28 Dec, 2014

Paush 14, 1421 Rabiul Awal 5, 1436 Regd No DA 6238 Vol 2, No 264

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2014 | www.dhakatribune.com | SECOND EDITION

20 pages | Price: Tk12

B4 | BUSINESS

7 | CAREER

11 | OP-ED

12 | SPORT

RUSSIA FORECASTS SLUMP AS BAILEDOUT BANK GETS MORE FUNDS

GLOBAL CERTIFICATION FOR CHARTERED FINANCIAL ANALYSTS

BUT WHO WILL WATCH THE ACC?

IPARK SNEAK AWAY WITH EARLY STRIKES

Volunteers retrieve Jihad’s body from the well He was found at depth of 256ft after fire fighters called off operation; probe body to file report in 24 hours As if losing a son wasn’t enough

n Mohammad Jamil Khan The body of four-year-old Jihad was found yesterday afternoon inside the nearly 500-foot abandoned well in the capital’s Shahjahanpur Railway Colony, around 23 hours after the boy had fallen into it.

The body was found at a depth of around 258ft by the use of a handmade tool produced by five volunteers.

Local people were able to bring the child out just 10 minutes after the fire service had suspended its rescue operation formally around 2:50pm as it failed to trace and rescue the boy although they were using various methods since Friday afternoon.

Jihad’s body was brought up by the improvised “catcher” when the fire service officials were wrapping up and the locals and media persons were almost leaving the place.

Railway authorities say they will take action after getting the probe report

pipe and 1 2”pump removed brigade 2 Fire sent camera down to 254ft

3

6 16” 2” INNER PIPE

 PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

JIHAD TRAGEDY

PUMP PUM

The boy fell down further after removal of inner pipe and pump

300ft 254ft

50ft

boy is 4 The rescued from under debris SLH/DT INFOGRAPHIC

His body was taken to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital immediately. Dr KM Riaz Morshed, residential surgeon of the hospital’s emergency ward, declared him dead around 3:45pm.

“At the primary examination, we suspect that the boy had died three to four hours back. It will be clear once we get the post mortem examination report,” the physician said.

The Dhaka Tribune contacted Mofizur Rahman, additional chief engineer of railway (east), to get a clear picture of the pipe’s depth.

Assessing the primary set up of the well, he said: “We assume that a 16-inch-wide pipe goes 350 feet down while another eight-inch one stretches more than 130 feet.”

The pump was built to supply fresh water to the colony with the help of a shallow machine, set up at a depth of nearly 246ft, through a two-inch-wide pipe inside the 16-inch one. Now abandoned, the well was covered with a metal cap a year ago.

Jihad fell into the well accidentally

Jamil Khan, Abu n Mohammad Hayat Mahmud and Asif Islam

at 256ft

130ft

Source: Additional Chief Engineer Bangladesh Railway, East Zone

From top: Without the help of firefighters, some local youths put an iron catcher with a camera attached to it down the pipe to lift Jihad out of the well l Jihad's mother bursts into tears after the boy’s body is recovered l Jihad is finally lifted out from a depth of several hundred feet NASHIRUL ISLAM/ MEHEDI HASAN

Soon after State Minister for Home Affairs Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal pooh-poohed claims, early yesterday morning, that a boy had fallen down a well in the capital and dismissed it as likely a rumour, police detained the stricken boy’s father and uncle.

Jihad’s father, Nasiruddin, and Manzur, the boy’s maternal uncle, were taken to the police station around 4am by Shahjahanpur police. Nasiruddin was held for over eleven hours and claims he was accused by the police of kidnapping his own child.

He said in the course of the interrogation police threatened him saying that if he did not talk now, he would face further beatings by the Rapid Action Battalion.

Manzur was held for about eight hours and claims to have been slapped and hit by the police during questioning.

They were being interrogated over the veracity of their claims that Jihad was trapped inside the well.

The police’s zeal to uncover the truth did not stop there. They detained three children who had told the media they had heard the child’s voice down the well, and took one of the first responders to the accident site – a neighbour to help – in for questioning.

Four-year-old Siam was questioned at the police station for an hour, Fatema, 15, Pushpita, 8, and Jahid Mia, in his late 20s, Pushpita’s father and one of the first adults on the scene were questioned for four hours.

Jahid Mia, one of the locals who rushed to the pipeline after hearing about the accident who later heard Jihad’s voice and communicated with him, later told the Dhaka Tribune that if the child had not been found, he and the others could have faced entrapment and police harassment for some time.

Jahid said around 3pm on Friday, he was watching TV at home.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 4

Slack hartal ends in Gazipur n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

BNP backtracks from Gazipur because of January ‘big plans’

Study: Sundarbans food chain broken by oil spill

Yesterday’s dawn-to-dusk hartal in Gazipur district called by the BNP-led 20-party alliance, protesting a ban on public gatherings, was observed peacefully with no major incident of violence taking place in the area.

Local BNP alleged that the law enforcers did not allow them to take to the streets and raided the houses of its

n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

n Abu Bakar Siddique

with our Gazipur correspondent

P16 PHOTOS leaders. Police picked up nine picketers during hartal hours.

However, amid section 144, the ruling party activists brought out a procession in Chandana intersection area of Gazipur protesting the shutdown.

BNP has criticised the administration for not obstructing the procession.

In the evening, Gazipur district administration withdrew the ban imposed in the district.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 6

There have been a lot of speculation yesterday on why the BNP and its partners had backtracked after having announced that they would hold a rally at Gazipur “at any cost.”

Considering how things have been unfolding, the BNP-led 20-party alliance’s countrywide hartal for Monday and leaving today free on the back of yesterday’s local shutdown in Gazipur, also comes as a bit of a surprise.

Insiders said the party does not want to cause any trouble for the visiting Chinese foreign minister who is scheduled to meet BNP chief Khaleda Zia on Sunday; that is why they called the hartal a day later.

Insiders also said the party did not want to waste any manpower before their “special plan” for January 3 and 5; hence the backtracking from Gazipur.

Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, BNP

acting secretary general and alliance spokesperson, made the hartal announcement after a secretary-general-level meeting at the BNP chief’s Gulshan office yesterday.

Seeking anonymity, a senior BNP leader told the Dhaka Tribune: “If Madam [Khaleda] went to Gazipur

BNP-led 20-party alliance calls countrywide dawn-todusk hartal for Monday today [Saturday], then many leaders would have been arrested and many others would have been forced to go underground. So, the party [that has big plans for January 3 and 5] does not want to take any risk right now.”

The leader also said: “BNP’s organ-

isational strength in Gazipur is not very good. That is why the party backtracked from its decision to hold the rally in Gazipur at any cost.”

During a meeting between senior party leaders and Khaleda Zia on Friday night, standing committee member Moudud Ahmad reportedly said gathering thousands of leaders and activists in Gazipur would not bring any result.

“It is the Gazipur district BNP who has to do everything. We have to think whether Gazipur BNP is ready for that or not,” a senior leader who attended that meeting, quoted Moudud as saying.

Moudud also advised that they should concentrate on the January 5 programme because Gazipur was only going to hurt. “Then came the decision to not move all-out into Gazipur and instead enforce a hartal there on Saturday,” the meeting source said.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

The food chain of aquatic species living in the world’s single largest mangrove forest, the Sundarbans, has been severely disrupted by the Sela River oil spill, a study report says.

The study report conducted by Khulna University (KU) said the presence of primary food producers like phytoplankton and zooplankton had decreased sharply in the contaminated water.

Under normal conditions, 47 species of phytoplankton flourish in the Sundarbans. A typical litre of water normally contains 226–456 units of phytoplankton. According to the study, only 18 phytoplankton species were recorded in the oil slick with just 24–67 units per litre of contaminated water.

Furthermore, whereas 8 species of zooplankton with an abundance of 53– 77 units per litre were recorded in the Sundarbans under normal conditions,

INSIDE 3 | News

5 | News

4 | News

6 | Nation

The international oil company Chevron has proposed the setting up of a centrifugal compressor at the Bibiyana gas field under PSC aiming to boost gas pressure from the field.

Physicians at Kishoreganj Modern Sadar Hospital are struggling to treat the large number of child patients who were admitted after contracting pneumonia and other cold-related diseases.

Negligence and corruption of the concerned authority of the DU, has pushed back the construction of the DU Indoor Games Building by 34 years since the ground-breaking in 1980.

The much appreciated multimedia classrooms in schools, colleges and madrasas, aimed for promoting modern method of teaching, is yet to be effective in Chapainawabganj district due to a myriad of reasons.

8 | World

North Korea called Barack Obama a “monkey” as it blamed Washington for Internet outages that it has experienced over the hacking of the film studio Sony Pictures.

14 | Sport

Steve Smith put Australia in command of the third Test with a memorable innings to leave India with a massive task to stay alive in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Melbourne.

15 | Entertainment

BCJA a reputed organisation representing the journalists who cover Bangladeshi film news, has announced the award in film for the last five years, from 2009 to 2013.

just 2 species were found in contaminated areas. Their abundance was very poor at just 6-10 units per litre of contaminated water.

Benthos species took a severe hit as well with the normal presence of 34 species whittled down to just seven species in oil contaminated areas.

“The diminished levels of phytoplankton, zooplankton and benthos in the study area indicate a decrease in diversity and abundance due to oil contamination and has obviously affected the food chain,” the study’s team leader Prof Abdullah Harun Chowdhury said.

The December 9 Sela River oil spill was caused by a cargo ship slamming into an oil tanker while the two were plying a waterway route inside a dolphin sanctuary.

It poured an estimated 350,000 litres [75,000 gallons] of furnace oil into waterways inside the forest reserve,  PAGE 2 COLUMN 2

2

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Promoting jute-based handloom industries stressed n BSS

Speakers at the inaugural ceremony of a training course yesterday stressed for promoting the jute-based handloom industries for enhancing exports of quality jute products to earn more foreign exchange.

The Women Entrepreneurs Association of Bangladesh (WEAB) has been organising the five-day training course on “Methods for Production of Diversified Jute Products and Marketing Strategy” at Panchagarh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) auditorium in Panchagarh district town.

Small and Medium Industries Foundation (SMIF) from Dhaka has been extending technical cooperation in conducting the training course from yesterday to 31 and 25 female entrepreneurs of Panchagarh district have been participating.

Deputy Commissioner of Panchagarh Mohammad Salah Uddin attended the inaugural ceremony and formally launched the training course as the chief guest with Panchagarh district unit President of WEAB Advocate Rina Parveen in the chair.

President of PCCI Iqbal Kaiser Min-

tu, Panchagarh Sadar upazila chairman Anwar Sadat Samrat and Executive Director of non-governmental development organisation ‘Paraspor’ Akhterun Nahar Saki attended the ceremony as the special guests.

In their speeches, the speakers stressed the need for reviving the past glory of jute through increasing diversified production and use of jute quality products and enhancing exports in the international markets.

The training course would definitely assist the local female entrepreneurs, especially the unemployed young women, in setting up of jute-based cottage and handloom ventures for expansion of the jute industries, they said.

They put emphasis on providing necessary capital, support and latest technologies for producing high valued, quality and diversified jute products, enhancing marketing facilities and a package of services to the entrepreneurs.

The chief guest stressed for promoting jute-based handloom industries to create more employments of the rural women in accelerating national uplift by extending supports to the female entrepreneurs to revive the past glory of the golden fibre. l

MP’s nephew arrested with arms n Tribune Report

Art critic Bartelik presents emerging trends in artworks at Asian Art Biennial

Police arrested a nephew of Tangail 3 constituency MP Amanur Rahman Khan Rana in possession with firearms and ammunitions at Akur Takur Para area of the district town.

Rezowan Khan Punom, who is known as an Awami League cadre in the area, was arrested from his residence around 2pm yesterday.

Officer-in-Charge Golam Mahfizur Rahman of Detective Branch of Police in Tangail said: “Police conducted a raid at Punom’s house around 2pm and arrested him from his room.”

Police also recovered a foreign revolver, two 7.65mm pistols, one 9mm pistol, 17 rounds of bullets, four magazines, nine chocolate bombs, four sharp weapons, three Chinese axes, 45 pieces of yaba tablets, foreign currencies and several other weapons from his house. l

BNP backtracks  PAGE 1 COLUMN 4

Another senior leader said the party and its partners may also enforce nonstop 72-hour hartal starting January 5. “We have decided to hold a rally on January 5 even if there is section 144,” he said.

After announcing the Monday hartal, Mirza Fakhrul yesterday alleged the local administration had adopted double standards in Gazipur.

“Although section 144 was imposed, ruling party men were allowed to bring out processions in the area, thanks to the local administration,” Fakhrul said.

Gazipur authorities imposed section 144 at the playground of a local college for an indefinite period starting Friday 2pm, banning all kinds of gatherings, after BNP and ruling Awami League’s student front Chhatra League announced separate rallies at the same venue for Saturday.

Yesterday, the BNP enforced a general shutdown in the district protesting what they said was a plan to foil their rally.

After a year of relative peace, the country’s political arena showed signs of heating up when the BNP and Chhatra League men clashed in Old Dhaka centring Khaleda Zia’s court appearance in a graft case. l

n Mohammad Abu Bakar Siddique

Marek Bartelik, president of International Association of Art Critics (AICA), discussed about the changing trend of the Asian arts at Shilpakala Academy in the capital yesterday.

He brought together the evolution of the Asian Biennials in a 20 minute presentation on “Emerging Paradigm Derived from Asian Biennials” at a seminar titled “Visiting Art Critic Talk”.

Liakot Ali Lucky, the director gener-

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina places floral wreath at the grave of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at Tungipara in Gopalganj yesterday

al of the Shilpakala Academy, delivered the welcome speech at the seminar.

In the presentation, Bartelik selected works of various biennials of different countries, and discussed the theoretical aspects of the latest developments in the field.

Art magazine, “Depart”, organized the programme as part of the 16th Asian Art Biennale Bangladesh 2014 which begun on December 1 at the National Art Gallery. v The month-long exhibition will remain open for all from

Study: Sundarbans food chain broken by oil spill  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

spreading across an area of several hundred square kilometres and contaminating the land and water of the tidal mangrove forest.

Due to tidal systems, the oil spill has reached small creeks, canals and the forest floor.

Thick black furnace oil has been deposited on the soil of intertidal zones, forest floors, plants, leaves, stems, floating fruits, roots and pneumatophores [the breathing roots of mangrove plants].

Much of the surface of the rivers, creeks and canals of the south-eastern part of the Sundarbans was covered by the thick oil slick.

A 10-member research team of the Environmental Science Department of Khulna University conducted the study in 15 different oil contaminated areas of the Sundarbans from December 11 to 25.

The 1,200 square kilometre study area also collected samples from Gharilal, Jorshing and Kalagachia in the West Sundarbans, which were not affected by the oil spill.

The team found evidence of serious oil contamination in affected areas, exceeding the international oil contamination standard limit of 10 milligrams per litre.

The study titled “Impact of Oil Spillage on the Environment of Sundarbans in Bangladesh” noted a near total absence of eggs and hatchlings of common species of fish, crabs and snails even though

they were common in the study area.

Bird species like the Masked Finfoot, Ban Morog, and other local and migratory birds were also conspicuous by their absence in the affected areas, the study team noted.

Prof Harun, a faculty member of the KU environmental science department, said the status of flora and fauna indicate that primary producers, consumers, some aquatic animals and some plants and their habitats had already been affected by the oil pollution.

Crocodiles were not able to prepare hatchling houses in these areas to lay and hatch their eggs, he added.

The study said the banks of the rivers, canals and creeks of the Sundarbans are a natural habitat for crocodiles to prepare hatchling houses in the months of April and May. But before the heavy rainy season in July and August there is little possibility of reducing the oil pollution in crocodile hatchling habitats.

As a result crocodiles may migrate and face territorial conflict, ultimately affecting the crocodile population, the study said.

The tidal forest is rich in natural resources and boasts a floral and faunal diversity of 66 species of plants, more than 200 species of fish, 42 mammals, 234 birds, 51 reptiles, 8 amphibians and many invertebrates.

Around 500,000 people directly and indirectly depend on the Sundarbans for their livelihood. l

Volunteers retrieve Jihad’s body from the well  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

around 3pm on Friday while playing with other children.

On receiving information, fire fighters arrived at the spot and launched the rescue operation around 4pm. They talked to Jihad and sent him oxygen, water, juice and also a torch light. Later, they tried repeatedly to bring him out with a rope, but failed.

After 7:30pm, they lowered a sack tied to the rope with the hope that Jihad could get on it, but in vain. The fire fighters brought a crane and removed the two-inch-wide pipe to make room for the boy to be brought out, and until 11pm, they were able to bring out and cut down nearly 246ft of the pipe along with the pump.

Rescuers say that the boy fell further down after the pipe was cut.

Around midnight, a volunteer named Bashir Ahmed, who also active-

ly took part after the Rana Plaza collapse, reached the spot and expressed his wish to go down and bring the child out. But the fire fighters would not allow him.

As per suggestions of Buet and LGRD experts, the fire fighters, around 1am sent a high resolution borehole camera, provided by Wasa, inside the pipe to locate the child. At 2:30am, the camera could reach nearly 256ft but got stuck in the regiform sheets.

Around 3am, the Director General of fire service Brig Gen Ali Ahmed Khan said they had failed to trace any human life inside the well. He also expressed doubt whether Jihad had really fallen into it.

A similar statement came out from State Minister for Home Affairs Asaduzzaman Khan. He declared around 3:15am that there had been none trapped in the well and suggested that

the incident could be a rumour.

The rescue operation almost stalled following their statements. However, locals demanded that it continued.

At that time, five volunteers – Md Faruq, Shah Md Abdullah Al Moon, Sujon Dash Ruhul, Abu Bakar Siddique and Abdul Kader Chowdhury – came forward. They made the “catcher” with iron rods in association with a private company named “Icon.” It has a net, a CCTV camera and a torch light.

They sent the “catcher” down the pipe around 9am yesterday with the help of a crane, but failed repeatedly as the CCTV cable was creating problems.

Until 2pm, they were able to send the tool nearly 300ft down and became successful around 3pm.

The fire service chief last night said the body was found just under the regiform sheet, 258ft deep.

Volunteer Faruq, a small business-

11am to 8pm every day except Fridays (from 3 to 8pm) till December 31.

Works of artists from Bangladesh, Nepal, Iran, China, Thailand, Korea, Pakistan, Egypt, Japan Chile, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Romania, Turkey, Fiji, Italy, and Saudi Arabia are being showcased at the event.

Of the two committees for the Asian Art Biennale, one panel will select the art works on display, and the other one will judge the works showcased for the competition.

In 1981, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy conceived the Asian Art Biennale to locate the changes and the co-existence of modernity and the traditions in the arts in Asian countries.

Since the beginning, Asian Art Biennale Bangladesh has been trying to display the kaleidoscope of various artistic endeavours of artists of present time.

The geographical parameter is important only in a generic sense and also for identification of sponsorship in this pioneering venture. l

As if losing a son wasn’t enough  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

Suddenly, his 8-year-old daughter Pushpita, shouted aloud that a child had fallen down the well. “I rushed in and shouted down to the child below, keeping my mouth close to the pipe in the well shaft.”

“The boy responded. I sent down a rope with a torch and told him to hold on to the rope. The boy again responded. I tried to pull him out, but could not.

Fire fighters soon arrived and started their rescue operation but police officials did not believe it,” said Jahid.

This correspondent spoke with Pushpita and Fatema who were playing badminton nearby and heard Jihad’s cries first. They both told the Dhaka Tribune that they saw three boys playing near the well on Friday afternoon.

“As I went to pick up my shuttlecock which landed near the well, I heard screaming from inside. I ran over and called my father and some others. They also heard the screaming,” Pushpita said.

Jihad’s father Nasiruddin, a security Guard of Mothijheel Ideal School and College, told the Dhaka Tribune that he had dressed his son in a yellow outfit on Friday afternoon before the boy went out to play.

“A few moments later, two of Jihad’s friends, Siam and Jasin, came to my house and told me he had fallen into the abandoned deep tube well. I ran over and neighbours said they had heard his screams,” Nasiruddin said.

The grieving father questioned the authorities’ morning statement saying: “If my boy is not there, then where is he?”

“Police, instead of helping us, kept me

man in the capital’s Bashundhara area, told the Dhaka Tribune: “We sent the ‘catcher’ with a 600-foot rope. After it went down nearly 300 feet, we felt something hard and through the CCTV camera we saw that the ‘catcher’ had hooked into something.”

Soon after the body was retrieved, angry locals of the colony brought out a procession demanding punishment to those responsible for the incident.

They also chanted slogans demanding resignation of the home state minister for announcing that there had been nobody inside the well.

The angry mob also vandalised a police outpost near the spot and totally demolished a makeshift house made by the contractor company who built the pipeline.

Mehedi Hasan, officer-in-charge of Shahjahanpur police, and a number of police officials went to the spot and

locked up at the police station from last night until 3pm today, when my beloved son was finally found. This is the law of the country? What kind of law is this? I want justice,” the grieving father said.

Asked about detaining Jihad’s family and several witnesses, Shahjahanpur police station inspector Abdul Mabud, said they were brought to the police station to clarify what had happened.

“Just routine duty,” the policeman said.

A mother’s grief and bewilderment

“So many people came and said all sorts of things. They delayed the rescue operation. Instead of making baseless comments, if they had done their jobs, he might be alive now,” Khadiza Akther, mother of four-year-old boy, said.

The stricken mother waited nearly 22 harrowing hours amid a barrage of negative comments, police harassment, and doubt that her son was in fact trapped, in front of their house at A/41 at the Shahjahanpur Railway Colony.

The diabetic patient slipped in and out of consciousness and endured the police detention of her husband and brother as she awaited the result of the ultimately fruitless rescue operation.

Khadiza last spoke with her son on Friday evening, keeping her mouth close to pipeline in the well.

The panic stricken mother wept nearly the entire time she was conscious until Jihad’s dead body was pulled out of his dark grave.

Finally, the recovery of the boy’s remains left her in grieving silence, and presumably silenced those who had claimed Jihad was not even in trouble. l

brought the situation under control around 4:15pm. Additional law enforcers were deployed in the area and no one was hurt during the rampage, he said.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Railway authorities formed a three-member probe body with the third Dhaka divisional engineer as its head. The committee has been asked to submit report within 24 hours, Ahmed Ullah Shia, chief engineer of railway, told the Dhaka Tribune.

Asked about taking action against those responsible, he said: “We have already discussed the matter with our legal adviser. Primarily, we have decided to take action including filing of a case soon after getting the report.”

On Friday, railway authorities suspended its senior sub-assistant engineer Jahangir Alam and blacklisted contractor firm AR Traders for negligence. l

FOCUS BANGLA

Slack hartal  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

Defying hartal and braving cold, movement of buses, rickshaws and vans on the streets remained almost normal during the day; though the number was less than usual. Factories, business houses, and shops were open.

Meanwhile, a case was filed against 30 named including city Mayor MA Mannan and 40 unnamed people for violating section 144 and vandalism.

Gazipur Reporters’ Club General Secretary MA Farid filed the case with Joydebpur police in the evening alleging that the hartal supporters had, in the morning, attacked the microbus in which he and several other journalists were travelling to Dhaka. Farid also alleged that the picketers had assaulted them.

On Thursday night, police raided the houses of BNP leaders Hasanuddin Sarkar and Salahuddin Sarkar, and seized banners, festoons and posters published ahead of the rally.

On Wednesday night, Chhatra League members vandalised the stage erected on the Bhawal Badr-e-Alam Government College grounds for the rally while miscreants set fire to the BNP office in Tongi the following night.

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia was set to address the rally yesterday. But the local administration clamped down the ban as the ruling party’s student wing Chhatra League had also announced a rally at the same venue protesting indecent remarks by BNP’s Senior Vice-Chairman Tarique Rahman on Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

BNP alleges that the ban was imposed as part of the government’s conspiracy to foil the scheduled rally.

Yesterday, police deployed at the college did not allow anyone to enter its premises.

Witnesses say police dispersed BNP activists when they tried to bring out a procession in Sreepur area of Dhaka-Mymensingh highway around 8am.

Then the hartal supporters vandalised some vehicles parked in the area.

Rezaul Karim, acting OC of Joydebpur police, said: “Three people were detained for their involvement in vandalising a human haulier carrying police in Borobari area of Gazipur.”

Kaliakoir acting OC Omar Faruk said six hartal supporters had been picked up from different areas and later sent to jail.

Gazipur Police Superintendent Harun-ur-Rashid said that a further five platoons of police had been deployed in the district to avoid any untoward incident.

District unit BNP General Secretary Sayeedul Islam Babul claimed that police had raided houses of many of its leaders. “If the government continues such repression, then tougher movement will be announced,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.

Chhatra League leaders, however, denied brining out any procession.

When contacted, Delwar Hossain, convener of Gazipur district unit Chhatra League, said: “We did not hold any procession where section 144 was imposed. We brought out the procession against hartal.

“We want to say firmly that Tarique Rahman has to apologise for his comment [on Bangabandhu]. Otherwise, we will not allow Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman in Gazipur.”

He, however, said they would certainly abide by decision of the central leaders. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

3

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Rescue workers yesterday noon pull out Zihad, the three-and-a-half-year-old boy who fell inside a pipe nearly 500 feet deep at railway colony in the capital on Friday. Right, people gather near the scene to watch rescue operations

NASHIRUL ISLAM/MEHEDI HASAN

Chevron proposes to set up compressor BCL factions threaten to enforce nonstop strike in Bibiyana, Petrobangla yet to nod n CU Correspondent

n Aminur Rahman Rasel The international oil company Chevron has proposed the setting up of a centrifugal compressor at the Bibiyana gas field under Production Sharing Contract (PSC) aiming to boost gas pressure from the field.

“Chevron proposed to set up a compressor at the Bibiyana gas field. We have examined the proposal and trying to reach a decision,” Director (PSC) of Petrobangla, the state-run oil, gas and mineral corporation, Md Quamruzzaman told the Dhaka Tribune.

A Pertobangla official seeking anonymity said instead of the centrifugal compressor if a reciprocating compressor was set up, the cost would reduce significantly.

He said Chevron had already placed a proposal involving over $500 million to set up a compressor at Bibiyana.

“Such a compressor has never been used in Bangladesh and it is also not confirmed whether there is a need for it. Under the PSC, the cost will ultimately have to be borne by the govern-

ment,” he added.

However, Energy and Mineral Resources Division Secretary Abu Bakar Siddique told the Dhaka Tribune that the government was yet to make any decision on the proposal.

This is bigger than the last assessed figure of the country’s oldest producing field, Titas, the reserves of which are currently being reassessed “We believe the proposal will help increase gas recovery from the Bibiyana field, playing a crucial role for Bangladesh’s energy security,” said Sabrina Khan, media officer of Chevron.

Centrifugal compressors use a rotating disk or impeller in a shaped housing to force the gas to the rim of the impel-

Govt attaches importance to capacity of professionals: FM n UNB Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali yesterday said the government is putting adequate emphasis on improving local capacity of both the institutions and professionals involved in applied statistics to rightly provide inputs in programmes and policy formulation ensuring proper allocation of resources.

