16 July 2014

Shraban 1, 1421 Ramadan 17, 1435 Regd. No. DA 6238 Vol 2, No 106

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Now National Bank stuck in loan tangles

‘Jinn-er Badshah’ duping people during Ramadan Jamil Khan and n Mohammad Syed Samiul Basher Anik

Business groups using influences got huge classified loans rescheduled n Jebun Nesa Alo Mindless restructuring of classified loans and the 2010 stock debacle have pushed the National Bank Limited to a precarious situation, with interest incomes stuck and the central bank apparently caring little about the bank’s miseries.

Sources said, if NBL was not allowed to regularise the huge classifiable loans, it would not have been able to show the Tk211 crore profit for the year ending December 2013 and hence not have paid any dividend to its shareholders.

‘Some large loans to major business groups have become burdensome’ In December last year, the central bank relaxed loan rescheduling conditions, allowing banks to reschedule the classified loans given to the business entities affected by political turmoil.

However, National Bank Limited (NBL), taking advantage of that, indiscriminately regularised huge classified loans by rescheduling, without actually being sure whether the borrowers would be paying the interests or not.

The bank also renewed some big classifiable loans of major business groups through “shadowy” deals, many of which were orchestrated by politically influential people, sources said.

Allegedly, rather than monitoring the bank’s activities, the Bangladesh

Bank actually allowed and at times turned a blind eye towards many of these shadowy deals.

Although on papers the bank is a profitable organisation, but in reality, it has “hidden” hundreds of crores of taka worth losses, just to save its face in the market.

A staggering 40% of the large loans of the bank is stuck with three major business groups of the country namely S Alam, Maisha and Beximco.

Of them, S Alam has a loan of Tk1,193 crore with the NBL, which is more than the amount that a single entity is allowed to borrow from a commercial bank.

Meanwhile, Maisha and Beximco groups, whose owners are said to be close with the ruling party, have Tk1,125.55 crore and Tk468 crore loans with the NBL respectively. The Maisha loan also exceeds the NBL’s single borrower exposure limit.

S Alam and Maisha groups have not been paying the loan interests for around two years on various “unacceptable” grounds, hugely affecting the profitability of the commercial bank, once known as one of the better ones in the country.

NBL Managing Director AKM Shafiqur Rahman told the Dhaka Tribune: “It is true that the financial health of the bank has deteriorated mainly because of the growing non-performing loan figure and the huge losses that we suffered in the share market crash.”

He also admitted that some large loans given to major business groups had become burdensome for the  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Schoolgoers cover their face as they cross the dust-filled road in Mirpur’s Beribadh area. Lack of maintenance causes distress to both pedestrians and commuters every day MEHEDI HASAN

Israel, Hamas battle as Egyptian ceasefire proposal collapses n Reuters Israel resumed air strikes in the Gaza Strip yesterday, six hours after agreeing to an Egyptian-proposed truce that failed to halt Hamas rocket attacks.

“Hamas has fired 47 rockets since we suspended our strikes in Gaza (this morning). As a result, we have resumed our operation against Hamas,” an Israeli military statement said.

Under a blueprint announced by Egypt - Gaza’s neighbour and whose military-backed government has been at odds with Hamas Islamists - a mutual “de-escalation” of week-old fighting was to have begun at 9 a.m. (0600 GMT), with hostilities ceasing within 12 hours.

Hamas’ armed wing, the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, rejected the ceasefire, saying its battle with Israel would “increase in ferocity and intensity”.

But Moussa Abu Marzouk, a top Hamas official who was in Cairo, had said

the movement, which is seeking a deal that would ease border restrictions imposed by both Egypt and Israel, had made no final decision on the proposal.

P8 8 OF 10 KILLED ARE CIVILIANS Live television showed Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepting several rockets over the port city of Ashdod, where a factory was hit. Emergency services said no one was hurt.

Sirens also sounded in areas up to 130 kilometres (80 miles)north of the Gaza Strip. The Qassam Brigades claimed responsibility for some of the rocket launchings.

Speaking in Vienna, US Secretary of State John Kerry supported Israel: “I cannot condemn strongly enough the actions of Hamas in so brazenly firing rockets, in multiple numbers, in the face of a goodwill effort (to secure) a ceasefire.”

Gaza health officials said at least 184 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed in eight days of fighting, the worst Israel-Palestinian flareup in two years.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose security cabinet voted 6-2 earlier on Tuesday to accept the truce, had cautioned that Israel would respond strongly if rockets continued to fly.

An Israeli official, speaking as the Israeli strikes resumed, said: “The prime minister and the defence minister have ordered the Israeli armed forces to take powerful action against terrorist targets in Gaza.”

Earlier, Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesman in Gaza, said that demands the movement has made must be met before it lays down its weapons.

Other Palestinian militant groups - Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the  PAGE 2 COLUMN 3

Frauds posing as “Jinn-er Badshah” or the king of supernatural beings have been busy throughout Ramadan exploiting the religious sentiments of Muslims by duping them and demanding money with late-night phone calls.

Different gangs of such swindlers – mostly based in Gaibandha – trick people by offering them fake information about alleged valuable assets in exchange for money; while reluctance to pay money to the “Jinn-er Badshah” often ended in threats and intimidations over phone.

Seeking anonymity, a person who recently became the target of such a scam told the Dhaka Tribune that someone claiming to be “Jinn-er Badshah” called his mobile phone at 2:30am on July 10.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

SEHRI & IFTAR TIME Day Ramadan 17/July 16 Ramadan 18/July 17

Sehri – 3.50am

Iftar 6.52pm 6.52pm

2

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

HC asks for setting up testing units for imported fruits n Nazmus Sakib The High Court has asked the government to set up chemical testing units at all ports, within the next six months, in order to test whether imported fruits have been treated with harmful chemicals.

In the full judgement released yesterday, the High Court bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury (now elevated to Appellate Division) and Justice Jahangir Hossain (now a member of International Crimes Tribunal-1) also gave four other directives in this regard.

The court asked the Inspector General of Police, Director General of Rapid Action Battalion and Director of Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution to monitor fruit markets and depots across the country every month using surveillance committees to ensure that no one can sell chemical-treated fruits in the markets.

The bench further ordered the Rajshahi Metropolitan Police Commissioner and Rajshahi Range Deputy

Inspector General of Police to deploy personnel at mango groves (commercial) in district and in other major harvesting areas to stop the use of chemicals for ripening mangoes.

Apart from the directives, the court also asked the government to formulate a guideline for controlling chemical usage for ripening fruits, within the six months.

These guidelines should be distributed among field-level administration across the country so that they could take action in this regard, the verdict added.

At the same time, the law enforcement agencies have been asked to take action as per existing laws for using toxic chemicals on fruits.

The HC bench also directed the government to issue a circular announcing the court directives for field-level administration officials.

The short verdict was delivered in February 29, 2012 following a writ petition filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh in 2010. l

DU expels 10 BCL men for attacking journalists n DU Correspondent Dhaka University authorities yesterday expelled 10 activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League, student wing of the ruling party, for attacking journalists on the campus centering a football match on Monday.

The decision was made at a meeting presided over by the VC, said acting proctor Amzad Ali. Among the activists, Mizan of political science, Sharif of history, Bidyut of management and information system, Abdul Hamid of philosophy, Zakir of finance and Sohagh have been suspended for one year. Mehdi of international relations, Rahat of sociology, Pervez of Sanskrit, and Nobel of criminology and criminal justice department have been suspended for six months.

Two other students – Tapan and Mokhlesh – were issued notices to explain their roles. l

After having suffered torture of various kinds for two months in Iraq, Hannan (right) and his brother Uzzal come back home yesterday.

The siblings spent Tk3.7 lakh for going to the middle eastern country for what they thought would be a better living RAJIB DHAR

Government goes tough against fake quarantine certificates n Kamran Reza Chowdhury

The government’s plant protection yesterday issued an ultimatum for exporters, asking them to stop dispatching contaminated vegetable consignments with fake phytosanitary certificates. Or else, the exporters would have to face business termination to the European Union, which for the first time had raised questions about the competence of the quarantine authority in Bangladesh.

EU policy stipulates that no plant or plant product will enter any of its 28 states without phytosanitary certificate from the national plant protection wing, stating that the consignments contained no pest, bacteria, virus and substances harmful for the environment and human health.

Over the past few months, the EU states detected over 100 consignments either contaminated with pests and viruses, although some had phytosanitary certificates from the Plant Protection Wing of Bangladesh. Then again, many of the consignments had no such certificates at all.

In a letter to the Bangladesh mission in Brussels, the EU said the situation did not improve despite the government’s repeated assurance of improvements. It also threatened to stop vegetable import from Bangladesh.

Bangladesh ambassador to Brussels Ismat Jahan informed the matter to the commerce secretary asking for a national plan of action to stop such practices. The ambassador’s letter prompted the quarantine wing to summon the

Universities to have quality assurance units n Mushfique Wadud

The University Grants Commission is set to establish quality assurance units at all public and private universities, said UGC Chairman AK Azad Chowdhury.

The unit will monitor quality of teaching, research activities and students and submit annual performance reports to the vice-chancellors, the UGC and the Education Ministry.

“To improve quality in the country’s higher education appears to be the main challenge now. The quality

assurance unit will contribute vastly to meeting that demand,” AK Azad Chowdhury said. “It will also help create competition among the universities for the sake of improving quality.”

The unit would be established under the UGC’s Higher Education Quality Enhancement Project financed by the World Bank.

AK Azad told the Dhaka Tribune that the World Bank would bear the entire expense in the first year, 25% of it from the second and, ultimately, the universities would have to meet the costs. l

vegetable exporters and convey the message.

Bangladesh’s vegetable export, mainly destined to the EU, fetches $200m every year.

'We have asked them to give undertaking to us that they will not counterfeit the phytosanitary certificates. And they agreed to do so' The envoy requested the Commerce Ministry to send a plan of action to her by July 25 so that she could send it to the EU authorities and save vegetable export.

“From the phone number 01857124750, a person claiming to be Jinn-er Badshah called me and recited some verses from the Qur’an. Later, I was told that I will get different assets including a large amount of gold from God that was now buried in a secret place.

“The person who called said if I wanted to get the asset, which was valued at Tk74 crore, I will have to send him five jaynamaj [prayer mats]. When I asked him how and where to send it, he said I do not have to deliver the jaynamaj by hand, rather I have to send

Tk3,050 to a phone number,” the victim said.

The voice on the other end told the victim that he would later be told about how much more needs to be paid for information on getting the asset.

Calls came repeatedly from the same number on the following day, but the victim did not answer any of those calls.

“When I received a call on July 13, he threatened me over phone that if I do not pay the money, God will harm to me.”

The victim later filed a general diary with the Adabar police station in this regard.

Sharif, a Dhanmondi resident, also

 PAGE 1 COLUMN 5

Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine - also said they had not yet agreed to the Egyptian offer.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who reached an agreement with Hamas in April that led to the formation of a unity government last month, urged acceptance of the proposal, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA said.

Failed ceasefire

amos Gilad, a senior Israeli defence official and envoy to Cairo, told Israel’s Army Radio that Hamas had been weakened by the air and sea bombardment of Gaza, having tried “every possible means of striking at Israel.”

Hundreds of rockets fired at Israel

faced similar threats from a “Jinn-er Badshah” recently. He received a phone call from the number 01956713810, with the person at the other end claiming to be the king of supernatural beings and demanding Tk5,000.

“The caller instructed me to pay the money to the Sylhet Shahjalal Majar; but as I did not pay the money two days after the initial phone call, he called again and threatened me. However, I avoided the matter,” said Sharif, adding that the phone number had been switched off from July 13.

Intelligence officials of Rapid Action

Now National Bank stuck in loan tangles  PAGE 1 COLUMN 2

bank because interest incomes had got stuck.

S Alam Group

The S Alam Group, one of the leading business groups in the country, has a staggering amount of around Tk4,500 crore loan in the banking sector.

According to rules, since the group has not been paying any interest to the NBL for a long time, its loan should have been marked classified.

The S Alam has always been citing “slow business” as the reason for its failure to pay the installments.

The NBL extended the loan limit for S Alam by adding the unpaid interests with the principle amount. That is actually how this particular large loan exceeded the single borrower exposure limit.

Interestingly, the central bank gave a no objection certificate to this deal on condition that S Alam group would repay parts of the loan in steps and re-

duce the principle amount to bring it under the exposure limit.

However, the NBL has never quite managed to get the payments out of S Alam group; neither did the central bank ever monitored the state of affairs.

NBL MD Shafiqur told the Dhaka Tribune: “S Alam group could not pay the installments because [they said] their business had been affected by political unrest.

Although Bangladesh Bank has asked us to bring down the loan amount gradually, we cannot do it right now. But we hope that they will pay us in future because their [S Alam’s] business is running.”

Maisha Group

The Maisha Group, owned by ruling party MP Aslamul Haque, owes Tk1,125.55 crore to the NBL for building a theme park in Gazipur.

However, after getting the loan, the group said it had “suddenly” discovered that the theme park project would not be profitable.

to give undertaking to us that they will not counterfeit the phytosanitary certificates. And they agreed to do so”.

Exporter Mahbubur Rahman admitted that the quarantine officials had asked them to give undertaking about not giving any counterfeit phytosanitary certificates.

He, however, declined to elaborate.

The Awami League in 2011 formulated the Plant Quarantine Act that empowered the government to turn the existing Plant Protection Wing into the National Plant Quarantine Authority.

The law came into effect from July 1.

But the authority is yet to be formed.

Institution of such authority would equip the Plant Protection Wing with better laboratory facilities and human resources. l

The European Union has renewed its call to all political parties to engage in dialogue to find a solution to the election-time government issue.

“Dialogue is as necessary as ever and confrontation and violence is never the way forward,” EU Ambassador to Bangladesh William Hanna said at a press briefing yesterday.

Hanna is scheduled to leave Dhaka for his new positing in Ghana before this Eid. The envoy said EU had expressed concern several times on the state of democracy in Bangladesh.

Development cooperation

The envoy also informed that the EU had decided to increase grant assistance by 40% for the next seven years.

Bangladesh would receive 100m euro every year as development assistance.

“We will focus this new support on education, skills, food security, nutrition and democratic governance,” he said. l

Israel, Hamas battle as Egyptian ceasefire proposal collapses

‘Jinn-er Badshah’ duping people during Ramadan  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

The EU has already banned betel leaf import from Bangladesh as it contained bacteria salmonella.

“Most of the phytosanitary certificates the exporters attached with the consignments to the EU are fake. We do not compromise with the quality of the products,” Ahsan Ullah, a deputy director of the Plant Protection Wing of the Department of Agricultural Extension, told the Dhaka Tribune after the meeting with the exporters.

He said, “We have made it clear today that unless they stopped dispatching vegetables with fake phytosanitary certificates, we will do everything possible to stop their export business.”

Quarantine officer Hafizur Rahman, who attended the meeting, told the Dhaka Tribune: “We have asked them

EU renews call for dialogue over polltime government n Sheikh Shahriar Zaman

After having failed to utilise the fund, the Maisha Group should have returned the money to the bank. But it did not do so; instead, it discontinued installment payment.

Instead, the group had recently been trying to get a limit extension on the loan saying that it now wanted to set up a power plant with the money, sources said. In this case too, the central bank has allowed the violation of the single borrower exposure limit for no apparent reason.

“Maisha group took the loan for setting up a theme park; but it did not do it because the project was not profitable.

We suggested it to set up a power plant by utilising the loan so that we can get some return,” said NBL MD Shafiqur.

Beximco Group

GMG Airlines, a concern of Beximco Group, owed Tk138 crore to the NBL. The loan got classified after the company was shut down in 2012.

have caused no fatalities, largely due to Iron Dome. But the strikes are a threat that send people rushing into shelters.

Israel had mobilised tens of thousands of troops for a threatened Gaza invasion if the rocket salvoes persisted.

“We still have the possibility of going in, under cabinet authority, and putting an end to (the rockets),” Gilad said.

In overnight attacks before the brief ceasefire, Israel said it had bombed 25 sites in Gaza. Palestinian medical officials said a 63-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman were killed Under the ceasefire proposal announced by Egypt’s Foreign Ministry, high-level delegations from Israel and the Palestinian factions would hold

separate talks in Cairo within 48 hours to consolidate the ceasefire with “confidence-building measures”.

The surge in hostilities over the past week was prompted by the murder last month of three Jewish seminary students in the occupied West Bank and the revenge killing on July 2 of a Palestinian youth in Jerusalem.

Israel said on Monday three Jews in police custody had confessed to killing the Palestinian.

Hamas leaders have said a ceasefire must include an end to Israel’s blockade of Gaza and a recommitment to a truce reached in an eight-day war there in 2012. Hamas also wants Egypt to ease restrictions at its Rafah crossing with Gaza imposed after the military

toppled Islamist president Mohamed Mursi last July.

The Egyptian proposal made no mention of Rafah or when restrictions might be eased.

Hamas has faced a cash crisis and Gaza’s economic hardship has deepened as a result of Egypt’s destruction of cross-border smuggling tunnels. Cairo accuses Hamas of aiding anti-government Islamist militants in Egypt’s Sinai peninsula, an allegation the Palestinian group denies.

Hamas has said it also wants the release of hundreds of its activists arrested in the West Bank while Israel searched for the three missing teens.

The proposed truce also made no mention of the detainees. l

Battalion said such crimes originated from Gobindaganj village of Gaibandha where the village residents did nothing but run such scams. The ringleader of the village and gang was Azmal, who started his scam business about 10 to 15 years ago, they added.

In May, Azmal was arrested by RAB 13; while during his interrogation, Azmal reportedly provided details on how the scams were run.

“After the mobile phone network covered the entire country, Azmal started phoning people in the middle of the night claiming to be Jinn-er Badshah

and demanding money through mobile banking,” Washim Feroz, operation officer of RAB 13, told the Dhaka Tribune.

When contacted, AB Jahidul Islam, officer-in-charge of Gobindaganj police station in Gaibandha, said there was over 300-400 criminals who were involved in such criminal activities. Although police raids often managed to arrest a number of criminals, they soon returned to their business after securing bail, he said.

The OC added that it was easy for gang members to get bail as the plaintiffs – in most cases – were from out of

town and did not stay in the area to follow up with case proceedings.

Asked about the issue, director of RAB’s Intelligence Wing, Abul Kalam Azad, told the Dhaka Tribune that the criminal gang, who were based in Gaibandha’s Gobindaganj, duped people by promising them different valuables.

“We have often conducted drives to arrest the gang members, but most of the time it is not possible to recover the money as the criminals have already spent it,” he said, adding that better awareness would put a stop to such crimes. l

However, in December 2013, after the central bank relaxed conditions, GMG Airlines got its loan rescheduled without actually showing any specific source of income.

The banking regulator approved GMG’s cause without analysing its performance. As a result, the company had not been able to pay the installments.

NBL MD said: “We are trying to put pressure on GMG Airlines for making it pay the installments.”

reduced its non-performing loan burden by taking advantage of the central bank’s relaxed loan rescheduling policy.

It regularised a total of Tk1,193.66 crore of classified loans with 14 borrowers, including the big three, against down payments of only Tk23 crore.

This means that the bank has got only 1.9% return for regularising the huge amount of classified loans.

If the bank showed the amount as classified, it would have needed to keep a loss provision of Tk700 crore in its balance sheet.

In that case it would have to show a massive loss instead of the Tk211 crore profit that it showed for the year ended December 2013.

Having done that, the total classified loan figure of the bank stood at 2.99% of its total outstanding loan, down from a staggering 16.61% in September last year.

In December, the average ratio of classified loans in the banking sector

was 12.79%.

In 2010, NBL declared 95% stock dividend, which was the highest in the banking sector that year. But, in 2012, it managed to declare only a meagre 6% cash dividend and was demoted to the “B” category in the share market.

However, in 2013, by declaring a 10% stock dividend by taking advantage of the provision facilities given by the central bank, the bank regained its category “A” status.

Bangladesh Bank Executive Director Md Naushad Ali Chowdhury told the Dhaka Tribune: “We have allowed the two groups to hold loans exceeding the single borrower exposure limit upon recommendation from the NBL board of directors.”

He also said the central bank was concerned about the miserable financial condition of the commercial bank and had been monitoring the clients, who had been holding loans in excess of the limit. l

Miscelleneous

The bank, through its subsidiary NBL Securities, lent out a total of Tk466 crore to investors before the stock market crash. However, after the debacle, the entire of that amount got stuck and the bank had showed the amount as blocked.

Soon after the crash, the CEO of NBL Securities lost his job because he failed to predict the market.

In December last year, the bank

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Beware of muggers in private cars! n Mohammad Jamil Khan Members of law enforcement agencies are “completely unaware and clueless” about recent much-talked-about muggings committed by a gang of criminals using number plate-less Premio and Allion cars in the city’s upscale areas.

A campaign against such muggings by using private cars has been launched in the social networking websites including Facebook.

The Facebook page Raise Awareness against Mugging – the Recent Premio/ Allion Case says a group of youths riding some number plate-less Toyota Premio and Allion cars are involved in mugging people especially young girls and boys in Gulshan, Dhanmondi, Uttara and Banani.

They sometimes abduct young girls and boys, and snatch away valuables from them before they are released.

Sometimes, they keep the girls confined and release them later in exchange for ransom from the victims’ families.

In the latest incident, the Facebook page mentions that the muggers whisked one Emdadul off into a Premio car at gunpoint on the Green Road around 9:45pm on Sunday. The victim was then on his motorcycle.

The muggers were four in number.

They snatched one iphone 5s, Samsung S5 and two credit cards from Emdad.

The snatchers later withdrew about Tk30 lakh from his account.

The muggers beat up Emdad and rubbed something in his eyes before he was pushed out of the car. The victim is

now undergoing treatment at a hospital.

Whgen contacted Sheikh Maruf Hassan, deputy police commissioner of Ramna division, said they were yet to receive such complaints. “The law enforcers are active in the city to stop mugging and abduction.”

Around 10pm on June 18, a gang of criminals took away a boy and a girl, who had passed their A level examination, in a microbus from Gulshan 2 area while they were returning home.

Later, the criminals left the boy in Banani after the car moved through different parts of the city. They took everything away from the boy. They, however, kept the girl confined and blindfolded in an unknown location.

The next day the girl was released after her parents paid them Tk2 lakh

as ransom demanded by the gang. The family did not contact any police station.

The Dhaka Tribune got the details of the incident from a friend of the victims.

Asked about this, Lutful Kabir, deputy police commissioner of Gulshan division, said they had learned about some incidents from the social media.

In most cases, the victims’ families do not contact police and criminals are taking advantage of this opportunity, he said.

“I hope we will shortly be able to trace them,” Kabir said.

The trend started soon after the month of Ramadan began. Criminals target young girls and demand money easily payable by family members who do not contact police to avoid social disgrace.

A case study by the Dhaka Tribune

found that in such cases the highest amount of ransom demanded was Tk500,000. The incident happened in Banani area from where criminals picked up a young girl while she was coming back home after attending a coaching class.

The most interesting thing is when the father of the victim told the gang of criminals that he was able to pay only Tk200,000, they agreed and the girl was released in Uttara House Building area after the money was sent on a specific bKash number.

Abul Kalam Azad, director of the intelligence unit of Rapid Action Battalion, told the Dhaka Tribune that the criminals used stolen vehicles to commit this type of crime. “They also use fake number plates.” l

Accused confesses in attempted murder of Shamim n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court yesterday recorded the confessional statement of an accused in the case filed over attempted murder of Enamul Haq Shamim, a central leader of the ruling Awami League, in the capital last month.

Rana Hawladar, one of the people arrested in the case, gave confessional statement before Metropolitan Magistrate SM Ashiqur Rahman.

He was later sent to jail. Earlier Rana was produced before the court on completion of five-day remand.

Meanwhile, the court of Metropolitan Magistrate Hasibul Haque granted the police five days to interrogate five other accused – Nur-e-Alam Siddique, Nazimul Haque Mithu, Md Monir Hossain, Md Harun and Mehedi Hasan.

Sub-Inspector Matiur Rahman of Dhanmondi police station produced the accused before the court seeking seven days to question them.

Shamim, member of the Awami League’s Central Working Committee, was attacked with guns on June 19 by a group of miscreants in Dhanmondi around 10am.

His uncle Nasir Uddin filed an attempted murder case the following day. l

Flouting rules, buses that are used for transporting Wasa officials block a major portion of the road in Karwan Bazar yesterday. Such indiscriminate parking causes regular traffic congestion on one of the busiest roads in the capital MEHEDI HASAN

ACC to implicate Sohel Rana as well n Tribune Report

The Anti-Corruption Commission has found evidence that Rana Plaza owner Sohel Rana was also involved in the irregularities while constructing the faulty eight-storey commercial building that collapsed on April 24 last year.

The commission will soon file charges against 18 people including Rana’s father Abdul Khalek and mother Morjina Begum, officials said.

Earlier, while approving the charges on June 12, the commission spared Rana, who is a Jubo League leader from Savar.

CID gets 3 more months for Maj Manzur murder investigation n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court yesterday ordered the Criminal Investigation Department to submit further investigation report in Maj Gen Abul Manzur murder case on October 9.

First Additional District and Sessions Judge Khondker Hasan Md Firoz passed the order after CID Special Superintendent Abdul Kahar Akond, also the investigating officer of the case, sought three months.

The court has extended the deadline three times thus far.

Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad, also a special envoy to the premier, is the main accused in the case. The other accused in the case are Maj (retd) Emdadul Islam and Lt Col (retd) Mostafa Kamal Uddin Bhuiyan.

On April 22, the court gave the CID 83 days to submit further investigation reports. However, on Monday, Kahar told the Dhaka Tribune that they would not submit the report now. He wondered if the deadline was over.

After judge of the same court Hosne Ara Akhtar set February 10 for the delivery of the verdict in this case, she was transferred to another court before pronouncement of the verdict.

On June 1, 1981, Manzur was killed at the Chittagong Cantonment. l

The other accused in the case are Savar municipality Mayor Refayet Ullah, architect of the building and Khulna University teacher ATM Masud Reza and Savar municipality ward 7 councillor Mohammad Ali Khan. Owners of three garment units housed in the building – Phantom Apparels Ltd Chairman Mohammad Aminul Islam, New Wave Bottom Limited Managing Director Bazlus Samad and Ether Tex Limited Chairman Azizur Rahman, have also been named in the charges.

According to the inquiry, the municipality initially approved the construction of a six-storey building but later

approved the addition of four more floors, though it had no authority to approve such an extension.

The building that housed at least five garment factories collapsed and killed at least 1,138 people on April 24, a day after cracks had developed in the structure. More than 2,500 people were injured while many others remain missing since the incident.

Police filed murder cases in connection with the deadly incident and Rajuk lodged a case for flouting building construction rules. A Dhaka court has fixed August 13 for the submission of charge sheets in the cases. l

No prosecutor during HRW contempt order n Udisa Islam None of the 22 war crimes prosecutors appeared at the International Crimes Tribunal 1 yesterday when it was set to pass order on Human Right Watch’s reply on a contempt notice.

The tribunal observed the absence of the prosecution team silently during the proceedings. Earlier on several occasions they failed to appear before the court on time and the tribunal expressed disappointment.

Yesterday, the tribunal members came to the courtroom around 10:50am and asked Md Asaduzzaman, the defence counsel: “Where is the prosecution? Your friends from the prosecution are perhaps tired.”

Asaduzzaman answered” “I do not see them either. It [absence] may have happened because of the football World Cup.” Justice Enayetur Rahim, chair of the three-member tribunal, said: “Today [yesterday] was fixed for passing the order, but we are not ready to pronounce it yet. We need more preparation.” And after five minutes, the tribunal members left the courtroom.

