25 March, 2016

SECOND EDITION

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016 | Chaitra 11, 1422, Jamadius Sani 15, 1437 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 339 | www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages plus 24-page Weekend supplement | Price: Tk10

Made-in-India yaba hits the market Jamil Khan and n Mohammad Syed Samiul Basher Anik The whole “Make in India” idea is on a high – or, rather a low – as India’s drug barons begin pumping illegal yaba tablets into Bangladesh, giving suppliers in Myanmar a run for their money.

Although regarded as lower grade than their Myanmar counterpart, the methamphetamine and caffeine pills widely enjoyed as a party drug are now being made in India.

India previously enjoyed the notoriety of being the main source of phensedyl, a codeine syrup banned in Bangladesh and a major contributor to Bangladesh’s drug addiction problem.

The Indian yaba menace was prioritised at the first meeting of the reconstituted central anti-smuggling task force held on February 28. This was the first official acknowledgement that yaba, popular as a sex stimulant, was coming in from India too.

The task force decided to reach out to India’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) to stamp out yaba smuggled from that country.

The rise in popularity and availability of yaba in Dhaka and elsewhere in Bangladesh is a matter of

grave concern for the authorities as well as parents. Deputy Director of the Department of Narcotics Control Mukul Jyoti Chakma said yaba tablets made up some 33% of the contraband items seized by law enforcers.

According to police sources, over 23.2 million yaba pills, of all places of origin, were recovered in 2015 alone.

Two fronts, tough patrons

But the rise of India’s yaba factories has got Bangladeshi law enforcers fighting a two-front battle against drug smuggling, adding the western frontier to existing operations on the south-eastern coast along the Myanmar border.

Bangladesh and India’s 4,096-kilometre border is a virtual emporium for smugglers.

Over the last couple of years, the border forces of Bangladesh and India have worked to shut down illegal phensedyl factories along the Indian border.

Some observers speculate that a recent ban in India on phensedyl may be behind the shift to yaba production by illicit drugs manufacturers. Under increased scrutiny when transporting liquid formulations, Indian smugglers are finding it easier to move tablets to Bangladesh.

YABA SMUGGLING TO AND FROM BANGLADESH

To Middle East by air Myanmar

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Even legally produced phensedyl was smuggled into Bangladesh for use as a narcotic.

Above-board drug companies that produced phensedyl, such as

Enters Bangladesh from India, Myanmar through borders Smuggled to Middle East through air courier service Abbot, has been hit hard by the ban and is fighting it in the courts.

The Delhi High Court has granted an interim stay to drugmaker Abbott against a government move to

ban phensedyl, India’s Economic Times reported recently.

Despite regular seizures of yaba by the law enforcers, the drug lords have always managed to keep one step ahead of the police.

A ruling party lawmaker and his family are among those sheltering smugglers of the drug from Myanmar, it has been reported.

In 2014, the Department of Narcotics Control (DNC) published a report containing the names of a staggering 1,200 people believed to be involved in the illegal trade, including Cox’s Bazar Awami League lawmaker Abdur Rahman Bodi.

The list of those complicit in the trade includes law enforcers, local policemen, government officials, lawyers and even journalists.

Moinul Khan, director general of Customs Intelligence and also member secretary of the anti-smuggling task force, told the Dhaka Tribune recently that some smugglers were sending contraband pills originating in Myanmar to India to avoid raids in Bangladesh. Some of these pills later resurface on the border.

In addition to supplying local demand, yaba smuggled into the country is often meant for onward transport to Middle Eastern  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

University teachers’ demands met Dejected Mushfiq A total 25% professors to get first-grade salaries apologises to nation n Tribune Report

INSIDE

Following months of tension and protests, the cabinet committee on solving salary discrimination has recommended that 25% professors of public universities be given salaries and benefits of a first-grade public servant – equal to a secretary.

University teachers welcomed the move, saying it was the culmination of their year-long movement.

The decision came from a meeting of the cabinet committee, presided by Finance Minister AMA Muhith, at the Finance Ministry au-

ditorium yesterday. Leaders from Federation of Bangladesh University Teachers Association (FBUTA) were present along with cabinet members and top bureaucrats.

“We have reached a consensus on resolving the dispute on promotion, post and amount of salaries for professors of public universities – which will applicable for 38 [public] universities,” said Muhith.

“The government will have to emphasize on the quality of education at public universities and our committee recommendations will go to the cabinet for approval,” the minister said.

Public university teachers had long been protesting the eighth pay scale, which removed the previous provisions that allowed professors to get first-grade salaries through the process of selection grade.

“A total 25% of second-grade public university professors will go to first grade when their job duration will be 20 years. Earlier they went to first grade in the process of selection grade,” Muhith said.

“We have fixed the criteria of promotion to the final stage for public universities teachers. A professor will get promotion from  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

Uddin Khan n Minhaz from Kolkata Bangladesh’s one-run defeat to hosts India in the Super 10 round of the 2016 World Twenty20 in Bangalore last Wednesday has rocked the cricket-crazy nation. It was not the defeat that has taken the country by surprise but rather the way the Tigers gifted the game to the home side and ensured their way out of the flagship event. It is hard to believe that a side with two set bats-

Arms bought from various sources

Chandpur women barred from voting

PM distributes Independence Award

The government is buying sophisticated weaponry to develop a three-dimensional force.  PAGE 3

Women from Chandpur’s Rupsha Dakkhin Union did not cast their votes in Tuesday’s Union Parishad polls following a fatwa by a pir.  PAGE 5

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday distributed Independence Award among 15 individuals and an organisation for their contribution.  PAGE 32

men in the middle, and one waiting in the dugout, can fail to chase two runs in three balls.

All the fingers are now being pointed at the direction of Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah.

It was Mushfiq who first went for the glory shot only to be caught at mid-wicket; Bangladesh reeling on 145 for seven in 19.4 overs. The game was still very much in the balance, thanks to the presence of the in-form Mahmudullah on strike. But he too was dismissed in a similar fashion like Mushfiq; the  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

2nd Round

Sport Page-28

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Hasina 10th among Fortune World’s 50 Greatest Leaders n

Tribune Report

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been named to Fortune’s third annual list of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders.

Ranked No 10 on the list, she deftly navigated the competing demands of Islamic tradition and women’s rights, the magazine said yesterday.

“As the only female leader among

the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation member states, Hasina has deftly navigated the competing demands of Islamic tradition and women’s rights.

She has committed Bangladesh, the nation with the world’s fourth-largest Muslim population, to securing legal protections for women and helping them attain more education, financial freedom, and political power.

“About 30% of adult women in Bangladesh now have at least a secondary education – and the nation scores better on the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Index than any other South Asian country,” Fortune explained.

Chief of Awami League since 1981, Hasina has been in office since January 2009. She previously served as prime minister from 1996 to 2001. l

Nation to remember Black Night of March 25 today n BSS The nation will recall the “Black Night of March 25” today in commemoration of the cowardly attack on Bangalis and genocide in the Dhaka city perpetrated by the barbarous Pakistani occupation forces in 1971.

On the fateful night, the Pakistani military junta resorted to genocide in Dhaka, dubbed Operation Searchlight. They killed thousands

of people indiscriminately, torched houses and properties, and looted shops and business establishments throughout East Pakistan.

In the wake of the crackdown, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared the independence of Bangladesh through EPR wireless at 12:30am on March 26 from his residence at Road 32 in Dhanmondi, following which he was arrested and taken to then West Pakistan. l

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Dejected Mushfiq apologises to nation Tigers left to chase two runs from the final delivery.

All-rounder Shuvagata Hom was on strike and all he needed to do was connect the ball and attempt a single to at least level the scores.

But the right-hander, who came in as the replacement of suspended fast bowler Taskin Ahmed, failed to predict the trajectory of a juicy short ball.

The three batsmen are now the culprits, according to the cricket-mad fans; let it be on social media or in a tea-table conversation.

For Mahmudullah, this was the second occasion he had failed to take Bangladesh to the destination after the two-run defeat against Pakistan in the 2012 Asia Cup final.

But given his recent performances, many will overlook what he has done.

As far as Shuvagata is concerned, he was never a dependable batsman to start with.

It is Mushfiq therefore, who is really feeling the heat. In recent times, the wicketkeeper-batsman

has been struggling for runs and all hell broke loose following his departure against India. In his last eight T20Is, the diminutive right-hander has accumulated only 84 runs and despite being one of the best Tigers batsman, him not being able to score was hurting the team. The team had fully supported him during the lean patch but one wonders what he might be facing right now in the dressing room.

Right after the game, the frustration displayed by all-rounder Shakib al Hasan at M Chinnaswamy Stadium was visible for all to see. Shakib was furious, shouting in front of the dressing room as if he was putting blame on individuals. Opening batsman Tamim Iqbal walked towards Shakib to cool him down only to incur the wrath of the Bangladesh limited-over vice captain.

In the official press conference after the game, captain Mashrafe bin Mortaza had refrained from blaming any individual for the chastening defeat. The veteran

cricketer however, over and over again mentioned that his side had lost the game in the last three balls.

‘I know that the defeat [last Wednesday] has hurt all of you but to be honest, all the players in the team play their heart out when in the middle’ Mashrafe said the batsmen (indicating Mushfiq and Mahmudullah) failed to hold on to their nerves.

“The chase could have been more relaxing if we had gone for singles.

All the [Indian] fielders were at the boundary. A single would have meant we needed only a run in two deliveries. I believe these things should have had come into our

University minds. But we failed,” Mashrafe explained.

There is no hesitation that Mushfiq, the highest-ranked Bangladesh batsman in one-day internationals, has presented Bangladesh many historic wins and great knocks to cherish. However, the recent and distant past seems all too blur now.

Mushfiq, the Bangladesh Test captain, realised the blunder and apologised to the nation through his official Facebook account yesterday morning.

The middle-order batsman quoted, “I know that the defeat [last Wednesday] has hurt all of you but to be honest, all the players in the team play their heart out when in the middle. So the defeat was disheartening for us too.

“I should not have got myself dismissed at that crucial point of the game. The team might have lost because of me for which I am sorry to the nation. I hope to take a lesson from this and in future bring back smiles on your faces.” l

Made-in-India yaba hits the market countries using courier services, police sources said.

Border Guard Bangladesh chief Maj Gen Aziz Ahmed told the Dhaka Tribune that they had recovered three consignments of yaba pills from along the Indian border.

These, he said, were distinct from Myanmar yaba tablets.

“We suspect that someone might have made some fake yaba tablets on the Indian side due to its high price and high demand in Bangladesh,” said the BGB chief, also a member of the task force.

He said specific information on the movement of Indian yaba smugglers would not be possible unless surveillance along the border is increased.

The Dhaka Tribune made contact with drug dealers and users in the northern region of the country to check the current status of yaba smuggling.

Md Kuddus, a drug dealer from Dinajpur, acknowledged that he did not need to bring yaba pills from Dhaka or Cox’s Bazar.

“It has been available in the border areas for the last year. Smugglers bring yaba tablets along with phensedyl from India,” he said, adding that yaba was safer and cheaper to move than phensedyl or other drugs.

“The pills coming from India, available only in pink, are cheap because of their low quality. It is sold for Tk160 to Tk180 in the border areas. The other varieties – green and white – do not come from India,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.

Carriers and courier services

Based on a tip-off from an international intelligence agency, the DNC in January recovered a parcel from the courier section of Dhaka airport’s cargo village. Officials recovered 1,000 yaba pills packed among

jeans and leather footwear.

The parcel was sent to the UAE from Bangladesh, but returned because no one received it in Dubai.

In December, Customs Intelligence officials arrested Mohammad Harun and recovered 3,300 yaba tablets and 2kg marijuana from his possession. He was travelling to Kuwait from Dhaka.

The Detective Branch of police recovered a shipment of yaba pills from inside a packet of herbal products from Uttara in November.

The package was brought from Myanmar but was on its way out of the country, DB sources said.

Through confessions from a number of arrestees, law enforcers have pieced together that Bangladesh is fast becoming a major transit point for the smuggling of drugs, especially yaba, using courier services, a senior DB official said, asking not to be named as he is not authorised to speak to media.

Syed Toufiq Uddin Ahmed, director (operations) of the DNC, told the Dhaka Tribune that the Dubai airport authorities had detected and sent back thousands of yaba pills discovered in courier parcels.

They had been sent from Bangladesh using the DHL and CEX courier services.

“We have started investigating the courier services’ databases in the hope of tracking down the gangs and delivery routes,” he said.

Bangladesh does not have high quality narcotics detection machines making it difficult for law enforcers to tackle smuggling operations, he said.

Nevertheless, Customs Intelligence Director General Moinul said parcels leaving the country are strictly being monitored. “Instructions have been given to the ports to check parcels properly before giving clearance.” l

third grade to second grade if he or she has stayed for four years [in third grade] and published two new research papers in well-known journals.

“Second-grade professors should stay for two years in the same post for promotion to first grade on the basis of seniority,” the minister said.

Responding to the decision, FBUTA Secretary General Prof ASM Maksud Kamal said: “We will need a unified criteria of promotion for all public university teachers, which is going to be made by government authorities concerned.”

The achievement of getting first grade was the result of a year of movement on the status of public university teachers, Kamal said.

The FBUTA would submit its recommendations to the Education Ministry on the professors who would get first grade, he added.

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid, however, said his ministry would not make the final decision on the portion of professors to get first grade, but it would go to the prime minister and the cabinet for approval.

Meanwhile, FBUTA President Farid Uddin Ahmed said the cabinet secretary – in the meeting – mentioned of creating a super-grade post, similar to that of a senior secretary in administration, for public university teachers.

The association will now submit a proposal to the University Grants Commission to create a super-grade post for public university professors, Farid Uddin said.

“We have also demanded more funds for research and higher education for public university teachers. Only Tk50 lakh is allocated for Dhaka University for research and publication from a budget allocation of Tk400 crore,” he added.

The new pay scale for 2.1 million civil servants came into effect from July 1, 2015. Teachers’ salaries were two steps below that of the secretaries in the scale.

University teachers have long been alleging that the new pay scale ensures more facilities for the secretaries and government officials but less for teachers. l

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Govt procures arms from diversified sources n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman The government is buying sophisticated weaponry as part of its initiative to develop a three-dimensional force.

Last week three war ships – two from China and one from the US – were inducted into the navy. Russian made combat training aircraft YAK 130 and maritime search and rescue helicopters were introduced last December. Three hundred APCs will be included in 2017-18 fiscal year.

Bangladesh has bought most of its arms from China in the past but now it is diversifying its procurement sources.

According to Stockholm based International Peace Research Institute (Sipri), in 2004-09 period the government bought arms from seven countries - China, Italy, Russia, Turkey, the UK, Pakistan and Romania.

But in 2010-15, the number rose to 11 with two – Pakistan and Romania - dropped from the list and six more countries – Czech Republic, France, Germany, Serbia, Ukraine

1000 900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0

AIRCRAFT 750

AIR DEFENSE SYSTEM 45

ARMORED VEHICLES 888

Source: International Peace Research Institute

and the US – included in the arms procurement country list.

A senior government official said China, Russia, Israel, the UK, the US and some European countries were the major suppliers of weapons worldwide.

Bangladesh traditionally buys

BNP: EC responsible for Union Parishad polls violence n Tribune Report The BNP has held the Election Commission responsible for the killing of 22 people in the violence centring the first phase of union parishad (UP) polls.

“The Election Commission did not play any role in preventing the violence; rather, it avoided responsibility of the incident by making in-

'Before the election, the CEC said they were not getting the cooperation expected from the administration' sane comments,” said Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, BNP joint secretary general, at a press briefing yesterday at the party's Nayapaltan headquarters.

The BNP leader claimed that 22 people had been killed since the election schedule was announced until the voting day, three among them being election candidates.

“Their [the Election Commission] subservient behaviour is the reason

behind those killings,” he alleged.

Rizvi also raised question about the “psychological state” of Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmed.

“Before the election, the CEC said they were not getting the cooperation expected from the administration... police would have to take the responsibility if any violence or confrontation took place.

But after the election, he said it was fair. It seems that he [the CEC] suffers from mental delusion.”

According to the constitution, the government is bound to extend its cooperation whenever the Election Commission seeks to hold a free and fair election, Rizvi said.

“If the government does not follow it, it violates the constitution.

The Election Commission has the power and it should exercise its power. If the commission is barred from exercising its authority, it should resign from the post and file a case with court against the government,” he added.

Rizvi claimed that election violence is still prevailing in many parts of the country and a dreadful situation is prevailing in the election areas as the Awami League musclemen have been continuing with their violent acts. l

ARTILLERY 57

ENGINES 59

MISEILES 170

NAVAL WEAPONS 8

ARMS PURCHASE DURING 2000-2015

bulk amounts of arms from China and there are several reasons behind it.

Relations between political and armed forces, prices, conditions related to payment, loan facilities and other factors dominate the buying decision, the official said.

SENSORS 83

SHIPS 934

IN MILLION USD

In addition to that, Bangladesh also buys arms from other sources based on the same considerations.

The official said due to the maritime verdict, Bangladesh now has sovereign authority over a vast area in the Bay of Bengal and it needs to be protected.

The forces in Bangladesh take part in different UN peacekeeping operations and the government also rents equipment to the United Nations.

According to Sipri, during the last couple of years, Bangladesh bought two war ships and machinery from the US, light transport from Serbia and spare parts for helicopters and aircrafts from France and Germany.

Another government official said Bangladesh does not buy arms from Israel, which is one of world's leading arms exporters, and at present it is trying to procure arms from European countries.

Chinese Ambassador Ma Mingqiang at an event last week said two Chinese ships have already been delivered to Bangladesh and three more would be delivered this year.

Asked about the procurement from other countries, he said Bangladesh buys arms according to its own needs.

He, however, said Chinese equipment are good in quality and very competitive in price. l

Family members meet war criminal Nizami at jail n Our Correspondent, Gazipur The family members of death-row convict war criminal Motiur Rahman Nizami met him at the Kashimpur jail in Gazipur yesterday, only a couple of days before the deadline for filing a review petition expires.

Nizami’s wife Begum Shamsunnahar Nizami, sons Nazib Momen alias Nazibur Rahman and Naimur Rahman, and daughters-in-law Saleya and Raiyan went to the jail around noon and stayed there for around 45 minutes.

They talked about family matters and regarding filing of the review

petition, Jailer Nasir Ahmed said.

The death penalty of Jamaat-e-Islami chief Nizami, one of the top collaborators of the Pakistani occupation forces in 1971, was upheld by the apex court on January 6 on charges of masterminding the killing of intellectuals and for his involvement in two incidents of mass killings of over 500 people in Pabna in 1971.

The court published the full text of the verdict on March 15, and the same day the International Crimes Tribunal issued the death warrant for Nizami. According to the rules, the convict gets 15 days from re-

ceiving a copy of the full verdict to file the review petition.

If the petition is rejected, the war criminal would be able to seek the president’s mercy admitting his crimes, or the jail authorities would execute the convict as per the tribunal’s verdict.

Earlier, Nazib Momen and two lawyers of Nizami met him at the jail on March 16.

A former minister during the 2001-06 tenure, Nizami has never repented for the cold-blooded atrocities Jamaat and Islami Chhatra Sangha had committed during the Liberation War. l

Teenager gang-raped in Rajshahi n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi

A teenage girl was gang-raped in a city hotel in Rajshahi early yesterday allegedly by her boyfriend and some other people.

