05 August, 2015

SECOND EDITION

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

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Shraban 21, 1422, Shawwal 19, 1436

AUTORICKSHAW BAN ON HIGHWAYS TO STAY PAGE 3

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Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 111

EID SPENDING EDGES UP INFLATION IN JULY PAGE 15

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

GOVT UNHAPPY WITH BFIU’S PERFORMANCE PAGE 32

Another child tortured to death Locals gave the three killers a good beating before police intervened and arrested them n Hedait Hossain from Khulna Another child was viciously killed by three adults who pumped air through the child’s rectum because he had left employment at their garage and taken up a job elsewhere.

The terrible incident took place in Khulna city’s Tutpara area on Monday night – the latest in the series of children’s death from abuse that has come to light recently.

After learning of the child’s death, Tutpara locals gave the three killers a good beating before police intervened and arrested the culprits.

Locals said the child, 12-year-old Md Rakibul Islam, used to work at a motor workshop in the area, owned by Mohammad Sharif, 28, but he left the workshop around seven months ago because he was frequently beaten by Sharif and Mintu Miah, 35, an influential man in the area and a close acquaintance of Sharif.

After leaving Sharif’s workshop, Rakib started working in another workshop at the PTI intersection, which irked Sharif and Mintu to no end, said Zahidur Rahman Zahid, a resident of Tutpara.

On Monday evening, Rakib went to Tut-

INHUMAN ACTS CAUSING DEATHS OF CHILDREN

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Law enforcers have claimed that some leaders of the BNP and its alliance partners conspired to kill after abducting the prime minister’s son and ICT Affairs Adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy in the US. Police filed a case on Monday night against the vice-president of JaSaS, BNP’s cultural wing, Mohammad Ullah Mamun and several top BNP leaders for hatching the conspiracy.

At a press briefing yesterday afternoon, DMP Spokesperson Monirul Islam said the step was taken as Mamun’s son Rizve Ahmed Caesar had been found involved in a bribery scheme to obtain confidential information about Joy from a former FBI special agent in New York.

Investigators have found that Rizve sought the information for implementing his plans to

PAGE 3 ‘No diplomatic pressure on govt for midterm polls’

August 3, 2015 Rakib, Khulna

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July 8, 2015 Rajon, Sylhet

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April 3, 2015 Najim, Narayanganj

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July 28, 2011 Milon, Noakhali

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July 18, 2011 Six students, Amin Bazar

Md Rakibul Islam para to buy paint and was noticed by Mintu, who dragged him into Sharif’s workshop.

In the workshop, Sharif and his mother Beauty Begum, 50, kept a hold on Rakib while Mintu forcefully undressed him, inserted the nozzle of an air compressor in his rectum and

DB: BNP leader planned to abduct, kill PM’s son Kamrul Hasan

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abduct and kill Joy, the grandson of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

“Mamun made the plan at the JaSaS office in Nayapaltan and other places in Dhaka to abduct and kill Sajeeb Wazed Joy,” Monirul said.

Some of the top BNP leaders and those of its allies had provided huge sum of money to bribe the former FBI agent. “That is why several BNP and alliance leaders were also made accused in the case,” Monirul said.

He, however, did not mention the other names but said that the accused had been staying in the country.

At present, Mamun is staying in the US. “So the investigators may visit the US and seek help from the FBI to solve the case,” Monirul said.

Md Anwar Hossain, deputy commissioner (Motijheel), earlier told the Dhaka Tribune

PAGE 5 Carbon powder plant sans environment clearance

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started pumping air into his body. As a crowd started gathering in front of the garage, Mintu pulled down the roller shutters of the shop, Zahid told the Dhaka Tribune.

As Rakib’s body started swelling and he became ill, Mintu took him to the nearby Good

Health Clinic, from where he was taken to St Martin Clinic, Khulna General Hospital, Khulna Surgical Clinic and then to Khulna Medical College Hospital, said Taposh Kanti Das, sub-inspector at Khulna Sadar police station.

Rakib was on his way to Dhaka on an ambulance when he died around 9pm near Khulna’s Baikali area.

Following his death, outraged locals broke into Mintu’s garage and started beating Mintu, Sharif and Beauty. Later, police went to the scene and arrested all three, sending Sharif and Mintu to the prison cell of Khuna Medical College Hospital (KMCH) for treatment.

Rakib’s father Nurul Alam filed a murder case with Khulna Sadar police station yesterday, listing Sharif, Mintu and Beauty as accused, said OC Sukumar Biswas.

The post-mortem examination of Rakib’s body was conducted at the KMCH. He was buried yesterday after Asr prayers in Tutpara graveyard.

A grudge that took a child’s life

“My son left their workshop to escape their torture. They used to beat him when he  PAGE 2 COLUMN 2

Cousin of Ganabhaban protester has no criminal record n Kamrul Hasan Sohel Mia, the cousin of Abul Kalam Azad – the college student who drew media attention by demonstrating in front of the prime minister’s official residence on Sunday – has no criminal record, Narayanganj police and RAB confirmed.

RAB detained Sohel on Sunday night in Sadipur of Sonargaon for alleged involvement in illegal drug business and handed him over to Sonargaon police.

The police produced him before a court on Monday but did not seek his remand since he has no case against him, Officer-in-Charge Manjur Kader said.

Police’s elite force Rapid Action Battalion also acknowledged that Sohel faces no case, but it alleged that Sohel and his father Nur Uddin had been involved in drug business for the last seven months.

PAGE 9 Pakistan defies rights protests to hang ‘teen’ convict

RAB said Azad’s demonstration in front of Ganabhaban and Sohel’s detention were merely a coincidence.

Rights body Ain o Salish Kendra protested RAB’s statement yesterday, urging the government to investigate the matter in a transparent manner.

“RAB’s past records make their claim suspicious,” ASK said in a statement signed by its Executive Director Sultana Kamal.

On Sunday, Azad stood before Ganabhaban with a placard that says “I want justice” to draw the premier’s attention so a locally influential leader who was trying grab their land be brought to the book.

RAB 11 Operation Officer ASP Md Nazim Uddin Al Azad yesterday said that Sohel had been detained from a kitchen market near his house while hanging out with four friends.

The elite force members recovered 100

PAGE 15 Ecnec approves largest trade exhibition centre project

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PAGE 32 MP’s men beat up 18 people including cop

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2 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

College girl gang raped in Jatrabari n Tribune report A 17-year old diploma student was gang raped in the Kutubkhali area of Jatrabari in Dhaka yesterday. Police have detained the three rapists from the spot where the girl was raped.

The girl came to Dhaka from her hometown Narayanganj yesterday afternoon with a friend.

When they came to the Kutubkhali area, three local men forcibly took them to the second floor of a three-storied building in the area.

They tied her friend in one of the rooms and then raped the girl in another room by turns.

Hearing her screaming, neighbours informed a patrol police team who rescued the girl and caught the rapists red-handed, said Sub-Inspector Parimal Chandra of Jatrabari police station.

Police took the three rapists in their custody and sent the girl to the One-Stop Crisis Centre for treatment, the SI said.l

Govt urged to withdraw VAT on private education n Tribune Report Leaders of private universities’ association yesterday called upon the government to review the decision of imposing 7.5% VAT on private education, saying it will hamper the expansion of private tertiary education.

The government, in one hand, has been working on the expansion of education to ensure that it reached everyone, but on the other hand, it was imposing VAT on private universities, they said adding that it was not expected.

“Ultimately the VAT has to be paid by the students which will be a burden for their parents,” said Sheikh Kabir Hossain, president of Association of Private Universities’ of Bangladesh.

He also said the imposition of the VAT will impede higher education of the country.

Kabir made the observation to Dhaka Tribune after a meeting with the association’s executive committee members. Around 35 chairman of board of trustees of different private universities attended the meeting.

The association leaders will meet with the Finance Minister AMA Muhith and Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid within a day or two, seeking withdrawal of the VAT, said Kabir.

The government in fiscal year 2015-16 imposed 7.5% VAT on private universities, medical and engineering colleges, that came into effect from June 4.

The National Board of Revenue has already asked these institutions to immediately register as a VAT-paying entity and submit their monthly VAT returns to the relevant circle offices in their areas by August 15.

This is the first time the government imposed a 7.5% VAT on the fees of private universities, medical and engineering colleges.

In 2010, the government made a move to impose indirect tax on private tertiary education, but had to pull out in the face of student protests.l

National Human Rights Commission Chairman Mizanur Rahman consoling a family member of Sheikh Samiul Alam Rajon, the 13-year-old boy who was brutally beaten to death nearly a month ago, at his residence in Sylhet yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Another child tortured to death worked there. My son did not want to be beaten every day,” Rakib’s mother Lucky Begum kept repeating these words as she grieved for her only son.

Crying while holding onto her little daughter Rimi, Lucky said Beauty and Mintu had held a grudge against Rakib since he left their workshop.

They used to often visit their residence on Central Road in Tutpara and threatened her, saying Rakib had betrayed them.

“The torturers that my son had wanted to escape killed him in the end,” she wailed.

“I just want justice for my son. Bring justice for my son.”

Zahid, the Tutpara local who witnessed Rakib’s torture, said Rakib had worked in Sharif’s workshop for two years and learnt the tricks of the trade there. So his leaving their workshop angered the three, who thought Rakib was obligated to them.

“Rakib breathed his last on my lap,” said Mizan Howlader, another Tutpara resident.

“We were taking an unconscious Rakib to Dhaka for treatment on an ambulance. His head was on my lap. He died just after our ambulance crossed Baikali.”

The report of the post-mortem report is still pending, but sources at the KMCH said Rakib died as his internal organs were fatally damaged from the air pumped into his body.

“His intestines were ruptured,” said one of the doctors who conducted his post-mortem, requesting anonymity.

However, there was no outward sign of torture on Rakib’s body, said Sub-Inspector Taposh. “We did not find any bruise on his body.

It was just swollen.”

The horrifying incident sparked an uproar in Tutpara and Khulna city. After attacking Sharif, Mintu and Beauty on Monday night, the locals vandalised the workshop yesterday

morning, said Sub-Inspector Kazi Mostaq, investigation officer of the case.

While Sharif and Mintu are undergoing treatment at the KMCH, police sent Beauty to a Khulna court and submitted a plea to place her in remand for 10 days, Mostaq told the Dhaka Tribune.

Protests rage in Khulna

Locals formed a human chain in Tutpara yesterday around 11:45am in protest of Rakib’s killing, Sub-Inspector Mostaq said.

Many have voiced outrage and demanded exemplary punishment of the three culprits. Several organisations have already announced programmes to stage protest in this regard.

Khulna District Mahila Parishad said they would provide all legal support to Rakib’s family. “We want to ensure that they get justice,” said Rasu Akhter, general secretary of the parishad.

Another human chain will be formed at the Picture Palace intersection in Khulna city today at 11am, organised by Jono Udyog Khulna.

Elina Khan, chairperson of Bangladesh Human Rights Foundation, Md Khabiruzzaman, president of its Khulna metropolitan branch, ASM Babar Ali, president of the district unit, and other officials issued statements, condemning the brutal killing and demanding punishment for the killers.

The Child Rights Advocacy Coalition in Bangladesh also condemned the killing and expressed concerns about the overall situation of children’s rights in the country.

Referring to the Children’s Act 2013, which stresses children’s protection, the coalition in a press release expressed hope that the government would revise the existing laws for children’s security in light of recent incidents of child abuse. l

BNP leader that a case in this connection had been filed in a foreign country first.

In October 2014, both defendants pleaded guilty to bribery and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services fraud. Rizve and another person named Thaler both admitted to participating in a bribery scheme with former FBI special agent Robert Lustyik who worked on the counter-intelligence squad.

Thaler was Lustyik’s friend, and Rizve was an acquaintance of Thaler.

On March 4, a US court sentenced Rizve for his involvement in the bribery scheme.

In a Facebook post on March 9, Joy wrote: “When someone tries to kill me, I take it very personally. No matter how high up they may be in the BNP, I will bring them to justice.” l

Cousin of Ganabhaban yaba tablets kept in Sohel’s pocket. The team later raided his house and found 270 more tablets in his father’s living room. Sohel was handed over to Sonargaon police at night.

The RAB official claimed that they had no idea about the protest incident and that the drive the same day was a mere coincidence.

RAB said their prime target was Sohel’s father Nur. But he was not at home during the drive. RAB was closely observing them for the last two months and conducted the drive after being certain about their involvement in the illegal business.

Azad has, however, claimed that he and Sohel – both live in the same house – had been beaten up by the RAB personnel during the operation.

Azad said he left Ganabhaban area when police members had asked him to leave. l

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NEWS 3

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Government stands firm on autorickshaw ban on highways Mamun, Dhaka and n Shohel Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong The government is hell-bent on imposing its ban on autorickshaws on highways with owners and workers continuing demonstrations in different parts of the country.

The demonstrations caused huge sufferings to people on the highways across the country with many requesting the government to settle the issue as early as possible.

“We will not backtrack from our decision but the problem will be solved within a short time,” said Road Transport Secretary MAN Siddique yesterday.

Autorickshaw owners and workers have already withdrawn their demonstrations in several districts, he said.

“We have instructed all deputy commissioners and members of law enforcement agencies to let the owners and workers know that the ban will be imposed on only a 3,570km stretch out of a total 2,50000 kilometers on the national highway.

Many of them realised it and have already agreed with the logic of the government. But some quarters are misguiding them, he said.

A source in the BRTA said the number of government approved CNG-run autorickshaws is 2,00000. Of them, 70, 000 ply the Dhaka-Chittagong highway.

Many of the auto rickshaw drivers said it would be tough for them to comply with the decision of the government.

Dhaka Zila Autorickshaw Owner-Driver Samity Secretary Jakir Hossain said: “When the BRTA issues a route permit it never mentions that autorickshaws are not allowed to ply the highway.”

Jakir vowed to continue their demonstration as, to him, they had no alternative but to force the government to meet their demand.

BRTA Chairman Najrul Islam said when the CNG-run autorickshaw owners get their route permit renewed this time it would be clearly mentioned that they would not be allowed to ply their three-wheelers on the highway.

Meanwhile, the owners and drivers in Chittagong yesterday formed a human chain near the Dhaka-Chittagong highway at Bhatiari under the district’s Sitakunda upazila protesting the government ban on three-wheelers on highways.

The protesters said about one million peo-

ple across the country would be rendered jobless if the ban is imposed.

Another group of demonstrators near the Potiya Highway Police Outpost in Potiya upazila on Chittagong-Cox’s Bazar highway demanded immediate withdrawal of the ban.

Several thousand three wheeler owners, drivers and workers joined the protest programme, much to the sufferings of the local commuters.

The demonstrators would also stage protest rally at the Chittagong Central Shahid Minar and submit a memorandum to the Roads and Bridge Minister through the deputy commissioner of Chittagong district on August 9.

The owners and drivers of autorickshaws called a dawn-to-dusk shutdown in Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar, Rangamati, Bandarban, Khagrachhari, Lakshmipur, Noakhali and Feni districts on August 13 protesting the government decision.

They will also hold a grand rally at the port city’s Laldighi Ground the same afternoon.

On July 27, the government declared a ban on the movement of the light vehicles like three-wheelers and non-motorized vehicles on highways across the country with effect from August. l

DSCC rally causes gridlock in city n Tribune Report In addition to the usual traffic rush, Dhaka dwellers faced immense traffic jam yesterday because of a rally being organised by Dhaka South City Corporation at Suhrawardy Udyan.

Long tailbacks were created in the areas surrounding the venue of the rally. Vehicles remained stuck for hours on the streets near Matsya Bhaban, Shahbagh, Dhaka University campus, DMCH. The effect of traffic jam could also be seen for hours in Purana Paltan, Kakrail, Farmgate, Elephant Road, Kalabagan, Panthapath, and Green Road.

Chaired by DSCC Mayor Sayeed Khokon, the rally was addressed by central leaders of the Awami League. The DSCC organised the rally as part of its programmes to mark the 40th anniversary of the August 15 massacre. l

Shop owners in Dhaka's Chankharpul area pull down shutters at 12 noon yesterday upon orders from the Dhaka South City Corporation, which organised a rally at the Suhrawardy Udyan as part of its programmes to mark the 40th anniversary of the August 15 massacre MEHEDI HASAN

Father of bullet-hit baby happy with government response n Kamrul Hasan The father of Suraiya – the newborn who was hit by a bullet while still in her mother’s womb – has expressed his gratitude to the government after cabinet members visited his daughter at the hospital and provided financial assistance for her treatment.

Bachchu Miah, the father, also requested media to call her daughter by her name – Suraiya Begum – instead of mentioning her as the bullet-hit girl.

During the few days following the incident when the child had not yet been named, it was okay to mention her as the bullet-hit girl; but now the media should report her by her actual name, Bachchu said.

Talking to reporters following Health Minister Mohammed Nasim’s visit to the hospital to see Suraiya yesterday, the father thanked the doctors and the government leaders who had helped in the treatment of his daughter.

Nasim also expressed his satisfaction at the treatment being provided by the doctors, adding that the perpetrators of the crime must be brought to justice.

Earlier in the day, State Minister for Women and Children Affairs Meher Afroze Chumki also visited Suraiya at the hospital and handed over Tk50,000 to Bachchu on behalf of the government.

Dr Kaniz Hasina, an associate professor at the DMCH paediatric department who had been treating Suraiya, said the newborn baby’s health was gradually improving but she was still not out of danger.

Suraiya’s mother Nazma Khatun is also receiving medical treatment for her bullet wound at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Nazma saw her baby on Monday for the first time since she was born over a week ago, but could not hold Suraiya in her arms.

Suraiya was injured when her eight-month pregnant mother was shot in the abdomen during an attack by a Jubo League faction on another faction on July 23 in Magura, that left one killed and another person injured.

The bullet went through the unborn baby’s right shoulder and damaged her right eye. She was born after a three-hour long operation at Magura General Hospital.

As of yesterday, six of the accused have been arrested by the police and Rapid Action Battalion. l

14-party: No diplomatic pressure on govt for midterm polls n Abu Hayat Mahmud The ruling Awami League-led 14-party alliance yesterday said there was no diplomatic pressure on the government over midterm polls.

The alliance spokesperson and Awami League Presidium Member Mohammad Nasim made the statement while briefing the media after a meeting of the ruling party-led alliance at Dhanmondi in Dhaka yesterday afternoon.

“The issue on midterm polls is a rumour which has been created by the media. No discussion is going on in Awami League and the 14-party alliance over holding any midterm polls,” Nasim said.

He said the next election would be held in 2019 under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s leadership.

The senior Awami League leader also thanked India for implementing the Land Boundary Agreement.

In the meeting, the 14-party alliance chalked out a three-day programme to observe the 40th death anniversary of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

The programmes include paying homage at Bangabandhu’s grave at Tungipara in Gopalganj on August 12, arranging a discussion at Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh on August 13, and placing wreaths at Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi Road 32

in Dhaka on August 15.

Nasim urged all the leaders and activists to observe the programmes with due respect.

The decision about mourning programmes on Bangandhu’s 40th death anniversary was taken in a meeting of the 14-party meeting chaired by Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal General Secretary Sharif Nurul Ambia at the same venue in Dhanmondi.

Meanwhile, in the evening in a rally the Awami League central leaders said the conspirators and killers of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman failed to destroy the country’s democracy.

Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) organised the programme at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital.