The tribunal set September 4 to pass an order whether to initiate contempt proceedings against the New York-based HRW for making “biased, baseless, utterly false, fabricated and ill-motivated allegations” in its re-

port regarding the trial of former Jamaat-e-Islami chief Ghulam Azam.

The prosecution was also absent during the proceedings of the case on February 28.

Tapos K Baul, one of the conducting prosecutors, told the Dhaka Tribune that he went to the tribunal only five minutes after it had been adjourned.

He then went to the judge’s chamber to say sorry.

The New York-based organisation is accused of making ‘biased, baseless, false and illmotivated allegations’ on the trial of former Jamaat chief Ghulam Azam last year In response to the tribunal’s notice, the defence counsel apologised for his clients by saying: “As the defendants are foreigners, they do not have any knowledge of contempt law and proceedings of this country.”

The prosecution on August 20 last year filed the contempt petition against HRW’s board of directors, its executive director of Asia Division Brad Adams and its associate for the Asia Division Storm Tiv. l

Owner claims Tk6 lakh missing from money recovered by police n Tribune Report Ziaur Rahman, was mugged out of by Tk65 lakh by a gang from capital's Eskaton area on July 7, yesterday claimed that the money police had handed him, is short by Tk6 lakh.

On July 7, Ziaur's business partner Ashraful Alam sent two of his employees, Akbar and Mujibor, to Zia's house to hand over the money in a packet.

Muggers attacked them on their way in capital's Eskaton area.

Ziaur Rahman told the Dhaka Tribune: “There were around Tk65 lakh in the packet but I received only Tk59 lakh from police. Of the money, Tk15 lakh was taken from Dutch Bangla Bank's Motijheel branch, Tk32 lakh from Foreign Exchange branch of City Bank and Tk18 lakh was collected from different people.”

DMP Ramna Zone Assistant Commissioner Shilbi Noman said on July 7, a team lead by sub-inspectors – Iftekhar and Monir Hossain – were patrolling near Janakantha Bhaban in Eskaton around 8:45pm. Hearing some pedestrians' screaming they approached the scene and found three youths fleeing on a motorbike with a bag. During the police chased, the muggers opened fire on them.

A case was filed in this connection on July 8.

“In the gunfight, SI Iftekhar was shot by the muggers, while, two of the gang members were also shot. Among them Liton fell off from the bike from a bullet wound to his leg,” he said.

Officer-in-Charge of Ramna police station Moshiur Rahman said the money was handed over to the owner on July 8.

“After recovering the packet, we found it torn apart on one side. Police is continuing investigation.”

The investigation officer in the case Sub-Inspector Iftekhar Mohammad Al Amin said: “Liton was arrested, however, the two other members managed to flee.

“Liton is in hospital, we will interrogate him after he recovers. We are searching for his associates.” l

3 BB asks ACC to take action against ex-board members of BASIC Bank n Tribune Report The Bangladesh Bank has asked the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to take action against BASIC Bank's former board members for their alleged involvement in the loan disbursement scam.

It sent a letter yesterday in this connection including a detailed investigation report on Gulshan and Dilkusha branches of the BASIC Bank and an observation report to the ACC. The letter said Bangladesh Bank earlier sent a special investigation report on Gulshan, Shantinagar and Dilkusha branches of the BASIC Bank to the ACC. But the central bank has not yet been informed about the action the ACC took.

“We have sent the letter and detailed investigation to the ACC requesting information about the progress of the ACC,” said Bangladesh Bank Executive Director SM Moniruzzaman.

He said: “We are ready to provide all kinds of support to the ACC in this connection. We requested it to take action as the central bank has some limitations in this regard.”

The amount of total disbursed loan of the BASIC Bank stood at Tk11,180 crore in March this year and of which Tk6,900 crore had been disbursed through the three branches.

The commission suspended its inquiry soon after the Bangladesh Bank signed a memorandum of understanding with the BASIC Bank last year with a view to recovering financial health of the state-owned bank.

However, the central bank claims that there is no relationship between the ACC inquiry and the MoU. Rather Bangladesh Bank is relying on the ACC investigation to take action against the former BASIC Bank chairman. The commission initiated an inquiry last year but it is yet to make any visible progress.

BASIC Bank MD Faqurul Islam was sacked on May 26 while chairman Sheikh Abdul Hye Bacchu resigned on July 4 following the allegation of financial irregularities of Tk4,500 crore.

However, no action has so far been taken against the former chairman and former managing director.

The government appointed Alauddin A Majid as new chairman of BASIC Bank after the resignation of the former chairman. l

Judge retires acquitting all accused in narcotics cases; bribery alleged n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A special court judge acquitted 11 persons – accused in three drug-related cases – allegedly in a hurry in the last three months before he went on retirement earlier this month.

Faruq Ahmed, judge of the Dhaka’s Special Sessions Court and also the Public Security Special Crime Control Tribunal, allegedly took money from the accused, most of who are foreign nationals.

The cases are related to smuggling of heroin worth Tk6 crore and Tk3 crore by some Nigerians – filed with airport and Uttara (west) police stations while another is related to possession of 3,500 Yaba tablets filed with Jatrabari police.

It is alleged that the judge did not give the prosecution time to place the witnesses while he also did not believe charges in the cases.

Court sources allege that in the last six months, Faruq Ahmed acquitted the accused in 12 more sensational cases involving smuggling of narcotics.

In the Tk6 crore heroin case, the judge had closed deposition of witnesses before recording of the testimonies.

The investigation officer and seven other witnesses mentioned about the offence in their depositions.

But the judge acquitted Nigerian citizen Affolian Oladipupu Jacobs on April 30.

Jacobs was arrested at the Dhaka airport on July 30, 2010 with 5.8kg heroin in his possession.

In the case, the trial court was changed five times.

Six other Nigerians, accused of smuggling heroin worth Tk3 crore, were acquitted on June 19. The case witnessed changes in the trial court four times. The judge relieved the accused from the charges after taking deposition of six witnesses in only one month.

Members of Rapid Action Battalion 1 arrested them from a house in Uttara on February 22 last year and recovered 2.7kg heroin from their possessions.

The judge in the orders asked the authorities concerned to place the accused to a local lawyer after release from jail. The seven Nigerians are free now.

Elite force RAB members arrested four people – Abu Salam Mia, Md Jalal Uddin, Mostafa Mia and Md Sharif – on June 27 last year from a bus at Jatrabari with 3,500 illegal Yaba tablets in their possession.

The accused also admitted their involvement to the offence.

After the charges had been framed on October 23, judge Faruq recorded deposition of four witnesses. In his verdict on March 31, the judge acquitted all the accused.

The trial court in this case too was changed several times. l

4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

National DNA database on the cards Convicted rapists and murderers will be indexed in the archive n Moniruzzaman Uzzal In a bid to make crime-solving easier, Bangladesh is planning to establish its first ever National DNA Database Centre to preserve the DNA samples of convicted offenders, missing and unidentified persons and crime scene evidence.

The indexing system at the centre – the first of its kind in the country – will preserve the DNA data which can later be used to solve cases.

Sources said initiatives to set up the database centre will begin as soon as the DNA bill, which was submitted before the parliament during its last session, is passed by the House. Currently the bill is being scrutinised by the parliamentary standing committee

Description 1 2 3 4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

Parentage test Murder Rape Identity Immigration Burglary Sibling Tissue Transplant

Total

Year 2006 20 02 03 02 00 01 00 00

28

Year 2007

Year 2008

Year 2009

Year 2010

72 08 90 02 03 00 00 00

105 20 154 01 03 00 01 00

146 25 223 03 05 00 02 00

100 20 162 03 08 00 02 00

175

on women and children affairs.

The draft of Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) Act – which mentions the establishment of a National DNA Database Centre – received its final approval by the cabinet last November.

284

404

295

Year 2011 139 24 198 01 03 0 02 13

380

The database will be set up by the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs under the National DNA Profiling Laboratory at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Dr Sharif Akteruzzaman, head of

Year 2012

Year 2013

156 47 189 04 03 0 00 25

117 66 198 25 7 0 04 15

424

432

Jan-May Total 2014 51 13 115 8 4 0 1 0

70

906 225 1307 50 36 01 12 53

2615

the DNA laboratory, told the Dhaka Tribune that they primarily plan to collect DNA samples from only the violent offenders who commit murder and rape.

After a court finds someone guilty,

the jail authorities will bring the convict to the laboratory where their DNA samples will be collected for future reference using the database.

The DNA of unidentified bodies will also be preserved at the database centre.

The laboratory and its index, if established, can prove to be the most powerful tool for identifying criminals and solving crimes in the country’s history, claimed the DNA lab chief.

Not only would the facility save time and money for the law enforcement agencies, it would also be crucial in ensuring justice for the victims, he said.

Referring to the UK’s Forensic Science Service, Dr Sharif said a DNA database centre could save up to 90% of

investigation costs for law enforcers.

He added that the centre, if established, would be requiring highly trained professionals for the centre to be effective in busting crimes and helping investigations.

The DNA lab carried out a total 2,615 DNA tests between 2006 and May 2014, including 1,307 rape-related tests, 906 tests on parentage, 225 on murders, 50 on identities, 36 on immigration, 12 on siblings, 53 on tissue transplants, and one for a burglary-related case.

Although separate courts had previously passed judgements against offenders based on DNA test results, the DNA lab did not receive any document or statistics from the court as there is no existing DNA act that makes it mandatory to notify the laboratory. l

Kailashtila well drilling for oil to begin in August

Ziauddin appointed ambassador to US n Tribune Report

n Aminur Rahman Rasel

The government has decided to appoint Ambassador-at-Large Mohammad Ziauddin as the new Ambassador of Bangladesh to the United States of America.

Ziauddin will enjoy the rank and status of state minister in his new appointment, said a press release from the foreign ministry.

In his distinguished diplomatic career, he served in Bangladesh missions in London, Nairobi and New York in various capacities.

He also served as the Bangladesh Ambassador to Italy with concurrent accreditation to Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina and Permanent Representative to FAO, WFP and IFAD in Rome.

Ziauddin had been serving as Ambassador-at-Large of the Prime Minister with the rank and status of state minister since 2009.

A career diplomat, Ziauddin has been a part of BCS (Foreign Affairs) Cadre with seniority since 1974. l

The drilling of the oil well 7 of Kailashtila Gas Field under the Sylhet Gas Fields Ltd (SGFL) is likely to start in the first week of August, the authorities concerned have said.

“The scheduled drilling of the well has been delayed for 10 months since Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina laid the project’s foundation stone last year. It happened as the rig that will be used could not be transported from the Fenchuganj project,” said Md Haronur Rashid Mullah, project director at the well and general manager of the SGFL. He told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday that state-owned Bapex had been tasked with drilling the well and producing oil at Kailashtila.

Malaysian consultancy firm Oriax is assisting the Bapex in the project because the latter does not have any experience in producing oil.

“We hope to start the drilling by the

first week of August. Hopefully, we will then be able to start production in December this year,” he said.

About 500 barrels of oil are expected to be extracted from the well every day. The premier inaugurated the Tk220 crore project at Kailashtila in September last year, with work at the site estimated to begin in December last year.

In May 2012, more than two decades after the discovery of the first two oil fields in Bangladesh, Bapex found oil reserves of nearly 137 million barrels in Kailashtila and Haripur after conducting 3D seismic surveys at the sites.

The surveys estimated 109m barrels of oil reserve at 4,000-metre depth in Kailashtilla and 28m barrels at 2,600-metre in Haripur.

However, according to Petrobangla’s estimation, only 55m barrels or 7.5m tonnes can be extracted from the two fields. The Kailashtila and Haripur gas fields are currently under the supervision of the SGFL.l

National Sramik Federation forms a human chain demanding wage and Eid bonus for garment workers in front of National Press Club in the capital yesterday MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

RMG owners pledge to give wages, Officials: Mirpur RMG worker’s rape cooked up Eid bonus by July 26 n Nazmus Sakib Two police officials and a doctor connected to the rape case of an RMG worker yesterday told the High Court that she had not, in fact, been raped.

Summoned, Dr Bilkis Begum, coordinator of the One-Stop Crisis Centre at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, presented the medical report of the RMG worker to the court.

She said they had found that the girl had been sexually active, but there was no evidence of rape.

Imtiaz Ahmed, deputy commissioner of police in Mirpur zone, and Md Salahuddin, officer-in-charge of Mirpur police station, also termed the allegation fraudulent.

When contacted, Deputy Attorney General Amatul Karim told the Dhaka Tribune that she would present further details regarding the case on July 21, the day of the next hearing.

The victim, employed at an RMG factory in Mirpur, was allegedly kidnapped and raped on her way back home on July 1. A case was filed against four people, including two identified and two other unnamed persons who were not involved with the alleged rape, Amatul said.

Following a writ petition filed by Children Charity Bangladesh Foundation, the bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Kazi Ejarul Haque Akondo on July 9 summoned the three officials to appear before it yesterday.

The bench also issued a ruling upon the government seeking explanations as to why proper laws should not be enacted to identify offenders, particularly drivers of bus, taxi and truck, and transport workers instantly. It also asked why the government should not be directed to introduce devices to bring those responsible for rape, sexual harassment and abduction to justice. l

n Mohosinul Karim

Garment factory owners have promised to paying apparel workers partial wages of the current month along with festival bonus by July 26.

They gave their assurance in a tripartite meeting among BGMEA, BKMEA, BTMA leaders, RMG factory owners and garment workers’ leaders and the government officials at the Labour Ministry yesterday.

After the meeting, State Minister Mujibul Haque Chunnu said: “The garment factory owners have agreed to pay the RMG workers a portion of the current month’s wage and festival allowance ahead of Eid so that they can celebrate the festival with their family members peacefully.”

The labour law does not state anything about festival allowance, he added. “They [factory owners] have, however, agreed to pay partial wages for the current month and festival allowance

as per their ability by July 26,” he said.

“They have given us assurance that they will pay them before Eid. We will monitor the situation during this period. The Department of Inspection of Factories and Establishment (DIFE) under the Labour Ministry has opened a control room to observe the situation.

If the workers have any complaint, they can inform the control room. The government will take necessary steps against the factories to avoid any kind of unwanted situation.”

Asked about the intelligence agency’s report on financial crisis faced by a number of RMG factories, the minister said: “The owners did not seek help in providing wages and festival allowance to the RMG workers. The government is ready to help them.”

Most of the labour groups have been demanding payment of arrears, wage of the current month and festival bonus before July 19.

BKMEA’s First Vice-President MA Ha-

tem said, “The DIFE on behalf of the government and BGMEA, BKMEA and BTMA have set up separate control rooms to avoid any kind of unrest in the RMG sector.

“The authorities will take necessary steps as soon as they receive information about any untoward incident. We hope no problem will arise.”

The state minister also called upon the bus operators not to charge extra fare during the Eid, particularly from workers. According to ministry officials, the industrial police recently warned the authorities concerned that labour unrest might flare up in around 500 apparel units operating in Ashulia, Gazipur, Narayanganj and Chittagong ahead of Eid centring payment of wages and festival allowance.

Meanwhile, the National Garment Workers Federation at a protest rally in front of Jatiya Press Club yesterday demanded payment of festival allowance equivalent to the basic wage of one month before Eid. l

Inu opens media centre for secretariat reporters n Mohosinul Karim Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu yesterday inaugurated a media centre exclusively for the journalists covering the secretariat.

He said the present government believed in the independence of media.

Therefore, it was not embarrassed by criticisms. Asking the newsmen to publish true and fair reports to preserve democracy, Inu said: “The government always takes decisions analysing the suggestions of the journalists.”

He added that the government was working in order to remove the last sign of dictatorship from the country.

Information Secretary Mortuza Ahmed, Additional Secretary Mahbubur Rahman and Bangladesh Secretariat Reporters Forum President Shyamol Sarker were present at the occasion. l

Dissemination on empowerment Professional Skills Development Programme resumes at BRACU of slum women held at AIUB

n Tribune Report American International University Bangladesh (AIUB) in the capital held a dissemination programme on Thursday on the findings and significant recommendations of a research project on the economic empowerment of slum women in Sutrapur.

The event was participated by British Council, University Grants Commission, ActionAID and Nari Moitree, project partners with the university.

Dr Carmen Z Lamagna, vice-chancellor of AIUB, welcomed the guests at the event; representatives of the project partners addressed the event as well.

Team members of the project, headed

by Dr Charles C Villanueva, coordinated the programme.

The research revealed that women in Sutrapur have the potential to become economically empowered given the appropriate support and encouragement from their families and communities.

During the research, students and faculty members of AIUB actively participated in exploring and the possibilities and identifying the vulnerable women and communities for intervention to help them improve their lifestyle.

The recommendations made at the programme included expanding the women’s livelihood activities such as handicrafts, food packaging, food preservation, and others to earn more, conducting teach-in during weekends to improve their knowledge on healthcare, entrepreneurship, human rights, housing projects to improve their living condition, etc, encouraging businesspersons with incentives provided by the government, and providing security in the area to set up small-scale business for women. l

n Tribune Report Brac University’s Career Services Offices (CSO) organised the orientation of the summer batch of their Professional Skills Development Programme (PSDP), on Thursday at the university auditorium.

The event was attended by Professor Fuad Hasan Mallick, pro vice-chancellor of the university, Khan Ahmed Murshid, director of the CSO, and Lady Syeda Sarwat Abed, director of Brac Institute of Languages.

In his welcoming speech, Khan Ahmed Murshid motivated the stu-

dents to pursue their desired professional goals with dedication. “The CSO is committed to ensure full support for all PSDP participants in terms of securing appropriate internships and jobs with respective employers,” he said.

Lady Abed talked about the importance of linguistic competence and effective articulation in the professional arena.

She also emphasised the role of co-curricular activities in preparing well-rounded employees. Professor Mallick highlighted the effectiveness of the programme in preparing graduates for the prodessional world and in “giving our students a crucial edge over the competition.” l

Seminar on blogging held at UIU n Tribune Report

The Career Counselling Centre of United International University (UIU) organised a seminar on blogging in partnership with the Dhaka Tribune on Monday at the university’s auditorium.

Polash Datta, in-charge of Online and Digital Media at the Dhaka Tribune was the keynote speaker at the sem-

inar. He discussed the importance of blogging, how it helps improve writing skills, and the impact it can have in a society in his speech. Zia Ur Rahman, sales manager at the Dhaka Tribune discussed how reading English newspaper can help develop English skills.

Md Manjurul Haque Khan, director of the Career Counselling Centre, was also present at the event. l

Lecture on current budget at ULAB n Tribune Report The School of Business of the University of Liberal Arts, Bangladesh (ULAB) organised a lecture titled “Current Budget of Bangladesh: 2014-15” in the university yesterday.

The event started with a welcome speech by Profession Imran Rahman, vice-chancellor of ULAB. Dr Zahid Hussain, a leading economist at the World Bank, delivered the lecture and

addressed several important and relevant issues of the budget. He was introduced by Dr Pinki Shah, associate professor at ULAB School of Business.

A question-and-answer session followed the lecture. The program ended with a vote of thanks by Professor Golam Mohammad, dean of the buisness school.

Professor Jahirul Haque, pro vice-chancellor of ULAB, faculty members and students attended the lecture. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Ecnec decides to improve services in four municipalities n

Tribune Report

The government has decided to spend Tk2,043 crore to improve services in four new municipalities.

The project – titled Inclusive City Governance Project (ICGP) – will be implemented by June 2020 in four new city corporations in Narayanganj, Gazipur, Rangpur and Comilla.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec), chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in the capital yesterday.

For the project, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will provide Tk2,397 crore on loan and the rest will

be provided from the state exchequer.

Along with the ICGP, the meeting also approved six development projects valued at Tk7,839 crore.

“Of the total project cost, the government will provide Tk5,441 crore from the national exchequer while Tk2,397 crore will come from project assistance,” said Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal after the meeting.

For providing electricity to rural areas, the Ecnec gave its approval for three development projects – Extension of Rural Electrification in Dhaka Division-II, Extension of Rural Electrification in Rajshahi and Rangpur Divisions-II and Extension of Rural Electrification in Chittagong and Sylhet Divisions-II.

Fifty seven Palli Bidyut Samitys (PBS), out of total 72, across the country under Rural Electrification Board (REB) will be brought under the projects to facilitate 11.5 lakh new connections Some Tk4,717 crore has been approved for the projects aiming to supply electricity to every village in the country by 2021.

Fifty seven Palli Bidyut Samitys (PBS), out of total 72, across the country under Rural Electrification Board (REB) will be brought under the projects to facilitate 11.5 lakh new connections.

Under the three electrification projects, 26,190km new transmission lines would be installed while 2,810km transmission line would be rehabilitated/renovated in these five divisions.

REB is entrusted to implement the project by June, 2018, which will cover 43 districts in five divisions.

Officials said the country needs a total of 3,26,263km transmission lines to ensure electric connectivity to every village by 2021. l

5

Bangladeshis protest Israeli aggression in Gaza n Afrose Jahan Chaity Bangladeshis of all walks of life formed several human chains in front of the National Press Club yesterday, on the eighth day of the Israeli attacks on Gaza. More than 350 people took part in the protests where an Israeli flag was burnt.

Bangladesh Khelafat Majlish formed a human chain titled “Against Genocide and Illegal Attack of Israel on Palestine” at 11am. They said the United Nations, Arab League and Organization of the Islamic Conference should work to prevent the killing of civilians in Gaza.

Bangladesh Human Rights Association formed a human chain titled “Stop Muslim Genocide in Gaza,” claiming Bangladesh had not taken any effective steps during this crisis and called

on the United Nations to take actions to stop the genocide.

Islamic Chattrasena protestors called the Israeli offensive on Gaza an illegal war and said it was a shame that the United Nations, the Arab League and the Organization of the Islamic Conference could not put an end to this continued aggression.

A Facebook-based group, Bangladesh for Palestine, shouted slogans during the protest. Bangladeshi volunteers who had participated in the Palestine struggle in the early 1980s also formed a human chain, as did Bangladesh Juba Moitri.

The Gaza-based Palestinian Centre for Human Rights puts the number of Palestinians killed at more than 172 with another 1,230 wounded in the Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip. l

RU female students run amok over hall provost's irregularities n RU Correspondent The resident students of Rahmatunnesa Hall at Rajshahi University went on a rampage and staged demonstrations yesterday, protesting the irregularities of the hall provost.

Campus sources said over a hundred female students, residents of Rahmatunnesa Hall, gathered in front of the office to discuss their problems with the resident teachers and the hall provosts.

After half an hour, around 10:30am, students brought out a demonstration inside the hall and went berserk when the hall provost did not come to hall even after being informed and the resident teachers refused to discuss the allegations with the students.

During havoc, the agitated students vandalised flower pots and the doors and window panes of the resident teachers’ rooms.

Later, the agitating students went to the departmental office of the hall provost Sabrina Naz. Agitated students calmed down when Sabrina assured them that she would take steps to re-

solve their problems.

On Monday, Sabrina ordered a student to leave the hall mass room by Tuesday afternoon as the student did not have a guest card.

Students said every student was required to have a guest card to stay at the hall mass room before being allotted a general room but the hall authority allegedly did not give guest cards to many students for the past one year.

Residents of the hall said after Sabrina Naz took charge of the hall, it had been beset with different problems.

The hall provost, officials and resident teachers misbehaved with the students frequently when they went to them for any problem, they said.

When contacted, Naz told the Dhaka Tribune that everyone could not be given guest cards and the decision of the hall authority would be final in this regard.

RU student adviser, Professor Sadiqul Arefin Matin told the Dhaka Tribune that, as per tradition, students should be given guest cards on the basis of seniority and added that he would look into the matter. l

4 held with foreign currencies n Tribune Report

Admission seekers of Narayanganj Mohila ‘Destroy tannery waste College continue demo, confine principal at the tanneries’

Rapid Action Battalion members detained four muggers from the capital’s Mirpur and Mohakhali area yesterday and seized Tk4.65 lakh and 1.39 lakh Indian rupee from their possession.

The detained are Masud Rana, 39, Quamrul Hasan, 30, Badsha Mia, 28, and Nayan, 28. Qamrul Hasan, operation officer of Rab-1, said a team of Rab nabbed the four muggers along with Bangladeshi and Indian currencies during a two-anda-half-hour long drive carried out til 12:30am yesterday. l

n Our Correspondent, Narayanganj

WEATHER THUNDERSHOWER WITH RAIN

WEDNESDAY, JULY 16 DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 6:49PM SUN RISES 5:21AM FORECAST FOR TODAY Dhaka

32

28

Chittagong

30

26

Rajshahi

32

27

Rangpur

32

27

Khulna

30

26

Barisal

30

26

Sylhet

30

26

Cox’s Bazar

31

26

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

34.8ºC Sylhet

25.0ºC Rangamati

Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajar Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha

3:55am 5:19am 12:05am 4:45pm 6:49pm 8:15pm SourceL IslamicFinder.org

Admission seekers of Narayanganj Government Mahila College confined principal and staged demonstrations on the campus yesterday protesting what they said was the admission trade of Bangladesh Chhatra League activists.

The agitators also threatened that they would commit suicide on the campus, if the college authority does not enroll them within July 20.

Students of the college have been protesting on the campus since June 30 about the irregularities in the admission process.

Aspiring students alleged that the college authorities ignoring the merit list had enrolled about 600 students in exchange for money.

Campus sources said some BCL leaders of Tolaram College unit in col-

A human chain is formed in front of the National Press Club in the capital yesterday, protesting attack on Palestinians by Isreal

laboration with college officials as well as some teachers are taking money from admission seekers assuring them of enrollment in the college.

There is also an allegation the BCL leaders have already pocketed Tk60 by this admission trade.

Afroza Akter, an admission seeker, told the Dhaka Tribune that she could not get enroll in the HSC first year, although she was in waiting list.

“College authority earlier told us that they would enroll us today [Tuesday], but when we came here to get enrolled, they were quite.”

Another admission seeker Rupa said she was on the merit list. She alleged that she had not been enrolled as she failed to provide money to the leaders of Bangladesh Chhatra League which they demand in exchange of admission.

“As the principal assured us that he would take measures to enroll us into the college, we did apply to other colleges,” she said.

When contacted, Principal Gopal Chandra Saha denied the allegation of taking money in exchange for enrollments.

He said some students had been enrolled in first year of HSC level, who were not on the merit list, considering their SSC results.

He also said they were compelled to enroll some students because of political pressure.

Asked about the enrollment of agitating admission seekers he said he had applied to the Dhaka Education board to add seats to three departments of the college. He said if the seats were added, they would be able to enroll more students. l

n Tribune Report Poultry farm owners demanded tannery waste to be destroyed at the tanneries in a discussion titled “Tannery Waste in Poultry Feed: Ways to Prevention” at the National Press Club in the capital yesterday.

Organised by Feed Industries Association Bangladesh (Fiab), the participants claimed that a few corrupt traders were using unrefined tannery waste to produce meat and bone meal (MBM), an essential ingredient of poultry feed.

Moshiur Rahman, president of Fiab, said MBM is imported from abroad for feed production in Bangladesh. So there is little chance of mixing tannery waste in the feed. He said the culprits who are making MBM locally by using tannery waste and supplying it to the feed mills must be brought to book.

Emdadul Haque, advocate at Bangladesh Supreme Court, said the laws regarding waste management were not incoherent and needed revision to introduce stricter punishment for such crimes.

Narayan Chandra Chanda, state minister for fisheries and animal resources, said a meeting would soon be held at the ministry among tannery owners, poultry farmers and other experts to resolve this issue.

Referring to recent reports in an English daily and on a satellite channel in this regard, the state minister said the ministry would issue a statement after proper investigation on the matter.