The girl, aged around 14, was admitted to the One Stop Crisis Centre of Rajshahi Medical College Hospital in the morning in a critical condition.

Police said the girl was brought to the hospital on a three-wheeler around 7am. The police detained the driver of the vehicle, Roni, for questioning.

The victim, who lives in Amnura area of Rajshahi’s Nachol, had an affair with a carpenter named Khokon, son of Abul Hossain from Rajbari area of the district’s Godagari, police said.

Khokon had lured the girl to the city on Wednesday evening, promising her of marriage.

Quoting the victim, RMCH Police Outpost In-Charge Assistant Sub-Inspector Morshed Alam said that after she reached the city, Khokon checked in Bhai Bhai Residential Hotel in the city. Later, she was gang-raped by some men in-

cluding Khokon the whole night, Morshed said.

He suspects that the hotel staff were also involved in the incident.

Boalia police station Officerin-Charge Shahdat Hossain said Khokon registered themselves as husband and wife while booking the hotel room.

He has been absconding since the incident.

SI Nazma Khatun of the One Stop Crisis Centre told the Dhaka Tribune last night that the girl had undergone a surgery but was yet to gain consciousness. l

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BGB chief defends shooting during UP polls n Arifur Rahman Rabbi

Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Director General Major Gen Aziz Ahmed yesterday said his men were forced to open fire to contain the situation in Pirojpur and Cox’s Bazar during Tuesday’s Union Parishad elections.

“The incidents were unexpected. The people were not cooperating with us, compelling us to use lethal force to bring the situation under control,” he told a programme at the BGB Headquarters in Dhaka.

He said the BGB troopers had followed the law.

At least eight people were reportedly killed in violence

centring the first phase of the polls of 712 Union Parishads.

The BGB shot dead five men who were attempted to snatch ballot boxes after the end of polling in Pirojpur’s Mathbaria.

About the incident, Aziz said: “The presiding officer in Mathbaria had rejected some fake ballots but the people were forcing him to count them. They confined the officer when he refused to do so.

“The magistrate and BGB officials went to the spot to rein in the situation. They [BGB] first fired shots in the air with the magistrate’s permission but were later forced to open fire as the situation spiralled out of control.”

Mathbaria police station Sub-Inspector Sanowar Hossain Khan filed a case against 1,200-1,300 unnamed persons on Wednesday night for vandalising vehicles, snatching ballot papers, and barring lawmen from their duty.

As for the Cox’s Bazar’s incident, he said the clash erupted when the people confined the presiding officer in Teknaf and tried to take over the polling centre.

A gunfight between supporters of the Awami League candidate and the rival aspirant left one Shafik Alam, 25, dead in Majherpara polling station at Shahfarid Dwip under Teknaf’s Shaparan union. l

‘Lack of technical knowledge preventing industrial growth’ n Shadma Malik The lack of technical knowledge and job-specific skills, and also institutional weakness in technical and vocational education and training (TVET) are preventing growth in the country’s industrial sector, said speakers at a seminar yesterday.

They said the country’s industrial sector is expanding and thus human resource development is key for achieving national goals in this sector.

The seminar organised by IC Net Limited was held at the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE) in the capital.

Findings from a survey were presented at the seminar, and one of the key findings was that skilled foreign workers have a dominance

in the country’s industrial sector.

The survey, jointly conducted by DTE, Bangladesh Technical Education Board (BTEB) and IC Net, showed that the level of satisfaction with graduates was moderately high but weaknesses were also observed. Lack of technical knowledge among graduates was found to be 14.2%, and lack of job-specific skills 9.8%.

Of the surveyed organisations, 32.8% said they had hired foreign workers for 58.2% of the high-level and 26.9% of the mid-level managerial posts.

The survey was carried out among 322 manufacturing companies in Dhaka and Chittagong from January 12 to February 11 this year. Lec-

turers of polytechnic institutes joined as interviewers and consultants contributed to the technical aspects of the survey.

The findings of the survey showed that competitiveness, integrated knowledge and skills, practical experience to complete an entire project, problem solving capacities, creativity and critical thinking skills are demanded by employers.

“Because of the lack of qualified human resource in the local market, companies are recruiting foreigners, especially for mid- and high-level managerial posts. Graduates from the TVET institutions can fill such positions,” said Dr Takujiro Ito, senior consultant at IC Net Limited who presented the survey findings.l

17th IUB convocation held n Tribune Report The 17th Convocation of the Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) was held yesterday at its Bashundhara campus.

Degrees were awarded to 1,388 students at the convocation. Of them, 954 were undergraduates and 434 graduates.

Business School’s Mahtab Fahim was the valedictorian this year, and also received the Chancellor’s Gold Medal.

Four students received the Award for Excellence for outstanding performance in various fields - Mahtab Fahim for academic excellence, Saquiba Bintay Ali for culture, Salman Ahmed for community service and Hisham Rahman for Sports. Saquiba Bintay Ali was awarded the “All rounder” award.

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid conferred the degrees on the graduating students. Prime Minister’s

Adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi was the convocation speaker, and Chairman of University Grants Commission of Bangladesh Prof Abdul Mannan was the special guest.

Elahi said: “You are about to morph into many new identities as you journey ahead. Take this journey with a sense of discovery and an open mind; avoid doctrinal ‘isms.’ Only then will you move forward, individually and collectively.” l

Border Guard Bangladesh chief Maj Gen Aziz Ahmed inaugurates mobile phone-based teleconsultation service yesterday to provide medical support to BGB members and their families

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Fatwa prevents women from voting in Chandpur n Ibrahim Rony, Chandpur Parul Rani, 60, Lakshmi Rani, 50, and Rupa Rani, 22, live in Charpata village under the Rupsha Dakkhin Union of Chandpur’s Faridganj upazila. Like other women in the locality, they did not exercise their franchise in Tuesday’s Union Parishad polls.

There are about 9,000 women voters in the union who have been staying away from polls following a fatwa by a pir.

time. “Women said they would go to vote but did not show up on the election day. The people are very religious. They stay away from polls to abide by an order of a pir.”

District Election Officer Ataur Rahman said 14 unions in Faridganj would go to polls in the third phase. “Women voters in Rupsha Union had been uninterested. The EC has told the returning officer and upazila election officer to bring women voters to polling stations with help from local imams.” l

not vote even though we want to, as our mothers and grandmothers stayed away from polls,” she said.

Faridganj Majidia Kamil Madrasa Principal AKM Mahbubur Rahman said women had every right to vote. UP chairman Billal Khan said many women stayed away from voting believing in a superstition while many were victims of dirty political practices.

Faridganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer Joynal Abedin said he had been raising awareness for a long

Huzur [the pir] said women of Union no 16 would not need to vote.”

Parul Rani told the Bangla Tribune: “I have never cast vote as no woman from the area goes to polling centres. But the new generation wants to exercise its franchise.”

Rupa Rani told the Dhaka Tribune that a Muslim cleric had asked them not to vote. “That is why I did not vote. But none from the government approached us.”

Primary school teacher Emily Begum rued the situation. “We can-

Locals said an Indian pir moved in there just after independence.

Soon, an epidemic broke out during a local election. The pir issued a fatwa ordering women not to go out of house without properly covering themselves.

Since then, women of all religion have stayed away from voting despite joining men in other social spheres.

When asked why she did not vote, Lakshmi Rani said: “We do not go to polling stations as the Jainpur

Man remanded over maid’s death n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court yesterday granted two days’ remand for one Md Khalequr Rahman Arko in connection with the death of his family’s maid.

Metropolitan Magistrate Md Nuru Miah approved the remand after Sub-Inspector Sushil Chandra Barman of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police produced Khalequr, 34, before the court with a 5-day remand petition.

In his petition, SI Sushil said Khalequr needed to be questioned in remand because he had so far given varying information regarding the death of the girl.

Defence counsel Md Bashir Uddin filed a bail petition for Khalequr.

Jannat Akter Shilpi, 16, the domestic help, was found hanging from a ceiling fan in Khalequr’s residence at Mollapara of Taltala at about 4:30pm on Wednesday.

Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police later detained Khalequr, husband of popular singer Krishnakoli, from his residence. He was shown arrested under Section 54 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and was sent to court. l

The Moghbazar-Tejgaon flyover in the capital is ready to be inaugurated on March 30. The photo was taken at Tejgaon yesterday

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Geological Survey to explore marine resources n Aminur Rahman Rasel

The state-owned Geological Survey of Bangladesh has planned to initiate a project on geo-characterisation of the offshore areas of Bangladesh in the context of marine resources exploration and hazards assessment.

The five-year project to be implemented by the GSB at a cost of Tk536.7 crore starts this July.

“We have planned to implement a project for marine resources exploration and hazards assessment.

TEMPERATURE FOREC AST FOR TODAY

DRY WEATHER FRIDAY, MARCH 25

Dhaka

38

20

Chittagong

34

22

Rajshahi

DHAKA TODAY SUN SETS 6:12PM

step-wise geological, geomorphological, geo-technical and geo-hazards reconnaissance mapping of coastal and estuaries areas, territorial sea up to 12 nautical miles (22.22km), exclusive economic zone up to 200 nmi (370.4km) and onwards up to 350 nmi (648.2km) to develop a preliminary geo-scientific data base of the maritime areas and to identify the areas of interest for future detail research activities.

They would identify and assess economic mineral deposit, assess

and deep sea port, oil and gas platforms construction, sub-sea gas or oil pipe line construction and submarine cable layout etc.

He said that the prime objective of this project was to build up a basic geo-scientific data bank on the coast and sea of Bangladesh territory in order to support sustainable exploration and exploration activities of the marine resources and infrastructures development.

Under the project, the GSB would acquire a modern dynamic position survey vessel and conduct

Amicable solution of Bangladesh maritime boundaries with India and Myanmar has created the opportunity to explore our marine territory in order to collect detailed geo-scientific and engineering geological data of the coasts and the sea beds,” GSB Director General Md Nehal Uddin told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

Nehal said that all these data would be helpful for its geo-characterisation, mineral resources identification, exploration of gas hydrates, construction of sea port

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Rangpur

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Khulna

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Barisal

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

TOMORROW SUN RISES 5:57AM

35.7ºC Faridpur

15.4ºC Chuadanga

Source: Accuweather/UNB

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PRAYER TIMES

sediment distribution pattern and dispositional characteristics in the coast and the territorial sea.

Bangladesh won more than 1,18,813 sq-km of waters altogether comprising territorial sea and an exclusive economic zone extending out to 200 nautical miles (370km).

It also has undeniable sovereign rights in the seabed extending as far as 354 nautical miles (around 656km) from Chittagong coast in the Bay of Bengal with all living and non-living resources. l Sylhet

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Cox’s Bazar

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Fajr: 4:39am | Jumma: 12:04am Asr: 3:31pm | Magrib: 6:15pm Esha: 7:42pm Source: IslamicFinder.org

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News

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

SC stays Minar’s bail again n Tribune Report The Supreme Court has extended its stay order on the bail given to BNP leader Mahtab Uddin Minar in the Ekramul Haque murder case for two weeks.

Following a hearing yesterday the court also ordered the Birdem Hospital authorities to release him and the law enforcement agencies to get him admitted to the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU).

The BSMMU authorities will form a board to examine Minar’s health condition and report it to the court by two weeks.

A four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha passed the order

following a petition filed by the state.

The bail was granted to Minar by the High Court on March 16 for six weeks on health grounds. He has been undergoing treatment at Birdem hospital in the capital.

When the state moved against the bail order, the chamber judge of the Appellate Division on March 20 stayed the bail and sent the petition to the regular bench of the Appellate Division for hearing.

The appeals court will issue further orders after the BSMMU authorities submit the health report.

Ekram was the president of Feni’s Fulgazi upazila unit of Awami League and the upazila chairman when he was shot and burnt to death in his car in Feni town on May 20, 2014. l

Chittagong Jamaat ameer freed on bail Hussain, n Anwar Chittagong Jamaat-e-Islami Chittagong city unit Ameer ANM Shamsul Islam was freed on bail yesterday morning after serving two years behind bars.

Police arrested Shamsul, also a former lawmaker, on May 12, 2014 in the party office in Chittagong’s Dewan Bazar area.

He was later shown arrested in at least five cases filed

over different charges including subversion.

Jahedul Alam, deputy jailer at Chittagong Central Jail, said the Jamaat leader was released as he had obtained bail by the High Court in all cases.

Prison sources said Shamsul was freed from jail at least three times in the past but was again detained from jail gate.

But this time, he was allowed to walk out of jail without facing detention. l

BGB launches telehealth programme n Arifur Rahman Rabbi A mobile tele-consultation treatment programme was officially launched yesterday at five Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB)-operated hospitals in the country.

BGB Director General Major General Aziz Ahmed inaugurated the programme at the force’s headquarters in the capital’s Pilkhana in the morning.

The five hospitals where this service can be availed are located in Dhaka, Chittagong, Khagrachhari, Chuadanga, and Thakurgaon.

Maj Gen Aziz said the

tele-consultation treatment programme was launched for providing medical services over the phone for BGB members and their families who might fall ill in remote or rural areas where hospital treatment is unavailable.

“In such situations, they can seek immediate medical advice by calling on-duty doctors at the five BGB-run hospitals. Until the patient gets a local doctor in the area where he called from, our doctors will give further instructions,” He also said the BGB had opened the door for new medical services through the telehealth programme. l

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DT

News

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Outrage across the country continues as public demands justice for Sohagi 30,000 students of Comilla Victoria Government College stage demo n Tribune Report Hundreds of people across the country took to the street yesterday protesting the killing of Sohagi Jahan Tonu, a second-year student of history department.

Some 30,000 students of Comilla Victoria Government College staged demonstration yesterday, the third consecutive days, protesting the killing and demanding punishment of the killers.

They demonstrated at Kandirpar Pubali Chattar, located at the heart of the city, from 10am to 12:30pm.

Students of different educational institutions and cultural activists joined the protest that disrupted traffic in the city.

The protesters later submitted memorandum to the deputy commissioner and the superintendent of police.

Imtiaz Ahmed, additional superintendent of police, and officerin-charge of Kotwali Model police station, Abdur Rob addressed the demonstration, and assured that the criminals would be identified soon.

Al-amin, former president of the college’s theatre group, said Sohagi was a member of the group and protests would continue until the perpetrators were brought to justice.

Meanwhile, teachers and students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) organised a protest rally on the campus. They also demanded arrest and capital punishment to the killers.

A demonstration was also held in protest at Sohagi’s killing in Barguna yesterday.

Barguna district committee of

Students of Comilla Victoria Government College stage a demonstration yesterday, the third consecutive day, protesting the rape and killing of Sohagi Jahan Tonu, and demanding punishment of the killers DHAKA TRIBUNE Bangladesh Mahila Parishad and Samajik Protirodh Committee formed a human chain on Barguna Press Club premises at noon.

Samajik Protirodh Committee President Sukhranganj Shil, General Secretary Monir Hossain Kamal, Bangladesh Mahila Parishad’s Barguna committee President Nazma Begum and General Secretary advocate Selina Akhter addressed the

human chain.

Sohagi, who was returning home after her part-time work as a private tutor on Sunday evening, was assaulted and killed inside Comilla cantonment. Her body was found in a bush hours later.

On Monday, Sohagi’s father Yaar Hossain filed a case with Kotwali police station accusing unnamed people. None was arrested in this

connection as of yesterday.

Gonojagoron Mancha will hold a rally in the city today protesting the killing of Comilla Victoria College student Sohagi Jahan Tonu after rape, says press release.

Spokesperson of Gonojagoron Mancha Imran H Sarker in a statement if needed, blockade will be put up across the country, but this type of killing and rape must be

stopped.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Online Activists Forum will organise a human chain demanding arrest and trial of the culprits involved in the incident in front of Jatiya Press Club.

Apart from this, a human chain was held at Kacharipara in Netrakona with a call to ensure justice for Tonu. l

Woman’s head shaved off, tortured Thakurgaon student assault video goes viral over extramarital affair Correspondent, n Our Lakshmipur A woman was tortured and her head was shaved off by some people on charge of extramarital affairs at Ramganj upazila, Lakshmipur.

Although police arrested a person in connection with the incident, but the victim is still living with insecurity as the offenders are influential people in the locality and two of them are yet to be arrested.

One Hasina Begum, wife of Mona Miah, called upon her at her (Hasi-

na) residence on Tuesday afternoon and accused her of making extra marital affair with her husband.

As the victim denied the allegation, five people, including Hasina’s brother Aziz and son Faruk, tied her with a tree and tortured her.

At one stage, they perpetrators shove off her hair with a blade and put a shoe garland around her neck.

Later, local people took her to Ramganj Upzila Health Complex in critical state. Later, the victim filed a case against the trio with Ramganj police station accusing five people.

Meanwhile, locals staged demonstrations yesterday demanding the arrest and exemplary punishment of the perpetrators.

Officer-in-charge of the police station Solaiman Hossain said they had already arrested Hasina Begum in connection with incident while a drive was going on to arrest others.

General Secretary of NGO Forum Asaduzzam told the Dhaka Tribune that the influential quarters had tortured the innocent women who was left by her husband. He threatened that they would wage movement. l

Correspondent, n Our Thakurgaon A video of several students of Thakurgaon Polytechnic Institute beating up another student has gone viral on social media, triggering widespread criticism.

The five and half minute video showed the victim – Shamim – being beaten up in a classroom of the institute by other students – including several who were later identified as Mehedi, Liton and Durjoy.

The video was originally uploaded to Youtube and was later shared widely across Facebook and other social networking sites.

The video showed Shamim begging to be spared from the assault, as his attackers slapped and kicked and used sticks to hit him repeatedly. It could not be known why Shamim was assaulted.

Superintendent of police in Thakurgaon, Farhad Ahmed, told the Dhaka Tribune that law enforcers will take action against the perpetrators. l

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News

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Hundreds injured, homes vandalised in post-poll violence n Tribune Report Hundreds of people across the country were injured in post-poll violence yesterday.

Our Bagerhat correspondent said at least 100 people were injured in several clashes at Moralganj upazila. The injured were taken to Moralganj upazila health complex.

Police Super Nizamul Haque told the Dhaka Tribune that they were ready to tackle the post-poll violence.

According to our Panchagarh correspondent, supporters of a defeated chairman candidate vandalised the Tetulia upazila council office in the afternoon, leaving six people injured.

The agitating supporters of Awami League-backed candidate Tah-

mid Milton gathered in front of the office and demanded a re-election.

At one stage, they went berserk and started vandalising the office.

To bring the situation under control, police fired blank shots.

BNP-nominated candidate Md Rafiqul Islam had won the chairman post in the March 22 union parishad election.

In Sirajganj, supporters of a newly-elected member at Raiganj union parishad vandalised the home of the defeated candidate, leaving 10 people injured.

Police arrested three people in connection with the attack.

Defeated candidate Shariful Islam told the Dhaka Tribune that supporters of Mosarraf Hossain, carrying local-made weapons, ransacked his house and looted valuables from

there. They also kidnapped one of his supporters from the spot.

In Habiganj, at least 15 people were injured in post-poll violence at Ajmiganj upazila.

