22 oct, 2014

Kartik 7, 1421 Zilhajjj 26, 1435 Regd No DA 6238 Vol 2, No 198

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B1 | BUSINESS

7 | LONG FORM

14 | SPORT

B1 | BUSINESS

WORD ON THE STREET: THE DOLL STORY

LET’S GET OUR HEADS TOGETHER

MADRID’S TRIP TO ANFIELD TOPS BILL

EU RETAILERS URGED NOT TO PULL OUT OF BANGLADESH APPAREL SECTOR

Anaemic private investment stunting growth

ST R E E T L AW I N AC T I O N

World Bank: Consumer confidence growing but business confidence yet to pick up deterring private investment, slowing n Kayes Sohel down economic growth, Zahid said.

Bangladesh’s economy is plodding along well beneath its potential, says the World Bank, as infrastructure bottlenecks and political uncertainty keep it from performing at full capacity.

But data published in the World Bank’s (WB) Bangladesh Development Update Report, released yesterday at its Dhaka office, suggests that the country has a robust domestic demand and its people have significant purchasing power.

The WB report said the economy recorded domestic retail sales, to the tune of $12bn, during the last two Eid

Infrastructure investment increased from less than 1% of GDP in FY09 to about 2% in FY13, still lower than the 7-10% needed annually festivals, indicating both consumer confidence and significant purchasing power.

“The economy is progressing, but below its potential,” World Bank South Asia Finance and Poverty group lead economist Zahid Hussain told the Dhaka Tribune.

Short-term profit taking investment was taking place but long- and midterm investment required for sustainable economic growth still lagged behind target, he said.

The Bangladesh economy has failed to find its pace because uncertainty persists, he added.

This is stunting competitiveness and

India warns Pakistan of more pain in Kashmir fighting

n Reuters, New Delhi

India warned Pakistan yesterday of more “pain” if it continued to violate a ceasefire on their disputed border in Kashmir and said it was up to Islamabad to create the conditions for a resumption of peace talks.

The two sides exchanged mortars and intense gunfire this month, killing at least 20 civilians and wounding dozens in the worst violation to date of a 2003 ceasefire. While the firing has abated, tension remains high along a 200km stretch of the border dividing the nuclear-armed rivals.

“Our conventional strength is far more than theirs. So if they persist with this, they’ll feel the pain of this adventurism,” Indian Defence Minister Arun Jaitley told NDTV in an interview.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government came to power in May promising a tough response to violence in the Himalayan territory. It accuses Pakistan of helping Islamist militants cross into its side to keep alive a 25-year armed revolt in India’s only Muslim-majority state.

Military officers on both sides say Indian border commanders adopted a more aggressive stance in the clashes

The festival retail figure was derived from retail shop owners’ estimates of Tk55,000 crore in sales during Eid-ulFitr and about Tk1 crore in sales of sacrificial animals during Eid-ul-Azha reported by news media, according to Zahid.

“This indicates that consumer confidence has increased,” he said. MasterCard Worldwide Index of Consumer Confidence increased from 40.4% in the second half of 2013 to 66.4% in the first half of 2014.

Business and institutional investment in the private sector did not match consumer confidence. He said quality growth was not possible without increases in private investment.

“But business confidence is yet to return as reflected in sluggish private sector credit growth,” the WB economist said.

According to Bangladesh Bank, private sector credit growth inched up a tenth of a percentage point to 11.4% in August compared with 11.3% in July this year.

The multilateral development bank revised its Bangladesh economic growth projection marginally upwards to 6.2% from its April forecast of 5.9%.

Political stability since early January, signs of an uptick in remittance inflows, continued strength in exports as well as buoyant domestic consumption bode well for GDP (gross domestic product) growth in the current fiscal year, the WB report said.

The WB projection fell far beneath the government’s growth target of 7.3% and slightly lower than the Asian Development Bank’s 6.4% forecast for fiscal year (FY) 2014-15.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Traffic police beat up a CNG-run autorickshaw driver for trying to get away after defying a traffic signal yesterday at the Saarc Fountain intersection in the capital’s Karwan Bazar area.

Witnesses said the driver tried to slip away despite several signals to stop by the traffic police, but one traffic police member blocked his way, got him out of his vehicle and started beating him MEHEDI HASAN

Expelled Awami League leaders top the list of illegal arms buyers n Mohammad Jamil Khan A large number of buyers of illegal arms in the capital are allegedly “expelled” ruling party leaders, the Detective Branch of police have learned from a sales list that was recently seized.

Based on information from arrested arms dealers and by analysing the register that listed the last couple of month’s sales, it was also found that illegal gun traders operated in 15 groups across Dhaka.

DB sources said the sales list was acquired following the arrest of three illegal arms traders from the capital’s Kalyanpur on Sunday. The arrestees –

Abbas fails to budge irate JCD leaders n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla The ongoing crisis created over the formation of a Chhatra Dal new committee is yet to be resolved as deprived leaders stick to their guns on two-point demands.

The demands include cancellation of the new committee and expulsion of Sahiduddin Chowdhury Annie and Sultan Salahuddin Tuku.

The deprived and aggrieved leaders also demanded that the new committee’s activities be postponed until the crisis was resolved.

But party’s Standing Committee Member Mirza Abbas claimed that the problem would be resolved soon.

“The students staging demonstra-

tions are neither rebel nor deprived.

Rather there are some differences of opinion between the student leaders. It is very much possible to resolve.”

Meanwhile, the police detained at least 22 Chhatra Dal leaders and activists in front of the party’s central office yesterday morning.

The party’s acting secretary general, however, alleged that the agents of the government launched attack on the party’s Nayapaltan headquarters and vandalised the office.

Mirza Abbas held a meeting with the deprived and aggrieved Chhatra Dal leaders at her residence around 3.30pm where Jubo Dal President Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal was also present.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

INSIDE

 PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

11 | Op-Ed

12 | Entertainment

5 | News

13 | Sport

It was in the late 90s when I first laid my hands on Salman Rushdie’s infamous book, The Satanic Verses, in London. It gave me shivers in my warm room as I started going through the pages. I could not continue.

DU admission seekers, who staged demonstration on the campus, have submitted a memorandum to the VC seeking the restoration of the system that allowed them to appear twice in the admission test.

Moushumi Hamid, who rose to prominence as a model and later as a smallscreen actor, is having a busy time moving from one set to another and acting in feature films. Currently, she is busy with ‘Purno Doirgho Prem Kahani 2’.

Half-centuries from Shamsur Rahman and Shuvagata Hom guided the BCB XI to a lead of 11 runs by the close of the second day’s play in the lone three-day warm-up game against Zimbabwe.

Moniruzzaman alias Shimul, Md Kamal Hossain and Ruhul Amin – are now on a three-day remand, while the DB police was investigating into the case.

The sales list showed that the biggest clientèle of the illegal arms dealers included muggers, goons and hit-men.

Seeking anonymity, a senior DB official, who was involved in the investigation process, said the sales list showed that a major percentage of illegal arms was procured by ruling party men. A huge quantity of those illegal arms was smuggled through the borders, the official added.

Asked about the number of illegal arms currently in circulation, DMP’s

Deputy Commissioner Masudur Rahman said they did not yet have any exact figure, but added that raids against illegal arms traders were under way.

A number of illegal arms traders have already been arrested, while the police have also achieved success in recovering illegal weapons and ammunition, Masudur claimed.

During interrogation, the arrested arms dealers said they usually brought their shipment of products into the city based on the demand from the clientèle, said a DB official who was present during the questioning. Most of the buyers wanted to purchase small and  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

Madrasa student murdered while fending off rapist n Manik Miazee An 11-year-old boy studying at a South Keraniganj madrasa had his throat slit with a kitchen cleaver early Monday after resisting a rape attempt by a school staff member, his killer admitted to police yesterday.

The self-confessed killer, Shah Alam, a 35-year-old cook at Tahfizul Quran Nurani Hafezi Madrasa, admitted to rape the same boy a month ago.

“I don’t know what came over me. I killed the boy with a boti in the madrasa kitchen,” Shah Alam, whose wife is nine months pregnant, said yesterday at the media and community centre  PAGE 2 COLUMN 2

2 Police launch probe on CNG driver shooting incident n

Mohammad Jamil Khan

Police yesterday formed a probe body to investigate the shooting incident of a CNG-run autorickshaw driver allegedly by a sub-inspector of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station, centring an extramarital affair.

“We have heard about the incident, but we are yet to know of what actually happened there. To unearth the mystery, a three-member probe body, led

by Tejgaon Division ADC Wahahidur Rahman, had been formed to investigate the case, Biplab Kumar Sarkar, deputy commissioner (Tejgaon division) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, told the Dhaka Tribune.

The two other members of the body are DMP Assistant Commissioner (Tejgaon division) Rakibul Islam and Sher-e-Banglanagar police station Officer-in-Charge Abdul Momen.

“If the committee finds any irregularities in the incident, measures will be taken to ensure maximum punishment against the respective officials,” he added.

Md Shah Alam, a CNG autorickshaw driver, was shot in both legs by Sub-Inspector Anowar of the police station allegedly due to an enmity between them over Anowar’s extramarital affair with Alam’s wife.

The driver is now receiving treatment at the capital’s National Institute of Traumatology & Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (NITOR).

Police, however, claimed that Shah Alam was a notorious mugger who was accused in at least 10 criminal cases with different police stations in the capital.

Meanwhile, the victim’s elder brother Golam Mostofa, quoting Shah Alam, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday: “One Siraz, who is our neighbour, took Alam to Mohammadpur Krishi market area and handed him over to SI Anowar on Sunday night. Later, SI Anowar hand-cuffed and blindfolded Alam and picked him up on a pick-up van and took off for an unknown destination.”

“After 15 minutes, the van paused and Alam was taken off the van and pushed to the ground. The police official shot him with a shotgun in his right leg and by a handgun in his left leg. After one and half hour, the police official took him to NITOR,” Mostafa claimed. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Speaker: World has confidence in govt n Kamran Reza Chowdhury Jatiya Sangsad Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury yesterday said her win in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association election and triumph of Awami League MP Saber Hossain Chowdhury as President of Inter-Parliamentary Union had proved that the world community had confidence in the government.

“They [international community] have also accepted the January 5 polls which the opposition termed ‘illegal’ and some western countries have snubbed,” she said while briefing reporters at the airport’s VIP terminal.

Shirin Sharmin rejected the notion that the January 5 polls stained the country’s relations with the western governments, saying that Bangladesh’s leadership in the CPA and IPU would improve the country’s image.

But the British government in its Human Rights and Democracy Report 2013 released on October 16 said British Prime Minister David Cameron at July 22 meeting with Sheikh Hasina expressed ‘disappointment’ over the Bangladesh polls.

“I do not think that our relations (with the western countries) has stained. If so, we would not have won the two biggest international parliamentary forums,” Shirin Sharmin told reporters replying to a Dhaka Tribune

question.

Bangladesh had got international leadership of parliamentary democracy, she added.

The speaker yesterday reached Dhaka airport from Delhi where she attended seminars on India-Bangladesh relations in future. She went to Geneva from Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon where she was elected chairperson of the executive committee of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) on October 9.

A team of 10 MPs, headed by chief campaigner Imran Ahmed, canvassed for Bangladesh candidate in the IPU assembly that elected Saber Chowdhury as the next president of the global parliamentary body, founded in 1889, on October 16.

Saber who returned home yesterday joined Shirin Sharmin to brief reporters on Bangladesh’s victory in the global forums of parliament.

He said Bangladesh had a limited number of diplomatic missions.

Saber said his election as IPU president would enable Bangladesh to grasp the opportunity to set linkages with 192 countries in the world including 166 IPU members and 19 CPA members.

The foreign office could utilise Bangladesh leadership for promoting Bangladesh’s interests globally including America where Dhaka maintained very poor ties, he added. l

The air is heavy with grief and loss in Shidhuli village of Natore yesterday as the community lost 14 of 0their own in the tragic road accident on the Natore-Dhaka Highway on Monday afternoon. Six of the victims were from the same family AZAHAR UDDIN

Ecnec approves 7 projects n UNB

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) yesterday approved a Tk782.63 crore project for acquiring some 1,000 acres of land for setting up 1320MW ultra-super critical coal-based power plant in Dhankhali union under Kalapara upazila of Patuakhali district.

The approval came from an Ecnec

Madrasa student murdered  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP).

Shah Alam said he had tried to get hold of Abu Rayhan around 1am when the child was on his way to the toilet.

He attempted to rape Abu Rayhan, but the boy resisted and threatened to tell the authorities about what had happened.

Shah Alam then dragged Abu Rayhan into the kitchen and slit his throat with a razor-sharp cleaver.

Police recovered the body from the floor of the madrasa kitchen on Monday.

Dhaka Police Superintendent Habibur Rahman said at a press briefing at the media and community centre of DMP: “We detained Shah Alam and 10 other madrasa staff members on

Monday morning. After the primary investigation, we found evidence of Shah Alam’s involvement in the killing.

After his admission of guilt, we recovered the murder weapon, a boti, and blood-stained clothes from the madrasa kitchen.”

Abu Rayhan’s brother is also a student at the madrasa. He could not be tracked down for a statement.

The victim’s father, Md Murad Hossain, filed a case against the madrasa administration, Officer-in-Charge (OC) Jamaluddin Mir of South Keraniganj police station said.

The victim’s body was handed over to his family after an autopsy was conducted at Sir Salimullah Medical College and Mitford Hospital, the OC said.

The general recording officer of the

Chief Judicial Magistrate Court said the court had not yet received the case.

The principal of Tahfizul Quran Nurani Hafezi Madrasa, Abu Bakr, who arrived in the capital last night after performing Hajj, was unavailable for a comment about the rape-murder at his school.

The chairperson of the Bangladesh Shishu Odhikar Forum, a child-rights NGO, Md Emranul Haq Chowdhury, told the Dhaka Tribune that physical and emotional abuse were known to take place at boarding schools and madrasas.

He said at these types of madrasas, only teaching and administrative staff are allowed on the premises and it is usually these people, the children’s caregivers and mentors, who turn out to be the abusers. l

Anaemic private investment stunting growth  PAGE 1 COLUMN 2

“Employment generation is compensated by manpower exports abroad,” said Zahid.

“Bangladesh needs an investment boom to exceed 7% growth this year,” he said, adding: “This means investment growth must be raised to 34-35% from the current level of 28.7%. This cannot happen without a major rise in private investment.”

The report was surprised by service sector growth figures during the last fiscal year despite the political turmoil.

“The biggest surprise is the estimated growth rate for the services sector, which increased to 5.8% in FY14 from 5.5% in FY13,” the report said.

The report went on to say: “Political turmoil affects the services sector most badly, yet Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics estimates show a significant improvement in the performance of the sectors presumably more adversely affected by political unrest— land transport, wholesale and retail trade, hotels, restaurants, real estate, renting, and business activities.”

The World Bank warned that growth recovery could not be sustained

without correcting the infrastructure deficit.

“Bangladesh should focus on improving infrastructure, particularly energy and transportation, to bolster its growth,” said Johannes Zutt, WB country director in Bangladesh.

The report said infrastructure investment increased from less than 1% of GDP in FY09 to about 2% in FY13, still considerably lower than the 7-10% the WB says is needed annually for the next ten years.

The report lauded Bangladesh’s progress in improving its competitiveness ratings, most visibly in the electricity supply.

Bangladesh needs to pay stronger attention to the efficient implementation of infrastructure investments along with necessary institutional changes relating to policy making and regulation, the report suggested.

The report said priority should be placed on completing ongoing road development projects including the Dhaka-Chittagong and DhakaMymensingh highways, the double tracking of the Dhaka-Chittagong railway, the Padma Bridge, the Dhaka

WB Assumptions (% growth) FY 14

FY 15

(BBS)

(Projection)

PRODUCTION Agriculture

3.3

2.0

Industry

8.4

9.5

Services

5.8

6.1

EXPENDITURE Consumption

3.4

4.9

Investment

6.4

6.5

Export

6.3

6.0

Imports

-0.9

2.0

6.1

6.2

GDP

metro rail and the two Bibiyana gas field based power plants.

The report said immediate action should be taken to enact the Public Private Partnership (PPP) law, and award contracts to build Special Economic Zones (SEZs).

On inflationary trends, the WB said the widening gap between wholesale and retail rice and flour prices after January 2014 suggested that

middlemen in the food distribution network may have raised their margins to make up for losses during the disruptions.

Stability in global oil prices helped contain the cost-push to non-food inflation, it said.

On sluggish public expenditure, the WB report said improving the quality of ADP (Annual Development Programme) implementation is difficult when the number of projects keep increasing.

Expressing concern over the financial sector, the report said the banking sector faces risks due to the low capital base in state-owned commercial banks which account for a quarter of the assets of the banking system.

“Bangladesh Bank’s supervisory and regulatory capacity is still weak – compliance- based instead of risk-based – and this needs to be strengthened to improve the efficiency and stability of the banking sector.”

The WB report praised Bangladesh’s progress in the human development index, in poverty reduction and in macroeconomic management. l

Abbas fails to budge irate JCD leaders  PAGE 1 COLUMN 3

Deprived Chhatra Dal leaders, including Anisur Rahman Talukdar Khokon, Abu Sayeed, Javed Hasan, Tarun Dey, Sahidullah Emran, Tarikul Islam Titu, Nuruzzaman Mukit, Mashiur Rahman, Shamsuzzoha Sumon, Habibur Rahman Sumon, Rafiqul Islam Rafiq, Rakibul Islam Royal, Kazi Sohidul Islam and Asaduzzaman Mia, attended the meeting.

Meeting sources said they alleged that during the December 29 Dhaka march programme, new committee president Rajib and general secretary Akram were inactive and they took money from the student leaders to induct others into the new committee.

They reportedly said they did not want leadership rather wanted expulsion of Annie and Tuku and dissolution of the new committee.

Abbas reportedly asked them to stop their movement until Khaleda Zia returned from Nilphamari, saying that the deprived leaders would get posi-

tion in Jubo Dal and Chhatra Dal. “They are neither deprived nor rebel rather media is branding them so.

Some vested quarters are cashing in on it. There are some differences of opinion between Chhatra Dal leaders. They have came here to place their demands and I will convey their statements to “netri” [Khaleda Zia],” Abbas told journalists after holding the meeting with the deprived leaders.

He said, “Those who have come today believes that the problem should be settled. I also believe that the crisis is not out of solution.”

When asked about the time-frame of resolving the crisis, Abbas said, “It is not possible to mention any time line, but I believe it would be resolved soon.”

Deprived student leader Abu Sayed said, “We have talked to our leader about our demands. We told him that we will do everything possible to save Chhatra Dal and carry out netri’s directions.”

Earlier on Monday, Abbas held oneto-one meeting with new committee’s organising secretary Ishak Sarkar and then held meeting with party’s acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and other senior leaders.

Party’s Chairperson Khaleda Zia on October 14 approved the 201-member new committee, mentioning the names of 153. Protesting the move, a group of student leaders started staging demonstrations the following day.

On Wednesday, they exploded several handmade bombs in front of the BNP’s Nayapaltan office and brought out a procession, demanding cancellation of the new committee.

Around 10pm the same day, some other members of Chhatra Dal blasted several crude bombs in front of the Gulshan office of the party chairperson when she was inside the office. >b<Fakhrul claims government agents have hand in vandalism>b< On Sunday, the aggrieved and deprived student leaders attacked the

party office and vandalised it. They also blasted two handmade bombs and a case was filed in this connection.

The police yesterday detained 22 Chhatra Dal activists in front of the party office and its adjacent areas suspecting that they might organise any demonstration further.

“We have detained 22 men suspecting that they might stage demonstration there. Earlier, violence erupted there and that’s why we have detained them on security grounds,” Ashrafuzzaman, deputy commissioner of Motijheel police station, told the Dhaka Tribune.

Fakhrul said, “I have heard that the police took position with water cannons in front of the party office and arrested some of Chhatra Dal leaders. In last two days, the government’s agents vandalised the party office, leaving more than 30 injured. And at that time, there was no police and the place was free zone for the agents.” l

meeting held at the NEC conference room in city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar with its chairperson and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair. Of the seven projects approved, four are new while three others are revised projects.

Briefing reporters after the meeting, Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said seven development projects involving Tk2170.75 crore were approved.

“Of the total project costs, Tk1664.73

crore will come from government exchequer, Tk314.91 crore from the organisation’s own funds while Tk191.11 crore as project assistance,” he added.

The planning minister said the North-West Power Generation Company Ltd (NWPGC) will implement the Tk782.63 crore project, titled “Land Acquisition, Land Development and Protection for Paira 1320MW Thermal Power Plant,” by December 2015. l

Protesters demand law minister’s resignation n Tribune Report Four organisations yesterday protested the remarks of Law Minister Anisul Haq on Brac University professor Piash Karim.

They also burned his effigy in front of the National Press Club for his positive remarks on Piash. Piash Karim died of a heart attack on October 13.

The four organisations – National Democratic League, Kazi Aref Foundation, Bangladesh Online Activists Forum and Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Party – staged the demonstration in front of capital’s National Press Club yesterday. The protesters called the law minister a new “rajakar” (war criminal) and asked him to seek apology.

They warned that they would go for vigorous movement if he does not seek apology.

On October 19 Law minister Anisul Haq said the allegation brought against Piash Karim’s father MA Karim that he

was a collaborator during the 1971 Liberation War was “absolutely false”.

Terming his involvement in the killing of Dhirendranath Datta “mere propaganda” the minister on that day also ruled out the accusation that Piash’s family members upheld anti-liberation values.

Earlier he told the Dhaka Tribune that “Just two months before the victory, the Pakistani Army picked up Piash Karim from in front of their Comilla house and kept him in the Circuit House.

Later, his father MA Karim was forced to join the peace committee when he went to the Circuit House for his son’s release.

“But after leaving that place, he never served as the peace committee member, rather continued distributing ID cards among the freedom fighters.”

President of Kaji Aref Foundation said: “The minister should withdraw his comments and also seek apology for his comments.” l

Expelled Awami League leaders top the list of Illegal arms buyers  PAGE 1 COLUMN 5

light weapons as it was easier to conceal them, the official quoted the arrestees as saying.

While searching the identities of the buyers mentioned in the arms sales list, the police found that a large number of the suspects claimed to be expelled leaders of the ruling party and its wings including the Chhatra League and the Jubo League, the official said. The DB police were now verifying the history of those suspects and would carry out an operation soon to arrest them, he added.

Monirul Islam, joint commissioner of DB police, admitted that some of the suspected illegal arms buyers have claimed themselves to be political leaders; however their identities could not be verified immediately. Once the verification is complete, prompt action would be taken against those individuals, the DB chief added.

He, however, refused to disclose the

identities of these “political leaders” as investigation was ongoing.

Contacted, DB Additional Deputy Commissioner Sanowar Hossain said at least 15 groups were involved in illegal gun trading, selling small weapons for Tk50,000-Tk60,000 and each bullet for Tk500-Tk600.

DB sources said the arrested arms dealers told the police that the carriers who brought the weapons into the capital from the border charged around Tk5,000-Tk10,000 for each gun. The cost of a 9mm pistol is around Tk12,000 in India; but once it crosses the border it becomes around Tk35,000, while it is sold by the capital’s illegal arms traders for around Tk60,000.

According to investigators, 59 border points are used to smuggle in weapons; among which Chapainawabganj district’s Monakosha, Masudpur, Monohorpur, Kironganj, Shingnagar points in Shibganj upazila are used as major routes for bringing in illegal arms.

India warns Pakistan of more pain in Kashmir fighting  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

this month, firing 1,000 mortars on one day this month.

It was not clear what triggered the fighting.

Pakistani army officials said the trouble began with India’s decision to beef up border defences, in violation of the ceasefire pact.

Indian army commanders, for their part, were incensed by the killing of a soldier on their side of the Line of Control in Kashmir in a remote-controlled explosion that they blamed on militants backed by Pakistani army regulars.

“When Pakistan used to fire, we always had a shield in our hand. This time we also had a sword,” said Jaitley, a close associate of Modi who is also fi-

nance minister.

Modi invited his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, to his inauguration as part of a push to rebuild trust with neighbors. But while relations with the smaller neighbors are improving, Pakistan has remained a stumbling block.

In August, the Modi government abruptly called off talks between the two countries’ top diplomats, objecting to Pakistan’s ambassador to New Delhi holding talks with Kashmiri separatists ahead of the meeting.

Jaitley said it was up to Pakistan to create the conditions for dialogue.

“Of course, we can talk to Pakistan, but it is up to Pakistan to create an atmosphere for talks. Pakistan has to stop triggers which upset the environment in which talks are held,” he said. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

3

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

PDB moves to shred paper tiger power plants n Aminur Rahman Rasel Four independent power producers (IPPs) may soon lose their contracts with the government because they have not mobilised the funds needed to set up the plants, which were to generate 368MW electricity, energy officials said.

“We have already sought the permission of the Power Division to cancel the deals for four power plants because the project owners have failed to meet the financial closing date,” a director of the state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

The failure to make a financial closing essentially means that the project owners have not raised the funds required to build the plants, much less own and operate them – as they were expected to under the Build, Own, Operate (BOO) scheme.

A 108MW power plant planned for Gabtoli, Dhaka was to be built by Dhaka North Utility Company Limited.

A 108MW power plant was planned for Basila, Keraniganj and was to be built

by Dhaka West Power Plant Limited.

According to their website, Dhaka North Utility Company Limited and Dhaka West Power Plant Limited are both sister concerns of Maisha Group.

A smaller unit – 52.20MW – was slated for Bhairab, Kishoreganj, to be built by a consortium of Aitken Spence Plc & Alliance Holdings Limited.

A 100MW wind-based power plant at Anwara, Chittagong was to be built by a consortium of PIA Group LLC and Bangladesh Alternative Energy System Ltd (BAES).

“After the approval of the Power Division, the IPP Cell under the PDB will serve final notices to the IPPs to cancel their contracts,” he said.

A PDB official said that PIA-BAES, owners of the wind energy power plant, deferred several deadlines to fulfil the conditions set out in the letter of intent (LOI) issued by the PDB on December 12, 2013.

The PDB recently sent a letter to the

Power Division secretary seeking permission to cancel the LOI for the consortium to construct a 100MW power plant at Anwara in Chittagong.

The PIA-BAES consortium was scheduled to accept the LOI in 15 days after the issuance and deposit of a $1 million bank guarantee.

On November 14, 2013 the cabinet committee on government purchase approved a PDB proposal to allow PIABAES to set up the power plant and sell electricity to the PDB for 20 years on a no-electricity-no-payment basis, according to the letter.

The failure to make a financial closing essentially means that the project owners have not raised the funds required to build the plants, much less own and operate them – as they were expected The 50MW power plant at Bhairab in Kishoreganj, a furnace oil-fired power plant, was slated to be set up by the private sector, with the PDB purchasing electricity from the plant under a 15-year contract.

The other two power plant projects, at Basila and at Gabtoli in the capital, with a planned 108MW capacity each, were to sell power to PDB under 15-year contracts.

According to the contracts, the Dhaka North Power Company Limited and Dhaka West Power Plant Limited plants were scheduled to start commercial operations on October 10, 2012.

But the plants are far from producing power because they do not exist.

The troubled IPP owners have not yet made their financial closings, leaving the future of the proposed power generation in uncertainty and prompting the PDB to cancel the move. l

People gather around a crime scene as a dead body lies on the street in Gulistan in the capital yesterday morning. The man died on the spot after getting hit by a bus while crossing the street DHAKA TRIBUNE

Death toll from Natore road crash climbs to 33 n Our Correspondent, Natore

The death toll from a fatal road accident at Razapur in Baraigram upazila rose to 33 as another person died from his injuries at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital on Monday night.

Hospital sources said Rezaul, 28, son of Niamat Shah, of Pukhimari village in Gurudaspur upazila, died around 10:30pm.

A pall of gloom descended over four villages in Baraigram and Gurudaspur upazilas following the deaths of 33 people in the road accident that took place on Monday afternoon.

They were buried in different graveyards after the namaz-e-janaza was held between 10am and 12:30pm yesterday.

Local MP Abdul Quddus, Offi-

cer-in-Charge of Baraigram police station Monirul Islam, Dharabarisha Union Council Chairman Abdul Matin and leaders and activists of different political parties, among others, took part in the janaza.

Earlier, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader reached the spot from Dhaka around 12:30am on Monday night. He visited the spot and Shidhuli village.

The minister asked the probe committee to submit its report within next three days. He also announced that each of the deceased families would get Tk1 lakh from the Prime Minister’s Office as compensation.

Among others, Abdul Quddus, MP, Abul Kalam Azad, MP, Deputy Commissioner Mashiur Rahman, Superintendent of Police Basudev Banik, Ra-

HRW: Prosecute the RAB member who shot Limon n Tribune Report With a view to ending the culture of impunity of RAB members, the Human Rights Watch has called on the Bangladeshi government to launch an independent investigation into the 2011 shooting on Limon Hossain.

The New York-based rights body also reiterated its demand to disband the elite force, Rapid Action Battalion, which is blamed for “hundreds of extrajudicial killings and other serious human rights violations.”