He was addressing as the chief guest the inaugural session of three-day the International Conference on Applied Statistics (ICAS) 2014 at Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban at the DU.

The foreign minister urged the statisticians to play the pioneering role to promote socioeconomic development in the country and meet the global challenges of 21st century The Institute of Statistical Research and Training (ISRT), University of Dhaka arranged the event.

DU VC Prof AAMS Arefin Siddique, Director of Institute of Statistical Research and Training (ISRT) Prof Muhammad Shuaib and chairman of the conference organising committee Prof Dr M Sekander Hayat Khan also spoke on the occasion.

The foreign minister urged the statisticians to play the pioneering role to promote socioeconomic development in the country and meet the global challenges of 21st century.

He also urged the teachers and re-

searchers to provide useful contributions to implement development plans for vision 2021.

Mahmood Ali said the conference is an excellent idea and would surely provide a platform for local and international practitioners, researchers and faculty to discuss and explore the new developments of statistical theory as well as their applications to meet the challenges of contemporary and imminent issues.

The theme of the conference “Applied Statistics: Meeting the challenges of the 21st century” is therefore very much timely and appropriate, he added.

“I also expect, from this forum, specific proposals may be generated that would be useful to the policymakers and planners in implementing national plan of action in line with the ‘Vision-2021’ of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in transforming Bangladesh into a Middle-income country by 2021 and into a developed one by 2041,” he said.

He hoped that the conference will also play a major role in sensitising statistics within the non-governmental organisations, research institutions, media, and other stakeholders to have a shared view in development and economics of the country.

Speaking at the conference, the DU VC urged the students, teachers and researchers of ISRT to come forward with zeal and zest to provide beacon light to solve the problems that all are confronting today due to lack of appropriate data and information in the country.

“Students and researchers have to work hard to fulfill the dream of our three million martyrs by making Bangladesh free from poverty, hunger, malnutrition, illiteracy, fundamentalism and incivility,” he added. l

ler, increasing the velocity of the gas.

On the other hand, reciprocating compressors use pistons driven by a crankshaft. They can be either stationary or portable, can be single or multistaged, and can be driven by electric motors or internal combustion engines.

According to the PSC, a gas field is considered to have a 25-year lifespan.

As the production started in March 2007, Bibiyana gas field is expected to be viable until 2032.

However, Chevron, in a recent presentation to Petrobangla, said production from Bibiyana would start to decline after 2018.

According to the Bangladesh Economic Review 2014, the initial reserve of gas at Bibiyana was 7.4 trillion cubic feet (tcf), of which 5.7 tcf was proven and recoverable. At the beginning of 2014, the remaining reserve amount at Bibiyana gas field was 4.2 tcf.

This is bigger than the last assessed figure of the country’s oldest producing field, Titas, the reserves of which are currently being reassessed.

Bibiyana is now the largest gas pro-

ducing field of the country providing about 40% of Bangladesh’s total domestic supply of natural gas.

“The details of the compressor selection are based upon the optimal technical alternative for the Bibiyana reservoir conditions. As laid out in the PSC, as with any project, we have to discuss with Petrobangla to reach an alignment on specific technical aspects and scope,” Sabrina said.

“As the operator of the Bibiyana Bangladesh PSC gas field, Chevron works to identify the most cost-effective method to ensure reliable gas production. Chevron already has a strong track record of increasing gas production in Bangladesh at a low cost,” she added.

Chevron Bangladesh has showed interest in two PSCs in Bangladesh, covering Block 12 (Bibiyana field) and Blocks 13 and 14 (Jalalabad and Moulavi Bazar fields) in the northeastern Sylhet region.

The company sells the gas it extracts to the government under long-term sales agreements. l

A tense situation prevails on the Chittagong University (CU) campus as two factions of the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) of the CU unit have threatened to enforce a nonstop strike demanding immediate arrest of the “main” accused and exemplary punishment to the killers of Tapos Sarkar.

Members of Choose Friend with Care (CFC), a shuttle train based faction of BCL of CU unit, yesterday demanded that the authorities concerned form a judicial committee to probe the murder.

On December 14, Tapos, a first year student of the Sangskrit department and also a member of CFC group, was shot dead by the rival group Varsity Express (VX), another shuttle train based BCL faction, over establishing supremacy on the campus.

The CFC men held a press conference at the CU Journalists Association (CJUA) office at CU Central Student’s Union (CUCSU) building to press home their six-point demand.

Their demands include the immediate arrests of and capital punishment to the Office and Organising Secretar-

NU forms committee to discuss decentralisation with PM n Tribune Report A seven-member committee comprised of National University’s Senate members was formed yesterday to meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to discuss her recent decision to decentralise the institution.

Former vice-chancellor of Jahangirnagar University Dr Shariff Enamul Kabir was made the convener of the committee, which is expected to be approved in the next senate meeting.

The committee, which will also discuss with the prime minister the ways to remove session jam at National University and to improve the quality of education, was formed at a special senate session of National University at the institution’s senate hall academy building in Gazipur.

Speaking at the meeting, National University Vice-chancellor Professor Harun-or-Rashid described the steps aimed at administrative decentralisation and computerising operations in order

to remove session jam and ensure overall development of education.

“Our unofficial declaration is that students of academic year 2013-14 will face no session jam even for a single day and results will be published within 80 days after the end of exams,” he said.

The vice-chancellor said some steps had already been initiated to accelerate operations, including reduced dependency on the postal department, cancellation of OMR system, creating database for teachers, online admission system, introduction of special master’s courses, and publication of newsletters and journals.

“Writing new textbooks, making an online library, introducing fibre optic network facilities and setting up “Bangabandhu and Bangladesh Research Institute” are among our future plans,” he added.

Dr Shariff Enamul, also a Senate member of National University, termed the plans for reducing session jam appropriate.

“The prime minister might have decided to bring 181 colleges, which are affiliated with National University, under the public university system without realising the overall picture but we have to make her understand that,” he said.

He also proposed six vice-chancellors for six regional centres of National University, which were established as part of the decentralisation process.

Afroz Ara Begum, associate professor at Government Titumir College, said resolving internal problems such as infrastructure and the shortage of teachers could be advantageous to get rid of other difficulties of National University.

“Many public university teachers are appointed directly and hence develop a superior mentality. I think many of them will not qualify for the BCS exam or any similar recruitment process. So why should the colleges having the National University affiliation go under public universities?” she said.

Other senate members were present at the session. l

Gobinda Halder expresses gratitude to PM n UNB Lyricist Gobinda Halder, who composed many immortal songs for the erstwhile Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra, expressed his profound gratitude to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for extending her support for his treatment.

PM’s Special Assistant Mahbubul Haque Shakil told UNB that he on behalf of the Prime Minister talked to Gobinda Halder and his daughter Gopa Halder over phone yesterday.

“I’m impressed with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s gesture and I always

pray for her wellbeing and long life,” PM’s special assistant quoted Gobinda Halder as saying.

The lyricist further said, “Sheikh Hasina is putting in her tireless efforts for making true the dream of Bangabandhu for which he called for liberation. My blessing will always remain with her.”

Gobinda Halder, suffering from old age complications, on Saturday returned home from Jitendranath Roy Hospital, Kolkata after treatment.

President Abdul Hamid visited him at the hospital on December 22.

Earlier, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina talked to Gobinda Halder on December 20 and assured him of bearing all the expenses of his treatment.

Shakil informed Gobinda Halder that the Prime Minister is always inquiring about his health condition and treatment.

Gobinda Halder’s wonderful songs include ‘mora ekti phul ke bachabo bole judda kori’, ek sagor rakter binimoye banglar swadhinata anlo jara,’ purbo digante surja uthechey’ and ‘padma meghna jamuna, tomar amar thikana’. l

ies, Jalal Ahmed and SM Ariful Islam respectively of the CU BCL unit dissolved committee; permanent expulsion of all accused in the murder, cancellation of their certificates; and lifting the ban on politics on campus.

Nazmul Haque, a student of the communication and journalism department, read out a written speech at the press conference, where CU BCL’s dissolved committee’s Assistant Secretaries Kawsar Ferdous Fuad and Abdullah Al Mamun were present.

“We will enforce nonstop blockade at the university if the VX men are allowed to return to the campus,” Nazmul said.

Meanwhile, the VX men also threatened to enforce a nonstop blockade at the campus from Monday demanding that the names of their leaders and activists be dropped from what they called a “false” case filed after Tapos’s murder.

They too demanded that their leaders and activists be allowed to return to the campus as well as to their dormitories.

Earlier, some VX men brought out a procession at the university’s rail crossing area around 1pm. l

Democracy triumphed thru’ Jan-5 polls, says Nasim

n UNB Health Minister Mohammad Nasim yesterday said the country’s democracy triumphed through the election on January 5.

“The country would have gone under martial law and its economy jeopardised had the election not been held on that day,” he said while addressing a discussion at the Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College and Hospital (SOMCH).

The SOMCH and the Sylhet chapter of Bangladesh Medical Association jointly organised the programme.

Nasim, also an Awami League presidium member, said no general election would be held in the country before 2019, urging all, including party activists, to remain alert to any conspiracy of the evil forces to save democracy.

Claiming that the BNP-Jamaat alliance did not take part in the polls ‘to kill the democracy’, he said they would neither be allowed to take to streets on January 5 next. “The Awami League will keep the roads under its control to protect public life and property.”

He also came down hard on those trying to defame Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, saying, “Bangabandhu is as high as the Himalayas. If anyone tries to malign him, he or she will be belittled.”

The minister also urged the activists of the Chhatra League to keep themselves away from any activity that may harm the image of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Turning to various demands the SOMCH placed before him, Nasim assured the authorities of constructing a hostel for the medical students and providing high quality equipment to hospital for cancer patients.

The health minister also said he would recommend turning the medical college hospital into a university. l

4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Baby patients cram Kishoreganj hospital n Our Correspondent, Kishoreganj Physicians at Kishoreganj Modern Sadar Hospital are struggling to treat the large number of child patients who were admitted after contracting pneumonia and other cold-related diseases.

Three to four patients are forced to share a bed in the children’s ward at the 250-bed hospital, which has four doctors and six nurses.

More and more child patients are arriving at the hospital from nearby districts every day, officials said.

Khadija Begum of Kodalia village in Pakundia upazila, who admitted her six-month-old son Arian to the hospital on Friday, at first thought of leaving the stinky ward after seeing that it was crammed with patients. But she later stayed as it was a matter of life and death for her baby.

Because of the shortage of beds in the children’s ward, some mothers sat on the edge of beds, sometimes keeping their babies on the laps, while many of them were compelled to stand on the floor and breastfeed their children.

The hospital authorities said there are only 20 beds in the children’s ward, 10 for newborn baby patients and the remaining 10 for diarrhoea patients, but they have to admit 60-80 patients daily.

As many as 116 babies were admitted to the hospital yesterday while the

Head teacher post vacant in 47 Ramganj primary schools n Our Correspondent, Lakshmipur The post of head teacher in 47 primary schools in Ramganj upazila remains vacant for long.

There are 161 primary schools in the upazila but a total of 68 posts of assistant teacher have not been filled for some time.

Even the post of upazila education officer is vacant while acting teachers have been employed in the vacant posts.

The lack of teachers has resulted in anomalies in the administrative and academic activities in the schools.

Guardians and members of the management committees of several schools said the learning of students had been affected by the shortage of teachers.

Parents of the students said they were concerned about results of this year’s Primary School Certificate tests.

Acting upazila primary education officer Md Minhaz Uddin conceded that there was no headmaster in 47 schools.

“A list of the vacant posts has been submitted to the higher authorities, who will decide about filling the posts,” he said.

Minhaz also said no one can have a long career at the upazila primary education office because of some “official problems”. l

number was 100-150 both on Thursday and Friday.

Besides, 150-200 babies take treatment on an average every day in the outdoor section of the hospital.

Shamsunnahar, who hails from Jashudal, brought her three-month-old child Noha to the hospital yesterday after the baby contracted pneumonia but could not find any empty bed.

She said it was difficult for a patient to get proper treatment in the crowded ward and the only doctor of the ward visits her child once in a day.

There should be at least 10 doctors who will work in three shifts in the three wards, including the children’s ward, of the hospital, said Dr Sujit Das, a child specialist of the hospital.

“It is becoming increasingly difficult for us to provide treatment as three to four patients are sharing a single bed.

Besides, we have only six nurses but there should be at least 15 to look after all the patients,” he said.

The doctor said most of the children were pneumonia patients and many of them later contracted other diseases like bronchitis, asthma, jaundice, diarrhoea and even kidney problems.

Dr Mrinal Kanti Pandit, civil surgeon of Kishoreganj, said the number of baby patients was on the rise but there remains an acute shortage of physicians in all the hospitals of the district. l

Withdrawal of cases against admission seekers and their release demanded n DU Correspondent Dhaka University Progotishil Chhatra Jote, a platform for the leftist student bodies, yesterday demanded the release of arrested admission seekers and withdrawal of all “false and fabricated” cases against them.

They made the demands at a press conference at Madhur Canteen of Dhaka University (DU) at noon. DU unit Chhatra Union President Liton Nandi read out a written statement at the conference.

They also threatened to stage a sitin programme in front of the residence of Dhaka University Vice Chancellor AAMS Arefin Siddique on Monday if their demands were not fulfilled before that day.

On October 14, just after the 2014-15 admission test, the authorities decided to allow only freshly passed HSC students to appear in its admission tests from the 2015-16 academic sessions.

Some students, who attended this year admission test of the university, started staging demonstrations demanding a reversal of the decision.

They staged a hunger strike, held rallies, and submitted a memorandum to President Md Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the DU vice chancellor.

HT Imam: AL never resorts to violence despite being repeatedly attacked n Tribune Report

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Political Adviser, HT Imam yesterday said the ruling Awami League had never resorted to violence out of vendetta though it was attacked many times by the Jamaat-e-Islami.

‘The owners of many business institutions nowadays are antiliberation. They collect money from people in the name of Islam’ “The owners of many business institutions nowadays are anti-liberation.

They collect money from people in the name of Islam and then they use it against us,” HT Imam alleged.

He said these while addressing the launching event of 1971 Genocide – Torture Index Granthamala as the chief guest. Organised by 1971 Genocide – Torture Archive and Museum Trust, the event was held at the Women’s Voluntary Association (WVA) auditorium in the capital’s Dhanmondi area.

Criticising Dhaka-based British journalist David Bergman, he said it was audacious for a foreign citizen to use

Day labourers huddle together in front of a fire made to keep them warm in the face of biting cold. The photo was taken yesterday from Panthapath area in the capital

mobile phone to capture photos inside the court room.

He later praised the initiative of launching the book series on the liberation war of 1971 and emphasised on translating the book into English for international recognition.

Ten books under the Granthamala were launched at the program. The writers are Satyajit Ray Majumder for Damerkhanda Ganahattya, Tapan Palita for Lalmatia Jaynopur and Khajanchibari Ganahattya, Chowdhury Shahid Kader for Mujafrabad Ganahattya and Pahartali Ganahattya, Mamun Siddique for Beltali Ganahattya, Ahammed Sharif for Golahat Ganahattya and Kaliganj Ganahattya, Shanta Patrnabaish for Binodbari Mankon Ganahattya, Gouranga Nandi for Badamtala Ganahattya, and Himu Adhikari for Kathira Ganahattya.

President of the Trust historian Muntasir Mamun urged the new generation to come forward to further the work of the Granthamala.

Also present in the event, Shahriar Kabir, the president of Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee said the Granthamala would help the readers know the atrocities committed by the Pakistani occupation force in 1971.

He also said this Granthamala would help prevent national and international conspiracy against the country. l

Despite repeated assaults by police they continued their programmes from October 17.

On December 21, several students gathered in front of Raju Sculpture on the campus before going to meet the vice chancellor as part of their schedule around 10am.

Shahbagh police, led

by Proctor Amjad Ali, arrested eight of them from the altar of Raju Sculpture and four from the TSC area and seven from Suhrawardi Uddyan. They later released three, detaining 16 others Shahbagh police, led by Proctor Amjad Ali, arrested eight of them from the altar of Raju Sculpture and four from the TSC area and seven from Suhrawardi Uddyan. They later released three, detaining 16 others.

The university authority filed a case against the 16 students for causing a

Son-in-law kills father-in-law over family feud n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi

A son-in-law reportedly stabbed his father-in-law to death as sequel to family feud in a village of the district early yesterday.

Abdul Jalil, 50, succumbed to his injuries following multiple stab injuries in Raghrampur village under Puthiya upazila around 5:30 am, said Hafizur Rahman, officer-in-charge (investigation) of Puthiya police station.

He said three persons Abdur Rashid, 45, his wife Mina Begum, 40, and their son Ripon, 20, were detained in connection with the killing.

However, the main accused sonin-law, Anwar Hossain, remained absconding since the murder.

Quoting locals OC Hafiz said Anwar Hossain accompanied by Ripon stabbed Abdul Jalil indiscriminately while he was working in crop field in the morning.

On information, police rushed to the spot and recovered the body.

Previous enmity over marital relation might have been reason behind the murder, the OC suspected.

A murder case was recorded with the police station in this connection.

The body was sent to the hospital morgue. l

loss of around Tk5 lakh by vandalising different structures of the university.

The Dhaka Tribune ran a report titled “16 admission seekers languishing in jail in ‘false case’” yesterday about the alleged vandalism caused by the arrested admission seekers, which made it clear that no act of vandalism by them took place on the day they were arrested.

Chhatra Union leader Liton told the press conference yesterday the authority had filed the case against 16 innocent admission seekers who were arrested from the campus on December 21.

He said there was only a procession at the university on the day that the admission seekers were arrested and if any case should be filed, it should be against those involved in the procession, not the admission seekers who are innocent.

The progressive students leader urged the authority to hold back their decision barring students from not taking part in the university admission tests for a second time.

Central unit Chhatra Union Vice President Maruf Billah Tonmoy, DU unit Somajtrantrik Chahtra Front President Rashed Shariar and DU unit Chhatra Federation President Monowar Hossen Masud were also present at the conference. l

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

DUTA election on Wednesday n DU Correspondent The Dhaka University Teachers Association (DUTA) will elect its 15-member executive committee on Wednesday.

“The voting will start at the Teachers’ Club at 10am and will continue until 2pm,” DUTA President Professor Fariduddin Ahmad told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

The Awami League-backed Blue Panel and the BNP-Jamaat-backed White Panel will contest the election, he said, adding Prof Shafikuzzaman, of the Department of Economics, will conduct the election.

The DUTA chief also expressed his hope that the election would bring a historical result for them and explained that they would be able to win all posts in the election.

BNP-Jamaatbacked teacher and former Dean of the Arts Faculty Professor Dr Sadrul Amin said they hoped that all the conscious teachers would vote for them in the election in view of the prevailing situation across the country.

This year, the candidates for the Duta president are the current Duta chief

from the Blue panel and Dr Akhter Hossain Khan from the White panel.

The Blue and White Panels candidates for the DUTA general secretary post are respectively Dean of the Earth and Environment Faculty Professor ASM Maksud Kamal and DU Syndicate Member Professor Md Lutfor Rahman.

Those who will vie for the vice-president post are Professor of management information system department Hasibur Rashid from the Blue Panel and Professor of physics department ABM Obidul Islam from the White panel.

The Awami League-backed panel of teachers bagged nine out of the existing 15 posts, including those of president and general secretary, in the last Duta election. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

5

Sunday, December 28, 2014

DU indoor games facility not ready in 34 years due to corruption n DU Correspondent Negligence and corruption of the concerned authority of the Dhaka University (DU), has pushed back the construction of the DU Indoor Games Building by 34 years since the ground-breaking in 1980.

The university authority allocated funds for the project three times but there is no trace of where the money had been used. There is also a case pending against the university engineers for being involved in corruption.

University are deprived of the facilities of indoor games because of the absence of the building.

At present, the university uses the gymnasium where indoor games such as table tennis, basketball, volleyball, carrom and badminton are played.

On a visit to the gymnasium, it was seen that different time slots were set aside for male and female students and various activities, because of the lack of space.

Tanzina Tanin, an athlete of the university expressed discontent over the present sports facilities. She said: “We face many obstacles when we need to practice for tournaments as we do not have a specific indoor games corridor.”

She urged the authority to resume the work and complete the construction as early as possible.

Director of the Dhaka University Physical Training Centre, Mohammad Shoukot-ur-Raham acknowledged that the students were deprived of facilities.

He said that the gymnasium had to be kept open till late night putting extra pressure on the sports officials and staff due to the unavailability of the indoor games building.

According to university sources, the authority started the construction of an indoor sports building near the swimming complex in 1980 with financial aid from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) where Tk6 crore was allocated at that time.

As the work progressed, allegations of corruption was raised against

the contractors for using low quality building material. No action was taken against the company, except for terminating the contract, after finding irregularities. As a result the work stopped.

In 1996, the then Vice-Chancellor Professor AK Azad Chowdhury attempted to resume the construction work. Tk2 crore was allotted this time but again the work got postponed for unknown reasons.

According to senior officials of DU engineering section, after 2001 the university did not take any further initiative to restart the work. On the contrary some university student leaders sold off relevant construction materials.

During the last tenure of the Awami League government, Pro-VC (admin) Professor Harun-or-Rashid attempted to finish the work. This time Golden JABL consortium was given the job.

When almost two-thirds of the work was done, allegations of corruption resurfaced. Some university officials were accused of taking bribes from the company. The work halted again and an investigation committee was formed.

The investigation report released in 2011 stated that the then Chief Engineer of the university Mohammad Amir Hossain, Deputy Chief Engineer Ghulam Mostafa Talukdar and an accounts officer were involved in the corruption.

For further investigation, the university syndicate formed a powerful committee, which submitted a report also accusing the same three persons.

Later the three officials were sacked and a special tribunal was formed to try them.

With the tribunal yet to pass a verdict, the construction work of the indoor building has fallen into limbo.

When contacted, incumbent Vice-Chancellor Professor AAMS Arefin Siddique said: “The construction work has been halted as the former officials were involved in corruption and a case is awaiting trial.”

He hoped that the work would resume soon after the tribunal passed a verdict. l

50,000 pieces of yaba recovered n UNB

Abducted businessman rescued, one held in Chittagong

Members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) recovered 50,000 pieces of Yaba tablet from Shabrah area in Teknaf upazila on Friday night. Lieutenant Colonel Abu Jar Al Zahid, CO of BGB-42, said a patrol team of the BGB challenged a group of people while they were roaming in the area suspiciously around 10:30am. They managed to escape the scene leaving behind two bags. Later, they found the pills in the bags. l

WEATHER

DRY WEATHER LIKELY SUNDAY, DECEMBER 28 DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 5:20PM SUN RISES 6:40AM FORECAST FOR TODAY 24 27 20 23 26 26 26 27

Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Cox’s Bazar

n

FM Mizanur Rahaman, Chittagong

Police rescued a businessman from Feni district early yesterday who was allegedly abducted by a group of miscreants four days back on December 23 from Chittagong city’s Bakalia area.

The rescued person was identified as Md Mizanur Rahman, 28, an owner of a Telecom shop in a market in Notun Bridge area. He was son of Abdul Khalek, hailing from Jorarganj area of Mirsari upazila in Chittagong, police said.

Police arrested an alleged abductor Md Saiful Islam, 31, said Officer-inCharge Mohammed Mohsin of Bakalia police station.

OC Mohsin said Mizan was a Dubai expatriate and came back to the country on September 2010 and started his business.

Children take part in a painting competition at the Faculty of Fine Arts, marking the 100th birth anniversary of Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin yesterday

Launch capsizes in Kirtankhola river, all 800 passengers rescued

Four drug peddlers jailed in Chittagong

n Our Correspondent, Barisal

n FM Mizanur Rahaman

A Dhaka-bound triple-decker launch with around 800 passengers on board has partially capsized after hitting the shore near Char Abdani in the Kirtankhola River in Barisal on Friday night.

The vessel, MV Dwipraj plying on the Barisal-Dhaka route left Barisal around 8:50pm and got stuck in soft mud on the shore around 9:15pm.

The passengers were rescued by local trawlers and boats soon after the incident.

“Traffic Inspector Aktar Hossain was sent to the spot along with BIWTA vessel, Agronee, to rescue the passengers,” said Abul Bashar Majumdar, deputy director (river safety and traffic management), Bangladesh Inland Water

When Mizan was aboard, he allegedly embezzled around Tk6 lakh from three persons including Saiful and another man named Yusuf, luring them with an opportunity to go to Dubai us-

On December 23, Mizan came to Dhaka after he received a call from a woman, asking him to meet her ing forged visa and documents, the OC said adding that Mizan however came back from Dubai without informing the aspirants of his return.

After coming back, Mizan, wanting to hide, changed his address and the Dubai aspirants failed to trace him,

Transport Authority (BIWTA).

The launch however, could not be salvaged till 2pm yesterday.

Shahjalal Huq, joint director of BIWTA’s Barisal office, said: “We were not able to send a salvage vessel to the spot as salvage tug Nirvik had been sent to Ghashiakhali channel and it would return in two-days time.”

BIWTA may call another salvage vessel from Narayanganj base if Nirvik’s return is delayed, he said. Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Md Riaz, the launch supervisor blamed Akhtar Hossain, the launch master for the mishap.

He [Akhtar] intentionally stuck the launch on the shoal as he was rebuked by officials of the launch company for negligence in his duty, he said.

Some passengers also blamed the

Mohsin said. Later, Saiful unearthed Mizan’s address and cell number in the city and plotted a plan with his cousin to abduct Mizan in a bid to recover the embezzled money, the official added.

The OC said Saiful using his female cousin staged an affair drama with Mizan. On December 23, Mizan came to Dhaka after he received a call from a woman, asking him to meet her, he added. Later Saiful and the others kidnapped him.

Saiful then demanded Tk6 lakh from Mizan’s family as ransom after which Mizan’s cousin Belal filed a complaint with Bakalia police station on December 24, said OC Mohsin.

Following the complaint, police started investigation and rescued him from a house beside Maya Clinic of Feni Sadar area.

A case was filed in this regard. l

7.2ºC Ishwardi

PRAYER TIMES 5:19am 6:39am 12:00am 3:44pm 5:20pm 6:41 pm SourceL IslamicFinder.org

A mobile court sentenced four drug peddlers to jail for different terms for selling drugs in the EPZ area of Chittagong yesterday.

The convicts are Afroza, Eron alias Kanaiya, Liton and Azmat, said police sources.

Officer-in-Charge of EPZ police station Abul Mansur said the four were arrested in Cement Crossing area and Boro Bari Lane area while selling drugs early yesterday.

Executive Magistrate Sahadat Hossain sentenced Afroza and Liton to three months in prison each while Eron and Azmat were jailed for four months and two months respectively, Mansur added. l

Dense fog disrupts flights in Chittagong airport n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong Regular flight operations at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong were disrupted for around two and a half hours yesterday due to dense fog.

Schedule of two international flights and at least four domestic flights were delayed, said sources at the airport.

Shah Amanat International Airport Manager Wing Commander Noor-EAlam said flight operations was halted from 7am to 9:30am as it was too foggy for flights to operate.

