September 24, 2016

SECOND EDITION

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

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Ashwin 9, 1423, Zil-Hajj 21, 1437

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Regd No DA 6238, Vol 4, No 147

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www.dhakatribune.com

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32 pages |

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Taskin, Sunny cleared to bowl by ICC n Minhaz Uddin Khan Bangladesh cricket heaved a sigh of relief after paceman Taskin Ahmed and spinner Arafat Sunny were cleared to bowl in international cricket by the International Cricket Council yesterday.

With the clearance, Taskin joined as the 14th member of the Bangladesh squad for the first two one-day internationals against Afghanistan. The three-match ODI series begins in Mirpur’s Sher-eBangla National Stadium tomorrow.

ICC found both Taskin and Sunny’s bowling action to be legal following remedial work and re-assessments. The governing body of world cricket allowed the two Bangladesh bowlers to resume playing international cricket with immediate effect.

At the re-assessments, which were carried out at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane, Australia on September 8, it was revealed that the amount of elbow extension in all of Sunny and Taskin’s deliveries were now within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC regulations.

However, ICC has kept the umpires  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Bangladesh bowling duo Taskin Ahmed and Arafat Sunny have been cleared by the International Cricket Council to bowl in international cricket with immediate effect DHAKA TRIBUNE

Report: Feni’s Akash planned terrorist attacks in Bangladesh

PM makes light of mid-term polls talk

n Tribune Desk

n BSS

Malaysian police have said that the Bangladeshi expatriate who they arrested last month and later deported used to meet his countrymen at his restaurant in Kuala Lumpur and plan terrorist attacks.

Peyar Ahmed Akash, 37, of Feni used his restaurant Rasana Bilash in Bukit Bintang as a meeting place for terrorists, Malaysian Star Online website reported yesterday quoting a police source.

A former Shibir leader and brother-in-law of Feni district unit

The Malaysian newspaper also claims that at his restaurant Akash met with Andaleeb Ahmed, a friend of Gulshan attacker Nibras Islam Jamaat-e-Islami Abu Yusuf, Akash was arrested a decade ago in Bangladesh for arms trading. He later

left the country securing bail with the help of Yusuf.

“The country’s [Malaysian] authorities believe that the suspected person used to plan for terrorist attack in Bangladesh. And he also used to meet his countrymen for that reason,” the source said.

Akash was arrested in Kuala Lumpur on August 19 for smuggling weapons for an international terror group and deported to Bangladesh on September 2. The following day, DB police handed him over to Dagonbhuiyan police. Jamaat  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has ruled out the possibility of midterm polls, asking why it was necessary to hold the polls.

“Did the rumour of mid-term polls come by floating in the Jamuna River ... What are the problems that require that we hold midterm polls?” she questioned at a press conference held in New York Thursday.

The event was arranged at Bangladesh’s Permanent Mission to brief media about the outcome of

the prime minister’s participation in the ongoing 71st United Nations General Assembly.

Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali and Bangladesh Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN Masud Bin Momen were present at the conference which was moderated by the PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim.

Hasina said there is no relation between the mid-term polls and the upcoming council of the Bangladesh Awami League.

“You know that the Awami  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

INSIDE Education: A hope for Banishanta sex workers

Amid the bleakness of their lives, sex workers at Banishanta Brothel in Mongla, Bagerhat have something that motivates them to survive – their children’s education.  PAGE 5

Laboratory School building on the verge of collapse Academic life of students of Khulna Government Laboratory High School are at great risk as the buildings of the school are in dilapidated condition and may collapse any time.  PAGE 6

Egypt shipwreck death toll rises to 133

The death toll from a migrant boat disaster off Egypt’s coast climbed to 133 on Friday as rescuers recovered more bodies from the Mediterranean.  PAGE 32

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PM mocks rumour over mid-term polls League is a big organisation. The councils of the party from grassroots to every ward, union, upazila and district have been completed.

Now the central council will be held and the councillors will take decisions about the leadership,” the party chief said.

“It is our routine work and the party council is held in every three years,” she added.

Hasina said the council of the party could not be held during the emergency and martial law regimes. “But at other times, we tried to hold party council regularly and we are taking that preparation,” she said.

Responding to a question about the opposition of BNP and some other parties about the government’s stance against militancy and terrorism, the premier said that the opposition party which tends to oppose every step would oppose everything and there is nothing to be worried about it.

“The opposition party in parliament is properly performing their due role, but you cannot expect anything especially from those who are not in parliament and do not believe in democracy … they killed

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina addresses a press conference on Thursday at Bangladesh’s Permanent Mission on the outcome of her participation in the ongoing 71st UNGA BSS and burnt people to death to foil the last general election, burnt the polling centres and killed an assistant presiding officer, torched buses, trains, launches and in trucks,” she added.

Hasina said that the BNP-Jamaat clique committed all such crimes to thwart the last election but failed to involve the common people in their attempt to foil the election.

She said that the issues of coun-

tering terrorism and militancy came up in various functions of the UNGA adding that the terrorist acts are now taking place across the globe, not only in Bangladesh.

In this connection, she said that some incidents of bombing and terrorist acts took place in the USA just before the UN session.

Hasina said that all should have to resist those culprits who are killing people in the name of Islam

and maligning this holy religion.

“Those who believe in killings are always become happy with seeing such killings ... It is better not to talk about them,” she added.

On repatriation of the killers of Bangabandhu, Hasina said it took 31 years to try the killers of Bangabandhu. “Since we have hold the trial, we will complete the rest surely.”

Since the killers of Bangabandhu are staying in various countries, her government is trying its level best to bring back those killers and execute the verdict, she said.

Asked whether she was writing an autobiography, the premier said nothing like that, adding: “I always want to live as my ‘father’s daughter.’”

About Bangladesh’s foreign policy, she said Bangladesh believes in the policy “friendship to all and malice to none” presented by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. “Due to this policy, I think that various countries are now showing interest in Bangladesh and their leaders are visiting the country,” she said.

The premier said US Secretary of State John Kerry visited Bangladesh as “we maintain good rela-

tions with the United States.”

Hasina also hoped that the upcoming new government in the US would work with Bangladesh.

Asked whether Bangladesh would give any female candidature for the UN secretary-general post which will fall vacant this December, Hasina said: “I will be a bit more delighted if any woman assumes any post and there always will be affection to our own community and there is no doubt about it.

“We are observing that there are some candidates for the post ... we will take our decision when the time for casting vote will come.”

About her participation in the UNGA, Hasina said Bangladesh was able to highlight its agendas strongly, adding. “It is my belief that our active and fruitful participation in various forums has brightened the image of Bangladesh in the international arena,” she said.

The premier urged expatriate Bangladeshis to always keep in mind that they are a victorious nation and they would move ahead in the global arena with dignity. She also asked them to uphold the image of Bangladesh and publicise different achievements of the country widely. l

Report: Feni’s Akash planned terrorist attacks in Bangladesh leader Yusuf again managed the police to provide Akash extra facilities while in custody.

On September 4, he was shown arrested in the arms case as an absconder and sent to jail through the District Joint Sessions Judge’s Court.

The court has so far recorded depositions of 14 out of the 19 witnesses.

RAB arrested him for selling off four AK47 rifles – stolen from the 10-truck arms seized on September 18, 2005 – to Delwar alias Azrail Delwar, a listed terrorist linked to Islami Chhatra Shibir.

Andaleeb’s Gulshan connection Peyar Ahmed Akash

The Malaysian newspaper also said that at his restaurant Akash had

met with Andaleeb Ahmed, who Star Online claims was involved in the July 1 Gulshan terror attack by New JMB that killed 23 people including 17 foreigners. The attack was later claimed by Islamic State.

Andaleeb was linked to Monash University in Malaysia. He stayed in Kuala Lumpur from 2012 to 2015 and later in Istanbul. His father Ashraf Uddin Ahmed Chunnu said that Andaleeb returned to Dhaka on December 21, 2015.

“He has no link to militancy. He has been assisting in my business since then,” Chunnu told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

He said that Andaleeb was a classmate of Nibras Ahmed, one of

the five terrorists who attacked the Gulshan restaurant, at Monash University. Nibras was killed in a commando operation on July 2.

After the Gulshan attack, law enforcers found that several Bangladeshi youths linked to Monash University had joined local militant groups.

Investigators say a yet unidentified “big brother” used to meet with the Bangladeshi students at Monash University and motivate them towards extremism. Identity of the “big brother” could not be known.

Several top militants have fled to Malaysia in the recent months after law enforcers launched crackdown.

Moreover, detectives say financiers and patronisers of some militant groups are currently staying in Malaysia.

Another Monash University student Tausif Hossain, killed in a raid in Narayanganj on August 27, was a friend of Nibras. Both ran away from home on the same day – February 3 this year.

Two others – Abdul Aziz and Foysal Rashid Khan – who reportedly had close links to Nibras have also gone missing.

Banned militant outfit Ansarullah Bangla Team leaders Tamim Al Adnani and Redwanul Azad Rana are believed to be hiding in Malaysia at the moment. l

review committee and both Taskin and Sunny worked closely with the committee. For the very first time in the history of Bangladesh cricket, 2D Technology was used to help Taskin and Sunny rectify their actions.

On the other hand, Sunny, who was not included in the 20man Bangladesh squad for the upcoming England series, said he was under immense pressure ever since his bowling action review test.

“To be honest, I was under tremendous pressure since the day I appeared for the test. Now, I feel very relaxed. At the moment, I am not thinking that I am not a part of the England series. Rather, my full attention is on the National Cricket League, which starts tomorrow. I

am not worried that I not in the national team right now,” said Sunny yesterday.

Both Taskin and Sunny were reported of illegal bowling action after their side’s opening match in the 2016 World Twenty20 against the Netherlands in Dharamsala on March 9. The independent assessments were performed after four days at the ICC-accredited testing centre in Chennai.

On March 19, the duo were suspended from bowling in international cricket after the results of the test in Chennai came out negative.

Two days later, the BCB appealed to the ICC over the suspension on Taskin, only to see it turned down by an ICC Judicial Commissioner on March 23. l

Taskin, Sunny cleared to bowl by ICC free to report Sunny and Taskin in the future if they believe the bowlers have a suspect action.

“It is a great relief, not only for me but for my family as well. I’m thankful to those who have supported me during the tough times.

And special thanks to the [Bangladesh Cricket] board and the national team management for giving me full-out support,” said Taskin in his prompt reaction to the bowling action review result.

The national selection panel had declared a 13-member squad for the Afghanistan series on Thursday with the aim of including Taskin, who was waiting for the bowling action review outcome.

“It is a great honour when people like the selectors and the board wait for your comeback. The selec-

THE COMEBACK ODYSSEY MARCH 9, 2016 – Taskin and Sunny reported for illegal bowling action after Bangladesh’s opening game in the 2016 World T20 against the Netherlands MARCH 14, 2016 – Both head to Chennai for bowling action test MARCH 19, 2016 – ICC suspend the duo from international cricket MARCH 21, 2016 – BCB appeals to ICC over Taskin’s suspension.

MARCH 23, 2016 – Taskin’s suspension upheld following a review hearing conducted by a Judicial Commissioner.

SEPTEMBER 8, 2016 – Both appear for bowling action review test at an ICC-accredited centre in Brisbane, Australia.

SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 – ICC clears the duo and allows them to bowl in international cricket with immediate effect. tion panel had kept a spot empty in the squad for me and I’m thankful to them. Now I’m due to repay the faith shown by the selectors and the team management,” he added.

Since the suspension in March this year, both Taskin and Sunny had worked under the supervision of the BCB. The BCB earlier this year introduced a bowling action

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UN chief on climate change: No time to waste qer Russell, from New n Zulfi York, US Ban Ki-moon, the outgoing secretary general of the United Nations, urged the world leaders to take immediate actions to combat the effects of climate change in order to save the planet and all its life forms.

“There is no time to waste,” he said at a press conference following a high-level meeting on the enforcement of Paris Agreement on climate change at the UN Headquarters in New York on Wednesday.

He said 31 additional countries had deposited their ratification instruments for the agreement at the meeting.

He expressed hope that the agreement would be implemented by the end of this year.

“I am confident that, by the time I leave office, the Paris Agreement will have entered into force,” he said. “This will be a major achievement for multilateralism.”

What is delaying Paris Agreement?

According to the clauses of the agreement, it will come into force 30 days after it is ratified by at least 55 countries representing at least 55% of the greenhouse gas emission in the world.

Ban Ki-moon said on Wednesday that 60 countries officially joined the agreement since it was signed by world leaders in April.

China and the US – the two countries which together represent 40% of global greenhouse gas emission

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon holds up a smart phone as he addresses the General Debate of the 71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in the Manhattan borough of New York on September 20 REUTERS – joined the agreement earlier this month.

With 31 new ratifications on Wednesday, the total number of countries ratifying the agreement stands at more than 55, but the combined greenhouse gas emission of these countries stands at 47.5% - 7.5% less than the required mark.

The scale of damage due to climate change

The impact of climate change has been severe over the last two decades. Rise in global temperature has resulted in rapidly melting ice shelves at the Arctic Circle and Ant-

arctica, holes in the ozone layer in the atmosphere, extreme weather, and disastrous effects on agriculture, according to experts, who say use of fossil fuels is the major reason behind the rise in temperature.

In its latest report published in 2014, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concluded that the global warming of 2.5°C would cost the equivalent to losing between 0.2-2% of annual income.

The report was based on Stern Review in 2006, which said delay in restricting the impact of climate change would increase the

Branches of state-run banks facing loss alarming n Asif Showkat Kallol The number of loss making branches of six state-run banks has increased at an alarming rate – almost double at the end of June fiscal year (2015-16) compared to the same period the previous year.

According to the Bangladesh Bank data, the number of such branches of four state-owned banks have risen three folds compared to the last six months.

Bangladesh Bank officials said that while the expenditure of the six banks had increased, their earnings reduced. Another reason behind the loss is rise in amount of default loans.

According to the central bank’s latest report, the highest number of loss making branches belong to the largest state-run Sonali Bank and followed by Rupali Bank, Agrani Bank and Janata Bank. The fifth and sixth positions are secured by specialised BASIC Bank and the

Bangladesh Development Bank.

The six banks had 642 branches out of 3,716 making loss, as per information at the end of June this year.

The number of such branches was 282 at the same time last year, which means the number rose by 128%.

Of the total branches, 589 belong to Sonali, Janata, Agrani and Rupali banks. In December, the number was only 183.

The number of loss making branches of Sonali Bank was 290 at the end of June. It was 89 last year.

According to the contract with the Bank and Financial Institutions Division, the Sonali Bank authorities would have to reduce the number of loss making branches to 30 at the end of this year.

Agrani Bank now has 99 branches facing loss, but they would have to bring it down to 10 by December.

Chairman of Agrani Bank Dr Zaid Bakht said that the number of such branches increased in the beginning of the year because of the

opening of the new branches.

At end of June, the loss making branches of Janata Bank was 74. It should be 15 by the end of this year.

Rupali Bank saw rise in the number of loss making branches by 12 folds in the last six months.

In December last year, the number was only 10 while it was 126 at end of June. According to the Bank and Financial Institutions Division, the number of branches should be reduced to 10 by December.

A top official of the Rupali Bank blamed automation of branches and reduced interest rate for deposits.

The number of branches of BASIC Bank facing loss was 26 and they would have to reduce the number to three. On the other hand, Bangladesh Development Bank’s 25 branches out of 38 are facing loss. The number rose by over two folds in one year. Now the bank needs to reduce the number to three. l

cost, and stressed putting effective measures in place to combat climate change as soon as possible.

According to a World Bank report published in May this year, climate change will cause water crisis at countries in South Asia, Central Asia, North Africa and the Middle East, which in turn will severely affect these countries’ economies.

