18 May, 2014

Joishthya 4, 1421 Rajab 18, 1435 Regd. No. DA 6238 Vol 2, No 48

SUNDAY, MAY 18, 2014 | www.dhakatribune.com | SECOND EDITION

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Two ex-RAB officers remanded Launch capsize death Whereabouts of the third RAB suspect still wrapped in mystery Islam Shaon and Ahmed n Ashif Zayeef, back from Narayanganj

Jamil Khan with our n Mohammad correspondent in Munshiganj

A Narayanganj court yesterday granted five-day remand for the two ex-RAB officers who were arrested in the early hours yesterday for their alleged involvement in the abduction and killing of seven people, including Narayanganj city panel mayor Nazrul Islam.

However, the whereabouts of the third RAB suspect – Lt Commander Masud Rana – are still not clear and none of the police officials concerned admitted failure in the arrest of the former Navy officer.

P3 ANOTHER RAB ABDUCTION? But, Senior Home Secretary CQK Mushtaq said they “suspected” Rana had escaped officials in Dhaka Cantonment as well as the police.

“After the arrest of the two, it seems that the police could not trace the other accused,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.

Around 11 hours into their arrest, police produced Lt Col Tarek Sayeed Mohammad and Major Arif Hossain before the court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Chandi Rupam around 2:00 pm, seeking 10-day remand.

Court Sub-Inspector Ashrafuzzaman said the two officers were shown arrested under Section 54 as they were not named in the two cases filed in connection with the abduction and murder. Police appealed to the court to show them arrested in the cases.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Police escort ex-RAB officers Lt Col Tarek Syed Mohammad (left) and Maj Arif Hossain (right) to the Narayanganj district court yesterday afternoon MAHMUD HOSSAIN APU

Man who saw abductions testifies Islam Shaon and n Ashif Ahmed Zayeef

A Narayanganj businessman yesterday told the government investigation team probing seven murders that he had witnessed the April 27 abduction conducted by around seven RAB personnel and another in plainclothes.

“I saw a RAB pickup van and at least six or seven of its members on

the spot,” said Md Shahidul Islam, who gave deposition at the rest house of Shiddhirganj Power Station. The probe body earlier held public hearings on May 12 and 15.

The witness said he had been passing the spot along with his HSC examinee daughter on a motorcycle.

“On that day, my daughter had an examination at Narayanganj Mohila College. She came out of the exam cen-

New record in pass rate, GPA 5 scores SSC RESULTS 2014 2013 PASS RATE

2014

91.34%

89.03%

1,42,276

GPA 5 91,226

PASS RATE AMONG 8 BOARDS LOWEST SYLHET 89.23% HIGHEST RAJSHAHI 96.34%

INSIDE News

4 The country’s health sector continues to suffer setbacks as over 23,000 posts remain vacant, while the recruitment process continues to be delayed as disgruntled candidates are filing writs accusing rampant corruption and nepotism in the process.

Nation

6 Many indigenous species of fish are on the verge of extinction in the natural water bodies of Netrokona district due to various reasons including widespread use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers in the cropland and adverse impact of climate change.

Career

7 “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

toll climbs to 55 as rescue operations end

n Mushfique Wadud A record percentage of students have passed this year’s Secondary School Certificate and its equivalent examinations, while the number of GPA 5 scorers has also increased than the previous years.

This year, the pass rate was 91.34%, a 2.31 percentage point increase than the previous year, and 142,276 students got GPA 5, which was 51,050 more than the previous year.

Explaining the reasons behind the better success rate, Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said the results were achieved because of the introduction of creative question system and properly training the teachers on the new system.

This year, students faced creative question system on 21 subjects, while Nahid said some five lakh teachers were trained on the new system.

Pointing out another government initiative, Nahid said: “After analysing results of previous years, we have found that students are mainly weak in English and Mathematics. So we had arranged additional classes on the two subjects and the initiative proved successful.”

P16 PASS RATE: A BOON OR BANE? The SSC results also reflected Nahid’s claim, with 98.88% students passing in English and 98% in Mathematics in Dhaka Education Board, while in Jessore Board, 99.43% passed in English and 97.22% in Mathematics.

The education minister further claimed that multimedia class rooms, regular classes and timely distribution of textbooks also contributed to the good results.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

NBR to bring tax-evading house-owners under radar n Syed Samiul Basher Anik For those house-owners, who have been evading tax for decades, things may turn out to be difficult if the prime minister approves the revenue authority’s budgetary proposal to go tough against them.

According to an official, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has planned to strengthen monitoring against the tax-evading house-owners. This, in fact, is one of the major proposals from the NBR to boost revenue collection in the upcoming fiscal.

Another budgetary revenue-booster, subject to the premier’s approval, could be raising the tax imposed on the import of gold in baggage.

Today, the NBR in a key meeting

with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is likely to place these issues before finalising its draft budget outline for the FY2014-15, officials said.

The revenue part of the annual budget is generally prepared by the NBR. The Finance Division of the Ministry of Finance prepares the expenditure part.

The tax authority is likely to set a revenue target of Tk1,49,000 crore in the upcoming budget alongside plans to expand the tax net by bringing necessary changes to the tax and duty structure.

“We have prepared a plan to bind the house-owners to collect rents through banks,” an official said.

He also said because owners do not  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

tre at 1:05pm. We took rest for at least 15 minutes there. Then we started for home on my motorcycle.

“It was around 1:45pm when I was passed the garbage dumping yard (situated on Dhaka-Narayanganj Link Road). I saw a RAB vehicle and few private cars parked on the road in queue.

I thought the RAB men were searching the cars to capture hoodlums. From  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

The death toll from the launch capsize in Munshiganj has climbed to 55, with 27 more bodies being recovered yesterday before the rescue operations were called off.

Out of the bodies that had been recovered from the MV Miraj 4 launch, 53 have been handed over to their family members. Of the deceased, 11 are children, 13 are women, while the rest are men.

“We have already handed over 53 bodies to the families after verification, while two bodies recovered on Saturday evening are yet to be identified. The Shariatpur authority has been asked to take action regarding it,” ATM Mahbubul Karim, the upazila nirbahi officer (UNO) of Gajaria, told the Dhaka Tribune.

Meanwhile, some register books and a draft of the passengers list have reportedly been recovered from inside the vessel after it was brought to the riverbank.

Without confirming the authenticity of the documents, which read that 335 passengers boarded the launch on the day of the accident, the UNO said: “I have been waiting for it to dry and we would give it to the DC office and probe body to investigate.”

However, employees from different launches told the Dhaka Tribune that the number was unlikely to be valid, as

the vessels only estimated passenger figures once the launch had reached its destination.

On the other hand, from a press conference onboard salvage vessel Prottoy in the afternoon, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) Chairperson Shamsuddhoha Khandaker declared the official end of the rescue operation. He said the launch sank very quickly as its thin lower part could not withstand the heavy blow of wind gust.

Following the conclusion of rescue efforts, the relatives of the missing people have started leaving the banks of river Meghna Asked about the delay in the rescue process, the BIWTA chief said the added time was needed as they had launched salvage operations using Prottoy for the first time.

Earlier, protests by relatives of the missing people forced the BIWTA to resume rescue efforts, despite announcing its end in the morning.

Claiming that authorities concerned have received a list of seven missing persons, Munshiganj Deputy Commissioner Saiful Hassan said local  PAGE 2 COLUMN 4

2

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Sunday, May 18, 2014

PM: Zia considered AL his main enemy n Tribune Report Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said military dictator General Ziaur Rahman wanted to erase the name of Awami League after the brutal assassination of Bangabandhu as he (Zia) considered the party his main enemy.

She said General Zia was appointed army chief by Khandakar Moshtaque and he was made the president and army chief simultaneously as he forced the then president Justice ASM Sayem to step down at gunpoint.

"After becoming president, General Zia wanted to destroy the signs and spirit of the War of Liberation side by side with erasing the name of Awami League," she said, adding the anti-liberation forces emerged during his misrule.

'After my coming back home, my number one thought was to put the country back on the path of democracy' Sheikh Hasina, also the Awami League president, told leaders of Awami League and its associate bodies who came to her Ganobhaban residence here this morning on the occasion of her 33rd Homecoming Day. Senior Awami League leaders including Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury, Begum Matia Chowdhury, Obaidul Quader, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Advocate Sahara Khatun, Syed Ashraful Islam and PM's Advisor HT Imam were present, among others.

On this day in 1981, Sheikh Hasina returned home after six years in exile following the brutal assassination of the architect of independent Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members on August 15 in 1975.

Sheikh Hasina and her younger sister Sheikh Rehana escaped the carnage as they were in Germany at that time.

The Prime Minister said General Zia grabbed the state power by violating the constitution. "The country witnessed frequent coups during his rule and he

killed sector commanders of the War of Liberation one after another," she said.

Earlier, the leaders of Bangladesh Awami League and its associate bodies greeted the Prime Minister by presenting bouquets and chanting slogans on the occasion of the Homecoming Day. In an emotion-charged voice, the Prime Minister said after the assassination of Bangabandhu, four national leaders were brutally killed and numerous leaders and workers of the party were thrown into jail to eliminate Awami League.

Recalling her Homecoming Day on May 17 in 1981, Sheikh Hasina said she returned home on a rainy and stormy day when thousands of people braving the inclement weather assembled at the airport to welcome her.

"When I returned home I didn't have any asset except the courage and inspiration of the Awami League leaders and workers," she said.

"When I returned home, there was a flood of millions of people and there was love for me. But my most beloved persons whose love I expected most were not there," she said referring to the killing of Bangabandhu and others who were assassinated on the fateful night of August 15.

While recalling her tragic and terrible days, the Prime Minister became emotional and tears rolled down her cheek.

Sheikh Hasina said General Zia ran the country by imposing curfew at night. "Rehana and I were not allowed to enter our historic Dhanmondi 32 residence. We were even barred to hold milad at our house," she said.

The Prime Minister said they used to spend time on the bank of Dhanmondi Lake. "The sufferers could only say what frightful days we passed at that time," she said.

After my coming back home, my number one thought was to put the country back on the path of democracy along with materializing the dream of Bangabandhu and strengthening the party. "I could not think where we would stay and what we would eat," she said.

Sheikh Hasina said when she returned home she saw that the country went against the War of Liberation and the anti-liberation forces were running Bangladesh under the patronization of General Zia. l

JU BCL leader beats up canteen owner n JU Correspondent

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina breaks into tears yesterday at Ganabhaban during a programme arranged on the occasion of her homecoming day BSS

A leader of Jahangirnagar University unit Chhatra League assaulted a canteen owner of Mir Mosharrof Hossain Hall yesterday for serving lunch with a plastic plate.

Sources at the campus said Faisal Hossain Dipu, organising secretary of JU unit BCL, sent an employee of the dormitory to fetch his lunch from a hall canteen around 2:15pm and its owner Kamal Hossain provided the meal with a plastic plate which was seemed “offensive” to the leader.

Being angered by the incident, Dipu beat up Kamal Hossain with a cricket stump indiscriminately, leaving him injured.

Later, employees of the canteen whisked off him to JU medical centre where he was given first aid.

Kamal Hossain said there was no other plate to him to serve meals to the leader.

Contacted, Dipu said: “Despite warning him (Kamal) several times earlier not serving me with plastic plate, he did so. Being failed to control rage, I beat him up him.”

However, Prof Dr Md Obaidur Rahman, provost of Mir Mosharrof Hossain hall said they had discussed the matter with the university authorities that would certainly take proper action. l

Teenager commits suicide for failing to achieve GPA 5

Nahid: No problem in college admission n Mushfique Wadud

n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said yesterday there will not be any problems for students to get admitted into the colleges though a record number of students have passed and scored GPA 5 this year.

“There are plenty of seats and so students will not have to face any problems in getting admitted into the colleges,” he said at a press briefing at the secretariat yesterday.

As the pass rate has been increasing over the years, guardians are concerned whether their children can get admitted into the colleges. l

A youth committed suicide yesterday reportedly after failing to achieve a GPA 5 score in his Secondary School Certificate examinations.

Mohammad Sowrov, 17, was found hanging with the ceiling fan by a rope in the neck at his residence at Karnaphuli Bhaban in Chittagong city’s Golpahar area.

Sowrov appeared for the SSC examination from Al Hera Academy at Bera in Pabna, while living with his grandparents.

“He was expecting a GPA 5, however, he found out that he had scored GPA 4.30,” said Md Shahnewaz, a next door neighbor.

“After finding the result, he come and informed me of his result and took a long breathe and went back to his house,” he added.

The victim’s mother, Firoza Begum, a senior staff nurse at Chittagong Medical College Hospital, said Sowrov got to know his SSC results at around 2:00pm when she and her husband, Sakhawat Hossain, a businessman, were at their workplaces.

At around 3:00pm, the victim’s mother returned home and found that Sawrov had committed suicide.

“Hearing her screams, I went to their house and she and I rushed Sowrov to CMCH,” Shahnewaz added.

“On-duty doctors at CMCH pronounced the boy dead at around 3:55pm,” said Nayek Jahangir Alam of CMCH Police Outpost.

The dead body was sent to CMCH morgue for autopsy, he said and added that the victim might have committed suicide after becoming mentally depressed over his expected result. l

NBR to bring tax-evading house-owners under radar

Man who saw abductions testifies

 PAGE 1 COLUMN 3

 PAGE 1 COLUMN 4

give formal money receipts to the tenants while collecting rents, they managed to conceal the actual amounts they had collected and thus evaded tax.

After introducing the rule, the NBR would collect relevant information from the banks, the official said.

He also said Finance Minister AMA Muhith in a meeting last week gave consent to the NBR officials regarding the unique new rule.

According to Chairman Ghulam Hussain, the NBR has identified a staggering total of 1.62 lakh owners in only a few selected areas in the capital, who have been concealing their incomes from house rents while submitting returns.

An NBR survey, conducted from December 2012-November 2013, shows that out of the tax evading owners, 70% were businessmen by profession, 25% just owners and 5% shop owners.

Gold import tax

in the wake of the recent hike in gold smuggling, another proposed revenue-boosting plan is to increase the existing Tk150 tax to Tk3,300 on every tola of gold imported in baggage.

However, the assumption is that the authorities concerned would strengthen monitoring at the airports to curb gold smuggling. In that case, people would be forced to bring in gold in their luggage and the government can benefit from it, the NBR official said.

Under the existing baggage rule, a passenger can carry gold or silver ornaments weighing less than 200 gram without paying any taxes.

Curtailing corporate tax

In today’s meeting, the tax authority is also likely to place a proposal for curtailing corporate tax.

Two ex-RAB officers remanded  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

The court fixed May 18 for hearing in the case filed by the son-in-law of slain lawyer Chandan Sarker, he said.

No lawyer stood on behalf of the two officers.

Two of the three Rapid Action Battalion officers, who were sent on forced retirement, were arrested from Dhaka Cantonment early yesterday. Later, they were taken to Narayanganj Police Lines.

Lt Col Tarek was the commanding officer of RAB 11 when the gruesome murder took place. Maj Arif and Lt Commander Rana were also posted at the RAB unit.

The three RAB officers were fired after Shahidul Islam, father-in-law of slain councillor Nazrul Islam, claimed that some RAB officers killed the seven in exchange for Tk6 crore from Nur Hossain, the prime accused.

The trio was not accused in the case filed by Nazrul’s widow, but the High Court on May 11 ordered the Inspector General of Police to “immediately” arrest them as suspects.

On April 27, Nazrul and his four aides and Chandan and his driver were kidnapped from the Dhaka-Narayanganj link road around the same time in broad daylight.

Six bodies, including those of Nazrul and Chandan, were found floating in the Shitalakkhya River on April 30 and another was found the following day.

The other victims were Moniruzzaman

A high-ranked official said the NBR would propose cutting tax for banks and financial institutions from the existing 42.5% to 40.5%.

He however could not shed any light when asked whether or not the other corporate firms would be given the same facility.

In forums and pre-budget discussions, trade bodies such as the FBCCI have been asking for lowering of corporate taxes terming them too high.

Many of the chiefs of the trade bodies are owners of major commercial banks.

Other proposals

some of the other proposals that the NBR is likely to place before the prime minister are: raising tax on products hazardous for health and the environmental such as cigarettes; tax-free income ceiling of Tk2.25 lakh for individual payers; schemes for protecting local

Launch capsize  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

administration would continue to look for the missing people even though the BIWTA had concluded the rescue operation.

He added that if any family member provided legal identification and proof of any missing person, then their details would be registered in the missing person’s list.

Following the conclusion of rescue efforts by the BIWTA, the relatives of the missing people have started leaving the banks of river Meghna.

On Thursday, MV Miraj 4 capsized during a storm on the Meghna with around 200 passengers on board. l

that interest, I slowed down my motorcycle and stopped.”

Shahidul said he had enquired a RAB man about the matter.

“The RAB personnel was rude with me to say ‘Ja beta ja, aage bar’ [leave this place, move ahead].”

This made him curious, Shahidul said: “If he did something usual, he would have answered me normally.

Then I started to drive my motorcycle and stopped few metres ahead. Four to five RAB men in arms kept the vehicles cordoned while two others standing with another person who was wearing a white T-shirt and black pant.

“The person [in plainclothes] had a black pistol [smaller than those used by police personnel] in his hand. He was pulling out several men from one pri-

court granted only five-day remand for the arrestees. They also reproached that the duo was not handcuffed when they were produced before the court.

The court premises

The court room

The Investigation Officer of the two cases Mamunur Rashid Mandal sought 10-day remand for each of the two officers.

On behalf of the District Lawyers’ Association, its president Shakhawat Hossain Khan, secretary Zakir Hossain and ex-president Abdul Bari Bhuiyan placed argument explaining as to why the arrestees should be put on 10-day remand.

Referring to the inquest report of the victims’ bodies, they said each of the victims was strangled and hit in the head. The killers also made hole in the abdomens before dumping them in the Shitalakkhya River. They also used bricks which proved that well-trained people committed the offence.

The lawyers cited the ropes and sacks used to tie up the bodies, claiming that those were meant for RAB. “Lawyer Chandan was innocent. He recorded the whole incident in his cell phone,” said a lawyer.

They also referred mass hearing where all of the witnesses said Nur Hossain used RAB to kill seven people. The lawyers said the state spends huge amount of money to train an officer. Money comes from people’s tax.

The officers, who were supposed to

serve the nation, used their authority and power for personal interest, they alleged.

“We do not have complaint against RAB as a force. But these people have tarnished the image of RAB, Army and Navy. They should be punished,” said a lawyer.

“They know where Nur and his associates are hiding now. They know who are behind the killing,” the senior lawyer said.

They alleged that Tarek, Arif and Rana were also involved with some other incidents of abductions and murders in Narayanganj. They committed such crimes in other places they were deployed earlier. An interrogation could reveal those incidents.

“We think some powerful men were behind all of these incidents. These incidents should be revealed,” he said.

Tarek blamed media

As Tarek had no lawyers, the court asked him to defend himself.

He told the court, “I do not have objection if the court places me on more than 10-day remand. We also want that the truth be revealed after fair investigation. But on the basis of the statement of Nazrul’s father-in-law Shahidul, media are publishing false and fabricated reports against me.”

“Media have blamed me for the incidents. They are liable for all …,” he told the court. l

vate car and pushing them into a white microbus [HIACE].

“The man was hitting those who did not want to enter the microbus with the pistol. Later it started for Signboard area. I saw the incident for two to three minutes.”

Shahidul told the probe body that he could not figure out the actual number of RAB men, but it could be six-seven.

He also did not notice the nameplate of the RAB member he spoke to.

“I came to know about the incident through the media after the bodies of the seven abduction victims were recovered. I have become mentally disturbed since the incident, and was eager to share it with somebody who can take action,” the businessman said to justify why he gave deposition in the case. l

New record in pass rate, GPA 5  PAGE 1 COLUMN 3

Swapan, Tajul Islam, Liton, Jahangir and Ibrahim.

Police nabbed 21 other suspects so far.

A large number of people gathered outside the court as the news spread that the arrestees would be produced before it. A huge number of uniformed police and plainclothesmen were also deployed there.

Ten minutes before arrival of six vehicles, including three police vans, policemen built two human chains there to make way for the arrestees.

Three police pickup vans and three microbuses reached the court premises around 2:00 pm. Tarek wearing helmet and bulletproof jacket was sitting inside a pickup van’s cabin between two policemen while Arif was inside another. Four policemen escorting them were also wearing helmets and bulletproof jackets.

As soon as the law enforcers brought Tarek, wearing white striped shirt and Arif wearing orange-colour shirt, locals chanted slogan demanding their death sentence.

After 40-minute hearing when they were being taken back to the vans, the same situation was created there. Many of the onlookers recorded video in their cell phones to grab that moment.

Meanwhile, lawyers staged demonstrations on the court premises as the

industries; continuing tax holiday for sectors including the agriculture, dairy and poultry. l

Although many school teachers agreed with the government’s claims, they also gave a different set of reasons for the record pass rates and GPA 5 scorers.

Seeking anonymity, several examiners from top-rated schools in the capital’s Bailey Road Dhanmondi, and Mirpur areas told the Dhaka Tribune that they were instructed to check scripts “liberally.”

“We were asked to check the script as liberally as we can,” said an examiner and teacher of a leading school in the capital.

However, Fahima Khatun, director general of the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education, denied the allegation.

“Normally, if a student has one or two marks short of the pass marks, we tell teachers to consider so that the student does not fail. This is nothing new. It has always been a norm. No other instruction was given except that,” she said.

Dhaka Board Chairperson Taslima Begum also denied giving any such instruction.

Teachers from the rural areas, on the other hand, said they were told that their schools’ Monthly Pay Order scheme would be cancelled if a large number of their students failed in the SSC exams.

Some teachers and guardians also claimed that incidents of questions being leaked might also have given unscrupulous students a wrongful advantage, contributing to the improved

results.

Prior to the exams of some subjects this year, their questions allegedly became available on facebook and other social media sites.

When asked about the allegations of question leak, the education minister, however, denied it.

Nurul Islam Nahid handed over the result to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the morning, before formally announcing the result at the secretariat in the afternoon. Students crowded their respective schools following the formal announcement.

Rasheda K Choudhury, executive director of Campaign for Popular Education, also agreed with the government’s claim that creative question papers played the leading role in better pass rate, adding that school facilities had also improved.

Among the eight general education boards, Sylhet Board had the lowest pass rate of 89.23%, while the highest pass rate was 96.34% in Rajshahi.

The pass rate was better in general education system than madrasa or vocational education system. It was 92.67% in general system, 89.25% in madrasa, and 81.97% in vocational education.

Male students fared better than females; the pass rate among males was 91.84% and 77,551 got GPA 5, while pass rate among females was 90.81% and 64,725 got GPA 5.

This year’s examinations were held between February 9 and March 20. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Sunday, May 18, 2014

‘Nur’s gang seized 500 auto-rickshaws’ Islam Shaon and Ahmed n Ashif Zayeef

Further stories of criminal activities

by Nur Hossain were brought to the attention of an ongoing mass hearing yesterday, when more victims of the Narayanganj ward councillor’s reign of terror came to give depositions in connection with the seven murders in the district.

Owners and drivers of autorickshaws described to the mass hearing, being held by the governmentformed probe committee, about how the gang of Nur Hossain – the prime suspect in the gruesome murders – had seized at least 500 battery-run auto rickshaws from the road ahead of Pohela Boishakh, and pocketed at least Tk10,000 for releasing each vehicle.

They took two of mine.

It was very tough for me to manage the money. Still I am paying the interest of the money Without the consent of the owners, the associates of Nur also reportedly sold the auto-rickshaws that were comparatively newer than the rest.

Five such victims talked to the Dhaka Tribune in front of the Shiddhirganj Power House, where the mass hearing was taking place.

One of the victims, Jahangir Alom, said: “They seized at least 500 autorickshaws that day from Mouchak, Shanarpara, Chittagong Road, Shimrail, Shiddhirgonj and Adamji areas, and gathered them in Shimrail

Eidgah grounds near Nur Hossain’s home.

“They took two of mine. It was very tough for me to manage the money.

Still I am paying the interest of the money,” Jahangir claimed.

Md Nazim Uddin, another victim, said: “I bought an auto rickshaw for Tk45,000 on instalments. Within 10 days, some associates of Nur Hossain seized it from the Chittagong Road bus stand.

“I went to them with the money but they gave me another auto rickshaw which was old. When I told them that it was not mine, they replied that if I wanted an auto-rickshaw then I would have to take it or get lost. I left the place without the auto-rickshaw.”

Md Nasir Uddin, who also testified before the mass hearing, said: “They took two of my auto-rickshaws. I went to Yasin Miah, general secretary of Shiddhirganj Thana Awami League, to ask for a favour. But he said he could do nothing. Then I went to them [Nur’s gang] with Tk20,000 and recovered my auto-rickshaws.”

Md Guljar Hossain, another victim, said: “On that day, I was driving my auto rickshaw. When I was in Mouchak area, two people hired me to take them to Shanarpara near Nur Hossain’s home. When I reached the place the two passengers seized my autorickshaw and said if I wanted it back I would have to pay Tk10,000. After giving the money the next day, I got my auto-rickshaw back. But I sold it within a few days fearing they would seize it again.”

Guljar has now switched his profession to become a vegetable trader.

Another of Nur’s victims, Alomgir Hossain said: “I had to pay Tk30,000 for getting back my three auto-rickshaws.

I had to manage the money within a very short time on high interest.” l

CPD: Political parties deviate from ideologies n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

Rounaq Jahan, distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue, presents her keynote speech on ‘Political Parties and Democracy in Bangladesh’ at Brac Centre in the capital yesterday RAJIB DHAR

Nazrul’s aide testifies in Narayanganj Islam Shaon and Ahmed n Ashif Zayeef

Md Shohidul Islam, a close associate of slain Narayanganj ward councillor Nazrul Islam, yesterday said they had caught a plainclothes RAB member at the court on April 27 for following Nazrul. But the police released him.

Shohidul told this to the probe body on the third day of public hearing held at Shiddhirganj Power Station in Narayanganj. After giving deposition, he spoke to reporters. He is also an accused in the case filed over the seven murders.

The witness said: “We were at the court to give attendance in a case. We sat on the corridor of the court. At one point, Tajul Islam [one of the seven victims] came to me and said ‘a man wearing pagri and kabuli is following Nazrul.’ Then we started to follow that man.

“When we were sure that the per-

Police mum on ex-Navy officer n Kailash Sarkar

Former official of elite force RAB 11 Lt Commander SM Masud Rana, who was dismissed from Bangladesh Navy over Narayanganj murder allegation, has gone into hiding apparently taking advantage of delay in executing the High Court’s order for his arrest.

None of the police officials concerned admitted failure in the arrest of Rana. They also did not make it clear why they had to wait six days to execute the order.

Accused in the seven murders after abduction in Narayanganj, former commanding officer of Rab 11 Lt Col Tarek Sayeed Mohammad and official Maj Arif Hossain were arrested early yesterday, a week into a High Court order.

The High Court on May 11 directed the government to arrest the RAB officials alongside asking the elite force not to interfere in the arrest or investi-

gation. The police on May 12 sent a letter to the Defence Ministry for its opinion and got a reply on May 15. Sources said the communication was made only to delay the arrest procedure and pave way for the accused to flee.

Sources in the Home Ministry, police and intelligence confirmed to the Dhaka Tribune yesterday that Rana had gone into hiding.

However, Senior Home Secretary CQK Mustaq said they “suspected” that Rana had escaped officials in Dhaka Cantonment as well as the police.

“After the arrest of the two, it seems that the police could not trace the other accused,” he said. “But police will have to submit their progress report before the court as well as the ministry.”

Mustaq said the Defence Ministry in response to a letter of the police did not mention names of the three former RAB officials, rather just allowed the police to carry out the criminal procedures.

RAB 11 blamed for another abduction n Tribune Report The family members and friends of an “abducted” Awami League activist Mohammad Ismail formed a human chain in front of the Siddhirganj Power Station in Narayanganj yesterday, demanding immediate release of the victim.

The protesters alleged that before the abduction and murder of seven people in Narayanganj, the 42-year old victim was abducted by members of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) 11, who placed a demand for Tk2 crore as ransom.

Ismail’s wife Josna Begum said they received a letter demanding Tk2 crore from the family soon after Ismail went missing.

The letter also mentioned that if she wanted to see her husband again, they have to pay Tk 2 crore to Lt Col Tarek Sayeed Mohammad, who was the then commanding officer of RAB 11 in Narayanganj.

Ismail, a contractor by profession and resident of Kanchpur area, has been missing since February 7.

Josna further claimed that they had managed Tk1 crore for the ransom, but Tarek refused to accept that amount.

“He [Tarek] was pressuring us to pay the full amount,” she added.

She also claimed that they did not approach other law enforcement agencies or the media in this regard followings threats from RAB members. l

3

When contacted, Khandakar Mahid Uddin, superintendent of police in Narayanganj, said: “As we have arrested two among the three former RAB officials, we also want to arrest the other. We have been giving our highest efforts to this end.”

About the arrest procedure, he said: “We have many other responsibilities as well as some limitations. Therefore, we have to work keeping a balance with both the things.”