Md Aftab Alam, managing director of Impex Marketing Limited, said the report in the English daily stated that the amount of chromium found in every kilogram of chicken to be 4,561mg, which was completely inaccurate. l

Maldives to recruit 225 doctors n Rabiul Islam

Two sentenced to life for producing adulterated food items n Tribune Report A mobile court yesterday sentenced two peòple to life imprisonment for producing and selling adulterated food products using the names of renowned brands, in the capital on early hours of yesterday.

Executive Magistrate AHM Anwar Pasha, who led the mobile court, also sealed off the factory used to produce these fake products at Begumbazar.

The mobile court was also accompanied by BSTI Representative Nikhil Chandra Ray and members of the Rapid Action Battalion.

The detainees were identified as Abdus Samad, 63, and his son Sohel, 29.

Sources said the duo had been running the illegal business for the last 15 years and were also jailed for two years in 2011 for the same offense. After completing their jail terms, they restarted their business and worked at night to avoid detection. l

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Although a lot of people throng the capital in search of fortune , they end up on the footpath finding no other place to seep in. A child of such a family has been put to sleep in a cradle on a footpath in capital’s Manik Mia Avenue SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Maldives will recruit 225 doctors from Bangladesh for its public hospitals.

“The process is ongoing to send doctors over as per the demand of the Maldives Directorate of Health Services,” Mohammad Zahidul Islam, general manager of Bangladesh Overseas Employment Services Limited (BOESL), told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

BOESL officials said an interested doctor would have to spend Tk 60,000 as service charge. After being recruited, they would get Tk 1,50,000 as salary every month.

They said the necessary documents of the interested doctors have already been sent to the Maldives Directorate of Health Services, and the doctors will be interviewed via Skype.

BOESL had taken an initiative to send around 50 doctors and 100 nurses to Oman, but only five doctors could be sent to the island state. BOESL General Manager Zahid said an Oman-based outsourcing company has been mediating the recruitment, stating, “Whenever the company gets an offer for the doctors and nurses, it will inform us.” l

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Many areas inundated as most rivers above danger level n Our Correspondent, Barisal The stream-flow of major rivers in the greater Barisal was above the danger level due to the spate caused by incessant downpour and the full moon induced high tide.

Resulting in residents of the area having to live with great uncertainty and apprehension that any untoward incident may occur at any time.

Earlier, the increased upsurge was damaging homesteads and properties of the people living in the low-laying areas of the region.

Superintending Engineer of Barisal Water Development Board Asadul Islam said the upstream flow increased alarmingly high levels in the most of the rivers there, because of which some flood prevention embankments collapsed.

The water level of river is measured by gauge-reader. About 18 out of 21 gauge-readers of hydrology department of BWDB yesterday reported that water of major rivers, including the Meghna, Arial Kha, Tentulia and

Kitankhola as well as those tributaries was flowing equal or above the danger-levels, the engineer continued.

WDB sources said the upstream flow increased alarmingly high levels in the most of the rivers there, because of which some flood prevention embankments collapsed Gauge Reader Shahidul Islam of Barisal Sadar said the Arial Kha and Kirtankhola Rivers’ water flow is close to danger level at different points. Gauge Reader Badiuzzaman of Bamna under Barguna said the Biskhali River flow was 10 centimetre above than the danger level. Gauge Reader Abul Kalam from

Amtali of Barguna said Burishwar River floating 17 centimetre above the danger level.

Gauge Reader Mahtabuddin from Barguna Sadar told that the Khakdon River flow was 54 centimetre high. Gauge Reader Sirajul Islam from Bhola said the Meghna River flow was recorded at 58 centimetre above while the Tentulia River flow was a little bit more than the danger level.

The officials concerned to the local WDB said the aforesaid data sent to the flood forecasting and warning centre of the head office in the capital.

Barisal Relief and Rehabilitation Officer Chittaranjan Adhikari said different areas of Sadar, Hizla, Muladi, Mehendiganj, Gournadi, Agoiljhara and Bakeganj upazilas of the district are vulnerable to flash flood.

Barisal City Corporation Mayor Ahsan Habib Kamal said he directed his all officials to be prepared to save people from the sufferings that may caused by downpours or flash floods. l

Baufal Bazar in Patuakhali has been inundated because of rise in water level in all the rivers of southern region. The photo was taken yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

Trade increases in Narsingdi SheikhercharBaburhat wholesale market n Our Correspondent, Narsingdi

The wholesale shops of the district’s Sheikherchar-Baburhat bazar, one of the biggest wholesale markets in the country, have been witnessing the buzz of buyers ahead of Eid-ulFitr.

Before a week of the Ramadan had passed, traders of the market started amassing products keeping an eye on the upcoming festival while some them are also selling imported foreign garments at resonable prices.

There are about 3,000 shops at the market which is situated on the Dhaka-Sylhet highway.

Heavy trading has recently been seen except on Saturday, were it continues till midnight.

Wealthier members of society have also been gathering at the market to buy Zakat at bargain price.

Businessmen from the market opined that the spree at the market would gather momentum during this coming Eid. Sources said most of the local fabric industries have established

Sellers and buyers busy at Baburhat wholesale market in Narsingdi DHAKA TRIBUNE in the district where basically saree, lungi have been produced along with other articles of clothing. Good communication system, bargain price and quality products are

Abducted boy rescued from Sirajganj n Our Correspondent, Sirajganj A child was rescued from Sirajganj yesterday, eight days after he was abducted.

Sub-Inspector of Sirajganj Sadar police station Abdul Barik said kidnappers had abducted Sharif, the son of a Kuwait ex-patriot- Iqbal Hossain, a week ago from Kacharipara village of South Keranigaj, Dhaka, and demanded a ransom of Tk10 lakh from his mother.

Parul, the child’s mother, filed a case with South Keraniganj police station.

With the help of Sirajganj police, a team from Keraniganj police station conducted rescue operations on Monday night in different parts of

Sirajganj town.

At one stage of their drive, the police team found the child on the rooftop of a house in Marowaripatti of the town.

Police detained Sima Akhtar, alias Mim, 19, the cousin of the victim and a member of the kidnapping gang, from a house on S S Road. They are looking for another member of the gang, Azam, for involvement with the kidnapping.

The Sub-inspector said Azam had helped Sima to rent a house, and had supplied her with food and other necessities.

The bkash account number given to Sharif’s mother for sending the ransom belongs to one of Azam’s relatives. l

Robbery committed Correspondent, n Our Gazipur

A robbery was committed at a house in Halukaid village under Sreepur upazila of the district yesterday. A gang of 12 robbers entered the house

of a retired police officer cutting the lock of the main gate and looted valuables worth about Tk22,000. Hearing the screams coming from the house, locals rushed to the spot while the robbers managed to flee the scene. l

Bangladeshi held by BSF Correspondent, n Our Thakhurgaon

Border Security Force of India detained a Bangladeshi cattle trader yesterday at Molani border under Haripur upazila of the district.

The detainee is Tozammel Hossain,30, son of Md Bazlur Rahman of Dograbari village under the upazila.

Confirming the incident,

Intelligence Officer of 30BGB Major Towhid said Tozammel had crossed the border near pillar no. 375/5S. When he reached 1 km inside the Indian territory at Ailpara village, a petrol team of 121 BSF battalion of Sreepur camp in India arrested him. He said that they conveyed a letter for flag meeting for returning Tozammel. l

attracting the buyers at the market, from where about 500 trucks daily leave for other districts of the country.

Pakija Fabric showroom manager

there Shankar Shaha said all types of indigenous clothes are available in the bazar. Whole sellers across the country prefer the market due to getting better quality products at bargain prices than the other markets elsewhere in the country.

A trader named Sheikh Ruman said heavy trading takes place every year particularly centring the two big Islamic festivals, Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Azha. Many people come to the market to buy Zakat saree and lungis in bulk.

GM Taleb Hossain, vice president of Sheikerchar-Baburhat traders’ association, hoped for better business this year, which was dull during the last two eids due to the BNP-Jamaat led 18-party sponsored incessant nationwide hartal and blockade programmes that also immensely paralysed the country’s economy.

The bazar’s saree and lungi whole seller named Helal Uddin echoed the voice of the vice president, saying trading would increase more in line with increasing shopping at retail level appearing Eid-ul-Fitr. l

Trawler with 37 workers capsizes in Padma, five missing Correspondent, n Our Munshiganj A sand-laden trawler, carrying 37 workers, capsized in Padma River near Mawa Ghat in Munshiganj yesterday.

So far, 32 people have been rescued among whom 10 people have been injured and are receiving treatment at Shologhar Health Complex in Srinagar upazila.

Among the injured, four are in serious conditions.

One rescued worker Habibur Rahman said there were 37 workers on-board the trawler and five were

still missing.

The workers loaded the trawler with sand collected from Maddha char in Louhajang upazila and started off for the nearby Paler char. The trawler capsized a few hundreds meters away from Mawa ghat amid the Padma River high tide.

People from other launches and speed boats rescued the workers.

Md Kaiyum, sub-inspector of Mawa police outpost, said it could not be confirmed whether all the workers had been rescued yet or not. Relatives of the missing people were seen waiting on the bank of the river. l

Chhatra League attacks police outpost n Our Correspondent, Chandpur Chhatra League activists attacked a police outpost in Chandpur Sadar upazila on Monday.

The incident took place around 10:00am, police said.

Locals said police had detained eight youths on charges of getting high on drugs and making noise, thereby disturbing the Esha and Tarawih prayers at Begum Jame Mosque.

In retaliation, in a sudden attack on the police outpost at around 10:00pm, their fellows vandalised two motorcycles and furniture.

Up to 40 Chhatra League activists were

allegedly part of the attack. They also assaulted the police officers who were present at the outpost.

Superintendent of Police Amir Zafar and Additional Superintendent of Police Kamrul Islam and Chandpur Model police station Officer-in-Charge Abdul Kaiyum visited the site that night.

District Awami League Vice President Osman Gani Patowari rushed to the scene and tried to resolve it.

Kaiyum said they had filed a case against 30 or 35 persons of whom six were named.

Speaking to the Dhaka Tribune, Zafar termed the incident “unexpected” and said those who were involved in the attack would be arrested soon. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Long Form

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

7

A boon misunderstood Recognising the contribution and potential of the RMG sector in Bangladesh

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n Chowdhury Abd-Allah Quaseed ut of about 200 nations of the world, it is not a matter to be scoffed at, that Bangladesh has secured its position between the 40th and 50th, in terms of the size of the economy, consistently over the last few years. And this is only using financial data which is legally disclosed.

The ranking of Bangladesh would possibly be higher if all the undeclared wealth of the nation would be tallied as well. So Bangladesh is really not as downtrodden as it may appear to many. In fact it is now well recognized as an upcoming place for growth and opportunities.

And one of the main reasons that Bangladesh has been able to attain this status is because of the ready-made garments sector that is flourishing in the country since the early 1980s and because of all the positive changes it has triggered off as a chain reaction across the nation in terms of economy as well as social development.

In 2006, the RMG sector of Bangladesh had been able to export about $8bn worth of products across the world, which at that time was considered to be a great feat. Today, less than eight years later, the industry’s exports have reached about $26bn annually, which is an almost 300% growth from the 2006 baseline.

There are almost 4,000 active factories belonging to about 1,500 holding companies, employing from a few hundred people to over 15,000 in a single factory. The total employment generated by the sector is a staggering 5.5 million, inclusive of all staff and management as well.

The number would leap up by a further couple of million, if we include the textile factories and trims and accessories manufacturing companies and all the buying, sourcing and liaison offices of apparel brands.

If each employee is considered to be supporting four others in the family, then the number of people depending on the sector for their survival, gets catapulted up to at least 30 million or three crore. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that it is indeed this industry which forms the backbone of the economy of Bangladesh and it is this sector that supports the creation, growth and prosperity of many other sectors of the country.

Impact on banking sector One of the most direct beneficiaries of the RMG industry is the banking sector. All of these thousands of factories have been built upon loans from the banks which derive more earnings by financing working capital for these companies and also by providing letters of credit and trade financing.

More than two million of the employees and owners and their family members of these garment companies have accounts in the banks, with varying quantities of savings, contributing significantly to the lendable fund reserve of the banks. Many hundred thousands of these employees have taken loans for various purposes and almost a million employees of the RMG sector use credit cards issued by these banks.

All of these directly contribute to the enhanced profitability of the banking sector and of the financial institutes. Thus all the tens of thousands of employees working in all the banks and the hundreds of thousands of their family members are all supported by the RMG sector to a great extent.

Almost 3,000 factories have been constructed in the last eight years

alone, each measuring from a minimum of 20 to 30,000 square feet to up to a million square feet, with the majority of them measuring between 100,000 to 200,000 square feet.

Counting all the factories that came up in the 90s and onwards as well, the total construction work that was required by this sector, does tantamount to a few billion square feet of civil engineering!

The making of all this has generated the boom in the construction industry, and the sale and supply of construction materials, and have provided employment to several million construction workers across the last decade and half. There have been several tens of thousands of architects, interior designers, and engineers from the field of electrical, mechanical and civil engineering, who have worked for these projects.

The specialised requirements of the sector has led to the establishment of dedicated universities focusing on textile and apparel technology based education. This has churned out many tens of thousands of graduates, most of whom have been successfully absorbed into the RMG sector, which has also provided work opportunities to a few hundred thousand BBA and MBA graduates from both public and private universities.

Impact on workers’ income The RMG sector has boosted the general income of the people that work within it and their associated subsectors, resulting in a tremendous boost in the living standards of people across the country and in consumption patterns. Food and groceries of higher grade are now purchased in much greater quantities even in villages, where the family members of the

RAJIB DHAR

wages for helpers to Tk5,300, from December 2013, which accordingly means minimum wages for higher levels of workers reaching up to 8,000 or higher, have now resulted in a situation where there are many workers earning up to even Tk20,000 a month.

The average earning of the worker now, is about Tk12,000 to Tk13,000 per month, which is at par with or even higher in many cases, than the salaries paid to university graduates by local private companies and even some banks.

The RMG industry not given the recognition and credit that is rightfully due to it and all the entrepreneurs and people working in the sector

employees of most of the RMG sector employees reside.

Low priced locally made electronic items ranging from phones to television sets and DVD players have flooded even the rural communities.

People are purchasing healthcare and cosmetic products many times more than before and spending a lot more on entertainment too.

It has to be realised that the earning of the workers in this sector is in fact considerably higher than what people earn in other industries and thus, the furor that is generated by the media and some portions of the intellectual community about the low income of workers in the sector is indeed quite unfounded and baseless. The minimum wage of Tk3,000 that used to prevail was only applicable for helpers and there were higher levels of minimum wages for various designations.

Thus the minimum wage of Tk3,000 was applicable for less than 10% of the workers at the bottom of the hierarchy. Besides, it has to be realised that the workers earn over double of the minimum wage after inclusion of the overtime, the attendance bonus, and some other allowances provided by the factories. Thus, the average earning of workers till 2013 was as high as Tk7,500 to Tk8,000, which was not as low as was misrepresented.

Now, with the increase of minimum

RAJIB DHAR

The rise in this salary level has also set off a domino effect leading to slow and gradual increase of salaries of staff and officers too. Thus, the life of the RMG sector employees, including even the factory workers, is in actuality, considerably better than what the general prevailing impression is.

Impact on foreign investment This is also the sector that has led to the influx of a few billion dollars worth of foreign investment across all the export promotion zones. The sector, which has led to the creation of a large number of power and energy providing companies supplying electricity, has also directly supported the creation of hundreds of thousands of ancillary service providers.

The housing and real estate sector has experienced a major boost since the mid 1990s, in part because of the surge in the RMG sector. Most of the owners and higher level management members of these thousands of companies have purchased apartments or plots of land. This again has benefitted the construction industry and those supplying materials.

This has in general contributed to the rise in property prices, something that was also brought about in the outlying areas by the companies purchasing large tracts of land in villages for the making of factories. Rent has also increased for the low cost homes of the workers and also in the areas where most of the mid and upper management of these companies reside.

Tens of thousands of foreign nationals working in the sector and staying in Dhaka and Chittagong have contributed to many architects leaning more towards international designs and standards, when designing and making residential buildings in areas which are preferred by these foreign nationals, thereby improving the look as well as quality of thousands of apartment buildings.

The transport sector has also experienced a major expansion, directly because of the RMG sector. All the companies operating in the industry owns many vehicles, some up to even 200 vehicles that they use for various commercial and noncommercial purposes, not only including cars and microbuses, but also large passenger buses, trucks and covered vans.

The owners of these garment

companies are also the ones who can afford the purchase and maintenance of the best brands of vehicles in the country. All of this in aggregate supports the companies selling automobiles, the fuel providers, and the workshops and garages. And there are a few hundred companies that have arisen who provide rented vehicles to the RMG companies.

Not only in the realm of logistics, but the RMG sector directly contributes to the bulk of the profits of the clearing and forwarding companies, the shipping sector, the freight forwarders and also the cargo section of the airlines. The RMG sector alone comprises over half of all the cargo that is transported. Thousands of small and medium catering companies are thriving as well, who supply food on a regular basis to the factories.

The TV channels and newspapers, restaurants, clothing stores and boutiques, private clubs, educational institutions, commercial buildings, etc, have almost all been formed by investments acquired from earnings generated by the RMG industry.

Domestic travel and tourism has also been propelled forward greatly due to the expansion of the sector.

Factories have been set up in distant places, leading to the sprouting of numerous resorts and hotels in many districts as well as in remote locations to provide accommodation for those who visit those factories for work purposes, and for them to bring their friends and family members along at times. The growth of the sector has also been one of the main reasons for the sprouting up of over a dozen export processing zones in distant districts, thereby leading to economic advancement of those regions in various ways.

International travel and tourism has been greatly enhanced over the years in Bangladesh because of the RMG sector. There are thousands of international buyers and consultants who are

clothes at low cost. It also provides the livelihood to all those engaged in selling these products.

There is a surprisingly large fabric recycling industry that has arisen in the last decade or so, where scraps of fabrics are taken and converted into thread and new textiles, which are then used for producing new items.

This recycling business generates income for a large population as well.

The RMG sector also supports the existence of numerous NGOs, training organisations, consultants, environmental and infrastructural services providers, and generates the employment for a host of international experts working for various organisations engaged in trying to develop the sector further. Indeed there are more than 100,000 foreign nationals living in the country, who, or the main earning member of whose family, derives their income from working in this sector or directly as an employee of these companies.

There are more than 50,000 people from other SAARC nations, as well as tens of thousands of foreign nationals from China, Korea, Japan, even Turkey and some European countries, all employed by the RMG companies, living in Dhaka and Chittagong and near the export promotion zones.

Indeed, the fact that Bangladesh is now considered one of the leading destinations for high paid jobs for many foreign nationals and that they work under Bangladeshi management and ownership is certainly something about which the country can afford to feel proud of. This has also paved the way for the country’s talented youth to learn important skills and work processes from remaining under the guidance of these international experts. The level of skill and expertise of Bangladesh is being greatly enhanced.

The presence of such a large foreign population in the country, and the exposure to the regular influx of foreigners every day has contributed

Reality of the RMG industry

factories in the export promotion zones, one would feel that the factories provide almost the same environment as a modern corporate office, even for the actual factory workers.

Indeed, the compliance situation is also a lot better than what people perceive it to be. Child labour is almost non-existent, as are practices such as salary non payment or discriminative salary setting etc. The strict monitoring by the foreign brands placing orders has helped a long way in ensuring the upkeep of social compliance standards.

The increase in awareness about safety related to electrical, fire, and structural aspects, and all the development work taking place in these fields, greatly spearheaded by the Accord and Alliance of foreign apparel brands, is paving the way for even safer factories.

In fact there are more fire doors, sprinklers, fire fighting equipment and environmental consciousness woven into more of these factories than is present in even many of the smartest offices, hotels, and commercial buildings and residences. People are safer in the garments factories than in their homes and in other buildings. But that is a fact that few realise.

One also has to take into consideration the reality that the profitability of the industry is indeed quite low, hardly exceeding 7% or 8% of the total revenue. This can also get depleted very easily due to air shipments caused by production delays, and by factories remaining closed out of schedule only for a few days in a year.

Thus, the allegations made about the industry not providing even more than what it does, for its employees, despite such high earning, is also not entirely as valid a remark as many think.

These are some of the many negative rumours that prevail about the industry, due to the fact that not too many people get to know about the industry and its magnitude and the extent of its contributions. This is because of the fact that there is very little advertising or public relations work done by companies in this sector, as their products are for export and not for local consumption.

However, the time has come to invest in image building.

Thus, I would lament that indeed the RMG sector is unfortunate, for it continues to bear calumny and ignominy which is undeserved. It is not given the recognition and credit that is rightfully due to it and all the entrepreneurs and people working in the sector.

And it really is time now, for the overall society of Bangladesh to understand how all of their lives are dependent upon the success of the RMG sector, and it is time to recognise the potential the sector has for shaping Bangladesh into a developed nation.

To that end, I would recommend strongly, that the entrepreneurs engaged in the sector, and the associations such as BGMEA, begin to invest a lot more of their time, resources and energy in building up the positive image of the industry among the people of the nation. l

Despite a lot of fallacies, the reality is that the garments factories provide much healthier and ergonomically advanced working conditions to workers than in most other kinds of industries.

If we consider the new factories that have come up in the last few years and especially the hundreds of massive

Chowdhury Abd-Allah Quaseed is the Director of HR & Compliance in a leading group of RMG manufacturing group of companies, and the maker and facilitator of a number of development focused TV programs and the founder of Force of Tomorrow, a non-political advocacy forum for better governance.

Despite a lot of fallacies, the reality is that the garments factories provide much healthier and ergonomically advanced working conditions to workers than in most other kinds of industries travelling to Bangladesh on any given day, and it is to support this influx of business related visitors that hundreds of small hotels and guest houses have arisen all over the city.

All of these small hotels and guest houses remain fully occupied, which is also the case with the major hotels.

Thus the boom in the hotel industry is a derivation of the RMG sector. Work related to marketing and training in this sector, has also greatly increased the travel of people from Bangladesh to other countries. The high income of the employees has encouraged more personal trips to other countries as well, helping to make the travel agencies burgeon into a booming industry.

There are tens of thousands of small and medium clothing stores across the country which sell the slightly defective, rejected or excess produced items taken from all the factories at very low prices, directly enabling millions of people in the country to buy and have excellent quality of

significantly to cultural advancement of the country as well. People have slowly become a lot less xenophobic, and there is a much better level of cross cultural understanding and trust. Many foreigners from all over the world are having a far clearer idea about what Bangladesh is, and is learning to view the country and its people with respect, and not just as a developing nation in need of aid all the time, or a country of fanatics breeding potential terrorists.

So the sector is helping in bridging the cultural divide as well and making the country more globalised.

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

D AY 7 : I S R A E L I M I L I TA R Y C A M PA I G N I N G A Z A 1

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(1) An Israeli Merkava tank rolls at an army deployment along the Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip on July 14, 2014. Israel kept up its punishing raids on Gaza. (2) A Palestinian boy walks amongst the rubble of a house which police said was destroyed in an Israeli air strike in Deir El-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. (3) Four-year-old Palestinian girl Shayma Al-Masri, who was wounded in an Israeli air strike that killed her mother and two of her siblings, lies on a bed next to her doll as she receives treatment at a hospital in Gaza City. (4) Relatives mourn during the funeral of four members of the Moamer family, including a 26-year-old militant of the Hamas movement, after they were killed in an Israeli air strike in southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah REUTERS/AFP

Pressure for ceasefire grows in week-old Gaza war n Reuters, Gaza/Jerusalem Israel held back yesterday from a threatened escalation of attacks on the northern Gaza Strip and no Palestinian rockets streaked towards Tel Aviv, but elsewhere fighting continued unabated despite growing pressure for a ceasefire.

The military said it had shot down a drone from Gaza, the first reported deployment of an unmanned aircraft by Palestinian militants whose rocket attacks have been regularly intercepted.

The use of a drone would mark a step up in the sophistication of the Palestinian arsenal, although it was not immediately clear whether it was armed.

Around half a dozen Israelis have been wounded since the start of the week-old offensive, which Gaza health officials say has killed 169 Palestinians, most of them civilians.

International calls for a ceasefire have grown as the death toll has mounted in the worst flare-up of Israe-

li-Palestinian violence for almost two years, sparked by the murder of three Israeli teenagers and revenge killing of a Palestinian youth.

Israel has arrested three people, two of them minors, over the Palestinian’s murder and officials said on Monday they had confessed to burning him alive.

The European Union said on Monday it was in touch with «all parties in the region” to press for an immediate halt to the hostilities, a day after US Secretary of State John Kerry offered to help secure a Gaza truce.

Egypt and Qatar were also involved but peace efforts were complicated

by Hamas’s rejection of a mere “calm for calm” in which both sides hold their fire in favour of wider conditions including prisoner release and an end to Israel’s Gaza blockade.

The Israeli army said its aircraft and naval gunboats attacked dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip and that Palestinian militants fired more than 20 rockets

Saharan skeletons may be evidence of the first race war, 13,000 years ago n Tribune Desk Scientists are investigating what may be the oldest identified race war 13,000 years after it raged on the fringes of the Sahara, The Independent said.

French scientists working in collaboration with the British Museum have been examining dozens of skeletons, a majority of whom appear to have been killed by archers using flint-tipped arrows.

The bones – from Jebel Sahaba on the east bank of the Nile in northern Sudan – are from victims of the world’s oldest known relatively large-scale human armed conflict. Over the past two years anthropologists from Bordeaux University have discovered literally dozens of previously undetected arrow impact marks and flint arrow head fragments on and around the bones of the victims.

This is in addition to many arrow heads and impact marks already found embedded in some of the bones during an earlier examination of the skeletons back in the 1960s. The remains – the contents of an entire early cemetery – were found in 1964 by the prominent American archaeologist, Fred Wendorf, but, until the current investigations, had never been examined using more modern, 21 century, technology.

Some of the skeletal material has just gone on permanent display as part of the British Museum’s new Early Egypt gallery which opens officially today. The bones – from Jebel Sahaba on the east bank of the

River Nile in northern Sudan – are from victims of the world’s oldest known relatively large-scale human armed conflict.

Now British Museum scientists are planning to learn more about the victims themselves – everything from gender to disease and from diet to age at death. The discovery of dozens of previously undetected arrow impact marks and flint arrow fragments suggests that the majority of the individuals – men, women and children – in the Jebel Sahaba cemetery were killed by enemy archers, and then buried by their own people. What’s more, the new research demonstrates that the attacks – in effect a prolonged low-level war – took place over many months or years. l

into Israel, slightly wounding a boy in the town of Ashdod, where a home was damaged. Palestinian health officials said at least 20 people in Gaza were wounded.

But Israel did not carry out a threat to step up attacks against rocket-launching sites it said were hidden among civilian homes in the town of Beit Lahuiya after urging residents there to leave.

A UN aid agency said around a quarter of the town›s 70,000 residents had fled.

And as of the late afternoon, no sirens had sounded in the densely-populated Tel Aviv area, a daily target of rocket attacks.

‘Special missions’

Hamas, the Islamist group which runs Gaza, said its armed wing had sent several locally-made drones to carry out “special missions” deep inside Israel. A military spokesman said the drone was intercepted near the port of Ashdod by a US-built Patriot missile, used largely ineffectively by Israel against

Iraqi Scud missiles in the 1991 Gulf War. The force was trying to locate debris in the area about 25 km (15 miles) north of Gaza, and determine whether it had carried explosives.

“Hamas is trying for an achievement at any price,” Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon, referring to the drone, said in a statement. “We will continue to pummel Hamas and other terrorist organisations until the safety of Israeli citizens is ensured.”

An Egyptian-brokered truce doused the last big Gaza flare-up in 2012, and UN Secretary General Ban Kimoon told Egyptian President Abel Fattah al-Sisi in a phone call that his country is the most credible party capable of persuading both sides to stand down, an official Egyptian statement said.

