23 April, 2015

SECOND EDITION

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

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Baishakh 10, 1422, Rajab 3, 1436

BANK HEIST PLANNED DURING IJTEMA PAGE 2

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Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 12

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www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages | Price: Tk10

KHOKON: I’LL SACRIFICE RANA PLAZA SURVIVORS’ MYSELF FOR CITY PAGE 3 CONDITIONS WORSEN PAGE 32

Dominant Tigers sweep Pakistan n Mazhar Uddin

A youth hits the car carrying BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia with a stick as the car crosses Banglamotor signal yesterday. Her motorcade came under attack again while she was carrying out a campaign in the area. Her security forces are seen trying to resist several youths armed with sticks MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

A cool, soothing breeze swept across the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium yesterday while the Bangladesh cricketers were congratulating each other. Somehow, the pleasing weather matched the occasion as the Tigers registered a historic series sweep over Pakistan after a comprehensive eight-wicket win in the third and final ODI. En route to their memorable 10th series whitewash, Bangladesh broke several records as they became the fifth Test-playing nation after Australia, England, Sri Lanka and the West Indies to clinch a series sweep over Pakistan in the history of limited-over cricket.

Yesterday’s whitewash was Bangladesh’s eighth at home.

Soumya Sarkar blasted to his maiden  PAGE 2 COLUMN 3

Khaleda attacked again

Army to act only on call during polls

n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

Members of the ruling party launched attack on the motorcade of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia at Banglamotor intersection yesterday, for the third consecutive day in five days during her election campaigns.

The attackers hurled bricks, stones and sticks at the vehicles, leaving several vehicles including that of Khaleda damaged slightly.

The BNP chief’s motorcade was obstructed in Uttara on Sunday, and attacked on Monday and Tuesday allegedly by supporters of Awami League. However, ruling party leaders claim that angry people might have attacked from their grievances as more than 100 people were killed during the BNP-led alliance’s anti-government movement since January.

Witnesses said the incident took place when the three-time former premier was on her way to begin campaigns for her party-backed mayoral aspirants for the Dhaka north and south city corporations.

She came out of her residence around 4:45pm. When her motorcade reached Banglamotor crossing, some 70-80 people chanting “Joy Bangla” slogans started coming towards the vehicles from both sides of the VIP Road as the cars were waiting at the signal around 5:20pm.

The miscreants carrying sticks attacked

The army will not be deployed in the election areas during the Dhaka and Chittagong city polls, rather they will act as a reserve force staying inside the cantonment.

The army will come out from the cantonment to act as a striking force if they are requested by the returning officers.

Amending an earlier decision, the Election Commission yesterday sent a revised letter to the Armed Forces Division stating that a single army battalion would perform election duty in each city corporation area for four days from April 26 to 29, Election Commission sources confirmed.

“They [the army] will actually stay inside the cantonment as a reserve force and will act as a striking force to face the situation following request of the returning officers,” the revised letter read.

On Tuesday, the EC announced that the army would be deployed from April 26 to April 29 in Dhaka and Chittagong cities to provide security during the polls.

The opposition BNP welcomed the move, but said if the army was not given magistracy powers – their presence would be ineffectual.

The BNP, Shujan and a number of mayoral and councillor aspirants, especially BNPbacked contenders, demanded the army be deployed ahead of the elections. l

 PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

PAGE 3 Afroza, Tabith demand army’s magistracy power

A policeman tries to save a member of Chairperson’s Security Force, the unit responsible for BNP chief Khaleda Zia’s security, from a youth who had a gun tucked in his belt and a stick in a hand COURTESY

PAGE 4 EC restricts vehicle movement in Ctg

PAGE 6 Serial killer Rasu to be hanged

PAGE 8 Nor’wester sweeps over six districts, eight die

PAGE 32 Load-shedding situation unlikely to improve

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2 NEWS

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Police: Ashulia bank robbery planned during Ijtema n

Mohammad Jamil Khan and Nadim Hossain

Investigators suspect that the apparent bank heist in Ashulia that killed eight people including an alleged robber was not merely an incident of robbery; it was rather a planned attack by Jamaat-Shibir or militants to “create political anarchy and turbulence” in the country.

Along with regular police officials, teams of the Detective Branch of police and elite force Rapid Action Battalion are investigating the case.

They came up with the view after interrogating two detained robbers – Borhan Mridha, 35, and Saiful Islam, 25.

“Analysing details of the incident and seized ammunition, we assume that an organised group launched the attack with arms and ammunition to kill people,” police’s Deputy Inspector General of Dhaka range Mahfuzul Haque Nuruzzaman said.

Borhan was involved with Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student body of Jamaat-e-Islami.

In a raid, police found books of Shibir at his house in Gazipur’s Chandra area.

Nuruzzaman, however, could not confirm whether there was any personal enmity of the robbers with any bank employee.

“The robbers did not go to the volt despite having time. They did not even took money from the clients. The so-called robbers only took Tk6,87,000 from the cash.”

They exploded and threw some powerful grenades which are not available in Bangladesh, apart from the armed forces, he said.

Based on these, the police official believes that the incident might be a Jamaat-Shibir sabotage to create havoc in the county.

On Tuesday afternoon, a band of armed

robbers stormed into a Kathgora Bazar branch of Bangladesh Commerce Bank in Ashulia, and killed seven people, including its manager, security official and a businessman, and looting money before shooting and bombing their way out. Locals then managed to get hold of two robbers. One of them was beaten to death while the other handed over to police.

A top-ranking police official said analysing previous attacks, “it seems that the attack was carried out by banned militant outfit JMB.”

Police DIG: Analysing details of the incident and seized ammunition, we assume that an organised group launched the attack with arms and ammunition to kill people During interrogation, Saiful told the investigators that they had planned the robbery during the Ijtema, in January.

“Saiful also gave police some major information about his accomplices which will be helpful to trace the killers. His information also suggests that it is an act of the JMB,” the official told the Dhaka Tribune seeking anonymity.

Locals at Chandra say Borhan, hailing from Kashiyani of Gopalganj, was a transport businessman and living in the area for the last few years. He has been living in a rented house with his wife and a three-year-old daughter.

They could not say anything about his Chhatra Shibir connection.

The landlady said the family of Borhan was introvert.

Meanwhile, Chhatra Shibir in a statement termed the police statement a sheer lie.

Two cases have been filed in connection with the incident. Bank official Faridul Islam filed the robbery and murder case with Ashulia police against eight to ten unidentified robbers and the two detainees.

Police filed the other case against around 300 unidentified people for beating one of the alleged robbers.

Meanwhile, at least 17 people were undergoing treatment at Enam Medical Collage Hospital in Savar. Of them, 10 were taking treatment at the intensive care unit.

The hospital’s physician Abdullah Al Mamun said six of them were injured by bullets and stabbing while the others by splinters.

One of the injured, former BGB lance naik Yakub Ali, 72, was kept in life support. The legs of two others – local traders Shahidul Islam and Yakub Ali – were amputated.

Locals demonstrated at the hospital yesterday following the deaths of their fellow traders.

Several hundred traders formed a human chain at Kathgora Bazar and brought out a procession after shutting their business outlets for the day.

Md Khokon, a local grocer, said the police members had reached the spot much later even though a check post was only several hundred metres away from the bank.

The seven dead bodies were handed over to their families after post mortem examination at Dhaka Medical College.

Slain bank manager Waliullah’s wife Mahmuda Mehzabin said he had just received his letter of promotion he had been longing for – elevation to senior executive. l

Police find no signs of gunshots at Karwan Bazar n Kamrul Hasan Contrary to what the Awami League has claimed, investigators have not found any signs of gunshots fired to any of their leaders during the recent attack on BNP chief Khaleda Zia’s motorcade in Karwan Bazar in Dhaka.

Tejgaon police station SI Mansur Hossain Manik, investigation officer of both the cases filed by the Awami League and BNP in connection with Monday’s attack, told the Dhaka Tribune: “I have visited the place and not found any shells of bullet at the spot where the Awami League said their leaders were shot at.”

On Monday, Khaleda went to Karwan Bazar to seek vote for Tabith M Awal, the mayoral candidate for the Dhaka North City Corporation polls. There her motorcade was allegedly attack ed by AL supporters. After the incident, both the ruling party and their arch rivals blamed each other for starting the skirmish.

State Minister for Home Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal alleged that Khaleda Zia’s security personnel opened fire at the AL supporters.

Local ruling party leader Zahirul Haque Jillur, who filed a case after the attack, claimed in the case statement that Khaleda’s security personnel fired six rounds of bullets at them.

Yesterday, SI Manik also said he had no idea which side first lodged the attack.

The case from the BNP’s side was filed by their senior leader Mahbub Uddin Khokon with the Tejgaon police accusing 100 unnamed ruling party men for launching attack on Khaleda’s motorcade.

He alleged that the AL men had fired gunshots targeting Khaleda Zia’s vehicle. He also said that over a hundred young men attacked the motorcade chanting “Joy Bangla” and “Chhatra League,” ruling party’s student body.

SI Manik added they are now busy with election security duty and would be able to make a breakthrough as soon as they manage to talk to the witnesses and victims of that attack. l

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Khaleda attacked again the vehicles when Khaleda’s motorcade started moving following green signal.

They dragged down Lt (retd) Shamiul Islam of the Chairperson’s Security Forces (CSF) and Abdul Mannan, a driver of one of the vehicles, and beat them indiscriminately on the street.

The rear windshield of Khaleda’s white Nissan Patrol car was damaged during the attack. But Khaleda remained unhurt and went straight to the Nayapaltan headquarters.

Two of the attackers were also injured as the vehicles moved forward.

After reaching Nayapaltan, Khaleda called an emergency meeting.

Khaleda’s motorcade came under attack at Karwan Bazar on Monday and in Fakirapool area on Tuesday. The party enforced hartal yesterday in protest against the attack in Karwan Bazar area.

Despite the attacks, Khaleda would continue campaigning for the BNP-backed mayoral candidates for the April 28 elections, party leaders said at a press conference at the Nayapaltan office.

“The ruling party men attacked on Khaleda Zia’s motorcade under direct patronisation of

the law enforcers and with an intention to kill her. We want to say it will not be possible to refrain her from campaigning through attacks or repression. We want to see how autocratic and repressive the government can be.”

Speaking at the event, Khaleda’s Adviser Khandker Mahbub Hossain said the government must make it clear whether it wants democratic practices to sustain in the country.

“If the government fails to try the attackers, then people will bring them to the book.”

Issuing a note of warning, the Supreme Court lawyer said: “If there is no rule of law in the country, people will be compelled to take law into their own hands. If people start doing so, then they will not listen to any leader.”

Urging the government to stop such attacks, he said: “Situation can be changed any time and the people may take to the street. It will not be good for you [government].”

Khaleda left the office for home around 9:30pm without campaigning.

Meanwhile, the party has decided to file a case with Ramna police over the incident and a team of Adarsha Nagorik went to the CEC’s house to discuss the matter.l

Dominant Tigers sweep Pakistan hundred and he along with the player-of-the-tournament Tamim Iqbal added 145 runs for the opening wicket to guide the Tigers to their modest target of 251 with 63 deliveries in hand.

Pakistan Skipper Azhar Ali, who earlier grabbed his maiden ton, maintained his good form but Pakistan managed only 250 despite being in a good position at 203/2. They lost their remaining eight wickets for just 47 runs and later, the Bangladesh batsmen were hardly troubled with Mushfiqur Rahim (49*) and Soumya (127*) remaining undefeated at the end.

Tamim departed but not before making 64 off 76 balls to continue his great run with the bat. His 29th fifty saw him surpass Shakib al Hasan (28) as the Bangladeshi cricketer with the most ODI half-centuries. The Chittagong lad ended the series on 312 runs to become the highest Bangladeshi run-scorer in a bilateral series. Interestingly, the swashbuckling southpaw broke his own record of 300 runs against Zimbabwe back in 2009.

Following Tamim’s departure, Mahmudullah too made his way to the hut after making

only four but an in-form Mushfiq and Soumya saw the chase home to spark wild celebrations all over the country.

The Tigers, earlier, made a brilliant comeback with the ball after Azhar (101) became the first Pakistan captain to score a century in five years. Azhar put on 91 runs for the opening wicket alongside debutant Sami Aslam (45).

Mohammad Hafeez continued to disappoint with the bat as he made just four but Azhar and Haris Sohail added a further 98 runs for the third wicket to take Pakistan to 203/2.

From there on in, however, the visitors lost wickets at regular intervals and ended their innings on 250 with an over to spare.

Ace all-rounder Shakib al Hasan (2/34), playing in his 150th ODI, was the most economical bowler for the home side while skipper Mashrafe bin Mortaza, Rubel Hossain and left-arm spinner Arafat Sunny also bagged two wickets apiece. With 30 wickets each, Shakib and Mashrafe are now the most successful bowlers for Bangladesh against Pakistan. l

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THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Khokon: Elect me, I’ll sacrifice myself for city n Abu Hayat Mahmud Awami League-backed mayoral candidate for DNCC Sayeed Khokon passed a busy day yesterday participating in rallies, view-exchange meetings and discussion.

He, as part of his electioneering, attended rallies at various points of wards 14, 15 and 22 in New Market, Hazaribagh and Dhanmondi areas in the capital.

Different pro-Awami League professional bodies organised those rallies, view-exchange meetings and discussions.

Khokon, also son of first city mayor of Dhaka Mohammad Hanif, started his yesterday’s campaign by joining a rally at Tannery More in Hazaribagh.

He joined the programme at 11am.

The programme was organised jointly by owners and employees of the tannery industry, Sahasra Nagorik Committee and local Awami League unit.

Local Awami League lawmaker Fazle Noor Taposh, local Awami League leaders, activists and several hundreds of supporters were also present at the rally.

Claiming himself to be honest with a clean

Ruling Awami League-backed mayoral candidate of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Sayeed Khokon, along with local MP Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh, visited Kathalbagan area in the capital as part of his campaign yesterday SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN image Khokon sought votes saying that he would follow the footsteps of his father late Mohammad Hanif.

“Please elect me as a mayor just for once

ANNISUL WELCOMES ARMY DEPLOYMENT,

Afroza, Tabith demand army’s magistracy power n Tribune Tribune Major mayoral hopefuls have welcomed the Election Commission’s decision of army deployment in the city corporation polls scheduled for April 28.

Dhaka North City Corporation mayoral aspirant Annisul Huq believes that it will have a positive influence on his election result.

“Now many more people will feel encouraged to go to polling centres,” he told reporters at Mirpur’s Jhilpara Bholaiya slum yesterday during his election campaign.

In his trademark style, Annisul played cricket with children in Lalmath area during his electioneering.

He also decried the attack on BNP chief Khaleda Zia’s motorcade, saying the attackers wanted to foil the city corporation polls.

Annisul Huq also campaigned in Mollah slum, Muslim Bazar, Pallabi, Arambagh, Mirpur 1, and Bhasantek yesterday.

BNP-backed candidate Tabith Awal sought magistracy power for army personnel in the city corporation elections.

He made the demand while talking to the media yesterday morning in Mohammadpur’s Rayer Bazar area.

If the army is not given magistracy power, it will not be able to play any effective role during the election, he said.

He demanded the army deployment before April 26.

“There is no security for candidates. Every day our BNP leaders and supporters are being arrested besides being threatened by the ruling party men.”

Despite intimidation the BNP-lead 20-party alliance is taking part in the election and the befitting reply will be given on the day of election, he said.

Tabith yesterday launched his campaign at 10:30am from Pulpar along with BNP’s Information and Research Affairs Secretary Habibur Rahman Habib, central leader Habibul Islam Habib, Labour Party Chairman Mostafijur Rahman.

Later, he went to Mohammadour’s Rajmushuri, Uttar Sultangang, Tajmahal Road and Madrasa Road to seek votes.

Afroza Abbas, wife of BNP-backed mayoral candidate for Dhaka South City Corporation Mirza Abbas yesterday said the decision of army deployment was just an eyewash.

“Army personnel were also deployed during upazila election but that did not work. We demand army deployment at every polling centre with judicial power,” she said while electioneering in the capital’s Sutrapur area.

Afroza also demanded installation of CCTV cameras at every polling centre.

She also condemned the attacks on BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia by ruling party men.

Sensing defeat in the coming city polls supporters of the ruling party candidates are launching attacks on Khaleda Zia one after another.

It is now clear that the government is scared of BNP’s participation in the polls.”

Afroza said.

Meanwhile, in Chittagong 14-party alliance-backed Nagorik Committee mayoral hopeful AJM Nasir, also the general secretary of Awami League Chittagong City Unit, announced his election manifesto yesterday.

On the other hand, BNP-led 20-party-backed Chattagram Unnayan Andolon mayoral candidate Manjur told his supporters to guard the polling centres and ballot papers.

Apart from the two, other mayoral and councillor candidates were found busy in their electioneering. l

and I will sacrifice myself for city dwellers like my father,” Khokon pleaded.

After that he went to join another rally at Hazarigbagh at 12:45pm from where his mo-

torcade set off for Panthopath intersection.

He also visited different areas of Kalabagan, Kathalbagan, Panthopath and Bangla Motor on foot. He ended his campaign around 3pm in Bangla Motor area.

After he ended his door-to-door campaign the ruling party-backed mayoral candidate joined a dialogue organised by World Vision at the Krishibid Institution where other mayoral aspirants also took part in the dialogue.

After that Khokon attended a discussion in Golam Murshed Community Centre at 7pm in Old Dhaka. The programme was organied by the Sahastra Nagorik Committee.

Meanwhile, Awami League lawmaker and singer Momotaj Begum carried out a campaign for Khokon at different parts of Old Dhaka.

Replying to a question about the attacks on Khaleda Zia during her election campaign for her party-backed candidates Khokon said: “If someone’s [Khaleda] motorcade was attacked it was her affair and there was nothing others could do.”

Seeking votes in Lalbagh, Azimpur and New Market areas Khokon also said he would like to dedicate his life to serving people like his father and first Dhaka city Mayor Mohammad Hanif. l

Police: Contract killers being hired to assassinate rival candidates n Mohammad Jamil Khan As the Dhaka city polls draw nearer, councillor aspirants in the capital are reportedly hiring contract killers to intimidate or even assassinate their rival candidates, the police have said.

Detectives made the discovery following the arrests of three alleged arms traders and two suspected contract killers in the city yesterday.

Monirul Islam, joint commissioner of Detective Branch of police, said the arrests were made as part of a special drive to recover illegal arms ahead of the city corporation elections.

“Last night, a team of Detective Branch of police first arrested arms traders Emdad Hossain, 22, Delowar Hossain, 24, and Chan Miah, 45, from the capital’s Jatrabari and recovered two weapons, three [bullet] magazines and 12 rounds of bullets from their possession,” said Monirul.

During primary interrogation of the detainees, the alleged arms traders – all hailing from Chapainawabganj – told the police that one Dakat Sagor had made an order to buy weapons from them.

The detainees also told the police that they were supposed to deliver the shipment of weapons to one of Dakat Sagor’s associates named Al-Amin Akash.

The DB team then conducted a separate drive in Waise Ghat Road in Kotwali to arrest 24-year-old Sagor Hossain alias Dakat Sagor and 23-year-old Akash. During their arrest, one weapon, eight bullets, two magazines of bullet and one machete was recovered from their possession.

Addressing a press conference at the DMP media centre, DB chief Monirul said Sagor had ordered the weapons in a bid to kill two councillor candidates of Dhaka South City Corporation.

“We primarily got confirmation that Sagor was hired by the targets’ rival candidates, but we are yet to verify their [targets or the hirers] names,” Monirul added.

He, however, did not disclose how much Sagor had charged his employers for offering to kill the candidates; the location where the contract was reached was also not disclosed by the police.

Commenting on the notoriety of Sagor, the DB chief said the culprit had eight cases filed against him with different police stations in the capital.

Sagor had gained notoriety after the death of his alleged mentor – Dakat Shahid, and had been establishing his influence in the crime world by claiming to be the successor of Dakat Shahid, he added.

Asked whether any top criminal was working behind the scene to control the contract killing gangs, Monirul said the police had information that some of the most wanted criminals were active from their hideouts to establish dominance in the crime world.