The report predicts a fall in the GDP of these countries to 6% on average by 2050, all due to water crisis.

Bangladesh is one of the countries that are high at risk of the impacts of climate change. The rise of sea level and extreme weather events have already resulted in migration of population towards the north from the coastal areas.

The report further states that lack of preventive action by 2050 will put around 1.3 billion people at risk due to rapid increase in climate change-related natural disasters.

According to a report published

by UK-based medical journal Lancet in March this year, rise in global temperature will cause deterioration in the nutrition levels of food, resulting in the death of more than 500,000 people every year by 2050.

‘There is still hope’

Before the high-level meeting at the UN headquarters, the number of countries that joined the Paris Agreement was 29.

With the addition of 31 new countries, one of the thresholds of the agreement – ratification by at least 55 countries – was met in one day.

Ban Ki-moon congratulated the countries for their continued efforts in pushing forward the pact’s entry into force.

“This means we will cross the final barrier for entry into force of the Paris Agreement,” he said.

He also warned that fast action was necessary to ensure prevention of climate change impacts.

“Climate impacts are increasing.

No nation or community is immune, but the vulnerable are feeling the effects first and worst.”

Lauding the continued global efforts behind the agreement, he called on the world leaders to capitalise on the momentum to ensure the pact’s enforcement by this year.

However, a number of scientists and experts are sceptic about the effectiveness of Paris Agreement in combating climate change. Many believe that the agreement does not comprise specific guidelines and will be too costly to implement.

Dr James Hansen, former Nasa scientist and an adjunct professor at Columbia University, who is considered the pioneer in raising awareness of climate change, dismissed the agreement, calling it “a fraud.”

“It’s a fraud really, a fake,” he told the Guardian in December last year. “‘We will have 2°C warming target and then try to do a little better every five years.’ It’s just worthless words.

There is no action, just promises. As long as fossil fuels appear to be the cheapest fuels out there, they will be continued to be burned.” l

DMCH ward boy kills patient with injection n DMCH Correspondent A teenager was allegedly killed by a ward boy of DMCH by administering an injection.

The victim, Biplob Mondol, 19, was an employee of a medicine store in Old Dhaka, police sources said.

OC of Shahbagh police Abu Baker Siddique confirmed the matter.

Police have already arrested Sumon based on the accusation of the family. According to Biplob's father,

he fell victim to a road accident in Keraniganj on Sunday and was brought to DMCH. However, Biplob recovered, he claimed adding that the doctors even said that he can go home on Saturday (today).

“Today [yesterday] in the evening, the ward boy Sumon came and said you will be leaving tomorrow, let me give you an injection,” the father said.

“Within five minutes of the injection, my son died,” he added. l

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

BD plans to restore pre-1965 rail links with India n Tribune Desk

Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu has said that Bangladesh will restore the pre-1965 railway connectivity with India, disrupted by the India-Pakistan war.

“The government will bring substantive changes in terms of connectivity with India. We will restore the pre-1965 railway links on priority basis,” Amu told the third “North East Connectivity Summit” in Agartala on Thursday, reports NDTV. “Air connectivity between Guwahati and Dhaka and Shillong and Agartala via Dhaka can be explored after examining the commercial viability,” he said.

Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar, known as BCIM region, is one of the richest in the world in terms of resources, the minister said. “The region with a population of 440m covers 9% of the world’s

total area and 7.3% of the global gross domestic product.”

Amu said: “Over the past seven years, Bangladesh and India have witnessed tremendous progress in almost all areas, including security, connectivity, power, trade and commerce.

“To boost trade and commerce between Bangladesh and India’s north-east region, we are improving trade infrastructure, immigration, customs facilities, developing land ports. Bangladesh is north-east India’s natural business partner.”

India’s External Affairs Ministry’s Joint Secretary Partha Satpathy said that India’s “Act East Policy” had been extremely successful in terms of diplomacy for development, regional security, energy security, political aspects and other vital issues.

“Several connectivity-related projects are now underway to connect north-east India with south-east Asian countries. India

is playing a vital role in important regional bodies like the South-east Asian Nations or Asean and Bimstec to provide greater global exposure to the regional grouping,” Satpathy said.

Headquartered in Dhaka, Bimstec includes India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Myanmar for multi-sectoral technical and economic cooperation.

Tripura Commerce and Industry Minister Tapan Chakraborty said that the northeast with 4% of India’s population and 8% geographical area had vast untapped resources.

Nagaland Chief Minister TR Zeliang emphasised on building road infrastructure, development and people-to-people connectivity.

He opposed the border fencing with Myanmar, and instead asked the central government to undertake more developmental projects along the India-Myanmar border.

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar said that resources of the northeast remained untapped due to the central government’s “impractical policies.”

Addressing the summit, NITI Aayog member Bibek Debroy said that it would aid, facilitate and monitor governmental schemes, plans and projects in the country.

The three-day summit is organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and supported by the Tripura government.

FICCI’s North East Advisory Council Chairman Ranjit Barthakur said during the summit, diplomats, officials and investors would discuss infrastructure development, information technology, healthcare, agriculture, bamboo plantation, connectivity, development of border infrastructure and development of road, air and water connectivity in the region. l

New IS video features Gulshan attackers n Tribune Desk

The Islamic State group last night released a new video featuring the five terrorists who killed 23 people including 17 foreigners at a Gulshan restaurant on July 1.

In the video message produced by “Bilad al-Bengal media office,” the terrorist group criticised democratic system and called on jihadists to launch armed attacks on the atheists, apostates and crusaders as revenge to the persecution on IS fighters in Iraq and Syria, and elsewhere.

The video is released in less than a month after the law enforcers killed Gulshan attack mastermind Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury, the man it says was leading the operations in Bangladesh. l

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Education: A hope for Banishanta sex workers Jamil Khan and n Mohammad Hedait Hossain, back from Mongla Amid the bleakness of their lives, sex workers at Banishanta Brothel in Mongla, Bagerhat have something that motivates them to survive – their children’s education.

Despite being born in the brothel, sex workers’ children get opportunities to go to school and sometimes even pursue higher studies.

“At least a dozen children of our women have successfully pursued higher education. Many other children are going to schools nearby.

Education is a priority here,” said Julekha Begum, deputy sardarni (chief) of the brothel.

World Vision, an NGO that works for children’s welfare, provides support for children’s education at Banishanta.

In addition, the children have access to the local government primary schools.

“At present, 70 children born to the sex workers in the brothel go to Ghoragangmari Government Primary School here. We try to ensure that all children from there get access to education. We often visit the brothel to check if any child has dropped out of school,” Md Masum Billah, education officer in Dacope upazila of Khulna, told the Dhaka Tribune.

Visiting the brothel, this correspondent learnt that the sex workers usually get families in the nearby villages to provide lodgings to their children.

Villagers charge a monthly fee of Tk1,500-2,000 for each child to cover their academic and other costs.

Sex workers at Banishanta Brothel in Mongla, Bagerhat work hard to provide education to their children so they do not get entangled in the dark web of sex trade DHAKA TRIBUNE

happens through a mutual understanding between the sex worker and the customer. Sometimes, customers get attached to the children and demand that the sex workers give them up.

“In cases like this, a customer takes all responsibility of the mother and provides his name as the father in birth registration. They become a family without wedlock.”

But there are many cases where the fathers lose interest in their

“But there are some children who still live inside the brothel,” said Julekha.

She also told the story of Surobhi (not her real name), one of the children born in the brothel who scored GPA 5 in her Secondary School Certificate exams last year.

“She is now going to a college in Khulna city,” Julekha said. “There are many others like her.”

Asked about the birth registration of these children, she said: “It

families after a few years and abandon them, Julekha added.

“What is good about these children is that they are very understanding about their mothers’ situation,” she told this correspondent. “When they grow up and begin to understand what their mothers do for a living and the stigma attached to it, they show compassion and try to help their mothers, instead of turning their backs on them.”

Asked if there has been an instance of a child entering the sex trade, Julekha denied vehemently.

“It has never happened in this brothel’s history. We only give shelter to floating sex workers who need support,” she said. “If any sex worker is found recruiting her daughter in this profession, we expel them from the brothel.”

What if they come back? “We take them in. It is our policy to provide shelter to all sex workers.” l

Dhaka, Moscow sign deal on visa-free visit

Two Bangladeshis shot dead by BSF n UNB n Tribune Desk Bangladesh and Russia have signed Two Bangladeshi nationals have been shot dead by Indian Border Security Force (BSF) in Jhenaidah and Kurigram. The incidents took place early yesterday.

In Jhenaidah, a Bangladeshi was killed as BSF opened fire at him on Baghadanga frontier under Moheshpur upazila. The deceased has been identified as Joshim Mondol, of Chuadanga.

In Kurigram: A cattle trader was shot dead by BSF personnel near international pillar No-1061 on Gaoitapara border under Roumari upazila.

The deceased is Ful Mia alias Dukhu Mia, son of late Abdul Hye. l

TEMPERATURE FORECAST FOR TODAY

mutual interests.

They also discussed the possibility of a visit by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to Dhaka sometime early 2017.

The Russian side showed interest in formalising a few agreements, including the Inter-governmental cooperation, maritime cooperation, and send delegation to Dhaka to further the ongoing discussion.

Foreign Minister Ali thanked the Russian government for its continued support to Bangladesh and especially referred to the implementation of the country’s first nuclear power plant under the Russian assistance.

Foreign Secretary Md Shahidul Haque was present during the meeting. l

an agreement on visa-free visit for persons holding diplomatic and official (service) passports.

At a meeting held on Thursday evening at the UN Headquarters, Bangladesh Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey V Lavrov signed the deal on behalf of their respective governments.

The agreement once implemented will ease and enhance the level of engagements between the peoples of the two friendly countries, said the Foreign Ministry here yesterday.

During the meeting, the two foreign ministers discussed issues of Dhaka

RAIN LIKELY SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24

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Bangladesh Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey V Lavrov sign the ‘Agreement on Visa-free Visit for Persons Holding Diplomatic and Official (service) Passports’ on behalf of their respective governments at the UN Headquarters on Thursday PID Khulna

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YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

TOMORROW SUN RISES 5:49AM

35.0ºC Rajshahi

23.9ºC Dimla

Source: Accuweather/UNB

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Fajr: 5:15am | Zohr: 1:15pm Asr: 4:45pm | Magrib: 6:10pm Esha: 8:00pm Source: Islamic Foundation

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Laboratory School building on the verge of collapse n Hedait Hossain Molla, Khulna Academic life of students of Khulna Government Laboratory High School are at great risk as the buildings of the school are in dilapidated condition and may collapse any time if they are not renovated soon.

The student of the school are also suffering a lot due to variety of problems, including poor condition of infrastructures and lack of teachers, furniture and scientific equipments.

Santosh Kumar Dhali, headmaster of Khulna Government Laboratory High School, said: “The buildings of the school are in decayed condition, which may collapse any time. We have already sent several letters to the authorities concerned about the poor condition of the academic buildings though the problems have not been solved yet.”

“In 2014, officials of Education Engineer Department had sent a recommendation letter to the Ministry of Education seeking Tk4.5 corer allocation for a new academic

Students, teachers and locals fear that the buildings of Khulna Government Laboratory High School may collapse any time if they are not renovated soon. The photo of the decayed school building was taken yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE building and for others necessary items, but we have not seen any progress about the allotment yet,”

the headmaster told to the Dhaka Tribune.

TM Zakir Hossain, Director of

MC College to be opened on October 1 Serajul n Mohammed Islam, Sylhet

MC College Hostel, which was gutted during a clash between BCL and Shibir men, will be made open for students on October 1.

Authorities of the college told the Dhaka Tribune that they had already selected 244 students who would be residence of the dormitories.

The list of the students will be published soon.

On July 8, 2012, about 200 rooms of MC College dormitory were gutted, as the agitated leaders and activists of the Bangladesh Chhatra League set the hostel on fire

during clashes with Islami Chhatra Shibir, students’ front of the Jamaat-e-Islami of Bangladesh.

The reconstruction work of the hostel was inaugurated jointly by Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid and Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith on December 5, 2015 five months after the dormitory was gutted.

The hostel was rebuilt following its previous architectural design. however, the wood that was used in its primary construction is no longer available.

On October 14, 2014, Nurul Islam Nahid inaugurated the hostel. However,

it was not possible to open the dormatory for students due to manifold problems, including arrears of gas bill.

Later, authorities of the college paid Tk9 lakh bill to Jalalabad Gas T & D System Ltd. According to college sources, around Tk40m was spent for the total reconstruction.

Three committees are in charges of the construction work under the surveillance of the Education Engineering Department. An internal team of the college led by Professor Habibur Rahman Akhand of mathematics department supervised the reconstruction work. l

Hizb-ut-Tahrir man held

Fertiliser factory catches fire

Members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested a suspected member of banned militant outfit Hizb ut-Tahrir Bangladesh from Dharmatal intersection in the district town early yesterday. The arrestee was identified as Salam, 45, son of Mohor Ali of Dharmatala area.

Tipped off, a team of Rab-6 conducted a drive in the area and arrested Salam around 2:30am.

He was wanted in a case filed under the Anti-Terrorism Act. l

Hussain, n Anwar Chittagong

n UNB, Jessore

A fire broke out at a fertliser factory in Patenga area in the port city on Thursday night.

Fire service sources said the fire originated from an electric short circuit at the warehouse of the factory around 11pm.

On information, firefighters rushed to the spot and put the blaze after over six-hour efforts around 5am.

Kamal Uddin Bhuiyan, deputy assistant director of Chittagong Fire Service, the extent of damage of the fire was estimated at Tk4.50 lakh.

However, no casualty was reported. l

Secondary and Higher Education of Khulna said: “We will direct Education Engineer Department to take necessary initiatives to renovated the dilapidated buildings.”

Khulna Government Laboratory High School, had been founded at Taligati in Fulbarigate area of the district in 1967 and is known for its academic successes in public examinations from its establishment.

Now after 49 years of its foundation the school is observing the worst condition due to poor condition of buildings and lack of teachers, said the school sources.

“Students of the school attend classes amid great risks, as the school authorities have compelled to run academic activities in the decayed building,” said the headteacher.

Students of the school, wishing anonymity expressed fear about their school building. “We face problem during classes in this old building. We are always afraid,” said a student.

They also alleged that along

with several problems there are lack of toilets in the school.

During a visit to Khulna Government Laboratory High School this correspondent had found that plaster of walls and ceilings of the buildings of the school were coming apart, and the roofs of some buildings had developed cracks.

According to school sources, now there are 1183 students have been studying in the school. Several posts of teachers including assistant headmaster, are lying vacant in the school, hampering education, management and administrative works.

Earlier, in 2010, Ministry of Education has declared the residential house of headmaster as out of order and ordered headmaster to remove the building.

“According to the recommendation of Education Engineer Department the ministry had allotted only Tk5 lakh in 2010, for the school which was spent to renovated the floors of the school,” said the headmaster. l

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News

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Bengal Tigers to be brought from S Africa n Anwar Hussain, Chittagong At last Chittagong zoo is going to collect a couple of Bengal Tiger, national animal of Bangladesh, from South Africa because the zoo has remained without tiger for long.

The zoo authorities will procure a couple of this variety of tiger spending Tk3.3 millions.

The last tigress ‘Purnima’ died of Spirocerca disease on October 30, 2012 while her spouse ‘Chandra’ died in 2009. Both ‘Purnima’ and ‘Chandra’ had arrived at

Chittagong Zoo from Dhaka Zoo in 2004.

In a bid to attract visitors, Chittagong zoo authorities have finally initiated international tender process to bring a tiger and a tigress from abroad.

