e_Paper, Friday, September 1, 2017

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2017 | Bhadra 17, 1424, Zil-Hajj 9, 1438 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 5, No 116 | 24 pages | Price: Tk10 

Rape on 

the road 

The brutal assault and killing of law 

student Jakia Rupa raises troubling 

questions about the safety of 

working women 

› 2 

Is your cow on drugs? › 3 

NOTICE 

All offices of the Dhaka Tribune will remain closed for three 

days from today for Eid. Therefore, there will be no issue of 

the daily on September 2, 3 and 4. However, our ONLINE service 

will be on to keep readers updated.

2 

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2017 

DT 

News 

Rape on the road 

Rupa was using her education to raise herself out of poverty. 

Her killers were uneducated, semiskilled and stuck in 

dead-end jobs. Then their worlds collided 

• Kamrul Hasan 

SPECIAL 

When Jakia Sultana Rupa returned 

to her village home for Eid last 

year, she promised her widowed 

mother: “Ma, wait a few months. 

I’m getting ready so I can take care 

of you. I’ll make sure our family is 

settled.” 

Rupa, 25 years old, was a middle 

child, the third of five children. 

But ever since her father, a farmer, 

died two years ago, she had taken 

responsibility as the breadwinner 

of the family. Her modest job as a 

marketing executive promoting 

consumer products for the local 

branch of a multinational company 

helped support her mother and 

younger siblings as well as pay for 

her law classes in Dhaka. She had 

lofty dreams of becoming a lawyer 

and helping the poor, her family 

and friends told the Dhaka Tribune. 

Rupa had promised her mother 

Hasna Hena that she when she 

came home for the Eid ul Azha holidays 

at the beginning of September, 

she would take Hena to see a 

specialist at Rajshahi Medical College 

Hospital. 

Those dreams were shattered on 

September 2 when she was brutally 

raped and murdered on a moving 

bus on the road to her workplace in 

Mymensingh. 

“She took a job to support us, 

her job took her life,” Hasna Hena 

said from a bed in Tarash health 

complex where she was admitted 

after the shocking death of her 

daughter. 

What happened on that dark, 

rainy night of August 25 has shaken 

the nation, sparked protests 

by rights activists and led many 

to question whether Bangladeshi 

society has failed to address the 

vulnerability of working women, 

especially those who have to travel 

solo. 

RAPE ON THE ROAD: WOMEN ASSAULTED IN PUBLIC TRANSPORT 

● In 2014, a young woman was gang-raped on a moving bus named 

Shuvechchha Paribahan 

● In 2015, a garment worker was raped by a bus driver and a helper 

● In 2016, two sisters were gang-raped in a moving bus 

owned by Sheba Paribahan in Barisal 

● Three months later, a garment worker was raped by a Binimoy Paribahan 

bus driver and helper while going to Dhaka from Tangail 

● A teenager was raped by a bus driver and two helpers in January 2017 

Despite growing up in 

a conservative village 

in the Tarash Upazila 

of Sirajganj district in 

Rajshahi division, Rupa 

had always been selfreliant 

and proactive 

‘I have to get to work’ 

Rupa’s younger sister Popy said 

on Friday morning Rupa told me 

that she was going Bogra to attend 

Non-Government Teachers’ Registration 

and Certification examination. 

After passing the day there, 

she decided to start for Mymensingh, 

where she worked, after 5pm. 

Reaching the bus station, she 

boarded a bus belonging to Chowa 

Paribahan. On the back of the bus, 

in large letters, was the word ‘Nirapod’ 

or Safe. 

The bus passed through Sirajganj, 

her home district. While she 

was having her supper at Sirajganj 

around 8pm, she again called Popy. 

Hearing Rupa was at Sirajganj, she 

advised Rupa to go to her village 

at Tarash for the night and resume 

her journey early Saturday. 

But Rupa said starting from 

Tarash might delay her a lot and 

she might lose her job. “I have to 

get to work,” she told her sister. 

She assured Popy that a male acquaintance 

was traveling with her 

and that she would be fine. 

So she continued her journey. 

“Sometimes it feels that if I could 

insist a little more she might be 

alive today,” Popy said. 

By the time the bus reached the 

Bangabandhu Bridge on the Jamuna 

river, all the passengers had got 

off one by one. Rupa’s male colleague 

had also reached his destination 

and departed. As the bus 

crossed the Jamuna, Rupa was the 

only passenger left. 

There were five men in the bus, 

the driver, a supervisor and three 

‘helpers’. Usually a bus like this 

carries three staff members, but on 

the Chowa Paribahan bus, two additional 

men were present. 

In confessional statements given 

to the police, the driver and supervisor 

described in chilling detail 

how Rupa was assaulted and then 

murdered. 

As the bus sped through the 

night, one of the helpers, Shamim 

approached Rupa. Sensing his intention, 

she offered him her mobile 

phone and Tk.5,000 in cash she 

had with her. He took the money 

and the money phone. Then he and 

the other two helpers, one just 19 

years old, dragged Rupa to the rear 

of the moving bus and took turns to 

rape her. 

When she screamed and fought 

back, one of the men took a wheel 

jack and proceeded to smash Rupa’s 

face with it to render her unrecognisable. 

By that time, the 

flat rice fields had changed to the 

dense Shaal trees of Madhupur 

forest. The killers threw her bloodsoaked 

body out of the bus, hoping 

it would look like a road traffic accident. 

Similar backgrounds 

There is striking similarity between 

the backgrounds of Rupa and her 

killers. They all grew up in poverty. 

All five bus staff were born and 

raised in Mymensingh. Sons of 

farmers, they had little or no education. 

Staff members of Chowa 

Paribahan said they were often resentful 

and rebellious, especially 

the younger ‘helpers’ 

Among them three – Jahangir 

alam, Akram Hossain and Shamim 

confessed to the rape and killing 

while the bus driver Habibur 

Rahman, supervisor Safar Ali alias 

Genda said they saw how the crime 

took place but they did not participate 

in the rape. All the arrestees 

were sent to jail by the court. 

But despite coming from comparable 

backgrounds, Rupa’s path 

had taken an upward curve. 

Despite growing up in a conservative 

village in the Tarash 

Upazila of Sirajganj district in Rajshahi 

division, Rupa had always 

been self-reliant and proactive. 

When her poverty-stricken father 

couldn’t support her studies, she 

took tuition at Tk100 per student. 

She wanted to establish her 

younger brother Ujjal Pramanik 

in business and her younger sister 

Mahfuza Sultana Popy married her 

off to a decent family. 

“She promised these to me 

during the last Eid festival,” her 

mother said between sobs. “But 

her promised has been broken. All 

her desire remain unfulfilled. Now 

I don’t who would care for me,” she 

said. 

Her elder brother Hafizur Rahman 

has a small grocery of shop in 

front of their tin-roofed house that 

could barely support the family. 

“We relied on Rupa,” Hafizur said. 

“She was a woman but as strong in 

spirit and courage as any man.” 

Her younger sister Popy passed 

honours examination this year and 

Rupa managed to ger her a job at 

her company in Jamalpur branch. 

PHOTOS: COLLECTED 

Rupa’s childhood friend Obaidul 

Huq told the Dhaka Tribune that 

Rupa was a very decent, energetic 

but introverted girl. “She talked 

little but had a very good quality 

to make friends twith all,” he said. 

“Everyone in the village lover her. 

She was an example for others.” 

Assistant Professor of Accident 

Research Institute, Kazi Shaifun 

Newaz said transport workers 

worked long hours in a macho environment 

which encouraged road 

rage incidents and unhealthy competition 

on the road. They were 

also forced to be away from their 

families for long periods which 

might encourage antisocial behaviour. 

Bangladesh Bus-Truck Owner 

Association Chairman and also the 

Managing Director of Sohag Paribahan 

told the Dhaka Triune that 

to avoid such incident “we have 

already urged the owners of the 

bus, to verify the background and 

criminal record of a person before 

employing them.” 

Women’s rights activist Ayesha 

Khanam said women have come 

forward in large numbers in Bangladesh 

and are playing an integral 

role in improving the socioeconomic 

conditions of the country. 

“Violence against working women 

is too common. This cannot continue. 

We have to ensure the safety 

of working women.” •

News 

FRIDAY, 

3 

SEPTEMBER 1, 2017 

DT 

Cattle sales peak as prices drop after rain 

• Abu Hayat Mahmud 

CURRENT AFFAIRS 

With just a single day in hand before 

Eid-ul-Azha, the cattle markets 

in Dhaka gained momentum 

yesterday, especially after a spate 

of heavy rain in the morning. 

Since then, the markets started 

being flooded with customers and 

in the afternoon they became full 

to the brim with more customers 

still thronging there. 

A significant fall in cattle prices 

and the last day in the capital before 

Eid holidays intensified the crowd 

in the cattle markets, traders said. 

According to the cattle traders 

and market leaseholders, a growing 

supply of Indian cows pulled 

down the prices greatly. 

A good number of buyers were 

seen in Galtoli cattle market catching 

a glimpse of sacrificial animals 

and bargaining with the traders 

over price. 

The same situation was also noticed 

in a makeshift cattle market 

on the free space of Eastern Housing 

in Mirpur 6. 

“I have come here [Gabtoli] after 

the rain to buy two cows at Tk2 

lakh,” said Afsar Uddin, a resident 

of West Rajabazar. 

He finally bought two local 

cows, weighing around 140kg each, 

for Tk182,000 including 5% hasil 

(cattle market fees). 

According to him, the traders 

were charging exorbitantly in the 

morning, but they were asking a bit 

The average price 

of a cow weighing 

around 100kg is 

Tk60,000, which 

is not very high 

compared to last year 

lower prices after the rain as more 

cows were being brought there. 

They said the traders were 

forced to reduce the prices fearing 

losses if their cattle remain unsold 

as there was only one day left. 

Khabir, a cattle trader at Mirpur 

6, said: “We have just a day to go 

before Eid and rain appears to be 

posing a great threat to us. 

“Considering the overall situation, 

we have decided to sell our 

cattle at a reasonable price.” 

Khabir, who came from Rajshahi, 

said the prices will fall even 

drastically on Friday, the last day 

of the three-day Eid cattle market 

in Dhaka. 

Earlier on Wednesday, customers 

and traders termed the prices reasonable, 

though some traders set the 

asking price at an exorbitant level. 

The average price of a cow weighing 

around 100kg is Tk60,000, 

which is not very high compared to 

last year, market insiders and several 

customers said. 

Many traders and leaseholders 

even said cattle prices were lower 

than those of last year. 

They attributed the situation to a 

huge supply of local cattle, flood in 

the northern districts and increased 

import of sacrificial animals from 

bordering India and Myanmar. 