The activities of these fugitive criminals escalated especially ahead of elections, the police official added.

“We would place the arrestees in remand to know whether or not these groups had any link with top criminals,” says Monirul.

Monirul further said the police had information that the illegal import of weapons for such kind of activities had seen a sharp rise in recent times. l

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THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

CHITTAGONG CITY CORPORATION POLLS

EC restricts vehicular movement, outsiders in campaigns It will take control of MA Aziz Stadium from April 27 for result announcement

n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong The Election Commission yesterday imposed several restrictions on vehicular movement and city polls campaigning by outsiders in order to control law and order and curb polltime offences.

Returning Officer Md Abdul Baten also announced their preparations for the election while talking to journalists after a meeting with local law enforcement agencies, intelligence forces and administration yesterday afternoon.

He said all outsiders who have been campaigning for different candidates have to leave the city within April 26 midnight. “If any such person is found after the given time frame, we will take strict action as per as law,” Baten said.

On vehicular movements, he said motorbikes cannot operate on city roads from April 26 midnight until April 30 midnight and all vehicles except bicycles, rickshaws, ambulances and service-providing vehicles are banned from operating on city roads from

April 28 midnight until April 30 midnight.

However, the restriction is not applicable for vehicles on election duty and those of journalists with permission.

‘Each general and important polling centre would get 10 and 12 armed law enforcers.

17,000 police and Ansar men would be deployed for inner security. Police, RAB and BGB would be deployed outside the centres’ Baten said candidates have to stop campaigning within April 27 midnight or actions as per law would be taken against them.

Regarding security, Baten said the polls results would be announced at the MA Aziz Stadium and they would take control of the

entire stadium area from April 27 with four tiers of security belts.

“No one will be allowed to move across the area on the election day and 12 hours before and after of the day,” Baten further added.

Each general and important polling centre would get 10 and 12 armed law enforcers. A total of 17,000 police and Ansar men would be deployed for the 719 polling centres’ inner security while members of police, RAB and BGB would be deployed outside the centres of the 41 wards.

A battalion of Bangladesh Army would be in the city during election period while 140 executive magistrates and 10 judicial magistrates were appointed for maintaining law and order across the city.

The Chittagong Metropolitan Police had 24-hour check posts at the city’s entry points to stop arms smuggling, black money transportation and outsiders who intend to hinder election activities, said CMP sources.

CMP Commissioner Abdul Jalil Mandal said they can monitor the check posts activities from CMP Headquarters through CCTV cameras installed in the areas. l

ASHULIA BANK HEIST

Zamir murdered after stopping a robber n Kamrul Hasan Zamir Uddin, one of the seven men killed during a bank heist in Ashulia’s Kathgarha on Tuesday, died while trying to stop a robber from escaping.

The 40-year-old was a tailor by profession and was working in a shop near the Kathgarha branch of Bangladesh Commerce Bank Limited when the robbery was committed.

His father-in-law, Selim Uddin, said yesterday that Zamir had come out of the shop after hearing a noise and saw some masked men running away from the bank.

“He sensed that they were robbers and ran towards them, eventually catching one. But the other robbers stabbed him several times with knives to free their cohort,” said Selim, who was present on the scene as well.

Zamir was rushed to Enam Medical College and Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead.

The tailor lived in Jaharchandra village and was buried at Aragao, a nearby village.

Zamir was the father of two sons, both of whom are primary school students. His wife, Shampa, works at Deko Garment in Kathgarha.

Selim said the future of Zamir’s sons had become uncertain as their father had died.

“I am really worried about my grandsons but I expect that they will grow up with the same morality that their father had.”

On Tuesday, Zamir and six others were killed by the robbers while a mob beat one of the criminals to death. l

Nasir unveils manifesto for an ideal green megacity n Tribune Report With an aim to make Chittagong an “Ideal Green Megacity,” Awami League backed mayoral candidate AJM Nasir Uddin for Chittagong City Corporation election yesterday afternoon unveiled a 28-page election manifesto highlighting 36-points.

With waterlogging topping the list, Nasir emphasised on landslides in hills, water pollution, drinking water crisis, encroachment on the Karnaphuli River, waste management, transport system and power shortage among other issues in his manifesto revealed at Chittagong Engineers Institute Auditorium.

The candidate promised to end waterlogging by taking short, medium and long term steps including dredging all the canals of the city in proper way, repair and extend all the drains and set switch gates at the mouth of all the canals.

“The goal of building a megacity will be achieved through development programmes like modernising the transport system, improving commuter train service, metro rail projects, turning Shah Amanat into an international standard airport, widening roads, introducing separate bus services for women, and bringing the whole city under a single security system,” said Nasir. He outlined his plans to make Chittagong beautiful and liveable with all modern amenities.

Nasir commented: “The previous mayor [M Monjur Alam] has stopped many works of ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury, who was CCC mayor for three consecutive terms, but I will reintroduce those projects in a more efficient manner.”

Nasir, general secretary of the city unit of AL, stressed on combined initiatives from all bodies to carry out a sustainable development in the city. l

EC orders Khulshi OC removed n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong Speakers at a view exchange meeting talk about the responsibilities and expectations from the mayoral candidates of the city corporations polls. The meeting was organised by Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (Bapa) and other organisations at PIB auditorium in the capital yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

Brahmanbaria terrorist killed in gunfight n Our Correspondent, Brahmanbaria A local terrorist in Brahmanbaria was claimed to have died during a gun battle between his associates and police early yesterday.

Uzzal, 30, son of Jhantu Mia of east Medda area, was killed in the gunfight that took place near a brick kiln in Ghatura Satbaria area.

Three policemen – Brahmanbaria Sadar Model police station Officer-in-Charge Akul Chandra Biswas, Assistant Sub-Inspector Mehedi Hasan and Constable Masud Mia – were also injured during the shootout.

OC Akul said police had been trying to nab Uzzal for a couple of days and had conducted raids in different parts of the country.

“Police raided the brick kiln after a tip-off but shots were fired at them, prompting them to fire back. Uzzal sustained bullet injuries during the shootout but his cohorts fled,” he said.

Uzzal, who was the cousin of Brahmanbaria Chhatra League President Masum Billah

and had been accused in 11 terrorism cases, was taken to Brahmanbaria Sadar Hospital where doctors declared him dead.

An autopsy was performed on his body at the hospital yesterday morning.

Residents of Paikpara and Medda marched through the streets to rejoice at Uzzal’s death.

Hundreds of people gathered outside the hospital at night after the news of his death spread.

On March 31, Uzzal and three others brutally hacked the Brahmanbaria Ward 4 general secretary, Ajit Kumar Das, in broad daylight in a fish market in Medda, leaving him seriously injured.

The four then set off some crude bombs and left the scene.

The incident caused outrage among locals and they had been staging demonstrations demanding Uzzal’s arrest.

On April 17, RAM Obaidul Muktadir Chowdhury, lawmaker of Brahmanbaria 3 constituency, announced a cash reward of Tk1 lakh for helping to capture Uzzal. l

The returning officer for the Chittagong City Corporation yesterday evening ordered the Chittagong Metropolitan Police to remove the officer in charge of the Khulshi Police Station, Mainul Islam Bhuiyan, within 24 hours as he was guilty of not discharging his duty properly.

Confirming the matter to Dhaka Tribune, CCC Election’s Assistant Returning Officer said the RO issued a letter to CMP Commissioner seeking the removal of the OC who failed to ensure security for the campaigners of a Chittagong mayor candidate.

Besides removal, the RO also ordered the authorities to not post the officer on any election duty.

The CMP Commissioner said knew nothing about the matter as no such letter reached him until the filing of this. He said would take decision as per as Election Commission’s instruction if he received such a letter.

Two campaigns of CCC mayor candidate M Manjur Alam was allegedly attacked by ruling Awami League men in the city’s Chittagong Polytechnical Institute area and Lalkhan Bazar area on Tuesday.

Khulshi Police Station OC Mainul on that day denied knowledge of any such incident within his jurisdiction. l

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THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

POHELA BOISHAKH SEXUAL ASSAULTS

Police receiving tip-offs, photos of incidents n Mohammad Jamil Khan People have started calling a police hotline to provide leads on the Pohela Boishakh sexual assaults as well as sending in emails with pictures of the incidents, the DB chief has said.

“The pictures have provided some informative clues which we did not get earlier, and we are now analysing them,” Detective Branch Joint Commissioner Monirul Islam told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

Earlier, the DMP set up a hotline and an email address for any witnesses or victims to provide any clues regarding the sexual assault on women during the Pohela Boishakh celebrations.

Although nobody stepped up with information on the first few days, DB Deputy Commissioner Jahangir Hossain Matubbor – who has been monitoring the hotline – has since received more than 300 phone calls or text messages.

Monirul Islam, also the spokesperson for the DMP, said many of the phone calls had no useful information at all or even had false information; regardless, the police were verifying all tip-offs carefully, he added.

“When we are getting information about any suspect, we are checking it out through local police stations and even interrogating the suspects; but we are yet to get any major breakthrough,” he said.

Meanwhile, the sexual harassment case which was filed with Shahbagh police station, was transferred to the DB yesterday for further investigation.

Besides, a five-member committee headed by DMP Additional Commissioner (crime and operation) Ibrahim Fatemi will now also probe into the incidents. This committee will also look into allegations regarding the inaction of the police members stationed near the TSC intersection during the sexual assaults. l

Chhatra Union: Police negligence delaying investigation n DU Correspondent Left student body Bangladesh Chhatra Union yesterday blamed police negligence for the delay in investigation in identifying the offenders who sexually harassed women during Pohela Boishakh celebrations at Dhaka University campus.

“The CCTV footage clearly shows the incident of sexual harassment near Suhrawardy Udyan but the cops are yet to acknowledge the incident, let alone arrest them. It is shameful,” said Chhatra Union President Hasan Tarek while addressing a press conference at DU Madhur Canteen.

Tarek alleged that the home minister “has dark glasses over his eyes” as he cannot yet

SC seeks concise statement in Mir Quasem case n

Ashif Islam Shaon

The Supreme Court yesterday asked the defence of convicted war criminal Mir Quasem Ali to submit a concise statement before it by May 20 in the appeal case filed against the Jamaat-e-Islami leader’s death sentence.

The four-member bench of the Appellate Division led by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha passed the order as the case appeared in the cause list.

Concise or summary statement contains the points on which the counsels would place arguments before the court.

“The Supreme Court bench has also asked the prosecution to submit the summary of the appeal within May 27,” Additional Attorney General Murad Reza said.

Quasem challenged the tribunal verdict on November 30 last year seeking acquittal. l

see the incident on the video footage which the people of the country are seeing on different private TV channels.

“Students will go for tougher movement if the authorities delay investigating the incident,” he said. However, the student organisation already announced some future programmes in protest of the incident which include candle light procession on April 23 at TSC area, a cultural programme on April 24 at Raju memorial sculpture, a discussion programme on sexual harassment on April 25, and class abstention across the whole educational institution for one hour on April 26.

Chhatra Union leaders also announced to take position in front of DU vice-chancellor’s office on April 26 regarding their demand. l

Protesters burn effigies of sex offenders while forming a human chain at the TSC roundabout yesterday protesting the Pohela Boishakh sexual assault SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

HC: Why did Ghulam Azam’s family get VIP status at airport? n Ashif Islam Shaon The High Court yesterday asked the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh and the government officials concerned to explain on which ground war criminal Ghulam Azam’s wife and his nephew were given VIP status at the Dhaka airport recently.

Questioning the legality of the action, the court issued a rule on its own volition asking the CAAB chairman, home secretary and four other government officials to explain in two weeks about the incident that took place on April 8.

The bench of Justice Quazi Rezaul Haque and Justice Abu Taher Md Saifur Rahman also asked the CAAB chairman to submit a report

by May 12 on what steps have been taken against the officials responsible for such act.

The judges came up with the rule and order following a report published in Bangla daily Janakantha on April 9.

Supreme Court lawyer Muntasir Uddin Ahmed placed the report before it mentioning that as per a previous order, the war criminals’ family members can not be given VIP status anywhere.

The court fixed May 12 for passing further order on this issue, Muntasir said.

According to the news report, Ghulam Azam’s wife Asifa Azam and his nephew Lutfur Kabir were scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia on April 8. They tried to use the VIP immigration counter and before that officials concerned of the airport had also allowed them to wait in a VIP room.

But intelligence officials barred them at the counter and informed high officials about their identities. After that both were sent back home.

The detectives found that the airport’s director, Group Captain MK Zakir Hasan, had arranged the duo VIP status concealing information and their identities. l

Verdict in MahidurAfsar’s war crimes case any day n Tribune Report The International Crimes Tribunal 1 yesterday concluded arguments in the case against Muslim League leaders Mahidur Rahman and Afsar Hossain alias Chhutu of Chapainawabganj.

The tribunal led by its Chairman Justice Obaidul Hassan kept the case for verdict, after recording the closing arguments placed by both the prosecution and the defence lawyers.

The prosecution claimed that they had been able to prove two out of the three charges pressed against the duo, while the defence denied that claim.

The accused, who were arrested on September 16 last year in a criminal case, were later shown in the war crimes case. The charges brought against the duo include mass killing, arson, looting, abduction, torture, confinement, and murder committed in the district in 1971. l

DT

6 NEWS

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Jubo League leader commits suicide

Rapist, serial killer Rasu Khan to die for killing garment worker

A central Jubo League leader committed suicide by turning the gun on himself yesterday, allegedly because of mental depression.

Enayet Kabir Chanchal, 48, was the presidium member of Jubo League’s central committee.

His wife Nazneen Jahan said Chanchal was suffering from depression for not getting his desired post and nomination for parliamentary election from the party.

“This can be a reason why he committed suicide... He went out saying that he was going for a walk. After one and half hour we heard about his suicide,” she said.

Security guard of the Jubo League leader’s Dhanmondi Road 1 residence, Zillur, said Chanchal was found on the floor of the bathroom in the garage.

Dhanmondi police station OC AB Siddique said: “A 0.22-bore pistol was licensed under his name, and was carried by him all the time.” l

n

n Kamrul Hasan

Our Correspondent, Chandpur

A district court yesterday sentenced pervert serial killer Rasu Khan to death for killing garment worker Shahida after rape in 2008.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Arunav Chakrabarty ordered that he be hanged by the neck. Rasu was also given seven years’ jail and fined Tk60,000.

He has seven days to file an appeal with the High Court against the sentence.

Moreover, the court ordered police to take action against the investigation officer for negligence and inconsistencies in the probe report.

No lawyer represented Rasu in the case.

Hence, the court appointed a state-defence counsel. Shahida was killed after rape near Nanupur canal of Faridganj in Chandpur on August 18, 2008.

SI Nazrul Islam of Chandpur model police filed the murder case. The police had filed final report in the case declaring Rasu innocent.

But the case was revived after Rasu’s arrest on October 7 in 2009 from Nirashpur of Tongi over stealing a fan from a mosque. He later confessed to the killing of 11 women after rape.

He wished to kill a total of 101 women and then take refuge at the Shahjalal shrine in Sylhet.

Rasu’s first victim was the wife of his brother-in-law in 2007. He used to make relationship with women luring to marry them, but killed them after rape in Chandpur’s remote areas.

Earlier, Rasu was acquitted in a case filed over the rape and murder of teenager Popy in Faridpur. He is facing eight other cases. l

OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER EDUCATION ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT MINISTRY OF EDUCATION RAJSHAHI ZONE, RAJSHAHI

Invitation for Tenders (IFT)

GC-460/15(16x3)

Dua mahfil for KM Shehabuddin tomorrow

n Tribune Report

A dua mahfil for retired ambassador KM Shehabuddin has been organised by his family at the capital’s Baridhara DOHS mosque after Asr prayers tomorrow. Shehabuddin died at United Hospital on April 15.

Funeral prayers were held on April 16 at Azad mosque in the capital’s Gulshan and on April 17 in his native village, Muhammadpur, Chittagong, where he was laid to rest.

Relatives, colleagues, friends, and well-wishers have been requested to attend the dua mahfil to pray for the departed soul.

The first diplomat to pledge allegiance to Bangladesh, Shehabuddin went on to serve in Bangladesh missions in France, Lebanon, and the UK prior to serving as Ambassador to Poland, Kuwait, France, and the United States. l

DT

NEWS 7

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Rafiqul, Rizvi among 42 BNP men charged wtih vandalism n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu Police yesterday submitted charge sheets in two cases launched over violence against 18-party alliance’s 42 activists including BNP Standing Committee Member barrister Rafiqul Islam Miah and its Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

The charge also includes BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s Advisor Mosaddak Ali Falu, her Special Assistant Shamsur Rahman alias Shimul Biswas, Joint Secretary General Amanullah Aman, Press Secretary Maruf Kamal Khan, central Jubo Dal General Secretary Saiful Islam Nirob and Swechhasebok Dal President Habib-un-Nabi Khan Sohel.

Mirpur police station SI Rafiqul Islam placed the charge sheets before Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court.

Besides, the SI, also the investigation officer of the lawsuits, appealed to the court to issue arrest warrant against the fugitives. The court fixed May 5 for next hearing on those.

One charge sheet was submitted under penal code and explosives substance act while the other was under the special powers act.

According to the charge sheets, Mirpur police station ASI Khandakar Rajib Ahmed on January 28 booked the cases against 10 BNP activists including Rizvi for blasting cocktails and vandalising vehicles during the BNP-led alliance enforced hartal and blockade programmes. l

Professionals: Address 10 concerns to make Dhaka liveable n Shadma Malik In order to make Dhaka a liveable city, priorities should be given to address ten areas that need development, a report reflecting the views of professionals has claimed.

The survey report, prepared by Bangladesh Institute of Planners (BIP), also urged the mayoral candidates of the bifurcated Dhaka city corporations to realise their electoral manifestos after being elected to office.

BIP General Secretary Dr Md Akter Mahmud said: “Throughout the year, we conducted a survey [among professionals] to make a better and liveable place for the city dwellers.”

Mahmud, who presented the findings at a programme in the BIP premises, said professionals pointed to the city’s poor communications system as the foremost issue that needs to be addressed. Their recommendations included ensuring pedestrian-friendly footpaths, zebra crossings and setting up roadside signs and signals.

The infrastructure of public places should be improved, while there should be no compromise about encroachment on city parks, the survey found.

Emphasising the need for a better waste management system, the report pressed for more manpower, investment and technical efficiency in managing waste in the country’s capital.

The professionals also named security as a key element of the city’s liveability, as well as being a necessity to attract more investment.

They also pointing out that ward-based community policing could be used to control traffic on Dhaka streets.

The report also called for development of affordable housing for the low- and lower-middle-income Dhaka residents; as a recommendation, it mentioned that public-private partnership or foreign investors could be used to fund such projects.

The professionals also called for better coordination between Dhaka Wasa and the city corporations to solve the recurring water

Sust Teachers continue protest demanding VC’s resignation n Our Correspondent, Sylhet

WEATHER

RAIN OR THUNDERSHOWER THURSDAY, APRIL 23 DHAKA TODAY SUN SETS 6:23PM

TOMORROW SUN RISES 5:31AM

FORECAST FOR TODAY 36 32 39 33 32 32 31 32

Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Cox’s Bazar

26 26 24 22 20 25 23 25

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

37.4ºC Jessore & Chuadanga

20.8ºC Sylhet Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajr

4:13am

Sunrise

5:32am

Zohr

11:57am

Asr

4:31pm

Magrib

6:22pm

Esha

7:42pm SourceL IslamicFinder.org

stagnation crisis in the capital.

Suggestions were also made for readying a research cell, increasing manpower and bringing in advanced machinery to tackle any disaster – including fires, explosions or earthquakes.

The survey report also expressed the demand from professionals for new sectors of self-employment to be introduced. If the professionals are offered qualitative services, they would be encouraged to pay taxes, the survey also found.

The city corporations’ activities should be ward-centric, the professionals said, adding that the mayor’s directives should be executed through the city wards.

The survey also emphasised on the need to set up city governments to solve the residents’ problems and ensure good governance.