He, however, did not explain why and how the former Navy personnel had gone missing.

Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Inspector General of Police Hassan Mahmood Khandker said the police had to take six days to complete some formalities and legal procedures. He did not elaborate the issues.

When asked about the arrest of Rana, the IGP said everything was going on as per the High Court directives. l

Inflation rate targeted at 6 % n Asif Showkat Kallol The government is planning to place an ambitious budget, possibly of Tk2,49,000 crore for the next fiscal year, focusing on investment with a target of 6% inflation rate.

The next fiscal year’s GDP growth has been targeted at 7.3%.

Finance Minister AMA Muhith yesterday at a meeting presented the broad outline of the next year’s macro-economic target and budget outlay to the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said a number of senior oficers who attended the meeting.

The finance minister will place the budget on June 5 in the Jatiya Sangsad.

Sources at the meeting said the prime minister asked the finance minister to prepare the budget in such a “people-friendly” way that media and political parties cannot not make any negative criticism on it.

The meeting also planned to reduce the bank borrowing. The outgoing year saw a bank borrowing of Tk30,000 crore . The government wants to bring it down to Tk27,000 crore in the next fiscal year.

Muhith told the meeting that he was planning to keep the budget deficit within 5% of the GDP. The total amount of budget deficit will cross Tk66,000 crore. l

son was following Nazrul, we grabbed his hand and stopped him. He had a pistol on his waist.

‘We will record depositions of everyone we need. We will also take depositions of the RAB members, if needed’ “As we took him outside, the court police took him from us and talked to him. At that time, another RAB member with long beard came and spoke to the police members. The man was released subsequently,” Shohidul said.

“When we asked the police why they had released him, they said the man was a RAB special force member,” the witness claimed.

Like Shohidul, several hundred people gathered at the power station to testify on the incident. The seven-member investigation body started to record depositions around 10am.

Jafor, who was registering names of witnesses, told the Dhaka tribune last night: “A total of 314 people have registered their names so far to give deposition in the case. Of them, 198 people, mostly neighbours and relatives of the victims, submitted their depositions before the probe body by 5pm [yesterday].”

Shahjahan Hossain Molla, head of the investigation team, told reporters: “We will record depositions of the civil society members from 3pm tomorrow [today] and of the rest who have registered their names today [yesterday].”

Replying to a query, member of the probe body Mustafizur Rahman said: “We will record depositions of everyone we need. We will also take depositions of the RAB members, if needed.” l

Speakers at a discussion yesterday stressed the need for democratic practice and transparency within political parties to establish mutual respect and good governance.

“We are concerned about the political parties,” Rounaq Jahan, a political watcher, said while presenting a keynote paper at a dialogue on “Political Parties and Democracy in Bangladesh”, organised by the Centre for Policy Dialogue in the capital. Rehman Sobhan, chairman of the CPD, chaired the programme.

Citing the many positive contributions of political parties, the professor observed that whenever a party comes to power through elections, the system of democratic governance fumbles.

“They could not do much in establishing democracy,” she said.

Regarding the challenges faced by the political parties, she said they were losing touch with the ordinary people and increasingly becoming dependent on people with money and muscle.

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed described how the country’s political culture and practices had gradually changed over the years.

Recalling how he had become a party leader through a long process, the veteran Awami League politician said politics was no longer in the hands of the politicians and the parties had deviated from their ideologies.

“We lost our political culture; we have to work on it to improve the situation,” Tofail said.

Moudud Ahmed, a standing committee member of the BNP, said immorality and falsehood were dominating politics, and proper leadership and changes in attitude were needed to establish democracy.

Imtiaz Ahmed, professor of international relations at University of Dhaka, said “two types of nexuses” were creating problems for democracy and politics and they needed to be broken up.

“One is a nexus between bureaucracy, business and politics. Another nexus, what I call ‘A, B, C’ – A and B stand for Awami League and BNP and C is cantonment.” l

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Manpower shortage restrains progress in health sector Writ petitions delay recruitment in over 10,000 posts posts, the director said. n Moniruzzman Uzzal On the other hand, several senior The country’s health sector continues to suffer setbacks as over 23,000 posts remain vacant, while the recruitment process continues to be delayed as disgruntled candidates are filing writs accusing rampant corruption and nepotism in the process.

According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), 23,127 out of the total 100,501 regular posts are currently vacant in different health establishments.

Although separate processes for recruiting over 10,000 health officials – including doctors, technologists, third and fourth class employees – began more than a year ago, the process was yet to be completed.

The entire recruitment process has reportedly been plagued with a flood of recommendations from cabinet members, top bureaucrats, politicians and leaders of doctors’ organisations.

The initiative to fill the empty posts had also created opportunities for an unscrupulous section of officials to pocket large amounts of cash from job seekers.

Asked about the large number of existing vacancies, DGHS Director (administration) Dr Md Shah Newaz told the Dhaka Tribune that even though the official figures put the number of vacancies at more than 23,000, the process of recruiting 10,000 health officials was ongoing.

According to the existing rules, at least 10% of the total available posts have to be kept vacant as reserved

health sector officials, seeking anonymity, said authorities were unable to move forward with the recruitment process because of different writs and cases being filed on charges of rules-violation and corruption.

A writ petition had reportedly caused delay in the recruitment of 915 posts for third and fourth class employees in nine districts, for which over 60,000 candidates appeared in written tests in April last year. The Health Ministry is now going for a fresh recruitment process after the ruling went against the government.

Following a different writ, the recruitment process of 1,057 medical technologists – which began around six months ago – has been left hanging.

The DGHS was defeated in a writ petition that challenged the recruitment of 177 third and fourth class employees in Sirajganj more than two years ago. The Health Ministry has reportedly decided to fight the ruling at the court again.

The recruitment of 1,808 third and fourth class employees in 25 districts resumed a few months ago, following the dismissal of a writ that had delayed the process for long.

The pressure of manpower shortage is expected to be lessened once the recruitment of 6,221 doctors through the 33rd BCS exam is completed.

Sources said the DGHS has also received permission to recruit 186 third and fourth class employees in five district sadar and district hospitals. But the advertisement was yet to be served. l

Residents of Uttara hold a demostration in front of the National Press Club yesterday, demanding exemplary punishment for the killers of Sharmin Akter Sumi

No climate fund to support fossil fuels, activists warn n Tribune Report Civil society observers of the United Nations’ Green Climate Fund noted with alarm that like other international financial institutions, the GCF may rationalise funding climate-polluting projects because of “lower carbon” energy or because they switch to “lower emissions” fuels rather than truly sustainable options.

More than 250 organisations, movements and communities from developing countries have called on the UN to ban the use of its funds for fossil fuel and other harmful energy projects and programmes as its seventh board meeting begins in Songdo, Republic of Korea today. The meeting will continue until May 21. The preparatory meetings of the Board and informal consultations among

Speakers at the concluding session of the two-day ‘Bengal Lights Literary Conclave’ yesterday

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Literary conclave concludes at ULAB n Tribune Report The two-day international event titled “Bengal Lights Literary Conclave” ended on the main campus of University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) yesterday.

The ULAB arranged the programme.

The conclave brought a distinguished panel of writers, scholars and critics from around the world to explore this year’s theme, “Beyond Identity Narratives: Defining a New World Fiction.”

On the final day, three panel-discussion boards concentrated on different aspects of the theme.

The first panel, exploring “New Lines, New Letters,” was moderated

by Maya Jaggi, critic for UK’s Guardian Review, with Indian author Chandra-

has Choudhury, British poet Alev Adil and Nick Richardson, an editor for the London Review of Books, as panellists.

The second panel scrutinized “Post-post-colonials”, with poet Ahsan Akbar moderating, and author Farrukh Dhondy, poet Sadaf Saaz and Nick Richardson as panellists.

The last panel, moderated by Bengal Lights publisher and author of The World in My Hands Kazi Anis Ahmed, explored “The Speculative Sphere of Fiction”, with panellists Chandrahas Choudhury, Maya Jaggi and eminent writer and scholar Syed Manzoorul Islam.

Authors Chandrahas Choudhury, Maria Chaudhuri, and Syed Manzoorul Islamalso read from their works during the last day of the conclave.

The two-day event was attended by 300 guests while more than 250 people watched the live webcast at http:// litcon.bengallights.com.

The conclave is a first-of-its kind event in Bangladesh aiming to capture the essence of the conclave’s discussions in essays to be later published in the Bengal Lights journal as well as partner publications.

Bengal Lights

Bengal Lights is a semi-annual literary journal founded in 2012 at ULAB, which already made literary circles in the region.

Bengal Lights later established its own imprint, Bengal Lights Books (BLB), to promote quality writing from Bangladesh. l

Canadian International School has extended its activities to help the underprivileged children in Dhaka city.

Its senior students will teach the poverty-stricken children in its evening school programme scheduled to begin this year, according to a press release yesterday.

On this purpose, a group of ten students and two teachers from the United World College South East Asia, Singapore paid a visit to the Canadian International School.

They hope to maintain a close work-

ing relationship with the Canadian In-

ternational school students, with the

harmful energy through the Green Climate Fund is fundamentally in conflict with what people around the world over are demanding, what the mandate of the founding document of Green Climate Fund actually says, and with climate science and common sense,” Asad Rehman, head of International Climate at Friends of the Earth EWNI, said.

In the context of sustainable development, the Fund will promote the paradigm shift towards low-emission and climate-resilient development pathways by providing support to developing countries to limit or reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to the impacts of climate change, taking into account the needs of those developing countries particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. l

registered observers were held yesterday.

Formally launched in 2010, the GCF is under pressure to open for business in 2015.

The 19th session of the Conference of Parties (COP) finalised the structure and functions of the GCF in Warsaw, Poland last year. But there had been no money in the Fund which would support projects and other activities in developing nations to adapt with the adverse impact of climate change and promote renewable energy. After 2020, the developed countries are pledgebound to release $100bn every year.

“To use climate funds to finance fossil fuel and other harmful energy projects is totally unacceptable,” said Lidy Nacpil, coordinator of Jubilee South Asia/Pacific Movement on Debt and Development – a member of the Global

Campaign to Demand Climate Justice that helped coordinate worldwide response.

“We are organisations, movements and communities from developing countries whose citizens bear the brunt of the most harmful consequences of climate change. All efforts must be made to ensure that climate finance is provided adequately, allocated equitably and used effectively,” Nacpil said, according to a press release.

“For the Green Climate Fund to have transformational impact, as it says it wants, it should not promote ‘business-as-usual’ energy solutions. It has to step away from the failed corporate model of energy services and open up real, people-controlled, community power solutions,” Nacpil concluded.

“Financing any fossil fuels and

Facebook urged to open office in Bangladesh n Muhammad Zahidul Islam

Last phase upazila election tomorrow

Facebook authorities have been urged to set up a research, development and training centre in Bangladesh at the US-Bangladesh Tech Investment Summit 2014. A Bangladeshi delegation, led by the State Minister for Information and Communication Technology, proposed the idea.

Shameem Ahsan, president of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services posted a message on Facebook on Friday (Bangladesh time Saturday) following a meeting with the social media giant authorities at the company’s headquarters in Silicon Valley. The delegation was led

by State Minister for Information and Communication Technology Division Zunaid Ahmed Palak. BASIS Secretary General Russell T Ahmed and several others attended the meeting.

“Fruitful meeting with Facebook Senior Directors at their Head Quarter and urged them to set up Research & Development and Training center in Bangladesh for our youth!” the post read.

Similar posts containing pictures were also shared by Palak and Russell on their Facebook profiles.

According to a release yesterday, Bangladesh Computer Samity (BCS) said, the Bangladesh Delegation also demanded Facebook with Bangla language in addition to establishing a regional office here in Dhaka. BASIS president Shameem Ahsan and BCS president AHM Mahfuzul Arif placed the demand from Bangladeshi delegation.

In the meeting, state minister Zunaid Ahmed Palak said, currently Bangladesh has around 35 million internet users which will increase to around 100 million by 2021 so it will be more lucrative for Facebook authority to establish office in Bangladesh. l

Canadian International school helping poor children n Tribune Report

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

goal of participating in a meaningful way in a service project that will provide some long term benefits to some of the young and vulnerable youths in the city.

Along with the Canadian International School students, they later visited Jaago Foundation, Brac and Gazipur Shishu Polli Plus. They closely observed how the organisations are helping poor children through educating them, and spent quality time with them by painting, teaching and playing.

Canadian International School Principal Frank Marisco said students of his school have a responsibility to help the less fortunate in the society. l

n Mohammad Zakaria The last and sixth phase election to 13 Upazila Parishads will be held tomorrow amid fears of rigging and attacks at polling centres.

The campaign was wrapped up yesterday midnight and movement of all types of vehicles will be restricted from today.

A total of 196 candidates, including rebels, from Awami League and BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami and Jatiya Party are contesting the elections.

Of them, 69 chairman candidates, 75 vice chairman aspirants and 52 women vice chairman hopefuls.

Election Commissioner Abdul Mobarak said yesterday they have taken all-out preparations for holding the

elections smoothly. The returning officers have also been asked to deploy an increased number of lawmen at the vulnerable polling centres.

The polling will be postponed at the centres immediately after untoward incidents take place there, he said.

Allegations of aiding and abetting the ruling party candidates in winning the elections have been submitted to the Election Commission against local administrations.

Officials at the Election Commission say mainly BNP candidates came up with such allegations.

Violence, rigging, snatching of ballot papers had also taken place in the last phases of the elections, despite the Election Commission’s strong warning against such unpleasant acts. l

Advertisement

Milestone College achieved 4th place in Dhaka board Milestone College achieved 4th place in SSC examination in Dhaka board.

In this year total of 908 students (Bangla medium and English version) appeared SSC examination from Milestone college and 866 students have scored GPA-5 and 42 students have got A grade. GPA-5 got 95.37%.

Total of 613 students appeared from science group and 605 students have scored GPA-5 and 8 students scored A grade. Total of 295 students appeared from commerce group and 261 students have scored GPA-5 and 34 students scored A grade.

Principal of Milestone college Prof Md Shahidul Islam and Vice principal L. Colonel M Kamaluddin Bhuiyan (Retd) said, Milestone is committed to ensure quality education that can help a student be an ideal person, create humane character, see dream and implement the dream. They are said, sincerity of the teachers as well as students and guardians was behind the highest success rate. They are also Said, Milestone ensures the optimum use of its resources to facilitate academic excellence.

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

5

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Jamaat-Shibir Dhanmondi children’s park awaits public opening 18 men held in Chittagong

n Abu Hayat Mahmud Russel Sishutosh Angan, a mini children’s park in the city’s Dhanmondi lakeshore area, has not been opened to public even after completion of construction as the authorities concerned are considering privatisation of it.

Antisocial activities have become commonplace in the park area as people prefer not to visit either side of the lake when the sun sets, said locals and army officials who implemented beautification work of the lake.

Seeking anonymity, an official of the 16 Engineering Construction Battalion of Bangladesh Army said beautification of Dhanmondi Lake had completed almost a month ago.

He said they had already asked Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) officials to reestablish authority on the lake.

“However, the city corporation authorities are delaying to take back responsibility of the lake,” he added.

DSCC authorities have been trying to lease the park to a private company for maintenance since the park’s inauguration, said the army official, adding: “Everyone should pay to enter the park erected on eastern part of Dhanmondi Lake.”

He alleged many objects were stolen during and after the beautification process.

“Water taps, a big water tank of public toilet, beautification lamps and some parts of those have been stolen twice from the lake area but the security guards are turning a blind eye to this,” he said.

“We stay at the site from morning to evening but miscreants usually steal the objects at night. Some guards might be involved in this,” he added.

The army officer said the lakeshore areas, meant for recreation of the general people, had become a sanctuary for sex workers and drug addicts at night.

Residents of Dhanmondi also said the lake is virtually ruled by drug addicts and peddlers, floating sex workers, brokers and clients at night.

Imtiaz Ahmed, a local resident, said: “Sex workers operate in the lake area when night descends. The security guards take money from them regularly and help them carry on with their acts.”

BSF held Bangladeshi national

n BSS

Indian Border Security Force (BSF) arrested a Bangladeshi national named Mohammad Hossain, 12, from Jogdol border under Ranisankail upazila here yesterday.

Intelligence Officer of BGB-30 Major Towhid said a petrol team of BSF-121 from Tingaon camp arrested Mohammad for lack of valid documents at 7 am while he was returning back to Bangladesh from India.

The BGB personnel sent a letter to BSF asking to arrange Company Commander level flag meeting to return the Bangladeshi national. l

WEATHER

PARTLY CLOUDY SUNDAY, MAY 18 DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 6:35PM SUN RISES 5:15AM FORECAST FOR TODAY Dhaka

39

28

Chittagong

34

27

Rajshahi

43

29

Rangpur

39

26

Khulna

40

26

Barisal

38

27

Sylhet

38

24

Cox’s Bazar

34

27

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

42.2ºC Jessore

20.8ºC Teknaf

Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajar Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha

3:51am 5:15am 11:55am 3:18pm 6:35pm 7:59pm Source: IslamicFinder.org

n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong Police in special drive yesterday arrested 30 people, including 18 activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student front Islami Chhatra Shibir, from different areas in Satkania and Lohagara upazilas of Chittagong.

Of the arrestees, 12 were accused in different cases lodged with Satkania and Lohagara police stations.

AKM Emran Bhuiyan, assistant superintendent of police of Satkania circle, said acting on a tip-off, they picked up 18 people, including six Jamaat-Shibir men, from different areas in Satkania upazila.

Meanwhile, 12 other Jamaat-Shibir men were arrested from nine unions in Lohagara upazila, he said, adding that the arrestees were produced before the court.

The police officer said their special drive would continue. The law enforcement agencies in separate drives nabbed a total of 135 Jamaat-Shibir activists from the city and district in last 17 days.

The arrested were allegedly involved with the violence in the upazilas before and after the January 5 national election, police said, adding that they were also planning further sabotage in the areas ahead of the conviction of Delwar Hossain Sayedee. l

Mayor Jhantu: RCC to stand by distressed people n BSS DSCC yet to open Dhanmondi children’s park to public despite completion of construction Another local resident Fahim echoed the same view, saying: “Sometimes when I walk in the lake area at night on my way back to home, I see antisocial activities here and there is also the fear of being hijacked.”

Security guards in the area, however, refused to talk about this issue.

DSCC Chief Executive Officer Mohammad Ansar Ali Khan told the Dhaka Tribune that they would take back the full control of the lake from the army soon.

“The project is still under army maintenance. We will be responsible

about the criminal activities in the area when we establish our authority,” he said.

Speaking of privatisation of the children’s park, Ansar Ali said: “We are trying to lease this to a private firm to ensure proper maintenance.”

“The park is to be opened to public immediately and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate it,” he added.

Meanwhile, army officials said under the beautification project, they had set up an orchid garden, the park beside the Kalabagan playground, and

ABU HAYAT MAHMUD

also planted almost 50,000 trees along the lakeshore.

The project also included construction of a two-kilometre walkway, a 1.5-kilometre drainage system, footbridges on Kalabagan and Dhanomndi Road 8, installation of 10 drinking water points and construction of four public toilets.

In 2011, the government took on the development project covering approximately 39.2 hectares of land of the lake area from Dhanmondi Road 32 to Road 6 in order to give a facelift to the green-

ery and make the area more attractive to a wider range of city dwellers.

The initiative was undertaken by the Local Government Division and the DSCC. Ninety percent of the funding for the Tk245.3m project came from the LGD, with the rest coming from the city corporation.

The project was given to the 16 Engineering Construction Battalion under the Special Works Organisation of the Bangladesh Army for implementation while Vitti Sthapati Brindo worked as the project’s consultant. l

Mayor of Rangpur City Corporation (RCC) Sharfuddin Ahmed Jhantu yesterday said RCC will always stand beside the distressed people to assist in overcoming losses from natural disasters.

He said this while distributing Taka 30,000 among two fire-incident victim families as grants at a ceremony arranged in Chak Eshobpur area in the city as the chief guest.

The mayor extended the financial assistance to the two victim families to recoup the losses as their all properties were gutted into ashes in a devastating fire that broke out on Friday last.

RCC Councilor Sultan Mahmud Pramanik of Ward No-12 presided over the ceremony attended by the local people and elite. l

Alleged drug peddler dies in police custody

World Telecommunication Day observed

n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi

World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD)-2014 was observed yesterday in the country as elsewhere in the globe with the theme “Broadband for Sustainable Development”.

To mark the day, the ministry of posts, telecommunications and information technology and its affiliated organizations chalked out various programmes including online essay competition, prize giving ceremony, discussion meeting and colorful rally.

This year the government chose Khulna division for central programmes to observe the day. Earlier the central programmes were taken in Chittagong division.

Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Ministry in association with the Khulna district administration organized day-long programmes in Khulna city to observe the day.

Inaugurating the day’s programmes in a city hotel, Posts, Telecommuni-

An alleged drug dealer died in police custody early yesterday in Rajshahi Boalia Metropolitan police station.

Family members of the arrestee, Ruhul Amin, claimed that he was killed by the police as they refused to pay the bribe for his release the police had demanded. However, police claimed Ruhul had committed suicide.

According to witnesses, Ruhul was arrested by a team of Boalia police around 5:30pm on Friday from Vadra rail-crossing area of the city.

He was beaten on the spot by the police and later taken to the police station.

When asked about the arrest, police said he was a local drug dealer and 250 grams of marijuana (ganja) was found in his possession.

Around 12:30am yesterday, police informed reporters that an arrestee had committed suicide in custody by

strangulating himself with a yarn of a blanket. But no blanket was found in the cell when the police station was visited.

A three-member probe body has been formed to investigate the matter and would be headed by Deputy Commissioner Proloy Chichim Family members of Ruhul claimed that the police had demanded Tk10,000 from them for his release. Rafikul Islam said his brother was killed because they had refused to pay the amount. He claimed that his brother had protested drug vending in the locality and for that reason Ruhul developed bitter

relations with local drug vendors.

Rafikul said the vendors had paid the police to kill his brother.

The allegations brought by the family were however denied by police.

Officer-in-Charge Sayedur Rahman of Boalia police station claimed the arrestee had killed himself.

Meanwhile the family members submitted a complaint to the commissioner of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police, demanding punishment of the officers who were involved with the alleged murder.

RMP Commissioner Mahbubur Rahman said: “A three-member probe body has been formed to investigate the matter and would be headed by Deputy Commissioner Proloy Chichim.”

Proloy Chichim said a probe report would be submitted within seven days.

The body was sent to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital morgue for post mortem examination. l

n BSS

cations and Information Technology Minister Abdul Latif Siddique, MP, said the government is giving utmost priority to the development of telecom and ICT sectors to ensure free flow of information for building a knowledge-based democratic society.

“Telecommunication and ICT have now become one of the main tools of socio-economic development globally,” he said.

The minister also urged the businessmen to invest in the country’s ICT sector to make successful the campaign for building a “Digital Bangladesh” by 2021 as well as turning Bangladesh into a developed country by 2041.

He hoped proper implementation of the “Vision-2021” announced by the government will play a significant role in strengthening the country’s economy.

Latif said the government has formulated the ICT Act and ICT policy in 2009 declaring the information technology as the thrust sector to achieve its electoral pledge to build the “Digital Bangladesh”. l

MV Bangali to be fixed soon n Abu Hayat Mahmud MV Bangali, the first passenger steamer made in Bangladesh, will soon go under repair, officials of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) told the Dhaka Tribune.

The steamer, which made its maiden voyage on April 10 this year, was put out of service on April 27 due to structural problems reported by passengers.

Mojibor Rahman, chairman of BIWTC, said many passengers had complained about the lack of facilities in the steamer.

“Passengers travelling with second-class tickets complained about congested accommodation. There are other structural problems in the steamer too. That is why we withdrew

it from service,” he said.

Other structural problems in MV Bangali include narrow balcony space and lack of outside view from the cabins, according to BIWTC officials.

Taking the complaints into consideration, the Shipping Ministry decided to change parts of the steamer’s design, the said.

Mojibor said the repair work would start in a couple days in Narayanganj.

“Hopefully we will be able to get the steamer back on water in a week,” he added.

The steamer, which was launched on the Dhaka-Barisal route, was built

by Western Marines and cost Tk26.8 crore.

It is 75.5-metre long and 12.5-metre wide with passenger capacity of 750 and cargo capacity of 100 tonnes, according to BIWTC. l

MV Bangali, the first passenger steamer made in Bangladesh, which started its journey on April 10, will go under repair as it has been put out of service due to structural problems SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

6

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Indigenous species of fish face extinction n Our Correspondent, Netrokona Many indigenous species of fish are on the verge of extinction in the natural water bodies of Netrokona district due to various reasons including widespread use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers in the cropland and adverse impact of climate change.

According to local sources, the local water-bodies like rivers, lake, canals and the swamps have been affected by the toxins of the pesticides and chemical fertilizers harming the ideal environment for the aquatic life in the district.

Elderly people and fishermen in the district said the native fishes were in abundance in all the rivers including

Sumeswari, Kangso, Dhano and Mogra and in Mohonganj, Halizuri and Modan haors, canals, beels and other natural water-bodies.

All the water-bodies were full of different varieties of fishes like Mohashoal, Ruhi, Katla, Chitol, Khoi, Shorputi, Gozar, Ayir, Bowal, Taki, Golsey, Talapia, Baim, Bedory, Kholsey, Kaikkia and Tengra.

The district was known as granary and fish resourceful are of the country, but now facing an acute shortage of indigenous fishes.

These fishes were even used to be supplied to many places of the country including capital city Dhaka after fulfilling the needs of the district.

Even huge quantities of these fishes

remained surplus in the down-stream areas and were stored in all the houses there after drying.

But, in course of time, the scenario changed and the district lost its past glory as a "fish-rich" area as all the traditional fishes including the Mohashoal fish have now disappeared from the natural open water bodies.

Many old-aged fishermen and local people said they could catch the native fishes by casting simple nets from the river Sumeswari, Kangso , Dhano, Mogra and all the natural water bodies including haors, canals and beels.

But, now a days, not a single Ayir, Gozar, Kholsey, Talapia, Vedory, Chitol, and other native fishes would be found easily in the rivers, canals and

other natural water bodies by putting a branch of tree or casting a simple net", they lamented.

Sources of district fishery department said the production of the native fishes in the natural open water bodies had come down due to many reasons including unprecedented fall of waterlevels in the rivers and others water bodies.

Besides, catching of fish-fries and pollution of waters in the water-bodies due to excessive use of fertilizers in the crop fields, they said.

Many fishermen are now earning their living by pulling rickshaw or doing other toiling work.

Fisherman Jasim said: “Catch of fish is not satisfactory nowadays. It has

become hard for me to lead my family with the money I earn from sale of the fish caught in the river. Despite the situation, I go to river for fishing as I do not have any other sources of income.”

Another fisherman Srikantha said: “Catch of fish is not satisfactory nowadays. It has become hard for me to lead my family with the money I earn from sale of the fish caught in the river. Despite the situation, I go to river for fishing as I do not have any other sources of income.”

District fishery officer Nurul Islam said that the government had taken a package of programme entitled "Pisciculture and fish management programme" in the haor areas for increasing production of the native fishes. l

Girl killed after rape n Our Correspondent, Kishoreganj A 4-year-old girl was killed after rape at Gaital area in Kishoreganj on Saturday night.

Police arrested Shah Alam in Kashurarchar area during a raid in connection with the incident.

Police and witness said Shah Alam kidnapped the girl while sleeping at around 11.30pm. Later, locals found her body near a mosque in Gaital area.

Kishoreganj Police Super Anwar Hossain Khan said: “Upon receiving information, police rushed to the spot and arrested Shah Alam conducting a raid in the area.”

Shah Alam admitted about the rape in primary interrogation, he added.

Nayan Mia, father of the child, filed a case against Shah Alam in this connection. l

10, including OC, SI, injured in Gazipur clash n Our Correspondent, Gazipur At least ten people, including two police officials, were injured in sporadic clashes between supporters of a local AL leader and a suspended AL leader over establishing supremacy in Puratan bus stand area of Kapasia upazila here yesterday.

Around 1:00pm, police arrested Arif and his nine followers from the market The policemen are Kapasia police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Ahsan Ullah and Sub-Inspector (SI) M Abu Siddique.

Both of them were given first aid, said Kapasia circle Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Shahriar Al-Mamun.

Witnesses said Anisur Rahman Arif, who was recently suspended from the general secretary post of Kapasia upazila unit AL for running in the fray of upazila vice chairman election defying party decision, took out a procession around 10:30am from Kapasia Bazar marking the homecoming day of Prime Minister and Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina.

Later, they held a rally in front of

Three UPDF men held with firearms n Our Correspondent, Khagrachhari

A team of joint forces arrested three United Peoples Democratic Front (UPDF) men early yesterday in Moratila area of Khagrachhari’s Panchhari upazila with firearms.

The three UPDF men were identified as Surendra Tripura, 27, son of Nobo Kumar Tripura, Mohendra Tripura, 32, son of Milon Bhusan Tripura both from Moratila and Sunil Tripura alias Katang 36, son of Sukendra Tripura of Sorendra Headman Para of Matiranga upazila.