He said: “Two international flights of the national flag carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines from Abu Dhabi was scheduled to land at the airport at 8:20am while another flight of Air Arabia from Sharjah was scheduled to land forty minutes later.”

“The flights were scheduled to stop

n Tribune Report

Source: Accuweather/UNB

Fajr Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha

launch master for the incident.

Hosenur Rahman, a passenger, said the incident took place at a time when there was sufficient light and there was no visibility problem.

“It seemed that this was no accident, but an intentional motive to endanger the lives of hundreds of passengers,” he said. The staff of the vessel fled the spot soon after the incident, he added.

The launch’s engine room also damaged heavily in the incident.

Locals were found collecting oil on the river bed that had spilled from the vessel’s engine room.

Despite several attempts to contact the launch owners over cellphone, none could be reached for their comments. Officials at the BIWTA said they will lodge a case in this connection. l

in Chittagong then go to Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka,” he added.

However, the two flights later made a landing at the Chittagong airport around 11am after the weather improved.

Meanwhile, landing of four domestic flights was delayed by one to two hours, he added.

Chittagong Met Office said the lowest temperature recorded in Chittagong was 15.1 degrees Celsius yesterday.

The weather situation suddenly deteriorated on Friday and the gaps between the maximum and minimum temperatures came down to only three degrees Celsius on an average.

The maximum and minimum temperatures recorded were 16.5 and 13.4 degrees respectively in the country yesterday. l

Quamrul: ‘BNP to face public wrath, if try to create anarchy’

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SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

BNP’s women wing Jatiyatabadi Mahila Dal bring out a procession at Shahebbazar in Rajshahi city yesterday protesting ban on the party rally in Gazipur AZAHAR UDDIN

Food Minister Advocate Quamrul Islam yesterday said BNP would have to face public wrath if it tries to create anarchy in the country in the name of movement.

“BNP is hatching a new conspiracy to destabilise the country in the name of movement. We have witnessed their first rehearsal,” he said.

“Will people take to the streets responding to the call of Khaleda Zia? No BNP workers took to the streets in the BNP enforced hartal in Gazipur,” he said.

Quamrul, also the AL Dhaka city unit joint general secretary, made the remarks when speaking as the chief

guest at a discussion in the capital.

Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Parishad organised the discussion at the Dhaka Reporters Unity auditorium in the capital.

Quamrul said BNP does not have the courage and ability to launch any movement on the streets.

“BNP leader Gayeshwar Chandra Roy has been arrested. There will be no trace of any leader and worker of BNP if a couple of its other leaders are arrested,” he said.

BNP’s so-called movement will go eventually be deep frozen.

Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Parishad President Prof Abdul Mannan Chowdhury chaired the discussion. l

6

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Multimedia classrooms yet to be popular Correspondent, n Our Chapainawabganj The much appreciated multimedia classrooms in schools, colleges and madrasas, aimed for promoting modern method of teaching, is yet to be effective in Chapainawabganj district due to a myriad of reasons.

During the 2012-2013 fiscal year, a total of 331 educational institutions of the district were given computers, projectors, modems and laptops to

We have three trained teachers, out of 28, to conduct the multimedia classrooms.

Each teacher takes seven classes daily on an average. So it is not possible to provide multimedia classes to about 100 students hold multimedia classes. 202 schools, 97 madrasas and 32 colleges received these equipment. Some of the teachers of these institutions were also given trainings on how to conduct classes using these multimedia devices.

However, a recent visit to schools revealed that some of the equipment are still intact in some schools while some schools had them on mere display. Only few schools were holding multimedia classes but that too for one or two days in a week.

Lack of skilled manpower, inadequate number of equipment against the number of students and an overall disinterest of teachers to use the modern technology have been cited as the reasons behind the multimedia classes not being successful.

Head Master of Namoshangkarbati High School Aslam Kabir said: “The main obstacles to using multimedia for

classrooms is the shortage of equipment and manpower. We have about 1600 students studying in 19 sections.

Compared to that, we have only one projector and 13 computers.”

“Moreover, we have three trained teachers, out of 28, to conduct the multimedia classrooms. Each teacher takes seven classes daily on an average. So it is not possible to provide multimedia classes to about 100 students of each section with such limited manpower and equipment,” he added.

Some students said the multimedia classrooms were no use to them as they could not practice the lessons later on.

“Many of us do not have computers at home. So it is not possible to practice what we learn. We find the classes to be really boring,” said some students.

Dr Imran Hossain, principal of Shangkarbati Hefz-ul-Ulum FK Kamil Madrasa said: “Out of the 13 computers, only four are working. We are not being able to repair the rest due to lack of money and manpower. Until an ICT expert is employed, such projects will not be successful.”

He urged the government to provide a proper computer lab, classrooms, modern computers and trained teachers.

The same concerns were reiterated by the head masters of Noyagola High School, Charmohanpur High School, Moharajpur High School and many others.

They said the situation was worse in the upazila institutions. Added to the already existing issues, frequent loadshedding and slow internet speed are two major hurdles in the upazilas. Moreover, senior teachers of the schools and madrasas are often not interested to use the digital technology.

When contacted, District Education Officer Md Mokhlesur Rahman Akand said: “We are trying our best to make the project a success. It is true there is a lack of skilled manpower but we are also bolstering our monitoring mechanism. Such new technology will not be popular in a day.”

He further added that they had planned to train four teachers of each institutions instead of three. l

Locals at Makhonerchar village in Dewanganj upazila of Jamalpur district, have long been waiting for a footbridge over the Zinziram River. Instead of waiting for the government to do the job, recently they build the Bamboo Bridge themselves DHAKA TRIBUNE

Unicef project spreading light of education n Our Correspondent, Bandarban The United Nations Fund for Children (Unicef) is spreading the light of education among children through a project in the Chittagong hill tracts.

Locals are spontaneously helping implement the project because they are finding it quite useful.

Healthcare is also being provided to the children and their mothers under the Integrated Community Development Project.

The Unicef and the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board are jointly implementing the project para centre-wise in the hill tracts.

There are 169 para centres in Naikhangchhari upazila. Of them, there are 49 in Baishari Union, 42 in Sadar union, 41 in Ghumghum Union, 16 in Dousari Union and 21 in Sonachhari Union.

Selina Akhter, who works as a worker under the project, hails from Holudi-

ashia village in the upazila’s Baishari union.

The project worker said she was enjoying her job under the project because “I like caring for the underprivileged children and teaching them and even love to work for their mothers.”

Upazila ICDP Project Manager, who looks after the para centres, said Ruhul Amin Helali said locals were benefiting much from this project because there were transparency and accountability in it.

Locals said it would help the disadvantaged people in the inaccessible hill tracts if the project was expanded in the inaccessible hill tracts. It would greatly benefit State Minister for Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs Bir Bahadur Ushwe Sing said the light of education was fast spreading in the hill tracts because the Awami League government had taken many initiatives for it. l

NEWS IN BRIEF Miscreants shot in Lakshmipur

bKash agent hacked to death

An alleged terrorist was shot in an attack by miscreants at Bashikpur in Sadar upazila on Friday night.The victim was identified as Riyad Hossain, member of ‘Ratan Bahini’ of the area and son of Ali Ahmed, a resident of the same area. Police said a group of miscreants opened fire on Riyad while he was gathering at a tea stall in the area at about 11:30pm, leaving him seriously injured.Informed, police rescued him and took him to Laxmipur Sadar Hospital under their custody.

– Our Correspondent, Lakshmipur

An agent of bKash, mobile money transfer service provider, was hacked to death at Duari Bazar in Debidwar upazila yesterday morning. The deceased was identified as Abul Kashem,26, a resident of Duari village. Parvez Sarkar, inspector (Investigation) of Debidwar police station, said a group of miscreants swooped on Kashem’s shop at a market at Duari Bazar in the area while he was inside the shop at about 1:30 am. They hacked Kashem indiscriminately, leaving him seriously injured. The miscreants also took the mobile phone and some amount of money from the shop and fled the scene. – Our Correspondent, Comilla

Child marriage registrar caught red-handed A fake marriage registrar was held when he went to register a child marriage in Balir Ghat village under Sadar upazila.

The detained was identified as Mozaffar Hossain,45. Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge Zakirul Islam said the villagers caught Mozaffar when he went to the village to registry a marriage with fake book. Later, locals informed the police and the law enforcers arrested him.

– Our Correspondent, Naogaon

BGB recovers Tk16 lakh smuggled goods The Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) recovered different types of smuggled goods worth Tk about Tk16 lakh in Chuadanga.

Chuadanga 6 BGB Battalion Director SM Moniruzzaman said they recovered the goods, smuggled from India, from different areas in the district from Friday night to yesterday morning.

– Our Correspondent, Chuadanga

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Career

7

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Global certification for chartered financial analysts The importance of having an internationally recognised certification for your skill

Y

n Nakibul Hoq

our university degree is not enough! There is a collective effort in Bangladeshi families to ensure that their children get into one of the more reputed universities in the country. Be it a social gathering or right after your school-leaving and college-leaving examinations, everyone around you will make a point to remind you that enrolling into a reputed university and graduating out of that university with honours is a must for every successful individual.

While being at a renowned university definitely has its merits and future benefits, especially in case of universities with famous alumnus in the society, the degree is simply not the end of the road. Rather, it is the start to greater things awaiting you in the coming days.

When complemented with an excellent university backing, a globally recognised certification like the chartered financial analyst programme adds a lot of value to the evaluation of the candidates. People reviewing job applications perceive these certifications to be an essential estimate of one’s abilities to achieve success in the future, and hence place a candidate in high prospects whenever they see this added qualification.

The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) programme is the strongest available global certification for young graduates and professionals considering a

BIGSTOCK

career in finance, especially in stock brokerage and market analysis. The curriculum is recognised worldwide, be it in Wall Street or in the Dhaka Stock Exchange, and being a CFA charter-holder means that your abilities in finance can be standardised in comparison with the international standards.

A few weeks back I had an opportunity to speak to Asif Khan, the deputy head of research at BRAC EPL Stock Brokerage Ltd. As a CFA charter-holder in a highly sought-after stock broker-

age firm, Asif emphasises on the exact same ideas: “From the students’ perspective, I think graduates now realise that in the 21st century you really need to differentiate. You have to stand apart in whatever way possible. This is why people nowadays are automatically moving towards professional degrees.

You will probably see more CFAs in the coming few days; more CIMAs, ACCAs as well.”

In the past few years, there has also been a huge amount of progress in

the financial market and the financial products industry of Bangladesh. This growth has been fuelled by Bangladesh’s growing sense of globalisation in terms of trade and government regulation, and also the expansion of the capital markets. CFAs are at the forefront in this new era, using their specialised skills and techniques to analyse stocks and financial performances of public limited companies.

At BRAC EPL for instance, Asif heads a research team of seven who look after

Aim for success by goal setting in five steps suggests that ambitious goals lead to a higher level of performance than easy or general goals.

stocks, analyse them and present them to the clients. The group is composed mostly of CFAs and part-CFAs. They work as a team to continuously analyse the stock market and predict the future of stocks. With the technical skills of finance the team provides concrete information about stocks to local and foreign clients.

The knowledge gained from appearing for the CFA exams is thus highly valuable in this profession. The curriculum for the three-tiered exams is

designed in a way such that candidates can get an in-depth insight into the world of finance.

One of the most highly faced dilemmas by finance majors nowadays is the choice between MBA and the CFA programme. The merits and demerits of both the programmes are endless. But we find that the two paths are not similar in any manner.

The CFA programme is highly technical, providing you with the tools and skills necessary to succeed in the world of finance; MBA on the other hand is more comprehensive and involves all the different aspects of finance. The latter provides an enormous opportunity to explore the different topics of business administration in an environment that fosters innovation and networking, while the former is a standardised certification that provides an accurate measure of one’s knowledge.

But when compared with the aspects of branding, the CFA programme is always the clear winner unless you are at a well known MBA programme.

The charter-holder is recognised globally, and today’s Bangladeshi businesses are also becoming aware of this fact.

This is why financial institutions now have a preference for CFAs. Businesses today are becoming more technical than ever before. Be it finance, marketing or operations management, your core knowledge in the subject matter does hold a great deal of importance to your prospective employers. Besides, the intense competition of today’s corporate world means that only tried and tested professionals with acute technical skills will be able to survive. With a globally recognised degree like the CFA programme, you too can be a leading professional in the field of Finance. l Nakibul Hoq is the Lead Manager, Content & Analytics for GradInsights, the career intelligence service of GradConnect. More articles and information about careers and business are available at www.grad-insights.com

Using your break to further your career

Time-bound goals: This is another benchmark to gauge the degree of success of your goal. Your goals should always have a deadline. Working under a deadline will help you develop a sense of urgency and accelerate a goal’s achievement.

Write it down

Put your goals in writing – make it a tangible thing you see everyday instead of something in the back of your head.

Write them in firm and positive language such as “will” instead of “would like to”.

A goal such as “I will meet all my deadlines this week” is more motivating than “I will not miss deadlines this week.”

Have a plan

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n Career Desk

W

hat do you expect to get out of your work? What do you hope to accomplish today?

What would you like to have done by the end of this year? If you want any of these expectations and wishes to succeed, you need to set yourself goals.

Goal setting not only establishes focus and direction in your life, it also provides you with a benchmark to determine whether you are succeeding the way you want to or just wasting time.

Goal setting isn’t as simple as making a list of things you want to do. It starts with careful meditation on what it is that you want to achieve and is followed by a lot of hard work to actually make it happen. Following are five golden rules of goal setting.

Motivate yourself

Motivation is crucial to achieving goals.

When you are setting goals, make sure they are important to you and that

their achievement will give you value.

When the outcome seems irrelevant to the bigger picture of your life from the get go, you will be less inclined to putting in the work required to make it happen. Goal achievement requires devotion and commitment; in order to increase the chances of success you need to feel the urgency and necessity of the achievement.

A sure path to disappointment and frustration is setting yourself goals that are not related to the big priorities in your life – you are basically setting yourself up for failure because the likelihood is that you will frequently put off necessary work for day to day priorities.

Specific goals: Your goal has to be clear and well defined – vague goals lack in focus and direction, which is contrary to the point of goal setting. Goals need to reflect the path you need to take, make sure you don’t end up getting lost along the way.

Set SMART goals

Attainable goals: If you set far-fetched unattainable goals, you will only demoralise yourself and lose your confidence when you fail to achieve them.

Set yourself realistic goals. However, setting goals that are easy is also not recommended. A 2006 study called New Directions in Goal-Setting Theory

In order to give your goals the best chance at success, they need to be designed to be SMART. While there are a few different versions of what SMART stands for, it is essentially what a good goal should be: specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound.

Measurable goals: One needs to measure their goals to assess their degree of success. This is why you need to include exact amounts and dates in your goals. For example: if you are planning to save more money this month, how will you know if you have achieved your goal unless you have a specific amount that you aim to save?

This is a step often missed in goal setting – most people are prone to getting so obsessed with the ultimate goal that they miss planning a step by step process to achieving the goal. It’s not necessary for the small day to day goals, but it is especially important for demanding and long-term goals. If you have a step by step plan, you will be aware of your progress along the way to your ultimate goal.

Stay focused

Goal setting is an on-going process and not a onetime activity. For higher chances of success, review your goals regularly; ask yourself if you are happy with the progress and course that you are taking. The end game remains the same but the action plan to get there may have to adapt to circumstances or change entirely for definite chances of achieving the goal.

Goal setting entails a lot more than simply saying you want something to happen in your life. If you do not visibly identify exactly what you want and understand why you want it in the first place, your likelihood of succeeding at achieving them are significantly reduced. By following the five golden rules of goal setting you can set goals with conviction and ultimately enjoy the pleasure of knowing that you have successfully achieved what you set out to achieve. l

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Relevant goals: Setting yourself lots of different kinds of goals that have little to do with the direction you want your life and career to ultimately take will only derail you on your path. Keep your goals aligned with the direction you want to take, and you will develop focus along the way.

n Career Desk

T

he lunch break is a sacred time of reprieve that many of us look forward to from the moment we step into the office. It’s a time to relax and gather momentum before the second half (often the busier half) of the day begins.

The lunch hour is spent walking around the office, meeting colleagues, chatting near the water cooler, yawning, stretching and with whatever time is left, eating.

In today’s increasingly fast-paced workplace, you can, with careful consideration, utilise your lunch break to work for you in furthering your career. Following are some suggestions.

Homework In any line of work, you are bound to meet a number of people every day in a professional capacity. Do your homework before you meet them. Research the people you hope to meet that day, or better yet, that week, be it at your office, at their office, or at work-related events; you will find that it will pay off (a simple Google search goes a long way; looking up their LinkedIn page is always a good idea).

This way you are prepared for the meeting, and you have cues as to how to approach this particular person, how to address them, what to talk about etc. All for a successful meeting!

Follow-up Never underestimate the importance of following up; if practised properly and regularly, this single approach will put you ahead of fellow colleagues. Every time you meet a person professionally, send them an email, text message, or Facebook message within 24 hours to thank them for giving you their time, and a brief summary of all that has been discussed during the meeting and any following steps to be undertaken.

This solidifies the working relationship, and makes sure that both parties are still

on the same page and minor details have not been overlooked.

Networking Failure of networking arises from the fact that people think of it as a series of episodes, instead of a continuous, 24-hoursa-day-7-days-a-week thing.

Speedy success in your career comes from being needed, and not merely tolerated or accepted. The way to become somebody who is needed is by handing out important information, contacts and ideas to as many people as possible.

Utilise any free time during the lunch hour to participate in water cooler discussions; connect two people together you think can help each other out, and out of it, just for making introductions, you earn the goodwill of two people.

Hello A lot of people disregard how far a casual, friendly hello can take your professional career. Be it texts, emails, Facebook messages (depending on what the recipient checks most often), use them to your advantage to make sure you are always on the top of people’s minds (too often, and you may become annoying). A simple hello reminds a person that you’re thinking of them and that your relationship with them means something to you. With your hello, add a line or two about something relevant (a personal goal that you’ve recently reached, important update on news that you may have unique insight on etc.)

These are suggestions that should be practised at any appropriate time for the continued success of your career.

However, the lunch hour in particular is an ideal time because it is time out from work, but technically in the middle of work so you have the proper frame of mind. All of these suggestions seem very tedious, and results are not instantaneous. But as with anything else in life, you must give, and give again, before you get. l

8

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Sunday, December 28, 2014

North Korea blames US for Internet outages, calls Obama a ‘monkey’

Russia says to supply coal, electricity to Ukraine

n Reuters, Seoul

Russia has agreed on a new deal to supply coal and electricity to Ukraine, which is struggling with a lack of raw fuel for power plants due to a separatist conflict in the industrial east, Russian officials said on Saturday.

The move comes a day after Kiev said it would suspend train and bus services to Crimea, effectively creating a transportation blockade to and from the region annexed by Moscow in March this year. Kiev has briefly cut off electricity to Crimea before.

Russia will supply coal and electricity to Kiev without advance payment as a goodwill gesture from President Vladimir Putin, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS news agency.

“Putin made a decision to start these supplies due to the critical situation with energy supplies and despite a lack of prepayment,” Peskov said.

Russia plans to supply 500,000 tonnes of coal to Ukraine per month, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak told Rossiya 24 television. It is ready to supply another 500,000 tonnes per month if an additional agreement is reached, he added.

North Korea called US President Barack Obama a “monkey” as it blamed Washington Saturday for Internet outages that it has experienced amid a confrontation with the United States over the hacking of the film studio Sony Pictures.

The National Defence Commission, the North’s ruling body, chaired by state leader Kim Jong Un, said Obama was responsible for Sony’s belated decision to release the action comedy “The Interview,” which depicts a plot to assassinate Kim. “Obama always goes reckless in words and deeds like a monkey in a tropical forest,” an unnamed spokesman for the commission said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency, using a term seemingly designed to cause racial offence that North Korea has used before.

Sony cancelled the release of the film when large cinema chains refused to screen it following threats of violence from hackers, but then put it out on limited release after Obama said Sony was caving in to North Korean pressure.

This photo combination shows US President Barack Obama, left, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. North Korea has compared Obama to a monkey and blamed the US for shutting down its Internet amid the hacking row over the movie ‘The Interview’ AP Obama promised retaliation against North Korea, but did not specify what form it would take.

North Korea’s main internet sites experienced intermittent disruptions

this week, including a complete outage of nearly nine hours, before links were largely restored on Tuesday.

In the statement on Saturday, the North again rejected an accusation

Kiev, rebels exchange POWs trains, buses to Crimea suspended n Reuters, Kiev Ukraine’s government and pro-Russian separatists on Friday exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war while Kiev said it would suspend all train and bus service to Crimea, effectively creating a transportation blockade to and from the region.

The agreement to swap 150 Ukrainian servicemen for 222 rebels followed peace talks between envoys of Ukraine, Russia, the separatists and European security watchdog Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on Wednesday.

Ukrainian transportation chiefs said the reason for suspending train and bus service was the need to protect

passengers due to a “deteriorating” security situation on the Black Sea peninsula, annexed by Russia in March.

Crimea is controlled by Russia, but its only land link is with Ukraine and it has remained dependent on the Ukrainian mainland for most of its supplies, including much of its electricity and water. Ukraine already has banned sea and air traffic with Crimea, which is still serviced by Russian airlines.

Other road transportation including passenger cars and trucks will still be allowed to travel into and out of Crimea.

State rail company Ukrzaliznytsia said cargo trains would be suspended beginning on Friday, while passenger routes would gradually cease running over the weekend and on Monday.

Prisoner Exchange

“The head of the SBU (security service) reported the release of 146 Ukrainians to the President.

The SBU expects another four prisoners to be released tomorrow.

They will all be able to celebrate New Year ... with their families,” Svyatoslav Tsegolko, a spokesman for President Petro Poroshenko, said in a Facebook post.

Earlier, an SBU aide had said they would hand over 225 rebels for the Ukrainian servicemen.

It is not known exactly how many prisoners are held by the two sides, but Ukraine’s military said this month about 600 Ukrainians were in rebel hands. l

by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation that North Korea was behind the cyberattack on Sony Pictures, and demanded that United States produce evidence for its accusation. l

n Reuters

Ukraine’s coal reserves stand at 1.5 million tonnes compared with normal winter stocks of 4-5 million tonnes, according to energy ministry data.

The country used to be self-sufficient in electricity, but months of fighting a pro-Russian uprising has disrupted coal supplies to thermal power plants, which had generated around 40% of its power.

Last week Ukraine’s energy minister, Voldymyr Demchyshyn, said he was holding talks with Russia’s energy ministry on coal and power supplies.

Earlier attempts to import Russian coal have been hampered by supplies being held up at the border.

Supplies will come at Russian domestic prices, Kozak said, adding that he hoped the move would help ensure reliable energy supplies to Crimea.

He did not say whether the transportation hold-ups at the border had been resolved.

Russia will also supply electricity to Ukraine, Kozak said, without giving supply volumes.

Kiev’s pro-Western government has accused Russia of orchestrating the rebellion in Ukraine’s east, a charge Moscow denies. l

Russia identifies Nato as its biggest threat n AP A new military doctrine signed by President Vladimir Putin identified Nato as Russia’s number one military threat and raised the possibility of a broader use of precision conventional weapons to deter foreign aggression.

The new doctrine was signed on Friday, and it maintains the provisions of the 2010 edition of the military doctrine regarding the use of nuclear weapons.

The doctrine, which came amid tensions over Ukraine, reflected the Kremlin’s readiness to take a stronger posture in response to what it sees as US-led efforts to isolate and weaken Russia.

Russia’s relations with the West have plummeted to their lowest level since Cold War times, and Nato cut

off ties to Moscow after it annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in March.

The doctrine says Russia could employ nuclear weapons in retaliation for the use of nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction against the country or its allies, and also in the case of aggression involving conventional weapons that “threatens the very existence’’ of the Russian state.

For the first time, the new doctrine says Russia could use precision weapons “as part of strategic deterrent measures,” the Associated Press reported.

Examples of precision conventional weapons include ground-to-ground missiles, air- and submarine-launched cruise missiles, guided bombs and artillery shells.

The document does not spell out when and how Moscow could resort to such weapons.

Nato ‘poses no threat’

The doctrine places “a build-up of Nato military potential and its empowerment with global functions implemented in violation of international law, the expansion of Nato’s military infrastructure to the Russian borders’’ atop the list of military threats to Russia.

Nato spokeswoman Oana Lungescu responded by saying in a statement that the alliance “poses no threat to Russia or to any nation.”

“Any steps taken by Nato to ensure the security of its members are clearly defensive in nature, proportionate and in compliance with international law.

“In fact, it is Russia’s actions, including currently in Ukraine, which are breaking international law and undermining European security,” she said. l

Mourners gather for slain New York policeman n Reuters, New York Police officers in dress uniform and other mourners joined a somber, fourblock line outside a New York City church on Friday for the wake of one of two officers shot by a man who said he was avenging the killing of unarmed black men by police.

Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu were slain last Saturday afternoon while sitting in their patrol car in Brooklyn.

Singled out because of their uniforms, their deaths have become a rallying point for police and their supporters around the country, beleaguered by months of street rallies by protesters who say police practices are marked by racism.

Stephen Davis, the police department’s chief spokesman, said Saturday’s service may prove to be the largest funeral in the police department’s history, with tens of thousands of people, including US Vice President Joe Biden, expected to fill the church and the streets outside.

Draped in the New York Police Department’s green, white and blue flag, Ramos’s coffin was carried into a church in his Queens neighborhood by police officers as colleagues from his Brooklyn station house stood saluting.

Ramos, 40, had been on the force for two years and was raising two teenage sons with his wife, Maritza.

“Dad, I’m forever grateful for the sacrifices you made to provide for me and Jaden,” his son Justin said in an emotional voice during a memorial service held after the wake, projected on a large screen in the streets outside. “He was my absolute best friend.”

Ramos’s funeral came at the end of a week during which heated rhetoric and blame marked a city that had largely escaped some of the more violent outbursts seen in six months of nationwide protests against police use of force.

In extraordinary scenes at the hospital where Liu and Ramos were taken on Saturday, police union leaders, angered by Mayor Bill de Blasio’s qualified support of the protesters, said the mayor had “blood on his hands.” As the mayor arrived at the hospital, some officers turned their backs to him in a pointed display of disrespect.

Two days later, a visibly angered mayor chastised some journalists at a news conference for what he called “divisive” coverage, while urging activists to halt demonstrations until after the police funerals. l

Church staff carry flowers before the funeral of slain New York City Police Officer Rafael Ramos, one of two officers murdered while sitting in their patrol car in an ambush in Brooklyn last Saturday afternoon yesterday in New York City AFP

Syria says to discuss Swedish centre-left make deal with Russia peace plan talks opposition, call off snap vote n Reuters, Beirut/Cairo

Syria said on Saturday it is willing to participate in “preliminary consultations” in Moscow aimed at restarting peace talks next year to end its civil war.

But members of the Western-backed Syrian opposition dismissed the Russian plan on Saturday, saying there was “no initiative.”