But Cairo’s government is at odds with Islamist Hamas, complicating a mediation bid with the group, an offshoot of the now-outlawed Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood. l

Moscow ‘considers targeted strikes’ on Ukraine in retaliation n AFP, Moscow Moscow is considering targeted strikes against Ukraine after a shell reportedly crossed the border and killed a Russian civilian, the Kommersant daily reported yesterday, citing a source close to the Kremlin.

The respected daily quoted a source as saying that Moscow was considering the possibility of “targeted retaliatory strikes” against Ukraine, where escalating clashes between pro-Moscow rebels and government troops threatened to spiral into an all-out civil war over the weekend. “Our patience is not limitless,” the source was quoted as saying, adding that Russia “knows exactly where they (Ukrainians) are firing from.”

The source said that Russia was not considering any large-scale action, but only targeted one-off strikes on positions from which fire is

Spy flap frays CIA, White House ties n Agencies

Germany’s dramatic decision to expel the top US intelligence official in Berlin has put fresh strain on the frequently fraught relationship between American spies and the policymakers who rely on – and sometimes clash with – the nation’s cloak-and-dagger operatives.

The transatlantic feud comes amid a bleak six-month stretch of international crises that appear to have caught the United States flat-footed as well as at a time of skirmishes between the White House and some of the intelligence community’s career operatives.

US intelligence agencies have never been strangers to ugly controversies, from attempts to assassinate Cuba’s Fidel Castro, to the use of interrogation practices that meet international defini-

tions of torture, or the case for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. They have also faced charges of incompetence, like the failure to predict the fall of the Soviet Union.

By those historical standards, 2014 hasn’t been a disaster. But the often testy relationship between spies and politicians is definitely going through a bad patch – and it may only get worse.

The last half-year has featured the shocking rampage of an al-Qaida offshoot, the Islamic State in Syria and the Levant (ISIL), in Syria and Iraq, Russia’s dramatic annexation of Crimea, the White House’s accidental but headline-grabbing outing of the CIA station chief in Afghanistan, and an unprecedented war of words in which one of the agency’s most reliable congressional champions, Senator Dianne Feinstein, accused it of spying on legislative staff.

Not everyone agrees that the relationship is passing through an unusually difficult period. Senator Saxby Chambliss, the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, praised CIA Director John Brennan.

“I think John is working hard to make sure our intelligence community functions in a way that the White House and policymakers want to see it work,” Chambliss said. “You have bumps in the road in any organization and John’s trying to smooth those out.”

The latest news out of Germany has roots in the stunning disclosures from former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden. Already, German Chancellor Angela Merkel had openly expressed anger upon learning that US intelligence eavesdropped on her cell phone calls. l

Snowden condemns UK surveillance bill n The Guardian The NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden has condemned the new surveillance bill being pushed through the UK’s parliament this week, expressing concern about the speed at which it is being done, lack of public debate, fear-mongering and what he described as increased powers of intrusion.

In an exclusive interview with the Guardian in Moscow, Snowden said it was very unusual for a public body to pass an emergency law such as this in circumstances other than a time of total war. “I mean we don’t have bombs falling. We don’t have U-boats in the harbour.”

Suddenly it is a priority, he said, after the government had ignored it for an entire year. “It defies belief.”

He found the urgency with which the British government was moving extraordinary and said it mirrored a similar move in the US in 2007 when the Bush administration was forced to introduce legislation, the Protect America Act, citing the same concerns about terrorist threats and the NSA losing cooperation from telecom and internet companies.

“I mean the NSA could have written this draft,” he said. “They passed it under the same sort of emergency justification. They said we would be at risk. They said companies will no

longer cooperate with us. We’re losing valuable intelligence that puts the nation at risk.”

His comments chime with British civil liberties groups who, having had time to read the small print, are growing increasingly sceptical about government claims last week that the bill is a stop-gap that will not increase the powers of the surveillance agencies.

David Cameron, searching for cross-party support, assured the Liberal Democrats and Labour that there would be no extension of the powers. But internal Home Office papers seen by the Guardian appear to confirm that there would be an expansion of powers. l

directed at Russian territory.

Moscow said Sunday that a Ukrainian shell had landed in Russia and killed a civilian, prompting the Russian foreign ministry to say that the incident was “another act of aggression” that could have “irreversible consequences.”

Ukraine denied the claim, saying that government forces “had never before, are not now, and never will fire on the territory of a neighbouring state.”

Several shells landed early Sunday in the small Russian border town of Donetsk, which has the same name as rebels’ stronghold city in eastern Ukraine, killing one resident and wounding two.

The deputy speaker of Russia’s upper house of parliament, Yevgeny Bushmin, said Sunday: “We need to use targeted weapons, like Israel does among others, to destroy those who launched this mine.” l

NEWS BITES

Costa Concordia wreck floats for first time

n Agencies

A salvage operation has successfully raised the wreck of the ill-fated Costa Concordia more than two years after it sank off the Italian island of Giglio. The high-risk operation has raised the rusting hulk of the 114,500-tonne vessel, which will now begin its final journey to the shipyard where it was built.

The operation to salvage the 290-metre long ship’s wreck was unprecedented in its scale. The Costa Concordia was rotated upright in September and was sitting on an underwater platform. The disaster in January 2012 left 32 people dead, with one body still left unfound. l

Cypriots file war crimes complaint against Turkey

n AP, Nicosia, Cyprus

A group of Cypriots has filed a war crimes complaint against Turkey at the International Criminal Court over what they say is its policy of settling Cyprus’ breakaway north with mainland Turks.

Cyprus split into a Turkish-speaking north and an internationally recognized Greek-speaking south in 1974 when Turkey invaded after a coup that aimed to unite the island with Greece. A Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence is recognized only by Turkey, which maintains 35,000 troops there. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Thai junta’s pledge to send back Myanmar refugees sparks concern

About 120,000 refugees live in 10 camps along the Thailand-Myanmar border “We are not at the stage where we grant workers sparked the departure of tion,” said the aid worker, who asked n Reuters, Bangkok will deport people because we must more than 200,000 Cambodians, a key not to be identified because of the senThailand’s military government said yesterday it would send home 100,000 refugees who have been living in camps for two decades and more along the border with Myanmar, a move rights groups say would create chaos at a tense time for both nations.

Thailand’s military overthrew the remnants of an elected government in May after months of sometimes violent street protests. Its National Council for Peace and Order has rolled out a raft of tough measures it says are needed to restore order and has promised a return to democracy next year.

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is emerging from nearly five decades of isolation under repressive military rule. Its nominally civilian government has talked about repatriating the refugees, but non-governmental organisations say they are concerned by a lack of infrastructure to help returnees rebuild their lives.

first verify the nationality of those in the camps,” army deputy spokesman Veerachon Sukhontapatipak told Reuters.

Without any legal status or marketable skills, the refugees have long been seen as a burden by the Thai state “Once that is done we will find ways to send them back. There are around 100,000 people who have been living in the camps for many years without freedom. Thailand and Myanmar will help facilitate their smooth return.”

Last month, comments made by a junta spokeswoman threatening to arrest and deport undocumented mi-

component of the workforce in fishing, construction and other sectors.

Thailand scrambled to reverse that exodus by opening service centres to help migrant workers secure work permits. There are also an estimated 2 million Burmese migrant workers, the largest contingent of such labourers in the country. But without any legal status or marketable skills, the refugees have long been seen as a burden by the Thai state.

An estimated 120,000 Burmese refugees live in 10 camps along the Thailand-Myanmar border, according to The Border Consortium, which coordinates NGO activity in the camps.

Military pressing for repatriation

An aid worker who has been helping the refugees said the Thai army appeared serious about its repatriation push. “The authorities said this time they are going to be very strict. It seems like they’re really pushing for repatria-

sitive nature of the issue.

“The situation in the camps is very tense because people don’t know what’s going to happen.”

The refugees fear economic and logistical difficulties in returning as well as sporadic fighting in parts of north and northeast Myanmar.

In his weekly televised speech last Friday, junta leader General Prayuth Chan-ocha said Myanmar and Thailand would oversee a smooth return home of refugees.

“Thailand and Myanmar will facilitate the safe return to their homeland in accordance with human rights principles,” he said.

But rights groups say a lack of transparency surrounds any plan to send refugees back.

“When Prayuth spoke on Friday he left out what the conditions for the return would be,” Sunai Phasuk of Human Rights Watch told Reuters. l

China begins criminal probe into three former top officials

Japan’s Abe wants to hold summit with China at APEC

Chinese authorities have begun criminal investigations into three former high-ranking officials over corruption allegations, state media said yesterday, two of whom were allies of powerful, retired domestic security chief Zhou Yongkang.

Sources have told Reuters that Zhou has been put under virtual house arrest while the ruling Communist Party investigates him for graft, though the party has made no announcement about his case.

Several of Zhou’s political allies have been held in custody and questioned over corruption, including former Vice Minister of Public Security Li Dongsheng and Jiang Jiemin, who was the top regulator of state-owned enterprises for five months until last September.

The official Xinhua news agency said criminal investigations had been opened into Li and Jiang, along with another official, Wang Yongchun, who was a vice president of China’s biggest oil company, China National Petroleum Corporation, the parent of PetroChina .

Xinhua provided no other details other than that all three were in custody.

As the wheels of Chinese justice can turn slowly their trials may be a long way off.

President Xi Jinping has launched a sweeping crackdown on deep-rooted graft since taking office last year, warning, like many before him, the problem was so severe it could affect the party’s ability to rule. l

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said yesterday he wanted to hold a summit with China at the APEC leaders meeting in Beijing in November to improve relations strained by territorial and security issues, but drew a cool response from China.

Abe has been in office since late 2012 and has yet to meet Chinese leaders, despite worsening ties over disputed islands in the East China Sea, China’s declaration of an air defence identification zone in the area and Abe’s visits to a Tokyo shrine seen as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism.

“It is a great pity that we have not been able to have a leaders’ summit,” Abe told a parliamentary committee.

“We need to return to the basics of a strategic relationship of mutual respect. I would like to have a summit in Beijing this November at the time of the APEC meeting,” he said, referring to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum annual summit.

China’s Foreign Ministry said it had expressed its view on the issue many times already, though stopped short of outright rejecting the request.

“The Japanese side should take real steps and work hard to banish the political obstacles which affect the development of bilateral ties,” it said.

Japan has been locked in a territorial dispute with China over a group of East China Sea islets, known as the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China. Ships from both countries frequently shadow each other around the islands, raising fears of a clash. l

n Reuters, Beijing

n Reuters, Tokyo

Malala in Nigeria: Bring back our girls n AP, Abuja

Pakistani education activist Malala Yousafzai is celebrating her 17th birthday in Nigeria with promises to work for the release of some 219 schoolgirls who have been held

by Islamic extremists for three months.

“My birthday wish this year is ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ now and alive,” she said, using the social media slogan that has been picked up around the world to demand freedom for the girls kidnapped from a school in the remote northeastern Nigerian town of Chibok before dawn on April 15.

Malala, who escaped a Taliban assassination attempt in 2012, met President Goodluck Jonathan later Monday.

Jonathan has not met with any of the kidnapped girls’ parents, nor with Nigerian activists who started the worldwide movement.

He has drawn international condemnation for his government’s failure to quickly rescue the students. In May, Jonathan canceled a planned trip to Chibok. And soldiers and police prevented activists from marching to his presidential village in Abuja, the capital, to give him written demands the same month.

Malala met in Abuja with some parents of the kidnapped girls and some of the dozens of girls and young women who escaped the abduction. All have been begging Jonathan to negotiate with Boko Haram extremists. Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau put out a new video this week in which he repeated his demands that the government release scores of detained insurgents in exchange for the girls’ freedom.

“Nigerians are saying ‘Bring Back Our Girls,’ and we are telling Jonathan to bring back our arrested warriors, our army,” he said. l

Eight tech titans who won’t leave their fortune to their kids n Tribune Desk

Some entrepreneurs who have made billions off of their tech ventures like to spend them in some pretty extravagant ways, whether it be on private planes, summer homes, or even an entire island.

Others turn to more-philanthropic efforts, choosing to donate their wealth to different causes through foundations and trusts.

But there are some generous people in tech who have decided to donate large portions of their wealth to charity rather than pass it down to their children.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates Bill Gates has been open about his decision not to leave his $78bn fortune to his three children. They will reportedly inherit just a small slice, about $10m each.

“I definitely think leaving kids massive amounts of money is not a favour to them,” he said in a Reddit AMA in February.

He founded the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 1994, and it currently has more than $36bn in assets. Gates also teamed up with longtime friend Warren Buffett to start a campaign called “The Giving Pledge,” which encourages other billionaires to donate at least half of their fortune to charity.

AOL co-founder Steve Case Steve Case helped millions of Americans get online, and now he is donating much of his wealth to developing other technologies.

He founded the Case Foundation in 1997, which focuses on using technology to make philanthropy more effective. He also started an investment firm called Revolution, which invests in startups outside of Silicon Valley, and signed the Giving Pledge.

“We share the view that those to whom much is given, much is expected.

We realize we have been given a unique platform and opportunity, and we are committed to doing the best we can with it,” he and wife Jean wrote. “We do not believe our assets are ours but rather we try to be the responsible stewards of these resources.”

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff Marc Benioff recently launched a campaign called SF Gives, which challenged tech companies to raise $10m for San Francisco-based nonprofit programmes in just 60 days.

He has encouraged other corporations to follow his 1/1/1 model, which says that a company should donate 1% of its equity, 1% of its employees time, and 1% of its resources to philanthropic efforts.

He and wife Lynne have also personally given a total of $200m to the children’s hospital at UCSF.

Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs Together with wife Joan, Irwin Jacobs has given away some $500m of his fortune to charitable causes that include the Cornell Tech Roosevelt Island campus, MIT fellowships, and the San Diego Symphony.

He has also signed the Giving Pledge, promising to give away at least half of

The smuggled stone that was once more precious than gold

n Alex Preston, BBC Myanmar, also known as Burma, is one of the world’s largest Jade producers but with trade bound by international sanctions, many of the precious gemstones are smuggled out of the country.

At first, I think it’s a waterfall. A wave of liquid sound comes towards me over the brackish waters of the Irrawaddy River.

As I get closer, crossing a bridge beside a flock of orange-robed monks, the wash of noise becomes louder, more crystalline. I’m in Mandalay, northern Myanmar, a bustling city of a million people, and the sound is the clack

and rattle of hundreds of thousands of precious stones in the world’s largest jade market.

I approach the market’s entrance past workshops where teenage boys, cigarettes drooping from their lips, carve raw lumps of jade on viciously spinning wheels.

The market itself is a vast and baffling warren, row after row of traders with their iridescent stones laid out on white trays.

At least half the traders are Chinese, and the voices that ring out over the clatter of sorting stones mix Mandarin and Burmese as they vie for business.

Estimates place the value of Myan-

mar’s jade trade at more than $8bn (£4.7bn) a year. Most of the jade goes to China, whose presence in Myanmar has been growing at a precipitous rate since the end of the military dictatorship in 2011.

As I walk along one of the market’s narrow alleys, side-stepping a slushy pile of betel nut pith, I see a Chinese trader, a woman in an embroidered skirt and Elton John T-shirt, fix a loupe to her eye to inspect a small pile of luminous green stones.

She’s haggling with a young man.

We’ll call him Breng Mai, a pseudonym for reasons which will become clear.

He’s from Kachin State, the semi-au-

9

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

tonomous region in the far north of the country.

The story of Burmese jade is inextricably tied to the turbulent history of Kachin, a once-lush country of rolling hills and steep ravines that rubs borders with India’s lawless Nagaland.

The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) fought a long and bloody war against the Burmese government, with an official ceasefire declared in 1994, but tensions and outbreaks of violence persist, with Myanmar’s security services asserting a heavy presence in the area.

While the roadblocks and curfews may help keep the uneasy peace, they also ensure the government maintains

control over the jade business.

Later I meet Breng Mai in his aunt’s grocery store in downtown Mandalay. He’s 23, absurdly handsome with a voguish blonde streak in his spiked hair. He’s wearing a KIA T-shirt. The shop is bare and dingy, a single bulb hanging from the roof.

On the dusty counter are eggs, toothpaste, joss sticks and prawn crackers. Breng Mai leads me down a corridor, through a curtained doorway and into a back room, the centre of his smuggling empire.

It’s like the planet Krypton, great mounds of jade dimly glowing.

“It is all chinjalu,” he tells me, a Kachin word for jade of the highest clarity and quality - known elsewhere as “imperial jade.” The shop is a front, run by his aunt as a warehouse for Breng Mai’s illicit operations.

Sipping tea by the piles of precious stones, Breng Mai tells me he went into the jade mines aged 15.

“Although some working there were as young as eight,” he says, “it was dangerous. There were regular avalanches. In one, our whole camp was swept away. I damaged my legs but my best friend was killed.”

To trade legally, jade miners have to pay a tax to the government.

“Smuggling makes my profits much higher,” Breng Mai says.

“I drive a beer truck from Hpakan to Mandalay every few weeks. The barrels in the middle of the van are full of jade.

The government carries out raids every so often, but so far I’ve been lucky,” he adds. l

the billions he made with the electronics firm he founded. Though his son, Paul, now serves as CEO of Qualcomm, his 1.5m shares are no comparison to his fathers 26m shares.

EBay founder Pierre Omidyar Ebay Omidyar and wife Pam are some of the most generous people in tech, having given away more than $1bn of the vast fortune they made when eBay went public in 1998.

They signed the Giving Pledge in 2010.

“In 2001, I publicly stated that we intend to give away the vast majority of our wealth during our lifetime,” the couple said in their pledge letter. “Our view is fairly simple. We have more money than our family will ever need. There’s no need to hold onto it when it can be put to use today, to help solve some of the world’s most intractable problems.”

They have also donated eBay shares to the Omidyar Network, their philanthropic investment firm, and are the single biggest private donors in the fight against human trafficking.

Intel co-founder Gordon Moore Gordon Moore has given away more than $1bn to charitable causes, donating about half of his wealth to create the Moore Foundation in 2001.

The foundation, which focuses on issues of environmental conservation, health measures, and the San Francisco community, currently has more than $5bn in assets.

He and wife Betty signed Gates Giving Pledge in 2012.

“We are pleased to be a part of the Giving Pledge not only because we are able to commit these funds, but because we believe they can lead to real learning and measurable change,” they said.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk Elon Musk may have five young boys from his first marriage — one set of twins and one set of triplets — but he has already donated much of his fortune to renewable energy, science and engineering education, and pediatric health.

He signed the Giving Pledge in 2012, committing to donate the majority of his wealth to charitable causes. He receives only $1 a year for his work with Tesla.

Google CEO Larry Page Google CEO Larry Page, on the other hand, has a somewhat unique idea for what he would like to happen to his wealth.

In March, he told Charlie Rose that instead of giving his billions to his two children, he would rather give it to entrepreneurs like Elon Musk, who are coming up with big ideas to change the world. “(Musk) wants to go to Mars. That’s a worthy goal,” he said. “We have a lot of employees at Google who’ve become pretty wealthy. You’re working because you want to change the world and make it better; if the company you work for is worthy of your time, why not your money as well? We just don’t think about that. I’d like for us to help out more than we are.” l

Philippine president’s approval down on doubt over corruption effort

n Reuters, Manila Philippine President Benigno Aquino’s performance ratings have plunged to their lowest ever, two independent pollsters said yesterday, as a perception grew that he is not serious enough in efforts to fight corruption.

Aquino, the son of an assassinated opponent of dictatorship and his wife, a democracy hero and former president, won the presidency in 2010 on a promise of good governance and fighting graft but has struggled to rid the country of its image as the most corrupt in Asia.

A survey by independent pollster Pulse Asia, taken last month, showed Aquino’s approval rating dropped from 70% in March to 56%. His trust rating also fell from 69% to 53% in the same period.

Another survey, by Social Weather Stations, also done last month, showed Aquino’s net satisfaction ratings dropped to 25% from 45% in March, the lowest in four years. His highest was 67% in August 2012.

Aquino is ineligible for re-election under the constitution but the prospects for his Liberal Party’s candidate are likely to be damaged if his popularity is undermined in the run-up to a 2016 presidential election.

“This is the largest decline in both approval and trust and it’s also his lowest performance thus far,” Ana Maria Tabunda, Pulse Asia research director, said. l

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

CODE-CRACKER

Bring the tourists here

A

ccording to government officials, Bangladesh’s tourism sector may be on the verge of witnessing a breakthrough by next year. Reportedly, some special programs are to be launched, which would help attract more foreign tourists to our country. While the enthusiasm expressed by the government is appreciated, to see our country’s tourism industry truly prosper would require a lot more being done than what has been articulated.

It would not be an exaggeration to claim that there is some amount of xenophobia present in the mindset of many Bangladeshis, which makes fostering a prosperous tourism environment a difficult proposition. Tourists, or foreigners, are frequently discriminated against, or even harassed without any good reason.

It is also counterproductive to establishing a good tourism industry in that a lot of the facilities and opportunities which the average first-world tourist takes for granted are so difficult to avail in Bangladesh. We need to make tourists feel comfortable and safe, and for that we the hosts must be more tolerant to cultural differences.

Another major hindrance to Bangladesh becoming an ideal tourist destination is the matter of security. Foreign visitors coming to Bangladesh to get away from the humdrum of regular life should not have to worry about basic safety.

Improving the state of our tourism sector is a large subject that cannot be tackled without considering a multi-faceted approach.

Combating discrimination and staving off threats cannot be accomplished simply through spending – our attitudes need to change.

To see our country’s tourism industry truly prosper would require a lot more being done

Convert to cleaner kilns

I

t is high time the government took necessary steps to convert all environmentally-hazardous brick kilns of the country into environment-friendly ones. Even though recently a committee of the Environment and Forest Ministry had recommended that the Department of Environment convert 70% of our brick kilns by October, it is up to the government to ensure that the deadline for the conversion is not extended yet again.

The brick-making industry and the transport system are two major factors behind the air pollution of our country, especially in urban areas.

Most of these brick kilns are based on a 150-yearold technology that causes the emission of very large amounts of carbon monoxide and other pollutants. These gases greatly harm the environment and cause serious health problems, including heart diseases and respiratory congestions.

Technologies like Zigzag and Hybrid Hoffman Kiln are more energy-efficient, clean, and eco-friendly. Even though introducing these new technologies can be expensive and complicated, it is high time this issue is given more importance, as brick kilns are one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in our country.

Converting the brick kilns into eco-friendly ones cannot stop air pollution completely, but it can most certainly make our environment less polluted, and reduce the health risks of the people. Our government should follow the footsteps of the other developing countries that use environment-friendly methods in their brick kilns, and make sure the emissions of the brick kilns do not worsen our already polluted environment.

Converting the brick kilns into eco-friendly ones can make our environment less polluted and reduce health risks

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

Why tyrants fear social science July 12

nds Just imagine if Karl Marx had been born in this country, and did his work! What fate could he have faced? Perhaps he would have shared the fate of Bruno of 16th century Italy, who was burned alive. khanadil A nation is what its citizens, social scientists included, make of it. What we are witnessing in Bangladesh these days is nothing but a true reflection of what its people are – a flock of sheep led by thugs.

Someone has wondered earlier if Karl Marx

Point of no return July 13

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 6 represents U so fill U every time the figure 6 appears.

You have one letter in the control grid to start you off. Enter it 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 the 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.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

had been born in this country, what would have happened to him. Well, you don’t have to go very far. We have a Nobel Laureate and see what we have done to him?

Until and unless the citizens of this country get out of their slavish entrapment and learn to smell rubbish as rubbish, nothing much will happen.

Except, of course, setting world records in producing the world’s largest national flag, gathering the largest number of people to sing the national anthem, organising the largest number of students scoring “GPA 5” in high school exams etc.

If you are looking for a nation that is pathetically intellectually vacuous, come to Bangladesh!

Neymar to cheer for Argentina in final July 11

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.

Breadbitten THIS is sportsmanship, ladies and gentleman.

SD By now, it has been incontrovertibly established that there is none in this world including the Muslim Umma to provide any effective help to Palestinians from the military onslaught of Israel.

What they are doing is just providing lip service to their cause and thereby giving false hope, depending on which the Hamas or some other groups are resorting to a totally unmatched futile military struggle with the mighty military machine of Israel. Having realised the futility, Jordan and Egypt have already made a sort of servile compromise with them. It is high time for the Palestinians to accept the reality, however unpalatable it might be. Otherwise, they will have to continue sacrificing the innocent lives of their people, including the children. Mere emotion or false sense of heroism will be of no help.

Government trying to identify BASIC Bank scammers July 12 Dr Ahsan Habib My request to the government is to stop making useless, valueless comments. No criminal will be identified or put in prison. Just do your job, put them in prison, and then talk with the press. I have seen dozens and dozens of such fake shows of seriousness, and I’m getting tired of it.

Now 32 sets of question papers to plug up leaks July 12 Indigo Strange way of dealing with the problem of question paper leakage! Let us bear in mind that historically more question papers have been leaked during an AL regime. Very strange, no?

Ronnie Pretty cool of Neymar to feel this way about the upcoming World Cup final, and (shockingly) wanting Argentina to win, out of his strong mateship with his Argentinian club-mates at Barcelona.

Darn, I’m obviously hoping he will be terribly disappointed; I’m a die-hard Germany fan rooting for, and expecting Germany to win. :)

Joy: BNP out to mislead people over Talpatti July 12

birbanggali Very nice speech by Mr Joy. Congrats to him and good luck! :) Sabaan I feel pity for the leading journos and “politicians” of Bangladesh who are sitting and listening to this rubbish speech. I am curious to know how he was appointed to such a high post of advisor to the PM? Is this post authorised by parliament ? Hasina compares Bangladeshi democracy to the US. In the US, such high posts are always approved by the congress.

Of course, Tarek Zia showed similar or even more condescension when his mother was PM. Now he seems to be paying a high price partly because of that.

El Narigon inspires the Albiceleste

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Stops up (5) 4 Social event (4) 7 Respectful fear (3) 8 No score (3) 9 Provide (5) 12 Singing voice (4) 13 Vibrations (7) 15 Prosecute (3) 16 Choler (3) 18 Tree (3) 19 Opening (3) 21 Credit (7) 24 Deep mud (4) 26 Worth (5) 27 United (3) 28 Tavern (3) 29 Exploit (4) 30 Skin disease (5)

DOWN 1 Diplomacy (4) 2 Presentations (6) 3 Limiting mark (4) 4 Prejudice (4) 5 Without exception (3) 6 Unbound (5) 10 Printers’ measures (3) 11 Reddening agent (5) 14 Kingdom (5) 17 Water-worn long deep valley (6) 18 Having weapons (5) 20 Filled pastry (3) 21 Curve (4) 22 Poet’s Ireland (4) 23 Sicilian volcano (4) 25 Fish eggs (3)

July 12

Jerome “‘It’s a big moment for Argentina. The team is playing its fourth final of the World Cup and I am very happy to be with the team …,’ said Carlos Bilardo, aka El Narigon, the most influential coach in Argentine football history.”

That’s the fifth World Cup final for Argentina though. 1930, 1978, 1986, 1990, and 2014.

CALVIN AND HOBBES

Banning marriage is not the solution

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

July 12

PEANUTS

Vikram Khan There seems to be some confusion of the real facts. The DC of Cox’s Bazar mentioned that he is not against marriage between Rohingya and Bangladeshi nationals, but that the marriage cannot be registered as a “local/domestic marriage” due to the fact that the Rohingya are foreigners (!) residing in Bangladesh.

The procedures for the registration of a marriage between a foreigner and Bangladeshi are different from the marriage registration between two Bangladeshi nationals.