Ruhul Amin, member secretary of Chittaong Zoo Executive Committee, yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune that the tiger couple would arrive at Chittagong Zoo within two months.

“A zoo without a tiger has no luster. Therefore, we have signed an agreement with Salcon Traders

for bringing a tiger couple from South Africa. Chittagong Zoo will bear the whole cost to bring the big cats by its own fund,” said Amin who is also Assistant Commissioner (land), Sitakunda.

“We are trying to increase the animal diversity of the zoo. Recently, we have exchanged a lion for a lioness with Rangpur Zoo. Besides, some other rare animals will arrive at the zoo very soon,” added Amin.

“The children often feel down when they do not find any tiger at the zoo. The number of visitors

to the zoo will witness a steep increase with the arrival of the tiger couple,” he hoped.

Speaking to the Dhaka Tribune, Dr Md Mongur Morshed Chowdhury, deputy curator of Chittagong Zoo, said the cage of tiger had been lying empty since 2012.

“Therefore, we have sent four letters to Dhaka Zoo and Dulahazra Safari Park seeking a tiger couple but in vain. We had no choice but to bring the tigers from abroad,” he added.

Venting his anger over the poor

collection of animals, Jamir Uddin, a frequent visitor to the zoo, said the zoo authorities must collect big mammals like giraffe, elephant, rhinoceros and hippopotamus to attract animal lovers.

Set up on February 28, 1989, the zoo is now located in a six-acre of hilly terrain in the city’s Foy’s Lake area.

Run by Chittagong district administration, the zoo now houses 360 animals of 67 species. Of them, 34 species are of birds while the rest species are of reptiles and other mammals. l

BCL leader hacked to death in Lalmonirhat Hossain, n Moazzem Lalmonirhat

A leader of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) has been hacked to death allegedly by friends over money lending dispute in Trimohoni area, Aditmari upazila, Lalmonirhat.

Moshiur Rahman Mushfique, 25, joint secretary of BCL Lalmonirhat unit, was son of Mozammel Haque of Collegebazar area, Sadar upazila.

Officer-in-Charge (investigation) of Aditmari police station Firoz Kabir said: “Nazim, a friend of Mushfique had taken loan from him.

On Thursday night, Mushfique along with his two friends Razin Ahmed, 19, and Mehedi Hasan Rubel, 20, went to Trimohoni area to take the money from Nazim around 11:30pm.”

“Suddenly, Nazim with the help of Razin and Mehedi, hacked Mushfique indiscriminately with sharp weapons, leaving him critically injured,” added the OC. Later, locals rescued him and sent to Lalmonirhat Sadar Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries around 12:30pm.

However, police have arrested Razin Ahmed and Mehedi Hasan Rubel in this connection while Nazim is on the run.

Family members said they would file a case after completing the burial works.”

Shohidul Islam, president of BCL Lalmonirhat unit, said: “Mushfique was a very active in party activities.”

Assistant Superintendent of Police Shohid Suhrawardi confirmed the incident by saying that, police are trying the unveiled the motive behind the killing. l

A member of Rajshahi Zilla Trucks-Lorry and Covered-van Labourer Union collects extortion from a truck driver on Rajshahi Highway. It is alleged that drievrs have to pay Tk100 as extortion at three points of highways in the name of daughter marriage, student scholarship and treatment funds. The photo was taken from Kashiyadanga area of Rajshahi city yesterday AZAHAR UDDIN

Clients of Gaibandha Sonali Bank swindled n Tajul Islam Reza, Gaibandha A syndicate has drawn thousands of money as loans against saving schemes of many account holders by using their fake signatures at Bharatkhali branch of Sonali Bank, Shaghata upazila, Gaibandha.

A three-member probe committee has been formed led by Debesh Chandra Sarker, senior officer principal at the principal office of the bank in Gaibandha. The other two members are Saidarul Islam and Jotimoy Sarker, senior officer principal and senior officer of the same office respectively.

A total of 15 account holders have raised the allegations.

In the branch, there are 500 accounts under different saving schemes for different terms. The bank has sanctioned loans between Tk47,000 to Tk1 lakh on average against 298 accounts out of the 500, said two officials of the branch, seeking anonymity.

Ripa Akter, an account holder hailing from Bharatkhali village, said: “Recently I have gone to the bank to take some loan against my MDS saving scheme and came to know that already Tk55,000 has been drawn as loan against my account.”

Rina Khatun, another account holder of the same village, alleged the same.

Rabindrinath Banik, resident of

Gajaria union in Phulchhari upazila, said he also proposed to the manager of the bank Abdullah Al Mamun for a loan against his MDS saving scheme, but the manager was dilly-dallying.

Later, he came to know that Tk1 lakh had already been taken as loan using his fake signature.

The irregularities were disclosed when some account holders involved in altercations with the manager over the issue.

The manager sent notices to the account holders, against whose accounts the loans were taken, to repay the debt.

The shocked account holders came to the bank upon receiving the

notices. They submitted a complaint to Hasim Uddin, deputy general manager of the principal office of the bank, over the fraud, said the officials.

However, Mamun claimed that he was a victim of conspiracy.

He said the money drawn as loans was deposited in the accounts of some account holders, including Ripa, Rina, Rabindranath, Keramat Ullah and Shandha Roy. When asked who deposited the money, he did not answer.

Hasim said money of all depositors is safe with the bank.

If the allegations were found true, actions would be taken against the responsible persons, he added. l

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8 World

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

SOUTH ASIA

Russia-Pakistan to hold joint military exercise Former Cold War-era rivals Pakistan and Russia are due to hold their first ever military exercise this month, in another sign of shifting alliances in South Asia.

About 200 military personnel from both sides would be involved in the exercises. Last year, Islamabad had bought four Mi-35 attack helicopters from Russia in a first military deal of its kind between them.

-REUTERS

INDIA

India signs $8.7bn deal for 36 French fighter jets India signed a deal to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets from France on Friday for around $8.7bn, the country’s first major acquisition of combat planes in two decades and a boost for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plan to rebuild an ageing fleet.

-REUTERS

CHINA

Chinese outrage over restoration of Great Wall Chinese social media users were in an uproar Friday over restoration of a 700 year old section of the Great Wall that has been covered in cement, turning it into a smooth, flat-topped path.One of the most beautiful portions of the “wild”, unrestored wall was built in 1381 during the Ming Dynasty.

-AFP

ASIA PACIFIC

Indonesia arrests notorious human smuggler Indonesian police had arrested a notorious human smuggler over an attempt to send a boatload of asylum seekers to New Zealand in 2015. Abraham Louhenapessy was arrested Thursday in Jakarta for allegedly purchasing the boat that was used in the suspected crime.

Louhenapessy reportedly brought more than 1,500 asylum seekers to Australia during many years as a key figure in the human smuggling trade.

-AFP

MIDDLE EAST

Abbas: Israel destroying two-state solution Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas told the UN General Assembly that Israel’s settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank was destroying any hope of a two-state solution. Abbas urged countries at the gathering to recognize Palestine as a state and once again offered the hand of peace, albeit slamming Israel’s intentions. -AFP

INSIGHT

Trump v Clinton: Debate to mark biggest moment of election n Reuters, Washington, DC Democ rat Hillary Clinton, suddenly vulnerable in the presidential race, is under pressure to deliver a strong performance against Republican Donald Trump in their first debate on Monday, a moment that could be the most consequential yet of the 2016 election.

Political veterans involved in preparing for past presidential debates said Clinton should drive home how she would run the country during uncertain times and draw a contrast as the steady, experienced alternative to the untested Trump. For his part, Trump needed to show enough gravitas to convince skeptics that he is ready to be commander in chief, they said.

The 90-minute face-off at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, the first of three debates, takes place at a time when Clinton’s once-comfortable lead in opinion polls over the former reality TV star has evaporated.

History shows that a single bad debate performance can alter the trajectory of a US presidential race. Reuters/Ipsos polling shows about 20% of the electorate remains undecided, far higher at this stage in the campaign than the 12% undecided four years ago.

The TV audience for the debate is expected to be a record, easily surpassing the record 46.2m households who watched the first encounter between President Barack Obama and Republican Mitt Romney in 2012, according to the Nielsen ratings company.

“I am going to do my very best to communicate as clearly and fearlessly as I can in the face of the insults and the attacks and the bullying and the bigotry that we have seen coming from my opponent,” Clinton said on Tuesday on the Steve Harvey Radio show.

Anita Dunn, who helped President Barack Obama prepare for debates against Republican nominee John McCain in 2008, said Obama succeeded at their first debate by steering the conversation repeatedly back to the struggling US economy even though the event was supposed to be about foreign policy.

She said she expected Clinton to try to exploit Trump’s

US BATTLEGROUND STATES The presidential election hinges on the vote in states that are neither Republican nor Democrat strongholds and could swing either way Battleground state:

Safe or leaning state

Montana

Washington Oregon

Idaho

Nevada

Wyoming

N. Dakota Minnesota S. Dakota Nebraska

Iowa

Utah

Arizona

New Mexico

Hawaii weaknesses and emphasize her strengths. “The contrast between them is what you want to hone,” she said.

The debate will be the best opportunity for two candidates, both widely seen by voters as untrustworthy, to put to rest questions about their fitness for the White House with the November 8 election fast approaching.

Even the candidates’ body language will be closely scrutinised, just as it has been in past elections.

Brett O’Donnell, a debate coach who helped President George W Bush in his 2004 debates and McCain in 2008, said Bush did not put in the necessary work for his first debate against Democrat John Kerry that year and it showed.

Quickly put on the defensive, Bush blinked rapidly and slouched behind the lectern. Kerry was judged the winner. Bush got more serious about the debates after that, O’Donnell said.

Clinton had a shaky performance at a Sept. 7 NBC “Commander-in-Chief” forum where she became prickly in response to questions about her handling of classified emails while serving as US secretary of state.

“Presentation is very important, and Hillary has to work on that. Her presentation at the ‘Commander-in-Chief’ forum was not very good. She didn’t come off as likeable. She came off as sour and defensive,” O’Donnell said.

Michigan

New Hampshire

New York

Illinois Ohio Penns.

Ind. W. Kansas Missouri Virg.

Kent.

Okla. Arkan. Tenness. N. Carolina Alab.

Georgia

Texas Alaska

Republican

Vermont Wisconsin

Colorado

California

Democrat

Maine Massachusetts Rhode Island Connecticut New Jersey Delaware Maryland Washington DC Virginia

S. Carolina

Mississippi Florida Louisiana Two Trumps

Clinton is spending most of this week in debate preparations with a small circle of top aides at her home in Chappaqua, New York.

Clinton aides said she is preparing for two scenarios: One in which Trump is measured and serious, and another in which he is freewheeling and makes inflammatory personal attacks.

Trump relied on his famed spontaneity to fire off one-line zingers to dismantle 16 Republican rivals during the primaries, dispatching “low-energy” Jeb Bush or “lying Ted” Cruz and “little Marco” Rubio. He has repeatedly called Clinton “crooked Hillary” at rallies.

“You’re just not sure who is going to show up,” said Jennifer Palmieri, a senior adviser to Clinton. “He may be aggressive or he may lay back. That’s hard to game out necessarily so I would say most of the focus is on what points does she want to make.”

A Trump supporter, Republican US Representative Chris Collins of New York, said Trump understands that he needs to put forth a presidential demeanor.

“I think the seriousness of that can’t be understated and that we’re going to see the debate prep making sure that she’s not going to be able to pull him somehow off the message,” he said.

Rick Lazio, a Republican former congressman from New York,

found Clinton a tough opponent when he faced her in a US Senate debate in New York in 2000.

He was seen as bullying, lost the debate and the election, and now says Trump will need to treat Clinton carefully.

“What he has to avoid is a sense that he is name-calling, highly disrespectful, badgering, anything like that,” he said.

Role-playing

Former Republican Senator Judd Gregg, who played Democrats Al Gore and John Kerry in George W Bush’s mock debate sessions in 2000 and 2004, said Bush began preparing in early June unbeknownst to the news media and for a while did two practice sessions a day.

For that reason, he said, he suspects Trump is doing more preparation work than he lets on.

“I have to believe he is doing something because it would be foolish to go in there and not practice at hearing lines,” he said.

A Republican source close to the campaign said former Fox News Chief Executive Roger Ailes has been coaching Trump but that the former reality TV star does not want to be over-prepared.

Trump spokesman Jason Miller said Trump is preparing for the debates but “there’s nobody who’s playing the role of Hillary Clinton.”

“Mr Trump prepares for everything that he does,” he said. l

9

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

USA

FACTBOX

No US-EU deal before Obama leaves

Ivory, rhino horn and pangolins on Cites meeting agenda The 17th meeting of the UN’s Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) kicks off in Johannesburg on Saturday and runs until October 5.

This meeting comes against the backdrop of a surge in elephant and rhino poaching in recent years in Africa, which has raised the emotional, ecological and economic stakes in this round of big animal diplomacy.

Here are some facts about Cites and the upcoming meeting: Ü Cites is a global agreement among governments that regulates trade in wild flora and fauna or products derived from them with an aim to ensuring their survival. Over 180 countries are signatories. Ü The Convention’s regulations only apply to trade between countries. It does not override national legislation or regulate domestic trade in wild species. Ü Cites classifies species in three appendices: Appendix 1 includes those regarded as highly endangered or threatened with extinction. It prohibits global trade in such species or their byproducts for commercial purposes. Exceptions for cross-border movement are made if the intention is not commercial sale. Examples would include rhino horn or ivory elephant tusks taken as trophies by sports hunters who took part in legal hunts. Ü Species listed in Appendix II are not threatened with extinction but controls are imposed on trade to ensure overexploitation does not take place and that wild populations remain viable. Ü Appendix III contains species that are protected in at least one Cites member state which has asked the Convention for help in controlling trade. Ü Changes to Appendix I and II are made every three or four years at the main Cites’ meetings, such as the one taking place in Johannesburg. In U.N-speak these are called Conferences of the Parties or COPs. Ü COP 17 in Johannesburg includes proposals by Namibia and Zimbabwe to sell ivory stockpiles; a proposal by other African nations led by Kenya to keep the global ivory trade on lockdown by including all of the continent’s elephant populations in Appendix I; a proposal

by Swaziland for permission to sell rhino horn from its stockpile to international buyers; and initiatives to bring greater protection to sharks and pangolins, a small, scaly animal regarded as

DT

World

THE GLOBAL IVORY NETWORK Source

Major trafficking routes of large-scale African ivory consignments 2000 - 2015

Transit

Consumption

Top 10 locations for interceptions

Analysis of 117 ivory seizures larger than 500 kg (2000 - 2015) Represents approximately 211,527 kg of ivory Equivalent to tusks of 31,571 elephants

Spain

Japan

China

20,986 kg

Taiwan

Laos

Hong Kong

7,686 kg

UAE

24,350 kg

Thailand

Nigeria

17,852 kg

Cameroon

Togo

Vietnam

Uganda DR Congo

Philippines Malaysia 10,800 kg 12,566 kg

Sri Lanka Kenya

Singapore

22,446 kg

Tanzania

Malawi

13,251 kg

Zanzibar

12,912 kg

DNA sources of intercepted ivory consignments

34,003 kg

Publicly reported large-scale hauls Research by the Environmental Investigation Agency

UNDER 40,000 kg PROTECTION

Five key species to watch out for in the CITES* conference in Johannesburg, September 24 to October 5 Pangolin

Lion

Illegal trade in scales and meat

Habitat loss and competition with humans,

10,000 02

03

04

05

06

07

09

10

11

12

13

14

15

Currently all international trade banned Swaziland wants to sell off 330 kg of rhino horns, from legal, non-lethally harvested horns

To ban international trade in all eight species in Asia and Africa

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday called on the EU to grant Greece additional debt relief and soften its demands for budgetary efforts. Even if Athens fully respects a prescribed programme of austerity and reforms, the IMF said in an annual report on the Greek economy, the government will still require a reduction of its debt mountain.