Syrian state television quoted a source at the foreign ministry saying “Syria is ready to participate in preliminary consultations in Moscow in order to meet the aspirations of Syrians to find a way out of crisis.”

Moscow, an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has pushed to

restart talks that collapsed in Geneva in February.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said this month that he wanted Syrian opposition groups to agree among themselves on a common approach before setting up direct talks with the Damascus government.

But Lavrov did not specify which opposition groups should take part.

Some opposition groups are tolerated

by Damascus but shunned by the opposition in exile.

Hadi al-Bahra, head of the Turkey-based opposition National Coalition, met with Arab League Chief Nabil Elaraby in Cairo on Saturday and told a news conference that “there is no initiative as rumoured.” l

n Reuters Sweden’s mainstream parties reached a deal on Saturday that will allow the minority centre-left government to remain in office and sideline the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats, who hold the balance of power in parliament.

Sweden’s normally stable politics were thrown into turmoil in December when Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said he would call a snap election in March after his budget was voted down by the centre-right opposition and the Sweden Democrats.

“Sweden has a tradition of solving difficult questions,” Lofven

said. “I am happy we have reached a deal that means that Sweden can be governed.”

The deal between the centre-left Social Democrats and Green coalition and the four-party centre-right Alliance will mean Lofven will have to follow the opposition’s budget next year, although he can make some changes in spring.

The Alliance will abstain from voting against the government’s budgets from spring onwards. The snap election, which had been due to take place on Mar. 22, has been cancelled.

Under the deal, which lasts until 2022, the two blocs have also agreed to coordinate policy on pensions,

defence and energy.

“It means that Sweden can be governed by the parties that have the biggest support among voters,” centre right Moderate Party acting leader Anna Kinberg Batra said.

Despite a tradition of minority governments, Sweden has not had a snap election since 1958, but the rise of the Sweden Democrats, reflecting gains made by the far right across Europe in recent years, had led to parliamentary deadlock.

The party, the country’s third biggest after September’s general election, had threatened to bring down any government that did not curb rising immigration. l

Al-Shabab militant Zakariya Ahmed Ismail Hersi ‘surrenders’

n BBC

A top al-Shabab militant, Zakariya Ahmed Ismail Hersi, has given himself up, Somali officials say.

Mr Hersi, a leading figure in the militant group’s intelligence wing, surrendered to police in the Gedo region, local media report. In June 2012, the US state department offered $3m (£1.9m, 2.5m euros) for information leading to his capture.

It comes three months after alShabab leader Ahmed Abdi Godane was killed in a US air strike.

A Somali intelligence officer, quoted by the Associated Press news agency, suggested Mr Hersi may have surrendered because of a dispute with al-Shabab members loyal to the former leader. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

9

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Severe flooding hits southeast Asia n Agencies

An aerial view of flooded streets of the National Park in Kuala Tahan, Pahang

REUTERS

Severe flooding has killed 13 people and left at least 180,000 displaced in Malaysia and neighbouring Thailand, officials said.

In Malaysia, rescue teams on Saturday were struggling to reach inundated areas in the northeast as victims accused the government of being slow to provide aid and assistance after the country’s worst flooding in decades.

Malaysians have vented their anger at Prime Minister Najib Razak after the release of photos which went viral on social media showing him playing golf with US President Barack Obama during the storms.

The number of people forced to flee their homes climbed past 120,000 with weather forecasters warning of no respite for the northeastern states of Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang.

The under-fire-Najib was expected to arrive in Kelantan on Saturday to lead the national flood response after cutting short his vacation in Hawaii, his aide Tengku Sariffuddin Tengku Ahmad told the AFP news agency.

The government has allocated about $14m to manage relief centres. Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin admitted rescuers were facing challenges with power outages and roads being washed away by the floods.

“I admit the situation is challenging to the rescue workers and we are try-

Pakistani cleric faces arrest over massacre

PM Nawaz Sharif wants functional Nacta in anti-terror effort

n Agencies

n Agencies

A Pakistani court has issued an arrest warrant for a hardline Islamic cleric who suggested the massacre of school children in the country’s worst ever terror attack was understandable.

Maulana Abdul Aziz also reportedly threatened people criticising him for leaping to the defence of the Taliban.

“Police have received the court order and we are trying our best to implement it,” reported the AFP news agency on Saturday, citing a police official in the capital Islamabad.

The official requested anonymity as he was not authorised to talk to media.

The arrest warrant came as Aziz, head of the Red Mosque in Islamabad and seen as pro-Taliban, faced accusations that he was threatening civil society activists, who this week staged several demonstrations outside the mosque, a police official and a spokesman for the mosque told the AFP. The protests were staged to denounce Aziz, who refused to condemn the massacre on a television talk-show.

Later Aziz told worshippers the attack in Peshawar, which left around 150 people dead - mainly children was a justifiable reaction to the army’s “un-Islamic” operation against the fighters in the North Waziristan tribal district.

“O rulers, O people in power, if you

Xinhua: China to list legal places of worship, ‘root out’ illegal n Reuters, Shanghai China is to publish online details of legal religious venues, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday, apparently in an effort to identify unsanctioned groups as part of an effort to “root out illegal religious activities.”

Names and addresses for “all Buddhist and Taoist venues” would be published within two years, Wang Zuoan, director of the State Administration for Religious Affairs, told a conference on Friday, according to the news agency.

Xinhua made no mention of other religions but it quoted Wang as saying the information would help stop illegal religious activity in unauthorised locations.

The government’s attitude toward religion has softened significantly in recent decades, and people are allowed to practice religion at sanctioned institutions that are required to preach and practice loyalty to the government.

Despite the rules, unsanctioned religious movements, which the authorities call cults, have proliferated in recent years, and the government has grown increasingly active in trying to discourage their growth. l

will commit such acts, there will be a reaction,” he told worshippers in a sermon last week, prompting further protests accusing him of being a Taliban sympathiser.

Pressure on police

Hafiz Ihtesham Ahmed, a spokesman for the Red Mosque, accused civil society activists of pressurising police to register a case against Aziz.

“This case has no grounds, so we will resist any move to arrest Maulana Abdul Aziz,” Ahmed said.

Pakistan has described the bloody rampage in Peshawar as its own “mini 9/11,” calling it a game-changer in the fight against extremism.

The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed the assault as revenge for an ongoing military offensive against its strongholds in the tribal northwest.

News of the arrest warrant came as the army issued a statement saying its fighter jets and ground forces had killed at least 39 suspected Taliban fighters as part of an ongoing operation in a troubled tribal region near the Afghan border.

The statement said the airstrikes also destroyed an underground tunnel system and a large underground cache of weapons and ammunition on Friday evening in the Datta Khel area of the North Waziristan tribal region.

The army’s claims are hard to verify as journalists are barred from the region. l

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday directed that the National Counter Terrorism Authority Pakistan (Nacta) be made functional with immediate effect.

The prime minister chaired a meeting of the committee to oversee the implementation of the National Action Plan, which was worked out two days ago with the consensus of all political parties represented in parliament to

tackle terrorism and militancy.

Following the premier’s directive, an administrative meeting of the Nacta has been summoned for Wednesday.

The meeting will be chaired by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and it will review anti-terrorism measures adopted by the government.

The anti-terror body has largely remained dormant resulting in an absence of coordination among various intelligence and law-enforcement agencies which is critical to

UN urges Pakistan to halt executions n AFP

monitoring activities of extremist groups operating in different parts of the country.

Nacta is an independent body answerable directly to the prime minister. Although its new chief, Hamid Ali Khan, took charge in November this year, Nacta is yet to become fully functional.

Nacta is expected to play a key role in the implementation of the NAP and which will be monitored by a committee headed by the prime minister. l

Pakistani soldiers patrol in Peshawar

ing our best to make sure that the food arrives to the victims depending on the flood situation,” he was quoted as saying by the Star newspaper.

Military helicopters and trucks were seen in Kota Bharu area, which is near the border with southern Thailand, but rescue efforts were being hampered by fast rising waters and strong currents while roads to hard-hit areas were impassable.

“The severity and scale of the floods had taken the authorities completely by surprise as it was worse than anticipated, overwhelming all disaster management plans and preparations,” Lim Kit Siang, veteran opposition MP with the Democratic Action Party said in a statement on Saturday.

Kelantan, one of the worst-affected areas, is led by the opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) and is one of the poorest states in the country.

From the air, parts of the state capital Kota Bharu resembled a vast, muddy lake, with row after row of rooftops peeking out of the murky waters.

Tempers flared among people sheltering at a crowded relief centre just outside Kota Bharu, with fears the situation would worsen as it continued to rain in surrounding areas.

“I am angry with them [the government]. We don’t care about their politics. We just want the government to do what they should do and help us,” 23-year-old Farhana Suhada, who works for a courier service, told AFP. l

AFP

UN chief Ban Ki-moon is pressing Pakistan to end capital punishment and restore a moratorium on the death penalty the government lifted in terror cases following the Taliban school massacre in Peshawar.

Ban spoke with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday to express his condolences after the slaughter last week that left 150 people dead, including 134 children.

However, “while fully recognising the difficult circumstances, the secretary general urged the government of Pakistan to stop the executions of convicts and re-impose the moratorium on the death penalty,” Ban’s office said in a statement.

Prime Minister Sharif promised that “all legal norms would be respected,” the statement added.

The prime minister ended the sixyear moratorium on the death penalty, reinstating it for terrorism-related cases, in the wake of the deadliest terror attack in Pakistani history.

Pakistan plans to execute 500 militants in the coming weeks.

‘Extraordinary circumstances demand extraordinary measure’ Pakistan, meanwhile, strongly reacted to the UN chief’s statement saying the country was “cognizant of its obligations under UN Human Rights Conventions/Covenants.”

“Execution of terrorists violates no international law,” FO spokesperson Tasneem Aslam said in a short statement issued in Islamabad. l

Yangon votes for first time in 60 years Sydney New Year’s Eve: n Extra 3,000 police AFP

Residents of Myanmar’s commercial hub Yangon went to the polls today for the first municipal elections in six decades, with voters hoping for change as the city booms, despite knowing little about the candidates or their policies.

The election will be closely watched as a test of the country’s democratic credentials ahead of a landmark nationwide poll slated for November next year.

For many the ballot for the Yangon City Development Committee is the first chance to vote under the country’s quasi-civilian government, which replaced outright military rule in 2011.

It is also a rare opportunity to have a say over the future of Myanmar’s biggest city, where residents grumble about runaway construction and soaring rents, worsening traffic, poor sanitation and weak pollution control.

“It’s very difficult to have big expectations as this is the first YCDC election for 60 years,” Khin Maung Tun, 50, a

resident in Thaketa township told AFP. “But we came here to vote and show our spirit.”

But curbs on who can vote have enfranchised just 400,000 of the city’s several million residents, while other clauses have strictly controlled who can stand for the YCDC. Just under 300 candidates, among them businessmen, retired civil servants and activists, are competing for 115 positions on the committee — although the top posts will remain largely appointed. l

China tries to pacify Vietnam over the South China Sea dispute n Reuters Senior Chinese and Vietnamese officials have agreed to settle their maritime disputes without resorting to “megaphone diplomacy,” the official Xinhua news service said on Saturday.

The agency’s report follows a meeting in Hanoi on Friday between Chinese political advisor Yu Zhengsheng and Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, and it comes as Beijing backs off from aggressive attempts to

press its territorial claims in the South China Sea. “Megaphone diplomacy can only trigger volatility in public opinion, which should be avoided by both sides,” the report quoted Yu as saying.

“The maritime issue is highly complicated and sensitive, which requires negotiations to manage and control differences,” he said.

Although major trading partners and sharing the same nominal commitment to communism, China and

Vietnam have a long history of distrust and conflict, including a short war in 1978 when Chinese troops invaded Vietnam in response to Hanoi’s invasion of Cambodia, run at the time by the China-backed genocidal Khmer Rouge regime.

Both governments, which lay claim to revolutionary credentials of resistance to foreign invaders, must also placate their respective nationalists demanding more aggressive defense of territory. l

n Agencies An extra 3,000 police officers will be out on Sydney’s streets on New Year’s Eve to ensure revellers feel safe after this month’s deadly CBD siege.

NSW police Assistant Commissioner Mick Fuller said there would be more than “3,000 additional police out to ensure New Year’s Eve is a safe and family-friendly event.”

“We’ll see police in the air, on the waterways and of course, in uniform ... to make sure Sydneysiders feel extremely safe coming out to enjoy New Year’s Eve.” He said planning for New Year’s Eve so far had not been affected by the siege at the Lindt Cafe in Martin Place earlier this month.

“We’re always looking for intelligence that may change the state of play, but at this stage the planning has gone ahead as it was the month before, and the month before that,” Fuller said on Saturday, adding that “nothing has changed other than the way we brief police.”

He said his message to those feeling worried about coming into the CBD was that “it’s safe to come into the city, police will be out in record

numbers to protect you.”

Sydney lawyer Katrina Dawson, 38, Lindt cafe manager Tori Johnson, 34, and 50-year-old gunman Man Haron Monis died in the siege that ended on 16 December when heavily armed police stormed the Lindt cafe.

The hostage emergency came after Australia’s terror threat level was raised to high in September following a string of counter terrorism raids across Sydney and Brisbane.

Fuller said police had ramped up intelligence activities since the increased terror alert, and there was a new evacuation plan for Sydney city this New Year’s Eve. “I won’t discuss the information in relation to that but if there was an incident we certainly have some information points and a strategy,” he said.

He said recent hoax emails outlining a potential terror threat in Sydney on NYE had been “put to bed as rubbish.”

He said there was no terror-related chatter police were aware of relating to New Year’s Eve. Mounted police, riot squad, PolAir, tactical operations officers and counter-terrorism police would all be deployed in Sydney on the night “to deal with anything that may arise.” l

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Sunday, December 28, 2014

CODE-CRACKER

An inexcusable mess

W

e are appalled that the four-year-old Ziad, who fell into a narrow, uncovered well at least 600 feet deep on Saturday afternoon, could not be rescued alive after almost a full day’s efforts. This tragedy exposes the dire need for a close examination of our consistently sub-standard response during any crisis.

While rescue operations started within half an hour of the accident, the next several hours were wasted over many short-sighted attempts to recover the child. If the rescue team’s expectation that a frightened four-year-old would successfully hang on to a rope as it dragged him up 600 feet wasn’t unrealistic enough, that they repeatedly pursued the same method after the first failed attempt is indefensible.

The confusion at the scene over how best to deal with the situation, whether or not there was, in fact, a child stuck in the hole at all, and even the depth of the hole with estimates ranging from 400 to 700 feet, demonstrates how unprepared we are when it comes to handling emergencies.

There is no excuse for the lack of foresight displayed by the authorities under these circumstances, when a well-thought out and sensible plan might have saved a child’s life.

It is high time that the government seriously considers a thorough reworking of its rescue preparedness and take full-scale measures to guarantee a systematic and effective response to emergencies in the future.

There is no excuse for the lack of foresight displayed by the authorities under these circumstances

A better partnership with Korea

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

Indigenous houses vandalised, torched in Rangamati December 17

Abid Miah This is utterly disgusting. It makes me sick to my stomach to see how Bangladeshis are treating other Bangladeshis. Such Neanderthals. And look at the army, how narrow-minded of them to help their Bengali brothers, and not those who are the men, women, and children of Bangladesh. The army should help all and keep it neutral. This is no exception. Have we forgotten the peace treaty?

You know, now that I come to think of it, Bangladeshis are quick to judge Israelis for their crimes in the West Bank and Gaza, yet we are doing the same thing in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

Sickening.

Farhad Faisal No one has the right to take the law into his/her own hand. There is no room in sovereign and civilised Bangladesh for an ethnic majority Bengali group to perpetrate violence/vandalism against an ethnic minority group. All Bangladeshis,

CHT violence has gone too far

December 19

A Free Trade Agreement between the two nations would increase our competitiveness

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.

Differently entrepreneur December 17

rose “Entrepreneurs who are disabled have the vision, leadership capacity, and the confidence required.”

Disabled persons should be given more opportunities and the training to work and contribute to this society.

W

e believe that a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Bangladesh and South Korea is the kind of initiative the two nations ought to take under serious consideration. CEPA can improve relations between the two nations, while enhancing economic cooperation via a Free Trade Agreement, investment opportunities, and other services.

Bangladesh right now gets duty-free market access in Korea under its GSP scheme.

However, it has yet to reap many benefits due to strict rules of origin for Bangladeshi products. Under a CEPA, with more relaxed rules of origin, our traditional and nontraditional products would gain greater scope for export, and other products would gain preferential market access as well.

What is more, the regional value chain between East Asia and South Asia would be strengthened with increased opportunities for Korean investment in Bangladesh, as well as initiatives to train and send skilled migrant workers to Korea.

A Free Trade Agreement between the two nations would increase our competitiveness and gain us access to the same benefits enjoyed by other Southeast Asian countries. It would also attract Korean investment in the value chains that are operated between South Korea, India, China, and other ASEAN countries.

Bangladesh has a lot to learn from Korea, a nation that considers FTA, export-led industrialisation, heavyweight industry, and attracting FDI as the reasons behind its economic growth.

Bangladesh is in need of new markets and new export items in order to ensure that our economic growth is sustainable. Signing a CEPA with Korea is an opportunity not to miss out on.

irrespective of what ethnic, religious, or language group we may belong to, ought to condemn such actions. The last redress for perceived wrongs lies in the rule of law and not in the law of the jungle.

It was further reported that the state authority was present at the site and had failed to act!

The government must conduct a thorough and impartial investigation immediately, and bring those responsible for the violence and vandalism, as well the allegedly inactive army patrol present there, under the due process of law. The government has both the responsibility and the power, given by law, to do so, and to prevent such occurrences in the future.

In the meantime, we Bengalis, the ethnic majority in Bangladesh, would do well to remember that the quality of a just society is measured more accurately by how well the minorities feel and find themselves within the majorities, rather than how the majority feels and finds itself within the minorities.

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 16 represents I so fill I every time the figure 16 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.

Renil Jumma Yes, true words.

Khin Aung It is really sad and a national disgrace in a secular state like Bangladesh. The government has to look into this matter seriously, and protect the indigenous and minority Buddhist people.

Abellard the Greek-Lover “ADD international has been supporting, both technically and financially, these emerging businesses led by disabled people.”

Now this is more like it! The ADD really is doing some good work here.

Equality is being human December 17

‘Sex’ most searched word on Google in Bangladesh December 19

SK Yes, and we still never want to talk about it for sure.

The top 10 countries where sex is the most searched word on Google: Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Nepal, Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea, Vietnam, Pakistan, and the Solomon Islands.

Sarah-Jane Saltmarsh A disturbing finding from the Saarc region. Perhaps time to think about adding some form of basic sex education in the curriculum?

RAB busts a gang of currency forgers in the city December 17

aousaf Masha’allah. RAB makes me proud.

Lisa “A man does not see anyone else as inferior, a man does not stand by and watch anyone else being humiliated, and a man stands up to injustices.”

A good piece. And the write-up reminded me of the recent short film by Vogue India – Boys Don’t Cry.

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Long angry speech (6) 4 Female swan (3) 7 Nimble (5) 8 Subjects of discourse (6) 11 Jurisprudence (3) 12 Dutch cheese (4) 13 That time (4) 15 Decoration (5) 16 Indian title (5) 20 Regrets (4) 23 Storm (4) 24 Devoted follower (3) 25 Meal course (6) 26 Constellation (5) 27 Obtain (3) 28 Sport (6)

DOWN 1 Tribal symbol (5) 2 Give life to (7) 3 Direction (4) 4 Heap (4) 5 Dash (4) 6 Fresh (3) 9 Lyric poem (3) 10 Cushion (3) 14 Encourage (7) 17 Container (3) 18 Mature (3) 19 Pays attention (5) 20 Uncommon (4) 21 Motel suite (4) 22 Transmitted (4) 24 Thick mist (3)

Zero-Agenda Let’s not beat around the bush here. There’s a lot of progress that still needs to be made in empowering women in our country.

Evil People Politics True equality is when you treat everyone around you the same way.

Khaleda now asks Hasina to watch her mouth

CALVIN AND HOBBES

December 19

Nazmul Khair Does anyone know when they will stop blaming each other?

PB No one can stop them. They have to change themselves.

CNG three-wheeler owners adamant to secure extension

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

December 17

PEANUTS

Dr Ahsan Habib Dear drivers, do not worry. The shipping minister is eager to help transport sector workers such as yourself. Go to him and your “illegal” wishes will be fulfilled.

Philanthropy for science December 18

RetiredBUET “It is good to see charitable organisations taking a greater interest in improving science education in our country.”

Yes, we must use private wealth more smartly. Too many wealthy people think they can salve/sooth their conscience by donating paltry sums to madrasas which are popular because they provide welfare, but offer very little education, even in Islamic studies; it’s often just mindless rote learning.

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

Sunday, December 28, 2014

11

Tackle poverty first n Syeda Samara Mortada

B

BIGSTOCK

But who will watch the ACC?

A

n Abdullah Zobair t last, anti-graft watchdog Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) has found corruption within its directors. Numerous media outlets carried reports that two directors of the ACC resorted to forgery in obtaining freedom fighter certificates to defer their retirement by a year, bewildering the citizens of the nation.

The commission has already lost its arms to fight, and teeth to bite corrupt individuals in the regimes that have come since 2009, even though it was once powerful during the military-backed interim government.

Now, it is gradually being turned into a signboard-holding commission, conducting investigations of opposition party men to harass them, and helping the ruling party men by providing them with clean chits.

This latest discovery within the sacred anti-corruption body signifies the horrible spree of corruption being committed by the administration.

Managing freedom fighter certificates is not any mere modest crime, since forging such certificates is tantamount to maligning the sanctity of our freedom fighters.

The anti-graft body made the discovery while investigating its nine officials, including a director general, who does have war hero certificates. The probe was launched on November 2 in the wake of government and media reports that some top bureaucrats had fraudulently secured freedom fighter certificates.

The ACC has completed its investigations of its director, Golam Yahiya, while those of the eight others are still on-going. In the report submitted to the commission late last month, the probe committee recommended that the government revoke Yahiya’s certificate, and drop his name from the gazette.

secretary general and countersigned by the incumbent prime minister.

Interestingly, Hasina was not in the office of the prime minister in 2001.

The ACC is supposed to work towards ensuring transparency and accountability of governance and development works by combating corruption without any intervention

The ACC should be run following the rules and regulations of the ACC Act, without any fear and favour

According to the reports, when Yahiya joined the ACC, he declared that he was not a freedom fighter. But he later secured the certificate without maintaining proper procedures. To evade departmental action, Yahiya resigned the very day the probe was launched. Another ACC director, Abdul Aziz Bhuiyan, submitted a fake Muktijoddha Sangsad certificate to the commission, which bore a countersignature of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Serial numbered 49719, the certificate did not bear an issue date. Sources within the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs said the last certificate issued by the Muktijoddha Sangsad is serial numbered 47931.

Under the rules, Muktijoddha Sangsad certificates must be signed by its

from politics. But recent comments made by ACC acting chief Shahabuddin slammed Khaleda and Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) for speaking against the anti-graft body and he personally attacked Khaleda for “shelving corruption” during her last tenure. Earlier in February, the ACC chairmen inaugurated a number of bridges, which raised eyebrows since they also contrasted with the ACC act.

The action of the anti-graft body is seemingly a subservient body of the executive branch of the government, with the sole objective to tag pro-BNP men as corrupt. In the meantime, the ACC also made the controversial move of clearing former health minister Ruhal Haque and AL lawmaker Aslamul Haque of amassing illegal wealth. The ACC also exonerated former commu-

nications minister Abul Hossain from the much-controversial Padma Bridge Graft Case with his 17 cohorts.

During the previous regime, the incumbent government had designed the ACC with its party men, aiming to evade any possible investigations made against them. There was an allegation that recruitments in the ACC were made in line with the government’s instruction of injecting ruling party loyalists only. The politicisation of the anti-graft body is sordid enough to sully its reputation, although its officials are also quite mired in corruption.

The corruption revolving around freedom fighter certificates in government jobs will not be suspended in the near future; rather, it is being taken further, as the certificate holders are subjected to undue favours, violating the principles of equality so clearly sketched out in our constitution.

The Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman struggled for nearly all his life against the quota provision in the Pakistani bureaucracy, as the quota was discriminatory.

The ACC should be run following the rules and regulations of the ACC Act, without any fear and favour, to combat the unchecked corruption. It is the ACC’s responsibility to provide a clean chit to that. The prime duty of the ACC is nothing but to ensure constitutional obligation of accountability and transparency. l

angladesh Girl Summit, which was held in Dhaka on October 27, was organised by Brac in partnership with the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs and DFID as a follow-up event to the Girl Summit held on July 21 hosted by the UK government with the partnership of Unicef.

The aim of the summit was to end child marriage and work towards achieving women’s empowerment collectively. One of the biggest highlights of Bangladesh Girl Summit 2014 was the pledges. Top officials from Bangladesh Police Women’s Network - BPWN, Bangladesh Mahila Parishad, Bangladesh Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Daily Samakal, made pledges about their future actions towards ending child marriage and promoting women empowerment.

The pledges will function as a melting point to a highly crucial agenda which, although stressed upon, has hardly been addressed. One of the proposed solutions which came up often was ensuring that each child has a birth certificate with his/her real age – the idea being that this will diminish the chances of early marriage. Much work needs to be done both in the formal and informal sectors. It is up to the Bangladesh government to ascertain that the approved policies are implemented.

At the same time, parents need to be counselled about the consequences of child marriage so that they do not think of it as a solution to all their hardships. Finally, strong legal action needs to be taken against those who continue to practice child marriage in order to set an example.

I have taken part in various discussions recently, where we tried to determine the root cause of child marriage and what the ultimate solution might be. Here is a typical scenario in a rural setting: Boy harasses girl, then gradually proceeds to threaten her. Parents feel obliged to get her married as soon as possible. Chairman of the village urges parents to get her married off to the boy who harasses her. Girl marries boy at a very young age.

The ultimate question becomes: Is awareness raising and sensitisation to the issue of women’s empowerment going to work on these parents? Who will get them out of this overwhelming situation?

Perhaps, looking at the situation in a roundabout fashion might be a solution. One of the main ways of overcoming such problems is working

Abdullah Zobair is Executive Director, Bangladesh Initiative for Political Development.

towards eliminating extreme poverty and hunger, that, consequently, is also one of the agendas in the Millennium Development Goals. This can be done through creating enough food supply and by making the rural population (where such problems are prominent) self-sufficient so that they can not only produce their own food but also create surplus, thereby earning a living in the process.

There are many organisations that work towards these goals. Brac has a large-scale program on agriculture and food security currently operating in Bangladesh, Uganda, Tanzania, Sierra Leone, Liberia, South Sudan, and Haiti.

It not only helps in the production of food but also helps farmers develop sustainable relationships with markets so that they can sell quality seeds at fair prices, conduct research to develop better varieties and practices for the agricultural sector, offer credit support to poor farmers, and promote the use of efficient farming techniques and proven technologies.

