A warm welcome awaits Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who flies into Dhaka this forenoon on a two-day visit aimed at giving a new impetus to the bumpy relations between the two neighbours.

Finance minister AMA Muhith has said it is not possible to provide transit facility to India before next year as related work could not be completed.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said the widely talked about deliciousness of Bangladesh's hilsa fish might prompt him to break his vegetarian status.

Paschimbanga Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has thrown a wrench into the signing of Teesta water-sharing treaty, claiming she has not been consulted about the final draft of the deal.

Will Prime Minister Manmohan Singh make history during his trip to Bangladesh starting today or repeat the tragic record of missed opportunities and mutual suspicion that marked Bangladesh-India relationship since the murder of Bangabandhu in 1975 but set on track by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to New Delhi in January 2010.

Loyalty, closeness and family relations meant more to Khaleda Zia than titles or institutional positions in influencing the decision makings process during her second term in power, according to a cable leaked by WikiLeaks.

Kamaluddin Siddiqui, principal secretary to former prime minister Khaleda Zia, in early 2005 told Harry K Thomas, the then US ambassador to Bangladesh, that Khaleda's biggest political failure was to protect her corrupt son Tarique Rahman.

Former national footballer Kaiser Hamid and former Nigerian player Emeka who also played for Dhaka Mohammedan were detained for possessing firearms in the capital early today.

In early January 2007, Khaleda Zia sharply reacted to the claims that some within the two major political parties approached to US and UK diplomats to advocate military intervention and forcing BNP chief and her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina into exile.

Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal have been removed as Bangladesh captain and vice-captain respectively following the Tigers' disastrous performance on the recent tour to Zimbabwe.

During her meeting with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia will try to assure him that she is not against India as a whole but against certain policies, party sources said.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will receive her Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 11:55am.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday came down heavily on those who arranged the sit-in programme at the Central Shaheed Minar on Eid day.

Anti-Gaddafi fighters were playing a waiting game yesterday after an official said negotiations for the surrender of the town of Bani Walid had failed and would not resume.

Law enforcers recovered three live rocket shells from a wooded area in Bakakura, a frontier village of Jhenaigati upazila in Sherpur district, yesterday.

A banker was killed when a minibus hit him in the city's Jatrabari area last night.

South Korea's leading Buddhist monks joined a service yesterday at a North Korean temple to pray for the reunification of the divided peninsula, Pyongyang's state media said.

Military air strikes on a mosque killed seven civilians yesterday in Jaar, an al-Qaeda stronghold town in the southern Yemeni province of Abyan, a local official said.

Notwithstanding the shock over the news that there will be no Teesta water-sharing accord, Bangladesh is ready to extend a warm welcome to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's much-awaited visit to Dhaka. This is the first such summit to be held in Dhaka since the Mujib-Indira meet in 1974 and that way it raised great hopes for a definitive value addition to the bilateral ties on a stronger foundation.

It is a fact that in spite of the commitments made by the government, NGOs and social workers for gender equality and ensuring the rights of the weaker section of the society, women continue to be discriminated against, and in various ways too.

Lionel Messi put the ball down patiently, before taking three marked steps back. He wiped his brow and eyed the mass of players lined up jostling for position inside the penalty area a few yards away. He took a deep breath and around him, the ten thousand strong crowd at the Bangabandhu National Stadium all reciprocated.

The look of pure unadulterated joy in Mirza Ahmad's face said it all.

Even though the historic Argentina versus Nigeria friendly in Dhaka today has been billed as a revenge mission for the Albiceleste, the newly appointed Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella tried to diffuse the hype by calling it just another match. In that rather infamous match on June 1 at Abuja, the former world champions were treated to a 4-1 drubbing by the Super Eagles.

Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella denied that they would be out for revenge when the two-time world champions take on African champions Nigeria in a friendly at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka today.

The fever pitch is ready for another august occasion. Sorry, it might be an understatement. Let's put it this way: The Bangabandhu National Stadium is ready to host the greatest sporting incident in the annals of the country's history today.