While visiting Gabtoli, Hazaribagh 

and Kamrangirchar cattle 

markets on Wednesday, this reporter 

found a large number of 

farmers with their animals – local, 

Indian and Burmese cows, buffaloes, 

camels and goats, mostly 

from the western and northern 

parts of the country. 

A camel was also available at 

Gabtoli for Tk10 lakh. 

The traders were asking Tk1.5 

lakh for a sheep, while the average 

price of a medium-sized goat stood 

at Tk20,000. 

Besides Gabtoli, 19 other authorised 

makeshift markets have 

been erected around the city. • 

Is your cow on drugs? 

• Shahed Shafiq 


Buyers are panic-stricken 

about buying healthy cows for 

Eid-ul-Azha, many of whom 

are expressing confusion on 

whether cows are on steroids. 

After massive promotion 

on the negative impact of eating 

artifically fattened cows, 

mass awareness has been 

raised. As a result, people are 

demanding to know about 

cows before buying. 

Many abnormally healthy 

cows have been seen around 

the capital. Though sellers 

are not admitting to their 

cows being on steroids, they 

say there are cows on steroids 

in the haats. 

Dangerous hormones are 

given to cows in the form 

of steroids – Hydroctrition, 

Decrmithusan, Cortisol, 

Bitamithasone, and Prudenicon 

– in the hopes of profit. 

The animals are given medicines 

that are five to ten 

times more powerful than 

their limits. Dhaka South City 

Corporation Veterinarian Dr 

Azmat Ali said: “Water stored 

in the body of the animals 

swell up. Eating meat of such 

animals can cause sickness.” 

Md Sharif, leaseholder of 

Meradiya Haat, said: “Because 

of the flood, sellers 

brought their cows to Dhaka 

a week beforehand. Now if 

someone does something at 

the haat, he will be caught. 

Though this was a common 

incident few years ago, people 

are conscious today. Buyers 

can identify such cows. 

Despite the fact, there could 

still be a few cases.” 

Veterinarians say that if a 

cow on steroids is not slaughtered 

within a certain period of 

time, it will die. This is because 

dangerous chemical hormones 

are inserted in every part of 

its body. Even if the meat is 

cooked, the chemicals still remain 

dangerous. Meat with 

DHAKA TRIBUNE 

steroids in it can cause damage 

to kidney, liver, cancer and the 

eyes. Immunity to diseases 

massively decreases as well. 

Identification traits 

The animals on steroids are 

usually very silent. They will 

not be able to even move 

properly. The thighs will be 

swelled up, but it is actually 

filled with water. If the area 

is pressed, it will leave an impression. 

These animals need 

to be kept in a cool place because 

they cannot tolerate 

heat. Breathing becomes irregular. 

Even the ribs are visible 

through the skin. 

On the other hand, cows 

not under the influence of 

any drugs are very active. 

The skin color is bright. If 

hands are placed on them, 

they will move. These traits 

are not visible in artificially 

fattened cows. • 

This article was first published 

on banglatribune.com

4 


DT 

News 

Top advisers in more displays of disagreement with Trump 

• Reuters, Washington, DC 

WORLD 

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis 

openly differed with his commander 

in chief over North Korea on 

Wednesday, the latest example of 

a once-rare public display of disagreement 

by top US aides that has 

become more frequent under President 

Donald Trump. 

“We are never out of diplomatic 

solutions,” Mattis told reporters, 

just hours after Trump said in a 

tweet that “talking is not the answer” 

to the standoff over North 

Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile 

programmes. 

His public contradiction of 

Trump’s position came a day after 

the Pentagon chief, a retired fourstar 

Marine general, appeared to 

delay implementation of Trump’s 

decision to ban transgender people 

from enlisting in the military. 

Mattis was also among the 

senior aides, including Secretary 

of State Rex Tillerson and White 

House economic adviser Gary 

Cohn, who implicitly criticized the 

Republican president’s response 

to violence at a rally organized by 

white nationalists in Charlottesville, 

Virginia, earlier this month. 

Presidents often disagree with 

senior advisers over policies or 

other matters but the differences 

are usually confined to internal 

deliberations and become public 

only through leaks or much later 

in memoirs, historians and former 

government officials said. 

Asked in a television interview 

on Sunday whether Trump’s initial 

comments blaming “many sides” 

for the violence in Charlottesville 

instead of focusing on neo-Nazis 

and white nationalists raised questions 

about his values, Tillerson 

said simply: “The president speaks 

for himself.” 

‘Best advice’ 

Mattis has repeatedly made clear 

that diplomacy – backed by a credible 

military option – is the only way 

to prevent the North Korea crisis 

from escalating into a potentially 

devastating conflict. 

• Arifur Rahman Rabbi 

MILITANCY 

When asked about Mattis’ comments 

on Wednesday, chief Pentagon 

spokesperson Dana White 

said: “Secretary Mattis provides 

the President with his best advice. 

It is the President who makes the 

ultimate decisions.” 

Leon Panetta, who served as 

defence secretary and CIA director 

under former Democratic president 

Barack Obama, said the airing 

of differences inside the Trump 

administration had its roots in the 

president’s habit of sharing his 

opinions in Twitter posts. • 

Faction of New JMB now active 

as Brigade Ad-Dar-e-Kutni 

MEHEDI HASAN 

Banned militant outfit Jama’atul 

Mujahidin Bangladesh’s 

(JMB) Sarwar-Tamim 

Group is now active as Brigade 

Ad-Dar-e-Kutni, according to 

Rapid Action Battalion (RAB). 

High-level leader of the 

group, Imam Mehedi Hassan 

was responsible for recruiting 

members and finance under 

radicalising young men and 

preparing them for hizrat 

(breaking off old ties to walk 

the path towards God) before 

the militant attack in Holey 

Artisan Bakery, RAB said, adding 

that he is now leading the 

new group. 

Three members of this faction 

had been arrested from 

Tangail on Wednesday, and 

the new name of the group 

emerged after they were interrogated. 

The arrestees were Md Abdul 

Mannan, Md Shamsher Fakir 

and Johurul Kha, all of them 

were living in Bhuapur upazila 

of Tangail. They worked as carpenters 

in Bhuapur. 

Speaking at a press conference 

yesterday, Lt Col Tuhin 

Mohammad Masud, the commanding 

officer (CO) of RAB 

3 said: “From our primary interrogation 

we have learned 

that a Mohakhali-based radical 

group was employed to 

reform the New JMB’s Sarwar-Tamim 

faction under the 

leadership of Imam Mehedi. 

The brigade is planning an 

attack by radicalising and encouraging 

the new members.” 

Tuhin Mohammad Masud 

claimed that the arrestees had 

acknowledged that they were 

active members of banned 

militant outfit New JMB’s Sarwar-Tamim 

faction and were 

prepared to launch attacks 

around the country following 

the command of Imam Mehedi. 

He said the arrestees had 

also taken an oath at Md Abdul 

Mannan’s home in Bhuapur 

to be militants under the 

leadership of Imam Mehedi. 

RAB had found video footage 

of the oath-taking ceremony 

at the house which was being 

distributed on social media 

as a means to radicalise more 

young men. 

“Primarily we know that 

Brigade Ad-Dar-e-Kutni is 

a faction of New JMB Sarwar-Tamim 

group and it was 

formed by Imam Mehedi. He 

was trying to reorganise the 

members and motivate them 

through this brigade,” CO 

Masud said. 

The RAB official also said 

there was about eight more 

people seen taking oath on 

the video and they are working 

to identify and find those 

individuals. 

Meanwhile, RAB 11 has arrested 

another member of the 

Sarwar-Tamim group named 

Ismail Hossain alias Atar Ali 

alias Shamim. He is one of the 

accused in a case filed under 

the Anti-Terrorism Act 2009 

with the Fatullah police station 

in Narayanganj district. •

News 5 


Fleeing the Rakhine state into death’s cold embrace 

DT 

• Adil Sakhawat, Teknaf 


As the gunfire from automatic rifles and 

whoop-whoop-whoop from helicopters 

overhead rose to a deafening cacophony of 

panic and dread, 17 members of the Rohingya 

community fled for their lives. 

On the shores of Bay of Bengal, they 

boarded a boat, hoping to find a moment of 

reprieve in Bangladesh. 

Like a raindrop which loses itself when it 

falls upon the ground, the hopes of the refugees 

were obliterated, when the boat sank in 

its perilous voyage. 

Abdullah, a Rohingya man who fled 

to Bangladesh on Monday, was waiting 

for his wife and their two-year-old son to 

meet him. He had last heard from them on 

the night of August 29, when she told him 

they were boarding a boat to Bangladesh 

after paying MMK 10,000 (Burmese currency 

equal to roughly Tk590). He waited for 

hours, and hours, as worry ate away at him. 

Abdullah inquired about incoming boats to 

every middleman who helped the Rohingya 

escape. 

When he heard from a boatman that the 

bodies of Rohingyas had been found at sea, an 

invisible fist drove into his chest cavity. 

The boat had capsized near Shah Pori 

Dwip in Teknaf, roughly 100km from Cox’s 

Bazar. 

Early Wednesday morning, a Bangladeshi 

was performing her prayers in her house in 

Shah Porir Dwip. After her morning prayers, 

she walked out of the house, and found the 

dead bodies of a woman and a child. They 

were not the only one. 500 metres south, another 

mother lay dead with her son. 

Abdullah now lives with a pain that makes 

the bitterness of regret seem like honey. 

“I should have brought them with me 

when I crossed the border. The army burned 

down our villages and killed our people. My 

family fled in one direction, I ran in another 

direction. We remained in touch till they got 

on the boat.” 

When Abdullah examined the bodies, it 

did not assuage his heart to find that they 

were not his family. He said he knows his 

family is dead, because they were on that 

very boat which capsized. His wife and 

child remain missing, just like his hopes and 

dreams. 

The bodies of the mother-son pairs remained 

on the beach, draped by black polythene 

sheets like shrouds. 

As the day grew, more and more onlookers 

gathered, muttering to each other: 

“God knows how much pain they had to go 

through.” 

A woman called Shamima was cradling 

her own child as she whispered: “Who can 

tell what a mother feels when she can’t save 

her baby.” 

Rohingya refugees identified the bodies 

and lamented that neither the Border Guard 

Bangladesh nor Teknaf police were assuming 

responsibility for the bodies and left them on 

the beach, till late Wednesday. 

BGB 2 Battalion Commanding Officer SM 

Ariful Islam said Teknaf police will dispose of 

the bodies, right after they make a decision. 

Boatman Mohammad Solim told the Dhaka 

Tribune that many of his fellow boatmen 

confirmed that a boat had sunk with more 

than a dozen on board. 

Stranded 

Over 600 Rohingyas, including 187 new arrivals 

this week, are stranded in Shah Porir 

Dwip. This includes three with gunshot 

wounds, mothers with newborns, the sickly 

and the diseased. 

