Due to dense fog, authorities have temporarily suspended ferry services on Paturia-Daulatdia and Aricha-Kazirhat routes in Shibaloy upazila of Manikganj. During this time, one ferry on Paturia-Daulatdia route and two on Aricha-Kazirhat route were stranded in the middle of the river with passengers and vehicles.

The authorities have suspended ferry services on Paturia-Daulatdia and Aricha-Kazirhat routes from 11 pm on Friday (January 3) and from 11:30 pm on Aricha-Kazirhat routes. Nasir Hossain Chowdhury, DGM of the Commercial of BIWTC Aricha office, confirmed the matter.

He said that the density of fog has increased in Padma-Jamuna in Manikganj since Friday evening. Due to this, ferry services on the route have become risky and the light of the ferry's marking lights has become dim. To avoid accidents on the river route, ferry services on the Paturia-Daulatdia and Aricha-Kazirhat routes were temporarily suspended from 11 pm and 11:30 am, respectively.

A large ferry named Bir Shrestha Matiur Rahman carrying passengers and vehicles got stuck in the Padma between the Paturia-Daulatdia route. On the other hand, two ferries named Khanjahan Ali and Krishani carrying passengers and vehicles got stuck in the Jamuna between the Aricha-Kazirhat route. Nasir Hossain Chowdhury said that ferry services will be resumed once the fog in the river area subsides.

The army has arrested 19 extortionists and robbers in Panthapath, Chawkbazar, Karwan Bazar, Rasulbagh and Kamrangirchar areas of the capital.

Units under the 46th Independent Infantry Brigade of the army conducted special operations in different areas of Dhaka metropolis from December 31 to January 2 and arrested these 19 people.

This information was given in a press release by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Friday (January 3) night.

The ISPR said that the extortionists in Panthapath, Chawkbazar and Karwan Bazar in the capital included members of a teenage gang using sharp country-made weapons from Rasulbagh and local criminals from Kamrangirchar and members of a robbery gang from Dhaka Udyan area.

The arrestees have been handed over to the police through legal process.

The ISPR also said that the army's special operations will continue to maintain the law and order situation.

Dhaka: Five years after the Covid-19 pandemic, another new virus has spread in China. The virus is called Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV).

The Indian media NDTV broadcast this information in a report.

NDTV reported that various posts in local media and social media in China are saying that this new virus is spreading rapidly. Doctors in hospitals are struggling due to the pressure of patients. Some have also claimed that the pressure is increasing in crematoriums.

Users on social media said that multiple viruses, including influenza A, HMPV, Mycoplasma pneumonia and Covid-19, are spreading in China.

Many also claim that China has declared a state of emergency in this situation though this has not been confirmed.

The symptoms of the HMPV virus are similar to the flu. It can also cause symptoms similar to Covid-19. Health officials are closely monitoring the situation as the virus spreads.

A handle called X SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) on social media said that China is facing multiple viruses including influenza A, HMPV, Mycoplasma pneumoniae and COVID-19. Hospitals are under increasing pressure from children with pneumonia and white lungs.

Meanwhile, a Reuters report said that China's disease control authorities said on Friday that they were conducting a small-scale surveillance system to monitor the increase in pneumonia patients.

State broadcaster CCTV quoted an administration official as saying that the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration was working on the virus. Research on how to prevent it is underway.

Meanwhile, according to an official statement released on Thursday, the number of cases of the virus peaked between December 16 and 22. The number of patients suffering from severe respiratory problems is high.

A respiratory specialist at a Shanghai hospital told state-run newspaper National Business Daily that a vaccine has not yet been discovered. The initial symptoms of the virus are colds. He warned the public not to take antivirals without advice against it right now.

Chattagram: Martyrs are martyrs, there will be no debate about them, Housing and Public Works Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan said.

He told reporters after inaugurating the Panchlaish July Memorial Garden on Friday (January 3).

The adviser said, it is our responsibility to honor the martyrs. The mayors will do the work of making the Chattagram Central Shaheed Minar visible. An underpass is also needed.

He said, we remember those who gave their lives fighting against injustice and fascism for 15 and half years.

He said that fascism can never return to Bangladesh, so that future generations can remember them and remember their sacrifice when they come to this garden or pass over the flyover. That is why the flyover and the garden were inaugurated.

He also said, the garden space is open to everyone, not for the use of any group. We are working to maintain cleanliness and law and order. InshaAllah, it will be implemented with the cooperation of everyone. The big issue is the water logging of Chattogram. It is in our eyes. Efforts are being made to free people from water logging. The Mayor, CDA, and DC are working together.

CCC Mayor Dr. Shahadat Hossain said, Panchlaish is a traditional park, we once knew it as the United Nations Park. I spent my childhood here. It has been aesthetically decorated. I think CCC, CDO, district administration; we have to take responsibility for it. We did not have coordination once. Now we are working together. We want to decorate Chattagram together. We want to do everything for the people. We want to make Patenga an international tourist center. It will take time. We hope that if we can work through the coordination we have, we can make Chattagram a clean and green city.

Deputy Commissioner Farida Khanam said, "The government is working to convey the spirit with which the nine brave martyrs of Chattagram laid down their lives in this July uprising and wrote a new democratic history to the next generation." This effort will continue. We will rescue the parks that are under the control of illegal occupants. We have already saved 194 acres of DC Park from drug dens. Patenga had lost its charm in the middle. A coordinated effort is underway under the initiative of CDA, City Corporation, and District Administration to restore that charm. Earlier, the Adviser inaugurated the toll collection activities of Shaheed Wasim Akram Elevated Expressway in Patenga.