Chaired by DSCC Mayor Sayeed Khokon the rally was also addressed by Awami League Presidium Member and Industry Ministry Minister Amir Hossain Amu, General Secretary and Public Administration Minister Syed Ashraful Islam, Joint General Secretary Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif, and Dhaka North City Corporation Mayor Annisul Haque.

The speakers urged the countrymen to get organised to fight the dark forces who fought against the liberation of the country in 1971.

The Awami League leaders also urged everybody not to create any debate over Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib.

The leaders from the rally vowed to materialise the dream of Bangabandhu’s Sonar Bangla. l

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WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Bangladeshi to compete in MOS World Championship n Tribune Report For the first time, Bangladesh is going to be represented in the upcoming Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) World Championship 2015 in Dallas, Texas, USA, an international talent hunt competition on the MS Office package.

Rafsan Rahman Raayan, a student of the Aga Khan School in the capital, was announced the 2015 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Bangladesh Champion on the conclusion of the popular technology skills competition in Dhaka, said a press release.

Thousands of entries were received as part of the competition and 25 finalists competed in the final round by taking a unique competition exam in their track.

Representatives from Digicon (Certiport Authorised Testing Center) and local dignitaries attended the awards ceremony and congratulated the winner.

The champion won an invitation and an all-expenses-paid trip to compete in Certiport’s 2015 Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship to be held from August 9-12, 2015 in Dallas. l

Rajon murder: Suspension not enough n Our Correspondent, Sylhet National Human Rights Commission Chairman Prof Dr Mizanur Rahman thinks that legal action should be taken against the three police officials who were suspended for negligence in arresting the killers of Rajon in Sylhet.

Terming the incident heinous, Prof Mizan said that only suspension of the officials was not enough. They must be tried under the CrPc (Code of Criminal Procedure).

He also said the government should work on improving police’s behavioural pattern.

Prof Mizan made the statement during a condolence visit to the house of Sheikh Samiul Islam Rajon at Badeali village of sadar upazila yesterday morning.

Expressing condolence over the brutal death of the 13-year-old, the NHRC boss said: “We are monitoring the case. A civilised country cannot tolerate such type of killing.”

Expressing concern over the rise in child abuse incidents, Prof Mizan said: “Such kind of offences are in complete violation of human rights. We have to find the reason whether the

Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury with the winners of Agrow Awards 2015 at a ceremony held at the Westin Hotel in the capital

Standard Chartered gives AGROW Awards 2015 n Tribune Report

Standard Chartered Bank Bangladesh recently honoured individuals and institutions with AGROW Awards for setting outstanding examples in the country’s agricultural sector.

Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury handed over the awards to the winners. Brac won in the Best Associated Organisation in Support and Execution category; Amar Desh Amar Gram won in the Best Use of Technology in Agriculture category; and Lal Teer Seed Ltd in Best Associated Organisation in Innovation and Research category.

Three winners in Farmer of the Year categories were handed over a prize money of Tk5 lakh and the honourable mentions Tk50,000. l

BYLC concludes leadership programme n Tribune Report

The graduation ceremony of the month-long programme by Bangladesh Youth Leadership Centre (BYLC) titled Building Bridges Through Leadership Training Junior (BBLT-J) was held on August 3 at the BYLC headquarters in Dhaka.

A total of 41 secondary school and madrasa students representing 23 institutions were competitively selected for this international award-winning programme. The selected participants attended three weeks of classroom training and one week of service in the Pothopolli school in Dhaka. l

incidents occur because of negligence of the police or any other force of the government.”

About police’s involvement in various crimes recently, he said facilities for policemen should be increased while punishment meted out for committing crimes. “Police can ensure rule of law in the country while working without any influence.”

He also urged the government to bring back Rajon murder accused Kamrul Islam from Saudi Arabia for the sake of quick trial.

Rajon was beaten and tortured to death on July 8 by Kamrul, Muhith and some others.

One of them filmed the incident and uploaded it on Facebook.

In the face of sheer criticism, the authorities withdrew an inspector and suspended two sub-inspectors of Jalalabad police station in Sylhet for negligence in arresting Rajon’s killers.

Meanwhile, labelling police’s final report on Shamsuddin Milon murder case in Companyganj, Noakhali as frustrating, he said that the NHRC had sent a letter to the Home Ministry asking the authorities to ensure justice. l

Nestle organises breast-feeding awareness session n Tribune Report

Nestle Bangladesh, on the occasion of World Breast-feeding Week, is organising a number of awareness sessions in major hospitals throughout the country.

As part of this campaign, an awareness session for lactating mothers was held yesterday at the lactation zone or breast feeding corner of the capital’s National Medical College Hospital.

The sessions seek to assist the government in improving the nutritional status by spreading nutritional knowledge among mothers and building capacity of healthcare professionals.

The awareness programmes reaffirmed the benefits of breast feeding and the importance of breast milk for babies. They also emphasised the importance of the involvement of the fathers, grandparents at home and colleagues and bosses in the workplace.

The sessions are being held in Ali Medical College & Hospital, Anwar Khan Model Hospital, Aichi Hospital, Savar Prime Hospital, East West Medical College Hospital, Chittagong Ma-O-shishu Hospital, Memon Hospital, the CMCH, and Khulna Shishu Hospital. l

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WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Carbon powder plant without clearance Alam Durjoy, Dhaka and Tafsilul n Nure Aziz, Kishoreganj Ignoring strong protests from local residents, a businessman is setting up a carbon powder factory in Karimganj of Kishoreganj without environmental clearance.

The factory named JC Charcoal Industries – the second of its kind in Bangladesh – is being set up at the Aila village. There is another smaller carbon powder factory in the Lalmonirhat district in Bangladesh’s north.

Protesters said such a factory in the middle of agricultural land will surely pose grave threat to its surroundings – the environment and the people.

Ershad Uddin, owner and managing director of the factory, is the president of Bangladesh Still Mills Resource Association and vice-president of an organisation named Kishoreganj Zila Bangabandhu Parishad (Kishoreganj district Bangabandhu council).

When contacted, Ershad said right now he does not have clearance from the environ-

ment department for setting up a carbon factory. “We have applied for the clearance certificate from the environment department,” he said.

‘Carbon is poisonous. It will destroy arable land and the environment. Our land will lose fertility and the factory, if built, will harm the villagers’ He also claimed that his charcoal unit is not going to be harmful for the environment because he will install state-of-the-art machinery and equipment impo‡rted from China.

Asked what the technology would be, he said there will be “smoke reduction machines” to prevent carbon emission to the atmosphere.

Ctg college demands Tk43,000 from students for TC Mahmud, n Tarek Chittagong A college in Chittagong has demanded Tk43,200 each from two newly admitted HSC students who sought transfer certificates – a fee education officials say they should not have to pay.

The students, Syed Hasnat Tanvir and Azhar Uddin, filed an official complaint with the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education Board, Chittagong on Monday afternoon in this regard, sources said.

The Dhaka Tribune acquired a copy of the written complaint yesterday.

In the complaint, the students said they were currently admitted in the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) course at Chittagong Science College and wanted to transfer to Islamia University College under the same board, availing the newly introduced transfer opportunity at the HSC level.

But when they asked their current college for transfer certificates (TCs), the authorities demanded Tk43,200 – the total fee of the two-year HSC course in the college – to issue the certificates.

However, the Chittagong Science College authorities denied the students’ claim and said they had asked the students to pay some money to make up for the loss caused by

their transfer from the college.

When contacted, Chittagong education board Chairman Prof Mohammad Shahjahan confirmed the Dhaka Tribune that the students had met him on Monday and he received the written complaint yesterday.

Sumon Barua, college inspector of the board, said any HSC student can transfer from one college to another if there were places available, and there is no rule of a special fee for issuing a TC. “College authorities can only claim fees for the time a student studies in the college,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.

Prof Shahjahan said the board had received similar complaints against a few other private colleges, but it can do little to prevent this trend.

When the Dhaka Tribune contacted Mohammad Jahedul Alam, principal of Chittagong Science College yesterday afternoon over phone, he hung up after saying the college had already issued one transfer certificate and was in process of issuing the other one.

However, an official said on condition of anonymity that the two students were still attending classes at the college as they did not yet receive the TCs. The Dhaka Tribune again tried to contact the principal several times, but his phone was found busy. l

“We only want to produce carbon powder from jute sticks and the final product will be sold to Chinese companies. They do different things with carbon powder but I do not know the details,” he said.

During a visit to the site, Dhaka Tribune’s Tafsilul Aziz found that the factory authorities have erected a brick boundary wall around the 28-decimal land, which was bought from some local farmers.

Ershad told the Dhaka Tribune: “In future, this factory will become a giant by creating jobs for thousands of villagers. So, they should not be frightened.”

However, local villagers and farmers are not convinced. Accompanied by environmental activists, they have been protesting the setting up of the factory for several days now.

Local farmer Abdul Aziz said: “Carbon is poisonous. It will destroy arable land and the environment. Our land will lose fertility and the factory, if built, will harm the villagers.”

Osman Goni, councelor of the local ward, said: “Agricutural land in Aila, Biddyanagar,

Bahadurpur and Kiratan will be under threat if the factory is set up. Moreover, it will also bring health hazards to those who will work in the factory.”

On Saturday, hundreds of local people formed a human chain under banner of Poribesh-Protibesh Samajik Andolon (environment-ecology social movement) protesting the building of the carbon factory. They also gave a memorandum to the local authorities on July 23.

The movement will continue if the setting up of the carbon factory is not stopped, said folk singer Kafil Ahmed, one of the leading figures of the movement.

When contacted, environmental activist Md Abdul Matin, also general secretary of Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA), said the world considers every type of coal as dirty fuel.

“Coal plants emit harmful gases such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide. The particles in these gases can cause severe environmental and health hazards,” he said. l

3 bKash agents held over HSC question leak n Kamrul Hasan Detectives on Monday night arrested three bKash agents for their alleged involvement in leaking HSC question papers.

Although they were legal agents, they opened a number of fake accounts to receive money from examinees.

The arrested are Abul Kalam Azad, Mofazzal Hossain Faruk and Hira Chowdhury.

The operation was supervised by ADC Shahjahan, and Senior ASP of the cyber crime unit Nazmul Islam led the operation.

DMP DB Joint Commissioner Monirul Islam told reporters: “These three used to collect money for Dan Brown and that money was sent to Dan through their bKash account to

supply HSC question papers.”

He said that 300 rim, 900 passport size pictures and 850 fake national identity cards were recovered from their possession.

The criminals were using Facebook and other social media to make passport size pictures which they used to open the accounts, he added.

On July 6, police picked up six people in Dhaka for demanding money from students after promising on Facebook to give them HSC question papers in advance.

Members of the Detective Branch of police arrested six people, including Raihan Chowdhury alias Dan Brown, on July 16. On that day, the DB hinted they had information that teachers were also involved in the leak. l

DT

6 NEWS

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Moheshkhali dam collapse brings woes n Our Correspondent, Cox’s Bazar More than 0.15 million people in 36 villages of Matarbari and Dhalghata in Moheshkhali are suffering as cyclone Komen destroyed embankments in 12km areas.

Areas such as Kutubjom, Shaplapur and Badarkhali have seen erosion and sea water enters through broken embankments.

On Sunday, the high tide crossed the usual height.

The cyclone wreaked all the embankments in Tiakati, Rangakhali, Merghona, Puran Bazar, Saraitala and Bharatghona areas while sea water has submerged the villages.

Villagers have blamed the local authorities for this.

Ahsan Ullah Bachchu, chairman of Dhal-

ghata union, stressed that rebuilding the embankments should be the priority. “Otherwise, this will no longer remain a suitable area to live. There will also be uncertainty over the government’s coal power plant project.”

Mahbub Kamal, general secretary of Matarbari-Dhalghata Nagorik Kalyan Forum, said there was no attempt to repair or rebuild embankments as government organisations were divided over who would initiate the task.

The project implementation officer in Moheshkhali, Shafiul Alam Shakib, said almost 90% of the residents in the upazila are marooned.

“The upazila authorities have distributed dry foods among these people. They are also trying to provide other assistance,” he added.

Md Anwarul Naser, Moheshkhali upazi-

la nirbahi officer, described the situation in Matarbari and Dhalghata as pitiful.

“People are marooned and their sufferings continue to rise. All the union parishad chairmen have been asked to draw up a list of people who have been affected by high tide,” he said.

Anwarul also said the Water Development Board had been asked to repair embankments taking into account the urgency of the situation.

Md Hossain Ibrahim, chairman of Moheshkhali upazila parishad chairman, said the embankments are usually fixed every year.

“But locals attempted to do so this year without waiting for the authorities to take steps. Japan International Cooperation Agency, which was awarded the coal power plant project deal, resisted locals and as a result,

Matarbari and Dhalghata now almost lie in ruins after the cyclonic storm lashed the areas,” he said.

The chairman estimated that some 2,5003,000 houses in the areas had been razed to the ground and immediate rehabilitation measures were necessary. We are visiting the afflicted areas every day, said Md Sabibur Rahman, executive engineer of Cox’s Bazar office of Water Development Board.

He said the damaged structures would be fixed once weather conditions improved.

Asheq Ullah Rafiq, lawmaker of Cox’s Bazar 2, said relief materials had been arranged for families who lost abodes in the unusual high tide in the last two days.

“The broken embankments will soon be repaired as well,” he added. l

Road accidents take lives of five Erosion gobbles up 24 houses n Tribune Report Two people were killed and three others injured in a head-on collision between a CNGrun auto rickshaw and a covered van on the Chittagong-Cox’s Bazar Highway at Patiya upazila in Chittagong yesterday afternoon.

The deceased were identified as Moktar, 22, son of Nur Alam and Nayon, 13, son of Jahur Alam. Both of them were residents of Patiya upazila, said Chittagong Medical College Hospital police outpost’s Nayek Hamidur Rahman.

He said an auto rickshaw carrying five passengers collided head on with a covered van at Shantir Hat point around 2pm, leaving all critically injured.

The injured were taken to CMCH where on duty doctors declared Moktar and Nayon

dead around 2:30pm. The bodies were sent to the CMCH morgue for autopsy.

Meanwhile, three pedestrians, including a couple, were killed while 15 passengers of a bus injured as the bus overturned on Dhaka-Rangpur highway at Fasitola in Gobindaganj upazila on Monday night.

The deceased were identified as Ismail Hossain, 40, son of Khoka Mian of Masta village of the upazila; his wife Tara Begum, 31; and Alim Miah, 40, son of late Kazem Uddin of the same village.

Locals said the Rangpur-bound bus of ‘Hanif Enterprise’ turned turtle as its driver lost control over the wheels while trying to overtake another bus of the same company on the highway about 9pm on Monday, leaving 18 people injured, including pedestrians Ismail, his wife Tara Begum and Kazem Uddin. l

n Our Correspondent, Bandarban At least 24 houses have vanished into the riverbed of Sangu as the riverbank erosion took an alarming turn in Madyampara area of the district town.

The untoward incident took place yesterday morning suddenly with the improve of flood water continued for last couple of days as a result of incessant downpour caused by cyclone Komen.

Besides, crack appeared inside about ten houses, as well as on the boundary walls of some nearby residences on the face of excess riverbank erosion in a day.

Consequently, many homeless people have been compelled to pass their days under open sky in a miserable condition.

During a visit, the correspondent found

that around 150 low-income families have been living on the riverbank of Sangu through erecting makeshift house on bamboo. Many of them reportedly started rental business by the houses as well.

One victim named Halima Akter said she could not save any furniture from her house due to onrush of the erosion.

A local namely Jamal Miah opined that the illegal house making on the riverbank led the disaster.

Being informed, Bandarban Deputy Commissioner Mizanul Hoque Chowdhury visited the erosion-hit spot and gave 5kg rice and Tk2,000 to each victim in the afternoon as instant assistance.

Besides, he advised the residents who were in possible danger to move away in nearby cyclone shelters, the DC continued. l

DT

NEWS 7

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Transport workers continue protest across country n Tribune Report Transport workers continued their demonstrations across the country for the fourth consecutive day yesterday, protesting a government ban on plying of three-wheelers on highways.

Transport workers staged demonstrations in different parts of the country, including Moulvibazar, Chittagong, Munshiganj, Mymensingh, Comilla, Sylhet and Barisal.

Drivers of about 38,000 CNG-run three wheelers took to the streets since the morning. They held protest rallies and brought out processions. On three-wheelers ran in and around the town much to cause sufferings for commuters.

The protest rallies were held on Kulaura road, Kamalganj road, Sripur road in the district town.

Transport workers said if the government did not withdraw ban, they would go for tougher movement to achieve their demand.

Owners and drivers of the CNG run three wheelers have also submitted a memorandum to the prime minister through deputy

THUNDERSHOWER WITH RAIN

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5 DHAKA TODAY

TOMORROW

SUN SETS 6:41PM

SUN RISES 5:28AM

FORECAST FOR TODAY 33 31 33 32 32 33 31 30

26 26 26 26 26 26 25 26

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

35.4ºC

24.0ºC

Sylhet

Teknaf Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajr Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha

If the government does not withdraw ban, they would go for tougher movement to achieve their demands During a sit-in in front of deputy commissioner’s office they raised question that if the government had imposed ban on three-wheeler why it imported such kinds of vehicles spending a huge amount of money.

Earlier on July 27, the government declared a ban on the movement of the light vehicles like three-wheelers and non-motorized vehicles on highways across the country with effect from August.

Following the ban, auto-rickshaw drivers and owners started their demonstrations in

different parts of the country from August 1 protesting the ban.

The ban came in the wake of deaths of over 240 people in a series of road accidents before and after Eid-ul-Fitr across the country.

Meanwhile, green activists urged the government to undertake a coordinated initiative to bring about discipline on the country’s highways and ensure travellers’ saafety.

They came up with the demand at a press conference organised by Poribesh Bachao Andolon at its office in the capital.

Speaking at the press conference, Poba chairman Abu Naser Khan referred to the aftermath of the ban on three-wheeled auto-rickshaws and all non-mechanized vehicles from highways since August 1.

“Transport workers staged demonstrations in many districts of the country to condemn the government’s decision. So local people have fallen into untold misery in travelling and carrying goods for lack of transport,” he said.

Abu Naser Khan said as the decision to restrict auto-rickshaws on highways was taken without introducing any alternative mode of transportation, the problem was exacerbated across the country. l

n DU Correspondent

The internet and social media, as well as newspapers and electronic media, have contributed to changing society in the global age, said Dr Wayne Wanta yesterday at a lecture commemorating the anniversary of the Dhaka University Mass Communication and Journalism Department.

“Facebook and Twitter among social media have contributed the most in changing society and running our daily lives,” he said.

Dr Wanta, professor of the Department of Journalism at University of Florida, USA, made these remarks as the keynote speaker in his lecture on “The Changing Effects of the News Media” held at the RC Majumder Auditorium of DU. The DU department had hosted the anniversary lecture yesterday morning to mark its 53rd Department Day. In his speech, Dr Wanta addressed media agenda, public agenda, and agenda of issues alongside the rules of media and social media to set the agendum.

He also spoke about rules of social media in politics and societies across the world.

In his speech as chief guest, DU Vice Chancellor Prof AAMS Arefin Siddique said the journalism sector is growing day by day. l

Migrant comes back dead from Malaysia

WEATHER

Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Cox’s Bazar

commissioner.

In Chapainwabganj, auto-rickshaw owners and drivers put up barricade on Dhaka-Chapainwabganj Highway for about four hours.

They also gave two-day ultimatum to withdraw the ban.