About 100 refugees are taking shelter in 

a small local mosque where they survive on 

aid from locals who bring fresh water, dry 

food and basic medicine. Despite their poor 

state, they remain confined by the BGB. 

The interior of the mosque reeks of disease 

and death. The pungent malodour of 

infected wounds and sores assail the nostrils 

of any new visitors. The Rohingya lie 

on mats of palm leaves. There is no special 

treatment for mothers, infants or the 

wounded. 

Rohingya refugees are arriving every day to the Bangladesh border 

The more aged members of the community 

sit in a corner and weep silently, horrified 

at their experience. 

Every one of these Rohingyas escaped 

ADIL SAKHAWAT 

from villages in Southern Maungdaw. All 

throughout Wednesday, they gazed out 

across the river at the smoke rising from their 

villages. • 

This Rohingya woman and her child were found dead on the shores of Shah Porir Dwip 

ADIL SAKHAWAT 

TEMPERATURE FORECAST FOR TODAY 

Dhaka 34 27 Chittagong 32 27 Rajshahi 32 27 Rangpur 31 26 Khulna 32 26 Barisal 32 27 Sylhet 30 25 

Cox’s Bazar 30 26 

HEAVY RAIN LIKELY 


DHAKA 

TODAY 

TOMORROW 

SUN SETS 6:17PM 

SUN RISES 5:40AM 

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW 

35ºC 24.8ºC 

Rajshahi 

Patuakhali 

Source: Accuweather/UNB 

PRAYER 

TIMES 

Fajr: 5:05am | Jumma: 1:15pm 

Asr: 5:00pm | Magrib: 6:26pm 

Esha: 8:15pm 

Source: Islamic Foundation

6 


DT 

News 

‘We’re committed to provide 

the best 4G services’ 

In an exclusive interview with the Dhaka Tribune’s Ishtiaq Husain, 

Banglalink Digital Communication Ltd CEO Erik Aas discusses the mobile 

phone operator’s future plans for the country’s telecommunication sector 

South Asia 

floods kill 

1,200, shut 

1.8m children 

out of school 

• Tribune Desk 

WORLD 

INTERVIEW 

Last month, VEON CEO showed 

interest in investing $1 billion in 

Bangladesh. Tell us a little about it. 

VEON [Netherlands-based company 

which holds majority share in Global 

Telecom Holding – the company 

that owns Banglalink] is committed 

to invest over $1 billion in Bangladesh 

over the next three years, and 

more than half of that money is exclusively 

for network upgrade. The 

work for network upgrade is already 

in progress: around 90% of the tower 

sites have already been converted 

to support 3G technology. The rest 

will be completed by the end of this 

year. This ultimately leads to more 

innovative digital services, better 

customer experience and a digital 

life in true sense. 

What do you think of the present 

state of the telecommunication 

sector in Bangladesh? 

Bangladesh is undoubtedly one 

of the fastest growing markets 

for telecom business. A survey of 

Bangladesh Telecommunication 

Regulatory Commission (BTRC) 

has revealed that the numbers of 

mobile and internet users have 

increased by 9.6 million and 5.9 

million, respectively, in the last six 

months. The smartphone penetration 

is close to 30% and have been 

increasing at a commendable rate. 

This shows the dynamic nature of 

the market. We also welcome the 

upcoming auction of 4G and are 

interested in participating in it. We 

would also like to ensure that our 

Bangladeshi customers always get 

updated with the latest technology. 

Do you think 4G services will 

attract new customers? What is 

your expectation in that regard? 

With smartphone penetration at 

30% and the rapid growth in the 

IoT [Internet of Things] adoption 

and usage, there is a dire need for 

fast internet, and the most prominent 

aspect of 4G technology is 

faster speed. Nowadays, almost 

everyone has a device in the palm 

of their hands. In these circumstances, 

4G has the space to come 

into play to satisfy the need for reliable 

and fast internet for an engaging 

digital life. And we’re committed 

to provide the best 4G services. 

What are the new aspects of 

mobile services that consumers 

can experience through 4G 

technology? 

As I said before, the most prominent 

aspect of 4G is faster speed. 

Banglalink believes that the future 

is digital, and it is always catering 

to its customers with superior services 

as they step into the digital 

world. The ever-evolving telecom 

world has always been influenced 

by the progressive and competitive 

technologies. Technology has 

transformed our lifestyle and ultimately 

has made everything much 

easier and faster. It has turned the 

world into a global village where 

physical presence is not required 

any more. More and more Bangladeshis 

connect to the internet with 

their smartphones, which opens 

up boundless possibilities. Today, 

people spend a lot of time online 

via their mobile phones, sharing 

their lives on Facebook, or searching 

for information. In the digital 

world of tomorrow, they will use 

their smartphone to do their online 

shopping, read the news, stream 

music, learn about new topics, 

watch films, electronically transfer 

money and manage their mobile 

accounts. As our mobile markets 

are shifting from voice to data, we 

believe many lifestyle services also 

have to move on to a digital dimension 

as well. Banglalink aims 

to enable its customers to get the 

best out of the digital future and 

creating a true digital ecosystem in 

providing products that suits the 

customers’ demands. 

How do you plan to draw in 

potential customers? 

Society is getting more and more 

digitalised every day, and people 

are gradually adapting to this form 

of life. There is an organic shift towards 

a more enabling digital life 

where healthcare, education and 

financial inclusion will be brought 

into everyone’s hands. This organic 

need will bring customers to the 

doors of 4G. 

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU 

Is the existing spectrum enough 

for the provision of 4G services in 

Bangladesh? 

I cannot speak for other operators, 

but in Banglalink we need more 

spectrum to offer the best services. 

Allocation of spectrum is a critical 

issue for Banglalink, because at 

present it has the least amount of 

spectrum in the market. To serve a 

significant number of Bangladeshi 

mobile phone users with minimal 

amount of spectrum is a big challenge, 

which also has a negative 

impact on the entire telecommunication 

sector. Banglalink looks 

forward to working with the regulator 

on securing the additional 

spectrum at the earliest opportunity, 

thus it will be able to continue 

to meet its quality of service 

obligations and offer better services 

to consumers throughout the 

country. I also believe that to offer 

LTE/4G services, operators need to 

be convinced on the business case 

which is fairly depending on getting 

the spectrum neutrality across 

all bands from the regulator. 

What is the potential deadline for 

Banglalink to launch 4G services in 

Bangladesh? 

We have already stated that our 

operations to set up 4G are underway. 

As soon as Banglalink gets the 

licence and all legal issues are sorted, 

it will be ready to launch 4G. 

The BTRC recently announced 

that it would award three tower 

company licences. What are your 

thoughts on that? 

We welcome the BTRC’s decision. 

Banglalink believes in offloading 

its tower assets as those are not 

the core business of operators any 

longer, and concentrating on providing 

best digital services to its 

consumers. Banglalink also believes 

that if its towers could be 

bought and serviced by experienced 

tower companies, it could 

use those proceedings to invest in 

buying spectrum, upgrading network 

and providing world-class 

digital services. • 

Heavy monsoon rains have brought 

Mumbai to a halt for a second day 

as the worst floods to strike south 

Asia in years continued to exact a 

deadly toll. 

More than 1,200 people have 

died across India, Bangladesh and 

Nepal as a result of flooding, with 

40 million affected by the devastation. 

At least six people, including 

two toddlers, were among the victims 

in and around India’s financial 

capital, the Guardian reports. 

The devastating floods have 

also destroyed or damaged 18,000 

schools, meaning that about 1.8 

million children cannot go to 

classes, Save the Children warned 

on Thursday. 

The charity said that hundreds 

of thousands of children could fall 

permanently out of the school system 

if education was not prioritised 

in relief efforts. 

“We haven’t seen flooding on 

this scale in years and it’s putting 

the long-term education of an 

enormous number of children at 

great risk. From our experience, 

the importance of education is 

often under-valued in humanitarian 

crises and we simply cannot let 

this happen again. We cannot go 

backwards,” said Rafay Hussain, 

Save the Children’s general manager 

in Bihar state. 

On Wednesday, police said a 

45-year-old woman and a one-yearold 

child, members of the same 

family, had died after their home in 

the north-eastern suburb of Vikhroli 

crumbled late on Tuesday, and a 

two-year-old girl had died in a wall 

collapse. 

The rains have led to flooding 

in a broad arc stretching across the 

Himalayan foothills in Bangladesh, 

Nepal and India, causing landslides, 

damaging roads and electric towers 

and washing away tens of thousands 

of homes and vast swaths of 

farmland. 

The International Federation 

of the Red Cross and Red Crescent 

Societies (IFRC) says the fourth significant 

floods this year have affected 

more than 7.4 million people in 

Bangladesh, damaging or destroying 

more than 697,000 houses. 

The IFRC, working with the Bangladesh 

Red Crescent Society and 

the Nepal Red Cross, has launched 

appeals to support almost 200,000 

vulnerable people with immediate 

relief and long-term help with water 

and sanitation, health and shelter.•

News 

FRIDAY, 

7 

SEPTEMBER 1, 2017 

DT 

First-ever solar 

plant connects 

to national grid 

• Aminur Rahman Rasel 

POWER 

A solar power plant has begun 

supplying electricity to the 

national grid for the first time 

as part of the government’s 

green energy initiative to cut 

carbon emissions. 

The 3MW plant was constructed 

on a “build, own and 

operate” basis on eight acres of 

land at Sarishabari in Jamalpur 

by a local company, Engreen 

Sharishabari Solar Plant Ltd. 

“We are proud that for the 

first time in the country’s 

history, power from a solar 

plant is being supplied to the 

national grid,” said Engreen 

chief executive officer, Zahidul 

Alam. 

“We have established the 

plant as part of the government 

renewable energy programme 

and hope the power 

generated here will help new 

consumers get connections.” 

On February 2015, the Power 

Development Board (PDB) 

signed a power purchase 

agreement with Engreen for 

the construction of a 3 megawatt 

grid-tied solar plant. 

The plant is now supplying 

power to the PDB in the 

Sarishabari 33/11 KV sub-grid 

station area at a per unit rate 

of 0.1897 US cents, equivalent 

to Tk14.74. 

The state-owned PDB will 

continue to buy power from 

the plant for the next 20 years. 

PDB Director (Renewable 

Energy) Sheik Nazmul Haq 

told the Dhaka Tribune that the 

newly-constructed solar plant 

began supplying power to the 

national grid on August 3 this 

year on a trial basis, but was 

now operating commercially. 

“The government has decided 

to establish a good 

number of renewable energy-based 

power plants under 

its green power project to reduce 

carbon emissions and 

protect the environment from 

the changing climate,” he said. 