Approximately 50 Nigerians under the banner of the Nigeria Football Supporters' Club in Asia gathered at the Hazrat Shahjajal International Airport to greet their national team yesterday afternoon as the Super Eagles took 12 hours to reach Dhaka from Madagascar to play their FIFA international friendly against Argentina.

The Argentina team arrived at hotel Ruposhi Bangla yesterday at noon amid much fanfare. Lionel Messi, the world's best footballer and Argentine captain, was cheered off the team bus and went up to room 1008 which he shared with teammate Sergio Aguero, before going to the hotel's 'Vintage' restaurant for lunch.

It is not quite often the case that you get to see Lionel Messi with your own eyes. Even if you do get a glimpse of the superstar once in a blue moon, you hardly ever manage to get near him, let alone talk to him. In such a desperate situation when you see a living legend walk by so near you yet you have to make do with mere eye contact or a smile in return. But when the man is Messi, that too is a distant dream, for his introvert yet humble nature.

The match will start at 7pm instead of previously scheduled 6pm due to the fatigue of the teams. The Nigeria team, who flew 12 hours after playing an African Cup of Nations qualifier against Madagascar on Monday, asked FIFA to consider the deferral, and FIFA in consultation with Argentina team officials decided to defer the match.

Match starts: 7 pm

Shakib Al Hasan was surprised but not entirely shocked by the board's decision to strip him of the captaincy.

Pakistan beat Zimbabwe by seven wickets at Queens Sports Club here on Monday, getting the winning runs with seven wickets in hand a few minutes before lunch on Day Five.

Sachin Tendulkar has been ruled out of the remainder of India's tour of England, and is likely to miss Mumbai Indians' Champions League campaign as well, after a visit to a specialist in London confirmed that he will require four to six weeks of rest to recover from an inflamed big toe on his right foot.

Defending champion Rafael Nadal shocked the US Open on Sunday when he collapsed with cramps during a bizarre news conference while Andy Murray stayed on course for a semifinal clash against the Spaniard.

Actual investments by Indian companies remain low in Bangladesh but they showed growing interest to invest here, according to data from Board of Investment (BoI) and Bangladesh Bank.

The trade deficit between India and Bangladesh more than doubled in just five years, reflecting a galloping economic imbalance between the two close neighbours.

Bangladesh expects to get duty-free access for its proposed 61 products to India as it will help narrow the trade gap between the two countries, Prime Minister's International Affairs Adviser Gowher Rizvi said

Bangladesh Bank has increased the policy rates for the fifth time in the last 13 months as non-food inflation jumped in the last few months.

Finance Minister AMA Muhith yesterday asked the bourses to come up with a detailed plan on demutualisation of stock exchanges by December.

Bangladesh will prioritise the removal of non-tariff barriers and duty-waiver on the proposed 61 products during the visit of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, said a senior official of the commerce ministry yesterday.

Mining suspension at Barapukuria Coal Mine Company Ltd (BCMCL) is set to linger, as striking workers and their Chinese employers are yet to find a common ground to end the impasse.

Stocks declined for a second day due to sluggish participation of institutional investors triggered by credit crunch.

The black Audi parked at Beijing's best-regarded hospital bears a licence plate of a province about 1,000 miles away -- testimony to the willingness of Chinese to go the extra mile to get top-notch healthcare.

Japan's Toyota will stop exporting its Camry sedan to North America and fully shift to local production for the vehicle, regarded as one of its signature cars in the United States.

The Journal of Social Business: Social Business and New Economics Paradigm. Issue: 2; published by the Centre for Development, Scotland

Beauty Pays: Why Attractive People are More Successful. By Daniel Hamermesh. Princeton University Press; 216 pages; $24.95 and £16.95.

Foreign Minister Dipu Moni yesterday asked Myanmar for early repatriation of the Rohingya refugees from Nayapara and Kutupalong camps in Cox's Bazar district.

Vehicular movement will be restricted on several roads in the capital for today and tomorrow during periods when Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will be using the roads and during the football match between Argentina and Nigeria.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who arrives in Bangladesh today said, as a close neighbour and friend, India is committed to extend its full support to Bangladesh in its development efforts.