Fifteen mayoral aspirants were present in yesterday’s programme, which was organised by the in association with Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA) and Work for a Better Bangladesh Trust. l

A goods-laden truck rams into a three-wheeler and a roadside tea stall after losing control due to a punctured tyre at Aam Chattwar area of Rajshahi city yesterday. Two passengers of the three-wheeler were injured in the incident AZAHAR UDDIN

Heads of 52 departments at RU start work abstention n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi Chairmen of 52 departments of Rajshahi University start work abstention today protesting assault on Vice-Chancellor Professor Muhammad Mizanuddin allegedly by some local Awami League leaders and a lawmaker.

President of Chairman Council, a platform of 52 departmental heads of the university, Prof Harun-Ar-Rashid, said the decision was made in an executive committee meeting of the council yesterday.

He said they would refrain themselves from performing duties in protest at the incident of assaulting vice-chancellor so that none could dare to do such heinous acts in the prestigious higher educational institution.

However, pre-schduled examinations of different departments would be held during the work abstention.

He also demanded proper actions against the ruling party leaders and a lawmaker for dishonoring the VC and teachers of the university.

Earlier, the platform sought intervention of university’s Chancellor President Abdul Hamid for taking steps to resolve the ongoing crisis on the campus.

Students of sociology department yesterday also boycotted classes demanding stern actions against perpetrators.

On 16 April, a group of local leaders led by the ruling party’s Rajshahi city unit General Secretary Dablu Sarker and Vice-President Shahadat Hossain barged to the office of RU VC Prof Muhammad Mizanuddin. Then, they demanded recruitment of their preferred candidates as employees and officers in different university posts.

However, when VC said the recruitment process would take place as per the university rules, the ruling party men started hurling abusive words at him. During the incident, the leaders also physically assaulted science faculty Dean Prof Habibur Rahman and RU Student Adviser Prof Sadequl Arefin Matin while the teachers come forward to calm down them. l

Teachers of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) are continuing their protest in demand of resignation of their Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Aminul Haque Bhuiyan.

Yesterday afternoon, almost 50 teachers protesting under the banner of “Mohan Muktijuddher Chetonai Udbuddho Shikkhok Forum” formed a human chain in front of the central library of the university.

Among the protesters were recently resigned Prof Dr Muhammad Zafar Iqbal, his wife Prof Yasmeen Haque, Prof Dr Anowarul Islam, Acting Proctor Emdadul Haque, and assistant proctor, transport administrator, hall provosts and assistant provosts.

Convener of the teachers’ forum Prof Dr Syed Samsul Alam said at the human chain that stricter movement will be adopted to depose the VC. Joint Convener Prof Mostabur Rahman said: “If the VC doesn’t resign, we will not withdraw our resignation letters. We will continue the movement.”

The forum has called for another human chain today in front of the VC Bhaban at noon.

Amidst the protests, VC Aminul has called an emergency syndicate meeting to be held at 10am today.

Student of Mathematics department Jahid Hasan said the classes, exams are being taken according to schedule amidst the movement, but the situation may worsen any time.

On April 13, 19 teachers got into a row with the vice-chancellor after they went to his office to discuss how to resolve problems related to the academic building’s space. Following the incident, 35 teachers of the university stepped down on Tuesday from 37 administrative posts demanding the vice-chancellor’s resignation. l

DT

8 NEWS

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Sirajganj accident kills three n Tribune Report Three people were killed and three others injured in a head-on collision between a truck and a CNG-run auto-rickshaw at Garadah on the Bogra-Nagarbari Highway in Shahjadpur upazila yesterday morning.

Of the deceased, one was identified as Sunil,55, while two others could not be

A woman looks at her house which was damaged by nor’wester yesterday night. The storm sweeps over Sadar upazila, Sadullapur and Palashbari in Gaibandha and damaged houses and crops FOCUS BANGLA

Nor’wester sweeps over six districts, 8 die n Tribune Report At least eight people, including woman and child, were killed as nor’wester lashed Hobiganj, Jamalpur, Chapainawabganj, Gaibandha, Sherpur, Kishoreganj and Bogra yesterday.

Apart from taking lives of people, the storm uprooted scores of tress and damaged standing crops, including Boro paddy.

Our Hobiganj correspondent reported that Nur Jahan, 35, wife of Fajal Miah, and her son Arian, 6, of Nandipara villagea, had died as a tree fell on their house during the storm in the early hours of the day.

Officer-in-Charge of Banichang police station Nirmolendo Chakrabarti said: “On information, police recovered the bodies and sent them to Habiganj sadar morgue.”

Meanwhile, crops on a vast track of land in Chunargaht, Bahubal and Ajmiganj upazilas have been damaged by the storm.

In Jamalpur, a teenage girl was killed and 30 others were injured as a giant tree fell on them when nor’wester hit several villages of Bokshiganj upazila of the district, our correspondent reports.

Local sources said power supply were remained suspended till yesterday afternoon as a number of electric poles were uprooted by the storm.

In Bogra, a night guard named Badal Kazi,55, a resident of Nishchintapur village in Sonatala upazila, was killed as a boat capsized in a water body when nor’wester hit the district.

Meanwhile, Belal Hossain Pramanik,50, son of Sultan Pramanik, a resident of Ashoko-

la Uttarpara of Sadar upazila when a wall of his bedroom collapsed on him during the storm in Baghopara area early in the morning.

The storm also uprooted scores of trees and damaged several hundred houses and shops.

Our Gaibandha correspondent adds: An elderly man was killed as a tree fell on him at Gonganarayan village under Sadullahpur upazila.

When Nawab Ali Mondol was in asleep, a big tree fell on his room. He died on the spot, local said.

Besides, a good number of trees were uprooted and a different types of crops were damaged during the storm.

In Sherpur, a worker was killed and 10 others were injured as nor’wester swept over five upazilas of the district in the early hours.

Locals said Haidar Ali,55, son of late Alimuddin of Herua Char Bhedurpur of Sribardi upazdied on the spot and 10 others were injured as a tree fell on their house during the storm at Balughat in Nalitabari upazila in the dead of night.

Deputy Commissioner Zakir Hossain said the storm had left 300 houses damaged in the upazilas which were out of electricity.

In Kishoreganj, a schoolboy was killed as a tree fell on his house during the storm at Satal Bhattacharja Para in Sadar upazila early in the morning.

The deceased was identified as Babu,8, a student of class III and son of Harunur Rashid, a resident of the area.

Officer-in-charge of Kishoreganj Model police station Mosharraf Hossain said Babu was seriously injured when a tree fell on his house during the storm in the area. l

Youth hacked to death n Our Correspondent, Bogra

A youth was hacked to death near Bogra Railway Station in the town yesterday.

The deceased was identified as Raj,25.

TSI Manzurul Haque Bhuyan of Sadar police outpost said Raj along with his

cohorts was taking drug at night in the area.

At one stage, they got locked in altercation over the issue. One of his cohort hacked him to death around 11pm as he denied to share the drug.

On information, police recovered the body and sent it to hospital. l

known immediately. OC of Shahjadpur Police Station Shahabuddin Khalifa said a speeding truck collided with an auto-rickshaw in the area around 6am, leaving three people dead on the spot and three others injured.

All the victims were riders of the auto-rickshaw. Informed, police recovered the bodies and sent those to the hospital morgue for autopsy. l

DT

NEWS 9

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Gour antiquities on verge of extinction n Our Correspondent, Chapainawabganj Most of the several-hundred-year-old antiquities of Gour civilisation in Chapainawabganj are decaying into nonexistence due to the indifference of the Archaeology Department and lack of initiatives to restore them.

Although the archaeology department restored a few of these historic structures, many lie untended – some of the relics are not even on their list. The department however claims that they are restoring these sites one at a time on the basis of priority. Under this circumstance, the residents of the district have demanded immediate restoration of these historical relics.

Once an ancient town, Chapainawabganj is rich in heritage sites and relics spread all over the district. The most notable among them is the Choto Shona Mosque (Golden mosque) – a beautiful vestige of Muslim archaeology – built at the time of Sultan Alauddin Hossain Shah by Wali Muhammad between 1493 to 1519 AD. A little way off the Shona Mosque stands Tohakhana. Built

by Shah Suja in 1655, the Tohakhana is said to have been built to control the temperature during winter. Right next to it stands a mosque built in the Mughal era and the shrine of Hazrat Shah Neyamatullah (RA). Now, these historical places are decaying away for the lack of security and proper restoration.

Caretaker of Shonamasjid Rest House Abdul Matin said: “All the historical sites of the district need immediate restoration. Also, we need Ansar members to secure all these sites.”

He added that to save the Shona Mosque, a bypass road is needed to reduce traffic on the highway that runs next to the mosque. Everyday, 400-500 heavily laden trucks use the highway to travel to and fro the Shonamasjid Port. This continuous movement of heavy traffic affects the already ruinous structure of the Shona Mosque.

In Shibganj of the district lies another architectural legacy from the middle ages of Muslim rule in the region – the Darasbari Mosque. West of the mosque stands the expansive Darasbari Madrassa, built in the 15th century under the rule of Sultan Alauddin Hossain Shah. These historic sites are also counting days before being lost to nonexistence.

Nurul Huda Sattari Gouriya, a descendent of the Gour family from the Shona Mosque area, says about the Darasbari mosque: “The roof of the mosque, which is biggest of those built during the Muslim rule, has fallen in a long time back.

The madrassa was in fact a university where 300 teachers were employed to educate students coming from all over Bengal for higher studies.”

The oldest find in the district is Noada Buruj in Rahanpur of Gomstapur upazila. Planned archaeological excavation is needed to know more of the history of the remnants, but

Satkhira village submerged as dyke collapses n Our Correspondent, Satkhira About 200-foot of a flood protection embankment in Chakla area in Protapnagar union of Assasuni upazila washed away early yesterday by a high tide in the Kapotakko river.

Consequently, a village and about 200-bigha fish enclosure inundated, pushing the villagers into immense suffering.

Sources said although about 200 people voluntarily led by the local chairman in the morning erected a ring dyke on the broken part to prevent entrance of water, it also broke down in the face of the unusual high tide at noon.

Protapnagar UP Chairman Jakir Hossain said: “The embankment on Chakla point remained vulnerable for long and they repeatedly urged the local water development board authorities to repair it, finally negligence of which led to the untoward incident.”

On the other hand, Satkhira Water Development Board division 2 Executive Engineer Abdul Malek visited the scene.

An application has already sent to the higher authorities seeking necessary allocation and the renovation works would be started soon after getting the reply, said the engineer. l

that is yet to happen. Meanwhile, the nearby lands are being grabbed up and many illegal structures have been erected.

Professor Dr Mazharul Islam Taru, Head of Bangla Department of Chapainawabganj Government College and a researcher of regional history, said: “These historic structures can never be brought back once they are lost. They need to be restored on an emergency basis.” He also expressed hope that the government would promote Chapainawabganj for

heritage tourism.

In regards to restoration and management of the historic sites, Regional Director (Bagura) Nahida Sultana Mala of Archaeology Department said: “Many of the antiquities have been more or less restored from time to time. We carry out work on all the sites on priority basis. We are planning to erect boundary walls for some of the sites and carry out archaeological digging in the next fiscal year.” l

DT

10 WORLD

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Yemen rivals battle on despite declared end to Saudi raids n Reuters, Cairo/Aden Rival forces fought on in Yemen yesterday despite a declared halt to a Saudi-led bombing campaign, showing how tough it may be to find a political solution to a war stirring animosities between rival Gulf powers Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Tuesday’s announcement by Riyadh that it would end almost a month of air strikes against the Iranian-allied Houthis drew positive responses from both the White House and Tehran, as well as fresh calls for peace talks and for urgent deliveries of humanitarian aid.

But hours later, Houthi fighters captured an army brigade base loyal to the government in Yemen’s central city of Taiz following heavy fighting. A Saudi air strike hit the brigade headquarters shortly afterwards, residents said.

The brigade, along with several other army units, had declared its loyalty to exiled president Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

Pro-Hadi militiamen fought clashes yesterday throughout southern Yemen against the Houthis and their army allies loyal to powerful ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh, and residents in the main port city of Aden reported heavy tank shelling and bursts of automatic gunfire in several neighborhoods.

Yemen’s south has been the bulwark of resistance against the Houthi advance and locals expressed dismay at the end to Saudi strikes, which had supported their forces.

“The decision was strange and totally unexpected. Our fighters had made gains but

HK protest camp grows as political battle heats up

n AFP

With the battle over how Hong Kong chooses its next leader heating up once more, a protest tent village next to government headquarters is slowly growing.

It is a small-scale echo of the sprawling tent camps that paralysed parts of the city towards the end of last year, with some protesters keen to make their voices heard again before a key vote on the city’s political reform package.

The government yesterday announced its roadmap for leadership elections in 2017, sticking to restrictions laid down by Beijing which rule that candidates must be vetted before a public vote.

That decision by China’s National People’s Congress last August sparked 79 days of mass rallies and street blockades which ended in December. Thousands of tents which had blocked several main roads were cleared away, but a handful remained on a street next to the government complex.

There are now a growing number, with one pro-democracy “tent census” Facebook page giving the total as 140 compared to dozens in December.

They are equipped with bookshelves, a water fountain and even a television powered by a solar panel – reminiscent of the infrastructure of the major protest camps which had everything from showers and a gym to art installations. l

Smoke billows from the Fajj Attan Hill following a reported airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition on an army arms depot, now under Huthi rebel control, on Monday, in Sanaa AFP needed more Saudi air support, now we hear the Houthis and Saleh’s people are advancing in many places,” said Aden resident Saleh Salem Ba Aqeel.

But residents of the capital Sanaa slept through a quiet night, a respite from almost nightly raids since the campaign began on March 26. l

Timing of sanctions relief may be deal breaker as Iran talks resume n Reuters The timing of sanctions relief is the sticking point in nuclear talks between Iran and the six major world powers this week in Vienna, where negotiations kicked off yesterday with a meeting between delegates from Tehran and the European Union.

Iran and the six powers are trying to end more than 12 years of diplomatic wrangling over the country’s disputed nuclear program, which Tehran says is peaceful but Western governments fear is aimed at developing an atomic bomb.

After a tentative deal between Iran and the P5+1 - China, France, Russia, Britain and the United States, plus Germany - was reached in Switzerland on April 2, differences have emerged over what was agreed.

Arriving in Vienna, deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araqchi, reiterated Iran’s position: “All the economic sanctions should be lifted on the day that the deal is implemented,” according to a report from Iranian news agency Tasnim.

But the United States has made it clear that sanctions on Iran would have to be phased out gradually under the final pact.

A meeting between Araqchi and EU political director, Helga Schmid, began yesterday afternoon. Talks between Iran and delegates from the six powers, including US Under Secretary Wendy Sherman, will follow this week, an EU statement said.

US President Barack Obama was forced to give Congress a say in any future accord - including the right of lawmakers to veto the lifting of sanctions imposed by the United States.

Araqchi said on state television before his arrival in Austria that the US administration was “responsible to ensure that its commitments, particularly sanctions-related ones, are fulfilled.”

Efforts have intensified to reach a final deal as a self-imposed deadline at the end of June is looming large for Iran and the P5+1 group.

“We think it is possible to reach a fair and just agreement... by the end of June or even before that,” Araqchi said, noting that the Vienna talks are expected to go on for three days. l

France arrests heavily armed man over church attack plans

n Reuters

French police have detained a man they suspect of planning an imminent armed attack on one or two churches, the interior minister said yesterday.

The man, a 24-year-old information technology student, was arrested on Sunday in southeast Paris. A car was also seized along with handguns, other weapons and bulletproof vests, minister Bernard Cazeneuve said.

France heightened surveillance of potential attackers by its intelligence services and deployed troops to patrol sensitive sites after Islamist militants killed 17 people in January in attacks on the offices of the Charlie Hebdo satirical weekly and a Jewish food shop.

An Interior Ministry source said the man, also suspected of being involved in the murder of a 32-year-old woman found dead in her car on Sunday, was an Algerian national.

“Detailed documents that were also found established beyond doubt that the individual was planning an imminent attack, probably on one or two churches,” Cazeneuve said.

He was arrested after calling emergency services to treat a wound, the interior ministry source said. When they arrived, they saw the injury was a gunshot wound and notified police. A blood trail led to a car which contained the weapons.

Police suspect the 24-year-old accidentally shot himself, the source said.

Cazeneuve said he had previously come to the attention of the French authorities as possibly wanting to go to Syria.

Police had made checks on him in 2014 and 2015 without finding anything that would warrant further investigation. l

Japan PM Abe meets China’s Xi, says to work for better ties

n Reuters

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a summit in Indonesia yesterday, the latest sign of a thaw between the Asian rivals that came despite an awkward diplomatic backdrop.

Abe told reporters after the meeting that the two leaders agreed to work for better relations and contribute to regional stability by promoting “mutually beneficial strategic ties.”

Noting that Sino-Japanese ties had begun to improve when he met Xi late last year, Abe said: “We want to make the improving trend in the bilateral relations solid.”

The meeting took place despite a speech at the Asian-African summit by Abe in which he warned powerful nations against imposing on the weak, an implicit reference to China. He also made an allusion to Tokyo’s remorse in the past over World War Two without issuing a fresh apology.

Earlier yesterday, lawmakers from Abe’s ruling party and the opposition visited a Japanese war shrine in Tokyo that is seen in China as a symbol of Tokyo’s past militarism.

Nevertheless, the two leaders met for about half an hour, signaling the desire of both nations to mend frayed ties and promote a cautious rapprochement. l

DT

WORLD 11

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Military in clash with insurgents n AFP

Indian farmer Gajendra Singh stands on a tree before committing suicide during an Aam Aadmi Party rally in New Delhi yesterday AFP

Indian farmer commits suicide at protest in Delhi n AFP A farmer hanged himself in front of hundreds of protesters gathered in the centre of the Indian capital yesterday to rally against the government’s contentious reform of land purchasing laws.

Television footage of the protest close to the nation’s parliament showed the farmer sitting in the branches of a tree before taking a scarf and hanging himself, as protesters, police and media crews looked on.

The farmer, reportedly a father of three from the desert state of Rajasthan, was rushed to hospital but declared dead on arrival.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the nation was “deeply shattered and disappointed” over the farmer’s death.

“At no point must the hardworking farmer think he is alone. We are all together in creating a better tomorrow for the farmers of India,” Modi said on Twitter.

The Delhi police announced an investigation into the sequence of events leading to the farmer’s death.

Anger was mounting over whether police and rally organisers did enough to save the man, as a political row erupted over who was

to blame for the suicide.

The tree was several metres from the stage where Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and members of his party were due to speak against the national government’s land bill.

Local media said a suicide note had been recovered from the farmer’s body, which said he had recently suffered crop losses because of unseasonal rains in Rajasthan.

Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi (Common Man) Party (AAP) quickly came under fire from political opponents for continuing the rally even after the farmer was taken down from the tree.

“We want to ask AAP why they didn’t stop their speeches when they heard that the farmer had died,” Sambit Patra, spokesman for the Bharatiya Janata Party which rules at the national level, told reporters.

But Kejriwal put the blame on police, saying “he climbed the tree in front of our eyes.”

“I kept telling the police to save him but the police are not in our control,” Kejriwal said from the stage during the rally.

Scores of debt-laden farmers have suffered recent damage to their winter crops from unseasonal rains, with media reporting a string of suicides in recent weeks. l

India takes Al Jazeera off air in Kashmir map row n AFP India’s government took Al Jazeera news channel off the air yesterday for five days after officials insisted it had repeatedly shown wrong maps of disputed Kashmir.

Al Jazeera in India showed a blue screen yesterday with a sign saying “as instructed by the ministry of information and broadcasting, this channel will not be available.”

An official said the order was made earlier this month over the maps that showed parts of the Himalayan Kashmir region in arch rival Pakistan and China, an extremely sensitive issue in India.

“The ban has been im-

posed for five days and it was done on instructions of an inter-ministerial committee, who took cognisance of an incorrect map of India in which the channel showed parts of Kashmir in Pakistan and China,” the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The order comes amid a simmering censorship row in India over a series of recent bans that have sparked accusations of a growing climate of intolerance under Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

They include a ban on screening a BBC documentary on the fatal gang-rape of a student that sparked mass protests in Delhi. l

Myanmar’s military has arrested five people after a rare clash with insurgents in Rakhine state, state media said yesterday, potentially complicating efforts to reach a nationwide ceasefire with numerous rebel groups.