The government is currently 

working to install solar 

panel-based power projects 

connected with the national 

grid, which will have a 572MW 

capacity. • 

BGMEA seeks one 

more year to shift 

HQ from Hatirjheel 



Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers 

and Exporters Association 

(BGMEA) has pleaded 

for a one-year extension to 

shift its headquarters from 

Hatirjheel, BSS reports. 

“BGMEA needs another 

year to relocate its Hatirjheel 

headquarters. We have filed a 

plea with the Supreme Court 

seeking the extension,” said 

BGMEA lawyer Barrister Imtiaj 

Moinul Islam. 

On March 12, the Appellate 

Division of the Supreme Court 

granted BGMEA six months to 

demolish its complex located 

on Hatirjheel-Begunbari 

Lake, rejecting a plea of the 

RMG producers’ seeking three 

years’ time. 

On March 5, BGMEA lost 

its most recent legal battle 

to keep its structure intact 

on the scenic water body as 

the Appellate Division rejected 

its plea, seeking review of 

its judgement that upheld an 

earlier High Court verdict, ordering 

the demolition. 

On that day, the Appellate 

Division described the structure 

as a “cancer” that stands 

on the Hatirjheel Lake. 

In 2011, the High Court ordered 

the 16-storey building to 

be demolished as it was illegally 

constructed. 

BGMEA later filed a leave to 

appeal petition with the Appellate 

Division against the High 

Court judgement. 

However, the apex court 

on June 2, 2016 dismissed the 

plea and asked the BGMEA to 

raze its headquarters. 

The court order read: “The 

petitioner is directed to demolish 

the building, namely the BG- 

MEA Complex, located on the 

Begunbari khal and Hatirjheel 

Lake at once, at its own cost.” • 

Like what you’re reading? 

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Dhaka Tribune

8 


DT 

News 

Mumbai building 

collapses after heavy 

rains, 12 killed 


WORLD 

At least 12 people died yesterday 

when a building collapsed 

in India’s financial capital 

Mumbai following heavy rains 

that have wreaked havoc in 

many parts of South Asia. 

More than a dozen others 

were pulled from the rubble 

of the four-storey residential 

building, which gave 

way around 0310 GMT in the 

densely populated area of 

Bhendi Bazaar. 

It was the most recent deadly 

housing collapse to strike 

the metropolis – shining a 

spotlight on poor construction 

standards in the Asian country 

– and came after flooding in 

the city killed 10 people. 

“Twelve people have died 

including three women and 

nine men. Rescue operations 

are ongoing,” Vijay Khabale- 

Patil, a spokesman for Mumbai’s 

civic authority, said. 

Ambulances rushed more 

than a dozen injured to the 

nearby JJ Hospital while locals 

joined a 43-member NDRF 

team in picking through piles 

of debris in a desperate hunt 

for survivors. 

“I can confirm that 11 people 

are dead and 15 have been 

brought here injured, including 

three who are in a critical 

condition,” the dean of the 

hospital, T P Lahane, said. 

Building collapses are common 

in Mumbai, especially 

during the monsoon season 

from late June to September, 

when heavy rains lash the 

western Indian city, weakening 

poorly built structures. 

Severe downpours caused 

flooding and chaos across 

Mumbai and the neighbouring 

region of Thane on Tuesday although 

waters had receded by 

late Wednesday. • 

www.bpsc.gov.bd

News 

9 


DT 

Seoul trains 

special forces 

to assassinate 

Kim Jong-Un 


WORLD 

South Korea is reportedly training 

its special forces to track down and 

assassinate Kim Jong-un and his 

closest advisers if the North starts a 

war, the Independent reports. 

The strategy is part of a raft of 

measures by Seoul to “switch to 

an offensive posture” if the rogue 

state attacks, according to a government 

document reported in 

South Korean media. 

It also plans to identify and 

eliminate 1,000 primary targets 

– including nuclear weapons and 

missile launch facilities – at the 

same time as halting a strike from 

the dictatorship, reports say. 

South Korean president Moon 

Jae-in was reportedly briefed by 

his Defence Ministry over the rejigged 

blueprint after he instructed 

officials to put an offensive military 

plan into place. 

They discussed their revised 

strategy just a day before Pyongyang 

fired a ballistic missile over 

Japan on Tuesday, with Donald 

Trump later saying “all options are 

now on the table”. 

Moon said South Korea’s military 

should be ready to “quickly 

switch to an offensive posture in 

case North Korea stages a provocation 

that crosses the line or attacks 

the capital region”, the Chosun Ilbo 

newspaper reported. 

It comes amid joint military 

drills this week by both Seoul and 

Washington that the authorities 

tout as defensive exercises in the 

event of a strike by North Korea. 

The Ulchi-Freedom Guardian 

is an annual operation which previously 

involved training for land 

and sea missions. About 17,500 US 

troops are taking part in the current 

drill, according to Seoul’s defence 

ministry. 

But the so-called defensive exercises 

are described by analysts as 

“decapitation missions” to target 

Kim, with some saying they believe 

that if the leader is assassinated or 

captured his armed forces could 

surrender. 

The claims the training missions 

are offensive in nature rather than 

reactionary have picked up pace 

since members of the US Navy’s 

Seal Team Six took part in separate 

exercises with South Korean special 

forces in March. 

The suspected “decapitation 

plan” to target the dictator and his 

senior deputies first came to light 

when Washington and Seoul started 

their joint training drills in 2015 

in exercises named as “Operation 

Plan 5015”. •

10 


DT 

Advertisement

News 11 


DT 

Benazir Bhutto, left, and Pervez Musharraf 

Pervez Musharraf 

declared fugitive 

in ex-Pakistan PM 

Bhutto’s murder trial 

• AFP, Rawalpindi 

WORLD 

A Pakistani court Thursday 

branded former military ruler 

Pervez Musharraf a fugitive 

in ex-prime minister Benazir 

Bhutto’s murder trial, but acquitted 

five men accused of 

being involved in the 2007 assassination. 

The verdicts are the first 

to be issued since Bhutto, the 

first female prime minister of a 

Muslim country, was killed in 

a gun and suicide bomb attack 

nearly a decade ago, sparking 

street violence and plunging 

Pakistan into months of political 

turmoil. 

Former president and military 

ruler Musharraf is alleged 

to have been part of a broad 

conspiracy to have his political 

rival killed before elections. He 

has denied the allegation. 

He was charged with murder, 

criminal conspiracy for 

murder, and facilitation for 

murder in 2013, in an unprecedented 

move against an ex-army 

chief, challenging beliefs 

Eid-ul-Azha at the 

Westin Dhaka 


METRO 

AFP 

the military is immune from 

prosecution. 

But he has been in self-imposed 

exile in Dubai ever since 

a travel ban was lifted three 

years later. 

The anti-terrorism court in 

Rawalpindi ruled he had “absconded”, 

a court official told 

reporters outside, saying it 

had also ordered the confiscation 

of his property. 

“There will be no justice till 

Pervez Musharraf answers for 

his crimes!” Bhutto’s daughter 

Aseefa Zardari tweeted moments 

after the statement. 

The court also acquitted five 

men who had been accused 

of being Taliban militants involved 

in the conspiracy to kill 

Bhutto on December 27, 2007. 

However the judges found 

two police officers guilty 

of “mishandling the crime 

scene”, the court official said. 

The police officers – Saud 

Aziz, who was chief of Rawalpindi 

police at the time, 

and senior officer Khurram 

Shahzad – are now the only two 

people to have been convicted 

over Bhutto’s assassination. • 

The Westin Dhaka is offering a 

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for guests to enjoy luxurious 

rooms, mouth-watering dining 

outlets, spa and swimming 

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The package includes accommodation 

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Late checkout will be available 

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DT 

12 

Editorial 


TODAY 

Where’s the 

sacrifice? 

Stuck between utter disgust and blind 

submission to ‘how it gets done’ every 

Eid, there is a desperate need for change 

Our moral duty 

PAGE 13 

Calling them Rohingya betrays the fact 

that they are just as human as we are 

PAGE 14 

Eid is for everyone 

Eid is a time for celebration. 

But it is also important that we, as a nation, 

remember the values of Islam and the Prophet 

Muhammad (pbuh), values of community and charity. 

Bangladesh has done much to progress on the path towards 

development in the last few years but we have challenges 

ahead. 

Flooding remains an issue. There are still many who cannot 

afford food and don’t have access to clean water. Every day, 

we are taking in the persecuted Rohingya from Myanmar. 

Of course, these are problems which test us a nation. But 

with our resilience and dedication, we have every reason to 

believe that we can overcome these odds. 

It is also important to remember that Eid-ul-Azha is the 

Eid of sacrifice. While we must celebrate, we must also keep 

in mind the countless who do not have the privilege to do so, 

those who still struggle to make ends meet, and help them in 

their time of need. 

With this year coming to a close, let us use the occasion of 

Eid to remind ourselves of all that we have lost, and all that we 

have yet to achieve. 

A happy Eid Mubarak to all our readers. 

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU 

Let us use the occasion 

of Eid to remind 

ourselves of all that we 

have lost, and all that 

have yet to achieve 

Great win, but team 

selection 

remains an issue 

We need a long-term plan for flooding 

It’s not like we don’t have the players 

that can improve the side, so it’s time to 

make those changes in the second Test 

and ensure another positive result 

Be heard 

Write to Dhaka Tribune 

FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, 

Shukrabad, Dhaka-1207 

Send us your Op-Ed articles: 

opinion.trib@gmail.com 

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The views expressed in opinion 

articles are those of the authors 

alone and they are not the 

official view of Dhaka Tribune 

or its publisher. 

PAGE 15 

Just as the city was starting to enjoy the sun, the rains made 

an ugly return. 

The recent wave of floods has dealt much damage to our 

nation, bringing severe destruction of property in certain 

parts of the country and causing nearly 25,000 people to be hit by 

post-flood diseases. 

We weren’t prepared for this. 

A baffling set of circumstances, given that Bangladesh has a 

history of destructive floods, and that our geographic disadvantage 

of being a delta country leaves us vulnerable most of the year. 

It’s an issue that has always been an impediment on our road 

to progress, and it’s high time that the government took it into 

cognizance in developing our cities. 

With tomorrow being Eid-ul-Azha, it’s not too far-fetched to 

imagine the flood situation being exacerbated by all the animal 

remains and blood that will inevitably wash down onto the streets 

-- a public health hazard in the making. 

We have to be prepared for this. 

In the short-term, our city corporations need to mobilise in 

order to prevent such an undesirable situation. In the long -term, 

our administration needs to seriously consider an overhaul of our 

drainage systems. 

It’s an issue that 

has always been an 

impediment on our 

road to progress

Where’s the sacrifice? 