In a statement yesterday, the HRW mentioned that then RAB chief and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina after the incident said Limon had been an accidental victim of a shootout between

Arrest warrant issued against Khoka, 8 others n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court yesterday issued arrest warrants against former Dhaka city mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka and eight others in a case filed against them for hurling crude bombs at the Election Commission office in October last year with Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station.

Dhaka Metropolitan Session’s Judge Md Jahrul Haque passed the ordered after taking the charges into cognizance and ordered Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station to submit the arrest warrant execution report by February 11, 2015.

The accused eight persons are BNP activist Tariqul Islam Jhantu, Md Shajalal, Hazrat Ali, Harun-or-Rashid, Rakib Hawlader, Md Altab Hossain, Abdul Kayes and Abdul Alim.

The accused were not present before the court during the order.

On April 7, Sub-Inspector Moshiur Rahman, the investigation officer of the case, pressed charges against 23 persons and appealed to the court to issue arrest warrants against Khoka and eight others as they were shown fugitives in the charge sheet.

Juba Dal President Moazzem Hossain Alal and its General Secretary Saiful Alam Milon and 12 other leaders of the party were present before the court. l

RAB and criminal gangs, and that the teenager had no involvement in criminal activities.

Hasina also ordered an investigation into the RAB officers involved in the incident. However, the government “withdrew the statement was withdrawn within four hours, without any clarification.”

Later, the police took no action against his attackers and instead filed two cases stating several criminal charges against Limon “in an attempt to shelter RAB from accountability.”

Following a Home Ministry order of July 9 last year, a Jhalakathi court withdrew charges against Limon in one case the same month, and in the other case last week.

On March 23, 2011, Limon was shot in the leg at “point-blank range” allegedly by the elite force personnel near his house in Jhalakathi. Four days later, Limon’s leg was amputated to save his life. For medical reasons he was not able to return home for more than six months.

“It is good that Bangladeshi authorities have finally dropped the spurious charges against Limon, but he never should have been charged in the first place,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at the HRW. The HRW also condemned the police report submitted in the case filed

by Limon’s mother that said no evidence of RAB’s involvement had been found in Limon’s shooting.

Witness accuses Jabbar of converting Hindus n Udisa Islam Another victim of forced conversion from Mothbaria of Pirojpur testified against war crimes accused engineer Abdul Jabbar at the International Crimes Tribunal 1 yesterday.

During his deposition as the 14th prosecution witness, Mohendra Adhikari, 84, said his name had later been changed to Mahbub Khan.

“About 30-40 razakars led by Jabbar and the Pakistani occupation forces attacked our village on May 17 of 1971.

About 8-10 days later, razakars and Peace Committee members told us that Jabbar instructed them to convert the Hindus into Islam to save life,” he said.

Around 200 Hindus of Paik Para of Phuljhuri village were forced to take

Islam as their religion. After two-three days, several Hindus were forced to eat beef.

After his short deposition, state-appointed defence counsel Mohammad Abul Hasan cross examined him.

Earlier in the day, Hasan cross examined Jonoprasad Paik, 62, a freedom fighter from the same village, who testified on Monday on the same charge.

So far, four victims of forced conversion testified before the tribunal against Jabbar, a former Jatiya Party lawmaker.

The proceeding of the case was adjourned until today.

Now fugitive Jabbar, the alleged chairman of Mathbaria unit Peace Committee during the Liberation War, was indicted on August 14. l

Mannan’s wife faces graft case n Tribune Report The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday filed a case against Syeda Hasina Sultana, wife of former state minister for housing and public works Abdul Mannan Khan, on charge of accumulation of illegal wealth of over Tk5 crore.

During inquiry, the commission’s official has found that the accused accumulated huge illegal wealth and

concealed its information in the wealth statement filed before the ACC, Public Relations Officer Pranab Kumer Bhattacharya told reporters.

ACC Deputy Director, also the probe official, M Nasir Uddin filed the case with Ramna police.

According to the FIR, Sultana accumulated illegal wealth worth around Tk3.46 crore and concealed information about more than Tk1.86 crore. l

It urged the authorities to break the cycle of impunity by successfully prosecuting those RAB officers responsible for the seven murders in Narayanganj.

Since its establishment in 2004, successive governments have “allowed the force to operate with impunity, leading to serious and systematic abuses,” the HRW says.

In opposition, the Awami League had called for the disbandment of RAB and for the prosecution of those responsible for “crossfire” and other killings. “But it has failed to take serious action despite hundreds of killings since it came to power.”

Urging the government to dissolve RAB, Adams said: “RAB is a death squad that cannot be reformed.” l

jshahi Divisional Inspector General of Police Iqbal Bahar, Bogra Regional Superintendent of Highway Police Israfil Hawlader and Sadar Upazila Chairman Shariful Islam Ramzan were present.

Six siblings died

Six siblings were killed in the accident.

They hailed from Shidhuli village under Dharabarisha union in Gurudaspur upazila.

The deceased were identified as Kohir, Shohrab, Rabbel, Atahar, Shahidul alias Sohir and Rayhan.

Another sad news was that Abdur Rahman and his wife Arifa Khatun died in the accident while returning home after getting treatment in Natore. They left behind two sons named Al-Amin, 12, and Foysal, 7, and only daughter Farzina, 3.

Besides, Abdul Gafur, 65, of village Jonail in Baraigram upazila died of a heart attack around 9:30pm on Monday after he heard the news about the death of his friend Abdul Quddus, 66, in the accident.

Of the total, 19 people hailed from Gurudaspur upazila while 12 from Baraigram upazila. Besides, a man came from Baraigachhi in Fulgazi upazila of Feni, and another from Talipara in Kushtia district.

Civil Surgeon Ferdous Nilufar said all the bodies were handed over to their relatives.

Deputy Commissioner Mashiur Rahman said the probe committee already started their investigation.

Legal action would be taken against the accused after getting the report, he added. l

Court moves to fast-track trial of Humayun Azad murder n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court has taken an initiative to speed up the trial proceedings in the long-pending Dhaka University teacher Humayun Azad murder case filed against members of banned islamist militant outfit Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).

As a part of the initiative, Judge Ruhul Amin of the Fourth Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court asked the prosecution to complete the depositions within November 11.

The court also fixed seven dates for recording the rest of the prosecution depositions from October 19 until No-

vember 11. Among the dates, today is the first to be taken depositions in the case.

Additional Public Prosecutor Saiful Islam Helal confirmed this and said “We hope the trial would be completed

by December.” According to the case, Humayun Azad, a teacher of DU Bangla department, was attacked and stabbed on February 27, 2004, while returning home from Ekushey Boi Mela in the city.

He died of cardiac arrest during a visit to Munich, Germany on August 12, 2004 and his attempt to murder case was then received as a murder case.

CID Inspector Lutfor Rahman submitted murder charges against five JMB leaders in the case on April 30, 2012. l

Complaint against Khaleda for terming AL atheists’ party n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A complaint was filed yesterday against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia for making “false and provocative” remarks on religious issues involving the ruling Awami League.

AB Siddique, president of Bangladesh Jananetri Parishad, a pro-Awami league organisation, filed the case with the Dhaka’s Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court under sections 153 (A) and 295 (A) of the Penal Code.

Highest punishment under each of the sections is two years’ imprisonment and fines.

After recording the case statement, Judge Md Mustafizur Rahman directed Shahbagh police to investigate the case and submit a report before it by November 19 after obtaining necessary permission from the government.

The complaint states that Khaleda made “false, derogatory and instigative” comments while addressing a function on October 14.

“Khaleda’s remarks, in which she said secularism is Awami League’s mask and it is a party of atheists, have hurt the religious sentiment of the people of the country,” the complainant said.

While briefing reporters, AB Sid-

dique was chased by enraged pro-BNP lawyers in front of the CMM court for filing the case.

Lawyer Mithun Majumdar, an eyewitness, said some pro-BNP lawyers led

by Abdul Khalek Milon brought out a procession protesting filing of the case against Khaleda Zia. “At one stage of the procession, they chased and attempted to assault AB Siddique while he was briefing reporters around 3:30pm.”

Sub-Inspector Amitab Chandra of Kotwali police station said: “Some lawyers attempted to assault AB Siddique but they failed as police were present on the spot.” l

Latif faces another arrest warrant n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

A Dhaka court yesterday ordered sacked Awami League minister Abdul Latif Siddique to appear before it on January 18 in a case filed for hurting the religious sentiments of the Muslims.

Metropolitan Magistrate SM Ashiqur Rahman passed the order after Nazim Uddin, the complainant, sought the warrant of arrest. The accused did not appear before the court yesterday as per a previous order.

The case was filed on October 1 with the same court, which summoned Latif Siddique.

The former Awami League Presidium member on September 28 made some remarks on Hajj and Tabligh while addressing a programme in New York. Now believed to in India’s Kolkata, Latif Siddique is facing more than 30 cases with different courts for the comments. He is facing arrest warrant also in a case filed by Dhaka Bar Association lawyer Md Shah Alam on October

2 on the same issue.

Meanwhile, another case was filed yesterday against the Tangail 4 lawmaker with a Comilla court for making derogatory comments.

Lawyer Md Mizanur Rahman of Shalchar under Chandina of the district lodged the case with Senior Judicial Magistrate’s Court of Mithila Islam. The judge took the case into cognisance and ordered Chandina police officer-in-charge to submit a report after investigating the case before January 25. l

4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Internal process to endorse Saarc motor vehicle and railway deals underway

The aggreement provides a framework for train movement Revenue and Commerce Ministry to fees and charges as well as other cusn Sheikh Shahariar Zaman get their views and submit the final toms.

The government has started an internal process to endorse the Saarc regional motor vehicle and railway agreements likely to be signed in the Kathmandu summit in November.

“We had an inter-ministerial meeting on the issue last week where we agreed to start the internal process and sent a formal letter to the ministries concerned on Sunday,” said an official of the Foreign Ministry.

Earlier, the member states at the Saarc Intergovernmental Group meeting in New Delhi this month agreed with the texts of Saarc regional agreements on motor vehicles and railways to improve connectivity in the region.

Communications and railway ministries, the line ministries for the agreements, would now interact with all relevant stakeholders, including Home Ministry, National Board of

text to the Law Ministry for vetting.

Later, it would be submitted to the cabinet for approval to complete the internal process.

“It is expected that communications ministers of the Saarc countries will have a meeting before the Kathmandu summit,” the official said.

Bangladesh youth delegation meets Indian president n Tribune Report

Murder case suspect accused of threatening victim’s family

SC stays bail to Ekram murder suspect

n Our Correspondent, Gaibandha

n Tribune Report

A youth delegation from Bangladesh visited The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee, on October 18, Saturday at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

This was the third visit by a youth delegation from Bangladesh.

During the visit, the president said India’s relation with Bangladesh is among the highest priorities to him and India.

The president urged the members of the delegation working towards making India-Bangladesh friendship stronger, and assured India will always extend its hand of cooperation for the welfare and progress of the people of Bangladesh.

The visit is a coordination between The High Commission of India in Dhaka with the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports and Government of Bangladesh.

The exchange programme involves interaction with local youths, visits to tourist and cultural sites and introduction to economic and social activities.

The President wished the delegation members a very enjoyable and educative tour. l

The prime suspect of a murder case has been accused of threatening family members of the victim after getting bail recently in Gaibandha’s Gobindaganj upazila.

Hundreds of locals formed a human chain for an hour in the field of Sarder Haat Dwimukhi High School in the upazila yesterday in support of the victim’s family.

They said Lutfor Rahman, who had allegedly killed Anjali Rani on May 21 following land demarcation of Sarder Haat Dwimukhi High School, was released on bail recently. After getting out of jail he had been threatening to

‘Think positive, dream big’ n Afrose Jahan Chaity Shehzad Munim, managing director of British American Tobacco Bangladesh Ltd, yesterday called upon the students of University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) to think positive and dream big in order to achieve success in professional life.

He said this while sharing his experience of early professional life at a leadership talk titled “Think Big” organised

by Center for Enterprise and Society of ULAB at the university’s auditorium yesterday.

Shehzad said: “For thinking big, you need to cultivate courage, virtues and values within. Right attitude and values driven by self-motivation can help one dream big and make success happen.” l

Motor vehicle

In the motor vehicle agreement, it was proposed how private cars, commercially run buses, ambulances and commercial cargoes could move across the region.

The draft text also stipulated that drivers must have special driving licences, cars must have certain fitness level and there must be a regional insurance coverage for any accident.

Respective taxation offices of these countries would deal with only transit

“Experts in the region had a meeting in Rajasthan of India in September and submitted their final report for consideration. It was approved in the New Delhi meeting,” said an official of the Communications Ministry.

Railway agreement

The railway agreement would provide a framework under which the member states could facilitate train movement across the region.

“Bangladesh and India have railway agreement and trains can move through borders. Similarly, other countries can have such agreement to facilitate train movement,” said an official of the Foreign Ministry.

He added: “If Bangladesh, India and Nepal want to have train communication, they can make arrangements under the agreement.” l

kill Anjali’s family members.

Although Nityaranjan, husband of the victim and plaintiff of the case, had filed a general diary in this regard on

Miscreants led by Lutfur Rahman, his son Selim Miya and nephew Lenin Miya, tortured Nityaranjan Sarder following demarcation October 8, the family members were still passing days in fear, said speakers at the human chain.

According to the case statement,

on May 21, a team of miscreants led by Chairman of the school management committee Lutfur Rahman, his son Selim Miya and nephew Lenin Miya, tortured Nityaranjan Sarder and his family members following demarcation of the school’s area.

Nityaranjan owns the land adjacent to the school.

In the incident, 10 were injured while Anjali Rani died while being taken to hospital.

Gobindaganj Nagorik Committee Convener Abdul Matin Molla and Deputy Director of Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council Gobindaganj unit Dhirendra Nath Barman spoke at the human chain among others. l

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court yesterday stayed the bail of a key accused in Fulgazi Upazila Chairman Ekramul Haque murder case in Feni.

Chamber judge, Hasan Foez Siddique, stayed the bail of key accused Abdullahil Mahmud Shiblu for four weeks on an application filed by the government.

Assisted by Deputy Attorney General Ekramul Hoque, Attorney general Mahbubey Alam represented the government while lawyer Md Habibul Islam Bhuiyan moved for the accused person.

Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Deputy

Attorney General Ekram said: “On October 1, the High Court granted six-month bail to Abdullahil Mahmud Shiblu [who is now in jail] on his bail petition.

“Though it is for four weeks that the Supreme Court has stayed his bail, he cannot now be released from jail.”

Shiblu, a local Awami League leader, is among the 56 charge-sheeted accused in Ekram murder case. He has been behind bars since he was sent to jail after surrendering to Fulgazi police on May 24.

Fulgazi Upazila Chairman Ekram, also the upazila Awami League president, was shot and burnt alive by miscreants inside his car in broad daylight in Feni town on May 20. l

Abducted boy rescued Media urged to play active role in in Chittagong; two held agriculture sector’s development n CU Correspondent Chittagong metropolitan police (CMP) detective branch (DB) and members of Khulshi police station rescued an abducted boy from the district’s Fatickchari upazila on Monday night.

The boy, Md Rabbi, 8, son of Jahangir Alam, was abducted from East Nashirabad area in on October 18.

The DB men nabbed Nazma Aktar Ruma, 22, wife of Md Gazi Arif of Fatickchari, and Suiching Marma Sumon, 26, son of Ongmong Chai Marma of Khagrachari district in connection with the abduction of the boy.

CMP DB additional deputy commissioner (ADC) engineer Hasan Chowdhury said Ruma kidnapped Rabbi from Chittagong Polytechnic area on October 18 evening and demanded Tk130k

as ransom from Rabbi’s father giving him a BKash number.

According to the ADC, after receiving the complaint from victim’s father, a DB team and Khulshi police force arrested Suiching Sumon from Raozan upazila bus station and Ruma from Gohira area following on a tip-off.

Being in police custody, Sumon and Ruma confessed to the crime and informed police of the location where Rabbi was held captive.

Rabbi was immediately rescued from Maizbhandar Dorbar Sharif area.

A case was lodged with Khulshi police station in this connection.

The ADC said Ruma is member of a gang who abduct children for ransom from residential areas of Chittagong.

Police is trying to capture other members of the gang. l

n BAU Correspondent Speakers at a function yesterday urged the media people to play a vital role for the development of the country’s agriculture sector.

They also suggested highlighting hidden facts that pull back the development of the sector through in-depth reporting on agro-related emerging issues for the sake of the peasant farmers.

Speakers made this observation in the inaugural ceremony of a six-day training programme styled “Training on Development Journalism” in a conference hall of Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) yesterday.

Shibir man flees police custody Mahmud, n Tarek Chittagong

Commonwealth Pharmacists visits NSU n Tribune Report To improve pharmacy education, retail community pharmacies can be set up to provide handsome pay and establish the social recognition in Bangladesh, said Md Nasser Shahrear Zahedee, president of Bangladesh Pharmaceutical Society and vice-president of Pharmacy Council of Bangladesh during his visit to North South University recently.

“Pharmacists will happily join the pharmacy community,” he said.

Raymond Anderson, president of Commonwealth Pharmacists Association (CPA) suggested more pharmacy graduates should build their career in pharmacy to improve public health.

Roger Odd, secretary of CPA expressed his desire to work with NSU pharmacy faculty members to implement of pharmaceutical practices.

Dr Hasan Mahmud Reza, dean of School of Health and Life Sciences and chairman of the department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in NSU was present at the session. l

Activists of different social organisations burn effigies of Law Minister Barrister Anisul Haque in front of the National Press Club in the capital yesterday for making comments in favour of Piash Karim, the recently deceased academic who was known for his controversial remarks on talk shows DHAKA TRIBUNE

DIU wins Aero-Design Competition and Exhibition n Tribune Report Daffodil International University Robotic Club has stood first in the Rotary Wing of the first National Aero-Design Competition and Exhibition 2014 organised by the Aeronautical Engineering Department of Military Institute of

Science and Technology recently.

Twenty-eight teams from 17 public and private universities took part in the competition.

State Minister of Public Administration Begum Ismat Ara Sadique was present as the chief guest at the event. l

An Islami Chhatra Shibir activist fled from a police outpost by playing tricks on a constable at Satkania upazila in Chittagong yesterday.

Shibir activist Md Rubel, 20, was arrested from his home around 5am and then brought to Dhemsha police out-post, said Satkania Police OC Khaled Hossain.

Around five hours later, Rubel, who is accused in two cases filed with the local police, faked an injury on his wrist and pleaded on-duty constable Shahjahan to take off his cuffs. When the cuffs were taken off, he promptly escaped.

OC Khaled said constable Shahjahan had been closed to the district police lines on charges of showing negligence in doing his duty.

Asked about what other constables were doing when the Shibir activist fled, he said they were not on duty guard during that time. Only Shahjahan was then on duty.

He however said they were trying to re-arrest Rubel. l

Aiming to uplift efficiency and skills of the BAU correspondents who have been working different media, Graduate Training Institute (GTI) of the BAU organised the programme where the university’s Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Md Rafiqul Hoque was as the chief guest while Director General of Bangladesh Betar Kazi Akhter Uddin Ahmed and Director and Head of News of Channel I Shykh Seraj were the special guests.

GTI Director Prof Dr Masuma Habib chaired the event.

“You, the journalists, are the actual tools for disseminating advanced agricultural technology by your respective media house to ensure development of

the country’s ordinary people,” said the VC. He also urged upon the journalists bringing the agro-regarded facts to light.

“There are many issues in the rural areas which can change the fate of farmers if those are focused in the media,” said renowned media personality Shykh Seraj.

Media houses should give more emphasis on agro-based reporting and programmes for the sake of the agriculture sector, he continued.

A total of 21 journalists have been participating in the training.

Students Affairs Adviser Prof Dr ZH Khandaker and Proctorial body members were present among others. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

5

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

BNP leader among the grabbers of Baneshwar haat The local land authorities have already made a list of 408 grabbers

n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi A local BNP leader as well as some 400 influential people have allegedly grabbed a piece of land allotted for a Baneshwar haat in Puthia upazila.

Consequently, traders have long been forced to run business on the sides of the busy Dhaka-Rajshahi Highway, causing tailback for hours. Accidents are also taking place on the highway as drivers are desperate to cross the place as soon as they can.

The market was established 200 years ago. The government’s yearly earning from it about Tk1 crore.

Farmers from nearby areas come to the market to sell their produces The local land authorities have already made a list of 408 grabbers, including BNP leader Abu Sayed Chand, and have sought permission from the district administration to evict the grabbers from the market place.

Abu Sayed Chand, president of Charghat upazila unit of the BNP and the party’s central committee member, is also the chairman of the upazila. He along with the others erected shops, grabbing the 16-bigha haat several years ago and rented those.

Locals claim that the market was

established 200 years ago. The government’s yearly earning from it about Tk1 crore. Businessmen and farmers from nearby areas come to the market to sell their produces. Thus, the market has turned into an important source for the locals to meet their daily demands.

Visiting the place, this correspondent found that Nosimon and Korimon – locally assembled vehicles – that carried goods to the market were parked on both sides of the highway, worsening the tailback stretched about 1km.

As a result, the passengers of longroute buses were suffering most.

When contacted, however, BNP leader Chand denied the allegations, saying: “I have necessary documents in favour of the land and I will legally handle the matter.”

About foiling his move of establishing a high-rise building there by the last caretaker government, he said: “The state authorities forcefully demolished my under-construction building in the absence of my family members.”

Locals alleged that the other 407 grabbers were also backed by different political parties.

Acknowledging the grabbing of Baneshwar market land, Puthia Upazila Nirbahi Officer Khandakar Farhad Ahmed said: “The traders have been compelled to take position on the highway for their business owing to the occupation. As a result, pedestrians and passengers are falling victims to various sorts of accidents as well as tailback.”

They were just waiting for the green signal of the deputy commissioner to evict the grabbers from the land, the UNO added. l

A lack of obedience towards the traffic law and civic sense is clear as a group of pedestrians put their lives in risk by crossing the busy street of Farmgate on foot leaving the well-built footover bridge right beside. The photo was taken yesterday SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Chittagong Nursing College closed sine die n Tribune Report

A tense situation is prevailing on the campus of Chittagong Nursing College as authorities of the institution closed it yesterday following demonstration of students over a results debacle.

The students were asked to leave dormitory by 3:00pm today, said Principal of Chittagong Nursing College Hosne Ara Begum.

She told the Dhaka Tribune that they had held a meeting around 1pm yesterday and decided to close the college to avoid further untoward incidents.

The agitating students said they would not vacate the dormitory and continue their protest until their demands were met.

Earlier, the college students started staging demonstration on the campus following their results disasters which was published on Monday.

They besieged the college principal’s office for five hours and confined the principal in her office for two hours demanding re-evaluation of their results and removal of their college principal. Later, however, police rescued the principal.

n DU Correspondent

Locals caught two female muggers and handed them to Ashulia police in Savar yesterday.

The arrested are Mita, 22, wife of Jewel and Sajeda Khatun, 25, wife of Shah Alam, both hailing from Comilla’s Brahmanbaria village.

Witness Shompa Begum said yesterday afternoon she boarded a minibus from Narsinghapur area to go to Dhaka. The two muggers were sitting beside her. As the bus reached Zirabo Bus Stand, the two women started beating her and tried to snatch away her gold chain, mobile phone and cash money.

Hearing Shampa’s screams, other passengers of the bus caught them and handed them to police.

Ashulia police station Officer-inCharge Azharul Islam said cases had been filed against the two. l

WEATHER

A group of Dhaka University aspirants continue demonstrations in front of the Aparajeyo Bangla for the third consecutive day yesterday to press the university to give them a second chance to sit for the admission tests DHAKA TRIBUNE

SUNNY WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22 DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 5:27PM SUN RISES 5:59AM FORECAST FOR TODAY 32 31 31 32 31 31 33 32

22 23 20 20 19 20 20 24

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

33.5ºC Sitakunda

18.0ºC Rajshahi

Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajr Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha

students to sit in a meeting over the result debacle yesterday, but none of the college authorities were seen in their office during students’ sit-in programme, added Pinky.

There was no chance to re-evaluate the results as Chittagong University (CU) had published it, said the principal, complaining that the students’ representative team did not reply despite repeated attempts to communicate with them.

Chittagong Nursing College is affiliated college under CU, added the principal. l

DU admission seekers place memo to VC

Two female muggers held in Ashulia n Our Correspondent, Savar

Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Cox’s Bazar

College sources said the result of different years were published on Monday, where a total 117 students successfully came out from a total of 257 students.

The students alleged college authorities took the examinations without completing syllabus.

Pinky Chowdhury, who appeared in a third year final examination, said the authorities set up the result debacle intentionally as the college students had protested the irregularities and corruptions of the principal in July.

Besides, the authorities had assured

4:43am 5:57am 11:43am 3:51pm 5:28pm 6:44 pm SourceL IslamicFinder.org

The Dhaka University admission seekers, who staged demonstration on the campus, have submitted a memorandum to the Vice-Chancellor seeking the restoration of the system that allowed them to appear twice in the admission test.

A six-member team submitted the memorandum to DU VC AAMA Arefin Siddique to press home their demands around 11:30am yesterday.

Besides, they gave a three-day ultimatum to the VC from the protest rally held in front of Aparejeyo Bangla to meet the demand and declared a mass rally on the Central Shaheed Minar premises on October 25 unless their demands are meet by the time.

According to the memorandum statement, they did not buy admission forms of other universities as they intended to retry for the DU in the next year. On the contrary, admission submission deadline of those universities

has already ended.

Acknowledging the reception of the memorandum, the VC said they would not retreat from the decision as the authorities adopted it by analysing various issues.

Earlier, the university authorities foiled an attempt to holding protest rally by the protesters beneath Aparejeyo Bangla around 11am.

Asked, DU proctor Professor Amzad Ali termed the protesters outsiders, saying they had no right to hold programme deteriorating law and order on the campus.

On the contrary, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (Jasad)-backed Bangladesh Chhatra League activists brought out a procession expressing solidarity with the demand of the protesters.

On October 13, the university authorities announced of implementing the order from the next academic session, triggering outcry among the students who have failed to be qualified in the university this year. l

Four traders fined for selling polythene

HC issues order to stop construction of structures along a Munshiganj river

n Our Correspondent, Barisal

n Tribune Report

Barisal office of Environment Directorate, operating a drive in the Bazar Road area of the city yesterday, recovered about two tonnes of banned polythene and fined four traders Tk 93,000 for selling polythene bags.

Sukumar Biswas, director of the Department of Environment, along with officials of the district administration, con-

ducted the drive in the Bazar road area in the afternoon and fined the traders.

Acting on a tip-off, the team, breaking locks of some godowns, found huge stocks of different kinds of banned polythene bags and packing materials.

Of the traders, Ram Saha was fined Tk 50,000, Sajal Saha Tk 20,000, Asim Saha Tk3,000 and Kanchan Mia Tk20,000 for stockpiling and selling polythene bags. l

The High Court ordered the government to stop constructing structures along a river at Sirajdikhan upazila in Munshiganj and to submit a compliance report before it within two weeks.

The HC bench consisting Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque and Justice Abu Taher Md Saifur Rahman came up with the order in response to a writ petition

Road recovered demolishing illegal structures, locals relieved n Our Correspondent, Gazipur Local administration evicted illegal constructions erected on government road at Baimile area in Gazipur.

Lead by Gazipur nirbahi magistrate Rebecca Sultana, a drive to recover the road blocked by illegal structures was conducted on Sunday.

The magistrate said in Baimile area, Fazlul Haque Miah illegally built a brick

factory and surrounded it with a walled boundary on 61 decimals of government land.

Union land office sent eviction letter to remove the boundary and the buildings inside, which was ignored by Fazlul. Later, plaintiff union land administration filed a case against the illegal structures.

During the eviction drive, local counselor Abbas Uddin, Konabari un-

ion land administration officer Abdul Wahab, police officers and hundreds locals were present.

The counselor said Fazlul’s intention was to grab government land which made him build structures and the boundary. It blocked a road for a long time and was a nuisance for general populace, but now the road is recovered and this will immensely ease the commuters’ worry. l

filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB) seeking necessary orders from it to protect the river.

The court also directed the government to take legal action against the people responsible for constructing illegal establishments in the river.

The court also asked authorities concerned why the construction of structures in the river should not be declared illegal and a direction should not be giv-

en to demolish them from the river.

Lawyer of the HRPB Asaduzzaman Siddique said some local influential people, including Zabbar Madbor and Jalil, had been constructing structures for a market and a house in the distributary of Ichhamoti and Dhaleshwari river after encroaching its land in the Matborerhat area of the district.

Deputy Attorney General Biswojit Roy represented the government. l

Shahjalal City College students, bus drivers clash n Our Correspondent, Sylhet Twenty-five people including students were held following a clash between students of Shahjalal City College and bus drivers in Sylhet yesterday.

Police fired tear shells and rubber bullets to bring the situation under control, said Rahmat Ullah, additional deputy commissioner of Sylhet Metropolitan police.

Witnesses said two groups of stu-

dents and transport workers were locked in a clash in city’s Uposhohor area over a fare. At one point they started throwing brick chips towards each other.

Later, the bus drivers blocked the Uposhohor Road for half an hour.

Ohee Alam Reza, faculty member of Shahjalal City College, said: “Some microbus drivers vandalised our college building and beat up some students.”

