United News of Bangladesh

The government has appointed Nasimul Gani as the new Cabinet Secretary. The Ministry of Public Administration on Monday issued a notification in this regard. Prior to his appointment, Nasimul Gani was serving as the Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Earlier on Saturday (Feb 14), the government cancelled the remaining tenure of the contractual appointment of former Cabinet Secretary Sheikh Abdur  Rashid. Officials said the cancellation was made following an application submitted by Abdur Rashid.  

The government on Saturday assigned Chief Adviser’s Principal Secretary M Siraz Uddin Miah the additional responsibility of Cabinet Secretary. The Public Administration Ministry issued a notification in this regard on Saturday night. The order will come into effect immediately, the notification said. In another notification, the government cancelled the remaining tenure of the contract of Dr Sheikh Abdur Rashid, who was previously in charge of the post.

The use of harmful single-use plastic items at the Bangladesh Secretariat will be banned from October 2, 2025, said Cabinet Secretary Dr. Sheikh Abdur Rashid on Tuesday. He made this announcement while speaking as the chief guest at a seminar titled “Sustainable Plastic Use in the Secretariat: A Future for a Single-Use Plastic Free Environment”, organised by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change at the Multipurpose Hall of the Finance Division, said a press release. Abdur Rashid said plastic pollution is a global challenge requiring collective international efforts. “Our actions must not only serve our present needs but also safeguard the future for the next generation. We must leave behind a healthier and more sustainable world for them,” he added. Lack of coordination dooms govt drive against polythene, single-use plastics Environment Secretary Dr. Farhina Ahmed, who chaired the seminar, said the Ministry will soon formulate and implement a detailed action plan to enforce the ban. She said the Secretariat will be made environment-friendly through coordinated efforts of all ministries. The government has officially categorised 17 items as single-use plastic including disposable cutlery, chocolate wrappers, plastic invitation cards and banners, Styrofoam food containers, thin plastic packaging, plastic bottles and caps, among others, as part of its effort to protect the environment and control pollution.

The government on Tuesday appointed Dr Sheikh Abdur Rashid as the cabinet secretary for the next two years on a contractual basis. A gazette notification, signed by Nilufa Yeasmin, senior assistant secretary of Contract and Foreign Employment Section of the Ministry of Public Administration, was issued in this regard. His two-year service will be counted from October 14 or the day when he will join, the notification says. Constitution reform commission: Cabinet Division issues gazette notification Dr Rashid was appointed following section-49 of the Public Service Act-2018, the release added. Rashid’s Journey in BCS Job   A senior secretary at the Secondary and Higher Education Division, Rashid joined the Bangladesh Civil Service as an admin cadre in 1982. He will join as the 25th cabinet secretary replacing Md Mahbub Hossain. The contractual tenure of the current Secretary Mahbub will end on October 13 but Wednesday will be his last working day as a four-day holiday will begin from Thursday. After the mass upsurge, the interim government appointed Dr Rashid as Secondary and Higher Education secretary and later he was made senior secretary. Completing honours and master’s degrees on Political Science from Dhaka University, he did MA degree on Public Policy and Administration from Hague’s Institute of Social Studies. Born in Satkhira on May 5, 1952, Rashid also did his PhD degree on Public Administration from Dhaka University. The cabinet secretary is entrusted with duties to coordinate among several ministries and divisions.

Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain on Tuesday paid a courtesy call on President Mohammed Shahabuddin at Bangabhaban.  President's press secretary Joynal Abedin told UNB that the cabinet secretary apprised the President of various aspects of the administrative activities at his office during the meeting. Also Read: Protect human rights in every area, President to National Human Rights Commission The cabinet secretary sought the direction and cooperation of the President in discharging his duties while the President wished the success of the cabinet secretary. Also Read: Thimpu to ink a hydropower cooperation deal with Dhaka soon: Bhutanese Envoy President's Office Secretary Sampad Barua, Military Secretary Major General SM Salah Uddin Islam, Press Secretary Joynal Abedin and Secretary (attachment) Md Wahidul Islam Khan were also present there.    