‘Social media contributing to change society’

4:04am 5:28am 12:05am 4:42pm 6:40pm 8:10pm SourceL IslamicFinder.org

n Our Correspondent, Narsingdi Five months after being lured and illegally transported to Malaysia, Abdur Rashid’s dead body was recovered from the Belantik holding camp and sent back home.

The body arrived in Bangladesh on Monday night and was sent to his home in Bhelanagar area of Narsingdi yesterday morning. His family, after losing the sole bread earner, has demanded exeplary punishment of the accused brokers involved with human traffickers who had lured Rashid away.

Family members said Rashid used to work in a furniture shop in Bhelanagar bazar. He left behind wife Nasima Begum, three sons Swapan Mia, 20, Shakil Mia, 12, and Sayem Mia, 8.

They said on the evening of March 27, Rashid got on to a Malaysia-bound trawler along with several others under the persuasion of a broker, Jamir Uddin, of Raupura upazila’s Mahmudnagar area. He did not inform any of the family members.

When Rashid’s family got in touch with Jamir later, the broker threatened to kill Rashid unless the family pay Tk300,000. Later, on April 28, Rashid’s elder brother went to Jamir’s home and paid Tk250,000. However, after being at sea for one and a half month, the traffickers abandoned the boat people.

Afterwards, the boat people managed to get to Langkawi; Malaysian police on May 11 took into custody Rashid and his two associates along with 716 other Bangladeshis and held them at the Belantik camp. Rashid became ill and died at the camp on June 5.

Rashid’s co-travellers Moqbul Hossain and Awlad Hossain of Bhelanagar returned to Bangladesh in June and July respectively and the news of the death to Rashid’s family. When the family got in touch with broker Jamir after hearing the news, they were fur-

ther intimidated.

After a complaint was filed on June 25 addressing the superintendent of police of the upazila the case was handed to Raipura police, but they did not take any necessary action.

Although the living migrants were brought

back through government channels, complications arose with costs of bringing back Rashid’s dead body and the whole process was postponed. Later, under the initiative of the organisations Karam Asia and Bhalobashi Bangladesh, Rashid’s body was sent back. l

DT

8 WORLD

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Myanmar asks for foreign aid as flood misery spreads n AFP, Sittwe

Fighters loyal to Yemen’s President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi gather on a road leading to the al-Anad military and air base in the country’s southern province of Lahej on August 3 REUTERS

Loyalists retake Yemen’s biggest airbase in new blow for rebels n AFP, Aden Pro-government forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition retook Yemen’s biggest airbase from Iran-backed rebels yesterday in a significant new gain after their recapture of second city Aden last month.

Their seizure of the Al-Anad base in a 24hour assault using heavy armour supplied by the coalition came after hundreds of Gulf Arab troops landed in Aden to bolster the loyalist fightback.

Hailing victory in the battle for Al-Anad, the defence ministry vowed there would be no let-up in the war against the Shiite Huthi rebels and their allies until the authority of exiled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi

was restored over the whole country.

The vast 15 square kilometre complex housed US troops overseeing a drone war against Al-Qaeda in Yemen until shortly before the rebels overran it in March.

Its loss is a major blow for the rebels, whose leader Abdulmalik al-Huthi claimed just Sunday that their ouster from Aden after four months of ferocious fighting was just a “short-term” setback that would be reversed.

The loyalists swiftly pushed on from Al-Anad yesterday, attacking the rebel-held Labouza army camp 10 kilometres (six miles) further north, military sources said.

Pro-government sources said that the rebels lost 70 dead and 10 captured in the fighting for Al-Anad. The loyalists suffered 24

dead and 23 wounded. Officers who took part in the assault said that the rebels had put up “stiff resistance” but that Saudi-led air strikes had helped destroy their armour.

An AFP correspondent saw huge columns of tanks and artillery supplied by the coalition pounding the base’s defences..

The recapture of Al-Anad is a major boost for the defence of Aden and paves the way for a possible return by the exiled government to the southern port.

On Sunday, hundreds of Gulf Arab troops from the coalition entered Aden with tanks and other armour “to help secure” it, a military source told AFP. The Saudi-owned AlHayat newspaper said 1,500 troops had deployed to the city. l

Myanmar yesterday formally appealed for international help in tackling massive floods with rescuers struggling to reach isolated regions of the country.

Flash floods and landslides in Myanmar have claimed at least 46 lives and affected some 215,000 people, swallowing huge tracts of land in what the United Nations has described as a “major natural disaster.”

“Myanmar authorities today [yesterday] have formally requested international assistance,” the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement.

In 2008 the military regime was widely criticised for refusing foreign aid for weeks after Cyclone Nargis wrought devastation across the Irrawaddy Delta, leaving nearly 140,000 people dead or missing.

Now, with a fast-growing troop of social media users, the quasi-civilian government has already come under attack for its flood response, accused of underplaying the scale of the disaster.

Government spokesman Ye Htut told AFP that Myanmar had sent an official list of requirements to the UN yesterday as the scale of the crisis was overwhelming local recovery efforts.

“We responded immediately. But in some areas there are no resources, such as boats to rescue people,” he said, adding that parts of the northern Sagaing region were seeing their “worst natural disaster in 100 years.”

Parliamentary spokesman Shwe Mann, a former general, issued a statement yesterday calling for urgent international assistance “in order to save many lives.”

A Sittwe police officer requesting anonymity told AFP that by Sunday 37 people had died from floods in the state, indicating the final national toll could surge, while seven were missing.

Warning the toll was likely to rise, UN Acting Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Eamonn Murphy said relief resources would soon be stretched across the country.

“It is quite clear that we have a major natural disaster,” he said. l

Top prosecutor accuses Berlin New Taliban leader faces of interfering in treason probe tension as top official quits n Reuters, Karlsruhe Germany’s top public prosecutor yesterday accused the government of interfering in a widely criticised treason investigation into a news website.

Federal Prosecutor Harald Range suspended an investigation on Friday into netzpolitik.org while he waited for an independent expert opinion on whether articles the website had published about plans to step up state surveillance of online communications amounted to revealing state secrets.

Range said the justice ministry told him to call off that assessment on Monday after it heard a preliminary independent legal evaluation had found that a document published on April 15 did constitute a state secret.

“Influencing investigations because the result they might have doesn’t seem politically opportune is an intolerable intervention in the independence of the judiciary,” Range told journalists. He did not go into details on why the government wanted the investigation stopped. But Justice Minister Heiko Maas last week said it was important to defend the independence of the press, adding he doubted whether the publication of the documents would endanger Germany.

Range said the freedom of the press and expression was not without limits and journalists who published online were not exempt from complying with the law. “It’s the judiciary’s task to monitor compliance with the law but it can only fulfil this task if it is free from political interference,” he added. l

n Reuters, Peshawar A top Taliban official announced his resignation yesterday amid a growing leadership struggle in the Afghan insurgent movement after the news of the death of leader Mullah Mohammad Omar last week.

The swift announcement that Omar’s longtime deputy, Mullah Mohammad Akhtar Mansour would be the new leader has riled many senior figures angry about the implication that Mansour covered up Omar’s death for more than two years.

The infighting could split the Taliban and threatens tentative peace talks with the Kabul government to end 13 years of war that began with a US-led campaign after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

Since Mansour’s appointment was announced by the Taliban leadership council based in Quetta, Pakistan, it has been denounced by several top members of the group, including Omar’s brother, who has called for an assembly to choose the leader.

Yesterday, Taliban official Syed Mohammad Tayab Agha announced he was stepping down as director of the Political Office in the Qatari capital Doha, originally set up to enable the Taliban to negotiate in any peace process.

Agha said he considered the decision to conceal Omar’s death a “historic mistake by the individuals concerned.” “Now, as the leader is appointed outside the country and from the people who are residing outside the country is also considered as a great historical mistake,” he said in a statement. l

DT

WORLD 9

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

South China Sea tensions flare at Asia security talks n AFP, Kuala Lumpur Southeast Asian diplomats said yesterday that China’s controversial island-building drive is raising regional tensions, with the Philippines slamming its “unilateral and aggressive activities.”

The US and some Southeast Asian states have watched with growing alarm as Beijing expands tiny reefs in the South China Sea, topping some with military posts to reinforce its disputed claims over the strategic waters and fanning fears of future conflict.

The flashpoint issue has taken centre stage at the annual security forum hosted by the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) that began yesterday.

But China has insisted it will not discuss the dispute during the meetings.

That prompted a sharp rebuke from the

Philippines, which along with Vietnam has been involved in the most direct territorial confrontations with China.

“As we speak, we see no let-up on the unilateral and aggressive activities of our northern neighbour in the South China Sea,” Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario told fellow ASEAN foreign ministers at an afternoon meeting, according to a transcript of his remarks obtained by AFP. He also hit out at what he described as “massive reclamation activities” and construction by Beijing in the disputed sea which had “undermined peace, security and stability.”

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Monday that such gatherings are not “the appropriate place for discussing specific bilateral disputes,” and that doing so would “heighten confrontation.”

He reiterated China’s position that it would not bow to pressure on its land reclamation.

But despite Beijing’s protestations, Malaysia’s foreign minister said the South China Sea disputes were “discussed extensively” during the day’s meetings.

Beijing claims control over nearly all of the South China Sea, a key shipping route thought to hold rich oil and gas reserves.

Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei – all ASEAN members – also have various claims, as does Taiwan, many of which overlap.

Beijing insists disputes must be handled on a bilateral basis between rival claimants.

Diplomats and analysts say this stance is aimed at preventing ASEAN from presenting a more united front.

But delegates say China will not be able to escape the issue in Kuala Lumpur this week. l

Kuwait Mosque attack suspect admits to IS links n AFP, Kuwait City

The main suspect in a deadly attack on a Kuwaiti Shiite mosque in June confessed in court yesterday to being in the jihadist Islamic State group.

Abdulrahman Sabah Saud told the first hearing of the trial of 22 men and seven women that he joined IS just a day before the June 26 suicide bombing that killed 26 people and wounded hundreds.

Although the public prosecution has not released the official charge sheets, a number of defendants are charged with being in a proscribed group and taking part in the bombing.

Those charged are seven Kuwaitis, five Saudis, three Pakistanis, 13 stateless people known as bidoons and another person at large whose identity is unknown.

An IS-affiliated group calling itself Najd Province claimed the bombing. l

Pakistan defies rights protests to hang ‘teen’ convict n AFP, Karachi

Pakistan yesterday executed a man convicted of killing a child, brushing aside a storm of protests from rights groups that his confession had been extracted by torture and he was a minor at the time of the crime.

Shafqat Hussain was hanged shortly before dawn at a jail in Karachi for killing a sevenyear-old boy in the city in 2004, his brother and a prison official told AFP. The case raised grave international concern, drawing protests from the United Nations, as his lawyers and family said he was only 15 at the time of the killing and was tortured into making a false confession.

In Muzaffarabad his family was distraught.

“Why did they hang my innocent brother, only because we were poor?” said his sister Sumaira Bibi, beating her chest and weeping.

His mother Makhni Begum, looked glassyeyed, stunned by the news of the execution after seeing her son reprieved from the gallows four times since January.

United Nations rights experts said Hussain’s trial “fell short of international standards” and urged Pakistan not to hang him without investigating the torture claims, as well as his age.

Hussain’s brother Gul Zaman said that in their last meeting, just a few hours before he faced the scaffold, he continued to protest his innocence.

Zaman told AFP his brother’s last words to him were: “I never even touched the boy – I want to let the world know this as I lay down my life.”

After receiving the body, another of Hussain’s brothers claimed the hanging had not been carried out properly, telling AFP “half of his neck is separated from his body.”

The Kashmir government made a last-minute plea to President Mamnoon Hussain late on Monday to postpone the execution, but to no avail. Hussain was originally due to face the gallows in January. l

Sumera Bibi, 26, sister of Shafqat Hussain who was convicted of killing a child in 2004, reacts while speaking to Reuters in Islamabad on August 3

REUTERS

Three killed in India, Pakistan firing n AFP, Srinagar

Three civilians were killed yesterday in heavy exchanges of fire between Indian and Pakistani troops along their border in the south of the disputed territory of Kashmir, officials from the rival sides said.

“One young man died during the shelling.

We are asking residents in the area to remain confined to their homes,” Danesh Rana, inspector general of police in the Indian-controlled part of the region, told AFP. The Pakistan foreign ministry accused Indian troops of “unprovoked firing” and targeting villages across the border that killed two

civilians aged 14 and 22 and injured seven.

“The Government of Pakistan lodged protest with the Government of India on the latest unprovoked ceasefire violations by the Indian security forces,” the ministry said in a statement.

An Indian Border Security Force official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the exchange started in the morning when guards noticed “suspicious movement” in the bushes near the border and fired. “It was an attempt at infiltration. The Pakistan side soon fired heavy weapons which is being retaliated (by Indian troops),” the official said.

A ceasefire agreement signed by the South

Asian rivals in 2003 has largely held but each regularly accuses the other of violating it. Indian officials reported nearly 200 violations in July.

India’s defence minister told parliament recently that Pakistan had violated the ceasefire over 1,000 times since the agreement, while Pakistan regularly registers complaints of violations by India to a UN mission which monitors the border.

In July at least five civilians and two soldiers died on both sides during cross-border firing. The Himalayan region of Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan, but claimed in full by both, since the two countries gained independence from Britain in 1947. l

DT

10 WORLD

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Thailand arrests 5 for trafficking women into sex slavery n Reuters, Bangkok Thailand has arrested five people suspected of trafficking Thai women into sex slavery in China and believed to be part of a ring that has also trafficked women into Malaysia and Singapore, Thai police said yesterday.

The arrests come a week after the United States kept Thailand on its list of worst human-trafficking centres. The Thai government has said it hopes the US will removed it from the blacklist following a crackdown.

“Thailand is determined to tackle and eliminate human trafficking,” Thai Police Chief Somyot Pumpanmuang told reporters yesterday.

Thailand in July indicted 72 people, including 15 state officials, over suspected links to human trafficking after what Thai police

described as their biggest ever investigation into the crime.

Chinese and Thai authorities worked together on the latest case after a Thai woman escaped her captors in Chongqing in China, Somyot said.

The woman told Chinese police that she and three others were forced to have sex with men after being lured to China with the promise of jobs as hostesses through a modelling website.

Thai police arrested four women and a man and had issued warrants for another four suspects, Somyot said. Chinese authorities had also arrested two Chinese nationals suspected of being part of the trafficking ring, the Thai police said in a statement.

Police suspect more than twenty women were trafficked by this ring, said Police Major General Thiti Saengswang, the commander of Thailand’s Anti-Human Trafficking Division. l

DT

EDITORIAL 11

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

INSIDE

Is there a Mahathir in the house?

But he left behind a mixed legacy.

During the 1980s, he became more authoritarian and less democratic

PAGE 12

The two Bengals meeting abroad Despite the ethno-linguistic similarity, the idea of a united Bengal never materialised due to the bifurcating nature of religion-based politics

BIGSTOCK

PAGE 13

Incorporate technology neutrality into ICT policy

A tale of two classrooms As a teacher in a more privileged part of the world, I am afforded certain luxuries that my teachers in Dhaka could not have

PAGE 14

Be heard Write to Dhaka Tribune FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka-1207 Email letters.dt@ dhakatribune.com

Send us your Op-Ed articles:

opinion.dt@dhakatribune. com www.dhakatribune.com Join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook. com/DhakaTribune

W

e welcome the recommendation by the prime minister’s ICT Affairs Adviser to incorporate technology neutrality into the National Telecommunications Policy.

This guidance tallies with the call made by a new report Realising Digital Bangladesh, released by Grameenphone and the ICT thinktank LIRNEasia, arguing that a clear spectrum road-map and tech neutrality are essential to enable ICT operators to offer better services.

In principle, tech neutrality allows the use of any technology for any spectrum frequency and cuts the operator’s costs of providing data services.

This should reduce costs for mobile phone operators and allow them to increase data service speeds and more cheaply provide new 4G services.

To work most effectively and help the telecom sector flourish, the government should encourage more public-private partnerships to grow connectivity and train new IT experts and leaders. It should also look at breaking up the duopoly which only allows two companies to lay and sell fibreoptic cables across the country.

Increasing the scope for growth is vital to attracting new investment, both foreign and domestic, across the ICT sector. This will help the government more easily achieve key goals of the Digital Bangladesh progam to expand connectivity across all schools and to grow jobs in the IT outsourcing sector.

It is encouraging to see companies and government working more closely together on these issues.

An open and ever more accessible Internet is the single greatest technology of our time. As its regulator, the government should give priority to ensuring neutrality, whether on technical matters or on the way ISPs treat different websites and services, to enable it to grow on a level playing field for the benefit of all.

A level playing field is vital to increase internet accessibility and maxmise the benefits of ICT in growing jobs

DT

12 OPINION

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Is there a Mahathir in the house?

Is Bangladesh any closer to becoming as prosperous as Mahathir’s Malaysia?

But he left behind a mixed legacy. During the 1980s, he became more authoritarian and less democratic. In 1987, he instituted the Internal Security Act, under the cover of which he shut down four newspapers and ordered the arrest of nearly 106 activists

n Brig Gen (Retd) Shamsuddin Ahmed

L

ast Friday, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, the son of, and an adviser to, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, underscored the need of his mother remaining in power for a minimum of another four to five terms (20 to 25 years) so as to achieve the Malaysian model of development for Bangladesh. He also called his mother, and our prime minister, the Mahathir Mohamad of Bangladesh.

Quite a revelation indeed, coming as it did from a young man educated in the US who is also representing the new generation.

Our prime minister’s son and adviser was speaking at a program called “Let us talk with

REUTERS

Sajeeb Wazed Joy on Bangladesh achieving middle income status,” organised by the Centre for Research and Information (CRI) in Dhaka.

One significant difference between Sheikh Hasina and Mahathir Mohamad is that, unlike the former, the latter did not climb up the ladder of political power following a family pedigree. While Sheikh Hasina stepped into the shoes of her slain father as AL chief in the 1980s and began gaining political clout largely in the light of her father’s charismatic persona and political career, Mahathir Mohamad rose to power by dint of his own hard work and characteristic qualities.

His father was a school teacher who had nothing to do with politics. Mahathir Mohamad, who was educated at Sultan Abdul Hamid College and the University of Malaya in Singapore, where he studied medicine, was first elected to parliament in 1964 as a member of the UMNO, the largest political party of Malaysia. He was re-elected to parliament in 1973, became a minister in 1974, and then deputy prime minister in 1976.

Mahathir Mohamad won five successive parliamentary elections and served for 22 years. Under him, Malaysia achieved rapid growth and was acclaimed as an emerging tiger in Southeast Asia -- together with Singapore -- in terms of development.

But he left behind a mixed legacy. During the 1980s, he became more authoritarian

and less democratic. In 1987, he instituted the Internal Security Act, under the cover of which he shut down four newspapers and ordered the arrest of nearly 106 activists, religious teachers, and political opponents, including Anwar Ibrahim, his former deputy prime minister.

He amended the constitution to restrict the interpretive power of the Supreme Court, leading to a number of high-ranking members to resign. But by and large, his personal integrity remained untainted, unlike most of our pedigree politicians.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina moved heaven and earth for the caretaker government system while she was in opposition, and quickly did away with said system when she was in power, so as to preside over the transition to power and, more pointedly, the voters, with a one-party parliamentary election held on January 5, 2014. The less said the better about the cause of democracy being served.