Four injured students were admitted to Osmani Medical College hospital. l

6

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Bus fare increases at owners' whim in Munshiganj Correspondent, n Our Munshiganj Passengers suffer as a transport company carrying passenger on Dhaka-Munshiganj route is increasing fare violating BRTA regulations.

There are three transport companies named Dighirpaar Transport Company, Kusumur Paribahan and Dhaka Transport Limited which carry passengers on that route. Currently Dhaka Transport’s buses do not ply on that route, and Kusumpur Paribahan operates with a small number of buses, which enabled the Dighirpaar Transport’s owner Jaglul Haydar Bhutu, who is currently the President of Tangibari upazila

Awami League, hike the bus fare as he wishes.

The commuters complained that there seems to be no authority to oversee the transport companies.

The bus owners hiked the fare overnight and now at least Tk10 extra was charged for each passenger.

It was found by our correspondent that at the Lichutala bus counter in Mushiganj city’s South Courtgaon area, Dighirpaar Transport was selling tickets for Tk60 while Kusumpur Transport was charging Tk50 for the same distance.

When asked about the reason for the difference in ticket price, a supervisor of Dighirpaar Transport Md Matin said previously they charged Tk5 more than the other

bus services, but the reasons for increasing the ticket price again could be explained only by the manager.

According to Bangladesh road Transport Authority (BRTA) laws, bus fare for 28 kilometers should be Tk39, where the bus company was charging Tk60. This goes on all along the route. Passengers pay 10 to 20 taka extra for going from one stoppage to another. The distance from Dighirpaar to Dhaka is nearly 40 kilometers, which should cost the passengers Tk43 but the bus companies were charging Tk70 to Tk90 for each passenger.

Dr Pranayan Kumar Bhoumik, a commuter, said it was really difficult to pay the extra amount for those who use this route regularly. The

bus fare was increased from Tk35 to Tk50 a few months ago, because of the hiked fuel price, but the recent increase of bus fare was inexplicable, he added.

Director of Dighirpaar Transport Company Md Babor said according to government laws the fare should be Tk43, which does not generate sufficient profit for them. That is why they increased the fare after informing the district commissioner (DC) and other authorities concerned.

Munshiganj DC Saiful Hassan Badal said he knew nothing about the increased bus fare. Dighirpaar officials did not contact them, but if they were charging more than the legal fare then actions would be taken against the company, he added. l

People of Kishoreganj Sadar upazila stage a demonstration in front of the upazila nirbahi officer’s office yesterday demanding withdrawal of the UNO

Elderly woman killed by daughter-in-law

n Our Correspondent, Gaibandha An elderly woman was killed by her daughter-in-law in Kishmat Malibari village in Gaibandha Sadar upazila on Monday night.

The deceased was identified as Halima Begum, 65. The Officer-in-Charge of Gaibandha Sadar police station Mafiz Uddin Halima had a dispute with her son Abdul Hamid’s wife Rahima Begum.

On Monday night, at one of altercation, Rahima attacke d Halima Begum and beat her up. Halima died around 10pm on the way to Rangpur Medical College Hospital.

Abdul and Rahima absoconded after the incident. Halima’s daughter Ruby Begum lodged a case with Gaibandha Sadar police station. l

Stone quarry worker killed in trench collapse

n Our Correspondent, Panchagarh

A stone quarry worker was killed and two others were injured as a chunk of mud collapsed on them at Kakrapara village in Sadar upazila yesterday while they were collecting stones from the Karotoya River.

Witnesses said a group of workers were collecting stones from the river near Kakpara border. At one stage, a chunk mud collapsed on them around 6:00pm, leaving Johirul Islam dead on the spot and Chutku,30, son of late Hafez Udddin and Rafiqul Islam,35, injured seriously. l

4 held in Barguna with deer hides

n Our Correspondent, Barguna Members of RAB-8 detained four persons from Barguna Sadar upazila and recovered deerskins from their possession around 10am yesterday.

The arrested were Nasir alias Joynal, 42, Ainul, 40, Kamrul, 30 and Enamul, 33.

RAB sources said Nasir was running a gang of poachers who were killing deers for a long time. A team of RAB members in plain clothes contacted Nasir and posed as buyers interested in buying deerskin.

RAB officials busted Nasir when he showed them eight pieces of deerskins at a house in Amtali village in Braguna Sadar upazila. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Post offices in a shambles, villagers devoid of proper services n Our Correspondent, Natore People in rural areas of Natore are suffering a lot as the branch post offices are failing to provide necessary postal services to them. Contrary to the city dwellers, villagers are still very much dependent on branch post offices for their various postal needs such sending and receiving letters, parcels, job interview cards, and appointment letters.

Services in the branch offices are almost non-existent depriving the villagers of their needs. All the 81 branch post offices in Natore are in a sorry state forcing the office staffs to provide the service from their convenient locations. Moreover, staffs of the branch offices are leading inhumane life because of meagre government allowance.

There are three categories of post offices in Natore - district post office, the upazila post office and branch post offices.

There are around 24-25 staffs in the district post offices with better wages and benefits. However, there are only three extra-departmental (ED) staffs for each branch offices

with minimum allowances. An ED post master gets Tk1260 a month while ED runner gets Tk1180 and ED post man receives Tk1230.

Given the continuous price hike of essentials, the ED service holders are facing various problems to maintain their families. Finding no other way, they pursue other income sources and fail to provide services to the people.

Moreover, many of the branch post offices remain shut as their condition is not suitable for running an office. Hence, many post masters work from various other places of convenience.

Rezaul Karim Reza, accountant of Natore district post office said, there are 81 branch post offices in the district. Among them, 16 are in Natore sadar upazila, 12 in Naldanga, 17 in Singra, 11 in Bagatipara, 11 in Baraigram, 7 in Gurudaspur and 7 in Lalpur upazila.

Abdur Rahim, a resident of Bagatipara upazila said, Tomaltola post office had been shut for almost 4 years. The post master provided services from his own shop at Tomaltala bazar.

“There has been no post man here for a long time. We could not send or receive our necessary documents. The post master did not send our letters. The government is losing revenue here for the want of adequate services in this sector,” he added.

Abul Kalam Azad, post master of Tomaltala post office confirmed the closing of the post office and said, he already had urged the authority to take steps to reconstruct the office but got no response.

“Finding no other way, I run the services in this shop,” he said.

When contacted, Ashit Kumar, deputy post master general of Rajshahi region said, they had to do everything as per government directive.

The ED job holders urged the government to change their honorary allowance into departmental salary and turn the post offices into modern service centres so that they can provide a better service to the villagers as per their demand. This will enable the government to earn a lot of revenue as well. l

NEWS IN BRIEF Olama League leader killed

A local leader of Olama League was hacked to death by a gang of assailants at Hagra village in Bagharpara upazila yesterday. The dead was identified as Shariful Islam, 45. Kaiyum Ali, officerin-charge of Bagharpara police station said, miscreants stabbed Shariful indiscriminately at night. Later, locals rushed him to Jessore Medical College Hospital where he died. Local UP chairman Manzur Rashid Swapan said Shariful had been killed over previous enmity. – Our Correspondent, Jessore

BSD leader killed in road crash A local leader of Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal was crushed under the wheels of a truck on Bogra-Rangpur Highway at Palsa in Sadar upazila yesterday. The deceased was identified as Krishna Kamol, 35, coordinator of district unit convention of BSD and son

of Ananta Barman in Pirganj upazila of Rangpur district. Police and witnesses said the accident took place around 8am as a moving truck hit Kamol while crossing the highway, leaving him dead on the spot. – Our Correspondent, Bogra

UNO office besieged A section of people in Kishoreganj Sadar upazila besieged the upazila nirbahi officer’s office yesterday demanding his immediate withdrawal.

The upazila vice chairman Mamun said the people had brought allegations of extortion, corruption and misappropriate of government money against Subrata Paul, the UNO of the upazila.

– Our Correspondent, Kishoreganj

64 held in Habiganj Police detained 64 people yesterday from different areas of Habiganj in a move to combat the rising violence in the district. Out of the detainees, some 59 people are fugitive accused while the five others are accused in regular

case. Assistant police Super Masudur Rahman said: “Law enforcers conducted the drive in different areas from 12am Monday midnight till early Tuesday.” – Our Correspondent, Habiganj

Peanut trader beaten to death A peanut trader was beaten to death by some miscreants in Bhogpara area of Marea Bamonhat union of Boda upazila yesterday. Ruhul Amin, chairman of Marea Bamonhat union, said some unidentified miscreants beat Zahirul indiscriminately when he was on the way home on a motorcycle from Marea Futkibari Bazar around 12am.

Later, they left him in a severely injured state along with the motorcycle in a nearly paddy field. Some pedestrians rescued him after hearing his sound.

Later he succumbed to his injuries while being taken to Thakurgaon Sadar Hospital.

– Our Correspondent, Panchagarh

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Long Form

7

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Let’s get our heads together

Quality, relevance and full employment should be the focus of post-secondary education

A placard with a very powerful message that was shown in the recent protest in Dhaka University against the changes in the admission test process

A

n Ahmed A Azad recent editorial in the Dhaka Tribune that made a strong case for making our universities “world class,” and the continuing furore over the admission tests at Dhaka University, have raised questions about the relative standards of our secondary and tertiary institutions.

The quality and scope of primary and secondary education have in fact improved steadily in recent years, but there needs to be further improvement and standardisation in the contents and teaching of core subjects such as the languages, mathematics and sciences under a unified system of schooling.

available tertiary positions are not sufficient to accommodate all deserving candidates.

Neither the extent nor the quality of higher education are sufficient to meet the socio-economic and development objectives of Bangladesh that, because of dearth of resources and available funds, has no option but to make the best use of its intellectual capital and develop a knowledge-based economy.

These objectives can’t be met simply by building even more conventional universities when the degrees conferred by current ones don’t match job demands. Attempts to enhance the quality of existing universities will fail if the relevance and utility of their degrees do not lead to full and productive employment.

The intellectual quality of our students and teachers, at least in our top universities, is second to none. So why have we failed to keep pace with leading universities in Asia and in our neighbourhood?

In international rankings this year, no university in Bangladesh made it to the list of 500 best universities in Asia, let alone the world. Dhaka University, the oldest and most prestigious university in Bangladesh, has capacity for only about 6,500 of the over 70,000 HSC students who received GPA 5 this year; about half of the remaining can be absorbed by other universities and technical institutes.

This leaves tens of thousands of applicants with the highest possible grades without university placement after 12 years of very hard work. This must surely be very demoralising and demotivating for many of the brightest young people!

Bangladesh has the fourth highest number of students enrolled in tertiary institutions in the developing world, but graduate unemployment remains very high, and many find jobs where their degrees are either superfluous or irrelevant. Even with so many unemployed graduates around, industries in Bangladesh can’t find suitably qualified middle level managers and technicians locally and have to hire them from neighbouring countries.

There certainly is a schism between what job skills are required and what is being produced by our universities. The seemingly large number of tertiary students and the 100 or so universities is certainly not large for a country of over 160 million, and the

Bangladesh’s aspiration to become a middle income country by 2021, and then an advanced economy by 2041, can’t be fulfilled without developing excellence in higher education underpinned by a very strong science and technology foundation. A need-based skilled workforce has to be developed rationally from a firm knowledge of the number and types of science and technology graduates and professional diploma holders required over time to meet the current, mid and long term socio-economic goals of Bangladesh.

Informed knowledge of actual requirements can guide and facilitate the establishment of the required institutions with pertinent development-focused curricula. In addition to conventional universities, large numbers of post-secondary technical institutions need to be established to produce sufficient numbers of health, agriculture and technology professionals required all over the country, and especially in the non-metropolitan areas.

Their salaries and benefits should be commensurate with their professional qualifications. More technical and professional institutions will ease the inordinate pressure on university places.

Quality and need-based post-secondary education is dependent on very good primary and secondary schooling in core subjects such as mathematics, science and languages.

Large numbers of highly trained teachers are required for all level of schooling, and in vocational and technical institutes all over the country.

To retain their services in non-metropolitan areas, teachers have to be adequately remunerated and shown proper respect in society. Who will teach and train these teachers?

Many public universities, including the constituent colleges of the National University, and most of the private universities are neither interested in nor involved in research. Academics from universities not involved in research could be suitably deployed to teach high quality mathematics, science and technology subjects, and languages to those who will teach in primary, secondary, vocational and technical institutions.

While the international rankings paint a dismal picture of the status of our universities, some senior academics and policy makers contend that the criteria used for ranking are not totally relevant to Bangladesh, and that the standards of our top universities has not actually fallen but those in other developing countries have progressed faster.

This then begs the question: are our universities internationally competitive in this globalised world? The intellectual quality of our students and teachers, at least in our top universities, is second to none. So why have we failed to keep pace with leading universities in Asia and in our neighbourhood?

identified just over 3000 institutions worldwide that would qualify as being research-competent. Only four institutions in Bangladesh – Dhaka University, Buet, ICDDRB and Rajshahi University – made this list.

Lack of research capacity significantly impedes the progression of our universities to international competitiveness. It is impractical to expect that all Bangladeshi universities could become “world class” overnight. It will be prudent to focus initially on a handful of universities with the strongest credentials and build them up as “research universities.”

No university or research centre in Bangladesh is likely to possess all the human and physical resources required for optimum research outcomes, so it is important to encourage and support multidisciplinary and multi-institutional research between research groups with complementary expertise and facilities.

International competitiveness also requires the establishment of national technology platform(s) to make expensive cutting edge technologies accessible to the entire research community. With very limited resources, Bangladesh can’t successfully compete in all areas of research simultaneously. So, it needs to focus its meagre research funds in areas of national priority such as health equity; food, energy and environmental security; climate change-induced challenges; and judicious exploitation of maritime resources and rich biodiversity.

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

years. The difference this has made to the country’s economy and quality of life is for everyone to see. Education in Bangladesh also needs this level of support.

A minimum of 2 % of GDP needs to be spent on R&D over a sustained period for Bangladesh to narrow the S&T gap with rapidly advancing countries, but reportedly spends only 0.4 %, of which 90% is expended on salaries and institutional overheads.

Many Bangladeshi expatriate academics and scientists, in appreciation of their free university education in Bangladesh, would be happy to provide pro bono time and expertise to the national R&D effort, but unfortunately foreign consultants seem to be more acceptable to our senior policy makers.

Higher education in Bangladesh receives a ridiculously low allocation from the annual budget. Postgraduate research is virtually non-existent and a research career has little appeal for talented youth.

To reverse this trend there has to be increased public sector funding for

education and research, encouragement of private sector investment in national R&D activities through targeted tax concessions, and generous financial rewards for good research and researchers based on impact factor of research publications and utilisation of research-generated intellectual property (patents).

The prime minister has publicly stated on more than one occasion that funds and higher salaries can be found for worthwhile and productive research. Why have the scientific community and the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences not taken her up on her words and demanded that the government make necessary allocations to education, research and innovation?

To become technologically proficient Bangladesh not only needs to build internationally competitive higher education and R&D capacity, but also develop a research culture that stems the highly debilitating brain drain and helps to reverse it. l Ahmed A Azad is freelance contributor.

International competitiveness also requires the establishment of national technology platform(s) to make expensive cutting edge technologies accessible to the entire research community

The best universities in the world also happen to be the leading research universities in the advanced countries of the West. In these countries, and in the rapidly advancing developing countries (China, India, Brazil), research students and post-doctoral fellows form the bulk of scientific workers who run the research engines that drive their economies.

The most spectacular example is South Korea which has utilised postgraduate research and university-industry partnerships to become an industrial power and progress to the status of an advanced economy ahead of Asian giants China and India.

A recent study, based on intellectual output and research capacity,

National priority research would benefit from coordinated support and special funding from a National Research Council (independent or within Higher Education Commission) for focused collaborations between universities, government research organisations and industry.

Quality education and S&T-proficiency do not come cheap! However, investment in quality and need-based education, and in postgraduate research and innovation, is the most important investment that Bangladesh could make in its own future.

There is much to learn from the example of Malaysia which has allocated 25 % of its annual budget to education and training over the last 20

A protest against the question leaks in the secondary examinations

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

8

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

ISIL ‘launches fierce new assault’ on Kobane

Kurdish fighters hold the line but struggle as they await reinforcements to cross from Turkey have welcomed the moves and issued and was swiftly welcomed by the US. n AFP Kobane has become a crucial sym- appeals for more help.

Kurdish fighters in the battle for the Syrian town of Kobane weathered a fresh onslaught by fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant as they awaited promised reinforcements from Iraq.

The Kurdish militia faced fierce attacks on Tuesday, fresh from heavy battles on Monday evening in which ISIL appeared to be trying to cut off the border with Turkey before the reinforcements could arrive.

This account is according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, who also reported that coalition forces carried out further air strikes overnight, following weeks of attacks in and around Kobane.

Ankara’s announcement on Monday that it would facilitate Kurdish forces from Iraq crossing its border with Syria to relieve Kobane’s beleaguered defenders marked a major shift of policy

bolic battleground in the war against ISIL, which is fighting to extend areas under its control in Iraq and Syria, where it has declared an Islamic “caliphate” that has not been widely-recognised.

An influx of well-trained Peshmerga fighters into Kobane could be a major boost for the Syrian Kurds.

Iraqi Kurdish officials have said they would provide training, although any forces sent would be Syrian Kurds.

The US has also stepped up its commitment to the town’s defence in recent days, with Secretary of State John Kerry saying it would be “irresponsible” and “morally very difficult” not to help.

Three C-130 cargo aircraft carried out what the US military called “multiple” successful drops of supplies early on Monday, including arms provided

by Kurdish authorities in Iraq.

Kurdish forces defending Kobane

‘Impressive’ resistance

The supplies were “intended to enable continued resistance against ISIL’s attempts to overtake Kobane,” the US military said.

ISIL lost at least five of its fighters to air strikes on Monday and a further 12 in ground battles, including two of its members who were suicide bombers, the monitoring group said.

Five Kurdish fighters were also killed. A senior administration official said Monday’s airdrop was in recognition of the “impressive” resistance put up by the Kurds and the losses they were inflicting on ISIL. But US commanders said the top priority remains Iraq, where ISIL swept through much of the Sunni Arab heartland north and west of Baghdad in June and both government and Kurdish forces are under pressure. l

Smoke and flames rise following an explosion in the Syrian town of Kobane, also known as Ain al-Arab, as seen from the southeastern Turkish village of Mursitpinar in the Sanliurfa province on Monday AFP

Why Israel loses no sleep over Islamic State n Dimi Reider, Reuters

A masked man speaking in what is believed to be a North American accent in a video that Islamic State militants released in September 2014 is pictured in this still frame from video At first sight, it seems that Israel is just as preoccupied with the rise of Islamic State as anyone else. Israeli media report diligently on the extremist group’s assault on the Kurdish town of Kobani and run at least a story every few days on its atrocities. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu references Islamic State frequently, as do other Israeli ministers. And the stories of two Palestinian citizens of Israel who died fighting for the group have been recently featured in the press.

Still, Israel remains the least concerned and least directly threatened country in a region increasingly rocked

by Islamic State’s advance. It certainly does not see the group as an external threat. Shocking though the events in Syria and Iraq are, Israel is far beyond the range of even the most sophisti-

cated of Islamic State’s weapons. The group’s immediate territorial interests do not extend to anywhere near Israeli borders, and its support in areas adjacent to Israel is still negligible. What’s more, unlike many militant groups and states in the region, Islamic State has declared itself emphatically disinterested in intervening in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, preferring instead to draw its support from Sunni revanchism and introducing a semblance of order into worn-torn regions of Iraq.

Islamic State also does not yet pose an internal threat to Israel. Unlike most countries bordering Syria, Israel has not been politically or demographically unsettled by the civil war there. The diversified systems of control employed

by Israel – some liberal democracy and some military rule — have cemented differences among the country’s constituencies disgruntled with the Israeli government. The divisions have precluded the emergence of a broad uprising similar to those that constituted the Arab Spring. The relatively short, highly militarized border between Isra-

el and Syria has prevented the influx of refugees into Israel, as well as any significant spread of the fighting.

In the absence of incentives to change policy, Israel remains determined to display an official disinterest in Iraq and a staunch neutrality toward Syria. Although the government has often expressed sympathy for victims of the Syrian civil war and offered some of them medical treatment, and has on one or two occasions hit targets in Syria, Israel has been careful to signal to Syrian President Bashir al-Assad that it considers him a relatively reliable neighbor and would not work actively to replace him.

It’s also unlikely that Israeli leaders will come under any internal pressure to change this position. While the images of the war in Syria have prompted some Palestinians to travel abroad and take up arms against the Syrian regime, sometimes fighting alongside jihadist organizations, the numbers have been small — and their wrath, for now, directed at the Syrian regime, not at Israel. Images of Islamic State’s atrocities, combined with the group’s religious fanaticism,

contempt for nation-states and express disinterest in the Palestinian cause have left Palestinians — largely secular, nationalist and deeply committed to building their own nation-state — more alienated than attracted.

Even attempts by Israeli centrists and the US to tie progress in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process to the fight against Islamic State have left Israel unmoved. Israel, the argument went, should makes concessions in its talks with Palestinians to mollify Arab populations as their governments yet again throw in with the Americans — and by extension, with the Israelis. This tactic rests on the idea that the only real threat that Islamic State poses to Israel, however remotely, is if it toppled any of the “moderate” Arab states, especially Jordan, by invading them or capitalizing on their local discontents, or a combination of the two.

But the Israeli government, which has no interest, political or ideological, in facilitating a two-state solution, has so far responded with a shrug. The view in Israel is that the moderate Arab

NEWS BITES regimes are sufficiently threatened by the spread of Islamic State to prioritize drawing the Americans in, warts and all. If anything triggers revolutions in these countries, it will not be the plight of the Palestinians.

The lack of direct threats notwithstanding, Israel has been able to extract some short-term gains from unfolding catastrophe. With the West again mobilizing against a radical Islamist group, Netanyahu find himself on the familiar turf of the “war on terror.” He is capitalizing on this by trying to equate Palestinian nationalism — especially the religious wing of it — with Islamic State at every conceivable opportunity (even if with little perceptible effect). Second, Israel is again making itself useful to the West as a corner of stability and pro-Western sentiment in an otherwise turbulent Middle East — and is using this to push the Palestinian issue further down the agenda.

These considerations apart, Israel sees Islamic State as something that’s happening to other people — and the country will do its best to keep it so. l

‘Iraqi refugees Submarine hunt sends Cold War chill across Baltic in Lebanon left n AP, Stockholm behind, forgotten’ n Reuters, London

Thousands of Iraqi refugees in Lebanon face a daily struggle to survive because of a lack of jobs and the rising cost of food and accommodation, a Catholic charity said on Tuesday.

Caritas, which has been helping Iraqi refugees in Lebanon since 1997, said rising tensions between Iraqi and Syrian refugees was a problem in Lebanon, where many Iraqis accuse the Syrians of being a source of cheap labor.

The report said many Iraqi refugees were overly optimistic about being quickly resettled, and as a result stopped looking for work or stopped enrolling their children in school.

When reality failed to meet expectations, they often felt hopeless or depressed, adding to the burden on a population where trauma is common, the report said.

“Up until this summer, the continuing Iraqi refugee crisis was no longer newsworthy, especially as the international community and media turned its attention to the Syrian conflict,” Najla Chahda, director of the Caritas Lebanon Migrant Center, said in the report.

“Unfortunately, as this report goes to press, a new wave of Iraqi refugees is entering Lebanon. Having faced the brutality of fundamentalist militants, the first of these persecuted Christian Iraqis has already begun to arrive.”

Lebanon has a long history of hosting people fleeing conflict and persecution - more than 60 years ago, it took in tens of thousands of Palestinians who were made refugees by the 1948 Arab-Israeli war marking the creation of Israel.

It is now home to some 8,000 Iraqi refugees and asylum seekers, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR. Many Iraqis fled after the 1991 Gulf War and the 2003 US-led invasion of their country.

But Lebanon has become known increasingly for hosting more than 1 million Syrian refugees, a number the government has said it cannot cope with. l

Sweden’s biggest submarine hunt since the dying days of the Soviet Union has put countries around the Baltic Sea on edge.

Sweden’s military investigates ‘suspicious underwater activity’ Reuters Sweden Wants to Know Who Is Speaking Russian in the Baltic Sea The Atlantic In a scene reminiscent of the Cold War, Swedish naval ships, helicopters and ground troops combed the Stockholm archipelago for a fourth day Monday for signs of a foreign submarine or smaller underwater craft that officials suspect entered Swedish waters illegally.

While Sweden hasn’t linked any country to the suspected intrusion — and Moscow suggested it was a Dutch sub — the incident sent a chill through the Baltic Sea region, where Russian forces have been accused of a series of border violations on land, sea and air in recent months.

“Closely following events in the Swedish territorial waters, may become a game changer of the security in the whole Baltic Sea region,” Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics wrote on Twitter.

Swedish military officials say there have been three sightings of the elusive craft since Friday, just 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of Stockholm amid the myriad of islands and skerries that stretch from the capital into the Baltic Sea. On Sunday they released a photograph taken at a distance of what they said could be the mystery vessel — a dark speck surrounded by foaming water.

Military spokesman Jesper Tengroth said more than 200 personnel were involved in the operation, but stressed that unlike Sweden’s submarine hunts in the 1980s, the military wasn’t using depth charges or other anti-submarine weapons.

Speculating on whether the suspected underwater intruder was linked to a mother ship, Swedish media zeroed in on an oil tanker owned by Russian

Monitor: IS wins ground from Syria government in east

n Reuters, Beirut

Islamic State won territory from Syrian government forces in the eastern city of Deir al-Zor on Tuesday, its first gain there in about two months, a group that tracks the civil war reported.

Fighters from both sides were killed during the clashes in Deir al-Zor city, about 450 km (280 miles) northeast of Damascus in a province bordering Iraq, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said without giving a death toll.

Islamic State, which is being targeted by US-led air strikes in Iraq and Syria, seized large areas of Deir al-Zor’s industrial region, meaning it now controls more than half the city, said Rami Abdulrahman, who runs the Observatory.

The Islamist militant group, which is also battling Kurdish forces for control of the town of Kobani at the Turkish border, brought reinforcements to Deir al-Zor in recent days, Abdulrahman said.

The US air force dropped arms to Kurds defending Kobani, also known as Ayn al-Arab, on Monday. Washington has ruled out such cooperation with the government of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad. l

Ukraine, Russia, EU energy chiefs meet to finalise gas deal

n Reuters, Brussels

Swedish Navy fast-attack crafts searching for what the military says is a foreign threat in the waters in the Stockholm Archipelago, Sweden, on Sunday AFP company Novoship, which had been circling near Swedish waters. In a statement Monday, Novoship President Yuri Tsvetkov said he was “flattered” by the attention but said the ship was charted for transporting oil from Russia to the US and was drifting on standby awaiting loading orders.

Daily Svenska Dagbladet has reported that Swedish intelligence picked up distress signals suggesting a Russian mini-submarine had run into trouble in Swedish waters and could be damaged.

Countering such claims, a Russian Defense Ministry official quoted by the Tass news agency suggested that the search was triggered by a Dutch submarine that participated in an exercise with the Swedish navy last week. The unidentified official suggested Sweden should save “taxpayers’ money” and ask the Netherlands for an explanation.

The Dutch navy, in turn, said that submarine left Sweden on Thursday

and had been in Estonia since early Friday. In Sweden, Armed Forces spokesman Philip Simon said the Dutch submarine was not what triggered the Swedish search.

In the final decade of the Cold War, Sweden launched a series of unsuccessful submarine hunts after a Soviet sub carrying nuclear weapons was stranded off its southeastern coast in 1981.

The events in the past days have sparked alarm across the Baltic Sea in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — three small former Soviet republics already spooked by Russia’s intervention in Ukraine.

Estonia stepped up surveillance of its territorial waters, with the border guard looking out for “potential anomalies,” spokesman Priit Parkna said.

Lithuanians were concerned over the safety of a floating natural gas import terminal currently being trans-

ported on the Baltic Sea to the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda. The terminal will be key to Lithuania’s plans to reduce its reliance on Russian energy.

Meanwhile, Russian media suggested the Swedes were overreacting. The Nezavisimaya Gazeta newspaper even speculated that the submarine hunt could be a ploy by the Swedish military to boost its defense budget, which has undergone a series of cuts since the Cold War. The official government newspaper Rossiiskaya Gazeta questioned whether there was any submarine at all, noting the Swedes hadn’t found anything.

“Either Sweden’s echo location equipment is working badly or, as the old saying goes, the eyes of fear see danger everywhere,” the paper said.

The submarine scare in Sweden comes after a string of border incidents involving Russian forces that Western analysts say signal Moscow’s growing assertiveness in the Baltic Sea region. l

Russia and Ukraine aim to resolve an impasse over natural gas supplies on Tuesday as their energy ministers meet in Brussels for talks brokered by the European Union’s energy commissioner.

Citing unpaid bills worth more than $5 billion, Russia cut off gas flows to Kiev in mid-June, adding to tensions sparked

by Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea region.

After months of stalemate, pressure has mounted to reach a deal to allow gas deliveries for heating as winter approaches.

Differences remain but Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said ahead of the talks that he hoped to finalize a deal on Tuesday.

The three sides arrived in Brussels for negotiations provisionally set to end by 1200 GMT (8.00 a.m. EDT) although officials warned they could run over.

