Painting competition was organized by the Russian House in Dhaka on the occasion of International Day of Human Space Flight. On the occasion of International Day of Human Space Flight, a painting competition titled "Yuri Gagarin: The First Man in Space" was held in Dhaka under the initiative of the Russian House in Dhaka in cooperation on thursday (April 4) with the Bangladesh Astronomical Association (BAA). Mr. Pavel Dvoychenkov opened the drawing competition and in his speech, talked about Yuri Gagarin's childhood, professional life and his historic space flight, as well as the history of the Russian space program and scientific activities and their impact on global progress in this field. Students of Viqarunnisa Noon School & College, the government laboratory high school, Scholastica school and other different educational institutions in Dhaka participated in the painting competition. The program was also attended by the Executive Members from Bangladesh Astronomical Association, the Bangladesh National Science and Technology Museum, Dhaka and the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Novo Theatre, as well as teachers of various educational institutions. After the competition, the Director of Russian House in Dhaka distributed commemorative souvenirs and certificates to the winners.

On December 9th, the Children’s Painting Competition Award Giving Ceremony was held at Embassy of Japan in Bangladesh. A total of 15 winners from 5 groups has received their prizes. It is worth mentioning that students from Tokoname City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, also attended the prize giving ceremony online.  Along with young students, Mayor of Tokoname City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, Mr. Tatsuya ITO and representatives from the city sent a video message encouraging the participants and hoped that more such event will deepen Japan-Bangladesh relations.   Ambassador IWAMA Kiminori congratulated the winners and said “ Today, the prizes are given not only to the children of Bangladesh but also to the Japanese boys and girls in Bangladesh and Japan ”. He further said “I do hope that after today’s competition, many of the participants from Bangladesh show strong interest to Japan.  Embassy will give relevant information about Japan for your future activities. I do also wish that some of you will one day travel to our country and experience our culture directly. ” Honorary Prof. Syed Abul Barq Alvi, Department of Printmaking, University of Dhaka, and Md. Zahirul Hasan, Founder President, Bangladesh-Japan Cultural & Friendship Exchange Forum, and Special guest Engineer, Utpal K Das, attended the prize giving ceremony.

The 'Center for Innovation and Sustainable Development' club is working to help the students of the Public Administration and Governance Studies Department of Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University proficient in co-education.  On Monday, February 13, first presentation competition was held on the initiative of this club.  In this presentation competition, students of different batches of the department make presentations on their academic-related subjects.  Where four students from each batch were compete. The team: Masters 2021-21 won the competition. The participants of that team are - Mostafizur Rahman, Sifati Jannat Mim, Mahmudur Rahman and Sharjil Hasan. Their topic titled 'Smart Bangladesh'.  Teachers of the department, including Assistant Professor Sharmin Begum, Assistant Professor Md. Harunur Rashid and Assistant Professor Nazmul Hasan Polash were present in the competition.Crest and certificate were given to the awardee and the participants at that event.  Departments have planned to transform students as skilled manpower by organizing various competitions.  Assistant Professor Nazmul Hasan said, "It was an amazing competition. The level of creativity, talent and passion displayed by all the participants were truly inspiring. From the core of my heart- thank you all, especially to the participants for their hard work and dedication. I am eagerly waiting to see the bright future of these talented individuals."

A large number of students took part in a painting competition held under the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign organized by Hamdaniya Mission High School Pampore in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district.   The competition was held on Tuesday by the Zonal physical education office Pulwama in collaboration with the school.   ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ is a campaign under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav to encourage people to bring the Tiranga home and to hoist it to mark the 75th year of India’s independence. Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav is an initiative of the Government of India to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of independence and the glorious history of its people, culture and achievements.   Various activities are being conducted by different departments and schools across Kashmir Valley and the painting competition was part of this initiative.   While speaking to ANI, Physical education Officer Pampore, Mehraj Andrabi Zonal said, “Under the directions of district administration Pulwama, we have organized painting competition at Hamdaniya Mission High School Pampore and we are happy that students were thrilled about this event and the theme of this painting competition was Dandi March and Jallianwala Bagh.”   The students lauded this initiative by the school and other departments. They made sketches of the National Flag, Bhagat Singh and Mahatma Gandhi and other freedom fighters.   “This is the first event after COVID in which we are participating. I hope this type of program will be held every year because we learn a lot through these activities,” said a student, Syed Imran.   The Principal of the school, Nisar Ahmad said, “This completion aims to tell the students the importance of the National Flag and these types of activities are then chain through which the students connect with their nation. This will surely motivate them.”   The ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign under the aegis of Azadi ka Amrit Mohatsav is a big hit in Jammu and Kashmir with a large number of people joining the celebrations to mark the 75 years of India’s Independence.   In Pulwama, the campaign has gained momentum as students, besides taking active part in essay, painting and singing competitions, are also participating in Tiranga rallies in all educational institutions in the district.   PM Modi had earlier called upon all citizens to turn the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign into a mass movement by hoisting or displaying the national flag at their homes and using the ‘Tiranga’ as a display picture on their social media accounts between August 2 and August 15 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence.”   “Under the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, from the 13th to the 15th of August, a special movement – ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ is being organized. Let us further this movement by hoisting the National Flag at our homes,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday while addressing the monthly radio programme ‘Mann Ki Baat’.   The ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ programme envisages inspiring Indians everywhere to hoist the national flag at their home. The aim of the program is to make the relationship with the national flag a more personal one rather than just keeping it formal or institutional.   Source: ANI

