Dhaka, March 20 -- The interim government has issued a holiday by executive order in three hill districts on the occasion of the Biju or Baisabi festival celebrated by ethnic minority communities in Bangladesh on Apr 13.

The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting on Thursday.

At a briefing held at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka in the afternoon, Chief Advisor's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam said: "We have already announced Apr 3 as a public holiday. Another historical thing is that there will be a holiday in the three hill districts on Chaitra Sankranti (Apr 13). Usually, there is a holiday on Pohela Boishakh.

"The holiday will also be applicable for ethnic groups other than Bengalis in the plains," he said.

In response to a qu...