-AFP

Population estimate 20,000 - 30,000 Proposed ban on all commercial trading

Illegal trade in ivory

AFRICA

Population estimate Around 473,000 Complete ban on trade challenged by Namibia and Zimbabwe who want to sell stockpiles

The UK has failed to meet many human rights recommendations made by the UN and should do more to prevent prison overcrowding, tackle hate crimes and restrict stop and search powers, a coalition of 175 civil society organisations claims. British Institute of Human Rights (BIHR) submitted the report to the UN in Geneva, also accuses the government of damaging international standards by threatening to scrap the Human Rights Act. -GUARDIAN

IMF pushes for more Greek debt relief

African elephant

Silky shark

Overfishing for the fin trade

Strictly regulate international trade

No reliable global population estimates, but significant local declines

*Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora

the world’s most illegally trafficked mammal. Ü Changes to Appendix I and II re-

The peace agreement between the government and FARC guerrillas to end armed conflict of 52 years would be supported by Colombians in a plebiscite. 54% of people who expressed their willingness to participate in the plebiscite responded that it will support the agreement, and 34% said they would vote for the No. - AFP

EUROPE

No data available for 2008

Source : EIA

Population 19,700

trade in parts, trophy hunting

No reliable global population estimates, but drastic local declines documented

2000 01

Colombian peace agreements ratify plebiscite

Watchdog: UK failing on human rights measures

Mozambique

Yearly totals from large-scale hauls

Black market trade in horn 20,000

THE AMERICAS

UK

South Africa

White rhino 30,000

A last-gasp push to seal a landmark free trade deal between the EU and the US before the end of the Obama administration has failed, EU ministers agreed Friday.

“It is not realistic to reach the final agreement by the end of the Obama administration,” said Peter Ziga, the trade minister of Slovakia which holds the EU’s current sixmonth rotating presidency.

-AFP

quire the support of two-thirds of the countries represented at a COP, though Cites says it strives

Source: CITES

“as far as possible” for consensus. l

Source: REUTERS

Morocco asks to rejoin AU after 32 years Morocco on Friday made an official request to return to the African Union (AU), 32 years after quitting the bloc in protest at its decision to accept Western Sahara as a member. Rabat first announced its intention to return to the club in July, with King Mohammed VI saying his country wanted to “take up its natural place within its institutional family.”

AFP

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

ANALYSIS

India, Pakistan teeter on the precipice of war n Tribune International Desk Six days after India’s government, without so much as even a cursory investigation, held Pakistan responsible for a terrorist attack on the Uri military base in the disputed Kashmir region that killed 18 Indian soldiers, New Delhi continues to be gripped by war fever.

From the political establishment, military, and corporate media has come a clamour for India to “punish” Pakistan. The media has enthusiastically reported that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is conferring with the military and intelligence chiefs about possible air and cruise missile strikes.

Cross-border raids and the assassination of those responsible for the Uri attacks through covert action are also said to be under consideration.

On September 20, India charged that Pakistani troops had unleashed a cross-border artillery barrage, violating the shaky ceasefire across the Line of Control (LoC) that divides Indian- and Pakistani-held Kashmir. By late afternoon, New Delhi was boasting it had killed 10 armed militants whom it said had recently infiltrated the LoC near Uri. Such reports, and indeed all the claims and counter-claims of the Indian and Pakistani governments and their militaries should be viewed critically. India’s military has a long and well-documented history of fake encounter killings in Kashmir; just as Pakistan’s military-intelligence apparatus has a proven record of using Islamist terrorists to pursue its reactionary strategic conflict with India and to manipulate, communalise, and suppress the popular opposition of the Kashmiri people to the Indian state.

Amid the Indian elite’s clamour for dispensing with “strategic restraint” and delivering a harsh, demonstrable blow to Pakistan, some voices can now be heard, not least from elements within the Indian military, urging New Delhi to thoroughly deliberate over its battle plan before proceeding.

Far from being advocates of peace, those counselling caution are merely making the obvious, albeit chilling, point that a military strike on Pakistan could quickly spiral into an all-out war and with a nuclear-armed adversary. An adversary, moreover, that has publicly stated the massive strategic imbalance between it and India has compelled it to deploy “battlefield,” or tactical nuclear weapons, and signalled that they will be used if Indian forces launch or, in the midst of a war, mass for an invasion of Pakistan.

On September 20, the Express and other influential Indian dailies reported that senior military com-

FLASHPOINTS AND FLARE-UPS IN INDIA-PAKISTAN TIES Ü 1947 - Britain divides its Indian empire into secular but mainly Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan, triggering one of the greatest and bloodiest migrations of modern history. Ü 1947/48 - India and Pakistan go to war over Kashmir. The war ends with a UN ordered ceasefire. Ü 1965 - India and Pakistan fight their second war over Kashmir. Fighting ends after the UN calls for a ceasefire. Ü 1971 - Pakistan and India go to war for a third time, this time over East Pakistan, which becomes independent Bangladesh. Ü 1972 - Pakistani Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi sign agreement in Indian town of Simla over principles meant to govern relations. Ü 1974 - India detonates its first nuclear device. Ü 1989 - Separatist revolt starts in Indian Kashmir. India accuses Pakistan , which Pakistan denies. Ü 1998 - India carries out nuclear tests. Pakistan responds with its own tests. Ü 1999 - Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee holds summit with Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in Lahore. Ü 2001 - Militants attack Indian parliament. India blames Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad. Ü 2003 - Pakistan, India agree ceasefire on the Line of Control. Ü 2004 - The two countries launch a formal peace process. Ü 2008 - Gunmen launch three days of multiple attacks in Mumbai, killing 166 people. India blames Pak militants and freezes talks with Pakistan. Ü 2009 - Pakistan admits the attack was launched and partly planned from Pakistan. Ü November 2012 - India hangs the lone survivor of the Pakistan-based militant squad responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Ü 2014 - On May 27, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds talks with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in New Delhi. Both sides express willingness to begin new era of bilateral relations. Ü 2016 - Militants attacked an Indian army brigade headquarters near the de facto border with Pakistan killing at least 17 soldiers. India accused Pakistan of being behind one of the most deadly attacks in Kashmir in a quarter-century-old insurgency.

Sources: REUTERS manders had told the government a “swift” strike on Pakistan may not be “feasible” because Pakistan has mobilised forces near the LoC in readiness and because Indian forces are not yet positioned to thwart the inevitable Pakistani counter-strike.

But insofar as there is truth to the claim, India has decided not to immediately take the most incendiary actions—a high-profile cross-border attack or airplane and missile strikes—pressure from Washington is undoubtedly also a motivating factor.

Washington has deplored the Uri attack and reaffirmed its partnership with India. But it has not joined New Delhi in labelling Pakistan responsible for Sunday’s assault. In summarising the outcome of US Secretary of State John Kerry’s Monday meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, a State Department spokesman said that Kerry had insisted on the need for India and Pakistan to work together to reduce tensions.

He added that Kerry had praised Pakistan’s contribution to the fight against “terrorism,” while repeating the US’s standard call for Pakistan to do more to stop its territory from being used as a “safe haven”

by terrorists.

With the aim of harnessing India to its drive to strategically isolate, encircle, and prepare for war with China, the US under George W Bush and now Obama has forged a “global strategic partnership” with India and lavished it with strategic favours, including access to the Pentagon’s most advanced technology.

Pakistan has warned in ever more shrill language that the Indo-US alliance has overturned the balance of power in South Asia, emboldening India and triggering a weapons and nuclear arms race.

But all to no avail. The strategists of US imperialism view India as the crucial south-western pillar of a quadrilateral anti-China alliance, involving its principal Asian-Pacific allies, Japan and Australia.

However, Washington, in keeping with the imperialist patron-client character of its relationship with India and to the consternation of the Indian elite, has repeatedly shown that it is not ready to cede New Delhi a “free hand” in dealing with Pakistan. US strategists are well aware that the Indo-Pakistani conflict could rapidly escalate to war with potentially incalculable consequences for the people of South Asia,

and more importantly, from their view, US hegemony over Eurasia.

Even heightened tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad cut across the US war in Afghanistan, which remains almost wholly dependent on Pakistan for logistical support.

However, none of this should be interpreted to mean that South Asia is anything but teetering on the precipice of war.

The rival ruling elites of India and Pakistan are primed to dangerously escalate their confrontation in the coming days and weeks.

Moreover, the US’s reckless drive for global hegemony, which has already blown up the Middle East and brought the world closer to a clash of the great powers than any time since the World War II, has now sucked South Asia into the maelstrom of imperialist violence and war—adding a highly combustible explosive charge to all the region’s conflicts, most importantly those between India and Pakistan and India and China.

Even the more “measured” steps India will reportedly take, should it deem an immediate strike on Pakistan too hazardous, would dramatically escalate tensions and propel India and Pakistan toward a clash.

The difference between the two options is at most that between lighting a long or a short fuse to war.

Rattled by the mass protests in Kashmir—protests the BJP government has dismissed as the product of nothing more than the machinations of “Pakistani “terrorists”— Modi last month launched a major strategic turn, announcing that henceforth India will denounce Islamabad’s brutal repression in Balochistan at the UN and other international forums. So as to underscore the implicit threat of Indian support for Pakistan’s dismemberment, New Delhi has also indicated that it intends to give more “political space” to the Balochi separatists in India.

This strategy would appear to be the brainchild of Modi’s national security adviser, Ajit Doval, who in advocating a more aggressive policy against Pakistan in a February 2014 speech declared: “You do one more Mumbai (a reference to the 2008 Mumbai terror attack), and you lose Balochistan.”

While directed first and foremost against Islamabad, India’s new Balochistan policy also targets Beijing. In response to India’s burgeoning strategic partnership with the US, China has moved over the past year and a half to enhance its longstanding “all weather friendship” with Pakistan.

China is investing $46bn in Pakistan to build a transit and pipeline corridor stretching from western China to the Arabian Sea Port of Gwadar, in south-western Balochistan. India virulently opposes the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) because it provides a desperately needed shot in the arm to Pakistan’s economy. But it is also well aware that the CPEC has major strategic implications for China.

Were the CPEC to be completed, it would enable Beijing to partially counter US plans to impose an economic blockade on China in the event of a war or war crisis by seizing Indian Ocean and South China Sea “chokepoints.”

While Washington may today seek to dampen India-Pakistan tensions because they cut across its own predatory designs, its drive to make India a “frontline” state in its anti-China military-strategic offensive is a hugely destabilising factor and is whetting New Delhi’s own reactionary great power ambitions. The logic of the US’s actions is to polarise the region, dramatically raising the likelihood that a war between India and Pakistan would draw in other great powers, starting with the US and China. l

This is an excerpt of a International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI) article, published in wsws.org.It can be found at http://bit.ly/2dpffBV

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

The city of mosques Bagerhat is home to about 300 splendid mosques

n Tim Steel

L

ying on the fringes of the famous Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove swamp forest, but also close to the shores of the delta of three of Asia’s most famous rivers, Brahmaputra, Meghna, and, above all, the Ganges, it is difficult to know how to balance the advantages and disadvantages that led to the growth of what is now known as “one of the 15 lost cities of the world,” according to Forbes Magazine.

Archaeological and some documentary and circumstantial evidence suggest that the city that we know today for its rich Islamic heritage, created in the 15th century, had far more ancient foundations.

It would be rather strange if it had not. The mangrove swamp was well-known to ancient travellers and merchants from across the world since very early times, located, as it is, on the edge of the entry to the great international trading centre for which we have evidence from, at latest, the middle of the last millennium BCE. And we have many reasons to suppose that such habitable lands on the fringes, in proximity to the

Bay of Bengal, would probably have been occupied long before our recorded history.

Indeed, the evidence of an early Buddhist settlement in the locale is compelling, though we may well doubt if it survived by the time of the early 15th century arrival, thereabouts of the warrior Turk, Khan Jahan Ali.

Not that he would have found much to comfort him in the times of the Ilyas Shahi Dynasty, then the short lived Raja Ganesha family, and the restoration of the Ilyas Shahi that ruled in Bengal independently throughout his lifetime.

It is believed, however, that he left the service of the Delhi

evidently loyal followers, to build the new city that we now know as Bagerhat.

And, as a forerunner of many other such cities around the rapidly changing world, it became, it seems, in very few decades of work, a very modern urban centre.

For a few centuries subsequently, it may have been

It is not only the simplicity of the fine buildings of the tomb which appeal; it is also the row of shops and teashops that line the approach road. In one of those shops, things such as Chakra stones, and East India Company coinage are on sale

Clearly a well organised, charismatic soldier and devout Muslim, it is unclear what motivated his arrival in these lands that are now Bangladesh.

However, as a soldier of the declining, brutal, Tuqhlaq regime in Delhi, it might be unsurprising that he should have sought pastures new; especially pastures that were both wealthy, and troubled.

regime, following the sacking of that city by the infamous Mongol, Tamerlane, in the last years of the 14th century.

After serving the succession of Nawabs of Bengal, he received the grant of these remote lands beside the waters of the Ganges delta, on the fringe of the mangrove swamp, and removed himself with an apparently large number of probably, similarly displaced, and

abandoned, but once the clearing of vegetation that had engulfed it was cleared, it emerged as one of the most startling, small Islamic cities in the world.

One might almost say, a “time capsule” of such traditional, medieval Islamic civilisation.

It was the brick road -- shown to me by graduates of Jahangirnagar University, who I was glad to have working with me at the time -- that

first struck me as the very epitome of modern urban development.

Clearly brick-making skills, probably made by slave labour, though supervised and trained by Khan Jahan’s entourage, were one of the earliest innovations, which, combined with very evident architectural skills, bear testimony to a group also rich in engineering and non-military skills.

No new community is built, today, without first laying out the road system.

And, in a sense, it shares with such notable sites as Fatepur Sikri, a former, short-lived capital city of the Mughal Dynasty in today’s India, amongst others around the world, a short, but substantial life.

A life that has in the past half century been slowly uncovered by human endeavour from the forces of nature.

The durability of both places of worship, and well-built “barrack blocks,” suggest that although it seems that most accommodation was probably built of wood, this was a settlement built to endure.

It is, however, clearly the array of mosques which are the most lasting mark of this “lost” city.

Why, we might well ask, were so many needed? Especially if we accept a premise that other faith

groups probably lived within the settlement?

Some sense of the original community can still be found in the area of the tomb of Khan Jahan, on the banks of the large tank known as Thakur Dighi, which, in the traces of animist cultural traditions commonly seen at such sites across Bangladesh, retains crocodiles in the waters, carefully conserved.

It is not only the simplicity of the fine buildings of the tomb, with the close proximity of that of his best friend, Ali Taheerer, which appeal; it is also the row of shops and teashops that line the approach road.

In one of those shops, things such as Chakra stones, and East India Company coinage are on sale amongst more usual tourist trinkets, revealing a cultural diversity, perhaps, of which Khan Jahan, like most of his contemporaries, it seems, would probably have approved ... unlike some of the more vociferous in today’s calling?

It is, of course, however, the “Sixty Dome” mosque, which draws most eyes; misnamed, of course, since the 60 pillars produce some 77 domes!

Curiously, whilst the external prospect is not especially lovely, the magnificence and similarity of the pillared interior to that of many Gothic contemporary edifices in Europe is particularly striking.

But the totality, built from brick in the slightly earlier Tughlaq tradition of that somewhat brutal regime elsewhere in India, may not be the loveliest of mosques, it is

More extensive excavation and clearance will eventually reveal a great deal more about the ancient history of the area within and around today’s town. And it will almost certainly prove to have been, like the rest of Bangladesh, a rich, as well as ancient history

the most famous, becoming listed a UNESCO world heritage site.