It would be totally discriminatory if the law would be applied differently for an American, British, Pakistani, etc national regarding marrying a Bangladeshi national (in Bangladesh) or a Burmese national. Does the piece imply that a Rohingya (Burmese citizen) crossing the border into Bangladesh automatically becomes a Bangladeshi national and enjoys the same rights?! I hope not! What about Indian nationals and other foreigners?!

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Shock, drama, heartbreak n Uday Sankar Das

J

There are measurable costs to this chaos

Syed Ishtiaque Reza is Director of News, Ekattor Television.

ust before the 20th World Cup football tournament kicked off, I wrote in an article: “As for the ultimate winners, I would like to see a European country lift the coveted trophy for the first time in South America.”

Little did I realise then, that I would have to face the wrath of the huge number of ardent supporters of Brazil and Argentina. Some even rubbished me for suggesting that a European country would bag the world title in Brazil, a feat never achieved before.

Be that as it may, the just concluded 20th edition of the FIFA World Cup has been one that gave immense joy and pleasure to football fans throughout the world, and could easily be termed as one of the most successful, with Germany bagging the title by beating Argentina in the final by a solitary goal scored in the last few minutes of extra time by Mario Gotze.

Yet, this tournament was shrouded with uncertainty, fear, and trepidation long before it had started. There were voices within Brazil which questioned the justification of holding such an event when the host country was engulfed with so many socio-economic problems.

There were questions raised about the level of preparedness for this world event. The law and order situation was such that fears were expressed about the security of the huge number of football fans who would throng the various cities of Brazil.

But, once the tournament kicked off, all the problems seemed to have just evaporated. The whole nation got deeply involved with only one thing they know and love, which is football.

This tournament will be remembered for years to come for a number of reasons. There were new records, there were dramatic turns of events, there were heroics, and there were successes and failures which were never comprehended. And best of all, it gave immense joy to the thousands who swarmed the football stadia.

Shocks came very early in the tournament when three former champions failed to cross the hurdle of the first round. Reigning champions Spain, Italy, and England had to take early flights home. Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo had to meet the same fate. The surprise of the pack was Costa Rica, who beat two former world champions Uruguay and Italy, and drew with England. They defeated Greece in the round of 16, and had to bow out after a penalty shootout in the quarter final. Theirs was a real success story.

There have been many upsets in this edition of the World Cup too, events even the neutrals could never comprehend – Brazil had to suffer its worst defeats in World Cup history.

But what really baffled football enthusiasts was the approach taken by the Brazilians in the match against Germany. Even after conceding an early goal, they continued to push people ahead instead of slowing the pace of the game. By the time they realised a change in tactics was called for, they were five goals down. Scolari just did not read the game.

The drama of penalty shootouts kept supporters nervous, and there

personnel during a crisis. It might have done good, but has paved the way for civilian governments to degenerate into despotic, totalitarian regimes. For Bangladesh, it’s perhaps too early to say that. Nevertheless, the indications aren’t much promising either.

Coming back to the core issue of public distaste for the version of Bangladeshi democracy, and lack of enthusiasm to reclaim it, it can unreservedly be said that a massive revamp is essential in our political culture so as to allow the people to feel the difference between democracy and non-democracy. It would be imprudent and unwise to suggest that the people of Bangladesh would never want democracy back. This is also true, democratic continuity has been unsettled, and the accompanying political events have cost hundreds of lives and severe economic disruptions. Who knows how much human and economic cost this poor nation will have to bear to bring back power to the people?

The variety of democracy, if you can call it that, which was in vogue until 2013, did not empower people. It did empower money and muscle, which

could bring about or ensure a desired electoral result and subsequently dominate each sub-domain within the socio-political spectrum, with various forms of power, while maintaining strict allegiance to corresponding dynastic power centres. The degree of the acts of theatric pampering of the political dynasties, and ill-mannered wrangling by wasting precious long parliament hours in the house, are astounding. The only difference was the fairly impartial elections due to the caretaker government system.

A further step towards deterioration has been ensured through the abrogation of it. Yet the fact remains, that even with the caretaker government system in the recent past, and two major parties rising to power alternatively, all these failed to create any substantial impressions on the masses in favour of democracy. That’s why they are so indifferent about the fate of electoral democracy in Bangladesh, for now at least. Such absence of democracy is unimaginable in the developed world. That makes the public apathy towards democracy in Bangladesh, and for that matter, in few other

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Stuck on the road

R

n Syed Ishtiaque Reza

ecently, I had the opportunity to get a former communications minister, an incumbent chairman of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), a traffic department official, a town planner, and two other civil society members to discuss the traffic situation in Dhaka.

All of them agreed that traffic in the capital was getting worse with each passing day.

On one hand, vehicles, especially private ones, are increasing exponentially in numbers, while roads are getting blocked due to so many development projects, illegal parking, and encroachments. In some of the areas, instead of carrying out development work (construction of flyovers, for example) in phases, authorities have green-lit all fronts in one go, leaving Dhaka all dug up from end to end.

One of the major causes identified is the VVIP and VIP protocols maintenance by traffic officials during rush hours. The VIP handling leaves the entire system in a state of total chaos in the city, which is already packed with too many vehicles plying the too small roads. Additionally, there are meetings and rallies held by various organisations in front of the Press Club which bring life at the centre of the city to a standstill, from 11am to 2pm nearly every day.

The former communications minister wanted to know from the traffic official about the manual handling of traffic activity, which we have despite possessing a modern, automated traffic signaling system. The traffic official replied that the number of vehicles was too high to go by the automation system. He, however, agreed that coordination among all departments concerned would help

in easing the congestion. The capital incurs a loss worth Tk21,000cr to the national exchequer every year, while the everyday loss due to traffic jams is Tk83cr, said a civil society member quoting a study.

Every day, city people are losing 320,000 working hours as they are forced to sit idly in traffic. Opinion came at the discussion that the authorities should look for feasible solutions to reduce this non-tangible and easily-avoidable cost incurred due to frequent traffic jams.

the footpaths are an ideal platform to place their merchandise. Roads at commercial districts such as Motijheel and Karwan Bazar are occupied by cars parking illegally, while inter-city buses have illegal depots and stop points at various spots, causing hindrance in the flow of traffic.

Despite having a relatively modern automated traffic signaling system in many areas, traffic police prefer conducting the traffic manually. Suggestions sprang from the discussion that all agencies involved here should come

The capital incurs a loss worth Tk21,000cr to the national exchequer every year, while the everyday loss due to traffic jams is Tk83cr

The road construction and repair works by the city corporations, Dhaka Wasa, the telephone department, cable networks, and many other government agencies continue throughout the year, leaving the city roads a complete mess. Construction of the Jatrabari flyover continued for seven years, resulting in serious congestion in the area, and the road under the flyover has not even been touched yet, and no one knows when it will be completed.

The Maghbazar flyover halted vehicle movement in Maghbazar, Eskaton, Malibagh, and Bangla Motor, as the project is still going on without any plans for traffic diversion.

Footpaths are occupied by vendors, hawkers, and shopkeepers, forcing pedestrians to use the main roads.

Squatters set up encroachments on the roads. Car showroom owners think

to a decision to store the timings in the system in accord with traffic volume, which can also be varied if necessary.

The traffic police are responsible in operating these signals, but instead of this system they are more intent in operating it manually. There should be a strong instruction from higher authorities to abandon such methods of traffic control.

Another major reason for traffic jams and road mishaps in Dhaka is a lack of knowledge about driving and traffic rules on the part of drivers. Most drivers are either unaware of traffic rules or they simply do not bother to abide. Jumping lanes, overtaking vehicles, speeding, cursing and swearing, all work to aggravate other drivers around them, leading to further congestion.

Solving traffic related issues is

certainly no easy task, requiring a lot of research and planning. Considering the availability of the resources and funds, it is best to utilise what is readily available rather than opting for a brand new solution which would cause more strain on taxpayers’ pockets. One of the ways is to make the railway movements from Narayangaj to Gazipur a smoother one, and reduce the pressure on roads. Another would be to go for a circular waterway, utilising the rivers and canals around the city. There were some discussions about a mass transit program, but it never saw the light.

The town planner and the former communications minister along with the civil society activists agreed that the improvement of our traffic system depended on the overall governance of the country. Yet the points raised in the discussion needed the attention of the authorities. Widening of roads is essential, along with construction of flyovers and underpasses in a scheduled and planned way. There should be designated parking premises, while traffic police must follow the sophisticated traffic controlling systems.

They can also impose conservation charges for private vehicles on various roads, and pay attention to mass transports. And there must be coordination among utility bodies like Wasa, electricity authorities, city corporations, etc, before digging roads for development and repair purposes.

The government can also think of allocating public school buses, as too many private cars move to and from schools during the rush hours. A proper drainage system is another way to keep the city free from water-logging, which also contributes heavily to traffic jams forming in the rainy season. l

was goalkeeping brilliance too. But the most dramatic event had to be the biting of Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini

by Uruguay’s star striker Luis Suarez.

FIFA promptly took action and barred him from football for four months.

The most heartbreaking event was the injury sustained by Brazil’s real hope on the field – Neymar Jr. In the match against Colombia, defender Zuniga recklessly pounced upon Neymar Jr, seriously injuring him and taking him out of the semi-final, the match in which Brazil conceded seven goals.

There were goalkeeping heroics.

Tim Howard’s name comes to mind automatically for the huge number of saves he made against the Belgians.

Just for his brilliant saves, the United States came out of that match with a respectable 2-1 defeat.

This tournament was shrouded with uncertainty, fear, and trepidation long before it had started The Golden Boot for being the highest scorer in this tournament was bagged

by Colombia’s young striker James Rodriguez for his six goals across five matches. European clubs would be showing keen interest in him, no doubt.

And then comes the most talked about individual player’s trophy: The Golden Ball. Argentina’s genius Lionel Messi was judged best player of this World Cup, and this raised a few eyebrows. Even FIFA President Sepp Blatter said he was surprised. There is no denying that Messi’s brilliance is second to none, but many football pundits say Messi failed to shine in this World Cup. There were flickers of his magic, and also goals in crucial moments, but in the semi-final and final, he was made absolutely inert by the opposition and he was just a bystander. Some football commentators also said that in the semi-final, Messi was very easy to mark, and the only time he took a shot at the opponent’s goal from the penalty area was when he scored in the tie-breaker. It has also been observed that not many defenders or goalkeepers are brought to the reckoning. I, for one, would rank Argentina’s Mascherano higher than Messi in the race for the Golden Ball.

This football World Cup has been sublime, some of the matches have been great spectacle, the final was great to watch, and the goal that sealed the fate of the Argentinians was just out of this world.

Well done, Brazil! The whole tournament went so smoothly. All in all, a memorable World Cup. Four years later, the players will be travelling to Russia for another great spectacle that will keep the whole world glued to one single event. l Uday Sankar Das is a senior journalist who worked for BBC World Service radio, and is presently based in Chittagong.

Our democratic fallacy n Sarwar Jahan Chowdhury

M

any were surprised by the fact that there wasn’t really a public upheaval with the demise of electoral democracy in Bangladesh early this year. The opposition, opposition-leaning intellectuals, and the media, had been screaming from every rooftop in Bangladesh that the people of the country would overthrow this, otherwise truly put, undemocratic regime soon, with popular uprising.

But the upheaval hasn’t yet happened, and it doesn’t seem forthcoming.

Simply the absence of any public outburst on the manner the last one-sided parliamentary election was won by the incumbent, does not ascribe any political legitimacy to the current government. Rather, there are strong indications that the vast majority actually don’t endorse this AL-led dispensation. Yet the non-occurrence of the much anticipated, and much expected to some extent, rising of the masses sends some very important messages crucial to be analysed and understood with some exactitude, what democracy essentially means for

the common people of the land.

The hype in the media and public discourse, recently created by the repeated rhetoric of the opposition and a section of intellectuals and media personnel, about supposed spontaneous mass rising against any undemocratic regime appears to have backfired now, putting said proponents in some awkward situations. It is important to comprehend that it’s not the conventional and unconventional political moves and maneuvers that have done the trick for the incumbent regime.

Intrigue cannot negate desperation of the masses, if that is a genuine one.

After all the complex brainstorming, the simple truth which seems to surface is that the form of democracy that has been practiced for the last two decades or more, and the existing absence of democracy, hasn’t made a great deal of difference for the common people of the country. The root cause of public disinterest, in mass agitation to clamour for restoration of democracy, perhaps lies there. Democracy hasn’t failed us, our social elites collectively, and our politicians precisely, have failed the widely revered system.

A natural outcome of the failing of politics in many developing countries has been non-political interventions, sometimes with tacit public approval, until politicians reorganise and reclaim their role. We can recall the public and media euphoria when the

Democracy hasn’t failed us, our social elites and our politicians have failed the widely revered system

military-backed caretaker government took over in 2007. Such models were almost an established cycle of national political courses for these countries.

In some countries, including recent Bangladesh, strict constitutional provisions against non-political interference has negated much of the possibility of takeover by uniformed

developing countries, even more baffling. For Bangladesh, the situation is particularly frustrating because most of our South and South East Asian neighbours are somewhat democratic; some with certain praiseworthy political culture.

Democracy is such a mammoth percept of the epoch that it’s impossible for Bangladeshis to afford revulsion to it for long. Such aversion is neither desirable nor good for our society in the longer term. The question is: How long will it take to generate democratic desire amongst the populace to make them genuinely want it, and in what form? Would that lead to the same old practices, and subsequently to the vicious circle that we have known and hated for so long? It’s imperative to figure out the answers to these questions first, before the next endeavours towards supposed democratic progression are undertaken. l Sarwar Jahan Chowdhury is the Head of Operations at Brac Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD), Brac University.

He is also a member of Regional Studies Research Cluster in the same institute.

12

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Prachyanat alumni stages Tati n Hasan Mansoor Chatak The pupils of the 26th batch of Prachyanat School of Acting and Designing staged “Tati” at the Experimental Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy on July 14 in the capital.

The play widely known as “The Weavers,” is translated to Bangla by Ismail Mohammad and directed by Saiful Islam Jarnal. It is a naturalistic drama in five acts by the German Nobel laureate Gerhart Hauptmann, published in 1892 and performed for the first time in 1893. Based on the revolt of the Silesian weavers of 1844, the play is a realistic portrayal of the sacrifices and sufferings of the mass during the Industrial Revolution.

The troupe did not attempt to adapt the play in the context of Bangladesh, rather, the play contains the original story and milieu. It is likely that the director and incharge of the troupe did not want to take the risk of changing anything as the performers are novice actors of the theatre school.

The plot reveals how the weavers are driven to revolt against the process of industrialisation due to the introduction of power looms which forced them to a state of destitution. They march to the home of Dreissiger, their arrogant, exploitative employer, ransack his house and achieve a temporary victory over a company of armed soldiers.

EID TV HIGHLIGHTS

Taaha’s pick of Eid

SADIA MARIUM

The characters playing the rebels entered the hall through the main gateway and marched through the audience, creating quite a dramatic impact among Dhaka’s theatre audience.

With this act, the director demonstrated his intention of using the whole theatre hall as the performing ground.

At different stages of the play, few choreographed performances with songs created tension and mood for the revolution set to take place in the story.

A total of 26 characters are portrayed and even though the actors got only six months of training, they gave a praiseworthy performance. Prachyanat is famed among theatre lovers for their background music and this time was no exception. Immaculate European tone highlighted the tension and

mood of the drama.

The director Saiful Islam Jarnal expressed his rationale behind the staging: “Our current economic and political situation matches to that of the play, even though it was staged in Germany a long time ago. The exploitation of the people in the grip of poverty showcased in the play is similar to the situation of present day workers and labourers of Bangladesh.”

Earlier, Selina Hossain, famed author and novelist, Siddharth Chakraborty, the director of Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre, Dhaka and Gazi Rakayet gave speech on the occasion and distributed certificates among the students of the 26th batch of the Prachyanat School of Acting and Designing. l

Monpura duo on the screen again

programme

n Entertainment Desk Chanchal Chowdhury and Farhana Mili, the celebrated duo of the superhit film “Monpura,” is all set to give a Eid treat to the viewres of the small screens.

This is their second TV play together. A romantic drama directed by Saif Ahmed, the plot is set against a rural backdrop. The title of the play has not been fixed yet. About working in the drama, Mili said: “I felt nostalgic working for the drama. It reminded me of my old days when I was shooting for ‘Monpura.’ As a person, I prefer to live a simple life. My character in the drama is exactly like the way I am in real life.” l

Mary Kom releases this September n Entertainment Desk

“Mary Kom” biopic featuring Priyanka Chopra in the lead role will hit the screens on September 5 confirmed the producers. Also industry is abuzz with the news that the film will be released in two different versions, reportedly one for the Indian audiences and another one for the international audiences.

Priyanka has always maintained that “Mary Kom” was one of the hardest films of her career. And that she had to sweat it out in the gym to achieve the perfect physique to portray the Indian boxer onscreen. Her transformation had to be made from

FROM AKHRA TO FUSION: TRANSFORMATION OF BAUL MUSIC (PART-13)

The glorious 90s – the revival of rock music and its role in Baul fusion n Maqsoodul Haque December 10, 1990 will go down in the history of Bangladesh as the day that saw the ouster of the hated military dictator Hossain Mohammad Ershad. What has passed many of us by since; Ershad was overthrown by a youth led mass movement. Fed up with the incessant chicanery of their “leaders” in their dealings with the dictator of nearly a decade, it was the only time that the youth front of Awami League, BNP and even Jamaat joined hand in an unprecedented display of unity – the rest is history. For the political landscape it was to see the return of semblance of representative democracy after 1975, a wait of almost 15 years.

On the cultural landscape it would usher in a new era, where freedom of expressions, denied and subverted for decades were to be restored and enter center stage of popular imagination.

The other historical event was the first ever open air concert held by Bangladesh Musical Bands Association (BAMBA) on December 16, 1990 at the Mall Square of Dhaka University – the same spot, where over a dozen students were killed in a last ditch gun battle with the henchman of the dictator. Over 50,000 people thronged the Mall to witness the free concert where more than 15 rock bands celebrated freedom away from the clutches of dictatorship. The momentous concert ended on a heartening note that evening, with an hour long performance by Shahjahan Munshi the visually challenged Baul from Manikgang.

Rock and Baul music tied a symbolic thread of commonality and unity on the day – and that was only a demonstration of newer things to appear on the horizon. Urban main-

stream and rural “cultures” merged and as if by providence were set to rock in a manner unseen. The winds of change following the historical BAMBA concert saw rock music stunted post-1975, re-emerge with strength and vitality – and together a noticeable shift in repertoire and listening habits of the audience. From 1990 onwards newer and unheard of genres entered the Bengali soundscape. From pop rock, hard rock to thrash metal, to heavy metal and jazz-rock fusion etc, very quickly and resolutely became powerful musical genres in Bangladesh.

A young and appreciative audience was also lapping up Baul music for they realized and recognized that

The band Feedback’s 1996 album titled ‘Bauliana’ is the first Baul fusion album in the history of Bangladesh Bauls were part of our forefather’s rebellion against any form of oppression. Baul was our ancient roots rock tradition and the young just did not stop by giving it tokenistic lip service. Baul fusion was in fact just a few years away from happening. In 1996 the legendary band Feedback (the author was then its lead vocalist) much to the surprise of their urban fan based, launched a complete Baul

fusion album. Titled “Bauliana” – the album show cased the possibilities of interpreting Baul music in a global music format. Experimenting not only with the works of Fakir Lalon Shah and other masters of some 200 years, the band notched up their presentations by including living Bauls themselves in the album.

The legendary Hiru Shah the oldest living Baul of the Lalon Shrine at the time and Santosh Baul of Bhanga, Faridpur (both now deceased) were featured in the album, that saw the beginning of a process of Masters joining in an urban production.

“Bauliana” was the first Baul fusion album in the history of Bangladesh and was an instant “crossover hit” endearing the band not only to their existing fan base, but also in rural Bangladesh – where it also gave listeners a foretaste of the unique and emerging rock music movement.

The process of soul searching and introspection that is fundamental in Baul music and its philosophy soon became an ongoing praxis among new Baul fusion exponents - the majority of whom were from a generation that was born after the Liberation War of 1971. The Fine Arts Faculty campus in Dhaka University organised for the very first time a proper “Shadhu Shongo” with hundred of Bauls and Shadu Gurus in attendance.

The times also opened up scopes for much younger Bauls emerging from the Akhara tradition to come to Dhaka to perform and record their works without been treated as “village bumpkins!” Outwardly the most potent indicator was; newer Baul music forms with the Akhara tradition notwithstanding, led to appreciation that had nothing in common with the closed, cliche and somewhat intolerant attitudes of the previous generation. l Maqsoodul Haque is a jazz-rock fusion musician and cultural researcher who is writing a series on the transformation of Baul music.

the glamorous actress to a hard hitting sportsperson. Priyanka Chopra had stated on a social networking site that “Mary Kom” was the hardest film of her life and that it took her two years of determination taught by the guru, Mary Kom herself.

Priyanka Chopra is slowly carving her way to the top with some impeccable performances. After she stunned all with her “Barfi!” role, the actor is all set to hit hard with a biopic.

The film is produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and directed by Omung Kumar. With the first look just released, Priyanka Chopra is already winning accolades on that front. l

TODAY IN DHAKA Film

Transformers: Age of Extinction (3D) Muppets Most Wanted Time: 10am – 10pm Star Cineplex Bashundhara Ciry Panthapath

Noah 3D Godzilla 3D Mr. Peabody and Sherman 3D Tarkaata Ami Shudhu Cheyechhi Tomay Time: 12:30pm – 9:30pm Blockbuster Cinemas Jamuna Future Park Pragati Sarani,

Exhibition

Urban Experiences Time: 12pm – 8pm Bengal Art Lounge Gulshan Avenue

Tom Cruise’s Edge of Tomorrow in Dhaka n Entertainment Desk The 2014 American military science fiction film “Edge of Tomorrow” starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt will be screened at the Star Cineplex from Friday. Doug Liman directed the film based on a screenplay adapted from the Japanese novel “All You Need Is Kill” by Hiroshi Sakurazaka.

Here Tom Cruise plays the role of a military officer who finds himself caught in a time loop in a war with an alien race. His skills increase as he

faces the same brutal combat scenarios, and his union with a Special Forces warrior gets him closer and closer to defeating the enemy.

The film was released in theaters in 28 countries, including the United Kingdom, Brazil, Germany, Spain, and Indonesia, on the weekend of May 30, 2014. On the following weekend it was released in North America and 34 other countries. The film received largely positive reviews from critics.

As of July 13, 2014, the film has grossed $350.5 million worldwide. l

Style evolution of celebrities on TLC today n Entertainment Desk Watch out for “Celebrity Style Story” on TLC today at 5pm. Hosted by Rocco Leo Gaglioti, the show tells the story of one celebrity’s style evolution through their unforgettable hair, make-up and fashion

choices. From the highs and lows of their career and how that affected their look, to how their personal relationships influenced their out-fit choices. “Celebrity Style Story” covers all the major fashion hits and misses throughout the decades.

Alongside archival celebrity inter-

view clips, vibrant red carpet footage and photos, a panel of expert hairstylists, makeup artists, fashion stylists, designers and fashion journalists weigh in on the celebrity’s looks and transformation from each stage of their red hot career. l

Sp rt DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, July 16, 2014

13

A season to behold for Sheikh Jamal n Shishir Hoque

Sheikh Jamal will probably remember this Bangladesh Premier Football League season for a long time to come.

Forming a star-studded squad with renowned foreign and local recruits, the Dhanmondi-based club kicked off this campaign with one goal and motto - to win all four silverwares.

They initially kept their commitment by winning the season’s opener, the Federation Cup, but missed out on the Independence Cup. Nevertheless, the most prestigious title in any country is the premier league and Sheikh Jamal have taken the title home in some style setting a number of records, beating Abahani Limited and Mohammedan Limited on the way. Bearing in mind that this is the first time the league is being played in three phases, Sheikh Jamal have registered the most number of points (58) so far, won the most number of games (17) and created a gap of 12 points with second-placed Abahani, the highest margin of lead at the top of the points table.

It is Sheikh Jamal’s second premier league crown since their first one in 2010-11 but it was not an easy achievement that time by any stretch of the imagination as they were only a point ahead of second-placed Muktijoddha Sangsad.

Their only failure this season in the Independence Cup can well and truly be covered by their heroic display in the 118th IFA Shield held in India.

“Our best performance was in the IFA Shield. I have managed many clubs but never seen such performances by a Bangladeshi club,” said club president Manjur Kader after the game yesterday.

“The expectation was high after the IFA Shield but we did not continue in the same vein in the league. The team that I formed this season should have won the title without conceding a point,” he added.

Skipper Mamunul Islam was ecstatic after the game. “It was all about hard work and team work. The players worked really hard to take this side this far. The delight was doubled after sealing the title against Abahani.

“I was a part of both the title-winning seasons and it feels really great,” said the left-footed playmaker.

The captain also thanked the club management for throwing their support behind the players.l

ROLL OF HONOURS The Nitol-Tata Bangladesh Premier Football League 2013-14 trophy proudly sits in front of the jubilant Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club players after their encounter against Abahani Limited at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday MUMIT M

League glory for Sheikh Jamal n Shishir Hoque Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club clinched their second professional football league title with two games in hand after they edged past Abahani Limited 1-0 in the NitolTata Bangladesh Premier Football League at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.

Wedson Anselme, the most prolific forward in the premier league this season, netted the all-important goal in the 71st minute to seal the three points that confirmed Jamal’s unassailable 12-point lead at the top of the 10-team standings. With two games to spare to the conclusion of the top flight, Jamal have amassed 58 points

from 25 matches ahead of secondplaced Abahani who have gathered 46 points from the same number of games.

Abahani came to the game knowing that they must win to keep alive their slim hopes of clinching the league crown but Jamal goalkeeper Mazharul Islam Hemel made some lovely saves to ensure their eighth clean sheet of this campaign.

Following dull passages of play in the beginning stages of the game Jamal first came close to taking the lead but Sony Norde’s goal was disallowed for offside in the 34th minute after a brilliant build-up involving Wedson and Emeka Darlington.

The easiest opportunity of the first half though fell Abahani’s way in the 39th minute but Hemel produced a

SL plan memorable farewell for Mahela n AFP, Galle

Sheikh Jamal’s Haitian playmaker Sony Norde in action during their Nitol-Tata Bangladesh Premier Football League clash against Abahani Limited at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday MUMIT M

Sri Lanka are planning to give star batsman Mahela Jayawardene a fitting farewell by winning his remaining matches, captain Angelo Mathews said ahead of the first Test against South Africa starting Wednesday.

On Monday, Jayawardene announced he will retire from the longest format of the game in August, after the two-Test rubber against South Africa followed by two matches against Pakistan (Aug 6-18).

The 37-year-old right hander will only be available for one-day internationals, having also retired from Twenty20 cricket in April this year.

“We need a player like him in the team, but he (Jayawardene) has decided to say goodbye,” Mathews said at a pre-match press conference in Galle on Tuesday. l

Norde to depart for KV Oostende n Shishir Hoque Sony Norde witnessed his favourite team Argentina losing the World Cup final and only two days after the disappointment, he lifted the most prestigious title in Bangladesh football - the premier league with Sheikh Jamal.

However, his love affair with Bangladesh football has ended as the Haitian international forward announced after the game yesterday that he will leave Sheikh Jamal and join Belgian Professional League side KV Oostende in the upcoming season.

Yesterday’s clash against Abahani was probably his last game in Bangladesh with only two matches left for Sheikh Jamal till the end of the league.

The pacy and tricky winger will leave Dhaka on July 21 to join the Belgian top-flight club. “I am leaving the club and another foreign player will come

so the same thing will stay. I will miss Sheikh Jamal because I enjoyed it when I played for them,” said the 24-year old playmaker.