The quasi-civilian government wants to declare an end to civil wars that have plagued ethnic minority border regions for decades.

Last month it signed a draft peace accord which was hailed as a historic step forward.

But sporadic fighting has continued in northern regions near the Chinese border.

These conflicts have involved members of

the Arakan Army (AA), which hails from the western state of Rakhine but has previously focused on fighting in the north.

State media reports of clashes since April 17 in Rakhine itself between the army and insurgents are believed to be the first time the rebels have fought troops in their home state.

Five men hiding in a forest were captured on April 19 by troops who uncovered guns, bullets and hand grenades nearby, according to an army statement, which referred to the group as “Rakhine insurgents.” The western state remains deeply troubled after unrelated deadly religious violence in 2012 between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Muslims. l

DT

12 EDITORIAL

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Satire matters

W

e mourn the closure of the popular entertainment webpage Moja losss?, which has been shut down by its founders citing death threats from unnamed “political entities” and individuals.

It is an affront to freedom of expression that such threats can be made and heeded in our country.

This case is particularly concerning as the threats followed the site publishing photos of, and naming individual suspects in the Pohela Boishakh sexual assaults. The need for law enforcers to act against these people and all those who make such threats cannot be overstated.

Satire and comedy go hand in hand with freedom of expression. To curtail one is to curtail the other. Humour is an essential part of life, transcending nationality, creed, and most certainly political viewpoints, and as such, it is discouraging to see that it can often be misinterpreted as being politically motivated by certain sections of our society.

In its final Facebook status, the founders stated their view that Bangladesh is not ready for their brand of humour. We profoundly believe and hope this is an overstatement, as those who make death threats and intimidate publishers are clearly not representative of our country’s whole population.

We all have the right to laugh. Humour is the best way to stand up against those who would bully or silence their fellow citizens. People should stand together against anyone who dictates what we should or should not find funny.

Humour is the best way to stand up against those who bully fellow citizens

Brands should top up Rana Plaza fund

W

e are concerned by a continuing shortfall in donations to the Rana Plaza Donors Trust Fund, which is some 30% short of its $30m target to deliver necessary compensation and medical care to survivors and bereaved family members.

The ILO chaired fund was set up by the Rana Plaza Arrangement backed by leading brands and the government, to enable support to be provided for victims in line with the standards required by ILO Convention 121, without getting delayed by legal disputes.

Although it has made commendable progress in working towards this aim, it is still $8.5m short of its proposed target.

We hope that the spotlight drawn by the second anniversary of the disaster will encourage more brands to come forward to top up the deficit. The government can also help by coordinating and speeding up disribution of unused monies collected in the prime minister’s fund for Rana Plaza victims.

The amounts being sought by the Arrangement represent a tiny percentage of the profits earned by brands involved in sourcing from Rana Plaza.

It would be in everyone’s interests for the shortfall to be removed straightaway so that the Arrangement can fulfill its commitment and alleviate concerns being expressed by many of the victims who are in dire need of help. Otherwise, the prime benefit to all stakeholders in forming the Arrangement will be undermined.

Industry associations should take a lead in working with brands, campaign groups, government and workers representatives to ensure more funds become available and are effectively distributed.

Stakeholders should work together to end delays

Be heard

Writeto toDhaka DhakaTribune Tribune Write Tower,8/C 8/CPanthapath, Panthapath, Sukrabad, Shukrabad,Dhaka-1207 Dhaka-1207 FRFRTower, Email letters.dt@dhakatribune.com Email letters.dt@dhakatribune.com Sendususyour yourOp-Ed Op-Edarticles: articles: Send opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com www.dhakatribune.com www.dhakatribune.com Join our Facebook community: Join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune

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Tragedy in the Maldives April 4

John The Maldivian government needs to take responsibility. If these Bangladeshi workers had to leave the Maldives tomorrow the country would not run. Maldivians are too arrogant to work the lower skilled jobs that these workers give up their lives to do. Wake up Maldives! These people are your fellow brothers and you and your companies are committing mass crimes against these people. I witnessed this first-hand working in the Maldives a few years ago ... this has to change for this once-beautiful nation!

Nusra Amin The esteemed ex-commissioner to the Maldives, when she was in office, was asked to prevent Bangladeshis coming to work at Maldives without going through the proper channels (bureau of manpower, employment, and training). Immigration officials at the Bangladeshi border let the workers go Maldives without checking if the worker has obtained a BMET card. Immigration officials say Maldives is a visa-free country, hence, they are unable to determine tourist or worker. Have they gone mad? Can any ordinary and low-status person make tourist visits to Maldives?

Furthermore, until recently, Bangladeshis have been attacking each other. They are involved in kidnappings and demanding ransom from families in Bangladesh.

Sua As a Maldivian, I am ashamed and disgusted with the lack of regard by the Maldivian government to ensure such incidents dont happen in the future and protect migrant workers’ rights.

No human beings should be subjected to the fate of Bangladeshis in the Maldives.

The way they are treated -- its cruel and inhumane and the whole world needs to know about the way we treat them. It’s about time we start talking about how we can remedy this on a more serious note, by the governments of both countries. sunny side This is the true story about the suffering of Bangladeshi people in the Maldives. It is also true that there are many companies who

deal with them with real respect and equality. Yet, surely the majority maltreats Bangladeshi citizens. I, as a Maldivian, feel bad and sad for what my people does to their fellow Maldivians. This is why I make sure that the labourer in my home gets $150 per month and a small room with an attached toilet. He maybe one of the few labourers in this country who is provided clothing and cosmetics free of charge, not to mention that I am a middle-class teacher. I thank our former diplomats for speaking up for your people. I urge Yamin to take immediate and clear-cut actions to stop those being abused. A lot of suffering is done and we must stop it. I am glad the topic I was always raising in my Facebook page today became a real topic.

Sarah Harvey sunny side: Surely you can admit though that $150 a month is absolutely pitiful. Say he works 40 hours a week, that works out at just $0.90 an hour. According to online sources, “mean wages [in Maldives] were $4.15 per manhour in 2009.” Oh, but it’s fair because he’s Bangladesh; right? He can survive on less money. Sounds just like Apartheid, but instead of “whites” and “blacks” it’s “Maldivians” and “non-Maldivians or non-whites.”

Maldivian These incidents are not random. They are planned by the current gangster president.

You can see clearly how immediately after these attacks, the government was blaming the opposition protests for compromising the safety of the capital.

In reality, none of these attacks have anything to do with the protests. They don’t occur during the protests and only gangs are involved. Everyone in the Maldives knows the gangs are controlled by the current gangster president through his Tourism Minister Fat Adheeb.

MohanH The Bangladeshi government is partly responsible for the misfortune of its citizen in Maldives.

The question is, what have the Bangladeshi governments done to evade such circumstances for its people? And what did High Commissioner Selina Mohsin do during her time holding the office to make the situation any better?

I ask the Bangladeshi government to pre approve labourers in Bangladesh and ensure that the labourers are aware of the work environment, the benefits, and make the employees responsible for the labourers.

Such a mechanism should be arranged with the Maldives government.

DT

OPINION 13

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

A cautionary tale n Kamran Reza Chowdhury

P

rime Minister Sheikh Hasina, on April 1, told parliament that her government was likely to amend the local government laws, making polls to the city corporations, pourashavas, upzillas, and the union councils partisan as it is in the UK, the US, and other mature democracies.

Justifying her position, she said people rated the local government polls as party affairs, though the parties did not nominate candidates for such non-partisan elections.

She even said the parties could not take any disciplinary actions against an elected representative if found guilty of misdeeds and corruption while in office.

No doubt, making the polls partisan will strengthen the political parties, with no guarantee that it will cement the local government system -- a primary and vital platform from creating leaders from the grassroots for the parties.

Given the level of democratic setup in Bangladesh, our forefathers made local government polls non-partisan to encourage

individual leadership at the local level -outside the political party chain in the urban, semi-urban, and rural areas.

The candidates of the local government polls emerge as leaders for their close contact with the people, motivating them to resolve local problems. For instance, the candidates in the salinity-affected south-western region would campaign with the promise of guaranteeing supply of sweet water while the voters in the Chittagong Hill Tracts demand that their elected representatives work for eradicating malaria.

Aspirant candidates with no political backgrounds launch door-to-door campaigns in the pretext of seeking dua (blessings) years before the local polls, promising an end to the local problems. In many cases, the political parties induct the self-made leaders in their fold, given their popularity at the grassroots. Partisan local polls would discourage such individual leadership efforts at the grassroots, ultimately weakening the system.

If introduced, the partisan local government polls would make aspirants more

focused on pleasing their local and central political bosses instead of going to the local people. For example, the candidates seeking BNP’s nomination would campaign with restoration of the non-party caretaker issue and strengthen the so-called movement against the ruling AL. Similarly, the AL leaders would focus on eliminating the “militant BNP-Jamaat” to woo the central leadership for nominations. Thus local issues are likely to be overshadowed by the national issues.

We have around 6,000 local government bodies including 4,550 union councils. Is it possible for Sheikh Hasina or Khaleda Zia to interview candidates for each of the polls?

They must depend on other leaders who would make money out of the nomination process, opening up a new avenue of political corruption.

A former councilor of Naogaon pourashava, Md Badar is a classical example that can give people a glimpse of the problem.

Marginal farmer Badar used to vie every polls to the Naogaon pourashava in the mid-70s.

All year round, he used to go door-to-door seeking votes for the next elections. If any

problem arose in his ward, Badar turned up.

Finally, in 1984-85, Badar was elected commissioner with the highest votes among all nine councilors -- thanks to his marathon campaign that made people sympathise with him. The AL’s late general secretary Abdul Jalil was elected chairman. Five out of nine commissioners had AL’s blessing. Badar maintained contact with the people in the first six months after the election.

Jalil urged him join the AL, and Badar did so.

Badar changed immediately. He started snubbing the voters who selflessly campaigned in his favour and voted. Vexed by his anti-people attitude, one day, one of his angry campaigners warned him in public: “We will see you during the next votes.”

A haughty Badar replied: “I do not bother with you public; I have my party and leader. I will win if my party men alone vote for me.”

Badar suffered a massive defeat in the next election, ending his hard-earned leadership. l Kamran Reza Chowdhury is a journalist.

How much have we learned from Rana Plaza? n Mamun Rashid

W

hen the ILO country director in Bangladesh tells us that Bangladesh has made significant progress towards ensuring workplace safety and protecting jobs, we have every reason to believe him. When Accord and Alliance don’t find many of our factories on the dock or failing their scrutiny, we should be happy about that.

When the ILO’s regional director tells us Bangladesh has to do a lot in order to ensure sustainable worker safety, and more importantly, protect and increase jobs, we agree to focus on productivity improvement and moving the entire value chain upward.

The BGMEA president feels that a small factory with 500-600 workers needs half a million dollars to relocate, create better working conditions in its factory premises, and build 3,200 factories large and small -- it will require a much larger amount than that.

On the other hand, we still hear that many Rana Plaza victims never received their compensations, and even the money received in the prime minister’s relief fund for supporting Rana Plaza victims still remains terribly underutilised. According to reports, the buyers’ consortium are also running short of their committed contribution.

We have heard that the main challenge for Bangladesh’s garments sector is price. After the fire incident at Tazreen Fashions and the Rana Plaza building collapse, the cost of production has increased significantly, but retailers do not pay higher prices for apparel items.

Although Accord and Alliance have already inspected most of the factories, they did not approach any retailers to increase the volume of work orders from factories housed in shared buildings.

Buyers’ representatives identified five

specific challenges to the sector: Finance to remedy the factory buildings, safety in the factories that are not under the purview of Accord and Alliance’s inspection, relocation of factories from Dhaka to other places, a policy for sub-contracts, and the departure of Accord and Alliance after 2018 -manufacturers were concerned whether the workplace safety programs would continue after the departure of these agencies after June 2018.

I have heard the ILO country director saying a mechanism should be adopted by the government, BGMEA, and BKMEA to take the responsibility of monitoring factory buildings after the departure of agencies like Alliance and Accord. Many within development partners feel that since the Bangladesh labour law has been amended, it should be put to action soon.

Why has nobody questioned whether the infrastructure bottlenecks or high bank interest rates could be the only things responsible for non-optimal growth of apparel industries? Courtesy of the Rana Plaza episode, Bangladesh apparel workers have seen a sharp rise in their wages. It has become almost on-par with India. Despite many industries being suspended by the biggies to either work as their vendors or have sub-contracting stopped, prices have not seen any significant rise.

Many industries are not able to finance shifts from a shared building or purchasing new firefighting or disaster management equipment. Though productivity has been identified as the single most important issue, most of the industries could not invest enough on worker training or the replacement of outdated machinery. Despite much hue and cry, development partners and buyer syndicates were unable to come up with any notable “bailout” packages.

The suspension of the GSP, possible

NASHIRUL ISLAM

facility curtailment by the EU, offering better facilities to competing countries, delays in the establishment of industrial clusters or special economic zones, and emerging competition from India and Vietnam are also being discussed as possible barriers to the RMG sector’s growth. Some are talking of shifting orders to Kenya, Ethiopia, or even the possible rise of Myanmar.

I would put price and productivity as the critical success factors for Bangladesh’s apparel industry. Solutions to both warrant coordinated efforts from industry owners, commerce and labour ministries, governments of buying countries, buyer syndicates, and development partners. Only productivity improvement and scale-up can help divert many orders from Vietnam and China.

Optimum price from the buying companies can also help with investing enough on worker training and the development of supervisors. Proper water usage, reduced accidental losses, and competitive financing packages can ensure better spreads or savings, contributing much to the entrepreneur’s ability to recycle or reinvest profits. The

industry has to be process-driven rather than owner-driven.

Average or ad-hoc solutions seem to still haunt our apparel sector. Should we allow our RMG sector to grow further, where there are multiple challenges faced by this industry? Or we should instead give impetus to our textile sector or other exporting entities?

I would say there is still enough headroom for our RMG industry to grow. A shift to better quality clothes, better design, and improved productivity and workplaces can fetch better prices, create more employment, accelerate poverty reduction, and create a large pool of people with higher purchasing power to buy more locally-produced goods and services -- giving further impetus to local industries.

It is high time we focused on worker responsibilities and obligations along with workers’ rights and, more importantly, protect each worker through accident coverage insurance. l Mamun Rashid is a business professor and financial sector entrepreneur.

DT

14 OPINION

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

BIGSTOCK

They know what they are doing, right? n Farid Bakht

A

string of recent news stories is painting a dismal picture of life amid the heat and dust of Dhaka: 1) The horrible assaults on women at the Pohela Boishakh/Bengali New Year celebrations and the inaction by security agencies to arrest the culprits 2) The alleged attack on the cavalcade of the opposition leader while out campaigning -- her lot were just as bad during the cruel days of Hawa Bhaban, but that’s no excuse 3) Much of the compensation money not being paid to Rana Plaza victims, according to Transparency International 4) Self-imposed exile to Toronto by fearful social media satirists 5) Murders of bloggers and inaction by a regime keen on “securing secular support via occasional executions of yesterday’s war criminals” while leaving today’s bloggers vulnerable to street executions.

Here’s what could have happened instead: 1) The TSC thugs arrested despite any perceived political links (though even better would be for the police to morph from passive spectator to active security-enforcer) 2) Free movement for all political candidates with no threatening rent-a-mob chanting during the mayoral campaign (and still the favoured Annisul Huq gets to win?)

3) Garments victims fully paid up and government undertakings to workers (and businessmen) fulfilled -- think about stability of electricity/gas/law and order and subsidised food for workers to offset low margins from greedy foreign buyers, etc 4) A government, confident of its unassailable political position, allows for “digital dissent” among the young urban minority -- who, by the way, rarely take to the streets. This would otherwise be called “smart politics”

5) Courage to take on terror networks who commit such shocking public executions. After all, the strength of a state is when it alone has the monopoly of violence ... so, inaction can be taken as a sign of weakness, get it?

After the mayoral fuss is all over (you don’t really believe the position has much more than symbolic power, do you?), the real battle with the BNP will commence.

Unless there is an unexpected (unlikely but certainly not impossible) public backlash via the ballot box, the plan seems to be to enact the final decapitation of the main opposition forces, replacement by friendly toothless outfits, and thereby the establishment of a permanent Party hegemony, “democratically achieved,” modelled perhaps on the Nehru dynasty in the first few decades of post-1947 India ...

But, as they say, the best-laid plans ...

ed to finally implement the Hill Tracts Accords which it signed back in 1997? From this high moral ground, it could then provide a robust defence of the rights of Rohingya refugees.

By allowing for digital dissent, with the chance of suffering an occasional inconsequential insult or two, it could earn the support of much of the dharma-niropekkho public (those whose politics see religion as neutral).

That would rise manifold if they showed zero-tolerance to street executioners.

By providing sensible answers to questions about disappearances of opposition leaders and activists, (and ensuring it does not happen again) it could once and for all reject the charges of a creeping Baksalisation which opponents are so ready to throw against it.

A penchant for scoring own goals

Framing an alternate story

Given the backdrop of global economic instability and almost permanent war in large swathes of the Middle East and Africa, the story from Bangladesh is refreshingly optimistic. Or it could have been.

Just imagine if the regime had pulled out all the stops to support garments entrepreneurs with bold policy action and implementing past promises while standing shoulder-to-shoulder with its garments workers, ensuring prompt compensation payments, meting out justice against any criminal owners, and providing subsidised support for workers struggling with spiralling food and housing costs in Dhaka.

Imagine if they had sacked the advisers who had decided that the Chittagong Hill Tracts should become a semi-No-Go area.

Just because Delhi mistreats its citizens in Assam and Nagaland, it should not mean we need to follow suit. We can do better.

Can you imagine if the government decid-

All these are a distraction from what could be a positive story of economic progress and widening prosperity. We know the fruits of growth are barely trickling down as inflation eats into nominal rises in wages but the country is coming to a critical stage.

Does it finally jettison the 1970s with its agenda of war crimes, one-party government, and threats of military coups? Can it shift the debate onto creating a national consensus on how new industries can rise? Don’t we have to reduce our vulnerability in relying on a low-technology-low-cost-low-margin garments industry?

From eggs in one basket, the urgent issue should be how to procure more baskets and diversify even while supporting that one basket to reach $50bn in annual revenues.

Young people, the middle-aged intelligentsia, and long-term investors could help create this consensus via social media, print media, TV talk-shows, and public face-to-

face discussions. Democracy is more than an occasional mark on a sometimes-rigged ballot paper. It also means listening to people’s concerns, hopes, and ideas. That makes it participatory.

But before entering that bright-eyed barely believable world of alternate reality, people must first see justice for crimes committed against women celebrating New Year, for crimes against bloggers, and for crimes committed against the poor industrial workforce.

Some of that same dogged determination to go hell-for-leather against war-criminals would not go amiss in seeking redress for injustices in 21st century Bangladesh.

Can you recall a time in any era of post-liberation electoral democracy where the opposition has been so weak, fractured, and devoid of ideas or direction?

From this position of strength, could wiser heads within the elite not demand a final drawing of a line over 1971 and replacing that ageing agenda with a new debate about creating a consensus of a brighter future that moves from PR slogans to a believable narrative …

Maybe, the regime can afford to disregard these thousand words as they do so many million more. An all-seeing, all-knowing regime can plough on regardless. Like us, it can also create its own understanding of what constitutes reality.

That is fine as long it does not confuse cunning with intelligence. Short-term repression for long-term survivability. Knee-jerk reactions for thought-through strategy.

But why concern ourselves with their thought processes? Should we not retain our faith in them ensuring this does not end up as their political tragedy? Of course we must.

They know what they are doing, right? l Farid Bakht is a political activist and can be reached at @Liquid_Borders.