Officer-in-Charge Abdus Samad Moral of Panchhari police station said the team of joint forces led by Maj Mehedi Hasan of Khagrachhari Sadar Army Zone made the arrests acting on a tip-off. The team had conducted the drive at Moratila area around 4am and arrested the UPDF trio with one pistol, one point 22 (.22) bore rifle and one SLR-AK 22 pistol, 50 rounds of bullet, two cartridges, two cell phones and many subscription books.

In the primary interrogation, the three arrestees admitted that they were UPDF activists and was engaged in toll collection activities in the areas.

The OC said a case was being processed in this connection. l

Arif’s office at Bhuiyan Market Goli of the Bazar.

Being informed of it, a group, led by Kapasia upazila unit president Mohammad Shahidulla and the unit’s Jubo League president Shakawat Hossain Prodhan, went to Arif’s office and a brawl ensued there.

They also vandalised about seven motorcycles parked there, prompting Arif’s supporters to retaliate. Shakawat was injured in the reprisal attack.

Meanwhile, Shahidulla’s supporters, equipped with local weapons, chased Arif’s followers to the bus stand area where a clash ensued between them, in which at least eight people were injured.

On information, Kapasia police rushed to the scene and the OC and SI were injured while bringing the situation under control.

Around 1:00pm, police arrested Arif and his nine followers from the market.

During the clash, some front-side glass sheets of the nearby branch of Southeast Bank were also vandalised, said Muhibur Rahman, vice president of the bank.

Kapasia Circle ASP Shahriar blamed Arif for the clash.

In this regard, Arif said his opponent group swooped on his peaceful rally without any provocation. l

Udichi Shilpi Gosthi Narayanganj district unit arranges a rally yesterday in front of the deputy commissioner’s office demanding immediate arrest of the killers of seven persons including advocate Chandan Sarker MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

60,000 fishermen take life risks everyday in Lakshmipur n Our Correspondent, Lakshmipur Around 60,000 fishermen have been fishing in the Meghna river, taking the risk of being caught unawares in the rough weather in the absence of a functional weather office in Lakshmipur.

Even though a weather office was set up at the district’s Ramgati upazila six years ago, it has yet not been brought into operation.

Since this office has not been opened, the fishermen still have to go fishing in the river by observing formation of clouds in the sky.

Their weather guess often goes wrong, leaving them to be caught unawares in the rough weather.

Earlier on Thursday, they were taken by a storm completely unawares, when at least 50 boats had sunken in the river while fishermen managed to swim to safety.

According to the local fisheries department, the weather forecasting office was set up in 2008 by the government upon the fishermen’s longstanding demand. The government had spent Tk 1 crore while building this office on one and a half acres of land at Char Sekander of the upazila.

A storm-hit boatman and fisherman says, “These boats would not have been sunken in the river if the weather office was brought into operation soon after it was set up here.”

“Despite the weather office having been set up here, we have to go fishing by observing, moon, stars, after all clouds, in the sky.” “What is the use of setting up the weather office here if it is not brought into operation,” he asked, venting anger on the authority for not opening the weather office.

“The fishermen are incurring loss due to natural calamities in the absence of a functional weather forecasting office,” says Char Kalkini Union Parishad Chairman Saif Ullah.

“They are fishing everyday at the risk of their lives,” he said and urged the relevant authorities to bring into operation the office on an urgent basis.

Relief and Rehabilitation Officer

at Lakshmipur Arunendra Kishore Chakrabarty says, “We have to look to the Dhaka weather office. We would not have to do so if it was opened.”

“As far as I know the equipment allocated for this office has been gathering dust at its Dhaka office. Besides, no manpower has yet been appointed for this office here,” he says.

“We often write to the higher authorities about this, but have not yet got any positive answer about this.”

Lakshmipur Deputy Commissioner AKM Tipu Sultan says, “I do not know why it has not yet been opened, but I will try to open it by contacting the higher authorities as soon as it is possible.” l

Three rice mill workers were killed in a boiler explosion in Dhara Bazar area of Mymensingh’s Haluaghat upazila early yesterday.

The dead were identified as Sultan, 29, Hazrat, 30, and Alam, 28. They were all residents of Mukimpur Village of Dhara Bazar area, according to police.

Officer-in-Charge Jakiur Rahman of Haluaghat police station said a total of six workers of Aziz Rice Mill were injured after a boiler had exploded around 6:30am during heating. He said: “They had sustained burn injuries in the blast and five of the injured were admitted to Mymensingh Medical College Hospital where three of them were declared dead.”

The injured Rahmat, 40 and Razzak, 38 were undergoing treatment at the hospital, the OC added. l

Kidnapped boy rescued; 1 held n Our Correspondent, Pirojpur Police rescued a boy in Sadar upazila of Bagerhat district Saturday 6 hours after his kidnap from Pirojpur on Friday.

The rescued boy is Rashedul Islam, 15, a Secondary School Certificate examinee and son of Dulal Mia of Shikarpara area in Pirojpur town.

Sources said miscreants had picked up Rashed from a bridge near Janata Cinema Hall in the town at 6pm. Later the kidnappers demanded Tk5 lakh as ransom

RAB arrests cheat in Rangpur n BSS Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested a man, who had been engaged in cheating the common people, from Kamal Kachhna area in the city yesterday, RAB sources said.

The arrested person is Feroz Kabir, 42, son of Tayebur Rahman of village Chhotopoya under Chatra union in Pirganj upazila of the district.

A special squad of the Crime Prevention Special Company of RAB-13 led by Lt Commander Motaher Hossain conducted a sudden raid in Kamal Kachhna area here and arrested the person red- handed while cheating the common people at 3:50 pm.

Later, the arrested person was brought to the RAB-13 Battalion headquarters in the city for primary interrogation. l

3 workers killed in boiler explosion n Our Correspondent, Mymensingh

NO WEATHER FORECASTING

from the family members of Rashed.

As per the demand of the kidnappers, Rashed’s mother sent Tk1.98 lakh to three mobile phone numbers through bKash.

After tracking the mobile phones of the kidnappers, police conducted a drive in Bagerhat and rescued Rashed from a field of Bagerhat District Education Office.

The police also arrested one Asaduzzaman Meraj of Kaukhali upazila of the district in connection with alleged involvement in the kidnap. l

3,000 bottles phensedyl seized n Our Correspondent, Jessore

Wife and daughter of Ruhul Amin wail in Nomo Vadro area in Rajshahi city yesterday as Ruhul was found dead in the toilet of the Boalia model police station on Friday. He was detained from the city’s Namobhadra market allegedly on charge of possessing cannabis DHAKA TRIBUNE

Border Guard Bangladesh in separate drives early yesterdayrecoveredeight crude bombs, a pistoland a round of bullets, and also seized 3,000 bottles of Phensedyl from Putkhali frontier under Benapole port police station and Malanchi under Jessore sadar upazila.

Two suspected smugglers were also arrested during one of the drives.

Lieutenant Colonel Mostafizur Rahman, commanding officer of 23 Bor-

der Guard Battalion,said the BGB men had recovered the bombs and weapon abandoned from a place at Putkhali after receiving a tip-off.However, no one was arrested in this regard.

In another drive, 26 Border Guard Battalion seized a total of 3,000 bottles of Phensedyl and arrested suspected smugglers Yanur and Akherulfrom a goods laden truck coming from Benapole around 5am, said Lieutenant Colonel Matiur Rahman, director of the battalion. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Career

7

Sunday, May 18, 2014

A time to take advantage of foreign investment n Naiian Yazdani “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

Winston Churchill might as well have been referring to Tau Investment Management, following the New Yorkbased growth-equity venture investment firm’s decision to invest $200m into the Readymade Garments (RMG) sector in Bangladesh. While major corporations are re-evaluating their decision to engage Bangladeshi manufacturers in light of the Tazreen fashion and Rana Plaza disasters, Tau’s CEO, Oliver Niedermaier, has seized the moment in order to transform the supply chain management in this sector.

This decision is a tick of approval for the Bangladeshi manufacturing industry, and it strongly reflects how far the sector has come and how far it can go. It recognises the RMG industry is well-developed and still retains its stature as a leading apparel-sourcing destination for the global market, second only to the dominant force that is China.

This position is set to strengthen: the global management consulting group Mckinsey reported in 2011 that the industry is expected to triple its exports to $42bn by 2020. This investment By Tau reflects the belief that the industry and those within it not only have the capacity, but also the will to make the supply chain process more efficient and effective.

The expectations are high, as Tau’s website states: “Capitalist Solutions to Capitalism’s failures,” one can reasonably conclude this investment requires a capitalist outcome. No CEO from New York will travel all the way to Dhaka to endorse a project which is unable to reap a substantial return on investment.

The modus operandi of Tau is to simultaneously inject capital, knowledge and relationships to create a sustainable business model. Tau specialises in providing both financial capital and knowledge capital to ensure that the business is profitable over the long term.

Niedermaier plans to purchase minority shares in various factories, facil-

outside the production process and the manufacturers themselves. Engaging with new retailers will require new fashion designers for a variety of markets in addition to dealing with new and exciting brands and cultivating relationships. This will make the industry more attractive to young talented graduates particularly across the art, fashion and business schools.

The initial investment is a test case.

Niedermaier himself notes that if successful there is no reason why investments such as this cannot be replicated across other industries such as electronics and agriculture. In turn, this

‘Bangladesh has spent too much time on educating in terms of content but not educating in terms of behaviour, in terms of developing traits, which can actually help them become leaders’

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itate relationships with his retail contacts in Europe and the United States and introduce training for mid-level management and workers. The intention is to create both a compliant and highly efficient manufacturing environment in the RMG sector whilst securing profitability.

Interestingly, these initiatives address some of the issues identified by Grameenphone Ltd CEO Vivek Sood at the Leadership Summit 2014. Sood

particularly identified a disparity between leadership at the middle management level of Bangladesh and India.

He noted that “Bangladesh has spent too much time on educating in terms of content but not educating in terms of behaviour, in terms of developing traits, which can actually help them become leaders.”

The opportunities which present itself from this investment cut across many spheres. The factories can imme-

diately showcase their expertise and in return the new set of eyes can identify those areas which may need up skilling, restructuring and diversifying.

The additional training will help push efficiencies throughout the production process while eliminating wastage, and in turn will reduce variable costs in the long term.

Beyond improving the gross margin, the $200m investment in these factories acts as a stamp of approval

to garment purchasers. Manufacturers who receive this investment will immediately be capitalised with goodwill, creating brand equity which can be utilised to increase orders, expand production or simply grow the bottom line. The endorsement will signal to the market that the manufacturer pursues transparency and values integrity, thereby making it more attractive as a business partner.

The effects will reverberate well

What to say and when and how to say it n Ahsan Sajid

Some people seem like they are inherently good at listening. Whether at work or in our personal lives, they always have the right things to say at the right time and the right way. More often than not, this is not by accident. Being caring and considerate is something one builds up one available shoulder at a time, and having these values is not only about helping others but helping yourself.

These are the people who are in charge of their emotions. They are hopeful and optimistic and never get angry or stressful. Being in control of your emotions does not only make it easier for you to deal with people; it gives you the ability to weigh a situation calmly and find a solution, making you a prized decision maker. It gives you the ability to know when to trust your gut and when to rethink your choice. It also gives you a thicker skin, letting you take criticism well and work on self improvement with an open mind.

These are the kind of people who are self-aware, and able to understand the needs of their peers. They have a high level of what is called emotional intelligence.

science journalist Daniel Goleman developed a framework of five elements that define emotional intelligence. He wrote for The New York Times for 12 years and his work is considered seminal in the field of emotional intelligence.

1. Self-awareness – Self-aware is generally considered the most important part of emotional intelligence. People with a high emotional intelligence understand their emotions, and because of this, they don't let their feelings control how they think or what they do. This makes them confident, because they have the ability to trust their intuitions and keep their emotions in check.

These are also the kind of people willing to take an honest look at themselves.

They know their strengths and weaknesses, and they work on these areas so they can perform better.

2. Self-regulation – This is the ability to regulate emotions and impulses; people with a high emotional intelligence self-regulate and typically do not allow themselves to become too angry or jealous, nor do they make impulsive,

careless decisions. In the simplest terms, these people think before they act.

People who self-regulate are generally thoughtful, comfortable with change, virtuous, and have the ability to say no.

3. Motivation – People with a high degree of emotional intelligence can keep themselves motivated. This is because they are patient enough to wait for long term success instead of looking for immediate results or shortcuts. They are highly efficient and challenges motivate them further.

4. Empathy – This generally considered the second-most important element of emotional intelligence. Empathy is the ability to identify with and understand the wants, needs, and viewpoints of those around you, just as self-awareness is the ability to recognise the same in yourself.

People with empathy are good at recognising the feelings of others, even if these feelings are not obvious. This makes empathetic people excellent at managing important relationships, listening, and relating to others. They

avoid making assumptions and snap judgments, and they live their lives in a very open and honest way.

5. Social skills – It is usually easy to talk to and like people with good social skills, which is another sign of high emotional intelligence. Those with strong social skills are considered better team players.

Rather than focusing on their own success first, they try to help others develop and shine. These people can manage disagreements and conflict, are excellent communicators, and are quick to build and maintaining new relationships.

Going through this list of five virtues makes one thing apparent: emotional intelligence can be a key to success in your life and more particularly your career. The ability to manage people and teams, delegate tasks is very important in all effective leaders. Developing your emotional intelligence can really give you the edge displaying your leadership skills in time for that next promotion, or job interview.

Improving emotional intelligence Emotional intelligence can be taught and

What is emotional intelligence?

An increasing number of organisations today are looking at emotional intelligence when hiring new recruits or promoting employees side by side with technical ability, experience, etc. This is particularly important for roles in teams, or roles that require public interface.

Living in a society means dealing with different personalities, values and beliefs, with different wants and needs. Being able to maneuver through this requires tact and understanding of others. Being able to maneuver through it successfully requires a lot of each.

Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognise your own emotions correctly and understand what they mean, all the while being aware of how your emotions affect the people around you. Emotional intelligence largely involves how you perceive others; once you understand how those around you feel, you can work on the relationships better.

Having a higher emotional intelligence generally makes people more successful at anything that they do. There is a very simple reason for it – the person with the high emotional intelligence is the person everyone wants for a friend – or colleague/teammate/ boss, etc. Because having a higher intelligence means not getting easily angered or upset or offending others, these people get things done with much more ease and help from others.

Characteristics of the emotionally intelligent The American author, psychologist and

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developed. There are countless online tests and quizzes to determine your emotional intelligence, as a simple Google search will reveal. You can also find out from such a test the areas that may require some work.

You can also use the following suggestions to better your emotional intelligence. n Perform a self-evaluation. What are your weaknesses? Accept that you are not perfect and that you could work on some areas to make yourself a better version of yourself? Have people been telling you of any weakness all your life that you have been shrugging off ? Having a high emotional intelligence means dealing well with criticism by welcoming them and letting them change you for the better. n Pay keen attention to how you react to people. Do you often find yourself rushing to judgment or making assumptions before you know all of the facts?

Look honestly at how you perceive and interact with other people. Try to put yourself in their place, understand where they are coming from, and you may find yourself more open and accepting of their perspectives and needs. n What kind of person are you at work? Do you constantly seek attention or praise for your accomplishments? More often than not, people will like you more if you keep your successes to yourself and feel quietly confident about it. An emotionally intelligent person works to let others shine and not worry too much about getting praise himself. n How well do you react to stressful situations? Do you become easily upset with delays or bottlenecks? Do you blame others or become angry at them, even when they could not have helped it? The ability to stay calm and in control in difficult situations is a highly valued asset of those with high emotional intelligence.

Keep your emotions under control when things don't go your way. n Take responsibility for your actions, both good and bad. If you offend someone, apologise right away instead of ignoring the situation or avoiding the person.

People are usually more willing to forgive and forget if you make an honest attempt to make things right.

Although technical know-how, intelligence and experience will always be important to success in life, emotional intelligence is key to relating well to others and achieving your goals efficiently. Emotional intelligence, simply explained, is an awareness of your actions and feelings – and how they affect those around you. It also means an ability to value others, listen to their wants and needs, and empathise or identify with them on many different levels. l

will encourage other foreign investors and other avenues of financing such as domestic and international banks to place their faith in the wider Bangladeshi manufacturing industry.

It is clear that the potential impact of such an investment is far reaching, from workers on the production line to investment analysts undertaking cost/benefit analysis. Tau has provided garment manufacturers and the wider Bangladeshi economy a glimpse into what lies ahead. A hand has been held out in support and it is time to collectively combine our knowledge and financial resources to reach back and switch on this sustainable journey. l Naiian Yazdani is the director of strategy at GradConnect, an international career information and advisory firm. You can email him at naiian@grad-connect.com.

Right word, right time: Talking terms n Career Desk Agent - Person or company that acts for another and provides a specified service.

Bargain price - ReBIZ duced price VOCAB Bedrock price - Lowest possible price.

Commitment - Engagement or undertaking; to commit oneself.

Compromise - Each party gives up certain demands in order to reach an agreement.

Condition - A stipulation or requirement that must be fulfilled.

Contract - Written agreement between two or more parties.

Counter-offer - Offer made in response to an offer by the other party.

Counter-productive - Having the opposite effect to that intended.

Deal - A business transaction.

Discount - Reduction in price.

Estimate - Approximate calculation of the cost.

Facilities - Equipment (e.g. parking facilities).

Feasible - Possible, something that can be done.

Figure out - Find a solution; estimate the cost.

Know-how - Practical knowledge or skill.

Joint venture - A way of entering a foreign market by joining with a foreign company to manufacture or market a product or service.

Negotiate - Discuss a business deal in order to reach an agreement.

Point out - Draw attention to something (e.g. the advantages of your proposal).

Proposal - Course of action, or plan, put forward for consideration.

Quote - Give an estimated price (a quotation).

Range - A selection of products sold by a company.

Rebate - Reduction or discount.

Supply - Provide customers with goods or services.

Supplier - Person or company that supplies goods or services.

Tender - A written offer to execute work or supply goods at a fixed price Turnkey - Equipment ready for use or operation (e.g. a plant or factory).

Underestimate - Make too low an estimate of something (cost, danger, difficulty).

Work out - Calculate; find a solution.

8

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Optimism remains despite tough Iran nuclear talks n AFP, Vienna Iran and world powers were nursing their wounds yesterday after a bruising round of nuclear talks, but diplomats and experts remain hopeful a historic deal can still be struck by a July 20 deadline.

With three previous rounds already under their belts, the three-day session that ended in a rainy Vienna on Friday night had been billed as the clincher, where the leaders would finally put pen to paper and start drafting the actual text of the deal.

But it was clear from the exhausted expressions on the faces of Iranian diplomats and their counterparts from the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany that nothing is in writing yet.

“The gaps were too large to begin drafting the text,” said Iran’s chief negotiator Abbas Araqchi, adding that “no tangible progress” had been made.

“This has, candidly, been a very slow and difficult process, and we are concerned with the short amount of time that is left,” a senior US official said.

“Huge gaps remain. There is really more realism needed on the other side,” said another Western diplomat.

“We had expected a little more flexibility.”

Officials said negotiations would resume in the Austrian capital next month, but unlike in the previous rounds no set date was announced, and there was no joint statement.

Old demons

The aim of the sought-after accord is to reduce the scale of Iran’s nuclear activities, easing fears it is seeking to construct a bomb, in return for a lifting of all sanctions.

At the heart of the debate is uranium enrichment, which can provide nuclear fuel but also the fissile core of a nuclear bomb. It is the same issue that has dogged diplomatic efforts for years.

The worry is that Iran could in theory use its 20,000 centrifuges – and newer, faster ones under development – to further purify its already considerable low-enriched uranium stockpile to weapons-grade.

The powers want Iran to slash the number of centrifuges, but Tehran de-

nies wanting nuclear weapons and considers this is a “red line” that it will not cross. In fact, it wants to install more.

“The Western powers want to divide the number of centrifuges by four or five ... while the Iranians believe that they need at least 50,000 for their future needs in research and nuclear power,” said Francois Nicoullaud, former French ambassador to Iran.

“The gap between these starting positions is immense,” Nicoullaud told AFP. But it is not the only issue.

Others are the new Arak reactor, which could give Iran weapons-grade plutonium, and the International Atomic Energy Agency’s snail’s-pace probe into alleged “military dimensions” of Iran’s past nuclear work.

This last issue is critical, said Mark Hibbs from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

“Because the deal with Iran says that at the end of the day Iran will be treated no differently than any other state without nuclear weapons, the IAEA needs to know from Iran what its capabilities are related to nuclear weapons-making,” Hibbs told AFP.

Ups and downs

Diplomats insist the process was always going to be hard and that the gaps can be bridged before the July 20 deadline, when a six-month interim deal agreed in November in Geneva expires.

“In any negotiation there are good days and bad days, and there are ups and downs. This has been a moment of great difficulty, but one that was not entirely unexpected,” the US official said on Friday.

“We believe we can still get it done,” she said.

Kelsey Davenport from the Arms Control Association agreed, saying the differences are “large, but not insurmountable.”

“Negotiators on both sides expected obstacles, but if they are willing to be flexible and creative, a deal can be reached,” she told AFP. “The next few months will be critical, as they twist and turn the nuclear Rubik’s Cube to achieve a realistic deal with a strong base on which to build in the succeeding years,” Ali Vaez, Iran expert at the International Crisis Group, told AFP. l

People take part in a candlelight vigil as part of a demonstration in honour of the victims of the mining accident in Soma of Istanbul. Turkish riot police fired tear gas yesterday at thousands of protesters at the scene of a disaster that killed nearly 300 miners, as the government faced a worsening political backlash AFP

Mine rescue to end as death toll rises to 301 n Reuters, Soma, Turkey Rescue workers began winding up their operations yesterday after finding the bodies of two more miners, believed to be the last remaining in the mine, bringing the death toll in Turkey’s worst industrial disaster to 301, the energy minister said.

Earlier a new fire broke out in the mine, hindering the rescue teams. Taner Yildiz said it had been extinguished and two more dead workers found. He said the numbers added up with the missing persons’ information provided by families.

“The newly discovered workers will be brought up and given back to their families. If there is no further demand to us and, the information we have backs that up, then we will have finished our search work,” he said.

However, he said rescue teams would first conduct a final search throughout the mine before making a decision on ending the operation, four

days after an initial fire sent deadly carbon monoxide coursing through it.

The disaster triggered angry protests across Turkey, aimed at mine owners accused of ignoring safety for

The disaster triggered angry protests across Turkey, aimed at mine owners accused of ignoring safety for profit

profit, and at Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s government, seen as too close to industry bosses and insensitive in its reaction to the tragedy.

Erdogan has presided over a decade of rapid economic growth but worker safety standards have failed to keep

Record Balkan floods claim at least 20 lives n AP, Belgrade, Serbia Tens of thousands fled their homes yesterday in Bosnia and Serbia, evacuated by boat or helicopter as rising waters surged into villages and towns.

Authorities said the record flooding killed at least 20 people and the death toll could rise further.

Meteorologists say the flooding is the worst since records began 120 years ago and is due to a three-month amount of rain that fell on the region in just three days. Goran Mihajlovic from Serbia’s Weather Center told The Associated Press that such a rainfall happens once in 100 years.

In the eastern Bosnian town of Bijeljina, some 10,000 people were being evacuated Saturday after the rain-swollen Sava River pushed through flood defenses. Mayor Mico Micic appealed for help, saying “we need everything, we are under water.”

Officials in Bosnia say 12 people died and more bodies could emerge as water recedes from the dozens of cities flooded in the past three days. In some places, floodwaters had reached the second floor of people’s homes and they had to be rescued by helicopter from their roofs.

In Serbia, which saw eight deaths, emergency crews and soldiers were using boats and helicopters to rescue thousands trapped in the town of Obrenovac, near Belgrade. Officials said more than 15,000 people have been evacuated so far from the floodhit regions, most of them finding shelter in schools and sports halls.

The flooding in Obrenovac is threatening the Nikola Tesla power plant, Serbia’s biggest. Plant capacity had already been cut after a nearby coal mine was flooded.

The rain eased in some parts Saturday but Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic told a press conference that new flood wave on the Sava River will hit Sunday evening.

“Our primary concern is to protect the power plant,” said Vucic. “We are doing all we can.” l

pace, leaving Turkey with one of the world’s worst industrial accident records. The frustrations boiled over in Soma on Friday as riot police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse several thousand protesters.

Overnight, demonstrators clashes with police in the western port city of Izmir, some setting up makeshift barricades and throwing stones and fireworks aimed at the police, Hurriyet newspaper reported. Some 40 people were detained.

There were also protests in Istanbul.

Some residents in the city banged pots and pans from their windows, an act which was a feature of last summer’s nationwide anti-government unrest.

The police intervention in Soma could add to public anger towards Erdogan.

University sit-in

There was wide media coverage of footage apparently showing Erdogan slapping a man as locals jeered his

entourage when he visited Soma this week. The man, Taner Kurucan, said Erdogan had slapped him and told Kanal D TV he was then beaten by the prime minister’s bodyguards.

His adviser Yalcin Akdogan accused “gang members” of provoking Erdogan’s team as he went to meet mourning families. Anger was intensified by a photograph of an Erdogan aide kicking a protester held down by police special forces.

A group of students at the Istanbul Technical University occupied the mining faculty on Friday evening in protest at links between the university and the company which operates the mine - Soma Holding, the private Dogan news agency reported.

Meanwhile, the mining company managers held a fractious news conference on Friday where they said an unexplained build-up of heat was thought to have led part of the mine to collapse, fanning a blaze which spread rapidly more than two km under the surface. l

Fossils of largest dinosaur found in Argentina n AFP, Buenos Aires

Fossilised bones of a dinosaur believed to be the largest creature ever to walk the Earth have been unearthed in Argentina, palaeontologists say WIKI

Boko Haram in fresh attack as region meets n AFP, Paris Boko Haram gunmen killed a Chinese worker and kidnapped 10 others overnight in Cameroon, piling more pressure on leaders meeting in Paris yesterday to thrash out a tougher strategy against the Nigerian Islamists.

Militants stormed an encampment used by Chinese road workers late on Friday in a region of northern Cameroon just across the border from the strongholds where they sparked global outrage by abducting more than 200 schoolgirls last month.

“The Boko Haram militants were heavily armed, they came in five vehicles,” an official in Waza, a town near the site of the attack, told AFP on condition of anonymity.

He said the camp where the Chinese road workers stayed was usually guarded by soldiers from Cameroon’s elite Rapid Intervention Battalion, but many of the troops were in Yaounde for a military parade ahead of National Day on May 20.

“Cameroonian soldiers retaliated and the fighting lasted until 3:00 am (0200 GMT),” said a local police chief, who said the militants also raided the police armoury in Waza overnight.

He said one Chinese worker was killed and 10 others had been missing since the attack and were believed kidnapped by the Boko Haram gunmen.

A source close to the Chinese embassy in the Cameroonian capital Yaounde spoke of 10 missing and one wounded but would not confirm or deny whether one had been killed. l

Paleontologists in Argentina’s remote Patagonia region have discovered fossils of what was likely the largest dinosaur ever to roam the earth.

The creature is believed to be a new species of Titanosaur, a long-necked, longtailed sauropod that walked on four legs and lived some 95 million years ago in the Cretaceous Period.

The dinosaur “weighed the equivalent of more than 14 African elephants,” or about 100 tonnes, said Jose Luis Carballido, a paleontologist at the Egidio Feruglio Museum in the southern Argentine city of Trelew.

“This is a true paleontological treasure,” Carballido said in a statement on Friday on the museum website.

“There are many remains and they were practically intact, something that does not frequently happen.”

Known fossils “of a giant Titanosaur are scarce and fragmentary.”

Museum director Ruben Cuneo told local media that the remains belong to “the largest known specimen” of its kind and “the most complete find of this type of dinosaur in the world.”

The fossils were accidently discovered in 2011 by a farm worker in a remote area in the Patagonian province of Chubut, some 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) south of Buenos Aires. The creature was plant-eating and measured some 40 meters from head to tail, Cuneo said.

Photos posted on the museum website show a fossilized femur larger than the paleontologist pictured next to it.

Experts believe that the remains of seven dinosaurs, as well as the broken teeth of carnivores, are among the 200 fossils found at the Chubut site where the giant femur was found. l

Separatist leader freed in Ukraine

n Reuters, Kiev

Pro-Russian separatist leader Valery Bolotov was detained by Ukrainian border guards yesterday then freed by armed supporters in a firefight at the checkpoint, a Ukrainian spokesman said. The incident took place just a few hours before peace talks in the eastern town of Kharkiv. The talks were initiat-

ed by Ukrainian authorities to ease the situation in east.

Bolotov, the self-proclaimed governor of Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk region, was detained at the checkpoint as he returned from treatment in Russia for wounds he suffered in an attack on Tuesday, border guards spokesman Oleh Slobodyan said.

About 200 armed separatists went to

the checkpoint and demanded his release. A fight broke out in which the separatists used grenades and machine guns.