Senior secretary to the Energy and Mineral Resources Division Md Mahbub Hossain has been appointed as the new Cabinet Secretary. The Public Administration Ministry issued a notification in this regard on Tuesday (January 03, 2023). Read More: Visiting foreign personalities to become Bangladesh’s goodwill envoys, ministry hopes Meanwhile, Dr. Md. Khairuzzaman Mozumder, additional secretary to the Finance Division, has been made secretary to the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, said another notification of the ministry.

New Cabinet Secretary Kabir Bin Anwar met with President Abdul Hamid at Bangabhaban in the capital Monday. The president congratulated him on his appointment as cabinet secretary. He also wished Kabir success in his new workplace, President's Press Secretary Joynal Abedin said. Read: New Japanese Ambassador presents credentials to President During the meeting, the new cabinet secretary sought the president's guidance and cooperation in fulfilling his duties, he added.

There will be no food crisis till the next Ramadan in the country, said outgoing Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam on Tuesday. The food stock position up to next June shows that there will be no food crisis, he told  reporters after a meeting of the Committee of Secretaries at the Secretariat. Read more: IFC giving $32.5 million to ensure food security in Bangladesh The Agriculture Secretary has been coordinating for the last six months in this regard. “More than 16 lakh tonnes of food remains in stock. So we are in a good situation.” He said the yield of Aman paddy has been good this year as Aman has been cultivated  in the low lands as the drought has been prolonged. Besides, various food aid services including open market sale (OMS) will continue, he added. On November 27, all secretaries had a meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and a follow-up meeting was held today, said the cabinet secretary. “We have received a review from all our secretaries on the cost reduction efforts like how entertainment cost is reduced, how electricity bill is reduced, then how much is being reduced in petrol consuming,” he said. Read more: Russia wants to support countries in energy, food security: Ambassador It has been possible to reduce the cost of electricity by about 48 percent since June, he said adding that the Prime Minister's office has reduced it by more than 60 percent and 40 percent cost reduction in fuel consumption has been possible, he added. In the meeting of the secretaries with the Prime Minister, directive was given to get prepared for any possible crisis, he said . Asked about the crisis, he said, it is not a political issue. If the supply chain is stopped due to any reason, for one or two months, all have been asked to get prepared for that, added the cabinet secretary.

Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam has said that government employees won’t have to submit separate wealth statement while filing income tax returns from now on. The secretary said this during a press briefing after a meeting of the Secretaries at the Secretariat on Sunday. “The one-page wealth statement that government employees have to submit to the NBR while filing income tax return isn’t necessary anymore. From now on, the government officials will submit the statement to the Ministry of Public Administration,” said Anwarul. Read more: Tax lawyers seek 2 months more for filing income tax returns He added that the National Board of Revenue (NBR) hasn't expressed any objection to the new directive. “I sat with NBR officials and the Secretary of the Public Administration Ministry to discuss the issue and all of us have agreed on the new measure. A circular will be published soon in this regard and after that, the one-page wealth statement that was previously submitted to NBR will be given to the Ministry,” Anwarul added. According to the Government Servants (Conduct) Rules 1979, government officials are bound to submit wealth statements and take permission for buying or selling properties after every five years. But this rule has been neglected for long, and the government hasn't tried to implement it either. Read more: Govt struggles to lift tax-GDP ratio to double digits On June 24, 2021, the Ministry of Public Administration sent letters to all the ministries and their secretaries to immediately apply this rule on all the government employees following a directive from the Prime Minister herself. Although the ministries are trying to make the rule effective, government officials are yet to respond.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday instructed to inform her about the current situation of Bangladesh’s banking sector. She gave the instruction during the Secretaries’ Committee Meeting, Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam told UNB. Read more: Complete ongoing prioritised projects: PM directs secretaries Regarding the banking sector, the Cabinet Secretary said the issue was discussed indirectly at the meeting and instructions were given to the Banking and Finance Division. “There’s a lot of talk (over the banking sector), let us know what the real scenario is soon,” the Cabinet Secretary  quoted the PM as saying. Read more: After Bangladesh assisted Sri Lanka with $200mn, many countries made similar requests: PM About recent events concerning Islami Bank, he said some “outsiders” are talking about the state of some banks on YouTube. “Yet, this was not neglected in the meeting. This issue will be looked into as well.”