The 11th National Parliament budget session to start on Wednesday, May 31. The National Parliament Secretariat has informed the matter through a press release that under the Parliament speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, the session will start at 5 pm tomorrow, May 31.  President Md Shahabuddin convened the 23rd National Parliament session under the powers given to him as per the clause (1) of article 72 of the constitution. Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal will present the national budget for the Fiscal Year-2024 on June 1.  On Sunday, june 25, the proposed budget is expected to be passed in the Parliament. An official of the Ministry of Finance said, "The possible budget size is Tk. 761,785 crore in order to control inflation and maintain high GDP growth rate."

Posts, Telecommunications and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Minister Mustafa Jabbar said more than three lakh youths both boys and girls will get jobs within next couple of years in 28 hi-tech parks now being constructed outside of Dhaka. He also said around 14,000 youths will get jobs in ‘Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Hi-Tech Park, Rajshahi’ Project that will play a vital role in boosting the current economy of the region by creating new technology-based employment. The Hi-tech Park is being built on 31 acres of land in Bulanpur area in Rajshahi city with an estimated cost of Taka 231 crore to make Rajshahi as the city of technology. Its implementation works are expected to complete by December, 2021. The minister revealed this while visiting the project site in Rajshahi on Saturday. Reports BSS. Mustafa Jabbar said the Bangabandhu Hi-tech Park intends to create atmosphere for establishing industries on ICT, engineering, electronics, telecommunication and biotechnology. Besides, more avenues of employment for the ICT people will be created in this venture. He said the park will play a key role in building Digital Bangladesh, accelerating the national economic development by expanding hi-tech industries, establishing hardware and IT industries and creating a helpful condition to attract foreign companies. Foreign companies, he said, would be allowed to provide technological support for developing local industries. During the visit the ICT minister directed the implementing officials concerned to quick and proper completion of the construction works as per the design. ICT Secretary Ziaul Alam, Commissioner of Rajshahi division Nur-Ur-Rahman and Deputy Commissioner Abdul Kader were present on the occasion. AH

Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar has said that more 15 thousand 636 porn sites and 2 thousand 235 gambling sites are going to be blocked. He delivered the information in his verified facebook page on Monday. Earlier on Sunday BTRC sent order to the International Internet Gateways (IIG) to block 56 websites. Websites containing harmful contents for the children were in the list. Besides, on Thursday following government order ISPAB blocked one thousand 279 porn sites. In his facebook status Mustafa Jabbar wrote, we have found 15 thousand 636 porn sites and 2 thousand 235 gambling sites. Along with there are Tick Tock and Bigo. All will be blocked. The government has reiterated its firm stands over blocking porn websites. The matter of blocking porn sites even placed to the High Court in last November. At that time after taking hearing the High Court ordered to block the porn websites within six months. AH   

Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar has said that the five G technology for mobile phone will start in the country through 'Tele Talk'. He said this as the chief guest in the prize distributing ceremony of Tele Talk Bangladesh Limited inter department cricket tournament held at Jagannath hall ground of Dhaka University on Saturday. The minister said, after facing many challenges including technology and investment Tele Talk has to march forward. Through digital revolution Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina placed the country into the position of global leadership. Under her leadership we will be able to face the challenges of Tele Talk. Efforts are going on to take Tele Talk according to people’s expectation as a government organization. Emphasizing on increasing mutual communication and sports for physical excellence Mustafa Jabbar said, mutual interaction created through social media over computer but sports bring people closer, which increase mutual harmony as well as mental and physical soundness. In the program the minister handed over champion trophy to the winning team. In the cricket match Tele Talk sales and distribution division became champion beating marketing and project division. In the program Tele Talk Managing Director Md. Shahabuddin and Jagannath Hall Provost Professor Dr. Asim Sarkar also delivered speeches. Mentionable, through the fifth generation internet technology people will get internet service 10 to 20 times faster than the present service. If five G service is available then more radio frequencies can be ensured. AH

