Jahangirnagar University (JU) has released the unit-based admission test schedule for the 2024-25 academic year for undergraduate (honors) classes. Like every year, this year too, the admission test will have a shift system. About 145 students will compete for each seat in the admission test to be held from February 9 to February 17.

Syed Mohammad Ali Reza, member secretary of the university's Central Admission Test Management Committee, confirmed the determination of the unit-based test schedule on Wednesday (January 29).

He said that on February 9 (Sunday), the first day of the admission test, the exam for female students seeking admission in 'D Unit' under the Faculty of Biology will be held in 5 separate shifts. The next day, February 10 (Monday), the exam for male students seeking admission in 'D Unit' will be held in 4 separate shifts. The Institute of Business Administration (IBA-JU) exam will be held in the 5th shift on the same day

On February 11 (Tuesday), the 'E Unit' exam of the Faculty of Business Studies will be held in the first and second shifts. The exams of the students seeking admission in the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics and the 'A Unit' of the Institute of Information Technology (IIT) will be held from the third to the fifth shift of the same day. After that, the exams of the students seeking admission in the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics and the 'A Unit' of the Institute of Information Technology (IIT) will be held on February 12.

On February 13 (Thursday), the 'C Unit' exam of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities will be held in 6 separate shifts. The last day of the admission exam is February 17 (Monday), the 'C1' unit exam will be held in the 1st shift. The 'B Unit' exam of the Faculty of Sociology will be held on the same day from the 2nd to the 4th shift.

It is to be noted that after the application process for the admission test, a total of 2,62,490 applications have been received this year against 1,814 seats. Among the applicants, there are 134,570 male and 127,920 female. Accordingly, about 145 students will compete for each seat.

Aspiring students can see the final schedule of the exam and other information about the admission test on the official website of the university (ju-admission.org). Also, the admit card of the exam can be downloaded from the website from February 2. At the same time, the exam results will be published on the official website of the university and the notice board of the concerned unit office.

Finally, the final list of 'Bangla Academy Literary Award 2024' has been published, replacing three names from the previously announced list for the award.

This information was given on the verified Facebook page of Bangla Academy on Wednesday (January 29).

The three people who were excluded are - Mohammad Hannan, Farooq Nawaz and Salim Morshed.

The 'Bangla Academy Literary Award 2024' was announced on January 23. Then the list was suspended on January 25. At that time, the Bangla Academy said that the list was suspended due to 'some complaints' about some of the recepients. On that day, the Bangla Academy announced its decision to review the award list after reconsideration within three working days.

Tuesday (January 28) was the last day of the three working days. After the deadline passed, it was announced on Wednesday night that the names of Mohammad Hannan, Farooq Nawaz and Salim Morshed had been excluded.

Mohammad Hannan was nominated for the Liberation War and Farooq Nawaz for the Children's Literature Award. And fiction writer Salim Morshed announced his rejection of the Bangla Academy Award on January 27 after the list of nominees for the award was postponed. He was nominated for the award in fiction.

The postponed list of award-winning writers was finalized at Wednesday's meeting. Accordingly, the Bangla Academy Literary Awardees are - Masud Khan (Poetry), Shubhashis Sinha (Drama and Drama Literature), Salimullah Khan (Essay/Prose), G. H. Habib (Translation), Muhammad Shahjahan Mia (Research), Rezaur Rahman (Science), Syed Jamil Ahmed (Folklore).

President Md. Sahabuddin has called on the Laos ambassador and the High Commissioners of Zambia, Kenya and Cyprus to work to increase the import of various international quality products including medicines, ready-made garments, frozen food, ceramics and jute products from Bangladesh and to increase investment and trade in various sectors.

The President made the call after meeting the newly appointed non-resident ambassador of Laos to Bangladesh and the non-resident high commissioners of Zambia, Kenya and Cyprus on Wednesday (January 29).

Welcoming the new ambassadors and high commissioners, President Md. Sahabuddin said that Bangladesh prioritizes developing bilateral and mutual relations with all countries of the world. Stating that Bangladesh is determined to establish mutual coexistence and world peace, the President said that Bangladeshi peacekeepers are working with good reputation in different countries of the world as part of the UN peacekeeping missions.

Referring to the trade and investment-friendly environment prevailing in Bangladesh, the President called on investors from Kenya, Cyprus, Zambia and Laos to invest in various sectors. At the same time, the President emphasized the importance of exchanging visits of bilateral government and commercial delegations to strengthen trade and investment relations.

President Md. Sahabuddin also said that developing countries of the world, including Bangladesh, are facing serious losses due to climate change. He called for joint initiatives in various fields, including renewable energy and green technology, to combat the adverse effects of climate change and for sustainable development.

During the meeting, the High Commissioners and Ambassadors said that they would work to increase trade and investment and improve mutual communication and relations between the people of their respective countries. They sought the President's overall cooperation in discharging their duties.

Senior officials of the President's Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were present during the meeting.

Since the July coup, the media in Bangladesh has been enjoying freedom, said Chief Adviser to the interim government Dr. Muhammad Yunus. However, he said that this freedom has been accompanied by a flood of misinformation and disinformation through social media.

He said this with the leaders of the Bangladesh Open Society Foundation on Wednesday (January 29). 

The Chief Adviser also said that the student-led mass uprising has brought a great opportunity to chart a new course for the country.

Regarding the Davos visit, he said that many people there do not know about the July coup. In addition, there is a lot of propaganda.

The delegation led by Open Society Foundation Chairman Alex Soros and President Binayfar Naoroji expressed support for the reforms of the interim government.

They discussed the July uprising, interim justice for victims, economic reforms, media, recovery of stolen assets, new cyber security laws, how to improve them, and the Rohingya crisis. They also praised Dr. Yunus for leading the country through difficult times and taking the necessary reforms to fix the country's institutions and rebuild the economy.