causing severe inconvenience to passengers. The separated section included the guard brake coach, which houses the train director, a canteen, and 15 passenger seats. Thousands of passengers narrowly escaped a major accident.

Following the detachment, the train was delayed in reaching Chattogram. Railway staff worked for nearly two hours to reconnect the separated coaches to the main engine. Once reattached, the train resumed its journey toward Chattogram from the Hasanpur area. According to Hasanpur station master Nasir Uddin, the train split between Hasanpur and Gunabati, outside the station area, and normal train movement resumed about 20 minutes after the incident.

Train operations on the down line later returned to normal, and no further disruptions were reported in the area.

The World Bank has assessed the overall implementation progress of Bangladesh’s Higher Education Acceleration and Transformation (HEAT) project as “moderately satisfactory.” The evaluation was presented during a courtesy meeting between a World Bank delegation and University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman Professor Dr. Mamun Ahmed on April 1, 2026. The three-member team was led by Senior Education Specialist and Task Team Leader T.M. Asaduzzaman, who noted that the project had earlier been considered problematic but showed visible progress after August 2024 due to effective UGC initiatives.

Asaduzzaman described HEAT as a frontline investment by the World Bank in Bangladesh’s higher education sector, aimed at developing skilled human resources and expanding employment opportunities. He announced that the project’s mid-term review would begin in April and sought cooperation to complete activities on schedule. UGC Chairman Mamun Ahmed emphasized that the project is vital for improving higher education quality and addressing structural issues, highlighting positive impacts from teacher training programs.

The World Bank delegation added that over the next two years, the project will focus on strengthening research, basic teacher training, and modern campus development.

The Puja Celebration Front in Muradnagar, Comilla, has strongly protested what it described as false and malicious social media campaigns linking Religious Affairs Minister Kazi Shah Mofazzal Hossain Kaikobad MP to a temple fire. At a press conference held in Comilla city on March 31, 2026, the organization’s northern convener Dulal Debnath said certain groups were spreading misinformation to destroy communal harmony and damage the minister’s relationship with the Hindu community.

Speakers including Professor Din Dayal Pal, Doyananda Thakur, Ratan Das, and Bijon Kumar Das stated that the fire occurred near a banyan tree adjacent to the minister’s house, not inside a temple. They alleged that some Facebook pages intentionally circulated videos and photos to create fear between Hindus and Muslims. The speakers emphasized that Kaikobad had long supported underprivileged Hindus and maintained peaceful relations among all communities.

The Puja Celebration Front urged authorities to investigate the incident, bring those responsible under the law, and called on residents not to believe rumors that could disrupt Muradnagar’s communal peace.

South Bangla Agriculture and Commerce (SBAC) Bank Chairman Engineer Mokhlesur Rahman said depositors’ funds are safe with the bank. Speaking at a press conference marking the bank’s 13th anniversary on Wednesday, he emphasized that the board and management are fully committed to customer service and national development. Senior officials including Managing Director Moinul Kabir, Additional Managing Director Robiul Islam, and Deputy Managing Director Altaf Hossain were present.

Rahman stated that trust is the core of banking and takes time to build through ethical practices and high standards. He said the bank prioritizes investment in agriculture, food production, and value-added services for overseas job seekers, while also supporting young entrepreneurs to engage in national economic activities. He warned against misuse of loan funds for non-business purposes, calling it a major problem in the banking sector.

Addressing dividend concerns, Rahman noted that asset quality pressure has limited payouts but efforts are underway to recover. Managing Director Kabir added that SBAC Bank has satisfactory liquidity, is avoiding aggressive lending, and is focusing on small and medium sectors while tightening recovery from willful defaulters.

A mobile court in Tungipara upazila of Gopalganj fined a business establishment Tk 30,000 for illegally hoarding and selling diesel at inflated prices. Acting on information from the National Security Intelligence (NSI), the court conducted a raid at Messrs Kalipada Saha Enterprise in Patgati Bazar on Tuesday night. The owners, Bishwajit Saha and Gobinda Saha, were penalized for storing 4,500 liters of diesel and selling it above the legal rate.

The mobile court was led by Executive Magistrate and Assistant Commissioner (Land) Al-Amin Haldar. He stated that the seized diesel had been kept unlawfully and sold at higher prices. Following the inspection, the court ordered that the stored fuel be sold to the public, limiting each buyer to a maximum of five liters.

The operation aimed to curb illegal fuel hoarding and ensure fair distribution in the local market, according to the official statement.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) has pledged full cooperation to assist the Bangladesh government in creating employment opportunities. The commitment was made by ILO Director-General Gilbert Houngbo during a bilateral meeting in Geneva with Bangladesh’s Minister of Labour and Employment, Ariful Haque Chowdhury, who was attending the 356th ILO Governing Body session. Prime Minister’s Adviser on Labour, Employment and Education Mahdi Amin and Labour Secretary Abdur Rahman Tarafdar were also present.

Houngbo expressed solidarity with Bangladesh’s priority programs and congratulated the new government on assuming office following recent elections. He emphasized the importance of Bangladesh’s democratic process and praised the country’s diplomatic efforts for gaining international support. Minister Chowdhury conveyed the Prime Minister’s greetings and highlighted the government’s focus on employment for youth and women, seeking a more active role from the ILO’s Dhaka office. He also requested cooperation in resolving the ongoing Article 26 issue concerning Bangladesh.

The meeting discussed strengthening international labour standards, expanding social protection programs, and increasing the involvement of multinational companies and global brands in ensuring workers’ rights. The minister welcomed Houngbo’s possible visit to Bangladesh in June.

Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury has said that preparing the upcoming national budget will be challenging due to a fragile economy, pressure to implement election pledges, and the ongoing war in the Middle East. He made the remarks on Wednesday after a meeting with officials of the National Board of Revenue (NBR), where he discussed fiscal strategies for the next financial year.

The minister noted that the economy is already under strain, and the government faces obligations to fulfill its electoral commitments. The Middle East conflict has further complicated the situation by increasing costs, particularly in energy imports. He emphasized that the government aims to design a budget that boosts revenue collection without harming investment and employment.

Chowdhury added that the government does not intend to print money and seeks to reduce dependence on borrowing, moving instead toward an investment-driven economy. The upcoming budget will focus on ensuring resources for development and encouraging both domestic and foreign investment.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will inaugurate two canal excavation projects in Jhenaidah and Feni this month as part of the nationwide canal excavation program. Water Resources Minister Md. Shahiduddin Chowdhury Annie announced the plan after a meeting chaired by the Prime Minister at the Secretariat. He said that excavation work in a canal at Kaharol in Dinajpur has already begun, and the new initiatives will extend the program to two more districts.

The minister stated that the Prime Minister will personally visit both districts to launch the projects, while ministers and state ministers will oversee activities in other areas. The meeting discussed completing the excavation within 180 days and achieving the target of 20,000 kilometers of canals. He noted that many rivers have been damaged by encroachment and pollution, posing challenges to implementation.

According to the minister, strict measures have been taken to recover occupied canals, and coordinated efforts are underway to overcome obstacles. He also mentioned that the Teesta Master Plan remains under technical discussion and that the technical team continues work on the Ganges Treaty with India.

An Israeli airstrike in central Iran’s Mahallat city has killed the chief engineering officer of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) Quds Force, according to the Israeli military. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated that the strike took place on Tuesday and identified the victim as Mahdi Wafai, who was described as the head engineer of the Quds Force’s Lebanon Corps.

In its statement, the IDF said Wafai had been involved for two decades in advancing secret projects in Lebanon and Syria, including building infrastructure and managing arsenals for Hezbollah. The military further claimed that he led efforts to construct underground facilities for Hezbollah and the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad, and oversaw dozens of underground projects used to store advanced weapons in Lebanon.

Iranian authorities have not issued any immediate comment regarding the reported strike or the death of Wafai, according to the source.

New York City Mayor Zohra Mamdani has criticized the United States and Israel’s war against Iran, saying it should be opposed from every perspective. In an interview with YouTuber Brian Tyler Cohen, she stated that the conflict has already cost 23 billion dollars, despite Americans facing a crisis of affordable living costs.

Mamdani, who campaigned on a promise to reduce living expenses in New York City, argued that such a vast amount of money could have transformed the lives of working-class Americans if invested in Medicare, education, or student debt relief. She said that by pursuing another regime-change war, the government has thrown away opportunities to improve domestic welfare.

Her remarks, reported by Al Jazeera, highlight growing concerns about the financial and social costs of foreign military engagements amid economic challenges at home.

The United States has pledged to stand by Bangladesh in addressing the global energy crisis triggered by ongoing instability in the Middle East. The assurance came during a high-level meeting at the U.S. Department of Energy in Washington, D.C., where Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Dr. Khalilur Rahman met with U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright. The discussion was confirmed in a press release issued by the Bangladesh Embassy in the United States on April 1, 2026.

During the meeting, the Bangladeshi foreign minister highlighted the pressure on the country’s energy sector due to disruptions in global supply chains and sought U.S. cooperation to ensure energy security. In response, the U.S. energy secretary said Washington was aware of Bangladesh’s situation and committed to supporting the country in overcoming the challenges.

Both sides also discussed prospects for long-term energy cooperation, including ensuring stable energy supplies for Bangladesh and expanding opportunities for energy imports from the United States. Senior officials from both governments attended the meeting.

More than two hundred workers were injured in a ferry accident at Mongla in Bagerhat on Wednesday morning. The incident occurred when workers were crossing the river to reach their workplaces, and overcrowding and disorder led to a stampede. Many fell into the river and sustained serious injuries. Locals helped rescue the injured and sent them to nearby hospitals for treatment. Officials fear the number of injured could rise further.

Workers alleged that long-standing mismanagement, excessive passenger pressure, and lack of safety measures have repeatedly caused such accidents. They demanded immediate steps to ensure safe crossings, saying they risk their lives daily without a permanent solution from the authorities.

Mongla Upazila Executive Officer and Municipal Administrator Sharmin Akter Sumi said the matter is being taken seriously, medical care has been arranged for the injured, and necessary steps will be taken to prevent future incidents. She added that initiatives are underway to improve ferry management and restore order soon. Workers warned of protests if a permanent safety solution is not implemented quickly.

A joint operation by RAB-12 of Sirajganj and RAB-13 of Rangpur uncovered a counterfeit money factory in Gangachara upazila, Rangpur. During the raid, law enforcers arrested Md. Rubel Mia, aged 34, and seized fake currency and equipment used for producing counterfeit notes. The operation was confirmed in a press release signed by Additional DIG Md. Atikur Rahman Mia, PPM, on Wednesday morning.

According to the press release, the raid took place on Tuesday afternoon at Rubel’s residence in Chengmari area under Gangachara police station, where RAB recovered counterfeit notes worth Tk 192,500 along with printing materials. Earlier, on March 29, two individuals were arrested in Sirajganj with fake notes worth Tk 1,315,700, and information from that case led to the Gangachara operation.

RAB stated that the arrested individuals had been involved in producing and distributing counterfeit currency for a long time and were already facing multiple criminal cases.