“They recaptured Bolotov. We are trying to find out whether there are victims,” Slobodyan said. The eastern rebellion by pro-Russian separatists has shaken Ukraine and pushed Western powers into a confrontation with Russian President Vladimir Putin. l

2m votes at risk in east Ukraine n AFP, Kiev

Almost two million people in eastern Ukraine could be prevented from voting in the presidential election if the government fails to ensure security in rebel areas, the country’s election body warned yesterday.

The Central Election Commission

said it could be impossible to organise the May 25 vote in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Lugansk, where pro-Russian insurgents fighting Kiev’s rule have declared their own independent republics. “With the information we have to hand at the moment, we cannot organise preparations for the vote because of illegal actions by unknown people,” the

commission said in a statement, referring to the separatists.

The commission cited cases of “threats and physical pressure” against local election officials and said there were a number of offices where the security of its staff could not be assured.

In total, 36 million Ukrainians are eligible to vote in the May 25 poll. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Why Muslim votes did not count in UP and Bihar n Agencies Despite a concerted effort by “secular” parties to get Muslims to vote en bloc against BJP, the saffron challenger prevailed largely because of what is being called “reverse polarization,” analysts say.

In both UP and Bihar, which have a significant population of Muslims, the BJP pulled off big wins. Talking to the TImes of India after the results were declared, BJP general-secretary Amit Shah said his party succeeded “because the number of people, who are not part of the politics of vote bank, are much more.”

As per the 2011 Census, Muslims are nearly 15% of India’s 1.2 billion people.

In 35 seats, they number around one in three voters or more. In 38 other seats, Muslims are 21-30% of the electorate.

If the 145 seats where they are 1120% are added to this, Muslim voters have the ability to influence the outcome in 218 seats. UP and Bihar, which have 120 seats between them, have 18% and 16% share of Muslims respectively. So the “secular” gamble was not unreasonable.

In UP alone, out of 80 seats, 32 have a Muslim population of close to 15% or more. Yet, despite a serious pitch as the only force that could stop Modi, SP won only two seats, with 30 going to BJP. Curiously, the saffron party swept all eight constituencies, including Saharanpur, Amroha, Shrawasti, Bijnor, Muzaffarnagar, Moradabad and Rampur, where the Muslim population hovers around 40%. For the first time since Independence, UP has no Muslim MP. The trend is similar in Bihar where out of the 17 seats where Muslims

Bihar’s Nitish Kumar resigns n Agencies Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar resigned yesterday a day after his party JD(U)’s poor show in the Lok Sabha elections. The JD (U) had managed to get just 2 seats out of 40 Lok Sabha seats in the state.

Kumar has submitted his resignation to governor DY Patil, the Times of India reported. Kumar’s resignation has come amid reports of dissent in the party following the poor show in the general elections. “He has taken responsibility for the loss; we decided to seek a fresh mandate,” JD(U) leader Ali Anwar said.

The resignation came just hours after LJP chief Ramvilas Paswan asserted that the Nitish Kumar government would fall within two to three months and midterm assembly polls would be held in October-November this year. “Nitish Kumar government will not last long,” Paswan had said on Friday after results of general elections were announced.

The CM’s resignation was on the cards since the reports of his party’s near washout started pouring in. Nitish remained inside his official residence throughout Friday and in the evening posted a one-line post on Facebook: “I respect the people’s verdict.” l

have more than 15% of votes, BJP has won 12. The remaining five have been shared by the RJD-Congress-NCP combine and JD(U) which has got one seat.

Even in Maharashtra, which has Muslims constituting 14% of its population, BJP and its allies have swept the polls winning 42 out of 48 seats.

The combine also won all the seats with considerable Muslim voters. In Mumbai and other Muslim-populated areas across Maharashtra, low polling in Muslim pockets and votes split between Congress-NCP and AAP made Muslim votes ineffective.

“In the Muslim-dominated Govandi area of Mumbai North-East polling was 40% while in the Gujarati-dominated Mulund, in the same constituency, it was 60%. And Muslim votes got divided between AAP’s Medha Patkar and sitting MP NCP’s Sanjay Dina Patil. This gave BJP’s Kirit Somaiya a comfortable win,” said Rais Shaikh, Samajwadi Party councillor from Govandi.

Pollsters, going by trends of past elections, say the Muslim vote is most effective where it is around 10% of the electorate, big enough to sway the result in a multi-cornered contest, by consolidating for a single candidate.

Ironically, where Muslim presence is over 20%, their votes have been mostly ineffective. This is because of a multiplicity of Muslim candidates that divide their votes.

In such constituencies, say psephologists, there is often counter-polarization of Hindu votes. In a polarized UP, it’s the latter that seems to have helped the BJP. “In the future, Muslims will have to change their strategy and keep their options open,” said M A Khalid of All India Milli Council. l

Hero’s welcome for Modi as he arrives in Delhi n AFP, New Delhi

Indian PM-elect Narendra Modi waves as he arrives at party headquarters in New Delhi on May 17, 2014. Hundreds of flag-waving supporters mobbed as he arrived in New Delhi, smiling and flashing victory signs after his party’s crushing poll victory AFP

Indian papers urge triumphant Modi to reach out to Muslims n AFP, New Delhi Indian newspapers yesterday urged prime minister-elect Narendra Modi to reach out to Muslims and avoid the temptation of triumphalism after the Hindu nationalist leader’s crushing election victory.

After winning the first outright majority by anyone for 30 years, Modi will not have to seek out coalition allies who might otherwise act as a moderating influence on his right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party. But the main newspapers said it was vital Modi allay the fears of minorities who did not jump

on his electoral bangdwagon, particularly Muslims who remember how around 1,000 people died in communal riots in 2002 soon after he took over as chief minister of Gujarat state.

“The reality remains that there is a huge trust deficit with the minorities, especially the Muslim community, which must be addressed,” said an editorial in The Hindu. “In order to close the credibility gap that persists as regards his acceptability to govern all Indians, Mr Modi must ensure that the idea of India as a pluralist and inclusive landscape in which all citizens have equality before the law as constitution-

Manmohan Singh bows out n AFP, New Delhi

India’s Manmohan Singh defended his decade-long record yesterday as he resigned as prime minister a day after Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi led his Bharatiya Janata Party to a historic election victory.

The 81-year-old premier’s final years in power were marked by slowing economic growth as his government struggled to overcome charges of weak leadership and corruption.

After making a final televised address to the nation in the morning, India’s third-longest serving PM was

driven to the presidency building in central New Delhi, where he tendered his resignation to President Pranab Mukherjee.

“Today India is a far stronger country than it was a decade ago,” he said in a short and typically low-key speech, wearing his trademark blue turban. “I give you credit for it. We still need to work hard to take this country forward.”

The economist also sent his best wishes to his successor Modi, a polarising Hindu nationalist whom Singh said in January would be “disastrous” for the country, in unusually forthright remarks.

“I am confident that India will emerge as a strong economy in the world, blending tradition with modernity and unity with diversity,” Singh added.

The former finance minister, celebrated for pushing through pro-market reforms in the 1990s, will continue as a caretaker prime minister until 63-yearold Modi takes office some time next week.

Singh believes historians will be kinder to him than contemporary critics who have savaged his recent performance in office, overshadowed by corruption scandals and policy paralysis. l

Rahul and Sonia to offer resignation! n Agencies

As Congress searches for answers for its worst-ever electoral performance, daggers are already out in the party ahead of the crucial Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting scheduled on Monday, the Press Trust of India reported.

Senior party leaders speaking in private are severely critical of some key advisers of Rahul Gandhi, while some have chosen to go public finding fault

9

with the ticket distribution.

Those who are in the firing line of a section of leaders include Jairam Ramesh, Mohan Gopal, Madhusudan Mistry, Mohan Prakash and Ajay Maken.

There was also media speculation that Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi could offer to resign during the CWC meet, which has been called to take stock of the political situation in the aftermath of results.

However, top sources in the party

THAI ANTI-GOVERNMENT PROTESTERS PLAN ‘FINAL PUSH’

trashed such speculation. “It is all rubbish. This is not the way to go forward.

That is not the solution,” sources close to the top leadership said.

The meeting of the CWC, the party’s apex decision making body, has been convened on May 19 even as questions were being raised over the leadership of Rahul Gandhi as well as the over-all election strategy of the party, besides the performance of the UPA-II government led by Manmohan Singh. l

Myanmar rally calls for charter change n AFP, Yangon Thousands of people joined a rally in Myanmar’s main city yesterday to call for changes to a military-drafted constitution that bars opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from becoming president.

The former political prisoner-turned-politician has been campaigning to amend the charter since she became a lawmaker two years ago.

The 2008 constitution blocks anyone whose spouse or children are overseas citizens from leading the country – a clause widely believed to be targeted at the Nobel laureate, whose two sons are British.

It also ring-fences a quarter of the seats in parliament for unelected military personnel, leaving the army with a significant political role despite the end of outright junta rule.

Addressing a crowd at the rally in Yangon, Suu Kyi urged the military top brass as well as rank-and-file soldiers to support a petition campaign to amend the charter.

“I would like you all to consider whether getting more opportunities

Obama’s Asia pivot tested by China’s bold maritime claims n Reuters, Washington/Manila

Thai anti-government protesters rally at outside Government House in Bangkok on May 17. Anti-government protesters in Thailand are to stage mass rallies in coming days to try to get a new prime minister installed, but their leader Suthep Thaugsuban said yesterday that if this final push in a six-month fight did not succeed, he would surrender to the authorities on May 27 AFP

ally decreed, is upheld consistently and transparently.”

A Modi government “needs to, first and foremost, reach out to those that did not vote for it. It needs to talk to the Muslim community,” said an editorial in The Indian Express. “Ever since the violence in Gujarat in 2002 on the Modi government’s watch, a Modi prime ministership stokes insecurities in India’s largest minority that Prime Minister Modi cannot afford to relegate or ignore.”

The Hindustan Times said it was vital that what it called the “bad eggs in the party do not make overtly triumphal remarks about any community.” l

US President Barack Obama sought to reassure allies in Asia last month that the United States would support them in the face of a more assertive China.

But after one of Beijing’s boldest moves in years to lay claim to contested waters off Vietnam, some Asia countries are asking a simple question: Where is Washington?

Days after Obama left the region, China deployed an oil drilling rig 150 miles off the coast of Vietnam, into a part of the South China Sea claimed by itself and Hanoi. That sparked deadly anti-China riots in central Vietnam and raised questions over whether Obama’s long-promised strategic “pivot” of military assets to Asia is more than talk.

“We have been pushing the US to change its policy and take sides in the regional dispute,” said a senior Philippine defense official.

China claims a stretch of water

Thousands of flag-waving supporters mobbed Indian prime minister-elect Narendra Modi as he made a triumphant entrance in New Delhi yesterday after securing a historic victory for his Hindu nationalist party.

The 63-year-old flew into the capital in the late morning from his home state of Gujarat to bask in the glory of a landslide for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and begin organising his cabinet.

The controversial politician, a former tea boy tainted by anti-Muslim riots on his watch as chief minister in Gujarat, has the strongest mandate of any Indian leader in 30 years.

A crowd of party supporters, who had waited at the airport since early morning while being entertained by a marching band and thumping dance music, burst through police barricades at the sight of his cavalcade.

“Modi is our lion! He will work for the people of India, he will work for development, he will work for every Indian,” shouted Om Dutt, a 39-year-old shop owner, reflecting heady expectations of what the new leader will deliver.

At party headquarters in the centre of the capital, hundreds of ecstatic loyalists showered Modi in petals and chanted his name. “I thank the BJP workers wholeheartedly,” Modi said once inside, where he was flanked by senior party figures such as Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj and Ravi Shankar Prasad, who are likely to take government roles.

The BJP won the first majority in parliament by a single party for 30 years on Friday after a campaign by Modi focused on delivering new jobs, development and clean government.

The triumph redrew India’s political map, handing him a huge mandate for change, and heaping humiliation on the ruling Gandhi political dynasty, whose Congress party has been in power for 10 years. l

off its south coast and to the east of mainland Southeast Asia, setting it in direct conflict with claims of US allies Vietnam and the Philippines. Brunei, Taiwan and Malaysia also lay claim to parts of the South China Sea. At stake is control over what are believed to be significant reserves of oil and gas. Estimates for proven and undiscovered oil reserves in the entire sea range from 28 billion to as high as 213 billion barrels of oil, the US Energy Information Administration said in a March 2008 report.

The United States has responded with sharpened rhetoric toward China, describing a pattern of Chinese “provocations.” But it has taken no tangible action, a stark reflection of the limited options available to an administration already stretched by the crisis in Ukraine and faced with a quandary over how to deter China without damaging broader ties with the world’s second-biggest economy. l

than ordinary citizens is really fair,” Suu Kyi said.

“The main strength of the military forces is weapons. So I would like you to consider whether getting special opportunities because of the power of arms is dignified or good for yourself,” she said.

Parliamentary elections due to be held in 2015 are seen as a definitive test of whether the military is willing to loosen its grip on power.

The country’s president is selected by the legislature, and Suu Kyi has declared her ambition to lead the country.

Any change to the charter needs the support of over 75% of the legislature, so at least some soldiers would have to vote for the reforms.

Suu Kyi spent 15 years under house arrest during military rule in Myanmar, before she was freed after controversial elections in 2010 that her party boycotted.

Since then President Thein Sein has pushed through sweeping changes, including releasing other political prisoners and welcoming Suu Kyi and her party into parliament following landmark by-elections in 2012. l

China urges Vietnam to crack down on rioting n Reuters, Beijing China’s public security chief urged Vietnam yesterday to take tough measures to stem anti-China violence and punish rioters following deadly attacks there earlier this week, China’s official Xinhua News Agency reported. The Vietnamese government has said one person was killed in the rioting on Tuesday and Wednesday night, but a doctor at a hospital near one area of clashes said he had seen 21 dead bodies and that at least 100 people were wounded.

“The Vietnamese government should be accountable for the violent attacks on Chinese companies and staff,” China’s Public Security Minister Guo Shengkun was quoted saying in a telephone call with Vietnam’s minister of public security Tran Dai Quang. “We are strongly dissatisfied by the Vietnamese side failure to respond effectively to curb an escalation of the situation.”

Thousands of Vietnamese attacked businesses and factories on Monday and Tuesday in the country’s industrial parks, targeting Chinese workers and Chinese-owned businesses. l

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Sunday, May 18, 2014

CODE-CRACKER

Mutual interest in good relations

N

ow that India’s general election has concluded, the foreign minister is due to travel to New Delhi soon for talks with the new government.

We hope Bangladesh and India can move forward fruitfully and smoothly to resolve key bilateral issues, relating to trade, water-sharing, immigration and mutual security.

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance won its landslide victory with a platform advocating faster economic growth and development, with strong support for private enterprise and big business. If this vision which has proved so attractive to voters is realised, and India experiences strong economic growth, then this could benefit economies throughout our region.

Much concern has rightly been expressed about inflammatory remarks involving Bangladesh.

Stoking communal hatred simply does not go with plans for an economic march forward. Policies inspired by such rhetoric are not in the interests of either Bangladesh or India as they could sour ties and harm cross-border co-operation and trade.

Good relations are certainly possible. Bangladesh had a beneficial relationship with India during a previous BJP-led government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s tenure.

Our shared geography and history gives many reasons for Bangladesh and India to strengthen good neighbourly relations.

It would be to everyone’s benefit for the new Indian government to help resolve key issues of concern for Bangladesh relating to water-sharing and border demarcation. Ending such disputes can help trade and good relations to flourish in the interests of both countries.

We hope diplomatic dialogue helps our countries to build a progressive and more prosperous region.

There are many reasons for Bangladesh and India to strengthen neighbourly relations

Free businesses from extortion demands

I

n just one small area around Farmgate, Dhaka Tribune reporters found 900 stalls paying between Tk1,000-Tk1,500 to a local Jubo league controlled organisation.

Some Tk37.5 crore is estimated to be paid each month in so-called tolls to politically-backed extortionists.

It is the public that bears the costs of this criminal activity. Elected representatives must do more to meet the desire of the public and law-abiding businesses to root out this type of behaviour.

One underlying cause which needs to be addressed is the indulgence, by whichever party is in power, of party activists who wish to demand tolls. The expectation of political protection for such activity is a major factor limiting effective law enforcement actions, and in causing rogue officers to take bribes to allow extortionists to operate in broad daylight.

Local authorities are also partly to be blame. Too often, they fail in their duty to provide appropriate space to facilitate legitimate business activities. This supports a cycle whereby many lawful businesses are left to operate illegally or without permission. This leaves them at risk of periodic drives to move them on by authorities, which in turn gives them a reason to fall prey to extortionists, who offer to protect them.

A more sensible balance needs to be struck, to allow legitimate traders to conduct business in a lawful manner, free from demands for tolls.

Political parties and police must also take clear action to remove law breakers from their ranks. Only by addressing root causes can the curse of rent-seeking be lifted from street-vendors and the public.

Address the root causes of rentseeking

Be heard Write to Dhaka Tribune FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Sukrabad, Dhaka-1207 Email letters.dt@dhakatribune.com Send us your Op-Ed articles: opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com www.dhakatribune.com Join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune

The enemy of all Muslims

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 10 represents A so fill in A every time the figure 10 appears.

You them in the appropriate squares in the main grid, then use your knowledge of words to work out which letters go in the missing squares.

Some letters of the alphabet may not be used.

As you get the letters, fill in other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check off the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them.

May 12

Sam I appreciate the candor and sincere feeling of outrage by the author. But let us be very honest: The Qur’an does not condemn slavery. In fact, it almost endorses it in war time; similarly there are dozens of authentic Hadith where Islamic rulers starting from the very first one took slaves, made them into concubines, and sold them at slave markets. The problem is definitely extremism, but it is also the very foundations of Islamic jurisprudence, notwithstanding the loud screeches of protests by many of its adherents who want to whitewash and “contextualise” history. kmak Sam: Yes, let us be honest. As Jonathan E Brockopp writes in the Encyclopaedia of the Qur’an: “Slavery, ubūdiyya or riqq, is nowhere mentioned, though the Qur’an recommends freeing of slaves and is obviously interested in regulating the institution.”

He also notes how the legal material in the Qur’an on “slavery” revolves mostly around freeing slaves rather than acquiring them. Given that there are innumerable instances in the Qur’an and Sunnah which extol the freeing of slaves, you will at least agree that Islam’s aim was to eradicate slavery, something which even the traditionalists agree with?

KMAK kmak: Slavery is actually a red herring as far as this discussion goes. Can Sam prove that what Boko Haram did, kidnapping and selling schoolgirls, is Qur’anically sanctioned?

Sam KMAK: Whether it is Qur’anically sanctioned, according to you, I don’t know. But several verses of the Qur’an (4.24 and 24.32 for starters) can be construed to be – notwithstanding how much you object and scream. Similarly Bukhari 41: 598 and 62:137 provide Sunnah justifications, if people are so inclined. The point is not that you or I don’t interpret them that way, but the fact that they are

Let’s mend our bond May 13

S Mallik What is the point of this piece?

Raihan Hadi S Mallik: May be you would like to point out where it hurts? That would really be lovely because it’ll help me learn. :) D Raihan Hadi: The whole thing …. the whole thing!

Raihan Hadi D: Should I take that as an anti-Indian movement from a minority group not looking at the future?

Mates, if you are thinking what I had been thinking months ago you are still at an adolescent stage of running a country, or you must be supporters of NaMo (not judging but that’s basically two of the things it seems like). If it were the whole thing, then why am I getting shared by other people, I wonder?

If you are here to do some constructive criticism, I say you read and then write back with knowledge.

there with ample gray area to be misinterpreted and hence the idea of using Islamic justification to oppose it is futile and nonsensical. kmak Sam: You don’t get it, do you? The status of slavery in Islam is a red herring to this discussion. The real question is, are the actions of Boko Haram, kidnapping and selling schoolgirls, in conformity with what the Qur’an and the Sunnah teaches? Both Al Azhar and the highly conservative Islamic Fiqh Academy, among numerous other bodies, have described the actions of Boko Haram as unIslamic. What makes you say otherwise?

As far as slavery goes, it is not my opinion that Islam sought to eradicate this practice, but the opinion of the vast majority of scholars today. Quoting Jonathan Brockopp (a non-Muslim historian of Islam) again: “Even conservative Qur’an interpreters continue to regard slavery as opposed to Islamic principles of justice and equality. This dramatic shift in Islamic attitudes toward slavery is a prime example of flexibility in interpreting Qur’anic norms.”

All things considered, no matter how much you object or scream, there are no grey areas with respect to the status of slavery in the bulk of Islamic scholarship today.

Sam kmak: I have quoted you Qur’an and Hadith and you are quoting me some little known historian whose only bonafides are that he is a non-Muslim? No, it is you who is not getting it. By the way, repeatedly quoting the same sources doesn’t make you look smarter. Dispute the direct quotes from actual “source” (Qur’an and Hadith) that I have provided.

Think for yourself if you can.

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Heavy substance (4) 3 Untidy state (4) 7 Opening (3) 8 Tally (5) 11 Offensive to sight (4) 12 Kingdom (5) 13 Happening (5) 15 Tree (4) 18 Flower (4) 19 Files (5) 20 Has on (5) 21 Performs (4) 23 Farm birds (5) 24 Vegetable (3) 25 Catch sight of (4) 26 Slender support (4)

DOWN 1 Inferior (6) 2 Worships (6) 4 Incite (3) 5 Salty (6) 6 Secret agent (3) 9 Replenishes (6) 10 Consume (3) 11 Arbitrator (6) 14 Modes of utterance (6) 16 Put in (6) 17 High regard (6) 19 Convict (3) 21 Monkey (3)

22 Faucet (3)

kmak Sam: “I have quoted you Qur’an and Hadith ....”

You referred to 4.24 and 24.32 from the Qur’an.

Please explain how these verses condone kidnapping and selling schoolgirls.

PM: Gov’t does not want to use DGFI politically May 14

Dr Ahsan Habib Everything in Bangladesh is used for political purpose by the ruling party. Party leaders have blatantly lied many times before and this is another example of that.

Over 1,000 DMCH honorary doctors go on 48-hr strike May 12

SUDOKU How to solve: Fill in the blank spaces with the numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must contain all nine digits with no number repeating.

VK Globally, the majority of physicians take the Hippocratic Oath, promising to take their profession seriously and honestly. This ancient oath is actually a set of ethical codes; for example, a physician will not be involved in corruption, will not have sexual contact with his/her patients and “will do what is best for the patient, rather than what is best for the physician.”

CALVIN AND HOBBES

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER Jamaat’s trial to create tribunal history

PEANUTS

May 13 Omar Shehab Thanks for covering this very important issue. It would have been better if you could have interviewed independent activist groups, like International Crimes Strategy Forum or others for their perspective on the technicalities.

Deal on bandwidth for 7 Sisters ‘Monday’ May 12

Snr Citizen There has to be a clause of “withdrawing” export as per increase in home demand. And I believe that the rate/tariff has been fixed by Indian buyers, we were “onlookers.” This is almost as vital for development as river water is for survival of Bangladeshis.

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Sunday, May 18, 2014

A space to play

E

n Ziaur Rahman very child and adult needs breathing space, especially in large metropolises like Dhaka. Town planning has gone awry in Dhaka and many of the cities of Bangladesh due to overpopulation, resource constraints, and plain greed. Urban Dhaka has very little of what we call open spaces, parks, and fields. Spaces allocated as playing fields and parks have been encroached by greedy citizens with ulterior motives.

The Dhanmondi playground, in spite of being open to the public, has been brutality disfigured

The Dhanmondi playground, sitting squarely next to Mirpur Road and Road 8 of Dhanmondi, has been at the centre of news in Bangladesh for the past few years where this open field for the public had been closed and fenced up by some high and mighty people who had enjoyed the rich rewards of turning a public space into a privately held fiefdom.

That protracted injustice came to an end recently. Luckily, due to the relentless pursuit of a citizens’ action committee and a subsequent writ petition, the judiciary instructed the city corporation to open the gates to the public without further ado. Thanks to the public uproar and appropriate ruling by the judiciary, the keys to the

open field have been returned to the public.

Now, even the tokais of Dhaka can breathe the open air and fill their lungs and run the stretch of the Dhanmondi playground like no tomorrow. It is wonderful to see the field alive and kicking once again, with the boisterous sounds of children and adults of different ages. The spark of Dhanmondi playground has reclaimed its old luster and glory. Youngsters gather throughout the day and enjoy nature.

Unfortunately, that bliss has been dented by a plan to construct a concrete structure in the dead centre of the field. The Dhanmondi playground, in spite of being open to the public, has been brutality disfigured.

The citizens’ action committees, under the name “Dhanmondi maath rakha andolon,” have been urging the government to step in and bring back the field to its original form with no structure in the middle to tarnish the beauty of the area.

Unfortunately, construction work continues with costs escalating. The field is purely public property, and perhaps managed by the Dhaka City Corporation. Therefore, the need for more public awareness and support to stop this illegal construction has been acute. Why should the government waste funds on an illegal construction that is under heavy protest to be brought back to its original form?

It remains a conundrum why the LGRD Ministry is bent on spending taxpayers’ money on something so unpopular, morally reprehensible, unfair, and downright illegal. The people of Bangladesh want a welfare-oriented public policy regime governed by the principle of equity and fairness.

We, the people, would urge the government and authorities concerned to develop infrastructure elsewhere, where a true need exists,

Open to all? and take every measure to bring this field back to its original form.

Dhanmondi playground and all other public fields are properties of the people and is there for the purpose of public welfare.

Does it make sense to build another expensive structure that will ultimately just fail and cost us heavy financial and social damage? Has the nation not learnt enough yet? Ceasing these constructions is a much cleverer public policy decision. This field,

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

which is legally open to all, cannot be arbitrarily used for certain interests.

I ask the authorities concerned to step in and correct the monumental loss that has been adversely affecting the minds of children of Dhanmondi and neighbouring communities who are being deprived of an open field for three long years. The collective loss is difficult to quantify.

However, time is ripe, and I am convinced that our MP in Dhanmondi has a role to play in supporting

what is fair and ethical. The citizens of Bangladesh and the people of Dhanmondi brought him to power to remain vigilant in these matters of national importance and relevance.

If our members of parliament are not vocal about justice and fairness, then where will the public go?

The longer this matter drags on, the worse the situation turns. Subsequently, public sentiment turns sour. This matter should have been resolved by now, but it amazes everybody that

Cut the Gordian knot

Dreams to reality

n Nur-al-Deen Zia

n Shams Bin Quader

T

his year started with a rude awakening for the elite Bangladeshi law enforcement agency, Rapid Action Battalion, popularly known as RAB. In an official letter to the inspector general of Bangladesh police, the United States authorities notified that individual members and units of RAB were ineligible for any further US training and assistance because of acts of gross violation of human rights committed by the members this elite force.

This allegation against RAB is not a new one. Since its inception as an elite force in March 2004, RAB has continuously been implicated in gross violation of basic human rights.

Killing people with alleged criminal backgrounds in the name of crossfire became the “signature” tactic of the force. Human rights groups so far tallied more than 2,000 extra-judicial killings which were attributed to RAB. Despite all the initial allegations against the battalion members, the government of Britain and the US continued their support for years.

While the battalion continued to receive military training from Britain and the US, despite all the allegations of extra-judicial killing, the sudden change in heart of the major western backers of RAB is a clear indication that something went very wrong with the way RAB was perceived in the West. The embargo on any further US-sponsored training, which was put on the members of RAB, is a major blow to the credibility to a force which earned its name and fame fighting Islamic terrorism.

One possible reason the West might have continued supporting RAB despite allegations of extra-judicial killing was its success in annihilating the homegrown Islamic terrorism that rattled parts of Bangladesh during the early part of the last decade. Other factors that might weigh in the West’s decision to support RAB was its widespread popularity, professional work ethics, as well as its politically blind modus operandi.

However RAB’s work ethics and professionalism started to take a turn towards the worse with the ascent of Awami League as the ruling party.

Starting as early as 2008, RAB, previously criticised for extra-judicial killings of highly vetted criminals, allegedly started getting involved in abductions of businessmen and politicians. In 2009, three RAB men were arrested on charges of abducting two businessmen

and robbing them of gold and money.

In June 20, 2011, two RAB men were captured by a crowd as they unsuccessfully tried to abduct Chowdhury Alam, a local government leader and opposition leader, from Gulshan. Later a patrol team of police rushed to the spot and rescued them. One of the rescued was a RAB personnel identified by the media as ASI Md Billal Hossain belonging to RAB headquarters. Five days later, another group of people allegedly identifying themselves as RAB members kidnapped Mr Chowdhury Alam. He has not been seen since then.

It is high time to take the sternest decision regarding this rogue force Apart from abductions, extortion, and robbery, RAB continued with extrajudicial killings through incidences known as crossfires and shootouts.

In a recent development, Ain O Salish Kendra, Bangladesh (ASK) cited 49 incidents of extra-judicial killings by law enforcement agencies, mostly

by RAB, only in the first the two months of 2014. The organisation also confirmed 179 extra-judicial deaths in the year 2013. As a result of changing tactics of RAB, ASK could directly attribute 24 such deaths to RAB, 18 to police, and for another 137 incidents, an agency could not clearly be linked.