The focus is on price, the number of payments Kiev should make, and the volume of gas Ukraine would get from Russia over the winter period, Commission spokeswoman Marlene Holzner said earlier.

Despite cutting off gas for Kiev, Russian exporter Gazprom has not cut supplies flowing through the country en route to EU member states.

The European Union relies on Russia for around one third of its gas, roughly half of which flows via Ukraine.

EU governments are concerned, however, and leaders will discuss ways to curb dependence on Russian energy at summit talks in Brussels on Thursday and Friday. Two previous price rows between Russia and Ukraine in 2006 and 2009 did impact supply to EU nations.

The gas row this time is more complicated due to the deterioration in relations between Moscow and Kiev, although EU leaders also say solving it could help to defuse wider tensions. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

9

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Sydney teen resurfaces in IS group video Hong Kong talks fail Missing n to break impasse AFP

n Agencies Hong Kong student representatives and government officials have held much-awaited talks to end street protests now in their fourth week, but achieved little progress to defuse the crisis in China’s semi-autonomous city.

In opening remarks, student leader Alex Chow said that an August decision

by China’s legislature ruling out direct elections for the city’s chief executive in 2017 had “emasculated” Hong Kong.

“We don’t want anointment,” Chow, secretary-general of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, one of three groups leading the protests, said at the talks on Tuesday.

Government officials stuck to the official position that Hong Kong’s mini-constitution cannot be amended to accommodate protesters’ demands, while also saying that many others do not share their views.

“We hope you would understand that there are a lot of people who are not in Mong Kok, who are not in Admiralty, many people at home who aren’t insisting on civil nomination,” said Justice Secretary Rimsky Yuen.

Live telecast

People gathered at the three main protest zones to watch the talks on big

India says no compromise with China on territory n AFP A Chinese soldier (left) and his Indian counterpart at the ancient Nathu La border crossing that remained closed for 44 years after the two Asian countries fought a bitter war in 1962 India wants to resolve its border row with China but will not compromise on territory, the country’s new national security advisor said Tuesday, after a tense stand-off between troops on the disputed border last month.

Hundreds of Chinese troops allegedly moved into territory claimed by India ahead of a visit by China’s President Xi Jinping last month.

The troops eventually pulled back but tensions persist and last week China expressed concern over plans by India to build a highway along the border.

“We consider China as a very important neighbour,” Ajit Doval said at an international security conference in New Delhi.

“But while we would like to take every opportunity to develop the relations to their best extent... we will never be able to make any compromise at the cost of our national security and territorial integrity.”

China defeated India in a brief but bloody war in 1962 and their border remains unresolved, with both sides regularly accusing each other of sending soldiers into the other’s territory.

Doval, who was appointed by the new government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said the two sides should “sit together and resolve our boundary dispute amicably and as early as possible”.

“We have to involve and engage them (China) rather than follow the path of exclusive isolation from each other,” he said. l

screens, and frequently cheered at remarks by the student leaders. But many held little hope that the talks would end the impasse, though they thought broadcasting them would help get their position out to the wider population.

Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying told reporters ahead of the talks that the government would not let the public nominate candidates to run in inaugural direct elections to succeed him in 2017, as demanded by thousands of protesters camping out on main streets across the city. But he added that there was room to discuss how to form a key 1,200-member committee that would pick candidates.

Leung said such changes could be covered in a second round of consultations over the next several months.

“How we should elect the 1,200 so that the nominating committee will be broadly representative, there’s room for discussion there,” Leung said.

“There’s room to make the nominating committee more democratic, and this is one of the things we very much want to talk to not just the students but the community at large about.”

Protesters have occupied main streets in three areas of the city since September 28 to demand that the government abandon plans to use the screening committee. l

A teenager who ran away from Australia to join jihadists in Iraq and Syria has reappeared months later in a video of the Islamic State group, vowing to “not stop fighting”, reports said Tuesday.

The 17-year-old, named in local media as Abdullah Elmir but who calls himself “Abu Khaled”, carried a rifle and directly addressed Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott in the video reportedly posted online, the Sydney Morning Herald said.

“To Tony Abbott, I say this. These weapons that we have, these soldiers, we will not stop fighting,” said Elmir, whose family is from the southwestern Sydney suburb of Bankstown.

“We will not put down our weapons until we reach your lands and until we take the head of every tyrant and until the black flag (of the Islamic State group) is flying high in every single land.”

A spokesman for the prime minister said in a statement the video showed the threat posed by the Islamic State group, also known as ISIL. “As the prime minister has said on many occasions, ISIL is a threat that reaches out to Australia and our allies and partners,” the spokesman said.

Australia’s Prime Minister Tony Abbott, pictured during a press conference in Sydney, on Septemb …

“That is why Australia has joined the coalition to disrupt and degrade ISIL in Iraq and is giving our law enforcement and security agencies the powers and

North Korea warns of ‘unpredictable’ retaliation n AFP

North Korea warned Monday of an “unpredictable” retaliatory strike against South Korea following a series of minor border skirmishes that have raised military tensions ahead of planned high-level talks.

Troops from the two sides exchanged small arms fire on Sunday after South Korean troops fired warning shots at a North Korean patrol moving towards the military demarcation line that marks the border on the peninsula.

The North’s military warned in a message sent Monday through a border hotline that it would take “unpredictable measures” in retaliation for alleged provocations from South Korea, the South’s defence ministry said.

It also vowed to continue its patrol along the demarcation line, a ministry spokesman said, adding the South responded with a message expressing regret and warning North Korea against further provocations. “Our side clarified our position that we will sternly deal with further provocations by North Korea,” he said.

On October 7 North and South Korean naval vessels traded warning fire near the disputed Yellow Sea border. Three days later border guards exchanged heavy machine-gun fire after the North tried to shoot down balloons launched over the land frontier with bundles of anti-Pyongyang leaflets. The North has repeatedly urged the South to ban the leaflet launches organised by activist groups, but Seoul insists it has no legal grounds for doing so. l

An image made available by Jihadist media outlet Welayat Raqa on June 30, 2014, allegedly shows members of the Islamic State group parading in a street in the Syrian city of Raqa AFP resources they need to keep Australia and Australians as safe as possible.”

Australia raised its terror threat level in September to “high” after years on “medium” on growing concern about returning jihadists, while Abbott has warned that those fighting with extremists could face lengthy jail terms if they come home.

Several men were arrested in counter-terrorism raids in September and

charged with recruiting, funding and sending jihadist fighters to Syria. One of them was last week facing fresh charges of preparing a terrorist attack on home soil.

Australia has also joined the US-led international coalition against the Islamic State group, with its combat aircraft conducting their first air strikes in Iraq in early October.

Elmir was reported to have left his

family home in June, telling his family he was going fishing before later calling his mother to tell her he was in Turkey about to “cross the border”.

The lawyer representing the family said at the time that his mother believed her son was going to Iraq.

The teenager reportedly left the country with a 16-year-old boy called “Feiz” who was found by his father and brought back to Australia. l

Iran president pledges to back Iraq amid attacks n AP, Tehran Shiite powerhouse Iran has pledged enduring support for the Shiite-led government of Iraq in its battle against an ascendant Sunni insurgency spearheaded by the Islamic State group.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi on Tuesday that Iran has supported Baghdad “from the first day and will remain on that path until the last day,” according to a report by the official IRNA news agency.

It was Abadi’s first foreign visit since taking office in September.

“Choosing Iran as my first destination after taking office indicates the depth of ties,” he said, according to

IRNA. “Terrorism is a threat to all regional countries and we are sure Iran will stand by us.”

The Iran-Iraq alliance highlights some of the complex political dynamics spawned by the emergence of the Islamic State group as a major threat earlier this year. The radical Sunni militia has captured and held large swaths of territory in eastern Syria and northwestern Iraq, including the major northern Iraqi city of Mosul, and threatens to expand southward toward Baghdad.

Now both Iran and the United States are essentially on the same side in backing Baghdad and opposing the Islamic State group — although neither country acknowledges any sort of

direct coordination. Meanwhile Iran continues to support embattled Syrian autocrat Bashar al-Assad, who Washington opposes.

Rouhani, in his Tuesday comments, said greater regional cooperation among affected countries was the only solution to confronting the Islamic State group.

Inside Iraq, insurgents continued their recent wave of attacks on Tuesday as a string of bombings in and near Baghdad killed 30 people. Police officials said the deadliest attack took place Tuesday afternoon when a double car bomb attack hit Habaybina restaurant in the Shiite-majority district of Talibiya in eastern Baghdad, killing 19 people and wounding 32 others. l

UN readying sanctions against Yemenis Pakistan suspends ‘antin Tribune desk The UN is preparing to impose sanctions on five prominent Yemenis, including Ali Abdullah Saleh, the former president, Al Jazeera has learned.

A UN panel of experts found that the individuals had been undermining Yemen’s democratic transition. Three of those named are leaders of the Houthi rebel group that has seized large parts of the country over the past month.

Saleh, whose 33-year reign ended in 2012 after a popular uprising, has been accused of using Yemen’s ongoing crisis to re-establish his influence over the country’s politics.

His powerful son Ahmed Ali, who was the brigadier-general in charge of the Republican Guard before he was named the ambassador to the UAE, is

also to be sanctioned, Arab diplomats who have seen the report prepared by the UN panel told Al Jazeera.

The three Houthis listed are the group’s leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi, his brother Abdulkhaleq al-Houthi and military leader Abu Ali al-Hakem.

Some Yemenis say there is a hidden alliance between the Houthis and Saleh, who belongs to the Shia Zaidi sect that the Houthis hail from.

Diplomatic immunity

Without the backing of Saleh, some observers say, the Houthis would not have been able to take the capital and other parts of the country.

The Houthis, who now control Sanaa and several other provinces, hail from the northern highlands and are increasingly imposing their authority

outside the capital as well as in it.

Al Jazeera’s Diplomatic Editor James Bays, speaking from the UN headquarters in New York City, said sanctioning Saleh’s son would be controversial since he has diplomatic immunity as an ambassador. He has said it would also be problematic to sanction the Houthi leaders, because they are so important, both politically and militarily.

“In the short term, it could make things worse rather than better,” he said. “If you’re trying to get any political reconciliation to happen, it will be important to have them on board.”

The UN Security Council in February authorised sanctions against anyone in Yemen who obstructs the country’s political transition or commits human rights violations but stopped short of blacklisting any specific individuals. l

government’ channel n Agencies Pakistan’s media regulation authority has taken a private television news channel, ARY news, off air for 15 days after accusing it of “maligning” the country’s judiciary.

A statement made the regulatory body said the channel, which is purported to be anti-government, had been shut effective immediately following a court order, the Associated Press news agency reported on Tuesday.

“The authority also noted that the channel has [a] chronic history of non-compliance of PEMRA Laws,” read the statement, which was issued on Monday.

Pakistan Electronic Media Regulato-

ry Authority (PEMRA) is responsible for regulating stations and issuing channel licenses in the country. ARY TV has also been ordered to pay a fine of $97,000. In a ruling issued last week,the court also banned one of its anchors, Mubashar Luqman, from appearing on any national TV. There is simply no justification for the Pakistani authorities to silence sections of the media solely because of their political leanings. But there are allegations that the ban is linked to the infighting among Pakistan’s numerous media outlets over their view and coverage of the two-month-long anti-government protests, which were led by cricketer turned politician Imran Khan, and a populist Muslim leader Tahir ul-Qadri. l

Cell transplant from nose helps paralysed man walk with frame n Reuters, London

A Bulgarian man who was paralysed from the chest down in a knife attack can now walk with the aid of a frame after receiving pioneering transplant treatment using cells from his nose.

The technique, described as a breakthrough by a study in the journal Cell Transplantation, involved transplanting what are known as olfactory ensheathing cells into the patient’s spinal cord and constructing a “nerve bridge” between two stumps of the damaged spinal column.

They used a nerve bridge constructed between the two stumps of the damage spinal column

Darek Fidyka was completely paralysed from the waist down

BBC

“We believe... this procedure is the breakthrough which, as it is further developed, will result in a historic change in the currently hopeless outlook for people disabled by spinal cord injury,” said Geoffrey Raisman, a professor at University College London’s (UCL) institute of neurology, who led the research.

The 38-year-old patient, Darek Fidyka, was paralysed after suffering stab wounds to his back in 2010. Following 19 months of

treatment, he has recovered some voluntary movement and some sensation in his legs, his medics said.

The Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation, a British-based charity which part-funded the research, said in statement that Fidyka was continuing to improve more than predicted, and was now able to drive and live more independently.

Raisman, a UCL spinal injury specialist, worked with surgeons at Wroclaw University Hospital in Poland to remove one of Fidyka’s olfactory bulbs, which give people their sense of smell, and transplant his olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) and olfactory nerve fibroblasts (ONFs) into the damaged area.

They used a nerve bridge constructed between the two stumps of the damage spinal column, they said in the study.

OECs are a type of cell found in both the peripheral and central nervous system. Together with ONFs, they make bundles of nerve fibres that run from the nasal mucosa to the olfactory bulb, where the sense of smell is located.

When the nerve fibres that carry smell become damaged, they are replaced by new nerve fibres which re-enter the olfactory bulbs, the researchers explained in their study.

OECs help this process by re-opening the surface of the bulbs for the new nerve fibres

to enter -- leading Raisman and his team to believe transplanting OECs into the damaged spinal cord could enable severed nerve fibres to re-grow.

Raisman added that the technique of bridging the spinal cord with nerve grafts from the patient had been used in animal studies for years, but never before in combination with OECs. “The OECs and the ONFs appeared to work together, but the mechanism between their interaction is still unclear,” he said in a statement about the work.

Experts not directly involved in the work said its results offered some new hope, but said more work needed to be done to figure out what had led to this success, and more patients treated, before its potential could be properly assessed.

“While this study is only in one patient, it provides hope of a possible treatment for restoration of some function in individuals with complete spinal cord injury,” said John Sladek, a professor of neurology and paediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in the United States.

Raisman and his team now plan to repeat the treatment technique in between three and five patients over the next three to five years. “This will enable a gradual optimisation of the procedures,” he told Reuters. l

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

CODE-CRACKER

Get serious about road safety

A

committee has been formed to investigate the head-on collision between two passenger buses, which killed over 32 people and injured dozens more, in an accident on the BanparaHatikumrul highway in Baraigram upazila on Monday afternoon.

It is all very well the government promptly promising financial assistance and help to victims and their families, but condolences and compensation are not enough.

The government must take road safety much more seriously.

It is a scandal that authorities do not take more pro-active action to reduce road accidents. Bangladesh has one of the worst rates of death and injury per vehicle distance travelled in the world.

Studies by BUET and the World Bank indicate that the number of deaths each year far exceeds 10,000 lives and is likely to rise much higher if action is not taken.

The main factors behind these grim figures are obvious, as are the solutions, given experience from other countries which have consistently been able to reduce their accident rates.

Clearly many roads are not fit for purpose. Analysis by Brac and the Power and Participation Research Centre of available statistics shows that fatality rates are worst on major highways. Road networks between major centres need to be wider and better built in order to accommodate overtaking vehicles.

Just as important, the fact that despite the lack of safe road space, many vehicles habitually speed and overtake dangerously, is a byproduct of the poor driving habits tolerated in the country.

We must have more effective laws to deter and punish careless and reckless driving.

It is unconscionable that more urgency is not shown to tackle these problems and make the country’s roads safer.

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

Separated colours

October 14 that. Most Bengali Muslims are converts from the native Hindu religion. This heritage, along with the prevailing Bengali culture, gave rise to a much softer version of Islam as practiced in Bangladesh.

Think of the Sufis and Bauls, for instance. Nothing un-Islamic about recognising that Bengali Hindus are indeed our blood brothers. In fact, we should celebrate this, in the spirit the writer has done.

Show more urgency to cut rates of death

Terror has no religion

W

e applaud the prime minister for urging the world community to not confuse Islam with terrorism.

Her remarks at the Asia-Europe Meeting in Milan and her call to control the global arms trade show sound good sense on an issue which is all too often dominated by fear and prejudice.

The world, in spite of moving forward in so many ways, has unfortunately seen a rapid rise in Islamophobia fuelled by fear and ignorance. Recent activities of military groups such as ISIL have, in the minds of many across the world, conflated terrorism with the religion of Islam.

It is imperative that people strive to make it understood that terror is independent of religion, Islam or any other, and must be treated as such.

The fight against terrorism, then, should not be seen as any sort of ideological battle against religion, but should be a mission to curb militancy and violence. One of the ways this can be achieved is through controlling the global arms trade.

Terrorists should be identified by their acts, which are against the interests of civilisation, and the peaceful coexistence of nations.

Terrorist acts, therefore, are not specific to any nation, religion, or ethnicity, but are everyone’s problem.

The world Islamic community also has a role to play in upholding the peaceful and fraternal image of Islam to the world. Religious leaders and scholars must denounce the terroristic activities of groups such as ISIL and distance themselves from it. It is important for us to stand against terror, regardless of religious or ethnic background.

The fight against terrorism should not be seen as any sort of ideological battle against religion

Kmak “I could not comprehend what exactly I had done to offend others’ faiths and beliefs.

“Mother Durga – she is gracious, kind, and powerful. She is everything I want to be.”

You (the author) say you were raised in a Muslim family and yet your role model is Mother Durga as opposed to an Islamic personality. And you wonder why Muslims might find that upsetting.

DTguest Kmak: “You say you were raised in a Muslim family and yet your role model is Mother Durga as opposed to an Islamic personality. And you wonder why Muslims might find that upsetting.”

Again, why is it upsetting?

TheLawMap Being exposed to the foreign and alien does not challenge the believer but reassert his or her own faith. The moral of this story is that you should not have waited for so long to experience something that seems to have been an enriching cultural experience. The more you experience other cultures and share such experiences through social media, the hostility would wane.

Priyadarshi Dutta Hindus may be 8% of the Bangladeshi population, but it is they who are keeping Bangladesh rooted to its heritage. Otherwise, Bangladesh would have been Arabia in another language and by another name.

You feel you wish to be like Durga because Durga represents the native ethos of East Bengal, from whose soil you are born. You might say, like Tagore: “Ami tomari matir kannya, janani basundhara.’”

Richard Parker Priyadarshi Dutta: Quite. Actually, it’s more than

Khaleda: BNP believes in religious harmony October 14

Priyadarshi Dutta Richard Parker: I deliberately ceased from stating the obvious. I don’t wish to remind that Muslims of Bangladesh were Hindus or Buddhists earlier.

They academically know it. Rather, some of them try to dissociate themselves from and deny their past for that reason alone.

Every Muslim of the world knows that he/ she is a descendant of a convert once – a Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, or a Jew. I want Muslims themselves to rediscover that heritage.

Guest777 Priyadarshi Dutta: Like Hinduism in present-day Bangladesh, Islam is also unique here compared to the ones practiced elsewhere. The claim that Hindu people in Bangladesh provide the identity of what really means to be a Bangladeshi is quite a grandiose statement. Convert or migrant, it doesn’t really matter.

Muslims in Bangladesh have their own unique identity and culture (similar to Persians or Turks, who aren’t Arabs). Islamic heritage to Bengali Muslims are as important as their Bengali heritage, and the two are not mutually exclusive.

Hindu people in Bangladesh who think that way should re-think what it means to be a Bangladeshi. kmak Priyadarshi Dutta: So 8% of the population has somehow managed to orient the 92% away from Arabic culture? Yeah, right. Here’s the thing. Salam Alaikum is used by both Muslims and many Hindus as a way of greeting in Bangladesh, not Nomoshkar or some other expression. That alone says a lot.

Pulack Ghatack ”I did not know what was more offending, the snide remarks, or all the unnecessary countless stares.”

DU relaxes requirements for English dept

October 14 Mehran H Chowdhury “According to the new rule, students have to get a minimum of 8 marks in Elective English, which was 15 previously; and 18 in General English instead of 20.”

Oh, how wonderful. The quality of English graduates, which was already stellar, will only improve further!

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 9 represents V so fill V every time the figure 9 appears.

You have two letters in the control grid to start you off. Enter them in the appropriate squares in the main grid, then use your knowledge of words to work out which letters go in the missing squares.

Some letters of the alphabet may not be used.

As you get the letters, fill in 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

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.

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Field diversions (6) 5 Zodiac sign (3) 7 Mechanical man (5) 8 Like better (6) 10 Joke (3) 12 Farm animal (4) 13 Of advanced age (3) 14 In addition (4) 16 Ligament (4) 17 Garden tool (3) 18 Employer (4) 20 High mountain (3) 23 Dress (6) 24 Unaccompanied (5) 25 Secret agent (3) 26 Inclines (6)

DOWN 1 Drinks slowly (4) 2 American state (6) 3 Walk (5) 4 Classify (4) 5 Ship’s record (3) 6 Greek letter (3) 9 Double over (4) 11 Fuel (3) 14 Mail (4) 15 Injury (6) 16 Serpent (3) 17 Inn (5) 18 Prohibits (4) 19 Tidings (4) 21 Scoop up with tongue (3) 22 Thickness (3)

Korean firm gets Padma bridge construction supervision job citizen Good to hear. Now add action to your words.

CALVIN AND HOBBES

October 14 Mohdud Ul Huq Finally headed in the right direction after a lot of political waves.

Robbery inside DMCH despite CCTV surveillance October 14

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

PEANUTS

TheLawMap “DMCH Deputy Director Mushfiqur Rahman, when asked about this, said: ‘We have failed to continuously man the monitors because we have other work to do. Although we wish to appoint someone to man the CCTV system, we have failed because there is no scope to do so,’ he said. About the low-quality picture of the CCTV footage, he said the authorities were working to improve it.”

“Shirajul Islam, officer-in-charge of Shahbagh police station, told the Dhaka Tribune that a general diary had been filed with the police station regarding the mugging and that the police were investigating the matter.”

Judging by the response from the head of the hospital and the police, no action is to be taken?

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

A freedom we can’t handle n Mohammad Ali Sattar

I

Suppressing differences is not the way to go

BIGSTOCK

What true diversity means

I

n Lutfey Siddiqi

n talking about social diversity, it is hard to get away from its two unambitious cousins: Harmony and tolerance.

Both are good. Neither is good enough. The fact is, a diversity-rich society is one where people seek out differences and are capable of engaging in “good conflict.” The antidote to disharmony is literacy in the conduct of conflict. The antidote to intolerance is a proactive mining of diversity.

When I sought to create a centre for “constructive conflict and diversity” earlier this year, I was asked the following questions: Is diversity just a race-and-gender thing? Isn’t harmony better than diversity? Can conflict ever be constructive?

Is diversity just a race-and-gender thing?

Race, gender, and other broad-bucketing of humanity provide us with visual shorthands. The headcount of “ethnic” parliamentarians or female senior executives in a company is a numerical measure for diversity. It is a quantitative proxy – often approached through quotas – that can be tracked over time to measure “growth” in diversity.

However, proxies and shorthand should not obscure the real goal which is plurality of perspectives and abilities “at the level of the individual.” If a member of the minority has to be “homogenised” in order to enter a community, that community does not become any more diverse.

Diversity is a virtue in any ecosystem – whether a team, company, or country. Having lived most of my adult life “as a minority,” this is personal for me. Inclusion and a celebration of differences is something that I’ve taken for granted, whether in my workplace or the immediate society that I live in.

into an absolute imposition of one view over another, and for differences about issues to degenerate into attacks on integrity or identity. As is evident from the comment section of internet posts, arguments become personal in two iterations or less.

If you disagree with me, I will

What is not inevitable, however, is for every conflict to degenerate into an absolute imposition of one view over another

Isn’t harmony better than diversity?

Diversity is valuable in fortifying the resilience of a system only if there is true diversification of style, background, and approach. If a state of harmony is achieved through the suppression of differences and with a polite, superficial tolerance of each other, it defeats the purpose. Not only that, it potentially masks a build-up of tension that might boil over precisely when cohesion is required.

Can conflict ever be constructive?

In a world of differences and in a world with limited resources, conflict is inevitable. What is not inevitable, however, is for every conflict to degenerate

question your motivations instead of trying to understand your reasoning.

If you disagree with me on any one issue, I will make sweeping judgements about your loyalty. In fact, I will make it binary – you’re either with me or against me. If you disagree with me on one issue, I will disagree with you on another issue, just to retaliate.

Our inability to compartmentalise topics of conflict, to isolate the topic from the person or her grouping makes us susceptible to instigation.

We succumb to generalised animosity towards “the other.”

The conduct of constructive conflict can be an acquired skill. It is possible to immunise ourselves from the most

incendiary and viral forms of conflict.

It is possible to train ourselves to seek opportunity in conflict and make ourselves more diversity-literate.

The centre for constructive conflict and diversity is intended to address the emergence of creeping intolerance in previously-tolerant communities.

While actual perpetrators of violence are few and far between, it is the indifference of a silent majority that concerns me most. Our attempts at subtle justification, our choice of words, labels and generalisations – sometimes unwittingly – inflict cumulative harm.

Interventions will take the form of education, active engagement, and affirmation.

For example, the Hunger Project has launched a series of community-based, diversity-focused workshops to reach 60,000 people in 12 months across rural Bangladesh. There is an established tradition of village-based awareness sessions using “animator trainers” for a wide range of topics.

Early childhood development is another point of intervention – either through top-up curriculum in school or the kind of “dignity sessions” popularised by the Global Dignity Movement.

Then there is professional training in private and public sectors. And much more. All ideas welcome. l

t was in the late 90s when I first laid my hands on Salman Rushdie’s infamous book, The Satanic Verses, in London. It gave me shivers in my warm room as I started going through the pages. I could not continue.

Now, we have our very own Salman Rushdie. Abdul Latif Siddique, who kick-started the uncivilised onslaught on the practices of Islam, quite confidently passed scathing remarks on the Tablig, Hajj, and Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). In extension, he spared a few lines for Sajeeb Wazed Joy, dismissing him.

I believe what Latif Siddique spewed out that day in New York about the Prophet, Hajj, and Hajis were well thought-out. It wasn’t a sudden outburst, as the occasion wasn’t religious, nor did anyone deliver a speech on Islam or Hajj.

This was enough to generate the needed electricity to drive people crazy. Did he make the demeaning comments to please the West? Again, why add Joy in his drive to malign all?

He is now binned for his life. One thing is clear – he might not be able to return home anytime soon.

About the same time as Latif’s tirades against Islamic practices, we witness the sudden emergence of older non-believers, including a writer who had to leave Bangladesh for reasons known to all, now making her way into the press with her write-ups being published frequently.

In one of her recent articles, she expresses casually that being an atheist, she is not in favour of Qurbani. She went on to write about her beliefs, and suggested ways to fight the fundamentalists. I wonder how she looks upon the genuine practicing Muslims and followers of other religions.

Let’s not forget that she was driven out of Kolkata by its chief minister on the plea that she was trouble for the state. She now lives in another city in India at the mercy of the government.

Then we have writers suggesting alternatives to slaughtering cows on Eid. One gentleman wrote objectionable statements in discussing Qurbani (sacrifice) and its rationale. He challenged

the practice and beliefs of millions of Muslims.

We have the haughtier, not-so-wellread joining the bandwagon of the so-called secularists, moderates, and self-declared atheists. They speak at their free will against religion and its followers. They have been especially rude with Islam and the Muslims who speak up for their faiths.

Freedom of speech is everyone’s right. We live in an age of democracy.

Open-minded premises should be allowed to accommodate varied ideas and differences on a single plain.

Unity in diversity is something we all want. But freedom of speech and expression should not allow you to say or do things that might hurt others’ values, traditions, sentiments, and faiths.

This is where the line must be drawn. The smart (but ignorant) ones mix up extremism and violence with the regular peaceful teachings of Islam. This they do deliberately. They tend to forget that Islam, or any religion for that matter, is divine, and they have been all planned and ordained by the Almighty.

They cannot harm divine scripts or faith, they are still the minorities.

Stephen Hawking recently declared that there is no God. His book The Grand Design is an interesting deliberation on power, nature, the laws of nature, etc. Hawking profusely quoted ancient, Middle Age, and modern minds and researchers, and claimed that there was, perhaps, no God. But his esteemed philosophers, scientists, astronomers, etc could not give you any answer regarding the “non-existence of God.” Are we good at being open and free and honest at the same time? Don’t we know what the free-thinking souls (mostly the young ones) are doing in the name of freedom, modernism, and friendship? Don’t we hear sadistic stories almost every day? Aren’t we victims of free-mixing environments already? Think hard, friends. Don’t push for a freedom that you know not how to handle or respect. l Mohammad Ali Sattar is a journalist and a DT columnist.

Lutfey Siddiqi is an Adjunct Professor at the National University of Singapore and a member of the Young Global Leaders’ community at the World Economic Forum.

BIGSTOCK

The accidental scientist who changed Bangladesh n Munshi Faiz Ahmad

D

r Munshi Siddique Ahmad is a perfect example of the spirit of the 13th century poem “Wings to Fly.” His deep love of knowledge and natural creativity helped establish him as a hugely successful “acci-

dental” agriculture scientist. He was instrumental in developing the BRRI Shail (BR4), for which there was a dramatic rise in our rice production, raising it to 20 million tonnes in 1975 from a paltry 8 million tonnes in 1965.

