All eyes were on how Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal would plan to revamp the country’s ill-equipped and Covid-battered health sector when he presented the 50th budget yesterday.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has stuck to his strategy of making higher allocation for the health sector to combat the pandemic, protect the poor and businesses, and speed up economic recovery.

The mega projects, whose completion are expected to raise Bangladesh’s GDP by as much as 4 percent, got about 48 percent more allocation in the upcoming fiscal year, as part of the government’s push to ensure their timely implementation.

Amidst a clamour to ensure digitalisation of all educational institutions and to get digital devices in the hands of all students, yesterday’s proposed budget for a Covid-battered education sector appeared to have glossed over those needs.

Over four months have passed with no response from a government body to a local pharmaceutical company’s application to conduct clinical trials for a home-grown Covid-19 vaccine.

The Ministry of Liberation War Affairs has decided in principle to revoke the state gallantry awards of four convicted killers of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Bangladesh’s currency swap agreement with Sri Lanka to replenish the island nation’s fast-depleting foreign reserves and ease pressure on its exchange rate will be completed by next month, according to a top official of Bangladesh Bank.

A high-level UN delegation yesterday lauded the Bhasan Char project and sought international community’s support to make sure that the Rohingyas live there with dignity.

Restrictions have been imposed in several border districts due to fears that the Indian variant of the Sars-Cov-2 virus may spread there as the country yesterday recorded the highest number of daily Covid cases since April 30.

Today, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal unveils his third budget, which coincidentally is the 50th fiscal plan of independent Bangladesh.

“Cuts, cuts, cuts!” -- would be the chorus of Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal’s third budget speech that he is due to deliver in the parliament tomorrow.

Debhata in Satkhira is separated from the district of 24 Parganas in India by the Ichamati river. The ban on international travel between the two countries does not stop Debhata’s local fry-catchers from swimming to the spots where they find the best Bagda prawn, regardless of whether they are in Bangladesh or in India.

Planning Minister MA Mannan’s mobile phone was snatched while he was talking over the phone inside his SUV at the capital’s Bijoy Sarani area on Sunday.

The government will start administering Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at four vaccination centres in the capital from next week.

With the number of Covid-19 new cases rising every day over last several days, a team of researchers said Bangladesh may observe another peak of novel coronavirus infection in mid-July.

A steel almirah typically costs about Tk 23,000, but the authorities of the 250-bed TB Hospital in the capital bought 100 such items at Tk 96,000 each, according to an Anti-Corruption Commission enquiry.

The government in last year’s budget gave priority to several crucial sectors to protect people and their livelihoods amid the pandemic, but it could not achieve the desired results due to the Covid second wave and hurdles in implementing its initiatives.

The allotment for other social protection programmes may go up to Tk 65,000 crore, up 41.47 percent year on year.

The Bangladesh economy has weathered the pandemic storm better than others and it is thanks to its citizens, said Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal.

Concerned over the sharp rise in Covid cases, the civil surgeons in six bordering districts have called for complete lockdown in the infection-prone areas to prevent further spread of the virus.