On February 11, 2014 plain-clothed armed men identifying themselves as RAB picked up Mridul Kumar Chowdhury in front of his house in Hazari Lane area of Chittagong. Prior to the incident, the gold trader lodged a case against some RAB personnel as they allegedly snatched a consignment of gold he sent to Dhaka. In an interview after being released from RAB custody, Mridul Kumar Chowdhury said that while being tortured by the abductors, he was asked time and again how he “dared” file the case against RAB. However, a probe committee consisting of law enforcement agency members surprisingly quashed the allegation, clearing RAB of any involvement with the abduction.

The international human rights defender, Human Rights Watch (HRW), in all its recent communiques regarding Bangladesh, has recommended

disbanding RAB. According to one of its recent reports titled “Democracy in Crossfire” HRW unambiguously attributed extra-judicial killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, and unlawful destruction of private property to RAB personnel.

HRW also repeated its call to the government to end the reign of impunity enjoyed by members of Bangladesh’s security forces working in RAB. They also urged to try the RAB members responsible for criminal offences.

Although RAB has been involved in such crimes for the last several years, the recent murder of seven people in Narayanganj has put RAB back into intense public scrutiny. As one followed the series of events leading to the discovery of seven corpses in Shitalakhya, it seemed that RAB had turned into a mercenary force, a ruthless group of professional killers, who instead of working against the criminal godfathers had started working for the criminal godfathers in exchange of hefty sums of money. Under intense publicity of the incident and as a result of loud public hue and cry, three senior officers of RAB, perceived to be responsible for the Narayanganj killings, have been forced to go into retirement.

Data received from the RAB Headquarters says that almost 2,000 RAB men faced departmental action for committing criminal offences since 2004. That means, on an average, 16 members of the battalion had to be disciplined every month. These numbers draw an alarming picture of the current state of RAB. First, when 2,000 members of a force with a total membership of approximately 11,000 are convicted of criminal offenses – meaning nearly 1 in 5 RAB personnel are convicted of some form of crime – and secondly when totally mind-blowing and credible allegations of acting as professional killers on behalf of notorious criminals surface against the whole senior leadership of a battalion, it becomes a very legitimate question whether this agency should exist as a guardian of the rule of law. One of the most serious allegations about RAB is that the government has lost its control over the force.

There are clear indications that the force is totally demoralised and has lost its way. It is high time to take the sternest decision regarding this rogue force and disband it if needed. The sooner, the better. l Nur-al-Deen Zia is a nationalist blogger. This piece was first published in nuraldeen.com.

I

have been an academic for a long time now. While working in the field of education, I have had to negotiate with numerous issues associated with studying abroad. I had to deal with students wanting advice for their plans relating to studying abroad and career choices. I myself completed two degrees from abroad (the first from the UK and the latter from Australia), where I had to deal with the universities, their scholarship schemes, and the visa application procedures as well as the challenges of living, working, and studying in foreign countries.

With my cumulative experiences from these aforementioned matters, I figured out that realising one’s dream of going abroad for higher studies, and eventually working and making a successful career anywhere in the world, is a lot more taxing than one would imagine. It is especially difficult in these recent times, because there are a number of variables involved, all of which have to align in the right way in order for this dream to become a reality.

Having said that, the experience of studying abroad is second to none in a student’s life, and no matter how difficult it is, it is worth pursuing as the benefits of this foreign education and experience outweighs the related hassles by far. It is most important to understand and have the correct information before making an informed decision about whether to go abroad for higher studies, and if yes, then where to go and what to study.

The majority of the Bangladeshi students have a dream of going abroad for higher education. Usually, the biggest obstacle is money and necessary academic qualifications. But with the correct information about certain countries, universities, subjects of study, and scholarship schemes, it is possible for any given student to gain acceptance at a certain foreign university, without paying a ton of money.

First and foremost, one has to decide why he/she wants to go abroad.

Is it for higher education? Will he/she finish his/her studies and come back to Bangladesh and start their career locally? Are they looking to stay back at the foreign country and build a career internationally? Are they looking to gain permanent residency or immigration to this foreign country? Is the sole purpose of going abroad gaining immigration to a foreign country?

These are all life-altering decisions and should not be taken lightly. I am not saying that these decisions cannot be modified during the course of time, because life is never constant.

But a strong idea about where one’s future lies is the single most important decision regarding one’s plan of going abroad.

One has to know his/her options and decide accordingly. If immigration is the sole purpose, then one could join a cheap Vocational Education and Training course in agricultural work or nursing, and immigrate to Australia with a permanent residency, given the Australian government has the necessary immigration scheme open for people with said specific skills. New Zealand, Canada, Germany, and Italy are the other good options.

If studying abroad and working for a few years to earn some money is the aim, then one could do a two-year hospitality diploma course in Germany, Sweden, or Canada where he/she would have the work permit to work and earn enough money to pay for their living expenses and tuition, and then work for three more years in that country in the said field of study after their diploma degree is complete. One could obviously look for citizenship or permanent residency options while studying and working in the said countries.

these things continue to go unresolved.

I will remain a perplexed citizen of Dhanmondi till the matter is settled on the grounds of equity and justice.

Hope has been raised through this journey of reclaiming all open fields, parks, and lakes of Bangladesh from vested quarters on moral grounds. Let the spirit of our citizens’ power rise again. l Ziaur Rahman is CEO, IITM.

ladesh. I have had the opportunity of talking with people from some of the most popular education and career consultancy firms in Dhaka. These agencies and firms offer numerous helpful services for the students, for example, counselling them to choose the appropriate subject of study, university, and scholarship schemes, helping them with IELTS exam preparations, university and visa application processes, arranging their flight and accommodation details, arranging events, fairs, and interview sessions with foreign universities, etc.

These firms and agencies usually take a fee for their services, but they are worth the money spent, provided they are efficient and trustworthy.

Therefore, choosing the appropriate consultancy firm or agency according to one’s desired education and career pathway is also important and can make life a lot easier. Also, no agency can magically do everything for you, so you have to be vigilant, follow up with them, and cooperate sincerely with their efforts.

Going abroad for higher education and making a career abroad is not impossible but requires patience, strong will, having access to correct information and proper options, and making the correct decision of why one is taking this step to go abroad. A well-thought out and well-informed

Returning to our country of origin provides us the opportunity to give something back

Finally, if studying abroad with a scholarship and then returning to Bangladesh is the target, then there are numerous reputed universities with campuses in Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Japan, China, Germany, Australia, Canada, the USA and the UK, which offer various scholarships for international students. A student has to find the right subject to study at the right university and the scholarship scheme which suits him/ her perfectly. This whole process may become extremely confusing and tedious, and that is where study abroad, career counselling, and immigration agents come in.

There are almost 700 registered education consultancy firms in Bang-

decision can save you or your parents a lot of money and time.

In my humble opinion, a Bangladeshi student should take the opportunity to go abroad for higher education, and then return to Bangladesh and use his/her knowledge and experiences to contribute in the development of this country. Various scholarships and work opportunities while studying abroad are available for Bangladeshi students all around the globe. But, returning to our country of origin provides us the opportunity to give something back to our motherland. l Shams Bin Quader is an academic of Media and Cultural Studies.

12

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Ami Shudhu Cheyechi Tomay faces legal challenge n Shadma Malik The Ministry of Information, Bangladesh has issued a letter to stop the screening of the film “Ami Shudhu Cheyechi Tomay,” a India-Bangladesh joint production. The film has been directed by Ashok Pati and Ananna Mamun and produced by Ashok Dhanuka, and is currently being screened in 57 theatre halls outside Dhaka since May 16.

Reba Rani Saha, Joint Secretary (Film) from Ministry of Information confirmed the Dhaka Tribune,“ A letter has been sent to the censor board to halt the screening of ‘Ami Shudhu Cheyechi Tomay.’ The producers of the film distributed it, violating regulations. We sent the letter to the censor board on Thursday, and they are is taking care of the matter. Further steps may be taking place soon.”

However, the director and writer of the film, Ananna Mamun, tells the Dhaka Tribune: “I heard the news from people, but I have not yet received any kind of legal letter.”

“Currently, we are screening the movie and it is running at a full house. ‘Ami Shudhu Cheyechi Tomay’ will be shown in the cinemas of Dhaka from May 23. Since ‘Children of War’ is running in the cinemas in the capital, we pushed back its release in the city,” he said.

However, there is criticism stating that the movie is a Kolkata-based flick starring Ankush and Shubhasree of India in the lead roles. The inclusion of Bangladeshi production house Action Cut as a producer of the film has raised questions, because it is rumoured that it is an all-out Indian film directed by Ashok Pati.

When asked about it, the director said: “The post-production was done in Bangladesh and the movie received uncut censorship. The producer came to Bangladesh and received an approval letter from the Ministry of Information, which is why we started to shoot the movie. I would like to ask: why now? Was everyone sleeping during the process to approve the film?

Plotters are there to halt the screening.” l

Shadhona to stage Mayar Khela today n Entertainment Desk

Shadhona’s acclaimed production “Mayar Khela,” based on Tagore’s dance drama of the same title, will be staged this evening at the National Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy.

Shadhona, which is famed for introducing foreign dance genres in their productions, has followed the form of the western opera in the experimental production.

Tagore’s “Mayar Khela” or ‘The Play of Illusions’ delivers the message of the true beauty of

TODAY IN DHAKA Film

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (3D & 2D) I, Frankenstein, Divergent Time: 10am – 10pm Star Cineplex Bashundhara City

Exhibition

National Sculpture Exhibition Group art show Time: 11am - 7pm National Art Gallery Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy Mukh O Mukhosh 5 Time: 11am – 8pm Galleri Kaya, House no. 20, Road no. 16, Sector no. 4, Uttara

Farah Ruma and Shatabdi Wadud pair for the first time n Entertainment Desk Famed small screen actor Farah Ruma and National Film Award winner actor Shatabdi Wadud are pairing up for a single-episode drama titled “Nibhrito Shapno Aborte” The drama is written by Yusuf Ali Khokon and directed

by Zubayer Ibn Bakr. The plot follows a apparently happy couple, Rimi played by Farah Ruman and Saif played by Shatabdi Wadud, whose childless marriage begins to strain the relationship. Saif knows he can never be a father as he is physically sterile. But their lives get a new turn when they go for a vacation to one of Saif’s favourite destinations. The play will be aired on a private channel during Eid. l

unconditional love.

The central characters of the dance drama are Amar and Shanta. Seized by wanderlust, Amar sets off from his home to explore what the external world has to offer.

During the course of his adventurous journey, Amar falls in love with beautiful Pramada. Here, the story reaches another height of suspense.

The dance drama is jointly choreographed by Amit Chowdhury and Sabbir Ahmed Biju. The performance’s allure lies in the Maya Kumaris (maidens of illusion) who appear in very colour-

A tale of four women staged n Hasan Mansoor Chatak Love, war , sexual exploitation and antagonism. Four words that could be used to portray the theme of the play “Suchona” staged at the Natmandol, University of Dhaka on May 16.

The play is adapted from the novella “Sheshpatro” written by veteran actor and theatre persona Abul Hayat while theatre activist Rahmat Ali directed the play on stage. Stage One Dhaka, a group dedicated to staging new theatre shows in town, designed the production.

Four prominent female actors of the small screen Mita Chowdhury, Wahida Mallik Jolly, Chitralekha Guha and Najnin Hasan Chumki formed the cast of the play.

The play is about four courageous women who face various difficulties in their personal life and overcome hurdles through sheer force of personality and determination. The narrative of these four women is related to the Libration War of Bangladesh.

Four childhood friends meet at Shelly’s place, in a remotely located resort. Shelly invites Rasheda, Sobita and Tani. Rasheda is famous writer, Sobita is famed singer and Tani works as development worker. Each woman starts to reveal something of her story at this retreat.

Although on the surface, everyone seems happy, each has a skeleton in her closet. Shelly was a freedom fighter who fell into the clutches of the “rajakars” (the collaborators) during the war. After Independence, rejected by her family she finds a place to live in a mental asy-

lum. A freedom fighter rescues her from the asylum and marries her. But after many years Shelly comes to know that her husband is a fake freedom fighter and actually served as the local collaborators during the war. When Shelly

Rahmat Ali said: “With the consent of the writer, a few dialogues and name of the play has been changed. I think the play carries the contemporary context which is still necessary to be staged.”

comes to know the truth she imprisons her husband in a room and invites her childhood friends to execute him as punishment. Since her friends refuse to take this step, Shelly take the job in her own hands and also poisons herself after killing her husband.

The play was written in 2005 and aired as a television drama on a private channel. Acclaim from the viewers inspired the organisers to bring the drama on stage. As the play still carries currency, the organisers want to continue staging for the foreseeable future. l

America Ferrera pranked on red carpet of Cannes n Entertainment Desk

John Abraham to promote FIFA World Cup in India n Entertainment Desk Bollywood actor John Abraham, who is a self-confessed soccer fan, is all set to promote the upcoming FIFA World Cup in India.

The 41-year-old “Madras Cafe” star has been roped in by Sony Six for their campaign to build anticipation for the football tournament.

“It is a known fact that John shares a great deal of love and passion for the sport and it is through this partnership that we would like to build anticipation for the upcoming FIFA event,” the channel said in a release recently.

The 20th FIFA World Cup is scheduled to take place in Brazil from June 12 to July 13 this year. l

A man tried to crawl under “How to Train Your Dragon 2” star America Ferrera’s dress while she posed yesterday with her co-stars at the film’s premiere in Cannes, France.

The Ukrainian prankster got onto the red carpet, then got on his knees and tried to crawl under her white tulle gown.

Ferrera and fellow actors Cate Blanchett, Djimon Hounsou and Kit Harrington were being introduced on the red carpet for the photo call, when a man, who appeared to be wearing a official accreditation, disturbed proceedings by crawling behind the cast and placing his head underneath actress Ferrera’s dress. He was immediately led off and handed to a policeman.

Cate Blanchett reacted saying “What’s happening?” while Ferrera looked visibly shocked.

The man is reported to be Vitalii Sediuk, an infamous Ukranian television reporter who has pulled several similar pranks in the past, including kissing Will Smith at a Moscow premiere, hugging Leonardo DiCaprio’s crotch at a Santa Barbara Film Festival event, and storming the Grammys stage during Adele’s acceptance speech. l

ful attire and vivid makeup. Their aerial dance was extremely well-received by the audience at previous showings of “Mayar Khela.”

The production features popular Tagore songs such as “Amaro Porano Jaha Chay,” “De Lo Sakhi De,” “Ami Jene Shune Bish Korechhi Pan,” “Dibasho Rajani Ami Jeno Kar” and “Era Sukher Lagi Chahe Prem” fusing eastern and western musical arrangements.

Reaz Mahmud is credited with the light designing while Lubna Marium and Ali Ahmed Mukul jointy designed costumes and set. l

A man invades the Red Carpet as Jay Baruchel, Kit Harington, America Ferrera, Cate Blanchett and Djimon Hounsou pose at the ‘How To Train Your Dragon 2’ premiere during the Cannes Film Festival on May 16

Hugh Jackman’s X-men homecoming n Entertainment Desk He’s still recovering from a skin cancer scare, but Hugh Jackman looked happy as he hammed it up with his co-stars at the Australian premiere of “X-Men: Days Of Future Past.”

The 45-year-old actor joined “Game Of Thrones” actor Peter Dinklage and Fan Bingbing on the red carpet at the A-List event in Melbourne on Friday night.

Just last week the father of two had a basal cell carcinoma removed from his nose, stepping out for promotional duties with a discreet band-aid covering the wound. “I tell you what, it’s great to be back home and not on the ‘X-Men’ diet. This City, the food is too good, I’ve seen my mother-in-law, everything is really great.” Jackman said.

Jackman was all smiles on the frenetic red carpet that attracted hundreds of fans to Melbourne Central.

The Australian actor said he was humbled by the reactions after going public revealing he had a second cancerous growth removed from his face this week.

Jackman said if what had happened to him makes the public more aware, then that’s a good thing.

“I think Australia knows; I don’t know if you guys realise this, the American doctor told me that the fastest decreasing rate of melanoma is in Australia. “So make sure you get checked up, wear sunscreen unlike me as a kid, that’s the important thing.” l

Did you know?

No World Cup host country had ever been eliminated in the first round - until South Africa in 2010

Sport

Sunday, May 18, 2014

14 Nadal fends off

Murray, Djokovic subdues Ferrer

14 Juventus

look for more records

DHAKA TRIBUNE

13

15 Felix aims to

get back on track in 2014

Media bar on BCB directors?

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is likely to establish a code of conduct for its directors which will bar them from leaking sensitive information to the media.

The initiative is a possibility after an anonymous BCB director leaked the news of former Sri Lankan cricketer Chandika Hathurusingha joining the Tigers as the new head coach to a local Bengali daily, a decision that the board is yet to close and make public.

BCB chairman of media and communication Jalal Younus confirmed Dhaka Tribune of the development and said, “I think a decision on this is likely to come in the next board meeting. Sensitive information being leaked by directors sometimes hampers the board’s job.”

“Roping in a head coach for the national team is one of the major issues we are dealing with now. Confidentiality is a key factor before such deals reach a concrete decision,” Jalal explained yesterday.

The BCB director further added, “The president personally will look after singing of the code of conduct and make sure that no trouble is caused in future. As far as I know the president

will not be in mood to take things lightly if leaks happen once the disclosure is signed.”

Earlier, Hathurusingha, who is currently serving New South Wales as the assistant coach, reacted furiously with the media personnels who tried to contact him over the phone to confirm the news of him taking the Bangladesh job.

“I don’t know where you are getting these things,” Hathurusingha told a private TV channel on Friday.

Sensitive information being leaked by directors sometimes hampers the board’s job “I am very happy what I am doing here. I don’t want to talk to anyone and I don’t know who you are and I am receiving calls from [journalists] every other day,” the 45-year old said.

“I just don’t know what purpose you are talking about. I just don’t want to talk to anybody because it is not good for my job here,” he added.

BCB president Nazmul Hasan had also hinted the media on Friday of taking necessary steps to stop informations being leaked out of the board. l

Alfaz makes top flight debut The sudden departure of Mohammedan’s Portuguese head coach Rui Jose Capela Batista saw former national striker Alfaz Ahmed make his debut as a coach of the Black and Whites against Chittagong Abahani yesterday. Batista returned home last Sunday due to his wife’s sickness who is reportedly diagnosed with cancer.

Alfaz, himself a Mohammedan legend, hung up his boots two seasons ago after enjoying a glittering career which lasted more than a decade. After obtaining his AFC C coaching license last year, it was it was indeed a good start as Mohammedan gifted him a win although not in a way he expected.

“It feels really great (to coach Mohammedan). They played well but I expected more goals,” said Alfaz after the game. “I played for Mohammedan.

I love the club. I will support the club as long as possible. I prepare myself in that way,” he added.

Unlike other coaches, Alfaz was hardly ever seen to move out of his seat in the dugout out but the nervousness was visible on his face throughout the game.

Mohammedan was not at their best and even when they were leading, they were seen in their own half most often.

“When you are 1-0 behind, any team in the world would be under pressure. There was tension as it was my first match as coach. Besides, our vital player midfielder Hemnata couldn’t play today (Saturday) and Demien was not fully fit as well. So we struggled a bit in midfield,” said Alfaz.

When the talk was about Portuguese coach Rui Capela Batista, Alfaz himself looked baffled for a moment but he got himself on track immediately. “A bit of pressure without the head coach (Batista). He left suddenly but he will come back may be in the next month,” Meanwhile, Mohammedan manager Amirul Islam Babu said the club will confirm the current and actual status of the coach within two days. l

Mohammedan forward Zahid Hasan Emily (C) tries to control the ball during their Bangladesh Premier League match against Chittagong Abahani at the BNS yesterday

Emily carries MSC past Ctg Abahani National striker Zahid Hasan Emily’s solitary goal allowed Mohammedan SC salvage a hard-fought 1-0 win over Chittagong Abahani in their Bangladesh Premier League encounter at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.

Emily netted the all-important goal just a minute before the stipulated opening half on his second attempt after his initial effort from the penalty spot was saved by Chittagong Abahani goalkeeper Nahid Uddin. The striker’s seventh goal of the league also saw him end his four-match scoring drought.

The victory lifted Mohammedan back to third place with 26 points from 15 matches.

It was former national star Alfaz Ahmed’s debut match as the interim

BCB University T20 from tomorrow GROUPS The Walton Refrigerator University T20 Challenge 2014 is all set to roll on the field tomorrow. The five-day long tournament will be played across three different venues at the Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan (BKSP).

In order to restore the players’ quota in both public and private universities throughout the country, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) took the initiative to launch the tournament with the participation of 12 universities – 10 public and two private universities.

Khaled Mahmud Sujon, chairman of the BCB Game Development revealed the details of the tournament at a press conference held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium (SBNS) yesterday.

Through a lottery the teams were picked and placed over four groups.

“The tournament will proceed on

A

Jagannath University, Islamic University Kushtia, University of Liberal Arts of Bangladesh (ULAB)

B

Dhaka University, Rajshahi University, Chittagong University

C

American International University Bangladesh (AIUB), Noakhali University of Science & Technology, Jahangirnagar University

D

Khulna University, Bangladesh Agricultural University Mymensingh, Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University

the basis of the league system, where each team will get to play two matches at the group phase. Each group champions will go through to the semifinals slot,” said Mahmud.

“We’ve earmarked a handsome budget

of Tk 17 lakh to run the competition and bear the entire expenditure of the tournament. The champions will be awarded with Tk100000 while the runners-up will receive Tk50000. Apart from that, man of the match from each game will also be rewarded,” Mahmud informed.

Kazi Inam Ahmed, chairman of the BCB Marketing and Commercial Committee, said the initiative ‘praiseworthy’. “If it can influence the authority concern to restore the players’ quota in the educational institution it can open the gate for the players to be educated.

It’ll ultimately enrich the sports arena of the country,” said Inam.

SM Zahid Hasan, executive director (policy & HRM) of Walton, Uday Hakim, operative director (creative & publication) Walton and Ziaur Rahman Topu, member of the BCB tournament committee were also present during the press conference. l

(L-R) Ziaur Rahman Topu, Khaled Mahmud, SM Zahid Hasan, Kazi Inam Ahmed and Uday Hakim attend a press conference at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday COURTESY

coach of the Black and Whites as the club’s Portuguese head coach Rui Jose Capela Batista left for his country on last Sunday. Alfaz made little change to their previous starting XI, but youngster Hemanta Vincet Biswas’ absence, who was suspended having received a red card in their last match against Sheikh Jamal DC, in the midfield was immensely felt. Along with an unfit Nigerian midfielder Demian Chigozie, Mohammedan struggled to control the midfield especially in the second-half.

However, the Black and Whites made the first real attack with just three minutes into the game. Cameroonian defender Bayebeck Fombagne’s header on a cross of Emon Mahmud was tipped by Nahid before the woodwork came to the rescue of the Chittagong side.

A clever flick by Emily put Zongo Ousseni in a snug position inside the box in the 15th minute but the Burki-

nabe forward, who showed great skill to loose his marker, shot wide.

Ismail Jahed squandered the best chance of the game for the visitors in the 25th minute when the midfielder headed over the bar from the six-yard box following a cross of Masuk Mia Jony from the right flank.

The Black and Whites earned a penalty in the 43rd minute after Nahid Uddin brought down Emily in the middle of the box. Nahid didn’t have to do much to parry away Emily’s weak shot from the spot, but he was unlucky to see the rebound fall right to Emily’s feet who made no mistake to send home on his second attempt.

Six minutes into the second-half, following a through-ball of Zongo, Sabuz raced towards the box but his strike was deflected off the onrushing goalkeeper. Sabuz was unlucky five minutes later as this time it was the crossbar that kept him away from doubling Mohammedan’s lead. l

MUMIT M

Power Development Board lift premier volleyball title Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) emerged as the champions in the National Bank Premier Volleyball League beating Titas Club 25-23, 25-12, 25-18 in a highly competitive concluding match at the volleyball stadium yesterday.

Monir of BPDB was adjudged as the best attacker while his teammate Ajoy was named the best setter. Ali of BPBD became the best libero.

The managing director of National Bank Ltd AKM Shafikur Rahman distributed the prizes as the chief guest. Volleyball federation general secretary Ashikur Rahman Miku, vice president Mostafa Kamal and tournament committee chairman Tabiur Rahman were also present among others. l

AIUB-BCB computer lab launched Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) launched the AIUB-BCB Computer Lab at the SAHARA-BCB National Cricket Academy yesterday. The fully equipped computer lab has been set up

by American International University Bangladesh (AIUB) as a part of its ongoing partnership with the BCB. AIUB, as the BCB’s official education partner also arranges English language classes, leadership courses, cultural awareness, life skills classes and a variety of other education programs including computer fundamental courses.

The beneficiaries of the BCB-AIUB partnership are the academy, U-19, U-17, high performance teams, members of women’s team, member of the pace foundation, various age group trainees and cricketers of the national team.

AIUB also offers annual scholarships to six cricketers of under-19, academy and the national team in its undergraduate and graduate degree programs. The University plays a significant role in the capacity building of the BCB administration by providing three full-time scholarships per year for BCB officials.

Chairman of BCB game development Khaled Mahmud, AIUB vice-chancellor Dr. Carmen Z. Lamagna and BCB’s acting CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury were present at the inauguration ceremony. l

Bangladesh Power Development Board players celebrate their NBL Premier Volleyball League title at the volleyball stadium yesterday COURTESY

Siddikur slips to 8th Bangladesh golfer Siddikur Rahman passed another frustrating day at the ICTSI Philippine Open as the day-one leader posted a woeful 4-over-par 76 in the third round and slipped to joint 8th position at the challenging Wack Wack Golf and Country Club yesterday.

Korean-American Chan Kim grabbed the third round lead in the $300,000 event while overnight leader Marcus Both of Australia shot a disappointing 76 to share second place with Filipino Jay Bayron (69) and Wang Jeung-hun (72) of Korea.

Starting the day on third, Siddikur carded two birdies along with equal number of bogeys in the opening half

of the third day. Then the EurAsia Cup star rued two unlucky double bogeys on holes 13 and 18 as he totaled with 1-under-par 215.

“I was a bit unlucky. My ball was plugged in the bunker in the 13th hole and my tee shot on number 18 hit a tree and landed in the bush. So I had to take a penalty drop. I’m still in a good position with one more day to go. Anything can happen tomorrow. Hopefully I can get my best round in the last round,” said the two-time Asian Tour winner.

Meanwhile, the other Bangladeshi contestant Zamal Hossain shared the 62nd spot after carding a 6-over-par 78 in the penultimate round for a 3-day total of 10-over-par in the Asian Tour event. l

14

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Bolivian club signs President Morales A first division Bolivian professional soccer club has signed President Evo Morales to play midfield at a salary of $213 per month and expects the leftist leader to make his debut in August, the head of the team said on Friday. The 54-year-old soccer fanatic will wear number 10 for the Sport Boys team, which is based in the southeastern province of Santa Cruz and rose to become a division one team last year. “He loves soccer and he plays well,” Sport Boys president Mario Cronenbold told Reuters. Morales monthly paycheck will be in line with the impoverished South American country’s minimum wage.

–Reuters

Sport

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Marquez takes pole in France MotoGP world champion and present series leader Marc Marquez took pole position for the fifth successive race on Saturday as he timed fastest in qualifying for Sunday’s French Grand Prix. The 21-year-old Spanish Honda rider, who was second in the race last year, secured the 42nd pole position of his career ahead of compatriot Pol Espargaro (Yamaha Tech3) and Italy’s Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati). Marquez has carried all before him this season winning all four races and should he win on Sunday he would match Italian great Giacomo Agostini’s five straight wins to open the 1972 season.

–AFP

‘Montella will stay at Fiorentina’ Fiorentina chairman Mario Cognigni is “100 percent” sure that coach Vincenza Montella will not leave the Serie A club at the end of the season. According to local media reports, Montella is among the front-runners to replace Milan coach Clarence Seedorf should the Dutchman be sacked in the summer as widely expected. “There is no chance that Montella won’t continue to be Fiorentina manager. He is staying 100 percent,” Cognigni said during a meeting with reporters in Florence on Friday evening. “Montella has not once showed us any signs that he would like to leave. He has no desire to abandon his work.”

–Reuters

Nadal fends off Murray, Djokovic subdues Ferrer Rafa Nadal overcame a first-set thrashing by Andy Murray to reach the semi-finals of the Italian Open with a 1-6 6-3 7-5 victory that kept him on course to meet rival Novak Djokovic in Sunday’s climax.

World number one and seven-times winner Nadal was a set down after only 37 minutes and trailed 4-2 in the decider, but kept his composure to book a last-four clash with rising talent Grigor Dimitrov.

On the other side of the draw, Djokovic maintained his hopes of a third Rome Masters title and 19th Masters Series crown although he was forced to dig deep to beat a tenacious David Ferrer 7-5 4-6 6-3 in a high-quality quarter-final.

Wimbledon champion Murray won the first five games in a blistering opening in which he limited Nadal to a handful of opportunities, including three wasted break points in the third game.

Yet Nadal came back strongly at the start of the second set, winning the first three games after Murray took a knock

to his right knee stretching for a shot that hindered his movement around the court. Murray was visibly less mobile after that and Nadal powered on to level the match.