Leading public health advocates from India and Bangladesh are desperately pursuing their highest leaders to include health issues in bilateral discussions as Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh begins his landmark official trip to Bangladesh today.

Main opposition BNP yesterday said it was “not unexpected” that the Indian side would oppose the proposed Teesta water sharing deal with Bangladesh as India “never cared for Bangladesh's interests”.

Environmentalists and experts yesterday called for integrating natural resource management, conservation, and climate change into national planning and budgeting to ensure sustainable development in Bangladesh.

The cabinet yesterday decided to set up a welfare fund under Ministry of Cultural Affairs for the country's artistes.

The High Court yesterday questioned the legality of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) rules that empower it to charge people with amassing wealth beyond known sources of income and concealing the information about it.

The education ministry is unhappy with the activities of the National University (NU) as it could not make expected progress, Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said yesterday.

The four-party alliance led by Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) blocked the investigation process of finding out the masterminds of the killing of AL leader Ahsanullah Master to protect BNP's top leaders.

Speakers yesterday recommended rectifying the definition of "trafficking" in the Saarc Convention on Preventing and Combating Human Trafficking to make it more effective in preventing the social menace in the region.

No corrupt firm will be assigned the construction of the US $ 2.9 billion Padma multipurpose bridge project, said Bridge Division Secretary Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan yesterday.

A Dhaka court yesterday deferred the hearing till October 27 on charge framing against detained former state minister for home Lutfozzaman Babar in a case filed for dodging income tax of Tk 2.65 crore from 1999-2000 to 2008-09 fiscal years.

Seven people, including a minor boy, were killed in separate road accidents in Dhaka, Sirajganj, Jhenidah, Chittagong, Tangail and Thakurgaon yesterday.

Spain has expressed keen interest to further increase its trade and investment in Bangladesh.

The Japanese government has given the World Food Programme (WFP) US$ 10 million or Tk 75 crore to provide food assistance to the poor communities vulnerable to natural disasters and climate change impacts in Bangladesh, says a press release.

Two people were killed in separate road accidents in the city's Banani and Tongi yesterday.

President Zillur Rahman yesterday urged the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago to import Bangladeshi products like leather and leather goods, jute and jute goods, ceramics and pharmaceuticals at competitive prices.

The Transparency International Bangladesh yesterday differed on the communications minister's claim made on Sunday that he communicates all development-related decisions to TIB to ensure transparency in the ministry.

Charge will be framed on September 15 against Jamaat-e-Islami leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee in a tax evasion case.

A man, sentenced to death for murdering his wife 12 years ago, was executed in Rajshahi Central Jail Sunday night.

Masked raiders looted gold, silver, and cash worth about Tk 40 lakh from a jewellery shop at Siddhirganj Bazar of the sadar upazila early yesterday.

A gang of snatchers stabbed a trader and snatched Tk 84,000 from his possession in the city's Mirpur area yesterday.

Bangladesh Mahila Parishad (BMP) expressed resentment towards an incident in Thakurgaon where a housewife was imposed with the fatwa of 'hilla marriage' (marriage with a third person), said a press release yesterday.

The second death anniversary of former finance minister and BNP standing committee member M Saifur Rahman was observed yesterday.

Syed Ahmadul Huq, a sufi researcher and social worker, passed away in Chittagong yesterday at the age of 93, says a press release.

Today is the 15th death anniversary of Prof Mohamm-ed Noman, a former vice-chancellor of Jahangirnagar University.

Today is the 7th death anniversary of Tohin Ahmed Bhuiyan, only son of Mostaque Ahmed Bhuiyan, a senior principal officer of Bangladesh Krishi Bank in Dhaka.

Thousands of people living in enclaves inside Bangladesh and India are eyeing a new life as the two countries are set to sign a bilateral deal to exchange the adversely possessed lands during Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Sing's two-day visit to Bangladesh starting today.

Jamuna Fertiliser Company Limited (JFCL), the country's largest urea producing factory, resumed its operation early yesterday after five months of closure.