In his 37 years of government service, he spent over 30 years in the

WIKIMEDIA

research of rice. Dr Munshi, a pioneer and an organiser, made invaluable and largely unparalleled contributions to the planning and setting up of the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute, developing it into a centre of excellence. Through his research, he succeeded in raising the height of dwarf HYV (high-yielding varieties) rice plants to 125cm and making them significantly more photosensitive.

This development was considered as unusual and a breakthrough by the rice scientists of that period.

From 1957 to 1968, he was involved in the research of rice, wheat, sugarcane, maize, and oilseed throughout various institutions. During his long tenure as the head of the breeding division at BRRI, he was instrumental in developing more than 30 new varieties of HYV rice by drawing up elaborate plans and carefully implementing them. BR3, BR4, BR10, and BR11 were some of the better known of these new HYV rice.

Under his leadership, the breeding division of BRRI received the President’s Award in 1977 and the FAO Bronze Plaque in 1980. Earlier in 1969, Dr Munshi was also awarded

the “Tamgha-e-Pakistan,” which he renounced in March 1971, during the non-cooperation movement. In recognition of his glorious contribution to science and technology, Dr Munshi was conferred the highest state honour, the “Independence Day Award” in 1997.

both home and abroad. Moreover, he was also responsible for submitting at least 30 detailed and analytical reports to the Seed Certification Agency for obtaining their approval for all the new varieties of HYV rice developed under his direct supervision.

At the beginning, I said that Dr

He succeeded in raising the height of dwarf HYV rice plants to 125cm and making them significantly more photosensitive

In addition, he had also received many other national and international awards. Among them, the Bangabandhu Award in 1974, the Begum Jebunsessa and Kazi Mahbubullah Trust Award in 1986, and the title of “Scientist Emeritus” in 1987. More than 20 of his scientific articles were printed by prestigious publications

Munshi was an accidental agriculture scientist, as he wanted to study medicine, but instead of that, fate had dragged him to Agriculture College. He passed ISc in the second division from Rajendra College in Faridpur in 1946.

He came to Dhaka in the same year, but found that he was late for admission in any of the institutions except

Agriculture College under Dhaka University.

When he approached the college, he was told that he was not eligible for studying agriculture science as he had not studied botany in his ISc. Demoralised, Dr Munshi found a ray of hope when the principal of the college, Dr Hedauyetullah, agreed to enroll him conditionally. His enrolment was on condition that he had to learn botany for three months and pass a special test. The accidental scientist got through this test successfully and his enrolment as a BAg student was confirmed.

He passed from the college in 1949, and then passed and completed his MAg from Dhaka University in crop botany in 1956. Subsequently, he obtained his PhD degree in genetics and plant breeding from Texas A&M University in the United States in 1968.

Pious, modest, benevolent, humourous, friendly, and a very warm-hearted person, Dr Munshi, after several years of illness, passed away October 19, 2011. l Munshi Faiz Ahmad is Chairman of BIISS, and former ambassador to China.

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

MOUSHUMI HAMID getting her hands full with films

Miss Congeniality HBO, 5:15pm

n Hasan Mansoor Chatak Moushumi Hamid, who rose to prominence as a model and later as a smallscreen actor, is having a busy time moving from one set to another and acting in feature films. Currently, she is busy with “Purno Doirgho Prem Kahani 2” in which she will be seen alongside Shakib Khan, Jaya Ahsan and Emon.

In the movie, she plays a crazy fan of the captain of Bangladesh national cricket team, played Shakib Khan.

She meets Shakib and quickly hits it off with him. As she becomes increasingly affectionate towards Shakib, she starts stalking him ignoring the fact that the latter is, in fact, in love with another girl, played by Jaya.

About her experience of working with Shakib and Jaya, Moushumi said, “Jaya Ahsan is one of my favourite actors; she is like a role model for me. I could barely contain my excitement when working alongside her. As for Shakib Khan, I was kind of edgy before I met him, but as filming started, he helped me relax and the anxiety slowly subsided. He is very friendly.”

Meanwhile, Moushumi also acted in another film titled “Blackmail,” in which she plays a stubborn girl who won’t take ‘no’ for an answer. In the movie, she as well as her childhood friend simultaneously fall for the same person, played by Anisur Rahman Milon, and eventually the for-

Indian supermodel URVASHI with EMON in item song n Shadma Malik Indian supermodel and ‘Miss Universe India 2012’ Urvashi Rautela will be seen shaking a leg with Emon in an item song titled “Eki Jala Mon Betala” in Swapan Ahmed’s upcoming flick “Porobashinee” (The Girl from Elsewhere).

In this regard, Emon said: “It was a thrilling experience. Urvashi certainly dominated the dance number which was choreographed by Jasmine. The song was sung by Sukanya while Binito did the music arrangement.”

Shedding light on his role in the movie, he said, “I played a spy in the film, and travelled through several countries including India and Europe as part of my job.

“The sequence in which the dance occurs is at a disco club in Mumbai, after I went there for an assignment. Urvashi invited me on stage and we had our time dancing.”

Urvashi Rautela is a model who competed at the third “I AM She pageant” in 2012. She was crowned by Miss Universe (1994) Sushmita Sen on September 21, 2012. Urvashi She starred opposite Sunny Deol in the film “Singh Saab The Great.” Recently, she was featured in Yo Yo Honey Singh’s video album “Lovedose” which released this month.

“Porobashinee” is expected to hit theatres sometime in the middle of next year. l

To prevent a terrorist group from targeting the Miss United States beauty pageant, Sandra Bullock, FBI agent, has to go under cover as a contestant.

Step Up 3D

Movies Now, 7:20pm

A dance extravaganza, this film shows a close group New York street dancers which includes Natalie and Luke forming a team. mer kidnaps him.

In this regard, she said: “The shooting of the film began with an action sequence in which I performed, and I worked with the best fighting director in the industry. I believe the audience will find something different in this film.”

Recently, she has also signed for another flick titled “Black Money,” a directorial venture of Shafi Uddin Shafi, the shooting of which will begin in December.

The actor, known for her natural looks, earlier received accolade for her acting in an independent flick titled “Jalaler Golpo,” which was directed by Abu Shahed Emon. The film received awards and award nominations in several international film festivals. In the movie, Moushumi played three different characters.

She made her Dhallywood debut with the film “Na Manush,” a yet-unreleased directorial venture of Animesh Aich. l

Queen

Sony Max, 2:32pm

Rani, a girl from conservative family, goes on her planned honeymoon trip, alone beginning a journey of self discovery being rejected by her fiance.

Film

Annabelle Into The Storm Hercules 3D Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3D Kistimaat Jack Ryan Blockbuster Cinemas, Ka- 244, Pragati Avenue, Kuril The Expendables 3 How to Train Your Dragon 2 3D The Equalizer Guardians of the Galaxy 3D Kistimat Star Cineplex, Level 8, Bashundhara City 13/3 Ka, Panthopath

Exhibition

The Macabre World

By Subrata Das, Time: 9:30am – 8:00pm EMK Centre, Dhanmondi

n

Solo Painting Exhibition

By Gopal Ghoshe Time: 12pm – 8pm Bengal Shilpalaya, H-42, Rd- 27 (old), Dhanmondi

Inspiration

Handsome the Ultimate Man grand finale today

Time: 3pm – 8pm Drik Gallery, House 58, Road 15A

Entertainment Desk

The grand finale of “Handsome the Ultimate Man (season 2)” will be aired today at 7:30pm on Channel i. The event will see one of the final five contestants, chosen over the months from approximately 300,000 entrants, emerge as “the ultimate man.”

The Final Five, aged between 18 and 30, proved their worth after going through a gruelling elimi-

nation process in which they endured taxing physical challenges and other activities including acting and modelling in Cox’s Bazar and Chittagong.

Among them are Abul Kalam Azad from Bogura, Sadman Sakib from Dhaka, Raihan Riyad Talukder from Maimensing, and Munna Chowdhury from Chittagong.

The show will be telecast live from the Bangabandhu International Conference Center. l

Disney’s new animation Moana n Entertainment Desk Disney has unveiled its new animated movie “Moana” directed by Ron Clements and John Musker, whose previous hits include “The Little Mermaid,” “Aladdin” and “The Princess And The Frog.” “Moana” will be a comedy-adventure about a spirited teenager on an impossible mission to fulfil her ancestors’ quest.

Fashion designer Oscar de la Renta dead at 82 Oscar de la Renta, one of the most sought-after fashion designers of the last half century, dressing American first ladies and Hollywood stars in his classic silhouettes, died on Monday at the age of 82. The fashion designer died complications from cancer.

De la Renta was born to a prominent family in the Dominican Republic and went to Spain to study art, but was drawn to fashion and started working alongside Spanish designer Cristobal Balenciaga.

He made his name in the 1960s dressing one of the major fashion icons of the day, first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, and established his company in New York in 1965.

De la Renta was known as one of the industry’s classic creators, famous for elegantly feminine designs marked by flattering silhouettes with full skirts and cinched waists, often rendered in soft hues and floral patterns.

Most recently, de la Renta made the wedding dress for human rights lawyer Amal Clooney for her marriage in Venice to Hollywood actor and director George Clooney.

De la Renta’s classic looks were popular on Hollywood’s red carpets and particularly well-suited to the tastes of the first ladies at the White House, most of whom were repeat clients. l

John said: “Moana is indomitable, passionate and a dreamer with a unique connection to the ocean itself.

She’s the kind of character we all root for, and we can’t wait to introduce her to audiences.”

Ron added: “John and I have partnered on so many films. However, creating Moana is one of the great thrills of our career. It’s a big adventure set in this beautiful world of Oceania.”

Lifestyle show ‘Rup Kotha’ will be aired today at 9:20pm on Maasranga Television. In the programme, host Tanjin Tisha will talk with actor Anisur Rahman Milon about skincare for men. The actor will suggest ways to look beautiful with minimal or even no makeup, and also discuss the importance of workout and yoga practices

OZZY: Being in a band is dying art n Entertainment Desk Ozzy Osbourne says the rise of technology in music means bands are losing the ability to jam and shape ideas together. And the Black Sabbath icon – who’s the subject of a free TeamRock iPad supplement – has first-hand experience of the phenomenon.

Ozzy tells Noisey.com: “The computer age is taking over and there’s a lot of trickery. I’ve actually seen guys in bands. You go, ‘Do you want to jam?’ and they go, ‘Jam? What’s that?’ Just playing anything together. They can’t do it. ‘I’ll have to consult my computer first.’ The art of being in a band is dying.”

The singer says he’s always proud when another musician is influenced by Sabbath – and he doesn’t just mean by the music.

“Metal has never had any rules. If you want me to do something, tell me not to. I’ve never played by any rules. My sole concern is to get on that stage and give the audience a great day out. I want to give my heart and soul when I play, and that’s God’s honest truth.” l

ALIA BHATT’s viral short film on women’s safety n Entertainment Desk Vikas Bahl, the director of the superhit Bollywood film “Queen” has created a short film titled “Going Home” starring Alia Bhatt, in association with fashion magazine Vogue.

The video talks about women’s safety and questions if society can give women the perfect world they believe exists.

Alia Bhatt is shown driving alone on a deserted road at night when her car breaks down.

An SUV with five men stops by and you would imagine the next scene would show another crime against a woman, but the men help her repair the car. They exchange glances on seeing the girl alone but drop her home safely in the end. l

Set in the ancient South Pacific world of Oceania, Moana sets sail in search of a fabled island. During her incredible journey, she teams up with her hero, the legendary demi-god Maui, on an action-packed voyage, encountering enormous sea creatures, incredible underworlds and ancient folklore.

The film is due to hit cinemas in 2016. l

Did you know?

Marouane Fellaini’s goal against West Brom came just 2:35s after coming on for Man Utd; the 2nd fastest goal by a sub in the EPL this season

Sport

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

14 Madrid’s trip to

Anfield tops bill

15 7 new records in

DHAKA TRIBUNE

13

15 Proteas cruise to

Nat’l Swimming

win over Kiwis

Shamsur, Shuvagata help BCB XI take 11-run lead n Mazhar Uddin

Bangladesh Cricket Board XI opener Shamsur Rahman plays a drive as Zimbabwe wicket-keeper Richmond Mutumbami looks on during the second day’s play of the three-day practice game at Fatullah yesterday MUMIT M

ICC, BCB, Acsu against Ashraful n Minhaz Uddin Khan The International Cricket Council (ICC), the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the ICC’s anti-corruption and security unit (Acsu) have jointly appealed against the decision of the BCB’s Disciplinary Panel which allows Mohammad Ashraful to be eligible for selection from 2016 onwards.

The organisations have also appealed against the decision of the BPL’s anti-corruption tribunal of acquitting five individuals who were accused of corruption in Bangladesh Premier League 2, but no proper evidence saw the tribunal rule out the allegations. The five individuals are Dhaka Gladiators CEO Gaurav Rawat, bowling coach Mohammad Rafique, players Mosharraf Rubel, Mahbubul Alam and Darren Stevens.

Ashraful saw his eight-year ban getting reduced to five by the BCB’s dis-

ciplinary panel after appealing to the disciplinary panel chief, Justice Mohammad Abdur Rashid, in July.

However, the ICC and BCB are not happy with the decision and opted to appeal the issue to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne.

BCB CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury confirmed that the appeal was made and according to sources within the board, the ICC and BCB firmly believe that Ashraful along with the others were involved with corruption in the game and they should receive the highest punishment, in other words a long-term ban.

According to the verdict of the BCB disciplinary panel, the five-year ban on Ashraful was dated from August 13, 2013.

With the last two years lifted subject to his participation in a BCB or ICC anti-corruption education and training programme, Ashraful would have been eligible to return to cricket on August 13, 2016. l

Half-centuries from Shamsur Rahman and Shuvagata Hom guided the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) XI to a lead of 11 runs by the close of the second day’s play in the lone three-day warm-up game against Zimbabwe at Fatullah yesterday. BCB XI ended the day on 252/6 replying to the visitors’ first innings tally of 241 all out.

The home side resumed the penultimate day’s play on 11 for the loss of opener Shadman Islam’s (nought) wicket. The overnight batsmen, Shamsur and Rony Talukder, played sensibly and added 93 runs for the second wicket before the latter was dismissed by leg-spinner Tafadzwa Kamungozi after scoring 46 off 81 balls.

Shamsur, however, continued from the other end and executed some brilliant strokes on way to his fifty. Alongside Marshal Ayub, the third-wicket pair added 48 runs.

Another leg-spinner, Natsai M’shangwe, soon accounted for Shamsur’s wicket but not before the opener scored a well-made 69 off 158 deliveries with the help of nine fours and a six.

M’shangwe went on with his wicket-taking spree dismissing Marshal (31), BCB XI skipper Naeem Islam (two) and Asif Ahmed (23) as he provided some sort of momentum to the visitors.

Shuvagata (53 not out) and Taibur Rahman (15 not out) though steadied the ship and added an undefeated 36 runs for the unbroken seventh wicket stand.

Shuvagata displayed admirable patience during his unbeaten knock but did smash seven boundaries in his 124ball innings.

DAY 2 Zimbabwe 241 all out in 76.2 overs Bangladesh 252/6 in 85 overs (Shamsur 69, Shuvagata 53 not out, M’shangwe 4/98) Meanwhile, following the conclusion of the day’s play, Zimbabwe coach Stephen Mangongo informed that they will rely heavily on their pacemen as they are missing the services of two of their most experienced spinners - Raymond Price and Prosper Utseya. Price has retired from international cricket while Utseya was suspended by the ICC recently owing to an illegal bowling action.

“Normally in Zimbabwe we rely on our faster bowlers but we took a few young spinners. You know Raymond Price and Prosper Utseya, they are not playing so we have young spinners. We are relying on our faster bowlers so that the young spinners can come through,” said Mangongo. l

Mominul not thinking about past n Minhaz Uddin Khan Bangladesh batsman Mominul Haque believes good results in the forthcoming home series against Zimbabwe will allow the hosts to overcome the bad patch that they have experienced this year. The left-handed batsman, considered one of the most in-form players of Bangladesh at a time when most of his teammates have been desperately struggling, informed that they are not fretting too much about the past.

“I think in order to fetch good results we should not think of the past rather focus on the upcoming games,” Mominul told the media at Sher-eBangla National Stadium yesterday.

“We have eight games (three Tests and five ODIs) in this series. This means we have some decent opportunities to make our things right and go for positive results,” he added.

With a creditable Test average of 62.64 in nine matches including three centuries and five half-centuries

under his belt, all eyes will undoubtedly be focussed on the diminutive lefthander to perform for the home side. The 23-year old, however, is not perturbed with the pressure heaped upon him.

“It is a very simple thing to be honest. You will feel the pressure if you consider it as pressure. But I think otherwise. I have no option than to perform let it be Tests or ODIs, considering the situation of our team,” explained Mominul referring to Bangladesh’s dismal record this year.

The Tigers have been beaten in three out of four Tests while in one-day internationals, they have conceded defeats in 12 out of 13 matches.

“It is a normal thing for everyone to start expecting from you when you are delivering consistently and this is not a wrong thing to do. This is not pressure or a challenge for me. Rather I see it as my responsibility to perform for the team. My job is to play the way I have been playing and do more than what I have done in the past,” he said.

The last time Bangladesh met Zimbabwe was last year in April.

Despite drawing the two-match Test series in Zimbabwe, Bangladesh will not have fond memories as they lost the first Test by a whopping margin of 335 runs. This is the first time in nine years, however, that Bangladesh will host Zimbabwe in a Test series. In those two Test matches, Bangladesh recorded their maiden series win since their inception in Test cricket in 2000.

Mominul said they will take motivation from that Test series win in 2005.

“I believe the team are motivated positively and are looking to take one game at a time. We have the option to boost ourselves taking into account the last home series that we played against them,” said the lad from the coastal town of Cox’s Bazar. l Anamul Haque (L) and Mominul Haque head towards the dressing room after a practice session at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

Bangladesh, Sri Lanka brimming Iran stroll past Jordan, India beat UAE n with confidence before friendlies Raihan Mahmood

n Shishir Hoque The two-match SS Steel International Friendly Series between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka kicks off on Friday as the home side are brimming with confidence and believe they can win both matches.

The hosts, however, will be guided by interim coach Saiful Bari Titu, after the Bangladesh Football Federation ended terms with regular coach Lodewijk de Kruif a couple of days ago.

Titu informed that he would adopt a playing style similar to what the Dutchman had taught.

“The main objective of arranging friendlies is to keep the national team in shape and increase the understanding among the players,” said Titu at a press conference at the BFF House yesterday. “He (Kruif) worked with his philosophy for the last one and a half years. I will not change the style he instilled overnight and continue with 4-3-3 formation which was the preferred system he used,” he added.

A 23-man squad for the friendlies consist four new faces – Yousuf Sifat, Fahad, Topu Barman and Rasel Mahmud Liton – who impressed for the U-23s while defender Atiqur Rahman Meshu is out with injury.

Titu ended on the losing side when he last guided Bangladesh against Sri

Lanka in the AFC Challenge Cup in 2010, but the veteran coach does not see the upcoming matches as his revenge mission rather he wants to concentrate on the development of the team.

“Four years is a long time. Many changes have come since we lost against them,” he said. “Now we know very little about them since they haven’t played a lot recently. I think there are many young players in the team.

“Sri Lanka are a close opponent for us. We can point out our weaknesses through these matches and make ourselves better as a team by working on them,” he continued.

Bangladesh captain Mamunul Islam, who returned from Indian Super League side Atletico de Kolkata and joined the squad for the friendlies yesterday, believes the matches will work as a preparation for the next Saff Championship.

“Our next target is Saff Championship and we already started our preparation. The team is in a good shape and we will try to perform our best and play to win,” said the Sheikh Jamal DC midfielder.

On the other hand, Sri Lanka arrived in Dhaka on the back of a contrasting two-match series against Seychelles where they won one and lost the other. The Islanders’ Serbian coach Nikola

Kavazovic, who will face a South Asian opponent for the first time in Jessore, believes they have done their homework and look forward to beat the hosts in both matches.

“The training sessions were only tactical. We analysed every single player of Bangladesh to show my players where Bangladesh can trouble us and how we can create trouble for them,” said the 39-year-old who took charge of Sri Lanka on July 3.

“I do believe we can win both games, not only one,” he continued.

“Bangladesh are favourites for only one reason - they are playing at home. I expect a full stadium because I want my players to feel the pressure and have that experience.” Sri Lanka captain Sanjeewa informed they have only four players who previously faced Bangladesh while the rest are all newcomers.

SS Steel is the title sponsor of the series while Walton and Amber Group are the co-sponsors. Major Nurul Amin, deputy general manager, HR & Admin, SS Steel was present during the ceremony where BFF revealed the details.

On a brighter note, BFF general secretary Abu Nayeem Shohag informed that tickets of the first game at Jessore Stadium which has a capacity of 11,000 spectators are almost sold out as they initially planned to sell 15,000 tickets.l

Iran staged a clinical performance to overpower Jordan 6-1 and top Group B of the AFC U-16 Women’s Championship Qualifiers at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.

The significant win meant Iran are on the threshold of qualifying for the final round as a draw against Bangladesh in their last game will be enough to see them go through. They have a goal difference of 14+ which means Bangladesh

have to beat Iran 9-0 to upset the contenders. However, if Bangladesh upset Iran 1-0 and India beat Jordan 3-0, then India will progress ahead of Iran. All the equations will be cleared tomorrow with the last match of the tournament between Bangladesh and Iran.

Iran fielded an attacking team with all the three of their Fatemeh’s – Geraeli, Ghasemi and Husseini operating upfront as Geraeli and Ghashemi slammed hat-tricks to maintain their winning spree. Jordan also produced splash of onslaughts but it was not enough to stop the blazing Iranians.

Iran (L) and Jordan in action during the AFC Under-16 Women’s Championship 2015 Qualifiers at Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday MUMIT M

Iran took the lead in the 22nd minute with skipper Geraeli scoring a superb goal with a looping shot from 30 yards out.

The lead was doubled in the 39th minute

by Geraeli when she flicked a free kick of Mamshad Amiri in the far post. Ghasemi added the third in the 42nd minute when she dashed past the Jordanian defence before netting from the far post. Jordanian midfielder Noor Mahmoud Rajab Zooash’s curved free kick in the injury time of the first-half reduced the margin as the ball dropped in the middle of the Iranian danger area and deceived goalkeeper Hengameh Sefati to enter the post.

Seven minutes after the break Geraeli completed her hat-trick with a chip over Jordanian goalkeeper Rand Naser Salem.

The dominating performance saw Ghasemi score two more goals in the 83rd and 84th minutes to complete the rout.

Earlier at the same venue, India registered the biggest margin of the tournament as they thrashed UAE 12-0.

Forward Roja Devi slammed four goals in the 24th, 69th, 75th and 92nd minutes while substitute forward Anushka Samuels matched her by netting four goals herself in the 72nd, 76th, 80th and 82nd minutes. Sushmita Bardhan scored a brace in the 4th and 57th minutes while the other two were scored by Premi Chiru (7th minute) and Jabamanu Tudu (67th minute) respectively. UAE ended their U-16 mission conceding 35 goals in four matches.l

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Madrid’s trip to Anfield tops bill n AFP, Paris The meeting of Liverpool and Real Madrid, who have 15 European Cups between them, is the pick of the games on Wednesday in the Champions League. AFP Sports looks at all the fixtures in Groups A, B, C and D:

Atletico Madrid V Malmo

In a finely-poised Group A, Spanish champions Atletico can ill afford a slipup against Malmo at the Vicente Calderon. “It is a very important match to maintain a strong position in the group.

Nothing else matters to us just now,” said Atletico midfielder Mario Suarez, who scored in Sunday’s 2-0 win against Espanyol in La Liga.

Diego Simeone’s side, runners-up last season, lost at Olympiakos in matchday one but recovered to beat Juventus at home last time out. Midfielder Tiago Mendes, who also scored against Espanyol, is a doubt for the visit of Malmo, who are buoyant after securing a second straight Swedish title earlier this month and boosted their prospects in the group by beating Olympiakos 2-0 at home three weeks ago with a brace from former Racing Santander striker Markus Rosenberg.

Olympiakos V Juventus

Real Madrid forwards Cristiano Ronaldo (R) and Javier Harnendaze arrives in Liverpool on Tuesday before their Champions League match INTERNET

Juventus have been plagued by an inability to transfer their superb domestic form in recent times onto the European stage and a 1-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid in their last outing means there is pressure on Massimiliano Allegri’s side before their trip to Greece. The Turin giants remain top of Serie A despite being held to a 1-1 draw at Sassuolo at

the weekend and won 7-0 when they last met Olympiakos in the group stage 10 years ago.

Ludogorets Razgrad V Basel

A rousing 1-0 win against Liverpool at the St Jakob-Park three weeks ago boosted Basel’s prospects of progressing to the last 16 from Group B ahead of a double-header against Bulgarian side Ludogorets Razgrad. The Swiss champions, who will again be without suspended Chilean midfielder Marcelo Diaz, head to Sofia fresh from winning 1-0 at Young Boys at the weekend.

Ludogorets -- forced to play 350 kilometres from Razgrad at the national stadium because their own ground is not deemed suitable -- are still looking for a first point in their debut groupstage campaign after running Liverpool and Real Madrid close.

Liverpool V Real Madrid

Liverpool and Real Madrid, who have won a remarkable 15 European Cups between them, clash at Anfield with the Reds looking to maintain their perfect record against the Spanish giants. Liverpool beat Madrid 1-0 in the 1981 final and then triumphed 5-0 on aggregate in the group stage in 2008-09.

Brendan Rodgers’s side are under pressure to perform after a lame 1-0 defeat at Basel last time out, but they will need to defend better than they did in beating Queens Park Rangers 3-2 in the Premier League on Sunday. Madrid head to England on a run of seven consecutive wins, having scored 32 goals in that time. Nevertheless, Carlo Ancelotti’s side will be without the injured Gareth Bale and could be distracted by the impending Clasico against Barcelona on Saturday.

Bayer Leverkusen V Zenit

Zenit head to Germany to face Bayer Leverkusen in Group C looking to extend a 16-match unbeaten run in all competitions. However, the Russian Premier League leaders have drawn their last three games, including a frustrating goalless stalemate with Monaco three weeks ago and a 2-2 draw with Krasnodar at the weekend.

In contrast, Leverkusen threw away a three-goal half-time lead to draw 3-3 at Stuttgart on Saturday, a result that left Roger Schmidt’s men sixth in the Bundesliga. The 2002 beaten finalists, who beat Benfica in their last Group C outing, are without Gonzalo Castro, Sebastian Boenisch and captain Simon Rolfes due to injury.

Monaco V Benfica

Monaco meet Portuguese opposition for the first time since their 3-0 defeat to Porto in the 2004 final when they host Benfica at the Stade Louis II. The principality club are top of Group C, having beaten Leverkusen 1-0 at home before a creditable 0-0 draw at Zenit, while Benfica are yet to register a point.

The game will carry added significance for Monaco’s Portuguese coach Leonardo Jardim, who coached Sporting to second place in the Portuguese top flight last season behind their great city rivals Benfica. Monaco -- whose squad contains Portuguese internationals Ricardo Carvalho and Joao Moutinho and Benfica loanee Bernardo Silva -- have had a slow start to this season but have lost only one of their last seven matches.

Anderlecht V Arsenal

Arsenal make the short trip to Brussels to face Anderlecht bidding to record a morale-boosting win after seeing their

stuttering recent form continue at the weekend. The Gunners required a last-minute Danny Welbeck equaliser to draw 2-2 with Hull City on Saturday, a result that means they have won just twice in nine games in all competitions. However, a double-header against the Belgian champions will give them a chance to build on a convincing 4-1 win against Galatasaray in their last group game.

Arsene Wenger will be without suspended goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny after his sending-off against the Turks, but the return to fitness of Theo Walcott and Aaron Ramsey provides welcome good news. Besnik Hasi’s home side are top of their domestic league but a 3-0 home loss to Borussia Dortmund in their last Group D outing was the latest example of their difficulties in adapting to the higher demands of the Champions League.

Galatasaray V Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund have been outstanding in the Champions League in the last couple of years and their coach Jurgen Klopp will be looking for a rousing performance away to Galatasaray at a time when they are enduring a miserable sequence of results in the Bundesliga. A 2-1 loss at Cologne on Saturday was their third in a row domestically and five games without a win have left them 14th in the table. However, in Europe they have already beaten Arsenal (2-0) and Anderlecht (3-0) and the return to fitness of Marco Reus, Ilkay Gundogan and Henrikh Mkhitaryan means their injury worries are easing.

Galatasaray are traditionally strong at home in Europe and are buoyant after beating Istanbul rivals Fenerbahce 2-1 at the weekend thanks to two Wesley Sneijder stunners but have just one point so far in Group D. l

5 talking points from Manchester United v West Bromwich Albion United remain miles off level required for tilt at the title

Victory here would have catapulted United into the title reckoning, according to Louis van Gaal. This flaccid performance not only made even the briefest mention of finishing top look hugely premature but a look at the fixture list – Chelsea and Manchester City are up next – means such talk should not be uttered for a long time to come.

If their defensive frailties are easily highlighted by perceived lesser players then the likes of Diego Costa and Sergio Agüero must relish the thought of the chances which could fall their way.