Single dome mosques characterise most of those built in the original development of the “new city,” and, as originating in a pre-Mughal period can easily be compared, if not exactly in beauty, certainly in dignity, with those of the Mughal era with which Bangladesh abounds.

Both the nine dome mosque, that stands on the western side of Thakur Dighi, and the splendid 10 dome mosque in nearby Krishnanagar, are masterful reflections of simplicity of design, and excellence of build of the sparsely decorated modesty of all these original masterpieces.

The district today is said to contain over 300 mosques, which, apparently somewhat superfluous to the relatively sparsely inhabited area, may also raise questions about the number of original mosques for what would seem to have been a not especially numerous, original Muslim population.

Not that evidence of other buildings of great age is not plentiful, although today, most are represented more by mounds that are actual remnants.

The site of Khan Jahan’s residence and private mosque has been identified, and some barracks and barrack mosques have been largely uncovered.

It is arguable that more

extensive excavation and clearance will eventually reveal a great deal more about the ancient history of the area within and around today’s town.

And it will almost certainly prove to have been, like the rest of Bangladesh, a rich, as well as ancient history.

It is just, perhaps, that so remote from Dhaka, today’s demands on the area continue to be more aqua and agricultural than commercial or industrial... at least for now!

And this fairly recently rediscovered, fascinating, urban development probably represents more of a potential tourist attraction than simply economic.

What preceded the urban

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Heritage

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development may, yet, throw more light on the heritage of this corner of the country.

The tantalising evidence of both Hindu and Buddhist earlier times, and its obvious proximity to those ancient routes of sea trade could prove, as in so many sites in Bangladesh, slowly emerging from the rich alluvial deposits of millennia of seasonal flood waters, to suggest a prospect of even further enrichment of the historic heritage of, not just the beauty of Bangladesh, but also the fascination of that heritage.

From the soils of Bangladesh are slowly emerging a number of, hitherto lost, great, and potentially very significant cities: Wari Bateshwar, Bhitagarh, and Egarosindur amongst the least obvious.

None can offer, yet, quite the level of tangible evidence of a rich past as Bagerhat; but then the Bagerhat we see today has a visible history of only about six centuries, whilst the others have had a thousand years and more in which to become hidden, and are certainly never likely to enjoy quite the visible and tangible appeal of this fine, ancient, and modern City of Mosques. l Tim Steel is a communications, marketing and tourism consultant.

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Opinion

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Hong Kong avenged Of unmistakable omnipresence and less destructive policies

Hinkley Point is China’s Hong Kong in the UK

REUTERS

Fifty years ago, Pakistan was one of the few friends the then ostracised People’s Republic of China had. Today, Pakistan is one of the few migraines that a modern China suffers from

n FS Aijazuddin

H

inkley Point is China’s Hong Kong in the UK. More than a century ago, Britain established itself on the tip of China’s mainland, converting a drowsy island into a powerhouse of commerce. More than a century later, Theresa May’s government has approved the establishment of a new sort of power-house -- a 3,200MW nuclear plant on the coast of south-west England. The colonisation of Great Britain has begun.

Ironically, Theresa May had as much choice as the Chinese once when they ceded Hong Kong after

the First Opium War of 1839-42.

“The Prime Minister’s hands were tied,” an informed analyst has written. “Cancellation of the project would have led to a diplomatic rift with China and France at any moment, when Britain needs friends to manage the fall-out from Brexit.”

The £18 billion Hinkley Point project is a collaboration between Électricité de France (EDF, a company owned almost entirely by the French government) and China General Nuclear which has taken a 33% stake in it.

For the French, it is a belated fulfillment of a promise the chief of EDF made years ago -- that the British would be cooking their

Christmas turkeys in 2017 from power supplied from the Hinkley power plant. For the Chinese, it is a major step in establishing their credibility as first-world nuclear energy specialists rather than peddlers of cheap nuclear technology to third-world captive customers like Pakistan and North Korea.

For years, instead of a Christmas turkey, it looked as if the project’s own goose had been cooked. Delays generated by both sides of the English channel caused the project to slip from the feasible to the economically indefensible, to the politically irreversible.

Even today, sceptics wonder

whether a long-term commitment to a “fixed price” formula is wise, considering it will require the British consumer to provide a subsidy over a 35-year span, amounting to £30 bn.

Like Hong Kong, Hinkley Point’s past is its future. It is more than simply “a contract that was written five years ago on a business case that was probably pulled together 10 years ago,” as a spokesman of Scottish Power commented slyly.

It is China’s retaliation for the Opium Wars of the 19th century.

The British will be dependent on the damaging opiate of nuclear energy.

Hinkley Point is also in a subtle way China’s Cuba. Any economic argument against have been overpowered by the stronger sibling, the Big Brother of Politics.

It has taken China less than a century to achieve the level of affluence it took the Western world a millennium to attain.

Unlike colonialist powers like Britain, France, Holland, Germany, Spain, and Portugal which gorged themselves on the riches and resources of their colonies, China’s policy is to fatten local economies

across the globe.

Unlike the United States which has been either involved or responsible for wars or armed conflicts (in almost every country in the world), China is applying its Croesean wealth in less metallic, less destructive ways.

Some years ago, it had been predicted that China’s domestic investment would be overtaken by its investments abroad. It was not a matter of “if” but “when.”

“This is just a matter of time,” Zhang Xiangchen, China’s assistant minister of commerce, declared in 2014. “If it doesn’t happen this year, then it will happen in the very near future.” Over the next decade, as one economist put it, using “a mildly optimistic scenario,” China plans to invest over $1.25tn outside its own borders.

The 19th century Sikh Maharaja of the Punjab Ranjit Singh, on being shown a map of India, asked what the areas marked in red represented. The British presence, he was told. Soon, he replied presciently, the whole of it will be red. The map of the world is gradually becoming similarly tinted.

China’s invasion army is not one of ageing remnants of Mao’s infamous Red Guards. It now comprises rows and rows of terracotta technicians of every discipline.

Stand in the queue at any immigration area in any airport of the world, and you will notice China as an unmistakable omnipresence. At Heathrow airport, students (most of them Chinese) are siphoned off into a separate “fast-track” lane. That is understandable.

China has just over 100,000 students studying in the United Kingdom. They represent 22% of the total foreign students’ population there. They are sent to learn English because the xenophobic English are slow to learn Chinese.

Fifty years ago, Pakistan was one of the few friends the then ostracised People’s Republic of China had. Today, Pakistan is one of the few migraines that a modern China suffers from. Its CPEC being a hydra-headed amalgam of many projects has as many headaches. It is becoming a cause of concern.

Should Gwadar forget about growing into even a cheap imitation of Hong Kong? l FS Aijazuddin lives in Lahore and is a columnist for Dawn, Pakistan’s main English-language newspaper.

Find lots more fun things to do at www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglishkids

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Learn English

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

© British Council 2016

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Kids

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Fiction

Photo: Bigstock

Christmas Thieves

colour it

Part 3 of “The Magic Ring” Before morning, Claire and I woke up and looked out the window. It was snowing quite heavily. We brushed our teeth then came back to our room.

“Claire, let’s go downstairs and see if our presents are under the Christmas tree!” I said.

“Good idea,” Said Claire. We crept downstairs step by step as the stairs creaked heavily, finally approached the living room where the Christmas tree was. “Catherine, our presents aren’t under the tree!” whispered Claire. “Except there is only one under the tree,” I remarked, surprised and curious.

It was wrapped in glittery red and green paper. It shone in time with the star on top of the Christmas tree. We heard a noise coming from outside.

It sounded like foot-steps of some girls who were shushing

each other to be quiet and not to get caught red-handed. We walked to the front door and I peeped through the little letter box. One of the girls almost spotted me. The littlest girl opened a window next to our back door. She got in and stole the present under the tree.

“Hey, stop!” I commanded.

I told Claire to stay in the house while I went and got our presents, and that if Mum and Dad asked where I was, she would tell them that I was cycling around the region.

After that, I ran through the door and chased the Christmas thieves. I saw that the littlest girl had a sack with her. She had put the present inside. I ran as fast as I could. When I almost caught up with her, she threw the sack to the eldest girl and said, “Catch!” The eldest girl caught it.

I passed a house with a trampoline outside. That gave me an idea. I ran to the trampoline, jumped on it as high and as far I could then landed on the eldest girl who had the sack. “Give it back!

It doesn’t belong to you, you thief!” I said, trying to grab the sack away from her as the other girls looked on. “It’s, mine!”

She said, as she pushed me away to the ground.

They headed to a little log-cabin far up ahead.

Unfortunately, I had lost them.

I heard some running steps and giggles from the other side. I bounced up and ran along to rescue those presents before the snow got heavier.

Do you want to share your stories with us? Email them to featuresdt@gmail.com under the subject “Kids”

Photo: Bigstock

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

Sidekicked Good vs Evil Author John David Anderson Genre Adventure Age 8-12 years

Olympus and beyond

The Story

video game

Any Good?

With several action-packed fighting scenes, superheroes and super villains and strong messages on morality, loyalty, identity and consequences, Sidekicked gives you the difference between the good and the bad, and is thus a must read for all. l

toy

Get, set, laser!

Outer Space Laser Tag Who doesn’t love laser tag? It is a fun, must play for most young adults, but now the kids can play it too. Outer Space Laser Tag brings to you the ultimate awesomeness of laser tag, in a safe but exciting way all the same. This game consists of two spaceship “lasers” that shoot a safe infrared beam from up to 33 feet away. The players have to slide the spaceships onto their wrists and then try to tag their opponent by hitting them with the beam. Vibrations, sounds and lights indicate who hits their opponent first and the player who tags his opponent six times wins the game. A suitable game for children aged six and above, Outer Space Laser Tag will be a definite favourite for you all and is available in the toy stores at Gulshan. l

Epic adventure DYNASTY WARRIORS 8 is an epic adventure that follows a number of heroic characters, each of whom are fighting to gain control over ancient China. The game features a number of interesting things including being one of many popular characters, and fighting different kingdoms. This sequel features 70 new characters, and a lot of different plot lines. In addition, multiple player features and online leader boards are also supported. The new challenges are said to bring about a huge change in the scenario of the previous series, and with its additional features, they make the game worthwhile. This game is suitable more for preteens as it lacks educational content.l

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

movie

b o ok

Andrew Bean is your 20th century ideal superhero sidekick. Enrolled in a secret program called H.E.R.O., to be trained as a superhero assistant, the 13 year old possesses extraordinary senses. His teacher, the Titan, is a reclusive legend, too caught up in misery and pain. But when a sudden villain, the Dealer, who was thought to been killed by the Titan years ago, returns with his three Jacks to destroy superheroes and their sidekicks.

Drew desperately tries to arouse the Titan but upon failure, he begins to doubt his loyalties and begins to walk the thin line between the good and bad.

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A sequel to the 2010 movie Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters takes you back to the ever craved land of the Greek gods and the marvellous adventures of Percy Jackson, who along with his friends, embarks on a journey in search for the Golden Fleece at the Sea of Monsters, to save the magical tree that protects their land from vicious enemies. When Luke Castellan attacks Camp Half-Blood and threatens to destroy Mount Olympus, Percy’s mentor Chiron learns that Luke has poisoned the magic tree that guards the camp from all evil from the outside world. When Annabeth, Percy’s mate, finds out the cure for the ailing tree – the Golden Fleece, Percy and his fellow companions set out to look for the cure, before their rivals can find it. Adapted from the book of the same name, Percy Jacksons adventures are an international hit, which makes this movie a must watch on your list. l

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Kids

magic trick

animal facts

Red and Black What You’ll Need: Deck of cards How to do it: • Separate the deck into two by colour, i.e. one black deck and one red deck. After that, put the separate piles back together (but don’t shuffle them).

• Separate the decks again and lay them face down on a flat surface in front of your audience.

• Have a person from the audience choose a card from each pile at random, and tell them to memorise the cards, and then place each card into the opposite pile.

• Let the person shuffle each deck separately and then place the two piles back together and give it back to you.

• After he/she has done so, you can look through the deck and find the two cards that don’t match the colour of that pile of cards.

• Voila! l

• The Pug is a dog with a wrinkly, short-muzzled face and curled tail • The breed has a fine, glossy coat that comes in a variety of colours • Although often black or fawn, they have a compact square body with well-developed muscles • The have a life span of 12-15 years • They are originally from China • They are charming, clever, stubborn, attentive and sociable • They are the most gentle and passive breeds of all

fun science

d iy

Trophy What you’ll need • Two plastic cups • Acrylic paint • Chart papers • Pencils • Brushes • Cellotape • Scissors • Glue Instructions Take two plastic cups and stick them at the end of each other with your cello tape. Then, take your pencil and draw out circles on a chart paper. Inside the circles, draw another circle. Then, using your art scissors, cut them out and use your cello tape to stick them at both ends like handles.

Finally, use you acrylic paint and colour the whole thing. Use glue to stick some nice buttons or cut out alphabets on your chart paper, colour them and stick them to your trophy. Gift it to your dad, rewarding him as the best dad ever!!

Paperclips defying gravity What you’ll need: • Clean dry paper clips • Tissue paper • A bowl of water • Pencil with eraser How to do it: • Fill the bowl with water • Tear a piece of tissue paper about half the size of a TK50 note.

• Slowly and carefully drop the tissue flat onto the surface of the water.

• Then, place a dry paper clip flat on top of the tissue (make sure you don’t touch the water or the tissue while doing so).

• After you have done that, use the eraser at the back of the pencil and carefully poke the tissue (not the paper clip, mind you) until the tissue sinks.

• If you have followed the instructions properly, after you have managed to get the tissue paper to sink, the paper clip should be floating!

At home Speedy stays home

S

peedy was tired after his trip to Spain, and wanted to stay home for a while.

No matter how much he goes to far away places and different countries, his favourite place will always be home. Home is where he can be himself, do whatever he wants, doesn’t have to worry about anything and it is his own space. No one can bother him in his own room.

But that isn’t the most important part. Home is where the people he loved the most lived.

The people who loved Speedy the most and would do anything for him – his family.

Entering home, the first thing he saw was his mother on the dining table. His smile got even bigger when he saw all his favourite food dishes on the table too! His mom was the best. She always bugged him about cleaning his room, about why always left home so often, about why he even studied harder in frog school, and that always made Speedy dislike her in those moments. But he knew she always did what was best for him. Without mom, Speedy would be so sad.

His brothers and sisters came to meet him too, and he missed all of them. His father was sitting in the corner chair and grunted at him. “the old man will never change!” laughed Speedy, but he knew his dad was happy that he was home safe.

Speedy thought it was the perfect time to stay home with his family. He gave his mom new springs for her legs, gave all his brothers and sisters chocolates and gave his dad a new walking stick.

After his belly full of delicious, warm food and climbing into his soft, cozy bed, Speedy thought of something – no matter where he went, there will never be a place like home. l

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20 Editorial

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

INSIDE

The wrong debate on the bloody picture What we have is a largely toxic and indefensible mix of traditionalism masquerading as religion, municipal corporations pretending to be actual accountable metropolitan governments, and narcissism passing off as generosity PAGE 21

FOCUS BANGLA

Climate Change The water came up to my waist, our houses drown. Where can we go? The more water, the less the rent. The rent is low here. The owner is going to raise the land, but the rent will go up.

This will not help me. We will move somewhere else. We are poor, wherever we can get cheap rent, we move there PAGE 22-23

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.

Building the future is a shared responsibility

W

e congratulate Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for receiving the Planet 50-50 Champion and Agent of Change Awards for her contributions to the fight against climate change and gender inequality.