Releasing the Logistics Ease Across Different States (LEADS) Report 2021, Indian Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Monday said that the inputs given by the report will push healthy competition for improvement in logistics development among Indian states paving the way to bring down logistics cost by 5 per cent over the next five years. Addressing the gathering after the release of the LEADS report, the union minister said India is committed to building a modern infrastructure for the 21st century, at a pace never seen before. He said the PM GatiShakti Master Plan would revolutionise the next generation of multimodal infrastructure development in the country. He said that the speed of highway construction has increased threefold from 12 km/day in 2013-14 to 37 km/day in 2020-21 and that there was a four-fold increase in Railways Capex from Rs. 54,000 crore in 2013-14 to Rs. 2.15 lakh crore in 2021-22. He observed that in the five years before 2014, only 60 panchayats could be connected with optical fibre and that in the last seven years, more than 1.5 lakh gram panchayats were connected with optical fibre. Goyal emphasized that efficient logistics was pivotal to bring ease and empowerment to businesses as well as citizens. He observed that logistics contributed immensely to the country's fight against COVID-19 by taking essential supplies including liquid Medical Oxygen throughout the country during the second wave. He named infrastructure, quality services and conducive regulatory framework as the three pillars of resilient logistics. "Rather than just absolute improvement in one state, improvement of logistics across all states will be a force multiplier for the entire logistics ecosystem", he said. Goyal said that the vision of logistics cost will be reduced by 5 per cent in the next five years. This will ensure that the logistics sector serves as an engine of growth and a key driver for transforming India into a five trillion-dollar economy. He lauded Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab for having acquired the top three positions respectively. He applauded the actions taken by the Gujarat Government against LEADS 2019 recommendations such as the widening of roads, implementation of faceless services in license renewals, expansion of warehousing etc. Goyal said that since its inception in 2018, each year LEADS report has followed a progressive methodology to provide a granular insight on the logistics performance at State/UTs level. "LEADS 2021 has gone 2-step ahead in the analysis of domestic and EXIM logistics ecosystem of the state" he added. The Minister said that states have an indispensable role in improving the logistics ecosystem of India. He outlined a number of suggestions for states including framing of state logistics policy and logistics master plan, use single-window clearance system for logistics establishment of grievance redressal mechanism and enabling if skilling in logistics through state skilling infrastructure. He opined that LEADS report would be a handy and practical guide to identify strengths, opportunities and improve the logistics performance of States. The report ranks the states on the basis of their logistics ecosystem, highlights the key logistics-related challenges faced by the stakeholders and includes suggestive recommendations. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry had launched a study, "Logistics Ease Across Different States (LEADS)" in 2018 with the main objective of ranking States and UTs on the efficiency of their logistics ecosystem. The first version of the report, LEADS 2018, focused on export-import trade and assessed the efficiency of the logistics ecosystem in each State and UT. The second edition of the study - LEADS 2019, covered both international and domestic trade. According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the LEADS 2021 exercise has gone one step ahead in analysing the domestic and EXIM logistics ecosystem of the state. Specifically, two improvements have been done in the overall assessment framework. Firstly, objective parameters have been used along with the perception-based indicators for index formulation. The objective parameters in the LEADS 2021 Index have been introduced by way of an objective survey instrument administered to the States/UTs and by the inclusion of secondary datasets on logistics across the State/UT level. Secondly, the statistical methodologies to build the index has been updated to get more robust results, given change in the overall framework. Alternatively, a total of 21 perception and objective variables have been statistically analysed to prepare a composite index basis upon which the states have been ranked. The perception survey was administered to the four different categories of logistics stakeholders, like traders/shippers, transport service providers, terminal operators and logistics service providers. The States' objective survey collected binary responses in the context of the areas related to policy, institutional framework, current enforcement mechanism, warehousing approvals and processes, smart enforcement, city logistics, drivers' empowerment, etc. to understand the initiatives taken by the different state governments towards improving the logistics environment in their respective States. The secondary dataset was compiled with the assistance of the central government ministries, departments and associated agencies. The LEADS survey 2021 was conducted over the period from May to August 2021 in a challenging environment when the COVID crisis was being fought across multiple fronts. The whole exercise garnered 3,771 responses from 1,405 respondents across the country. For representation purposes, states have been ranked in three separate classes including the 'North Eastern States and Himalayan UTs' and 'Other UTs' group. Within the North Eastern states and Himalayan Region, Jammu and Kashmir is the top ranker followed by Sikkim and Meghalaya. Delhi stands at the top rank among other UTs. Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand have witnessed a remarkable improvement in their ranks compared to the 2019 LEADS ranking and have emerged as the top improvers. The report consists of specific section on States and UTs giving a detailed analysis of their performance in the LEADS, including issues and challenges being faced by stakeholders as well as suggestions to mitigate the issues. States/UTs are encouraged to examine and evaluate the findings of the report and to formulate a suitable strategy and a prioritized action plan for improving logistics performance. Source: ANI

