Prime Minister Tareque Rahman has emphasized that promotions for armed forces officers should rise above political ideology and personal preference.
On this, he directed members of the selection board to emphasize officers’ professional competence, leadership qualities, standard of discipline, honesty, trustworthiness and loyalty, and above all, suitability for the specific posting.
He gave the directive Sunday morning while inaugurating the Navy and Air Force Selection Board 2026 at Air Force headquarters in Dhaka Cantonment.
The prime minister said that alongside their duties in defending the country’s independence and sovereignty, the Bangladesh Navy and Air Force continue to make important contributions in supporting the civil administration on internal peace and order, stability and disaster response.
He extended heartfelt thanks to the Navy and Air Force chiefs, and to all members of the two forces, for their sacrifices in the service of the country. The prime minister later inspected several important operational installations of the Air Force in person.
He first unveiled the inaugural plaque for the Air Defense System Integration (ADSI), set up at the Air Defense Operations Center in Dhaka Cantonment. He then inspected the newly unveiled ADSI’s various air-defense operations in person.
He also visited the Air Force’s Air Command Operations Centre (ACOC). During the visit, he observed, via ACOC’s digital large display, fighter jets intercepting enemy aircraft, and watched a live feed from an unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) based in Chattogram showing troops disembarking from a helicopter.
The prime minister then observed the Air Force’s Aerospace Research and Development Complex and its various research activities in person.
Various types of unmanned aerial vehicles built using the Bangladesh Air Force’s own capabilities — drones, kamikaze drones, interceptor drones and VTOL aircraft — were displayed during the visit. The prime minister watched a quadcopter take flight.
The prime minister expressed hope that developing this kind of modern flight technology using domestic capability would be considered an important step forward in the Bangladesh Air Force’s research, innovation and technological self-reliance.
Earlier that morning, when Prime Minister Tareque Rahman arrived at the venue, he was welcomed by his defense adviser, Brig. Gen. (retd.) Dr. A K M Shamsul Islam; Army Chief Gen. Waker-uz-Zaman; Navy Chief Admiral Khondaker Mesbah Ul Azim; and Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmud Khan.
The prime minister’s defense adviser, the navy and air force chiefs, the principal staff officer of the Armed Forces Division, the defense secretary and senior armed forces officials were present during the inspection of the important operational installations.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report