Maybe here we see a bit of similarity between “our Mahathir Mohamad” and Malaysia’s Mahathir Mohamad. But I am not sure if the Malaysian government, under Mahathir Mohamad, also had an array of unelected advisers like we have in the current government.

There is another aspect which needs to be looked into. As a country that was once warravaged, we have received, over the years, massive economic aid, running into billions of dollars, from the international community for our development since our independence.

In this context, our graduation to a lowmiddle income status now after 43 years pales into insignificance when compared to the development strides of Malaysia.

Here, the crucial factor has been the rampant corruption that has existed within our successive governments -political or otherwise. During the caretaker government’s reign, in the event now known as 1/11, a tip of the iceberg that is our corruption was made visible when corruption charges were brought against many heavy-weight political leaders, after which many such leaders went into hiding, leaving behind very large amounts of cash money with houses and luxury SUVs thrown about for good measure. Mahathir Mohamad has been out of power in Malaysia for a while, but his reputation remains largely untainted.

We would do well to remember that the people of this country have laid down their lives and sacrificed the honour and dignity of their mothers and sisters at the clarion call of Bangabandhu, our undisputed leader and Joy’s own grandfather, not just to be independent from Pakistan, but for genuine democracy and fundamental democratic rights which would shape the destiny of this country and its people.

We do not want a Gaddafi or a Saddam to develop this country. We look forward to leaders standing on a moral high ground of a democratic landscape and leading us out of darkness to the light at the end of the tunnel, and out of poverty into affluence. l Brig Gen (Retd) Shamsuddin Ahmed is a former Military Secretary to the President of Bangladesh.

DT

OPINION 13

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Obama’s speech at the GES 2015 will inspire entrepreneurs from all over the world

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

The two Bengals meeting abroad n Tamim Choudhury

B

engali culture came alive in greater Washington, DC over the final weekend of July. The aromatic smell of biriyani and jasmine filled the lobby at George Mason University’s Centre for the Arts.

Tunes that had originated thousands of miles away played within the concert hall, as cultural group Dhroopad’s arrangement of Banglamela 2015 came under way,

Despite the ethno-linguistic similarity, the idea of a united Bengal never materialised due to the bifurcating nature of religion-based politics. The two parts of Bengal were sliced apart, each destined to have divergent paths in global history

celebrating the musical soul of Bengal right here, in a leafy university campus in northern Virginia.

Dhroopad, a member of Mid-America Bengali Association, has been holding these annual events to showcase Bengal’s cultural heritage since 1999. For the past 15 years,

Dhroopad has been promoting Bengali culture in the greater DC area, and this was an illuminating cultural event.

This year’s show brought in numerous artists from both Bangladesh and West Bengal. Performances included dance, drama, and musical numbers by notables such as Fahmida Nabi, who sang her award-winning songs, Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta, who performed multiple ragas used by Tagore, and Shafi Mondol, whose mesmerising Baul items enthralled the audience.

I went to hear the great baul of whom I had heard so much, and he certainly lived up to his name. Shafi Mondol’s heart-pounding voice, accompanied by the rhythmic dhol and the Sufi-style lyrics, created an ambience that is almost impossible to forget. The syncretic vision of the Baul, who is known to combine elements of Sufi Islam and Hinduism, came alive in this Western theatre.

One particular number, where the Baul proclaims that he will not pray in a temple or in a mosque but within his heart, came to a thundering crescendo as he radiated the words “Allahu Akbar” in a prolonged, highintensity volume.

A quarter of the audience went into immediate applause upon hearing his invocation of the Almighty’s name. One usually hears this in a ritualistic method in the mosque or in a menacing manner when the Western news depicts Middle Eastern violence, but if one would hear this Baul sing the words, it would provide them with a deeper meaning, one that depicts love for

the Almighty, not simply reverence or a call to war.

His vocals harken back to the 10th century, when the nomadic group came into recorded history. The spirit of Lalon Fakir, the legendary folk singer from whom bauls draw their heritage, is ever-present in this music.

This devotional music transcends religious and political divisions, and it was aptly represented in Dhroopad’s cultural program that showcases a united Bengal.

Despite the ethno-linguistic similarity, the idea of a united Bengal never materialised due to the bifurcating nature of religionbased politics. The two parts of Bengal were sliced apart, each destined to have divergent paths in global history, with East Bengal undergoing a brutal war of liberation.

Questions still linger about our Bangladeshi identity: Are we Bengali Muslims following a secular democracy, or Muslim Bengalis who still retain Islam as the state religion?

Even though there are enormous differences caused by the 1947 partition, culturally, West Bengal and Bangladesh continue to share the same heritage.

For a brief weekend in the suburbs of Washington, DC, the two Bengals met and exchanged their vibrant cultures, with hundreds of the Bengali diaspora in attendance, marking another milestone for the South Asian experience in the United States. l Tamim Choudhury is a Texas-based communications analyst.

DT

14 OPINION

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

A tale of two classrooms

A good teacher surpasses the geographic boundaries of the classroom

BIGSTOCK

n Shehtaz Huq

W

e spend eight hours taping squares on the linoleum floor.

We count off how many pairs of students we anticipate for each home-room. 11 here, 13 there … we reshuffle the seating arrangement, attach personalised name-tags to folders, spend a good hour hanging decals and posters on the bright green walls.

The assistant principal pops in to check our progress, sometimes lending a hand, kicking off her shoes to stand on desks and straighten a banner.

As a middle-school teacher in upstate New York, I cannot help notice how different my role on this side of the divide feels from my days in the hard, wooden seats of my English-medium school in Dhaka.

I will spend the next three hot weeks of August prepping for every aspect of classroom management: Setting behavioural expectations, Marking up lesson plans, Establishing relationships with families.

Like last year, I will spend hours checking in with parents and action-planning around gaps in student understanding. Come September, I will spend an hour a week in meetings with my instructional coaches, who will tell me where I can do better, coaches who sit in the back of the classroom and write down what I say during my instructions and give me feedback when they feel that I can be more effective.

This feels different from my experience as a student back in Dhaka, where I spent a decade at a reputable English-medium school. Rarely did I have a teacher who did not read off notes that we were instructed to copy verbatim.

As a teacher in a more privileged part of the world, where almost every classroom has uninterrupted electricity and an overhead projector that functions, I am afforded certain luxuries that my teachers in Dhaka could not have

Rarely did I have a teacher who broke down concepts, took hands, offered up free periods to help students who were struggling. Those teachers who were more engaged in cementing academic content I am Facebook friends with. That brings my list of Dhaka-teachers-I-am-Facebook-friends-with to five.

Why this disengagement from supposed essential components of ensuring long-term academic success? Perhaps it has to do with the fact that teaching is not considered a viable profession in Dhaka.

The pay is dismal. The hours are long, made even longer by the need to supplement one’s income by taking in private coaching that subsequently add another three, four, five hours to one’s work day.

There is no training, or observation hours, required for a full-time position at a school.

Educational standards are non-existent, or sparingly enforced, with little deep-diving in areas of mastery or areas of growth.

I did not know what made mitochondria the energy center of the cell, merely that it

was a component of micro-biology I needed to know to get an A on my mid-year exam.

As for those other components of a successful teacher -- building relationships with students, or planning specific interventions for students struggling with content -- they were not even a blip on the radar.

I am aware that as a teacher in a more privileged part of the world, where almost every classroom has uninterrupted electricity and an overhead projector that functions, I am afforded certain luxuries that my teachers in Dhaka could not have.

Yet, even though the work on either side of the Atlantic is still exhausting, and occasionally dismal, the desire to be a good teacher surpasses geographic boundaries.

At the end of the day, however, the work of educators on either side of the Atlantic is still significant and necessary; in our wake, we aspire to leave a legion of individuals who can succeed, will succeed. We aspire. l Shehtaz Huq is a teacher based in Rochester, NY.

16

As oil falls below $50, analysts eye ‘midprice’ era

‘No risks posed by expected Fed, BOE rate hikes’

17

19

DSE turnover crosses Tk900 crore

Ecnec approves largest trade exhibition centre project n Tribune Report

BANGLADESH-CHINA FRIENDSHIP EXHIBITION CENTRE

The government has taken up a Tk796 crore project to build a permanent trade exhibition centre at Purbachal, the largest of its kind in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh-China Friendship Exhibition Center will be constructed on 20 acres of land at the under construction new satellite town.

The construction of the centre aims to create scope for showcasing products of both producers and exporters to attract buyers, as well as to establish a platform for both the buyers and sellers.

The centre will have two superior halls with space for 806 booths of 9m by 9m each, apart from arrangement for a parking site for some 1,500 cars.

Besides, there will be a conference room, press centre, trade information centre, reception centre, service room, sub-station and other necessary facilities.

According to project plan, China will provide Tk625.70 crore as grant, the government Tk138.18 crore and Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) will bear the remaining Tk32.13 crore.

EPB will implement the project by June, 2018 under the turn-key method with Chinese grant.

Total area 20 acres

Projects cost Tk796 crore

Chinese grant Tk625.70 crore GOB Tk138.18 crore

EPB Tk32.13 crore To have two superior halls

Space for 806 booths (9m X 9m each) Parking site for 1,500 cars EPB to implement project by June, 2018 The project was approved yesterday by the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair held at the NEC conference room. It is one of the nine projects worth Tk3,368.63 crore approved by the Ecnec, according to Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal who briefed reporters after the meeting.

Of the total outlay, Tk2,379.31 crore will come from the government exchequer, Tk32.13 crore from the related public organisation’s own fund and the remaining Tk957.19 crore as project assistance.

Of the approved nine projects, eight are new and one is a revised project.

ECNEC also approved another Tk420.3 crore project titled “procurement of machinery and equipment for the city corporations and pourasavas from Belarus.”

The Belarus will provide the vehicles under a deal signed between Minsk and Dhaka during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to the Eastern European country in 2012.

Local Government Division will implement the project by June, 2016 under which the machinery and equipment valued Tk331.5 crore will be procured from Belarus.

The fund will be used for waste collection, transportation and cleaning, drain construction, maintenance and cleaning, road construction and maintainable in all the country’s 11 city corporations and 323 pourasavas.

Replying to a question, Mustafa Kamal said Prime Minister already directed the authorities concerned to undertake initiative for providing basic needs of the people of the former exclaves after the recent historic exchange with India.

He said steps would also be taken to ensure construction of roads, schools and colleges, places of worships, community clinics in the former exclaves while work for distributing electricity would begin in those areas over the next three months. l

20

DT

Business

15

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Stress on multicurrency to avoid export losses

Banks asked to submit Grameenphone account details n Tribune Report The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has asked the commercial banks to submit detail bank account information of Grameenphone for the calendar year of 2013.

The Large Taxpayers Unit (LTU) of NBR has served a letter recently to the banks. It asked them to send bank transaction statements of the leading mobile phone operator on emergency basis.

The tax authorities require the bank transaction statement to assess the tax file of Grameenphone for the fiscal year 2014-15, mainly for audit purposes.

The NBR letter, however, did not mention any deadline for the submission of the data.

According to bank officials, seeking transaction report of commercial entities is nothing special.

Rather, it is a regular practice of NBR for conducting assessment of any tax files selected for audit.

Under the process, the National Board of Revenue scrutinises tax files of business organisations with the bank transaction statements to find out whether there were any inconsistencies. l

Eid spending edges up inflation in July INFLATION TREND

6.36

6.25

7.04

2015

6.97 6.19

7.48 6.32

7.46

7.48 6.27

4

6.14

5

2014

7.84

6

6.04

7

Figures in (%)

7.5

8

3 Source: BBS

2 1 0

January

February

March

n Tribune Report Inflation moved up marginally for the second straight month on the back of rising non-food inflation as consumers were on buying spree during Eid ul-Fitr.

April

May

June

July

The July inflation stood at 6.36%, which was 6.25% in June, as prices of non-food items spiked, according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) latest data released yesterday.

Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal explained the causes of soaring inflation, saying

the celebration of Eid last month has pushed the demand side against the supply side, which leads to increase inflation.

“People from all walks of life bought nonfood items like clothes during the festival, which is the main driver for increasing inflation,” he said.

He added that the government would try to keep under control the annual inflation target of 6.2% for the current fiscal year.

Transaction during the recent Eid stood at over Tk1 trillion, according to Bangladesh Bank.

The overall month-tomonth non-food inflation rose to 6.8% in July from 6.32% in June, the BBS data showed.

In contrast, food inflation fell to 6.07% from 6.32% during the period.

Consumer Price Index (CPI) of BBS data showed that the overall inflation at the urban area slightly increased to 7.28% from 6.91% while it soared 5.88% from 5.9% in ru-

ral area during the period. In rural area, food inflation was 5.43% in July, down from 5.76% in previous month, while non-food inflation increased to 6.69% against 6.16%.

In urban area, food inflation declined to 7.58% from 7.64% and non-food inflation saw a rise of 6.96% from 6.14% during the period.

The national wage index rate gained 9.55% to 9381.54 in June. The average year-to-year inflation from August 2014 to July 2015 stood at 6.35%, which was 7.28% a year earlier. l

DT

16 BUSINESS

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

EU announces free trade deal with Vietnam in principle n AFP, Brussels

A worker fills a tank with subsidized fuel at a fuel station in Jakarta

REUTERS

As oil falls below $50, analysts eye mid-price era n Reuters, Singapore

A slump in oil below $50 a barrel - a level it has held above for most of the past decade has raised the prospect of a new era of lower prices, although a return to super-cheap oil seems unlikely. Prices below $50 for the two crude oil benchmarks, North Sea Brent LCOc1 and US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) CLc1, were the norm prior to 2005. Brent averaged just $18.37 a barrel in the 1990s, WTI $19.70 a barrel, and both only broke above $50 for the first time in late 2004.

China’s explosive economic growth over the past decade, coupled with flatlining global output, saw Brent soar above $140 in 2008 and it has spent more than 90 percent of the past decade above the $50 mark.

But producers globally, in particular US shale drillers, are now pumping record

amounts of oil just as China’s growth looks set to steady at lower levels, while alternative energy sources and better efficiency are denting demand in the developed world.

Suggestions that cheap oil will cure itself by spurring demand may fail to play out as consumers look to save rather than spend.

And a likely deal to lift sanctions on Iran and allow its huge oil reserves to return to markets, has led many analysts to trim their oil price forecasts to reflect deepening oversupply.

BMI Research, a subsidiary of Fitch Ratings, said on Tuesday that a strong U.S. dollar, China’s weakening economy and the prospect of rising Iranian oil exports would keep downward pressure on prices in the coming months.

“A retest of Brent crude’s 2015 low around $45 per barrel looks inevitable given current ample market supply and intensifying bearish market sentiment toward prices,” the firm

said in a note to clients. But while analysts say a return to extremely high prices of $100 a barrel or more is unlikely any time soon, barring a sudden production crash, they also don’t expect a return to super-cheap oil, effectively opening up a third, mid-priced era of prices.

A Reuters poll of oil price forecasts by brokerages and banks shows that the majority of analysts expect Brent prices to average $60 to $70 a barrel in 2016, with only a small minority forecasting significantly higher or lower levels than that.

“In the longer-term, it’s not really a question of oversupply. Oil is still a scarce resource,” said Richard Gorry, managing director of JBC Energy Asia.

“Outside the US, we haven’t seen supply rising by much, so in the longer term the Iranian oil will actually be needed to keep the market balanced.” l

The EU yesterday announced a free trade deal “in principle” with Vietnam aimed at removing nearly all tariffs on goods traded between the two countries.

“We have a deal,” EU Trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem announced as her office said it was “an agreement in principle” in two and a half years of “intense” negotiations for a free trade agreement.

“This finely balanced agreement will boost trade with one of Asia’s most dynamic economies,” Malmstroem said.

“It sets a new, better and modern model for free trade agreements between the EU and developing countries, and establishes a good standard for the trade relationship between the EU and Southeast Asia as a whole,” she added.

The announcement followed a telephone conversation between Malmstroem and Vietnamese Industry and Trade Minister Vu Huy Hoang.

The two sides had agreed on “all issues of substance” and that the “agreement will remove nearly all tariffs on goods traded between the two economies,” Malmstroem’s office said.

Malmstroem said the deal would boost opportunities for both EU and Vietnamese companies “by increasing market access for goods and services.” She added that more than 31 million jobs in Europe - which is suffering from high unemployment - depend on exports.

“So having easier access to a growing and fast developing market like Vietnam, with its 90 million consumers, is great news,” the commissioner said.

Malmstroem said the negotiating teams will now work on the finer points, “settle some remaining technical issues and finalise the legal text.” The final version will then have to be approved by the EU member states and the European Parliament. l

India’s central bank keeps interest rates unchanged n AFP, Mumbai

‘Significant uncertainty will be resolved in the coming months, including the likely persistence of recent inflationary pressures, the full monsoon outturn, as well as possible Federal Reserve actions’

India’s central bank kept its key interest rate on hold yesterday as analysts had expected, resisting government pressure for a fourth cut of the year.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said the benchmark repo rate - the level at which it lends to commercial banks - would remain at 7.25%.

“It is prudent to keep the policy rate unchanged at the current juncture while maintaining the accommodative stance of monetary policy,” RBI governor Raghuram Rajan said in a statement following the bank’s monetary policy review meeting in Mumbai.

Rajan had already snipped rates three times this year to aid India’s economy, which at 7.5% growth outperformed China’s for the first three months of 2015.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s busi-

ness-friendly government was keen for a further cut as it seeks to quicken the pace of growth in Asia’s third-largest economy.

But Rajan has insisted that any further reduction would have to wait until the inflationary effect of annual monsoon rains is known in a couple of months time.

Heavy monsoon rains are vital for crops and a dry season can reduce farm output, raising food prices which can be crippling for India’s tens of millions of poor.

“Significant uncertainty will be resolved in the coming months, including the likely persistence of recent inflationary pressures, the full monsoon outturn, as well as possible Federal Reserve actions,” Rajan said.

The bank left room for a cut at its next meeting on September 29.

A survey of 42 economists by Bloomberg had overwhelmingly predicted Rajan would hold rates on inflationary concerns.

The governor has made controlling inflation a priority, setting a target of bringing it consistently below six percent by next January and to four percent for the 2016/17 financial year.

Inflation increased 5.4% in June, faster than analysts’ expectations, with food prices rising during the monsoon.

Modi’s government has made reviving India’s economy a priority since coming to power last May, introducing reforms aimed at boosting demand and increasing investment.

After cuts in January and March, the RBI kept rates unchanged in April, citing inflation concerns and a failure of most commercial banks to on pass lower loan rates to customers.

In June it lopped off a further 25 basis points.

Pressure on Rajan to announce another cut was eased by data released Monday that showed factory output climbed to a sixmonth high in July on strong demand. l

DT

BUSINESS 17

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

No risks posed by expected Fed, BOE rate hikes n Reuters, Tokyo Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Kikuo Iwata yesterday played down any risk that expected interest rate increases by the US Federal Reserve or the Bank of England could pose to financial markets, and dismissed suggestions that the BOJ should raise rates to prevent the yen from falling too fast.

Iwata, speaking at the upper house financial affairs committee, acknowledged there was a chance currencies could react to such rate hikes but noted that foreign exchange markets may have fully priced in expected interest rate increases.

An interest rate hike in the United States or Britain would be an important step in returning monetary policy to normal after the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis, but some investors worry the normalization process could disrupt financial markets.