Using environmentally-sustainable practices, Brac is helping these countries become self-sufficient in food production and also in generating employment.

Another program titled “Targeting the Ultra-Poor” is for those who fall at the bottom of the social ladder. Despite progress in poverty-reduction and human development in Bangladesh, there is still an urgent need for more effective safety nets and program targeted at the ultra poor, who constitute the poorest 17.5% of the population.

People in this category suffer from chronic hunger and malnutrition, have inadequate shelter, are highly prone to many types of diseases, are deprived of education, and are particularly vulnerable to recurring natural disasters.

Initiated in 2002, Brac’s challenging the frontiers of poverty-reduction targeting the ultra poor (CFPR-TUP) program is specifically designed to meet the needs of ultra-poor households, who are too poor to access the benefits of microfinance.

Eliminating child marriage is a massive task in a country like Bangladesh, where a majority of the people go on without food for days. Creating employment and producing food are two issues that need to be dealt with beforehand in order to mitigate child marriage and work towards the empowerment of women. l Syeda Samara Mortada is working in the Communications Department of Brac International.

SYED LATIF HOSSAIN

A moderate message n Hafeejul Alam

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hile Bangladesh was celebrating the Victory Day on December 16, Pakistan suffered a dastardly terrorist attack in which about 140 people, mostly school-children, were killed. I have no words to express my shock at the carnage perpetrated by jihadist militants against school-children at a military-run public school in Pakistan.

Being a former cadet of Pakistan military academy, Kakul, I feel the pangs even more.

It appears that Pakistan is being wiped out by its own politicians and opinionated generals with conflicting mindsets about terrorism. What a sharp contrast from what the founding father of Pakistan, MA Jinnah, envisaged and articulated on August 11, 1947, when he said: “In the course of time, Hindus would cease to be Hindus and Muslims would cease to be Muslims; not in the religious sense, because that is the personal faith of each individual, but in the political sense as citizens of the state.”

Today’s Pakistan is thousands of miles away from what Mr Jinnah wanted it to be.

Terrorism in Pakistan thrives in vicious political, economic, religious, and psychological environments.

It has been observed that the elites validated violence by both state and non-state actors. Obviously, before these powerful groups, the majority peace-loving people of Pakistan just become helpless.

Driven by Cold War goals, the Western countries, along with Pakistan, supported and glorified non-state violent groups fighting in Afghanistan against the former USSR. They called their fight a “jihad,” in stark contrast to the real meaning of the word. Thus, the perverse political strategies of these countries, rather than religion, have contributed to making terrorism so common over there. Dumped subsequently by their state supporters, many of these rebels and their followers still scout the subcontinent and beyond, searching for new causes.

Then again, the nexus between Arab charities promoting Wahabi and Salafi traditions and the extremist Islamic movements has emerged as one of the major threats to people and governments across the globe. It is reported that from Iraq, Syria, Af-

ghanistan, and Pakistan to Bangladesh and Indonesia in the east, a network of charities is funding militancy and mayhem to coerce Muslims of diverse traditions to conform to the Salafi and Wahabi traditions.

Let’s steer Bangladesh away from becoming a Pakistan or an Afghanistan

It may be worth noting that Pakistan’s military is alleged to still use many of the terrorist groups for furthering its “regional goals.” Having let the genie out, the generals are battling to simultaneously put it back into the bottle in some places, while continuing to utilise it for other battles. The countries of South Asia, and Bangladesh in particular, must be cautious about

these “regional goals.”

Appeasing or arranging political talks with the militants rarely succeed, because of their flawed ideologies, and core demands about applying their ideology countrywide to undermine democracy and modern governance.

The only way to contain them is to go for mass awareness against religious bigotry and terrorism, and of course, a massive spread of modern education in schools and madrasas.

Bangladesh is still recognised in the world community as a moderate Muslim country, and rightly so, for the Muslims, the Hindus, and other communities have lived in this part of the subcontinent for centuries in peace and harmony. The extremist religious elements never got more than 5% votes in the previous national elections, and that too at the behest of the BNP. The tag “moderate Muslim country” has since started to wane fast, owing to the increasing muscleflexing by the Islamist radicals all over the country.

It is said that there are groups among both the opposition and ruling political parties who are hell bent to appease the radical Islamists just to

gain political and material advantage.

This signifies that secular proliberation Bengali nationalist forces are on the verge of losing ground to those who are intent on turning the country into a haven for terrorist outfits, as in Pakistan.

In this respect, the present government must do everything to reverse the situation by teaching the young generation the true spirit of our Liberation War. The sacrifice of millions of lives for this country must not be jeopardised by a bunch of brutes who are out to destroy our country by exploiting religious sentiments.

In the backdrop of such developments, Bangladesh must rise to the occasion, maintain peace and harmony among the populace irrespective of religious and social orientation. Bangladesh needs to conserve what it has achieved so far. According to international observers, Bangladesh has been one of the star performers of the global economy in the past decade.

Its GDP growth averaged 6.2% during 2003-2012. The economy has surpassed $100bn in real exchange rate terms. It is now a $320bn economy in terms of purchasing power parity. With

this rate of growth, an economy could double its GDP size every 11.6 years.

Bangladesh’s strides in the social sector is equally impressive. The life expectancy of its population has surpassed both India and Pakistan.

The gender gap in Bangladesh is also fast closing. Despite all these, it is a fact that the bulk of our population is reeling under abject poverty.

Therefore, Bangladesh needs an economic agenda, not disruptive political ones. The people now desperately hope that both the government and the opposition political parties (both within the parliament and outside of it) shall refrain from committing any deeds that may plunge the country into darkness.

Let’s steer Bangladesh away from becoming a Pakistan or an Afghanistan. Let Bangladesh continue to remain a moderate Muslim country, thanks to the great Sufi saints who preached Islam in this part of the world, and taught our ancestors the true tenets of Islam: Peace, tolerance, love, and universal brotherhood. l Hafeejul Alam is a freelancer and a former civil servant.

12

DHAKA TRIBUNE Sunday, December 28, 2014

13 Delwar dreams

of playing for Bangladesh

14 Smith fireworks

leave India reeling

14 Suarez still

upbeat despite lack of goals

Sport

Did you know?

Two Australian batsmen (Smith and Warner) have reached 1,000 Test runs in a year for the first time since 2009 (Clarke and Katich)

IPark sneak away with early strikes

Maruf rues lack of clinical finishers

n Shishir Hoque

n Raihan Mahmood

Two goals inside five minutes of the kick-off cost Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club an irksome 2-0 defeat against visiting Korean top flight club Busan IPark in their Fifa international friendly match at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.

Korean midfielder Kim Jingyu left the home crowd stunned by grabbing the lead in less than a minute before forward Yoon Dongmin doubled the visitors’ joy four minutes later to pour salt to the wound.

The home side took time to settle and absorb the early shock before attempting to stage a comeback. But their misfiring efforts did not help the cause while the cross bar and Busan goalkeeper Lee Changgeun also denied several golden chances.

Apart from the early hiccups, Sheikh Jamal dominated majority of the 90 minutes and looked to become better with every minutes passing by. A late surge in the last 10 minutes of the game saw the home side go close to scoring four times but the King’s Cup champions had to remain content with the efforts only as they were unable to breach the organised Korean defence.

It took the visitors only 43 seconds to move ahead in the game after the Korean attackers showed a glimpse charisma of pace, passing and majestic finishing. Defender Ku Hyun Jun cut a low cross from the left flank for forward Park Yongi who flicked the ball onto the path of onrushing Kim Jingyu to slot past Jamal goalkeeper Mazharul Islam Hemel from the far post.

Forward Yoon Dongmin doubled the delight after taking control of a Ju Se Jong cross at the left edge of the box, dribbling past his marker before volleying the ball the second.

Sheikh Jamal piled pressure in the remainder of the opening half with no result. They went close in the 22nd minute when star midfielder Mamunul Islam chested down Wedson’s header to shoot from distance that went inches wide.

Five minutes later, Jamal Bhuiyan fed Wedson Anselme with a lovely lob but the Haitian forward’s powerful strike missed the target by a few yards before Gambian midfielder Landing Darboe also squandered an opportunity in the 41st minute.

Hemel was lucky to get away with a yellow card in the 52nd minute after the goalkeeper handed the ball outside the box in an attempt to clear another Korean attack.

Sheikh Jamal enjoyed their best in the last 10 mintues where they threatened to snatch away something from the match. Wedson started by hitting the woodwork from a 20-yard free-kick in the 84th minute before Sohel Rana delivered a cross off the rebound only to see Jamal Bhuiyan fail to connect.

Changgeun produced a superb save in the 88th minute to deny Sohel Rana’s powerful strike from outside the box while Nasir squandered a great chance in the 90th minute to pull a consolation for the home side.

Changgeun made another outstanding save three minutes into the injury time tipping away a curled free-kick of Wedson from left side to keep his side from conceding. l

Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club head coach Maruful Haque yesterday expressed his satisfaction with his charges’ performance against Busan IPark in the international friendly at Bangabandhu National Stadium, apart from the first five minutes when the home side shipped two goals. His counterpart, Yoon Sung-hyo on the other hand said although he is satisfied with the 2-0 victory, the scoreline should have been more convincing.

INT’L CLUB FRIENDLY

Sheikh Jamal DC

Sheikh Jamal DC goalkeeper Mazharul Islam Hemel (R) tries to thwart an opposition header during their international friendly against Busan IPark at Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

n Raihan Mahmood Korea Football Association president Chung Mong-gyu termed his arrival in Bangladesh as a “great beginning” and vowed to assist the development process of Bangladesh football.

The 52-year-old Chung was in a joyous mood during the official press conference at the BFF House yesterday where he said, “I thank BFF president Kazi Salahuddin for inviting me to Bangladesh, this is my first visit here and I see many opportunities to strengthen the long relational ties between Bangladesh and Korea. We are very good football friends apart from being good business friends.”

He became the president of the KFA last year while he is also an Organising Committee member of the Fifa Club World Cup. Hailing from Seoul, Chung was pleased with his warm reception to Bangladesh and believes he has a lot to

Doleshwar excel in the battle of Primes to open up title race n Reazur Rahman Rohan Prime Doleshwar earned themselves a lifeline in the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League as the title-chasers handed joint-table-toppers Prime Bank a seven-wicket drubbing in their Super League encounter yesterday. Legends of Rupganj on the other hand exacted sweet revenge upon Abahani by denying the league leaders a solo lead.

On a day when all the three matches across the city had to be curtailed due to fog, Rupganj’s win over the Sky Blues arrived as good news for the other aspirant, Kalabagan Cricket Academy, who continued to live upto their “giant killing” reputation by slaying Mohammedan to bring a twist in the title race with three matches left in the season.

Tied on 20 points each, a win for either of the sides – Abahani or Prime Bank – would have seen them take a giant leap towards the title, but now, Doleshwar, who face Abahani this Tuesday, closed the point gap by two and also earned a shot at claiming top spot.

Kalabagan CA will take on Prime Bank on the same day and a continuation of their current form will lift them to third place.

Prime Bank v Prime Doleshwar, SBNS

Paceman Delwar Hossain rattled the bankers with a magnificent five-for as Doleshwar were left to chase a mere 153 in Mirpur. In reply, it was opener Rony Talukder’s 60-ball blitz that gave Prime Bank no hope of making a game out of it.

Rony clobbered seven fours and smote four sixes in his mesmerising 77 before veteran left-arm spinner Enamul Haque Jr cleaned him up in the 23rd over. However, the dismissal hardly changed the scenario as national skipper Mushfiqur Rahim (25*) and Dawid Malan (17*) sealed the win in the 29th over with seven wickets to spare.

Delwar, earlier, initiated the proceedings in the 38-over-a-side match by removing Bank’s Soumya Sarker in the third over of the game before he returned in the 31st over for a devastating spell. He was miserly for his four crucial wickets in the space of three overs to end Bank’s hope on 153.

Abahani v Legends of Rupganj, Fatullah

Shakib al Hasan and quickie Rubel Hossain bagged three wickets each to help bring Rupganj back to winning ways after they beat Abahani by 76 runs. Chas-

Busan IPark

Kim Jingyu 1 Yoon Dongmin 5

Chung’s visit a beginning of great things to come

BFF president Kazi Salahuddin (C) waves to the crowd in the presence of KFA supremo Chung Mong-gyu during the international friendly between Sheikh Jamal DC and Busan IPark at BNS yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

0-2

ing a run-rate of almost six an over, Rakibul Hasan (45) and Ziaur Rahman (38) were the only notable scorers in Abahani’s 145 for nine.

Earlier, Jahurul Islam’s 93 was the pick of the Rupganj batting as the No 3’s 108-ball innings paved the way for the defending champions to post a challenging 221 for nine in 40 overs.

The innings run-rate was also helped by opener Junaed Siddique’s 49-ball 42 as Shakib (18), Alok Kapali (13) and Abul Hasan (15) were the only others to reach double figures. New-ball bowler Shuvashish Roy took four wickets and was well complimented by his partner Mostafizur Rahman who took three.

Mohammedan v Kalabagan CA, BKSP-3

Spinners Nabil Samad and Mahmudul Hasan shared seven wickets between them to help Kalabagan CA defend 200 runs in 45 overs with utmost ease.

Only Naeem Islam put up a fight with 56 runs, but with no real support from the other end, Mohammedan faltered to 137 runs with 22 balls to spare.

Naeem, earlier, picked up three wickets along with Rahatul Ferdous to restrict Kalabagan to a mediocre total despite Imtiaz Hossain’s 56 at the top.l

learn from his BFF counterpart.

“South Korea has been playing in the World Cup football for the last eight consecutive editions and I hope Korea will continue to do so, and this is where we can share the experience of how we participate, how we prepare. We can also share the experience in the club level and national arena.

“We have discussed about sending a coach, also inviting Sheikh Jamal DC and arrange training for them, and also the possibility of bringing different level of Korean national team here, and we agreed to exchange our national calender and play each other, I think it’s a great beginning for both the countries,” informed the 52nd president to serve KFA. Meanwhile, the BFF boss was also in a buoyant mood and said, “I am happy to sit beside the president of the Asian powerhouse who had played eight consecutive World Cups.”

“Basically there were three topics,

I wanted a sustainable relationship, a coach for our football academy and assistance in the technical and tactical sides, you know we lag behind in those areas,” he added.

“At the moment we don’t have many things to offer to Korea, I dream about watching Bangladesh club in the AFC Champions League and elevate the national team to the top level. The result may matter today, I hope it will not matter tomorrow, as we elevate,” said Salahuddin.

Also the chairman of Korean topflight side Busan IPark, Chung later enjoyed his club’s 2-0 international friendly win against Sheikh Jamal DC in the evening.

The high-profile Korean businessman and football administrator is also running for a spot on Fifa’s powerful executive committee in a bid to help Asia increase its World Cup representation and fulfill its global potential. l

Following the conclusion of the friendly, Maruf admitted that his plans of creating some early pressure backfired.

“We thought of putting all-out pressure in the opening minutes but it misfired. They scored two goals in the span of five minutes. The positioning of my players were not right as the Koreans found the gaps and utilised it. Overall, they breached our backline thrice – scoring two and hitting the post once. We threatened them but lacked clinical finishing. I needed clinical finishers.”

Maruf also informed that his two attacking spearheads – Wedson Anselme and Emeka Darlington – lacked the ideal understanding.

“I need to work more on the duo. In this match Emeka and Wedson lacked the required understanding. It (their understanding) was an eye-opener ahead of the domestic league.”

Maruf also believes that the K-League outfit and the Japan Under-21 team, who visited Dhaka two weeks ago, are almost on the same level.

“Both play in the same style and the Korean team are more convenient on the wings. They (Busan) are also efficient in midfield. Busan IPark have some world-class players with quick movements and intelligence.”

Meanwhile, Yoon said he is quite elated with the outcome of the match.

“We expected to score quick goals and we did that but we thought of adding more and could not do it.

The team did not play as per my expectations.”

“Maybe the pitch appeared too hard for us. The team expected a better pitch. However, the weather was in our favour and we were not bothered by Jamal’s onslaughts.”

Yoon praised the opponents but thinks the Bangladesh Premier League champions require more improvements. l

OUCH! IT HURTS! BRIEF SCORES Abahani v Legends of Rupganj Rupganj 221/9 in 39.5 overs (max 40) Jahurul 93, Junaid 42; Shuvashish 4/42, Mostafizur 3/51 Abahani 145/9 in 34.4 overs Rakibul 45; Shakib 3/25, Rubel 3/29, Mosharraf 2/27 Rupganj won by 76 runs Mohammedan v Kalabagan CA Kalabagan CA 200-allout in 43.4 overs (max 45) Imtiaz 56, Mehedi 41; Naeem 3/30, Rahatul 3/35, Rahmat 2/35 Mohammedan 137-allout in 41.2 overs Naeem 56; Nabil 4/10, Mahmudul 3/21 Kalabagan CA won by 63 runs Prime Bank v Prime Doleshwar Prime 153-allout in 35.4 overs (max 38) Delwar 5/26, Elias 3/34, Habibur 2/25 Doleshwar 154/3 in 28.2 overs Rony 77 Doleshwar won by 7 wickets

Legends of Rupganj batsman Abul Hasan writhes in pain after being hit on the groin during their DPL Super League match against Abahani in Fatullah yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

DHAKA TRIBUNE

QUICK BYTES

Neuer cautious over Ballon d’Or prospects

Sport

Lankans in fight to save 1st Test

Germany’s World Cup winning goalkeeper Manuel Neuer on Friday played down his prospects of securing the World Player of the Year award over holder Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. “I’m certainly not favourite,” the Bayern Munich star told German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung. “The other two are international ‘marques’, they’ve clearly got an advantage.” If Neuer does receive the Ballon d’Or he will be the first of his countrymen to do so since Lothar Matthaus in 1990 and only the second goalkeeper after Lev Yashin, of the then Soviet Union, in 1963.

For Germany coach Joachim Loew, the 28-year-old would be a worthy recipient.

–AFP

Japan coach denies fixing allegations Japan coach Javier Aguirre on Saturday denied allegations that he was part of a match-fixing scandal that has rocked world football. Prosecutors in Spain allege that Aguirre, 56, and 40 others were involved in rigging a league match that saw Real Zaragoza defeat Levante 2-1 to avoid relegation. The former Mexico coach is due to appear in a Valencia court in February following a probe into the allegations dating back to 2011, when he was manager of Real Zaragoza. “I spent 12 years with Spanish football. I have not been involved in anything that goes against ethics and professionalism,” Aguirre said through a Japanese translator at a press conference in Tokyo. “I have not received anything. I have not asked for anything,” he said, vowing to cooperate with authorities. Prosecutors allege that Zaragoza paid a total of 965,000 euros ($1.2million) into the bank accounts of certain of its coaches, staff and players who then gave the money to Levante’s players as a “bribe”.

–AFP

Hammers rib Blues with tweet

New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum bowls during day two of their first Test against Sri Lanka at Hagley Park Oval in Christchurch yesterday AFP

n AFP, Christchurch New Zealand had the scent of victory after only the second day of the first Test against Sri Lanka Saturday after a scintillating bowling spell forced the tourists to follow on 303 runs in arrears.

After New Zealand posted 441 in

their first innings at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, a four-pronged pace attack led by Trent Boult dismissed Sri Lanka for 138 inside 43 overs.

Sri Lanka made a more solid start to their second innings, reaching 84 without loss at stumps, but with three days remaining they were still 219 runs in ar-

n Minhaz Uddin Khan Riding on paceman Delwar Hossain’s five-wicket haul, Prime Doleshwar recorded a seven-wicket victory over namesake Prime Bank in the Super League of the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League in Mirpur yesterday.

The convincing win elevated Prime Doleshwar to third in the standings with 18 points, just two behind joint table-toppers Abahani and Prime Bank.

Delwar, the star of the 13th round encounter between the two Primes, later onwards shared his thoughts on the milestone.

Do you get motivated while playing for a good side?

DAY’S WATCH

One advantage you get while playing for a good team is that you are focused and it helps you to deal with the challenges. Surjo Torun was my first team in the Premier League and in my second season I played for Mohammedan. So yes, it helps when you play for a big team.

Ten Cricket

How do you keep yourself motivated?

I always try to play well and I think I have been able to do that. My aim was to perform which will help the team

2:30PM South Africa v West Indies 2nd Test, Day 3 6:00AM (Monday) Australia v India 3rd Test, Day 4

Star Sports 2 9:20AM Ranji Trophy Bengal v Mumbai

Ten Action 12:00PM Australian A-league Wellington Phoenix v WS Wanderers Sky Bet Championship 6:00PM Nottingham Forest v Birmingham City 9:00PM Blackburn Rovers v Middlesbrough

Star Sports 4 2:15PM

Faf du Plessis completed his fourth Test century and was dismissed immediately afterwards on a rain-hit second morning of the second Test between South Africa and the West Indies at St George’s Park on Saturday.

Play in Port Elizabeth delayed the start by 90 minutes and returned after six overs had been bowled in half an hour, causing lunch to be taken.

10:00PM Newcastle v Everton

Rory McIlroy, the world’s number one golfer, experienced an awkward moment when he went to watch Ulster take on Connacht in a rugby match on Friday.

The Ulster supporter was in the middle of a television interview with the BBC when the Neil Diamond song “Sweet Caroline” was played over the public address system at halftime.

McIlroy responded by smiling sheepishly, looking down at the ground

9:00PM Man City v Burnley

Star Sports 2 English Premier League 9:00PM West Ham v Arsenal

B

12 0 4 0 13

34 8 8 2

441

Bowling Lakmal 19.5-3-90-3 (2nb), Eranga 18-1-82-1, Mathews 12-2-39-3, Prasad 12-2-62-1 (2w), Kaushal 22-0-159-1 (5nb), Thirimanne 2-0-5-0

R Sri Lanka 1st innings D. Karunaratne lbw Boult 0 K. Silva lbw Boult 4 K. Sangakkara c Southee b Boult 6 L. Thirimanne c Craig b Southee 24 A. Mathews c Latham b Wagner 50 N. Dickwella c McCullum b Southee 2 P. Jayawardene c Williamson b Wagner 10 D. Prasad c McCullum b Neesham 18 T. Kaushal c Williamson b Wagner 6 S. Eranga not out 10 S Lakmal c McCullum b Neesham 2 Extras (lb3, w2, nb1) 6 Total (all out, 42.4 overs)

B 4 9 27 59 85 4 21 18 6 17 7

138

Fall of wickets 1-0, 2-8, 3-15, 4-58, 5-60, 6-88, 7-105, 8-118, 9-128, 10-138 Bowling Boult 11-4-25-3 (1w), Southee 12-4-17-2, Neesham 6.4-1-28-2 (1w), Wagner 11-060-3 (1nb), Craig 2-0-5-0

R

B

Sri Lanka 2nd innings D. Karunaratne not out K. Silva not out Extras (1lb, 1nb)

49 109 33 102 2

Total (0 wickets, 35 overs)

84

Bowling Boult 7-2-16-0, Southee 7-2-11-0, Wagner 11-1-37-0 (1nb), Craig 7-2-12-0, Neesham 2-1-4-0, McCullum 1-0-3-0

and also benefit me. Everyone aims to play in the national team and I also harbour the same hopes.

Do you feel there is a healthy competition between all the pacemen now?

Yes, that is a fact. Every player dreams of playing for the national side. I also dream the same as a paceman. However, my aim is to perform and attract the attention of the selectors and the board (BCB).

How did the wickets behave in the Super League?

There is a little bit of bounce but all are batting tracks to be honest. The change in the ball was troublesome. We started playing the league with the SG ball but later we bowled with Kookaburra. It was difficult to generate pace with the SG ball and it used to wear off after two or three overs which in turn helped the batsmen. Maybe the SG balls we played with did not have the cutting edge.

Did you get any assistance from the wicket today (yesterday)?

It was a good track to bowl on. One of my wickets came from a speedy delivery while the other four came from slower deliveries.l

Super Human of Discovery Channel, MAK Yuree (C), speaks during the presser of the Rangers 6th National Butthan Championship yesterday COURTESY

National Butthan C’ship begins today n Raihan Mahmood The Rangers 6th National Butthan Championship comprising 150 participants starts at the Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmed Indoor Stadium, Paltan today.

This is the first time that the national event of Butthan will be held in Dhaka and the officials of the Butthan federation hopes to cash in from the occassion. “It is very unfortunate that Butthan, being the own martial art and

self defence form of the sub-continent is a forgotten aspect, we are trying to revive the tradition, we are also working towards international recognition,” said MAK Yuree, the general secretary and the Super Human of Discovery Channel who broke three baseball bats with a kick.

Rangers Security and Training Services general manager Squadron Leader (retd) M Obaidur Rahman was also present during the programme.l

Suspended off-spinner Saeed Ajmal’s chances to feature for Pakistan in next year’s World Cup were further hit Saturday after authorities decided he needed more time to remodel his bowling action.

The 37-year-old was suspended from all international cricket after his bowling action was found illegal in a bio-mechanical test in September.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) earlier this month requested the International

South Africa moved from their overnight 270 for two to 289 for three before the stoppage.

Du Plessis, on 99 overnight, flicked Jerome Taylor’s first ball of the day for four runs to raise his century off 229 balls.

He hit 13 fours and two sixes. But he was out to the next ball, a perfect outswinger which found such a faint edge that umpire Paul Reiffel remained unmoved as wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin and the bowler celebrated.l

n Reuters, Dublin

English Premier League

R

Fall of wickets 1-37, 2-60, 3-88, 4-214, 5-367, 6-420, 7-429, 8-431, 9-440, 10-441

n AFP, Port Elizabeth

8:00PM Southampton v Chelsea

Star Sports HD1

Total (all out, 85.5 overs)

Ajmal doubtful for World Cup

5:45PM Tottenham v Man United

English Premier League

New Zealand 1st innings (Overnight 429-7) M. Craig not out T. Southee c Thirimanne b Mathews N. Wagner c Kaushal b Lakmal T. Boult c Jayawardene b Lakmal Extras (lb4, w2, nb7)

Du Plessis reaches hundred before rain

Sweet Caroline interruption proves awkward for McIlroy

T20 Big Bash League Brisbane Heat v Melbourne Stars

rears and Boult believed the signs were good for New Zealand.

New Zealand had resumed the second day at 429-7 and lost their last three wickets for a cheap 12 runs in 32 balls as their innings folded for 441.

The quick end signalled that the bowlers had found how to exploit the

green-tinged surface and 13 wickets fell in two sessions after the batsmen led by New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum’s 195 had dominated the first day.

In a pre-lunch onslaught Boult ripped through Sri Lanka’s top order starting with the removal of Dimuth Karunaratne for nought with his fourth delivery to bring up his 100th Test dismissal.

He followed with the wickets of Kaushal Silva for four and Sri Lanka dangerman Kumar Sangakarra for six.

Sangakkara was six runs short of becoming only the fifth player to reach 12,000 Test runs when he was beaten by a late swinging Boult delivery that caught an outside edge and was snapped up by Tim Southee at third slip.

Southee split the webbing between the thumb and forefinger of his left hand securing the catch and required five stitches.

