Bangladesh High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam, Nahida Rahman Sumana, said Brunei and Bangladesh have forged a strong bond of friendship, cooperation and mutual respect over the past four decades.

She said this while inaugurating the Bangladesh Textile Exhibition at the Malay Technology Museum in Kota Batu on Tuesday (July 2).

The exhibition was organized to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and Brunei. Sumana mentioned that the cultural similarity and understanding between the two countries has been reflected through this.

Pengiran Mohd Amirizal bin Pengiran Haji Mahmud, Permanent Secretary (Sports) of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports (MCYS) of Brunei Darussalam, inaugurated the exhibition as the guest of honor.

In his welcome speech, Acting Director of Museum Department Pengiran Haji Rosli bin Pengiran Haji Halus highlighted the importance of textile industry in the history and culture of both countries. He said, "Clothes are the source of national pride of a country and an identity passed from generation to generation."

Pengiran Haji Rosli also said that the textile exhibition is presenting the cultural heritage of Bangladesh. He appreciated the craftsmanship, creativity and beauty of textile industry of Bangladesh. Such exhibitions have been instrumental in strengthening the relationship between Bangladesh and Brunei Darussalam over the last 40 years.

He added that the cooperation between the Museum Department and the People's Republic of Bangladesh High Commission in organizing this exhibition will play an important role in bilateral relations and create more opportunities for cultural exchange.

During the event, the Bangladesh High Commission donated four traditional sarees to the museum department's collection. The aim of which is to strengthen cultural relations between the two countries. Bangladeshi music was performed in the exhibition.

Chairman of Petrobangla Janendra Nath Sarkar confirmed to Barta24.com that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has given approval in principle for the project of drilling 100 wells for oil and gas exploration and production.

He told Barta24.com that we had put forward the works even before getting the Prime Minister's approval. Work has been put forward so that the Development Project Proposal (DPP) can be expedited. We are looking to avoid hiring consultants to save time and money. I want to do the work through an expert committee, where teachers and experts of Dhaka University will be involved as well as Petrobangla.

In response to a question, he said that the process of appointing consultants is a very long process and also very expensive. The work through the consultant will cost Tk. 50 to Tk. 60 lakhs. We can complete the same work at a nominal price of Tk. 50 thousand to Tk. 1 lakh. We can complete the work in 15 days which would take a few months for the consultant.

The Chairman of Petrobangla said that Petrobangla will dig a well and gas may or may not be found in that well. Feasibility studies should not be mandatory where there is a 100% chance of failure. Petrobangla should be allowed to work that way because the working pattern is completely different. Only then will the country's oil and gas exploration and production speed up.

A project of drilling 48 wells is currently underway. The 100 well drilling project which has received the Prime Minister's approval will be completed between 2026 and 2028. It will require Tk. 20 thousand crore. Tk. 7 thousand crore will be provided from the company's own funds. A funding of Tk. 3.5 thousand crore has been requested from the government every year.

Energy experts have been blaming the stagnation of exploration for the gas crisis in the country. Energy experts have been critical of Petrobangla for decades of laxity. But that day is now beginning to change. The current Chairman Janendra Nath Sarkar has changed the opening of Petrobangla. On the one hand, as the pace has increased, on the other hand, new dimensions have been added to oil and gas exploration.

Until now, Bangladesh was stuck in a certain bottleneck in oil and gas exploration. To put it more briefly, the Surma Basin i.e., starting from Sylhet, was stuck between Moulvibazar, Habiganj, Brahmanbaria, Cumilla, Feni, Noakhali and Bhola. Although there are some exploration activities in other areas, the amount can be said to be negligible. Petrobangla is going to bring radical changes there too.

About 99 exploratory wells have been drilled in the territory of Bangladesh in 112 years. And Petrobangla wants to dig 69 wells in 3 years. Although many people think it is ambitious, he commented that it is very important.

Professor of Geology Department at Dhaka University Dr. Badrul Imam said, if gas is not found in a well, it is not allowed to start commotion. If 8 out of 10 are dry, then it is not possible. In Rajasthan, Unocol drilled 13 wells in a row and got dry. The company's headquarters then asked not to drill any more wells, but the geologists risked a lot by drilling well number fourteen and discovered the largest mine in India.

