Central Zone batsmen Marshal Ayub, left, (251 not out) and Mehrah Hossain Jr (206 not out) acknowledge the crowd while leaving the ground at the end of second day’s play at the Shaheed Chandu Stadium in Bogra on Wednesday. — New Age photo

Students rejoice at their success in the primary school completion and junior school certificate examinations, at a school in the capital on, December 27. — Focus Bangla photo

Activists of the youth wing of India’s ruling Congress party shout slogans as they burn an effigy depicting Pakistan during a protest in the central Indian city of Bhopal on Wednesday. India slammed arch-rival Pakistan on Wednesday over a firefight in the disputed territory of Kashmir in which two of its soldiers were killed, and said the mutilation of one of the bodies was ‘inhuman’. — Reuters photo

Passengers stay stranded at Sadrghat launch terminal in Dhaka on Wednesday as lunches did not leave the terminal because of river transport workers strike. — Indrajit Ghosh

Abahani Limited’s Shakhawat Hossain Rony (L) heads to score one of his two goals against Team BJMC during their Bangladesh Premier League match at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on Wednesday. — New Age photo

Members of the South African Police Services monitor striking farmworkers in Wolseley on Wednesday, a small rural town about 120Km North of Cape Town. — AFP photo

CPD distinguished fellow Debapriya Bhattachary speaks while executive director Mustafizur Rahman looks on at a press briefing at the CPD office in the capital on Wednesday. — New Age photo

A man pelts policemen with stones as the lawmen on Wednesday fire teargas shells to disperse non-government secondary teachers and employees trying to lay siege to the secretariat demanding MPO enlistment. — Sony Ramany

Robert Pattinson, left, and Kristen Stewart in The Twilight Saga. Breaking Dawn- Part 2.

The National Garment Workers’ Federation forms a human chain in front of the National Press Club on Wednesday, demanding arrest of the people responsible for Tazreen Fashions fire. — New Age photo

Real Madrid’s star forward Cristiano Ronaldo (R) and his girlfriend Russian model Irina Shayk arrive at the FIFA Ballon d’Or awards ceremony at the Kongresshaus in Zurich on Monday. — AFP photo

MAIN NEWS

Strike halts river communications

River transport workers on Wednesday went on strike for an indefinite period halting river communications and transport goods on waterways across the country. Thousands of motor launch passengers got stranded... Full story

Govt sets up body to find out errant units

The government on Wednesday appointed a new five-member committee to look into the safety arrangements at readymade garment factories across the country with the objective of checking recurrence of fire which on... Full story

Police use pepper spray

The police on Wednesday fired rubber bullets and tear gas shells and used pepper spray to disperse the non-government teachers and employees, who tried to besiege the secretariat demanding enlistment of their institutions for the monthly pay order facility. The police action for the second consecutive day on the teachers and employees left 30... Full story

Dhaka prepares to face USTR threat

Dhaka is preparing to explain its position to the United States Trade Representative in response to the latter’s threat to withdraw the generalised system of preference facility for Bangladeshi... Full story

NATIONAL

Upazila chairmen demand ‘charter of duties’ for MPs

Upazila parishad has turned out to be a ‘good for nothing’ body due to non-implementation of the upazila parishal law, alleged the Upazila Parishad Association of Bangladesh on Wednesday. Full story

6 killed in traffic accidents

METRO

Transport owners demand bus fare hike in Ctg

Transport owners in the Chittagong city on Wednesday demanded increase in bus fare to cope with the hike in fuel prices and other expenses. Holding a press conference at the Chittagong Press Club in the afternoon, leaders... Full story

JU students allege killers move at large

BUSINESS

DSE CEO resigns over board ‘interference’

The chief executive officer of Dhaka Stock Exchange, Musharraf M Hussain, on Wednesday resigned after the board of directors grilled the management team led by Musharraf on the day before over repeated... Full story

BB to relax charge on inter-bank transaction

INTERNATIONAL

Pakistan, India warn against escalation over border killings

India delivered a dressing-down Wednesday to Islamabad’s envoy to Delhi as it accused Pakistan’s army of beheading one of two soldiers killed in Kashmir, but both sides warned against inflaming tensions. While Pakistan insisted no such incident... Full story

Iran says sole nuclear plant at ‘full capacity’

SPORTS

Marshal, Mehrab into record books

Walton Central Zone’s Marshal Ayub and Mehrab Hossain Jr made their way into the record books as they both registered a double century on the second day of their third round Bangladesh Cricket League match against Islami Bank East Zone on Wednesday. Marshal and Mehrab, who earlier scored a century each in the tournament, became the first batsmen... Full story

Rony propels Abahani to joint top

EDITORIAL

No compromise on quality of teachers

THE announcement made by the prime minister on Wednesday to... Full story

Death of an icon

OP-ED

Quantity achieved but quality?

THE results of the primary school terminal examinations 2012 were published in the last week of December. The pass rate marked an increase of 0.09 percentage point; 2,415,351 students or 97.35 per cent passed the examinations. The number of... Full story

Hail hypocrisy

TIMEOUT

Aditi presents Tagore’s love songs

The melancholic mood of the Tagore’s sentimental song Amar praner porey choley gelo ke was perfectly transported in popular singer Adity Mohsin’s soothing voice. The audience felt the pain of separation as the skillful Tagore singer’s voice modulation... Full story