Fred W. Riggs, whom I called as pitamaha (the great father), as the guru of gurus Bhishma in the Indian epic, Mahabharat was known. Although comparative study is not new (‘ancients’ wrote on that), Riggs made the concept his own, and advocated it very intensely. Here is a brief attempt to run the gamut of his ideas and see how they hold up in today’s world— a world that changed much and comprehensively. This is also an attempt to clear some misconceptions about is contributions as a “comparativist”. Problems may be universal, such as Covid, but the remedies can only be applied contextually and culturally—two concepts Riggs advocated. He was unjustly criticized as an ‘academic imperialist’ when he abhorred dictating to anyone. His was a ‘multicultural’ gift to be used within the ‘glocal’ context. ‘Culture’ and ‘context’ are not to be impediments to development, but essential understanding to reform, adapt and move on. The best lessons I learnt from Riggs are not to be dogmatic but to observe, adapt, protect stable political institutions and, most importantly, learn from past mistakes. In other words, remain a perpetual student.

This paper is a mixed-method study that aims to investigate the influence of deceptive online advertising on Dhaka residents in Bangladesh, as well as the relevant approach to society and consumption culture. The fundamental assumption is how viewers respond to television and social media advertising that attempt to promote items and services by deception. The study sought to determine whether advertising affects the populations social and cultural characteristics and how society responds to the deceit found in advertisements by recording the perceptions of denizens. It also analyzes how deception in advertisements reduces the stereotypes in the mindset of consumers. The research was conducted to investigate the reinforcement of deceptive internet advertisements and how residents of Dhaka elicit reactions and appeals from viewers when exposed to these commercials. The statistical data has been derived from an anonymous survey questionnaire designed to better understand the targeted audiences shared belief system and actions. The paper attempts to provide an unbiased view regarding the presence of deception in advertising during the increased online shopping among citizens of Dhaka during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Equal Measures 2030 introduces the 2019 SDG Gender Index in the global report that highlights the power of data for gender equality. The Index is the complete mechanism known to investigate the state of gender equality across 129 countries, 14 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and 51 targets correlated to issues innate in the SDGs. This study explores the progress of gender equality in South Asian countries, comprising Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. The study indicates the poorer performance of South Asian countries in the SDG Gender index. It draws attention to the SDG-4 performances of South Asian countries as it has a strong gender perspective, grounded in evidence on the close links between girls’ education and social and economic development, including poverty reduction. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, the study explores SDG 2020 projections and assesses the performance and rate of progress and acceleration timespan for South Asian countries toward gender equality by 2030. The overall comparison confirms that the performance of no country has been satisfactory in the SDG Gender Index. Sri Lanka is leading, ranked 1st in South Asia, and 15th in Asia and the Pacific region. Bangladesh and Pakistan are the worst performers in South Asia. Equal Measures 2030 serve to enhance girls and women’s status, champion their abilities, and advocate their equality through policies and actions at the ground level.

The sustained economic growth of Bangladesh and its gradual integration into a globalized economy has influenced its foreign policy. The concerns are to increase merchandise exports; to ensure uninterrupted supply of raw materials, intermediate commodities, and electricity via reliable import channels; to attract much-needed Foreign Direct Investment and technology transfer to close the resource gap; and to leverage itself to become a regional hub of multimodal connectivity to reap maximum benefits from regional integration. Thus, Bangladesh behaves like a Trading State in the global arena, and it is precisely because of these economic determinants that it opts to pursue a policy of geopolitical neutrality. Bangladesh has significant economic dependence on USA, UK and EU for its exports. China and India are the leading sources of much needed import of agricultural produce, raw materials, intermediate goods and machinery. USA, UK and EU member nations are significant investors in Bangladesh. However, long-term Chinese investment commitments under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and generous credit facilities have caused the Chinese to acquire greater clout over the last five years or so. Competing regional integration initiatives by India and Japan pose opportunities to counter Chinese influence in Bangladesh and provide the host country with a unique opportunity to select future projects prudently. Due to Bangladeshs diverse economic engagements, it is prudent to maintain its geopolitical neutrality and avoid becoming entangled in a New Great Game.