The food adviser to the interim government, Ali Imam Majumdar, said that he is also under pressure as a buyer due to the rise in commodity prices.

He made this comment in response to a question from reporters after a coordination meeting on the food situation at the Food Directorate on Thursday (November 14).

The food adviser said, as a buyer, I am also under pressure due to high inflation. I am middle-class; I buy my own food from the market. However, if the supply of new rice and vegetables increases, there will be relief in the market.

He also said, if Aman rice is harvested and winter vegetables arrive in the market well, I hope the market situation will improve.

Meanwhile, the food adviser said that there has been a bumper harvest of Aman rice this year. Aman rice will be procured from November 17. This time, 5.5 lakh metric tons of rice will be procured. Along with this, 1.5 lakh tons of rice and wheat will be imported.

Ali Imam Majumdar also said that this time Aman paddy will be purchased at a price of Tk. 33 per kg, an increase of Tk. 3 compared to last time. He said that when Aman paddy comes to the market, the price of rice will start decreasing.

He said that the government does not want to take any risk with food. Therefore, to control the country's rice market and increase its supply, the import duty on rice has already been withdrawn. This will also have an impact on the price.

Regarding the achievement of the paddy-rice target, the adviser said that this time Aman, including Feni, Cumilla and Chattogram, has been affected by the flood. Even then, maximum efforts will be made to achieve the target.

Former Malaysian Finance Minister Daim Zainuddin has died in a hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Reuters reported on Wednesday (November 13). He was 86 at the time of his death.

Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad expressed his condolences.

In a condolence message, Mahathir Mohamad said, "I have lost a friend who fought with me for the nation, country and religion."

Notably, Daim Zainuddin served two terms in Mahathir Mohamad's cabinet. He served in the first term from 1984 to 1991 and the second term from 1999 to 2001. Zainuddin won five national elections between 1982 and 1999.

He led the country's economic reforms. Zainuddin was credited with implementing investor-friendly policies and privatizing state-owned enterprises under Mahathir Mohamad. During his time, the country's economic growth reached 9 percent.

Republican Party candidate Donald Trump has won the election as the 47th president of the United States. He met with current President Joe Biden for the first time since being elected president.

The meeting was held at the White House on Wednesday (November 13).

Both the newly elected and current presidents pledged to peacefully transfer power in January.

White House spokeswoman Karin Jean-Pierre told reporters that Trump and Biden had a two-hour long meeting. It was a meaningful meeting. They discussed various issues related to the United States and the world, as well as national security and domestic policy.

In an interview with the New York Post, Donald Trump said, "I asked him for his opinion on where we are now. He told me that sincerely."

Earlier, President-elect Donald Trump arrived in Washington to meet with US President Joe Biden. He landed in Washington on his private jet on Wednesday (November 13).

Republican candidate Donald Trump won the US presidential election on November 5. He defeated Democratic Party's Kamala Harris. The next day, President Joe Biden congratulated Donald Trump over the telephone.

When Trump was elected president for the first time in the 2016 election, then-President Barack Obama invited him to the White House as a matter of tradition.

The number of deaths in the Israeli army's attacks on Gaza is constantly increasing. The world seems to be playing a silent role on the humanitarian issue in this region. The refugee camps here are also not safe. Attacks are being carried out there too.

The Israeli army has carried out a drone attack on 'Al-Mawasi', known as a safe zone. At least 10 Palestinians have been killed in it.

• Residents of northern Gaza on the verge of famine: UNRWA chief

• 70 percent of those killed in Gaza so far are women and children: UN

On Tuesday (November 12), Qatar-based media Al Jazeera reported this information, citing the country's Health Ministry.

The Health Ministry said that 10 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli drone attack targeting 'Al-Mawasi', known as a safe zone in Gaza. The dead were previously in the Nusirat refugee camp. They moved into the area as the force launched a new ground offensive there.

The ministry also said that this brought the number of Palestinian deaths to 43,603. And 12,929 were injured.

Meanwhile, on Sunday, Philippe Lazzarini, head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), warned that people in northern Gaza were on the brink of famine.

He said that adequate relief aid is not being provided to the area. An average of 30 truckloads of food are being delivered to the area every day. Which is not enough for the residents to survive. This amount of relief is just over 6 percent of the daily needs. Israel is depriving them of basic rights, including food. They are obstructing relief operations.

Earlier, the UN human rights agency said that information on the deaths in Gaza since October 7 has been verified. This has exposed the "horrific reality" of the people of Gaza. 70 percent of the dead are women and children.

The United Nations says that women and children are being killed in Gaza due to Israeli attacks on a regular basis. Men are not left out either. Not only that, they are also preventing relief efforts there. In addition, the supply of necessary medical supplies is also being hindered. If such a situation continues, the people of the area will face extreme threat.