Discuss in groups and write a paragraph on the following topic Folk Music:

Padma Multipurpose Bridge

Padma Multipurpose Bridge is the 'Dream Bridge' of the people of Bangladesh. The construction of the bridge started on December 7, 2014. The Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the bridge on 25 June 2022. It is located at about 40 km south-west of the capital city Dhaka. It is a double-layer steel truss bridge. It carries a four-lane highway on the upper level and a single track railway on the lower level. It connects Louhajong of Munshiganj to Shariatpur and Madaripur, linking the south-west of the country, to northern and eastern regions. Padma Multipurpose bridge is considered to be the most challenging construction project in the history of Bangladesh. The length of the bridge is 6.15 km and the width is 18.8 m. The bridge has a total of 42 pillars. 41 steel spans have been placed on the pillars. The construction cost of the bridge is tk. 30,193.39 crore. The construction firm of the bridge was China Major Bridge Engineering Company Ltd. The project is funded from the own sources of the government of Bangladesh. The Padma Bridge will play a very important role in the economic development of the country. It is expected that the bridge will boost up GDP of Bangladesh by as much as 1.2 percent.

Dhaka Metro Rail

Dhaka Metro Rail project is a wise and far-sighted initiative of the present government of Bangladesh. It has been developed by the Dhaka Mass Transit Company. This long cherished Metro rail is the second largest project of the current government of Bangladesh. A total of five lines, MRT Lines 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6, have been proposed for the project. MRT Line-6 is the first line to be approved under the project. It is from Uttara to Motijheel.. The total length is 20 km. Its total cost is $2.82bn. It is expected that the metro. rail will commute 60,000 passengers per hour. It has stations on 16 points of the city. As a result, people are able to move easily from one place to another. It will also reduce the existing traffic jams to a great extent. Moreover, the traffic condition will also be improved as people will then less rely on private cars. The metro rail is eco-friendly as well because it runs by electricity. It is a matter of great happiness that it takes only 33 minutes to travel the entire route. Metro rail will have many positive impacts on our social and economic life as well. So, the city dwellers are greatly delighted to have such a dream project in reality.

Coronavirus Pandemic

Coronavirus is a newly discovered species of virus. This virus causes cough, flu, and fever. It rapidly destroys the respiratory system which causes death to the person. The disease caused by the coronavirus is named Covid-19. It is completely an infectious disease. The disease was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. The common symptoms of Covid-19 are fever, cough, fatigue, breathing problem, and loss of smell and taste. Majority of the cases show mild symptoms. Some cases may be serious that may result in death. The virus is primarily spread among people during close contact with the affected people. The affected people produce small droplets by coughing, sneezing, and talking. These droplets carrying coronavirus spread Covid-19 among others. A number of vaccines have already been invented. People are being vaccinated. People also started taking booster dose. To prevent infection recommended measures are frequent hand washing, maintaining physical distance from others, quarantine for the people with symptoms, covering face and keeping unwashed hands away from the face. In fact, controlled lifestyle and awareness of mass 'people are necessary to get rid of coronavirus.

Dengue Fever

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne tropical disease caused by the dengue virus. This virus spreads among people through the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito. Symptoms typically begin three to fourteen days after infection. These may include a high fever, severe headache, vomiting, muscle and joint pains and characteristic skin rash. In small portion of cases, the disease develops into a severe hemorrhagic dengue fever. This results in bleeding and low levels of blood platelets. There are no specific antibiotics to treat dengue fever. Antiviral medications are also not indicated for dengue fever. Treatment of acute dengue is supportive care. Paracetamol is recommended for fever reduction and pain relief. Taking sufficient rest is also important. For more severe cases, blood transfusion may be required. Aedes mosquitoes typically lay eggs near standing water in containers that hold water, like buckets, bowls, animal dishes, flower pots and vases. So the best method of preventing dengue includes destroying mosquito habitat and limiting exposure to bites. This may be done by throwing standing water and wearing thick clothes that cover much of the body. Most importantly, everyone's awareness against dengue can halt the outbreak of this disease.

How COVID-19 Spreads

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the SARS COV-2 virus. This disease spreads through close contact with an infected person. When an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks, the virus of this disease spreads. The virus comes out through the nose and mouth in droplets and if a healthy person inhales the droplets, he or she will be affected too. The droplets can also sit on the surface of any object. When someone touches that surface with bare hands, the virus gets transmitted to his hands. After that, if the person touches his nose, mouth or eyes, the virus gets into his respiratory system. After getting infected, a person might expose no symptom for several days or weeks. This means the infected person may not show symptoms of sickness at the beginning. This period is very dangerous because the infected person can unknowingly affect other healthy people. To avoid infection, social distancing, wearing masks while staying outside, washing hands with soap and water frequently, or cleaning hands with hand sanitizers are essential. Besides, we can make our immune system stronger by following the health rules, taking nutritious food, drinking a lot of liquid and doing light exercise. Even after getting fully vaccinated, we must follow these measures to prevent COVID-19.

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was the undisputed leader of Bangladesh. He liberated Bangladesh from the Pakistani rule in 1971 through a bloody liberation war. He was born in an aristocratic Bengali Muslim family on March 17, 1920, at Tungiparà in Gopalganj district. He passed his Matriculation from Gopalganj Missionary School in 1942, Intermediate of Arts from Kolkata Islamia College in 1944 and BA from the same college in 1947. From a very early age Mujib showed a potential of leadership. He participated in Language Movement in 1952 and Mass Movement in 1969. In the election of 1970, Bangladesh Awami League under his strong leadership. secured absolute majority but Pakistani rulers refused to handover the power. In continuation of the situation he officially declared the independence of Bangladesh at the first hour of 26 March 1971 before he was arrested by Pakistani rulers. And, a war of liberation went on under his shadow leadership and Bangladesh won its victory on 16 December 1971. For his genuine love for this land -people gave him the title 'Bangabandhu' and 'The Father of the Nation'. He was killed on August 15, 1975 by some derailed military personnel. It was a great loss for the country, and the world as well.