Irvine turning The Hawthorns into a minor fortress

Manchester United have always enjoyed going to The Hawthorns but West Bromwich Albion have become a far more imposing proposition in front of their own fans this season under Alan Irvine. They drew nine times at home in the previous Premier League campaign but there was something different

about last night. This was an assured performance by Albion, one which exuded confidence. The 30-year wait for a victory over United at The Hawthorns goes on but positives could be taken despite Daley Blind’s late equaliser.

Fellaini displays his strengths to galvanise initial fightback

It would be wrong to proclaim this as the night Marouane Fellaini finally arrived for United, but it was unquestionably his most positive performance for the club. In the first half Van Gaal engaged in a frank exchange with the Belgian on the bench, like a headteacher telling off a misbehaving pupil. Whatever was said had the desired effect on him initially. For a side shorn of physicality, Fellaini’s 1.94m frame was a welcome tonic.

Berahino brilliant but Albion’s star man was Sessègnon

Praise has justifiably been heaped on Saido Berahino this season – and if he keeps performing to this standard it will

Wilshere excited

by Walcott return n Reuters, London England international Theo Walcott’s imminent return cannot come soon enough for Arsenal team mate Jack Wilshere.

Walcott needed surgery after rupturing knee ligaments against Tottenham Hotspur in January but his rehabilitation is almost complete and England midfielder Wilshere believes the winger’s comeback will spark the north London club’s season.

“I’ve never played with someone before who times their runs so perfectly and keeps doing it, time after time,” Wilshere told Arsenal’s website (www. arsenal.com) on Monday.

“He gives us something different, he gives us pace. I know we’ve got Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who gives us pace but Theo gives you something different without the ball.

“It’s a dream for a midfielder.”

With Arsenal short on firepower and languishing 11 points behind Premier League leaders Chelsea after eight games, Walcott’s return will be a major boost.

Especially as Wilshere believes he has returned from injury as an even speedier player.

“He’s got physically stronger and he looks quicker than he did before, that

might seem impossible but he does,” Wilshere said. “He’s done a lot of work on his quads and his power so he’s going to come back fine.” l

Arsenal striker Theo Walcott attends training at their London Colney facility in Hertfordshire yesterday AFP

only be a matter of time before he departs to one of the big hitters. However, it is also time for Stéphane Sessègnon’s growing influence to be flagged up.

The delightful finish for the opening goal aside, his subtle link-up play was a delight to watch. All Sessègnon needs is a touch more consistency and Albion should enjoy a season comfortably ensconced in mid-table, away from any threat of a relegation fight.

Questions raised over Shaw’s flaky positioning sense

Luke Shaw may forever be judged by his £27m price tag but he will have done himself no favours with a performance which, at times, bordered on awful. Not only was he sold softly by Graham Dorrans on the halfway line for Sessègnon’s goal, he was also continuously caught out of position, allowing both Albion players in behind too often. Ángel di María, for all his attacking ability, will never provide much protection but Shaw often got the basics wrong. His wayward crossing also posed further questions. l

Manchester United midfielder Daley Blind (C) celebrates scoring the equalising goal during their English Premier League match against West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns in West Bromwich, central England on Monday AFP

Van Gaal still believes United can win title

Historic Indian club suspends games amid cash crunch n AFP, New Delhi n AFP, West Bromwich Even as the glitzy Indian Super League grabs the spotlight, a 123-year-old football club in Kolkata has opted out of national tournaments this season due to a financial crisis.

“We don’t have sponsors to support our team,” Mohammadan Sporting president Sultan Ahmed told AFP by phone from Kolkata. “Our first priority is to bring in some money for the club.”

Sporting, which was founded in 1891, remains one of football-mad Kolkata’s three big clubs alongside Mohun Bagan and East Bengal and is a regular fixture on the national scene.

Sporting will not defend its title in the Durand Cup inter-club tournament this year or take part in the I-League where it was relegated to second division last year, Ahmed said.

“But please don’t believe reports that we are shutting down for ever,” he added. “We will use this time to find sponsors, improve our infrastructure and get ready for next season.”

Ahmed, a former government minister, said there were efforts to help his players and coaching staff secure temporary contracts with other teams. “I hope they get a chance to play on,” he said.

There was no official comment from the All-India Football Federation on Sporting’s decision to stay away this year. l

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal insists they can still overhaul Premier League leaders Chelsea despite there being a 10-point gap between the two sides.

Van Gaal’s team’s 2-2 draw at West Brom on Monday has left them further in need of a positive result against Jose Mourinho’s side on Sunday.

It promises to be the biggest test of the Dutchman’s Old Trafford reign yet with United still to have faced any of last season’s top four.

But the former Netherlands and Barcelona coach remains relaxed and claimed his team’s title hopes are not over just yet.

“That’s possible but difficult to say because then I am arrogant,” he said.

“But I have done it a lot of times.”

Van Gaal insisted his team’s failure to defeat West Brom did not mean their prospects against the unbeaten leaders should be dismissed.

“Now we have to play Chelsea, but you cannot compare West Bromwich Albion with great respect,” he said.

“I think Chelsea and (second placed) Man City are another level. We have to see if we can beat them.

“I am already thinking it starts with the offensive and also how the attackers are defending. You could see that in

EPL POINTS TABLE Team Name 1 Chelsea 2 Man City 3 Southampton 4 West Ham 5 Liverpool 6 Man United 7 Arsenal 8 Swansea City 9 Tottenham 10 Stoke City 11 Hull City 12 Aston Villa 13 Everton 14 West Brom 15 Leicester 16 Crystal Palace 17 Sunderland 18 Newcastle 19 Burnley 20 QPR

P 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8

W 7 5 5 4 4 3 2 3 3 3 2 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 0 1

D 1 2 1 1 1 3 5 2 2 2 4 1 3 3 3 2 5 4 4 1

L GD 8 15 8 10 5 14 11 4 12 1 12 3 11 2 10 1 11 -1 9 -1 13 0 12 -8 16 0 11 -1 13 -2 14 -3 15 -7 14 -6 13 -9 18 -12

Pts 22 17 16 13 13 12 11 11 11 11 10 10 9 9 9 8 8 7 4 4

their (West Brom) first goal.”

Van Gaal rejected suggestions United should sacrifice flair for solidity.

“I don’t think that is the solution,” said the 63-year-old. I get asked this question a lot. You are right, today two errors, also in the past because I think we could have 8 points more.

“I think also football is made to be attractive for the fans and I think all of them enjoyed this as it was a great game.” l

Mourinho wants more dialogue with int’l managers n Reuters, London Confronted with a growing injury list, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho spoke on Monday of his frustration at a lack of communication with international managers who send his players back injured.

Striker Diego Costa, who has been suffering with a hamstring injury in recent weeks, played in both of Spain’s recent Euro 2016 qualifiers but was ruled out of his club’s 2-1 Premier League win at Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Mourinho believes international managers should have more dialogue with the club sides.

“Out of all the national teams I’ve only had one phone call - from (England’s) Roy Hodgson,” the Portuguese told a news conference.

“He was the only manager to make personal contact with me. We have a correct relationship. It hurts when you give the players in good condition and they come back in bad condition,” added Mourinho.

“When I was manager at Real Madrid with Luka Modric, I used to get three phone calls a week from (Croatia coach] Igor Stimac. If I become an international manager, hopefully in 20 years, I will have good conditions to be good to the clubs.

“This is the situation and it hurts but there is nothing we can do about it.” l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

Seven new records in National Swimming n Shishir Hoque

Al Amin positive over bowling test n Mazhar Uddin Bangladesh paceman Al Amin Hossain is confident of a positive outcome following his return from the Sri Ramachandra University in Porur, Chennai yesterday after he appeared for a bowling test on his suspect bowling action.

“I bowled five overs in the bowling action test just like I bowl in match situations. The officials present there informed me that they have accepted my test. I am confident and hoping for a positive result,” said Al Amin.

Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) game development manager Nazmul Abedin Fahim accompanied the pacer to Chennai but was not allowed to enter the accredited facility. The result of Al Amin’s bowling test is likely to be given within 15 days. Keeping that in mind, the BCB named him in the 14-man squad for the first Test against Zimbabwe on October 25.

Al-Amin was reported by the International Cricket Council for a suspect bowling action after the conclusion of the first Test against the West Indies recently. He is the second Bangladeshi bowler to be reported for an illegal bowling action after off-spinner Sohag Gazi, who has already been suspended following his bowling test which took place in Cardiff.

The pace bowler was earlier scheduled to give his bowling test in Leicestershire, England on October 3 but was forced to postpone the test due to his side strain injury. l

Hockey team eye India tour n Raihan Mahmood Bangladesh Under-21 hockey team are planning to play eight practice matches in India ahead of the AHF U-21 Hockey Qualifiers scheduled to be held in Dhaka from November 30.

Depending upon the availability of visa and sponsor the team are intending to tour India in the first week of next month and stay in Punjab where the practice matches will be arranged.

Coach Mamunur has started the camp with 33 players and said, “Before the tour the team will be trimmed to 25.”

“I am working on the defence, in my eyes the defence requires a lot of attention. If we can play eight matches in Punjab the boys will realise their weaknesses and the technical loopholes,” said the former star defender.

Bangladesh will be playing against Oman, Chinese Taipei, Sri Lanka and Thailand in the eight-day AHF U-21 tournament. l

Seven new national records were created in the second day of the RMM Group 27th National Swimming Championship at the Goplaganj Swimming Complex yesterday but the number of records raised questions over the clarity of the events.

After three records in the opening day, the total number of new records set in the first two days is now 10.

Seven national records out of a total of 10 events in a day looked unreal because of the performance of the Bangladesh swimmers in recent times. The

whole discipline was even cut off from the contingent of the 17th Incheon Asian Games after the swimmers’ poor displays in the Commonwealth Games

After three records in the opening day, the total number of new records set in the first two days is now 10 in Glasgow. The events are being conducted by hand-timing.

“There could be some difference between electronic-timing and hand-tim-

Pakistan hope to end a 20-year drought against Australia when they meet in the first of two Tests in Dubai from Wednesday but they are hobbled by the absence of spin king Saeed Ajmal.

Ajmal, who has been suspended due to an illegal bowling action, has single-handedly ruled the dry and slow tracks of Pakistan’s neutral venues in the United Arab Emirates, especially at Dubai where he has 37 wickets in six Tests, three of which Pakistan won.

DAY’S WATCH Ten Cricket 12:00PM Pakistan v Australia 1st Test Day 1 UEFA Champions League

Ten Sports 12:45AM Anderlecht v Arsenal

Ten Action 12:45AM Liverpool v Real Madrid

Ten HD 12:45AM Olympiacos v Juventus

ing but it is very little,” explained Bangladesh Swimming Federation’s joint secretary Amirul Islam yesterday. “I have not been in Gopalganj due to personal reasons. I can explain elaborately when I get there,” he added.

However, the federation’s general secretary Rafizuddin claimed that the records are the output of the new committee’s positive approach.

Meanwhile, Mahfizur Rahman Sagar set another record yesterday in the men’s 50m freestyle event while Sonia Akter Tumpa broke two new records in the women’s 100m butterfly and 200m personal medley. l

Pistorius: Timeline of tragedy February 14, 2013

News breaks around 8am on Valentine’s Day: Pistorius has shot and killed his girlfriend, claiming he mistook her for a robber. Police later confirm they have arrested Pistorius and recovered a 9mm pistol.

February 15

After spending the night behind bars, Pistorius appears in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court.

February 17

Pistorius’s agent, Peet van Zyl, says all future races Pistorius is contracted to compete in have been cancelled.

February 19

Reeva Steenkamp’s funeral is held in Port Elizabeth. Pistorius appears in court on the first day of a bail hearing.

February 22

Magistrate Desmond Nair grants Pistorius R1 million bail. Conditions include that Pistorius surrender his passport and any weapons in his possession.

March 28

Pistorius’s bail restrictions are eased by the High Court in Pretoria, allowing him to leave South Africa if he wants to compete internationally.

August 19

The day on which Steenkamp would have turned 30, Pistorius appears in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court before magistrate Desmond Nair to have the State’s indictment served on him. He is charged with premeditated murder and violation of the Firearms Control Act.

March 3

Trial starts in the High Court in Pretoria where Pistorius pleaded not guilty.

March 25

The participating women swimmers of the RMM Group 27th National Swimming Championship pose for a photograph at the Goplaganj Swimming Complex yesterday COURTESY

The State closes its case after calling 21 of the 107 witnesses on its witness list.

Reeva Steenkamp (L) and Oscar Pistorius

July 8

Judge Thokozile Masipa rules that no heads of argument could be published in print or electronic media until the commencement of the arguments in court.

July 12

Pistorius and Johannesburg businessman Jared Mortimer are reportedly involved in a nightclub brawl in Sandton.

July 30

The State files its final arguments.

August 4

The defence files its final arguments.

August 7 and 8

The State and defence present their closing arguments and both Pistorius and Steenkamp’s fathers made a debut appearance at the trial.

August 10

Pistorius takes to twitter again.

Tweets: “Lord, I know you have a plan for each & everyone that is struggling, please give them peace and help them to believe.”

September 12

Judge Thokozile Masipa finds Pistorius guilty of culpable homicide and of firing a shot from his friend Darren Fresco’s Glock pistol under a table at Tasha’s restaurant in Johannesburg in January 2013.

October 21

Masipa to hand down Pistorius’s sentence. l

West Indies in trouble as India suspend future tours

Proteas cruise to win over Kiwis

n Reuters, New Delhi

South Africa cruised to a six-wicket win over New Zealand in the first one-day international at Mount Maunganui on Tuesday, guided home by a captain’s knock from AB de Villiers.

The Proteas ended their run chase at 236-4 in 48.1 overs, easily overhauling the 231 target New Zealand set after losing the toss and being sent in to bat.

De Villiers top-scored for South Africa with 89, ably supported by JP Duminy (58), who combined with his skipper for a 139-run partnership when the Proteas were looking wobbly at 97-4.

Wicketkeeper Luke Ronchi’s gritty 99 was the standout performance for the Black Caps but he had little support apart from unlikely strike partner Trent Boult, with whom he set a New Zealand record 10th-wicket stand of 74.

The three-match series is essentially a World Cup warm-up for both sides as New Zealand prepares to co-host the tournament next year.

However, South Africa could also

West Indies cricket was plunged into a major crisis on Tuesday after India, the world’s richest board, suspended all future tours with them following the Caribbean team’s abrupt withdrawal from a series in India last week.

The mighty BCCI also decided to take legal action against the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) after the tourists abandoned the series on Friday over a protracted payment dispute between the players and their board.

They still had a one-dayer, a Twenty20 international and three test matches left to play.

“BCCI will initiate legal proceedings against West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) due to the abrupt cancellation of this tour,” Indian cricket board secretary Sanjay Patel said in a statement.

“All bilateral tours between BCCI and WICB stand suspended,” he added

after the board’s working committee meeting in Hyderabad on Tuesday.

To fill the void, the BCCI swiftly arranged a five-match one-day series with Sri Lanka next month but was not ready to take the estimated $65 million loss lying down even though WICB apologised for the team’s sudden withdrawal.

“The members appreciated the gesture of the Sri Lankan Cricket Board for having accepted our request...at such a short notice,” Patel said.

For the sponsorship and TV revenue it generates, a series against India represents a jackpot for financially weaker boards like the WICB and India were expected to make four trips to the West Indies in the next eight years.

The BCCI secretary told Reuters on Saturday they would also seek intervention of the International Cricket Committee (ICC) - headed by Indian industrialist Narayanaswami Srinivasan - into the matter. l

Pakistan seek to end Australia drought n AFP, Dubai

15

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

That includes 24 wickets in a 3-0 rout of England in 2012.

Pakistan have also lost frontline seamers Junaid Khan and Wahab Riaz - both through knee injuries - and have to rely on uncapped leg-spinner Yasir Shah and two-Test left-armer Zulfiqar Babar, both of whom are likely to play.

Captain Misbah-ul Haq, under pressure to score runs after managing nought and 15 in the preceding 3-0 oneday series defeat, admitted Ajmal’s absence is significant.

“Ajmal has left a big hole,” said Misbah,

n AFP, Mount Maunganui

overtake Australia as the world’s top ranked ODI team if they complete a 3-0 whitewash over the Black Caps, who are ranked seventh.

New Zealand, in their first ODI since January, looked rusty at the crease.

They opened cautiously after losing the toss and being sent in to bat, with Jimmy Neesham waiting until the third over to score the first boundary.

The hosts slumped to 68-5 before Ronchi and Tom Latham (29) set about rebuilding the innings, only for their 67-run partnership to end when wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock stumped Latham after he strayed from his crease pursuing a shot.

Ronchi continued to run out of partners and New Zealand slumped to 1569, with not much expected when Boult arrived at the crease boasting a previous ODI high score of five.

The paceman dug in, even managing a six off Morne Morkel, before the innings ended with South African bowlers Vernon Philander, Morkel, Imran Tahir and Ryan McLaren all taking

who skippers a team whose last Test series win over Australia was back in 1994.

Australia will also look to include both spinners in Nathan Lyon and Steve O’Keefe despite their unimpressive record of losing five of the last six Tests (one draw) in which they played with two spinners. But they have dominated Pakistan, winning 13 out of the last 14 Tests against them.

Australia will hope skipper Michael Clarke, top Test run getter in 2013 with 1,093, anchors the batting after recovering from a hamstring injury. l

Lodewijk de Kruif will fly back to the Netherlands today, three days after the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) decided to close terms with the Dutch head coach.

The Bangladesh head coach arrived in Dhaka last Saturday and came to know that his services are no longer required by the federation.

Following three days of drama, both the parties – the BFF and the Dutch coach – decided to come to an amicable solution.

“I talked to (BFF vice president Tabith) Awal and (president Kazi) Salahuddin and I will talk to them again before leaving,” said De Kruif yesterday.

“I also want a peaceful conclusion to this,” he added. l

SCORECARD New Zealand Martin Guptill c Kock b Philander 5 Jimmy Neesham c Kock b Philander 16 Dean Brownlie c de Kock b Tahir 24 Brendon McCullum c Tahir b Morkel 16 Tom Latham st de Kock b Duminy 29 Corey Anderson b Morkel 0 Luke Ronchi c de Kock b Steyn 99 Dan Vettori lbw Tahir 0 Nathan McCullum c Kock b McLaren 6 Kyle Mills c Philander b McLaren 1 Trent Boult not out 21 Extras (lb7, w5, nb1) 13 Total (all out, 45.1 overs) 230 Fall of wickets 1-21 (Neesham), 2-35 (Guptill), 3-68 (Brownlie), 4-68 (B.McCullum), 5-68 (Anderson), 6-133 (Latham), 7-134 (Vettori), 8-145 (N.McCullum), 9-156 (Mills), 10-230 (Ronchi) Bowling Steyn 7.1-1-28-1, Philander 7-1-38-2, Morkel 8-1-39-2, Tahir 10-1-37-2, McLaren 8-0-59-2, Duminy 5-0-22-1

South Africa Quinton de Kock c Latham b Boult 9 Hashim Amla b Mills 38 Faf du Plessis c Ronchi b Boult 8 R Rossouw c Brownlie b Anderson 26 AB de Villiers not out 89 JP Duminy not out 58 Extras (lb3, w4, nb1) 8 Total (4 wickets; 48.1 overs) 236

De Kruif’s tenure comes to a sorry conclusion n Tribune Desk

two wickets apiece.

South Africa received a minor scare when Boult dismissed de Kock and Faf du Plessis cheaply but the rest of the attack struggled for wickets as New Zealand attempted to defend a modest total.

Renee Roussouw (26) and Hashim Amla (38) kept the runs ticking over but failed to capitalise after making good starts.

De Villiers then lived up to his ranking as the number one ODI batsman in the world, combining with Duminy to comfortably seal the victory. The next match on Friday is also in Mount Maunganui, with the series wrapping up in Hamilton on October 27. l

South Africa batsmen AB de Villiers and JP Duminy celebrate their victory against New Zealand in the 1st ODI at Mount Maunganui yesterday CRICINFO

Fall of wickets 1-11 (de Kock), 2-30 (du Plessis), 3-73 (Roussouw), 4-97 (Amla) Bowling Mills 8.1-0-47-1, Boult 10-2-40-2, Vettori 10-0-43-0, N.McCullum 10-0-45-0, Anderson 6-0-31-1, Neesham 4-0-27-0 South Africa lead 3-match series 1-0

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

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Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Homegrown eco-technology system could clean up polluted water bodies n Syed Samiul Basher Anik A Bangladeshi university teacher and two of his students have developed a bioremediation technique deployed using an artificial floating wetland that has shown dramatic success in reducing the E-coli, organic waste and turbidity levels of polluted water.

Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology (AUST) assistant professor Dr Tanveer Ferdous Saeed along with students, Mashrekur Rahman and Hamim Ahmed, have introduced a system that can convert industrial waste water into purified water using a floating wetland consisting of plants and bacteria.

The success rate in removing E-Coli, organic waste and water turbidity in pilot projects run during the last three years has been between 80 and 99 percent. Saeed said these systems would cost a maximum of Tk2500 each. Once introduced, there is no maintenance cost, he added.

The innovative technology consists of a floating, porous buoyant platform on which plants are established, allowing the roots of the plants to hang below the platform and inside the water column. These hanging roots encourage extensive growth of bacteria on root surfaces, establishing a combined network of roots and bacteria that can remove contaminants from the water column.

“Though water purification using floating wetlands is quite common in many countries, it is yet to be introduced in Bangladesh. This natural technology can remove harmful waste and pollutants, hazardous for health and the environment, from lakes and water bodies,” Dr Saeed told the Dhaka Tribune on Thursday.

Under the system, a mat made using PVC pipes, will form the base of a mini-ecological system involving soil,

water, different plants, and ultimately, bacteria.

According to the Department of Environment (DoE), 20,000 tonnes of tannery waste, including some highly toxic materials, are released into Bangladeshi rivers every day. Everyday in the capital, 9000 tonnes of waste is produced; 49% of it is household waste and the rest is commercial, industrial and medical waste.

The capital has been subjected to high levels of pollution for years. Rivers and lake waters pose a high disease risk due to synthetic pollution and biological waste in the form of human sewage, animal excrement, rainwater run-off and city waste.

“We are using these materials because they are widely available everywhere in the country, and they are cheap. The plants used for water purification can be found in local water bodies. As soon as the plants grow to maturity, they have large roots that touch the water beneath the artificial wetland,” he said.

“Bacteria grow in the plant roots.

When water flows inside the roots, these bacteria will clean the waste and the water that passes through the system,” the scientist said.

The beginning

Dr Saeed returned to Bangladesh in 2011 after completing his PhD (Environment) at Monash University, Australia.

“With what I learned there, I thought I could introduce a floating wetland water purification system in the country because no one had introduced it yet. First, I began pilot projects on the roof of the university building. The first one was a tannery waste purifying project, then a textile waste purifying project, and then a municipal waste purification project,” he said, adding that it took three years to run the pilot projects.

Survey: Review required for a more mature RTI act n Rafe Sadnan Adel

“When the lab tests showed that the projects were working properly, we went for a full-fledged project,” he said.

For the rooftop projects, lab tests showed that the E-Coli pathogen was removed by 89%, while 89% of BOD (organic waste elements) and 99% of turbidity was removed.

As the project continued, results showed 95.69% E-Coli removal, 79.64% BOD removal and 100% turbidity removal.

“It was the winter season and some of our plants died leading to a decrease in BOD removal,” he said explaining why the BOD removal rate decreased.

The full-fledged project at Lalmonirhat

Encouraged by the success of the pilot projects, Dr Saeed and his colleagues made plans to introduce the system to a big water body.

“We introduced the system to Sukan Dighi which is in Guriadha village in Lalmonirhat. We established 10 systems there, 180 feet in total, to cover 37 acres of the dighi. The plants in the system will grow by 3-4 feet within the next one and a half months. It will be fully functional from next February,” he said.

The system was introduced on October 12.

Government support stressed

Saeed believes his eco-technological intervention can purify the water in all of the lakes in the capital.

“Gulshan lake is now hugely polluted. If we can introduce 30 systems there, it will purify the water and will increase its beauty. It will only cost Tk60,000 to introduce the system,” he said.

He said if Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) helps them, they could introduce the systems on a large scale.

Dr Saeed’s team has sought support from the government to implement and spread the technology across the country.

“We believe that these systems can purify water from the most polluted lakes and water bodies if introduced.

But we alone cannot do it. The government, the DoE and RAJUK have to come forward to help spread the system so that people get purified water at the cheapest possible price,” he said. l

Several clauses of the Right to Information Act’s (RTI) section seven – which make the providing or publication of certain types of information not mandatory – need to be reviewed and amended to make the act more mature and complete, a survey has found.

The perception survey was carried out by Management and Research Development Initiative (MRDI), while the development organisation’s Executive Director Hasibur Rahman presented the survey report in the capital’s Brac Centre auditorium yesterday.

The survey was assisted by the Information Commission and Manusher Jonno Foundation.

The survey report recommended on unchanging the constitutional restrictions regarding the release of information that may cause a threat to state security or may affect friendly relations with a foreign country, as well as keeping the clause that makes it not mandatory to release information which may endanger the life or physical safety of any person.

Speakers at the programme, however, claimed that section seven of the RTI was often misinterpreted by the authority to deny release or publication of information citing personal security reasons.

Former information commissioner Sadika Halim said authorities concerned should clarify the definition of personal security so that the misuse of RTI’s section seven could be prevented.

Abu Taher, another former information commissioner, suggested that in order to ensure people’s right to information, the authorities responsible for disseminating information need to change their behaviour.

Pre-primary textbooks to include road safety issues next year n Syed Samiul Basher Anik

The perception survey also recommended omitting the RTI act’s subsection (n) – which says no authority shall be bound to provide information which is liable to be published only for a certain period of time, claiming that such a clause was not included in the constitution or any international legislative documents and was in conflict with the RTI act’s section 3(a).

The survey was carried out over a three year period, with the participation of around 300 people including public servants, journalists, NGO workers, human rights activists, indigenous leaders and public representatives.

Chief Information Commissioner Mohammad Farukh said the government was working to build more awareness about the RTI act, adding that the commission would be able to take proper initiative regarding the loopholes of the law which would eventually be discovered as people practice the law more often.

He also requested all to file complaints if they find anything wrong regarding the act.

Also speaking at the programme, Information Minister Hasanul Haque Inu said the government will take initiative to amend the act if necessary.

Monjurul Ahsan Bulbul, head of news and CEO of Baishakhi Television, also urged the government and thinktanks of the country to thoroughly review the act, and called on everyone to be individual watchdogs of the act.

In October 2008, the then caretaker government promulgated the RTI ordinance, which became the RTI act in March 2009 after the Awami League government passed the bill by making minor amendments to the original ordinance. l

Ex-BoI official, son stabbed in capital n Tribune Report Armed criminals intruded into the residence of a retired government official and stabbed him and his son at Madartek’s Begunbari area of Sabujbagh in the capital yesterday.

Abul Hossain, a retired assistant director of the Board of Investment (BOI), received critical stab injuries on his shoulder and wrists, and his 45-year-old son Ahad Hossain on the face and legs during the incident around 5am.

The victims are now receiving treatment at the National Institute of Traumatology & Orthopaedic Rehabilitation Centre.

Police suspected that the attack was either a robbery attempt or was due to a personal enmity.

Injured Abul, who also owns the building, said seven to eight criminals entered his house at gunpoint and tied up the gatekeeper. He said he was preparing for Fazr prayers when they knocked on the door.

Sabujbagh police station Officer-inCharge Rafiqul Islam said: “We have visited the spot and an investigation is already underway.” l

In a bid to raise awareness among students on road accidents and its consequences, the government has decided to introduce lessons on road use and road safely in pre-primary level textbooks from the next academic year.

The decision was made yesterday at a meeting of the Education Ministry, presided over by its Joint Secretary Ruhi Rahman.

The ministry took the initiative after receiving a suggestion from the Road Transport and Highways Division under the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges.

“The government is going to include lessons on road use and road safety in the pre-primary textbooks from 2015 academic year. The ministry will also hold a seminar with stakeholders seeking their opinion on the matter,” Ruhi said.

The Road Transport Division earli-

er sent its concept papers to the Education Ministry and the Primary and Mass Education Ministry, requesting the ministries to include such lessons in pre-primary, primary and secondary level textbooks. However, as the Education Ministry found such topics already being discussed in primary and secondary textbooks, it decided to include chapters in the pre-primary level.

The meeting came a day after a fatal road accident at Baraigram upazila of Natore that killed at least 33 people and injured many others.

Officials, who attended the meeting, said lessons like proper uses of footpaths, roads, zebra crossings and footover bridges have been recommended for the proposed curriculum.

According to the plan, children will also be given lessons on how to move or walk on the roads, traffic rules and signals, consequences of road accidents, among others. l

Oscar Pistorius begins jail sentence n Tribune Desk

Health Ministry takes highest BoI, Privatisation precautions for medical admission test Commission to be merged

South African athlete Oscar Pistorius yesterday began serving time in jail for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

He was driven to Pretoria’s Kgosi Mampuru prison where he is expected to be housed in the hospital wing.

Judge Thokozile Masipa gave Pistorius a five-year jail sentence for culpable homicide, but cleared him of murder.