16

‘Self-driving cars hold key to future highway’

17

Oil prices drop as Middle East tension eases

19

Stocks continue to decline with volatility

20

DT

Business

15

THURSDAY, APRIL 23 2015

BB blames social system for deadly bank robbery

Government has no clear data on Rana Plaza victims n Tribune Report

The file photo shows apparel industry workers demonstrating before the BGMEA building in Dhaka against denial of their rights

DHAKA TRIBUNE

RMG workers still denied rights n Tribune Report Garment workers in Bangladesh work in poor conditions and face anti-union tactical tussle with the employers including assault on union organisers, Human Rights Watch in its report said yesterday.

The HRW called on Bangladesh government, factory owners and western retailers to ensure respect for workers’ rights and end unlawful target of labour leaders by factory owners and supervisors.

The report said efforts are underway to make Bangladesh factories safer, but the government and western retailers should do more to enforce international labour standard to protect workers’ rights, including the one to form unions, and advocate for better working condition.

“If Bangladesh wants to avoid another Rana Plaza, it needs to effectively enforce labour law and ensure that garment workers en-

joy their rights and voice their concerns about safety and working conditions without any fear of retaliation or dismissal,” said Phil Robertson, Asia deputy director of HRW. “If Bangladesh does not hold factory managers accountable who attack the workers and refuse their right to form unions, the government will perpetuate practices that have already cost the lives of thousands of workers.”

The report titled “Whoever Raises their Head Suffers the Most”: Workers’ Rights in Bangladesh’s Garment Factories,” is based on interviews with more than 160 workers from 44 factories.

According to the report, there are a series of violations including physical assault, verbal abuse – sometimes of a sexual nature – forced overtime, denial of paid maternity leave, failure to pay wages and bonuses on time or in full.

Many workers who try to form unions to address such abuses face threats, intimidation, dismissal, and sometimes physical assault at the hands of factory management or hired third parties, added the report.

Union leaders told Human Rights Watch that they continue to be targeted by factory management, risking abuse by both managers and supervisors, or thugs acting at their behest.

A union leader at a factory in Gazipur said when she and others tried to set up a union in January 2014, they were brutally assaulted and scores of

workers were fired.

A Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) official told Human Rights Watch: “We have a bitter experience about unions. They believe they don’t need to work and they will get paid.”

But a Chittagong garment worker, Mitu Dtta, ran counter to what the BGMEA official said.

He said: “Four people were holding me and beating me in the legs with bars and two were beating my wife with iron bars.”

She had to get 14 stitches on her head, Mitu said, adding that when they were beating up Mira, they were saying, “You want to do union activities, right? and then we will shower you with blood.”

In our factory, 80% of workers are female and they will get pregnant but the managers are not doing anything about maternity leave and bonuses, described Mitu.

“When we protested against the injustice, our supervisors used to hurl slang at us, saying, if you are all concentrating on getting pregnant, why are you working here? Go and work in a brothel,” a female worker at a Dhaka-based factory said, seeking anonymity.

The Bangladesh government and retailers need to ensure that factory owners and management start respecting workers’ rights, and the government must hold accountable those who abuse labor rights, Robertson suggested.

The Bangladesh government should carry out effective and impartial investigations into all workers’ allegations of mistreatment, including beatings, threats and abuses, and prosecute those responsible, he said. l

Government does not have clear data about the Rana Plaza victims even in two years since the accident, said speakers at a roundtable yesterday.

“It was government’s responsibility to prepare statistics over the victims that how many workers were injured, how many were dead and how many remained unidentified,” said Kazi Saifuddin Ahmed, labour adviser of Bangladesh Employers Federation.

He blamed the government for “chaos over compensation issue” that there were confusions that who have been compensated and who have not been.

The roundtable discussion on “Present Situation of Rana Plaza Victims, Compensation and Rehabilitation” was organised by Bagladesh Occupational Safety, Health and Environment Foundation (OSHE) in the capital.

In which criteria the amount of compensation is being set and who will be entitled to get how much that is not clear to the affected workers and their families, he said.

He said, mass mismanagement has created which resulted in some workers getting compensation though they do not deserve it on the other hand who are entitled but not getting following their right.

He urged the government to prepare a clear data over the workers who have been compensated and how much through a study.

Some affected victims of Rana Plza and their families were present at the function and shared their views over the compensation.

Of the victims Shafiqul Islam who remained stuck up in the collapsed building one day said he was compensated only Tk60,000 in two phases in last two years. He could not join in work as he physical condition does not permit to heavy weight work.

He, however, still bearing lesion in his body but could not continue the treatment due to not have affordability.

He raised question that in which criteria he has been entitled to get the poor compensation that was even to enough for his treatment.

On the other hand, Mehera Begum who lost her son Babu Miah in the Rana Plaza disaster received compensation of only Tk50,000 in two years. She, however, got a letter from Rana Plaza claims administration where she has been entitled to get Tk4 lakh. But still she did not get the compensation amount.

The trade union leaders urged to form a committee a tri-partial committee consisting minimum one members on behalf of workers, owners and government to prepare a clear data over the compensation.

Kazi Reazaul Haque, a full-time member of National Human Rights Commission, was present as the chief guest. l

DT

16 BUSINESS

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

‘Self-driving cars hold key to future highway’ n AFP, Detroit Self-driving vehicles hold the key to reducing traffic fatalities and will transform the automobile industry, a top Google executive predicted Tuesday.

Ray Kurzweil, a leading expert in artificial intelligence who joined Google in 2012, told the annual conference of the Society of Automotive Engineers that the rapidly declining cost of computing power and the advances in artificial intelligence will make autonomous driving a reality.

Kurzweil told the audience that autonomous driving, utilizing artificial intelligence, is definitely coming.

“The technology works. It’s not far away,” said Kurzweil, though he was not prepared to say just when self-driving cars will become a common sight.

“Google advised me to share with you they don’t know the answer... The technology is not going to be introduced until it’s ready.”

The need and value of autonomous vehicles is clear, he told hundreds of the industry’s top engineers.

“Google cars have gone close to a million miles without incident,” he said.

“Some day an autonomous car will cause an accident and it will be big news. But while we’ve been talking several people have died from human drivers.”

Autonomous cars “are ultimately going to save millions of lives,” he said, noting that traffic accidents kill 1.2 million people worldwide a year now.

“They also provide more efficient use of roads and parking lots. There are a lot of benefits.”

But he said Google was not going to let its self-drive cars into the market “until they’re safe.”

“They have to be much more reliable than the technology they replace.”

The appearance of the original Google Car prototype touched off a race among the world’s automakers.

Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and Nissan have set up engineering centers near Google’s headquarters in Silicon Valley to focus on self-driving technologies.

Self-driving vehicles hold the key to reducing traffic fatalities and will transform the automobile industry, a top Google executive predicted Tuesday

Part of sharing culture

“People will still buy cars,” Kurzweil said.

“But the Uber model with self-driving cars will become very popular. We should share our cars. I think that model will grow when we have autonomous cars.

“Every company has to reinvent itself. Not everything is predictable.”

Kurzweil said that until now the transportation industry, including the automobile business, has not been considered part of the digital world.

“But we see information of every kind coming into every form of transportation,” he added.

At the same time, the price of digital information is dropping dramatically.

Kurzweil said disruptive technologies become feasible at different times. Search engines, such as the one developed by Google, became practical in the late 1990s because of the exponential growth in computing power.

If you tried to build a search engine after that you “missed your opportunity,” he said.

“But if you are running a business you can anticipate when changes will occur.”

“There is one is one aspect of the future you can predict reliably,” Kurzweil added.

“The price performance and the capacity of information technology follows a very pre-

AFP

dictable path and that path is exponential, not linear.”

As for slower-moving technologies like batteries - the key to more electric cars -- he predicted longer lasting batteries in 10 to 15 years, at a “more mature phase of nanotechnology where you can manipulate matter on the atomic level.”

Other technology, such as solar power, is developing more quickly than many experts expected.

“Solar power is growing exponentially. It’s doubling every two years. In many parts of the world, it’s reached parity with fossil fuel,” Kurzweil said. l

Euro 3-month China tech firms shake up world’s biggest car market interbank interest n AFP, Shanghai Powerful state partners rate turns negative n

AFP, Paris

The 3-month Euribor, the rate at which eurozone banks borrow from one another and serves as a reference for household and corporate lending, fell Tuesday into negative territory for the first time, according to Bloomberg data.

The 3-month Euribor came in at -0.001% on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg which cited the European Money Markets Institute that compiles the rates.

Euribor rates have been falling steadily for months during the run-up and following the launch last month of the European Central Bank’s massive 1.1tn euro ($1.2tn) bond-buying stimulus programme. l

Chinese technology giants Alibaba and Tencent are promising to build the cars of the future, vehicles linked seamlessly to the Internet and offering shopping and navigation help while on the road.

E-commerce company Alibaba and WeChat messaging app provider Tencent have both announced plans for cars in the past month, along with video streaming platform Letv.

The move could shake up the traditional industry in the world’s largest auto market, but details of their automotive visions are still vague, analysts said.

At the Shanghai auto show this week, the stand of Letv’s partner in the venture, BAIC Motor, displayed the concept for the vehicle, which has two front seats with a steering wheel and a futuristic screen control panel.

“In the mobile Internet era, the auto indus-

try is facing a huge revolution,” Letv CEO Jia Yueting said on his microblog. “The Chinese auto industry can subvert traditional European, American, Japanese and Korean giants.”

A promotional film at the auto show said the Letv car would have features such as gesture recognition, automatic parking and a fingerprint recognition locking device.

“At the moment we haven’t seen the products, this is all the sort of concept stage,” Namrita Chow, principal analyst for IHS Automotive, told AFP. In the United States, search engine Google has already made news with its plans for a “self-driving car”, and Apple is reportedly planning to develop an electric car.

Alibaba, whose $25bn US-listing last year was the world’s largest, plans an “Internet car” that would use technology to provide a better driving experience including e-commerce, digital entertainment, map and com-

munications services.

In one sense, Alibaba is already in the auto business. Its business-to-consumer platform Tmall.com is now offering for sale more than 30 new cars - including a limited-edition Ford Mustang -- launched at the Shanghai auto show, which started on Monday.

Rival Tencent also has plans for an Internet-connected car, while Letv plans an electric vehicle. China’s market for fully electric vehicles and hybrids remains small, but the government is offering support to the emerging industry.

Both Alibaba and Letv have chosen powerful state-owned firms as partners for their projects, an odd match for the nimble private companies.

Alibaba is working with China’s biggest auto maker, Shanghai-based SAIC Motor. l

DT

BUSINESS 17

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Oil prices drop as Middle East tension eases n Reuters, Singapore Oil prices extended declines from the previous session yesterday as tensions in the Middle East eased after Saudi Arabia ended an air strike campaign in Yemen, but industry leaders said the market could rebound as attention turned to rising demand.

Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday it was ending a month-long military campaign against the Houthi rebels who seized large areas of Yemen, bringing hope of a peaceful political solution to the conflict in the key oil producing region.

Oil prices had gained nearly $10 a barrel this month on tensions in the Middle East and concerns over slowing output growth in the United States, before starting to drop back.

Prices are unlikely to plumb new depths this year, however, leading commodity trad-

ers said on Tuesday, citing strengthening demand.

“We will probably see one more dip in the second quarter but prices probably won’t go below this year’s lows,” said Ian Taylor, head of the world’s top oil trader, Vitol.

“Gasoline is coming back with a vengeance. Refining margins are not as bad as we had feared,” he said.

Growth in demand outside the United States was impressive in India, South Africa and Europe, he added.

Brent for June delivery LCOc1 was down 43 cents at $61.65 a barrel by 0650 GMT, after settling $1.27 lower on Tuesday.

US crude for June delivery CLc1 was 70 cents lower at $55.91 a barrel. The May contract, which expired on Tuesday, ended down $1.12.

“The world has been focused for the last six months on destroying supply,” said Exec-

utive Chairman Gary Ross of the PIRA Energy Group consultancy in an interview.

“Increasingly the mindset is going to change. They’ll have to start thinking about creating supply again, and that’s going to mean a lot higher prices than today,” he said.

Still, crude oil storage in the United States has reached the highest levels since 2011, with tanks in the Cushing, Oklahoma hub running nearly 80% full, according to energy markets intelligence firm Genscape.

A Reuters survey showed US crude inventories likely rose for the 15th straight week, adding nearly 3 million barrels last week, less than a reading by industry group American Petroleum Institute that showed a stock build of 5.5 million barrels.

Official US stocks data will be issued by the government’s Energy Information Administration at 1430 GMT on Wednesday. l

Euro sinks in Asia as Tokyo ends at 15-year high n AFP, Hong Kong Japanese shares ended above 20,000 yesterday for the first time in 15 years as the country recorded its first trade surplus for almost three years, while the euro weakened on pessimism about a Greek bailout deal.

With few catalysts to spur business in Asia, several other markets fell following a broadly negative lead from Wall Street.

Tokyo jumped 1.13%, or 224.81 points, to finish at 20,133.90 - ending above 20,000 for the first time since April 2000.

Shanghai soared 2.44%, or 104.87 points, to end at 4,398.49 and Hong Kong rose 0.30 percent, or 83.36 points, to 27,933.85 But Seoul ended marginally lower, losing 0.90 points to 2,143.89, while Sydney shed 0.36%, or 34.84 points, to close at 5,837.50.

Singapore was off 0.29% in the afternoon and Jakarta had shed 0.27%.

Tokyo’s Nikkei broke back through the 20,000 point barrier - after briefly clearing the hurdle earlier this month in intraday trading as the yen slipped against the dollar.

“Since the Nikkei is a simple average of 225 (companies), what’s behind its rise are expectations for higher corporate earnings,” Toshihiko Matsuno, senior strategist at SMBC Friend Securities, told AFP. “Where the market will go from here depends on how company earnings fare.”

Before the market opened the finance ministry said March saw the country enjoy its first trade surplus since June 2012 thanks to tumbling oil prices and a boost in exports.

However, economists warned the positive results might not last.

“We expect the yen to weaken further in coming months, which should lift the cost of imports by more than the yen–value of exports,” Marcel Thieliant at Capital Economics wrote in a commentary.

“The trade balance is unlikely to remain in surplus for long.”

The dollar was at 119.52 yen against 119.63 yen in New York but well up from 119.44 yen in Tokyo earlier Tuesday.

The dollar’s strength comes despite the diminishing likelihood of a US rate rise any time soon.

Athens backlash

A man fishes near an oil platform in Niteroi, near Rio de Janeiro

REUTERS

More than 30% of Arab youth jobless n AFP, Kuwait City More than 30% of young Arabs are jobless because of unrest in many Arab nations and not enough investment, a top labour official said on Sunday.

“The unemployment rate among Arab youth until the age of 30 years exceeds 30%,” the director general of the Arab Labour Organisation Ahmad Mohammed Luqman told AFP. “Unrest and a lack of investments have boosted the number of jobless.”

He said many graduates fail to find em-

ployment because their specialisations are not needed by private sector.

“Due to unrest in several Arab nations, the number of Arabs without jobs has jumped two million since 2011, making the total number of unemployed Arabs at 20 million,” Luqman said on the sidelines of the annual Arab labour conference. He told the opening session of the five-day gathering in Kuwait City that unemployment in the Arab world hit 17% last year, “three times higher” than the global average.

“It appears that jobless numbers will rise this year and the next,” Luqman added, with-

out providing specific figures. Guy Ryder, director general of the International Labour Organisation, warned that the youth unemployment problem is a threat to stability.

“Arab countries face the urgent and unavoidable task of responding to an acute crisis of unemployment,” he told the conference.

“Failure to provide them with opportunities for decent work is a potent threat to the stability of our societies.”

Since 2011, uprisings have swept over Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen, forcing out veteran strongmen. l

1the Fed won’t do anything soon. The momentum in equities is still there,” Evan Lucas, a markets strategist at IG in Melbourne, told Bloomberg News.

The euro slipped as investors nervously follow events in Europe as Greece struggles to scrape cash together to pay its bills.

Athens is facing a backlash from the country’s mayors after it issued a decree ordering them to hand over their reserves in order to service its debts and pay wages.

The government is locked in negotiations with its international creditors on unlocking billions of euros in much-needed bailout funds. Failure to secure the cash will likely see it default and possibly crash out of the eurozone, which analysts fear could have global repercussions.

Greece’s creditors sounded the alarm Saturday over the pace of debt negotiations, with European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi saying: “More work, much more work is needed now, and it’s urgent.” l

DT

18 BUSINESS

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

News, analysis and recent disclosures NTC: The Board of Directors has recommended 20% cash dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2014. Date of AGM: 31.07.2015, Time: 10:00 AM, Venue: Hotel Purbani 1, Dilkusha C/A, Dhaka-1000.

Record Date: 14.07.2015. The Company has also reported Net Profit after Tax of Tk. 42.09 million, EPS of Tk. 6.38, NAV per share of Tk. 126.20 and NOCFPS of Tk. 16.38 for the year ended on December 31, 2014.

DESCO: (Q3 Un-audited): Net Profit after tax from (Jan15 to March15) was Tk. 304.81 million with EPS of Tk. 0.81 as against Tk. 52.45 million and Tk. 0.14 respectively for the same period of the previous year. Whereas Net Profit after tax from July14 to March15 was Tk. 1,151.43 million with EPS of Tk. 3.04 as against Tk. 244.39 million and Tk. 0.65 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

APEXTANRY: (Q3 Un-audited): Net Profit/(Loss) after tax from (Jan15 to March15) was Tk. (0.71) million with EPS of Tk. (0.05) as against Tk. 12.77 million and Tk. 0.83 respectively for the same period of the previous year. Whereas Net Profit after tax from July14 to March15 was Tk. 24.99 million with EPS of Tk. 1.64 as against Tk. 49.74 million and Tk. 3.26 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

Board Meeting: FEDERALINS on April 27, 2015 at 2:30 PM, ACIFORMULA on April 27, 2015 at 3:00 PM, SONARBAINS on April 27, 2015 at 3:30 PM,

BATASHOE on April 27, 2015 at 2:30 PM. IPO Subscription: Olympic Accessories Limited Subscription 19.04.2015 TO 23.04.2015, NRB UPTO 02.05.2015. Offer Price per share Tk. 10.00, Market Lot (Shares) 500.

Dividend/AGM BDTHAI: 10% stock, AGM: 22.06.2015, Record Date: 04.05.2015.

PIONEERINS: 5% cash and 25% stock, AGM: 21.05.2015, Record Date: 04.05.2015.

PROVATIINS: 12% stock, AGM: 25.06.2015, Record Date: 04.05.2015.

IBNSINA: 30% cash and 5% stock, AGM: 06.06.2015, Record Date: 10.05.2015.

AGRANINS: 10% cash, AGM: 30.05.2015, Record Date: 29.04.2015.

ABBANK: 12.50% stock, EGM and AGM: 17.05.2015, Record date for EGM and AGM: 23.04.2015.

IFIC: 15% Stock dividend, AGM: 17.06.2015, Record Date: 20.05.2015.

MERCINS: 10% cash dividend, AGM: 09.06.2015, Record Date: 22.04.2015.

NORTHRNINS: 10% stock dividend, AGM: 13.06.2015, Record Date: 22.04.2015.

CITYGENINS: 10% stock dividend, AGM: 15.06.2015, Record Date: 22.04.2015.

SHASHADNIM: 20% cash and 15% stock dividend, AGM: 21.05.2015, Record date: 23.04.2015.

POPULARLIF: 40% Stock dividend, AGM: 11.06.2015, Record Date: 23.04.2015.