A total of 20 people were injured in post-poll violence at Koira upazila in Khulna.

President of Koira upazila unit Awami League GM Mohsin Reza told the Dhaka Tribune that after winning the union parishad election, supporters of opposition candidate Shafiqul Islam created mayhem in the locality.

“They are assaulting my supporters and vandalising their houses,” he said.

Shafiqul Islam, however, said none of his supporters are involved in the violence which has taken place in the upazila.

On March 22, a total of 11 people were killed and hundreds injured in poll-related violence.

In Pirojpur, at least five were killed when Border Guard Bangladesh members opened fire on a group of people trying to snatch ballot boxes in the district’s Mathbaria upazila.

In Sirajganj, a woman was killed in a clash between supporters of two UP candidates at Dhangara UP. She was the mother-in-law of Nawab Ali, who won the poll.

In Jhalakathi, a clash between rival candidates at the Sadar upazila’s Nabagram UP killed Abul Kashem Sikdar, 60, the brother of member candidate Chunnu Sikdar.

In Bogra, Awami League Jabed Ali Bhuiyan and 10 others were critically injured when supporters of

BNP-backed candidate Abdul Majid attacked supporters of the AL-nominated candidate Golam Mustafa Tuku. Abdul Majid won the poll.

Jabed was taken to Jamalpur Sadar Hospital from where he was shifted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

In Teknaf, three people were killed in a gunfight between supporters of the Awami League candidate and the rival aspirant over counting ballot papers at Shahfarid Dwip under Teknaf’s Shaparan union.

The chairman elections will see the direct participation of political parties for the first time this year.

The first phase of the election was held on March 22.

The election of other phases will be held on March 31, April 23, May 7, May 28 and June 4. l

3 killed in Tangail road accident n Our Correspondent, Tangail

Quader: Tough actions against rebel candidates

Three people were killed and another has been injured in a collision between a truck and a human hauiler at Ganggair, Tangail yesterday.

The deceased are Jamal Uddin, 55, son of late Fotik Uddin of Mashajaan area, Samia, 8, daughter of Sohel Mia, and Raiz Uddin, 60.

Modhupur OC Shofiqul Islam said: “Samia died on the spot in the accident that occurred around 12:45am Thursday. l

Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has issued a warning against the rebel candidates of the Awami League who are contesting the union parishad (UP) polls, saying tough actions would be taken against them.

“A list of the Awami League leaders and lawmakers who supported and helped the rebels is being prepared as well,” said the minister, also a presidium member

Correspondent, n Our Narayanganj

of the ruling party. “Strict actions will be taken against those who are rebelling against the party, or who are instigating such actions.

The rebels will lose any chance of getting party nomination for future elections.”

The minister issued the warning during a visit to a mobile court of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) working on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway in Fatullah, Narayanganj yesterday afternoon.

He said the first phase of the UP

polls, which was held on Tuesday, March 22, went smoothly with sporadic events of violence. He said the government would monitor the polls more carefully in the future to prevent such violence acts.

Referring to the BNP and its recently held national council, Quader said: “The BNP is a weak party. It has been five days since its national council was held, yet they have not been able to form a full committee.

They are still waiting for directions from London to elect their secretary general.”

Earlier, while observing the mobile court’s proceedings, he directed traffic police to take appropriate action against drivers and transports which did not have legal documents or were carrying passengers beyond capacity.

The minister was accompanied

by BRTA Dhaka Divisional Deputy Director Masud Rahman, Deputy Director (Enforcement) Tapan Kumar Sarkar and Narayanganj Superintendent of Police Dr Khandakar Mahid Uddin during the visit, among others. l

High Court: Demolish shrine near Shaheed Minar n Ashif Islam Shaon

A procession is brought out in Rangamati district town yesterday demanding immediate recovery of illegal weapons

The High Court has ordered authorities to demolish illegal structures built around a grave near the Central Shaheed Minar within 72 hours.

The High Court bench of Justice Kazi Rezaul Haque and Justice Abu Taher M Saifur Rahman gave the order yesterday following the final hearing on a rule issued by the bench in 2012 over the matter.

The court also ordered the authorities to keep the grave unharmed.

The 72 hour time frame will start when the authorities get a copy of the verdict in hand.

Lawyer Manzill Murshid said that historian Prof Muntasir Mamun filed a writ petition with the High Court on February 22, 2012 at-

taching news cutting from a Bangla language daily published on February 20.

The news item said a so-called shrine had been erected on an ordinary grave of an unidentified

The court also asked to demolish all structures within 48 hours person near the Shaheed Minar.

The ‘shrine’ had become a source of income for some people, his petition said.

The historian told the court there was no evidence any Sufi saint had been laid to rest in that grave.

Holding a primary hearing into the petition, the High Court on that day issued a rule asking the authorities as to why they will not be ordered to protect the Shaheed Minar from the illegal encroachment.

The court also asked to demolish all structures which had been built in the name of the shrine except the grave, within 48 hours.

Within three days public works department demolished some structures. A building built atop the grave was also padlocked.

Manzill Murshid said, following the final order, the Dhaka University vice chancellor, Executive Engineer (Civil Division), Dhaka’s deputy commissioner and the Shahbagh poice station officer-in-charge will take the initiative to demolish the rest of the illegal structure from the place while keeping the grave intact. l

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DT

Feature

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Our own Birdman PHOTOS: SAUDIA AFRIN

n Saudia Afrin Without really realising the effect of a name, his parents named him after a bird. His name was Tota Miya. Forty years down the line, it seems like the name couldn’t have

been more apt. In English, “Tota” means parrot. Tota Miya is a man who has been single handedly taking care of over a thousand shalik birds, all because he has a deep sense of love and adoration for them.

A resident of Jhikargacha, one of the borderline upazilas of Jessore, he owns a tea stall at Baisha inside the upazila. To reach there one has to go beyond massive mustard fields, making their way through a dirt road. To the left there are large brick fields, to the right a tiny hut. It’s in this tiny hut that Tota Miya has his tea stall, spending time gossiping with customers and feeding his pet birds from time to time.

When you look beyond the dirt road, there are massive fields that extend beyond the horizon. Busy farmers can be seen working on the fields, but they aren’t alone.

They are accompanied by several tiny, black and white feathered shaliks.

Not only are the fields strewn with shaliks, but the road, the branches of trees that line the street

and the surrounding shops all have bits of black and white that glisten in the sun. The little shaliks sit around, some resting, some singing and some waiting for the call of their beloved friend Tota Miya.

The shaliks can sense the hour of feeding, and the moment it approaches, their numbers multiply. They are fed four times a day by their forty year old friend.

Tota Miya only sets up his stall after feeding them in the morning.

Beyond bearing the cost of his simple, rural life, he also shoulders all the costs incurred to feed his bird friends. Everyday he needs 2kgs of rice to feed them. That’s approximately 25kgs of rice a year.

“Aai..aai.. aai,” he calls them, tossing the rice across the fields.

Instantly flocks of shaliks begin to gather around. Interestingly, they only respond to Tota Miya’s call.

Except him, no one else can feed them. He says, “No matter when I call, they answer by flying to me.

It pleases me very much and feeds my love and warmth for them.” As his loyal friend, their fondness for him even makes them step into his shop from time to time, but only when there’s no one else nearby.

“As they are dwellers of the forest, they fear humans. They only come inside when no one is around.”

Quite recently, a doyel built its home inside the tea stall.

However, the interesting thing is, it enters the shop regardless of the presence of people.

During Tota Miya’s childhood, he had a pet ghugu bird. Everyday, when he’d close shop, he’d spread the leftover fried food to feed the surrounding birds. Soon after, the number of birds that began to rely on him grew and that’s how his bonding with the shaliks began.

Initially, there weren’t more than five birds. Today, there are over a thousand that come to his stall.

Tota Miya dreams of one day returning the love he feels for these birds. Planting a Bot Gaachh (Bengal fig) behind his stall, he hopes it can turn into a shelter for the shaliks. “When the tree will grow, I want to hang small baskets on each branch so that these birds know they can finally call some place home.”

Everyday, visitors across the country visit Baisha to witness the sweet, innocent relationship between Tota Miya and his thousand shaliks. l

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10

Writing

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

An open letter to a teacher that changed my life

n Karishma Fatiha My favourite teacher just said that he’d be leaving soon. “Great,” I said in the most sarcastic tone I could’ve ever managed to whisper.

This isn’t a story where you’d find twists and turns of a movie.

In fact, this isn’t a story, anyway.

This is an excerpt from a day of a teacher’s life and of how brilliantly he chooses to motivate his students. This is exactly what distinguished him as a mentor - he motivated his students not because he needed to, he motivated his students because he chose to. He chose to, day after day. Months after months.

And isn’t that how we can define our short lives? By the choices we make? Aren’t choices the phenomenon that distinguishes a good person from a greater one?

“There is nothing in between,” confirmed the teacher. “You either realise your responsibilities, or you don’t at all.” The room effusively echoed with a suffocating type of scrutinising silence. While some students frowned in an attempt to pretend they heard him attentively, there were a few students simply hanging on the edge of the chairs, idly listening to what he was saying with so much passion but yet with so much ease. The entire class had done horrendously in their second mid-

“You have the ability to do everything you want to do in your life”

term exams. How disheartened wasn’t the teacher; how worn-out didn’t he feel! “I came into this profession, thinking I would be able to shape lives,” said the fivefeet-ten-ish feet tall teacher, “But lately I’ve realised, I expected too much out of this profession.” And that is exactly when the silent room felt more silent; when the ticking of the clock grew louder.

Students dismissively shuffled their feet in an attempt to bear with the uncalled situation; they looked down at their wrist to mark the time on their wristwatch. But I; I was busy contemplating my favourite teacher.

So you see, this gentleman, who was the first teacher of my first class of my first day of my undergraduate life at the university I’m currently enrolled in, was in his late twenties by the time he joined as a lecturer. Full of life, and full of enthusiasm, he would make sure the students felt at home. He made sarcastic punches at the pettiest jokes and

encouraged mistakes after the most trivial failures.

I was not appreciated throughout my life so far, honestly.

I was looking for a tiny glimpse of success in just anything, for my life back in freshman year already felt tattered, splintered and beaten with exhaustion and disappointment. I remember the time I got my first midterm’s answer script checked by him. In the corner of the script, something was jotted down: “You have the ability to do everything you want to do in your life.” They weren’t words that came out of a Shakespearean story; they weren’t words that could make news.

Those words were like an ointment to a deep-rooted infection. His words were the tiny glimpse of success that I needed to see.

They were the kind of words that somehow hit the right chord inside at the right time with the right effect, something that resonated a determination within.

I never told him how happy

he made me that day, but I still wonder till date whether he had noticed me sneaking out my Nokia 210 phone and stealthily clicking a photo of the scribbled words he had written down.

In the meantime, during the semesters when I had no courses with him, I often saw him gently gelling with students and curiously chit-chatting with his colleagues. Rumours had it that everyone’s favourite teacher was already furious and frustrated with a lot of issues in his professional life. I wondered how could a person who’s always motivating students not motivate himself out of problems, like a train that automatically swivels its route anywhere, any time it needs to.

But life takes ugly stoppages, he mentioned once.

He confessed that things weren’t going right and that he is certainly uncertain whether he’d resume being a teacher over here.

My jaw dropped.

All throughout the class, I had snippets of memories where my teacher bragged about always having wanted to be a teacher, and now he thought it had no point.

Didn’t he know what great changes teachers could bring? Doesn’t he know how a real-life mentor like him inspired people? “You still have the time to do well; it’s never too late,” his words echoed

throughout the hollow class. This time, I noticed a clear indifference in his expressions. Something that was apparent, but something that had been going unnoticed.

Somewhere his lips might’ve happened to stumble across the right sentences but he left them unsaid because this time, there was a resignation in his look. A finality in his gaze. He simply stared at all of us. And just like a dispirited sculptor finally drop his chisel and mallet, giving up on a refractory block of a sculpture that hadn’t taken the shape he’d had pictured, the teacher looked across at the projector and began with the lecture of the day.

I was once asked by a friend why I don’t write about people who motivated me. So here it is.

I want the favourite teacher of so many students out there to know that, dear sir, I understand that you’ve been going through a phase of life where every day you might feel like the mat before a doorstep or the straw in a glass: people either walk over you or simply sip the life out of you with their viciousness, but didn’t you, yourself, tell us that life wasn’t fair any day, anyway? Just because you value people doesn’t mean people would value you back. Harsh, but this is true. But it’s actually not our ethics that set us apart, sir, but always the values we choose to tread upon. So don’t change, sir.

Don’t.

While you feel your attempt to motivate your students everyday has been going in vain, little do you know that somewhere out in one corner of the class, a living breathing sloth stirred up to your words. Somebody else who only flipped through books, now for the first time opened one to actually go through it. And someone who thought he was already doing great with his life began to have second thoughts to do much better because of you.

So thank YOU. Thank you for showing students an entire pathway when they struggled to even find a way out. Therefore, don’t you worry, sir. Some of your students may not change now but they will, drastically, in the future.

Because remember, when spring comes, it doesn’t melt the snow all together at once. It melts the snow one flake at a time. l Content provided by SteamPug Writers. A pack of experienced writers and editors well-versed in producing dynamic content.

DT

Editorial 11

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

INSIDE

Stopping selfmutilation Even unfairly handicapped, we pack quite the punch. We need to go out of our way to love our heroes every time they lose, because that’s proof of our class, our fighting mind-set PAGE 12

Project of mass destruction In order to protect the lives and livelihood of millions of people, and the world’s largest mangrove forest, we have no other way but to resist any project that is disastrous to the Sundarbans PAGE 13

Who really captains Bangladesh?

What made Mahmudullah hit a full toss ball into the sky instead of along the ground, which he has done thousands of times in his career, in domestic and international matches?

PAGE 14

Be heard Write to Dhaka Tribune FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka-1207 Send us your Op-Ed articles: opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com www.dhakatribune.com Join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/ DhakaTribune.

The views expressed in Opinion articles are those of the authors alone. They do not purport to be the official view of Dhaka Tribune or its publisher.

BIGSTOCK

Central bank independence matters

I

nvestigations into the theft of foreign currency reserves should not be used as an excuse to undermine Bangladesh Bank’s independence.

While experience varies, there is a broad consensus that independent central banks have been more effective than those subject to direct political interference in achieving long-term economic goals.

Government interference has more often than not led to at best temporary gains that turn out to prove unsustainable.

Although it is clear Bangladesh Bank needs reform to improve its security procedures and operations, the Finance Ministry should take care not to use this crisis to justify clawing back more day to day influence over its operations.

Bangladesh Bank’s freedom and ability to pursue prudent long-term macroeconomic management should not be compromised by bringing in more day to day political involvement.

The record shows that government influence and actions to subsidise stateowned banks have hampered Bangladesh Bank from taking effective action to reform the institutionalised poor management and corruption that causes huge losses in the state banking sector.

Even when political and economic policy goals are closely aligned, such as efforts to improve financial exclusion and encourage corporate social responsibility, government interference has been unhelpful. Ministerial directives have diverted central bank attention away from the core task of ensuring responsible management of financial institutions to initiatives to mandate and micro-manage philanthropic donations by banks.

It is of course vital the government helps the new Bangladesh Bank governor ensure full accountability and all necessary security reforms in the light of February’s enormous digital theft.

However, it also needs to bear in mind the desirability and importance of ensuring central bank independence as the best way to provide and sustain prudent long-term macro-economic management.

Bangladesh Bank’s freedom and ability to pursue prudent longterm macro-economic management should not be compromised by bringing in more day to day political involvement

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DT

Opinion

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Stopping self-mutilation Our national cricket team deserves more than our on and off love affair

n Matthew Islam

T

he world has taken notice of our young Tigers, and this country as a result of it.

The sole credit for that amazing feat goes to our budding cricketers and the team behind them.

Consistently, the Tigers have provided Bangladesh with positive PR on the world stage that we so desperately need.

They deserve much more than the on and off love affair that we provide them with.

A supporter is not meant to have an open relation with his or her team. It’s a commitment that requires you to be unflinchingly supportive and monogamous.

Your love for the Tigers is deserved when they win, but it is truly needed more when they lose, especially when they do so in a close fought match. Losses can scar a soul.

If it pains the supporters to watch, it hurts infinitely more to be playing the way we did and then losing out.

It’s a game. We win some and

Even unfairly handicapped, we pack quite the punch. We need to go out of our way to love our heroes every time they lose, because that’s proof of our class, our fighting mindset. We are the supernova of the snoozy darkness that’s descended over cricket in recent years. We excite. We never give up. We are the Tigers!

We need to love our heroes we lose some. Overcoming your own pain to make your team feel better is the kind of love our team deserves.

Leave the finger-pointing to the experts, the coaches, the detractors. It’s not your job as a supporter to fan those flames.

Cricketing personalities, giants of the game, hall of famers have been vocally supporting the Tigers in the recent past. They keep saying how Bangladesh is the new cricketing force to be reckoned with. This has been the case for many months now.

Many of us already know this.

REUTERS

We keep putting up a fight with the best and we are getting better at overcoming our weaknesses at a very fast pace for such a young team at this level of cricket.

With the low median age of the players in the team, the future is truly bright.

We need to stop acting like spoilt brats when the results don’t go our way.

This self-mutilation is unbecoming of our team, and counter-productive to the strides that we have made over the years.

It’s also very crass.

We are right up there with

everyone else. We need to act like it.

Be able to clap for our team and the other team when they win even knowing fully well that sometimes mysteriously, the decisive machinery in the cricketing world unfairly puts obstacles in our path to victory.

It’s ok. That will change too.

That we love our team is not a matter of doubt. Let’s act like it.

That we can win against anyone often is not in doubt, so why fret?

That we always fight when the chips are down, should no longer be in doubt. Even unfairly

handicapped, we pack quite the punch.

We need to go out of our way to love our heroes every time they lose because that’s proof of our class, our fighting mind-set.

We are the supernova of the snoozy darkness that’s descended over cricket in recent years. We excite. We never give up. We are the Tigers! l Matthew Islam is a writer, entrepreneur, barrister-at-law, and a Dhaka Tribune columnist. He can be contacted on twitter via @matthewislam or www. facebook.com/thematthewislam.

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Project of mass destruction There are other power sources, but there is no alternative to the Sundarbans. This is the concluding part of yesterday’s long form, and the last article on a series about the Rampal power plant

n Anu Muhammad

A

fter carefully analysing the environment impact assessment, Kallol Mustafa correctly concluded that “although the EIA report has tried to justify the Rampal coal power plant near the Sundarbans by using wrong emission standards, underestimating various adverse impacts, not specifying impact in many cases, using words such as ‘unlikely,’ ‘hardly,’ ‘very little,’ ‘may,’ ‘may not,’ etc, the impacts of construction and operation of the coal-based power plants on the Sundarbans’ eco-system documented in the EIA are enough to call off the project immediately.”

Process of deception

Thirdly, from their work map, the very intention of the governments of both countries can be questioned.

Years before the EIA was done, 1,834 acres of land, which were mostly agricultural and shrimp aquaculture pond, had been acquired for the proposed 1,320MW power plant project.

That was done by the government without the consent of the people, and with force by the police and local thugs.

Moreover, if we look at the chronology of events, it would be clear that the EIA process was merely an eyewash, used as an instrument to rationalise a predetermined project. The events took place as follows.