The current practices in performing qurbani misses the point 

Opinion 13 

DT 


firm believers, never did doubt 

their faith despite the questions 

I asked them. They thought 

about the question, sometimes 

longer than usual, and patiently 

answered. 

So I would leave it you to ask 

and explore, regardless of your 

age. If you still feel repulsed and 

angry because of the practices, 

kindly do take into account few 

things. 

From the sacrifice to the sacrament, some changes are essential 

Stuck between utter disgust and blind submission to ‘how it gets done’ 

every Eid, there is a desperate need for change 

• Nusmila Lohani 

We often forget the 

purpose of things 

-- simple and basic 

things. And yet, we 

carry out certain actions anyway 

because we are supposed to. 

By “we” I mean our parents’ 

generation and ours, which have, 

in fact, blindly submitted to the 

“norms” and practices of society. 

We fail to see the broader picture, 

and more depressingly, we fail to 

understand the purpose of our 

actions. 

Take, for instance, education. 

Since the emergence of coaching 

centres some 15 years ago in 

Dhaka, school-children and their 

parents have long forgotten the 

purpose of going to schools. 

Is it the place only to collect 

assignments to get done in the 

coaching centres, I wonder? 

Or weddings. The practice of 

“going all-out” has even made 

middle-class families submit to 

excess. Now every wedding affair 

seems too extravagant and too 

staged with too many dress codes 

and too many events. But what 

about family traditions, the actual 

warmth and joy of two families 

coming together and celebrating 

life in unison? 

Or Ramadan. Since every 

restaurant, cafe, and eatery sells 

“iftar” gluttony at irresistible 

prices, we no longer like to break 

fast at home. Moreover, the basic 

purpose of fasting (one of the 

basics being to instill discipline in 

self) has been crumbled, greased, 

and forgotten with every bite of 

that extra bucket of chicken that 

we order during iftar. 

Point is, we seem to be doing 

things in a loop. We sometimes 

nag about the shortcomings of 

unreasonable demands that 

society makes of us, but, in the 

end, we still do them. Mostly 

because we feel like we are bound 

MEHEDI HASAN 

to do things to feel accepted and 

be part of the collective Bengalis/ 

Bangladeshis, whichever or both. 

The purpose 

When it is this time of the year, 

when we sacrifice cattle in the 

name of Allah and celebrate Eidul-Azha, 

I wonder, do we know the 

purpose of the sacrifice? 

Undoubtedly, there are far 

better-informed individuals 

than me out there, sophisticated 

experts who can cite the Holy 

Qur’an and/or the Hadith to 

explain the purpose of the sacrifice 

on this auspicious religious 

occasion -- but my question is a 

layman’s question. 

It is for the general people who 

have limited knowledge about this 

annual religious practice. When in 

doubt, ask your parents or elders 

about the purpose of qurbani. 

It may be easy and convenient 

to not know why we do what we 

do and still do it anyway, but when 

the sight of slaughter disgusts you, 

when you’re choking on empathy, 

holding back tears, and especially 

when not knowing angers you, 

you must ask. If answers from 

your family or friends do not help 

much, you can always look it up. 

I have had questions for a long 

time about qurbani. My parents, 

who have always been liberal and 

How it happens vs how it should 

One of the basic principles of 

qurbani is that the meat is to be 

distributed into three parts. And 

one household/family is obligated 

to allocate one of the three parts to 

the poor. This is simple charity. 

Imagine, if every household 

religiously followed the basic 

principle of qurbani and more 

importantly, if the poor did not sell 

the meat to hotels in the city and 

instead sought ways to preserve 

the meat for themselves, it would 

in effect mean that the poor would 

have a few months’ meat supply. 

One of the other evolved things 

about qurbani is to what extent the 

sacrificial animal is manhandled. 

Much has been said and discussed 

about how qurbani has become 

merely a display of wealth and 

bragging rights, but not enough 

can be said about the treatment of 

the animal before qurbani and the 

way the animals are slaughtered. 

Aside from animal rights 

activists and groups who stand 

entirely against the practice, not 

much has been said about the 

cruelty of assigning “koshai” jobs 

to untrained individuals on Eid by 

the Muslim community. 

Stuck between utter disgust 

and blind submission to “how it 

gets done” every Eid, there is a 

desperate need for change. Change 

in how we perceive qurbani, what 

we understand about qurbani, and 

most importantly, how we treat 

the animals and how we let others 

treat the animals. 

The current practice of 

performing qurbani is a far 

cry from the true purpose of 

sacrificing an animal. And it is high 

time that we asked ourselves and 

others about this purpose. 

So, tomorrow, when you stand 

witness to (or take part in the 

qurbani) how the slaughterer 

sharpens the knives and prepares 

to perform qurbani, pay heed to 

the sacrificial animal and try to 

ensure minimal pain -- that could 

be the start of the change we 

should aspire to make and see. • 

Nusmila Lohani is an Editorial Assistant 

at the Dhaka Tribune.

14 


DT 

Opinion 

Our moral duty 

Surely there is a real way we can help the most persecuted people in the world? 

It is not impossible for Bangladesh to help the Rohingya 

REUTERS 

• Fairuz Faatin 

Myanmar’s persecution 

of the Rohingya has 

developed into a 

humanitarian crisis 

of hellish proportions, and it 

no longer feels justified for us 

to watch and let the atrocities 

continue. 

After all, if we hadn’t 

introduced measures to control 

our own population growth -- 

today we might have been double 

the size -- so can we really not 

accommodate these helpless and 

tortured souls coming to us for 

salvation from hell? 

There is no doubt here about 

what the morally right thing 

to do is, so the only objections 

remaining are ones on the grounds 

of practicality. Yet, we cannot say 

that it is practically impossible, 

because it isn’t. Sure, it’s going 

to be difficult and there are going 

to be adjustment pains, but it is 

certainly possible. 

Calling them 

Rohingya betrays the 

fact that they are just 

as human as we are 

So, while the whole world is fighting 

over what Islam really is and 

what being a good Muslim entails, 

we have a chance to show, as a 

Muslim majority nation, the true 

spirit of Islam -- one embodied in 

our Prophet Muhammad -- and 

help those in need. 

Our common humanity 

Labels are not meant to be used 

to divide us. Our rational minds 

want to distinguish, categorise, 

and label everything -- from 

sofas to divans, grunge rock from 

punk rock (see how petty the 

distinctions can be?) -- because 

that’s how we understand the 

world around us. 

But calling them Rohingya 

betrays the fact that they are just 

as human as we are. Although 

that argument can, and should, be 

extended to refute all other evils 

in the world -- racism, sexism, 

and so on -- for now, since we 

need a reminder of our common 

humanity, let’s remember that we 

share the same religion. 

And furthermore, we share very 

similar ethnicity -- Rohingyas look 

a lot more like us than they do the 

typical Burmese person. 

Learned people -- the prophets, 

philosophers, and intellectuals 

-- know that nation states are a 

purely political construct and that 

superficial characteristics like the 

colour of our skin or the language 

we speak mean nothing when it 

comes to our common humanity. 

But before world politics can 

be that self-aware and awake to 

higher truths, let’s at least help 

those suffering from the worst 

kinds of persecution. Then, after 

we have taken some corrective 

steps, to reverse the insufferably 

long series of bad decisions that 

led the human race to where we 

are, we can take on less blatant 

kinds of discrimination, like 

wealth inequality, oppressive 

gender roles, and more. 

Avoiding disaster 

Attempts to correct injustice in 

the world are often met with 

ridicule from naysayers who, by 

the way, have never done anything 

substantially useful for the world. 

When injustice is allowed to 

persist unchecked, it snowballs 

into some kind of disaster -- 

always, every time. 

And every great person in 

history who made a positive 

difference first believed that a 

better world was indeed possible, 

and then undertook the noble and 

usually daunting task of changemaking. 

From Martin Luther in 

the 15th century to Martin Luther 

King, Jr in the 20th century, all 

the greats in history dreamed of 

a better world. And they did their 

best to work towards it. 

The indubitably positive impact 

of their work should convince 

even the most stubborn among 

us that positive change is indeed 

possible. Much of Europe today 

that was previously ravaged by 

wars, plagues, and whatnot, are 

pretty much like heaven on earth, 

more so compared to other parts 

of the world. And it’s all because 

of men and women like Martin 

Luther, Florence Nightingale, 

Marie Curie, Descartes, and 

hundreds more. 

The point I am making is 

that, if they can do it, so can we. 

Hopefully without having to go 

through wars and plagues because 

we can just learn the lessons from 

their mistakes. So, coming back 

to the Rohingya issue, before the 

crisis degenerates into a regional 

conflict that could devastate all 

the countries involved, let’s turn 

the tide away from disaster and 

towards recovery, by doing the 

right thing. • 

Fairuz Faatin is a Sub-Editor at the 

Dhaka Tribune.

Opinion 15 

Great win, but team selection 

remains an issue 

We need to make the right choices 

DT 


• Shahnoor Rabbani 

Now that I’ve had time to 

digest the performance 

of the Tigers from the 

first Test match, it’s time 

to unleash the cynic in me. 

Obviously, everyone will be 

showering Shakib and Tamim with 

all the plaudits for match-winning 

performances in their 50th Test, 

and they deserve every bit of it for 

putting in a world class effort. 

But let’s not forget all the 

hullabaloo regarding the selection 

leading into the first Test against 

the Aussies. 

There are issues that need to be 

addressed. Mominul Haque has an 

average of over 46 in 22 Tests and 

for some reason he is not in the 

playing 11. 

He made the squad because of 

Mosaddek Hossain Saikat’s eye 

infection and eventual omission 

from the 14-man squad. 

In his place, we have Imrul 

Kayes, a player who has been the 

regular opener along with Tamim 

Iqbal and, in their partnership, 

they have scored over 2000 runs at 

an average of 48. 

Now let’s talk about Soumya 

Sarkar 

Many have opined that Soumya 

Sarkar doesn’t belong in the 

Test team due to his technical 

shortcomings. 

But in his last 10 innings 

these are his scores: 

15,8,10,61,53,71,42,15,36, and 86. 

Four 50s in the last 10 innings 

means that coach Chandika 

Hathurusingha will still include 

him in the side. 

Speaking of the coach, the talk 

among the sports journalists is 

that he is calling the shots as far as 

team selection goes. 

The board president and 

appointed selectors, along with 

the team captain, barely have any 

hand in selection. 

Hathurusingha has a preference 

for Soumya, which is why he is in 

the starting 11 and has taken the 

spot from Imrul Kayes. 

Now Imrul Kayes does not 

prefer to bat at number three as 

he has opened for the bulk of his 

international career. 

He has also indicated that 

batting at this position will be a 

challenge for him. 

He’s not among the coaches 

favoured players but gutsy 

opening performances of 78 

against England and a 36 against 

New Zealand has meant he needs 

to be shoehorned into the side. 