It looked as though it would be plain sailing from then on but Murray fought back to lead a pulsating final set, only for Nadal to break right back and take match with a burst of nine points in a row.

Serbia’s Djokovic looked to be in full control when he led 5-2 in the opening set but Spaniard Ferrer fought back to 5-5 and although he lost the opener the tone was set for an intense duel.

Djokovic eventually prevailed on his second match point having double-faulted on his first, the point in between being a 38-stroke baseline rally of extraordinary quality.

Djokovic will face Milos Raonic in the semi-finals after the Canadian beat Roger Federer’s conqueror Frenchman Jeremy Chardy.

Dimitrov reached his first masters Series semi-final when German veteran Tommy Haas retired from their match with a shoulder injury.

Celebrating his 23rd birthday Dimi-

trov was presented with a cake on the court which his coach Roger Rasheed splatted all over the Bulgarian’s face.

In the women’s Italian Open at the same atmospheric Foro Italico venue top seed Serena Williams breezed past Shuai Zhang 6-1 6-3 in a one-sided contest.

The American roared out of the traps, winning five games in a row and crushing any chance of resistance from the Chinese.

Williams will get the chance to avenge her Australian Open defeat to Ana Ivanovic in the semis after the Serbian 11th seed followed up her impressive win over Maria Sharapova with a thrilling 6-4 3-6 6-4 win over Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro.

Home fans were given something to shout about when Sara Errani reached the semi-finals with a superb 6-3 4-6 6-2 victory over world number two Li Na - her first career win against a player ranked in the top three.

The Italian will have another tough challenge in the semi-finals in the shape of world number eight Jelena Jankovic, who beat Agnieszka Radwanska 6-4 6-4. l

Nadal reacts during his match against Murray during the Rome Masters Tennis tournament at the Foro Italico in Rome on Friday

AFP

Three World Cup cities at PSG, Man City punished for excessive losses higher dengue risk: study Three Brazilian host cities - Fortaleza, Natal and Recife - are at higher risk than the other nine of a dengue fever outbreak during the World Cup, scientists said on Saturday.

In absolute terms, the risk is low in all Cup venues, but comparatively greater in the three northeastern cities and authorities should beef up steps to prevent an outbreak, they said.

A potentially dangerous fever caused by a virus for which there is no vaccine or cure, dengue is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito when it takes a blood meal.

Doctors last year sounded the alarm over dengue at the June 12-July 13 tour-

nament. The disease is endemic in Brazil, which is expected to lure hundreds of thousands of football visitors.

Writing in the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases, a team of European and Brazilian experts crunched the numbers to pinpoint areas of risk.

They looked at real-time weather patterns provided by four meteorological agencies, particular rainfall which affects mosquito breeding.

They matched these against 13 years of data from prior dengue outbreaks in the month of June in 553 “microregions” of Brazil, including the 12 tournament host cities.

The researchers factored in the dynamics of how a dengue outbreak builds up. l

Manchester City and Paris St Germain, two of the newly rich clubs in European soccer, have been fined up to 60 million euros ($82.23 million) and had their squads capped for next season’s Champions League after breaching UEFA’s financial rules.

As part of their settlement with UEFA, Premier League champions City, owned by Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Mansour, and Qatari-owned French champions PSG have also agreed to curbs on transfer spending over the next two seasons.

City said their transfer spending would be capped at a net figure of 60 million euros this summer but added that the restrictions would not greatly impact their plans.

The deals broadly matched recent media reports of the likely sanctions

Belgian entrepreneurs Fabio Lavalle (L) and David Dos Santos pose with the ‘diabolica’ trumpet in Mons on Friday. Ear-splitting vuvuzelas were an ever-present backdrop to the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa. Four years on, two Belgian entrepreneurs hope to fill stadiums in Brazil with the high-pitched noise from plastic trumpets dubbed ‘diabolica’ REUTERS

Pressure mounts on EPL chief in sexism row The English Premier League chief at the centre of a sexism row came under fresh pressure to quit his post on Saturday.

Last week Britain’s Sunday Mirror newspaper published leaked private e-mails sent by Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore in which he made crude references to a woman colleague and also included jokes about “female irrationality”.

Now Scudamore has been urged to consider his position by Heather Rabbatts, an independent board member of the Football Association and one of the most prominent women in English football, in light of “growing evidence of a closed culture of sexism”

tion.

PSG and City will each get 40 million euros of the fine back should they stick to the terms of their settlement with UEFA in coming seasons.

They will only be able to name 21 players in their Champions League squads for next season, while rivals will be able to pick from a pool of 25.

They are also not allowed to increase their wage bills next season.

City, who have spent hundreds of millions of pounds since Sheikh Mansour bought the club in 2008, said they expected to move into profit from next season after heavy losses to build a team to compete with the best in Europe.

City said they believed they would comply with all UEFA’s conditions and be free of any restrictions for the start of the 2015-16 season.

They posted combined losses of almost 149 million pounds ($250.76 million) for the past two seasons - £97m in 2012 and £51.6m in 2013.

PSG said it accepted the sanctions although they would be a “tremendous handicap” in competing with top European teams.

In doing its sums, UEFA angrered PSG by assigning a lower value to a controversial sponsorship deal the club has with the Qatar Tourism Authority that was reported to be worth 200 million euros per season.

UEFA has handed lesser punishments to seven other clubs including Galatasaray of Turkey and Russia’s Zenit St Petersburg. Two other Turkish teams - Bursaspor and Trabzonspor along with Russian teams Rubin Kazan and Anzhi Makhachkala and Levski Sofia of Bulgaria were also sanctioned. l

Stake your World Cup claim: Prandelli

Falcao returns to training with Monaco Colombia striker Radamel Falcao returned to training with his Monaco teammates on Friday for the first time since injuring his knee in January, the Ligue 1 club announced.

Falcao, 28, suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during a last-32 French Cup match against amateur side Chasselay, ruling him out for the rest of the season and putting his participation at the World Cup in serious doubt. However, he has been included in Jose Pekerman’s provisional 30-man squad for the finals in Brazil in the hope that he can recover in time.l

under new rules that prevent clubs from running up unlimited financial losses.

City made clear that they had reluctantly agreed a deal with UEFA, believing they had complied with the rules.

However, had they fought on they would have risked a ban from next season’s Champions League.

This will effectively be the end of the process unless rival clubs decide to challenge the punishments as too lenient.

Critics of the “Financial Fair Play” rules say they will entrench the established order in European soccer and prevent teams with wealthy owners from challenging the elite.

They also said that the threat to ban teams from Europe was a hollow one as UEFA would not want to weaken its lucrative Champions League competi-

at the Premier League.

“No one can doubt the tremendous achievements of the Premier League in creating one of the world’s great footballing competitions,” Rabbatts said in a statement issued Saturday.

“But with that success and the massive public interest it generates comes the obligation to behave responsibly and have in place proper lines of accountability and good governance.

FA chairman Greg Dyke, while calling Scudamore’s comments “totally inappropriate”, has said the governing body will not be taking action as “our policy has always been that we do not consider something stated in a private email communication to amount to professional misconduct”. l

Italy coach Cesare Prandelli called on his fringe players to stake their claim for a World Cup place during an upcoming training camp that will see seven players cut from his provisional 30-man squad.

Two years after a surprise appearance in the final of Euro 2012, Prandelli embarks on a first World Cup campaign hopeful of putting the Azzurri in contention for a record-equalling fifth World Cup triumph.

The 56-year-old insists that that dream can only take shape once Italy, who have dropped to ninth in FIFA’s rankings, successfully negotiate passage through a Group D composed of England, Costa Rica and Uruguay.

Prandelli told Gazzetta dello Sport on Friday: “First, we have to pass the first round and then we have to organise as best we can to get to the final. I want to go to the final. Now, we have 10 days of training in which I will also be taking into consideration the results of scientific tests, without having to rely solely on what I see,” said Prandelli.

Among the strikers, only AC Milan’s Mario Balotelli has cemented his place.

It means veteran Antonio Cassano (Parma), Giuseppe Rossi (Fiorentina), Torino striker Ciro Immobile -- Serie A’s top scorer this season so far on 22 goals -- and Mattia Destro (Roma) will all be under the microscope.

Prandelli added: “Both of them could make the trip: I’m not excluding anyone.”

Immobile’s sterling season has al-

Juventus look for more records Champions Juventus take aim at an all-time Serie A points record on Sunday as a four-horse race which could see Milan coach Clarence Seedorf relieved of his duties ensues for the final Europa League place.

Crowned champions with two games to spare, Antonio Conte’s side are looking to add another record to their impressive list by becoming the first champions with at least 100 points.

Juve’s 32nd win of the campaign last week was a record in itself and took the Bianconeri’s tally to 99 -- surpassing the previous record of 97 by Inter in 2007.

A draw at home to Cagliari on Sunday would be enough, but midfield maestro Andrea Pirlo told Sky Sport:

“We’ve got a chance to finish on 102 points, and we’re not going to miss it.”

With Juve joined in the Champions League by Roma and Napoli (qualifying

FIXTURES Catania Genoa Juventus Chievo Fiorentina Lazio Milan Napoli Parma

v v v v v v v v v

Atalanta Roma Cagliari Inter Torino Bologna Sassuolo Verona Livorno

stages), seven-time European champions Milan are set to miss out on Europe altogether.

Seedorf is expected to be replaced whether or not Milan upset predictions

and squeeze into sixth spot to claim a place in the Europa League.

Despite being able to boast a superior statistical record than predecessor Massimiliano Allegri, who was shown the door in January, Seedorf has failed to win over club owner and president Silvio Berlusconi.

If Milan are to upset predictions, they need a win at home to Sassuolo, Torino to lose at Fiorentina and for Parma to draw or lose away to Napoli.

Long dismissed as “the other Turin club”, Torino ravel to Florence armed with the added incentive of Ciro Immobile’s hunt for the ‘Capocannoniere’ awarded to the league’s top scorer.

Immobile leads the league on 22 goals, two more than Verona’s Luca Toni (20) and three in front of Juventus striker Carlos Tevez (19), a feat which earned him a place in Italy’s 30-man provisional squad for the World Cup.l

ready impressed Prandelli, who believes the 24-year-old could go on to make a starring appearance by emulating Italian legends Paolo Rossi and Salvatore (Toto) Schillaci.

Rossi scored six goals on his way to Italy’s World Cup triumph in 1982 while Schillaci became a huge star in 1990 when, after coming on as a substitute in the first game, he cemented his place to go on and score six goals to also win the competition’s ‘Golden Boot’.

“He (Immobile) has scored a lot of goals and silenced the critics who said he was ‘only a boy’,” said Prandelli.

“Ten months ago he wasn’t in contention, but thanks to his stubbornness he is now. In the history of the World Cup, other strikers have emerged like this - Paolo Rossi, or (Toto) Schillaci.” l

United sign Serbian youth goalkeeper Managerless Manchester United have agreed a deal with FK Vojvodina to sign Serbia youth goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic, the English Premier League club said on Saturday.

The 17-year-old will stay with the Serbian side next season before moving to Old Trafford to provide competition for first choice number one David de Gea. Milinkovic’s transfer is the first by the 20-times English champions since they sacked manager David Moyes, who replaced legendary predecessor Alex Ferguson, in April after a disappointing first campaign.

Dutch coach Louis van Gaal is widely expected to be announced as the new head coach of United, who finished seventh in the league last term. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

15

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Phelps steps up comeback with butterfly win

QUICK BYTES

Women’s kabaddi team hold West Bengal Bangladesh women’s kabaddi team drew 21-21 with the West Bengal women’s kabaddi team in their Friendship Series in Kolkata, West Bengal yesterday. Subrata Mukherjee, the Public Health minister of West Bengal and the president of West Bengal Kabaddi Federation inaugurated the event as the chief guest. AFM Iqbal bin Anwar Dawn, the additional director of Walton was also present on the occasion.

–RM

Olympic legend Michael Phelps stepped up his return to competitive swimming Friday with a 100m butterfly triumph at the Charlotte Grand Prix, his first finals win since the London Games.

Phelps, who retired after the 2012 Games with a record 22 Olympic medals - a staggering 18 of them gold launched his comeback last month in Mesa, Arizona, where he won his 100m fly heat but finished runner-up in the final to US Olympic teammate Ryan Lochte.

On Friday, Phelps led at the 50m mark and won in 52.13sec, with Pavel Sankovich of Belarus second in 52.72 and Singapore’s Joseph Schooling third in 52.95.

The American superstar’s winning time was the exact same time he produced in his runner-up finish to Lochte.

Phelps also swam in the 200m freestyle heats on Friday morning, squeezing into the final but opting not to swim it in the evening.

He didn’t look overjoyed in his postwin interview, but for now, he said, consistency and a 200m free time that will allow him to swim the event at the US championships in August, if he chooses, are enough. l

Johnstone win Scottish Cup for first time St Johnstone won the Scottish Cup for the first time in the club’s 130-year history after beating Premiership rivals Dundee United 2-0 at Celtic Park on Saturday. The Saints went ahead in first-half stoppage-time when Steven Anderson headed in from close range after United goalkeeper Radoslaw Cierzniak flapped at a corner. And they sealed victory six minutes from full-time when, with the ball having deflected into United’s box, the chasing Steven MacLean scored while flat out on the turf.

–AFP

Silva says hopes to return to AC Milan Paris St Germain defender Thiago Silva says he wants to follow compatriot Kaka and return to AC Milan later on in his career. “I hope to follow Kaka’s footsteps by one day coming back to Milan,” he said in an interview with Sky Sport Italia. The Brazil international spent four years at Milan after signing from Fluminense in 2008. During his time in Italy he won the 2011 Serie A title and an Italian Super Cup. Fellow Brazilian Kaka returned to Milan last year after four years at Real Madrid. “Milan was a wonderful time for me. It’s a shame I went away without saying goodbye, but it was only because I didn’t know that I would be leaving,” he added.

–Reuters

Pakistan court reinstates Zaka Ashraf Pakistani cricket turmoil deepened Saturday after an Islamabad high court suspended a management committee appointed by the prime minister and reinstated Zaka Ashraf as chief of the cricket board. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had sacked Ashraf on February 10 this year and appointed a committee chaired by Najam Sethi to oversee cricketing matters. Saturday’s order meant all decisions taken by Sethi are now null and void - including the appointments of head coach Waqar Younis and Zimbabwean batting coach Grant Flower. It is the third time Ashraf has been reinstated since May last year.

–AFP

Cambiasso free to leave Inter: club Argentinian midfielder Esteban Cambiasso has been told he can leave Inter Milan after the Serie A giants refused to offer him a new deal. Cambiasso has spent 10 years with Inter after joining from Real Madrid in 2004 after just two seasons with the Spanish league giants.

Inter sporting director Piero Ausilio revealed on Saturday the 33-year-old Argentinian -- who is not selected for the World Cup -- is now surplus to requirements. “We explained to him that as part of our strategy to freshen up the squad we won’t be offering him a new deal,” said Ausilio. “We’ve never spoken about money, he’s never asked for anything in that sense. In any case I like to think that he’s the sort of person who will come back to Inter in some shape or form one day.”

–AFP

DAY’S WATCH Sony Six Indian Premier League 4:30PM Chennai v Bangalore 8:30PM Hyderabad v Kolkata 8:00AM Major League Soccer 2014 Seattle Sounders v San Jose Earthquakes 2:00PM Red Bull Air Race World Championship Kuala Lumpur Star Sports 2 3:00PM MotoGP: France Main Race 8:00PM Rome Masters, Final 12:45AM Italian Serie A Chievo Verona v Inter Milan

Atletico Madrid players and staff celebrate their league title at the end of the La Liga match against FC Barcelona at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona yesterday

AFP

Atletico win La Liga title after 18 years n AFP, Barcelona Atletico Madrid claimed their 10th Spanish league crown on Saturday but first in 18 years after coming from behind to draw 1-1 away at title rivals

Barcelona.

Alexis Sanchez’s stunning strike fired Barca into the lead on 33 minutes, but Diego Godin’s header four minutes into the second-half was enough to give Atletico the point they needed to become the first side other than Barca and Real Madrid to win La Liga in 10 years.

A point for both sides means that Barca finish the season ahead of thirdplaced Real Madrid thanks to a bet-

ter head-to-head record, three points adrift of Atletico.

The visitors had started brightly but were dealt a huge blow after just 15 minutes when top scorer Diego Costa pulled up with the recurrence of a hamstring injury that will also make him a huge doubt for the Champions League final against Real Madrid next weekend.

Arda Turan was then also forced off with a hip injury as Adrian Lopez and Raul Garcia entered the fray.

Barca grew into the game as the half developed and could have been ahead when Pedro Rodriguez wastefully headed over Dani Alves’ precise cross from the right.

When the Catalans did go in front just after the half hour it was in spec-

tacular fashion as Lionel Messi cushioned the ball into Sanchez’s path on the right side of the area, but despite the narrow angle he managed to thrash the ball high past Thibaut Courtois at the Belgian’s near post.

Atletico forced a series of corners without carving out a clear-cut chance in their search for an equaliser before the break, but the half-time whistle also brought frustration on the part of the Barca players as both Messi and Sergio Busquets were booked for dissent.

However, Diego Simeone’s men only had to wait a minute longer to be level as Godin rose highest in the box to power home Gabi’s corner.

Barca then suffered an injury blow of their own as Busquets had to be replaced by Alex Song, whilst Neymar

was also introduced by Gerardo Martino in the search for a winner.

Messi did have the ball in the net with 25 minutes remaining, but he was flagged offside as he latched onto a loose ball inside the area.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid ended a run of three league games without a win by beating Espanyol 3-1 to end their league season on Saturday, but Los Blancos’ victory was overshadowed by injury concerns over Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema ahead of the Champions League final.

Ronaldo failed to start the match despite being initially named in Carlo Ancelotti’s line-up as he pulled out in the warm up due to the recurrence of a thigh muscle problem that has troubled him in recent weeks. l

LA LIGA Team 1 Atlético Madrid 2 Barcelona 3 Real Madrid 4 Athletic 5 Sevilla

G 38 38 38 37 37

W 28 27 27 20 17

D 6 6 6 9 9

L 4 5 5 8 11

GD PTS 51 90 67 87 66 87 27 69 15 60

LAST 10 WINNERS 2013-2014 2012-2013 2011-2012 2010-2011 2009-2010 2008-2009 2007-2008 2006-2007 2005-2006 2004-2005

Atletico Madrid Barcelona Real Madrid Barcelona Barcelona Barcelona Real Madrid Real Madrid Barcelona Barcelona

Felix aims to get back Multi-medal winning athlete Allyson Felix said Saturday that 2014 would be a crucial year following her recent injury setback, as she aims to make an instant impact at the Shanghai Diamond meet.

Sri Lanka return to winning ways Sri Lanka secured their first victory on English soil this season with a crushing 128-run win over Kent in a one-day match at Canterbury on Friday.

The tourists made 301 for seven in their full 50 overs after losing the toss, Angelo Mathews top-scoring with 51 in

BRIEF SCORE Sri Lanka 301-7, 50 overs (A Mathews 51; R Joseph 4-59) Kent 173, 36.3 overs (A Blake 60; S Lakmal 3-16, T Perera 3-33, A Mendis 3-55) Sri Lanka beat Kent by 128 runs an innings where Lahiru Thirimanne (49) and Dinesh Chandimal (47 not out) also made significant contributions.

In reply, Kent were bowled out for just 173 inside 37 overs with seamer Suranga Lakmal (three for 16), leading the attack. l

The four-time Olympic gold medallist makes her season debut in Shanghai on Sunday after suffering a miserable 2013, crashing out of the 200m race at last year’s Moscow world championships with a hamstring injury.

Felix, who took gold in the 200m in London, will be competing in the 400m in Shanghai.

“My focus last year was just all about the world championships as it always is, so that is where I was focusing to really peak at that time.

“And so when I had my injury things didn’t go as planned, but you’ve just got to learn from the experience and keep moving,” Felix told AFP. Felix won her other Olympic golds in London in the 4x400 and 4x100 relays, while she was also part of the successful US 4x400 relay team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. She is a previous Diamond League champion at 200 metres and 400 metres, but won only two Diamond races last year. l

Arsenal’s Thomas Vermaelen (R) lifts the trophy as he celebrates with teammates after winning the FA Cup final against Hull City, at Wembley Stadium in London yesterday REUTERS

Arsenal end trophy drought with comeback win n AFP, london

Aaron Ramsey scored an extra-time winner as Arsenal ended their nine-year trophy drought by coming from two goals down to beat Hull City 3-2 in a gripping FA Cup final on Saturday.

Appearing in their first ever major final, Hull rocked Arsenal by going 2-0 up inside just eight minutes through goals from centre-backs James Chester and Curtis Davies.

But Santi Cazorla’s sumptuous freekick reduced the arrears in the 17th minute and after Laurent Koscielny netted an equaliser with 19 minutes of normal time remaining, Ramsey drilled home the winner in the extra period.

It was the Welsh midfielder’s 16th goal of a campaign that has seen him emerge as Arsenal’s most influential player and brought Arsene Wenger’s side a first trophy since the 2005 FA Cup. Wenger, who is still to extend his

contract, which expires shortly, has now won five FA Cups, while Arsenal have equalled Manchester United’s record of 11 successes in the competition.

Hull faded badly after their stunning start, but Steve Bruce’s side could console themselves with the knowledge that a Europa League place was already secure.

Chester had unexpectedly overcome a hamstring problem to take his place in Hull’s three-man defence, and nobody could have predicted how quickly he would have an impact on the game at a muggy Wembley Stadium.

Hull’s fans were still adjusting to the novelty of seeing their side in an FA Cup final when Chester put them ahead in the fourth minute, clipping the ball into the bottom-left corner from Tom Huddlestone’s mishit volley.

Huddlestone had been picked out

by Stephen Quinn from a corner and four minutes later, Arsenal were again undone by a set-piece.

After Ahmed Elmohamady’s freekick was partially cleared, Quinn put

the ball into the box from the left and when Alex Bruce’s downward header came back off the post, Davies rattled the rebound home from a tight angle.

Arsenal continued to force the issue in the second half and had three pen-

LAST 10 WINNERS 2013-2014 2012-2013 2011-2012 2010-2011 2009-2010 2008-2009 2007-2008 2006-2007 2005-2006 2004-2005

Arsenal Wigan Athletic Chelsea Man City Chelsea Chelsea Portsmouth Chelsea Liverpool Arsenal

alty claims turned down by referee Lee Probert in the space of 10 minutes.

Huddlestone appeared to drag Giroud back with his hand, Arsenal substitute Yaya Sanogo saw a header hit Jake Livermore on the arms and Cazorla was caught by Davies, but Probert allowed

play to continue on each occasion.

Amid the flurry of appeals, Koscielny headed wide from a corner, but in the 71st minute the Frenchman found the target.

Cazorla’s corner was knocked down at the back post and Koscielny swivelled to hook the ball home from close range despite being flattened by Hull goalkeeper Allan McGregor.

Giroud, twice, and Sanogo went close in the closing minutes of normal time and Arsenal’s dominance spilled over into extra time, with Giroud heading a cross from Ramsey against the bar.

Wenger introduced Jack Wilshere and Tomas Rosicky at half-time of extra time, but it was Ramsey who made the difference, ghosting onto Giroud’s back-heel and bludgeoning a crisp shot into the bottom-right corner.

Arsenal goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski gave his team’s fans one last fright by rushing out of his box and missing the ball, but Hull substitute Sone Aluko’s effort from out on the left bounced agonisingly wide. l

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Sunday, May 18, 2014

AL: Modi’s majority will help BNP still unclear about gains from Modi government Bangladesh’s cause n

Emran Hossain Shaikh

Although the Awami League appears to be uncomfortable with BJP’s win, some of its leaders are saying it will now be easier for India to decide on some of the outstanding issues with Bangladesh because the party has landslide majority.

Awami League, especially its chief and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has always been known for having close ties with Congress, who have done the worst in the recent polls since independence.

Some ruling party leaders said Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) result was highly unexpected; they thought BJP would win only a meagre majority at best and form a fragile coalition government like the one it formed in 1997.

Faruque Khan, international affairs secretary of the Awami League, said India would ensure a warm relation with

Bangladesh for regional peace and the country has no alternative but to have the Awami League in power in Bangladesh.

He also snubbed out chances that the India-Bangladesh relationship would change under the new BJP government.

“Those, who want to see the destruction of India, are congratulating Modi.

Narendra Modi knows very well who believes in democracy and who does not,” said Syed Ashraful Islam, LGRD minister and Awami League general secretary.

Long before AL, BNP congratulated Modi for the massive win.

Ashraf also said: “Some are saying that because Congress is not there the Awami League will not be there either. I want to tell them that they do not have on idea about democracy and foreign policy.”

He also slammed the “talk-show artists” saying they did not have profound idea about anything.

“The Congress that orchestrated India’s freedom, have lost in the election today.

People gave their reply because party did not have any connection with them. This is the lesson of democracy. One must keep warm relations with the people,” Ashraf said, while addressing a programme in the capital yesterday organised to observe Sheikh Hasina’s homecoming day.

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed hoped the outstanding issues such as the Teesta water sharing would be quickly solved under the Modi government.

Prime Minister’s International Affair’s Adviser Gowher Rizvi said because India’s foreign policy towards Bangladesh was made on the basis of a concensus, nothing will change. “There is no reason to think that we will allow anyone to put pressure on us. The Awami League never bows before anyone,” Rizvi said at a BBC Sanglap in the capital yesterday. l

n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

The BNP leaders are somewhat happy with the Indian election results since the “pro-Awami League” Congress lost office, but they are still sceptical about the benefits they might get from the Narendra Modi-led new government.

For this, when contacted by the Dhaka Tribune, many of the top BNP leaders did not want to open up on record.

However, even before announcement of the full results, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia greeted Modi, the would-be prime minister of India, on Friday morning for his party’s landslide victory in the Lok Sabha elections.

The party leaders believe that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has a good personal relation with Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and outgoing President Pranab Mukherjee, and that the Hasi-

na-led government held the January 5 election with the blanket support of the Congress.

Hasina does not have similar kind of warm relation with the BJP leaders, the BNP leaders observe.

They think with Modi’s triumph, now the relation with India would be state-to-state and people-to-people, not with the Awami League only.

BNP’s acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said: “We hope that the longstanding disputes like border killing, Teesta water treaty and other issues will be settled [with the new government].”

Shamser Mobin Chowdhury, vice-chairman of the party, echoed Fakhrul saying that the Indo-Bangla tie would reach a new height in the coming days.

Osman Farruk, an adviser to the BNP Chairperson, said: “The way the

Congress government took position over the January 5 election, it seemed that the people of Bangladesh are the counterpart of Indian government.

Apart from bilateral issues, we believe that the new government will reevaluate the Congress government’s blind support to the Awami League government over the controversial election.”

In response to a question whether the new Indian government would want to see early election in Bangladesh as demanded by many Western countries, Shamser said it was difficult to predict at this moment.

“But India has a history of democracy, and BJP has come to power through a democratic election. Naturally Indian government would want to see a democratic process in Bangladesh,” Shamser told a programme in the city organised

by BBC Bangla Service. l

Pass rate: A boon or bane? n Mushfique Wadud

Guardians and students of Motijheel Ideal School scan through the notice board displaying SSC results in the capital yesterday RAJIB DHAR

SSC result 2014: Boys outshine girls n TazlinaZamila Khan

Candidates set new record in Chittagong

The male students had performed better than female examinees in this year’s SSC result in terms of GPA 5 and pass rate.

This year, some 1,426,923 students appeared for the examination of which 731,690 were male and 695,233 were female students.

Around 1,303,331 students managed to pass the exam, where 671961 were male and 631,370 female. Male students were also ahead of females in terms of GPA 5 by secured around 12,826 more that the girls.

In terms of grades, 77,551 boys received GPA 5 while 64,725 girls received an A+. In 2013, some 142,276 students received A+ and 91,226 students received GPA 5.

The pass rate of boys and girls were at 91.84% and 90.81% respectively for this year and the overall pass rate was at 91.34 percent, posting a 2.31% increase compared to last year.

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid formally handed over a copy of the results to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at 10am yesterday. l

n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong Chittagong Education Board this year witnessed a significant rise in the pass rate and number of GPA 5 achievers in the recent Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examinations in comparison to the previous year.

A total of 91.4% of the examinees passed this year's SSC and equivalent examination under the education board, marking a 3.36 percent rise than of the previous year, where 10, 884 students achieved GPA 5.

Out of 20 best schools ranked by the education board, Chittagong Collegiate School secured first position, Bangladesh Mohila Samity Girls High School and College in second and Dr Khastagir Government Girls High School secured the third position.

The pass rate of male students was at 92.33% while female were at 90.58%.

Dr Pizus Dutta, exam controller of Secondary and High Secondary Education Board in Chittagong, disclosed the

Pass rates and higher grades, like GPA5, in public examinations have been significantly on the rise over the past few years.

Some educationists believe that despite the improved results, the quality of education in schools may actually be falling, while others think that pass rates are increasing due to changes in the examination and evaluation systems.

Results show that the pass rate in Secondary School Certificate (SSC) exams have increased substantially in just seven years.