Land acquisition order for this power plant was issued on December 27, 2010 -- more than two years before the EIA was completed.

Before the EIA was approved, the joint venture agreement to set up the power plant was signed between Indian company NTPC and Bangladeshi company PDB on January 29, 2012.

The EIA was published on January 2013 in the PDB website for public opinion. Experts and some concerned organisations submitted their opinion in due time. They rejected the EIA. A public consultation was arranged

by PDB on April 12, 2013.

The experts present there identified serious problems with the EIA; they categorically rejected the EIA, and asked the government to stop all activities before another independent EIA was completed.

A week later, two government

representatives signed the final agreement (on April 20, 2013) -- the Implementation Agreement (IA) and Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).

Moreover, Bangladesh government made the special decision to allow the Indian side to get a tax waiver on its share of profit from the proposed plant.

Bangladesh will purchase “NTPC’s stakes at a price evaluated by an independent Indian firm.

“Earlier, the PDB had relaxed the Liquidated Damage (LD) and Performance Guarantee (PG) clauses, along with Corporate Guarantee, for implementing the Rampal power project.”

Therefore, whatever happens to the Sundarbans, the Indian company’s huge profit is ensured.

India is violating its own law

The spokespersons of the governments of Bangladesh and India have been asserting on the point that no damage will be done to the Sundarbans since super critical technology will be used in

cities, national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, ecologically sensitive areas like tropical forests, biosphere reserves, important lakes, and coastal areas rich in coral formation.”

That means the Indian stateowned NTPC is pursuing the Rampal project by violating its own principle and legal restrictions.

Nevertheless, the Indian government is pushing for that. No company, including the NTPC, will be allowed to implement similar or much less disastrous projects in India.

The government’s claim about the distance of the proposed plant, 14km from the forest, has also been contested by the experts.

For instance, geographer AKM Wahiduzzaman and Mohammad Tawsif Salam gathered their findings through geographical information system (GIS) software and exhibited that this distance is between 9km and 13km, which they elaborately explained in “Rampal Electricity Plant and our

In order to protect the lives and livelihood of millions of people, and the world’s largest mangrove forest, we have no other way but to resist any project that is disastrous to the Sundarbans A region in peril this project.

The question remains, why couldn’t the use of technology justify the coal-based power plants in India, eg in Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, and Orissa, which were cancelled due to environmental concern?

According to the EIA, the distance of the proposed Rampal coal-based power plant from the Sundarbans mangrove forest is 14km, which they claim as a safe distance.

But the EIA guideline manual for coal-based thermal power plants prepared by the Indian Ministry of Environment and Forest in August 2010 clearly states that the “locations of thermal power stations are avoided within 25km of the outer periphery of the following: Metropolitan

Environmental Consciousness.”

The more worrying fact is that if we consider a buffer zone, crucial for preservation of forest life, this distance goes down further to 4km.

People against grabbing and mass destruction

In the larger Sundarbans area, several corporate houses already built billboards declaring their new profit-making ventures.

New projects on shipyard, shipbreaking, five-star hotels, and aggressive tourism are in the air.

It is also heard that gas exploration and security installations are also in the planning process by relevant authorities. So, an all-out attack on the Sundarbans and the country has been in the making for a while now.

While visiting Bangladesh a few months back, the president of India urged that both India and Bangladesh should work unitedly to protect the Sundarbans.

In reality, the governments of both the countries are working for the very opposite.

The huge and vital forest is spread over into both India and Bangladesh. Therefore, people of the two countries should be united to resist the Rampal coal-fired power plant to save the Sundarbans.

In order to protect the lives and livelihood of millions of people, and the world’s largest mangrove forest -- a natural defence system against natural disasters, extremely important bio-diversity -- we have no other way but to resist any project that is disastrous

DHAKA TRIBUNE

to the Sundarbans.

Concerned people express their main argument regarding the Rampal power plant in one sentence: “There are many alternatives for power generation, but there is no alternative for the Sundarbans.”

People of Bangladesh are gathering to save the Sundarbans.

Indians and the world should join them to save this World Heritage Site. l A version of this article previously appeared on anumuhammad.net and bdnews24.com.

Anu Muhammad is Member-Secretary, National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power, and Port.

He is also a Professor of Economics at Jahangirnagar University.

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Who really captains Bangladesh?

Sometimes, the fans change the game

n Moazzem Hossain

J

ust a few days before our 45th Independence Day, the nation went into a great shock after losing to India by only one run in the T20 version of the game of cricket.

I know, in Australia, when the Australian team plays against England or New Zealand, with any version of the game, the streets become almost deserted.

Why? All the three teams have been fierce rivals for a long, long time.

Some say that if these countries had had common borders, by this time, there would have been war over cricket.

I have seen in Dhaka, during the three matches Bangladesh played against Pakistan, Australia, and India, suddenly, Dhaka city stops.

There is no traffic jam; only a few empty rickshaws can be seen.

The hundreds and thousands of villages of this nation of more than 160 million do not go dark early, because the villagers become glued to the TV sets, irrespective of age and gender.

Bangladesh cricket, indeed, has changed the psyche of the nation.

Imagine, if one could not see it, one would not realise how sports, particularly cricket, has changed everything, from top to bottom, from the prime minster to a farmer, a garments worker, and millions more.

Surprisingly, after so many unsuccessful attempts in the world cricket arena by the team, unlike India and Pakistan, players never faced any unwarranted behaviour from the fans.

Why? The fans know well that the team has been improving at a very fast pace.

However, it strikes me, after watching the three recent matches against Pakistan, Australia, and India, that the batting order of the Bangladesh team has raised a few eyebrows.

Mahmudullah’s place in the T20 version seems to be creating controversy amongst the national and international media. Everyone knows Mahmudullah is cool as a cucumber. As a batsman, he keeps going on despite all sorts of uncertainties in the game.

But, he certainly lacks the skill to convert the closer matches, which players like Steve Waugh, Ricky Ponting, and Chris Gayle did not.

The fans have been getting annoyed at seeing him coming to bat at six or even seven down.

Unfortunately, it seems, he just

Did Mashrafe make decisions under media pressure? cannot convert. The right person to talk to for a solution perhaps is the team psychologist, and not the media men or the international commentators.

After the match against Australia in Bengaluru, our media at home, in quoting the international commentators, grilled Mashrafe as to why he was indifferent in the game, particularly when he bowled only one over against Australia and had no chance to bat because of the batting order.

According to them, a captain has to put 100% in the game.

Indeed, that’s what Mashrafe has done in the game against India.

It looked like he listened to the media and he bowled all four overs and came to bat well ahead of the order.

The fans ask: Why was Mahmudullah not sent instead?

It looks like Mahmudullah’s potential was underused in the match against India and other matches. Such a world-class player

AFP

What made Mahmudullah hit a full toss ball into the sky instead of along the ground, which he has done thousands of times in his career, in domestic and international matches?

needs extra care.

What made Mahmudullah hit a full toss ball into the sky instead of along the ground, which he has done thousands of times in his career, in domestic and international matches?

I am convinced the answer will be available to the coach and the psychologist of the team. Why psychologist?

Because he or she knows how devastating it is for the players and fans to lose a very close match by only one or two runs.

Mashrafe, as captain, is very successful. It would be wise to keep a successful captain at an

arm’s length from the media. The game against India made the boys proud.

The whole world now knows that the Bangladesh team has come a long way with the support of its experienced and promising players and not because of commentators and the media.

Nowadays, almost all commentators are former cricket players. It does not mean that they are correct all the time. Three cheers to our boys! l Moazzem Hossain is an Associate Professor in the Business School at Griffith University, Australia.

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

INSIDE Dutch shows interest in Paira port project The Netherlands has expressed its interest in Paira port project in line with the government initiative to build a deep seaport at Paira in Patuakhali. PAGE 16

Asia sentiment brightens with turnaround in China view

Sentiment at some of the biggest companies across Asia brightened in the first quarter of 2016, rising from a four-year low registered three months prior, as executives bet on economic improvement in China, a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey showed. PAGE 17

BTRC asks Go Broadband to answer ISPAB complaint n Ishtiaq Husain

BTRC has asked Go Broadband to reply to the complaint of Internet Service Provider Association that Go is offering optical fibre connection, violating the Wi-Max policy guidelines of the regulatory body.

Go is a joint venture of Agni system Ltd., Grameenphone and ADN Telecom. They are supposed to provide Wi-Max services only.

On February 29, Internet Service Provider Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB) submitted the complaint.

ISPAB requested BTRC to investigate the issue and take proper action to maintain fair competition amongst all internet service providers.

‘We hope that the regulatory body will take stern action based on its own investigation to save our business’

Internet Service Providers (ISPs), also known as Internet Access Providers, is a business organisation that offers users access to Internet and related services.

They provide services such as internet access, internet transit, name registration and hosting, di-

Inside the graceful halls of Myanmar’s first modern bourse a huddle of business leaders crowds into a crash course on sharetrading, as the former junta-run country takes another leap towards economic revitalisation. PAGE 18

Capital market snapshot: Thursday DSE Broad Index Index 30 Index

4,370.5 1,059.7 1,655.5

Turnover in Mn Tk

3,297.2 -20.4% ▼

Turnover in Mn Vol

99.5 -22.2% ▼

-0.2% ▼ -0.1% ▼ -0.2% ▼

CSE All Share Index 13,474.2 -0.0% ▼ 30 Index 12,108.5 -0.2% ▼ Selected Index 8,182.1 -0.0% ▼ Turnover in Mn Tk 209.9 -26.1% ▼ Turnover in Mn Vol 8.0 -36.0% ▼

jection against mainly Grameenphone.

“As far I know, GP has already given its explanation for the complaint.”

ISPAB president MA Hakim told the Dhaka Tribune that as an internet service provider, “We cannot let this irregularity happen. We hope that the regulatory body will take stern action based on its own investigation to save our business.”

Syed Talat Kamal, head of external communication of Grameenphone, told the Dhaka Tribune that GP is doing its business abiding by the country’s rules and regulations and providing customers with its highest services. l

New governor visits Applications for BB forex departments DG posts to be invited on Sunday

n Tribune Report

Learning to trade: Myanmar investors swot up for new bourse

al-up access and leased line access.

“We have received numerous complaints from ISPAB that Go Broadband is providing fibre optic connections. We have learnt that they signed an agreement with Sonali Bank where they offer such services,” it said.

This is a clear violation of BTRC guidelines on Wi-Max. They have no right to provide only wireless connectivity based on Wi-Max technology. If they continue such illegal activities, all other ISPs will suffer a huge loss.

Asif Mahmood, managing director of ADN Technologies Ltd, said there is no confusion about ADN business.

He said according to ISPAB complaint, it submitted an ob-

Newly appointed Bangladesh Bank Governor Fazle Kabir has suddenly visited two departments of foreign exchange management after joining the central bank.

He made his maiden visit at 3.30pm yesterday to the Accounting and Budgeting Department and Foreign Exchange Reserve and Treasury Management Department of Bangladesh Bank.

He visited the office of the dealing room, which is highly restricted and deals with the foreign transactions through SWIFT code.

He got an idea on how foreign transactions take place and what technical function is used, said a senior executive of a respective department.

During his half an hour visit, he talked to the officers of the two departments.

The governor will hold a meeting with all the general managers and senior officers on Sunday next.

He is trying to remove the existing panic among the officers to create a comfortable working atmosphere, said a top manager of Bangladesh Bank.

He said: “The governor has made some internal changes in work and responsibilities of public relation department.”

Although the new governor was advised by the Finance Minis-

n Tribune Report

BB Governor Fazle Kabir try to cancel job contract of some officers, who were close to former governor Atiur Rahman, he did not pay heed to the suggestion on humanitarian ground.

Rather, instead of canceling the job agreement, he changed the job responsibilities of said officials by issuing departmental order on Wednesday, according to the source.

FazleKabir joined with Bangladesh Bank on March 20 and held series of meeting with high officials giving the first priority on recovery-stolen reserve in his work agenda.

Earlier on March 15, Atiur resigned from the post of governor in the wake of recent digital heist of US$101m from the central bank’s reserve account with Federal Reserve Bank of New York. l

The committee to search deputy governors for Bangladesh Bank will invite applications for the post on Sunday next, with a deadline for submission by April 13.

The decision was taken at the first meeting of the committee held at the central bank headquarters yesterday, chief of the five-member body Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad told journalists after the meeting.

“We have discussed over the application requirements,” he said.

On March 15, the government had sacked two deputy gover-

nors – Naznin Sultana and Abul Kashem soon after the resignation of Atiur Rahman over the cyber heist.

On the following day, the search committee was formed to find two DGs for the central bank.

Some incumbent and retired executive directors of Bangladesh Bank and managing directors of the commercial banks are expected to apply for the position, a senior central banker said.

After firing, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said two deputy governors were relieved of their responsibilities and fresh appointments would be made in these two posts shortly. l

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Dutch shows interest in Paira port project n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman The Netherlands has expressed its interest in Paira port project in line with the government initiative to build a deep seaport at Paira in Patuakhali.

Bangladesh Ambassador to the Netherlands, Sheikh Mohammad Belal, recently told the Dhaka Tribune that the issue had been discussed when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited the Hague last year.

“The prime minister [Hasina] noted the Dutch interest in deep

seaport projects and assured the Dutch side of her government’s due consideration for the port project propositions,” he said.

The ambassador said the Dutch companies have considerable interests in different sectors of Bangladesh including water resources management, i.e. waste water treatment, dredging, etc, port development, agriculture, textiles and leather, ICT, mobile telecommunication and energy.

Dutch companies like Unilever, Philips, Organon, Shell, Vimpelcom, and other firms were active in

Bangladesh from very early years of its independence.

From Dutch perspective, they are well aware of our potentials “From Dutch perspective, they are well aware of our potential as a gateway to the coming Asian cen-

tury and substantial size of our own domestic market,” he said.

The cumulative Dutch private investment to Bangladesh stands at around US$ 684 million as of June 2015, he added.

About export to the Netherlands, he said the export is steadily increasing and Bangladesh exported goods worth $840.34 million to the Netherlands and imported goods worth $ 147.10 million in the last fiscal.

Major export items from Bangladesh include woven garments, knitwear, bi-cycle, jute manufac-

ture, jute yarn and twine, home textile, leather products, shrimps while major import items are vegetable products, live animals, animal or vegetable fats and oil, prepared food stuff and mineral products.

The embassy is working to organise business seminars focusing on trade potentials between the two countries.

The Dutch-Bangla Chamber of Commerce and Industry is also going to organise a Single Country Trade Fair in Amsterdam in midApril this year, added Belal. l

World’s biggest startup? Samsung Electronics to reform corporate culture

n Reuters, Seoul Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, the world’s biggest maker of smartphones and memory chips, announced yesterday that it plans to adopt a corporate culture akin to a startup, seeking to become more nimble as growth slows.

Samsung’s executives will sign a pledge to move away from a topdown culture and towards a working environment that fosters open dialogue.

The flagship firm of South Korea’s dominant conglomerate will also reduce the number of levels in its staff hierarchy and hold more frequent online discussions between business division heads and employees.

“We aim to reform our internal culture, execute as quickly as a startup company and push towards open communication and continuously innovate,” it said in a statement.

The pronouncement is the latest among sweeping changes attempted at a time of crisis by the conglomerate and carries echoes of a 1993 exhortation by Samsung Group patriarch Lee Kun-hee to executives to “change everything but your wife and children”.

Hurt by a rapid decline in smartphone profits and the absence of new businesses to drive growth, Samsung has been under pressure to reform its military-style working culture to foster innovation.

Some current and former employees say it will be difficult for a company like Samsung, which has global headcount of more than 300,000, to transform itself.

Analysts also say there is the risk of Samsung losing its edge as a fast-execution hardware company by attempting to change its ways. l

Visitors at the Insurance Fair yesterday at Bangabandhu International Conference Center in Dhaka

DSEX falls to 10-month low n Tribune Report Stocks fell yesterday extending their losses for the third consecutive session with benchmark index DSEX falling to over 10-month low.

The DSEX fell 10 points or 0.3% to close at 4,370—its lowest since May 17 last year when it was 4,315.

The Shariah index DSES inched 1 point down to 1,059.

The blue chip comprising index DS30 was down over 2 points to 1,655.

The Chittagong Stock Exchange Selective Category Index CSCX settled at 8,182, dropping 2 points.

Trading activities took a jolt as the DSE total turnover stood at Tk329 crore, sharply down more than 20%

over the previous session’s value.

The market’s bellwether banking sector lost its solid ground declining nearly 1%, driven by Trust Bank that slumped 11.6% as investors reacted negatively to its corporate declaration.

Most other sectors, including pharmaceuticals, telecommunication, food and allied, and cement suffered losses.

On the other hand, power sector was the largest gainer, rising almost 1%, followed by non-banking financial institutions that rose 0.8%.

Engineering was the most favourite sector that accounted for 19.5% of the total turnover, led by BSRM Limited, which topped the day’s turnover chart.

Hype on Dragon Sweater and Spinning Limited subdued in its second trading day as it fell about 6% to Tk17.7 after rising Tk18.8 on its offer value of Tk10 a share in the previous day.

Lanka Bangla Securities said the market was unable to hold the modest early gain and finished mixed, but mostly lower, with pressure stemming from lack of market triggers, hefty sell-off on large cap and possible hit to the economy after the central bank’s foreign exchange reserves scam in Federal Reserve, USA. After BSRM, other most traded stocks were Keya Cosmetics, Emerald Oil, AFC Agro, Square Pharmaceuticals and Dragon Sweater. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Boeing 737-800 aircraft added to Regent fleet n Tribune Report, Chittagong Regent Airways has added Boeing 737-800 aircraft to its fleet.

The aircraft arrived at the Dhaka Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport yesterday from Jakarta, Indonesia.

The airlines said the aircraft was procured from the USA-based company Jekes UK on a six-year lease.

With the new one, the total number of aircraft has stood at 5 in the Regent fleet, including three Boeing and two dash-8 aircraft.

Initially, the aircraft will fly in the newly introduced Muscat route from next month. l

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Asia sentiment brightens with turnaround in China view n Reuters, Hong Kong

Sentiment at some of the biggest companies across Asia brightened in the first quarter of 2016, rising from a four-year low registered three months prior, as executives bet on economic improvement in China, a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey showed.

The survey in which 97 firms rated their six-month outlook resulted in a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asian Business Sentiment Index of 65 for March from 58 in December. A reading over 50 indicates a positive view.

The companies ranked a decline in Chinese demand as the primary risk to their outlooks, followed by excessive foreign exchange volatility and falling oil prices. Yet readings across the region revealed the biggest increase in confidence among firms in China itself and chief trading partners such as Singapore.

“The index is not an amazingly great number but it tells us there is certainly less pessimism now than in previous surveys,” said Singapore-based economics professor Antonio Fatas at global business school INSEAD. “People are digesting the economic slowdown in China and are

Too soon to cheer

An employee works on an assembly line producing automobiles at a factory in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China REUTERS being more optimistic and looking for opportunities rather than being alarmist, and that shows up in the numbers around the region, particularly Singapore,” he said.

The Southeast Asian city-state registered the quarter’s steepest

rise in sentiment at 29 points, resulting in a neutral subindex at 50 after two deeply pessimistic quarters. In its top trading partner China, sentiment rose 21 points to 71.

