Dhaka's groundwater level at the lowest in 11 yrs

Low on water Little groundwater recharging a cause groundwater level in Dhaka has dropped to 61.18m below the surface putting the sprawling metropolis at risk. A

Bangladesh wants hybrid paddy, experts wary

Farmers in Bangladesh, an agriculture-driven economy, are in for an era of dependency on hybrid seeds. Following a large-scale destruction of the country's paddy crops in the previous season, the government has decided to promote hybrid rice in a big way. Farmers growing hybrid varieties cannot use inbred seeds from their crop for the next season, unlike traditional rice varieties.

Breast milk protects infants from arsenic

there is now an addition to the list of benefits that breast milk offers. It protects infants from arsenic, says a study conducted inBangladesh. The study is crucial because almost 50 per cent of the tube-wells providing drinking water to about 57 million people in Bangladesh contain arsenic at levels exceeding who's drinking water guidelines of 10 microgramme per litre (g/l).

South Asia

bird Flu resurfaces: Pakistan confirmed a new outbreak of bird flu at a farm outside the southern city of Karachi on February 24. This is the fourth outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu virus in Karachi in February, but was limited only to fowl. Authorities have sent health teams to the area. Poultry officials say sporadic outbreaks of the disease have occurred in Pakistan, mostly in northwest region, since it was first detected in 2006.

South Asia

Yellowing disease strikes Sri Lanka's coconuts: Coconut trees in Sri Lanka's Southern province have been affected by a yellowing disease, said plantation industries minister D M Jayaratne in parliament recently. The disease is caused by a group of extremely small parasitic bacteria, phytoplasma, which probably came through a shipment of ornamental palms that were not quarantined before entering the island. The disease turns the leaves yellow and causes fruits to drop prematurely.

Bangladesh backyard poultry hit by bird flu

bird flu is spreading in Bangladesh despite efforts to control it. By February 19, the H5NI virus outbreaks had been reported in 43 out of 64 districts. The nation's poultry industry, one of the world's largest, is now confronted with its greatest challenge since large-scale poultry farming was introduced in the 1980s.

Food crisis grips Bangladesh after flood and cyclone Sidr

A food crisis looms large in Bangladesh after two waves of floods and a cyclone. Three natural disasters within four months have ruined the late-monsoon aman paddy, the second major cereal crop in the country. As a result, food prices have soared and the government is finding it difficult to procure rice.

South Asia

Bird flu in Bangladesh

Clear link

Global warming intensifying natural disasters in Bangladesh Storms batter Bangladesh every year. Cyclone Sidr killed more than 4,000 people in November, 2007, causing a loss of over us $900 million. It triggered 5-metre high waves that devastated coastal areas, displacing over 2 million people

Cyclone in Bangladesh

cyclone Sidr hit Bangladesh on the night of November 15, killing thousands of people and severely damaging paddy crops just before harvest, and the Sundarbans. Though the official death toll till November 20 was about 4,000, unofficial estimates say the figure could cross 10,000.