In 2007, the SSC pass rate was 58.36%, while the percentage rose to 91.34 this year.

The number of GPA5 achievers also increased. A total of 142,276 students got GPA5 this year, compared to 25,732 in 2007.

On the other hand, pass rates in national exams used to stand below 50 percent about two decades ago.

In 1990, the SSC pass rate was only 22.82% in the humanities group, while it was 43.63% in the science group, according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Education Information and Statistics.

There is a debate whether the increasing pass rates and GPA5 scores mean that the quality of education has improved, or fallen.

One group of educationists think that the increasing pass rates have nothing to do with the education quality, but more to do with the changing method of checking exam scripts over the years.

Some claimed that the old philosophy of not giving full marks to examinees had also changed in recent times.

Jalal Uddin, director of Dhaka University’s Institute of Education and Research (IER), said with the increasing pass rates, a question remained on whether the quality of education was improving or falling. Jalal also claimed that sometimes, political and other external factors determined the higher pass rates.

Manju Ara Begum, principal of Viqarunnisa Noon School and College, however, said the education quality was not falling, but improving.

She attributed the higher pass rates to changes in the examination and grading systems, introduced in 2001.

“In the (new) grading system, students normally get higher marks than under the old system. And the creative

question style is another thing increasing the pass rates,” she said. “I do not think that the quality is falling.”

Manju Ara also claimed that students, and their guardians, were more diligent about their studies these days, and that also contributed to better result.

“The facilities in schools have also improved and teachers’ mentality to give lower marks have changed,” she added.

Rasheda K Choudhury, executive director of Campaign for Popular Education, said it was logical to make a student pass after 10 years of schooling, but the issue of quality should also be addressed as it affects higher education.

‘I want that every one passes in the examinations,” she said, adding, “However, students with good results in public exams are not doing well in university admission tests. We must find the reasons.”

A former director of IER, who did not want to be named, opined that there should be an independent evaluation of students’ skills other than public examinations.

Meanwhile, Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said the government was working on improving the quality of education in the country. l

figures while talking to the media at his office yesterday.

Saying this year’s SSC results had broken all previous records, he also said the difference between students’ performances in the city and remote areas also went down significantly.

A total 92,123 SSC candidates from 963 schools under the education board took part in the examination, where 276 candidates were absent and 31 were expelled.

A total 91 schools achieved a full pass rate, while no school was found without a single successful candidate.

Dr Pizus suggested to the students to shift to vocational education in a bid to boost the sector as an alternative route to flourish jobs, like most developed countries.

Meanwhile, Suman Barua, college inspector of Secondary and High Secondary Education Board in Chittagong, said the number of seats in 218 colleges under the education board will be able to cover the successful students and urged students and guardians not worry in this regard. l

101 gold bars, $40K seized at Dhaka airport n Kailash Sarkar In yet another seizure of gold haul, Customs officials at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport yesterday seized 101 gold bars weighing around 12 kilograms and arrested three passengers of a flight coming from Dubai.

Israt Jahan, Assistant Commissioner of the Customs Department, said they

seized the gold bars after searching bodies of the three immediately after a flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines had landed in Dhaka around 10am. The flight from Dubai had a transit in Sylhet before it arrived in Dhaka.

The arrestees were Joynal Abedin, 32, Sabuj, 30, and Roman, 22.

“Customs officials, after becoming suspicious of the movement and attitude of the three, subjected them to body search while they were crossing the green channel.

When we searched them, we found the gold bars,” said Israt Jahan.

“They hid the bars inside their shoes, belts and other places in their bodies,” she added.

According to Customs officials,

the arrestees boarded on the flight from Sylhet during the transit. They suspect that the detainees were members of a ring involved in gold smuggling and they came to Dhaka from Sylhet in an attempt to carry the gold, smuggled into the country from Dubai, out of Dhaka airport.

Earlier on Tuesday, around 10 kilograms of gold were recovered and a passenger was arrested in this connection. Besides, officials seized haul of gold bars on several occasions at Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet airports over the past few months.

Meanwhile, police arrested one Nurul Islam with $40,000 dollars in his possession at the airport yesterday afternoon.

Inspector Shah Alam, officer-incharge of Airport Police Station, said 50-year-old Nurul Islam was arrested around 3:30pm with the money.

Shah Alam said the arrestee failed to provide required documents on the seized dollars. l

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B3 Plans to de-risk ‘too-

B4 What gets measured

big-to-fail’ banks face hurdles in Europe, Asia

gets done

SUNDAY, MAY 18, 2014 www.dhakatribune.com/business

Banks’ trick to expand consumer loans Biman raises fare BB has decided not to accept any request for increasing credit card limits n Jebun Nesa Alo The commercial banks want to extend their credit card limits in an oblique strategy to increase providing consumer loans as the industrial loans have remained sluggish.

But the central bank continues to discourage such lending in the unproductive sector and has recently rejected an appeal of Dutch-Bangla Bank to increase its credit card limit.

According to the Bangladesh Bank sources, authorities of some commercial banks are trying to convince the central bank high-ups for extending the credit card limits amid poor industrial credit flow.

The central bank has recently relaxed travel quota rules, allowing a resident Bangladeshi national to spend up to US$12,000 (Tk9 lakh) in a year while travelling abroad.

But the annual current credit card limit is Tk5 lakh without security money. As a result, the customers cannot spend their travel quota facility by using international credit cards.

“Bangladesh Bank has decided not to accept any request for increasing credit card limits and discourage banks to provide loans in the unproductive sector,” said a senior executive of the central bank.

A saleswoman swipes credit card at a superstore in Dhaka recently. Amid dull picture of industrial loans, the banks want to raise limits of credit card borrowing to get some buzz DHAKA TRIBUNE

He said the commercial banks are interested to extend their credit card limits as they can earn profit through high interest rates of consumer loans.

Besides, the banks have focused on individual loans since the industrial loans flow has continued to remain sluggish, the official added.

Banks are charging interest as high as 30% on credit card loans whereas average lending rate on advance is

around 13.40% in the market, according to the central bank data.

The demand of credit card loans has soared after relaxation of personal travel quota rules.

Although Bangladesh Bank has relaxed the travel quota rules due to sufficiency of dollar reserve but, on the other hand, it discouraged credit flow to the consumer sector, said another senior executive officer of central bank.

The central bank has expressed its concern over the aggressive consumer credit provided by the banks in last year, which prompted it to decide not to raise credit limit any further.

The consumer financing registered a substantial 32% growth in the first quarter of 2013 compared to a negative growth of 5% in the corresponding quarter of 2012.

During the same period, total loan growth increased by 0.83% from 3.06%, according to the central bank data.

The consumer loan increased by 10.5% to Tk28,021crore in AprilJune quarter of 2013 and over 18% to Tk33,140crore in the July-September quarter.

The industrial loan marked negative growth of 3% to Tk1.47 lakh crore in July-September quarter compared to 1.76% growth in the preceding quarter.

In January 2012, Bangladesh Bank had slashed the loan margin ratio to 70:30 from 80:20 in housing finance and the ratio for car loans and all other consumer financing to 30:70 from 50:50.

The central bank brought the changes in the margin ratios as consumer loans were in rising trend despite its repeated attempts to discourage consumer loans. l

to ease losses n Muhammad Zahidul Islam Biman Bangladesh Airlines is going to increase air ticket fares from June in different international routes to reduce losses, sources in the national flag carrier said.

It has already raised fares for the travellers in London, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore routes.

While the fares have been raised for both business and economy classes in London route, only business class travellers have to pay higher prices in other two routes.

Dhaka-London route is regarded as the most popular route of the national airlines. Biman officials said the fare hikes will be made mostly for business class seats.

They added the economy class fares will also be raised by 5-10% in Kuala Lumpur, Jeddah, Doha, Kathmandu and Kuwait routes.

“We have decided to increase fares in some of Biman popular routes,” said Mohammad Shah Newaz, director (marketing and sales) of Biman.

He added: “Not only Biman but some other carriers have also increased fares, some are going to make the hike.”

Shah Newaz said raising fare and of-

NPL major obstacle to cut lending rate n Tribune Report

A worker carries a carton of garment products ready for export at a factory warehouse in Tongi near the capital Dhaka DHAKA TRIBUNE

RMG accessories makers assured of policy support n Tribune Report

The government would provide policy support to garment accessories and packaging manufacturers to help the sub-sector grow parallel to the apparel industry, one of the mainstays of the country’s economy.

State minister for finance MA Mannan gave the assurance while inaugurating a project titled Bangladesh INSPIRED (Integrated Support to Poverty and Inequality Reduction through Enterprise Development), funded by the Bangladesh government and the European Union, which aims to develop SMEs in the country.

“The industry is a promising one and will get every policy support for growth like apparel industry,” the minister said.

The packaging and accessories makers have enough contribution to the value chain of the industries like clothing, leather, pharmaceuticals and other exportable items, which remained inattentive, he said.

He urged the entrepreneurs to ensure

workers’ rights and safety in the workplace in line with the international standard compliance.

The event was organised by the Bangladesh Garments Accessories and Packaging Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGAPMEA).

The INSPIRED project, being managed by the SME Cell of the industries ministry, endeavors to enhance competitiveness and sustainable pro-poor growth of SMEs in selected sub-sectors of the economy.

Under the Programme, €6.5m will be provided to business intermediary organisations to improve their competitiveness in the sectors like agro-processing, natural fibres, leather, plastics, light engineering, electronics, furniture and textiles.

Exporters’ Association of Bangladesh President Abdus Salam Murshedy said in 1980s, the apparel industry imported all accessories from button to carton.

“But now, our RMG backward linkage industry supplies 99% accessories and

packaging items. So it deserves getting some incentives,” he said.

BGAPMEA President Rafez Alam Chowdhury sought policy support to grow parallel to the RMG industry.

“We fail to grow at a pace like the apparel industry despite a lot of contribution we have as a backward linkage industry. We never got any incentive like other industries,” he said.

The sector earned valuable foreign exchange to the tune of more than US$4bn annually during the financial year 2012-13 by exporting garments accessories and packaging items, Rafez said.

The country has more than 1,200 garments accessories and packaging factories, employing more than 3 lakh people.

First counsellor and head of cooperation of the EU delegation to Bangladesh Philippe Jaques, Project Director Farhad Uddin and Director General-1 of Export Promotion Bureau of Bangladesh Salahuddin Mahmud were present at the launching ceremony. l

Increasing Non-Performing Loan (NPL) in the banking sector has been identified as a major obstacle to reduce the lending rate to a single digit as the banks are incurring losses from the classified loans. However, all the banks are to pay tax on the classified loans.

Reduction of the lending rate largely depends on loan recovery, classified loan management and the overall market scenario, said Golam Hafiz Ahmed, CEO and Managing Director of National Credit and Commerce Bank, while addressing a press conference held yesterday at its headquarters in the capital to mark its 21st founding anniversary.

“As a huge amount of liquidity get stuck as classified loans, from which banks are not getting any return, while they are to pay the interest committed to the depositors, banks are unable to manage their expenditures, and consequently the banks are to maintain the high lending rates,” he said.

Golam Hafiz stressed the need for early disposal of the pending suits on classified loans, so the loan recovery will also be improved, which would be able to support the banks to reduce the lending rates.

Bangladesh Bank is now allowing short-term foreign loans for the bus-

Top managerial level officials of NCC Bank are seen at a press briefing held yesterday at the bank’s headquarters DHAKA TRIBUNE

Airtel’s new CEO assumes office in June n Muhammad Zahidul Islam Mobile phone operator Airtel will get a new chief executive officer and managing director in June as the incumbent Chris Tobit is resigning from the office on contract expiry.

PD Sharma, CEO of Kolkata, West Bengal and Orissa Telecom Circle of Bharti Airtel, will replace Tobit, said the operator sources.

Sharma already paid a visit to Dhaka last week and saw for himself the operations of Airtel Bangladesh.

Rubaba Dowla, chief service officer and head of M Commerce in Airtel Bangladesh, confirmed PD Sharma’s Dhaka visit.

“The new CEO hasn’t joined yet, but we are expecting PD Sharma to join with us any time in June,” she told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

During his visit last week, Sharma went to Airtel head office in Dhaka and meet some senior executives on Thursday, sources said. Then, he left for Kolkata on Friday.

Chris Tobit, first CEO of Airtel

Bangladesh, joined before rebranding Warid as Airtel in 2010.

His three-year contract with company expired last year. However, Tobit has continued to serve before making the replacement.

Chris Tobit is also the current chairman of Association of Mobile Telecom Operators Association of Bangladesh (AMTOB) board. After leaving the Airtel’s charge, he will also need to cease continuing the chairmanship of AMTOB. Presently, the Airtel is number

nessmen just to put pressure on the local banks to cut their lending rates.

Though the banks were rigid to reduce their interest rates, the banks are now lending at 13% interest rate from earlier 15% to 16% rate, changing their earlier stance, he added.

Banks got release from the huge NPL burden in the last year, thanks to the relax loan rescheduling offered by Bangladesh Bank.

Among others, the ceremoney was attended by NCC Bank Chairman Nurun Newaz Salim, Vice Chairman Mainuddin Monem, Cairman, Audit Committee of the Board Amirul Islam, Director M.A. Awal and Khairul Alam Chaklader.

Nurun Newaz Salim said, if the government reduces corporate tax, it would contribute to reducing the lending rates of the banks.

“All the banks have to reach a consensus and move together to cut the lending rates,” he said.

The NCC bank is now operating across the country with 101 branches, the bank announced 5% cash and 6% stock dividend in the year 2013 despite the dull business, said Golam Hafiz.

“Capital Adequacy Ratio of the bank remained above satisfactory level, which is now 12%, credit growth was 13% and import growth was 15%,” he said. l

four mobile operator in Bangladesh in terms of subscribers. As of April 2014, the number of subscribers stood at 85.03 lakh with 7.3% of market share.

In 2010, Bharti Airtel bought 70% shares of Warid Telecom at $100,000.

Airtel purchased more 30%stakesof the company last year at $85 million, according to official documents.

The operator claims its total investment in the company is now $1bn, making it the largest investment in Bangladesh by any Indian company. l

fering discounts is a regular process for an aircraft company.

Earlier in December last year, Biman rearranged and increased fares in different routes.

The national airlines incurred a net loss of Tk118 crore in the first eight months of the current fiscal year. The fare hike is an attempt to ease losses.

Biman recently decided to suspend flights in some loss-making routes and increase carrying Hajj pilgrims.

The Hajj flights are expected to help the struggling company enhance revenue income.

Official sources said flights in some important destinations like New Delhi, Kolkata, Hong Kong and Yangon were on the suspension list.

The airlines has already stopped selling tickets and started withdrawing general sales agents from the four cities.

Besides, the flight operations in Kathmandu, Bangkok and Rome-Frankfurt routes are also being assessed to see whether they should be suspended to prevent further losses.

The Biman authority recently calculated the unprofitable routes would make another loss of Tk50 crore in the final two months of current fiscal year. l

CNG station owners threaten indefinite strike n Aminur Rahman Rasel CNG refueling station owners have warned they will go on an indefinite strike across the country if their sevenpoint demands are not met by May 24.

President of Bangladesh CNG Filling Station and Conversion Workshop Owners Association Zakir Hossain Noyon issued the warning at a press conference at Dhaka Reporters Unity auditorium yesterday.

“We are determined to enforce countrywide nonstop strike if the government does not satisfy our seven-point demands by the May 24 deadline,” said Noyon.

CNG refueling station owners demanded CNG prices be raised when power price is raised, saying prices of both the energy sources were interlinked.

For the owners, the margin at present is a mere Tk0.12 for per cubic metre CNG after adjustment of all costs and they demanded the margin be raised to Tk2.98. They called for providing gas connections for the 54 new stations.

The association demanded installation of Electronic Volume Correction (EVC) metres at the refuelling stations by replacing the existing ordinary metres so that the bill could be generated accurately according to the pressure readings of gas. The owners also asked for introducing fortnightly billing system in place of the existing monthly billing.

According to the Energy Division, CNG refueling station owners have been expecting gas connections since 2009. At present, they sell CNG at Tk30 per unit and pay gas companies Tk23 for each unit of gas, keeping a margin of Tk7.

On September 19, 2011, Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission set the price of CNG at Tk30 per cubic metre, increasing the price by Tk5 from the previous price.

Petrobangla currently supplies about 120 million cubic feet or 3.40 million cubic metres of gas every day, against the demand of 130 mmcfd, to 585 refueling stations across the country. The association’s Vice-president Mohammad Irad Ali, Joint Secretary Abdus Sattar, Finance Secretary AKM Alamgir Khan, executive member Abdus Shakur Chowdhury were present at the presser. l

B2 Bearish spell hits stocks for 3rd week n

Bearish spell swept over stock market for the third week in a row, as poor earnings results that poured in the market accelerated selling pressure.

During the week ended Thursday, the benchmark DSEX lost 138 points or 3% to close the week at 4,417, slipping to five-month low since January 9, 2014. The blue chip index DS30, however, shed 61 points or 4% to 1,604.

The DSE Shariah Index was down 28 points or almost 3% to 985. The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, fell 254 points or 3% to 8,509.

Trading continued to remain sluggish as the daily average turnover of the week stood at Tk364 crore, registering a drop of 5% over the previous week’s average of Tk383 crore.

The market witnessed four instead of usual five trading sessions in the past week, as the market was closed Tuesday due to public holiday on the occasion of Buddha Purnima.

All the major sectors closed in red during the week, food and allied was the biggest loser of the week with 5% loss, followed by pharmaceuticals 4%, non-banking financial institutions 4%, telecommunications 2.9% and energy 2.5%.

“Investor sentiment seems to be highly bearish. Poor first quarter performance by listed companies and banks’ reduction of capital market exposure is getting heavier on market,” said Lanka Bangla Securities, in its weekly market analysis.

The High Court on Wednesday scrapped the provision imposed by

DSE LOSERS

Renata Ltd. -A MBL 1st M. F.-A Bay Leasing.-A ACI Limited- A G Next Fashions-A Shahjalal Islami -A BD Finance-A Apex Footwear-A SonarBangla Insu. -A Rupali Bank - A

Closing (% change) -25.62 -21.43 -18.88 -17.72 -16.49 -15.83 -15.63 -14.01 -13.14 -13.09

CSE LOSERS Company MBL 1st M. F.-A Bay Leasing.-A ACI Limited- A Shahjalal Islami -A G Next Fashions-A BD Finance-A IDLC Finance -A National Bank - B LankaBangla Fin. -A PragatiLife Insu. -A

Closing (% change) -22.35 -19.35 -17.56 -16.43 -16.41 -14.47 -13.12 -12.21 -11.82 -11.24

4416.95723

(-) 3.03%

1604.39147

(-) 3.70%

13657.0914

(-) 2.80%

11204.3141

(-) 3.39%

8508.8447

(-) 2.90%

Average (% change) -25.73 -20.38 -18.03 -17.73 -16.57 -14.79 -15.93 -13.59 -12.09 -11.86 Average (% change) -20.45 -19.11 -17.47 -16.42 -15.38 -15.25 -14.48 -12.30 -11.63 -10.50

ANALYST

Closing average 858.45 6.72 27.82 202.31 16.21 11.87 13.51 397.60 20.57 61.46

Closing average 6.65 27.59 200.61 11.71 16.34 13.50 45.66 11.55 45.75 161.10

Weekly closing 850.80 6.60 27.50 202.00 16.20 11.70 13.50 397.60 20.50 60.40

Weekly closing

Bank NBFI Investment Engineering Food & Allied Fuel & Power Jute Textile Pharma & Chemical Paper & Packaging Service Leather Ceramic Cement Information Technology General Insurance Life Insurance Telecom Travel & Leisure Miscellaneous Debenture

DSE Million Taka 1605.88 751.07 463.23 1241.80 1138.26 1301.70 5.21 2089.23 2159.50 2.29 305.49 162.83 65.58 912.43 101.55 247.23 276.08 1325.73 89.82 310.85 0.86

▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ Weekly high 1150.00 8.90 34.40 248.80 19.70 12.80 16.60 466.90 21.50 71.90

Weekly high

6.60 27.50 200.50 11.70 16.30 13.60 45.70 11.50 45.50 161.10

356,071,295

8.90 34.10 250.00 13.00 19.50 16.30 52.60 12.00 51.50 175.00

343,815

Traded Issues

304

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

74

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

229 1

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,267.63

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

27.49

CSE key features May 11-14, 2014 Turnover (Million Taka)

1,173.65

Turnover (Volume)

32,745,992

Number of Contract

45,806

Traded Issues

245

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

56

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

181

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

7

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,174.87

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

26.36

Turnover in million

846.00 6.50 27.50 187.00 15.00 10.70 13.00 397.60 19.60 60.20

Weekly low

113.945 168.392 28.647 117.508 99.854 37.954 18.440 66.656 1.837 21.910

Turnover in million

6.50 27.50 198.00 11.60 14.90 13.40 45.10 10.90 45.00 161.10

3.692 1.103 6.740 5.410 10.693 1.429 3.195 13.448 23.531 0.338

28.84 14.18 13.43 12.41 11.46 10.34 10.12 9.54 8.78 8.75

CSE GAINERS

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

Weekly low

Rahima Food -Z JMI Syringes MDL-A Kohinoor Chem -A Pharma Aids A Delta SpinnersA Meghna PET Ind. -Z Central Insur -A CVO PetroChem RL-Z Legacy Footwear -A Imam Button -Z

Closing (% change)

Latest EPS 36.56 1.44 1.44 5.28 2.28 -0.88 1.22 -11.44 1.52 3.96

Latest EPS 1.44 1.44 5.28 -0.88 2.28 1.22 -0.88 0.92 1.24 2.38

Latest PE 23.5 4.7 19.3 38.3 7.1 -ve 11.1 -ve 13.5 15.5

Latest PE 4.6 19.2 38.0 -ve 7.2 11.1 -ve 12.6 36.9 67.7

Company Rahima Food -Z Continental Insur. -A Delta SpinnersA JMI Syringes MDL-A Midas Financing-Z Imam Button -Z Legacy Footwear -A CVO PetroChem RL-Z Standard Ceramic -A Saiham Tex.A

Closing (% change) 28.47 13.74 11.98 10.71 10.00 8.75 8.75 7.48 7.32 4.41

Average (% change) 26.72 16.27 13.43 12.92 9.13 7.33 9.95 10.48 9.46 10.00 Average (% change) 24.26 13.93 9.40 15.08 10.00 8.50 9.31 7.21 7.39 3.80

Closing average 54.58 180.92 380.00 207.70 21.04 6.44 27.29 850.78 28.92 8.80

Closing average 54.35 24.04 21.18 179.53 23.10 8.68 28.99 808.36 44.03 30.62

Weekly closing 55.40 177.10 380.00 203.80 21.40 6.40 27.20 843.60 28.50 8.70

Weekly closing 55.50 24.00 21.50 172.70 23.10 8.70 28.60 810.40 44.00 30.80

Weekly high 56.00 186.70 393.00 216.00 22.20 6.50 28.10 900.00 30.20 8.90

Weekly high 56.50 25.00 21.90 184.00 23.10 8.70 30.00 810.50 44.10 31.50

Weekly low 42.70 153.20 335.00 180.00 18.90 6.00 24.10 785.00 25.00 8.00

Weekly low 42.50 24.00 19.00 154.00 23.10 8.00 26.00 800.00 39.60 29.30

Turnover in million

Latest EPS

23.523 89.561 1.920 127.475 123.815 0.138 10.294 188.032 13.261 0.932

Turnover in million

-1.01 2.08 9.37 4.63 0.55 -1.33 3.64 -3.16 0.20 -1.85

Latest EPS

1.965 0.110 12.350 11.117 0.012 0.063 5.936 8.400 0.317 1.151

-1.01 3.00 0.55 2.08 -6.91 -1.85 0.20 -3.16 1.32 3.09

Latest PE -ve 87.0 40.6 44.9 38.3 -ve 7.5 -ve 144.6 -ve

Latest PE -ve 8.0 38.5 86.3 -ve -ve 145.0 -ve 33.4 9.9

Weekly news from trade server ORIONPHARM: 15% cash, AGM: 22.06.2014, Record Date: 21.05.2014. EPS of Tk. 4.06, consolidated NAV per share of Tk. 65.23.

PURABIGEN: 15% stock, AGM: 29.06.2014, Record date: 21.05.2014. EPS of Tk. 1.55, NAV per share of Tk. 13.83.

MBL1STMF: 3% cash, Record date: 02.06.2014. Earnings per unit of Tk. 1.44 for the year ended on March 31, 2014.

AIBL1STIMF: 5.5% cash, Record date: 02.06.2014. Earnings per unit of Tk. 1.49 for the year ended on March 31, 2014.

Audited/unaudited Financial Reports: Unaudited Financials: ULC: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 60.02 million with basic EPS of Tk. 0.47 (restated 0.43) as against Tk. 54.98 million and Tk. 0.43 (0.39) respectively.

ONEBANKLTD: (Q1): NPAT=Tk. 51.40 million with consolidated basic EPS of Tk. 0.11 ( restated 0.10) as against Tk. 25.57 million and Tk. 0.05 respectively.

LINDEBD: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 137.65 million with EPS of Tk. 9.05 as against Tk. 196.39 million and Tk. 12.90 respectively.

IBNSINA: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 16.77 million with basic EPS of Tk. 0.86 ( restated 0.78) as against Tk. 12.80 million and Tk. 0.66 (0.60) respectively.

BDSERVICE (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 66.22 million with EPS of Tk. 0.90 as against Tk. 84.74 million and Tk. 1.15 respectively.

HEIDELBCEM: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 404.53 million with EPS of Tk. 7.16 as against Tk. 470.54 million and Tk. 8.33 respectively.

UNITEDINS: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 24.51 million

with basic EPS of Tk. 0.61 as against Tk. 22.45 million and Tk. 0.56 respectively.

PRAGATIINS: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 34.99 million with basic EPS of Tk. 0.66 (restated 0.63) as against Tk. 66.57 million and Tk. 1.26 (1.20) respectively.

ISLAMIBANK: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 384.05 million with consolidated basic EPS of Tk. 0.26 (restated 0.24) as against Tk. 278.22 million and Tk. 0.19 (0.17) respectively.

NBL: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 356.60 million with consolidated EPS of Tk. 0.25 (restated 0.23) as against Tk. (142.90) million and Tk. -0.10 (-0.09) respectively.

PREMIERBAN: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 206.51 million with consolidated basic EPS of Tk. 0.40 (restated 0.37) as against Tk. 16.40 million and Tk. 0.03 (0.03) respectively.

SHAHJABANK: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. -159.85 million with consolidated basic EPS of Tk. -0.24 ( restated –0.22) as against Tk. 98.46 million and Tk. 0.15 (0.13) respectively.

EXIMBANK: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. -827.26 million with consolidated EPS of Tk. -0.72 (restated –0.64) as against Tk. -740.34 million and Tk. -0.64 (-0.58) respectively.

LANKABAFIN: (Q1): NPAT=Tk. 67.72 million with consolidated EPS of Tk. 0.31 as against Tk. 74.71 million and Tk. 0.34 respectively.

RANFOUNDRY: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 7.67 million with EPS of Tk. 0.77 as against Tk. 7.52 million and Tk. 0.75 respectively.

RENATA: (Q1): NPAT=Tk. 403.30 million with consolidated basic EPS of Tk. 11.42 (restated 9.14) as against Tk. 355.86 million and Tk. 10.08 (8.06) respectively.

ISNLTD: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 0.53 million with EPS of Tk. 0.05 as against Tk. (0.26) million and Tk. (0.02) respectively. Accumulated profit/(loss) of the Company was Tk. (1.19) million as on 31.03.2014.

NHFIL: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 61.68 million with EPS of Tk. 0.58 as against Tk. 0.54 million and Tk. 0.01 respectively.

NITOLINS: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 19.53 million with basic EPS of Tk. 0.90 (restated 0.81) as against Tk. 13.13 million and Tk. 0.61 (0.54) respectively.

RUPALIINS: (Q1): NPAT=Tk. 34.50 million with basic EPS of Tk. 0.66 (restated 0.60) as against Tk. 27.71 million and Tk. 0.53 (0.48) respectively.

PHENIXINS: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 30.64 million with EPS of Tk. 0.76 as against Tk. 29.51 million and Tk. 0.73 respectively.

CENTRALINS: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 37.85 million with EPS of Tk. 0.91 as against Tk. 29.51 million and Tk. 0.71 (restated) respectively.

ICBIBANK: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. (184.09) million with EPS of Tk. (0.28) as against Tk. (3.84) million and Tk. (0.006) respectively. Accumulated profit/(loss) of the Company was Tk. (16,806.56) million as on 31.03.2014 resulting total shareholders' equity stands at Tk. (9,526.77) million.

IDLC: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. (44.94) million with consolidated EPS of Tk. (0.22) as against Tk. 102.67 million and Tk. 0.51 respectively.

EBL: (Q1): NPAT= Tk. 719.68 million with consolidated EPS of Tk. 1.18 as against Tk. 149.32 million and Tk. 0.24 respectively.

Investor sentiment seems to be highly bearish.