What about Mominul Haque? 

So, why is Mominul not in the 

team? Chances are, we will not see 

him in the second Test either as 

the coach might persist with the 

winning combination. 

There are not enough options 

honestly for the number three 

position. At least, none as 

statistically accomplished as 

Mominul Haque. 

Once touted as the Bangladeshi 

Bradman, his form has dipped 

under coach Hathurusingha’s 

It’s not like we don’t 

have the players 

that can improve the 

side, so it’s time to 

make those changes 

in the second Test 

and ensure another 

positive result 

tenure. If Mominul’s form has 

dipped, isn’t it supposed to be the 

job of the coach to help mend such 

issues? It’s clear that Mominul 

should be in the side on stats 

alone, and either one of Soumya 

and Imrul will have to make way if 

that is to happen. 

It could be Imrul who faces the 

gauntlet as the coach, ironically, 

is a firm believer of stats, and uses 

that to make his selections if there 

is a change. 

Is Sabbir Rahman misplaced? 

We must also look at what position 

best suits Sabbir Rahman in Tests. 

There are plans to make him the 

long-term number three player in 

ODI’s and, in the 1st innings, we 

saw him come in at number four 

and get out for a golden duck. 

He looked much more 

comfortable in the second innings 

Who’s next? 

and perhaps should have scored 

more runs if he had used his 

review(s) properly. 

Perhaps, he should be batting at 

number six and not number four 

on bowler-friendly surfaces. 

The pacers Shafiul Islam and 

Mustafizur Rahman have managed 

to take zero wickets in the entire 

Test and Shafiul didn’t even bowl 

in the second innings. Mustafizur 

was barely given a proper spell. He 

didn’t settle in, nor was he given 

the chance to do so. 

Support ‘the Fizz’ 

If we are to rely on “the Fizz” to 

lead our pace bowling unit for 

years to come, we need to ensure 

he is given enough opportunities 

and the right amount of overs 

under his belt. 

He needs to be given a proper 

role with the ball and his set of 

skills should make him a handful, 

even in spinner friendly pitches. 

There was an instance in the 

fourth innings where he bowled 

just one over and was taken off the 

attack the next. 

This does nothing to help a 

bowler’s confidence, especially 

when it’s a fast bowler who is 

expected to dominate batsmen. 

We just need to look at Kagiso 

Rabada and see how he’s been 

managed. 

Either we play two pacers and 

use them properly or we add in 

another specialist batsman in 

place of one of the pacers. 

And, in this, Liton Das can 

be a choice. He also has the 

better wicket-keeping abilities 

so Mushfiqur can focus more on 

his batting if he chooses to do so. 

Even though it is understood he’s 

reluctant to give up the gloves. 

MD MANIK 

The inclusion of Nasir in the 

11 gave the team an extra spin 

bowling option along with some 

experience in the lower middle 

order. 

Given our fragile tail, the 

inclusion of Liton in place of one 

of the pace bowlers makes all the 

more sense. 

Overall, it is clear that there 

is room for improvement and a 

better team could be selected and 

much better managed. Some of the 

coach’s selection and tactics have 

not worked out. 

It’s not like we don’t have the 

players that can improve the side, 

so it’s time to make those changes 

in the second Test and ensure 

another positive result. • 

Shahnoor Rabbani is a radio show host 

and cricket commentator at Radio 

Shadhin 92.4 FM.

16 


DT 

Downtime 

CROSSWORD 

CODE-CRACKER 

ACROSS 

1 Severe trail (6) 

4 Homosapiens (3) 

7 Ooze out (5) 

8 Tempt (6) 

11 Permit (3) 

12 Require (4) 

13 Eager (4) 

15 Confection (5) 

16 Discovers (5) 

20 Mean dwellings (4) 

23 Midday (4) 

24 Weapon (3) 

25 Solemn promise (6) 

26 Nimble (5) 

27 Obtain (3) 

28 Circuitous way (6) 

DOWN 

1 Prophetic signs (5) 

2 Plain to see (7) 

3 Welsh national emblem 

(4) 

5 Middle East port (4) 

6 Meshed fabric (3) 

9 Fresh (3) 

10 Golf mound (3) 

14 Distinguished (7) 

17 Indicate tiredness (3) 

18 Domestic animal (3) 

19 Show contempt (5) 

20 Immense (4) 

21 Single entity (4) 

22 Hurried (4) 

24 Joke (3) 

How to solve: Each number in our 

CODE-CRACKER grid represents a 

different letter of the alphabet. For 

example, today 12 represents I so fill I 

every time the figure 12 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 

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS 

CODE-CRACKER 

CROSSWORD 

DILBERT 

SUDOKU

Biz Info 

Conference for the heads of BGBrun 

educational institutions ends 

17 


Seafood BBQ at Le Méridien 

Dhaka during this Eid 

DT 

• Features Desk 

A four-day-long conference on 

‘What an ideal school should 

look like’ for all the heads of 

BGB-run educational institutions 

ended yesterday. The Minister 

for Education Nurul Islam 

Nahid, MP attended the 

concluding day of the conference 

at Pilkhana as the chief guest. 

The Director General of Border 

Guards Bangladesh Maj. Gen. 

Abul Hossain and prominent 

educationist Professor Jamilur 

Reza Choudhury were present as 

the special guests. A total of 24 

heads of educational institutions 

in different BGB units across 

the country attended the 

conference, a press release from 

BGB said. 

The Minister in his address 

as the chief guest stressed on 

the importance of modernising 

the education system in order 

to make the students world 

citizens. He said that the 

government is working tirelessly 

to that end. “Educational 

institutions can not improve 

without proper training for 

the teachers. Our goal is to 

create better human beings in 

addition to achieving academic 

excellence,” the Minister said. 

The education minister 

praised the BGB’s initiative for 

organising the conference. The 

minister gave instruction to 

submit the recommendations 

accumulated from the 

discussions at the conference, to 

the education ministry, so that 

those can be adopted for other 

educational institutions in the 

country. 

Professor Jamilur Reza 

Choudhury said that outcome 

based education must be 

ensured by creating ‘quality 

assurance cell’ in order 

to improve the quality of 

education. “In addition to 

the regular curriculum, it is 

essential to teach supplementary 

skills through inter-school 

competitions,” he said. Professor 

Choudhury recommended 

organising mathematical and 

science olympiad in the BGBrun 

institutions to fight fear 

of mathematics and develop 

technological skills. He 

suggested utilising the online 

resources available on the 

Internet. 

The BGB Director General 

Maj. Gen. Abul Hossain said 

that there is no alternative 

to education for turning the 

future generation into human 

resources. “But it has to be 

good quality and ICT based 

modern education,” he said. 

The Director General stressed 

on the importance of instilling 

effective accountability 

among the teachers. “All BGB 

institutions should ensure 

proper accountability by setting 

up a central system,” said Maj. 

Gen. Abul Hossain. “We have 

organised this conference so 

that the heads of all BGB-run 

educational institutions can 

share their experience with 

each other and present their 

recommendations. These 

recommendations will help 

improve the quality of BGB’s 

educational institutions,” he 

added.• 


Le Méridien Dhaka is set to 

arrange a seafood BBQ from 

September 3 to 6 at its flagship 

restaurant Olea. Guests will be 

able to enjoy the gourmet spread 

of various seafood delicacies 

during the Eid weekend . 

Signature seafood items like 

shrimps, lobsters, calamari, crabs 

and many other exquisite items 


Uttara Motors Limited, an 

enterprise of Uttara Group of 

Companies, distributed relief to 

the victims of the flood affected 

Chilmari, Nagaswari, and Ulipur 

in the Kurigram district. 

will be part of the menu. The 

buffet dinner will be available 

from 6:30pm to 11:30pm. Guests 

can avail this scrumptious buffet 

dinner offer at Tk3,600. 

Special discounts and buyone-get-one-free 

offers are also 

available with various banks and 

telecommunication partners. 

For more information: 

+8801990900900, 

+88017666673443.• 

Uttara Motors distributes relief 

to flood victims 

Rice, pulses, sugar, salt, oil, 

potato, spices, food saline, water 

purification tablets, candles, 

matches, among other materials, 

were distributed to thousands 

of flood affected people in those 

areas, a press release from Uttara 

Motors said.• 

Best Electronics distributes relief 

in Dinajpur 

AB Bank organised a training on “Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism” for its officials at the 

bank’s Training Academy yesterday. M A Awal, Director, AB Bank, inaugurated the training program along with senior 

members of the management 


Best Electronics, 

a multi-brand 

electronics retail 

company, distributed 

relief materials to 

1,200 flood affected 

people in Birol, 

Birgonj and Kaharol upazilla in 

the Dinajpur district on August 

27, a press release from Best 

Electronics said. 

Iqbalur Rahim, MP and Whip 

of Bangladesh Parliament and 

Hamidul Alam, Police Super of 

Dinajpur were present. High 

ranking officials from Best 

Electronics and Zaman Group 

were also present.•

DT 

18 

Sports 


Tamim fined 

for breaching 

ICC’s code of 

conduct 

• Tribune Report 

Bangladesh opening batsman 

Tamim Iqbal has been fined 15% of 

his match fee for breaching Level 1 

of the International Cricket Council 

code of conduct. 

Tamim has been found guilty of 

breaching the ICC code of conduct 

during day four of their first Test 

match against Australia in Mirpur’s 

Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on 

Wednesday. 

The Tigers won the game by 20 

runs to mark their maiden victory 

in the longest format against 

Australia. 

Tamim was found guilty of 

debating with the on-field umpires 

while the Australian batsmen were 

changing their gloves regularly. 

Shortly after, he approached 

wicketkeeper-batsman Matthew 

Wade and gestured towards him to 

leave the field upon his dismissal in 

the second innings. 

The Bangladesh Test vicecaptain 

admitted the offence and 

accepted the sanction proposed 

by Jeff Crowe of the ICC Elite Panel 

Match Referees. 

There was no need for a formal 

hearing as Tamim admitted to the 

offence. 

The charge against Tamim was 

levelled by umpires Aleem Dar and 

Nigel Llong and third umpire Ian 

Gould, all from the ICC Elite Panel 

Umpires, and fourth umpire Anisur 

Rahman. 

Level 1 breaches carry a 

minimum penalty of an official 

reprimand, a maximum penalty of 

50% of a player’s match fee, and 

one or two demerit points. 

The offence saw the Bangladesh 

opening batsman breach Article 

2.1.1 of the ICC code of conduct 

for Players and Player Support 

Personnel, which relates to 

“conduct that is contrary to the 

spirit of the game.” 

In addition to the fine for his 

breach of Article 2.1.1, one demerit 

point has been added to Tamim’s 

disciplinary record. 

Since Tamim had come into 

the match with one demerit point 

against his name, he is now on two 

demerit points. 