The prime minister’s leadership has been instrumental in driving the country’s progress, and will no doubt continue to play an important role in ensuring that we reach middle-income status, sooner rather than later.

Bangladesh has, in recent years, succeeded in achieving remarkable progress in meeting the Millenium Development Goals, having alleviated poverty, improving gender parity in education, and reducing infant and maternal mortality, among others.

We have come a long way, but our work is far from over.

Meeting the Sustainable Development Goals set out by the UN to tackle issues like hunger, inequality, and education will still be a challenge for Bangladesh.

The prime minister’s Planet 50-50 Champion award specifically should be a motivator for the country to move towards greater gender equality and towards ending violence against women. In spite of there being plenty of women in top positions in government, Bangladesh still lags behind in making the streets safe places for women, where assault and harassment are all too common.

Furthermore, many parts of the country still remain under the dark shadow of illiteracy and poor medical care, problems we must strive to eliminate.

Let these awards inspire the nation to get to work on fixing these problems.

It is only through long-term planning, efficient implementation, and a united front that prosperity can be achieved for all.

We have come a long way, but our work is far from over

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Opinion

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

The wrong debate on the bloody picture Are we missing the bigger picture?

n Esam Sohail

L

eave it to us to invariably focus on the picture frame than the picture itself. Or, in this case, the allegedly photoshopped picture.

Was the picture shown around the world of a City of (qurbani) Blood genuine or touched up? Was there an agenda behind it? Were there vested interests involved?

Such, dear readers, are the typical queries about the photo from Dhaka’s Shantinagar where, apparently, a most unflattering image was shot in the capital of the next digital tiger.

Those questions are largely irrelevant. That Dhaka, in the week after Eid-ul-Azha, gets far more uninhabitable than it already is, is merely a matter of degree: Sometimes it is a little more hellish, and sometimes a little less so. But the fundamentals of the equation remain the same: A most haphazardly planned city with no enforcement of zoning, barely functioning drainage, and more than 10 million souls -- half of which aspire to slaughter a live animal right on the public thoroughfares as if it is the most normal thing.

It is no surprise that these days anyone with a taka to spare flies off to more tolerable pastures to the East and the West during this spectacle, and doesn’t return until the foulest of the smells and most putrid of the innards have disappeared.

That photo from Shantinagar, embellished or not, should have helped start a conversation on fixing the problem rather than pushed cultural and religious chauvinists to the corners in defensiveness about the indefensible. And what we have is a largely toxic and indefensible mix of traditionalism masquerading as religion, municipal corporations pretending to be actual accountable metropolitan governments, and narcissism passing off as generosity.

My friend, the author and historian Dr Taj Hashmi, makes a good case that the literal sacrifice is incumbent only upon those who have actually been to the Hajj; his point is supported by the practices in Brunei and Malaysia both.

In quite a few other, more traditional places like Libya, Syria, and Iran, civic authorities have simply designated certain abattoirs outside city limits to do this kind of slaughter. Yet, other places where Muslims live have come

The photo that sparked the wrong conversation into the 21st century and opted for technology, whereby an “order” of sacrifice is placed with a service provider in the public or private sector with a selection of animals available, and part of the resulting meat is packaged and sent to the customer while the remainder is distributed to charity.

Streamlined, efficient, modern, clean, and within the strictures of religion.

I have very little doubt that all those young men and women wanting to change the world through digital wizardry at the private universities across Dhaka will have little trouble coming up with an app and a supply chain schematic to implement that in Bangladesh’s clogged metropolises too.

But such an approach at a broad level requires civic authorities that are both accountable to their citizens and empowered to make decisions on their behalf; elaborate pretensions notwithstanding, Dhaka doesn’t have that. Nor does it have too many individuals who, given the chance, will eschew a desire to show off to their neighbours how much more expensive and finer their cow or goat was.

And what would be a qurbani

What we have is a largely toxic and indefensible mix of traditionalism masquerading as religion, municipal corporations pretending to be actual accountable metropolitan governments, and narcissism passing off as generosity

without the rich family in the mohalla showing off how many packages of meat they distributed to the poor and needy?

It may be that, someday, Dhaka will have accountable, autonomous, municipal selfgovernment. It may also be that, someday, there will be a mass realisation that the whole idea of slaughtering animals for Eid-ulAzha is not as deeply rooted in religion as it is in traditionalism.

Or, perhaps, the middle-class and the upper middle-class will stumble upon shame and decide that showing off one’s abundance by ruining the streets and alleys of a congested city is not ethical.

I doubt any of those good things will happen in my lifetime.

What I do suggest is that we bank on and advocate small scale reforms with technology and

incentives as the foundational pillars: An app for qurbani that lets you select the animal of your choice in several price ranges?

Tax holidays for businesses that become part of the supply chain for this app? Public adoption of this approach by the high and mighty so that the average citizen senses a bit of reassurance in blazing the revolutionary path? An edict or two from the turban-andbeard folks endorsing it as a good alternative?

Now those are the discussions that should be happening far more than whether a picture from Shantinagar was a photoshopped monstrosity of a conspiracy of the highest order. l Esam Sohail is an educational research analyst and college lecturer of social sciences writing from Kansas, USA.

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Climate Change

Climate change research based on Dhaka

Impacts of flooding

n Joanne Jordan

D

haka is on the front lines of climate change, but what does that mean to the people living in its

slums?

We know that climate change intensifies the exclusion suffered by the poorest, but what are the best ways to support them?

As part of my research on climate change at the Global Development Institute at the University of Manchester, I spent months in a slum in Dhaka talking to over 600 people in their homes, workplaces, local teashops, and on street corners to understand how climate change affects their “everyday” lives and what solutions they employ.

My research found that the urban poor have been able to develop a myriad of ways to respond to climate change but in many cases their efforts are constrained by a lack of land tenure rights.

For example, if slum dwellers are not protected by laws and regulations that shield them from exploitative landlords, they are less likely to invest scarce resources in making their homes

JOANNE JORDAN

more resilient to climate change.

Limited resources can also trap the poor in places that flood most frequently because they cannot afford rents elsewhere. One slum dweller explained: “The water came up to my waist, our houses drown. Where can we go? The more water, the less the rent.

explore the findings through a Pot Gan; a traditional folk medium that combines melody, drama, pictures, and dancing.

The Pot Gan we developed is an interactive event that challenges the audience to engage with the personal experiences of slum dwellers affected by

to remember the key messages from the performance later on.”

Live performances of “The Lived Experience of Climate Change: A Story of One Piece of Land in Dhaka” have now been seen by over 600 people, including Dhaka slum dwellers, policy makers, practitioners, academics, and the

The water came up to my waist, our houses drown. Where can we go?

The more water, the less the rent. The rent is low here. The owner is going to raise the land, but the rent will go up. This will not help me. We will move somewhere else. We are poor, wherever we can get cheap rent, we move there

The rent is low here. The owner is going to raise the land, but the rent will go up. This will not help me. We will move somewhere else.

We are poor, wherever we can get cheap rent, we move there.”

With the research completed, I teamed up with the Department of Theatre and Performance Studies at the University of Dhaka to

climate change. The director of the Pot Gan, Mr Ahasan Khan, explained the importance of active engagement: “One of the key aspects of the Pot Gan is that it is designed to get the audience involved.

“That way, they feel part of the story that is being acted out and are much more likely

general public.

The collaboration with the University of Dhaka resulted in the Pot Gan being developed as part of a Master’s course unit on “Theatre for Development,” helping Bangladeshi students learn about crucial global issues that have a local impact, and explore those issues through traditional

indigenous theatre.

The stories and the script itself are all based on the direct testimony and experiences of the people living in the Dhaka slum that my research is based on.

The Pot Gan has proved a very effective tool to deepen engagement and understanding of the everyday realities of climate change.

In a survey of the varied audiences who saw the live performance, every single person who responded agreed that performances like the Pot Gan are a useful way to build awareness on climate change. More than 80% said they had learned something new about climate change as a result.

This is not surprising: it can be difficult for scientists and other climate change experts to fully comprehend and then communicate the day-to-day impact of climate change on local communities.

The Pot Gan, however, “humanises climate change, what otherwise would be a fairly complex and difficult to understand, and theoretical and technical issue,” according to Dr Saleemul Huq, Director of the

International Institute for Climate Change and Development, who praised the Pot Gan’s interactive element, where “in the end, the audience were the theatre.”

The Pot Gan was also performed in the slum where I conducted my research. I felt that I owed the community the opportunity to see the results of the research that they helped to produce, and a chance to provide additional feedback on its key themes.

I believe that it is a researcher’s moral responsibility to engage the communities around the findings that they have been central to generating.

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Climate Change

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

study, to bring the stories from the Dhaka slum dwellers to an even larger international and national audience.

The Pot Gan performances were filmed to produce a documentary exploring my findings on the everyday realities of climate change.

Directed by Ehsan Kabir from Green Ink, the documentary was recently premiered at the Manchester Museum’s Climate Control exhibition.

Similar to the live Pot Gan performances, the screening actively encouraged people to discuss the issues raised, moving

This project highlights that understanding the day-to-day realities of low-income people living with climate change must play a central role in climate change action

Far too often, research is carried out extractively in the global south, and then presented only to audiences in the global north.

Public engagement and research dissemination should be aimed at a diverse audience using innovative methods that not only present the findings but challenge the audiences to action or critical thought.

This is how academics can have a real, lasting impact on the issues and communities they

them from passive members of the audience to active participants.

This project highlights that understanding the day-to-day realities of low-income people living with climate change must play a central role in climate change action.

If you look at any given intervention, whether it is going to be accepted, modified, or completely rejected by the local population depends on whether the intervention fits with their

Premiere of the documentary at the Manchester Museum’s Climate Control exhibition everyday experiences and understanding of climate change.

So to create effective climate resilience strategies, it is crucial that we engage local voices in innovative ways to ensure that we do not leave the disadvantaged and most vulnerable behind by

predefining their “problems” and bypassing their priorities and realities.

This project provides a platform for the “voices of the urban poor” to enter the climate change debate -- challenging us to inclusive action and critical thought. l The documentary and video of the Pot Gan performance can be viewed at bit.ly/GDIpotgan View the project photo galleries at bit.ly/GDIpotganphotos For further information on the project Web: bit.ly/GDIpotgan Twitter: #GDIpotgan @ JoanneCJordan Facebook: @GDIpotgan Dr Joanne Jordan is a lecturer in Climate Change and Development at the Global Development Institute, University of Manchester. Since 2007 Dr Jordan’s work has focused on climate change resilience, vulnerability and risk in Bangladesh. She can be contacted at joanne.jordan@manchester.ac.uk.

Pot Gan performance

This page has been developed in collaboration with the International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) at Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) and its partners, Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS) and International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). This page represents the views and experiences of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of Dhaka Tribune or ICCCAD or its partners.

JASHIM SALAM

EMMA KELLY

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24 Sport

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

TOP STORIES

Afghanistan series a test for us: Tamim Bangladesh opening batsman Tamim Iqbal has claimed that the Afghanistan series will be a test for the Tigers to prove how much the side have progressed, both mentally and on the field, in 50-over cricket. PAGE 25

Bauza blasts Barca over Messi injury Argentina coach Edgardo Bauza launched a stinging attack on Barcelona on Thursday after losing star forward and inspirational captain Lionel Messi for vital World Cup qualifiers against Peru and Paraguay next month. PAGE 26

Bangladesh Cricket Board XI’s Mehedi Hasan Miraz is caught short of the crease during their lone practice match against Afghanistan in Fatullah’s Khan Shaheb Osman Ali Stadium yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Mosaddek knock in vain as Afghanistan win n Mazhar Uddin from Fatullah

Latham, Williamson lead NZ’s reply Kane Williamson and opener Tom Latham led New Zealand’s robust reply with unbeaten half-centuries before rain and a wet outfield washed out the final session of the second day’s play in the first Test against India yesterday. PAGE 27

Wenger plays down Mourinho threat Arsene Wenger said he preferred to avoid a “destructive mode” as he played down claims that adversary Jose Mourinho had once wanted to “break his face”. The Arsenal manager said he was concentrating solely on the’ Premier League clash with Chelsea today. PAGE 28

Visiting Afghanistan exhibited a strong indication of their potential as they beat Bangladesh Cricket Board XI comfortably by 66 runs in their lone practice match at Khan Shaheb Osman Ali Stadium in Fatullah yesterday.

Youngster Mosaddek Hossain, who was named in the 13-member Bangladesh squad for the first two ODIs, had a good outing, scoring highest 76 off 97 balls with five fours and three sixes.

The 20-year old displayed great maturity coming in to bat in a difficult situation with the BCB XI struggling on 23/3. He initially took time to settle down at the crease before opening up and playing some delightful strokes.

However, when he was deceived by experienced off-spinner Mohammad Nabi, it was game over for the home side.

In pursuit of 234, BCB XI were all out for 167 in 38.1 overs as none of the batsmen were able to provide any kind of support to the right-hander Mosaddek. Shuvagata Hom was the second highest scorer with 34 runs while Mehedi Hasan Miraz (15) was only the third batsman to reach double figures. BCB XI captain Imrul Kayes, who is also in the Bangladesh

squad, was dismissed after scoring only eight while Sabbir Rahman (nine) too departed cheaply.

Following the game, Mosaddek said his knock will give him a lot of confidence with the first of three day-night ODIs against the Afghans taking place tomorrow in Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.

“It was important for me to read the wicket first as it was a difficult pitch to bat on. It was a low and turning wicket and I am happy to have read the wicket properly.

Obviously, whenever a player gets a national call, the level of confidence grows automatically. I tried

to bat till the end but unfortunately, it did not happen,” said Mosaddek.

Mosaddek went on to inform that the 18-year old Rashid Khan has all the attributes to trouble the Tigers in the ODIs. Rashid picked up two wickets yesterday.

“I think Rashid is a very good bowler among the three leg-spinners. He bowls in a very good posi-

BRIEF SCORE AFGHANISTAN 233 in 49.2 overs (Shahidi 69, Babu 3/32, Mehedi 3/48) beat BCB XI 167 in 38.1 overs (Mosaddek 76, Nabi 4/24, Fareed 2/19) by 66 runs

Bangladesh Cricket Board XI’s Mosaddek Hossain executes a delightful square cut as Afghanistan wicket-keeper Mohammad Shahzad looks on during their lone practice match in Fatullah yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

tion and also has some variations up his sleeve. He is difficult to play at times and he can bowl a very good googly, which is his biggest strength,” he said.

Earlier yesterday, Kayes invited Afghanistan to bat first as they were bundled out for 233 in 49.2 overs with paceman Alauddin Babu and Mehedi bagging three wickets each. Pacers Abu Haider and Subashish Roy also chipped in with two wickets apiece.

Afghan middle-order batsman Hashmatullah Shahidi top-scored with 69 off 96 balls, featuring five fours and a six, but the visitors kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Mirwais Ashraf smashed a quick-fire 32 off just 19 deliveries at the end to add some respectability to the total.

After the game, Ashraf expressed confidence that they would give a good account of themselves against the Tigers.

“This was a great preparation for us against BCB XI. We also had an excellent preparation in India of around 20 days. Hopefully we are willing to play positive cricket and give some tough times to the Bangladesh team. Bangladesh are a Full Member nation and a well respected side. But we also have some good players in all the three departments,” said Ashraf. l

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Bangladesh face India in U18 Asia Cup Hockey n Tribune Report Bangladesh will kick off their Boys’ Under-18 Asia Cup Hockey campaign today with a tough test on the opening day as the hosts face favourites India in a Pool A match.

The game begins at Maulana Bhasani Hockey Stadium at 3pm.

The fourth edition of the tournament will be inaugurated with the match between China and Hong Kong at 11am while Chinese Taipei will take on Pakistan in the second match of the day at 1pm at the same venue.