In the seminar related to Petrobangla's 100 well drilling project, Professor of Geology Department of Dhaka University Dr. Anwar Hossain Bhuiyan said, if 25 wells fail, and if gas is found in 26th wells, the price is very high. Several times the cost will come up.

Chairman of Petrobangla said in that event, we have been brought out from the dark ages. If the well fails, I will take responsibility as Chairman. I promise that there will be no departmental case or investigation committee against any official. If I succeed, I will take responsibility if I fail.

Such a declaration of the Petrobangla Chairman has infused courage among the officers and employees. That is why Petrobangla has returned to speed in real terms.

India's Godda coal-fired power plant has returned to full production. Adani Group sources said that 1510 MW of electricity was supplied at 9 pm on Tuesday (July 2).

The electricity generated by Adani's plant is exported to Bangladesh. A unit goes for routine maintenance during Eid holidays.

Another unit was completely shut down on June 29 due to technical reasons while it was in partial production. Due to this, load shedding of electricity in the country took an extreme form.

Minister of State for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid had already confirmed the return to production on July 2. He told Barta24.com that there was a unit of Adani under regular maintenance. That too will come into production tomorrow. And the unit which was shut down due to technical problems is already in production. One unit of our Payra Power Plant is under regular maintenance. That too will be in production soon. Then there will be no shortage of power generation.

Bangladesh imports 1600 megawatts of electricity from Adani's power plant which comes to Bangladesh through Rohanpur of Chapainawabganj, Bangladesh. The Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) report showed that the power plant provided only 500 MW of electricity on June 21.

PGCB sources informed that the demand during the Eid holidays was low, due to which the power plants are regularly maintained by rotation. First unit of Adani power plant went into schedule maintenance before Eid. It is scheduled to return to production on July 5. Sudden shutdown of supply from the second unit has created a major shortfall in power supply in the country.

The first unit of Adani's power plant started supplying electricity at an average of 750 MW in March last year. Production from the second unit started in June.

The 12th JS has passed the Finance Bill to approve the budget for the fiscal year 2024-25. Finance Minister Abul Hasan Mahmud Ali presented the bill.

Although the Finance bill was passed on Saturday (June 29), the budget will be passed on Sunday after a long discussion and scrutiny. The speaker Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury will preside over the session.

Today, Sunday (June 30), the budget for the new financial year will be passed in the JS which will be effective from next day Monday (July 1). 264 members of JS participated in this year's budget discussion.

Earlier this month, on June 6, the size of the proposed budget for the next fiscal year was Tk. 7,97,000 crore. Compared to the fiscal year 2023-24, the size of this year's budget has increased by 4.6 percent. This is the 53rd budget of the country, the 25th of the Awami League-led government and the first budget of Finance Minister Abul Hasan Mahmud Ali.

The revenue target in the budget is 5 lakh 41 thousand crores. The remaining two lakh 56 thousand crores will be the target of borrowing. Annual Development Program (ADP) worth Tk. 265 thousand crore has already been approved.

In the proposed budget for the financial year 2024-25, the budget was announced with the slogan 'Commitment to build a happy, prosperous, developed and smart Bangladesh'. In the new budget sector-wise allocation is given. In the next budget, Tk. 7 lakh 97 thousand crore have been allocated to 15 sectors.

The sector-wise allocation is – Tk. 1 lakh 75 thousand 774 crore for public administration sector, Tk. 47 thousand 953 crore for local government and rural development sector, Tk. 42 thousand 14 crore for defense sector, Tk. 33 thousand 520 crore for public order and security sector, Tk. 1 lakh 11 thousand 157 crore for education and technology sector. Tk. 41 thousand 408 crore for health sector, Tk. 43 thousand 208 crore social security and welfare, housing sector Tk. 6 thousand 929 crore for housing sector, Tk. 6 thousand 700 crore entertainment , culture and religion sector, for power and energy sector Tk. 30 thousand 317 crore, Tk. 47 thousand 332 crore in agriculture sector, Tk. 5 thousand 694 crore for industry and economic services sector, Tk. 82 thousand 918 crore in transport and communication sector, Tk. one lakh 13 thousand 500 in interest sector and Tk. 8 thousand 576 in other sectors.