During his short two-year stay in Bangladesh, Sony Norde became the fans’ favourite in the country’s domestic football scene after he helped Sheikh Russel win the treble last season. He was then the chief architect of Sheikh Russel’s campaign. The performance attracted big-spenders Sheikh Jamal who recruited him with a record fee.

The Haitian caught the attention of the fans and other clubs outside Bangladesh following his dazzling display in the 118th IFA Shield in Kolkata early this year. He played a starring role behind Sheikh Jamal’s progression to the final of the prestigious tournament where he was adjudged the best player. Several Indian clubs like Mohun Bagan and

Mohammedan Sporting (Kolkata) displayed huge interests but the forward chose Europe as his next destination.

Sony Norde recently took a vacation from Sheikh Jamal and flew to Belgium on April 11 to try his luck in the Belgian top-flight club. “This is very difficult for me too (about the fans). Because every time I go to Facebook the fans say, ‘Stay! Stay! But I must try another country and Belgium offered me the opportunity to play and what I wanted,” he added.

Sony Norde, however, refused to reveal the details of his contract or the remuneration that he will receive from the Belgian club but hinted that it is “five times more than Bangladesh”.

Oostende have been recently promoted to the Belgium Pro League for only the second time in their history. They became the champions of the second division in the 2012-13 season. l

decent save to deny the Sky Blues. A lobbed pass from Ghanaian midfielder Awudu Ibrahim set Osei Morrison free but his shot from the edge of the box hardly troubled Hemel.

Abahani posed another threat in Jamal’s territory early in the second

half. Portuguese forward Leonildo Soares dribbled past a defender to break into the penalty area but his effort was punched away by Hemel.

Midfielder Shahedul Alam headed on the rebound only to see his header flying over the bar.

POINTS TABLE Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Teams Sk Jamal Dhanmondi Abahani Ltd Mohammedan SC Ltd Muktijoddha SKC Brothers Union Ltd Sk Russell KC

P 25 25 25 24 24 25

W 17 12 11 11 10 8

D 7 10 8 7 7 8

L 1 3 6 6 7 9

GF-GA 70 - 26 30 - 14 33 - 25 44 - 26 34 - 30 36 - 28

GD 44 16 8 18 4 8

Pts 58 46 41 40 37 32

Team BJMC Ctg Abahani Ltd Soccer Club, Feni Uttar Baridhara SC

25 25 24 24

7 5 1 2

6 7 12 6

12 13 11 16

37 - 47 17 - 38 26 - 43 17 - 67

-10 -21 -17 -50

27 22 15 12

2013-14 2012–13 2012 2010-11 2009-10 2008-09 2007

Sheikh Jamal Sheikh Russel Dhaka Abahani Sheikh Jamal Dhaka Abahani Dhaka Abahani Dhaka Abahani

In the 56th minute it was Jamal’s turn to lay seige in the opposition terrain after fine work by Sohel Rana.

Wedson received the ball inside the box and rounded off a defender to before unleashing an angular shot that was parried away brilliantly by Abahani custodian Shahidul Alam Sohel for a corner.

Wedson finally confirmed Jamal’s title with a screamer in the 71st minute. Collecting a pass from Emeka, the Haitian forward skipped past a defender and thumped a powerful strike from 20 yards that gave Sohel no chance despite his fullstretched dive to his right. And thus Wedson ended his campaign as the league’s highest scorer with 22 strikes as Jamal sealed their second domestic title in four years. l

Team more important than individuals for Hathurusingha n Mazhar Uddin

The head coach of Bangladesh cricket team Chandika Hathurusingha joined the ongoing training camp for the upcoming West Indies tour at the Sher-e-Bangla National stadium yesterday after returning from Australia on Monday. But the Sri Lankan declined to comment regarding Shakib al Hasan’s suspension being reconsidered by BCB. Hathurusingha rather commented that it was an internal matter whether the board would reconsider Shakib’s suspension while emphasizing that whatever was done, was done for the betterment of Bangladesh team.

Shakib al Hasan, the premier all-rounder of the Bangladesh team, was suspended from all types of cricket for six months by BCB after engaging himself in an argument with the head coach Hathurusingha. Shakib’s punishment also sees him not getting a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to play any league abroad till December 31, 2015.

When asked if he would request BCB to reconsider Shakin’s suspension, Hathurusingha said, “That’s an internal matter. I don’t want to discuss it in public. Whatever we are doing is for the betterment of the Bangladesh cricket as well as for the betterment of the individual player.” However, the head coach sounded buyoant about his team’s chances of success in future.

“We will do the best for Bangladesh team,” Hathurusingha affirmed.

The 45 year old further went on to add that it would be unfair to think about Shakib only as it’s a team game and there are other cricketers in the team. “It’s very unfair to think that way because there are another 10 players playing. It’s a team. For me it’s the Bangladesh team. Whoever replaces him or whoever comes into the team, I expect him to do his best. For me it’s the Bangladesh team which is moving

forward,” he said.

The former Sri Lankan batsman was appointed as the head coach of Bangladesh just before the home series against an Indian side without their eight regular players. The hosts lost the three match ODI series 2-0 with a match abandoned due to rain. Hathurusingha thinks the team needs to improve on both batting and bowling.

“We played different ways, like we played the first game on a batting wicket and I think we batted okay. We changed the conditions for the second and third game just to see how we cope. And if not for the rain, I was pretty happy with the bowlers. But then again I understand the condition helped. Overall, we need to improve in both batting and bowling,” he said.

However, the new mentor of Mushfiqur Rahim and his side is looking forward to give his players the mental support and has asked the BCB for a mental conditioning coach to overcome mental setbacks and bounce back.

“Yes, that’s right. We have asked for one of the mental conditioning coaches to come and work with us as well.

That’s one area we are seriously considering to give the players some support.

But it’s all about starting new and fresh.

What has happened has happened, we can’t do anything about it. Preparing for next few weeks and moving forward are going to be crucial,” he added.

Hathurusingha also revealed the tigers would begin their skill training from today and would prepare themselves on match situations after Eid. l

14

Sp rt DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, July 16, 2014

QUICK BYTES

Ticket fugitive surrenders to court Ray Whelan, the fugitive chief executive of a Swiss hospitality company implicated in an investigation into the illegal resale of VIP World Cup tickets, surrendered to a Rio de Janeiro court on Monday, a court spokeswoman said. Whelan gave himself up to the Rio de Janeiro-state Justice Tribunal in downtown Rio and would be picked up by police, the court said. Rio state prosecutors have accused 12 people of engaging in criminal organisation, bribery, money-laundering and tax evasion in connection with a World Cup ticket “scalping” ring. Scalping, or reselling tickets for profit, is illegal in Brazil.

–Reuters

‘Drunk’ Pistorius in nightclub brawl South Africa’s Paralympian star Oscar Pistorius was thrown out of a nightclub over the weekend after being involved in a drunken brawl, the Star newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing witnesses.

The athlete, who is currently on trial accused of murdering his girlfriend, was in the VIP section of a plush Johannesburg nightclub when the altercation occurred with another patron, Jared Mortimer, it said. Mortimer told the newspaper that a friend introduced him to Pistorius, who then launched into a tirade, telling him how he had been “screwed over” by Mortimer’s friends. “We were drinking tequila and I still remember putting down my drink and thinking I couldn’t drink it while my friends were being spoken of like that,” he said.

–AFP

A crowd of Argentinian fans greet their national football team upon their arrival, near Ezeiza, province of Buenos Aires, Argentina after playing against Germany in the World Cup Brazil 2014 final, on Monday

Thousands welcome Argentina home n AFP, Buenos Aires

English players afraid to leave home: Cole Former Arsenal and Chelsea defender Ashley Cole says English players are afraid of leaving their comfort zone and playing overseas. The former England international has joined Serie A side AS Roma on a two-year deal after eight trophy-laden years at Chelsea, having spent last season as second choice to Spaniard Cesar Azpilicueta. “English players are probably afraid to come abroad, they’re in a comfort zone in England,” the 33-year-old told reporters at his first news conference in Rome on Tuesday.

–Reuters

Everton legend Royle returns to Goodison Former Everton manager Joe Royle has returned to Goodison Park as part of manager Roberto Martinez’s coaching staff. Royle has been brought in to help young players breaking through from the Premier League side’s academy and Under-21 set-up and he will also assist in scouting and recruitment. The 65-yearold was a product of the Everton youth system himself and went on to score 119 goals in 275 appearances for the club from 1966-74 before winning the FA Cup during his three-year spell as manager in the 1990s. Bringing through young players has been an area of strength for Everton, with Ross Barkley the latest off the production line, and manager Martinez believes Royle will be a valuable addition.

–AFP

Man United announce £750m Adidas deal English Premier League giants Manchester United on Monday announced a record 10-year kit deal with German sportswear group Adidas worth £750 million (942 million euros, 1.28 billion dollars) after US rivals Nike walked away from the club. The sponsorship switch comes after Nike left the bargaining table last Tuesday when Adidas agreed to more than double Nike’s current contract. The club’s current 13year deal with Nike, worth £303 million ($502 million, 368 million euros). –AFP

DAY’S WATCH Ten Cricket 10:30AM South Africa Tour of Sri Lanka 1st Test Day 1 Star Sports 2, HD1 11:30PM Natwest T20 Blast Surrey v Somerset

AFP

A crestfallen Lionel Messi kept a low profile as thousands welcomed the Argentina squad home Monday after a World Cup final defeat to Germany.

Television networks carried live coverage of the Aerolineas Argentinas plane -- painted in the blue-andwhite colors of the flag with the words “Thank you Argentina” -- as it touched down in Buenos Aires, where about 500 fans braved the cold to meet the flight from Rio de Janeiro.

Thousands more fans lined the team’s route from the airport, waving flags and swarming the convoy of three buses, which moved at a snail’s pace through the crowds.

Nationwide, the atmosphere was one of pride as much as disappointment after the team forced Germany

into extra time in a hard-fought 1-0 match in Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana Stadium.

“I just want to thank everyone for the welcome,” Messi, who spent much of the day with a pained look on his face, told a reception with President Cristina Kirchner at the offices of the Argentine Football Association.

“I would have liked to have brought home the Cup and enjoyed it with you (the country). We gave everything we had but we just didn’t manage it.”

Kirchner met the team with hugs and tried to get a smile out of them, teasing striker Gonzalo Higuain, forward Ezequiel “Pocho” Lavezzi and winger Angel Di Maria, among others.

She drew laughs when she told Higuain he should go to the doctor for an MRI scan after German keeper Manuel Neuer crashed into him in the second

half, an incident the referee controversially waved away.

Kirchner tried hard to provoke a blush from Lavezzi and Di Maria, often described as the team’s best-looking members.

“Pocho, come here, they say you’re the sex symbol of the team,” she told Lavezzi, trying to persuade him to say a few words.

“Di Maria, come here, the girls are asking for you.”

But the players were reluctant to take the microphone, and the smiles were fleeting.

“It’s very nice when people recognize what you do. We would have loved to bring home the Cup but we weren’t able to,” said Lavezzi.

As the curtain fell on two-time champion Argentina’s campaign to win its first World Cup title since 1986, the

bleaker side of national life returned to the foreground. The economy is in a slump and the government risks defaulting on its debt.

“The issues worrying Argentine society didn’t disappear during the World Cup, they just had less relative importance,” said sociologist Ricardo Rouvier. “Now interest in the World Cup will wane a little each day. People will slowly get off the bandwagon.”

Signs that the party was over did not take long to appear.

Immediately after Sunday’s match, tens of thousands of revelers descended on Buenos Aires’s iconic Obelisk monument, determined to celebrate despite the bittersweet end of the nation’s World Cup campaign.

But after several hours of partying, dozens of hardcore fans known as “barras bravas” clashed with police and

went on a destructive looting binge.

Police arrested around 120 people over the violence, which left 70 wounded, including 15 officers. One rioter in serious condition with a punctured lung, officials said.

Violence also broke out in the cities of La Plata and Mar del Plata, the government said.

On Monday afternoon, unrest erupted again in the area around the Obelisk after a planned appearance by the team was canceled and some of the thousands of people who had gathered started throwing bottles and stones.

Still, overall, Argentines were proud of their team for making their first World Cup final since 1990.

“They gave everything for us and they deserve our support,” said Matias Ruiz, 17, one of those who welcomed the squad at the airport. l

‘I am no soccer fan’ n Reuters, Buenos Aires

Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez admitted on Monday she had not watched a single one of the country’s matches in the World Cup soccer tournament, including the final, a blunder that some observers said exposed her as out of touch with the national mood.

A day after soccer-mad Argentina lost the World Cup final to Germany by a score of 1-0, Fernandez received the national team in the capital, giving each of the downbeat players, dressed in black suits and ties, a consolatory hug.

Fernandez had earlier declined an invitation from Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff to attend the final, saying she was recovering form a sore throat.

Her counterpart, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, attended the match, even leaping with joy at Germany’s winning goal.

In a televised speech, Fernandez, flanked by Lionel Messi and the rest of the team, said: “As you know I’m no soccer fan.”

“I didn’t see a single match, not even the one yesterday,” she said, adding that she rang Argentine Coach Alejandro Sabella after the match because it felt like the team had won.

“That’s how I felt and how 40 million Argentines felt too.”

Although not entirely surprising given her well-known disinterest in the sport, Fernandez’s comments will do little to endear herself to a country obsessed by soccer and left heartbroken by the defeat.

Despite her best intentions, analysts said Fernandez, who cannot run in next year’s election, failed to capture the national mood.

“It sort of underscores that she lives in a world of her own more and more,” said Felipe Noguera, a political analyst.l

Argentina President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (R) applaudes the team during their welcoming ceremony from the World Cup where they ended up in second place AFP

Blatter gives Brazil 9.25 out of 10 n Reuters, Rio de Janeiro

FIFA president Sepp Blatter stopped short of saying the World Cup in Brazil was the best ever staged, but he gave it 9.25 out of 10 on Monday, describing it as a “very, very special” tournament highlighted by attacking football.

Speaking the day after the monthlong extravaganza ended with Germany crowned as champions after beating Argentina in the final, Blatter said he was delighted with the tournament.

“Brazil has improved on four years ago in South Africa,” he said. Four years ago he gave South Africa nine marks out of 10.

Smiling broadly, Blatter told reporters at his post-tournament news briefing; “We consulted all our computers and our Facebooks last night and decided on 9.25 out of 10, so Brazil is an improvement on South Africa.

“But I always say that perfection does not exist in football, or in life.

“This was my 10th World Cup and my fifth as president and what makes this so very, very special was the quality of the football and the intensity of the games.”

The final statistics tend to support the widespread belief that this tournament, which far outweighed expectations, is a contender for the best ever.

The final goals tally of 171 equalled the record set in France in 1998, there was a 40 percent reduction in injuries and a vast improvement in discipline.

There were 177 yellow cards and 10 red cards compared to 245 yellows in South Africa and 17 reds. The all-time low came in Germany with 307 yellows and 28 dismissals.

But in real terms there was more games with a higher standard of play than in previous finals, with huge, knowledgeable crowds and vast hordes in fan fests.

“We started with very good attacking football which was new,” Blatter said. l

After successful WC, spotlight turns to Games n Reuters, Rio de Janeiro After a month of scintillating soccer and few of the logistical nightmares that many feared would mar the World Cup, Brazil is touting its success and promising the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro will be just as good.

To hear Brazilian officials in recent days, the hand-wringing before the World Cup, which ended on Sunday with Germany beating Argentina in the final, was unjustified.

“The only tragedy of the World Cup was that Brazil was beaten,” Rio’s mayor, Eduardo Paes, said on Friday, referring to the national team’s drubbing by Germany earlier in the week.

That is, of course, if you don’t count a concrete overpass, one of many unfinished infrastructure projects that were supposed to have been completed

before the tournament, that collapsed and killed two people in Belo Horizonte, one of the 12 host cities, days before a semi-final match there.

Or the fact that many problems were averted only because Brazil essentially shut down during the tournament. In a country where public services and infrastructure routinely buckle, officials avoided the usual traffic jams, overpacked trains and airport chaos by declaring holidays around most games.

Despite a smooth ride for visiting soccer fans, the approach prompts many in Brazil to argue that the World Cup, rather than showcasing progress, has revealed age-old habits of slipshod and improvisation that make it impossible to deliver quality social services or fast, sustained economic growth. l

Sp rt DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, July 16, 2014

‘We are all world champions,’ German coach Loew tells fans

WORLD CUP IN NUMBERS

0

Number of goals scored after 120 minutes play in Wednesday’s last four clash between Argentina and the Netherlands, the first ever goalless semi-final at a WC

n AFP, Berlin

Germany coach Joachim Loew told hundreds of thousands of jubilant fans in Berlin Tuesday celebrating his team’s World Cup victory that they shared the title with his players.

“We are all world champions,” he said at a massive street party at the capital’s Brandenburg Gate after the team’s triumphant arrival from Rio de Janeiro.

“Of course we are all overjoyed now to be with the fans,” he added, as the capacity crowd at the so-called Fan Mile venue behind the landmark symbol of national unity waved black, red and gold German flags.

Captain Philipp Lahm hoisted the World Cup trophy to a giant roar from the crowd.

“What a mood here, thanks so much to everyone,” Lahm said as he passed the golden statuette to his fellow players.

Team members wearing black shirts emblazoned with the number one took the stage in groups to greet ecstatic supporters.

They carried a giant banner reading “Obrigado Fans”, “thank you” in Portuguese in a nod to tournament hosts Brazil, and “the fourth title is ours”.

Mario Goetze, who scored the only goal in Sunday’s nail-biter final against Argentina, called the Mannschaft’s win “a dream”. We played an amazing tournament,” he said. “It’s an incredible feeling.” l

4/6

Odds on favourites Germany justified the British bookmakers William Hill tag to win Sunday’s Cup final

1

Points mustered by England after another underwhelming appearance at football’s top table

4

World Cup titles won by Germany

6

Colombian hotshot James Rodriquez’s goal tally to claim the World Cup’s Golden Boot honour

8

World Cup finals reached by Germany, a record

9

Uzbekistan referee Ravshan Irmatov’s record number of World Cup matches

10

Red cards dished out in Brazil, way down on the record 28 at Germany 2006

Germany captain Philipp Lahm (F) holds the World Cup as he and Bastian Schweinsteiger (2R) get off their airplane at Berlin airport Tegel yesterday

AFP

Attention to detail, milkshakes fire German World Cup glory n Reuters, Berlin

Germany’s head coach Joachim Loew smiles during a fan party after the arrival of the German national team in Berlin yesterday AP

The omens were not good. In late May, as the Germany football team gathered at their World Cup training camp in Italy, news broke that manager Joachim Loew had been stripped of his driver’s license for six months after a series of speeding tickets.

Days earlier, Kevin Grosskreutz, a versatile defender, had been caught urinating in the lobby of a luxury hotel in Berlin.

Two other players, attending a public relations event, had been involved in a high-speed car crash that seriously hurt two pedestrians. The troubled start fuelled public panic about Loew’s coaching strategies.

The training camp, designed to get the players ready for the tropical heat of Brazil, was beset by cold temperatures and heavy rain. Then, in a friendly against Armenia before their departure for Brazil, Germany lost Marco Reus, one of the team’s best players, to an ankle injury.

With a “golden generation” of some of the best soccer players Germany has ever produced, there is little doubt the pressure on the 54-year-old Loew was building as he set off for Brazil.

Eighty one million Germans - desperate for a fourth world title after wins in 1954, 1974 and 1990 - felt it was time for the sharply dressed, mop-haired manager to deliver or quit.

The “Bundestrainer” - as Germans

call the head coach - had taken his talent-laden team to the semi-finals of their last four major international tournaments, but failed to win a trophy.

That was just not good enough in a country where the World Cup has been an integral part of post-World War Two identity ever since the 1954 “Miracle of Berne”.

That improbable triumph, historians say, gave the broken, bombed-out nation such a boost it helped spark West Germany’s economic miracle.

So how did Germany overcome all their problems and go on to beat hosts Brazil in a sensational 7-1 semi-final thrashing before edging Argentina 1-0 in extra-time in the final?

The answer: attention to detail, ig-

noring distractions and milkshakes.

Talking to reporters after arriving at Germany’s Brazilian base in Santo Andre, an isolated town on the Atlantic shore, Loew outlined his thoughts.

“I’ve been around long enough to realise that some of these same kinds of debates repeat themselves from tournament to tournament,” he said.

“Obviously people are going to have different opinions on the lineup and on the tactics. But I’m going to try to stay away from of all that.”

More than any other squad at the World Cup, Loew and his players treated each of their six matches as warmups along the way to the final they always seemed confident of reaching - and winning. l

NADER RAHMAN Match of the tournament Spain 1-5 Netherlands. There is no simple way to describe what happened in Salvador as the reigning world champions and possibly the best ever international team were dismantled by the Dutch who exorcised the ghosts of the 2010 final in the most emphatic way possible. Their aura of invincibility was not just punctured but annihilated. The only downside? A raft of ‘think’ pieces which lamented the death of tiki-taka. Save me please.

Player of the tournament Thomas Müller. Five goals, three assists and an impish presence on the pitch he may not have been the engine that powered Germany to victory but he was most certainly the axle, the gearbox and maybe even the brakes. As a false-nine he was devastatingly effective while also taking on midfield duties when needed. He may look like a teenage bible salesmen, but theres a steel to him which belies his tender age.

on the back of an undefeated qualifying campaign as well as an amazing run to the Euro 2012 finals I fully expected them to qualify from the group of death and challenge for a spot in the Semis. An unconvincing win against England was as good as it got for Parandelli’s men as they crashed and burned against surprise package Costa Rica and were clearly scared for their lives after being bitten by Uruguay.

The only highlight, Balotelli tweeting that if Italy helped England qualify for the second round he wanted a kiss from the Queen. He couldn’t save his own team let alone England and the world was spared the image of the Queen and balo locking lips. God save the Queen.

Team of the tournament (4-1-3-2) Neuer, Lahm, Vlaar, Medel, Yepes, Mascherano, Kroos, Robben, Di Maria, Rodríguez, Mueller.

Surprise package of the tournament A tie between Costa Rica and James Rodriguez. The Central American team proved that size doesn’t matter as they vanquished two former World Cup champions

Russia to win the World Cup with Valdimir Putin and Sepp Blatter twisting their proverbial mustaches and repeating as Blatter said yesterday, “ When you speak about corruption, you have to present evidence...” l

Goal of the tournament Robin van Persie, Spain vs Netherlands.

I’ve seen a lot of headers in my time, powerful ones, looping ones, ones that have been glanced in, precise ones in the corner of the net and even head and shoulder combinations. As van Persie went airborne I honestly thought he had lost the plot, little did I realise all he needed was a cape because his goal was nothing short of superhuman. I’ve never seen a goal like and probably never will.

Biggest disappointment Italy. Having gone into the World Cup

The flying Dutchman Robin van Persie scores the goal of the tournament

24

Years since Argentina appeared in a World Cup final

30

Seconds, the time of Clint Dempsey’s goal for the USA against Ghana in Natal on June 16 - the fifth fastest goal in World Cup history

32

Teeth of an average human, like Luis Suarez, banned for biting Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini

171

Goals scored in Brazil, matching record set at France 1998

187

Yellow cards

1000/1

The odds on Germany beating Brazil 7-1 in Tuesday’s semi-final

25,800

Police, soldiers and private security guards on duty in Rio and at the Maracana stadium for Sunday’s final

2000

Most interesting off-field moment

Predictions for 2018

16

Saves made by Tim Howard in the USA keeper’s heroic display against Belgium

Seconds it took for Germany to score three of their five first half goals in the 7-1 dissection of Brazil

and charmed their way into a quarter final where they were unlucky to lose against Netherlands.

The name is James, James Rodriguez.

A big money move to Monaco last season put him on the map but this tournament is where he announced himself to the world.

I wasn’t just surprised, I was left shaken and stirred.

The bite that launched a thousand memes.

Suarez may be banned from all football for four months but he can spend that time parked in front of his laptop consuming the tsunami of memes he caused. Tim Howard deserves an honourable mention as his epic 15 saves against Belgium was also immortalized by the meme world. The most interesting off-field moment was the internet’s sense of humor.

16

Miroslav Klose’s record World Cup goals haul

179

The Queen’s kiss and other stories Dhaka Tribune’s writers share their best and worst memories of the World Cup 2014

15

Goals milestone reached by Germany, Thomas Mueller claiming the honour in the 7-1 Brazil rout, 106 years after Fritz Becker scored their first

580,166

Thomas Kurz, Charge d’Affaires of the German Embassy, holds a plaque ‘The Embassy of the 2014 World Soccer Champion’ before placing it at the entrance of the German Embassy in Ankara, on Monday AFP

Record number of tweets per minute when Germany’s Sami Khedira scored the fifth of Germany’s seven goals against Brazil.

Germany shirt sells out less than 12 hours after WC win

Germany shirts snapped up by fans of Mirolsav Klose and company

n Reuters, Berlin

US dollars in cash sent from Ghana to pay players’ bonuses

A new German football shirt bearing four stars for Germany’s four World Cup wins had sold out on Monday within hours of the team’s triumph in Brazil - showing the kind of boost retailers can expect from the feel-good factor among fans in coming days.

The German team snatched victory against Argentina late on Sunday with a goal in extra time in Rio de Janeiro.

It was the first time Germany has been champion in the soccer tournament since the country reunified in late 1990.

German sportswear maker Adidas is already seeing the benefits, with customers flocking to its Frankfurt store on Monday in a bid to get one of the new

white shirts, which cost 84.95 euros.

Adidas had made a small batch ahead of the final in case Germany won. Andre Langer was one of the customers lucky enough to get his hands on a replica of the number ‘19’ shirt worn by Mario Goetze, who scored the winning goal.

“My son will get this shirt - which of course has four stars on it - for his 18th birthday. He’s one-year-old now,” he said.

On Monday morning Adidas’ website was already displaying a “sold out” sign next to the new shirts. The company said it would fly in new ones from China to meet the urgent demand.

Adidas shares ended the day up 2.85 percent and a spokeswoman said Germany’s win would give the company “a small extra boost”.l

2,000,000 3,000,000

35,000,000

US dollars, the cheque Germany or Argentina will pick up for winning the title

35,600,000

Record number of tweets for a sporting event, the Germany 7-1 semi-final thrashing of Brazil (previous record was 24.9 million for 2014 SuperBowl)

11,000,000,000 US dollars, total cost of World Cup, the most expensive in history (USA 1994 cost 30 million)

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, July 16, 2014 DHAKA TRIBUNE Monday, June 16, 2014

13 League glory for Sheikh Jamal

14 Fans welcome Argentina home

Sport

15 Germany printed stamps before final

Germany throws giant homecoming party n AFP, Berlin

German national football team players cheer as they ride in an open-deck bus to Berlin’s landmark Brandenburg Gate to celebrate their FIFA World Cup title yesterday

AFP

Hundreds of thousands of jubilant fans massed at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate Tuesday to cheer the World Cup winners and new national heroes bringing home football’s top prize for the first time to a reunified Germany.

The flag-waving crowd, which began gathering before dawn, erupted in applause under warm summer sunshine when the triumphant players arrived from Rio de Janeiro.

Germany coach Joachim Loew told more than 250,000 supporters at the so-called Fan Mile stretching behind the Gate, the symbol of national unity, that they shared the title with his players.

“We are all world champions,” he said. “Of course we are all overjoyed now to be with the fans.”

Captain Philipp Lahm hoisted the World Cup trophy to a giant roar from the crowd.

“What a mood here, thanks so much to everyone,” Lahm said as he passed the golden statuette to his fellow players.

Team members wearing black shirts emblazoned with the number one took the stage in groups to greet ecstatic supporters.