Speakers at a rally here yesterday thanked Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for his move to protect the Sundarbans and preserve its resources.

Once popular among common people, train journey now repulses most of the passengers in Kurigram district as the cheap mode of transport has become awfully slow and irregular due to ramshackle rail lines.

People living on both sides of the Teesta River in Dimla upazila joined a boat procession on the river yesterday demanding equitable share of Teesta water.

Seven Bangladeshis, all aged below 30, were returned by the Indian authorities to Tamabil immigration police Sunday evening.

Additional District and Session Judge Ekramul Haque Chowdhury yesterday sentenced 10 people to life term imprisonment and fined Tk 30 thousand each, in default, to suffer six months more in jail for killing a man in 2003.

Barisal University (BU), the only general public university of the division and 33rd public university in the country, Sunday evening announced its admission schedule for the first batch under 2011-12 academic session.

Eight children including two siblings drowned in ponds and rivers in Gazipur, Chuadanga, Kushtia and Moulvibazar districts yesterday, Sunday and the day before.

At least 50 people were injured in an infighting of the local unit BNP over formation of Karimganj upazila unit convening committee at Patmahal in Karimganj Bazar yesterday.

Lawmaker of Thakurgaon-3 constituency and also central leader of Jatiya Party Hafizuddin Ahamed assaulted Ranishankoil Degree College Principal Md. Tofiluddin on Sunday afternoon for felling some trees of the college.

A man hacked an 8-year old boy to death at village Gouripur of Jalalabad police station yesterday morning. Eva Begum, 5, sister of the deceased also sustained serious injuries in the attack. Police said, Chand Miah of neighbouring village Sujatpur had a longstanding dispute with his niece over some landed property. The man entered into the house at about 6:00am yesterday and all on a sudden picked up a sharp billhook and swooped on the children in their sleep. He chopped Abu Bakar Imon and his sister Eva. Their mother Rina also sustained injuries as she tried to save them. The injured were rushed to the Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital where the physicians declared Imon dead. Locals caught Chand Miah and handed him over to police.

A Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) leader of Baufal upazila unit was seriously injured as a group of BCL (Chhatra League) activists attacked him at about 8:00pm on Sunday. The victim was identified as Md. Tareq, 25, joint convener for Baufal upazila unit JCD also of Dhulia village under the upazila. He was admitted first at Baufal upazila health complex and then shifted to Barisal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital in critical condition. Police and local sources said, Tareq went to Dhulia launch terminal at about 7:00pm where about 8/10 BCL men led by Al-Amin, Porag and Alamgir attacked him with sharp weapon. Locals rescued him and sent him to upazila health complex and then Barisal.

A case was filed against two deer poachers for killing a deer in Mongla upazila on Sunday. Mohammad Abul Kalam, station official of Chandpai union of Sundarban East Zone filed the case under Forest Act. Mihir Kumar De, DFO of Sundarbans East Zone said, when a deer entered Joimoni village adjacent to the Sundarbans on Sunday, Golam Sardar, 35, and Manik Talukdar, 38, of the village, caught and slaughtered it. On information, forest guards rushed to the spot and recovered the slaughtered deer. Sensing their presence, the poachers managed to flee the scene.

At least 15 villagers were injured in a clash between the supporters of a union parishad chairman and a defeated chairman candidate in Sadar upazila Sunday night. Shahidul Islam, officer-in-charge of Sadar police station, said Ripon Patwari, chairman of Molakandi union, and Shah Alam Malik, a defeated chairman candidate, picked up a quarrel over a trifling matter at Noadda Dhali village. At one stage, one of the supporters of Malik pushed a woman of the opposite group triggering a clash around 9:00pm. People of Ripon attacked the supporters of Malik, also the vice-president of district Awami League, and damaged a number of houses. Around 30 to 40 bombs were exploded during the clash, the OC said adding at least 15 people from both the groups were injured.

