Amidst all the commotion at Jahangirnagar University, this issue of the Star Weekend attempts to discern the trajectory of the disaster by sieving it through a chronological timeline, collated from reports published in The Daily Star and other major national newspapers. We start from the reappointment of the VC and take the reader through all that has happened till date, all that has brought this renowned academic institution to a standstill.This timeline is certainly not exhaustive. What it demands of the reader is discernment, analysis and conscious awareness of the ever-persistent, wider issues that these events represent. Where does it all begin, and where does it end? Why should a public university be in such a place to begin with?
Ashraful Islam, a retired government official, built a two-story house in Dhaka’s east Jurain neighbourhood in 1996. He spent his forty years of savings and even exhausted his wife’s fixed deposit to build this dwelling.
Burimari union, a border village nestling in a nook of the Indian district of Cooch Behar, is a village of stones and stone-crushing yards.
Along the banks of the Sitalakhya river in Narayanganj, some 20 villages in Sonargaon, Rupganj, and Siddhirganj in particular, women villagers starch yarn in lime and toasted rice to make warp yarn—the vertical, lengthwise weaves that make up a fabric.
The latest, but probably not the last, victim of this culture of impunity is Abrar Fahad, a second-year student of the electrical and electronic engineering department of Bangladesh University of Science and Technology (BUET).
For months, our public universities have been erupting in protests, with students demanding some very basic things: vice-chancellors who are not corrupt, teachers who cannot bribe their way into the university, student political wings who do not extort or oppress (or murder), effective sexual harassment policies, and freedom of expression.
The public universities, old and new, are in quite a sorry state. It seems that these institutions exist only to offer support for the government’s misrule.
The story of Teesta begins 23,386 ft above the sea-level at the Pahunri glacier nestled between the Tibet and India border.
Over the years, Jaago Foundation and their volunteer wing VBD (Volunteer for Bangladesh) established their work, philosophy and work across the country. What started out as just a school for slum children, became one of the most popular and active youth organisations
The idea was initially to just make a platform, a platform for everyone who has anything to do with music. “We want to bring them all
"I will not be sending my children to their art classes this Friday," says 33-year-old Kishwar Sultana, a dentist who lives with her family in Boro Moghbazaar. Her children, a 6-year-old daughter and a 4-year-old son, regularly attend art classes held every Friday at the
Take a walk in Kamlapur, Sadarghat or even Mirpur – and you will come across a unique setting with children of all ages grouped
Medhashmunir Ashram, in Boalkhali, will not offer you innovative themed mandaps – all decked up with series of LED lights and the other usual puja extravaganzas.
A vast steel mass, disguised as a door, will open into a room that stops your breath at first sight. What you will witness will make you feel unreal for a slight second before you can swallow in the fact that you are, as off now, surrounded by more than just history.
It is a very small and one of the most neglected parts of Dhaka; not only neglected but also hated. Most people refuse to go there if not
For artists and creators, night time is the best time to think, imagine and design. This is true for musicians, writers, chefs in many Old Dhaka restaurants and also graphic designers.
The tranquil town of Cox's Bazaar recently came to life with art. The under construction Cox's Bazaar Institute and Public Library, otherwise empty and unused, was the centre of activities and vibrant colours.
The Hatirjheel-Begunbari Lake area, with its open spaces, is steadily losing its charm and beauty due to the unbearable stench of the contaminated lake, coupled with the sight and smell of the garbage heaped in it. Suffocating odour seeping out from the water,