Pursuant to Article 7.6 of the 

code, if Tamim reaches four or 

more demerit points, within a 

24-month period, they will be 

converted into suspension points 

and he will be banned. 

Tamim had received the earlier 

demerit point during the second 

Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo’s 

Premadasa Stadium on March 16, 

2017. • 

Bangladesh players react following their first Test win over Australia in Mirpur on Wednesday 

Small contributions come 

big on occasions 


Bangladesh’s 20-run win in the first 

Test match against Australia in Mirpur’s 

Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium 

on Wednesday had come riding 

on all-rounder Shakib al Hasan’s 

10-wicket game haul. 

While with the bat it was opener 

Tamim Iqbal and his twin half-centuries 

which showed the way. 

The duo are being praised for 

their lion’s share of contribution 

in what was their 50th Test for the 

country. 

But there is also fair argument 

too, of giving credit where it is due. 

It should not be difficult for one 

to realise the importance of the 

cameos in a low-scoring Test which 

lasted only a little more than a session 

on day four. 

Off the 481 scored by Bangladesh 

in the match, Tamim scored 

the most with 149, followed by 

Shakib with 89. 

But when the totals are within 

the bracket of 300, one cannot 

disagree the importance of even a 

20-odd. 

With the ball, Shakib was worldclass, 

bagging five wickets in each 

innings, but the rest of the team’s 

bowler had to take the other 10. 

Considering this fact, left-arm 

spinner Taijul Islam should be 

leading the chart. 

Taijul is hardly a star compared 

to his colleagues in the national 

dressing room. 

The 25-year old is hardly approached 

by the general public 

when he is walking on the road. 

He is often left unrecognised by 

the majority. 

But on Wednesday, this man 

hailing from Natore stood up to the 

occasion when the team needed it 

the most. 

The game resumed on day four 

After I bowled my first four balls in the last 

over, Shakib bhai came to me and said there 

might be a chance of getting a wicket, if I 

bowl round the wicket, and it worked 

with Australia in need of another 

156 while Bangladesh required 

eight wickets for victory. 

Shakib led from the front to 

ensure a timely strike upon the 

Australia batsmen while Taijul provided 

valuable support, picking up 

wickets from the other end. 

The left-arm spinner took one 

in the first innings and three crucial 

scalps in the second to reach 

half-century of Test wickets. 

His Test wickets tally now 

stands at 52. 

“Honestly we thought it was a 

tough job. They have world class 

batsmen. The wicket had changed 

as it was day four. We were expecting 

something in favour of us 

MD MANIK 

as scoring 150 will not be easy. We 

were looking for a breakthrough 

which Shakib bhai gave after dismissing 

[David] Warner. This 

meant the rest of us bowlers had 

to sustain the pressure on them 

(Australia). Shakib bhai was taking 

wickets from one end, which 

boosted the rest of us to pick up 

some wickets too,” Taijul told the 

media yesterday. 

“They were putting up partnerships 

and scoring runs at every opportunity. 

So Shakib bhai was tipping 

us so that we can have them in 

control. After I bowled my first four 

balls in the last over, Shakib bhai 

came to me and said there might be 

a chance, if I bowl round the wicket 

and it worked,” informed Taijul, 

alluding to the dismissal of No 11 

batsman Josh Hazlewood. 

The Aussies will travel to Chittagong 

today for the second Test, 

starting on Monday at Zahur 

Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium. 

The Tigers meanwhile, will be 

travelling in patches after staying 

back in Dhaka an extra few days 

to celebrate Eid-ul-Azha with their 

family. •

Tamim, Shakib 

rise to careerbest 

ICC ranking 


Pakistan’s 

Sharjeel gets 

five-year ban 

for spot-fixing 

• Reuters 

Batsman Sharjeel Khan has been 

banned for five years by his country’s 

cricket board (PCB) for his involvement 

in a spot-fixing scandal 

in the Pakistan Super League, local 

media reported on Wednesday. The 

28-year-old will not be able to play 

domestic or international cricket for 

half the sentence and will be kept 

under observation for its duration. 

“Sharjeel is banned for five 

years, which has two-and-a-half 

year suspended, after the proceedings 

of the case,” Asghat Haider, 

who headed the three-member 

PCB tribunal that sentenced him, 

told local media. 

Sharjeel, who made his international 

debut for Pakistan in 2013, 

has played one Test, 25 one-day 

internationals and 15 Twenty20 internationals 

for his country. 

“The charges have been proven. 

He was given minimum punishment 

with no fines imposed. This 

decision has shown that we had 

strong proofs against him,” Taffazul 

Rizvi, PCB legal advisor, told 

Pakistan’s Geo TV News. • 

Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal 

jumped six places to his career-best 

position in the latest ICC Test ranking. 

As per the latest ranking update, 

the Bangladesh Test vice-captain 

reached 14th position in the batsmen’s 

list following his match-winning 

knocks of 71 and 78 against 

Australia in the just concluded first 

Test in Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla National 

Stadium. 

Riding on Tamim’s heroics with 

the bat, Bangladesh defeated Australia 

by 20 runs. 

Meanwhile, all-rounder Shakib 

al Hasan rose three positions to a 

career-best 14th among the Test 

bowlers after his match-haul of 10 

for 153 against the Aussies. 

Another Bangladesh spinner 

Mehedi Hasan Miraz moved three 

slots to 30th while left-arm spinner 

Taijul Islam jumped four places to 

32nd after finishing the Australia 

Test with five and four wickets respectively. 

Shakib also consolidated his position 

at the top of the all-rounders’ 

list with his highest aggregate of 

489 points, having also scored 84 

and five in his two innings. 

On the other hand, Australia 

opener David Warner returned to 

the top 10 Test batsmen’s list after a 

valiant century against the Tigers. 

Warner’s partnership of 130 for 

the third wicket with captain Steve 

Smith was not enough to stave off 

defeat but the former had the satisfaction 

of rising five positions to 

sixth after scores of eight and 112. 

As far as the team ranking in 

concerned, Bangladesh have only 

improved their rating points and 

are still No 9 among the Test-playing 

nations. 

The home side, following their 

emphatic win, will see an addition 

of 10 rating points, which currently 

stand at 69. 

But Australia are set to hit their 

all-time low in four years as they 

won’t be among the top four teams. 

The Aussies will go down to No 

5 even if the series ends all-square 

while they will drop down to No 6 

in the event of a 2-0 series defeat. • 

MS Dhoni of India plays a shot during their fourth ODI against Sri Lanka in Colombo 

yesterday. This was Dhoni’s 300th ODI 

REUTERS 

Brazil coach tells Coutinho to 

go where he is happy 

• Reuters, Rio De Janeiro 

Brazil soccer coach Tite has told 

midfielder Philippe Coutinho to play 

for whatever club would make him 

happy and complained that transfer 

speculation had affected the national 

squad’s preparations for yesterday’s 

match against Ecuador. 

Liverpool’s Coutinho is being 

pursued by Spanish club Barcelona, 

though the English Premier 

Sports 

League side’s manager Juergen 

Klopp has said he does not want to 

sell the Brazilian. 

“I told him (Coutinho) that I 

want him to go wherever he feels 

happy,” Tite told a press conference 

ahead of yesterday’s World Cup 

qualifier in Porto Alegre. 

Coutinho has not played for 

Liverpool this season because of 

injury. 

However, Tite defended Brazil’s 

decision to insist that the midfielder 

travel to South America for the 

match. 

“The Brazilian team doctor has 

spoken to Liverpool’s doctor and 

our director with their directors. 

I haven’t been in touch because I 

don’t speak English,” he said, adding 

that Coutinho would not play 

against Ecuador. 

“We are not going to take any risks 

but, on the other hand, we are not going 

to do without him in the squad.” 

The transfer window closes yesterday 

in most European countries 

and today in Spain. 

“It affects us and it will continue 

affecting us until the end,” said 

Tite, whose side have already qualified 

for the World Cup finals. 

“It effects the players emotionally. 

It also affects the coach, who 

has to take into consideration situations 

which are nothing to do with 

the field of play.” 

Tite’s comments chimed with 

the thoughts of Italy coach Giampiero 

Ventura, who said this week 

that the uncertainties caused by the 

transfer window had hampered his 

preparations for Italy’s key World 

Cup qualifier against Spain. • 

19 


Kohli, Sharma 

tons hoist 

India to 375-5 

• AFP, Colombo 

South Africa 

appoint Ottis 

Gibson as 

head coach 

• Reuters, Cape Town 

DT 

Captain Virat Kohli and Rohit 

Sharma slammed quickfire tons 

as India flayed a hapless Sri Lanka 

to post 375-5 in the fourth oneday 

international in Colombo 

yesterday. 

The batsmen shared 219 runs for 

the second wicket off just 168 balls 

after the visitors won the toss and 

elected to bat on an easy-paced 

wicket at the R. Premadasa stadium. 

With the series already in pocket, 

Kohli batted with gay abandon, 

hitting 17 fours and two sixes in his 

96-ball 131. 

Sharma (104) hammered 11 

fours and three sixes in an equally 

entertaining innings off 88 balls. 

Kohli was dismissed by Sri Lanka’s 

stand-in captain Lasith Malinga 

who completed 300 Test wickets, 

the 13th bowler overall and 

fourth Sri Lankan to achieve the 

feat. 

India, the world No 3 side in 

ODIs, have already clinched the 

five-match series 3-0. 

Sri Lanka have been struggling 

to put up a decent fight, with injuries 

to key players, selection woes 

and hostile fans compounding 

their misery. • 

England bowling coach Ottis Gibson 

has been announced as the 

new head coach of South Africa, 

officials said on Wednesday. 

Barbadian Gibson, who played 

two Tests for West Indies, was 

widely expected to replace Russell 

Domingo when the latter’s contract 

ends next month and has been 

handed the reins of the national side 

in all three formats through to the 

end of the 2019 Cricket World Cup. 

“His playing and coaching credentials 

are impressive and that will 

place the Proteas in good hands as 

we move towards a big home summer 

with both India and Australia 

visiting us,” Cricket South Africa CEO 

Haroon Lorgat said in a statement. 

“Having spent a great part of 

his playing career in South Africa, 

Ottis is familiar with our country 

and that should help him to settle 

in quickly with our national team.” 

Gibson, who has been with England 

in his current role since 2015, 

will leave after the conclusion of 

the Test series against West Indies 

next month. •

20 


DT 

Chamberlain to 

join Liverpool 

• Reuters, London 

Liverpool have agreed to sign 

England international Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 

from Premier 

League rivals Arsenal for about 

40m pounds ($52m), British media 

reported on Wednesday. 

Arsenal manager Arsene 

Wenger spoke last week of his desire 

to keep the 24-year-old Oxlade-Chamberlain, 

who was also a 

target for champions Chelsea. 