Police in a drive recovered five powerful bombs, two bullets and a pipe gun from a stack of straw at a house at Mondolgati village in Terokhada upazila on Saturday. Acting on a tip-off, a team of Terokhada police raided the house of Jamal Sheikh and recovered five live bombs and the arms and ammunition in the afternoon. Police could not arrest anyone in this connection.

Rescue teams carried out a painstaking search yesterday for the missing after a typhoon pounded western Japan leaving at least 31 people dead and more than 50 unaccounted for, local authorities said.

Anti-Gaddafi fighters were playing a waiting game yesterday after an official said negotiations for the surrender of the town of Bani Walid had failed and would not resume.

China offered huge stockpiles of weapons to Muammar Gaddafi during the final months of his regime and held secret talks on shipping them through Algeria and South Africa, The Globe and Mail reported.

Monsoon rains in Pakistan have affected up to five million people and killed 132 others in a month, a senior disaster official said yesterday, as the country braced for more wet and wild weather.

The trial of Hosni Mubarak resumed yesterday after dozens of the ousted Egyptian president's supporters and opponents clashed near the Cairo court before he arrived on a stretcher.

Famine has spread to six out of eight regions in southern Somalia, with 750,000 people facing imminent starvation, the United Nations said yesterday, and hundreds of people are dying each day despite a ramping up of aid relief.

Muslim rebels waging a decades-long insurgency in the Philippines said yesterday they would refuse to hold further direct talks with the government until it modified its peace plan.

The Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation Bill, which provides for enhanced compensation to land owners and a slew of other benefits, was yesterday approved by the Indian Cabinet.

Assam witnessed a nine-hour shutdown yesterday, as taking a rigid stand on the proposed land swap deal with Bangladesh the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and BJP's Bharatiya Yuva Manch jointly called for a bandh.

A powerful Indian politician who styles herself as saviour of the country's downtrodden "un-touchables" sent her private jet to pick up a pair of sandals, according to leaked US diplomatic cables.

Myanmar's regime has allegedly exported rice and other agricultural commodities to North Korea in exchange for arms, according to a US diplomatic cable released by anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il expressed distrust of his country's major economic prop China during a 2009 meeting with a visiting South Korean businesswoman, according to a US diplomatic cable.

The BRICS group of emerging powers are unhappy with developments in war-torn Libya where many civilians have been killed, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Sunday.

Allegations that MI6 was involved in the rendition of Libyan terror suspects should be examined by an independent inquiry, David Cameron has said.

A Kurdish rebel group said yesterday it has called a ceasefire with Tehran as Iranian state television reported elite Revolutionary Guards have killed 22 rebel fighters in a new offensive.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon yesterday vowed to the leader of Kiribati, a low-lying Pacific nation threatened by rising seas, to keep pressing for "real results" against climate change.

Police in India's southern state of Karnataka yesterday arrested mining baron and former state minister G Janardhana Reddy over a massive mining scandal.

A senior al-Qaeda leader has been arrested in southwest Pakistan along with two other high-ranking operatives for the global terror network, the army announced yesterday.

At least 88 people have died and around eight million affected by floods in Pakistan's southern Sindh province and eastern Punjab province, a top official said yesterday.

The late actor Salman Shah had been and still is a shining star in Bangladeshi filmdom. He made his debut with the widely acclaimed “Keyamat Theke Keyamat” (remake of the Hindi blockbuster “Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak”). He secured a strong foothold with the film. And it was followed by films such as “Shopner Prithibi”, “Denmohor” and several other smash hits that exceeded the expectations of the audiences. Movie theatres that ran his films buzzed with youngsters.

Nasima Khanam Queenie has a fascination for compositions and varied forms (particularly triangular and oval). Her paintings can be categorised according to the use of varied familiar and unfamiliar forms as well as compositions. She believes that we are all part of nature, but some of us observe nature with intense passion. Lighting is a prominent feature in her paintings and the artist generally prefers luminous and mystifying settings where human figures are completely missing.