Neil Wagner chimed in with the wickets of Prasanna Jayawardene, Angelo Mathews and Tharindu Kaushal before Jimmy Neesham mopped up the tail with the wickets of Dhammika Prasad and Suranga Lakmal.

Amid the carnage, only Mathews carried the fight to New Zealand as he raced from 40 to his 19th half-century with a four and six off successive deliveries from Wagner. But his belligerence was to prove his downfall when he charged at Wagner a third time and skied a top edge to Tom Latham at third man.

In addition to Boult’s impressive figures, Wagner took three for 60, Southee two for 17 and Neesham two for 28.

In their second innings Karunaratne was not out 49 at stumps with Silva on 33, with Karunaratne receiving a life when he was dropped on 10 by substitute Cole McConchie off Boult’s bowling.l

NZvSL, DAY 2

Paceman Delwar dreams of playing for Bangladesh one day

West Ham United poked fun at Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho with a tonguein-cheek Twitter message ahead of the teams’ Premier League clash at Stamford Bridge on Friday. Mourinho had accused West Ham of employing overly defensive tactics following the 0-0 draw between the sides in January, saying Sam Allardyce’s team had played “football from the 19th century”. In response, West Ham posted a sepiacoloured picture of a horse and cart on their Twitter page, accompanied by the caption: “The West Ham United team coach (and horse) has arrived at @chelseafc for today’s game #19thcenturyfootball”. Mourinho, whose side lead the table, backtracked on his comments on the eve of Friday’s game against fourth-place West Ham, saying his choice of words had been “silly”.

–AFP

Star Sports 1

13

Sunday, December 28, 2014

and exclaiming “Oh dear”.

The Northern Irishman broke off his engagement to former world number one tennis player Caroline Wozniacki in May, the same week as he won the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.

McIlroy went on to score a rare title hat-trick later in the season, reeling off three straight victories in the British Open at Royal Liverpool, the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Ohio and the U.S. PGA Championship in Kentucky.l

n AFP, Karachi

Cricket Council (ICC) to have Ajmal’s action reassessed but had to delay that after his unofficial tests revealed he still needed remodelling.

Ajmal has been remodelling his action with the help of former Pakistan off-spinner Saqlain Mushtaq.

Under the ICC rules all bowlers are allowed to flex their elbow by 15 degrees but Ajmal’s tests revealed his elbow flexed by 43 degree.

Besides Ajmal Pakistan also faces race against time to get all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez cleared after his action

was reported as suspect last month.

He was subsequently suspended earlier this month. A PCB meeting on Saturday decided Hafeez will proceed to Chennai, India to have an unofficial test while Ajmal will do more remodelling work in Lahore.

“The PCB committee discussed the future course of action to be adopted with regard to Ajmal and Hafeez and agreed that in the case of Ajmal, further remedial work should continue in collaboration with Saqlain and a bio mechanist in Lahore,” a PCB release said.l

The six finalists of the newcomers category of the Bay Emporium National Bodybuilding pose after they qualified for the finals yesterday

14

Sport

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Sanchez saves Arsenal as Giroud sees red n AFP, London Alexis Sanchez helped maintain 10man Arsenal’s Champions League push as his man-of-the-match display condemned Queens Park Rangers to a 2-1 Premier League defeat on Friday.

The Chilean forward went from zero to hero after squandering an early penalty and then putting Arsenal ahead with a 37th-minute header.

Arsenal striker Oliver Giroud was sent off for violent conduct before Sanchez’s mazy run carved out a second goal for Tomas Rosicky.

Charlie Austin’s late penalty had nerves jangling at the Emirates Stadium, but it was too little, too late for QPR, who fell to a record-equalling ninth straight away defeat.

Giroud took exception after Nedum Onuoha pushed him from behind as he chased a through-ball and rose from the floor to headbutt the QPR defender right in front of referee Martin Atkinson, who had no option but to send him off. l

RESULT

Arsenal Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez (2L) heads to score against Queens Park Rangers during their English Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium in London on Friday

REUTERS

2-1

Sanchez 37, Rosicky 65

QPR Austin 79-P

High-flying United tackle Spurs threat Saints entertain table-toppers Chelsea, holders Man City up against Burnley at home, Gunners travel to West Ham

n AFP Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has bemoaned the lack of time at his disposal as he attempts to nurse an injury-plagued squad through his first Christmas in English football.

United have just 43 hours between their 3-1 victory over Newcastle United on Boxing Day and their Sunday visit to Tottenham Hotspur, which kicks off at lunchtime.

It is a piece of fixture scheduling that clearly has not impressed the former Dutch national team manager, who said: “I can’t prepare my team like I have to prepare.

“We have unit meetings, we have team meetings, we have a training session, 11 against 11, simulating the opponents. We can’t do that now. We have to

play within 48 hours.

“In UEFA and in FIFA it is forbidden to play within 48 hours, but it is England, so it’s different!

“I changed (Radamel) Falcao and I changed (Michael) Carrick for that reason, so we will have to wait and see how they recover because all the players now have to go to recover and eat properly.

“Then your body can recover better.

Tomorrow (Saturday) morning, they have free time and rest because recovery is much more important than a training session now.”

A new, if familiar, name on the United injury list is Angel di Maria, who was meant to be in contention for the Newcastle game but suffered a pelvic injury in training on Christmas Eve that ruled him out.

Van Gaal is now awaiting tests that will reveal how long he will be without the Argentina international, but at least United are showing no ill-effects on the field.

Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino eased fears over Hugo Lloris’s fitness by confirming the France goalkeeper was unharmed after a collision with Leicester

EPL FIXTURES Tottenham Southampton Aston Villa Hull City Man City QPR Stoke City West Ham Newcastle

v v v v v v v v v

Man United Chelsea Sunderland Leicester City Burnley Crystal Palace West Brom Arsenal Everton

Crystal Palace sack manager Warnock n Reuters, London Premier League strugglers Crystal Palace ended manager Neil Warnock’s second spell in charge on Saturday following a dismal run of one win in 12 games, the BBC reported.

A 3-1 home defeat by Southampton on Friday left Palace in the relegation zone, third from bottom on 15 points.

The London club have lost three and drawn three of their last six games, their last win coming against Liverpool on Nov. 23.

Warnock, 66, returned to Selhurst Park after Tony Pulis, who had steered

Toure close to fourth straight African award n AFP, Johannesburg Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure moved closer to a record fourth consecutive African Footballer of the Year title on Friday when he was included in a three-man shortlist.

Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Nigeria goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama are the other contenders for the most prestigious African football individual award.

Toure plays for reigning English Premier League champions Manchester City, Aubameyang for German club Borussia Dortmund and Enyeama for French outfit Lille.

The votes of the 56 national coaches in Africa decide the winner, who will be announced on January 8 in Lagos.

Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o has won the award four times, but only three of his successes came in consecutive years.

The Africa-based Footballer of the Year award rests between Entente Setif of Algeria team-mates El-Hedi Belameiri and Akram Djahnit and Firmin Mubele from Democratic Republic of Congo side V Club.

Setif and V Club are among the club

award contenders after reaching the CAF Champions League final, which the Algerians won on away goals. l

CONTENDERS Footballer of the Year Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (GAB), Vincent Enyeama (NGR), Yaya Toure (CIV)

Africa-based Footballer of the Year El-Hedi Belameiri, Akram Djahnit (both Setif/ALG), Firmin Mubele (V Club/COD)

Female footballer Annette Ndom (CMR), Desire Oparanozie, Asisat Oshoala (both NGR)

Best male/female youth Fabrice Ondoa (CMR), Asisat Oshoala, Uchechi Sunday (both NGR)

Most promising Vincent Aboubakar, Clinton N’jie (both CMR), Yacine Brahimi (ALG)

Coach Vahid Halilhodzic (ALG), Florent Ibenge (V Club and COD), Kheireddine Madoui (Setif)

National team Algeria, Libya, Nigeria

Female national team Cameroon, Nigeria, Nigeria U.20

Club Al-Ahly (EGY), Setif (ALG), V Club (COD)

them to an 11th-place finish against the odds last season, departed two days before the start of the current campaign.

Warnock left Palace in 2010 after they went into administration, joining Queens Park Rangers and taking them into the Premier League before being sacked eight months later, in January 2012.

The following month he was appointed manager of Leeds United, only to be fired just over a year later.

Warnock has managed 13 clubs, starting in non-League football almost 35 years ago.l

striker Jamie Vardy.

Lloris will be fit for Sunday’s home match against Manchester United despite going down in an incident that brought back memories of the moment he was knocked out against Everton 13 months ago.

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has downplayed the significance of his side standing on the brink of a club-record 10-game winning run ahead of Sunday’s game against Burnley.

City’s 3-1 Boxing Day success at West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League stretched their streak of victories to nine in a row in all competitions, leaving them on the verge of history ahead of Burnley’ visit.

Pellegrini conceded that the statistic was news to him, but said that it was points, rather than records, that are

his primary focus as his second-placed side look to keep the pressure on leaders Chelsea. Jose Mourinho believes his Chelsea side have improved sufficiently in 2014 to justify their position as Premier League leaders.

A 2-0 victory over West Ham at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day, courtesy of goals from John Terry and Diego Costa, kept Chelsea three points ahead of last season’s champions Manchester City.

The Blues, who finished third last season, will have their title credentials tested again against Southampton on December 28, but Mourinho is confident his players can rise to the occasion at St Mary’s and finish the calendar year on top. Sunday’s trip to the south coast will see Mourinho renew his relationship with Southampton manager Ronald Koeman.

The pair were colleagues at Barcelona

Smith fireworks leave India reeling n AFP, Melbourne Steve Smith put Australia in command of the third Test with a memorable innings to leave India with a massive task to stay alive in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Melbourne on Saturday.

Smith blasted an imperious 192 off 305 balls with 15 fours and two sixes to spearhead Australia to a formidable 530 and then took a diving catch to have the tourists at 108 for one at the close on the second day and trailing by 422 runs.

India’s first task was to avoid the follow-on target of 331 while the Australians, leading the four-match series 2-0, will be pressing for victory over the final three days.

Murali Vijay passed fifty for the fourth time in the series and was unbeaten on 55 with Cheteshwar Pujara not out 25 after Smith swooped to take a catch low off the ground at second slip to dismiss Shikhar Dhawan for 28 off Ryan Harris.

It could have been better for Australia but wicketkeeper Brad Haddin dropped Pujara on 12 off the bowling of Josh Hazlewood.

Smith dominated day two with his highest Test score and was the last wicket to fall when he went after a big shot with fielders on the boundary in pursuit of a double century.

It was his third century of the series, his fifth for the year and was replete with all his quirky shotmaking to leave India skipper M.S. Dhoni at a loss as to

Suarez still upbeat despite lack of goals n Reuters, Barcelona Barcelona forward Luis Suarez is confident his scoring form will return and he can put a slow start to his debut season in Spain behind him.

The Uruguay international plays in a three-man attack at Barca with Lionel Messi and Neymar and although he has not been as prolific as he or coach Luis Enrique would like he has been contributing with assists and has made four in La Liga and one in Europe’s elite club competition.

“I am obviously a striker who likes to score a lot of goals and have done that in every team I have been with,” Suarez said on Barca’s website on Friday.

“I’m not scoring much at the moment but I’m sure that with help from my team mates the goals will come,” added the 27-year-old, who made his return from a four-month ban for biting an opponent at the end of October.

“But as long as the team is winning important games as it is then I’ll be happy whether I score or not. A forward always has to help the team, either with assists or goals. Sometimes making good assists or passes makes you feel better than scoring easy goals.”l

when Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal was in charge at the Nou Camp.

Arsene Wenger admits losing Oliver Giroud once again is a body blow to Arsenal’s Champions League push.

Giroud is facing three games out after his red card in the 2-1 Boxing Day win against QPR. Having made a major impact since his return from ankle surgery that sidelined him for three months, Giroud’s absence is the last thing the Arsenal manager needs at this pivotal stage of the season.

Wenger might have celebrated his 400th Premier League win in charge of Arsenal but he won’t be raising a glass to Giroud.

The striker’s physicality will be missed at Upton Park, especially with the aerial bombardment West Ham put teams under with Andy Carroll in their ranks.l

how to contain him.

“I feel pretty good at the crease. Everything is working for me at the moment which is nice and the most pleasing thing is that we’ve got 530 runs on the board and that’s a very good first innings total for us,” Smith said.

“It was pretty fun to be honest. It was nice to be able to play a few shots there at the end and try and get the total up as high as we could.”

Smith bettered his previous highest score of 162 not out in the first Adelaide Test by dancing down the wicket to plonk spinner Ravi Ashwin high into the stands with a mighty six.

The new skipper was aided by lusty knocks from Haddin (55), Mitchell Johnson (28) and Ryan Harris (74) as Australia took apart the Indian attack.l

AUSvIND, DAY 2 Australia 1st innings (Overnight 259 for 5) C. Rogers c Dhoni b Shami D. Warner c Dhawan b Yadav S. Watson lbw b Ashwin S. Smith b Yadav S. Marsh c Dhoni b Shami J. Burns c Dhoni b Yadav B. Haddin c Dhoni b Shami M. Johnson stp Dhoni b Ashwin R. Harris lbw b Ashwin N. Lyon b Shami J. Hazlewood not out Extras (b1, lb9, w1, nb5)

R

B

57 0 52 192 32 13 55 28 74 11 0 16

126 6 89 305 83 27 84 37 88 15 0

Total (all out, 142.3 overs)

530

Fall of wickets 1-0, 2-115, 3-115, 4-184, 5-216, 6-326, 7-376, 8-482, 9-530, 10-530 Bowling I. Sharma 32-7-104-0 (5nb), Yadav 32.33-130-3, Shami 29-4-138-4 (1w), Ashwin 44-9-134-3, Vijay 5-0-14-0

R

B

India 1st innings M. Vijay not out S. Dhawan c Smith b Harris C. Pujara not out Extras

55 102 28 51 25 69 0

Total (1 wicket; 37 overs)

108

Fall of wickets 1-55 (Dhawan)

Australia captain Steve Smith lofts the ball for a six as India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni watches on during the second day of their third Test at the MCG yesterday AFP

Bowling Johnson 9-3-24-0, Harris 7-3-19-1, Hazlewood 9-4-19-0, Watson 4-0-14-0, Lyon 8-0-32-0

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Sunday, December 28, 2014

MILA back on screen

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs HBO, 7:33pm

n Entertainment Desk

After nine years, model Mila Hossain has made a comeback in the showbiz world with renewed enthusiasm.

Winner of Lux-Anandadhara 2000, Mila has been staying abroad for long and occasionally came back to visit Bangladesh.

After a year, she is back and is gearing up to shoot for the new TV play Punuschho Bhalobasha, where she will be pairing up with Abdul Nur Sajal.

The model-cum-actress will also be seen in a telefilm named Otopor Nodi, which is expected to air in the second week of January next year.

She will co-star with wellknown actor Nobel in the telefilm.

“Once again, I am working with Nobel. The last time I worked with him was in the drama series Shesh Theke Shuru,” said Mila.

“I came to visit Bangladesh to celebrate the New Year. Apart from travelling to a number of places, it is a pleasure that I have found time to act in a few productions. I expect to perform my best in those,” she added. l

Inspired by the children’s book, the film focuses on a town where food falls from the sky like rain.

Stardust HBO Hits, 9:55pm

Fusion band Joler Gaan pays tribute on the occasion of Zainul Birth Centenary at the Bakultola, Charukola on Friday which will continue till December 29 KHAN HASAN MD RAFI

Cherry Blossoms screens today

A young man makes a promise to his beloved that he’ll retrieve a fallen star by venturing into the magical realm.

n Entertainment Desk

Troy WB, 9:30pm

Every last Sunday of the month, the Goethe-Institut shows independent and experimental films as well as documentaries from Germany beyond the mainstream at the Berlin Hall of the Goethe-Institut, and this month’s screening of “Kirschblüten – Hanami / Cherry Blossoms” will be held today at 6pm. Directed by Doris Dörrie, the film portrays Trudi An-

germeier, who learns that her husband Rudi is terminally ill and has a short life to live. She then decides to make a journey together with him.

But in the Baltic Sea, Trudi dies unexpectedly and Rudi finds himself at the end of his rope.

As he hears that his wife has given up on her dreams to love him, he begins to see his dead wife differently and travels to Japan to live a new life. l

Bangladesh Cine Journalist Association (BCJA), a reputed organisation representing the journalists who cover Bangladeshi film news, has announced the award in film for the last five years, from 2009 to 2013.

The gala ceremony of the 38th edition of the award was held yesterday at Bangladesh Film Development Corporation where Hasanul Haque Inu, the information minister, handed the awards over to the winners. Razzak, Kabori Sar-

2009

Film: Priyotomeshu Director: Morshedul Islam (Priyotomeshu) Actor: Ferdous (Ganga Jatra) Actress: Poppy (Ganga Jatra)

war and Chashi Nazrul Islam, the three prominent figures of Bangladeshi movies, received the life-time achievement award for their contribution to cinema while filmmaker Shahidul Islam Khakon received a special honorary award.

An autonomous jury board formed by the association selected the winners for 17 categories including best film, best director, best story-writer, best actor, best actress, best playback singer and best music director.

Some of the winners in different Kabori Sarwar and Nayok Raj Razzak receive the Lifetime Achievement Award yesterday in categories are as follows: the award ceremony at the BFDC from Minister Hasanul Haq Inu KHAN HASAN MD RAFI

2010

Film: Gohiney Shabdo Director: Khaled Mahmud Mith (Gohiney Shabdo) Actor: Shakib Khan (Bhalobaslei Ghor Bandha Jay Na) Actress: Moushumi (Golapi Ekhon Bilatey)

JESSICA ALBA teaches daughters ‘real meaning’ of beauty n Entertainment Desk Jessica Alba definitely exudes beauty, but teaching about beauty is another ball game. The famous mother of two daughters revealed that she’s taken a slightly different approach than the one she grew up with when it comes to explaining the meaning of beauty to 6-year-old Honor and 3-year-old Haven.

“Growing up, whenever I was bullied, my mom would say, ‘You’re a beautiful girl. They’re just jealous,’” Alba, who looks gorgeous in a blue plunging jumpsuit as she covers the January-February 2015 issue of Natural Health magazine, explained. “It never helped. I want my girls to know that beauty is being kind...beauty is helping people…beauty is humility.”

The working mom has also been putting in a lot of time into The Honest Company, which she co-founded with Christopher Gavigan, Sean Kane and Brian Lee, in hopes of having something for her girls to take over in the future.

“I really am building The Honest Company for them,” she told Entertainment Tonight’s Nischelle Turner. “I’m really hoping that...The Honest Company is some place that they would like to work later, when they’re older.” l

Exhibition

Shifting Sands Time: 12pm – 8pm Bengal Art Lounge 60, Gulshan Avenue

Film

Meghmallar, Ouija Interstellar, Gone Girl

Ek Cup Cha, Into The Storm Blockbuster Cinemas Jamuna Future Park Meghmallar, Brick Mansions, Big Hero 6 (3D) Pipra Bidda Lavel 8, Star Cineplex Bashundhara City, Panthapath

The assault on Troy by the united Greek forces and chronicles the fates of the men involved.

TRANSFORMERS: Age of Extinction highest-grossing film of 2014

Film awards given n Entertainment Desk

15

2011

Film: Guerilla Director: Nasiruddin Yusuf Bachchu (Guerilla) Actor: Amin Khan (Goriber Mon Onek Boro) Actress: Jaya Ahsan (Guerilla)

2012

Film: Runway Director: Tareque Masud (Runway) Actor: Masud Akhando (Pita) Actress: Bobita (Khodar Pore Maa)

n Entertainment Desk “Transformers: Age of Extinction” has been named the highest-grossing film of 2014, thanks largely to huge success in China.

The fourth instalment in Michael Bay’s divisive, sci-fi saga took $1.087bn around the world. More than $300m came from China, where the film overtook “Avatar” in July to become the highest-grossing movie of all time. Bay shot “Age of Extinction” in Hong Kong and hired Chinese stars such as Li Bing-

2013

Film: Mrittika Maya Director: Gazi Rakayet (Mrittika Maya) Actor: Titas Zia (Mrittika Maya) Actress: Apu Biswas (My Name Is Khan)

ANUSHKA SHARMA: Working with Aamir was surreal n Entertainment Desk Fresh from the success of her recent blockbuster alongside Aamir Khan, Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma says that she often had an “out-of- body-experience” working with the 49-year-old Bollywood star. “I would be sitting on the sets and Aamir would be around somewhere, and I’d probably be thinking something in my own space and suddenly I would look at him and it would just hit me — it’s Aamir Khan, he was in ‘Pehla Nasha,’ he was in ‘Lagaan!’” says the 26-year-old army kid, adding that coming from a completely non-filmy -background, it’s like a surreal experience for her to be-working and hobnobbing with industry big stars.

“I’ve been here for six years but when you are not from the industry, and when you are suddenly working here, there are times when you feel like you’re having an out-of body-experience,” says the Bangalore-bred girl.

“I would have never thought 10 years ago that I would be here in my life! Or I see actor Amitabh Bachchan, or I would have never thought I would be going to his house for a Diwali party! I never thought that because I don’t come from ‘there’,” adds the actress, who is currently spending time with her boyfriend, cricketer Virat Kohli, in Melbourne.

Aamir and Anushka’s “PK” is surely blazing at the box office. The film is expected to stand at around Rs210 crore, thereby taking over Aamir’s previous Rajkumar Hirani flick “3 Idiots,” Salman’s “Ek Tha Tiger” and SRK’s “Happy New Year.” l

bing for supporting roles, thereby helping to encourage local interest.

The second highest-grossing movie was Marvel superhero epic “Guardians of the Galaxy,” with $772m worldwide.

Third spot went to Angelina Jolie fantasy vehicle “Maleficent,” with took $757m across the globe.

The top five was rounded out by two other superhero films, 20th Century Fox’s “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” with $746m, and Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” with $714m. l

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Clockwise: An aerial view of Gazipur Chourasta during the BNP-led 20-party-sponsored slack hartal yesterday. Gazipur Awami League activists and leaders bring out an anti-hartal procession on the Tongi-Gazipur highway yesterday. BGB men patrolling the Gazipur-Joydebpur road during the shutdown. Bhawal Badre Alam Govt College, the declared venue for BNP’s rally, under lockdown by police who seem to be passing an idle time during the hartal RAJIB DHAR/DHAKA TRIBUNE

Pakistan army kills 55 militants in fresh Six die, 14 injured in road accidents assault near Afghan border n AFP At least 55 militants were killed in airstrikes and a gun battle with ground forces in Pakistan’s troubled northwest where the military launched a major offensive this year, officials said yesterday.

The army intensified its offensive after the massacre of 150 people in a school in Peshawar this month, carnage which Pakistan described as its own “mini 9/11” and a game-changer in the fight against extremism.

Troops raided a militant hideout late Friday in an area adjoining the Orakzai and Khyber tribal districts – near the Afghan border – where insurgents had gathered for a meeting, the military said in a statement.

“An intense battle took place, in which 16 terrorists were killed and 20 injured,” it said.

“Fleeing terrorists left behind nine dead bodies of their accomplices,” the

statement added.

Troops arrested two critically wounded militants and four soldiers were also wounded in the battle, according to the statement.

Separately, 39 militants, including two rebel commanders, were killed in airstrikes in the north-west late Friday and an ammunition depot was also destroyed, according to military spokesperson Maj Gen Asim Bajwa.

It was not possible to independently verify the casualties as media are banned from visiting the remote area.

In another incident, police said they arrested an important Taliban commander who was wanted for attacks on police and was also involved in the killing of a local journalist in north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The army has been waging a major offensive against long-standing Taliban and other militant strongholds in the restive tribal areas on the Afghan border for the last six months.

PM talks tough against maligning Bangabandhu n UNB Issuing a stern warning, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said those who are making disparaging remarks about Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman will not be spared.

“People know the country’s history very well…..kulangars (black sheep) are uttering derogatory remarks about Bangabandhu. They won’t be spared.

People will certainly bring them to justice,” she said.

The prime minister said this while holding separate meetings with leaders of Gopalganj district, and Tungipara and Kotalipara upazila units of Awami League.

Sheikh Hasina held the meetings with the AL leaders at Bangabandhu’s house after placing wreaths and offering Fateha and munajat at the mazar of Bangabandhu here.

PM’s Press Secretary AKM Shameem Chowdhuri briefed reporters after the meetings.

Shameem said the Prime Minister enquired about the development

works of her constituency and talked to local public representatives apart from the AL leaders of different levels.

Sheikh Hasina, also the Awami League president, directed the grass roots leaders to hold the council of the party and its associate bodies as soon as possible.

She said organisational capacity of Awami League will have to be strengthened further for maintaining the trend of democracy, constitution and development.

“Those who want to foil democracy, constitution and development will have to be resisted,” she said.

In this connection, the Prime Minister requested all, including Awami League leaders and activists, to remain vigilant so that the country’s ongoing development trend is not hindered.

“You’ll have to remain alert so that the anti-democratic elements who want to grab power in an unconstitutional way can’t create any unstable situation in the country,” she said.

Sheikh Hasina also urged the grass roots leaders to maintain unity among them for strengthening the party. l

The offensive gathered momentum after the December 16 attack on an army-run school in Peshawar which killed 150 people, 134 of them children.

The Pakistani military says it has killed more than 1,700 militants so far in its heavy offensive in the tribal zone, with 126 soldiers having lost their lives.

Peshawar conspirator killed

Forces have killed a Taliban commander who allegedly facilitated the Peshawar school massacre.

Named only as “Saddam,” the militant was killed Thursday night in a gunfight with security forces in the restive Khyber tribal area, which borders the north-western city of Peshawar where last week’s horrific school attack took place.

“Commander Saddam was a dreaded terrorist, who was killed in an exchange of fire with security forces in Jamrud town of Khyber tribal region,” top local administration official Shahab

Ali Shah told a press conference in Peshawar.

He added that Saddam is believed to have facilitated the school attack, although the extent or capacity of his alleged involvement was not yet known.

He described Saddam as an important commander in the Pakistani Taliban, or Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and said he had masterminded several bomb attacks.

Saddam and his accomplices had been involved in several recent attacks on security forces that had resulted in heavy casualties, Shahab said.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has announced the establishment of military courts for terror-related cases in order to accelerate trials, and he has also lifted a six-year moratorium on the death penalty, reinstating it for terrorism-related cases.

Officials said Pakistan plans to execute around 500 militants in the coming weeks. l

in three districts n Tribune Report Six people were killed and 14 others injured in road accidents in Mymensingh, Naogaon, and Chittagong yesterday.

Our Mymensingh correspondent reports, three people were killed and four others injured as a bus and CNG-run auto-rickshaw collided head-on in the Dholibazar area of Phulfur in Mymensingh yesterday.

The victims could not identified immediately. Police said all seven passengers of the auto-rickshaw were injured in the incident.

The injured were rushed to Phulpur Upazila Health Complex where doctors declared the three dead.

Our Naogaon correspondent reports, two people were killed and 10 others injured as bus plunged into a roadside ditch in the Porsha upazila of Naogaon.