Latest government data showed improving economic conditions in

Reuters poll: Japan firms could stash cash in safes if rates go negative n Reuters, Tokyo Some Japanese firms, facing the possibility of negative interest rates on their deposits, would consider stuffing their cash in a safe rather than pay to keep it in the bank, a Reuters poll found, in what would be an unintended and unwelcome side-effect to the country’s new monetary policy.

While the bulk of companies in the Reuters Corporate Survey said they would keep their money in bank accounts if their lender followed the Bank of Japan in cutting rates below zero, 15% said they would withdraw funds.

“We would store cash in our company safe,” wrote a manager at a services company.

Safes or safe-deposit boxes were the most popular alternative to bank accounts cited by respondents. A popular series of company safes from Secom Co Ltd can be crammed with some 150 million yen to 1.6bn yen ($1.3mn$14mn) in Japan’s biggest-denomination bills.

The central bank shocked investors in January by cutting a benchmark interest rate to below zero, seeking to put an end to two decades of deflation and encourage loan and investment demand.

But the willingness of a noticeable chunk of corporate Japan to squirrel cash away rather than

leave it on deposit highlights the difficulty Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is having in getting companies to do their part in supporting his policies, which have also included pleas to raise wages and invest more. The survey, conducted March 3-17, also showed that 62% of firms disapproved of the central bank’s new policy, believing it will hurt business and consumer sentiment.

Just over 500 large and mid-size companies were polled, with managers responding anonymously. Of those, 240 replied to a question on what they would do if their own deposit rates went negative.

Banks insist they won’t pass on negative rates to their small-account holders, but some lenders have left open the possibility of raising fees on big deposits, meaning a net charge to customers. Big companies tend to park their cash in current accounts - akin to checking accounts in the West - which already yield zero interest.

To be sure, even those companies pondering withdrawals could decide the cost, risk and bother of holding cash outweighs the loss from negative rates. The companies in the survey did not indicate how much they might consider taking out of the bank.

The concerns at the companies mirror those of many of Japan’s legions of savers, especially older people on fixed incomes. l

China, with fixed-asset investment increasing and capital outflows moderating, top officials said. The government also said it is aiming for economic growth of as much as 7% in 2016, after 6.9% in 2015 - the slowest rate in 25 years.

China’s outlook is crucial in a region where every economy counts China among its top three trading partners. But while economic improvement helped overall sentiment rebound, subindexes were still below the 50 mark in Malaysia, Taiwan and Indonesia.

Sentiment fell the most in Indonesia, by 23 points to 42, in a quarter when the central bank of Southeast Asia’s biggest economy lowered interest rates three times to stimulate growth.

Stimulus measures by central banks elsewhere, from Japan to Europe, encouraged investment in the more risky assets during the survey’s polling. But, on the whole, corporate executives remained wary about the broader health of the global economy.

“I think it is still too soon to say the world economy has turned a corner as the United States is still not raising interest rates despite an ongoing recovery - which tells me how fragile sentiment is,” said Edward Yip, corporate affairs general manager at Malaysian survey respondent Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd, which makes medical gloves.

“We need to see two sustained quarters of rebound before drawing that conclusion.” l

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Eyeing future sales, Learning to trade: Myanmar investors swot up for new bourse luxury carmakers innovate to woo millennials

n AFP, Yangon Inside the graceful halls of Myanmar’s first modern bourse a huddle of business leaders crowds into a crash course on sharetrading, as the former junta-run country takes another leap towards economic revitalisation.

Yangon Stock Exchange (YSX) is due to debut its first listed company on Friday, just days before a new civilian government overseen by Aung San Suu Kyi comes to power in a nation fast opening up after decades of military rule.

The start of trading, long after the bourse was first envisaged, is a vivid illustration of Myanmar’s economic handicap - a country that still has no credit rating and where business has long been hamstrung by ingrained corruption.

But it also encapsulates the excitement and optimism that has gripped both local and foreign investors alike.

Dozens of people every week have attended the YSX classes for those unfamiliar with sharetrading, which include lessons on investment risks and rewards as well as multimedia guides to stock purchasing.

“It is great for Myanmar people to learn about the stock market. It will bring new hope for our business sector,” business consultant Nwe Ni Soe told AFP at a recent training day.

Under the military, Myanmar was plunged into poverty and pummelled by banking crises, international sanctions and arbitrary economic policies that destroyed the once vibrant economy and saw ordinary people hoard savings in assets like gold.

The tide began turning under the outgoing reformist quasi-civilian government which took power in 2011.

n AFP, New York

Media representatives gather for the opening ceremony of the Yangon Stock Exchange, on December 9, 2015 AFP A handful of foreign banks have slowly crept into the country, while a raft of new business and finance laws have begun to untangle a messy legal landscape.

The World Bank says the country could grow by as much as eight percent a year for the next five years, but says firms are struggling with access to finance.

Myanmar’s incoming government is faced with a raft of challenges as it looks to encourage investment and create jobs. In the way is a weak kyat currency, decrepit infrastructure, patchy electricity and an urgent need to improve skills in a nation whose education system withered with neglect under the junta.

Solo trader

The YSX will initially launch with just a single firm, First Myanmar Investment run by Myanmar tycoon Serge Pun, and be open only to domestic investors.

Tun Tun, FMI’s executive director and chief finance officer, said he hoped the bourse would provide a “healthy capital market for the bene-

fits of both investors and businesses”, urging authorities to accelerate plans to allow foreign investment.

With its sister firm Yoma Strategic Holdings listed in Singapore and around 6,800 shareholders through an in-house system, FMI already has experience of stocktrading, a rarity in Myanmar.

Several other firms that have been approved to list, including the Japan-backed Thilawa Special Economic Zone, have yet to finalise their preparations.

Rajiv Biswas, Asia-Pacific chief economist, IHS Global Insight, said it would take time for YSX to overcome an array of hurdles, like building up enough stocks to trade, creating liquidity and putting in place strong governance standards.

“Relatively new stock exchanges need to build confidence among investors about the transparency of listed companies in their stock exchange filings, as well as setting tough regulatory standards to prevent acts such as insider trading or market manipulation,” he said. l

British carmaker Jaguar has developed a tool to win over seen-it-all millennials who view a conventional test drive as passe.

Seeking to tap into younger customers’ desire for a few moments of cinematic glory, Jaguar films the prospective customers behind the wheel as they navigate the vehicle through several precarious driving challenges, channeling their inner speed demon.

Moments later, they are emailed a slickly edited two-minute film, which can conveniently be uploaded to Facebook and social media sites.

“It all takes literally minutes,” said Jaguar spokesman Stuart Schorr. “By the time you’re done, you’ve taken a test drive, but you’ve also got an asset that’s shareable and fun.”

The clever tactic is part of the 94-year-old brand’s effort to boost its US sales as it broadens its offerings in 2016 with the introduction of new models, including the F-PACE, Jaguar’s first sports utility vehicle.

But all the automakers at this week’s New York International Auto Show have the new generation in their sights.

“Generation Y will dictate who wins and who loses in the marketplace,” said John Humphrey of JD Power’s global automotive practice. “It is by far the biggest generation we’ve had in the US.” BMW, also eyeing millennials, has trained a cadre of some 1,000 showroom “geniuses” -- like the staff at an Apple Store “Genius Bar” - to show drivers how they can customize the car’s myriad gadgets and driving tools.

They are distinct from the salesforce and are not supposed to seal deals, said Ludwig Willisch, president and chief executive of BMW North America.

Millennials “don’t like sales pressure,” Willisch told the JD Power auto forum Tuesday, as opposed to their parents, the baby boomers, who rely more on test drives and multiple visits before making a purchase.

With millennials, he said,

“You only get one shot.”

“If we get this right, and we will, we have the opportunity to create lifelong BMW drivers.”

Pocketbook challenge

It is a crucial point for luxury cars, which account for about half of the auto industry’s profits. A long-term worry for auto companies is that with the surge of rideshare programs like Uber and optimism about self-driving cars, younger Americans will drive less than earlier generations did.

Humphrey said automakers face particular pressure because the overall US auto market is expected to cool significantly following several boom years.

“We’re coming up on the end of the current cycle,” said Humphrey, who warned that the industry could slip back towards overcapacity and a reliance on rebates and cheap prices to move inventory.

Those practices are less a problem for brands like Jaguar and BMW, which cater to a more select group of buyers less influenced by price, Humphrey said.

But luxury brands face other difficulties with millennials, a generation renowned for carrying hefty student loans and without the means to spend $50,000 or $60,000 on a car.

Compact and midsized cars accounted for the highest shares of the millennial market in 2015, with a combined 32.6%. Premium vehicles in total accounted for less than 10%, according to JD Power data.

For that reason, luxury automakers are taking the longterm view in their marketing campaigns.

Few of the 6,000 consumers who have participated in the Jaguar events have ordered one of their cars, Schorr said. But about 60% have shared their personal action videos on Facebook. That creates additional exposure and buzz, enhancing the brand’s prospects.

“The whole subtext is to reintroduce the Jaguar brand to a younger group of customers, and that’s an investment you look to pay off over a number of years,” he said. l

19

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Biz Info

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

| powerw |

| environment|

Mampower Ltd at BIID Expo 2016

Shobuj Dhaka Green Campaign at BRAC University

Mampower Ltd. Cosponsored and participated in the Bangladesh International GREEN Summit- 2016 and International Innovation and Development (BIID) Expo 2016, that took place between March 11 to 13. At the summit, Mampower Ltd. showcased its existing products and also their new products innovated to promote a smarter and greener Bangladesh.

Mampower has been proudly manufacturing and distributing efficient, loss-cutting power distribution equipment for the last 37 years. Mampower is one of the leaders in the local transformer and switchgear industry. The company also provides Building Management Solution System (BMS) which is required for LEED Certification.

Rezwanul Ahsan, Deputy

| comic |

Managing Director of Mampower, gave a presentation and speech on sustainable green environment at the inaugural ceremony of the Expo.

Mampower is committed towards building a green and eco-friendly mindset among its employees and the extended stake holder community. l

Every year BRAC University Earth and Environment Forum (BUEEF) organise seminars emphasising on different environmental issues and their possible solutions, on account of the increasing concern about the present status of our environment. Recently the club arranged a seminar along with “Shobuj Dhaka Campus Campaign” on February 23, Wednesday at BRAC University auditorium. The five speakers present were Professor Zia Uddin Ahmed, chairperson of Mathematics and Natural Science Department, Md Hamidur Rahman, director of Krishi Shomprosharon Odhidoptor,

Shafaat Bari Ivan, director of office of co-curricular activities and Priti Chokrabarti, chairman of Universal Medical College and Hospital Limited. The chief guest was Brigadier General Doctor S M M Saleh Bhuiyan.

The first speaker of the event was Professor Zia Uddin Ahmed.

He concluded by saying that the young generation has to avoid littering. Md Hamidur Rahman stated that if we cut down one tree, then we have to plant two trees which will be prove to be beneficial for the environment.

The seminar came to an end with plants being distributed to each student present. l

| screening|

Happy Rain screened at BRACU BRAC University with the affiliation of BRAC University Film Club screened Happy Rain by Dr. Isabelle Antunés on Tuesday, March 22, 2016 at 2pm at the BRACU auditorium. Happy Rain (2015) – Isabelle Antunés’ latest documentary film is based in Bangladesh and was previously screened at the UN COP 21 Conference on Climate Change in Paris in December 2015.

The vice chancellor of BRAC University Dr Syed Saad Andaleeb and the dean of BRAC Business School Rahim Baksh Talukdar were present during the screening among other faculty members, students, and university staff.

Happy Rain (2015) focuses on the resilience of Bangladesh and shows that the country has considerable potential to uplift itself. Happy Rain is about the development of fish farming in low flooded lands in what used to be rice paddy fields of Daudkandi during other seasons. Every year, rivers and streams descending from China, Nepal, Bhutan, and

India converge and overflow, flooding and nourishing the Bangladeshi soil through the long monsoon months. This enriching process opens up opportunities for the local people in the region.

Dr Isabelle Antunés was present at BRAC University on this occasion.

Following the screening, there was a question and answer session between the director Isabelle Antunés and the audience. l

DT

Downtime

20

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Ran away (4) 5 Tribe (4) 10 Augury (4) 11 Consumed (3) 12 Happen (5) 13 Solemn promise (3) 14 Mohammedanism (5) 16 Refer (6) 18 Moral principles (6) 21 Summit (5) 23 Snow runner (3) 24 Acquire knowledge (5) 26 Vigour (3) 27 Niggardly (4) 28 Region (4) 29 Sketched (4)

DOWN 2 Confined to an area (5) 3 Flightless bird (3) 4 Mocks (7) 6 Molten rock (4) 7 Of atoms (6) 8 Fresh (3) 9 Roman garment (4) 15 Established (7) 17 Storage (6) 19 Silly (5) 20 Transgressions (4) 22 Mature (4) 23 Heated pool (3) 25 Corn spike (3)

CODE-CRACKER How to solve: Each number in our CODECRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 3 represents V so fill V every time the figure 3 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 DE FG H I J K L MN 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

World 21

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

INSIDE POINTS TAKEN

The web of Paris, Brussels attackers India SC questions Muslim triple-talaq system’s validity The age-old debate of whether the triple-talaq system in Indian Muslim personal law provides any safeguard for women in arbitrary divorce reached a new height recently as the Indian Supreme Court issued a suo moto ruling to test the legal validity of the system.

PAGE 22

More than 30 people have been identified as being involved in a network behind the Paris attacks on November 13, with links now established to this week’s bombings in Brussels.

This is what we know so far about the attackers and their support network.

Paris attacks A 10-man team of suicide bombers and gunmen launched attacks on the Bataclan concert hall, the Stade de France national stadium and a string of bars and restaurants around eastern Paris on the night of November 13, 2015. Seven of the attackers died on the night, and two more were killed the following week. The last member of the team, Salah Abdeslam, was arrested in Brussels on Friday after four months on the run.

The coordinated assaults claimed by the Dae’sh group killed 130 people and wounded another 350.

Stadium bombers

From Russia with love: Why the Kremlin backs Donald Trump Donald Trump is a brave pro-Putin political maverick who would end US foreign wars and perhaps lift sanctions on Moscow. Hillary Clinton, however, is a warmonger beholden to the military-industrial complex, the Kremlin believes.

PAGE 23

The attacks began when three men blew themselves up outside the Stade de France where President Francois Hollande was watching a match between France and Germany. Only one of that trio has been identified: Bilal Hadfi, a 20-year-old French national who was living in Belgium and who had travelled to Syria. The other two were carrying fake Syrian passports they apparently used to enter Greece in October, posing as refugees. Dae’sh said in a video they were Iraqi.

Bars/restaurants gunmen Three gunmen, including alleged ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud and Salah Abdeslam’s brother Brahim, sprayed cafes and restaurants with bullets, killing 39 people. Brahim blew himself up outside a bar, wounding one person.

Abaaoud, a notorious Belgian jihadist of Moroccan origin, escaped unharmed but was killed in a massive police operation in the northern Paris suburb of Saint-Denis on November 18. The third, Belgian-Moroccan Chakib Akrouh, 25, blew himself up during the Saint-Denis operation.

Bataclan attackers

Karadzic guilty of Bosnia genocide, jailed for 40 years Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic was sentenced to 40 years in jail by UN judges who found him guilty of genocide for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre and of nine other war crimes charges.

PAGE 23

The worst bloodshed took place at the Bataclan concert hall, when three French gunmen -- all of whom had spent time in Syria -- stormed a concert by American rock band Eagles of Death Metal, killing 90. Foued Mohamed-Aggad, 23, was part of a group of 10 that left Strasbourg for Syria in 2013. The other two attackers were 28-year-old former bus driver Samy Amimour and Omar Ismail Mostefai, 29. Both were from the Paris area and were known radicals. Two of them blew themselves up and the third was shot by police.

The Paris attackers Dead Wanted Charged and/or in custody

Stade de France

In France

Bataclan concert venue

Bars, restaurants

Samy Amimour 28

Bilal Hadfi 20 French national, lived in Belgium

In Belgium

Unidentified

From Drancy, France Fomer bus driver

One of the organisers of the attacks

Born in Essonne, France Lived in Chartres

Foued Mohamed Aggad 23

On the run Mohamed Abrini 30 Seen with Salah Abdeslam Nov 11

Najim Laachraoui 24, alias ‘Soufiane Kayal’

Questioned Sept 9 on the border between Austria and Hungary. In the car with S Abdelslam and M Belkaid Sources: Belgian police, courts, media

The Saint-Denis raid

Abdelhamid Abaaoud 28

Omar Ismail Mostefai 29 Questioned in Greece Oct 3, travelling with migrants

Arrested March 18, 2016 at Molenbeek, Brussels Salah Abdeslam

Spent several months in Syria, end of 2013

In Turkey

‘Mounir Ahmed Alaaj’ / ‘Amine Choukri’ both names could be aliases

Had planned to blow himself up at La Defense Paris, Nov 18 or 19

Abid A Sihane A Djemila M

Hasna Aitboulahcen 26 A Cousin of Abaaoud

Jawad Bendaoud

Brahim Abdeslam 31

Mohammed Amri / Hamza Attou: Got

S Abdeslam out of Paris

Mohammed S

In Morocco

Lazez Abraimi

Associate of Jawad Bendaoud

Gelel Attar

Belgian/ Moroccan origin Linked to attackers

Adboullah C

In contact with Hasna Aitboulahcen

Provided the flat in St-Denis

French national who lived in Belgium

2 guns and blood found in his car

Ali Oulkadi

Moved S. Abdeslam around Brussels

In Algeria

In Syria

Abdeilah Chouaa

Close to the Abdeslam brothers

Zouhir Mehdaoui 29

Fabien Clain 37

French Claimed responsibility for attack in audio recording

members of the family who sheltered Salah

Mohammed Belkaid Algerian, 35 Killed in Brussels (15/3)

Blew himself up

Belgian/Moroccan

Ahmad Dahmani 26 Belgian Suspected of having scouted attack targets

Elite police unit raided apartment November 18

Chakib Akrouh 25

From Strasbourg, France

26 Brother of Brahim Handled logistics for the attacks

Zakaria J

Close to Abaaoud

Mohamed BakkaIi

Associate of Abaaoud

Logistics role

Photos: AFP/Belgian police/BFM TV

Brussels airport, metro attacks Four people carried out coordinated attacks at Brussels airport and a metro station on March 22 that left 31 dead and wounded 300. Two brothers, Khalid and Ibrahim El Bakraoui were identified as suicide bombers -- one at Zaventem airport and one at Maalbeek metro station. Najim Laachraoui, 24, was identified as the second airport bomber and is believed to have made bombs for the November rampage in the French capital. A third person seen on airport surveillance footage wearing a white jacket is the subject of a police manhunt after he fled the scene when his explosive-packed suitcases did not detonate.

Salah Abdeslam Brussels had already been on alert as the home and hideaway of several of the Paris attack suspects. The last surviving member of the cell directly involved in the Paris assaults, Salah Abdeslam, was arrested in Brussels four days before the twin airport and metro assault. Abdeslam, 26, said he was planning further attacks in Brussels, and links have emerged between him and the suspected Brussels assailants. He is believed to have played a key logistical role in the Paris attack, renting cars and an apartment-hotel used by the jihadists. Abdeslam has told investigators he had planned to blow himself up outside the Stade de France on the evening of the Paris attacks but changed his mind.