'Literary Encounters' is a programme initiated by Goethe-Institut and implemented by its partners to introduce contemporary German literature (English translation). The programme is held once every two months in Dhaka and Chittagong, says a press release. The latest instalment of the programme will be held on September 18 at 6pm at Goethe-Institut, Dhanmondi, in the city.

New-age digital signboards and hoardings have dealt a deathblow to the age-old profession of commercial signboard painting here in the northern districts.

The Public Service Broadcasting (PSBT) is organising its annual 'Open Frame' Film Festival and Forum. The fest provides a platform for established and emerging documentary filmmakers to showcase their films, while workshops and discussions are a popular draw for the cognoscenti, media students and film enthusiasts. The event is to run from September 9-17.

Bengal Gallery of Fine Arts will organise a solo painting exhibition featuring the works of Mokhlesur Rahman titled “Soundless Nature”. The exhibition will be inaugurated on September 7 at Bengal Gallery, Dhanmondi in the city.

A tribute to legendary Queen front man Freddie Mercury took centre stage at Google in much of the world yesterday in the latest “doodle” merging technology and art to show the Internet giant's human side.

Question (Q): In Bangladesh we have special expectations from you and love for you.

Q: Dhaka has extended its supportive hand to New Delhi to deal with its North Eastern insurgency. Bangladesh also agreed to provide transit facility to India. But Bangladesh is yet to receive reciprocal steps from the Indian side. Don't you think this kind of situation will prolong barriers to improving bilateral ties?
A: We are extremely grateful for all the help the Government and people of Bangladesh have extended in tackling Indian insurgent groups. Cooperation in this area and joint efforts reflect the maturity of our relations and are in the enlightened self-interest of both countries. They enhance the security of both countries and help to create a peaceful environment for economic development and growth.

Now that India and Bangladesh are seeking to establish a more constructive pattern of relationships they are, in a spirit of friendship, seeking to resolve some of the outstanding problems which I have identified earlier. Most of these issues are readily solvable with the application of some goodwill and much commonsense and are being discussed extensively in our media. I will, therefore briefly focus on only two of these themes, trade and transit, where I have more exposure to the issues involved.

September 6

Understanding the flow and processing of carbon in the world's oceans, which cover 70 percent of Earth's surface, is central to understanding global climate cycles, with many questions remaining unanswered. Between 200 and 1,000 meters below the ocean surface exists a "twilight zone" where insufficient sunlight penetrates for microorganisms to perform photosynthesis. Despite this, it is known that microbes resident at these depths capture carbon dioxide that they then use to form cellular structures and carry out necessary metabolic reactions so that they can survive and reproduce.

Yale researchers have discovered the source of signals that trigger hair growth, an insight that may lead to new treatments for baldness. The researchers identified stem cells within the skin's fatty layer and showed that molecular signals from these cells were necessary to spur hair growth in mice, according to research published in the Sept. 2 issue of the journal Cell.

A different type of seminar titled “Biosafety and Biosecurity: What do we know, what do we need, and what can we do?” was held at ICDDR,B's Sasakawa Auditorium on August 22, 2011. The main purpose of the seminar was to launch a national professional organization on national biosafety and biosecurity issues. The professional organization would, in the near future, help the government promulgate laws and create institutions with regulatory authorities. Our part of the globe is generally familiar with regulatory organizations created and imposed by the government. This exceptional seminar reflected the development of a sensible private sector and a group of non-government organizations in the country.

In a novel marriage of conservation and modern biology, scientists have created stem cells from two endangered species, which could help ensure their survival.

The tendency, over time, for software to become difficult and costly to maintain is known as software entropy. A software system that undergoes continuous change, like new functionality added to its original design, will eventually become more complex, losing its original design structure, and may even become disorganized as it grows. In theory, it may be better to redesign the software in order to support the changes rather than build on the existing programme.

After suffering devastating brain damage from a viral infection, artist Lonni Sue Johnson lost her memory. Now, after years of therapy, she is unveiling a new portfolio of "recovery art," while also teaching scientists a bit about the brain and creativity.

Developing countries forging ahead with nanotechnology need regulation and research into local risk patterns, say Alok Dhawan andVyom Sharma.