“I don’t see these moves as a risk,” Iwata said.

“It could be fully priced in. In that case, there wouldn’t be much reaction. Central banks conduct monetary policy for price stability, not for currencies.”

Economists and investors are eyeing Fed meetings scheduled for September and December as the most likely timing of the first rate hike in nearly a decade. The BOE is also moving closer to its first interest rate increase since 2007.

In theory, the widening interest rate differential should cause the yen to fall versus the dollar and sterling, but Iwata said it was difficult to predict how the foreign exchange market would react, because several factors determine currency levels.

When asked by an opposition lawmaker if the BOJ needed to prevent a rapid decline in the yen and an ensuing rise in import prices, Iwata reiterated the BOJ’s position that quan-

Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) Deputy Governor Kikuo Iwata poses for a photo after an interview with Reuters at the BOJ headquarters in Tokyo titative easing aims for price stability and not to influence currencies.

Internally, the BOJ is conducting simulations about how to end quantitative easing,

including its purchase of exchange-traded funds, but it is too early to talk about specific strategies in public, he said.

The BOJ is expected to keep policy steady

REUTERS

at a meeting ending Friday, but lackluster exports, output and consumer spending pose a serious challenge to the central bank’s optimistic forecasts. l

Greek stock market suffers record drop as shutdown ends n AFP, Athens Greece’s stock exchange suffered its steepest-ever fall on Monday, plunging more than 16% as trading resumed after a five-week shutdown triggered by the country’s debt crisis.

Bank shares were particularly hard-hit, sinking some 30% after the Athens bourse opened for the first time since the government imposed capital controls to prevent a bank run and stave off financial collapse at the height of its standoff with EU-IMF creditors over a new bailout.

The ATHEX index ended the day a record 16.32 lower to 668.06 points, its worst drop in nearly 30 years, highlighting investors’ ongoing anxiety about the Greek economy even after a new rescue deal was agreed last month.

The previous worst loss in the stock market’s history was a 15.03% tumble in 1987.

“The situation in Greek equity markets will have to get a lot worse before it gets better,” said Luca Paolini, Pictet Asset Management’s chief strategist in London.

The reopening of the stock market came after senior EU and IMF auditors held their first meetings with Greek ministers to finalise the new three-year bailout for the country that could be worth up to 86bn euros ($94bn).

The negotiations are “going in the right direction,” EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici told the Greek daily Ethnos.

“Our Greek partners are responding in a constructive and comprehensive manner, and are working hard,” he said, after months of acrimony between the two sides.

The tough conditions demanded by creditors in return for the rescue funds have however put a major strain on Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, whose Syriza party came to power on an anti-austerity platform.

The 41-year-old premier faced a mutiny among his lawmakers last month and he has warned that early elections will be called if his MPs refuse to ratify the bailout in parliament.

Banks vulnerable Analysts had widely expected Greece’s vulnerable banks to bear the brunt of the mass sell-off when traders returned to their desks on Monday.

Uncertainty over the fate of Greece’s economy, and its place in the eurozone, has seen bank customers withdraw some 40 billion euros ($44bn) since December, leaving lenders dangerously low on cash and in need of urgent recapitalisation.

Banks across Greece were ordered to stay shut when the government imposed its capital controls on June 26. They reopened on July 20, but withdrawals and money transfers abroad remain restricted.

The National Bank and Piraeus both fell to the maximum allowed level of minus 30% in Monday’s session. Alpha Bank finished at minus 29.81% while

Eurobank fell 29.86%.

The four top banks are expected to undergo stress tests in the autumn to determine their recapitalisation requirements using European rescue funds.

Greek officials hope to complete the operation before new regulations come into effect in 2016, when bank shareholders and depositors will foot the lion’s share of recapitalisation costs - a process known as “bail-in” - instead of European taxpayers.

Investors on Monday also offloaded shares in top companies such as gaming giant OPAP, electricity provider PPC, telecoms operator OTE and leading refiners HELPE, all shedding between 12 and 23%.

“Pressure by sellers was high. It is logical and anticipated by everyone,” stock market chairman Socrates Lazaridis told Bloomberg TV, adding that he expected the market to stabilise in a month’s time.

The reopened stock market currently operates as normal for foreign investors but local traders still face restrictions and cannot buy securities with money from their bank accounts in Greece. They can, however, use foreign bank accounts or make cash transactions.

The Greek economy is forecast to contract by at least 3% this year.

In the latest batch of worrying data out of the country, a survey by a small traders association on Monday found that 51.2% of small and medi-

um-sized companies had seen their sales drop by more than half since the capital controls were imposed.

The measures have forced many companies to send staff on mandatory vacation and disrupted the import of a wide array of goods, raising the prospect of shortages in the autumn, according to market insiders. l

Uncertainty over the fate of Greece’s economy, and its place in the eurozone, has seen bank customers withdraw some 40 billion euros ($44bn) since December, leaving lenders dangerously low on cash and in need of urgent recapitalisation

DT

18 BUSINESS

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

News, analysis and recent disclosures MARICO: (Q1): EPS for AprilJune, 2015 was Tk. 14.42 as against Tk. 14.82 for April-June, 2014; NOCFPS was Tk. 30.71 for April-June, 2015 as against Tk. 7.71 for April-June, 2014. NAV per share was Tk. 68.77 as of June 30, 2015 and Tk. 54.35 as of March 31, 2015.

FAREASTLIF: (HY): Increase in life revenue account for April-June, 2015 was Tk. 147.66 million as against increase of Tk. 675.83 million for April-June, 2014. Whereas increase in life insurance fund for Jan- June, 2015 was Tk. 249.49 million with total life insurance fund of Tk. 29,112.55 million as against increase of Tk. 914.80 million and Tk. 26,162.83 million respectively for Jan-June, 2014.

NFML: (HY): EPS for April-June, 2015 was Tk. 0.30 as against Tk. 0.28 for April-June, 2014, EPS for Jan-June, 2015 was Tk. 0.63 as against Tk. 0.57 for Jan-June, 2014. NOCFPS was Tk. (0.50) for Jan-June, 2015 as against Tk. (0.08) for Jan-June, 2014. NAV per share was Tk. 13.73 as of June 30, 2015 and Tk. 14.41 as of December 31, 2014.

1STICB: ICB has informed to the honorable Unit holders and all concerned of 1st ICB Mutual Fund, managed by ICB, that as per BSEC letter dated July 12, 2015 and August 02, 2015, the Conversion/Redemption time schedule is December 31, 2015.

In line with BSEC Directive No. SEC/CMRRCD/2009-193/175/ Admin/62 dated July 08, 2015, the Board of Director of ICB has decided that if required consent is obtained from the meeting

of the unit holders, then the scheme of the closed-end mutual fund may be converted into open-end scheme subject to approval of BSEC. In this regard Record date for 1st ICB Mutual Fund will be October 28, 2015 and effective date for conversion will be October 29, 2015.

HAKKANIPUL: BSEC News: With reference to the earlier news (disseminated by DSE on 30th June, 2015) regarding BSEC Order related to investigation into unusual price increase in shares of Hakkani Pulp and Paper Mills Limited, the BSEC has extended time up to August 11, 2015 for completion of the said enquiry and submission of the enquiry report, vide its Order No. BSEC/Surveillance/2015-0855/689 dated August 03, 2015.

Note: InShaALLAH, declared Half Yearly financial Data will be updated by Thursday.

Dividend/AGM

8THICB: 140% cash. 7THICB: 150% cash 6THICB: 120% cash 5THICB: 250% cash. 4THICB: 300% cash. 3RDICB: 300% cash. 2NDICB: 450% cash.

1STICB: 1,000% cash. Record date: 12.08.2015.

BERGERPBL: 100% interim cash dividend. Record date for entitlement of interim cash dividend: 20.08.2015.

PRAGATILIF: 17% cash and 5% stock dividend AGM: 29.09.2015,. Record Date: 20.08.2015.

SHASHADNIM: 10% interim cash dividend for 2015, Record date for entitlement of interim cash dividend: 20.08.2015.

Turnover (Volume) Number of Contract

Company Premier Cement-A Beach Hatchery -A BD Fixed Income MF-A 7th ICB M F-A Monno Stafllers -A Libra Infusions-A Daffodil Computers -Z UNITED AIR-A Northern Jute -Z The Ibn SinaA

Closing (% Change) 9.97 9.60 9.46 8.99 8.75 8.58 8.51 8.33 7.77 6.66

CSE GAINER Company Premier Cement-A Beach Hatchery -A Bengal Windsor-A I P D C -A UNITED AIR-A BDCOM Online-A Daffodil Computers -Z 1st ICB M F -A Berger Paints-A Continental Insur. -A

Closing (% Change) 9.76 9.74 9.55 7.56 7.41 6.90 6.38 6.24 6.24 5.63

DSE LOSER Company EXIM Bank 1 MF-A Tallu Spinning -Z AIBL 1st Is. M. F.-A BSRM Ltd. -A Prime Bank-A IFIC 1st MF-A ICB AMCL 1st NRB -A Miracle Industries -B Legacy Footwear -A Bangladesh Welding -B

Closing (% Change) -7.94 -5.64 -5.45 -4.64 -4.39 -3.77 -3.62 -3.55 -3.49 -3.46

CSE LOSER Company Prime Bank-A Anwar Galvanizing-B Miracle Industries -B Midas Financing-Z AMCL 2nd MF-A AIBL 1st Is. M. F.-A Linde (BD) Ltd. -A Shahjibazar Power-N Kohinoor Chem -A Legacy Footwear -A

Closing (% Change) -4.90 -4.75 -4.19 -3.70 -3.70 -3.70 -3.67 -3.31 -3.27 -2.71

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY

DSE key features August 4, 2015 Turnover (Million Taka)

DSE GAINER

Sector

9,282.71 265,053,962 185,843

Traded Issues

325

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

199

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

123

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

3

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,742.93

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

33.25

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 805.26 246.89 177.34 1646.91 419.03 1603.29 9.60 1141.79 1181.49 45.19 129.34 31.62 100.81 418.32 143.46 44.09 60.73 197.93 494.21 385.36 0.07

% change 8.67 2.66 1.91 17.74 4.51 17.27 0.10 12.30 12.73 0.49 1.39 0.34 1.09 4.51 1.55 0.47 0.65 2.13 5.32 4.15 0.00

Million Taka 40.00 22.36 7.54 136.77 14.00 113.88 82.83 97.20 3.75 9.05 1.55 8.04 29.06 14.08 0.55 3.46 12.93 66.52 37.37 0.25

Average (% Change) 9.29 11.34 9.35 9.35 7.02 10.00 7.66 6.00 4.74 5.89

Average (% Change) 10.85 10.31 5.91 5.03 5.07 5.73 5.27 6.24 6.14 5.93

Average (% Change) -8.52 0.57 -1.45 2.02 0.25 -3.36 -2.95 -0.66 -1.86 4.69

Average (% Change) -2.14 -4.99 -1.51 -3.41 -3.70 -5.06 -3.38 -2.66 -3.27 -2.39

CSE

ClosingAvg. 72.67 21.69 8.07 105.71 255.73 391.44 15.18 11.49 222.45 108.17

ClosingAvg. 73.64 21.40 71.86 18.15 11.39 27.51 14.79 1514.50 1973.07 15.00

ClosingAvg. 5.80 19.28 5.42 108.39 20.20 5.18 21.35 16.46 25.35 26.13

ClosingAvg. 19.66 41.86 16.32 13.03 5.20 5.25 1,161.26 180.60 352.10 25.36

% change 5.70 3.19 1.08 19.51 2.00 16.24 0.00 11.81 13.86 0.53 1.29 0.22 1.15 4.14 2.01 0.08 0.49 1.84 9.49 5.33 0.04

Closing 73.90 21.70 8.10 105.50 259.80 395.90 15.30 11.70 227.50 108.90

Closing 74.20 21.40 73.40 18.50 11.60 27.90 15.00 1514.50 1975.00 15.00

Closing

DHIGH 73.90 21.70 8.10 106.40 259.80 396.50 15.50 11.80 229.50 110.00

DHIGH 74.30 21.40 73.70 18.60 11.70 28.10 15.30 1514.50 1975.00 15.00

DHIGH

5.80 18.40 5.20 104.70 19.60 5.10 21.30 16.30 24.90 25.10

Closing 19.40 42.10 16.00 13.00 5.20 5.20 1,156.00 178.00 352.10 25.10

Million Taka 845.26 269.25 184.89 1783.68 433.04 1717.17 9.60 1224.62 1278.69 48.94 138.39 33.17 108.85 447.38 157.53 44.64 64.19 210.86 560.73 422.74 0.32

DLOW 68.00 21.00 8.00 104.00 242.00 375.00 14.30 10.90 211.00 102.00

DLOW 69.00 21.40 69.70 17.60 10.90 26.80 14.10 1514.50 1970.00 15.00

DLOW

5.80 20.10 5.70 113.00 21.00 5.30 22.40 16.80 26.40 27.50

DHIGH 20.70 42.10 16.70 13.60 5.20 5.30 1,166.10 187.00 352.10 26.40

Total

5.80 18.30 5.20 103.60 19.20 5.10 20.70 16.20 24.70 24.80

DLOW 19.40 41.70 15.90 12.20 5.20 5.20 1,156.00 177.00 352.10 25.00

% change 8.47 2.70 1.85 17.87 4.34 17.20 0.10 12.27 12.81 0.49 1.39 0.33 1.09 4.48 1.58 0.45 0.64 2.11 5.62 4.23 0.00

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

13.589 19.617 0.216 0.213 1.484 1.107 5.772 433.676 4.682 36.675

Turnover in Million

1.55 1.29 0.51 20.76 1.08 3.38 0.80 0.86 1.75 4.82

Latest EPS

1.644 3.012 1.681 0.281 62.195 3.244 0.514 0.017 0.051 0.000

Turnover in Million

46.9 16.8 15.8 5.1 236.8 115.8 19.0 13.4 127.1 22.4

Latest PE

1.55 1.29 3.35 1.36 0.86 1.67 0.80 142.00 49.64 3.02

Latest EPS

0.003 8.169 2.829 123.684 20.642 7.721 0.318 5.605 9.163 79.335

Turnover in Million

Latest PE

47.5 16.6 21.5 13.3 13.2 16.5 18.5 10.7 39.7 5.0

Latest PE

0.56 -0.21 4.76 2.16 4.22 0.73 2.61 0.36 0.20 -0.80

Latest EPS

1.340 0.036 0.444 0.003 0.026 0.061 0.042 12.352 0.035 1.226

10.4 -ve 1.1 50.2 4.8 7.1 8.2 45.7 126.8 -ve

Latest PE

4.22 0.68 0.36 -1.55 0.71 4.76 32.00 8.44 8.25 0.20

4.7 61.6 45.3 -ve 7.3 1.1 36.3 21.4 42.7 126.8

CSE key features August 4, 2015 Turnover (Million Taka) Turnover (Volume) Number of Contract

701.19 23,823,962 27,344

Traded Issues

261

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

154

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

98

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

9

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,629.78

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

31.88

DT

BUSINESS 19

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

DSE turnover crosses Tk900 crore n Tribune Report

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company UNITED AIR-A Islami Bank BD - A LafargeS Cement-A BEXIMCO Ltd. -A BSRM Steels-A Beximco Pharma -A Square Pharma -A Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A United Power-N Shahjibazar Power-N

Khulna Power-A Appollo Ispat CL -N Grameenphone-A Baraka Power-A Shasha Denims -N Bengal Windsor-A Summit Power -A

VolumeShares 37,755,373 13,159,966 2,556,005 6,670,853 2,386,354 2,826,762 723,782 12,183,641 1,075,241 956,958

Value in Million 433.68 366.98 322.27 230.38 221.47 203.79 195.23 178.57 174.17 172.94

% of TotalTurnover 4.67 3.95 3.47 2.48 2.39 2.20 2.10 1.92 1.88 1.86

VolumeShares

Value in Million

% of TotalTurnover

2,117,049 6,853,739 475,381 4,252,827 3,076,629 2,024,625 3,568,579

CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company UNITED AIR-A Beximco Pharma -A Olympic Accessories -N BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A LafargeS Cement-A BSRM Ltd. -A Keya Cosmetics -A United Power-N BSRM Steels-A

Khulna Power-A Islami Bank BD - A CVO PetroChem RL-A Square Pharma -A Shahjibazar Power-N Appollo Ispat CL -N Summit Power -A

5,460,951 610,468 510,838 765,067 1,645,018 160,606 171,909 916,072 104,848 180,508

209,797 567,645 36,327 47,529 68,395 524,632 272,278

161.48 157.11 155.90 148.52 144.55 144.54 144.03

62.19 44.19 32.96 26.43 24.00 20.15 18.47 18.43 16.92 16.63

16.03 15.83 14.10 12.83 12.35 12.03 10.99

1.74 1.69 1.68 1.60 1.56 1.56 1.55

8.87 6.30 4.70 3.77 3.42 2.87 2.63 2.63 2.41 2.37

2.29 2.26 2.01 1.83 1.76 1.72 1.57

ClosingP 11.70 27.70 125.50 34.40 90.90 71.50 269.20 14.70 163.80 177.70

75.90 22.70 327.90 35.00 46.90 72.00 40.40

ClosingP

Change % 8.33 4.92 0.40 0.88 0.11 -0.42 -0.52 5.00 3.61 -3.42

-0.13 -2.16 -0.33 2.34 0.43 6.19 3.32

Change %

11.60 71.40 64.30 34.40 14.60 125.00 105.10 20.40 162.80 90.80

76.20 27.60 386.00 269.00 178.00 22.60 40.60

7.41 -0.70 1.42 0.88 4.29 0.08 -4.11 4.62 2.45 -0.44

0.13 3.76 5.12 -0.44 -3.31 -2.59 3.57

ClosingY 10.80 26.40 125.00 34.10 90.80 71.80 270.60 14.00 158.10 184.00

76.00 23.20 329.00 34.20 46.70 67.80 39.10

ClosingY

10.80 71.90 63.40 34.10 14.00 124.90 109.60 19.50 158.90 91.20

76.10 26.60 367.20 270.20 184.10 23.20 39.20

DHIGH 11.80 28.90 127.50 34.80 94.20 73.10 271.10 15.00 165.10 186.00

77.00 23.70 329.90 35.50 47.90 74.00 41.00

DHIGH

11.70 73.00 66.00 34.90 14.80 127.00 112.00 20.70 164.00 94.00

77.00 28.90 396.00 271.50 187.00 23.30 40.90

DLOW 10.90 26.50 125.10 34.20 90.00 71.20 268.30 13.80 156.50 176.00

75.50 22.40 325.30 34.30 45.90 68.40 39.00

DLOW

10.90 71.20 63.10 34.10 14.10 124.00 104.00 19.50 157.00 90.00

76.00 27.00 371.00 268.20 177.00 22.50 39.00

AvgPrice 11.49 27.89 126.08 34.54 92.81 72.09 269.73 14.66 161.98 180.71

76.28 22.92 327.94 34.92 46.98 71.39 40.36

AvgPrice

11.39 72.39 64.51 34.55 14.59 125.47 107.42 20.12 161.37 92.13

76.41 27.89 388.20 270.00 180.60 22.93 40.36

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

12485.1698

(+) 0.19%

1904.75799

(+) 0.17%

14926.9209

(+) 0.17%

12485.1698

(+) 0.17%

9092.4405

(+) 0.18%

▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲

Stocks closed flat yesterday with turnover on Dhaka Stock Exchange crossing Tk900 crore, riding on strong buying and selling pressure.