On July 29, hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Bangladesh & the Center for Chinese-Foreign Language Cooperation, Undertake by the Confucius Institute at North South University, co-organized by the Confucius Institute at the University of Dhaka, the online finals of the Bangladesh Division of the 20th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for College Students came to a successful conclusion.   Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Li Jiming was invited to attend and delivered a speech, Mr. Shi Jingwu, Bengali Professor at Beijing University Language Center, Ms. Wu Yun, Deputy Director of the National Cooperation and Exchange Office of Yunnan University, Mr. Liu Chuntao, Chief Correspondent of Xinhua News Agency in Bangladesh, Dr. Nazmus Sakib, Committee member of ABCA (Association of Bangladesh-China Alumni), and Miss. Tahsin, the first prize owner of the 16th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Finals for Foreign College Students (Asian area) in 2017, attended the event.   After three rounds of contests including speeches, knowledge quizzes and talent performances, with solid Chinese skills and creative talent performances, Poroma Subha Mostafiz from the Confucius Institute of North South University finally won the first prize of this contest and she will have the opportunity to represent Bangladesh participated in the "Chinese Bridge" global finals.   Ambassador Li said in his speech that China and Bangladesh support each other and fight the epidemic together, leaving behind many touching stories. There is an old saying in China, “knowing the pines and cypresses in the cold & you see the truth in adversity", which means that only through severe tests can tell who is a true friend. After the outbreak of the covid-19 epidemic, the two countries helped each other, this is the realism of friends taking care of each other. At the same time, he emphasized, “I know that many students are eager to go to China to complete their studies as soon as possible. However, I am also very anxious. I hope that the students will be more patient and actively participate in online learning in Chinese universities. For the better, when all the students are vaccinated, I believe that all international students will return to China and the door of China will always be open to you."  

The Marketing and International Business Club of North South University organised the event. Samsung's digital marketing competition titled MarXcellence was held recently in order to create interest in technology among young students in this country. The Marketing and International Business Club of North South University organised the event. More than 1000 students from 43 universities across the country participated in the competition, said a press release.  The grand final of the three-round competition of the country's largest online digital marketing competition, was held on 30 January. Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Mr Mostafa Jabbar delivered the keynote address as the chief guest at this event. He highlighted the overall success of Samsung and compared it to all other smartphone manufacturers. "I think that Samsung has successfully created interest in technology among young students in this country. There is no alternative to such initiatives to establish Bangladesh as a self-reliant country." he noted. MarXcellence invites enthusiasts from every public and private university in the country to face unique challenges and has the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the corporate world. The event comprised three rounds and two workshops. Each round will test participants' knowledge of real-life based marketing case problems and develop their skills in three key aspects of marketing, sales, and branding. The first, second and third place winners received prize money of BDT 80,000, BDT 50,000, and BDT 30,000, respectively. The winning team also will get the exclusive opportunity of landing a top corporate internship with MIBC's partners.

