Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will address the nation this evening, marking the second anniversary of her current government formed through the December 30, 2018 general election.

Bangladesh Betar and Bangladesh Television will simultaneously broadcast the prime minister's address from 7:30pm, said PM's Speechwriter Md Nazrul Islam.

Sheikh Hasina formed the government for the third consecutive term following her party Awami League's landslide victory in the 11th parliamentary election.

The new cabinet was formed on January 7, 2019.

Awami League (AL) General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader today said devoted persons who remained with the party in its well and woe will be made the party leaders.

“We want more disciplined and well-organized Awami League. We do not want opportunists in the party. Devoted workers will be evaluated in the party,” he said while addressing the first session of AL Chattogram District North unit’s triennial conference at the historic Laldighi Maidan in the city.

Quader said AL has a large number of workers so there is no need of wrongdoers in the party.

The party, he said, does not need workers like those who were involved with BUET student Abrar Fahad killing, who created chaos in the Chattogram University and who plunged college principal into a pond in Rajshahi.

The AL general secretary said once Chattogram was Father of Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s strong base for achieving independence and it was also a strong base of Bangabandhu’s daughter Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

He called upon the leaders and workers of Chattogram to be united shunning quarrels.

AL Presidium Member Engineer Mosharraf Hossain inaugurated the conference while Presidium Member Advocate Abdul Matin Khasru, Joint General Secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif, Publicity and Publication Secretary and Information Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud, Organizing Secretary and Deputy Minister for Water Resources AKM Enamul Haque Shameem, Organizing Secretary and Deputy Minister for Education Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel, Deputy Publicity Secretary Aminul Islam and Deputy Office Secretary and Prime Minister’s Special Assistant Barrister Biplab Barua, among others, addressed the session.

AL Chattogram District North Unit acting President ABM Fazle Karim Chowdhury chaired the function while its General Secretary MA Salam conducted it.

Speaking on the occasion, Mahbubul Alam Hanif said pro-BNP lawyers have made an unprecedented incident by creating chaos in the courtroom. People of no other countries witnessed such a terrible incident inside the courtroom of the chief justice, he added.

Dr Hasan Mahmud said world leaders including the US president, Indian prime minister, World Bank president and its chief economist have praised the unprecedented development of Bangladesh. But BNP and its 20-party alliance could not praise the achievements of the country, he added.

Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury said BNP has become a political party based on media as now the party’s only task is to hold a press conference for spreading falsehood against Awami League and the government.

Chattogram City AL Acting President Mahtab Uddin Chowdhury, Chattogram City Corporation (CCC) Mayor and City AL General Secretary AJM Nasir Uddin, Chattogram District South unit of AL President Moslem Uddin Ahmed, General Secretary Mafizur Rahman, lawmakers Didarul Alam, Mahfuzur Rahman Mita and Khadizatul Anwar Sony were present in the dais.

A huge number of leaders and workers joined the council. Later in the afternoon council session was held at the International Convention Centre in the city.

Awami League President Sheikh Hasina-led new cabinet will be formed tomorrow excluding some heavyweight ministers of the immediate past cabinet.

Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam today announced the names of the new cabinet members including 24 ministers, 19 state ministers and three deputy ministers.

A total of 31 new faces were included in the cabinet while 25 ministers, nine state and two deputy ministers of the immediate past cabinet were excluded.

Some new faces have been given priority in the new cabinet to give them space bringing dynamism in the state function, an Awami League leader wishing anonymity told The Daily Star.

The Awami League bigwigs are among Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu, Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed, Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury, Health Minister Mohammad Nasim, LGRD Minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Expatriate Welfare Minister Nurul Islam, Social Welfare Minister Rashed Khan Menon and Housing and Public Works Minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain were dropped from the new cabinet.

Public Administration Minister Syed Ashraful Islam died on January 3. Finance Minister AMA Muhith, prior to the 11th parliamentary election, told that he would take retirement and thus he did not participate in the December 30 national election.

Among the Awami League-led 14-party grand alliance, Workers Party of Bangladesh President also former Social Welfare Minister Rashed Khan Menon and Jatiya Samastantrik Dal (JSD) President also former Information Minister Hasanul Huq Inu were dropped from the new cabinet.

Former Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan, Relief and Disaster Management Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, Foreign Minister Abul Hasan Mahmud Ali, Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor, Food Minister Qamqul Islam were also kept aside from the new cabinet.

Of them, Maya was not given nomination to contest the just ended national election.

Among the state ministers, former State Minister for Textiles and Jute Mirza Azam, Jatiya Party Presidium Member and also State Minister for Labour Mujibul Haque Chunnu, State Minister for Information Tarana Halim and State Minister for Local Government Mushiur Rahman Ranga were also dropped form the new cabinet.

There is no Jatiya Party lawmaker in the new cabinet as the party has recently announced that it would act as a real and effective opposition party in the 11th parliament.

There were three state ministers in the immediate past cabinet.

Awami League secured 257 seats, its alliance partners Jatiya Party got 22, Workers Party of Bangladesh 3, Bikalpadhara Bangladesh 2 Tarikat Federation 1, JSD 2 and Jatiya Party (Manju) secured 1 seat in the December 30 national election. 

However, Awami League did not pick any lawmaker from its alliance partners in the new cabinet.

Bangladesh and India signed seven memorandum of understanding (MoUs) on cooperation in seven sectors during a virtual summit today.

The seven MoUs include framework agreement on high impact community development projects; cooperation in the field of agricultural, protocol on trans-boundary elephant conservation; supply of equipment and improvement of garbage/solid waste disposal ground in Barishal City Corporation; cooperation between Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Museum, Dhaka and museum in New Delhi; terms of reference of India-Bangladesh CEOs Forum; and framework understanding on cooperation in Hydrocarbon sector.

The virtual summit between Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Indian PM Narendra Modi began around 11:30am.

Hasina and her counterpart Modi delivered their opening remarks.

The meeting will continue until 1:00pm today.

Following that, Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen will hold a press conference at the State Guesthouse Padma in Dhaka at 2:30pm.

They launched a postal stamp marking the birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and inaugurated Bangabandhu-Bapu Digital Museum, which highlights the lives and activities of the founders of Bangladesh and India.