Turnover (Volume) Number of Contract

Company Premier Leasing-Z BD Submarine Cable-A GeminiSeaFood-B Sonargaon Tex -Z Modern Dyeing -Z Reliance Insur -A FAR Chemical-N Hamid Fabrics -N Ifad Autos -N SummitAlliancePort.-A

Closing (% Change) 10.00 10.00 9.84 9.68 9.47 7.51 7.19 6.28 6.21 6.06

CSE GAINER Company BD Submarine Cable-A Bangladesh Welding -Z Sonargaon Tex -Z Hamid Fabrics -N Premier Leasing-Z Samata LeatheR -Z Fine Foods A SummitAlliancePort.-A FAR Chemical-N ISN Ltd. -Z

Closing (% Change) 9.99 9.79 9.76 9.75 9.59 9.36 7.78 7.76 7.19 7.14

DSE LOSER Company Dhaka Bank -A Zahintex Ind.-N Apex Tannery -A National Life I -A United Power-N United Insur -A ACI Formulations-A Standard Insurance-A Grameen1:Scheme2 -A People`s Leasing-A

Closing (% Change) -18.04 -8.18 -8.09 -6.75 -6.69 -6.67 -6.01 -5.52 -5.32 -5.23

CSE LOSER Company Dhaka Bank -A Hwa Well Textiles-A Apex Tannery -A Grameen1:Scheme2 -A Takaful Islami Insu-A ICB AMCL 1st NRB -A National Life I -A H.R. Textile -A BGIC -A United Power-N

Closing (% Change) -18.00 -9.91 -8.16 -8.08 -8.02 -7.65 -7.58 -7.28 -7.14 -7.06

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY

DSE key features April 22, 2015 Turnover (Million Taka)

DSE GAINER

Sector

5,255.85 112,345,058 126,352

Traded Issues

309

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

102

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

205

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

2

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,436.08

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

29.53

Bank NBFI Investment Engineering Food & Allied Fuel & Power Jute Textile Pharma & Chemical Paper & Packaging Service Leather Ceramic Cement Information Technology General Insurance Life Insurance Telecom Travel & Leisure Miscellaneous Debenture

DSE Million Taka 226.99 101.79 29.05 681.18 159.62 1635.73 2.72 570.09 718.26 13.83 427.88 19.20 72.26 64.71 115.73 19.31 54.76 137.15 100.78 95.78 9.04

% change 4.32 1.94 0.55 12.96 3.04 31.12 0.05 10.85 13.67 0.26 8.14 0.37 1.37 1.23 2.20 0.37 1.04 2.61 1.92 1.82 0.17

Million Taka 13.00 9.82 1.42 51.10 8.74 148.44 51.43 32.26 2.23 23.69 1.13 7.90 9.49 7.79 0.59 2.01 15.61 19.93 13.96 0.01

Average (% Change) 2.82 10.45 9.66 9.85 35.01 9.25 4.74 5.68 2.94 4.41

Average (% Change) 10.59 6.73 9.76 6.65 11.66 9.36 6.19 5.36 4.82 7.33

Average (% Change) -18.09 -4.91 -7.46 -4.57 -1.50 -8.74 2.08 -4.20 -4.26 -4.51

Average (% Change) -16.82 -9.57 -7.21 -4.75 -8.17 -7.43 -2.95 -6.14 -7.16 -1.69

CSE

ClosingAvg. 7.29 136.40 187.57 13.60 100.00 40.15 29.18 25.47 81.65 57.56

ClosingAvg. 136.50 15.69 13.50 25.66 7.95 18.70 9.61 57.84 29.37 12.00

ClosingAvg. 15.98 15.29 102.54 191.08 221.12 20.89 140.71 17.32 8.99 15.05

ClosingAvg.

% change 3.09 2.34 0.34 12.15 2.08 35.30 0.00 12.23 7.67 0.53 5.63 0.27 1.88 2.26 1.85 0.14 0.48 3.71 4.74 3.32 0.00

16.42 30.13 102.26 9.22 17.20 16.94 204.78 19.10 14.26 220.73

Closing 7.70 136.40 189.80 13.60 76.30 40.10 29.80 25.40 83.80 57.80

Closing

DHIGH 7.70 136.40 190.00 13.60 76.50 40.90 30.00 26.20 84.80 59.00

DHIGH

136.50 15.70 13.50 25.90 8.00 18.70 9.70 58.30 29.80 12.00

Closing 15.90 14.60 101.10 186.40 210.70 21.00 134.40 17.10 8.90 14.50

Closing 16.40 30.00 100.20 9.10 17.20 16.90 195.00 19.10 14.30 210.70

Million Taka 239.99 111.61 30.47 732.28 168.36 1784.17 2.72 621.52 750.52 16.06 451.57 20.33 80.16 74.20 123.52 19.90 56.76 152.76 120.71 109.73 9.04

DLOW 6.60 136.40 182.00 13.60 76.00 38.80 28.10 23.80 78.60 55.90

DLOW

136.50 15.70 13.50 25.90 8.00 18.70 9.80 59.40 30.10 12.00

DHIGH

136.50 15.60 13.50 23.90 7.10 18.70 8.80 55.10 28.00 12.00

DLOW

16.40 16.10 108.10 203.00 233.90 21.10 146.00 18.40 9.60 15.80

DHIGH

15.90 14.40 99.10 184.00 206.90 20.90 132.90 17.00 8.70 14.10

DLOW

16.70 30.30 109.40 9.50 17.20 17.00 206.00 19.10 14.90 233.80

Total

16.40 30.00 100.00 9.10 17.20 16.90 195.00 19.10 14.20 207.10

% change 4.23 1.97 0.54 12.90 2.97 31.43 0.05 10.95 13.22 0.28 7.96 0.36 1.41 1.31 2.18 0.35 1.00 2.69 2.13 1.93 0.16

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

Turnover in Million

Latest EPS

0.871 36.297 1.916 1.019 0.001 0.285 40.565 29.707 118.515 141.470

Turnover in Million

0.08 0.76 -6.36 -0.84 -0.50 4.34 2.76 1.88 1.92 0.78

Latest EPS

5.188 0.154 0.194 7.376 1.041 0.000 0.041 8.076 4.794 0.006

Turnover in Million

91.1 179.5 -ve -ve -ve 9.3 10.6 13.5 42.5 73.8

Latest PE

0.76 0.44 -0.84 1.88 0.08 -0.46 -0.36 0.78 2.76 0.13

Latest EPS

4.808 4.637 13.297 1.898 623.174 0.048 44.844 0.312 6.605 28.042

Turnover in Million

Latest PE

179.6 35.7 -ve 13.6 99.4 -ve -ve 74.2 10.6 92.3

Latest PE

3.35 1.03 2.19 12.46 7.11 2.92 3.27 3.07 0.92 0.97

Latest EPS

0.015 0.060 0.910 0.486 0.086 0.042 0.028 0.006 0.059 82.448

4.8 14.8 46.8 15.3 31.1 7.2 43.0 5.6 9.8 15.5

Latest PE

3.35 2.66 2.19 0.92 1.43 2.86 12.46 1.36 1.31 7.11

4.9 11.3 46.7 10.0 12.0 5.9 16.4 14.0 10.9 31.0

CSE key features April 22, 2015 Turnover (Million Taka) Turnover (Volume) Number of Contract

420.55 11,087,949 20,031

Traded Issues

238

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

83

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

150

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

5

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,350.12

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

28.49

DT

BUSINESS 19

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Stocks continue to decline with volatility n Tribune Report

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company United Power-N Khulna Power-A SAIF Powertec-N WesternMarine -N ACI Limited- A Shasha Denims -N MJL BD Ltd.-A SummitAlliancePort.-A Ifad Autos -N Baraka Power-A

Square Pharma -A Grameenphone-A DESCO Ltd. -A CVO PetroChem RL-A Bangas -A

VolumeShares 2,818,265 4,840,166 3,713,763 4,674,135 423,115 4,872,616 1,429,529 2,457,973 1,451,475 3,582,273

Value in Million 623.17 324.87 280.93 252.36 234.43 209.48 185.21 141.47 118.52 117.01

% of TotalTurnover 11.86 6.18 5.35 4.80 4.46 3.99 3.52 2.69 2.25 2.23

VolumeShares

Value in Million

% of TotalTurnover

CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company United Power-N WesternMarine -N MJL BD Ltd.-A UNITED AIR-A Khulna Power-A SAIF Powertec-N Shasha Denims -N Mozaffar H.Spinning-A Grameenphone-A CVO PetroChem RL-A

LafargeS Cement-Z SummitAlliancePort.-A BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Hamid Fabrics -N RAK Ceramics-A

449,638 305,022 1,447,948 228,518 239,474

373,529 400,708 148,801 2,117,892 231,595 200,179 273,228 314,905 31,611 21,996

73,846 139,622 249,911 287,483 126,400

113.92 100.85 94.50 93.17 87.71

82.45 21.60 19.37 17.06 15.57 15.33 11.67 10.88 10.43 8.95

8.20 8.08 7.60 7.38 7.18

2.17 1.92 1.80 1.77 1.67

19.60 5.14 4.61 4.06 3.70 3.65 2.78 2.59 2.48 2.13

1.95 1.92 1.81 1.75 1.71

ClosingP 210.70 67.90 78.10 53.10 534.80 43.90 126.90 57.80 83.80 32.60

252.30 329.30 64.40 409.60 350.80

ClosingP

Change % -6.69 4.95 4.97 1.34 -0.30 3.78 -3.28 6.06 6.21 2.19

-0.83 -0.99 0.94 5.00 -2.80

Change %

210.70 52.80 126.80 8.00 67.80 77.60 43.60 34.90 327.90 405.50

110.70 58.30 30.10 25.90 56.40

-7.06 0.96 -2.91 1.27 4.79 4.02 3.07 2.65 -1.47 4.51

1.65 7.76 -0.66 9.75 1.99

ClosingY 225.80 64.70 74.40 52.40 536.40 42.30 131.20 54.50 78.90 31.90

254.40 332.60 63.80 390.10 360.90

ClosingY

226.70 52.30 130.60 7.90 64.70 74.60 42.30 34.00 332.80 388.00

108.90 54.10 30.30 23.60 55.30

DHIGH 233.90 68.10 79.00 55.10 570.00 44.10 134.00 59.00 84.80 33.50

256.80 334.80 66.80 418.90 398.00

DHIGH

233.80 55.00 133.90 8.40 68.10 79.00 44.00 35.40 334.80 419.90

115.00 59.40 31.00 25.90 57.60

DLOW 206.90 65.40 72.30 52.40 530.00 42.10 126.20 55.90 78.60 31.90

251.00 328.50 63.70 393.20 345.00

DLOW

207.10 52.00 126.30 7.80 65.50 74.50 41.80 34.10 326.60 390.00

109.80 55.10 30.00 23.90 55.00

AvgPrice 221.12 67.12 75.65 53.99 554.05 42.99 129.56 57.56 81.65 32.66

253.36 330.63 65.26 407.70 366.27

AvgPrice

220.73 53.90 130.20 8.06 67.23 76.60 42.73 34.54 329.86 406.76

111.08 57.84 30.40 25.66 56.78

Daily capital market highlights DSE Broad Index : DSE - 30 Index : CSE All Share Index: CSE - 30 Index : CSE Selected Index :

4252.94666

(-) 0.71%

1621.56325

(-) 0.65%

13077.4750

(-) 1.12%

10584.7046

(-) 1.66%

7947.8895

(-) 1.31%

▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼

Stocks continued to fall for the third consecutive session yesterday as investors’ confidence was running low.

The market moved up and down in the early trading but accelerated its decline as the day wore on.

Some of the worst-hit stocks were from power and financial issues.

The benchmark index DSEX shed 30 points or 0.8% to close at 4,252—its lowest level since December 30, 2013.

The Shariah Index DSES dropped 3 points or 0.4% to 1,041. The comprising blue chips DS30 was down 10 points or 0.7% to 1,621.

Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, closed at 7,957, losing 96 points.

Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Ltd (BSCCL) continued to show its muscle as its share prices continued to climb for the second session in a row since the Cabinet approved to export bandwidth to India, which is expected to boost income

of the company up to $1.2m every year.

In the last two sessions, the company gained 20% – the biggest gainer of the day.

Newly listed United Power Generation and Distribution Company Limited fell on profit booking after a long rally abnormally. It remained the most-traded scrips as usual for nearly two weeks.

Strong selling pressure has helped turnover cross Tk500 crore at the Dhaka Stock Exchange. It stood at Tk525 crore, up more than 19% over the previous session.

Cement sector was only sector that closed positive with a rise of 1.6%. Among the worst sectors, power suffered most falling 1.9%, followed by banks 1.4% and non-banking financial institutions 0.8%.

Lanka Bangla Securities said it was another bad day for the capital market. “Lack of confidence and direction among the investors are clearly visible as the market showed a lot of volatility throughout the whole trading session.” l

ANALYST

Lack of confidence and direction among the investors are clearly visible as the market showed a lot of volatility throughout the whole trading session

DT

20 BUSINESS

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Ceramic makers seek SD withdrawal on local manufacturing n Tribune Report

CID personnel visit the crime scene at the Bangladesh Commerce Bank branch in Ashulia after Tuesday’s horrible robbery incident

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

BB blames social system for deadly bank robbery n Tribune Report Bangladesh Bank blames social system for the robbery that took place in daytime on Tuesday in Kathgarha branch of Bangladesh Commerce Bank in Ashulia on the outskirts of the capital.

At lest seven people were killed and 11 injured during the act of robbery.

Bangladesh Bank announced a donation of Tk1 lakh for each family of those dead.

Bangladesh Bank Deputy Governor SK Sur Chowdhury came up with the announcement at a press conference held yesterday at the central bank headquarters.

“The bank’s own security force is not enough to resist such gruesome robbery,” said SK Sur Chowdhury.

He claimed that without social development, it is not possible for banks to protect vaults from such incidents.

“Banks have experienced different incidents like theft, robbery, forgery, but I have never seen such a gruesome robbery in my life,” said Sur. The central bank will provide the donation for the family members of the dead from its CSR (corporate social responsibility) fund.

On the other hand, BB yesterday sent an

investigation team comprised of three members to the spot to inquire whether there was any mistake from the bank’s side.

Bangladesh Bank asked the banks to provide financial assistance to the injured admitted to hospital.

At the same time the central bank sent a letter to Inspector General of Police (IGP), asking for a quick investigation into the bank robbery and to catch those involved in the incident.

In the letter addressed to IGP, the central bank said such incident is a threat to the banking sector as it is based on public confidence. l

Padma Life board fined Tk20 lakh for rule violation n Tribune Report The Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA) has imposed a fine of total Tk20 lakh on the Padma Islami Life Insurance company board members for violating the Chief Executive Officer’s appointment rules.

The decision came at a hearing IDRA held at its headquarters on April 1 with the company’s board members.

IDRA Chairman M Shefaq Ahmed presided over the hearing while the insurance company Chairman ABM Zafar Ullah was present, among others, said a press release IDRA issued yesterday.

All the board members have been fined Tk1

lakh each for keeping the CEO post vacant for one year, according to the decision.

The company will have to pay fine of Tk5,000 per day if the measures of appointing CEO are not taken by May 1 next.

The CEO post in Padma Life Insurance remained vacant since March 19 last year.

On May 5 last year, the authority asked the company to appoint a CEO through a letter.

Later, the company sent a letter, seeking the approval of Mohammad Wasiuddin as CEO on January 5 this year.

The authority rejected the proposal as Wasiuddin was not qualified as CEO. The directors who have been fined are – Chairman ABM Zafar Ullah, Vice- Chair-

man AFM Obaidur, Director Abu Taher, ATM Rafique, Nazim Uddin Ahmed, Nazmun Nahar, Zainal Abedin Zafar, ATM Anayet Ullah, Abdul Mujib Chowdhury, Nadera Saberin, AKM Anwaruzzaman, Fatema Begum, Independent Director Nurul Islam Chowdhury, Dewan Sultan Ahmed, Public Shareholder Director Nargis Wazed, Suriya Basar, Abul Kashem, Mohammad Muntasir Karim and Rasheda Jahan.

According to the insurance companies act, the post of CEO cannot remain vacant for more than three months. IDRA, however, has the authority to extend the period by three more months.

Earlier, IDRA fined Union Insurance Tk5 lakh for the same. l

Domestic ceramic manufacturers have requested the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to completely withdraw the supplementary duty (SD) on locally made ceramic tiles to help them contribute more to the government exchequer.

They said the locally made tiles are no more considered to be luxurious products and therefore the SD on local tiles manufacturing needs complete withdrawal.

The withdrawal of SD can help domestic manufacturers compete with the global market keeping the standard of tiles, the manufacturers said, adding that the duty withdrawal can boost sales of products helping them contribute more to the government exchequer.

Currently, there are 15% Value Added Tax and 15% SD on local manufacturing of tiles.

Bangladesh Ceramic Wares Manufacturers Association (BCWMA) has come up with the demand at a proposal filed before the NBR for upcoming budget for fiscal year 2015-16.

The association president M Sirajul Islam Molla, also a lawmaker, made the demands in the proposal.

The country’s ceramic industry, which has employed around 5lakh workers, has so far invested Tk5,000 crore and witnessed 200% growth in the last five years, according to BCWMA. Currently, there are over 50 local industries that meet the local demands and export products to many other countries. All these industries are involved mainly in production of tableware, tiles and sanitary ware.

The industry earned Tk400 crore as foreign currency through export, and has witnessed 140% growth in last 10 years, BCWMA said.

The industry contributes around Tk2,000 crore as revenue and different bills to the government exchequer, according to BCWMA. The association leaders also demanded a proper literature of the Harmonized System (HS) codes to avoid any sort of misleading tax imposition.

They also said the customs duty on essential intermediary raw material, decoration and printing materials should be reduced to 5% from the existing 10% and 25% respectively.

They also said the customs duty on essential machinery and parts like elements should be brought down to 2% from the existing 5%, 10% and 25% on different machinery.

It also asked NBR to completely withdraw the regulatory duty and supplementary duty on these products.

The manufacturers, on the other hand, demanded a rise of supplementary duty on imported tiles, sanitary-ware, and tableware products from existing 60% to 80% and on opal glass tableware and pyrex products from existing 45% to 80% to protect local industry, collect increased revenue, and prevent under-voicing.

They also demanded that the regulatory duty on imported tiles, sanitary ware, table ware, opel glass tableware and pirex-made tableware should be raised to 25% from existing 5%. l

DT

Photo: Bigstock

T-JUNCTION

Making the heart smile

21

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

INSIDE

22

Hot Topic

The secret of everyday happiness

24 Ticket

Inspect your gadget “On The Streets”

by Jaago

DT

22 T-JUNCTION

Hot Topic

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

The secret of everyday happiness PHOTOS: BIGSTOCK

Be a butterfly and travel lightly: revel in the vibrancy of life !

n

Syeda Shusmita Ferdousi

Are you someone who thinks you just have to put up with things now - just long enough until things become more palatable in the future? I can relate to that because I was that person until I woke up one morning, decided to STOP being miserable and take control of my life. So...I quit my job and started working for myself and I can’t even begin to tell you how awesome that felt! Now I have the opportunity to retrain and rediscover myself instead of feeling stuck in a rut. I now enjoy the euphoria of absolute autonomy...ahhh that sweet sweet nectar for the soul!

So...if you’re experiencing that impasse and feel you have no option but to just drift along on auto pilot; sighing a lot during the day and softly sobbing into your pillow at night.. then read on.

Stop overthinking: Remember: analysis is paralysis. Some people take months and years to come to a decision as they are forever weighing up the pros and cons.

Listen to Nike and JUST DO IT! When we think too much or live in our head, our body is in then stuck in a frozen moment instead of being in full expression. Move into your body and do activities which bring you joy and go for the job which will bring you purpose and meaning! To recap: stop thinking about doing it and just do it already!

Give up high expectations: Usually people who are perfectionists tend to have high expectations from themselves and of others too. They will only do something if they can do it perfectly otherwise they won’t do it at all. This leads to

procrastination, disappointment and sometimes even depression. So do yourself a favour and rid yourself of this neurosis.

If you can’t do it yourself, ask people who love you to help you out. If all fails, get the help of a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist.

Give up junk food: You heard me...go cold turkey. Plant based food is where it’s at.

Food rich with enzymes will give you an energy boost and you’ll feel better. You’re welcome.

SUCCESS

PS. Seriously - this is a no-brainer!

STRATEGY

Let go of limiting BS (belief system): It’s all about knowing instead of believing.

Don’t buy into everything the media tells you. Do your own research and come to your own conclusion. On a personal level, if someone tells you, you can’t do something - question it instead of accepting it as an absolute. That’s just their subjective experience of you. So first of all know what you really want, focus your energy completely into that and it will manifest. Use your limitations to be limitless!