The market opened sharply higher in early trading, pushing benchmark index DSEX to cross 4900-mark level. But it came under selling pressure in the wee hour on profit booking, closing the index flat.

The benchmark of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, DSEX, rose marginally over 9 points or 0.2% to 4,871, extending its gaining streak for the fourth straight session.

The Shariah index, DSES, inched over 4 points or 0.4% higher to 1,207.

The blue chip comprising index DS30 was slightly up 3 points or 0.2% to 1,904. The Chittagong Stock Exchange Selective Category Index, CSCX, moved up over 25 points to settle at 9,092.

The market witnessed robust trading, which helped DSE turnover to hit 9-week high. Total turnover of the session stood at Tk930 crore, which is more than 14% higher than the previous session’s value.

Most sectors closed flat with small cap non-life insurance beat all the sectors gaining 1.7%, riding on strong move in Green Delta Life Insurgence that soared 6.2%.

Rally in non-banking financial institutions, bank, food and allied, textile and cement sectors offset losses in tannery, power and telecommunication sectors.

Lanka Bangla Securities said investors came to book profit on stocks which made significant move in previous sessions. “Market played actively on the both sides of the fence which kept stocks rally alive and pushed the market turnover value above Tk900 core.”

IDLC Investments said profit realisation pressure in large and mid-cap stocks flattened the index movement in spite of the fact that 156 scrips rose today as against decline in 128 scrips.

United Airways topped the liquidity chart with turnover worth over Tk43 crore. It was followed by Islami Bank, Lafarge Surma Cement and Beximco. l

ANALYST

Market trend revamped to gaining momentum with a strong leap after six sessions of sideways move.

The session was upbeat from the very beginning as investors eyed for reversal

DT

20 BUSINESS

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Stress on multi-currency option to avoid fluctuation-driven losses n Tribune Report Analysts said Bangladesh authorities should introduce a multi-currency basket in place of single currency use in external trade payments to avoid financial losses caused by currency fluctuation.

As the country uses US dollars to pay most of its export-import bills, it may suffer huge losses due to fluctuation of the currency, while a multi-currency basket will be a protection against such possible setback, they observed.

Bangladesh currently pays 99% of its export-import bills through the greenback.

“While Bangladesh suffered a loss of $380m from currency fluctuation last fiscal year, introduction of a multi-currency basket could bring a benefit of $350m for the country,” Jesper Toft, founder of Global Currency Union, told a seminar in Dhaka yesterday.

Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and

Exporters Association (BGMEA) organised the seminar on “Currency Exposure Management” at its conference room.

Bangladesh Bank’s Deputy Governor Abul Kashem suggested that the apex garment sector body could be the best platform in introducing the multiple currency option.

Stakeholders like Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), Bangladesh Institute of Bank Management (BIBM) and Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute (BFTU) could together work to develop the idea, he said.

He suggested initiating research and taking a six-month to one-year project to have the idea matured.

Mamun Rashid, a senior banker, said the appreciation of US dollar against euro contributed to the loss as the exporters receipts reduced to Tk78 for an euro from Tk105.

Due to this, export receipts declined de-

spite the increase of export volume, he said.

Mamun Rashid also said to avert the impact of exchange rate fluctuation, payment could be done through multi-exchange rate.

European Union is a major destination of Bangladesh exports.

BGMEA president Atiqul Islam said the fluctuation of exchange rate was eating into the country’s competitiveness in global market and making unable to achieve export targets.

He said the multi-currency basket is a new idea which requires development and the stakeholders could come up to develop the idea.

Alamgir Morshed, head of financial markets of Standard Chartered Bank, said the currency management emerged as a priority issue in last two years while the risks could be averted by hedging.

He urged the authorities to formulate a risk management framework in the country. l

12 industries to get presidents award n Tribune Report

The government is set to honor 12 industrial entrepreneurs in recognition of their contributions to promoting industrial development and innovation.

The entrepreneurs or organisations will receive the prestigious award titled “Presidents Award for Industrial Development” under five categories for their contributions in 2014.

The Ministry of Industries on August 2 published a gazette with the names of award recipients under the categories of large, medium, small, cottage and hi-tech industries.

BSRM Steels Limited (Chittagong), Abdul Monem Limited (Dhaka) and BRB Cable Industries Limited (Kushtia) will receive the awards under large industries category while Basumati Distribution Limited (Dhaka), National Agricare Import and Export Limited (Dhaka) and Jalalabad Frozen Foods Limited (Khulna) will receive the award under medium industries category.

The awardees will receive a crest and a certificate at a grand programme to be held soon, they added. l

Bangladeshi delegation off to Myanmar for importing onion n Asif Showkat Kallol

In the wake of onion export price hike in India, a two-member delegation yesterday left Dhaka for Myanmar to find out possibilities of importing essential items including onion quickly to maintain stability in the local market.

A two-member delegation headed by an Additional Secretary (WTO cell) of the Ministry of Commerce AmitavaChakradorty will also discuss with the Myanmar authority about the smooth supply of onion from that country, so Bangladesh can reduce dependency on Indian onions.

The other member of the delegation is Chairman of Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) Brigadier General A K M Iqbal.

A high official of the Commerce Ministry told the Dhaka Tribune that the government wanted to import the items from other neighboring countries to reduce dependency on a particular country.

“But, it is not possible to import onion from Myanmar right now because of the ongoing massive flood as the onion price in Myanmar is also in a rising trend,” he said.

Earlier, Senior Commerce Secretary Hedayetullah Al Mamoon said his ministry would send a delegation to Myanmar to find out the possibility to import onion from Myanmar.

Bangladesh imports 6 lakh tonnes of onion from India each year while a small volume of it comes from Myanmar through unofficial channels.

India recently fixed the export price of onion at US$350 per tonne from $150. As a result, the price of the item in Bangladesh went up to Tk75 per kg at the retail level.

Prices of onion in the city’s large kitchen markets Karwan Bazar and ShamBazar- are in between Tk55-65 per kg. l

Law Minister Anisul Huq speaks at a meeting with business leaders, organised by Bangladesh International Arbitration Centre to promote alternative dispute resolutions (ADR) at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka yesterday

Indian court lifts ban on coal export till Nov n Syed Samiul Basher Anik

Bangladesh is likely to resume coal import from India in a week and half as a tribunal in the neighbouring country lifted a ban imposed since June.

However, the tribunal ordered the Meghalaya authorities to export only from the already extracted coals and not to go for any fresh extraction.

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) in India, which imposed the ban after environmental concerns due to coal extraction, said the current withdrawal would only remain effective till November 30 and the export must be completed by the time.

There will be no further extensions by NGT for transportation of coals unless the state government provides a mining plan for the state, according to the court order.

During its hearing on July 31, the NGT also

fixed September 30 as deadline for payment of royalty.

The next hearing will be held on 29th and 30th of September in Shillong, the capital city of Indian state of Meghalaya from which Bangladesh imports the coal.

As the bar was lifted, Bangladesh can now import coals from Meghalaya, which has a rich deposit of high quality coals, according to Sylhet Coal Importers Group.

It said the coal import through six major land stations would resume in a week, Coal is mainly imported through Tamabil, Bholaganj, Sutarkandi, Barchara, Charagaon and Bogla borders of Sylhet.

“The NGT has delivered the judgment for export of the extra coal which was already extracted. But no new coal can be exported,” Group President Falah Uddin Ahmed told Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

He, however, said the coal cannot be im-

ported right now as there are still rains in the hilly state.

“Transport movement is being hampered by heavy rain. It may take more 10-12 days to resume the import.” The import of Meghalaya coal was suspended for several times. Since June it has remained suspended.

“The Meghalaya coal extracted already can meet Bangladesh demand for next two years,” Falah Uddin said, adding Bangladesh brick kilns hugely suffered due to the import suspension.

He said it also unemployed a large number of labourers in Bangladesh.

According to the Coal Importers Group, Bangladesh imports around 42 lakh tonnes of coal annually, of which, the Meghalaya coal accounts for half the amount because of its high quality.

While Barapukuria mines supply 10-12 lakh tonnes, the remaining demand is met by charcoal. l

DT

21

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

T-JUNCTION INSIDE

22

Trial room

Rapid-fire with Rupali Chowdhury

Harmonious melody Photo: Bigstock

24 decor

Taking on the rainy season headfirst news

Amari Dhaka appoints new marketing and sales director

DT

22 T-JUNCTION

Trial Room

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Rapid-fire with Rupali Chowdhury n N Anita Amreen One meeting with Rupali Chowdhury, and you can’t help but feel at ease with her warm smile and cheerful disposition. As we sat down with her for a quick rapid-fire round at her place, her positivity and energy betrayed any signs of fatigue that may have come around from having spent a long day at work. Dressed in a turquoise katan saree, she cozied up on her large sofa, munching on home-made pizza ready to take our 54 question rapid-fire round head on. Starting off her career with Ciba Geigy (Bangladesh) Ltd, a multinational pharmaceutical and chemical company, this MBA graduate from IBA moved on to join Berger Paints Limited as planning manager in 1990. By 2008, her incredible hard work and brilliance led her to be promoted to the role of managing director for the corporate giant, spearheading the multinational’s growth and success. As of now, not only does this whip-cracking leading lady command from the heights of Berger’s local wing, she is also the chairman and managing director of Jenson & Nicholson (Bangladesh) Limited, a subsidiary of Berger Paints Bangladesh Limited.

We decided to go behind the scenes to look beyond the corporate genius persona as she shares with us personal anecdotes, tells us about her selfie stick, her love for shutki and how Shah Rukh Khan films move her to tears.

What’s the best thing about working at Berger?

I genuinely love what I do and I really enjoy my work.

What time do you usually wake up?

By 7am to 8am.

How do you like your coffee?

I don’t drink coffee, I prefer tea.

The most dangerous thing you’ve ever done?

I haven’t really done anything dangerous, per se, but I have taken a lot of risks in life.

The biggest professional risk I took was when I gave up my job and went to Nigeria to accompany my husband. I knew I could be the CEO of the company I was working for, but I wanted to accompany my husband and I thought I would give my time to children.

What is the happiest colour for you?

Happiest? I’d say lemon yellow.

The colour of your bedroom walls?

Off-white!

The best thing about your home?

Home is home - I like everything about it.

One thing in your office you’ve had the longest?

A framed photograph of my children.

The biggest surprise you ever got?

There are so many but I’d say my best surprise was when my son was born. He was born one month premature and had very feeble heartbeat. I was very nervous and worried, but when he survived and made it, that was the best surprise for me.

Best gift you’ve ever received?

I can’t really put a finger on one particular gift, but I’d say flowers.

If you could switch lives with a person for a day, who would you choose?

Bill Gates. I want to see how he perceived the concept of changing the whole world, get a glimpse into his vision. These days everybody talks about Apple but think of running any business without Microsoft, you really can’t.

If there’s one thing missing in your life, what is it?

Physical activity. I need to start incorporating an exercise routine.

What’s one thing you always carry with you, other than your phone?

Books or magazines and at times, work reports.

One talent you wish you had?

I wish I could be a quick learner.

One quality of yours that people underestimate?

I can be very rude.

One question you wish people would stop asking you?

“How did you become successful being a woman?”

If you had one superpower what would it be?

Eradicate poverty in the world.

One bad habit you wish you could change?

Talking too much. I wish could talk less and listen more.

The last person you texted?

I can’t really remember - I’m not much of a texter.

How do you feel about selfies?

Usually I like them.

Do you like taking selfies?

No, and I’ll tell you why: I’m really bad at taking selfies myself and usually end up looking fat! However, when other people take group selfies - I love it. I love being part of selfies. I even have my own selfie stick!

What’s your favourite place to shop from right now?

Pink City.

One fashion trend you wish would be removed?

In general I like all the fashion trends. The only thing I dislike is the different elaborate headgear styles. Some styles in which it’s draped, it makes us look like a Middle eastern country, I don’t really like that.

The first thing you notice about a person?

I think I don’t really notice anything particular about people I meet, but I do pay attention to my gut feelings about them are they friendly? Are they positive? These things I notice.

Your absolute biggest phobia?

Falling sick.

One experience when you felt most nervous?

I often feel nervous, but I think I felt most nervous when my son fell ill in Canada.

What’s the best way to relax?

Going to the beach or a seashore, sitting down with a good book in hand.

As the MD for Berger, what is one lesson you learned along the way that you want to share with everyone?

Always be ready to take risks. Work hard, take risks and be brave - that’s the most important thing you need to believe in. There is no alternative to working hard, being honest and fearless.

What was one thing you wish you knew when you were working your way to the top?

That you’re bound to be unpopular.

There will come a time you have to take unpopular decisions, but that’s part of the job. Sometimes it can even get very lonely, but it’s something you need to take in your stride.

What is it like being called a power couple?

I don’t know what it means, really. I consider my husband and I to be just a regular working couple. I don’t really see ourselves as anything special or “powerful.”

If you had to choose an alternate career, what would it be?

Singing.

Rupali Chowdhury with husband Abdul Haque, son Rahul and daughter Poorna

PHOTOS: COURTESY

T-JUNCTION 23

DT

Trial Room

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Your favourite lyrics of all time?

Never really gave it much thought, but I’m currently listening to Tomar shongey dekha na holey by Jatileshwar Mukhopadhay.

The last movie you watched?

Birdman.

The last movie that made you cry?

Hmm..that’s a tough one. I haven’t watched a movie in the recent past and cried, but I’ve watched several Shah Rukh Khan films and cried. Veer-Zaara is one of them.

Favourite restaurant in Dhaka?

For us, it’s always Spitfire.

Least favourite food?

I think pasta or any bland European dish.

Favourite food?

Pitha and shutki maach.

Your favourite app?

Facebook!

The cutest thing on earth?

For me it’s my son Rahul and daughter Poorna.

would be my favourite, but if I really had to choose I’d say Europe.

If you could meet one historical figure who would it be?

Nelson Mandela. He is one man who has really transformed himself. Although he was in jail for so many years, when he came out he could have had a lot of hatred for white people but he transformed himself and became an administrator and president.

That’s a very positive transformation for a leader.

Which city in Europe?

I can’t chose just one country or city, I find every nook and cranny of Europe beautiful.

Favourite band of all time?

Abba or Boney M. Favourite cartoon?

I would have to say that I detest cartoons because my son Rahul made me watch everything from Pink Panther to GI Joe to Ninja turtles when he was younger! But if I really had to choose an all time favourite, it would be Tom and Jerry.

What are you most excited about these days?

I’m so so so excited about cricket right now.

My Facebook posts are full of cricket, I can’t contain my excitement! This is the only thing I’m excited about.

Is cricket your favourite sport to watch?

No, not really. I only love it so much because Bangladesh was playing and that’s what gets me so excited. I think what excites me the most is seeing Bangladesh succeed in any sphere - be it cricket or anything else.

One thing you still have from your childhood?

My love for people, or kindness.

One trend you hope doesn’t exist in the next few years?

Too much social networking. I think people are getting too engrossed in their phones, they are becoming distant over time.

The last book that you read?

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki by Haruki Murakami.

The best part about being a mom?

I think getting to spend time with my children, getting to see, understand and appreciate the differences between their generation and mine.

Favourite country to visit?

I visit Canada every year, so technically that

Hardest part about being a mom?

Having them as my critic. The harshest

criticism comes from my children.

How do you spend your weekends?

Most weekends, I immerse myself in household activities even though my son would disagree. I use my weekends to check up on the household, if the bedspreads have been changed, the groceries bought, the next weeks menu planned. Other than that I watch movies with my kids and husband, if they’re around.

What do you hope to be doing next year?

I want to be more health conscious, I’d like to listen more, talk less and give less advice to my children.

The most important advice you’ll give your kids?

Be positive, be hardworking, go out there and make it happen! l

DT

24 T-JUNCTION

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Tucked in

decor

Taking on the rainy season headfirst Tips and tricks to rainproof your balcony Scrub away rain stains Once the rain has taken its toll, it is now time to clean out the tough water spots it leaves behind. One way to do this is to make a solution of water and white distilled vinegar in equal volume. Add more vinegar if your spots are more aggressive or old. Spray the solution onto your desired glass surface and let it sit for a while (but don’t let it dry). Then wipe it down with a rough cloth or towel.

Prevent waterlogging You’d also be better off not watering your plant pots if you do choose to keep them in the balcony to prevent them from becoming waterlogged. You can use pot feet to keep your pots above ground so they leach out the rainwater faster.

n Mithul Roy With heavy showers drizzling down your precious walls, it is important to damp-proof your balcony and all other exposed surfaces.

Here’s how.

Use lemon juice for harsh stains You can make a similar yet more powerful solution by substituting the vinegar with lemon juice. For aggressive marks, scrub the glass with the lemon directly. If all else fails, apply commercial glass cleaner to the glass surface and rub down with a crumpled up newspaper.l

Plant indoors If you have planted seedlings in the monsoon, your best bet is to cover them with plastic wraps. For the better part of the rainy season, it is best to move your plants indoors.

During the day, you can place the plants out in your balcony when it’s sunny, but for the majority of the time, move the plants inside.

room of the week

Be persistent If the stains are still present, reapply and let it sit for longer period of time. If needed, repeat.

news

Amari Dhaka appoints new marketing and sales director

Balcony blues Room: Moumita Ahmed Area: Gulshan

Amari Dhaka announces the appointment of Pranav Bharadwaj as director of sales and marketing, effective from July 10.

Bharadwaj has more than 19 years of experience in the field, including more than 18 years in the hospitality Industry. Starting as a sales executive with Intercontinental

Eros Nehru Place in New Delhi, he developed his career further with Starwood Hotels and Resorts. The list continues with Leela Kempinski in Mumbai, Marriott in Hyderabad, IHG of New Delhi and lastly, at Best Western India. l

Barcelona announced that Iniesta will succeed Xavi as club captain.

Messi will be second, Busquets third, with Mascherano fourth. The appointments were made following a secret ballot among the playing staff

Sport 26

WHEN SPORTS TAKES A BACKSEAT

27

MORNE VAN WYK RECALLED TO SA SQUADS

29

25

DT

ARMBAND

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

AUSSIES UNITED DESPITE ‘COMPLEX’ CALL: NEVILL

An account of the Tigers’ best season n Minhaz Uddin Khan The conclusion of the South Africa series brought the curtains down on what has been the Tigers’ longest cricket season at home.

Usually, cricket is avoided during the months of June, July, August and September due to the heavy monsoon showers. However, the extended 2014-15 season was a rare exception as Bangladesh entertained India and South Africa in June and July despite heavy showers.

Persistent rainfall might have wrecked havoc in three Test matches – the lone fivedayer against India and two against the South Africans – but the Tigers will not mind as they bagged the ODI series against both the cricketing powerhouses.

Given the series of recent successes and consistent team performances, there is no doubt that the Tigers enjoyed their best season in history. Since last August, Bangladesh have played 20 Tests, 23 ODIs and four Twenty20 internationals and their most notable improvement came in 50-over cricket.

Among the 23 ODIs, the Tigers won 15 matches and lost eight. During their memorable journey and under the stewardship of a lion-hearted head coach in Chandika Hathurusingha, the Tigers exhibited an aggressive brand of cricket. The strategy worked wonders as it enabled them to cope with alien conditions and qualify for the quarter-final of a World Cup for the very first time.

The best however, was yet to come.