PAY COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION

Administration should have been reformed 30 years ago n

Asif Showkat Kallol

The National Pay and Services Commission has recommended that slashing the number in public manpower is necessary in order to make the government fully operational.

They suggested that the government should reduce the number of staffs and also train the remaining manpower.

Suggesting that the public administration is badly in need of reform considering the international context, the commission said an “administrative reconstitution and reform commission” should be formed immediately.

The report, submitted to the finance minister last week, says the issue should have been addressed 30 years ago. Because of the delay, there are now “intra- and inter-cadre imbalances” in the public administration.

However, the commission did not recommend or suggest anything regarding what should be done for rehabilitation in case the government

decides to implement the recommendation to cut down the government manpower to the right size.

Moreover, the report – a copy of which the Dhaka Tribune has accessed – does not say anything about politically sensitive issues such as the officers on special

The govt needs to invent a new performance appraisal system for the reformation of the public administration duty (OSD). Traditionally, governments have used the OSD mechanism to punish or corner bureaucrats who belong to different political influences.

The last time the country’s administration saw any kind of reform was back in 1984; it was based on a report by the then Enam Commission.

The Enam Commission had rec-

ommended that the official-employee ratio in the administration should be 1:1, meaning: for every official, there should not be more than one employee.

But at present, the ratio is 1:2.5, meaning that for every official, there are now more than two employees on an average.

According to the Finance Division, there are currently 608,340 officials and 1,495,953 employees. The second count includes manpower from various development projects as well.

The report says: “In the last 30 years, the government has brought some unplanned reforms to the public administration which have created a deep crisis.”

The government created several posts and put them under existing salary grades without much thought, triggering discontent, frustration and discrimination.

The report said: “The government needs to invent a new performance appraisal system for the reformation of the public administration.” l

The deceased are Toriqul Islam, 30, of the Chakpran area in the Noagaon sadar; and Seratul Islam,20 the bus driver’s assistant.

Police said the accident took place on Noaogaon-Porsha highway near the Doyar Intersection as the driver lost control of the wheel as the dense fog blocked visibility around 10am.

The injured are undergoing treatment at the Porsha Hospital.

Our CU Correspondent reports that an elderly man was killed in a road accident on Dhaka-Chittagong highway at the Sitakunda upazila in Chittagong yesterday. The deceased is Wahab Ali, 50.

Police said the vehicle hit the man while he was crossing the highway in the Kumira area around 1:00am.

Critically injured, Wahab was rushed to the Chittagong Medical College Hospital where the doctors declared him dead. l

China wants follow-up actions on agreed issues n UNB China expects follow-up actions on the agreed important issues with Bangladesh and mapping out commemorative activities to be held next year, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying.

She said China also wants to extend bilateral cooperation in economy and trade, connectivity and people-to-people exchanges, and further boost China-Bangladesh relations, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived here yesterday evening on a three-day visit to discuss the progress on the deals and MoUs signed between Bangladesh and China during Sheikh Hasina’s China visit.

The Chinese Foreign Minister has been here at the invitation of his Bangladesh counterpart and his visit is considered as another step towards boosting the bilateral ties between the two countries.

The bilateral talks between the two countries led by the two Foreign Ministers will start at 10am at the Foreign Ministry. l

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B3 Japan inflation slows

and output slips, keep BOJ under pressure

B4 Russia forecasts economic slump as bailed-out bank gets more funds

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2014 www.dhakatribune.com/business

2014: A year of RMG transformation n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi RMG owners have termed 2014 a transforming and learning year for apparel industry as the year has witnessed a lot of remedial works to turn the industrial sector compliant to ensure workers’ rights and safety.

Following the Rana Plaza building collapse, which killed 1,135 workers, and Tazreen Fashions fire incident, people across the globe raised question about the RMG workers’ rights and safety, plus electrical and structural integrity.

Following the two deadliest incidents, global buyers focused on safety issues and formed Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh and Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety to promote safety standards in the country’s RMG sector.

Accord and Alliance used to source products from those factories they completed inspection. The buyers’ platforms found less than 2% factory risky to labourers’ safety.

Garment factory owners claimed that they had done a lot of remedial works as per the recommendations of Accord and Alliance. The recommendations helped them transform the factories and acquire knowledge about the safety issues and requirements.

“The year 2014 was viewed as a

RMG Fact Sheet 4 million workers employed 80% female workers over 10% contribution to GDP 3,500 active RMG units $24.49 earned in FY 2013-14 Safety inspection found less than 2% RMG units risky Accord and Alliance inspection shut 27 RMG units Set $50bn export target by 2021

Challenges being faced in 2014 • Factory Inspection • Implementation of new wage structure • Political unrest • Propaganda over factory disaster • Tuba Group Crisis • Rana Plaza impact • Orders crises for shared building factories • 450 factory closed

transformational year. It was also a challenging year for the RMG sector to revive from trouble it faced, and I think we have been able to turn around,” BGMEA Vice-President Shahidullah Azim told the Dhaka Tribune.

There were a lot of challenges including propaganda over safety issues following the Rana Plaza disaster, said Azim.

“We have done a lot of remedial works. We have overcome a crucial time. In the past, RMG owners did not have proper knowledge about the remedies, which had been acquired through recommendations that came

to do everything in right earnest to meet the export target of $50 billion by 2021,” She added.

Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) former first vice-president Mohammad Hatem: “Challenges for the next year are to complete the remedial works and more concentration on new market exploration especially in China, South Korea, Japan and Russia.”

Special attention would be paid to negotiate with those potential countries to ensure duty-free access of Bangladesh’s RMG products to their markets, said Hatem.

Since the world concentrates more on compliance issues, Bangladesh has to carry out the remedies as per the instructions of Accord and Alliance, said Mustafizur Rahman, executive director, CPD. If the remaining tasks are carried out as soon as possible, it would be an opportunity for Bangladesh and buyers would place orders, added Mustafizur.

Commenting on the RMG transformation that the factory owners claim to have done, the CPD official said: “It will take time to turn around but the process has started.”

To achieve the $50bn export target he urged the government and RMG factory owners to focus on non-traditional market exploration.

Challenges to be faced in 2015 • Implementation of remediation • Relocation of RMG units from shared building • Negotiation for duty free access • Introduction of production engineering • Going to advanced technology • Lean Management • Sustainable development through energy efficiency • Infrastructural development to tackle new volume of business • Uninterrupted utility service.

• Exploration of non-traditional market

after inspection of the factories by the buyers’ platforms,” Vidiya Amrit Khan, a BGMEA director, told the Dhaka Tribune.

RMG people have to concentrate on advanced technology to boost productivity, renewable energy and green technology for sustainable development and infrastructure development to implement the upcoming big volume production, added Amrit, also a director of Desh Garments Limited.

“We are very hopeful about a vibrant RMG future since apprehensions as regards RMG have disappeared.

RMG owners and the government have

Though the BGMEA claimed that it had made a lot of progress, the buyers’ platforms said a lot more still needs to be done.

The RMG sector witnessed transformation this year and had made a lot of progress in terms of workers’ safety but there are some challenges ahead, M Rabin, managing director of Alliance for Workers’ Safety in Bangladesh, told the Dhaka Tribune.

The challenges include implementation of remedial works within the stipulated time frame, relocation of factories, fund management for relocation of small and medium factories and the buy of genuine fire safety equipment as they are totally dependent on import, said Rabin.

Stressing the need for quick implementation of remedial works and relocation, he said: “If the implementation is delayed, it will hamper production.”

The Alliance managing director added that gas, electricity and other utility services are mostly needed to facilitate production.

Bangladesh earned $24.49bn from RMG export in the last fiscal, which is over 81% of the total export earnings and it contributes over 10% to GDP. The ready-made garment sector has 4 million workers, of which 80 are women, mostly from rural areas. l

Export earnings rise 14% RMG export earnings grow 5% in 11 months this year despite all odds in 2014 n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi Bangladesh’s export earning rose by 14% to $27.5bn in 11 months of the calender year 2014 compared to the same period last year.

According to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Bangladesh earned $27.5bn from January to November, 2014, which was $24.17 for the same period in 2013.

Bangladesh has set $33.2bn export target for the current fiscal year 2014-15, up from $30.5bn in the previous fiscal year when total earnings stood at $30.17bn.

“The 14% growth in 11 months is acceptable and mostly came from the first quarter,” said Khondaker Golam Moazzem, additional research director at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

“In the second quarter, the growth trend has slowed down and if we failed to retain the first quarter growth pace, it would be very tough to sustain the 14% growth,” said Moaazem.

It was also noticed that garment export to US market and EU countries has shown downward trend, which is a matter of concern, he said adding that this downtrend was also observed in some other sectors.

“The expected growth is not possible due to conservative attitude of buyers towards Bangladesh over the safety issues. To overcome the situation, Bangladesh has to resolve the problems domestically and concentrate on the new market exploration and product diversification.”

“To boost export volume, the government has taken steps in different sectors like agro-based industry, shipbuilding, leather and pharmaceutical,” Commerce Secretary Hedayetullah Al Mamoon told the Dhaka Tribune.

Mamoon said the government will provide cash incentives for non-traditional products to encourage diversification of products. l

450 RMG factories shut n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi Since the collapse of Rana Plaza last year, which killed 1,135 workers, a total of 450 factories were shut due to compliance issues and relocation.

Lack of enough work orders, non-compliance with the rules, labour unrest, exit from business and factory relocation are resons for the closure of the factories. According to the BGMEA latest data, a total of 450 RMG factories were closed. Of the closed factories, 220 were the members of BGMEA, 170 belonged to BKMEA. The rest are neither linked with the BGMEA nor the BKMEA that work on subcontract basis. The data also said

about 40 garment factories were closed due to labour unrest. At least 1.5 lakh workers, mostly women, were employed in those factories.

“Most RMG units were shut due to safety issues while lack of enough work orders, shared building and labour unrest acted as a catalyst,” BGMEA Vice-President Shahidullah Azim told the Dhaka Tribune.

To avert further unemployment, Azim urged the government to provide gas and electricity for the factories whose owners want to relocate them.

After Rana Plaza incident, Accord and Alliance completed inspection and found less than 2% factory risky to workers’ safety. l

RMG AND OVERALL EXPORT TREND 2013 & 2014 SOURCE: EPB

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

RMG Export 2013 Overall Export 2013

n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi Despite several challenges faced by the apparel industry, export earnings from the RMG sector rose by nearly 5% to US$22.25bn in January-November this year compared to the same period last year.

According to the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Bangladesh fetched $22.25bn in 11 months of 2014, which was $21.22bn in the previous year.

The knitwear export during the period stood at $11bn with a rise of 6.723% from the previous year’s $10.4bn. Woven products earned $11.15bn growing at 3.05% as the previous year’s figure was $10.8bn, EPB data showed.

“The ready-made garment export has witnessed slow growth this year as it witnessed belated impacts of Accord

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Overall Export 2014 RMG Export 2014 and Alliance’s inspection coupled with political unrest, but this growth was expected and realistic,” Abdus Salam Murshedy, president of Exporters Association of Bangladesh (EAB), told the Dhaka Tribune.

“Bangladesh needs to wait two to three more years to get the robust growth as some of the factories are still facing the challenges,” said Salam, also former president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).

He said the next year will be a challenging one as remediation work is still underway.

In 2013, Bangladesh’s RMG sector faced several accidents, including the deadliest Rana Plaza collapse, which killed over 1,135 workers, intensified political violence and repeated labour

unrests. These incidents has also affected the sector in 2014.

According to the BGMEA, a good number of factories has faced music from the Accord and Alliance inspection over non-compliance issues regarding workers safety, causing adverse impact on the export earning.

After the Rana Plaza disaster, a total of 220 small and medium factories faced shutdown while Accord and Alliance closed 29 factories following their inspection.

The RMG manufactures and exporters, however, expected bright days for the apparel industry in the new year.

“Export earnings will start to grow in the first quarter of the next year, as a number of new factories will contribute to the export basket from the next year,” BGMEA Vice President Shahidullah Azim told the Dhaka Tribune.

Azim, however, put importance on infrastructural development to cope up with the new production demand saying infrastructure deficit, if not improved, might hamper the supply chain in the country, causing sluggish growth.

“Bangladesh is losing competitiveness in the global market while our competitors are getting stronger due to the government’s extended support,” said Azim.

To be more competitive, Bangladeshi RMG sector also needs cash incentives and policy support from the government, he said. BGMEA has set an export target of $50bn by 2021 to mark the 50 years of Bangladesh Independence.

Bangladesh government has set an export target of $26.9bn from the RMG sector for the fiscal year 2014-15.

As per BGMEA data, over 40 lakh workers are employed in the industry and 80% of them are women mostly from the rural area. l

RMG owners, workers row over new wages implementation n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi

Apparel owners and workers have provided conflicting figures over implementation of new wage structure and yearly increment in the country’s apparel industry.

A row over the wage implementation between the two sides still continues since the new wage announcement in December last year.

RMG workers’ leaders claimed that one year elapsed since the announcement was made, but around 30% factories did not implement the wage structure.

They alleged that most garment factory owners are yet to take steps to offer even 5% yearly increment, which is a must as per the wage board instruction.

In sharp contrast, BGMEA claimed that 98% of its members have implemented the new wage structure and 5% yearly increment will be given as per the law.

On December 5 last year, the Minimum Wages Board declared the new wage structure for garment workers, fixing Tk5,300 as minimum wage with a yearly increment of 5% of their basic set as Tk3,000 for entry-level garment workers.

“We have surveyed over 100 RMG units in the capital and found that 40% of RMG owners started the process of paying increment while 60% are not paying any heed,” said Sirajul Islam Roni, president of Bangladesh Garment Workers Employees League.

In a survey over around 500 garment factories in Mirpur and Kafrul in the capital and Narayanganj, it was found that over 20% of RMG units did not implement the new wage structure, Rony added.

The garment workers claimed that wages for workers had been fixed at a lower grade in more than 40% factories before implementing the new wage structure.

Denying the allegation, BGMEA Vice-President Shahidullah Azim told the Dhaka Tribune that about 98% factories implemented wages. He said the factories that did not implement wage structure are not the members of BGMEA. “If there is any specific case, RMG workers can approach us and we will take action accordingly,” he added.

Following the Rana Plaza disaster, the issue of minimum wages for the workers came under spotlight while the international trade unions and rights groups pressed the authorities concerned to implement minimum wages.

The board on November 4 proposed Tk5,300 as minimum wage, of which Tk3,200 were recommended as basic.

As a result around 77% of the gross salary was hiked. The wages amounted to Tk5,300 that had been effective from December, 2013.

Though the RMG workers declined to accept the new offer of wages, later they complied with it in prime minister’s interference.

The board on November 4 proposed Tk5,300 as minimum wage, of which Tk3,200 was recommended as basic.

The worker. l

First Dhaka apparel summit held to bag $50bn by 2021 n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi Bangladesh, for the first time, organised an apparel summit this year with a view to finding better ways to reach $50bn export target of the sector by the year 2021.

Named as “Dhaka Apparel Summit-2014,” it also tried to brand Bangladesh to the global market.

On December 7, BGMEA organised the three-day event.

It outlined a road-map to meet the 2021 garment export target as in that year the nation will celebrate golden jubilee of independence.

In a number of sessions,

the local and global experts, economists, exporters and buyers identified key challenges. Ensuring better infrastructures, such as availability of power and gas, was found a major challenge towards the target.

By the year 2021, the government aims to make the country a middle-income nation.

For this, the country will require having a large number of skilled workers and managers, keeping politics stable, raising safety awareness among workers and managers and access to low cost finance for remediation and relocation of factories for safety issue. l

B2

Stock

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Political heat dampens investor sentiment

DSE key features December 21-24, 2014

DSE GAINERS

Turnover (Million Taka)

Traded Issues

314

n Tribune Report

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

99

EXIM Bank 1 MF-A Stylecraft -A Alltex Industries -Z Emerald Oil Ind. -N EBL NRB M.F.-A Dutch Ban. Bnk- A BD Fixed Income MF-A AIMS First -A Sonargaon Tex -Z Northern Jute -Z

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

208

ue amounted to Tk220 crore in the week compared to previous week’s average value of Tk240 crore.

Among the major sectors, telecommunication and cement came out with strong gains of more than 2% respectively. jute dropped 1.7%, followed by mutual funds 1.6% and tannery 0.8%.

Food and allied declined 1.7%.

Non-banking financial institutions and power retracted by nearly 1%.

Pharmaceuticals and banks also counted losses in the past week.

The small cap ceramic sector got the most hit losing 6.7% of market cap.

Small cap scrips dominated among weekly gainers as EXIM First Mutual Fund, Style Craft and Alltex rallied 11.9%, 9.1% and 7.9% respectively.

LankaBangla Seceurities said the market observed another week of bearish trading as political uncertainty looms over the country.

It said the institutional inactivity ahead of year-end might be the reason for this lacklustre participation.

The week’s trading session was cut short by one day for Christmas.

IDLC Investments said ahead of the year-end, market remained weak while investors were meticulously re-assessing the market before fresh investments.

Alongside the year-end closing, low turnover was caused by the adaptation to new trading software. In the political landscape, uncertainty remained high as the Bangladesh Nationalist Party came up with announcements of demonstration plans in the upcoming year. l

Stock market continued to slip for the third straight session taking cue from the boiling political situation, year-end closing and adaptation to new trading system.

In the past week that ended Thursday, the benchmark index DSEX lost 33 points or 0.7% to end at 4,823.

The comprising blue chips DS30 index was down 6 points or 0.4% to 1,786. The DSE Shariah Index, DSES, lost 6 points or 1% to 1,786.

Market observed another week of bearish trading as political uncertainty looms over the country The Chittagong Stock Exchange also lost with its Selective Categories Index, CSCX, was down 83 points or 0.5% to settle at 9,019.

Average daily turnover during the week was Tk224.7 crore, a very low figure compared to that few weeks earlier.

The week witnessed four out of five trading sessions due to public holiday on the occasion of Christmas.

Turnover suffered badly through the past week as the market saw lower number of participants. Consequently, the daily turnover hovered around Tk200-240 crore range in the last two consecutive weeks.

The average daily turnover val-

Weekly capital market highlights DSE Broad Index : DSE - 30 Index : CSE All Share Index: CSE - 30 Index : CSE Selected Index : DSE LOSERS Company Jute SpinnersA Hamid Fabrics -N Shampur Sugar -Z Keya Cosmetics -A Zeal Bangla Sugar -Z Safko Spinning-A Anwar Galvanizing-B Miracle Industries -B R. N. Spinning-Z GSP Finance-A

Closing (% change) -17.45 -14.62 -14.04 -13.67 -13.54 -12.46 -11.56 -11.35 -9.83 -9.24

CSE LOSERS Company Hamid Fabrics -N Keya Cosmetics -A Anwar Galvanizing-B Miracle Industries -B Safko Spinning-A FarEast Knitting -N R. N. Spinning-Z Imam Button -Z 7th ICB M F-A Quasem Drycells -A

Closing (% change) -14.22 -13.36 -12.14 -11.48 -10.76 -9.89 -9.67 -8.99 -8.98 -8.83

4823.57214

(-) 0.68%

1786.87875

(-) 0.33%

14825.5286

(-) 0.86%

11999.9304

(-) 1.46%

9012.3678

(-) 0.99%

Average (% change) -16.34 -15.00 -15.11 -12.79 -13.63 -10.61 -12.59 -10.26 -10.11 -7.09 Average (% change) -14.62 -12.61 -13.41 -9.18 -8.16 -9.13 -10.55 -8.47 -8.93 -8.05

ANALYST

Closing average 54.36 36.71 9.83 24.01 8.30 30.68 37.63 16.53 26.32 32.74

Closing average 36.73 23.98 36.92 16.42 31.16 25.79 26.61 8.10 80.14 73.74

Weekly closing

▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ Weekly high

54.40 36.80 9.80 24.00 8.30 30.20 37.50 16.40 26.60 32.40

Weekly closing

70.00 43.90 11.80 26.20 9.30 35.00 45.00 19.00 31.50 36.30

Weekly high

36.80 24.00 36.90 16.20 30.70 25.50 27.10 8.10 80.10 73.30

43.20 27.20 41.90 18.30 35.30 28.10 31.10 8.60 80.50 82.50

Company

8,986.84

Turnover (Volume)

232,174,910

Number of Contract

282,528

7

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,590.07

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

31.39

CSE key features December 21-24, 2014 Turnover (Million Taka)

2,008.47

Turnover (Volume)

29,785,915

Number of Contract

50,757

Traded Issues

266

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

94

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

167

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

4

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,500.48

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

30.31

Turnover in million

53.10 36.40 9.70 23.80 8.30 29.80 37.30 16.20 25.80 32.00

Weekly low

0.525 81.881 1.153 108.011 0.038 35.837 12.856 18.009 67.371 123.120

Turnover in million

36.40 23.80 36.80 16.20 30.50 25.30 26.00 8.10 80.00 73.00

Latest EPS -43.64 3.12 -52.72 2.36 -47.80 1.24 0.84 0.40 2.19 1.59

Latest EPS

27.224 23.128 0.463 0.911 0.868 4.225 16.793 0.093 0.011 2.679

3.12 2.36 0.84 0.40 1.24 2.28 2.19 -1.72 8.52 2.24

Latest PE -ve 11.8 -ve 10.2 -ve 24.7 44.8 41.3 12.0 20.6

Company National Polymer -A Reliance1 M.F.-A Standard Ceramic -A AIMS First -A NCCBL Mutual Fund-1-A Emerald Oil Ind. -N Alltex Industries -Z Fu-wang Ceramic-A Kay & Que (BD) -Z Berger Paints-A

13.00 10.00 9.46 9.41 8.93 7.73 6.56 5.76 5.26 5.26

Average (% change) 16.87 11.76 9.46 9.61 8.93 7.50 4.50 6.38 7.28 5.43

Closing average 6.60 1,000.00 25.99 39.19 4.68 101.80 6.87 27.91 11.25 315.00

Closing average 76.48 7.70 42.80 27.95 6.10 39.00 25.75 14.85 14.00 1340.00

Weekly closing 6.60 928.30 26.00 39.40 4.70 102.40 6.80 27.80 11.30 315.00

Weekly closing 76.50 7.70 42.80 27.90 6.10 39.00 26.00 14.70 14.00 1340.00

Weekly high 6.60 950.00 26.90 40.00 4.80 103.00 6.90 28.60 11.60 364.00

Weekly high 76.50 7.70 42.80 28.30 6.10 39.70 26.60 16.40 14.00 1340.00

Weekly low 6.00 884.90 24.60 36.30 4.40 96.20 5.80 26.20 10.50 315.00

Weekly low 66.00 7.00 39.90 26.00 6.10 35.30 25.00 14.20 13.50 1340.00

Turnover in million 0.008 0.014 20.112 28.095 4.349 26.921 0.140 80.313 1.106 0.026

Turnover in million 2.848 0.017 0.087 3.690 0.015 3.255 3.851 8.984 0.023 0.001

Latest EPS 0.64 44.98 3.28 2.56 0.64 9.69 0.48 4.71 -0.84 1.00

Latest EPS 2.76 1.38 0.60 4.71 0.43 2.56 3.28 0.40 -1.41 49.25

Latest PE 10.3 22.2 7.9 15.3 7.3 10.5 14.3 5.9 -ve 315.0

Latest PE 27.7 5.6 71.3 5.9 14.2 15.2 7.9 37.1 -ve 27.2

term and ECRL-2 in the short term along with a stable outlook based on audited financials of the Company up to December 31, 2013 and unaudited financials up to June 30, 2014 including other relevant qualitative information up to the date of rating.

Miscellaneous DBH: The Company has informed that Cash dividend for the year ended on June 30, 2014 has been remitted to the respective shareholders Bank Accounts through Bangladesh Electronic Fund Transfer Network (BEFTN) System. The dividend warrants of the NRB Shareholders and the Shareholders whose Bank details were incomplete, have been distributed through courier services.

SHURWID: The Company has further informed that due to unavoidable circumstances the 4th EGM and 10th AGM of the Company which was scheduled to be held on December 20, 2014, has been adjourned. The new date will be notified later on.

TUNGHAI: The Company will be placed in A category from existing N category with effect from December 22, 2014 as the Company reported disbursement of 10% stock dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2013.

TUNGHAI: The Company has informed that it has credited the bonus shares for the year ended on December 31, 2013 to the respective shareholders BO Account on December 17, 2014.

BATASHOE: The Company has informed that it has sent the interim dividend warrants for the year 2014 on December 21, 2014. The Company has also informed that the folio holders will get dividend warrants to their mailing address by Padma Courier Service and the BO holders will get dividend through BEFTN to their bank account which is mentioned in their BO accounts.

Conduction of IPO lottery: Ifad Autos Limited: All concerned are hereby informed that the IPO lottery program of Ifad Autos Limited will be conducted on 24 December 2014 at 10:30 am at Seminar Hall of the Institution of Engineers (IEB), Ramna, Dhaka.

NORTHERN: The Company has informed that it has credited the bonus shares for the year ended on June 30, 2014 to the respective shareholders BO Account.

Zaheen Spinning Ltd.: Zaheen Spinning Ltd. has informed that the IPO subscription closing date of the Company has been changed from 4 January 2015 to 5 January 2015.

Latest PE 11.8 10.2 44.0 41.1 25.1 11.3 12.2 -ve 9.4 32.9

Ahead of the year-end, market remained weak while investors were meticulously re-assessing the market before fresh investments

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY 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

Closing (% change)

AGM/Dividend ECABLES: The Board of Directors has recommended 10% cash dividend for the year ended on June 30, 2014. Date of AGM: 26.02.2015, Time: 11:00 AM, Venue: Factory Premises of the Company, Patenga, Chittagong. Record Date: 05.01.2015.

The Company has also reported NAV of Tk. 669.94 million, EPS of Tk. 4.95 and NOCFPS of Tk. 0.46 for the year ended on June 30, 2014.

Fixed Assets/Right/Investment: ICBISLAMIC: ICB AMCL ISLAMIC Mutual Fund will be de-listed and trading of units of the fund will be discontinued with effect from December 29, 2014 (i.e. the next working day after record date 28 December, 2014).

Credit Rating: SAIFPOWER: Credit Rating Agency of Bangladesh Limited (CRAB) has announced the entity rating of the Company as BBB1 with negative outlook based on audited financial statements up to June 30, 2014 bank liability (December 18, 2014) and other relevant quantitative and qualitative information up to the date of rating declaration.