Brussels-Paris links The Bakraoui brothers had been sought

The Brussels bombers and suspects On the run

Brussels airport

Age 29

Ibrahim El Bakraoui Deported from Turkey in 2015 Served jail time for armed robbery

Not identified* 3rd suspected attacker: on the run

Attacker dead

24

Najim Laachraoui* Suspected organiser of Paris attacks, may also have been bombmaker

Brussels metro

27 Brother of Ibrahim

Khalid El Bakraoui Rented a flat for the Paris commando Served jail time for armed robbery Source: Belgian authorities

31

Not identified 2nd suspect seen on surveillance cameras with Khalid

Mohamed Abrini Petty criminal turned jihadist, suspected of involvement in the Paris attacks

* From surveillance camera

by police for links to Abdeslam prior to the Brussels attacks. Belgian television said Khalid had rented an apartment in Brussels last week under a false name where Abdeslam’s fingerprints were found after a bloody police raid. He is also linked to another apartment in southern Belgium that Abdeslam and other jihadists used before the Paris attacks. DNA from the second airport suicide bomber Laachraoui, 24, was found at an apartment in Brussels where bomb-making equipment and one of Abdeslam’s fingerprints had been found

in December. His DNA was also found on explosives used in the Paris attacks.

Prosecutors have said Laachraoui “travelled to Syria in February 2013,” and was registered under a false name at the border between Austria and Hungary last September. He was travelling with Abdeslam and Mohamed Belkaid, who was killed in a Brussels raid three days before Abdeslam was captured. Belkaid is believed to have provided logistical support to the Paris attackers. l

Source: AFP

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Advertisement

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

India Supreme Court questions Muslim triple-talaq system’s validity The age-old debate of whether the triple-talaq system in Indian Muslim personal law provides any safeguard for women in arbitrary divorce reached a new height recently as the Indian Supreme Court issued a suo moto ruling to test the legal validity of the system, resulted in mixed reactions from different quarters of the country’s Muslim community.

The most frustrated reaction came from All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), the supreme authority of protecting and overseeing continued applicability of Muslim personal law in India.

Resisting the ruling, the AIMPLB has said that the country’s top court has no jurisdiction to undertake the exercise as the community’s personal law was based on the Qur’an and not on a law enacted by Indian parliament, reports Times of India.

“Mohammedan law (common term for Muslim Personal Law Application Act of 1937) is founded on the Holy Qur’an and Ahadith of the Prophet of Islam and this cannot fall within the purview of the expression ‘laws in force’, as mentioned in Article 13 of the Constitution.”

The provisions under Article

13 ensure protection of the fundamental rights and consider any law “inconsistent with or in derogation of the fundamental rights” as void.

“The personal law of Muslims has not been passed or made by a legislation,” it said.

“Muslim personal law is a cultural issue, it is inextricably interwoven with the religion of Islam.

Thus, it is the issue of freedom of conscience guaranteed under Articles 25 and 26 read with Article 29 of the Constitution,” it said in an affidavit filed in court, quoting a series of the supreme court judgments which apparently ruled that provisions of personal law could not be challenged for violation of fundamental rights.

The board also challenged the utility of a uniform civil code which, it said, was no guarantee of national integrity and solidarity, arguing that a shared faith did not prevent Christian nations engaging in two World Wars.

In a similar vein, the AIMPLB said the Hindu Code Bill had failed to eradicate caste discrimination.

Drawing a line between a law enacted by the legislature and social norms dictated by religion, the board’s counsel Ejaz Maqbool told the Supreme Court.

The 43-year-old organisation

said there were periodic noises by a section of society demanding an uniform civil code. “If the SC lays down special rules for Muslim women it will amount to judicial legislation,” it said.

“Is uniform civil code imperative to national unity, integrity and solidarity?” it asked and said if that been so, there would not have been two world wars between armies belonging to the same Christian religion.

Countering the idea of uniform civil code, AIMPLB said the Hindu Code Bill, which was passed in 1956 to bring uniformity in personal law among different sects of Hindus, has failed to achieve integration among different sects of Hindus. l

New Zealand rejects flag change Preliminary results of referendum Thursday Retained flag 56.61% of votes

About 3m ballot papers distributed for the vote, conducted only by post

Source: New Zealand electoral commission

Saudi intervention

March 26, 2015 Saudi Arabia begins Operation Decisive Storm with air strikes on the rebels after forging a coalition of nine countries to defend embattled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who has taken refuge in Riyadh. Iran opposes the intervention.

April 17, 2015 UN chief Ban Ki-moon calls for an immediate ceasefire in Yemen, two days after world powers impose an arms embargo on Yemeni rebels and demand they relinquish territory seized in a sweeping offensive.

Fruitless peace talks

Mid-June 2015 Yemen’s warring factions come together for the first time in Geneva in

Humanitarian emergency

Reclaiming territory

July 1, 2015 The UN declares Yemen a level-3 humanitarian emergency, the highest on its scale. At least 2.5m people have been internally displaced with 14.5m -- more than half of the population -facing food shortages, it says.

October 27, 2015 UN chief Ban condemns strikes on a hospital at Saada, operated by international charity MSF. September 28, 2015 A suspected coalition air strike kills at least 131 civilians at a wedding near the Red Sea city of Mokha. The coalition denies involvement.

July 17, 2015 Yemen’s exiled Prime Minister Khaled Bahah announces the liberation of the southern province of Aden. It is the first success of pro-governmental forces backed by the coalition.

February 18, 2016 Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir says the coalition has helped the government reclaim more than three-quarters of Yemeni territory from the rebels and their allies.

Coalition losses and jihadists

September 4, 2015 The Saudi-led coalition has suffered

An Indian newspaper journalist has been arrested after allegedly posting an inflammatory message on social media, police said Thursday. Prabhat Singh had criticised police in a WhatsApp post about the situation in Bastar region of eastern Chhattisgarh state, where rights groups say journalists are facing official harassment from security forces.

-AFP

China to push Obama next week on North Korea talks Chinese President Xi Jinping will push President Barack Obama next week to resume talks on the North Korean nuclear issue, a senior Chines diplomat said on Thursday, a meeting that could also touch on hacking and the South China Sea. US President Barack Obama will host Chinese President Xi Jinping on March 31 for a bilateral meeting alongside the Nuclear Security Summit. -REUTERS

ASIA PACIFIC

A year of conflict in Yemen February 2016 New York-based watchdog Human Rights Watch accuses the coalition of using US-supplied cluster bombs.

March 15, 2016 Saudi-led air strikes on a market kill at least 119 people -- including 106 civilians of which 24 children -- in the northern rebel-held province of Hajja.

Nepal has secured a deal for China to supply it with fuel, as the energy-starved Himalayan nation seeks to deepen ties with Beijing and reduce its reliance on India.

The agreement was signed during a visit by Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to Beijing, following months of frosty relations with New Delhi, traditionally the sole supplier of fuel to landlocked Nepal.

-AFP

CHINA

Losing design 43.16% of votes

a bid to resolve the conflict. The talks are followed in December by a fruitless session with several ceasefires that are not respected.

February 18, 2016 UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed tells the UN Security Council that “deep divisions persist that prevent me from calling for the next round of talks”.

Nepal agrees fuel deal with China to curb reliance on India

INDIA

CHRONICLE

A Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen a year ago after Iran-backed Huthi rebels overran the capital Sanaa in September 2014 and later advanced to seize most of the country.

Here are some key dates-

SOUTH ASIA

Indian journalist arrested over social media post

BIGSTOCK

n Tribune Desk

DT

World

Vietnam slams illegal Taiwan Spratlys tour losses, notably during a rebel missile strike that killed more than 60 Gulf soldiers. The United Arab Emirates says that it has lost more than 70 soldiers since the beginning of the intervention.

March 4, 2016 The authorities blame Dae’sh for an attack on March 4 in Aden on a missionary hospice, in which 16 are killed, including four nuns, while an Indian priest is kidnapped.

March 12, 2016 For the first time, the coalition conducts air strikes on jihadists in Aden.

Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and Dae’sh group are exploiting a lack of security in the south to broaden their influence there.

New hopes for peace

March 23, 2016 UN envoy Ould Cheikh Ahmed announces a ceasefire to be observed across Yemen on April 10, followed by peace talks on April 18. l

Source: AFP

Vietnam on Thursday hit back at Taiwan for taking international media on a tour of a disputed island in the South China Sea, saying the illegal and worthless trip had further raised tensions in the hotly contested waters. Taiwanese officials on Wednesday took journalists to Taiping, the largest island in the Spratlys chain, which it controls and views as part of its territory.

-AFP

MIDDLE EAST

Syrian government forces enter Dae’sh-held Palmyra Syrian government forces fought their way into Palmyra on Thursday as the army backed by Russian air cover sought to recapture the historic city from Dae’sh insurgents, Syrian state TV and a monitoring group said. The Syrian army earlier this month launched a concerted offensive to retake Palmyra, which the ultra-hardline militants seized in May 2015, to open a road to the mostly Dae’sh-held eastern province of Deir al-Zor. -REUTERS

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

USA

US Navy ship missing for 95 years found A US Navy ship that went missing 95 years ago with 56 aboard has been found near about 50km west of San Francisco, ending one of the biggest mysteries in US naval history. The USS Conestoga tug boat, which disappeared on March 25, 1921 on its way to Pearl Harbor, was the last US Navy ship to be lost in peacetime.

-AFP

THE AMERICAS

US to declassify military record on Argentina’s Dirty War President Barack Obama will move to declassify US military and intelligence records related to Argentina’s “Dirty War,” the White House said Thursday, aiming to bring closure to questions of US involvement in a notorious chapter in Argentina’s history. The US has previously released 4,000 State Department documents related to that period, but those documents tell only part of the story.

-AP

UK

UK formally rebuts UN panel’s Assange opinion The British government on Thursday issued a vehement rebuttal of a UN panel’s findings that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange had been arbitrarily detained. Published last month, the UN working group’s non-binding legal opinion was instantly dismissed as ridiculous by London, which has now submitted its formal response, inviting the panel to reconsider its conclusions.

-AFP

EUROPE

Paris suspect Abdeslam seeks extradition to France Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam wants to be extradited to France as soon as possible to face charges following his arrest in Brussels, his lawyer said Thursday. Asked if his client had prior knowledge about Tuesday’s suicide bombings at Brussels airport and on a metro train, lawyer Sven Mary said in English: “He didn’t know it.”

-REUTERS

AFRICA

Boko Haram’s chief reappears in new video Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau appeared on video for the first time in more than a year on Thursday, rejecting rumours about his death but appearing to signal his time in charge of the Nigerian jihadist group may be coming to an end.

Nigeria has claimed several times that Shekau has been killed. The military believes several lookalikes have since stood in for him.

-AFP

INSIGHT

From Russia with love: Why the Kremlin backs Donald Trump n Reuters, Moscow Donald Trump is a brave pro-Putin political maverick who would end US foreign wars and perhaps lift sanctions on Moscow. Hillary Clinton, however, is a warmonger beholden to the military-industrial complex.

Russian state TV, which hews closely to the Kremlin’s world view, leaves little doubt about who Moscow supports in November’s US presidential election: “The Donald.”

Vladimir Putin’s spokesman took brief exception this month to a Trump attack video which showed Putin laughing at the prospect of Clinton defending America. But officials and analysts say the Kremlin still sees Trump as the best candidate by a mile.

Putin has hailed Trump as “very talented”. The head of the Russian parliament’s foreign affairs committee said he’d be a worthy winner of the 2015 “man of the year” title in the US. And Dmitry Kiselyov, presenter of Russia’s main weekly TV news show “Vesti Nedeli,” claimed this month that the GOP elite had struck a secret deal with the Democrats to derail Trump, in part because of his sympathy for Russia.

Vladimir Putin

Donald Trump

“Trump doesn’t suit the Republican party,” Kiselyov told viewers. “They usually divide up the state budget (among themselves) by frightening people about Russia. But Trump is ready to find a common language with Putin. That’s why they don’t need Trump and even regard him as dangerous.”

Kiselyov has been one of the chief proponents of state television’s strongly anti-American tone, once saying Moscow could turn the US into radioactive ash.

Some experts say Trump appeals to Moscow because Putin believes a Trump presidency would be isolationist and leave Russia with a free hand.

“The Kremlin can’t believe its luck,” said Konstantin von Eggert, an independent Moscow-based political analyst who believes the Obama administration has not been forceful in countering Russia.

“President Obama and (Secretary of State) John Kerry were a dream team for them, but now

they have an even better option; someone who thinks that America should have nothing to do with the rest of the world.”

RT, the Kremlin’s English-language TV channel formerly known as Russia Today, says it does not back any US candidates. But it has described Trump as “idiosyncratic and raw,” and suggested he represents the popular will of US voters, which a sinister US establishment is trying to subvert.

“Can America’s elections be truly called democratic if the political establishment aligns itself against the popular will?” lamented Peter Lavelle, the American host of RT’s flagship talk “CrossTalk” show. “As things stand now millions of voters could be disenfranchised.”

REUTERS

‘Thank God for Trump’

Trump has won friends in Moscow with statements praising Putin as a strong leader that he could probably get along with. His support for Russian air strikes in Syria was welcomed.

In January, after a British judge ruled that Putin had “probably” authorised the murder of former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko in London, Trump said he saw “no evidence” that Putin was guilty.

“First of all, he says he didn’t do it. Many people say it wasn’t him. So who knows who did it?”

Trump said.

This week, Trump said the US should reduce funding for Nato. A Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said his comments showed the alliance was in crisis.

“They (Trump and Putin) are both open-minded, pragmatic, and say what they think,” Victoria Zhuravleva, a Moscow-based expert on US-Russia relations, said.

Hillary Clinton, who is well known to the Kremlin because of her 2009-2013 stint as US Secretary of State, is clearly not to Moscow’s taste.

“We really don’t want Hillary,” said one Russian official, who spoke anonymously because of the subject’s sensitivity. “She’s no friend of Russia’s.”

State media coverage has focused on what it has cast as her wacky promise to declassify UFO files and on the pressure she has faced for using her personal email account for government business and over her response to the fatal 2012 attack on the US diplomatic compound in Benghazi. l

Karadzic guilty of Bosnia genocide, jailed for 40 years n Reuters, The Hague Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic was sentenced to 40 years in jail by UN judges who found him guilty of genocide for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre and of nine other war crimes charges.

Karadzic, 70, the most senior political figure to be convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague, was found guilty of 10 out of 11 war charges. He was acquitted of a second count of genocide in various towns across Bosnia during the war of the 1990s.

The judges said Karadzic was criminally responsible for the siege of Sarajevo and had committed crimes against humanity in Bosnian towns. They said he had intended to eliminate the Bosnian Muslim males in the town of Srebrenica, where 8,000 Muslims died in Europe’s worst war crime since World War II. Presiding judge O-Gon Kwon

said the three-year Sarajevo siege, during which the city was shelled and sniped at by besieging Bosnian Serb forces, could not have happened without Karadzic’s support.

His sentence will be reduced by slightly more than 7 years for time already spent in detention. It will be served in an as yet undetermined state prison. He is expected to appeal, a process that could take several more years.

Karadzic was arrested in 2008 after 11 years on the run, following a war in which 100,000 people were killed as rival armies carved Bosnia up along ethnic lines that largely survive today.

He headed the self-styled Bosnian Serb Republic and was Supreme Commander of its armed forces.

The only more senior official to face justice before the Tribunal was the late Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, who died in custody a decade ago.

Ratko Mladic, the general who

Names of victims of the 1995 Srebrenica massacre are enscribed on a wall at a cemetery in Potocari, Bosnia and Herzegovina in this 2007 file photo REUTERS commanded Bosnian Serb forces, was the last suspect to be detained over the Srebrenica slaughter and is also in a UN cell awaiting judgment.

The Srebrenica massacre and the years-long Serb siege of Sarajevo were events that turned world opinion against the Serbs and prompted Nato air strikes that helped bring the war to an end.

Opponents of the ICTY say its prosecutors have disproportionately targeted Serbs as 94 of 161 suspects charged were from the

Serbian side, while 29 were Croat and nine Bosnian Muslim. Prosecutors have been criticised for not bringing charges against two other leaders of that era who have since died - Croatian President Franjo Tudjman and Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic.

Many Serbs, both in Bosnia and Serbia, regard the court as a pro-Western instrument, say Karadzic is innocent and believe his conviction would be an injustice for all Serbs. l

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Sport 25

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

INSIDE

Johan Cruyff, the total footballer Cruyff began playing on the streets of Amsterdam and started his career with local side Ajax.

Lithe, wiry and strong he made his international debut in September 1966, scoring in a 2-2 European qualifier against Hungary.

Aussie Watson to retire after WT20 Australian all-rounder Shane Watson announced he would retire from international cricket after the World T20 in India, bringing to an end a sterling career spanning 14 years. Watson, 34, shared his decision to call it quits with teammates in Mohali. PAGE 26

Moved to Barcelona in 1973 for what was then a world record transfer fee of around $2 million.

He won the second of his three Ballon d’Or awards in 1973 and in 1974 helped Barcelona win their first league title in nearly 15 years. He also endeared himself to locals by choosing a Catalan name for his son Jordi (born 1974).

Cruyff led the Dutch national team, the masters of "Total Football", to the 1974 World Cup final.

Pakistan to give it their all for Afridi Pakistan batsman Shoaib Malik vowed his team will do all it takes to pull off a win against Australia and give skipper Shahid Afridi a winning send-off at the World T20.

Afridi has hinted at an imminent retirement from the game after being criticised for his side’s show in the T20 tournament. PAGE 27

From Arsenal to Spurs, finally Abahani Anthony Rohan Ricketts is in Dhaka. If you haven’t heard the name before, google it. There are plenty of images of Ricketts in different football club jerseys; be it Arsenal, Tottenham or the England U21s. PAGE 28

Benteke bemused by silent treatment Liverpool striker Christian Benteke had admitted he finds it difficult to understand why club manager Juergen Klopp is ignoring him.

He has started just five of the last 16 games, having fallen behind Daniel Sturridge, Divock Origi and Roberto Firmino. PAGE 29

n AFP, Barcelona Johan Cruyff, one of the greatest footballers in history, died on yesterday at the age of 68 after losing his battle with cancer, leaving an astonishingly rich legacy behind him.

One of the most exciting and gifted players ever to take the pitch, winning almost everything at club level in a glorious career not only as a player but also as a coach with Ajax and Barcelona.

The Dutchman was also the lynchpin of the Holland side, the driving force at the heart of his nation’s push to the World Cup final in 1974 where they lost a nar-

row and hard fought match 2-1 to West Germany.

What the Dutch did win was a great deal of admiration for their idea of “total football”, which first attracted attention at that time along with Johan Neeskens and Ruud Krol.

It was to be his only appearance at a World Cup. After that run to the 1974 final he won the third of his three Ballon d’Or titles as he towered above the European game, having led Ajax to the European Cup three times in 1971, 1972 and 1973.