In order to create a platform for undergraduate students nationwide to exhibit their expertise of digital marketing, Marketing and International Business Club of North South University (NSU MIBC) is launching MarXcellence, the biggest online digital marketing competition in the country as of date. In line with the theme of the event, “Set Forth Your X-Factor,” MarXcellence invites enthusiasts from every public and private university in the country to face unique challenges and have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the corporate world. On the event, Mr. Arman Kabir Mahid, President of MIBC, says “MarXcellence’s guiding mission is to give its participants the platform to showcase their skills and aptitude in digital marketing, and as the competition’s theme goes, we want participants to set forth their X-Factor. We aim to give participants real-life experience and the opportunity to link up with the corporate world,”. Founded on July 2nd, 2019, MIBC is the only student club operating under the largest department of North South University, the Department of Marketing and International Business. Since the inception of the club, every single event held so far has successfully lived up to the club’s motto, “Envision Beyond Borders.” Within the very first year, MIBC partnered with various multinational corporations and held several seminars and events. As the world shifts to the virtual realm due to the COVID-19 pandemic, MIBC has taken the initiative to host this grand digital marketing event fully online from December 18th to January 31st. To motivate undergraduate students across the nation to participate, registration for MarXcellence is completely free, and will be open online from December 18th until December 31st. The event comprises three rounds and two workshops. Each round will test participants’ knowledge on real-life based marketing case problems and develop their skills in three key aspects of marketing – promotion, sales and branding. Workshops are situated in between rounds for participants to directly interact with and learn from top digital marketing specialists from across the country. After the first two rounds, the finalists will face a unique challenge in the final round. The first, second and third place winners will receive prize money of 80,000 BDT, 50,000 BDT, and 30,000 BDT, respectively. The winning team will also get the exclusive opportunity of landing a top corporate internship with MIBC’s partners. AH

Bangladesh-based art and cultural organization, 'Colony of Art' has started a month-long international cultural competition, "Colony of Art Mega Cultural Event 2020".  It is started on November 15 and will be continued till December 15.  During this period, any student studying in the school-college-university can submit his artworks to the Facebook group of the organization. Sanjid Tahrim Ifty, president of the Colony of Art, said, "Artists involved in a variety of creative activities, including song, dance, makeup art, painting, digital drawing, photography, craft, can submit their works to the group. The posts will be displayed till December 15. The final winner will be selected based on the reader-viewer-audience vote and the judges 'evaluation'. Suhana Zebin Modhu, the coordinator of the competition's management committee, told that the event was organized because there are many creative-thinking people around us, those who want to express their thoughts in a positive environment. But not getting a place. 'Colony of Art' is creating that opportunity. She also said the winners will have prize money, crests, gift items and certificates. The judges for the competition are Morshed Mishu (Art), Lauren Shaw (Face and Body Art), Derina Ahmed (Face Art and Cosplay), Titas Baha (Instrumental), Shafiqul Alam Saif (Music), Tauhid Parvez Biplob (Photography), Anamika Pew (Dance), Tokib Towfiq (Literature) and Saadman Saadu (Rap).

University of Chittagong (CU) is hosting the renowned ‘Hult Prize’ competition for the first time with huge response and support from the entire campus and community. The Hult Prize is a brainchild of Ahmad Ashkar who came up with the ingenious idea while pursuing an MBA at Hult International Business School and later transformed his idea into reality in collaboration with BertilHult. Established in 2010. The Hult Prize Foundation is the world’s largest engine for the creation and launch of a market- based, SDG-aligned, sustainable, and impact-centered startups emerging from university, offering a grand prize of 1,000,000 US Dollar. The Hult Prize truly emphasizes a practical approach to learning how to become an impact entrepreneur where students build a team, brainstorm ideas, start a business, and pitch to impressive audiences. Hult Prize has helped launch social enterprises that serve the least fortunate, tackle humanity’s greatest challenges, and pursue large, untapped markets. Every year, the Hult Prize has crafted challenges and helped launch startups that actively solve UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This year’s challenge is to “To develop an idea to provide 10,000 meaningful jobs for young people within the next decade” The online round is going on in full swing. The other on-campus segment is the Final Round which will be on 16th November where the top 10 ideas will be presented and participants will have to compete through presentations slides and Q&A sessions. The Champion team from the campus will directly fly to Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Dubai, London or any of the 25 hosting cities to participate in the Regional Finals. Hult prize at University of Chittagong has already got 104 from various departments. To be part of it you have to fill up the registration form and submit your ideas before 7th November 11.59pm at [email protected]. Before that you have to registrar your Team from this link: https://tinyurl.com/hult-prize-bd For any queries contact:  Abdullah Al Mahmood Taisir, Campus Director; Email: [email protected]; Phone: 01866914250 Source: Press release. AH