Give up complaining: When you complain, you bathe in negative energy and you have to ask yourself “How is this serving me?

Instead, change your mindset, appreciate and focus on what you already have.

That way you will feel you are living in abundance. When you are burdened with troubling thoughts, strive to bring a galactic perspective. Also, don’t forget that every problem has a solution. Use lateral thinking strategies and be thrilled about coming up with solutions.

RESEARCH

GOALS

TEAM WORK

VISION

T-JUNCTION 23

DT

Hot Topic

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

PHOTO: SYED LATIF HOSSAIN

Stop gossiping: If you’re gossiping about other people it’s a sign there’s nothing going on in your own life. Instead, try to focus on everything you’re grateful for and when you’re busy doing the things you love, you won’t have time or inclination to gossip.

Give up the negative self talk: This is energy depleting. To move into an energy generative state, move from your mind, into your body and every now and then, get off your hamster wheel of goal-chasing. So... stop, smell the roses or simply breathe in that precious Prana (Sanskrit for Life Force).

Stop living in the past: Embrace the

power of now. Don’t get attached to your past story line. Create a new page every single day.

Give up FEAR (False Evidence Appearing Real ): Are you too scared of failure or of doing something which is in alignment to your true purpose? We are constantly measuring ourselves in someone else’s version of success. That breeds tightness, tension, feelings of inferiority and fear.

Find something or someone that inspires you enough to give you strength and courage. For me it’s this simple quote

by Bruce Lee: “You must be shapeless, formless, like water. When you pour water

in a cup, it becomes the cup. When you pour water in a bottle, it becomes the bottle. When you pour water in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Water can drip and it can crash.”

Become like water, my friend.

Stop judging yourself and comparing yourself to others: We spend a lot of our time emulating others because we feel part of ourself is somewhere else - maybe inside THAT person. When we connect with ourself the need to compare to others is no longer there. Create your own value system and your own happiness. Don’t judge yourself too hard because there’s plenty of people doing that for you! Happiness is in the action you take and not just your thoughts. Honour your true soul’s purpose.

Go for it and achieve it, instead of being unproductive and comparing yourself with others - coveting what they have.

Give up labels: You are NOT your skin colour, you are NOT your diet, you are NOT your job title! Live in abundance and create magic. Honour your true authenticity instead of trying to impress people with superficial aspects of yourself.

Give up control: Give up control and move away from your mind and get more into your body, into your inner being, to who you are beyond words. Control is one of the biggest mind trap. Free yourself from your mental prison and enter a state of pure happiness. Don’t control or be controlled.

Freedom is your birth right.

Stop being a victim: Instead of complaining where you are, move into the direction where you want to be. Don’t just spend your energy attacking what you hate, instead, promote what you love. You

alone have the power to live the life you are worthy of.

Meditate: Happiness is a self-generated skill and meditation can help you hone this. Meditation will soon join the pantheon of no-brainers like exercising, balanced diet etc. So don’t dismiss it as something only bohemian, tree-hugging hippies do. Start incorporating this in your daily routine and you will notice a massive improvement in your wellbeing!

Well, guess what? I’ve left the best for last. Remember to smile and compliment others. Make sure you mean it too. Nothing worse than being inauthentic. Even the most evil person can have a beautiful and vulnerable side to them. We all have those polarities. There’s no good without evil, no light without darkness, no joy without melancholy. Embrace these polarities and live life in its full spectrum. So find something genuinely nice about that pesky colleague who makes your life miserable, and compliment them. You can be better than the worst people around you and be kind to them. Why? Because you can!

I don’t know about you, but every time I make another person happy - I get a massive dopamine hit and the buzz lasts me for hours. The best things in life are really free!

I hope these steps help you to experience bite-size, daily dose of Nirvana and set you off on your path to transformation - from a sluggish caterpillar to a resplendent butterfly! l Syeda Shusmita Ferdousi is a therapist, life coach, personal travel advisor and social media marketing consultant. She currently resides in Sydney, Australia

DT

24 T-JUNCTION

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Ticket

finds

Inspect your gadget When it comes to electronics, Philips has been a household name in many homes in Bangladesh for ages. While they may have been touted as the king of light bulbs in the 8os, (Batti’r raja Philips-ring a bell?)

This company has a whole lot more to offer to make everyday chores a breeze.

Check out the extensive collection of products at Panna Electronics, located at 71/D Bangabandhu National Stadium Market in Gulistan.

Info: Telephone: 01972-472370 http://www.panna.com.bd/

news

“On The Streets”

by Jaago After the successful event by #IamDhaka, Volunteer for Bangladesh, the youth wing of JAAGO Foundation in association with Dhaka Tribune and The Daily Ittefaq is organising a street exhibition named “On the Streets,” the second phase of #IamDhaka Campaign from April 22 to April 27. “Oprottashito Dhaka” was the first phase of #IamDhaka where the mayoral candidates where made aware of the expectations of the youth and the masses through the photo exhibition by Through The Lense. There’s also an AV made by Dot 3 which reflects Dhaka dwellers sufferings and expectations to the candidates. This street Exhibition is a part of the #IamDhaka Campaign. Through this road exhibition, VBD is showcasing 44 photographs from the “Opratashito Dhaka” exhibition in seven areas. The photographs will be exhibitioned from April 22 to April 27 from 3-5pm daily. The plan is as follows: • • • • •

23rd April: Gulshan 2 Circle 24th April: Mirpur 10 25th April: Shahbag Cirlce 26th April: Basundhora City 27th April: Jasimuddin Road, Uttara

PHOTOS: COURTESY (JAAGO)

Opener Tamim Iqbal’s 312 runs in three ODIs against Pakistan is the highest for a Bangladesh cricketer in a bilateral series. He blasted two tons and a fifty

Sport 26

SOUMYA DELIGHTED, MASHRAFE CREDITS ENTIRE TEAM

27

MUSTAFIZUR, LITON NAMED FOR LONE T20I

28

25

DT

BACK IN STYLE

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

‘GIVE NEW TEAM, AJMAL SOME TIME TO SETTLE’

Elegant Soumya joins the party n Mazhar Uddin The elegant Soumya Sarkar made a majestic start to his international career but was unable to score big. Yesterday, however, he finally broke the shackles and smashed his maiden ODI hundred in his 10th match as Pakistan were bangla-washed following the third and final game in Mirpur.

The 22-year old announced himself as the next big thing in Bangladesh cricket during the recently concluded 2015 ICC World Cup Down Under, impressing everyone with his ability to strike the cricket ball cleanly.

The attacking left-hander possesses a fearless attitude but despite crafting glorious starts, the Satkhira lad was unable to convert those knocks into significant ones. The southpaw was continuously getting out in the 20s and badly required a big innings in order to establish his place in the national side.

He did not have to wait long, however, as his moment of truth came yesterday. Right from the word go, Soumya and fellow opener Tamim Iqbal blasted the Pakistan bowlers all over the park. Soumya executed some delightful cuts and pulls and played a couple of gorgeous cover-drives.

He reached his fifty in 61 balls and realising that he had a great opportunity to turn it into a big score, he took only 33 balls to reach his hundred. He reached the landmark after clubbing a six off Pakistan skipper Azhar Ali towards the deep midwicket region.

From there onwards, he literally toyed with the Pakistan bowlers. Umar Gul, returning to the side for the first time this year, was on the receiving end as Soumya smacked him for consecutive boundaries followed by a six.

Soumya became the 14th Bangladeshi to score an ODI hundred and few will bet against him to score many more in the years to come. l

ODI SERIES WHITEWASH

BY BANGLADESH MARGIN

OPP

VENUE

YEAR

4-0

Kenya

Home

2006

3-0

Kenya

Away

2006

5-0

Zimbabwe

Home

2006

2-0

Scotland

Home

2006

3-0

Ireland

Home

2008

3-0

West Indies

Away

2009

4-0

New Zealand

Home

2010

3-0

New Zealand

Home

2013

5-0

Zimbabwe

Home

2014

3-0

Pakistan

Home

2015

Bangladesh batsmen Mushfiqur Rahim (L) and Soumya Sarkar (C) celebrate after winning their third ODI against Pakistan at SBNS in Dhaka yesterday

AP

DT

26 Sport

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

SCORECARD

Bangladesh fast bowler Rubel Hossain (2R) proudly holds the national flag alongside (L-R) Abul Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Shakib al Hasan and Soumya Sarkar following the third ODI against Pakistan in Mirpur yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Soumya delighted, Mashrafe credits entire team n Minhaz Uddin Khan Hosts Bangladesh rewrote the history books yesterday at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium as they strode to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory over Pakistan in the third ODI to register a historic whitewash.

Besides the Bangladesh bowlers, centurion Soumya Sarkar was one of the chief architects behind the victory while Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim played their part exceedingly well to give the Tigers their 10th overall series sweep. Soumya though stole the show for himself with a fine, unbeaten 127 off 110 balls, becoming the 14th Bangladesh cricketer to score a ODI hundred.

Soumya came into the limelight during the 2015 ICC World Cup where he provided solid starts to his side only to come up short once he reached 20s or 30s.

The wait for a maiden hundred, however, did not elude him for long as he smashed a brilliant ton yesterday to announce his grand

arrival in world cricket.

“I was getting out in the 20s and 30s. And, to be honest, I was thinking about it and was a little concerned. I talked to the seniors about this. The majority of them told me to carry on with my own game and not to think about it and that I will overcome it eventually,” player-of-the-match Soumya told the media after the game.

“So, I started on a similar note today (yesterday). When I first saw my score on the board, it was 18 and I gave myself a thought that, okay, that was done quite smoothly and that I should convert now. So, I did not do anything different today (yesterday),” he said.

The 22-year old cricketer from Satkhira expressed his delight and said he was delighted after contributing heavily to a win.

“It is very special because this is my first hundred. I am really happy with the fact that I was able to witness the whitewash,” he added.

Soumya reached his hundred with a scintillating six off Pakistan ODI skipper Azhar Ali

but did not burst into a wild celebration. He simply swung his bat a couple of times before coming to a sudden halt while his partner, Mushfiqur Rahim, approached him and gave him a hug. Explaining the celebration, Soumya said, “It is a habit. I do not celebrate much whenever I do anything big. The shot to get to 100, it did not go far. It just went over the fielder and I did not think it would go all the way. At the same time, I had cramped immediately. When I saw that it was six, the cramp was not there. Maybe it was not there at all! At the end of the day, my celebration came from my heart if you ask me.”

Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe bin Mortaza, meanwhile, credited the whole team for the series sweep and reserved special mention for Soumya.

“We often joked that he will reach his maiden hundred in the next World Cup if he batted like the way he did in the earlier games. But, he batted using his brain and talent. It was a brilliant innings,” said Mashrafe. l

PAKISTAN INNINGS Azhar Ali b Shakib Sami Aslam c Mushfiq b Nasir Mohammad Hafeez b Sunny Haris Sohail c Mushfiq b Mashrafe Mohammad Rizwan c & b Shakib Fawad Alam c Nasir b Mashrafe Saad Nasim c Taskin b Rubel Wahab Riaz c Mashrafe b Rubel Umar Gul run out (Shakib / Sunny) Zulfiqar Babar not out Junaid Khan b Arafat Sunny Extras (lb 1, w 5)

R 101 45 4 52 4 4 22 7 0 1 4 6

Total (all out; 49 overs)

250

B 112 50 15 58 6 9 24 8 2 4 6

Fall of wickets 1-91, 2-105, 3-203, 4-207, 5-213, 6-224, 7-243, 8-244, 9-245, 10-250 Bowling Mashrafe Mortaza 10-0-44-2, Taskin 2-0-22-0, Nasir 7-0-37-1, Rubel 6-0-43-2, Sunny 10-0-432, Shakib 10-0-34-2, Sabbir Rahman 2-0-17-0, Mahmudullah 2-0-9-0

BANGLADESH INNINGS Tamim Iqbal lbw b Junaid Soumya Sarkar not out Mahmudullah b Junaid Mushfiqur Rahim not out Extras (lb 1, w 4, nb 2)

R 64 127 4 49 7

Total (2 wickets; 39.3 overs)

251

B 76 110 10 43

Fall of wickets 1-145, 2-154 Bowling Hafeez 8-1-37-0, Gul 7-0-53-0, Wahab 6-0-300, Junaid 7.3-0-67-2, Babar 10-0-56-0, Azhar 1-0-7-0 Series - Bangladesh won 3-match series 3-0 Player of the match - Soumya Sarkar (Ban) Player of the series - Tamim Iqbal (Ban) Bangladesh won by 8 wickets

Tigers bowlers fight back n Minhaz Uddin Khan

Bangladesh headed into the third and final ODI in Mirpur yesterday with a lot of confidence having won the first two ODIs comprehensively against Pakistan. In their pursuit of a 10th series sweep, Bangladesh, however, were shaken up initially as Pakistan started well after deciding to take first strike.

Pakistan skipper Azhar Ali and debutant Sami Aslam posted a 50-run stand for the opening wicket and it appeared that the visitors were well on course to reach 300 for the first time ever since setting foot in Dhaka.

The opening duo of Azhar and Sami added 91 runs but following the latter’s dismissal, Pakistan suddenly lost the momentum as Mohammad Hafeez continued his poor run of form with the bat.

From 105/2, Azhar and Haris Sohail once again set about rescuing their side and they were successful, putting on 98 runs for the third wicket. With Pakistan coasting at 203/2, Bangladesh might have thought that they

would have to chase a total in the region of 300.

The Tigers attack though had other ideas as they regrouped and stepped up to the occasion to restrict the opposition to an achievable 250. The bowlers demolished the Pakistan middle and lower order as the tourists lost their last eight wickets for just 47 runs.

Nasir Hossain initiated the first breakthrough, accounting for the wicket of Sami for 45. Arafat Sunny then brought the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium crowd to their feet, clean bowling Hafeez for four.

Then came Azhar and Haris’ 98-run association for the third wicket but thanks to Shakib al Hasan, the former departed right after scoring his maiden ODI hundred.

The Bangladesh bowlers were desperate to take wickets at regular intervals in order to prevent the opposition from reaching 300 and they prevailed as skipper Mashrafe bin Mortaza dismissed Haris for 52. The remaining Pakistan batsmen were unable to put up any resistance as Mashrafe, Shakib, Sunny and Rubel Hossain all bagged two wickets apiece. l

Bangladesh’s Arafat Sunny celebrates the dismissal of Pakistan’s Mohammad Hafeez during their third ODI at SBNS in Dhaka yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

DT

Sport 27

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

QUICK BYTES Imposing junior Tigers take 5-1 lead Bangladesh Under-19 cric Siddikur tees off in Indonesian Masters today Talismanic Bangladesh golfer Siddikur Rahman will begin his CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters campaign today at Royale Jakarta Golf Club.

Indonesia’s premier golf tournament will offer a collated prize money of $750,000 in its fifth edition. Siddikur will compete against the likes of England’s Lee Westwood, former world number one, and defending champion Anirban Lahiri of India among others.

–Tribune Desk

Pakistan skipper Azhar Ali leaps in the air in delight after reaching his maiden ODI hundred in the third ODI against Bangladesh in Mirpur yesterday

BJMC claim women’s handball title

BJMC emerged as the champions of the Exim Bank 25th National Women’s Handball Championship beating Bangladesh Ansar by 24-15 points in the final at M Mansur Ali National Handball Stadium yesterday. Shirina Akter scored a milestone 10 goals while Sahida Khatun and Sumi Begum netted four goals apiece for the victors while Ismat Ara Nishi scored six for the runners-up. Shirina was adjudged the best player of the match for her brilliant performance. In the last four years, BJMC and Ansar have been featuring prominently on the finalists’ list with Ansar clinching the title last year. BJMC were the runners-up side on that occasion.

–Shishir Hoque

Dhumketu, Gladiators seal semi spots Dhumketu Club and Dhaka Gladiators swept into the semifinals of the Citycell Federation Cup Basketball Championship 2015. Dhumketu outplayed Bakshi Bazar by 66-49 points to clinch the last-four spot yesterday. Avi and Sajid caged 14 and 13 points respectively for Dhumketu while Yeasin scored 20 for the losing side.

Meanwhile last Tuesday night, the Gladiators confirmed their semifinal spot after beating Dhumketu by 87-62 points.

–Shishir Hoque

Bangladesh U-14 thump 16 past Bhutan Bangladesh Under-14 girls reached the semi-final of the AFC U-14 Girls Regional Championship 2015 following a 16-0 rout of Bhutan at Army Central Ground Stadium in Nepal yesterday. Bangladesh progressed to the last four as the Group B champions. Promising winger Sanjida Akhter, who also shone for the national side in the AFC U-16 Championship qualifiers recently, and Maria, who netted against India in the previous match, smashed four goals each while midfielder Jahan Moushumi grabbed a hat-trick. Striker Marzia, skipper Krishna Rani and forward Mosammat Sirat Jahan Shopna scored one apiece. Despite a dominating performance, Bangladesh played out a 1-1 draw against India in their first match.

Both Bangladesh and India ended their group stage on four points from two matches but the former topped Group B by virtue of a better goal difference. Bangladesh will face Group A runners-up side Iran in the second semi-final at Dasarath Rangasala Stadium in Kathmandu tomorrow.

–Shishir Hoque

MI MANIK

Azhar blames lack of team effort for series defeat n Minhaz Uddin Khan A new-look Pakistan came into the ODI series against Bangladesh with doubts looming over their ability to challenge the home side. The tourists experienced drastic changes following the 2015 ICC World Cup and many correctly predicted that the Tigers would start as favourites due to the inexperience of the Pakistan squad.

All the doubts and worries proved to be correct as the visitors suffered a humiliating series whitewash at the hands of the Tigers yesterday and Pakistan skipper Azhar Ali, who himself was under pressure following his return to the national side after two years, said the cricketers should accept responsibility for the series defeat.

“As a captain I feel responsible for not performing. You would be told how to play but you have to apply it in the middle. We will have to take responsibility for the performance,” Azhar told the media after the third and final ODI in Mirpur.

“This is a totally new combination from the one that played at the World Cup. They played

together for a few years. After every World Cup, there are a few changes. It is difficult but we have to keep our heads up. We have to put everything in the right place. We know we got the talent but we need to get things together,” explained the cricketer from Lahore.

The 30-year old praised Bangladesh on their 10th overall series sweep and informed that the visitors were well aware of the Tigers’ strength prior to the start of the three ODIs. “Before the series started, we knew Bangladesh were an improved side. They did well in the World Cup. They were doing very well in their home soil, giving tough time to their oppositions. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy. We didn’t play enough good cricket,” he said before adding, “They are a more improved side. It is not surprising they are playing well. We can only think of ourselves.

There were some exciting performances but we couldn’t put them together. We dropped a few catches in crucial times, we didn’t bowl that well. Today (yesterday) we were going really well in batting and suddenly after 38 overs, it was a turnaround.” l

TOP 5 RUN SCORERS Player

Inns

Runs

HS

Ave

SR

100

50

Tamim Iqbal (Ban)

3

312

132

156.00

95.41

2

1

Mushfiqur Rahim (Ban)

3

220

106

110.00

115.78

1

1

Azhar Ali (Pak)

3

209

101

69.66

85.30

1

1

Soumya Sarkar (Ban)

3

164

127*

82.00

104.45

1

0

Haris Sohail (Pak)

3

147

52

49.00

80.32

0

2

TOP 5 WICKET TAKERS Player

Overs

Runs

Wkts

BBI

Ave

Econ

SR

Arafat Sunny (Ban)

30.0

131

6

3/47

21.83

4.36

30.0

Shakib Al Hasan (Ban)

29.2

130

5

2/34

26.00

4.43

35.2

Rubel Hossain (Ban)

21.0

115

4

2/43

28.75

5.47

31.5

Wahab Riaz (Pak)

24.0

125

4

4/59

31.25

5.20

36.0

Mashrafe Mortaza (Ban)

18.0

96

3

2/44

32.00

5.33

36.0

Mustafizur, Liton named for lone T20I n Minhaz Uddin Khan Bangladesh Cricket Board yesterday announced a 14-member squad for the lone Twenty20 international against Pakistan, slated for tomorrow in Mirpur.