Cruyff had it all - vision, speed, passing ability and the knack of getting into attacking positions, a genius that resulted in 33 goals in

Name: Born: Position: Caps: Clubs:

Johan Hendrikus Cruijff 25 april 1947 (Amsterdam, The Netherlands) Forward, Attacking Midfielder 48 (33 goals) Ajax, FC Barcelona, Los Angeles Aztecs, Washington Diplomats, Levante, Feyenoord As a manager Johan Cruyff was active for Ajax and Barcelona

TROPHIES AJAX 1 Intercontinental Cup (1972) 3 European Cup (1971, 1972, 1973) 2 European Super Cup (1972, 1973) 8 Dutch Championship (1966, ‘67, ‘68, ‘70, ‘72, ‘73, ‘82, ‘83) 4 Dutch Cup (1967, 1971, 1972, 1983) BARCELONA 1 Spanish Championship (1974), 1 Spanish Cup (1978) FEYENOORD 1 Dutch Championship (1984), 1 Dutch Cup (1984) As a manager Johan Cruyff won the European Cup (1992), the European Cup Winners Cup (1989), four Spanish Championships (1991, ‘92, ‘93, ‘94), and the Spanish Cup (1992) with Barcelona, and the European Cup Winners Cup (1987) and two Dutch Cups (1986, 1987) with Ajax

HONOURS 3 time European Footballer of the Year (1971, 1973, 1974) 1 time IFFHS European Player of the Century

48 games at national level.

He once said that he sometimes preferred to hit the post than score, so much did he love the sound, and always said he was in the sport for its beauty, rather than merely to win.

He turned professional at 17 and quickly made the number 14 shirt one to be feared as he progressed through the ranks of Ajax, becoming the leading scorer in Holland in only his third season with 33 goals.

Ajax’s success in Europe made Cruyff a household name, and when his compatriot Rinus Michels held the reins at Barcelona, he tempted Cruyff to try his luck in Spain. l

They lost 2-1 to hosts West Germany after taking a 1-0 lead but he was named player of the tournament, famed for close control and dazzling trickery with the ball including the famous "Cruyff Turn".

He retired from international football in 1977, the year before the Dutch again reached and lost the World Cup final in Argentina to the hosts. He had scored 33 goals in 48 matches.

Cruyff then entered management, coaching Ajax to European Cup Winners’ Cup success in 1987.

He returned to Barcelona as manager in 1988.

In 1999 he was voted European Player of the Century.

CRUYFF QUOTES Simplicity “Playing football is very simple, but playing simple football is the hardest thing there is”.

Juggling “Technique is not about being able to juggle a ball 1,000 times. Anyone can do that by practicing. Then you can work in the circus. Technique is about passing the ball with one touch, at the right speed, onto the right foot of your team mate.”

Football wealth “Why couldn’t you beat a richer club? I’ve never seen a bag of money score a goal.”

Time flies “When you play a match, it is statistically proven that players actually have the ball three minutes on average. So, the most important thing is what do you do during those 87 minutes when you do not have the ball. That is what determines wether you’re a good player or not.”

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Bengal Tigers end WC qualifiers with 8-0 loss n Tribune Report Bangladesh concluded their 2018 Fifa World Cup second round qualifiers with a comprehensive 8-0 defeat against Jordan at Amman International Stadium yesterday.

It was the Bengal Tigers’ biggest loss in the qualifiers. The men in red and green finished their qualifying campaign with only a single point from eight matches.

In the day’s other Group B encounter, Asian champions Australia thrashed Tajikistan 7-0 at home.

The Socceroos remained at the top of the group with 18 points, two more than second-placed Jordan.

Australia and Jordan will face each other in a couple of days’ time to determine which of the two sides finish as the group champions.

Bangladesh’s temporary head coach, Spaniard Gonzalo Sanchez Moreno fielded an unusual starting XI with only Atiqur Rahman Meshu, Ariful Islam, Shakil Ahmed, Shahedul Islam Shahed, Jamal Bhuiyan and Rayhan Hasan the regular faces in the line-up.

Hamza al Dardour netted a hattrick for the home side while Abdallah Deeb, Yusef al Rawashdeh, Baha Faisal, Yousef al Naber and Ahmed Samir adding one apiece. l

RESULT Jordan

8-0

Bangladesh

Al Dardour 7, 23, 40, Deeb 29-P, Al Rawashdeh 32, Faisal 63, Al Naber 82, Samir 90+2-P

WHAT JAHANARA ALAM SAID This tournament, we are the youngest team here. We didn’t win any game, but it was part of cricket. We gathered experience, and hopefully it will help us in the next tournament. We need to do better physically and mentally. We have lack of experience. We haven’t played too many international matches.

BRIEF SCORES

Lata Mondal sends one in the air during Women’s World T20 Group B match between Bangladesh and Pakistan in Delhi yesterday INTERNET

Bangladesh Women 113/9 (20 ov) Fargana 36, Sharmin 19; Anam 2/12 Pakistan Women 114/1 (16.3 ov) Sidra 53, Bismah 43; Salma 1/15 Pakistan women won by 9 wickets

Aussie Watson to retire after World T20 n AFP, Mohali Australian all-rounder Shane Watson announced Thursday he would retire from international cricket after the ongoing World Twenty20 in India, bringing to an end a sterling career spanning 14 years.

Watson, 34, shared his decision to call it quits with teammates in Mohali, where Australia take on Pakistan in a World T20 group match on Friday, Cricket Australia said.

“It’s been over the last week that it’s really become clear that now really is the right time to retire from all international cricket,” Watson said in a statement issued by the national cricket body.

Watson had retired from Test cricket at the end of last year’s Ashes tour of England and has not played one-day internationals since September.

Watson, who is also retiring from first-class cricket, would how-

ever remain available for lucrative T20 leagues around the world.

Other players such as the West Indies’ Chris Gayle have also stopped playing Tests in order to earn big bucks in tournaments like Australia’s Big Bash or the Indian Premier League.

An opening batsman and a reliable pacer, Watson scored 5,757 runs from 190 ODIs. He also took 168 ODI wickets and holds the Australian record for

the highest ODI score, an unbeaten 185 against Bangladesh in Dhaka in 2011.

Always a dangerous player in the shortest format, he has scored 1,400 runs from 56 T20 internationals so far while taking 46 wickets.

Watson was the last surviving player of the Australian golden era, having played along with the likes of Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist.l

Bando, Rayon Tex win big in BGMEA Cup Football n Tribune Report Bando Design Ltd, Rayon Tex Group and Torque Fashions Ltd earned full points from their respective matches 2016 in the BGMEA Cup football tournament yesterday.

The evening at the International Turkish Hope School began with a tight game between Comfit Composite Knit Ltd and Versatile Group. Tanin opened the scoring for Comfit before Jonny equalised in the dying moments as both settled for a point each.

Bando rode on a brace from Mridul, and one each from Imran and Mamun, as they handed Sterling Group a comfortable 4-0 defeat.

Later in the night, Rayon Tex hammered six goals past Tamanna Apparels Group as they won 6-2.

CUP

Man of the Match Sayem scored one while Tomal added two goals for the winners alongside one each from Kufu, Rashedul and Zakir. Rasel and Jashim netted the consolation goal for Tamanna Apparels.

Meanwhile, Torque Fashions rode on a solitary goal from Rana to beat Epyllion Group 1-0.

BGMEA president Siddiqur Rahman, vice presidents Mohammad Nasir and Ferdous Parvez Bivon, former vice president Riaz bin Mahmud, ex-president Abdus Salam Murshedy and director Monsurul Haq Monju were present among other dignitaries and presented the Man of the Match awards on the day. l

RESULTS Comfit

1-1

Versatile

Bando

4-0

Sterling

Epyllion

0-1

Torque

Rayon Tex

6-2

Tamanna

Bando’s Mridul receives the Man of the Match award from BGMEA senior vice president Faruq Hasan (L) at ITHS ground yesterday COURTESY

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Pakistan to give it their all for Afridi at WT20, says Malik

QUICK BYTES Taskin returns home today Bangladesh fast bowler Taskin Ahmed, who was recently suspended from bowling in international cricket with immediate effect, returns home today from Bangalore. Despite being banned by the International Cricket Council due to an illegal bowling action a few days ago, the right-arm tearaway stayed back with the side in India. Taskin’s bowling action came into question following the Tigers’ first round clash of the ongoing 2016 World Twenty20 against the Netherlands.

He underwent a bowling action test at an ICC-accredited laboratory in Chennai following which it was declared that some of his deliveries exceeded the 15-degree tolerance level permitted under the ICC Regulations for the Review of Bowlers Reported with Suspected Actions.

n AFP, Mohali

–TRIBUNE REPORT

BFF election on April 30 The upcoming Bangladesh Football Federation election will take place on April 30 this year, confirmed the country’s football governing body following a meeting of its executive committee at BFF House yesterday.

The last election was held on the exact same date four years ago when current BFF president Kazi Salahuddin was re-elected for a second term without opposition.

Much like the previous instance, Mezbahuddin Ahmed will perform his duties as the chief election commissioner and returning officer.

Mahfuzur Rahman Siddique and Atikur Rahman Khan, meanwhile, will be the election commissioners.

The executive committee also lifted the ban on Farashganj SC and Cox’s City Club following their appeals.

Farashganj, who were suspended in the middle of the league campaign last year, will be allowed to play in the top-tier from next season onwards.

–TRIBUNE REPORT

Johnson jailed for 6 yrs for child sex crime Former England international soccer player Adam Johnson was jailed for six years yesterday after being found guilty of sex offences involving an under-age, 15-year-old girl. Johnson was convicted earlier this month of sexual activity with a child, having already admitted kissing and grooming the teenager.

“Adam Johnson exploited a young star-struck fan, actively grooming her over a number of months in single-minded pursuit of his own sexual gratification,” said Gerry Wareham.

–REUTERS

Pakistan's captain Shahid Afridi bats during a training session at Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali yesterday ahead of their World T20 match against Australia today AFP

Gayle back to open against Proteas as Windies eye semis n AFP, Nagpur Chris Gayle is set to return to the top of the batting order as the West Indies seek to clinch a World Twenty20 semi-finals spot today against a South African side who can ill afford to lose.

The Windies big-hitting opener tweaked a hamstring while fielding against Sri Lanka on Sunday night and was dropped down to number six, much to the disappointment of the Bangalore crowd.

Gayle’s services weren’t required as replacement opener Andre Fletcher hit 84 not out to power the Windies to a seven-wicket victory.

It was the West Indies’ second win of the tournament after a Gayle century, which included 11 sixes, inspired them to a six-wicket triumph over England in their opening match. They sit top of Group One on four points and a defeat of South Africa in Nagpur would see them become the second team to qualify for the last four, after New Zealand.

Gayle and Fletcher are expected to open the Windies’ with Johnson Charles moving down.

“I’ve opened the batting with him on many occasions so I know

what sort of a player he is, he is very dangerous and he’s capable of getting big scores as well,” Gayle said of Fletcher.

South Africa desperately need a victory after picking up one win from two games as they bid to show the world that they have what it takes to clinch a first international trophy.

They are yet to get up to fullsteam after a stunning opening defeat to a record 230-run chase

by England was followed by a win over minnows Afghanistan, leaving them precariously placed in third spot, two points behind England.

If South Africa fail to beat the Windies then England would be in pole position to qualify from the group going into the last round-robin game.

The Proteas’ preparations were dealt a blow after all-rounder JP Duminy was ruled out of the match with a hamstring injury he picked up in the 37-run win over Afghanistan on Sunday.

The right-arm spinner, who bats left-handed, has been in fine form, making scores of 54 and 29 without being dismissed.

“JP is a big player for us. Not hav-

ing him is a big blow and does upset the balance of the side,” South Africa coach Russell Domingo said in quotes carried by Cricinfo.

The absence of Duminy however means the tournament debut of Aaron Phangiso’s new bowling action. The left-arm slow bowler was cleared to play just days before South Africa left for India after it was earlier announced that he had been banned from bowling in domestic cricket. Domingo said spin was going to be important in Nagpur and that he was confident Phangiso would get “game time”.

TEAMS

South Africa (from): Faf du Plessis (captain), Kyle Abbott, Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock, AB de Villiers, Imran Tahir, Chris Morris, David Miller, Aaron Phangiso, Kagiso Rabada, Rilee Rossouw, Dale Steyn, David Wiese.

West Indies (from): Darren Sammy (captain), Samuel Badree, Sulieman Benn, Carlos Braithwaite, Dwayne Bravo, Johnson Charles, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Jason Holder, Ashley Nurse, Denesh Ramdin, Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels, Jerome Taylor, Evin Lewis.l

Pakistan batsman Shoaib Malik yesterday vowed his team will do all it takes to pull off a win against Australia and give skipper Shahid Afridi a winning send-off at the World Twenty20.

Afridi, who no longer plays Test and one-day cricket, has hinted at an imminent retirement from the game after being criticised for his side’s disappointing show in the marquee tournament.

Pakistan have lost two of their three group matches and another defeat against Australia in Mohali today will throw them out of the competition.

“This is going to be Afridi’s last World Cup. I respect him a lot, he is like an elder brother to me,” Malik said at the pre-match press conference.

“Nobody will be happier than me if we can win this World Cup for Afridi.

“Every player is trying to give 100 percent. Winning or losing is not in our hands, but each one of us is taking responsibility and trying to give our best,” he said.

Veteran Afridi has played 97 T20 internationals and scored 1,391 runs while taking 97 wickets.

Malik, 34, said the team was looking at plugging the loopholes and come out firing against Australia, who have one win and a loss from two outings so far.

“Our first goal is to win tomorrow. We missed out on scoring singles in our last game. Nobody is perfect. We are trying to improve our skills,” he said.

A win against Australia is the minimum Pakistan need to keep their tournament hopes alive.

Malik also sought to dismiss talk of friction in the Pakistani dressing room, blaming the team’s poor performance for the speculation.

“Nobody talked about a rift in our camp in 2009 when we won the World T20. Six of us were not talking to each other, we still won.

When you lose games, all the talk starts.”l

TODAY'S MATCHES 3:30PM, Group 2, Chandigarh

Australia v Pakistan

8:00PM, Group 1, Nagpur

South Africa v West Indies Maasranga TV, Gazi TV, Star Sports 1

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

KFC Independence Cup sans Sheikh Jamal DC n Tribune Report The opening tournament of this season’s professional football, the KFC Independence Cup, is all set to kick off this Wednesday without the participation of Bangladesh Premier League champions Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi and Arambagh KC. The draw ceremony was held at the Bangladesh Football Federation House yesterday where Abahani Limited, the four-time professional league champions, and former treble winners Sheikh Russel KC were placed in Group B. Team BJMC, Feni Soccer Club and Rahmatganj MFS are the other

sides of the group.

Reigning champions Mohammedan SC were pitted in Group A along with Ctg Abahani, Muktijoddha SKC, Brothers Union and newly-promoted Uttar Baridhara Club. It was earlier announced that 12 top-flight teams will partake in the curtain-raiser but Sheikh Jamal and Arambagh decided not to enrol their names.

Mohammedan will take on Uttar Baridhara in the tournament opener. All the matches will be held at Bangabandhu National Stadium.

BFF senior vice president Abdus Salam Murshedy and vice president Kazi Nabil Ahmed were present in the draw ceremony. l

BFF vice president Kazi Nabil Ahmed (L) gestures during the draw ceremony of the season-opening KFC Independence Cup at the BFF House yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Rohan Ricketts, from Arsenal to Spurs, and finally Abahani Anthony Rohan Ricketts, better known as Rohan Ricketts, is in Dhaka. If you haven’t heard the name before, google it. There are plenty of images of Ricketts in different football club jerseys; be it Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur or the England Under-21s. It doesn’t end there. He played against a young Cristiano Ronaldo and went on to face legendary footballers like Paul Scholes, Roy Keane and Dennis Bergkamp et al. He also shared the pitch with French football icon Zinedine Zidane, who paid a social visit in Bangladesh a decade ago. However, Ricketts is not in Dhaka for social activities. The 33-year old attacking midfielder is here for a trial with four-time professional league champions Abahani Limited. Ricketts has featured in 11 different domestic leagues – England, Canada, USA, Hungary, Moldova, Germany, Ireland, India, Ecuador, Thailand and Hong Kong – and underwent his first practice session in the capital’s Abahani field yesterday afternoon, donning the jersey number 28. The Clapham lad, who once played in front of a crowd of 68,000 fans at the Theatre of Dreams in Old Trafford, Manchester, talked with the local media before training. Here are some excerpts: Expectations in Bangladesh I try not to expect too much. I try to see how things are, learn about how they (Bangladesh footballers) live and play. Then I try to inspire them from my experience of playing for some big teams of the world. I don’t have expectations.

I just want to be a part of the group and help lift the level. I’m looking forward to a new journey, new destination.

What do you prefer? Individual brilliance or team performance?

Football is a team game. It’s not like tennis or any other individual game.

If [Andres] Iniesta and my friend Jermaine Defoe come to play here, it is not going to be so easy. To my understanding, it’s a team game and you got to have good relationship with the team. Then it’s easy for everybody.

Favourite club I was in Arsenal for many years. I learned a lot from Arsene Wenger.

Many years in Tottenham as well, there were good friends like Robbie Keane.

But, I had a baby when I was in MLS (USA’s Major League Soccer) so maybe it was a special time.

William Gallas, David Jenkins, Laurie Brown and Jimmy Brain; you were one among very few players who moved from Arsenal to Spurs, the bitter north London rivals.....

Now, it’s a big thing but that time it wasn’t too big. They spoke about it in the news but for me, I love football. So, it’s no problem. I had to change but I’m proud because I think I’m only the [fifth] player to switch from Arsenal to Spurs.

Iconic players played with or against Cristiano Ronaldo. I played against

him twice when he was in Manchester United; in Old Trafford and in White Hart Lane (home ground of Tottenham). Paul Scholes, who is one of my favourite players. Most of the Manchester United team. Then Dennis Bergkamp. I played a game with Zidane. Zidane had a big game. I was playing in the MLS and I was on my way to England when Zidane’s agency called me to play (charity) games with his friends. I played two games with Zidane. Those were special.

Football, as it is in South Asia and

02:Who won the first World T20 in 2007?

Ans: India Zimbabwe Afghanistan 03:In which year did Bangladesh host the World T20?

Ans: 2014 2004 2015

English players coming to South Asia Many English players don’t even think of coming over here. I spoke to some of my friends in England [Wednesday].

They said, “Hey, where are you?” When I replied Bangladesh, they said, “Huh? Bangladesh?” They don’t understand.

When I went to India their reaction was the same. But now they want to go to India because the ISL (Indian Super League) football is big.

Terms & Conditions:

Prizes: (Second Round)

The lucky winners among all the participants who have answered correctly will be selected in an official lottery and will have their picture published in the newspaper. v Answers must be sent in only the coupon (photocopy will not be accepted). v Quiz coupon should be submitted in the Dhaka Tribune newspaper address. v No one affiliated with Dhaka Tribune and Walton will be able to participate. v Coupon submission deadline April 4, 2016. v A person can send as many coupons as he/she wants. v Walton-Dhaka Tribune T20 World Cup should be written on top of the envelope.

1st prize 2nd prize 3rd prize 4th prize 5th prize

v

01: Who scored the first T20I century for Bangladesh?