His defence said it expected him to serve about 10 months, with the remainder under house arrest. His family say he will not appeal.

The parents of Reeva Steenkamp told the BBC they were happy with the sentence and relieved the case was over.

Prosecutors had called for a minimum 10-year term, and the defence had argued for community service and house arrest.

Judge Thokozile Masipa hands down the sentence Pistorius, 27, an amputee sprinter who became the first athlete to compete in the Olympic and Paralympic Games, killed Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day last year. l

n Moniruzzaman Uzzal The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has taken all possible security measures to ensure transparency at the medical and dental college admission test for the 2014-15 academic session scheduled on Friday.

The ministry sent letters to the senior secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the inspector-general of police and the director-general of Rapid Action Battalion on Monday, asking to ensure that all medical coaching centres were closed until the admission test, said MM Niaz Uddin, secretary at the ministry.

The letter, signed and issued by Md Rezaul Alam, senior assistant secretary of medical education at the ministry, said a group of frauds from different medical coaching centres across the country were allegedly selling question papers to students at a high price, guaranteeing 100% common questions in the admission tests.

“We asked police to make certain

Two students climb over barbed wire on the central reservation of Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue to cross the street yesterday. People take such risks to cross busy streets in the capital, yet the authorities concerned are doing little to construct a foot overbridge in the area SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

that all the coaching centres were closed until the exams in a move to ensure transparency during the exams,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.

The ministry also formed 23 inspection teams to inspect the test centres across the country. Each team comprises three to five members, consisting of officials from the ministry and the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), said the health secretary.

In addition, several law enforcement agencies such as police, RAB, Special and Detective Branches of police, National Security Intelligence and Directorate General of Forces Intelligence are monitoring activities involving medical coaching centres, said several high officials at the ministry and the DGHS to the Dhaka Tribune.

They are also keeping an eye on activities at the dormitories of different universities, especially a few residential halls at Dhaka University, to monitor the movement of a few students who are suspected to be involved with

question leakage.

“We are very serious about this and are trying to take the highest precautions to hold a transparent admission test,” said Professor Dr ABM Abdul Hannan, director of medical education at the DGHS, yesterday.

The principals of the institutions where the test will be held, as well as other officials, have been instructed to ensure proper screening of the exam candidates with the help of the magistrates and other law enforcement members, the DGHS official told the Dhaka Tribune.

No candidate will be allowed to enter the exam halls with mobile phones or any other electronic devices, he added.

A total of 69,477 candidates have applied to appear in the admission test for both the government and private medical and dental colleges this year. The test will be held at 35 centres under 23 public medical and dental colleges, and the seat plan is available on the DGHS website. l

n Mohosinul Karim The Board of Investment and the Privatisation Commission under the Prime Minister’s Office are likely to emerge as a unified organisation titled Bangladesh Investment and Industries Development Authority.

Until then, normal activities of the commission including preparation or finalisation of the proposals of government or public enterprises will remain halted. The commission may start functioning again, only after the launch of the new unified organisation, officials at the commission said.

Incumbent Chairman Mollah Waheduzzaman denied making any comment, saying: “The Cabinet Division may comment on the issue as they are coordinating all the issues of the commission now.”

Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday that there was no legal bar on the commission to function. “It will function normally until the new pro-

posal, Act and organogram of the new body are approved and passed.”

The PMO took the initiative and asked the Cabinet Division to prepare a draft proposal on the matter after analysing the existing laws of the two wings.

Following the instruction, a committee led by Cabinet Division’s Additional Secretary Md Moyeen Uddin prepared drafts of the new organogram, an Act for the proposed organisation and another proposal to merge the two bodies together.

The committee submitted the documents to the Cabinet Division in August. The drafts were sent to the PMO recently for approval of the premier.

Musharraf said: “We are waiting for the green signal of the Prime Minister’s Office to finalise the drafts. Those will be tabled in the cabinet.”

The Privatisation Commission last year took an initiative to privatise 19 more enterprises. The tender of selling two enterprises were also floated in December but the process was later stopped. l

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B3 Gold steady near one-

month high on slowing China growth

B4 China’s economic growth slows to 7.3% in Q3, six-year low

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2014 www.dhakatribune.com/business

activities of state banks EU retailers urged not to pull out CSR likely to be reinstated n of Bangladesh apparel sector Asif Showkat Kallol

The government is likely to withdraw the temporary suspension on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities by the four state-owned banks due to political pressure.

On August 30, the Bank and Financial Institutions Division (BFID) suspended all kind of CSR activities of the four state banks to arrest the misuse of funds.

“We will withdraw the suspension, which was earlier imposed on corporate social responsibility activities of the four state banks, for the overall development of the society,” BFID Secretary M Aslam Alam told the Dhaka Tribune.

He also noted that Bangladesh Bank is now preparing a coordinated policy of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for all the commercial banks as previously it was different from each others because of the different circular issued by the central bank.

“We had to suspend the corporate social responsibility activities of the four state-owned banks because it was unearthed that board members of some state banks were spending

The industry seeks price hike as it is going through massive reforms n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi A senior European Commission official has urged the retailers and brands to stay engaged in Bangladesh and not to pull out orders from the small and medium factories, employing 1.5 million workers.

Director (GSP) of the DG Trade of the European Commission, Sanda Gallina, made the call in her closing statement in an outcome document titled “Implementation Review and Stock Taking of Progress” on Monday.

The document also urged early adoption of rules and regulations for Bangladesh Labour Act with highest priority, including rules on unfair labour practice, implementation of National Tripartite Plan of Action (NAP), enactment of Export Processing Zones (EPZ) Act and further improvement of freedom of associations and collective bargaining in EPZs. On Monday, the European Union, the United States, Bangladesh and ILO met in Brussels in order to take stock of the progress on the actions outlined in the Sustainability Compact adopted on July 8 last year.

In the session, speakers appreciated Bangladesh’s commitment towards fulfilling the actions outlined in the Sustainability Compact and expressed satisfaction over the progress that Bangladesh has made in last more than one year.

The parties said if Bangladesh can recruit 189 inspectors within December 2015 as recommended by the PSC, it would be a big achievement in terms of strengthening the government’s ability to regulate the RMG sector on its own.

Bangladesh placed the progress on the occasion of the Sustainability Compact Follow up meeting held on Monday in Brussels.

NBL warned of irregularities Garment workers performing duties at a factory in Dhaka Bangladesh, the European Union, the United States and the ILO recognised the progress made by Bangladesh since the launch of Compact in July last year in areas of labour rights, occupational safety and responsible business conducts.

Since the inception of sustainability compact, Bangladesh amended Labour Act 2013, upgraded the Directorate of Inspection for Factories and Establishments to a Department (DIFE), over 236 trade unions get registered in RMG Sector since January 2013, allowed duty-free import of fire safety equipment

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

and fabricated building materials, launched publicly accessible database of RMG factories at DIFE and conferring the rights to strike to workers’ Welfare associations in EPZ areas.

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed in his statement stressed on taking the actions to improve the occupational safety, working condition and labour rights in Bangladesh, according to an official release issued here yesterday.

He also said the government has increased the minimum wage to Tk5,300 for RMG workers that has been implemented from December 1 last year.

Among others, BGMEA President Atiqul Islam urged the buyers and retailers no to cancel their orders in the factories located in shared buildings. He also urged the buyers and retailers to consider raising prices of the apparel items.

A 12-member delegation comprising Senior Commerce Secretary Hedayetullah Al Mamoon, Labour and Employment Secretary Mikail Shipar, Foreign Secretary Md. Shahidul Haque and representatives from BGMEA, BKMEA, Bangladesh Employers Federation, Accord and Alliance attended the session. l

n Tribune Report The National Bank board of directors has been warned of irregularities that took place into the Gulshan branch of the bank.

The warning came at the bank’s board meeting which was held yesterday and attended by the Bangladesh Bank representative, Kazi Sayedur Rahman, for the first time after he was appointed as observer to the National Bank.

The central bank inspection report on the irregularities of National Bank Limited was presented at the board meeting, said Sayedur.

He said the meeting focused on

CSE trading fair begins today Amu eyes increased private sector n Tribune Report Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) will organise a two-day fair styled “CSE Internet Trade Fair” today to educate investors on how to trade through using smartphones, tabs, ipads and laptops.

The two-day fair aims at attracting investors and increasing their participation into the stock market.

The fair will be held on Wednesday and Thursday at the Institute of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh in the city.

Syed Sajid Husain, CSE managing director, made the announcement at a press briefing at the bourse’s Dhaka office yesterday.

Since the participation of investors did not increase after the crash in 2010, the port city bourse took the initiative to make the stock market dynamic by engaging investors in trading through internet trading platform, he said.

“As the internet facility is widespread across the country with 3G services, we have decided to teach investors how to trade online, using smartphones, tabs, ipads and laptops,”said Sajid.

The CSE MD also said the fair aims

a lot of money in the name of CSR. It has created a negative impact on the banks, capital adequacy ratio and subsequently on provisioning,’’ he added.

In this regard, he also mentioned that an ex-chairman of Janata Bank disbursed Tk20 crore, which was approved at a board meeting held within a week just before his retirement, which is now under investigation.

Following some alleged incident of irregularities, a BFID had put a temporary ban on the CSR activities of the four state-owned banks Janata Bank, Sonali Bank, Agrani Bank and Bangladesh Development Bank to stop misuse of funds through issuing a circular.

The move for withdrawing the CSR suspension comes in the wake of the state banks continue to flounder in maintaining an adequate capital base.

As of June, the four state-owned commercial banks had a capital shortfall of Tk1,500 crore.

During last year, the government had injected Tk5,000 crore into Sonali, Janata, Agrani and Rupali banks while another Tk5,000 crore were kept aside in the current budget to shore up the banks’ balance sheets. l

at involving student, housewife, employees and businesses in the trading virtually.

“To make the stock market vibrant, we have to come out of the notion that investors’ participation could be increased by opening up branches of brokerage houses across the country,” he added.

MA Mannan, state minister for finance, is scheduled to inaugurate the expo as the chief guest while Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) chairman will attend the programme as special guest.

In 2010, the stock market bubbled up due to aggressive financing of banks not for involvement of investors from all walks of life, Sajid said, replying to a query on the massive participation of investors in the year.

He also said based on information collected from the fair, the CSE will launch several training programmes based on the investors’ category to make them aware of investment risk and to make the investment decision properly. l

investment inflow n Tribune Report Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu yesterday hoped Bangladesh will get priority in the efforts UNCTAD would take to divert private investments at innovative sectors of developing countries like Bangladesh.

He stressed the need for adequate investment flow to the less developed countries to help them achieve sustainable development goals.

“I have urged the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to come forward and invest more in countries, including Bangladesh, which runs the risk of climate change,” Amu said, addressing a press briefing at the Industries Ministry.

The briefing was to share views about the UNCTAD’s World Investment Forum-2014, which was recently concluded at Geneva, Switzerland.

“I told the conference that the total investment needed for implementing sustainable development goals in the

developing countries alone could be about $3.9 trillion every year, as against the current investment of around $1.4 trillion,” Amu said.

The programme also focused formulation of a platform with both government and private initiatives to increase the investment flow, he adds.

To attract foreign investments, we showcased our initiatives and activities The minister also said Bangladesh was showcased as an investment-friendly country at the conference.

“To attract foreign investments, we showcased our initiatives and activities to the forum. The participating countries and the multinational companies will now have a new idea for investments in Bangladesh,” the minister hoped.

Stressing more investment, he said: “There is a huge amount of money in the private sector, but not being invested in the creative sectors to achieve the targets.”

The four-day multi-stakeholder conference was designed to facilitate dialogue and action on the world’s key emerging investment-related challenges. The World Investment Forum is considered to be a platform that promotes investment flows to sustainable and inclusive development among its member nations.

From Bangladesh side, Amir Hossain Amu led the eight-member delegation, consisting of the Board of Investment Executive Chairman Syed Abdus Samad, Bangladesh Ambassador to Switzerland M Shameem Ahsan, Industries Ministry Additional Secretary Begum Parag, Joint Secretary Begum Afroza Khan, Deputy Secretary M Fahimul Islam, Foreign Ministry Director Shanchita Haque and BoI Deputy Director M Ariful Haque. l

widespread irregularities that surfaced during inspection.

“On behalf of the central bank, we informed the board of directors about the irregularities that took place into the bank and warned them of such misdeeds,” he said.

The positive sign of this meeting was that the highest number of directors attended the meeting, he said.

Kazi Saidur Rahman, general manager of Forex reserve and treasury management department under the central bank, has been appointed as the observer to the National Bank on October 9, following anomalies in the Gulshan branch of National Bank. l

Microsoft chief Nadella earns $84m in 2014 n AFP Microsoft chief Satya Nadella, whose gaffe advising women to trust “karma” for pay raises sparked a firestorm, earned $84.3m this year, according to an SEC filing Monday.

That amount, for the 2013-2014 fiscal year, included a base salary of $919,000, along with a bonus of $3.6 million, as well as stock options worth $79.8m - though he can’t exercise those options until 2019, the filing reported.

Nadella, 47, who took over from Steve Ballmer in February at the head of the US software giant, has been at the center of a controversy since early October over his comments at a conference in Arizona.

At the conference, on women in computing, Nadella stunned the audience when he answered a question by saying that women, instead of asking for a raise, should just trust “that the system will actually give you the right raises as you go along.” l

BTRC to press ICXs hard to realise Tk418cr dues n Muhammad Zahidul Islam The telecom regulator is going to take a hard line against Interconnection Exchange (ICX) operators for recovering dues worth Tk418 crore piled up till June last.

The outstanding amount stood more than Tk1,000 crore from revenue sharing, license fees and late fees between August 2012 and June 2014. It, however, collected rest of the amount.

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) at a meeting held at its headquarters in the city on Monday decided to go tough on case-to-case basis – serving legal notices and even adopting other legal measures.

At the same time, BTRC high ups decided to recommend amendment to the existing guideline, according to meeting sources.

According to officials, although the 26 ICX companies owe a huge amount of money to BTRC, they are dillydallying in paying their dues as most of the ICX operators are strongly

backed by influential ruling party politicians.

Out of the total dues, the ICX operators have so far paid only Tk496 crore as revenue sharing while their total dues stand at Tk896 crore.

The ICX operators have also pending dues on license fees worth Tk14.3 crore for the year in 2014 while Tk3.42 crore for the year 2013 with late fees.

In 2012, BTRC recommended to give more ICX licenses but the government awarded 23 licenses along with the then existing three.

The ICX operators route international and domestic calls and link between the other operators like international gateway operators and mobile telephone operators.

According to the BTRC data, Getco Telecommunication has dues worth Tk32 crore, M&H Telecom Tk40 crore, Bangla ICX Ltd Tk18 crore, Voicetel Ltd Tk36 crore, Bantel Ltd Tk12 crore, Integrated Service Ltd Tk39 crore, Jibandhara Solution Tk9 crore, Cross World Telecom Tk6 crore, Tele Exchange Tk14 crore and Micre Trade Tk29 crore for

revenue sharing.

The data also showed that Bangla Telecom has dues worth Tk5 crore, Vertex Communication Tk9 crore, Agni System Tk17 crore, Paradise Telecom Tk17 crore, Teleplus Network Tk2 crore, Gazi Networks Tk6 crore, Ring Tech BD Tk19 crore, Mother Telecommunications Tk1 crore, Cloud Tel Tk7 crore, New Generation Telecom Tk10 crore, Imam Network Tk7 crore, Soft Tex Ltd Tk8 crore, Purple Telecom Tk5 crore, SR Telecom Tk5 crore while MM Communications has dues worth Tk25 crore.

“As the companies are not paying the outstanding dues for a long time, the commission has decided to take regulatory action against the ICX operators,” said a senior BTRC official of the legal wing.

He, however, said the commission decided to go on case by case basis. Even, it can go for scraping their licenses or lodges cases for the sake of collecting the money.

The BTRC had earlier in September last year blocked 10 international gateway oper-

ators for not paying their dues worth Tk275 crore. BTRC officials informed, they have so far sent 17 letters to collecting the amount from the ICX operators.

The BTRC officials said although the IGW operators were paying their dues in fractions, some of the operators are dillydallying in paying their respective dues because of their influential political links.

The BTRC has recently increased the revenue sharing of the ICX operators from international calls to 17.5% from 15%.

Sources also informed, BTRC has other Tk685.42 crore owes to international gateway (IGW) operators and only six of them owes Tk523.63 crore and BTRC also filled case five of them so far.

IGW operators have so far paid Tk83.1 core for the annual license fee of 2013 while Tk86.25 crore for 2014.

BTRC owes Tk35.83 lakh to International Internet Gateway (IIG) operators as annual license fees while Tk9.42 crore as revenue sharing, sources also informed. l

B2

Stock

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Stocks bounce back after 3-day losses

DSE key features October 21, 2014

Traded Issues

301

n Tribune Report

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

210

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

86

Breaking last three sessions’ pessimism, market bounced back amid improved activity Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, rallied 145 points to 9,823.

Trading activities continued to decline with turnover falling down below Tk600 crore-mark after six weeks. Trading activities improved as the DSE turnover was Tk694 crore, registering an increase of more than 16% over the previous day’s 24-session low.

The investors’ attention remained mostly concentrated on power, engineering and pharma – the sectors that accounted for over 21%, 14% and almost 12% respective-

Weekly capital market highlights DSE Broad Index : DSE - 30 Index : CSE All Share Index: CSE - 30 Index : CSE Selected Index : DSE LOSER Company

Closing (% Change)

EBL NRB M.F.-A UNITED AIR-A Shampur Sugar -Z Hakkani P& Paper -B Padma Islami Life*-N Quasem Drycells -A Islamic Finance-A AMCL 2nd MF-A ISN Ltd. -Z Renwick Jajneswar-A

-9.86 -7.27 -5.56 -3.49 -3.23 -2.95 -2.78 -1.82 -1.80 -1.72

CSE LOSER Company

Closing (% Change)

UNITED AIR-A Islami Ins.BD-A Anlima Yarn -A Mercantile Insur -A ACI ZERO Bond-A BDCOM Online-A ICB Sonali Bank 1 MF-A AB Bank 1st Mutual Fund-A Quasem Drycells -A Delta Brac HFCL-A

-6.31 -4.38 -3.70 -3.45 -3.12 -2.97 -2.86 -2.82 -2.75 -2.73

5233.82107

(+) 1.74%

1972.04920

(+) 2.01%

16132.34280

(+) 1.50%

13358.07530

(+) 1.67%

9807.08990

(+) 1.33%

Average (% Change) -8.73 -6.86 7.14 -2.94 -4.05 -5.07 0.05 -0.73 -1.35 -2.21 Average (% Change) -6.41 -4.91 -0.85 -3.45 -4.22 -3.08 -2.98 -2.82 -6.47 -1.05

ANALYST

ClosingAvg. 6.48 10.32 7.50 25.13 41.74 42.53 21.23 5.47 11.00 246.94

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 682.37 516.97 93.09 805.24 253.12 1491.57 17.65 365.31 1001.84 22.89 263.94 69.62 96.64 352.73 36.40 50.96 196.45 291.22 144.44 189.32 0.57

▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲

DHIGH

6.40 10.20 6.80 24.90 41.90 42.80 21.00 5.40 10.90 245.50

6,942.31 150,526,294

7.00 10.50 7.00 25.70 43.80 43.90 23.50 5.60 11.00 250.00

126,803

5

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,761.95

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

33.48

CSE key features October 21, 2014 Turnover (Million Taka)

440.69

Turnover (Volume)

12,105,690

Number of Contract

15,574

Traded Issues

223

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

146

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

70

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

7

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,664.82

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

32.30

Turnover in Million

DLOW 6.40 9.00 6.80 24.80 41.00 36.20 19.50 5.40 10.90 245.00

DHIGH

DLOW

10.37 24.00 23.33 19.60 1,044.00 26.11 6.83 6.90 42.36 64.16

10.40 24.00 23.40 19.60 1,056.00 26.10 6.80 6.90 42.50 64.20

10.60 24.00 23.50 19.60 1,056.00 26.50 7.00 6.90 43.50 64.20

10.00 24.00 23.20 19.60 1,032.00 25.00 6.70 6.90 41.00 64.10

Latest EPS

0.107 64.406 0.006 1.596 7.221 60.793 57.202 0.394 0.121 5.371

Turnover in Million

Closing

0.85 1.02 -61.36 0.28 1.10 1.55 1.21 0.99 0.20 3.92

Latest EPS

14.525 0.036 0.047 0.010 0.002 0.131 0.150 0.003 0.784 0.160

1.02 1.70 0.80 2.00 0.00 1.43 1.60 0.64 1.55 5.15

Latest PE 7.6 10.1 -ve 89.8 37.9 27.4 17.5 5.5 55.0 63.0

3.80 1.00 1.39 5.08 0.52 0.73 2.83 4.19 2.08 2.73 0.01

Million Taka 35.68 29.11 3.40 73.67 12.57 63.82 43.80 49.74 7.77 26.03 5.64 9.52 18.90 6.98 2.19 5.34 15.16 25.02 22.26 0.00

CSE

% change 7.81 6.38 0.74 16.14 2.75 13.98 0.00 9.59 10.89 1.70 5.70 1.23 2.08 4.14 1.53 0.48 1.17 3.32 5.48 4.88 0.00

Million Taka 718.04 546.08 96.49 878.91 265.68 1555.39 17.65 409.11 1051.58 30.66 289.97 75.25 106.16 371.63 43.38 53.15 201.78 306.38 169.46 211.58 0.57

10.00 9.99 9.97 9.95 9.38 8.77 8.74 7.87 7.80 7.69

Total

Company Daffodil Computers -Z ICB AMCL 1st NRB -A SAIF Powertec-N FAR Chemical-N SummitAlliancePort.-A Khulna Power-A MeghnaCement -A Rangpur Dairy-N Apex Foods -A IDLC Finance -A

Closing (% Change) 10.00 10.00 9.87 9.77 9.52 6.78 6.49 5.99 5.58 5.27

Average (% Change) 7.42 10.15 9.97 10.09 5.90 8.89 8.64 6.93 5.33 7.03 Average (% Change) 6.99 10.00 10.14 6.62 9.68 6.25 5.99 5.23 5.54 4.05

ClosingAvg. 42.57 107.90 139.00 66.45 130.13 60.63 352.56 23.29 15.03 236.88

ClosingAvg. 15.00 24.20 66.06 42.19 60.73 64.09 133.86 22.92 107.90 77.07

Closing 42.90 107.90 139.00 67.40 132.90 60.80 353.30 23.30 15.20 240.80

Closing 15.40 24.20 66.80 42.70 61.00 64.60 134.50 23.00 107.90 77.90

DHIGH 42.90 107.90 139.00 67.40 133.50 61.40 353.30 23.70 15.30 243.10

DHIGH 15.40 24.20 66.80 42.70 61.20 66.00 135.00 23.20 107.90 78.00

DLOW 37.00 107.90 139.00 63.90 122.30 51.00 339.00 22.60 12.80 220.00

DLOW 13.90 24.20 61.60 39.90 56.80 61.10 132.20 22.20 107.90 74.90

Turnover in Million 151.674 5.093 0.007 118.700 17.606 115.068 5.165 0.163 4.396 46.440

Turnover in Million 1.080 0.012 13.317 9.745 11.832 17.210 0.375 5.177 0.011 8.061

Latest EPS 2.88 3.00 -1.80 1.63 0.76 0.96 11.16 0.09 0.68 4.13

Latest EPS 0.68 4.57 1.63 2.88 0.96 6.42 9.10 1.16 2.99 3.04

Latest PE 14.8 36.0 -ve 40.8 171.2 63.2 31.6 258.8 22.1 57.4

Latest PE 22.1 5.3 40.5 14.6 63.3 10.0 14.7 19.8 36.1 25.4

News, analysis and recent disclosers From TradeServers: TUNGHAI: The Board of Directors has recommended 10% stock dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2013. Date of AGM: 02.12.2014, Time: 12:00 Noon, Venue: Factory Premises of the Company at Shibrampur, Zirani Bazar, BKSP, Joydebpur, Gazipur, Dhaka. Record date: 05.11.2014.

The Company has also reported EPS of Tk. 1.39, NAV per share of Tk. 15.11 and NOCFPS of Tk. 0.79 for the year ended on December 31, 2013.

ISLAMICFIN: (Q3): As per un-audited quarterly accounts for the 3rd quarter ended on 30th September 2014 (July'14 to Sep'14), the Company has reported net profit after tax of Tk. 19.57 million with EPS of Tk. 0.17 as against Tk. 13.43 million and Tk. 0.12 respectively for the same period of the previous year. Whereas net profit after tax was Tk. 106.25 million with EPS of Tk. 0.91 for the period of nine months (Jan'14 to Sep'14) ended on 30.09.2014 as against Tk. 73.08 million and Tk. 0.63 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

Board Meeting: RAHIMTEXT on October 22, 2014 at 2:45 PM. MICEMENT on October 25, 2014 at 2:30 PM. DAFODILCOM on October 31, 2014 at 10:00 AM. ANLIMAYARN on October 25, 2014 at 3:00 PM. MODERNDYE on October 23, 2014 at

4:00 PM. PTL on October 26, 2014 at 4:00 PM; to consider, among others, audited financial statements of the Company for the year ended on June 30, 2014.

IPO Subscription: Hamid Fabrics Limited subscription date 28 September to 02 October 2014, NRB upto 11 October 2014. @ taka 35, face value taka 10 and market lot 100. National Feed Mill Limited subscription date 26 -30 October 2014, NRB upto 08 November 2014. @ taka 10, face value taka 10 and market lot 500.

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.

ICB: Subscription period for rights issue will be from 07.12.2014 to 30.12.2014.

Record date for entitlement of rights share: 09.09.2014. BIFC: subscription period for rights issue of the Company will be from 09.11.2014 to 30.11.2014. Record Date for entitlement of rights share: 19.10.2014.

Dividend/AGM FUWANGFOOD: 10% stock, AGM: 28.12.2014, Record date: 16.11.2014.

POPULARLIF: 40% Stock, AGM: 18.12.2014, Record Date: 28.10.2014.

AL-HAJTEX: 20% stock, AGM: 20.12.2014, Record Date: 05.11.2014.

DESCO: 5% cash & 10% stock, Record

Date: 13.11.2014.

APOLOISPAT: 15% stock, Date of AGM: 21.12.2014, Record Date: 21.10.2014.

QSMDRYCELL: 5% cash and 10% stock, AGM: 27.11.2014, Record Date: 20.10.2014.

PENINSULA: 10% cash, AGM: 13.11.2014, Record Date: 15.10.2014.

FAREASTLIF: 40% cash, AGM: 03.11.2014, Record date: 16.10.2014.

UNITEDAIR: 10% stock, Record date: 20.10.2014.

EHL: 15% cash & 5% stock, AGM: 30.10.2014, Record Date: 02.10.2014.

BANGAS: 50% stock, AGM: 21.10.2014, Record date: 30.09.2014.

BDBUILDING: 5% cash & 20% stock, AGM: 23.10.2014, Record date: 30.09.2014.

MATINSPINN: 25% cash, AGM: 30.10.2014, Record date: 02.10.2014.

CENTRALPHL: 5% cash and 15% stock, AGM & EGM: 23.10.2014, Record date for AGM & EGM: 29.09.2014.

DBH: 25% cash, AGM: 25.11.2014, Record date: 25.09.2014.

DESHBANDHU: 10% stock, EGM & AGM: 19.10.2014, Record date for AGM & EGM: 21.09.2014.

MHSML: 25% stock, AGM: 30.10.2014, Record date: 25.09.2014.

FARCHEM: 20% stock, AGM: 09.10.2014, Record date: 11.09.2014.

Latest PE 10.2 14.1 29.2 9.8 18.3 4.3 10.8 27.3 12.5

Market reclaimed 5,200-mark as largecap and mid-cap stocks tuned up and market participants showed some zeal for banking, pharma and power stocks

% change 9.83 7.45 1.34 11.60 3.65 21.49 0.25 5.26 14.43

FAR Chemical-N Shahjibazar Power-N GeminiSeaFood-Z SAIF Powertec-N Sonali Ansh -A SummitAlliancePort.-A Rahim Textile -A Samata LeatheR -Z Daffodil Computers -Z Popular Life Insu. -A

Closing (% Change)

CSE GAINER

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

ClosingAvg.

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY Sector

Company

Number of Contract

ly of the day’s total turnover.

“Market reclaimed 5,200-mark as large-cap and mid-cap stocks tuned up and market participants showed some zeal for banking, pharma and power stocks,” said Lanka Bangla Securities.

As per the central bank’s statistics, disbursement of the total industrial term loans during April-June 2014 was higher by 23.47 per cent or Tk1,146 crore compared to Tk928 crore during January-March quarter.

“This indicates growing business activities in economy, which conveyed positive cues to the equity market,” said the leading stock broker.

IDLC Investments said breaking last three sessions’ pessimism, market bounced back amid improved activity.

All the large cap sectors ended in green. Pharmaceuticals posted the highest return of over 2%. Power and banks went up by 1.7% and 1.4% respectively.

Telecommunication, food and allied, and non-banking financial institutions also gained over 1% each.

Gainers took a strong lead over losers as out of 301 issues traded, 227 advanced, 41 declined and 33 remained unchanged on the DSE. MJL BD was the most traded stock with shares worth over Tk32 crore changing hands, followed by KPCL, Square Pharma, Grameenphone and RSRM Steels.

