Bangladesh on right track of 4IR: Hasan

Information and Broadcasting Minister Hasan Mahmud has said present Bangladesh under the prudent and farsighted leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is on the right track towards the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). 

"We have already been connected with the 4IR as we have started generating competent workforces with successful promotion and expansion of the ICT sector," he told the inaugural function of Star Cineplex here yesterday as the chief guest.

The cineplex has been constructed at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Hi-tech Park with 172 seats besides an eye-catching environment, a sound system with ultramodern technology and a giant screen.

State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak, Managing Director of Bangladesh Hi-tech Park Authority Bikarna Kumar Ghosh and Director of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Hi-Tech Park, Rajshahi Project Fazlul Hoque also spoke on the occasion.

Dr Mahmud said the 4iR will be the era of ICT, robotics and artificial intelligence and the present Bangladesh isn't far behind that.

Highlighting the significance of Cineplex, he opined that mental refreshment and some amusement are essential after daylong engagement in technology.

He also said there is a plan of establishing 100 Cineplex throughout the country and 20 of those have already been done. 

In his remarks, Zunaid Ahmed Palak said Sajeeb Wazed Joy intended to build an affordable, energetic, knowledgeable and smart Bangladesh by 2041. 

Side by side with showing cinema, the Cineplex will be used for the purposes of project training and audio-visual by the entities concerned. 

On 12 December, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina formally inaugurated Bangabandhu Museum, Joy Silicon Tower and the Cineplex at the hi-tech park.

Eighty-eight percent works of the park have so far been completed and more six months are needed to complete the total work. 

There are two portions- Sheikh Kamal IT Training and Incubation Building and Sajeeb Wazed Joy Silicon Tower- in the park. 

Construction works of the Sheikh Kamal IT Incubation and Training Centre were completed last year, while the Joy Silicon Tower is now in the final stage, he said. 

He added that the park has been built on around 31 acres of land in the Nabinagar area adjacent to the Rajshahi metropolis aimed at establishing knowledge-based IT industries together with ensuring an area-based development. 

Bangladesh Hi-tech Park Authority is implementing the Taka 335.51-crore project initiated by the Information and Communication Technology Division. 

Employment opportunities for around 14,000 youths both male and female will be created upon the successful completion of the project by December 2022.