Ans: Tamim Mashrafe Taskin

the rest of the world I see the big changes are the climate and the weather. Like, in South Asia the game is played at a slower tempo and then the next thing is the pitch level.

It is not the same as premier league level. When Bangladesh played against Australia [in Perth], you saw that the ball moves quickly. This is how football is played in top-level. So the pitches are the big differences. I played in front of 70,000 fans in Old Trafford and I played in India for a big team in Dempo but there were around 100 fans only.

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Champions League set for two groups, 16 teams

Afghanistan's goalkeeper Ovays Azizi punch the ball beside Japanese forward Shinji Okazaki during the first half of their World Cup Asian Group E qualifying match in Saitama yesterday. Japan won 5-0

n AFP, London The Champions League could face a radical makeover with two groups of just eight teams each in what media reports claimed Wednesday represents a step closer to a European Super League.

The plans are aimed at pleasing the contintent’s major clubs from the likes of Germany, Italy, Spain and England who fear that the current Champions League, which features eight groups of four, does not attract sufficient commercial returns.

Britain’s Guardian newspaper claimed Wednesday that the changes would see the top clubs guaranteed at least 14 money-spinning

AFP

DAY’S WATCH CRICKET STAR SPORTS 2 3:30 PM ICC World T20 2016 Pakistan v Australia 7:30 PM South Africa v West Indies

FOOTBALL SONY ESPN 8:30 AM FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Peru v Venezuela 7:00 AM (Saturday) Brazil v Uruguay

TEN HD 2:40 PM

Benteke bemused by silent treatment from Reds boss Klopp n Reuters

Liverpool striker Christian Benteke had admitted he finds it difficult to understand why club manager Juergen Klopp is ignoring him.

The Belgian has started just five of the last 16 games, having fallen behind Daniel Sturridge, Divock Origi and Roberto Firmino in the pecking order eight months after he was signed for 32.5 million pounds ($45.78 million) from Aston Villa.

“Some team mates said that I was lucky with the arrival of Klopp because I certainly would play,” Benteke told Belgium’s Sport/Voetbalmagazine.

“When your coach says he wanted to take you to Dortmund and a little later you sit at the same club and he ignores you, it is hard to understand. In January, I didn’t want to leave and it’s still my desire to succeed at Liverpool,” Benteke added. “We’ll see at the end of the season.”l

A-League 2015/16 Melbourne v Western Sydney 1:45 AM Sky Bet Championship Peterborough v Coventry City

TEN ACTION 11:30 PM Sky Bet Championship Swindon Town v Wigan Athletic

BASKETBALL SONY SIX 6:00 AM NBA season 2015/16 Oklahoma City v Utah LA Clippers v Portland

TENNIS SONY SIX HD 9:00 PM ATP 1000 Masters 2016 Miami Open Day 3

Man City’s Sterling ruled out for up to eight weeks n Reuters, London

Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling could be out of action for up to eight weeks due to a groin injury, the BBC reported on Wednesday.

The 21-year-old, signed from Liverpool for a British record 49 million pounds ($69.2 million) last year, was hurt during the Manchester derby defeat by United on Sunday.

He will miss City’s Champions League quarter-final against Paris St Germain and will need to prove his fitness to play for England in the European Championship starting in June.l

games against other leading sides.

The report also said that the revamp is being driven by the concerns of continental clubs they are being left behind by huge revenues generated

by England’s Premier League.

Meanwhile, the Daily Telegraph pointed to the draw for this season’s tournament as highlighting a fixture list that the major clubs want to avoid - pot four for the event included BATE Borisov from Belarus, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Kazakhstan’s Astana.

However, as the Champions League is in the first term of a three-year rights contract it would be difficult for any change until after the 2017-18 edition.l

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FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016

Runa Laila with stars in Mumbai

Urvashi, Urvashi, take it easy Urvashi n Parthe Sarker Woke up this morning to find out Urvashi Rautela missed her flight to Dhaka. Worried she’d miss her appearance at the BMW’s launching event for their new series, I worried that the anxious crowds would have to go without getting a glimpse of Love Dose girl Urvashi Rautela. Luckily, Urvashi caught the next flight to Dhaka and made it to the event. Although the event was all about the launch, the audience couldn’t help but inquire about Miss India 2012’s Bollywood life.

During her interview session, a common question was thrown her way - if she was to name any one actor other than Amitabh Bachchan that she’d like to work with, who would that be? She laughed and replied, “Well, in Bollywood everyone dreams to work with Big B and you got me there too! But yes, after him, I really want to work with the Khan’s. Aamir, Salman and of course King Shah Rukh Khan. I have a secret crush on Hrithik, he is my dream hero, so if I got a chance I will never miss working with him!” Upon hearing this, she was asked if she would try her luck with Hrithik if he was single, she responded with a flat “no,” a small smile playing on her lips.

n Ashfaq Nafi

“Oh, that was a scary memory!

According to the rule, contestants have to be 17 years old by February 1. My birthday is on February 24”

Finally, she was asked about her crown and she revealed some interesting info. She won her Miss India crown when she was only 17 years old. However, there was a small glitch that may have led to her losing her crown and her certificates.

She said, “Oh, that was a scary memory! According to the rule, contestants have to be 17 years old by February 1. My birthday is on February 24. So technically, I was not 17 when the finale took place! I was about to loose everything I earned from my hard work. Then former Miss Universe Sushmita Sen stood up for me and gave me her support.

I dedicated my crown to her because if she was not there, I wouldn’t be able to fight alone.”

Ever since, she never looked back. In 2013 she acted in her first Bollywood movie Singh Saab The Great with Sunny Deol. However, she rose to fame with Yo Yo Honey Singh’s music video, “Love Dose”. Urvashi was asked if doing her first film was a wrong choice for her, to which she took a few minutes before responding. “No, I don’t want to judge.

I was too young to

take any decision. Day by day I will mature and will be able to take good decisions as well as make better choices. I don’t want to get lost in the past. I just want to think about the future,” she explained.

Bhaag Johnny (2015) and Sanam Re (2016) are two of her recent releases, making her eye candy in Bollywood. Currently she’s working in a new movie, Great Grand Masti the sequel of Grand Masti. She said, “After Sanam Re I got positive response from my audience. Now I am really waiting for the release of Great Grand Masti. This may just be my turning point because I am playing the lead.” The movie is set to release this June.

Urvashi Rautela is now hoping for the best. She is waiting for another crown from Bollywood as she believes she’s getting used to it! She won the title of Miss Asian Supermodel 2011 in South Korea. Later, she competed in the Miss Tourism Queen of the Year International and won the title. In 2015 she was crowned Miss Diva 2015 and represented India at Miss Universe 2015 pageant.

Once her interview session came to a close, she became the centre of attraction for selfie hunters, with cameras flashing away. l

Popular singer Runa Laila is currently in Mumbai to attend a press conference as the judge of the Dadasaheb Phalke Awards.

Sparing time out of her schedule, the Bangladeshi singer has been chatting and dining with her Mumbai-mates Posting pictures with Lata Mangeshkar, Runa wrote on her official Facebook page, “Honoured to meet the living legend and to have dinner with her and her illustrious family !!!”

Runa also had a great chit-chat and dining experience with Pakistani singer Adnan Sami who is presently an Indian citizen. With pictures of her visit to Adnan Sami’s residence in West Andheri, Lokhandwala, Runa wrote on her official Facebook page “Had dinner with the multi-talented Adnan Sami ji and his lovely wife Roya ji at their home.”

Runa also met superstar Salman Khan and his father and renowned scriptwriter Salim Khan during her visit to Mumbai. l

Boishakhi

Mou

PHOTO: BISHWO RANG

n Showtime Desk Sadia Islam Mou may not work in TV productions or TV commercials as often as she used to, but when called for shoots for Bishwo Rang, a famous fashion house of Bangladesh, she never says no. It has become routine for her. Mou was found

busy yesterday in a shoot for their Boishakhi collection in Narayanganj. Designer Biplob Saha was directing the shoot while photographer Shafawat Khan Shafu was capturing the new designs of Bishwo Rang in his frame. Along with Mou, Swagata, Shoshee, Moutushi Biswas and Faria also worked in the shoot. l

Colourkite and Dream Lithe at Film Festival in Norway

n Showtime Desk Bangladeshi short films Colourkite and Dream Lithe have been invited at the second session of the

International Youth Film Festival of Langesund (IYFFL). The festival will be held this year from July 7-11 at the beautiful coastal town of Langesund in Southern Norway.

World TV premiere of Ekattorer Khudiram n Showtime Desk A children’s film based on the Liberation War, Ekattorer Khudiram, is all set to have it’s world TV premiere tomorrow on Channel i at 2:40pm.

Written and directed by playwright Mannan Hira, the film depicts the story of the Liberation War and it revolves around a chain of events that occurred at a district town in the country in March, 1971. There was a school named Sonamukhi High School that stages a play on its premises every year. Like the previous years, the school was to stage a play titled Shahid Khudiram. Khokan Banerjee, a teacher of the school, instructs the play while students of the school play roles.

The rehearsal for the play is going on in full swing as the time for the play’s launch is

drawing near. Khokan excites the students by narrating the stories behind the preparations taken before the Liberation War, during the rehearsal of the play. Thus, the cast and crew gradually gets involved with the cause of the war. This is how the story of the film goes forward.

The government grant film casts a group of popular actors such as Mamunur Rashid, Fazlur Rahman Babu, Dr Enamul Haq, Momena Chowdhury, Munsi Mojnu, Chanchal, Chitra Chobi, Feroz Al Mamun, Sazzad Saju and others. The film also casts a group of child artistes – Sachcha, Rudra, Shakil, Antara, Modhumoni, Munna and Jewel Miji, among others. Mahfuzur Rahman is the cinematographer of the film, while Sujay Sham is behind the film’s music direction. l

Both films, made by young Bangladeshi filmmaker Zayed Siddiki, were produced under the banner of Homo Reflector Productions. The short films

portray the harsh socio-economic reality of the disadvantaged street children of urban ghettos in Bangladesh.

Major casts in Colourkite include prominent and talented actors Shely Ahsan and Habib Arinda while the two debutants Oishi and Kazi Bappa played the major roles in Dream Lithe.

Before this Colourkite were invited and screened in seven international film festivals and grabbed three awards.

Besides, Dream Lithe has also received invitation from three international film festivals so far.

To express his feelings director of the films Zayed Siddiki said, “Short films are not that popular in our country but in western countries and in the far East, it’s very popular. So, receiving an invitation from Norway is an honour for the whole team behind the films.” He also said, if we can increase the facilities of screening short films in our country the medium will be very popular and we will get a lot of film activists. l

Here comes Wonder Woman

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WHAT TO WATCH

Scream 4 Star Movies 11:47pm Ten years have passed, and Sidney Prescott, who has put herself back together thanks in part to her writing, is visited by the Ghostface Killer.

Cast: Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Lucy Hale, Roger Jackson The Spiderwick Chronicles HBO 7:34pm Upon moving into the run-down Spiderwick Estate with their mother, twin brothers Jared and Simon Grace, along with their sister Mallory, find themselves pulled into an alternate world full of faeries and other creatures.

Cast: Freddie Highmore, Mary-Louise Parker, Nick Nolte, Sarah Bolger, Andrew McCarthy The Courier Zee Studio 5:30pm A specialist carrier is hired to deliver a mysterious case to the underworld’s most dangerous hitman. The courier’s attempts to find Sivle only lead to killings.

Cast: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Josie Ho, Til Schweiger, Miguel Ferrer, Lili Taylor

n Showtime Desk There’s not much time left before Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice hits theatres, but the audience can have a sneak peek at Wonder Woman’s famous armored bracelets to look at while they are waiting.

On Friday, actress Gal Gadot tweeted a new image of herself as Wonder Woman from the film, her wrists crossed in defensive mode wearing her bracelets.

“It’s almost here!,” Gadot tweeted. “One more week!!

Can’t wait to finally share this with you all!! #WonderWoman #WhoWillWin #BV” Not only were fans excited to see this new reveal but so was comic book artist Adam Hughes,

who noticed the similarities between the live action photo and the Wonder Woman cover he drew for DC Comics.

This new image is also getting fans excited for the upcoming Wonder Woman movie starring Gadot, irected by Patty Jankins.

The upcoming DC Comics origin film tells the story of Amazon princess Diana and how she became the legendary superhero.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice hits theatres on March 24 in Australia and on March 25 in the UK, US and Bangladesh as well. While the audience can all see Gadot in action as Wonder Woman next week, the Wonder Woman origin film doesn’t debut in theatres until June 2017.

Source: CNET l

Anaconda Movies Now 7:45pm A “National Geographic” film crew is taken hostage by an insane hunter, who takes them along on his quest to capture the world’s largest - and deadliest snake.

Cast: Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, Jon Voight The Dark Knight Rises Warner Bros 9:30pm Eight years after the Joker’s reign of anarchy, the Dark Knight, with the help of the enigmatic Selina, is forced from his imposed exile to save Gotham City, now on the edge of total annihilation, from the brutal guerrilla terrorist Bane.

Cast: Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Anne Hathaway

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PM distributes Swadhinata Padak n BSS Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said that Bangladesh would surely go ahead conquering all barriers and hurdles in the coming days to make its position amidst world comity as a victorious nation.

“I have firm confidence that we will be able to make the country a prosperous one, and none will be able to suppress us. I believe, we will be able to overcome all barriers and make a prosperous country to pay the debt of the millions of martyrs,” she said at a programme arranged to distribute the Swadhinata Padak, the highest state award, among 15 individuals and an organisation at Osmani Memorial Hall.

She also urged everybody to work together to materialise the cherished goal of independence.

This year 15 eminent persons and Bangladesh Navy were given the award in recognition to their outstanding contribution to different levels of the society. The premier formally handed over the award to the recipients and relatives of the awardees who got the award posthumously.

Each awardee received a gold medal, a certificate of honour and a sum of Tk3 lakh this year.

In the category of “Independence and Liberation War,” the award was given to Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith, Mohammad Imaj Uddin Pramanik, Moulavi Achmat Ali Khan (posthumously), Squadron Leader (retd) Badrul Alam Bir Uttam, Shahid M Abdul Ali, AKM Abdur Rouf (posthumously), KM Shihabuddin (post-

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina with the winners of Swadhinata Padak at Osmani Memorial Auditorium yesterday humously) and Syed Hasan Imam.

Abdus Salam and late Rafiqul Islam, who played role in earning the Unesco recognition to Ekushey February as International Mother Language Day, were given the Swadhinata Padak in Mother Language category.

In science and technology category, late Professor Dr Maqsudul Alam and in medical science category Dr MR Khan received the Swadhinata Padak.

In the area of literature, noted poet Nirmalendu Goon and in the area of culture, celebrated singer Rezwana Chowdhury Bonya were given the Swadhinata Padak this year.

Bangladesh Navy was given the award in recognition to the force’s contribution to the Liberation War, stride in protecting country’s independence and sovereignty in maritime areas and public service activities.

Cabinet Secretary Shafiul Alam read out the citation on the award

Awardees Abul Maal Abdul Muhith Mohammad Imaj Uddin Pramanik Moulavi Achmat Ali Khan (posthumously) Squadron Leader (retd) Badrul Alam Bir Uttam Shahid M Abdul Ali AKM Abdur Rouf (posthumously) KM Shihabuddin (posthumously) Syed Hasan Imam Abdus Salam Rafiqul Islam (posthumously) Professor Dr Maqsudul Alam (posthumously) Dr MR Khan Nirmalendu Goon Rezwana Choudhury Bannya Bangladesh Navy recipients and conducted the function, organised by the Cabinet Division. Noted artiste Hasan Imam also spoke on the occasion on behalf of the award recipients.

Cabinet members, PM’s advis-

BSS

Categories

Independence and Liberation War

Mother Language Science and Technology Medical Science Literature Culture Liberation War and public service activities

ers, deputy speaker, parliament members, chiefs of three services, high civil and military officials, diplomats and relatives of the award recipients were present at the programme. l

Johan Cruyff dies at 68 after cancer battle n AFP Johan Cruyff, one of the greatest footballers in history, died on Thursday at the age of 68 from lung cancer, his family announced.

The Dutchman “died peacefully in Barcelona, surrounded by his family after a hard-fought battle with cancer,” said a statement on Cruyff ’s official website.

Cruyff won three European Cups as a player with Ajax Amsterdam and Ballon d’Or titles in 1971 with Ajax and 1973 and 1974 with Barcelona, where he starred from 1973 to 1978.

Cruyff was also named Europe’s player of the century in 1999. l He was the incarnation of Total Football that took the Dutch team to the World Cup final in 1974. As a coach, Cruyff led Barcelona to their first European Cup title in 1992.

“He was the best player of all time,” French legend Michel Platini told AFP. “The ‘14’ will never be the same.

RIP Johan Cruyff,” said Spanish Xabi Alonso on Twitter in a tribute referring to Cruyff ’s number 14 shirt. l

Dhaka’s dream of drinkable tap water n Abu Hayat Mahmud

Despite different projects by the Dhaka Wasa, residents of the capital are getting foul-odoured water as they head into summer months.

As part of one its ongoing mega projects, the Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (Wasa) is replacing water pipelines across the city. Once the project is completed by the end of this year, the city’s residents are supposed to get drinkable water straight out of the tap, according to Wasa officials.

But such promises seem farfetched to residents of Dhaka, a city of over 17 million, who more

than often suffer from disrupted water supply and develop waterborne diseases.

Several Dhaka Wasa officials told the Dhaka Tribune that supplying drinkable water is a colossal challenge because of unplanned development, unapproved settlements and lack of awareness among landlords in the city.

But the Wasa chief insisted that the supplied water has always been safe to drink.

“Wasa’s supplied water is always pure and safe to drink. Some might be getting dirty water for pipe leakage that occurred during road digging or other reasons,” said Wasa

Managing Director Taqsem A Khan.

He also blamed landlords for not cleaning reserve water tanks in the basements of their buildings.

Taqsem said there would be no need to boil tap water once all supply pipelines are replaced by December.

However, as of March, many areas in the city continue to receive dubious-smelling water.

The Dhaka Tribune spoke to residents from the city’s Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Dhanmondi, Kazipara, Farmgate, Rajabazar, Kalabagan, Shajahanpur, Shantinagar, Badda – and they all complained about getting dirty water coming through their taps for the past cou-

ple of months.

“Every year we see a water crisis in this area, and often we find waste and insect coming through Wasa pipelines,” said Farid Ahmed, a resident of Tejkunipara.

Taslima Akhter, who lives in Kazipara, said they cannot use tap water for even household works as it has a horrible smell.

“Because of drinking smelly and dirty water, children are suffering from stomach and skin diseases. So last month, we spent a lot of money to buy and drink water from jars and bottles,” she said.

Waterborne diseases are common throughout the city. According

to ICDDRB, an average of 700 people received treatment for diarrhoea every day between the months of April and August in 2014 and 2015.

A 2014 study by the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Diseases and Research Bangladesh (ICDDRB) also found the presence of E Coli bacteria in 63% of the water supplied by Dhaka Wasa.

The summer months are arriving with increased risks of waterborne diseases, with Wasa officials warning that the quality of water at Wasa treatment plants are unlikely to improve before monsoon because of the highly polluted waters of rivers Buriganga and Shitalakkhya. l

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207. Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com