DHAKA: A 19-year-old bride has challenged Bangladesh Muslim wedding tradition by taking a groom to her home to marry him, with the ceremony going viral on social media and sparking debate about women’s rights in the conservative nation.

In what local media are describing as a first, Khadiza Akter Khushi led hundreds of guests to the wedding ceremony at her groom Tariqul Islam’s residence in the western rural district of Meherpur on Saturday, before taking him to her home.

It overturned a longstanding tradition where a groom kicks off the festivities by first going to the house of the bride.

“Yes, it is uncommon. But I did it so that other women can follow me,” Khushi told AFP on Sunday.

Islam, 27, said the couple faced no resistance or criticism from families and friends.

“We did it as part of our efforts to end gender discrimination and to establish equal rights for women,” he told AFP.

“I am sure our marriage will send a message that a woman can do whatever a man can.”

Footage of their wedding went viral online, generating heated debate on social media.

The marriage also made national headlines in the Muslim majority country of 168 million people, where conservative values remain strong.

“Definitely it’s a big news in our culture,” Sadaq Hasan wrote on the Bengali daily Prothom Alo’s website, while others wrote “courageous women” and “I want to marry like this”.

Others were highly critical, saying the wedding reflected badly on the couple and their families.

“Their families should be beaten with shoes,” Mohammad Abul Hasnat wrote on the website of television station Channel 24.

ALOR GAJAH, Sept 23 ― The National Higher Education Fund Corporation (NHEFC) will redouble effort to attract more employers to assist their workers pay outstanding study loans, said its chairman Wan Saiful Wan Jan.

He said the effort included providing clear and accurate information to employers especially on the tax exemption given by the government to make the initiative a success.

To date, he said that only six employers had made payments totalling RM97,873.59 for the study loans of 10 workers.

“This matter is still new and the information on it reaching the employers is still very low especially on the tax exemption incentive.

“So, we are in the process of conducting campaigns so that more employers can pitch in to pay the education loans of their workers especially the low income earners,” he said after a 2019 state level National Education Saving Scheme Tour Programme here yesterday. ― Bernama

JAKARTA:  Indonesian investigators have found that design and oversight lapses played a key role in the October crash of Boeing Co’s 737 MAX jet that killed all 189 aboard, the Wall Street Journal said on Sunday.

The draft conclusions, expected to be the first formal government finding of flaws in the design and US regulatory approval, also identify a string of pilot errors and maintenance mistakes as causal factors of the Lion Air crash, the WSJ said.

The plane has been grounded since March in the aftermath of two fatal crashes in five months.

A Boeing spokesman did not comment on the newspaper report but said the plane maker continued to offer support to the investigating authorities as they complete their report.

Reuters could not immediately contact the Indonesian investigators to seek comment.

US air crash investigators are readying to announce a handful of separate safety recommendations, from bolstering pilots’ manual flying skills to boosting Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) vetting of new aircraft designs, the paper added.

Around month-end, the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is expected to call for improvements to cockpit training and crew decision making and focus on potential changes to certification of new airliners, WSJ said.

The NTSB declined to comment on the WSJ report but said it planned to release recommendations on the FAA’s certification program sometime in September.

The FAA welcomed the scrutiny from safety experts and looked forward to their findings, it said in a statement.

“We continue to work with other international aviation safety regulators and will carefully consider all recommendations,” it added. “The FAA will incorporate any changes that would improve our certification activities.”

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 23 ― The Air Pollutant Index readings in Kuching and Samarahan, Sarawak have dropped to the moderate level of 91 and 95 respectively as at 11pm.

According to the Malaysian Air Pollutant Index Management System (APIMS), the air quality in the two areas was at unhealthy level (103 and 111 respectively) as at 7pm.

Meanwhile, the API in Johan Setia, Klang still at the unhealthy level of 223 compared to 221 at 10pm.

Other areas experiencing unhealthy API reading were Tasek Ipoh (177), Shah Alam (167), Putrajaya (166), Kuala Selangor (178) and Nilai, Negri Sembilan (174).

The API reading in Seri Aman, Sarawak had increased to 162 from 152 at 10pm while Kluang, Johor also increased to 106 from 98 at 7pm.

An API between zero and 50 indicates good air quality; 51 and 100, moderate; 101 and 200, unhealthy; 201 and 300, very unhealthy and 300 and above, hazardous.

For the latest information on the haze and related matters, refer to the Bernama portal at www.bernama.com. ― Bernama