They carried a long banner reading “Obrigado Fans”, “thank you” in Portuguese in a nod to tournament hosts Brazil, and “the fourth title is ours”.

Mario Goetze, who scored the only goal in Sunday’s nail-biter final against Argentina, called the Mannschaft’s win “a dream”.

“We played an amazing tournament,” he said. “It’s an incredible feeling.”

Midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger appeared with the black, red and gold German flag draped from his shoulders, with a bandage still affixed below his eye from an injury he suffered in a clash during the final. l

TEN MEMORABLE MOMENTS AT WORLD CUP 2014

1

2 THE “MINEIRAZO”

This was the tournament where Brazil were supposed to shake off the historical scars of the 1950 “Maracanazo” when Uruguay defeated them 2-1 in Rio de Janeiro’s famous stadium the last time they hosted the World Cup. Yet they never even made it to the Maracana this time, collapsing horribly to Germany 7-1 in the semi-final in Belo Horizonte’s Mineirao stadium. It would be hard to pinpoint one pivotal moment as goal-after-goal flew past the imploding Brazilians. The “Mineirazo” will haunt Brazil forever.

6

3

THE RECORD

5

THE BITE

THE WINNER

THE FOUL

THE GOAL

Uruguay striker Luis Suarez had been the two-goal hero of a 2-1 victory over England, but he turned villain in the next game against Italy by inexplicably biting defender Giorgio Chiellini towards the end.

The Italians were still complaining when Uruguay scored from a corner to win 1-0 and reach the last 16. Suarez’s joy at victory was short-lived, though, as his action touched off worldwide controversy and brought a nine-match ban from playing for Uruguay and four-month prohibition from football - the toughest sanction ever given at a World Cup. The incident did not stop Suarez’s 81 million euro ($111 million) move to Barcelona.

Bayern Munich midfielder Mario Goetze had been having a disappointing tournament for Germany and was dropped in the latter stages. But that all changed after he came on as a substitute in the final against Argentina. In the 113th minute, with the score at 0-0 and penalties looming after a tense game where both sides missed good chances, the 22-year-old creative midfielder received a cross from Andre Schuerrle. He controlled it on his chest and slammed it past Argentina’s Sergio Romero to win the game, send his homeland into raptures and write himself into football history.

Brazil’s World Cup effectively ended when Colombia defender Juan Zuniga charged into their marquee striker Neymar with a raised knee during a rough quarter-final. Neymar, whose four goals and exuberant play had carried the team, left in tears on a stretcher with a broken vertebra. Brazil won that game 2-1, but the emotionally fragile team collapsed afterwards, losing 7-1 to Germany in the semi-final and 3-0 to the Netherlands in the third-place playoff.

The fans’ chanting of Neymar’s name and the team’s holding aloft of his number 10 shirt prior to kickoff against Germany were moving at the time but look hollow in retrospect given the trauma that followed.

While much of the world had focused on Neymar, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as potential standout performers, it was Colombia’s James Rodriguez who arguably overshadowed them all with consistently brilliant performances - and six goals - in his nation’s dream run to a first quarter-final. His best moment came against Uruguay in the last 16 when the ball arched towards him 25 metres out. The Netherlands’ Robin Van Persie, scorer of an extraordinary “salmon”-like header against Spain, and Australia’s Tim Cahill, who smacked in a fantastic volley against the Netherlands, may disagree, but for most pundits Rodriguez’s was the goal of the tournament.

7

Veteran Germany striker Miroslav Klose’s closerange strike against Brazil in the semi-final after 23 minutes made him the tournament’s all-time leading scorer with 16 goals. The 36-year-old had moved level with former Brazil striker Ronaldo on 15 when he scored in Germany’s 2-2 draw against Ghana in the group stage. The best German striker of his generation, Klose has played in four World Cups and now scored 71 goals in 136 appearances for his country.

The mild-mannered, Polish-born Klose, who is also a trained carpenter, was typically modest about his achievement. “Miroslav Klose in the club of 16 and everyone’s welcome to join,” he said afterwards.

4

8 THE DANCE

No-one shakes it like the Colombians. Their joyous, hip-swaying goal celebrations will live long in the memory, much as Cameroon’s did back in 1990. It was left back Pablo Armero who led the way after scoring against Greece in their opening game in the fifth minute. The rhythmic 27-year-old raced to his bench, crossed himself, called team mates around, and then led a clearly rehearsed but nonetheless fabulous dance of salsa steps and raised arms that quickly went viral back home. Only Ghana ran Colombia a close second with their moves, striker Asamoah Gyan leading the team in a leg-cocking ‘chicken’ dance after scoring against Germany.

9

10

THE HEAD-BUTT

THE PRAYERS

THE CROSSBAR

Cameroon’s miserable World Cup hit a shocking low when defender Benoit Assou-Ekotto head-butted team mate Benjamin Moukandjo towards the end of their 4-0 capitulation to Croatia. Players from both teams intervened to halt the shameful scuffle that symbolised the chaos in the ‘Indomitable Lions’.

“Such behaviour is really disgusting, it won’t do, it’s impossible,” said coach Volker Finke. Earlier in the same game, midfielder Alex Song was sent off for bizarrely elbowing Croatia’s Mario Mandzukic in the back right in front of the referee. And all that after a team strike over money prior to departure for Brazil, and injury to captain Samuel Eto’o.

Algeria ended their 28-year-old wait for a World Cup goal when Sofiane Feghouli converted a spot-kick in the 25th minute to give them a 1-0 lead over Belgium. The players, representing the only Arab nation at the World Cup, wore their Muslim faith proudly by kneeling in prayer to give thanks for the goal. The north Africans lost that game 2-1, but went on to score another six goals in a surprisingly fruitful campaign which ended with a 2-1 loss to Germany in the last 16.

In the dying seconds of extra time with the score at 1-1 in their last-16 game, Chile striker Mauricio Pinilla hit a thunderous shot that rattled off the crossbar to leave Brazil counting their lucky stars as they went to penalties. Chile lost the shootout, but had Pinilla’s shot gone just slightly lower, he would have become a national hero by overturning a painful history of defeats by Brazil, who also knocked them out of the 2010, 1998 and 1962 World Cups. Back home, Pinilla had a tattoo of the shot made on his back with the caption: “One Centimetre from Glory.” Chileans say the crossbar haunts their sleep.

– Reuters

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207.

Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com

The BRICS

Summit in Brazil, July 15-17

BRAZIL

SOUTH AFRICA

200 million

INDIA

RUSSIA

53 million

CHINA

144 million

Population

1.25 billion

B3 WB hails Philippines as next Asian ‘miracle’

1.36 billion

B4 BRICS to create develop-

GDP growth, %

2012 2013 2014 forecast 1.0

2.3

2.3

ment bank, ‘mini-IMF’ 2.5

1.8

2.8

3.2

4.4

7.7

7.7

7.5

WEDNESDAY, JULY 16, 2014 www.dhakatribune.com/business

5.4

3.4 1.5

2.0

ADP implemented Eid sales yet to pick up as increased at high rate despite prices dampen shopping spree n political unrest GDP current

$2.25

trillion

0.35

1.88

2.10

9.24

GDP per capita

1,499

6,618

$11,208

95% of total allocation was spent with faster progress in the last few days Briefing reporters after ECNEC meetn Kayes Sohel ing yesterday, Planning Minister AHM The government implemented 95% of the annual development progarmme during the just concluded fiscal year 2013-14 although the year was battered by persistent political turmoil.

In the year which ended in June 30, an amount of Tk56,793 crore was spent against the total revised allocation of Tk60,000 crore.

The ADP implementation rate was one percentage points down from the previous fiscal year however and three percentage points higher than the FY2011-12.

In keeping with tradition, the implementation of ADP became faster in the final months of the fiscal year, making room for wastage of public money.

The government had spent 67% of the ADP in the first 11 months of last fiscal year and 60% in the first 10 months of the previous fiscal year.

Different ministries and division spent Tk38,000 crore or 98% of their total allocation of Tk38,800 from the government’s own exchequer, the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) data showed.

The data said the government agencies, however, spent Tk18,650 crore or 88% from the external resources (project aid) out of their Tk21,200 crore project aid outlay in the Tk60,000 crore ADP for the last fiscal.

Mustafa Kamal said: “The implementation rate would have been better if the country had not faced political instability in the early months of the year.”

The implementation rate could be much better if the ministries and

The implementation rate could be much better if the ministries and divisions could implement more donor-funded projects under the development budget divisions could implement more donor-funded projects under the development budget, he said.

According to the IMED, 25 ministries and divisions including Power Division, Rural Development and Co-operative Division, Education, Housing and Public Works, Roads Division, and Agriculture Ministry are on the top of the chart with their 96% or more execution rates.

Seven ministries and divisions spent over 91% but less than 96% of their respective allocations in the ADP for the year. l

6,807

14,612

: IMF/WorldBank KayesSource Sohel

Traders in garments, shoes, accessories and other allied Eid items are so far doing dull business before the religious festival that traditionally fetches them a fair share of their annual turnover and profit.

But they expected picking up the business shortly as the half of the holy month of Ramzan already passed and the Eid is approaching fast.

Though the political field relatively calm this year, rising clothing prices might have negative impact on their sales this year, they feared.

“This is a real scenario for everyone in the community of traders,” said Md Ibrahim Khalil, a seller at the Best T Shirt shop in the city.

The signs were not good so far even this time with no political unrest, he said. “My sales in first 10 days of Ramzan fell to 20% to 30% compared to the previous year,” he said. He, however, hoped picking up sales at the final days before Eid. Per T-shirt price rose to Tk20-Tk30 compared to the last year, according to Ibrahim.

One of the unhappy shopkeepers said: “I used to get more than 150 customers daily during this time, but now it has dropped to 75-80.”

“For the few weeks or so, which is supposedly peak business time, our average daily sales are even below what we normally sell during this time.

And we are not alone in such a situation. Everyone here has the same story to tell,” he added.

Thin presence of customers was seen at different markets of the capital yesterday as compared to the situation until the day before and the mad rush of

As just two weeks to celebrate the biggest Muslim festival, the malls are full ready to serve an expected influx of shoppers which will make the year’s largest turnover. The picture taken in a city mall yesterday shows manikins dressed with women’s salwar kameezes as two ladies walk past SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN the third week of Ramadan – unlike last two weeks of previous other occasions.

The shopkeepers considered that the higher prices dampened the sentiment of the customers. The city’s shopping centers are usually packed two weeks before Eid-ul-Fitr, the biggest religious festival for Muslim community, but this year they have seen far less foot traffic.

Mohammad Mahbub Hossain, a tailor, was not busy this occasion as he usually remains during the Eid festivals.

“I have received fewer orders to stitch new clothes for Eid. I used to close booking on the 12th of Ramadan

due to so many orders, but this year, I closed it on the 18th. I got at least 30% fewer bookings. It is like almost similar situation of the previous year,” he said.

Abdul Samad, a store manager at an electronic outlet, said: “Usually two weeks before the Eid, market remains open till dead night, but this year we shut our shops early.” On his sale, he said: “Sales of electronic appliances declined substantially this year too ahead of Eid.” “Price hike of products might affect the shopping spirit of consumers this year too.” Mohammad Mofiz, a salesman at Sunflower Fashion, said clothes

prices had also gone up this year.

For example, an average shalwar-kameez is now priced at Tk600700 as compared to Tk500-600 last year. A good quality shalwar-kameez now carries a price tag of Tk1,600 as against Tk1400 last year.

Every festival triggers a shopping spree among people of all income groups, buying clothes for themselves and their loved ones, and bringing vibrancy to economic and business activities.

“But the scenario is different this festival as sales are sluggish,” Mofiz said.

“Let’s wait until a day before Eid.” l

Poultry feed makers want ban on selling tannery wastes BTRC overseeing 3G roll n Tribune Report

“Making tannery waste free of toxic effects is the key for a significant reduction of environmental and human health problems where production of safe food should be the target,” said S. D Chowdhury, professor of Bangladesh Agriculture University in the department of Nutritional Biotechnology department of Poultry science.

In his key note paper, Chowdhury suggested use of vegetable tanning process in tanning leather instead of, installation of adequate waste treatment plant and sustainable technologies at tanneries, establishing a quality control system for Poultry feeds, eggs and poultry meat to get rid of toxic effects of tannery waste.

Use of toxic wastage in poultry

feed could cause many chronic and non-chronic diseases such as Diarrhea, Cancer, heart diseases, various kidney diseases and birth defects, Chowdhury said.

According to FIAB, over 90% demands of poultry feed are met by the renowned and registered feed producers, while only the 10% are met by non-registered company who used wastage as ingredient in the poultry feed.

The leaders of FIAB ignored all the allegation of using tannery wastage in poultry feed and said, to meet the demand of protein to be used in the feed, the sector people import it to ensure safety. Accordion to them only 3-5% protein is needed in the feed. l

Feed Industries Association Bangladesh (FIAB) has urged the government to ban selling tannery wastage to ensure quality of poultry feeds.

“The government should take steps so that toxic tannery solid waste cannot come out from the tanneries and dishonest feed producers cannot buy it,” FIAB President Moshiur Rahman told a discussion meeting at National Press Club yesterday.

The sector has made significant growth only due to production of safe feed, said Rahman. But an informal sector is using toxic wastage to destroy the sector, which needs immediate action to stop, he added.

“We will sit with the tannery and feed sector people to address the concern and take necessary steps to ensure stopping the use of toxic tannery solid wastage in poultry feed,” said Narayan Chandra Chanda, State Minister, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock.

“There is no scope of ignoring the use of solid tannery wastage in poultry feed and research has found chromium in meat and eggs than that of the tolerable level,” said Nazma Shaheen, professor of Institute of Nutrition and Food Science (INFS), University of Dhaka.

To ensure safe nutrition to the common people, the feed should be qualified, balanced, and safe as we are in transition of nutrition period, she added.

Tea prices up on robust demand n Reuters

Banking sector may face challenges in NPL management

Tea prices in Bangladesh extended gains at the weekly auction yesterday due to robust demand from local buyers for quality leaf, despite larger supplies and sales volume also rose.

Bangladeshi tea fetched an average of Tk190.35 ($2.4) per kg at the auction against Tk187.52 at the previous sale, an official at National Brokers Ltd said.

Around 1.78 million kg was offered at the sole auction centre in Chittagong, with 28% remaining unsold. At the previous auction, nearly 1.5 million kg was offered, of which 37% went unsold.

“Demand was strong for quality tea and buyers were ready to pay a premium,” the official said.

Bangladeshi buyers have imported tea in bulk from neighbouring India, contributing to a glut in the domestic market and reducing demand at auctions, industry sources said. That prompted authorities to extend the duration of last season through April from the typical close at end-March.

In April, however, the Bangladeshi tax authority trebled regulatory duty to 15% on imports of tea to discourage overseas buying amid a drop in local prices due to ample supplies.

Bangladesh’s tea production in 2013 rose 1.6% from a year earlier to a record 63.5 million kg due to favourable weather but still fell short of the domestic consumption of about 65 million kg.

Bangladesh has moved from being a net exporter of tea to a net importer due to rising consumption. l

n Tribune Report

The country’s banking sector is likely to face challenges to keep its increasing non-performing loans (NPL) at a tolerable level in the coming days as there has been a tendency to grow NPL risk further if weak loans continue to be rescheduled, abusing the advantage of the relaxed rule.

A Bangladesh Bank circular, which was issued in December, last year, had relaxed the loan reschedule policy, has contributed a lot on profit making in the banking sector till June this year, but still there has been a looming risk of increasing the NPL burden, which may hit hard the profit margin in next six months, said Pubali Bank Managing Director Helal Ahmed Chowdhury.

He was addressing a press conference on SMS alert service launching held yesterday at the Pubali Bank

headquarters in the capital.

The banks, which rescheduled weak loans will suffer in the long run. Many banks have already formed task force in order to recover the bad loans that have been rescheduled, abusing the advantage of the relaxed rule, said Chowdhury.

NPL management has appeared as the major challenge for the banks in reducing the lending rate in line with Bangladesh Bank directive.

Pubali Bank board has recently decided to reduce the interest rate to up to 15% from existing 16.5% with effective from July, said Managing Director.

“We have cut the interest rate on credit to reduce the business cost and also to facilitate the entrepreneurs” he said.

Bangladesh Bank has an instruction over the banking sector to bring down the lending rates.

Commercial banks are already in

Guidelines for banking services n Tribune Business Desk

Bangladesh Bank issued guidelines for customer services and complaint management and asked all banks and financial institutions (FIs) to follow it to ensure better services to customers.

The central bank in a press release on Tuesday said the guidelines were issued to protect the interest of customers, ensure better services in the

financial sector and settle customers' complaints, reports BSS. "The guidelines are structured and focused on the aspects of institutional and individual ethical standard, customer service quality, customer awareness programme and complaint management system," the BB said.

These guidelines deliberate the complete procedures to ensure the comfortable and affordable customer services. l

the process to reduce the lending rate following the central bank directive and Pubali Bank also cut its interest rate in this line, he said.

“We could reduce both the lending and deposit rates due to reduction in NPL and keep the spread below 5% following the central bank guideline.”

He noted that the banking sector has now enough liquidity and the entrepreneurs, who were earlier following “Wait and See policy” amid political unrest, are now interested to become active in business as they are coming to the banks for loans.

It will be possible for the banks to use the credit space fully this year if the existing political stability continue to sustain, he added.

“Pubali Bank is the only largest bank, which has run real-time online banking service in more than 427 branches.” l

out performance n Muhammad Zahidul Islam The country’s telecom regulator (BTRC) has started monitoring closely the roll out performance of the third generation (3G) mobile data services by the four private mobile phone operators.

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) officials are now traveling to the divisional headquarters to oversee the 3G roll out performances by Grameenphone, Robi, Airtel and Banglalink, according to sources.

Officials in the telecom watchdog body have started their inspection from 13 July to 17 July, as a 9-month long grace-period for introducing the three generation (3G) mobile data services ended up last week.

As per the 3G license guideline, the operators have an obligation to roll out their services in all the divisional headquarters within nine months from the license awarding date.

Though the 3G guideline also effected over the state owned operator Teletalk like other private operators but here BTRC officials not included them as their inspection list.

3G spectrum auction was held on September 8, last year and the operators got their respective licenses within a week.

We know some of the operators have already introduced 3G services in all the divisional headquarters but we have the responsibility to check whether all of them have fullfilled their roll out obligations or not, a senior official of BTRC told the Dhaka Tribune.

“We will also get an idea about the network coverage of the operators as well as the quality of the services following the field-level visits,” he added.

Grameenphone, the leading operator, has got 10 Megahertz spectrum in the spectrum auction to expand its 3G coverage to all the 64-district headquarters by March, this year, although it had covered up more than two hundred upazilas by that time and it has already covered more than three hundred upazilas so far.

The operator brought all the seven divisional cities and some densely populated cities under 3G coverage

by December 31, 2013, according to Grameenphone officials.

Banglalink expands its 3G network in 62 districts head quarters including all the seven divisional cities.

Although Robi has faced some problems after launching its 3G service, it has overcome the crisis and the operator is now offering services in all the 23-district head quarters, said a senior executives of Robi.

Airtel officials informed that the operator has covered all the divisional headquarters before the deadline as currently its subscribers are enjoying 3G networks in 13 districts head quarters.

Robi, Airtel and Banglalink took 5 Megahertz of spectrum while Teletalk taken 10 Megahertz though they have paid a less on it.

Teletalk has so far covered 18 districts including all the divisional headquarters though it had launched its service one year before than the other private operators.

Currently, there are around 46.17 lakh 3G users across the country while Teletalk is leading the market in Bangladesh, Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister Abdul Latif Siddique has recently told the Parliament. l

B2

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Stock

Stocks back to red

DSE key features July 15, 2014

n Tribune Report

Turnover (Volume)

Stocks closed in red yesterday, just a day after rising, as investors were skeptical about the market’s sustained rally.

Before recovering some points on modest buying mainly on banks, cement and energy in the wee hour, the market continued to dip till mid-session.

Setting up of new optimistic export target of $34.5bn for FY 2014-15 didn’t impulse market participants, investors were much stimulated with cashing out tendency over upcoming Eid After losing more than 30 points, the benchmark DSEX at the end of the day lost 14 points or 0.4% to end at 4,363.

The Shariah Index DSES was down 6 points to 992. The comprising blue chips DS30 closed at 1,596, shedding 11 points or 0.8%.

Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, fell 37 points to 8,291.

Trading at DSE continued to remain dry, although turnover has

Company

1,932.71 50,783,618

Number of Contract

71,649

Traded Issues

294

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

105

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

179

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

10

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,270.26

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

27.52

CSE key features July 15, 2014 Turnover (Million Taka)

220.51

Turnover (Volume)

Daily capital market highlights DSE Broad Index :

DSE GAINERS

Turnover (Million Taka)

improved slightly over the previous session. The DSE turnover stood at Tk193 crore, an increase of 4% over the previous session’s value.

In its first trading day, Shahjibazar Power Company Ltd became the turnover leader as traders’ buying interest was confined to this stock. Its share prices rose 46% on its offer value of Tk35 a share.

“Except bank, cement and financial institutions stocks, all the sectors ended negative, which might be a short-term correction as many investors have the eyes for newly listed and sector specific stocks,” said Lanka Bangla Securities.

IDLC Investments said having single session’s break, market turned red again, putting DSEX in negative territory.

“Overall apathy in market anatomy resumed beating market sentiment,” it said.

Alongside, setting up of new optimistic export target of $34.5bn for FY 2014-15 didn’t impulse market participants, it said adding that rather, investors were much stimulated with cashing out tendency over upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr. Hence, turnover stayed below Tk200 crore-level for the fifth consecutive session.

Beximco Ltd was the top turnover leader with shares worth almost Tk22 crore changing hands, followed by Shahjibazar Power Company Ltd, Squre Pharmaceuticals, Grameenphone, Apolo Ispat and Beximco Ltd. l

5,937,056

Number of Contract

12,818

4376.89942

(+) 0.75%

▲

Traded Issues

200

998.12014

(+) 0.79%

▲

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

84

1606.48451

(+) 0.70%

▲

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

110

CSE All Share Index:

13476.06770

(+) 0.61%

▲

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

5

CSE - 30 Index :

11244.41130

(+) 0.71%

▲

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,184.64

8328.80380

(+) 0.43%

▲

DSE Shariah Index : DSE - 30 Index :

CSE Selected Index : DSE LOSERS

Wata Chemicals -A Zeal Bangla Sugar -Z Reliance Insur -A Janata Insur -A Rupali Bank - A R. N. Spinning-Z LR Global BD MF1-A Meghna PET Ind. -Z

-5.41 -5.00 -3.99 -3.98 -3.87 -3.79 -3.51 -3.39

Average (% change) -3.42 -4.63 -3.30 -3.45 -2.44 -1.83 -2.10 -3.39

FAR Chemical-N Reckitt Benckiser -A

-3.37 -3.25

-5.03 -3.12

Company

Closing (% change)

CSE LOSERS

SonarBangla Insu. -A Eastern InsurA Apex SpinningA Safko Spinning-A Rupali Life Insur.-A FAR Chemical-N Bangladesh Lamps -A Premier Leasing-Z

-9.36 -8.82 -6.67 -5.56 -5.27 -4.03 -4.00 -3.95

Average (% change) -9.36 -5.89 -6.67 -5.56 -4.82 -4.17 -4.03 -5.66

Eastern Bank - A Sonargaon Tex -Z

-3.37 -3.23

-3.27 -3.23

Company

Closing (% change)

ANALYST

Closing average

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 168.20 49.73 19.85 159.72 69.38 347.94 0.42 131.44 380.29 0.10 16.34 20.68 7.96 80.86 11.07 33.51 30.91 97.08 62.55 244.43 0.25

26.48

26.51

Turnover in million

Daily low

Latest EPS

Latest PE

213.84 7.63 57.78 17.05 65.52 25.72 5.59 5.70

211.60 7.60 57.70 16.90 64.60 25.40 5.50 5.70

228.00 7.70 60.90 18.00 69.00 26.30 5.70 5.70

205.00 7.60 57.00 16.00 60.50 23.80 5.50 5.70

6.633 0.029 0.325 0.163 1.411 3.236 0.976 0.003

6.24 -30.63 5.84 1.40 3.96 3.12 0.64 -1.33

34.3 -ve 9.9 12.2 16.5 8.2 8.7 -ve

43.26 1019.84

43.00 1019.60

44.30 1020.00

42.70 1010.00

43.757 0.311

3.92 41.12

11.0 24.8

Closing average

Closing

Daily high

Turnover in million

Daily low

Latest EPS

Kay & Que (BD) -Z SonarBangla Insu. -A Midas Financing-Z B I F C -A National Tea -A Pioneer Insur -A Central Pharm-A Mercantile Bank -A Imam Button -Z Beacon Pharma Ltd.-Z

15.50 31.00 70.00 18.70 61.10 42.90 110.40 7.30

15.50 31.00 70.00 18.70 62.00 44.10 112.00 7.30

15.50 31.00 70.00 18.70 61.10 42.60 109.10 7.30

0.016 0.006 0.014 0.009 0.092 8.885 0.088 0.005

1.52 3.44 1.85 1.08 5.33 3.92 0.92 0.12

10.2 9.0 37.8 17.3 11.5 11.0 120.0 59.8

28.70 9.00

28.70 9.00

28.70 9.00

28.70 9.00

0.006 0.023

4.72 -0.92

6.1 -ve

Overall apathy in market anatomy resumed beating market sentiment

Company Kay & Que (BD) -Z Prime Islami Life -A Rahima Food -Z Imam Button -Z Aziz PipesZ Rangpur Foundry -A AB Bank 1st Mutual Fund-A ACI Formulations-A B I F C -A Standard Insurance-A

% change 8.70 2.57 1.03 8.26 3.59 18.00 0.02 6.80 19.68 0.85 1.07 0.41 4.18 0.57 1.73 1.60 5.02 3.24 12.65 0.01

Million Taka 11.02 3.73 1.60 12.43 49.78 56.51 57.99 34.53 95.18 1.32 96.29 0.64 11.95 0.42 0.32 1.02 25.25 13.60 32.32 0.01

% change 2.18 0.74 0.32 2.46 9.84 11.17 0.00 11.46 6.82 18.81 0.26 19.03 0.13 2.36 0.08 0.06 0.20 4.99 2.69 6.39 0.00

Million Taka 179.22 53.46 21.45 172.15 119.15 404.45 0.42 189.43 414.82 95.28 17.67 116.97 8.60 92.82 11.48 33.83 31.93 122.34 76.15 276.76 0.26

Closing (% change) 7.69 6.97 6.33 6.17 4.90 4.61 4.48 4.19 3.79 3.57

Average (% change) 7.93 4.51 4.86 3.73 7.23 3.35 1.99 2.58 3.09 1.73 Average (% change) 7.69 6.92 1.80 8.56 5.19 4.61 4.01 5.45 3.48 3.57

Closing average 14.98 17.16 21.79 13.62 840.00 47.20 32.30 14.70 8.67 14.15

Closing average 14.00 86.02 42.31 8.75 15.00 99.90 7.00 87.00 13.67 26.10

Closing 14.90 17.20 21.80 13.60 839.40 47.30 32.60 14.80 8.60 14.20

Closing 14.00 86.00 43.70 8.60 15.00 99.90 7.00 87.00 13.70 26.10

Daily high 15.00 17.80 22.30 13.90 849.00 48.00 32.90 15.10 8.80 14.40

Daily high 14.00 86.10 44.50 8.90 15.00 99.90 7.00 87.00 13.70 26.10

Daily low 12.60 15.00 20.50 11.70 801.00 41.90 29.00 13.00 8.60 12.60

Daily low 14.00 86.00 40.60 8.50 15.00 99.90 7.00 87.00 13.60 26.10

Turnover in million 0.076 0.167 0.338 0.805 0.210 0.536 10.969 14.205 0.286 1.984

Turnover in million 0.007 0.039 0.190 0.070 0.008 0.050 0.105 0.131 0.198 0.013

Latest EPS -0.92 1.52 -6.91 0.24 -71.72 5.16 2.09 1.16 -1.85 0.04

Latest EPS -0.92 4.95 -1.01 -1.85 0.68 3.08 0.55 6.28 0.24 2.88

Latest PE -ve 11.3 -ve 56.8 -ve 9.1 15.5 12.7 -ve 353.8

Latest PE -ve 17.4 -ve -ve 22.1 32.4 12.7 13.9 57.0 9.1

News, analysis and recent disclosers Shahjibazar Power Company Limited: (Q3): The Company has reported its profit after tax Tk. 170.62 million and basic EPS Tk. 1.50 for the 3 (three) months ended on 31 March 2014 (Jan 2014-March 2014) as against profit after tax of Tk. 90.47 million and basic EPS of Tk. 0.79 for the same period of the previous year. It is to be noted that basic EPS has been calculated based on weighted average Pre-IPO paidup number of shares i.e. 114,118,000 shares for both periods. However, considering Post-IPO 126,798,000 number of shares the Company's basic EPS for the 3 (three) months ended on 31 March 2014 would be Tk. 1.35 For the period of 9 (nine) months (July 2013 to March 2014) ended on 31 March 2014 profit after tax was Tk. 289.36 million and basic EPS was Tk. 2.54 as against profit after tax of Tk. 222.22 million and basic EPS of Tk. 1.95 for the same period of the previous year. It is to be noted that the said EPS has been calculated based on weighted average Pre-IPO paid-up number of shares i.e. 114,118,000

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Shahjibazar Power-N Square Pharma -A Grameenphone-A Appollo Ispat CL -N Beximco Pharma -A

Total

7.19 4.88 4.81 4.62 4.40 3.73 3.16 2.78 2.38 2.16

CSE GAINERS

LafargeS Cement-Z

CSE

Closing (% change)

shares for both periods. However, considering Post-IPO 126,798,000 number of shares, Company's basic EPS would be Tk. 2.28 for 9 (nine) months ended on 31 March 2014 (July 2013 to March 2014) and NAV per share would be Tk. 27.93 as on 31 March 2014.