Last April, the Tigers thrashed Pakistan on their way to the historic Banglawash.

They followed it up by bulldozing both India and South Africa to record four ODI series wins in a row.

The unearthing of two gems

Bangladesh witnessed drastic changes in the dressing room following the tour of the West Indies last August. Both the cricketers and the team management were under fire for the below-par performances against the Windies.

Something had to change.

The Tigers had to prove themselves all over again and in their pursuit of some improved displays, the national selection panel introduced a few raw talents. Toporder batsman Soumya Sarkar and paceman Mustafizur Rahman are the two noticeable players that Bangladesh picked when the chips were down.

Soumya’s fearless attitude towards the opposition attack not only helped his side a great deal but also rubbed off well on his partner, swashbuckling opener Tamim Iqbal. Soumya wasted very little time in establishing his authority. The Satkhira lad featured in 16 ODIs,

Mustafizur Rahman is the toast of his teammates following the second and penultimate ODI against India at Mirpur’e Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium last June.

Alongside the fearless Soumya Sarkar (2L), Mustafizur was one of the finds of Bangladesh cricket this season MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK smashing a century and four half-centuries, and his heroics earned him the faith of the national selectors.

New sensation Mustafiz on the other hand had plenty of reasons to be cheerful. The 19year old made his international bow against Pakistan but it was his display in the India ODIs that really attracted all the headlines.

His lethal off-cutters puzzled even the best batsmen of world cricket as he created one

SEASON 2014-15 Played Won Test ODI T20

10 23 4

3 15 1

Lost

Draw

3 8 2

4 NA 1

history after another. Also from Satkhira, Mustafiz’s potential impressed the selectors as he ended up making his Test debut against South Africa. The left-armer broke the Proteas’ spine in the Chittagong Test en route to a four-wicket haul.

Best ODI moment

Bangladesh’s 2-1 win over India was perhaps the highlight of the year, as far as 50-over cricket is concerned. There was a bit of animosity between the two sides following their controversial 2015 ICC World Cup quarter-final encounter. The Bangladesh supporters believed their team would have won were it not for a few dodgy decisions that went against their way.

The Tigers came up with the best possible reply, thrashing India in the first two ODIs to record a memorable series triumph.

Best Test moment

The first of two Tests against Pakistan will be remembered by every Bangladesh fan for a long, long time to come. Even though the Tigers clinched the preceding T20 and ODI series, they were yet to give a good account of themselves in the white outfit.

And the Tigers were up against an improbable equation in the first Test in Khulna. The hosts needed to survive the best part of the last two days in order to draw the Test. And they did just that, thanks to their openers Tamim and Imrul Kayes. A record 312-run stand for the opening wicket laid a solid platform as the Tigers drew the Test against all odds.

Tamim became only the second Bangladesh cricketer, after Mushfiqur Rahim, to score a double century while Imrul chipped in with 150, his highest in any format of the game. l

DT

26 Sport

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

When sports takes a backseat Bangladesh has been blessed with a plethora of talent. From veteran cricketers like the world’s top all-rounder Shakib al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim and young guns like Mustafizur Rahman and Taskin Ahmed to the world’s top T20I female cricketer Salma Khatun to Mohammeden’s Jewel Rana. The list goes on. Yet, it’s quite shocking and hard to believe that so few of the players on both female and male national teams of all sports are English Medium school graduates.

Norma Hilton and Tahrima S. Huq sit down and talk to English Medium school students about their thoughts and feelings on why this is the case.

Bespectacled Anisul Islam seems more the type to hit the books than the courts but looks couldn’t be any more deceiving. He’s been involved with the Scholastica football team for a good chunk of time and represented the team fabulously both on and off the pitch.

He talks about the underground football scene, what it’s like and the future prospects of partaking in such tournaments.

“It began in 2006 with only a few teams. Footballers saw it as an opportunity to turn pro. There are several teams but the heavyweights are 7 Nations Army, DOHS United and Club 11. Players from all over Bangladesh take part in these underground tournaments. Some of these players may then go on to play in the third division and sometimes in the Bangladesh Premier Football League for teams like Abahani and Mohammedan.”

He then speaks about why he thinks that there are so few English Medium school graduates participating in sports in a professional capacity.

“I think it’s because of the increased competition.

Out of 100 footballers, maybe only 20 have the potential to turn pro. Out of these 20, only 10 or fewer will try to turn pro. To turn pro, you’d have to essentially give up life as you know it, train for months at a time. Many people don’t want to do this.”

Samaha Hamid plays for both the Scholastica football and handball team. She has won the MVP award in numerous tournaments and has been hailed as the “next big thing” by pretty much everyone who’s seen her in action. The family she belongs to is unbelievable.

As we spoke, her grandmother was in India representing Bangladesh in a chess tournament – Women’s International Master Rani Hamid. Uncles Kaiser Hamid and Hasibul Hossain Shanto are former Bangladesh football and cricket players respectively while Samaha’s parents – Bobby Hamid and Shahrin Hussain Tania – are former national handball players.

We ask her what it is like, having a family like this.

“They were supportive. My dad actually helped train me when I was younger. And I’ve more or less practiced every day of my life.”

However, when asked if she’d ever consider playing for any national team, she said, “No, not really. I was actually called up to play for the national handball team but I declined. My first priority has always been my studies. If I were to play in the national team, I’d have to give that up and dedicate my entire life to the sport. And I don’t want to do that. The future prospects of making a career out of any sport other than cricket aren’t good. I’d prefer some sort of certainty and security in my future and I don’t think playing for any national teams will provide me with that.”

Isheta Ahmed, ex-Scholastican and currently studying in Sunbeams, is another example. A very passionate basketball player and a popular name in school tournaments, Isheta echoes Samaha.

“No. I wouldn’t want to make a career out of it.

If playing basketball was my job then I’d have to dedicate all my time to it. And I don’t want to do that. My parents wouldn’t approve. And without the support or approval of parents, it’s nearly impossible to achieve anything. Our parents want the best possible future for us. I’d rather go to Uni to be honest.”

Tasnuva Raian Hera from Mastermind has been the goalkeeper for her school’s football team for two years. Despite her love for the sport and her family’s support in the regard, taking it up as a career has

Scholastica’s Samaha Hamid (2R) poses alongside her friends following a football tournament recently.

Samaha is the niece of former national footballer Kaiser Hamid and the grand-daughter of women’s chess legend Rani Hamid COURTESY really been an option.

“Honestly, our parents worked so hard so that we could grow up and have an excellent career that lets us have a comfortable life, that I never really considered joining the national team,” she opines.

And therein lies the problem- the fact that a career in sports is rarely considered an “excellent career,” as Tasnuva puts it. When asked why, her answer was simple: “Female national teams don’t get enough attention. As a result, they lack sponsors, so they are not provided with sufficient funding.”

Though she herself has been an ardent follower and admirer of the Bangladesh women’s football team, she finds the general lack of interest towards women’s football disheartening.

“If you asked a room full of 100 people if they watched the men’s world cup, almost all will say yes.

But ask the same people if they even know about the women’s world cup, only few will respond. This shows how our hard work isn’t appreciated much.

We don’t get as much opportunities as men do. So eventually, we just lose interest and don’t take it up as a profession.”

Even as a school player, Tasnuva has had to face many problems already.

“We don’t even have enough places to practice.

We rented the field in Lalmatia Physical College before an upcoming tournament for practice. Within a few days, the authorities banned girls from playing in it for no apparent reason though they had no problem with boys,” she elaborates.

“A lot of schools we play in have issues when girls wear shorts during tournaments, though it is completely fine when male players roam around shirtless.”

Tasnuva’s sentiments make it clear that in order for female national teams, or any female player at all, to be taken seriously by people, these double standards and discriminatory views must be removed from society. This is the major limiting factor for her, since she believes that otherwise she would have loved a career in professional football,

and her parents would have been beyond proud if she succeeded.

“I see how happy they become whenever I win a tournament. They would love to get used to such a thing. But it is the fact that if I ever play in the international arena, most people, being judgmental, would say that football is a man’s game and the only reason we fail to do well is because we’re girls, that really stops me from aspiring to play in the national team.”

However, she does not believe the future is completely bleak.

“The situation is gradually changing. Girls are becoming more and more interested in sports and many schools are recognising their potential. People’s opinions are changing and they are becoming used to the idea of female players. Maybe these sexist opinions will not exist any more once girls start participating in football as much as their male counterparts. Maybe people will warm up to the idea of their female teams bringing them glory too.”

Her hopeful tone reflects the dreams of every athletic girl who does not dare to consider playing for Bangladesh, or every talented young female whose skills are left unrecognised.

After playing volleyball for Scholastica for nine years, it is surprising that Norma, one of the co-writers of this article, decided she does not want to play for the national team.

“The reason is pretty obvious,” Norma says, “Sports is a risky career which depends on physical longevity. If you get injured, or outgrow your form, it’s over. It doesn’t provide you with a certain future.”

When asked about her experience as a school player, she points to her favourite memories of participating in the “Shaky’s G-league: League of Champions” – an international tournament in Philippines.

“We actually played against the Bangladesh national team as part of our practice before the tournament. That experience is another reason I decided I don’t want to take it up as a profession.”

“To say their facilities are not up to par would be an understatement,” Norma explains, “There was an indoor gym with no ventilation and broken wooden floor boards. It felt very unsafe and I kept thinking I would trip on a broken board and injure my leg.”

Furthermore, Norma talks about how the only facilities for players are available in the Women’s Complex in Dhanmondi. Regularly travelling there would take a huge toll on her schedule.

“I would need to practice around six hours every day. Add travel time to that and I would have no time left for my studies. It would probably involve giving up the lifestyle I have known for years and moving into the living quarters for the national team. And as much as I love volleyball, that is a scary thought.”

Though her practice is currently limited to forty minutes a day for a week leading up to any tournament, it is already difficult to find a balance between studies and sports. She is afraid that pursuing a career in it would make the situation even tougher.

“After getting exposure in an international tournament, I have realised how intensive my practice really needs to be to play on a national level. And I just don’t feel like it’s worth giving up my studies for something that can’t guarantee me a stable future.”

There are clearly a lot of things that play a role in discouraging students like Tasnuva and Norma from trying out for the national teams. Perhaps they would consider playing for the country if the facilities were more up-to-date and accessible. One can only hope that the scenario will indeed change to ensure a positive environment for our national women’s teams. l

An action during a basketball match at an English Medium School recently COURTESY

DT

Sport 27

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

QUICK BYTES

ZIMvNZ, 2ND ODI

French midfielder Kante joins Leicester

ZIMBABWE R H Masakadza c Latham b McClenaghan 0 C Chibhabha st Ronchi b Sodhi 42 C Ervine b Elliott 12 R Chakabva lbw b Sodhi 2 E Chigumbura c Taylor b Elliott 5 S Williams run out 26 Sikandar Raza not out 100 G Cremer c McCullum b Sodhi 5 P Utseya c Ronchi b McCullum 0 T Panyangara run out 33 Extras (1lb, 8w, 1nb) 10

Leicester City have signed French midfielder N’Golo Kante from Ligue 1 side Caen for an undisclosed fee, the club website reported on Monday.

Kante, 24, joins on a four-year deal and becomes new manager Claudio Ranieri’s first signing. He will go straight into the squad for Saturday’s Premier League opener against Sunderland.

–AFP

Liverpool loan goalkeeper Vigouroux to Swindon Town

Total (9 wkts, 50 overs)

B 13 44 27 6 7 45 95 19 6 39

235

Bowling

Vigouroux was on trial at Swindon and played for them against the Merseyside club in their pre-season fixture on Sunday. The 21-year-old joins fellow youngsters Jordan Williams and Kevin Stewart at the County Ground, Liverpool said on its website. Liverpool signed Vigouroux, who has represented Chile at the under-20 level, from Tottenham Hotspur last year.

–REUTERS

Henry 8-2-45-0, McCullum 10-0-38-1, McClenaghan 10-1-55-1, Elliott 6-0-27-2, Sodhi 10-0-38-3, Williamson 6-0-31-0.

Man City hand teenager Barker new five-year deal

Mpofu 7-1-37-0, Panyangara 6-0-30-0, Williams 5.2-0-36-0, Cremer 10-0-60-0, Utseya 10-0-46-0, Sikandar Raza 2-0-17-0, Masakadza 2-0-9-0.

NZ won by 10 wickets, level series 1-1

Barker was one of City’s best academy players last season and has been at the club since the age of nine. His new deal is a four-year extension on the remaining year he had left on his current contract. “The talks have continued over the summer and this was the perfect time for me to sign the new contract,” Barker, who was included in the first team squad for City’s pre-season tour of Australia and Vietnam, told the club’s website (www.mcfc.com).

–REUTERS

Marseille set to make Casco latest signing Argentina defender Milton Casco is set to complete a move from Newell’s Old Boys to Marseille, the French club announced on Tuesday. “The final details will be dealt with in the coming hours,” said Marseille on their official website, with local media saying the Ligue 1 club will pay a fee of around 2.5 million euros ($2.7m, £1.8m) for a player who has never operated outside of Argentina.

–AFP

Polish champions Poznan sanctioned for racist sign Polish champions Lech Poznan will be forced to play a match behind closed doors as punishment for a racist sign at a Champions League qualifier, UEFA announced on Monday.

European football’s governing body took action after the offending banner appeared among Poznan’s fans in the 2-0 Champions League second qualifying round first-leg win at Bosnian club FK Sarajevo on July 14.

–AFP

Zamora returns to Brighton after 12 years The 34-year-old former England international, who left Queens Park Rangers at the end of last season, had scored 83 goals 83 goals in over three seasons between 2000 and 2003 during his first stint at the club. He subsequently moved to Tottenham Hotspur where he worked with current Brighton manager Chris Hughton.

–REUTERS

NEW ZEALAND M Guptill not out T Latham not out Extras (1b, 9w)

R B 116 138 110 116 10

Total (0 wkts, 42.2 overs)

236

Bowling

New Zealand opener Tom Latham (L) and Martin Guptill prepare to punch fists during their second ODI against Zimbabwe at Harare Sports Club yesterday AFP

Guptill, Latham tons demolish Zimbabwe n AFP, Harare Openers Martin Guptill and Tom Latham both struck centuries as New Zealand crushed Zimbabwe by 10 wickets in the second oneday international in Harare on Tuesday to set up a series decider.

Chasing 236 to level the three-match series in the wake of Sikandar Raza Butt’s unbeaten 100 for Zimbabwe who reached 235 for nine, Guptill finished unbeaten on 116 while Latham was 110 not out as New Zealand achieved the target with almost eight overs to spare.

The pair set a new record for the highest chase in an ODI without losing a wicket, bettering the 231 that Sri Lanka chased in a 10-wicket win over England in the 2011 World Cup quarter-final.

Earlier, Raza arrived at the crease with Zimbabwe struggling on 68 for five, and hit 100 not out from 95 balls to guide the hosts to 235 for nine.

With early morning starts at Harare Sports Club, conditions generally favour the side bowling first and so it was a surprise when Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura decided

Law named junior Tigers’ technical advisor n Mazhar Uddin Bangladesh Cricket Board has appointed former Tigers head coach Stuart Law as the technical advisor of its national under-19 team for a duration of 16 weeks. The former Australian cricketer will prepare his charges for the upcoming 2016 ICC U-19 World Cup, scheduled to be hosted by Bangladesh in January-February.

It was under his tenure that Bangladesh reached the final of the 2012 Asia Cup for the first time. After nearly 10 months in charge of the Tigers, Law resigned from his post due to personal reasons. The 46-year old is expected to arrive in Bangladesh later this month.

And according to BCB CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury, the appointment of Law as the technical advisor will greatly aid the home side’s prospects in the 11th edition of the age-level tournament.

“The U-19 World Cup is a very important stepping stone for the next generation of

Bangladesh cricketers. Our U-19 side have had some excellent results in recent times and have defeated current champions South Africa 6-1 at home and 5-2 away. As the home side, there will be a lot of expectations on them and Stuart’s understanding of youth-team management and first-hand knowledge of the conditions will significantly help the preparation process,” Nizamuddin informed the media last Monday through a press release.

“He has had a remarkable playing career at the very top level and brings vast experience of coaching established as well as emerging cricketers. We are very happy to get him on board ahead of this massive competition for our boys,” he added.

After calling it a day in 2009, Law has worked as the High-Performance coach of Australia’s Centre of Excellence. He also guided his nation to the final of the last U-19 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates two years ago. l

to have a bat.

The only two teams to do so at the venue in the past three years - Pakistan in 2013 and Australia in 2014 - both suffered shock defeats at the hands of Zimbabwe.

The decision appeared to have backfired when the hosts lost their top five inside the first 18 overs, with Grant Elliott using the swing on offer to dismiss Craig Ervine and Chigumbura, and legspinner Ish Sodhi picking up his first two wickets in ODI cricket.

The series decider will take place at the Harare Sports Club on Friday. l

Morne van Wyk recalled to SA squads n Cricinfo Morne van Wyk will move from behind the microphone to behind the stumps for South Africa’s limited-overs series against New Zealand after being dumped from the squad earlier this year.

Van Wyk, who scored a T20 century in January, missed out on the 2015 World Cup and spent the recent Bangladesh series in the commentary box. He will now replace Quinton de Kock, despite AB de Villiers’ return.

South Africa’s regular ODI captain de Villiers, who missed the ODIs and Tests in Bangladesh while on paternity leave, is back to face New Zealand but will only act as the designated gloveman in the T20Is. South Africa have all of their first-choice players available for the series, apart from Imran Tahir, who has only been selected in the ODIs, to give Eddie Leie an opportunity to push for a World T20 spot.l

DT

28 Sport

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Adidas defend controversial Man Utd women’s shirt n AFP, London Manchester United kit maker Adidas has been forced to defend its controversial new shirt designed specifically for female fans of the Premier League club.

Adidas unveiled the first United kit of its £750 million ($1.3 billion) deal with the Old Trafford team last week.

But the German sportswear giant was criticised for the design of the women’s shirt, which had a much lower neckline than the men’s version.

One United fan, @MUnitedGirl, posted on Twitter: “Seriously Adidas? Why is the V-neck so low compared with the men’s one? Some of us don’t like to show cleavage.

“I call that discrimination. Nike never did that.”

Responding to the criticism, Adidas said it took the thoughts of fans into account before producing the kit.

“Adidas provides an adult shirt which is a replica of what the players wear,” an Adidas spokesperson said on Monday.

“Based on research from fans, we also offer a women’s shirt as part of our lifestyle range of products. l

Palestinian group, Bar Palestine, take part in street exercises amid the destruction in Gaza City on Monday. Street workout, that is still new to Gaza, is a growing sport across the world with annual competitions and events AFP

Mourinho sees Europe stars speeding MLS evolution n AFP, Washington Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho sees this year’s influx of older European club stars into Major League Soccer as a key step in the North American league’s global evolution.

From Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard going to the Los Angeles Galaxy to fellow Englishman and Chelsea icon Frank Lampard signing with New York City and long-time Stamford Bridge teammate Didier Drogba going to Montreal, MLS has brought big names to a growing fan base hungry for top talent.

“The evolution is clear. You are getting su-

perstars, people like Drogba, Gerrard, Frank Lampard,” Mourinho said. “I can see the difference. I can feel the difference.”

Add Italian star Andrea Pirlo and Spaniard David Villa with New York City and Brazil’s Kaka with Orlando and MLS has gone well beyond the days when only David Beckham’s Galaxy could arouse interest.