FAR Chemical was the day’s highest gainer, posting a rise of 10% while EBL NRB Mutual Fund was the day’s worst loser, plunging 9.85%. l

Stocks bounced back yesterday, after profit booking losses for last three days as investors put funds mainly on large cap stocks.

After rising more than 95 points in the morning, at the end of the day the benchmark DSEX gained 89 points or 1.8% to close at 5,233.

The Shariah index DSES rose 26 points or 2% to 1,233. The comprising blue chips DS30 was up 39 points or 2% to end at 1,972.

DSE GAINER

Turnover (Million Taka) Turnover (Volume)

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company

% change 9.70 7.38 1.30 11.88 3.59 21.02 0.24 5.53 14.21 0.41 3.92 1.02 1.43 5.02 0.59 0.72 2.73 4.14 2.29 2.86 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

MJL BD Ltd.-A Khulna Power-A Square Pharma -A Grameenphone-A Ratanpur Steel -N Titas Gas TDCLA IDLC Finance -A Beximco Pharma -A City Bank - A LafargeS Cement-Z

FAR Chemical-N Jamuna Oil -A BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Olympic Ind. -A Islami Bank BD - A

CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company Ratanpur Steel -N BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Khulna Power-A UNITED AIR-A SAIF Powertec-N SummitAlliancePort.-A BSRM Steels-A Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A Grameenphone-A FAR Chemical-N

Square Pharma -A LafargeS Cement-Z The Peninsula CTG.-N RAK Ceramics-A ACI Formulations-A

VolumeShares 2,208,806 4,666,213 1,033,575 710,845 3,070,000 2,393,255 2,522,692 2,623,115 6,898,699 1,185,500

Value in Million 325.23 298.25 288.19 265.06 250.14 223.43 194.28 177.73 157.77 157.05

% of TotalTurnover 4.68 4.30 4.15 3.82 3.60 3.22 2.80 2.56 2.27 2.26

VolumeShares

Value in Million

% of TotalTurnover

3,563,300 560,864 3,221,563 492,893 4,281,096

426,400 419,170 268,539 1,400,492 201,600 194,817 109,760 405,500 27,200 231,000

34,210 71,000 289,800 132,483 56,450

151.67 142.51 134.62 123.76 123.16

34.57 17.51 17.21 14.52 13.32 11.83 11.80 10.66 10.16 9.75

9.54 9.40 9.28 8.69 8.67

2.18 2.05 1.94 1.78 1.77

7.88 3.99 3.92 3.31 3.04 2.70 2.69 2.43 2.32 2.22

2.18 2.14 2.12 1.98 1.98

ClosingP 147.80 64.40 279.90 373.60 82.20 93.40 77.90 68.70 22.90 133.40

42.90 253.60 42.00 251.90 28.70

ClosingP

81.90 42.00 64.60 10.40 66.80 61.00 107.50 26.20 374.30 42.70

279.40 134.50 32.30 64.50 154.10

Change % 1.93 7.33 2.60 1.22 5.52 1.19 4.42 5.37 2.69 3.98

10.00 0.08 3.70 1.12 2.87

Change %

4.73 3.45 6.78 -6.31 9.87 9.52 1.90 -0.76 1.52 9.77

2.31 4.34 2.54 -1.07 2.26

ClosingY 145.00 60.00 272.80 369.10 77.90 92.30 74.60 65.20 22.30 128.30

39.00 253.40 40.50 249.10 27.90

ClosingY

78.20 40.60 60.50 11.10 60.80 55.70 105.50 26.40 368.70 38.90

273.10 128.90 31.50 65.20 150.70

DHIGH 150.00 66.00 285.00 375.80 84.40 94.00 78.30 69.30 23.20 134.50

DLOW 132.00 54.00 250.00 360.00 77.60 83.50 68.00 59.00 20.10 128.50

42.90 256.50 44.50 254.00 29.50

37.00 235.00 36.50 235.00 25.50

DHIGH

DLOW

84.00 42.40 66.00 10.60 66.80 61.20 108.90 26.70 375.50 42.70

281.90 134.80 32.80 67.00 155.00

78.00 41.00 61.10 10.00 61.60 56.80 103.00 26.00 370.00 39.90

274.00 130.70 31.40 64.10 150.00

AvgPrice 147.24 63.92 278.83 372.89 81.48 93.36 77.01 67.75 22.87 132.48

42.57 254.08 41.79 251.08 28.77

AvgPrice

81.07 41.76 64.09 10.37 66.06 60.73 107.55 26.30 373.57 42.19

278.95 132.39 32.04 65.57 153.61

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Gold steady near one-month high on slowing China growth n Reuters, Singapore Gold clung to overnight gains yesterday to trade near a one-month high as worries persisted over a slowdown in the global economy after China’s growth eased in the third quarter to its weakest since the 2008/09 financial crisis.

The weakness in Chinese growth, however, was not as bad as feared as the world’s second-largest economy grew 7.3% between July and September from a year earlier, above the 7.2% forecast by analysts.

The slightly better-than-expected data yesterday lent some support to Asian equities, though investors were eyeing US data later this week for more cues.

“For the moment I think gold will hold near the key $1,250 level and a strong break above that could take it up to $1,275,” said a trader in Hong Kong.

“Despite the recent rebound in equities, there are still some worries out there that could attract bids for gold.

Weakness in the dollar is a major factor for gold,” the trader said.

Spot gold was flat at $1,246.71 an ounce by 0408 GMT, after gaining 0.7% in the previous session.

Gold jumped to a one-month high of $1,249.30 last week as fears over a slowdown in the global economy sent investors chasing after safe-haven assets.

The dollar was little changed yesterday but it is off a four-year peak hit at the beginning of this month.

With China data out of the way, focus will now turn to today’s US inflation data and Thursday’s European

The shop window of a jewellery displays gold items near the Grand Mosque during the annual Haj pilgrimage in Mecca manufacturing reports.

Weak data from Europe in particular had hurt financial markets in recent days, leading to jitters about a global slowdown and a close watch on economic data.

SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 1.18% to 751.97

RBI will not change gold import rules n Reuters, New Delhi The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will not change its gold import rules, sources with knowledge of the matter said, responding to a report that the world’s second-largest consumer of the precious metal was keen to limit imports.

The RBI has already eased some import controls by allowing seven trading houses to import the metal, driving a sharp jump in overseas buying despite a record import duty of 10%.

A surge rise in gold imports widened the trade deficit to an 18-month high of $14.25bn in September, creating concerns for the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an unidentified Finance Ministry official told the

Economic Times newspaper.

The ministry also sent a letter to the central bank seeking a review of the May relaxations, according to the report. But two officials familiar with the RBI’s policies told Reuters on Monday it was not considering any change.

The Finance Ministry could not be reached for comment. Gold is India’s second-biggest expense on imports after oil, and shipments of the metal tend to jump ahead of key festivals in October.

Indian gold traders and jewellers had hoped the new government would lower duties, following election campaign statements that any action should take into account the interests of the public and gold traders. l

The inauguration ceremony of Dhaka WASA bill payment through First Security Islami Bank Limited’s mobile financial service named, “FSIBL FirstPay SureCash” was recently held at a hotel in Dhaka. The bank’s managing director, AAM and Engineer Taqsem A Khan, managing director of Dhaka WASA have attended the ceremony

tonnes on Monday - the biggest daily percentage drop in a year.

The drop in holdings at the fund considered influential due to its size could undermine sentiment in the bullion market.

Traders, however, were optimistic about buying interest in the physical markets from Asia - the top-consuming

REUTERS

region.

India, the second-biggest gold buyer, celebrates Dhanteras on Tuesday and Diwali later in the week. Both are considered auspicious for buying gold, and retail sales and imports could get a boost.

News that India’s central bank will not tighten its gold import rules further could also lend support. l

As China gets tougher on fuel economy, some carmakers may be left behind n Reuters, Beijing Chinese automakers from state-owned FAW Co to Zhejiang Geely are racing to sell more eco-friendly cars as they try to meet tough fuel economy rules due next year as part of Beijing’s battle against pollution.

But many of China’s smaller indigenous automakers will struggle to make the costly upgrades needed to meet the new rules, which aim to push more efficient energy use and which are expected to be toughened every year through 2020.

A technology deficit versus bigger foreign automakers and the cost of developing or obtaining the new technologies needed are likely to speed up consolidation in a fragmented industry of more than 80 registered manufacturers.

The Chinese government last week unveiled tough penalties tied to the new fuel economy rules - from namingand-shaming those who fail to make the grade to restricting production at non-compliant automakers.

“Restricting production is a very severe penalty,” said He Hui, an analyst at the International Council on Clean Transportation, an adviser to China’s government on fuel-economy policies.

“Chinese carmakers lag far behind foreign firms in their technology repertoire, so the rules add pressure to those already struggling domestic brands.”

By next year, all car makers in China, the world’s biggest autos market, will be required to achieve average fuel economy of 6.9 liters per 100 km (around 41 miles per British gallon or 34.1 miles per US gallon) across their

Japan stocks see biggest gain this year n Reuters, Tokyo

Japanese stocks led a rally in Asia yesterday, after solid US data and earnings calmed tumult in global financial markets and reassured investors worried about the health of the world economy.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment was surprisingly strong in early October, rising to more than a sevenyear high. Other data also showed new housing starts rose more than expected last month, suggesting US economic growth was solid.

The upbeat US data has brought some calm to markets after a week of turbulence as signs of softening global growth roiled investors and sent volatility spiking.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan surged 1.3%, while Japan’s Nikkei stock average jumped about 3.7%, posting its biggest daily rise since June last year and retaking some of the 5% it shed in the previous week.

European markets were expected to open higher too, with financial spreadbetters predicting Britain’s FTSE 100 and Germany’s DAX to each open up 0.4%, and France’s CAC 40 to open flat.

Shares in Shanghai added 0.5%, after sources said on Friday that China’s central bank is set to inject about 200bn yuan($32.66bn US dollars) worth of three-month loans into five or six medium-sized listed banks to keep liquidity ample and support the slow-

ing Chinese economy.

Data on Tuesday is expected to show that China’s economy likely grew at its weakest pace in more than five years in the third quarter as a property downturn weighed on demand, according to analysts polled by Reuters, raising the chances of more aggressive policy steps.

“We take this (injection) as a message from the Chinese government that they’re basically changing the priority from anti-corruption to the economy again, which brings some comfort to the market,” said Kyoya Okazawa, head of global equities at BNP Paribas in Tokyo.

Still, Okazawa said, much of the rise in Asian shares was due to funds reducing their downside hedges, so he called Monday’s broad gains a “mostly technical rebound.”

Tokyo shares in particular were underpinned by expectations that Japan’s $1.2tn Government Pension Investment Fund, the world’s largest public pension fund, will likely raise its allocation for domestic stocks to about 25%, according to people familiar with the process.

On Wall Street, all major stock indexes climbed more than 1% on Friday, though the S&P 500 posted its fourth straight weekly decline, its longest streak in more than three years.

US earnings will remain in the spotlight this week, with results due from 128 S&P 500 companies, including six Dow components.

Out of the 81 S&P 500 component companies that have already reported

B3

third-quarter results, 64.2% have beaten expectations, a rate slightly below the average over the past four quarters but better than the past 20 years.

But some strategists remain wary as the negative factors which dragged down global shares last week have not completely evaporated.

“With Halloween just around the corner, the market was spooked by ‘ghosts’ and these ghosts will probably stick around longer,” said Hiroyuki Nakai, chief strategist at Tokai Tokyo Research Center. “The ghosts are European economic concerns, worries on what could happen after the Fed ends tapering, and fears about Ebola.”

Asian investors are also paying attention to developments in Hong Kong, where pro-democracy protests entered their fourth week and demonstrators appeared increasingly willing to confront police. US Treasuries posted their second straight day of declines on Friday, and their rising yields added to the dollar’s appeal.

The yield on benchmark 10-year notes stood at 2.221% in Asian trade, up from Friday’s US close of 2.199 percent and well away from 17-month lows below 2% plumbed last week.

Speculators boosted their bullish bets on the dollar in the week ended Oct 14 to their largest since late May last year, still showing optimism for US economic prospects, data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed on Friday. l

product line-up. By 2020, the target will have been made more stringent to 5 liters per 100 km (56.5 mpg in Britain or 47 mpg in the US).

That means each car maker will have to improve fleet average fuel economy by more than a third by the end of the decade from today’s levels, said James Chao, regional director at IHS Automotive, estimating it will cost “billions and billions of dollars” for the industry as a whole to comply. “Who’s at a disadvantage? ... the local lower volume (manufacturers),” said Chao. “This may well be the catalyst for them to either find a partner or to be acquired.”

'This may well be the catalyst for them to either find a partner or to be acquired' Nearly 30% of carmakers in China failed to meet suggested fuel economy targets for 2013, and most of those were Chinese, including Lifan Industry Group Co Ltd and state-owned GAC Group’s passenger car unit. Some foreign makers, too, especially luxury car producers, are likely to struggle to meet the new rules, and are rushing to adopt green car technologies, according to Chao.

Highlighting the challenges facing even some of China’s bigger automakers, already struggling to compete with global brands, Beijing-based BAIC Motor Corp, Daimler’s local partner, has said the fuel economy rules are a major business risk that could result in product delays and big increases in component and design costs. l

Dollar eases in Asia after weak China data n AFP The dollar slipped in Asia yesterday as weak Chinese growth data rekindled concerns about the global economy.

In Tokyo afternoon trading, the greenback slipped to 106.40 yen from 106.92 yen in New York.

The euro rose to $1.2820 from $1.2800, while it weakened to 136.54 yen from 136.86 yen.

The yen, seen as a safe bet in times of uncertainty, after China said its economy expanded 7.3 percent year-on-year in July-September, its slowest since 2008 at the depths of the global financial crisis..

The third-quarter figure announced was lower than the 7.5% expansion in the previous three months, although it exceeded the median forecast of 7.2% in an AFP survey of 17 economists.

Investors will now turn their attention to US home sales later in the day and Japanese trade data Wednesday.

“Any indication of further weakening export growth is likely to come to the benefit of (Bank of Japan) easing expectations,” Credit Agricole said.

“This, combined with further improving risk sentiment should keep the yen a sell on rallies.”

The dollar has tumbled in recent weeks on worries about the global economy and fears about the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. l

Dhaka Bank’s training institute and its human resources division have jointly organised a day-long workshop on personal excellence recently. The bank’s managing director Niaz Habib inaugurated the workshop as chief guest

An agreement has been recently signed between Trust Bank Limited and Cadet Colleges regarding collection of various fees of all cadets through Trust Bank Mobile Money and cards in Dhaka. Vice Chairman of Trust Bank Limited and Adjutant General of Bangladesh Army, Major General Ashraf Abdullah Yussuf attended the signing programme as chief guest

Pizza Hut and KFC, the two globally renowned and internationally restaurant chains from the house of Transcom Foods Limited have recently opened a new outlet at RM Centre. The inaugural ceremony was attended by Akku Chowdhury, MD and CEO of Transcom Foods Ltd

NCC Bank’s training institute has recently organised a workshop on preventing money laundering and combating terrorism financing for its officers at Dhaka branches. The bank’s deputy managing director, Akhtar Hamid Khan inaugurated the workshop as chief guest

An agreement was recently signed between Envoy Textiles Ltd and National Institute Burn & Plastic Surgery (NIBPS). Mr. Kutubuddin Ahmed, chairperson of Envoy Textiles Ltd and Professor Dr Md Abul Kalam, for NIBPS signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations

Union Bank Ltd has recently opened its Talshahar Branch at Brahmanbaria for providing shariah-based modern banking services. The bank’s managing director Md Abdul Hamid Miah inaugurated the branch

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

China’s economic growth slows to 7.3% in Q3, six-year low

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Cooling China GDP growth likely to raise heat on policymakers

n Reuters, Beijing

n Reuters, Beijing

China’s economic growth cooled to 7.3% between July and September from a year earlier, the weakest expansion since the global financial crisis and reinforcing expectations that Beijing will need to roll out more stimulus to avert a sharper slowdown.

With a faltering property market increasingly dragging on manufacturing and investment, the reading was the slowest for the world’s second-largest economy since early 2009, when the growth rate tumbled to 6.6%.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected third-quarter growth to cool to 7.2% from 7.5% in the second quarter, adding to worries about flagging global growth which have sent financial markets tumbling in recent weeks.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, growth eased to 1.9% versus expectations of 1.8% and down from 2% in the second quarter.

Other data released alongside the gross domestic product (GDP) report on Tuesday showed factory output rose 8% in September from a year earlier, beating expectations for a 7.5% increase and up from August’s six-year low of 6.9%.

Fixed asset investment, a key driver of the Chinese economy, was weaker than expected. It climbed 16.1% in the first nine months compared with the same period a year earlier, below forecasts for a 16.3% rise and cooling from 16.5% in the first eight months of the year.

Retail sales rose 11.6% in September from a year earlier, below analysts’ predictions of 11.8% and down from the previous month’s 11.9%.

A raft of lackluster and at times alarming economic data in recent months presaged slowing third-quarter growth in China, with the growing drag from the property market blunting the impact of stimulus measures which were rolled out earlier in the year.

Beijing is expected to announce fresh support measures in response to the weak economic picture as China is on track to miss the official 7.5% growth target for the year, analysts said ahead of the data release. However, Premier Li Keqiang has said repeatedly that the government would tolerate growth slightly lower than the target as long as the jobs market holds up.

Most economists do not expect more aggressive policy action such as interest rate cuts unless conditions sharply deteriorate.

China is expected to post its weakest growth since the global financial crisis in the third quarter as a property downturn weighs on manufacturing and investment, raising the heat on Beijing to unveil more stimulus measures.

Data is expected to show the world’s second-largest economy expanded 7.2% in the September quarter from a year earlier, slowing markedly from 7.5% in the previous quarter, a Reuters poll showed.

That would be its weakest performance since early 2009, when the growth rate tumbled to 6.6% and a collapse in world trade threw tens of millions of Chinese out of work.

The market believes Communist Party leaders will tolerate a gradual slowdown as long as there are no signs of a potentially destabilising jump in unemployment, but anything weaker would fuel speculation of major stimulus measures such as an interest rate cut.

“We expect weak Q3 data as the economy still faces relatively big downward pressures, but we have seen some positive signs from exports, power production and bank lending in September,” said Tang Jianwei, senior economist at Bank of Communications in Shanghai.

Premier Li Keqiang has said growth slightly below the official target of 7.5% this year was fine as long as the job market remained stable, saying the government accepted activity would slow as it tries to reform the economy.

Annual growth slowed to 7.4% in the first quarter, before a series of stimulus steps, including infrastructure investments and cuts in the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) for smaller banks, lifted it briefly in the June quarter.

While the leadership has offered a steady stream of aid to more vulnerable sectors of the economy, they have ruled out massive stimulus as China is still struggling to deal with a mountain of local government debt, the hangover from 4tn yuan (US$650bn) in spending rolled out in 2008/09 to cushion the impact of the global crisis.

Similarly, the central bank has resisted calls to cut interest rates or RRR for all banks, while trying to coax increasingly risk-averse banks to continue lending and keep the financial system flush with cash to avert any damaging spikes in borrowing costs.

In its latest move, sources said late last week that it was set to inject about 200bn yuan ($33bn) of liquidity into some banks.

“Further relaxation of credit supply

Job market is key

The data added to expectations that growth will come in below the official

A worker cleans an apartment block in Beijing 2014 target of 7.5 percent, which would be the first miss since 1999.

Premier Li Keqiang has stated repeatedly that authorities will tolerate growth slightly below target as they try to reshape the economy so it is driven more by domestic consumption and less by exports and investment.

Li has indicated that the leadership’s bottom line is maintaining employment to ward off social unrest, a policy priority. The government has said growth of 7.2 percent is needed to keep employment steady.

“Although economic growth has slowed in the third quarter, our employment and inflation situation are generally stable, which means the economy is still operating in a reasonable range,” statistics bureau spokesperson Sheng Laiyun said.

Private and official business surveys have suggested pressure on employment for much of the year, though there have been no reports of widespread layoffs.

Property headwinds

A weakening property market continued to weigh on broader activity in the third quarter, with revenue from property sales revenue and new construction tumbling in the first nine months

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of 2014, blunting the impact of earlier stimulus measures and a long-awaited pick-up in exports.

“The weakest part of China’s economy is still the property sector,” said Wang Tao, analyst at UBS in Hong Kong.

“The government has relaxed some controls recently and property sales may pick up in the fourth quarter. However, we may not see improvement in sectors like heavy industry and we expect the economy to continue to slow down.”

With house price declines spreading to a record number of cities and new construction tumbling, the government last month cut mortgage rates for some home buyers for the first time since the global financial crisis.

Few bright spots

Other data showed factory output rose 8.0 percent in September from a year earlier, beating expectations and marking a recovery from August’s six-year low of 6.9%.

But that appeared to be the lone bright spot. Fixed asset investment, an important driver of the economy, was weaker than expected, as were retail sales.

That followed data last week which

showed inflation cooled to a near fiveyear low, highlighting sluggish domestic demand and a lack of pricing power for firms.

“While we do not see China will fall into a ‘hard landing’ scenario, we do see the risk of deflation is rising sharply,” ANZ economists said in a note.

The statistics agency downplayed that risk, saying there was no danger that consumer prices would fall in coming months.

While authorities have offered a steady stream of aid to more vulnerable sectors of the economy, they have ruled out massive stimulus as the country is still struggling with a mountain of debt, the hangover from 4tn yuan (US$650bn) of stimulus rolled out during 2008/09 global crisis. Government economists at top think tanks have said that if growth looked like dropping below 7%, authorities may take bolder and broader steps such as interest rate cuts.

“Today’s numbers don’t really suggest they have to do a big stimulus,” said Tim Condon, ING’s head of Asian research in Singapore.

“They can continue targeted measures. They’ve done quite a bit in the last couple of weeks. Maybe that’s enough.” l

Economists: WTO Doha Oil falls below $86 as oversupply, deal would make world global economy worries weigh $11tn richer by 2030 n Reuters, Calgary

n AFP, Geneva Sealing a global free trade deal would add $11tn to the world economy and pull 160 million people out of poverty by 2030, economists said in a study published yesterday.

Member states of the World Trade Organisation launched negotiations in 2001 in the Qatari capital Doha for a global deal on slashing trade tariffs and removing subsidies, but have failed to reach an agreement.

Economists commissioned by thinktank Copenhagen Consensus Centre said however in a series of studies published yesterday that such a global agreement would be an extraordinary investment.

Implementing the deal would not be free, the economists said but for every dollar spent on putting in place the agreement, countries could reap at least $2,000 in benefits.

“The costs are very small,” Australian economist and lead author of the studies, Kym Anderson, told AFP. And the biggest winners would be developing countries, which tend to have the highest trade barriers - with around $3,400 in return for every dollar spent there, they said.

“Our crude estimates show that by 2030, there will be 160 million fewer people in extreme poverty if (Doha) is implemented,” Anderson said.

“You would end up with a huge gain,” he added.

The WTO itself had estimated last year that a global trade deal could add several hundred billion dollars, or even over a trillion dollars, to the annual sum of global commerce.

But over a decade of negotiations

have borne no fruit as developed countries refuse to slash subsidies to farmers while developing nations refuse to bring down tariffs imposed on industrial goods.

“There will be losers,” acknowledged Bjorn Lomborg of the Copenhagen Consensus Centre, referring for instance to some European farmers who might see subsidies vanish.

But they would by far be outweighed by winners, especially in developing countries, he said.

“This could fundamentally change the world. We could make the world about 10% richer in 2030 than it would otherwise be, and make every person in the developing world $1,000 better off.”

Lomborg and Anderson said they hoped the analysis would provide “a huge argument” for those pushing to restart the discussions on global free trade.

Economists Santiago Fernandez de Cordoba of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and David Vanzetti of Australia National University meanwhile said in a reaction to the economists’ study that economic growth alone was not enough to ensure broader development.

“Investment is the key. Capital needs to be allocated correctly and used productively. Governance is critical,” they wrote.

If Doha remains elusive, the analyses showed Asia-focused regional free trade agreements could also rake in nearly $2,000 in benefits for every dollar spent.

However, such deals would exclude Africa and thereby “leave out the best opportunity to lift people out of poverty,” Lomborg said. l

Brent crude fell on Monday, dropping below $86 a barrel as worries about booming supply and sluggish demand pushed the global oil benchmark back toward last week’s four-year low. US crude hovered below $83 a barrel.

Brent tumbled more than a dollar in early US trade, but bounced off session lows as global equities markets gained.

Oil prices are down more than 25% since June on concern about a saturated global oil market and a gloomy economic outlook from Europe to China. Last week, Brent slid below $83, its lowest since 2010.

Energy economists have slashed forecasts of world oil demand growth for next year.

It was also not clear whether the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will decide to cut output to support prices when OPEC members meet on Nov. 27.

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iran have all indicated reluctance to change supply policy, while Venezuela has requested an extraordinary meeting ahead of the Nov 27 gathering to discuss how to arrest the price plunge.

Brent fell as low as $84.41, and was down 69 cents at $85.47 a barrel by 1945 GMT. The global benchmark had rallied 2% on Friday, its biggest gain in over a month.

US crude settled down 4 cents at $82.71 a barrel.

The spread between Brent and US crude closed at $3.39 a barrel.

“Brent was probably just a reversal of Friday. There’s substantial downward pressure because of the uncertainty over what’s going to happen at the OPEC meeting,” said James Williams, energy economist at WTRG Economics.

“The Saudis seem willing to toler-

An offshore oil platform is seen in Huntington Beach, California ate prices around $80 so I would not be surprised if it continues to go lower.”

Brent losses were limited ahead of Chinese third-quarter gross domestic product data due to be released overnight, with many market participants keen to see the data before taking positions. Growth was expected to be at a five-year low of 7.3%.

“There’s still a sense that right now things are not really great in the global economy and there are no signs that oil producers are looking to cut back on production any time soon,” said Phil Flynn, analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.

Output has been halted temporarily for environmental reasons at the Saudi-Kuwait Khafji oilfield, which has output of 280,000 to 300,000 barrels per day (bpd).

But the move is unlikely to affect oil supplies from Saudi Arabia, the world’s top exporter, which says it has the ability to produce as much as 12.5 million

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bpd. Saudi Arabia pumped 9.7 million bpd in September.

Investors kept a wary eye on any disruption to oil supply from geopolitical developments.

The United States air-dropped arms for the first time to Kurdish fighters defending the Syrian border town of Kobani against Islamic State.

Traders were also concerned about uncertainty over who is in charge of oil reserves in Libya, where two competing governments are vying for control. l

DILBERT

through increased base money supply and relaxation of loan quotas could help, though we do not expect a RRR cut soon unless there are persistent large FX outflows,” Tao Wang, China economist at UBS, said in a note.

“We also expect a wholesale cut in the benchmark lending rate by the end of 2014 or early 2015 to help more effectively lower borrowing costs and boost businesses’ cash flow.”

Authorities may resort to bolder and broader measures if quarterly growth slips below 7 percent, government economists at top think tanks involved in policy discussions said.

Growth in fixed-asset investment is seen easing slightly to 16.3% for the January to September period, from 16.5% in the first eight months of the year Much will depend on whether recent government steps to relax lending rules for home buyers can stem house price declines, which have spread to a record number of cities. The resulting slump in new construction has dashed demand for everything from glass and furniture to cement and steel.

Monthly data

Beijing will also release some September activity data later yesterday, which could give investors clues on how much economic momentum will be carried into the fourth quarter of the year.

Factory output is forecast to have grown an annual 7.5% in September, quickening from August’s 6.9%, a near six-year low. Retail sales, a gauge of consumption, likely grew 11.8%, largely steady from August.

Investment figures, however, are likely to prove more worrying.

Growth in fixed-asset investment is seen easing slightly to 16.3% for the January to September period, from 16.5% in the first eight months of the year.

Other investment data will show the extent of the slowdown in the property sector, which accounts for about 15% of GDP. Earlier data for September painted a mixed picture, with bank lending quickening and exports and imports beating expectations, but consumer inflation slipping to its lowest in nearly 5 years, pointing to broader weakness in the economy. l

Apple, IBM to shed light on apps, alliance next month

n Reuters, San Francisco

Apple Inc and IBM have signed up about 50 initial corporate clients for software solutions and apps developed jointly under their recently forged strategic alliance, chief financial officer Luca Maestri told Reuters.

The two companies, which in July announced they would team up to sell iPads and iPhones with specialized software to corporate and government customers, will announce the first batch of apps and software next month, he said in an interview on Monday.

Their alliance is aimed at helping Apple delve more deeply into the business of serving corporate clients, a business now dominated by the likes of IBM, Hewlett Packard and Microsoft Corp. But neither company has said much about their progress since the July announcement.

“The level of interest from the corporate world has been incredible,” Maestri said after Apple released its September quarter results.

The company posted better-thanexpected revenue after its best new iPhone launch on record, pushing sales of the smartphone to 39.27 million in the September quarter.

Maestri told Reuters that sales of the new iPhones in China, where they went on sale just last week, have surpassed the launch of the previous generation iPhone 5S and 5C. l