ULC: (H/Y): As per un-audited half yearly accounts as on 30.06.2014 (Jan'14 to June'14), the Company has reported net profit after tax of Tk. 136.51 million with EPS of Tk. 0.97 as against Tk. 121.03 million and Tk. 0.86 respectively for the same period of the previous year. Whereas net profit after tax was Tk. 76.49 million with EPS of Tk. 0.55 for the period of 3 months (Apr'14 to June'14) ended on 30.06.2014 as against Tk. 66.05 million and Tk. 0.47 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

POPULARLIF: (Q1): As per un-audited quarterly accounts for the 1st quarter ended on 31st March 2014 (Jan'14 to March'14), the Company has reported an increase in life revenue account of Tk. 1,047.06 million with

total life insurance fund of Tk. 25,841.20 million as against Tk. 1,207.95 million and Tk. 21,920.56 million respectively for the same period of the previous year.

BXPHARMA: The Company has informed that cash dividend for the year 2013 has been credited to the respective shareholders' Bank Accounts under their BO Accounts through BEFTN System.

BDTHAI: The Company has informed that it has credited the bonus shares for the year ended on December 31, 2013 to the respective shareholders' BO Account on July 14, 2014.

IPO Subscription: Saif Powertec Limited subscription date 06-10 July 2014, NRB upto 19 July 2014. @ taka 30, face value taka 10 and market lot 200. Ratanpur Steel Re-Rolling Mills Limited subscription date 1317 July 2014, NRB upto 26 July 2014. @ taka 40, face value taka 10 and market lot 200.

Right Share: MIDASFIN: Subscription period for rights issue will be from 01.09.2014 to 30.09.2014. Record date for entitlement of rights share: 03.08.2014.

Latest PE

15.50 31.00 70.00 18.70 61.40 43.23 110.37 7.17

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY Sector

Daily high

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

% change 7.35 2.19 0.88 7.06 4.89 16.59 0.02 7.77 17.01 3.91 0.72 4.80 0.35 3.81 0.47 1.39 1.31 5.02 3.12 11.35 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

FAR Chemical-N Olympic Ind. -A Meghna Petroleum -A

UNITED AIR-A Padma Oil Co. -A The Peninsula CTG.-N BSRM Steels-A Renata Ltd. -A CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company BEXIMCO Ltd. -A

Grameenphone-A Square Pharma -A FAR Chemical-N UNITED AIR-A LafargeS Cement-Z Appollo Ispat CL -N The Peninsula CTG.-N Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A HeidelbergCement -A BD Submarine Cable-A GBB Power Ltd-A BSRM Steels-A BSC-A Hwa Well Textiles-N

Volume shares 6,405,912 5,668,600 637,939 267,823 2,064,000 1,254,080 641,000 1,011,500 154,489 130,145

2,605,574 97,210 777,600 287,520 23,891

Volume shares

899,933 75,200 71,349 205,500 604,827 90,500 225,600 174,400 154,000 6,250 17,100 109,460 27,500 3,260 44,500

Value in million 218.57 207.34 173.02 78.43 59.52 55.52 51.50 43.76 35.53 34.49

32.67 29.84 25.71 22.72 21.28

Value in million

30.51 22.20 19.34 8.88 7.58 7.31 6.50 5.76 3.56 3.16 3.05 2.56 2.16 1.67 1.63

% of total turnover 11.31 10.73 8.95 4.06 3.08 2.87 2.66 2.26 1.84 1.78

1.69 1.54 1.33 1.18 1.10

% of total turnover

17.64 12.84 11.18 5.14 4.38 4.22 3.76 3.33 2.06 1.83 1.77 1.48 1.25 0.96 0.94

Daily closing 34.30 36.50 270.80 291.70 28.80 44.40 80.80 43.00 228.10 264.40

12.50 306.60 32.90 79.20 889.50

Daily closing

34.30 292.80 270.00 42.90 12.60 81.00 28.70 33.00 23.20 506.20 178.30 22.50 79.20 511.80 36.80

Price change 0.59 0.00 -1.78 -1.35 -0.69 0.45 1.51 -3.37 -2.15 -0.53

Daily opening 34.10 0.00 275.70 295.70 29.00 44.20 79.60 44.50 233.10 265.80

Price change

Daily opening

-1.57 -0.42 -1.79 0.13 -0.18

0.88 -0.85 -2.10 -4.03 -0.79 1.38 -1.03 -1.49 0.43 0.16 -0.94 -3.43 0.38 -0.58 -0.27

12.70 307.90 33.50 79.10 891.10

34.00 295.30 275.80 44.70 12.70 79.90 29.00 33.50 23.10 505.40 180.00 23.30 78.90 514.80 36.90

Daily high 35.00 39.00 277.70 298.00 29.20 45.50 81.40 44.30 234.60 266.90

13.00 309.30 33.50 79.80 899.80

Daily low 30.70 35.00 255.90 290.00 28.50 39.80 79.50 42.70 212.80 260.00

11.50 300.00 32.80 73.00 829.00

Daily average 34.12 36.58 271.22 292.85 28.84 44.27 80.34 43.26 229.96 264.99

Daily high

Daily low

Daily average

34.70 296.90 277.00 44.10 12.70 81.40 29.50 33.50 23.30 508.00 179.40 23.90 79.90 519.80 37.00

33.20 291.10 267.20 42.60 11.50 80.00 28.40 32.80 23.00 502.00 178.00 22.40 77.60 510.00 36.50

12.54 307.01 33.06 79.00 890.67

33.90 295.20 271.10 43.23 12.53 80.73 28.79 33.05 23.13 505.83 178.54 23.43 78.59 511.78 36.70

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

WB hails Philippines as next Asian 'miracle' n AFP, Manila World Bank president Jim Yong Kim yesterday described the Philippines as the next "Asian miracle" and a global model in fighting corruption, as it emerges from decades as a regional economic laggard.

Kim said President Benigno Aquino should take much of the credit for the turnaround, highlighting his anticorruption campaign, efforts to build transparency in government and focus on "inclusive growth".

"Can the Philippines be the next Asian miracle? (After) coming here, I think there is no question that is the case," Kim, who was on a two-day visit, told a forum at the presidential palace.

Kim heaped praise on Aquino's antigraft fight, which has seen the president's predecessor and three sitting senators charged with corruption, as well as the impeachment of a Supreme Court chief justice.

"Among the most important things you can do is tackle corruption and... that is one of things that the (Aquino) government is doing frankly better than any government in the world," Kim said.

"Around the world, the spread of information technology is converging with grassroots movements for transparency, accountability and citizen empowerment.

"Under your leadership, President Aquino, the Philippines is absolutely at the forefront of this transformation."

Kim said the Philippines, where one quarter of the roughly 100 million people live in deep poverty, had huge potential. He cited its strong macroeconomic fundamentals, prudent monetary policies and young workforce.

He said the World Bank expected the Philippines' economy would expand by 6.6 percent this year, maintaining its status as one of the fastest growing in Asia.

The economy grew by 7.2% last year, second only to China.

Kim's strong endorsement was a timely boost for Aquino, with two polls

World Trade Organisation judges said on Monday the United States broke its rules in imposing hefty duties on Chinese steel products, solar panels and a range of other goods that Washington argues enjoyed government subsidies.

In a similar case involving US methods in deciding when foreign imports are unfairly priced, another WTO panel ruled in support of some claims by India against tariffs on steel exports from three of its major firms.

Trade diplomats said the two cases, both under scrutiny for nearly two years by the separate panels, reflected a widespread concern in the 160-member WTO over what many see as illegal US protection of its own producers.

In the $7.2bn Chinese case, the panel found that Washington had overstepped the mark in justifying the socalled countervailing duties it imposed as a response to alleged subsidies to exporting firms by China's government.

Under the 1964 Marrakesh accords, which also set up the WTO, these duties can only be levied when there is clear evidence that state-owned or partially state-owned enterprises passing on the subsidies are "public bodies."

The panel found that Washington had produced insufficient evidence for this, and was also at fault in its calculations of the value of the subsidies to Chinese firms producing items like kitchen shelving, grass cutters and even citric acid.

And it told the United States it should adapt its measures to bring them into line with the WTO's agreement on subsidies and countervailing measures, dubbed the SCM in trade jargon.

Some Comfort

The ruling, which gave the United States some comfort in rejecting some aspects of the Chinese complaint, was welcomed in a statement from China's Ministry of Commerce distributed by Beijing's trade mission in Geneva.

"China urges the United States to respect the WTO rulings and correct its wrongdoings of abusively using trade remedy measures, and to ensure an environment of fair competition for Chinese enterprises," the statement said.

The United States said it was weigh-

Microsoft expected to announce job cuts this week n Reuters Microsoft Corp is planning its biggest round of job cuts in five years as the software maker looks to integrate Nokia Oyj's handset unit, Bloomberg reported, citing people with knowledge of the company's plans.

The reductions, expected to be announced as soon as this week, could be in the Nokia unit and the parts of Microsoft that overlap with that business, as well as in marketing and engineering, Bloomberg reported.

Since absorbing the handset business of Nokia this spring, Microsoft has 127,000 employees, far more than rivals Apple Inc and Google Inc. Wall Street is expecting Chief Executive Satya Nadella to make some cuts, which would represent Microsoft's first major layoffs since 2009.

The restructuring may end up being the biggest in Microsoft history, topping the 5,800 jobs cut in 2009, the report said.

Some of the job cuts will be in marketing departments for businesses such as the global Xbox team, and among software testers, while other job cuts may result from changes Nadella is making to the engineering organization, Bloomberg reported. l

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim addresses a press briefing in Manila yesterday. Jim Yong Kim on July 15 described the Philippines as the next "Asian miracle" and a global model in fighting corruption, as it emerges from decades as a regional economic laggard AFP released this week showing the president's public support dropping to record lows amid deep controversy over a budget stimulus programme.

The Supreme Court this month ruled the programme was unconstitutional, with the 13 judges issuing a unanimous opinion that Aquino should not have

WTO faults US over duties on Chinese, Indian steel goods n Reuters, Geneva

B3

ing its options. US Trade Representative Michael Froman said the decision to reject many of China's challenges was a victory for American businesses and workers.

"With respect to the other findings in the panel report, the Administration is carefully evaluating its options, and will take all appropriate steps to ensure that US remedies against unfair subsidies remain strong and effective.”

Many other members of the organisation, including the European Union and Japan, declared themselves interested parties in the disputes, although they did not say if their sympathies lay with the United States or its challengers.

In the $7.2bn Chinese case, the panel found that Washington had overstepped the mark in justifying the socalled countervailing duties it imposed as a response to alleged subsidies to exporting firms by China's government The ruling in the Indian case - which involves steelmakers like Tata, Jindal and Essar who are supplied by the state-run iron-ore mining firm, NMDC - was not so clear-cut.

It said the United States had "acted inconsistently" in terms of some provisions of the SCM agreement and had unfairly reduced Indian trade revenue.

Washington should bring its measures into line with the pact, the panel said.

But it rejected many of the technical aspects of the Indian case.

Froman hailed the panel ruling while recognising it as a "mixed result."

"The panel's findings rejecting most of India's numerous challenges to our laws and determinations is a significant victory for the United States and for the (US) workers and businesses making these steep products," he said. l

bypassed Congress in spending 160bn pesos (nearly $3.7bn).

Critics have linked the controversy to a giant corruption scandal engulfing potentially more than 100 politicians, including the three senators who have been charged and are behind bars.

But Aquino has insisted the two is-

sues are separate and that his administration is largely free of corruption.

He said on Monday he would appeal to the Supreme Court to reconsider its ruling, and in a speech alongside Kim yesterday again defended the stimulus programme.

"We had to act. We knew that, if we

were to bring about inclusive growth sooner rather than later, we needed to be proactive and pump-prime the economy," he said.

The Philippines was last year ranked the 94th most corrupt of 175 countries by anti-graft group Transparency International. l

Dollar, euro hold gains against yen after BoJ meeting n AFP, Tokyo The dollar and euro maintained recent gains against the yen yesterday after the Bank of Japan held off expanding its huge stimulus programme.

After a two-day meeting the central bank said the world's number three economy was recovering despite activity taking a hit from an April sales tax hike.

The dollar fetched 101.59 yen in Tokyo, the same rate before the decision and marginally up from 101.54 yen in New York Monday afternoon. The euro bought 138.36 yen against 138.29 yen in US trade.

The single currency was also at $1.3619, unchanged from New York trade. Investors are now keeping an eye on a news conference by BoJ governor Haruhiko Kuroda later in the day.

Also in focus is US Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen's two-day congressional testimony that kicked off later yesterday as well as retail sales figures for June.

"The market will be examining this report closely for signs that the US consumer spending growth is back on track... Then there'll be intense focus on Fed Chair Yellen's testimony," National Australia Bank said in a note.

It said it expects Yellen to downplay

talk of any rate rises any time in the near future.

"We'd be expecting she will refer to the fact that average earnings growth is still consistent with their inflation mandate and that labour market slack persists with broader measures of unemployment remaining above average," it added.

The dollar was higher against other Asia-Pacific currencies.

It firmed to Sg$1.2431 from Sg$1.2410 on Monday, to 32.18 Thai baht from 32.14 baht, to 60.17 Indian rupees from 59.97 rupees, and to 1,026.26 South Korean won from 1,018.54 won.l

Oil prices down ahead of Yellen testimony n AFP, Singapore Oil prices fell in Asia yesterday as investors await congressional testimony by the US central bank chief for fresh clues about the state of the world's biggest economy, analysts said.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for August delivery was down five cents to $100.86 while Brent crude for August eased 23 cents to $106.75 in afternoon trade.

US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen will begin two days of testimony later Tuesday before congressional committees that will focus on the bank's time-frame for raising benchmark interest rates.

French lender Credit Agricole said Yellen is likely to say that the Fed's key policy-making committee "look for the rate lift-off in 2015".

However, she will "emphasise that Fed views on the timing of the lift-off remain contingent on the economic outlook", the bank said in a market commentary.

Oil prices remain supported following turmoil in Libya, which has clouded expectations of a return of the country's long-disrupted crude supplies to the market.

Libya suspended all flights to and from its third city Misrata on Monday, a day after deadly clashes closed the country's main international airport in Tripoli and damaged several planes. l

Modhumoti Bank Limited has recently taken an initiative named “Modhumoti Talent Source" to help students who wish to go abroad for higher education. The bank’s managing director and CEO Md Mizanur Rahman inaugurated the programme at its Motijheel Branch

NBL Money Transfer Inc USA, a wholly owned subsidiary of National Bank Limited has recently launched its operations in USA. The director of NBL Money Transfer Inc, Dipu Haque has inaugurated the commencement of its business at the presence of Jonas Khan Sikder, director of National Bank Ltd

NRB Commercial Bank Limited has launched its 18th branch at OR Nizam Road in Chittagong. The bank’s director Abu Bakr Chowdhury inaugurated the branch yesterday

NOVOAIR has recently signed a corporate agreement with EXIM Bank on booking flight tickets from the bank’s offices. The bank’s CEO and managing director Mohammed Haider Ali Miah and Mofizur Rahman, managing director of NOVOAIR signed the agreement at the bank’s head office

Unicef has started a campaign at Asad Gate and Dhanmondi in the capital recently for measuring child’s height and weight

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

BRICS to create development bank, 'mini-IMF' n AFP, Fortaleza Leaders of the BRICS group of emerging powers meet Tuesday to launch a new development bank and a reserve fund seen as counterweights to Western-led financial institutions.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff hosts the leaders of Russia, India, China and South Africa in Fortaleza before talks with South American leaders the next day in Brasilia.

The summit will mark the first faceto-face meeting between India's new Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jiping.

For Russian President Vladimir Putin, who visited Argentina and Cuba before coming to Brazil, the trip gives him a chance to hammer home his calls for a "multipolar" world amid tensions with the West over the Ukraine crisis.

"Together we should think about a system of measures that would help prevent the harassment of countries that do not agree with some foreign policy decisions made by the United States and their allies," Putin told Russia's ITAR-TASS news agency.

Russia has been excluded from the G8 group of industrialized powers as punishment for its annexation of Crimea and perceived meddling in Ukraine.

The United States is threatening to impose new economic sanctions on Russia over accusations that it is backing pro-Moscow separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.

'Mini IMF'

The summit comes as the economies of some BRICS countries, which together represent 40% of the world population and a fifth of the global economy, are cooling down. Russia and Brazil are expected to see growth of just one percent this year.

The five emerging nations unveiled in 2013 their plans to create the bank, which aims to rival the Washingtonbased World Bank while the reserve is seen as a "mini-IMF." The creation of the bank will give a

backbone to the BRICS, which is not a formal international organization, said Marcos Troyjo, Brazilian director of BRICLab research center at New York's Columbia University.

"They are only taking their first steps towards a platform for building consensus on international agenda items such as rules for international trade, joint action at the UN or the WTO," he told AFP, referring to the World Trade Organisation.

The bank will have initial capital of $50bn with each country contributing an equal share, while the reserve will have $100bn at its disposal.

Together we should think about a system of measures that would help prevent the harassment of countries that do not agree with some foreign policy decisions made by the United States and their allies The bank is "key to foster growth for the BRICS countries," Brazilian Industry and Commerce Minister Mauro Borges said.

For the fund, China will make the biggest contribution, $41bn, followed by $18bn from Brazil, India and Russia and $5bn from South Africa.

Despite their agreement on the need for a bank, the five countries are split on where it should be headquartered.

Shanghai is seen as the frontrunner to host the bank but South Africa insists on having it in Johannesburg.

New Delhi and Moscow are the other candidates.

The five nations are also negotiating who should hold the bank's rotating presidency first and the make-up of the board.

The talks in Fortaleza will open a series of marathon summits and bilateral meetings in Brazil. l

The BRICS

Summit in Brazil, July 15-17

BRAZIL

SOUTH AFRICA

200 million

INDIA

RUSSIA

53 million

CHINA

144 million

Population

1.25 billion

1.36 billion

GDP growth, %

7.7

2012 2013 2014 forecast 1.0

2.3

2.3

2.5

1.8

2.8

3.2

4.4

7.7

7.5

5.4 3.4 1.5

2.0

GDP current

$2.25

trillion

0.35

1.88

9.24

2.10

GDP per capita

1,499 6,618 $11,208

6,807 14,612 Source : IMF/WorldBank

Negotiations to launch new BRICS bank hit snag n Reuters, Fortaleza On the eve of the signing of a deal to launch a joint development bank, the BRICS nations have still not agreed on where the lender will be headquartered, a senior official involved in the talks told Reuters late yesterday.

The leaders of the five emerging market economies are expected to sign a deal on Tuesday that creates the $100bn bank and a reserves fund of the same size to challenge Western dominance over global finance. The five nations are Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa.

Negotiations have stalled for now on a dispute between China, India and South Africa over who will host the bank. The disagreement has also delayed a decision on which of the countries will hold the first 5-year presidency of the bank.

"This should be easy to resolve but we have this dispute. If it doesn't move forward, we may have to leave the decision for another meeting," said the official, who declined to be named.

Another negotiator confirmed that no decision has been reached.

A delay could be an embarrassment for the BRICS, which see the creation of the bank as a major step to gain more influence in the shaping of the world's financial architecture.

The official said that if no deal is reached on Tuesday, the leaders could still sign off on creation of the bank and decide on the headquarters and its president at a later date.

Negotiations to create the bank dragged on for more than two years as Brazil and India fought China's attempts to get a bigger share in the lender than the others.

The stark economic and political differences between the BRICS countries has made it difficult for the group to turn rhetoric to concrete action in coordinating policies.

Russian and Indian officials have signaled that China's business hub, Shanghai, was the front-runner in the race to land the headquarters. l

Gloomy German investor sentiment weighs on economy IMF cuts eurozone 2014 n growth forecast AFP, Frankfurt

Investment sentiment in Germany fell to the lowest level for 19 months in July amid signs of a dent in activity in Europe's top economy, a survey found on Tuesday.

Even as the euphoria engendered

by Germany's World Cup soccer victory reached its climax with the return of the national Mannschaft to Berlin on Tuesday, the widely watched investor confidence index calculated by the ZEW economic institute fell by 2.7 points to 27.1 points in July, it said in a statement.

Analysts had been projecting a shallower drop to 28 points this month.

The index now stands at its lowest level since December 2012.

"Germany has experienced a slight

dent in economic activity recently -- retail sales declined and industrial production as well as incoming orders dropped," said ZEW president Clemens Fuest.

The latest decline in the ZEW barometer "reflects this sobering development. On a general note, however, the medium-term economic outlook remains favourable," Fuest insisted.

For the survey, ZEW questions analysts and institutional investors about their current assessment of the economic situation in Germany, as well as their expectations for the coming months.

The sub-index measuring financial market players' view of the current economic situation in Germany fell by 5.9 points to 61.8 points in July, its first decline since November 2013.

Google's Nest launches network technology for connected home n Reuters, San Francisco Google Inc's Nest Labs yesterday unveiled an industry group to encourage makers of smart home gadgets like locks and light bulbs to use Thread, a new standard for devices to communicate on a network.

The attempt by Nest, a smart thermostat maker that Google bought in January for $3.2 billion, to lead the way on how future household devices to speak to each other, underscores the importance Google puts on areas like cars and the home. It follows similar initiatives by Qualcomm Inc, Intel Corp and other technology companies.

The new Thread Group includes Samsung Electronics and chip companies ARM Holdings, Freescale Semiconductor and Silicon Labs. Big Ass Fans and lock maker Yale are also members of the group, which will cer-

DILBERT

tify Thread-compatible products.

Thread is a networking protocol with security and low-power features that make it more suitable for connecting household device than others, such as Wifi, NFC, Bluetooth or ZigBee, said Chris Boross, a Nest product manager who heads the new group. Nest's products already use a version of Thread, he said.

The radio chips used for Threadcompatible smart devices are already in many existing connected home products that use ZigBee, like Philips Hue smart light bulbs.

Those Zigbee devices could potentially be updated with software from their manufacturers to work with Thread after a product certification program starts next year, Boross said.

"Around that time I imagine that Thread-compliant products will start hitting the market, but people can start building Thread today," he said. l

"While the World Cup trophy just landed in Berlin, the German ZEW index is sounding a signal of increased caution," said ING DiBa analyst Carsten Brzeski.

The expert said that recent data had raised concerns of a possible stagnation in the German economy in the second quarster.

"Weak industrial production, a sharp correction in the construction sector and the reversal of the positive weather effect from the first quarter do not bode well for second-quarter growth," he said.

"Only die-hard optimists and soccer fanatics would argue that the German victory at the soccer World Cup would be sufficient to boost private consumption," the analyst said.

Contrary to 2006 when Germany

hosted the World Cup, "soccer enthusiasm is very unlikely to ignite economic confidence," Brzeski argued.

Germany beat Argentina 1:0 in a nailbiting final on Sunday and the national team returned to euphoric crowds in the German capital on Tuesday.

Capital Economics economist Jennifer McKeown also believed that the latest ZEW reading "adds to signs of a slowdown in the eurozone's largest and strongest economy."

Berenberg Bank economist Christian Schulz said that while the ZEW index remains "significantly positive, such a protracted period of declines points to a noticeable cooling of the economy."

Postbank economist Heinrich Bayer attributed the renewed drop in the index to disappointing hard economic data and increased geo-political risks. l

n AFP, Brussels The IMF cut its 2014 growth forecast for the eurozone on Monday, warning that the recovery in the single currency bloc was "neither robust nor sufficiently strong."

In an annual report on the eurozone, the International Monetary Fund said growth this year would reach 1% instead of the 1.1% earlier forecast. The estimate for 2015 remained at 1.5%.

"We acknowledge there is recovery but a lot more needs to be done," said Mahmood Pradhan, Deputy Director of the IMF's European Department, in a conference call presenting the report.

The Washington-based IMF recom-

mended eurozone policy-makers adopt measures to boost demand, reinforce banks, and pursue structural reforms that applied to all 18-member countries, including ways to fight youth unemployment.

The IMF praised monetary measures decided in June by the European Central Bank, which included negative interest rates and fresh financing for lenders, and said proof of their effectiveness could take time.

If the measures fall short however, the IMF urged even more stimulus, including so called quantitative easing embraced by the United States, Britain and Japan, but so far resisted by the more conservative ECB. l

Portugal hopes new boss at BES marks fresh start for troubled bank n Reuters, Lisbon Portugal's troubled Espirito Santo clan was forced to sell a chunk of the bank it founded and accept independent managers on Monday after the lender's links to the family unsettled international markets.

An audit of the family-owned holding companies behind Banco Espirito Santo found financial irregularities that raised the prospect of potentially destabilising losses at the country's largest listed bank.

The news last week sent Portugal's debt and stock markets into turmoil that spread to Europe as well as other firms in the Espirito Santo family's sphere.

Portugal Telecom, waiting to be reimbursed on over $1bn in debt issued by one of the family holding companies, was hard hit.

Pressured by Portugal's central bank, BES announced on Monday that its board had put in place new executives - including economist Vitor Bento as chief executive - hastening changes not due to happen until the end of the month in order to distance itself from the family group.

Bento is joined by new chief financial officer Joao Moreira Rato, who headed Portugal's IGCP debt agency, and new deputy CEO Jose Honorio. l

Microsoft Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner holds up a HP Stream 2-in-1 tablet and notebook computer device that will be released this fall for $199 during the keynote address at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference 2014 at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC on Monday AFP