Uncapped left-arm paceman Mustafizur Rahman and opening batsman Liton Kumar Das received their first call-up to the national side.

National selection panel chief Faruk Ahmed said the newcomers will bolster an already settled unit in the shortest format of the game.

“Mustafizur’s inclusion may come as a surprise to some but he has impressed during his time with the Under-19s and the A team. He is an intelligent bowler with good variation which is required in T20 cricket. Besides, being a left-arm seamer, he gives us a different option,” Faruk explained yesterday.

Opener Liton on the other hand has been under the radar for quite some time now for his consistent performances in the domestic circuit. Many predicted Liton to make his ODI debut against Pakistan but the inclusion of Rony Talukdar instead deferred the former’s national call-up for a few days.

“Liton has been in our thoughts for a while now and he has the runs behind him in firstclass and List A cricket. He is one for the future,” said Faruk justifying Liton’s selection.

Right-handed batsman Mominul Haque and fast bowler Rubel Hossain missed out despite being in the ODI squad.

“We have decided to rest Rubel in order to keep him fresh for the Test series as he is our main strike bowler,” the former national skipper added.

Bangladesh T20 squad Tamim Iqbal, Rony Talukdar, Soumya Sarkar, Liton Kumar, Shakib al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Nasir Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Mashrafe bin Mortaza, Taskin Ahmed, Abul Hasan, Mustafizur Rahman, Arafat Sunny. l

DT

28 Sport

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

‘Give new team, Ajmal some time to settle’ n AFP, Karachi

Pakistan Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq Wednesday urged fans to have patience with the struggling one-day team and returning off-spinner Saeed Ajmal, following below-par performances in Bangladesh.

A new-look Pakistan team trail the threematch one-day series 2-0 and face the prospect of a whitewash in the final match in Dhaka on Wednesday.

Misbah, who retired from one-day cricket after the World Cup last month, said fans must put up with defeats as the side rebuilds.

“If we want to give a new look to the oneday team then this defeat will have to be tolerated,” Misbah told AFP. “All the changes we have seen will have an impact on the team, with some new players coming and some making a comeback.”

Veteran all-rounder Shahid Afridi also quit ODIs after the World Cup, while batsman Younis Khan, opener Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal were dropped following below-par performances at the tournament.

Misbah, who was replaced by Azhar Ali as

one-day captain, said the new team would take time to settle.

“If we have decided to build the team for the future then we have to back all these new players and have to give them confidence,” said Misbah.

“If we don’t panic and give this team some time it will mature within the next two years, so we must not look at the results.”

Misbah, who will lead the Test side against Bangladesh, said the hosts are always a tricky prospect on their own turf.

He urged Pakistan to learn from Bangladesh’s long-term approach which has seen them largely shed their “minnow” tag -- in one-day cricket at least.

“This is the same Bangladesh team which lost to Afghanistan in the Asia Cup last year and that too on their home ground, but they kept faith in their players and now they have a mature bunch of players,” he said.

The two-match series will start in Khulna from April 28.

“Our Test team is mature and have had good results recently, so we can take confidence from that,” said Misbah.

Misbah also backed off-spinner Ajmal, who has looked ineffective bowling with a remodelled technique on his return from an eight-month suspension imposed for an illegal action.

“When a player like Ajmal comes back after such a setback he is very cautious because there are concerns over his effectiveness but I think he will improve with every match,” Misbah said.

“Give him one or two series and he will come back strongly.”l

Bangladesh’s Nasir Hossain takes a catch successfully to dismiss Pakistan’s Fawad Alam during their third ODI at SBNS in Dhaka yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

MOMENTS OF THE DAY BANGLADESH V PAKISTAN, 3rd ODI, Mirpur

AZHAR ALI’S MAIDEN ODI TON

Pakistan captain Azhar smashed his maiden ODI century yesterday, scoring 101 off 112 balls before being dismissed.

The right-handed opener struck 10 fours to lay the platform for a big total. His teammates though were unable to capitalise, losing their last eight wickets for 47 runs to end up with a below-par 250-all out.

The three-match ODI series against Bangladesh is Azhar’s first assignment as captain and although his side conceded the series in the second game, he has performed consistently with the bat.

Azhar totaled 209 runs in three matches at an average of 69.

The ton meant a lot to him as he kissed the ground for several seconds after reaching his landmark.

SHAKIB’S 150TH ODI APPEARANCE The Tigers’ poster boy reached yet another milestone yesterday as Shakib al Hasan became the fourth Bangladeshi cricketer to appear in 150 one-day internationals.

Mohammad Ashraful (175), Abdur Razzak (153) and skipper Mashrafe bin Mortaza (151) have previously reached the landmark while Mushfiqur Rahim (149) and Tamim Iqbal (144) are patiently waiting to achieve the feat.

Shakib made his ODI debut against Zimbabwe in Harare back in 2006 and has picked up 195 wickets, including his 2/34 against Pakistan yesterday. The 28-year old has scored 4211 runs, including six centuries, and has been ranked the world’s top all-rounder across all formats at different stages of his career.

TIGERS’ SCINTILLATING COMEBACK WITH THE BALL

The Tigers crafted a brilliant comeback with the leather as they picked up the last eight Pakistan wickets for just 47 runs to skittle out the opposition for 250 with an over to spare.

Skipper Azhar Ali blasted his maiden ODI hundred as Pakistan were coasting at one stage.

However, from a healthy position of 203/2 in 38 overs, the visitors lost their momentum in the face of some disciplined bowling from the Tigers.

Captain Mashrafe bin Mortaza, fast bowler Rubel Hossain and the two left-arm spinners, Arafat Sunny and Shakib al Hasan, all bagged two wickets apiece to give the Tigers batsmen a comparatively uncomplicated target to chase down.

–MAZHAR UDDIN

North trailing South in BCL four-dayers n Tribune Desk Bangladesh Cricket Board North Zone were struggling against Prime Bank South Zone following the second day’s play of the opening four-dayer of the 3rd Bangladesh Cricket League longer-version in Fatullah yesterday.

Replying to South’s 352-all out in the first innings, North ended the second day on 161/5, trailing by 191 runs. Naeem Islam and Ariful Haque were unbeaten on 42 and 19 respectively while out-of-favour national spinner Abdur Razzak took two wickets for South.

South earlier posted 352 in their first innings, courtesy a fine century from Sohag Gazi at number eight. National opener Anamul Haque, returning to cricket after recovering from a shoulder injury, made 94 while wicketkeeper-batsman Nurul Hasan chipped in with 78. l

BRIEF SCORE, DAY 2 South Zone 352-all out in 108.5 overs Gazi 108, Anamul 94, Nurul 78; Ariful 6/75

North Zone 161/5 in 64 overs Naeem 42*, Ariful 19*; Razzak 2/40 North trail by 191 runs

DT

Sport 29

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

RESULTS Barcelona (ESP)

2-0

PSG (FRA)

Neymar 14, 34 Barcelona win 5-1 on aggregate

Bayern Munich (GER)

6-1

FC Porto (POR)

Thiago Alcantara 14, J. Martinez 73 Boateng 22, Mueller 36, Lewandowski 27, 40, Xabi Alonso 88 Bayern win 7-4 on aggregate

Bayern Munich players celebrate after their Uefa Champions League second-leg quarter-final against FC Porto in Munich, southern Germany on Tuesday. Bayern won the match 6-1

Majestic Bayern, dominant Barca reach semis n AFP, Paris Doubles from Robert Lewandowski and Neymar inspired Bayern Munich and Barcelona respectively into the Champions League semi-finals on Tuesday.

Lewandowski’s brace came in a crazy first half where Bayern rattled five goals past a demoralised Porto side, who had come into the game leading 3-1 after the first leg and with real hopes of reaching their first semi-final since they won the trophy in 2004.

The game ended 6-1 and a 7-4 aggregate victory for Bayern and extended their coach Pep Guardiola’s remarkable record in the competition where in six campaigns he has

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never failed to reach the last four.

While Bayern president Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said ‘We have seen something miraculous’, Guardiola poured praise over his players.

“At this moment, it’s easy to love my players,” beamed Guardiola.

Not even splitting his trousers while shouting instructions from the sidelines could take away the joy the 44-year-old Spaniard felt.

“Ah, they broke. It’s not so bad, I’ll just put on a new pair for the next game,” said Guardiola.

For his opposite number, Julen Lopetegui, it was a devastating evening.

“The first half here in Munich cost us

everything, we were punished and now we have to pick ourselves up again,” said Lopetegui.

Neymar also scored his double in the first half for Guardiola’s former side Barcelona whom he guided to two Champions League trophies in his spell there - as they eased to a 2-0 win on the night and a 5-1 aggregate win over French champions Paris Saint Germain.

“I am very happy with the season I am having and we need to continue like this to achieve our objectives. We need to keep going and get to the final,” said Neymar, who took his tally to 30 goals for the season.

“In my first goal Iniesta did everything. All I had to do was dribble past the goalkeeper and score.”

Banned Butt to appear before ICC corruption unit n AFP, Karachi Disgraced former Pakistan Test captain Salman Butt said Tuesday he was due to appear before the anti-corruption unit of the game’s governing body next week to try to have his spot-fixing ban relaxed.

The 32-year-old opener was banned for ten years with five years suspended conditionally, along with Mohammad Asif (seven years with two suspended) and Mohammad Aamer (five years) in a spot-fixing case in England in 2010.

The trio and their agent Mazhar Majeed were also jailed in Britain for receiving money in return for arranging deliberate no-balls during the Lord’s Test against England.

In January this year Aamer was allowed to play domestic cricket in Pakistan after the International Cricket Council (ICC) revised its anti-corruption code - allowing banned players to make an early return to domestic cricket a few months before their bans expire.

But the Pakistan Cricket Board said Butt and Asif had not completed the rehabilitation processes necessary to allow the relaxation to occur, a claim he contests.

“I am fighting to get the relaxation as I have complied with all the regulations. So I want to play domestic cricket,” Butt told AFP. If allowed to play domestic cricket, Butt will become eligible to return to international cricket after his ban expires on September 2.l

AFP

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique was delighted with the result in what was his 50th match in charge and still on course for a treble this season, all the more extraodinary that rumours earlier in the season suggested his job was at risk after apparently falling out with Lionel Messi.

While Barcelona, who have won 23 and drawn one of their last 25 games, reached their seventh semi-final in eight seasons, for PSG it was their third successive exit at this stage.

PSG coach Laurent Blanc had said prior to the game that they weren’t coming on a ‘school trip’ but having been made to look like children playing against adults he felt deflated.l

Van Gaal tickled by fan’s transfer list n AFP, London Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal reacted mirthfully after being handed a list of suggested transfer targets by a disabled supporter during a recent charity event.

One fan hands Van Gaal a sheet of paper listing players with whom United have been linked, including Mats Hummels, Paul Pogba and Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale.

Van Gaal thanks the fan and pockets the list, saying: “Hummels, (Nathaniel) Clyne, Pogba, (Gareth) Bale, (Memphis) Depay, Jackson Martinez? Thank you for this. I’ll bear it in mind.

You are smart.” The Dutchman later says to the camera: “He didn’t tell me who I have to sell, but after a little bit of pushing, I know. So it’s easy for me. Next year we are the champion!” l

DT

30 DOWNTIME

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 And not (3) 3 Book of the Mass (6) 8 Modern Persia (4) 9 Be indebted (3) 10 Plunder (6) 11 Cricket team (6) 14 Comforts (5) 17 Get on a horse (5) 20 Reddish brown (6) 24 Hostility (6) 26 Ignited (3) 27 Table-shaped hill (4) 28 Slumbers (6) 29 Drinking vessel (3)

DOWN 1 Back of the neck (4) 2 Mature (4) 3 Female horse (4) 4 Senseless (5) 5 Makes dirty (5) 6 Beard of the barley (3) 7 Vegetables (5) 12 Zodiac sign (3) 13 Forefornt (3) 15 Donkey (3) 16 Optic (3) 17 Repasts (5) 18 Combine (5) 19 Top card (5) 21 Utilises (4) 22 Pretended (4) 23 Slender shoot (4) 25 Nothing (3)

CODE-CRACKER How to solve: Each number in our CODECRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 20 represents L so fill L every time the figure 20 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.

A B C D E FG H I J K L M N O P Q RST UVWXYZ

CALVIN AND HOBBES

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.

PEANUTS

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

DILBERT

SUDOKU

DT

SHOWTIME 31

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

Another tiny gem from Prachyanat n Tausif Sanzum Prachyanat recently staged the Bengali adaptation of Four Portraits of Mothers at Shilpakala Academy, Mayer Mukh.

The Arnold Wesker play had its Bangla interpretation done by Moom Rahman and was directed by Kazi Toufikul Islam Emon. The play was divided into four acts consisting of monologues.

The first act consists of Ruth played by Lucy Tripti Gomes, a single mother whose lover abandoned her when he heard that she conceived out of wedlock. She tries to fill the shoes of both the mother and the father figure in her daughter’s life. However, her daughter keeps asking for a father which makes Ruth helpless, leading to sudden bouts of breakdowns. It is a complex character and Gomez completely gives in to the character.

The second act shows a seventy year old woman, Naomi portrayed by Ritu Sattar who is virtually invisible under all the make-up.

Sattar gives a memorable performance which wipes out the memory of her cringeworthy “your Grashe” act just three nights ago in Man for All Season. Naomi is motherless and lives on her own. She tries to find her motherhood in her nephew, Danny.

Although she loves it when Danny calls but she gets angry. This reaction is a combination of the ordeal faced because of her old age and Danny’s failure to understand what she is trying to convey. Ritu deserves a special mention for making Naomi so real. The loud applause after her act is a testimony to her brilliance in portraying this role.

The third act has Mirium narrating her story to a psychiatrist. Joyeeta Nobish Mohala, who plays this role, shows an array of emotions one after the other. She succeeds in showing how broken Mirium is

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Photo: courtesy psychologically. The best part of this act is the repeated reference of how the bad parenting during Mirium’s childhood has affected her own parenting skills.

The last act consists of Debora played

by Sadika Swarna. She plays the role of a mother who is successful and enjoys every bit of it. She has no complains from life and screams out loud that she is not weak. Maybe an actress with a more mature voice could have added that extra punch to the character. Nevertheless, this act is important because we see all the four women come on stage.

Nokshi Kanthar Math gets a theatrical treat

The play is free of any added artificial technical gimmicks. Between every act there are simple, but hard hitting projections consisting of headlines highlighting the atrocities committed against women. The set design is simple but sufficient to differentiate one act from the other. The director deserves an extra pat on the back for bringing all four characters on stage in the last act.

It shows that these women are not parts of different worlds, but they are just characters we come across everyday at a marketplace. l

WHAT TO WATCH TELEVISION

n Showtime Desk Nokshi Kanthar Math, Jasimuddin’s Bengali masterpiece verse, has been adapted in a theatrical production staging at the Daffodil International University recently. Directed by Dr Towfique Elahi, the tragedy was performed by the students of the Multimedia and Creative Technology Department.

Alternatively titled The Field of the Embroidered Quilt, the verse is a tragic folk tale that is centered around Rupai and Saju. Rupai is a young peasant who falls in love with a girl named Saju from the neighbouring village. They marry but after a fight with some peasants from another village, Rupa flees to faraway lands.

The lonely young wife waits every day, expecting her husband to return but her hopes go in vain. As all her hopes fade, she begins to prepare an embroidered quilt in which she recreates all the incidents and tragedies of her life.

Without altering the original storyline, the verse has been played on stage. From the set design to props to background music, the play seems to flawlessly portray the rural milieu the poet has described in the legendary verse. The actors made the show quite picturesque with their synchronised choreography. l

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DT

32 BACK PAGE

THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2015

RMG WORKERS STILL DENIED RIGHTS PAGE 15

ELEGANT SOUMYA JOINS THE PARTY PAGE 25

ANOTHER TINY GEM FROM PRACHYANAT

Physical, mental conditions of onefourth Rana Plaza survivors worsen

Relatives of the Rana Plaza victims break down in tears as they visit the graves of their dearest ones at Jurain graveyard in the capital yesterday. With the second anniversary of the tragic incident around the corner, many people are still to know about the fate of their loved ones MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

n Tribune Report The physical and mental conditions of 22.6% survivors of Rana Plaza disaster have rather worsened in the past two years, a study finds.

More than 70% respondents surveyed by ActionAid Bangladesh have said they recovered from the trauma of the deadliest industrial disaster.

The study on the present condition of the Rana Plaza survivors revealed yesterday also shows that more than 61% of the survivors have to see doctors or go to hospitals for diagnoses, check-up and physiotherapy while depression and trauma still torment 59%.

Apart from the physical and psychological conditions, the study assesses the livelihood status of the survivors and the status of compensation and identifies the loopholes in extending necessary services to the survivors.

“The workers could not go back to work as they are traumatised with anxiety and the sit-

uation has worsened to a level that they have to take consultancy by professional psychologists,” said Kamal Ahmed, who teaches clinical psychology at Dhaka University.

A total of 2,200 people – 1,414 survivors and 786 family members – were covered by the survey.

The survey says 55% survivors are still unemployed due to unwillingness of employers to give them jobs, their mental and psychical weakness, unavailability of suitable jobs and desired wages.

“The psychical conditions of the survivors are worsening, and they are unable to join works due to trauma,” said Farah Kabir, country director of ActionAid Bangladesh, at the programme.

She suggested multi-stakeholders dialogue with participation from the government, factory owners, brands, trade unions and development partners to address the issue and help the workers overcome the situation.

A number of survivors, who were present

at the function, claimed that they did not get proper compensation and in some cases were even deprived of the allocated amounts.

Replying to a question from a survivor, Mojtaba Kazazi, executive commissioner of Rana Plaza Coordination Committee, said they had received more letters demanding compensation than the fund available.

He added that the compensation depends on the loss and damage the survivors faced.

“Compensation is an endless debate, but it should be addressed properly,” said lawmaker Ishrafil Alam, who is a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour and Employment Ministry.

Commenting on punishment of Sohel Rana, the owner of the building that collapsed, he said: “The culprits are very powerful. That is why the process of judgment is being delayed.” Ishrafil said they wanted industrialisation but not at the cost of workers’ lives, humanity and dignity. l

PAGE 31

Load-shedding situation unlikely to improve soon n Aminur Rahman Rasel The country is experiencing frequent load-shedding because of a prevailing gas shortage and disruption in generation at the country’s largest power plant.

Most places in the country are having to deal with one hour or longer power-cuts and things are made worse by the summer heat. The students taking the ongoing HSC and equivalent examinations are the worst sufferers.

The current estimated peak demand is 7800MW but average supply is 7300MW. However, the Power Development Board (PDB) has claimed that whatever is happening in the country is just forced load-shedding.

According to officials, the extent of load-shedding has gone up to about 500MW from last week’s less than 200MW. On March 16, generation at the 412MW gasfired Haripur Combined-Cylce Power Plant in Narayanganj was stopped due to technical glitches. State-owned Electricity Generation Company of Bangladesh (EGCB) runs that plant.

“We are not in a position to give an idea about when the plant can resume operation,” said EGCB Managing Director Mostafa Kamal.

An official of the government’s Power Division said: “The current level of production is not enough. In fact, people are not getting enough power and are therefore facing load-shedding.”

PDB Chairman Md Shahinul Islam Khan claimed that they are generating enough power to meed the demand but they are having to do some load-shedding because of problems in distribution lines or sub-stations.

Many places in Dhaka including Jatrabari, Gulistan, Khilgaon, Azimpur, Rampura, Banasri, Hatirpul, Panthapath, Dhanmondi, Syamoli, Mohammadpur, Kalyanpur and Mirpur are experiencing load-shedding four times a day.

Md Nazrul Hasan, managing director of Dhaka Power Distribution Company, said if the distribution lines go out of order, power supply had to be stalled for sometime. He also said: “Because of the ongoing construction of the Mogbazar-Mouchak flyover, distribution lines got damaged, causing load-shedding.”

The forced shut down of power plants for maintenance works would leave 1,819MW of capacity unused in the peak season. Another 185MW cannot be tapped due to gas shortages. l

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