It has been 15 years since Bangladesh last took part in the event.

They didn’t participate in the next two editions in 2009 and 2011.

Bangladesh, guided by coach Zahid Hossain Raju, have been training at BKSP in Savar for the last one and a half month. They have four players - Romman Sarkar, Fazle Hossain Rabby, Arshad Hossain and defender Ashraful Islam – in the squad who have experience of playing for the senior side while most of the players were selected from BKSP. “We played together for BKSP and in the premier league so team spirit is quite good. We worked hard and are prepared to play against India. We want to win but let’s not forget that India are technically better than us. We will face the challenge with team work,” said Raju yesterday.

On the other hand, India coach BJ Kariappa said, “Everyone thinks India are favourites but we don’t think about it. We are ready to give our best performance. Bangladesh are tough opponents at their home. They have some experienced players. We expect a tough challenge [today].”

A total of seven countries, split into two groups, will take part in the event. l

Uttar Baridhara appoint Faruk as head coach n Tribune Report Bangladesh Premier League outfit Uttar Baridhara Club have appointed Mir Mohammad Ali Faruk as their new head coach yesterday in place of Rashed Ahmed Pappu. The 66-year old coach will begin his job in the eighth round which gets underway in Sylhet today. Faruk started his professional playing career with Arambagh Krira Sangha in 1968 where he was the captain of the side for nine years. He was the former head coach of Arambagh, Farashganj Sporting Club, Rahmatganj MFS and Feni Soccer Club. He was also the coach of BKSP. l

Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusingha is engaged in a deep conversation with bowling coach Courtney Walsh during the Tigers’ practice session in Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

Afghanistan series a test for us, says Tamim n Minhaz Uddin Khan

Bangladesh opening batsman Tamim Iqbal has claimed that the Afghanistan series will be a test for the Tigers to prove how much the side have progressed, both mentally and on the field, in 50-over cricket.

Bangladesh are set to return to their favourite format after nearly a year through the forthcoming three-match ODI series against Afghanistan. The Tigers last contested an ODI series against Zimbabwe

in November last year, winning the three-match series 3-0.

“No side can remain positive after such a long gap. It is always good to have a break when a side are losing but it is never good to have a year gap, more so when the team are doing well. It is a challenge for us to prove how much we have developed mentally, and on the field,” Tamim told the media during a practice session in Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday.

“It is a challenge for us to start

from where we had left off in the last series,” he added.

Many are terming the Afghanistan series as a part of the Tigers’ preparation for the upcoming bilateral home series against England, comprising two Tests and three ODIs. Tamim however, begged to differ, saying, “I never thought this series is to prepare for the England series. We are playing an international one-day series, which is equally important like the England series. We as a team will treat Af-

ghanistan the same way we have planned for England.

“Every win and defeat against Afghanistan will be part of the record books so we have no scope to take this series lightly.”

The maiden bilateral series between Bangladesh and Afghanistan gets underway at SBNS tomorrow with the first ODI. The second and the third ODI will be played at the same venue this Wednesday and next Saturday.

All the matches will be daynight affairs. l

NATIONAL CRICKET LEAGUE 2016/17

Rajshahi, Rangpur target better displays n Tribune Report The 18th edition of the country’s premier first-class competition, the National Cricket League, gets underway this Sunday at four different venues – Rajshahi, Bogra, Khulna and Sylhet.

The NCL, set to be played in two tiers for only the second time ever, will be contested by Barisal, Dhaka Metropolis, Khulna and Dhaka in the top tier while the bottom tier features Rajshahi, Rangpur, Chittagong and Sylhet.

Here, Dhaka Tribune Sport previews two teams – Rajshahi and Rangpur – ahead of the tournament opener tomorrow.

Rajshahi

Perhaps the most sincere side in the NCL, Rajshahi had a disappointing finish last year. They won two matches to go level with Rangpur in tier two but the latter were promoted to tier one, courtesy a better points finish.

Rajshahi are blessed to have a sound cricket infrastructure that not only ensures that their divisional cricketers are on track but also produces cricketers for mainstream cricket.

With the presence of experienced campaigners like batsman Jahurul Islam and all-rounder Farhad Reza, the side are looking forward to living up to their rep-

utation this year. The players are aware that they have not given their best in the last two seasons so there is enough will in the dressing room now to return to the glory days of the past. Considering the youngsters in the team, the side are expecting Nazmul Hossain Shanto to deliver. At the same time, they will also place high expectations upon the 31-year-old right-arm pacer Abdullah al Mamun.

Rangpur

Rangpur finished last in tier one in the 2015-16 edition of the tournament to emerge as the first team to get demoted to the second tier.

The side, filled with cricketers

who have a lot of experience, had a disastrous season last time around, losing two matches and drawing four. The side feature renowned names like Naeem Islam, Dhiman Ghosh and Sohrawardi Shuvo.

This year’s preparation has been minimal as until yesterday the side had failed to group up. According to team members, many are undergoing personal training while there are a few who have practised in a group.

They will begin the season against Chittagong in Khulna with only one target in mind - to stay at the summit of tier two and achieve promotion. l

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Sport

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Late Parejo penalty gives Valencia first win n AFP, Madrid Coachless Valencia earned their first win and points of the season as Daniel Parejo’s late penalty gave them a 2-1 success at home to Alaves on Thursday.

Valencia came into the match bottom of La Liga having sacked coach Pako Ayestaran following four straight defeats to start the season.

But an own goal from Victor Laguardia on 28 minutes gave them the lead before Gaizka Toquero equalised for Alaves on the stroke of half-time.

But when substitute Zakaria Bakkali drove into the box four minutes from time, he was tripped

by Marcos Llorente and Parejo sent goalkeeper Fernando Pacheco the wrong way from the spot.l

RESULTS Osasuna

1-2

Limones 68

Deportivo

1-2

Borges 31

Valencia

Espanyol Carrilho Baptistao 42, Gerard 72

Leganes Luciano 55, Gabriel 61

2-1

Laguardia 28-og, Parejo 88-P

Alaves Toquero 45

Valencia defender Jose Gaya (L) vies with Athletic Bilbao forward Inaki Arthur during their Spanish league match at the San Mames stadium in Bilbao on Thursday

AFP

Barca must do ‘a little bit more’ without Messi n Reuters, Barcelona The rest of Barcelona’s squad will have to do “a little bit more” to make up for the absence of fivetimes World Player of the Year Lionel Messi for the next three weeks, according to captain Andres Iniesta.

The Argentina forward faces a spell on the sidelines after sustaining a groin injury in Wednesday’s 1-1 La Liga draw with Atletico Madrid.

“There’s no question we are stronger with Messi,” Iniesta told Cadena Cope radio ahead of today’s match at Sporting Gijon.

“When these things happen we all have to give a little bit more.

FIXTURES Eibar Sporting Gijon Athletic Bilbao Las Palmas

v v v v

Real Sociedad Barcelona Sevilla Real Madrid

“We lost two points against Atletico and we have to make sure we don’t throw away any more.”

Third-placed Barca, who won eight of their 10 games when a knee injury kept Messi out for two months last season, are three points behind La Liga leaders Real Madrid.

Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid, who missed out on a La Liga record 17th straight victory when they drew 1-1 with Villarreal on Wednesday, visit Las Palmas today.

Real talisman Cristiano Ronaldo failed to find the net against Villarreal but coach Zidane was unconcerned.

“I’m not worried if he doesn’t score,” said the French coach. “I’m worried when he isn’t out on the pitch.

“What matters is for him to regain his form because he’ll always get goals.”

Las Palmas striker Kevin-Prince Boateng was sent off in a 4-1 defeat at Real Sociedad on Wednesday

and is suspended.

Atletico host Deportivo La Coruna tomorrow and will be in positive mood following Angel Correa’s second-half equaliser against Barcelona.

Second-placed Sevilla travel today to Athletic Bilbao who are riding a three-game winning streak in La Liga.

Unbeaten Sevilla, 1-0 winners over city rivals Real Betis on Tuesday, are two points behind Real Madrid after five matches. l

Argentina boss Bauza blasts Barca over Messi injury n AFP, Buenos Aires Argentina coach Edgardo Bauza launched a stinging attack on Barcelona on Thursday after losing star forward Lionel Messi for vital World Cup qualifiers against Peru and Paraguay next month.

Messi will be sidelined for the next three weeks due to a groin strain suffered in Barca’s 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid on Wednes-

day night.

And that brought a furious rebuke of the Catalans from Bauza.

“They send us messages to look after Messi but they don’t protect him. He plays every match,” Bauza, who said his team would nevertheless cope, told Fox Sports.

“We’ve already played without Messi. Having him is an advantage for the problems he creates (for opponents). But for me as coach and

for the team it’s a challenge if we have to play without him.”

Argentina are third in the South American World Cup qualifying group, one point behind leaders Uruguay. They play Peru in Lima on October 6 before hosting Paraguay on October 11 in Cordoba.

Only the top four teams in CONMEBOL qualifying earn an automatic place at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. l

Barcelona’s Lionel Messi sits on the field after being injured during their La Liga match against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday REUTERS

27

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

DAY’S WATCH

1ST TEST, DAY 2 INDIA 1ST INNINGS R B (overnight 291/9 in 90 overs; Ravindra Jadeja 16 not out, Umesh Yadav 8 not out) R. Jadeja not out 42 44 U. Yadav c Watling b Wagner 9 27 Extras (b 5, lb 1) 6

CRICKET STAR SPORTS 1 9:50 AM New Zealand Tour of India 2016 1st Test, Day 3

Total (all out; 97 overs)

TEN 1 HD

Fall of wickets

10:00 PM West Indies Tour of Pakistan (UAE) 2nd T20I

1-42, 2-154, 3-167, 4-185, 5-209, 6-261, 7-262, 8-273, 9-277, 10-318 Bowling Boult 20-3-67-3, Wagner 15-4-42-2, Santner 23-2-94-3, Craig 24-6-59-1, Sodhi 15-3-50-1

FOOTBALL STAR SPORTS 1 7:50 PM Premier League 2016/17 Middlesbrough v Tottenham

STAR SPORTS 2 7:50 PM Premier League 2016/17 Liverpool v Hull City 10:16 PM Bundesliga 2016/17 SV Werder Bremen v VfL Wolfsburg

STAR SPORTS 4 5:20 PM Premier League 2016/17 Manchester United v Leicester City 7:50 PM Swansea City v Manchester City 10:20 PM Arsenal v Chelsea

STAR SPORTS HD 4 7:50 PM Premier League 2016/17 AFC Bournemouth v Everton

TEN 1 8:00 PM Sky Bet EFL 2016/17 Sheffield Wednesday v Nottingham 10:30 PM Aston Villa v Newcastle Utd

TEN 2 11:50 PM French Ligue 1 2016/17 AS Monaco v Angers

SONY SIX 5:00 PM La Liga Santander 2016/17 Eibar v Real Sociedad 8:10 PM Sporting Gijon v FC Barcelona 10:30 PM Athletic Bilbao v Sevilla 12:40 AM Las Palmas v Real Madrid

New Zealand’s Tom Latham plays a sweep shot against India during their first Test in Kanpur yesterday

Latham, Williamson lead NZ’s strong reply n Reuters, Kanpur Skipper Kane Williamson and opener Tom Latham led New Zealand’s robust reply with unbeaten half-centuries before rain and a wet outfield washed out the final session of the second day’s play in the first Test against India yesterday.

The duo featured in an unbroken 117-run stand to take New Zealand to 152 for one at tea before it started drizzling at Kanpur’s Green Park Stadium and no further play was possible. Having bowled out the hosts for 318, New Zealand lost Martin Guptill (21) before lunch but the left-right combination of Latham and Williamson negated the home spinners with aplomb.

Latham was batting on 56, while Williamson was on 65 with New Zealand trailing India by 166 runs with nine wickets in hand.

Guptill could not convert the start he got and was trapped leg before by a full, swinging delivery from Umesh Yadav. l

10:00 PM Serie A TIM 2016/17 Palermo v Juventus

SONY ESPN HD

12:30 AM Serie A TIM 2016/17 Napoli v Chievo Verona

TENNIS TEN 1 HD 9:00 AM WTA Tour 2016 Toray pan pacific open SF

TEN 3

NEW ZEALAND 1ST INNINGS M. Guptill lbw b Yadav T. Latham not out K. Williamson not out Extras (b 8, lb 1, nb 1)

R B 21 31 56 137 65 115 10

Total (1 wicket: 47 overs)

152

Bowling

SONY ESPN

5:00 PM ATP World Tour 250 2016 St Petersburg Open SF 1

318

Sylhet District Stadium will host the Bangladesh Premier League for the first time as the eighth round of the top flight football kicks off in Sylhet today. A ceremony was held yesterday to welcome football in Sylhet COURTESY

REUTERS

Shami 8-1-26-0, Yadav 7-2-22-1, Jadeja 171-47-0, Ashwin 14-1-44-0, Vijay 1-0-5-0

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Mourinho feels heat, City face Swansea n AFP, London Jose Mourinho has vowed to silence the critics when Manchester United face champions Leicester, while his old rival Arsene Wenger hopes to celebrate a memorable milestone with a rare success against Chelsea today.

Mourinho finds himself under fire less than two months into his United reign after three successive defeats and an unconvincing League Cup win at third tier Northampton.

United are already trailing six points behind Premier League leaders Manchester City and another setback at Old Trafford this weekend would be a huge blow to Mourinho’s bid to stamp his authority on an team that has underachieved in recent years.

Wenger, who has endured many barbs from Mourinho in the past, faces Chelsea looking to improve

FIXTURES Arsenal Bournemouth Liverpool Middlesbrough Man United Stoke Sunderland Swansea

v v v v v v v v

Chelsea Everton Hull Tottenham Leicester West Brom Crystal Palace Man City

Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero, defender Aleksandar Kolarov and midfielder Ilkay Gundogan take part in a training session ahead of their English Premier League match against Swansea INTERNET on a woeful record of five wins in his last 31 meetings against the Blues.

His last major milestone - his 1,000th match as Arsenal manager - was spoilt by a 6-0 thrashing at Stamford Bridge.

But having seen a second-string team win 4-0 at Nottingham Forest in the League Cup in midweek,

following a 4-1 success at Hull last weekend, Wenger is confident the depth of his squad will help restore order after a sluggish start to the season.

Table-topping City head to Swansea for the second time this week after winning 2-1 at the Liberty Stadium in the League Cup. City have won all nine matches

under boss Pepe Guardiola, including five in the league, and the Spaniard kept his team in south Wales to aid their recovery time during a busy period.

Even so, changes are certain as Sergio Aguero is back from suspension and captain Vincent Kompany is struggling with an injury suffered in midweek.l

Rooney dismisses outside criticism n AFP, Manchester Underfire Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney said on Thursday he shuts his ears to criticism of his performances coming from outside the club.

The 30-year-old England skipper - who came in for particular criticism after United lost three successive games last week - told MUTV he is used to having his form scrutinised and he will just get on and work hard.

However, former top level players such as Alan Shearer have suggested United manager Jose Mourinho should think of dropping Rooney.

“I think I’ve had that my whole career - a little bit more of late, I think, but that’s football,” said Rooney.

“I listen to my coaches and my team-mates, the people around me, and I don’t really listen to what a lot of people out there are saying because a lot of it is rubbish. I have to focus, work hard, of course, and I’ve done that throughout my career. I’ve worked hard and tried to do my best for the team.”

Despite United winning their first three league games, Rooney’s lacklustre displays meant his place was already under scrutiny.l

Wenger plays down Mourinho ‘face break’ threat

Savage Bayern line up fresh prey

n AFP, London

n AFP, Berlin

Arsene Wenger said yesterday that he preferred to avoid a “destructive mode” as he played down claims that adversary Jose Mourinho had once wanted to “break his face”.