Post, Telecommunication and Information technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar said, initiatives have been taken to shut more 1 thousand 314 porn sites. Decision was also taken to shut 12 gambling sites after identifying those. He said these in a status on his verified facebook page on Friday. The Minister wrote in the status, by this time 244 porn sites were shut down. Our team also traced 1 thousand 314 porn sites. We are working to shut those down. We hope that the success will come immediately. As we are being digitalized, we are also emphasizing on digital security. Our credence is to ensure security for all citizens including children in this digital world. We will overcome. He also wrote, process to shut down those has begun. All will be shut by phases. We have also found 12 gambling sites. We are shutting those down. Digital Bangladesh will be safe. Mentionable, on February 6 Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) ordered to shut 244 porn sites. Sending the direction BTRC directed all the International Internet Gateways to shut the domains and links.   AH   

AHM Mustafa Kamal is going to be appointed as the Finance Minister in the new cabinet. He is at present serving as the Planning Minister. The size of the new cabinet will be with 46 members excluding the Prime Minister. Of them 24 are ministers, 19 state ministers and 3 deputy ministers. A reliable source of the cabinet division said this. By this time the following persons have got phone calls from the cabinet division for taking charge as the ministers: AKM Mozammel Haque (Liberation War Affairs), Obaidul Quader (Road Transport and Bridges), Dr. Abdur Razzak (Agriculture), Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal (Home), Hasan Mahmud (Information), Anisul Huq (Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs), AHM Mustafa Kamal (Finance), Tazul Islam (LGRD and Cooperatives), Dr. Dipu Moni (Education), AK Abdul Momen (Foreign Affairs), MA Mannan (Planning), Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun (Industries), Golam Dastagir Gazi (Textiles and Jute), Zahid Malek (Health and Family Welfare), Sadhan Chandra Majumder (Food), Tipu Munshi (Commerce), Nuruzzaman Ahmed (Social Welfare), SM Rezaul Karim (Housing and Public Works), Shahab Uddin (Environment, Forest and Climate Change), Bir Bahadur UShwe Sing (Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs), Saifuzzaman Chowdhury (Land), Nurul Islam Sujan (Railway), Yafes Osman (Science and Technology) and Mustafa Jabbar (Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology). AH

Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar said, if the initiatives of setting up 12 hi-tech parks are implemented than 20 lakh people can be employed there. He said this at a seminar titled ‘Inspire the entrepreneurs to invest in Sylhet hi-tech park’ organized at Sylhet Chamber of Commerce conference hall on Sunday. Mustafa Jabbar said, if the hi-tech parks are implemented than huge change will come to the lifestyles of local people. After watching the infrastructural development centering the hi-tech parks it is easily estimated that the planning of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is time worthy and based on modern technology. Assuring the local entrepreneurs he said, government is ready for all out cooperation to invest in hi-tech parks. Nobody has to suffer by investing in this sector. The Minister said, digital Bangladesh is no more dream, it is reality. Bangladesh is exemplary in information technology sector for any country at present. What was unimaginable once a time, now we have achieved that through relentless work and timely decision by the Prime Minister. Chairman of parliamentary standing committee on information technology affairs and Member of Parliament of Sylhet-4 constituency Imran Ahmed, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Md. Nojibur Rahman, Consultant of Sylhet hi-tech park Architect Iqbal Habib and newly elected Sylhet City Corporation Mayor Ariful Haque Chowdhury were present in the seminar. Bangladesh hi-tech park authority and Sylhet Chamber of Commerce and Industries jointly organized the seminar. AH            

Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar said, Digital Security Act was finalized in the parliamentary standing committee. If the law is passed then police cannot take any direct action against anybody. They will only be able to file case after obtaining permission from Director General of Digital Security Agency. If the act is passed then there will be no existence of section 57. He said these to the newsmen after joining the second session of the third and last day of the Deputy Commissioners’ conference at the cabinet conference room in the secretariat on Thursday. The minister said, we want to stop digital and cyber crimes. Robbing expression of independent opinions is not our aim. At present the cases under section 57 will be solved under the existing legal process. Mustafa Jabbar said, we have to remember one thing that the impact of digital crimes is much more than the normal crimes. So, digital crimes should be curbed after being in the legal framework of technology.    He said, the government wants to build digital Bangladesh. That will not be centered in Dhaka, from the capital to union and village level everything will be digitalized. There will be no union in Bangladesh where digital touches are not reached. To implement the government’s plan of digital Bangladesh there is no alternative to cooperation of DCs. Because, they are performing their duties in such a position where they have to maintain communication between the people at the extreme lower level and to the people at the top state level. So to reach the digital service well and truly at the village level cooperation of DCs is much needed. AH   

Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar has said that the experimental 5G service will be inaugurated in the country in next June. He said this at a discussion organized by Junior Chamber International (JCI) at a hotel in Gulshan of the capital on Saturday. Mustafa Jabbar said, we have missed three industrial revolutions, Bangladesh should be established as a leading country in the fourth industrial revolution. The whole world will enter into the era of 5G in the year 2020. The country will not be allowed to stay behind from this. He said, technology will move the world from one sphere to another. We have to see whether the existing education system is suitable or not for the forthcoming new sphere or fourth industrial revolution. There is no alternative to build the young generation as skillful through crash program. The minister said ICT division is implementing five training related projects. Besides, BITM has offered training for 16 thousand people. It will complete training for 23 thousand people by December. He said, Bangladesh will be able to create manpower suitable for twenty first century through working in an integrated way. JCI president Mark Brian Lim, national president Fayez Atiqul Islam, BASIS director Mostafizur Rahman, BASIS president Syed Almas Kabir and managing director of Microsoft Bangladesh Sonia Bashir Kabir also spoke on the occasion. AH    

Raising allegation over the service of country’s mobile phone operators Minister for Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Mustafa Jabbar has said, call drop happens eight times while going from Motijheel to Dhanmondi. I have to pay but won’t get mobile phone service accordingly, that should not be happened. He made this allegation after the auction of the spectrum of fourth generation internet service-four G at Dhaka Club in the capital on Tuesday. The Minister said, today will be a historical day. I specially offer my thanks to Prime Minister’s Information and Communication Technology Advisor Sajib Wazed Joy for his initiatives to roll out four-G service in the country and suggestions accordingly. Through this auction the government has sold spectrum of nearly 5 thousand 268 crore taka. Four-G service license will be given in the next week. People will get the service from February 21st. Mobile phone operator Grameen phone and Banglalink Digital Communication took part in the spectrum auction organized by Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) with help of Post and Telecommunication department. In the auction Banglalink took 10.6 MHz spectrum from different two bands - 2100 and 1800, with a price of 308.6 million dollars while Grameenphone took 5MHz from only 1800 band with a price of 155 million dollars. The total sold out spectrum was 15.6 MHz which is one third of the BTRC’ expectations. It also expressed disappointment over the auction. But the commission has said that the path for buying the four-G spectrum will be opened for six months for the mobile phone operators. Robi, Tele Talk and City Cell did not take part in the auction. Tele Talk will get the spectrum according to the government decision. Mustafa Jabbar said, subscribers are increasing in the country but spectrum is not increasing along with that. Mobile operators are providing service with short spectrum. He said, if any subscriber would ask me that words cannot be exchanged due to network then it would be very hard for me to answer. I urge the operators to improve the quality of service and take action in this regard. He also said, if qualitative changes are not met that we will be failed to achieve the target. The target of digital Bangladesh could not be achieved if speed is not initiated throughout the country. We want to believe- we will pay money and get service in return. The minister also urged mobile operators for increasing the speed of internet service. AH