Your Evening Brief - Next national polls will be free and fair: PM Hasina tells Chollet

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said the next parliamentary election will be free and fair as she is committed to democracy and the Election Commission is completely independent. "The next election will be free and fair. I fought for democracy my whole life," said the premier when a US delegation, led by Counsellor of US State Department Derek Chollet, paid a courtesy call on her at the latter's official residence Ganabhaban. Read more

Among a number of incidents taking place on Wednesday (15 February), take a quick look at some of the most important news items The Business Standard has compiled for you…

Govt to procure 33.60 lakh MMBtu LNG, 1.10cr litres soybean oil, 8,000 MTs lentil

The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) has approved separate proposals for procuring some 1 cargo or 33.60 lakh MMBtu LNG from the spot market, 1.10 crore litres of soybean oil and 8,000 metric tons of lentil to meet the growing demand. Read more

Hopeful about future relations with Bangladesh: US Counsellor Chollet

Counsellor of the US Department of State Derek Chollet has said that US is "hopeful" about future relations with Bangladesh – building on the strong partnership that has developed over 51 years. Read more

Controversy over president election 'unnecessary': CEC

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal on Wednesday said that creating controversy over the election of the president is "unnecessary". Read more

Keep vigil against evil forces to sustain country's development pace

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday urged the people of the country to remain alert against the evil forces so they can't grip Bangladesh again. Read more

3 Bangladeshi students killed, 1 critically injured in Canada road crash

Total three Bangladeshi students living in Canada died in a road accident on Tuesday (14 February). Read more

Govt to import 1.5 lakh tonnes of TSP fertiliser from Tunisia

Bangladesh has signed a deal with Tunisia to import 1.5 lakh metric tons of triple super phosphate (TSP) fertiliser in order to meet domestic demand for uninterrupted agricultural production. Read more

Appellate Division stays HC order to allot stall to Adarsha in Ekushey Book Fair

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court stayed the High Court's (HC) order to allot a stall to Adarsha Publications at the Ekushey Book Fair. Read more

PM urges Korean businessmen to invest more in Bangladesh

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today urged Korean businessmen to come up with more investment in Bangladesh. Read more

DSEX inches down for second trading ‍session

Indices at the Dhaka bourse on Wednesday ended in red following the previous trading session amid the profit booking in some specific stocks. Read more

Monno Agro's share hits highest price in 52 weeks

The share price of Monno Agro and General Machinery has reached its highest level in 52 weeks. Read more

Nine survivors pulled from Turkey's rubble as earthquake death toll passes 40,000

Nine survivors were rescued from the rubble in Turkey on Tuesday, more than a week after a massive earthquake struck, as the focus of the aid effort shifted to helping people now struggling without shelter or enough food in the bitter cold. Read more

India's tax officials 'survey' BBC's Delhi, Mumbai offices for 2nd day

Indian tax officers searched the BBC's bureaus in New Delhi and Mumbai for a second day on Wednesday, the NDTV channel reported, as controversy swirled over a BBC documentary critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's role in deadly riots two decades ago. Read more

Russian student under house arrest for Instagram story criticising war in Ukraine

A university student in Russia has been placed under house arrest with an electronic tag on her leg for criticising the Russian special military operation in Ukraine. Read more