The Arsenal manager said he was concentrating solely on the Gunners’ Premier League clash with Chelsea today and did not want to linger on the controversial quote, contained in a new biography of Manchester United boss Mourinho being serialised in the Daily Mail newspaper.

Wenger, celebrating his 20th anniversary with the Gunners, clashed repeatedly with Mourinho when the Portuguese was in charge of London rivals Chelsea.

According to the new biography, Mourinho allegedly once told the author, football journalist Rob Beasley, when discussing Wenger: “I will find him one day outside a football pitch and I will break his face.”

But Wenger, 66, keen not to add any fuel to the fire, told a news conference: “Look, I haven’t read the book and I certainly won’t read it.

“I cannot comment on that. I talk about football and that’s all I do. I’m not in a destructive mode, ever. I’m more constructive and I cannot comment on that because I’m focused on tomorrow’s game and how we want to play football.”

The Frenchman added: “What is amazing is that has nothing to do with our game tomorrow. I personally am just focused on doing my job well and respecting everybody else.

“I do not want to especially comment because we play Chelsea tomorrow. I have no personal problem with anybody, I respect every-

body in our game and I don’t feel I comment a lot on other teams.

“Sometimes I just say what I think, but that is part of the way I am. Honestly, for me it was always just a big game and an important game, and the personal rivalry that you suggest existed stronger before was never, in my head, a concern,” Wenger said.

Asked if he would reveal his thoughts on Mourinho one day in an autobiography, Wenger replied: “I don’t know, I will maybe make a book one day, but I am not ready for that yet.”l

Carlo Ancelotti’s all-conquering German league leaders Bayern Munich face a Hamburg side in turmoil today with coach Bruno Labbadia under the threat of the axe after three straight defeats.

Hamburg’s 1-0 defeat at Freiburg on Tuesday followed their humiliating 4-0 drubbing at home to RB Leipzig last Saturday.

Labbadia has been in charge since April 2015 but another uninspiring performance from his team at the hands of Ancelotti’s relentless Bayern could be his last.

It does not help that Hamburg have suffered 5-0, 8-0 and 9-2 thrashings at the hands of the Munich giants in the last three years and another drubbing could see Labbadia shown the door just five games into the new league season.

Hamburg last beat Bayern in 2009 and are winless against the Bavarian giants in their last 13 games. Bayern are the only team with a perfect record in Germany’s top flight. With seven wins from his first seven games in all com-

petitions, Ancelotti is enjoying the best start to a season in Bayern’s highly successful history.

Dortmund will be without defender Marc Bartra for yesterday’s visit of Freiburg after suffering a

FIXTURES M’gladbach Mainz Hamburg Augsburg Frankfurt Werder Bremen

v v v v v v

Ingolstadt Leverkusen Bayern Munich Darmstadt Hertha Berlin Wolfsburg

groin injury in Tuesday’s 5-1 win over Wolfsburg and is doubtful for next Tuesday’s Champions League home game against Real Madrid.

Back-to-back wins since their shock 1-0 defeat at RB Leipzig catapulted Dortmund up the table into first before Bayern’s win over Hertha knocked them down to third.

Dortmund have banged in 17 goals in their last three games, having also trounced Legia Warsaw and Darmstadt 6-0, but coach Tuchel has warned about any complacency. l

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Talisman (6) 6 Uncooked (3) 9 Elector (5) 10 Grotto (4) 11 Consumed (5) 12 Golf mound (3) 13 Pay out (6) 15 Edible rootstock (4) 18 Notion (4) 21 Distinctive tone (6) 24 Spoil (3) 25 Dwelling (5) 28 Paradise (4) 29 Landed estate (5) 30 Fresh (3) 31 Ruler (6)

DOWN 1 Ward off (5) 2 Extinct bird (3) 3 Speak (5) 4 Sheltered side (3) 5 Sea eagle (4) 6 Degree (4) 7 Handsome thoroughfare (5) 8 Unwanted plant (4) 14 Hawaiian dish (3) 16 Gallery of shops (6) 17 Lyric poem (3) 19 Dull monotonous sound (5) 20 Vigilant (5) 21 Prayer ending (4) 22 Ship’s company (2) 23 Docile (4) 26 Container (3) 27 Spanish nobleman (3)

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Downtime

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

CODE-CRACKER How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 19 represents T so fill T every time the figure 19 appears.

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

Some letters of the alphabet may not be used.

As you get the letters, fill in the other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check off the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

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

MONDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

DILBERT

SUDOKU

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30

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

Showtime

New season, new challenges We look into the premier of two new seasons (don’t worry, no spoilers)

n Mahmood Hossain Both How to Get Away With Murder and Empire opened up with a bang this week, each premiering their first episode of the new season.

Both of these shows may not have won too many awards in the TV world, they’ve never been weak in the “drama fo yo mama” category.

Empire came back strong, starting off where it left off last season, threatening to break up the Lyon family yet again.

However, this time around, the show has picked up on some serious cameos from the real world of Hip-Hop. This only hints to major mix-ups and new characters that will impact the show in a very effective way. There wasn’t a single sober moment throughout the entire premier episode. As expected, each character on the show has his or her life flipped upside-down from the get-go and new dangers in the way that attempt to tear them apart. Funny

enough, the Lyon family put up a solid front, showing the world, and particularly their enemies, how they are stronger than ever.

How to Get Away With Murder left us with a ridiculous cliffhanger to kick-start season three, which is expected from a Shonda Rhimes show. The law students of Annalise Keaton are now seasoned, getting away with a few immoral, unethical and illegal acts. After the undesirable occurrences of season two, Annalise is being targeted by an unknown presence, while a former associate remains loose that could shatter Annalise’s career. While the cast of misfits deal with their own difficult transitions, the lessons of law continue. One case after another, Keaton’s kids learn the ways on becoming a coldblooded lawyer like herself. While some fight against it, others have fallen into her unsavoury ways of solving life and career threatening challenges. l

Papa Roshan stands by ‘beta’ Roshan

Soha’s admiration for Bebo n Showtime Desk It came as no surprise when Kareena Kapoor Khan was seen completely at ease marching through her pregnancy like a tank. From flaunting her cute bump on the runway to endorsing

n Showtime Desk Several times in the past, we have seen parents of Bollywood stars to help their children through obstacles in their careers. Rakesh Roshan is one such father who stands by his son, Hrithik Roshan after his recent film, Mahenjo Daro failed at the box-office.

The big budget film was declared a failure after which, daddy Roshan has jumped to the rescue of his 42-year-old son, Hrithik Roshan. The directorproducer has taken a potshot at director Ashutosh Gowariker.

He blamed the bad visual effects for the film’s failure and added that things appeared too tacky towards the end of the film.

In an interview, senior Roshan said, “Though director Ashutosh Gowariker had a vision, what did not work were the last 20 minutes of the film. The VFX failed it, things appeared tacky. The last few reels of a film always stay in the audience’s mind, and that’s where the film did not work.”

When asked if Hrithik’s film was sidelined because of his controversial battle with

Kangana Ranaut, Roshan said, “What happens in an actor’s personal life doesn’t impact a film. A good film will do well.

Rustom was a good film. In the industry, anyone can side with anyone. Every family has their share of ups and downs, but as we are part of the industry, our turmoil gets highlighted. I know my son, and he has done no wrong. I stand by him.”

Roshan, who will soon work with Hrithik in Krrish 4, doesn’t want his son to be blamed for Mohenjo Daro’s poor performance at the box office. l

pregnancy kits, Bebo is absolutely rocking her pregnancy.

The beautiful actress who turned 36 two days ago, has indeed kept her word and proved everyone wrong by breaking the norm of pregnant actresses taking time off from their careers and has worked almost the entirety of her pregnancy. The Begum of Bollywood has found yet another admirer; her sister-in-law Soha Ali Khan has went on record to marvel

on Bebo’s feat.

Soha said, “(There is) a lot of excitement, of course! I am very excited for her. She is going to be a mother for the first time. She is looking beautiful, and she is really setting trends. I think she stands for something that is wonderful in today’s world. I have banker and lawyer friends, and they all work till their last trimester or till the eighth month even. Kareena is doing that as well. Why should celebrities be any different as long as she is healthy, which she is? So, I have a lot of respect for her.”

She added, “I am really excited for them because I think they make a beautiful couple.”

We too, wish that the Chhotey Nawab and his Begum have a beautiful, healthy child. l

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Showtime

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

exclusive

Black Zang on the mic n Rayan Quddus

Black Zang is probably one of the most hardworking rappers in Bangladesh. A few weeks ago, he ended his radio show, Planet Hip Hop, on its 100th episode, which left his fans baffled and heartbroken. On the other hand, his song “Bubli Bubli Bubli,” from a Shakib Khan movie, went viral, Khan lip-synced to the rap song.

any credit for the song. Hip hop fans around the country had a lot of questions about Zang. So, in order to clear everything out and break his silence, the rapper got in touch with Showtime.

Why did you end your radio show?

Don’t you think it’s a big blow to the hip-hop community?

I think ending with a 100 episodes under my belt was

to a certain extent, my show turned into a big platform, but you have to understand that I have other interests too. I cannot do everything alone. If there is someone else who wants to start another hip-hop radio show, he or she is more than welcome to.

So what new projects are you working on?

For now, I am working on a few solo tracks, which will be made public very soon. Also, clothing I designed will be coming out from my outlet, Black Diamond. I hope it turns out well. But the thing that I’m most excited about at the moment is a collaboration project with a rapper from California.

Can you elaborate on your collaboration project?

I’m working with a guy called MOGZ, on an experimental duo album named BangAngeles. He is a young Bengali talent from Los Angeles. A composer, rapper and a videographer; he’s a really talented kid. I don’t want to say any more about the album right now, but I can tell you that it won’t be out before next year.

Fans instantly recognised that it was Black Zang, rapping behind the scenes. But for some reason, the rapper was not publicly given

the perfect time to stop. Look, I was not only a radio host; I tried to help all the other people within the hip-hop scene. Yes

A lot of your fans are saying that you rapped a song in a Shakib Khan movie. Are the rumors true about you not getting due credit for the song?

Yes the rumors are true, I do rap for Bangla films, but it was a personal decision to not take credit for them. I just didn’t want to create a wrong impression. As an artist I experiment a lot. In order to keep experimenting, I

try to keep myself anonymous, at times.

But it is time for me to confess, and for the first time, I admit that I have worked on several playback songs over the years.

Hey, it actually feels great to have “King Khan” Shakib Khan lip-syncing to my flows.

Do you regret not taking credit those tracks?

Regret is not the right word; I would say that it was a certain miscalculation on my part. Given that I am a radio personality who raps, it might have had some positive effect on the underground scene. A lot of movie producers would have thought of calling more kids to rap in movies. But I think it is starting to happen. I don’t have any regrets; it’s just that, taking the credit might have boosted deshi hip hop. But I personally don’t care about being credited.

I just want to enjoy the work and learn new things. I’m very grateful for the response I got from my well-wishers. l

WHAT TO WATCH

Ant-Man Star Movies 9:30pm Armed with a super-suit with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, cat burglar Scott Lang must embrace his inner hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym, plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.

Cast: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll

Shooter HBO 9:30pm A marksman living in exile is coaxed back into action after learning of a plot to kill the President. Ultimately doublecrossed and framed for the attempt, he goes on the run to find the real killer and the reason he was set up.

Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Michael Pena, Rhona Mitra

Maleficent Zee Studio 9:30pm A vengeful fairy is driven to curse an infant princess, only to discover that the child may be the one person who can restore peace to their troubled land.

Cast: Angelina Jolie, Elle Fanning, Sharlto Copley

Non-Stop WB 9:00pm An air marshal springs into action during a transatlantic flight after receiving a series of text messages that put his fellow passengers at risk unless the airline transfers $150 million into an off-shore account.

Cast: Liam Neeson, Juilanne Moore, Scoot McNairy

The Dark Knight Rises Movies Now 9:30pm Eight years after the Joker’s reign of anarchy, the Dark Knight, with the help of the enigmatic Catwoman, 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, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway l

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Back Page

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

THE CITY OF MOSQUES PAGE 12

MOSADDEK KNOCK IN VAIN AS AFGHANISTAN WIN PAGE 24

NEW SEASON, NEW CHALLENGES PAGE 30

Owner, master of sunken Oishi sued, death toll 27 Rahman Swapan, n Anisur Barisal A case has been filed against the owner and master of launch ML Oishi, which capsized with about 60 passengers in Sandhya River at Dasherhaat point in Banaripara of Barisal district Wednesday morning.

As of Friday, the death toll from the capsize rose to 27 with four more bodies recovered.

Sub-inspector of Banaripara Police Jasim Uddin filed the case against launch owner Yusuf Hawlader and its master Nayon Mia Friday afternoon, said Officer-in-charge of the police station Ziaul Ahsan.

He said: “We recovered 24 bodies until Thursday evening of which one was from another sunken boat. We first thought it was of a passenger of the launch but it was from a boat which had sunk in the same area.”

The launch was salvaged Thursday around 8:30am, nearly 21 hours after its capsize. l

An aerial view shows a portion of Dhaka’s Balu River near Purbachal area being filled with sand, extending the river bank. Though river encroachment is illegal, influential people are taking the advantage of government lax on the issue and eventually narrowing the river. The photo was taken recently MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Egypt shipwreck death toll rises to 133 n Agencies The death toll from a migrant boat disaster off Egypt’s coast climbed to 133 on Friday as rescuers recovered more bodies from the Mediterranean.

The migrants’ boat capsized nearly 12km from the Nile Delta port city of Rosetta. The UNHCR estimated that the boat was packed with some 450 people, while the state news agency MENA said earlier that the number might be as high as 600 and some 150 people, mostly Egyptians, survived.

Survivors have said up to 450 migrants were on board the overcrowded fishing vessel that was heading to Italy from Egypt when it keeled over off the port city of Rosetta on Wednesday.

Egyptian Health Ministry official Adel Khalifa said 77 more bodies had been retrieved on Friday, raising the death toll to at least 133.

The military said it had rescued 169 survivors. Recovery attempts

People gather along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea during a search for victims after a migrant boat capsized, in Al-Beheira, Egypt on Thursday REUTERS were continuing.

Rescuers had said search operations would focus on the boat’s hold where witnesses said around

100 people had been when the vessel flipped over.

Authorities have arrested four suspected people traffickers over

the tragedy, the latest in what the UN refugee agency expects to be the deadliest year on record for the Mediterranean.

Prosecutors ordered the crew members jailed for four days while an investigation takes place. The rescued migrants have been released. Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail pledged the government’s full support for the continuing rescue mission and said those responsible must be brought to justice. The military said in a statement it was conducting the rescue operation.

The accident comes months after the EU border agency Frontex warned that growing numbers of Europe-bound migrants were using Egypt as a departure point for the dangerous voyage.

Traffickers often use barely seaworthy vessels and overload them to extract the maximum money in fares from desperate migrants.

The International Organisation for Migration said most of those

rescued were Egyptians but also included Sudanese, Eritreans, a Syrian and an Ethiopian.

After Balkan countries closed the popular overland route in March and the EU agreed a deal with Turkey to halt departures, asylum-seekers turned to other ways to reach Europe.

Frontex chief Fabrice Leggeri said in June that the crossing from Egypt to Italy, which often takes more than 10 days, was becoming increasingly popular.

The UN refugee agency said on Friday that more than 4,600 non-Egyptians, many of them Sudanese and Ethiopians, had been arrested this year trying to depart from Egypt’s northern coast.

More than 10,000 people have died attempting to cross the Mediterranean to Europe since 2014, according to the United Nations.

At least 300,000 migrants have crossed the sea so far this year from various points of departure, the UN had said this week. l

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