Poor first quarter performance by listed companies and banks’ reduction of capital market exposure is getting heavier on market

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY Sector

14,556.63

Number of Contract

Weekly capital market highlights DSE Broad Index : DSE - 30 Index : CSE All Share Index: CSE - 30 Index : CSE Selected Index :

Company

Turnover (Million Taka) Turnover (Volume)

Sunday, May 18, 2014

DSE GAINERS

DSE key features May 11-14, 2014

the securities regulator for individual sponsor-directors to always hold at least 2% shares in listed companies.

“Investors might have taken this negatively,” it said.

However, the Appellate Division on Thursday stayed the order till May 22.

IDLC Investments said investment-hostile economic and political state of the country strangled movements in the capital market, forcing investors to rethink their exposure.

It said mixed quarterly earnings and corporate declaration kept investors nervous throughout this week.

“Investors’ confidence has been hit as any definite stock-wise or sector-wise trend failed to emerge in the market. Especially, financial sector behaved erratically, reflecting investors’ underweighting of accounting numbers in recent investment decision making,” said the merchant bank.

IDLC said forward looking participants remained on the sidelines, considering over budgetary incentives to the market, resulting in sluggish turnover.

In the past week, two companies – Hwa Well Textiles and Wata Chemicals – began trading in the stock market.

Losers took a strong lead over the gainers as out of 303 issues traded during the week, 220 declined, 67 advanced and 16 issues remained unchanged on the DSE. Grameenphone dominated the week’s top turnover chart with shares worth Tk67 crore changing hands, followed by Matin Spinning, Square Pharma, Lafarge Surma Cement and Hwa Well Textiles. l

Tribune Report

Company

Stock

DHAKA TRIBUNE

% change 11.03 5.16 3.18 8.53 7.82 8.94 0.04 14.35 14.84 0.02 2.10 1.12 0.45 6.27 0.70 1.70 1.90 9.11 0.62 2.14 0.01

Million Taka 142.91 52.91 18.54 111.90 109.33 137.15 0.00 308.72 123.83 148.22 10.46 156.68 8.17 97.01 8.66 4.34 16.41 105.39 19.00 37.29 0.06

CSE

% change 8.84 3.27 1.15 6.92 6.76 8.48 0.00 19.09 7.66 9.17 0.65 9.69 0.51 6.00 0.54 0.27 1.02 6.52 1.17 2.31 0.00

Million Taka 1748.79 803.99 481.77 1353.70 1247.58 1438.85 5.21 2397.95 2283.32 150.51 315.95 319.51 73.75 1009.44 110.21 251.57 292.50 1431.11 108.82 348.14 0.91

Total

% change 10.81 4.97 2.98 8.37 7.71 8.90 0.03 14.83 14.12 0.93 1.95 1.98 0.46 6.24 0.68 1.56 1.81 8.85 0.67 2.15 0.01

Prepared exclusively for Dhaka Tribune by Business Information Automation Service Line (BIASL), on the basis of information collected from daily stock quotations and audited reports of the listed companies. High level of caution has been taken to collect and present the above information and data. The publisher will not take any responsibility if any body uses this information and data for his/her investment decision. For any query please email to biasl@bol-online.com or call 01552153562 or go to www.biasl.net

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company Grameenphone-A Matin Spinning-N Square Pharma -A LafargeS Cement-Z Hwa Well Textiles-N Meghna Petroleum -A BD Submarine Cable-A Olympic Ind. -A Emerald Oil Ind. -N HeidelbergCement -A CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company Hwa Well Textiles-N BD Submarine Cable-A HeidelbergCement -A Matin Spinning-N Appollo Ispat CL -N Grameenphone-A City Bank - A LafargeS Cement-Z LankaBangla Fin. -A Square Pharma -A

Volume shares 3,496,141 10,338,600 1,719,374 5,973,000 9,167,500 1,364,034 1,972,577 1,520,441 6,414,000 634,880

Volume shares 2,202,000 331,264 95,350 953,200 1,534,600 151,600 2,302,433 501,000 489,058 71,483

Value in million 939.09 503.80 470.23 406.36 395.19 387.87 386.64 361.36 333.47 331.44

Value in million 94.38 64.77 49.95 46.24 43.35 40.61 39.50 33.71 23.53 19.57

% of total turnover 6.45 3.46 3.23 2.79 2.71 2.66 2.66 2.48 2.29 2.28

% of total turnover 8.58 5.89 4.54 4.20 3.94 3.69 3.59 3.07 2.14 1.78

Weekly closing 264.50 47.10 267.20 67.40 43.50 278.80 190.50 231.40 50.90 512.30

Weekly closing 43.30 190.20 510.60 47.20 27.10 263.70 17.10 67.00 45.50 269.80

Price change -2.97 -1.26 -4.09 -2.60 0.00 -5.30 -1.50 -3.70 0.20 -6.02

Weekly opening 272.60 47.70 278.60 69.20 0.00 294.40 193.40 240.30 50.80 545.10

Weekly high 283.00 50.40 280.00 70.00 45.80 295.00 203.00 242.00 53.30 539.50

Weekly low 250.00 47.00 250.00 66.10 35.00 261.00 177.00 218.00 50.50 500.00

Weekly average 263.91 47.55 269.64 67.01 44.24 277.87 191.87 231.83 51.23 510.32

Price change 0.00 -0.83 -6.14 -0.84 -3.21 -3.23 -4.47 -3.04 -11.82 -3.26

Weekly opening 0.00 191.80 544.00 47.60 28.00 272.50 17.90 69.10 51.60 278.90

Weekly high 45.60 202.00 545.00 50.50 29.30 279.00 17.80 69.60 51.50 278.10

Weekly low 36.10 189.00 501.20 46.60 26.80 261.70 15.70 64.10 45.00 268.00

Weekly average 43.88 191.56 508.08 47.39 27.16 263.84 17.06 66.95 45.75 270.73

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

Sunday, May 18, 2014

B3

Plans to de-risk ‘too-big-to-fail’ banks face hurdles in Europe, Asia

UCB holds conference on strategic development

n Reuters, London

n Tribune Report, Chittagong

Global plans to prevent taxpayers from having to pay for big bank failures are at risk because banking supervisors in Europe and Asia do not fully support some of the proposals aimed at drawing a line under the 2007-2008 financial crisis.

Governments have paid out billions of taxpayer dollars to bail out large banks in trouble because of fears that the fallout from a big collapse would be too damaging.

But leaders of the world’s major economies - the G20 - want to put an end to the “too big to fail” phenomenon. They want the world’s biggest 29 banks to hold enough capital and bonds that in a crisis they would not have to be rescued by governments.

The G20’s regulatory arm, the Financial Stability Board (FSB), wants them all to hold a common “cushion” of bonds that can be converted to equity to help rescue or “bail in” the bank if all other capital has been burnt through.

But there is resistance among supervisors in Europe and Asia to banks having to hold what would be another layer of capital.

FSB Chairman Mark Carney wants a draft rule on the “bail in” bonds by November, when G20 leaders meet in Australia so they can move on from crisis clean-up to growth promotion.

Supporters of a global standard say it is needed because big banks operate across borders.

“It’s very much in the interest of the industry to find a solution to this because we want to get a consensus on the view that too big to fail has been eliminated,” David Schraa, regulatory counsel at the Institute of International Finance, a global banking lobby in Washington, said.

But bankers, bank industry associations and regulators familiar with work on the new “bail in” rule say Asian bank supervisors argue that big banks in the region have enough capital already and

Oil prices rebound in Asia n AFP, Singapore Oil prices rebounded in Asian trade Friday but gains were capped by weak economic data from Europe and oversupply in the United States. New York’s main contract, West Texas Intermediate for June delivery, was up 39 cents at $101.89 a barrel in afternoon trade, while Brent North Sea crude for July gained 20 cents to $109.29.

Gross domestic product across the 18-nation eurozone grew just 0.2% in the three months to March, the Eurostat data agency said, much lower than expectations for 0.4%. “Eurozone GDP was weaker than expected, Germany is fine but the rest of Europe is struggling,” Shailaja Nair, senior managing editor at energy market information provider Platts, told AFP. l

Lead_Bank of England governor and Financial Stability Board Chairman Mark Carney delivers a Financial Stability Board media briefing at the Bank of England in London REUTERS do not need the additional cushion or “debt shield.” They did not want to specify which Asian countries.

Banks around the world are already having to hold far more capital from 2016 as a result of new rules to strengthen them since the financial crisis.

In the European Union, central bankers argue EU banks will already have to contribute to central funds for winding down failed banks and hold bail-in debt under new European laws.

Industry regulators in the EU also want the bail-in debt required in Europe to be accepted as a substitute for what the FSB is planning. Some banking supervisors in Europe also argue that capital banks already hold above

minimum requirements should count towards bail-in debt.

In addition, this year’s EU bank stress test is already pushing banks to raise capital so supervisors are wary of making additional demands on them to issue bail-in bonds.

Global debt shield

Regional bickering over the plans highlights the difficulty of getting agreement on a one-size-fits-all rule that applies across the world.

But failure to get a global consensus will give free rein to regulators to do their own thing, creating a patchwork of rules that would make it tough to wind down an international bank.

For example, the U.S. Federal Reserve may propose its own “debt shield”, requiring foreign banks to hold capital and liquid assets in the country to protect its taxpayers.

Regulatory “hawks” like the United States and Britain want quite detailed rules, while some Asian countries prefer less defined principles, banking officials said.

There are a range of views to be taken into account and refined and many tough issues remaining, a person with knowledge of the new rule said. “There will also be issues with banks that are deposit rich and don’t feel the need to issue more debt instruments,” the person said.

The FSB declined to comment. It will publish the draft rule for public consultation after summit in November.

The world’s biggest banks are already expected to hold a capital buffer equal to about 10% or more of riskweighted assets. The extra cushion or debt shield would come on top of this.

“People are talking about total (debt shield) and capital in the range of 17-20 percent,” a U.S. banking official said.

A source at a European bank that will need a debt shield expects it to be around 10-13%, bringing total debt and capital buffers to 20-25%.

“On the quantity ... we are not seeking an amount ... capable of resurrecting any failing bank including the global giants,” Bank of England Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe said this week in the first comments of substance on the subject from a senior policymaker.

We want there to be sufficient capital to recapitalize the banks that are carrying out critical economic functions to a level where they can regain and maintain market access, he said.

Even if a global standard is eventually agreed, there are doubts it will prevent individual regulators from making their own rules or push them to get rid of existing ones, such as the Fed’s capital requirement for foreign banks.

“I don’t see the Fed doing that anytime soon,” Kenneth Bentsen, chief executive of banking lobby the Global Financial Markets Association, said.

While the regulators argue, markets are already anticipating the demise of too big to fail, an event which is expected to increase banks’ funding costs.

“You have to embrace bail-in as there is no other alternative,” Philippe Bodereau, global head of financial research at bond fund PIMCO, told a conference on Thursday.

“If a large US bank defaults tomorrow, one thing I am pretty sure of is that Congress is not going to give any money to recapitalize, so the era of too big to fail is probably over,” Bodereau said. l

Dollar weaker in Asia as US, eurozone data disappoint n AFP, Tokyo The dollar was under pressure in Asia Friday following a disappointing batch of data out of the United States and eurozone that led investors out of high risk assets.

In afternoon Tokyo trading, the greenback fetched 101.46 yen, down from 101.57 yen in New York and 101.83 yen in Tokyo earlier Thursday.

The euro bought $1.3715 and 139.19 yen compared with $1.3711 and 139.26 yen.

In other trading, the Indian rupee gained more than one percent as the nation’s stock market jumped to a record high.

The dollar bought 58.69 Indian rupees Friday afternoon, down from 59.50 rupees on Thursday, as election

Diamond World has gifted a diamond nosepin to its first ten customers each on its first anniversary of Bashundhara City showroom on May 16. The shop is also providing 27% discount on its products on this occasion, said its managing director Dilip Kumar Agarwal

MoneyGram Money Transfer, official money transfer partner of the “ICC T20 World Cup 2014 Bangladesh” recently conducted a promotional campaign for customers who received transferred money through MoneyGram between January 15 and February 28.

The managing director and CEO of Uttara Bank, Shaikh Abdul distributed gifts to the lucky winners through a prize giving ceremony held at the bank’s head office

results indicated Hindu nationalist party leader Narendra Modi, riding a wave of public support for his pledge to revive the economy, was set to become the country’s next prime minister.

In the eurozone, gross domestic product (GDP) across the 18-nation group expanded just 0.2 percent in January-March, data agency Eurostat said, half the 0.4 percent that had been forecast.

Italy, the third-biggest economy in the bloc, shrank 0.1 percent in that period, while Portugal, which is about to emerge from a bailout, contracted 0.7 percent.

Separately Eurostat confirmed eurozone inflation rose to 0.7 percent in April, up from the 0.5 percent reported in March but still well off the European

Central Bank’s 2% target.

While there was a bright spot with Germany seeing growth double to 0.8 percent, the data add to expectations the European Central Bank (ECB) will ease monetary policy conditions to kick-start growth in the region and soothe fears of deflation.

“The euro has been capped of late, mainly on the back of lower-than-expected growth data and as most ECB members supported the view of more aggressive monetary policy action being considered as soon as next month,” Credit Agricole said.

“However, it appears that the jury is still out when it comes to aggressive measures,” it added.

Adding to the unease, US industrial production fell 0.6 percent in April after two months of gains, although new

The Dhaka Mercantile Co-operative Bank Ltd recently donated four families of Rana Plaza victims with one tailoring machine each at the company’s Narail branch. Abdul Gaffar Khan, DC of Narail distributed the machines as chief guest at the presence of the company’s vice chair Captain (retd) Abu Zafar Chowdhury

EXIM Bank launched its branch at new premises in Bashundhara recently. The bank’s board audit committee chair, Omor Farque Bhuiyan inaugurated the branch as chief guest

jobless claims hit a seven-year low last week.

“Markets prefer to focus on the negative at the moment... and this dominated over some relatively good news,” National Australia Bank said. “That tone is likely to stay for now.”

The dollar was mixed against other Asia-Pacific currencies. It weakened to 11,401.80 Indonesian rupiah from 11,446.80 rupiah, to Tw$30.15 from Tw$30.16, and to 1,025.16 South Korean won from 1,026.44 won.

The US unit rose to Sg$1.2520 from Sg$1.2509, to 43.75 Philippine pesos from 43.70 pesos and to 32.48 Thai baht from 32.45 baht.

The Australian dollar weakened to 93.53 US cents from 93.72 cents while the Chinese yuan slipped to 16.26 yen from 16.30 yen. l

United Commercial Bank Limited (UCB) yesterday held a business conference for its managers of Chittagong branches at a local club in Chittagong.

Strategic development and financial excellence of the bank came to focus at the conference.

The bank’s management also addressed issues regarding financial inclusion through client-friendly products and services.

The bank’s managing director Muhammed Ali presided over the conference.

UCB has been selected as the best bank in Bangladesh for the category of Best Emerging Markets Banks in Asia-Pacific 2014 by a finance magazine named Global Finance, said Muhammed Ali at a press briefing after the conference.

He added: “The award is undoubtedly an achievement for us and the country.”

The bank’s additional managing director M Shahidul Islam, deputymanaging directors Mohammad Abu Abdullah, Md Tariqul Azam and Mohammad Shawkat Jamil were present at the conference among others. l

Apple, Google settle smartphone patent litigation n Reuters, San Francisco Apple Inc and Google Inc’s Motorola Mobility unit have agreed to settle all patent litigation between them over smartphones, ending one of the highest-profile lawsuits in technology.

In a joint statement on Friday, the companies said the settlement does not include a cross license to their respective patents. “Apple and Google have also agreed to work together in some areas of patent reform,” the statement said.

Apple and companies that make phones using Google’s Android software have filed dozens of such lawsuits against one another around the world to protect their technology. Apple cofounder Steve Jobs called Android a “stolen product.”

Google and Apple informed a federal appeals court in Washington that their cases against each other should be dismissed, according to filings on Friday. However, the deal does not apply to Apple’s litigation against Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. Apple has battled Google and what once were the largest adopters of its Android mobile software, partly to try to curb the rapid expansion of the free, rival operating system.

But it has been unable to slow Android’s ascendancy, which is now installed on an estimated 80% of new phones sold every year. Motorola, the US company that pioneered the mobile phone, no longer ranks among the biggest smartphone makers. l

World Academy for Research & Development Ltd (WARD) has organised WARD HR Summit 2014 on Friday at the conference hall of the Wings Centre in Dhanmondi, Dhaka.

Khaleda Akter, ex ioint chief and director WARD was the chair of the session

SRSG Broadcast (India) Pvt Ltd, a system integrator company has recently launched its products and services in Bangladesh that include turnkey solutions on setting up of TV and FM channels. The photo shows Sanjib Mekup, CEO of the company along with officials from Ministry of Information in a launching ceremony held at a city hotel

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Sunday, May 18, 2014

What gets measured gets done What doesn’t is given lower priority. After all, we are only human n Sigve Brekke My previous two rules have been about the importance of storytelling and of having a simple, focused and actionable strategy.

These are essential tools for leaders, as they help boost motivation and engagement. But the strongest motivator of all is to strive for, and to reach, your targets. That’s why it is so important to break your big targets into smaller pieces. You need to know not only where to go and how to get there. You need constant feedback to understand how you perform – every single day.

Most industries measure performance through a set of simple key indicators. As we know, some companies measure on a quarterly or a monthly basis, others on a weekly basis. The faster the industry, the more frequently they measure. We measure our own performance in the market every single day, and use the data to adjust plans and tactics – to implement tomorrow. I believe in performance management not as a tool for control or for shifting blame around, but as a working tool to motivate people and to work smarter.

Our performance focus started in Thailand. We had just entered as owners in dtac, and we were working on transforming the organization. For me and my co-CEO, Vichai, one of our most important goals was to build a team of highly engaged staff, setting a completely different tone within dtac and evolving a new identity. The real challenge, as always, was engaging the middle management. So I challenged them with a very tangible goal: run a mini marathon with me. I am an avid runner, but most of my colleagues in dtac’s management found the thought of even putting on running shoes

next to impossible. I told them in a morning meeting that I wanted 100 members of the extended management team to run 10 kilometers. We called it the “Impossible Race”.

During the 12 weeks from when the challenge was posed and leading up to the day of the race, we lined up a detailed training program. We ran several days a week, often together, and we made sure people worked out in ways that would bring them closer to the target: finishing a 10-km run. It became

not so much a question of the race itself, but about the larger race we were in as a company – facing strong competitors with well-established brands in a rapidly growing market. dtac was an underdog, but our team was not accustomed to acting like one.

On the day of the race, more than 700 executives completed the 10 km faster than the cut-off time. And for many of them, the Impossible Race brought lasting change to their lives: they started running and working

out regularly. dtac went on to become a leading brand in Thai telecoms – and the second largest operator in Thailand. Clear, achievable goals and highly visible measurement led to real results and lasting change.

Change was also needed in Uninor in India in 2010. Our strategy was sound – we would be about basic services, mass market distribution and ultra-low costs. But the strategy did not say much about execution.

In the ultra-competitive Indian mobile mar-

ket, we knew we had to stay constantly on top of what happened in the streets. Competitors would copy products or services overnight, launch dirt-cheap campaigns or give away prepaid connections for free to try to force us out of business.

Our response was twofold. First, we set common targets throughout the organization. Our leaders would convene every month and agree on targets for their region, and if one could not commit to a certain number, a colleague would step in to take more. That way we ensured the organization moved ahead even when local or seasonal trends were against us. This open target setting was new to most of our leaders, but brought about a team spirit at the top management level like we had never seen. Similar target setting – by negotiation and open discussion – happened at every level down to the “beat”, a defined route of 30-40 retail outlets serviced daily by our field force staff. The big goals agreed by regional leaders were broken down by zones and territories, and target numbers were developed for every day.

The second response was about followup. In Uninor, it’s called a “war room” – a meeting in the morning to take stock of targets for the day, and a meeting in the afternoon to see how we had performed.

Reports were shared with the team – not only with top management but at every level of the organization. Each retail executive and sales manager could at any time check his or her performance on our automated sales tracking system. I would argue that this constant feedback – the sense that every sale, every sealed deal brought the individual, the team and the company closer to its targets, is the single most powerful motivating factor in Uninor. Reaching

targets translated to bonuses, but often just as important: recognition, the respect and admiration of your colleagues.

Telenor’s high performance in Asia is built around people, fostering teamwork, energy and enthusiasm. Balancing this, structured negotiations ensure ambitious, but realistic targets, and logical, disciplined, constant measurements ensure we all strive to be a little bit better every day. The only way to eat an elephant is to do it bit by bit. And that’s how we set our targets – not for the month or for the week, but for every day. What you do not win today you cannot take back tomorrow. At Uninor, we call it “Winning Every Day”.

Alright, you say. But can this be translated to a more mature company? To another market? To be honest, I wasn’t sure. But in January last year, we had to do just that.

Our 17-year-old operation in Bangladesh, Grameenphone, was losing ground to competition. Vivek, our CEO at Grameenphone, introduced measures that had made Uninor succeed: common target setting, constant measurements, continuous feedback, encouraging friendly competition between regions. When I came back to Bangladesh in April, the sales manager of the winning region told me it had been the most rewarding quarter of his entire career: “We know what we have to deliver, we all work together towards that target, and we reached it. I have never had this much fun at work.”

How do measurements impact your work? Are you energized or antagonized?

And how is your organization dealing with the vast intelligence available to showcase your own performance? Tell me in the comments field below! l Sigve Brekke is the head of Telenor Asia

Google buys written language translation startup n AFP, San Francisco Google on Friday confirmed it has bought a startup specializing in using smartphones to translate signs, billboards or other written words in real time.

'With Word Lens, we’ve seen the beginnings of what’s possible when we harness the power of mobile devices to see the world in your language' Quest Visual and the technology built into its Word Lens application will become part of a Google team devoted to developing translation features and services.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed and Google declined to make any comment on the record.

“With Word Lens, we’ve seen the beginnings of what’s possible when we harness the power of mobile devices to see the world in your language,” Quest said in a blog post.

“By joining Google, we can incorporate Quest Visual’s technology into Google Translate’s broad language coverage and translation capabilities in the future.”

Word Lens uses smartphone video cameras to “read” words in one language and translate them into another almost instantly without need for network connections.

Versions of the application have been tailored for smartphones powered by Apple or Android software as well as for Google Glass eyewear that links to the Internet.

The news came as Google this week began letting anyone in the United

States buy Glass, priced at $1,500 a pair.

Google has promised lower-priced, fashionably versions of Glass in the not too distant future and has been prepping the market for their arrival.

Fashion industry veteran and jewelry artist Ivy Ross will take charge of Google’s Glass efforts beginning Monday, according to the California-based technology titan.

“I look forward to answering the seemingly simple, but truly audacious questions Glass poses,” Ross said in a post at Google+ social network.

“Can technology be something that frees us up and keeps us in the moment, rather than taking us out of it?”

Her resume includes stints at Calvin Klein, Swatch, Coach, Mattel, Bausch & Lomb, Gap and, most recently, Art.com.

The decision to open the “Glass” test, or beta, program on Wednesday to anyone with enough money and curiosity came about a month after a oneday sale of the eyewear to the public. l

Employees speak with David Cann (centre), CEO and Co-founder of Double Robotics, on a Telepresence "Double" Robot at the company's headquarters office in Sunnyvale, California. Double Robotics is a technology startup company that produces an iPad-based telepresence robot called Double AFP

Global and local funds may drive next push in Indian equity rally

Banks to return 6.155bn euros in crisis loans to ECB next week

n Reuters, London

n Reuters, Frankfurt

With emerging equity funds positioned for a business-friendly outcome to India’s election, any further boost for the pumped-up stock market may come from global funds whose India allocation still has room to grow.

Election results due on Friday are expected to reveal a strong mandate for the opposition BJP, seen as more probusiness than its rivals. Those expectations have fuelled year-to-date stock market gains of 14% and a 4% rise in the rupee’s exchange rate against the dollar.

Foreigners betting on a BJP victory have poured more than $16bn into Indian stocks and bonds in the past six months and now hold over 22% of Mumbai-listed equities - a stake estimated by Morgan Stanley at almost $280bn.

But does the market have room to rally further?

The short-term answer is yes - a majority for the BJP, as indicated by this week’s exit polls, will bring more gains.

Societe Generale, for instance, predicts Mumbai stocks currently at 23,800 points will hit 25,000 if a big BJP win materialises.

Funds dedicated to emerging equities may be running out of room to extend positions, however - they currently run a record 600 basis-point overweight on India, Morgan Stanley estimates.

That means India comprises a much bigger share in portfolios than its 6.8%

weight in the MSCI emerging markets index.

That is borne out by other data. Bank of America/Merrill Lynch’s monthly survey showed India is the biggest overweight for emerging market funds, while emerging equity funds tracked

by Boston-based EPFR Global have an average 9% allocation to Indian stocks.

“Positioning is certainly a reason to be wary; the marginal foreign buyer going forward will need to be more global than Asian or emerging market dedicated portfolio managers,” Morgan Stanley said, advising emerging market clients to stay neutral.

Despite predicting post-election gains, Societe Generale also told clients this week to “rotate out of India” for what it called more attractive opportunities elsewhere in Asia.

Global

But positioning by funds with a global rather than an emerging markets mandate is less extreme - Goldman Sachs calculates they hold a smaller 130 bps overweight on India.

These funds, which have a broader pool of stocks to choose from, have held off from buying into the India election story, possibly daunted by the scale of challenges facing the new government and India’s poor track record on reform.

Valuations, too, are not alluring.

Growth is well off the 8-9% rates of

some years ago, and company earnings are weak, yet shares trade at 14 times forward earnings, in line with longterm averages.

One of many global investors that is neutral on Indian equities is ING Investment Management. That means it is holding allocations level with India’s share in equity indices - in the MSCI allcountry index, which includes developed as well as emerging economies, India’s weight is a tiny 0.7%.

“We need a very good result to get more upside, an environment where the BJP can push through all the reforms that are needed. I am not convinced,” said Maarten-Jan Bakkum, investment strategist at ING IM. Yet global funds’ assets dwarf the amounts managed by dedicated emerging funds - MSCI, the most widely used index provider, has $8tn benchmarked to its indices worldwide but only $1.3tn of that tracks emerging indices.

So even a tiny allocation shift by global funds would bring billions of dollars into the market.

Meanwhile, Indian funds, suffering redemptions by jittery retail investors, have dumped shares worth 98.5bn rupees ($1.67bn) in 2014, the third year of outflows, regulatory data shows. That brings their share of the market to a sixyear low, according to Mumbai-based Motilal Oswal brokerage.

Goldman Sachs reckons a convincing opposition win would bring in these buyers as well as more globally

oriented funds.

“Global funds still have very low allocations in India, and we continue to see global funds and longer-term investors increasing their allocations in this market should fundamentals improve as we expect,” analysts at the bank said.

Reform

Some may feel a sense of deja vu, however. Indian stocks jumped 18% on May 18, 2009, after the Congress-led alliance won enough parliamentary seats to avoid a coalition with anti-reform parties.

But that was their high point for years amid disappointing progress on reforms and a raft of corruption scandals.

This time, markets may have priced not just a BJP election win but also swift reforms and a return to doubledigit growth.

“The BJP may provide strong leadership, and a strong prime minister is what India has been missing. But until roads and power capacity are built, we can’t dream of 8 percent growth,” said Steve O’Hanlon, a fund manager at ACPI Investments.

Indian markets have room to rally, O’Hanlon reckons, but he bases his view on the improved balance of payments deficit and trust in the new central bank governor to bring down inflation.

“I don’t think the story changes that much (post-election), India has turned the corner in terms of policies,” he said. l

Banks will return 6.155bn euros ($8.44bn) in long-term crisis loans to the European Central Bank next week, more than this week and than was expected as banks trim down their reliance on ECB funding and return to the markets.

The amount banks will repay on May 21 is more than this week’s repayments of 3.365bn euros, and above the 3.5bn forecast in a Reuters poll.

Banks are voluntarily offloading the crisis loans they took from the ECB in late 2011 and early 2012 in anticipation of Europe-wide bank stress tests, which will over the next couple of months check how the lenders hold up under certain scenarios.

The tests are part of a broader balance sheet review done by ECB before it takes over as bank supervisor in November.

The repayments have reduced the amount of spare cash in the system to levels that have started to put upward pressure on overnight bank-to-bank

DILBERT

lending rates. EONIA has shot above the ECB’s main rate of 0.25% several times now, but stood at 0.172% on Thursday.

Excess liquidity, which is the measure of money that banks have beyond what they need for their day-to-day operations, stood at 113bn euros on Friday, recovering from 74bn euros last week as banks adjust their funding.

ECB President Mario Draghi pointed out last week that recent volatility in short-term money market rates had not spilled over into the medium-term and that more liquidity in the EONIA market was to some extent a positive sign as banks were going back to the market and fragmentation was receding.

“In other words, banks rely less on the ECB and more on each other,” Draghi said in the post policy meeting news conference.

On Friday, the ECB said three banks would repay 5.005bn euros from the first LTRO on May 21, and two banks would pay back 1.15bn from the second LTRO. l