“Our sport is not the king here,” Mourinho said during Chelsea’s recent US tour. “Bringing our best teams and players feeds the pressure to grow.”

The Portugese mastermind sees pre-season US tours from top European sides as part

of building that MLS evolution and new pools of fans for overseas clubs as well.

“To leave a good image for our clubs is the most important thing, and to contribute to the power of our sport in the United States,” Mourinho said. “The next evolution is to bring them a bit younger, with more than a couple of years, with more to give to MLS.” Toronto might have started that movement, having let Jermain Defoe return to Europe and brought in 28-year-old Italian international Sebastian Giovinco, the “Atomic Ant” who spent most of his time at Juventus on loan to other clubs.l

Legia Warsaw awarded win after Europa trouble

n AFP, Paris UEFA have awarded Polish side Legia Warsaw a 3-0 win in their Europa League third qualifying round, first-leg tie against Kukes after trouble marred last week’s match in Albania.

The match last Thursday was abandoned with Legia leading 2-1 after the visitors’ Slovakian midfielder Ondrej Duda appeared to be struck in the head by a stone thrown from the stands.

Legia said that Duda was left with “a oneinch hole” in his head, although he was back on his feet again a few minutes after the incident. Kukes were also ordered to play their next two European home games behind closed doors and were fined 70,000 euros for the setting off of fireworks and throwing of objects, crowd disturbances. l

Guardiola raises doubts over Schweinsteiger’s fitness n Reuters

The Bangladesh Under-12 football team pose for a photograph at the BFF House yesterday. The U12s will fly to South Korea today to take part in the Asian Youth Football Fiesta 2015 MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola has cast a doubt on Manchester United’s new midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger by saying his former player was never fully fit during the last three seasons.

Guardiola said the 31-year-old Schweinsteiger can only be a success at the Premier League club if he can shake off his injury problems.

“When he does not have injury problems, I am completely convinced he will do very well at Manchester United,” Guardiola was quoted as saying by the British media. “He is a top, top player.

“Unfortunately, during the last three years he was never in good condition. He is going to play really good there (at United). I really hope that is going to happen.”

German World Cup winner Schweinsteiger, who has been plagued by ankle and knee injuries throughout his career, spent 17 years at Bayern before joining United in the summer.

Guardiola, however, had words of praise for Spain international Pedro, who has been heavily linked with a move to United, calling him one of the “best” players.

“He is one of the best players you can imagine,” said Guardiola, who worked with the forward when he managed Barcelona.l

DT

Sport 29

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

Nevill says beaten Aussies united despite ‘complex’ call n AFP, Birmingham Australia wicketkeeper Peter Nevill has insisted the tourists remain united despite the “complex situation” which saw him included in the side for their third Ashes Test defeat by England.

Nevill made his debut in Australia’s 405run second Test win at Lord’s after firstchoice wicketkeeper Brad Haddin withdrew to be with his sick daughter Mia. The 29-year-old Nevill impressed at Lord’s, with seven catches and 45 in his only innings.

But several former Australia players, notably Matthew Hayden, felt the 37-year-old Haddin should have been recalled for the third Test and went on to question the worth of Australia’s ‘family first’ policy in the light of his absence.

But on-tour selector Rodney Marsh, one of Australia’s greatest wicketkeepers, said Haddin’s form did not warrant a recall, with coach Darren Lehmann subsequently adding selection could not be guaranteed.

Reports in the Australian press, suggested some players were unhappy at a move which could signal the end of Haddin’s 66Test career.l

Eng selector backs Lyth to come good n AFP, Nottingham England selector Mick Newell has defended the ongoing inclusion of struggling opener Adam Lyth in the Test side facing Australia in the Ashes series.

Yorkshire batsman Lyth has failed to make a major impression on the series so far with 72 runs in six innings at an average of 12 and a best of 37, although he did score a Test century against New Zealand earlier this season.

England head to Nottingham’s Trent Bridge with a 2-1 lead after an eight-wicket win completed inside three days across the Midlands at Birmingham’s Edgbaston ground. England have already altered their batting line-up once this series, bringing in Jonny Bairstow and promoting Ian Bell and Joe Root up a place after dropping number three Gary Ballance - a Yorkshire colleague of Lyth, Root and Bairstow.l

Australia wicket-keeper Peter Nevill takes a catch during a training session at Trent Bridge in Nottingham yesterday

Make or break for Clarke: Aussie media n AFP, Sydney

Australia captain Michael Clarke’s Test career could be over if he fails with the bat during the fourth Test at Trent Bridge, Australian media said Tuesday, saying he looks ‘lost’ and knows the end is near.

Scores of 10 and three during Australia’s eight-wicket defeat by England in the third Test at Edgbaston left Clarke with a meagre series aggregate of 94 runs in six innings at an average of under 19.

With Australia 2-1 down in the five-Test series, he must step up or face the fact that he should retire, cricket writers said.

“Clarke’s issues extend beyond his batting,” said the Sydney Morning Herald’s chief sports writer Andrew Webster.

“His choices as captain without hardened and experienced heads like Brad Haddin and Shane Watson next to him in the middle are

being questioned like never before.

“But it’s with the willow that he desperately needs to turn the beat around.”

Webster added that Clarke’s face explained his issues more than his meagre run total.

“Maybe I’ve known Clarke and covered his career too long. Maybe it’s obvious,” he said.

“But his expression with each cheap dismissal is undeniable: it is a blank expression of utter bewilderment. He isn’t annoyed but lost.”

Clarke, 34, himself admitted that Australia have been “playing with 10 players” and Peter Lalor, cricket writer for The Australian, wrote that failure in the fourth Test in Nottingham starting Thursday “spells an almost certain end to his career”.

“It’s on his mind and he know in his heart that the end is near but like all greats he would like to go out on top,” he said.

But he added that “Clarke is a champion and if he pulls out of this form slump, there

is a possibility the team can win the series or retain the Ashes with a draw”.

The Sydney Daily Telegraph noted that despite his form slump, selectors would be reluctant to axe Clarke or let him retire with a two-Test tour of Bangladesh following the Ashes series in October.

Clarke is a quality player of spin on what are expected to be dusty pitches in Dhaka and Chittagong, with the newspaper also pointing to a lack of quality players to replace him.

“Those quick to close the curtains on the out-of-form skipper might have failed to realise there’s a two-Test tour of Bangladesh to follow,” wrote Ben Horne.

“Even in Clarke’s form slump, is there anyone else in Australian cricket, with the possible exception of Steve Smith, who plays spin better then the skipper?

“The experience and class of Clarke in Bangladesh will be hard to ignore.”l

Lyon reach deal to sign United’s Rafael n AFP, Lyon

DAY’S WATCH Star Sports 2 8:30AM Tri Series Australia A v South Africa A 8:30PM Pro Kabaddi League Hyderabad v Kolkata 2:00AM ATP World Tour 500: Citi Open

Star Sports 4 1:00AM International Champions Cup Chelsea v ACF Fiorentina

REUTERS

Indian cricket team members arrive for an indoor practice session in Colombo, Sri Lanka yesterday. The Indian cricket team are in Sri Lanka to play a three-Test series that begins this Wednesday AP

Manchester United’s Rafael is joining Lyon after the two clubs reached a deal over the Brazilian right-back, the French side announced on Monday.

The 25-year-old, has passed a medical and will sign a four-year contract with the former multiple French champions.

Rafael joined United with his twin brother Fabio from Fluminense in 2008 and leaves Manchester with three Premier League titles, and a League Cup win.

Last season he only turned out ten times with new coach Louis van Gaal more often than not preferring Antonio Valencia.l

DT

30 DOWNTIME

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Jump rope (4) 3 Remain (3) 7 Monkey (3) 8 Abnormally fat (5) 11 Love god (4) 12 Draws nigh (5) 13 Expel by legal process (5) 15 Part of a castle (4) 18 Fish (4) 19 Pitworker (5) 20 Play (5) 21 Conceal (4) 23 Illustrious (5) 24 Employ (3) 25 Camping item (4) 26 Raw hide (4)

DOWN 1 Tallied (6) 2 Pacific (6) 4 Sailor (3) 5 Climax (6) 6 Acceptance (3) 9 Withdraw from federation (6) 10 Consume (3) 11 Snow dweller (6) 14 Traveller’s case (6) 16 Make possible (6) 17 Minister (6) 19 Homo Sapiens (3) 21 Mean dwelling (3) 22 Lair (3)

CODE-CRACKER How to solve: Each number in our CODECRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 21 represents C so fill C every time the figure 21 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

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

'Nupur Beje Jai'

Photo: Courtesy

Cine Fan Summer International Film Festival 2015

From golden movies of the era to premieres and screenings, the Cine Fan Summer International Film Festival 2015 glamorously displayed it all on August 11 to 25 on various cinemas in Hong Kong.

Inaugurated with Hou Hsiao-Hsien's The Assassin, it is considered as one of the best creations of Hou, with the movie portraying a classic Taiwanese story line.

And with that, the festivities moved on to Wild City, directed by Ringo Lam. The highlight of the event was Wild City, as it premiered the third in the series.

The trilogy, aged 28 years, lead to this highly anticipated moment which really made the festival shine.

The international film festival brought together all types of movie-goers as the infused screenings from hit movies from all around the world were displayed.

Among other favorites where Standing Tall, a 119 minute movie starring Catherine Deneuve and Rod ParadotPK. Others included Piku (Shoojit Sirkar), Slow West (John Maclean), Yakuza Apocalypse (Miike Takashi), Love and Peace (Sono Sion), Flying Colors (Doi Nobuhiro), Prophecy (Nakamura Yoshihiro) and many more. l

Nupur Beje Jai is a dance choreography workshop, conducted by Smt Mamata Shankar, daughter of legendary dance maestro Sri Uday Shankar. The workshop started from August 4 at Shadhona Cultural Circle, Shilpakala Academy, which is a center for the advancement of South Asian culture.

Shadhona, in collaboration with Bangladesh National Museum, is presenting a workshop showcase on August 8 at the museum. The event is open for all.

The showcase will commence at 7pm and will be followed by Bharatanatyam and Kathak recitals by students of Kolpotoru and Bharatanatyam. Other performances include Kathak and contemporary dance by Amit Chowdhury and Tahmina Anwar Anika.

Moreover, Shankar and other members of the West Bengal Dance Group Federation (WBDGF) will be conducting dance examinations at Kolpotoru, a dance academy and sister organization of Shadhona. This will be the third year that the WBDGF will be conducting exams. Held under the aegis of Kolpotoru, the exams are also conducted in Komolganj (Srimongol) where Shadhona runs Manipuri dance classes. l

Five top Swedish films n Showtime Desk

exuberance and nativity of youth.

Sweden, a country that left its mark on world cinema from its inception, developed a very distinct style of its own. Ranging from crime thrillers and tragic comedies to razor sharp documentaries, Swedish film in the past recent years has the range and intelligence to impress even the pickiest of film-buffs. Here, we picked just five as exemplary of each year’s best.

Searching for Sugar Man (2012)

Force Majeure (2014)

n Showtime Desk

n Showtime Desk

Ruben Ostlund’s fourth feature film and recipient of Jury Prize at Cannes Film Festival follows a seemingly generic and photogenic family, on vacation at a beautiful ski resort in the French Alps.

However, there is a major twist that rips apart this semblance of perfection, perhaps not in a way one would expect the film to unfold.

A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014) Like his previous features Songs from The Second Floor and You, The Living, Swedish director Roy Andersson takes up the theme of “being a human being” with this meticulously crafted comedy.

Sam and Jonathan, a pair of hapless novelty salesman, takes the viewers on a kaleidoscopic tour of the human condition in reality and fantasy.

We Are the Best! (2013)

Lukas Moodysson transports the audience to Stockholm in 1982, as three quirky teenage girls decide to form a punk band without a single instrument. Personifying the peak of teenage rebellion, the girls flick V-signs at anyone who suggests the punk movement is no longer relevant.

Perhaps surprisingly, the film manages to present an endearing portrayal of the sheer

Two South Africans set out to discover what happened to their unlikely musical hero, the mysterious 1970s rock ‘n’ roller, Rodriguez. While he only recorded two albums, his influence in South Africa was unprecedented. Malik Bendjelloul, a Swedish film director, has left a legacy with this film which won both a BAFTA and an Oscar.

Play (2011)

There are few observationalist films that can with distanced as the static camera-work manages to pull you in. Just like in his earlier film Involuntary, Ruben Ostlund knows how to expose society’s awkwardness and hypocrisy while simultaneously producing hugely enjoyable films. The play is based on real-life examples of bullying in the Gothenburg area. l

CELEBS ON SOCIAL

TED @Laughbook holy heaven Jamie Oliver @jamieoliver #Recipeoftheday is a beatuiful leftover pasta frittata from @ gennarocontaldo #ThePastaBook

Shahid Kapoor @shahidkapoor Falling off to sleep , wake me up tomorrow # ShaandaarFirst LookTomorrow

JATRA BIROTI

Jatra Biroti Bulletin Saturday August 8 - Electro/Acoustic Ticket price: Tk500 A featured set performance titled chilletronics, featuring Zunayed Sabbir Ahmed, Dewan Anamul Hasan and Yameen Khan.

Venue: 60 Kemal Ataturk Ave, 1213 Dhaka, Bangladesh.

WHAT TO WATCH Mission Impossible II ZStudio 2:40 pm A secret agent is sent to Sydney, to find and destroy a genetically modified disease called “Chimera”.

Cast: Tom Cruise, Richard Roxburgh, Dougray Scott, Thandie Newton, Ving Rhames Air Force One Star Movies 6:30 pm Hijackers seize the plane carrying the President of the United States and his family, but he - an ex-soldier - works from hiding to defeat them.

Cast: Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, Glenn Close, Wendy Crewson, Liesel Matthews

DT

32 BACK PAGE

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015

BANKS ASKED TO SUBMIT GP ACCOUNT DETAILS PAGE 15

WHEN SPORTS TAKES A BACKSEAT PAGE 26

‘NUPUR BEJE JAI’ PAGE 31 MP’s men beat up 18 people including a policeman in Gulshan n Kamrul Hasan

Several days of heavy rain has left most of the roads and streets of Dhaka in bad shape, prompting authorities to launch repair works in many areas of the city, including this part of the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway, yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

LAUNDERING, TRAFFICKING, SMUGGLING

BFIU not filing any cases since 2012 concerns govt n Asif Showkat Kallol Finance Ministry officials have expressed concerns about the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) that has failed to file any cases against human trafficking, gold smuggling and terrorist financing since 2012.

Officials of several government agencies – including the Bank and Financial Institutions Division (BFID), Bangladesh Bank and BFIU – sat in a meeting at the secretariat yesterday as a preparation for the upcoming visit of a global anti-money laundering watchdog.

Sydney based Asia/Pacific Group (APG) is scheduled to visit Dhaka in October. During their two-day stay, an APG team will meet a number of organisations and government agencies to evaluate the current status of anti-money laundering activities in Bangladesh.

In February last year, Bangladesh came out of the gray list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a Paris-based intergovernmental policymaking body. FATF’s standards are accepted internationally as the global policy benchmark for anti-money laundering, anti-terrorist financing and anti-proliferation financing measures.

The recognition meant that Bangladesh was now globally considered safe for international transactions and there would be signif-

icant reduction in the cost and time of financial transactions with the rest of the world.

APG’s upcoming visit is crucial because whether Bangladesh would be able to stay clear of FATF’s gray list would largely depend on the Sydney-based watchdog’s recommendations.

BFID Secretary M Aslam Alam, who led yesterday’s meeting, told the Dhaka Tribune: “The Anti-Corruption Commission has done well filing cases against corrupt people under section 97 of the anti-money laundering act. But the BFIU has failed to file any cases against manpower and gold smuggling and terrorist financing.”

Last year, FATF praised the significant progress Bangladesh made in improving anti-money laundering and combatting terrorist financing (AML/CTF) activities.

Success in establishing a financial intelligence unit was one of the reasons why Bangladesh graduated out of the list and became eligible to work with the APG, who help in sustaining AML/CTF regimes.

After yesterday’s preparatory meeting, BFID Secretary Aslam said that two joint investigation units would be formed which will look into the type of lawsuits that can be filed in connection with AML/CTF activities in the country.

The units – comprising members from the

BFIU, ACC, CID and NBR – will also monitor the proceedings of the existing lawsuits.

Asked whether the APG team will look into any political issues, the secretary replied in the negative.

“The APG team will look into pure money-laundering activities. The scope of money laundering has got broader. Legal money can become illegal if a person sends money abroad through ‘hundi’ instead of formal banking channels. If a person invests bribe money in the local share market, this is a kind of money-laundering,” the secretary said.

However, contrary to what the BFID secretary said, there is a provision that allows whitening of undisclosed money through investment in stock market against a 10% tax.

That provision, introduced in budget a few years ago, is still effective.

Aslam also said that the BFIU will conduct mock interview sessions with various organisations and agencies to get them prepared so that they can give satisfactory answers to the APG team in a couple of months time.

Last month, Bangladesh and Australia signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on AML/CFT cooperation. BFIU and the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Center signed the memo during a meeting of the APG from July 12-17 in New Zealand. l

At least 18 people, including a policeman, were injured by armed criminals, backed by a lawmaker, at the site of an under-construction building in Dhaka’s Gulshan yesterday.

Sources said the criminals were men of Jhenaidah lawmaker Tahjib Alam Siddique who has a conflict with the builder, Borak Real Estate, centring the land of the construction site.

Witnesses said that around 11am, a team of five officials of Desco (Dhaka Electric Supply Company Limited) came to road number 46 to remove three electricity poles located in front of the site whose holding number is 34-37/A. According to a source, the poles were impeding work at the site. But MP Tahjib, who wants to grab the land of the site, did not want the poles removed. If work does not progress, it is easier for him to grab the land.

In no time, scores of armed criminals came out of the nearby Doreen Tower – owned by MP Tahjib – and attacked the Desco officials.

At one point, they forced the officials to leave the area.

Seeing this, Shafiqur Rahman, project manager of Borak, went there to protest the attack.

But the criminals pounced on him. When more people from the project rushed to Shafiqur’s help, the criminals beat them up too.

On getting information, police Sub-Inspector Ferdous went to the area and tried to bring the situation under control. But too was badly injured by the criminals. Ferdous was rendered helpless after another group of criminals started hurling bricks from the roof of Doreen Tower.

Later, several officials from the Gulshan police station rushed to the spot with more force and brought the situation under control.

Others injured in the attack include project admin officer Maj (retd) Rashid Siddique, electrician Roman Sikdar, supervisor Manik and employees Allauddin, Jiarul, Russel, Liton, Chotton, Malek, Hiru, Nazrul, Sabdul, Shamim, Shafik and Selim.

They were given treatment in a local clinic and the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Manager Shafiqul said MP Tahjib himself joined the mob at one point and instead of stopping his men, he ordered them to shoot everyone who came in front. “I have just shown you a trailer today. I would run a river of blood if needed,” Shafiq quoted Tahjib as shouting.

Shafiq also said that they had received threats from the same group several times before.

Desco Assistant Engineer Golam Rabbani, who went there to remove the poles, said: “Today [Tuesday] we went to remove the poles after taking permission from the authorities. But despite repeated attempts, we could not do our work because of local problems.”

Mahbub Hossain, additional deputy commissioner of Police’s Gulshan Division, said: “So far, we have detained four people and are preparing to file a case in this connection.” l

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