BDLAMPS: Emerging Credit Rating Limited (ECRL) has assigned the surveillance rating of the Company as A- in the long

Company

DSE Million Taka 857.41 692.70 174.10 1109.71 750.05 1021.33 4.87 848.63 1191.12 36.43 347.49 37.35 249.47 344.67 357.40 100.47 129.27 273.80 86.24 236.20 0.00

11.86 9.07 7.88 7.07 6.82 6.56 6.25 6.11 5.61 5.35

Average (% change) 11.86 17.98 5.95 6.44 5.88 5.70 7.85 7.22 4.85 5.35

News, analysis and recent disclosures

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS

Sector

Closing (% change)

CSE GAINERS

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

Weekly low

Sunday, December 28, 2014

% change 9.69 7.83 1.97 12.54 8.48 11.54 0.06 9.59 13.46 0.41 3.93 0.42 2.82 3.90 4.04 1.14 1.46 3.09 0.97 2.67 0.00

Million Taka 65.30 54.93 15.98 105.25 40.36 98.32 0.00 123.86 658.79 23.14 53.93 23.18 32.42 89.40 29.90 6.16 5.70 569.83 17.76 41.03 0.64

CSE

% change 3.18 2.67 0.78 5.12 1.96 4.78 0.00 6.02 32.04 1.13 2.62 1.13 1.58 4.35 1.45 0.30 0.28 27.72 0.86 2.00 0.03

Million Taka 922.71 747.63 190.09 1214.96 790.41 1119.66 4.87 972.50 1849.91 59.57 401.42 60.53 281.89 434.07 387.30 106.63 134.97 843.62 104.00 277.23 0.64

Total

% change 8.46 6.86 1.74 11.14 7.25 10.27 0.04 8.92 16.96 0.55 3.68 0.56 2.59 3.98 3.55 0.98 1.24 7.74 0.95 2.54 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

LafargeS Cement-Z Olympic Ind. -A Square Pharma -A Beximco Pharma -A Grameenphone-A Agni Systems -A Brac Bank -A SummitAlliancePort.-A Tung Hai Knitting -N DESCO Ltd. -A

MJL BD Ltd.-A RAK Ceramics-A

CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company HeidelbergCement -A LafargeS Cement-Z SummitAlliancePort.-A WesternMarine -N Hamid Fabrics -N BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Keya Cosmetics -A RAK Ceramics-A Tung Hai Knitting -N Jamuna Oil -A

SAIF Powertec-N Agni Systems -A

Volume shares 3,193,796 1,534,226 1,038,600 4,246,301 696,428 7,076,482 5,743,603 2,426,584 8,524,555 2,600,454

1,448,437 2,709,588

Volume shares 87,627 307,246 410,791 583,026 700,799 680,821 898,231 379,098 1,000,278 95,832

288,520 552,142

Value in million 382.67 356.01 266.15 263.60 248.30 235.49 215.54 199.12 183.22 176.78

171.25 165.84

Value in million 43.81 36.67 33.46 31.40 27.22 25.30 23.13 23.09 20.80 19.65

18.70 18.52

% of total turnover 4.26 3.96 2.96 2.93 2.76 2.62 2.40 2.22 2.04 1.97

1.91 1.85

% of total turnover 2.19 1.83 1.67 1.57 1.36 1.26 1.16 1.15 1.04 0.98

0.93 0.93

Weekly closing 119.50 228.00 254.90 60.50 360.20 32.70 37.70 80.30 19.90 67.70

120.20 57.10

Weekly closing 493.10 119.20 79.90 52.40 36.80 36.30 24.00 57.10 19.70 203.80

63.10 33.00

Price change 3.91 -5.28 0.24 -3.82 2.68 -1.21 0.53 -4.86 -6.57 3.68

Weekly opening 115.00 240.70 254.30 62.90 350.80 33.10 37.50 84.40 21.30 65.30

Weekly high 122.20 245.00 261.40 63.30 360.90 34.90 37.90 85.20 23.50 69.90

Weekly low 115.00 226.70 251.50 59.90 350.30 31.70 37.30 79.40 19.80 65.10

Weekly average 119.54 227.61 254.30 60.74 359.33 32.70 37.74 80.24 21.47 67.62

Price change -1.91 3.56 -5.11 -2.78 -14.22 -4.22 -13.36 -7.90 -6.64 -1.31

Weekly opening 502.70 115.10 84.20 53.90 42.90 37.90 27.70 62.00 21.10 206.50

Weekly high 510.00 122.60 85.70 56.70 43.20 38.40 27.20 65.00 21.80 208.40

Weekly low 485.00 115.20 79.20 51.60 36.40 36.20 23.80 56.70 19.60 201.00

Weekly average 499.93 119.19 79.94 52.36 36.73 36.45 23.98 57.66 20.05 204.93

5.07 -8.05

-7.61 0.00

114.40 62.10

68.30 33.00

121.70 64.90

71.50 34.90

113.60 56.50

62.00 31.60

119.26 57.03

63.89 32.98

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

B3

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Japan inflation slows and output slips, keep BOJ under pressure

US retailers miss fewer Christmas deadlines

n Reuters. Tokyo

Major US retailers missed fewer Christmas deliveries this year, according to two small, early surveys released on Friday, partly reflecting a year’s worth of investments made to avoid 2013’s last-minute shipping debacle.

This year, 7% of packages ordered online did not arrive by their promised delivery date, compared with 12% in 2013, according to a survey of 160 orders placed by retail-intelligence firm StellaService.

Separately, management consulting firm Kurt Salmon said 13% of the nearly 100 e-commerce orders it surveyed did not make it in time for Christmas, down from 15% in 2013.

In 2013, some 2 million express packages were left stranded on Christmas Eve, according to shipment-tracking software developer ShipMatrix Inc. The reasons given were, in part, a surge in demand triggered by last-minute online promotions and bad weather.

This year, retailers pushed back the cut-off date for Christmas delivery by one day, but most were still able to hit the mark because of improvements to their logistics infrastructure, better weather and fewer last-minute deals.

“We saw a lot less of the 11th-hour promotions,” said Steve Osburn, director of supply chain for Kurt Salmon.

“They may have extended their deadline by about a day, but they were a little less aggressive about pushing those promotions.”

Retailers set a Christmas cut-off delivery date between Dec.19 and Dec 20 this year, he said. The four retailers with the most aggressive cutoff date of Dec 23 - Apple Inc, Dell Inc, Nordstrom Inc and Zappos, a unit of Amazon. com Inc - all made their deadlines,

Japanese annual core consumer inflation slowed for a fourth straight month in November due largely to sliding oil prices, highlighting the challenges the central bank faces in achieving its 2% inflation target.

Factory output unexpectedly fell and real wages marked the steepest drop in five years, underscoring the fragility of the recovery and dealing a blow to premier Shinzo Abe’s stimulus policies aimed at pulling the economy out of stagnation.

The core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes volatile fresh food but includes oil products, rose 2.7% in November from a year earlier, matching a median market forecast, government data showed on Friday.

Stripping out the effects of a sales tax hike in April, core consumer inflation was 0.7%, slowing from 0.9% in October and far below the Bank of Japan’s 2% target.

“While the economy is recovering, falling oil prices and slowing inflation will force the BOJ to ease policy further at some point next year,” said Hiroshi Watanabe, senior economist at SMBC Nikko Securities.

In a worrying sign for the central bank, inflation-linked government bond prices JP00190083=MUFG slumped over the past several weeks as investors’ inflation expectations hit their lowest since Haruhiko Kuroda became BOJ governor in March 2013.

Japan’s economy slipped into recession in the wake of April’s tax hike, though analysts expect growth to rebound in the current quarter as exports and output pick up.

Factory output slid 0.6% in Novem-

A man puts the national flag of Japan on street lights ahead of New year sales at Tokyo's Ginza shopping street

'While the economy is recovering, falling oil prices and slowing inflation will force the BOJ to ease policy further at some point next year' ber after two straight months of gains, largely the effect of big-ticket items such as computer chip-making equipment and boilers boosting October out-

CORPORATE NEWS

Banglalink has recently organised Bangladesh Utshob to uphold Bangladeshi culture at a glance at Ramna Park in Shahbag, wrapping up the great year of 2014. Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor inaugurated the event as chief guest among others

DHL Express Bangladesh has recently organised a training programme, 'Certified International Manager Part 2' for its managers

put and confounding market expectations of a 0.8% rise.

In a glimmer of hope, however, manufacturers surveyed by the government expect output to rise 3.2% in December and increase 5.7% in January.

Economics Minister Akira Amari told reporters the drop in November was likely a temporary blip, given the sharp increase projected for coming months.

Kuroda stressed last week that Japan was on track to hit the price goal, shrugging off speculation that a recent plunge in oil prices would weigh on consumer prices and force him to ease

PRAN has recently held the gala award ceremony of 15th PRAN National Pickle Competition-2014 at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre. State Minister of Women and Children Affairs, Meher Afroze Chumki handed over the awards at the presence of Maj Gen Amjad Khan Chowdhury (retd), CEO of PRAN-RFL Group

policy again early next year.

But many analysts remain doubtful that the BOJ can meet its pledge of accelerating inflation to 2% in the next fiscal year, beginning in April 2015.

Reflecting the recovery, job availability hit a 22-year high and the number of part-time workers exceeded 20 million for the first time since relevant data became available in 1984.

But companies remained reluctant to increase wages, a bad sign for consumption. Household spending fell 2.5% in the year to November, against a market forecast for a 3.8% drop. l

StellaService said.

The better results also stemmed from the heavy investments by United Parcel Service Inc and FedEx Corp, the world’s two largest shipping companies.

UPS allocated $500 million to expand and improve its 2014 holiday operations. Both built new facilities, added more temporary workers and pushed retailers for clearer estimates and earlier deadlines to avoid last year’s missteps.

The level of communication between carriers and retailers was “significantly higher” this year, Osburn said, pointing to a retail client who, in the run-up to Christmas, heard from one carrier two to three times a day.

But both surveys found that some retailers still fell short of their promises, reflecting the difficulty of accurately calculating holiday demand as e-commerce orders grow rapidly.

StellaService found nine of the top 40 retailers it tested missed delivery dates: Best Buy Co Inc, Costco Wholesale Corp, Crate & Barrel, JC Penney Co Inc, Kohl’s Corp, Macy’s Inc, Staples Inc, Toys ‘R Us and Wayfair Inc. Best Buy declined to comment. The other retailers were not immediately available for comment.

Both Staples and Toys ‘R Us missed deliveries in multiple regions in the United States, and in one case, Staples canceled an order without notifying the shopper, StellaService said.

Osburn found one case where a retailer fell behind on orders and attempted to upgrade shipping on packages to make the Christmas deadline.

But the volume was three to four times higher than its previous estimates, and the retailer missed the Christmas deadline, Osburn said, declining to name the company. l

Spain PM promises economy will ‘take off ’ in 2015 n AFP, Madrid Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy promised Friday the country’s economy would “take off ” again in 2015 but opponents branded his optimism “indecent” with many Spaniards still suffering from cutbacks.

After a gradual return to growth, “2014 has been the year of recovery and 2015 will be the year when our economy really takes off,” Rajoy told a news conference.

Spain technically exited recession in mid-2013 after five years of economic turbulence but the unemployment rate remains extremely high at 24%.

Rajoy attributes the recovery to tough budget cuts that he said were necessary to strengthen the public finances. But the measures have sparked fierce popular protests.

The new left-wing anti-austerity party Podemos has overtaken Rajoy’s conservative Popular Party in some opinion polls ahead of Spain’s next general election due in November. l

Volkswagen’s Audi to step up investments in 201519 on models, plants

n Reuters, Berlin

Bay Emporium Ltd has recently re-opened its shop at 98 New Elephant Road in Dhaka.

Chairperson of Bay Group, Shamsur Rahman and the company’s CEO, MA Quader have inaugurated the shop

REUTERS

n Reuters, San Francisco

Volkswagen’s flagship Audi division is to increase spending on new models, plants and technology through 2019 to push its goal of surpassing German rival BMW as the world’s largest luxurycar manufacturer.

Audi, which contributes 40% of operating profit at Europe’s biggest automotive group, said on Saturday it will push up investment in car-making operations by 2bn euros ($2.44bn) to a record 24bn euros over the next five years.

Seventy percent of spending will be assigned to developing new models and technologies such as emission-cutting plug-in hybrid vehicles, Audi said.

The brand is also working on purely electric cars to catch up with BMW and Tesla Motors.

More than half of the funds will be spent on Audi’s two German factories in Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm which accounted for half the carmaker’s ninemonth output of 1.34 million autos, Audi said, confirming a Reuters story.

“We place top priority on sustainable growth,” Chief Executive Rupert Stadler said. “That’s why we are making large investments in the innovative areas of electric mobility, connectivity and lightweight construction.” l

An employee welds the exterior of a vehicle along a production line at a factory in Qingdao, Shandong province

REUTERS

China’s November industrial profits suffer sharpest fall in 27 months n Reuters, Shanghai Chinese industrial profits dropped 4.2% in November to 676.12bn yuan ($108.85bn), official data showed on Saturday, the biggest annual decline since August 2012 as the economy hit major unexpected headwinds in the second half.

Despite last month’s drop, profits for January-November were 5.3% higher than in the first 11 months of 2013, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data.

The NBS attributed November’s profit drop to declining sales and a long-running slide in producer pricing power.

“Increasing price falls shrank the space for profit,” the agency said.

It said the impact of prices for coal, oil and basic materials falling to their lowest levels in years “was extremely clear”.

As the NBS analysis suggested, the net slide in industrial profits was driven primarily by weakness in coal mining, and oil and gas industries, where November profits tumbled from a year earlier by 44.4% and 13.2% respectively.

Upside for tech businesses

Oil, coking coal and nuclear fuel processing industries saw their profits slide by 34.2%, according to the data.

'This suggests that on the one hand, in the context of weak investment demand, stable consumption demand provided a certain degree of support' On the upside, Chinese technology industries saw profits grow sharply last month. Telecommunications firms saw a 20.7% increase, electronics and machinery grew 15.1% and automobile manufacturers enjoyed a 16.7% gain.

“This suggests that on the one hand, in the context of weak investment demand, stable consumption demand provided a certain degree of support;

on the other hand, promoting industry restructuring is having a positive effect on efficiency,” the NBS analysis said.

However, the unbalanced nature of the performance highlights a quandary regulators face. They want to restructure the Chinese economy away from credit- and energy-intensive heavy industries toward lightweight technology products and services, yet they must also avoid causing a crisis in the financial system.

If Beijing allows mass closures among its sagging erstwhile industrial champions in the name of economic transformation, it also risks forcing a wave of bad loans onto bank balance sheets. That would make banks even more reluctant to lend to the next-generation companies which authorities want them to support.

Economists are debating whether the monetary easing steps taken in recent months - including late November’s surprise interest rate cut can prove effective in a context where many companies are seeking fresh capital primarily to roll over existing debt amid weak customer demand, while China’s most successful firms remain reluctant to borrow. l

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Sunday, December 28, 2014

Russia forecasts economic slump as bailed-out bank gets more funds

Oil declines amid stronger dollar, crude oversupply in US n Reuters, New York

n Reuters, Moscow Slumping oil prices have put Russia’s economy on course for a sharp recession and double-digit inflation next year, government ministers said on Friday, as authorities scaled up a bailout for the first bank to succumb to this month’s ruble crisis.

The economy is slowing sharply as Western sanctions over the Ukraine crisis deter foreign investment and spur capital flight, and as a slump in oil prices severely reduces Russia’s export revenues and pummels the ruble.

The government has taken steps to support key banks and address the deepening currency crisis in the past week, including a sharp and unexpected interest rate hike, but analysts are pessimistic on the outlook for both the economy and the ruble.

Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told journalists on Friday the economy could shrink by 4% in 2015, its first contraction since 2009, if oil prices averaged their current level of $60 a barrel.

Siluanov also said the country would run a budget deficit of more than 3% next year if the oil price did not rise.

“Next year we will, without doubt, have to bring the Reserve Fund into play,” he said, referring to one of Russia’s two rainy-day funds intended to support the economy at times of crisis.

Crude prices have almost halved from their June peak amid a global glut and a decision by producer group OPEC not to cut output. Saudi Arabia said on Friday it was prepared to withstand a prolonged period of low prices.

“We need to have our budget break even at $70 per barrel by 2017,” said Siluanov.

Russia’s government imposed informal capital controls this week, including orders to large state-controlled oil and gas exporters Gazprom and Rosneft to sell some of their dollar revenues to shore up the ruble.

Russians have kept a wary eye on the exchange rate since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Hyper-inflation wiped out their savings over several years in the early 1990s and the ruble collapsed again in 1998.

The ruble’s latest fall will inevitably lead to higher inflation next year, which after years of stability threatens President Vladimir Putin’s reputation for ensuring Russia’s prosperity.

An employee counts Russian ruble banknotes at a small private shop selling home appliances in Krasnoyarsk “The inflation forecast is tough, high. We forecast the level of 10% at the end of the year (2015),” Russian Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev said on Friday.

Inflation would remain in double digits throughout 2015, peaking at the end of the first quarter or in the second quarter, he added.

Rouble trouble

The Russian currency slipped on Friday after hitting its strongest levels in more than three weeks earlier in the day.

The ruble traded at 53.9 per dollar during the evening, a sharp rebound from its recent all-time lows of 80 but still far weaker than the 30-35 range it

was trading at in the first half of 2014.

“If oil goes down to $50 (per barrel) ... I don’t think our authorities will be able to artificially maintain the (ruble) rate even with higher sales by exporters,” said the head of treasury at a major Russian bank, who asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to media.

On Friday, Russian authorities also significantly scaled up rescue funds for Trust Bank, saying they would provide up to $2.4bn in loans to bail out the mid-sized lender, the first bank to fall victim to the crisis.

The falling ruble has prompted panic buying of foreign currency in Russia and a spike in deposit withdrawals, heaping pressure on a vulnerable bank-

Big questions for markets for 2015 n Reuters Wall Street was generally calmer in 2014 than in previous years, but that doesn’t mean the stock market was devoid of drama.

Big selloffs in biotechnology and social media stocks had strategists predicting doom in the spring, and the plunge in oil prices has clouded the outlook for the coming year. It was a year when Cynk Technology, a development-stage company with no revenue, was briefly worth $6 billion, and when a long-forgotten closed-end fund focused on Cuba - the Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund - saw more trading in one day in December than it had in six years.

With that in mind, Reuters asked Wall Street strategists a few questions on odd things to watch for in 2015.

The big apple Shares of Apple Inc, the most valuable publicly traded US company, will finish higher for a sixth straight year. With a current market value of about $663bn, if one were to pick a company that would be the first to hit $1 trillion in value, Apple’s a safe choice - but not next year, investors said.

The iWatch, its latest product, may not be enough to propel the stock further.

“I don’t really see this company as having another blockbuster category of products. The watch doesn’t feel like a great idea. I’m kind of out of the Apple mystique thing,” said Kim Forrest, vice president and senior analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh.

DILBERT

Nasdaq 5000 With its gains on Friday, the Nasdaq Composite Index sits just about 200 points shy of the vaunted 5,000 level, which it has not seen in nearly 15 years - and its all-time intraday high of 5,132.52 reached on March 10, 2000, isn’t far off.

“I think Nasdaq will test and probably achieve higher highs than we did in 2000 because I think we’re in a secular bull market that has another eight to 10 years left to run,” said Jeffrey Saut, managing director at Raymond James & Associates.

For the Nasdaq to hit 5,000, it would take a gain of 4%. And to get to that all-time high, it would take about a 7% increase. Whether that’s warranted is something over which investors disagree.

“What we need now is for fundamentals like revenue and earnings to catch up with current valuations,” said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at BMO Private Bank in Chicago.

More trading events expected After a series of market-crippling operational glitches in recent years, found everywhere from Nasdaq to options markets, investors are bracing for more such events.

This year, a gold-mining exchange-traded fund, Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF, dove 10% in the waning seconds of trading one day in early December. Earlier in the year, high-frequency trading firm Virtu Financial canceled an initial public offering after the release of Michael Lewis’ book “Flash Boys” brought negative publicity to computerized trading.

None of these incidents were as damaging as the May 2010 “flash crash.”

The most notable in 2014 came out of the bond market in mid-October, when 10-year Treasuries yields crashed more than 0.3 percentage point without warning.

“There definitely will be an event. At least one, probably more,” said Joe Saluzzi, co-manager of trading at Themis Trading in Chatham, New Jersey. “Investors want a lower cost. In return for the lower costs they think they’re getting there are also risks, and the risks usually involve technology. Lots of times they leave black eyes.”

“Whenever you have all these systems talking to each other problems happen.

They’re tested robustly but not for every boundary condition,” said Forrest of Fort Pitt Capital.

Biotech trouble?

Investors worry that biotech stocks will have a tougher start to the year after pharmacy benefits manager Express Scripts dealt a blow to Gilead Sciences Inc on Dec 22 when it dropped coverage of Gilead’s hepatitis C treatment.

Biotechs were all over the place in 2014.

They were at the forefront of the selloff in momentum favorites in the spring, and hit another rough patch in December on the Gilead news.

“I think biotech is pretty expensive as an asset class,” said Raymond James’ Saut. “But over the next three to five years the big breakthroughs are going to come from the biotech complex. I don’t know about a pullback but I think there are better places to be.” l

ing sector whose access to international capital markets has already been restricted by Western sanctions.

Siluanov said on Friday that authorities would provide additional capital to the country’s second-largest bank, VTB, and fellow state lender Gazprombank.

VTB could receive 250bn rubles and Gazprombank 70bn rubles to help fund investment projects, including those planned by Russian Railways, he said.

It was not clear whether this support would be in addition to the 1 trillion ruble capital boost the banking sector is set to receive as part of legislation recently approved by parliament.

Credit agency Standard & Poor’s said this week it could downgrade Russia’s

REUTERS

rating to junk as soon as January due to a rapid deterioration in “monetary flexibility” in the country.

“Practically this (a downgrade) may mean the increase of capital outflow from Russia, which would be necessary to replace with instruments we have,” Ulyukayev said.

Russia may repurchase corporate bond issues, especially denominated in foreign currency, if needed, he added.

Meanwhile Russian gold and forex reserves have fallen to their lowest levels since 2009 as the central bank has spent billions to prop up the currency.

Last week, reserves dropped by as much as $15.7bn to below $400bn, down from over $510bn at the start of the year. l

Dollar inches back vs yen, euro as markets slowly get back into gear n Reuters, Tokyo The dollar edged up against the yen on Friday in light bargain-hunting following two sessions of losses, with some markets slowly getting into gear after the Christmas holiday.

Market participants expected it would still take a bit of time for business to resume in full swing, with key markets in the region such Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore closed on Friday. The U.K. market will remain closed on Friday although New York will be open.

After a dip to 120.005 yen the dollar was up 0.1% at 120.170 yen, crawling back towards the week’s high of 120.800 hit on Tuesday.

A break above that peak would put the greenback in sight of a 7-1/2 year high of 121.860 scaled earlier in the month.

“That the recent drop by the dollar was contained shows that risk sentiment continues to improve. There is no change to our view that the yen will continue to weaken as the recovery in U.S. economic fundamentals, which is at the root of risk appetite, continues to gather pace,” said Junichi Ishikawa, a

market analyst at IG Securities in Tokyo.

The dollar also took back some ground against the euro after two days on the retreat.

The euro inched down 0.1% to $1.2210, edging back towards a 28-month trough of $1.2165 reached on Tuesday in light of robust US GDP data that further boosted prospects for the world’s largest economy.

Recently upbeat U.S. economic data has provided evidence that the economy is steadily recovering, and heightened expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve is on track to eventually hike interest rates in 2015.

That outlook is in sharp contrast to Japan and Europe, where monetary policy is expected to remain loose to stimulate growth and ward off deflation.

Data released on Friday highlighted some of the struggle the Bank of Japan faces. The year-on-year rise in Japan’s core consumer prices slowed to 2.7% in November from 2.9% in October amid the recent decline in crude oil prices.

Widening differentials between U.S. and record-low Japanese yields should favour the dollar as more market participants return from holidays. l

Oil prices fell Friday, tumbling as the dollar strengthened and as a supply glut in top consumer, the United States, trumped worries about falling production from Libya.

The market had come under pressure from Wednesday’s Energy Department report, which showed a 7.3 millionbarrel rise in crude inventories to their highest December level on record. Analysts had expected a seasonal decline.

The slide was exacerbated as oil prices reacted to a strengthening dollar index.

“There’s still significant weakness in confidence, and that means that we’re going to have occasional retests to the downside,” said Richard Hastings of Global Hunter Securities. The strengthening dollar index triggered the slide on Friday, he said.

Additionally, the market continued to reel from bearish storage data just before the Christmas holiday.

“The numbers on Wednesday were really bearish, and it’s possible the market is still trying to digest them,” said Andrew Lebow, a Senior Vice President of Jefferies in New York. “Maybe the path of least resistance is down here, given that we’ve been in a long down trend.”

Crude imports by Japan, the world’s fourth-biggest oil buyer, dropped 17.3 percent in November from a year earlier to 14.68 million kilolitres (3.08 million bpd), government data showed on Thursday.

Brent crude settled down 79 cents at $59.45, while U.S. crude fell $1.11 to $54.73 in thin trade as many countries were still on holiday.

“We tried to rally off of the Libyan situation, but I think that the market is still reeling from larger-than-expected inventory data,” said Phil Flynn of Price Futures Group in Chicago.

Fighting in Libya has cut output there to 352,000 barrels a day, or about half November’s average, state oil company spokesman said on Thursday. This countered the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) report showing a big stockbuild.

In Libya, a rocket hit a storage tank at the country’s biggest export terminal, Es Sider, setting it on fire as armed factions allied to competing governments fought for control, officials from both sides said on Thursday.

On Friday, officials said the blaze had spread to two more tanks. l

Russia’s FM sees economy shrinking 4% in 2015 n Reuters, Moscow Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Friday Russia’s economy could suffer a 4% contraction next year and see a budget deficit of 3%.

Siluanov told Russian reporters that the economy would contract 4% with oil prices around $60 a barrel, adding that he expected the ruble’s exchange rate to be around 51 rubles per dollar.

“That’s the exchange rate which according to our estimates corresponds to the balance of payments,” he said.

He added that the government would have to further cut expenses or tap into reserves, noting that the planned 10% spending cut was not enough.

The central bank recently said the Russian contraction could be up to 4.8% at current oil prices, with a recovery not expected until 2017, but that was before it hiked interest rates by more than a third to 17% and which will also act as a drag on the economy.

The government had previously said it expected that the economy would slump by 0.8% next year.

Under the pressure of falling oil prices and Western sanctions over Ukraine, Russia is sliding into a full-blown economic crisis complete with the collapse of the ruble and growing inflation. l

Russian economy minister sees inflation at 10% by end of 2015 n AFP, Moscow Russian Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev sees inflation at 10% by the end of next year, he told Rossiya 24 television on Friday, as the rouble crisis persists.

Russia has been forced to support banks and hike interest rates in recent weeks to try to arrest the currency’s slide and avoid spiraling inflation after

years of stability, a situation that could threaten President Vladimir Putin’s popularity.

A slumping oil price and Western sanctions have sent the currency down 40% against the dollar this year.

“The inflation forecast is tough, high. We forecast the level of 10% at the end of the year (2015),” Ulyukayev said, noting that inflation would remain in

double digits throughout 2015, peaking at the end of the first quarter or in the second quarter.

Putin’s economic aide Andrei Belousov said on Thursday that annual inflation was at 10.4% and could reach about 11% by the end of the month, hurdling the psychologically significant 10% mark for the first time since the 2008/09 global financial crisis. l