But the player had his heart set 

on a move to Liverpool, who beat 

Arsenal 4-0 in the league on Sunday, 

and rebuffed Chelsea’s advances. 

He will become Liverpool’s second 

most expensive signing after 

Guinea international Naby Keita, 

who will join the club from next 

season for 48m pounds from Germany’s 

RB Leipzig. 

Oxlade-Chamberlain made 

more than 130 Premier League appearances 

for Arsenal since 2011. 

He can play in central midfield or 

on either flank and his versatility is 

one of the reasons Liverpool manager 

Juergen Klopp was keen to 

bring him to Anfield. • 

Tottenham 

sign Argentine 

defender Foyth 


Tottenham Hotspur completed 

their third signing of the transfer 

window when defender Juan 

Foyth joined the Premier League 

club from Argentina’s Estudiantes 

on Wednesday. 

Spurs said the 19-year-old, reportedly 

a target for Paris St Germain, 

had signed a five-year deal. 

Last week they signed Colombia 

central defender Davinson Sanchez 

from Ajax Amsterdam for a club record 

fee reported to be about 42m 

pounds ($54.23m), and they have 

also brought in goalkeeper Paulo 

Gazzaniga from Southampton. 

No tansfer fee was disclosed by 

Tottenham for Foyth, who represented 

Argentina at the 2017 Under-20 

World Cup, but local media 

said it was eight million pounds 

($10.33m). 

“This club believes in young players 

and I’m very happy to be here,” 

Foyth told Spurs’ website (www.tottenhamhotspur.com). 

“I think there’s a wonderful project 

here.” 

Tottenham boasted the best 

defence in the league last season 

but have sold England right back 

Kyle Walker to Manchester City 

and Austrian stand-in centre back 

Kevin Wimmer to Stoke City. 

The north London club are reportedly 

close to confirming the 

signing of PSG’s right back Serge 

Aurier. • 

Maria Sharapova of Russia serves against Timea Babos of Hungary on day three of the US Open tennis tournament at Flushing Meadows 

Sharapova battles on while Zverev, 

Kyrgios crash at US Open 

• AFP, New York 

Former world No 1 Maria Sharapova 

battled back Wednesday to 

reach the third round of the US 

Open while next-generation rising 

stars Alexander Zverev and Nick 

Kyrgios crashed out. Sharapova, 

who downed second-ranked 

Simona Halep in her first Grand 

Slam match after a 15-month doping 

ban, defeated Hungary’s 59thranked 

Timea Babos 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 

6-1 at Arthur Ashe Stadium. 

“It wasn’t my best tennis,” 

Sharapova said. 

“It was scrappy tennis but 

sometimes those kind of matches 

are a lot of fun and this was one of 

those days.” 

The 30-year-old Russian, who 

next faces Russian-born US teen 

Sofia Kenin, tested positive for 

meldonium at the 2016 Australian 

Open, her most recent Grand Slam 

appearance until this week. 

“Every day I have the chance I 

have to play at the US Open is a special 

day and I’ll look forward to the 

next one,” Sharapova said. 

Sharapova, whose five Grand 

Slam titles include the 2006 US 

Open, played only one Open tuneup 

match after a forearm injury 

but wore down Halep and Babos to 

prove she’s a threat for a deep run, 

with Latvian 16th seed Anastasija 

Sevastova her top-ranked potential 

semi-final obstacle. 

Fourth seed Zverev, whose five 

ATP titles this year include a win 

over Roger Federer in this month’s 

Sports 

Montreal final, fell to 61st-ranked 

Croatian Borna Coric 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 

(7/1), 7-6 (7/4). 

The 20-year-old German had 

been the highest-ranked player in 

his half of an injury-hit Open draw. 

“It’s upsetting because the draw 

is pretty open in the bottom part,” 

Zverev said. 

“I felt like I should have been 

the favorite there. I just played a 

very, very bad match, so it’s unfortunate.” 

Coric, who faces South African 

Kevin Anderson for a last-16 berth, 

was one point from a fifth set before 

winning five in a row to force 

the deciding tie-breaker. 

“I was just thinking to keep the 

points shorter,” Coric said. 

“And yeah, I was a little bit 

lucky.” 

Zverev’s ouster left US 10th seed 

John Isner the top-ranked player in 

his draw quarter and Croatian fifth 

seed Marin Cilic the best in his half 

of the draw. 

Wimbledon runner-up Cilic, the 

2014 US Open winner, reached the 

third round by beating Germany’s 

Florian Mayer 6-3, 6-3, 6-3. 

Kyrgios, the 14th seed and former 

top-rated obstacle in Federer’s 

quarter-final path, hurt his right 

shoulder in a 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 firstround 

loss to 235th-ranked fellow 

Aussie John Millman. 

“Early in the third set I hit one 

serve and I never felt the same after 

that,” Kyrgios said. “Something 

didn’t feel right in my arm.” 

Kyrgios, 22, dropped eight of the 

Venus Williams of the US in action during her second round match against Oceane 

Dodin of France 

REUTERS 

REUTERS 

last nine games. 

“Nick’s shoulder deteriorated as 

the match went on,” Millman said 

after his first US Open triumph. 

“It’s a victory but slightly hollow.” 

Austrian sixth seed Dominic 

Thiem ousted Aussie Alex de Minaur 

6-4, 6-1, 6-1. 

Thiem is the highest-ranked rival 

on the Federer and Nadal side 

of the draw. 

Canadian 18-year-old qualifier 

Denis Shapovalov defeated French 

eighth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-4, 

6-4, 7-6 (7/3) to book a third-round 

date with Britain’s Kyle Edmund. 

“It’s a dream come true for me,” 

Shapovalov said. 

Shapovalov became the youngest 

man in the third round of a 

Grand Slam since Bernard Tomic at 

the 2011 Australian Open and at the 

US Open since American Donald 

Young in 2007. 

Wimbledon champion Garbine 

Muguruza reached the US Open 

third round for the first time by 

beating China’s 92nd-ranked Duan 

Ying-Ying 6-4, 6-0. 

“I had like a curse and I broke it finally. 

I’m so happy,” Muguruza said. 

“I just put the heart on the court. I 

knew I had to be all the time fighting 

for the ball and in the end I won.” 

Beating Slovakian Magdalena 

Rybarikova to reach the last 16 

would put the third-seeded Spaniard 

atop a fight for world number 

one that was trimmed to six women 

when Danish fifth seed Caroline 

Wozniacki lost to Russia’s Ekaterina 

Makarova 6-2, 6-7 (5/7), 6-1. •

Sports 

21 


DT 

Leicester’s Mahrez leaves Algeria 

camp in bid to seal move 


Leicester City forward Riyad 

Mahrez has been allowed 

to leave the Algeria training 

camp to “formalise” a transfer 

on deadline day, the Algerian 

Football Federation said 

yesterday. 

Mahrez, a key member of 

Leicester’s Premier League 

title-winning side in 2015-16 

when he was voted PFA Player 

of the Year, has been the 

subject of bids from Italian 

club Roma. 

Several Premier League 

clubs are also likely to be keen 

to sign the 26-year-old, who 

has scored 35 goals for Leicester 

since arriving from French 

club Le Havre in 2014. 

A statement from the Algerian 

Football Federation said 

Mahrez, preparing for World 

Cup qualifiers against Zambia, 

had been allowed to travel 

back to Europe. 

“Mahrez was authorized 

by the national coach, Mr. 

Lucas Alcaraz, and the FAF 

to make an express trip to Europe 

to formalise his transfer 

to his new club,” a statement 

said. 

“The selection will therefore 

fly without him to Lusaka 

to face Zambia on Saturday.” 

Mahrez has played in all 

three of Leicester’s Premier 

League matches so far this 

season. •

22 


DT 

Showtime 

Eid TV glimpse 

• Showtime Desk 

Marking the Eid-ul-Adha, various TV channels in the country are set to entice the audience with their diverse 

programs, from drama series to talk shows. Here is a glimpse of what TV ventures the channels have to offer. 

SINGLE EPISODE TV PLAY 

episode TV play casts Badhon, Shoshi, Shormi 

Mala, and Mahmudul Islam Mithu. 

TV SERIES 

Osthir Samay Swastir Golpo 

With the supervision of 

Amitabh Reza Chowdhury and 

Mezbaur Rahman Suman, seven 

directors have made their first 

TV ventures for a series titled 

Osthir Samay Swastir Golpo. 

The seven directors includes 

Nuhash Humayun, Anam 

Biswas, Tanvir Ahsan, Zaheen 

Faruq Ameen, Syed Ahmed 

Shawki, Md Abid Mollik, and 

Sukarna Shahed Dheeman. 

Each episode will be aired on 

GTV, starting from the first day 

of Eid to the sixth day of Eid, at 9:30pm everyday. The series will 

also be available on bioscopelive.com. 

Das Cabin 

Written and directed by Masud Hasan Ujjal, a 

single episode play – Das Cabin tells a story of 

how class-division in a society creates ground for 

oppression. It revolves around few people who 

dream of a socialist revolution. Das Cabin casts 

Azad Abul Kalam, Iresh Zaker, Sharlin Farzana 

which will be aired on GTV, on Eid day at 11pm. 

Pranbonto Prithok Puroosh 

Abul Hayat directed adaptation of Rabeya 

Khatun’s story titled Pranbonto Prithok Puroosh. 

The single episode play, casts Shahed Sharif Khan 

and Farhana Mili as the lead, and will be aired on 

Channel I, on Eid day at 7:50pm. 

Bakhtiar-er Bike 

Nayeem plays the role of Bakhtiar in the single 

episode drama of a young man from a village 

who carries patients on his bike to the hospital. 

Bakhtiar saves many lives through his endeavour 

and his popularity starts to flourish which 

eventually leads to his clash with a political leader 

in the village. Polash Mahbub wrote the drama 

while Abu Hayat Mahmud directed it, which will 

be aired on Maasranga TV, on the third day of Eid 

at 10:30pm. 

Fande Poria Boga Kande 

Written and directed by RB Pritam, the series stars Iresh Zaker, 

Saju Khadem, Arfan Ahmed, and Shabnam Faria. The story 

revolves around a couple who travel to Nepal with a hope that 

their detoriating relationship would survive. However, they meet 

two bachelors at the airport which led them to an unexpected and 

a memorable event of their lives. 

Golmaal 

A three-episode 

drama series titled 

Golmaal revolves 

around three friends 

who were very 

close during their 

graduation days. They 

take a break from their 

present life to fulfil a 

wish from the past. 

Directed by Imraul 

Rafat, Golmaal casts Mishu Sabbir, Tousif, Prova and Safa Kabir 

and the series will be aired on Deepto TV from the second day of 

Eid at 12am, everyday. 

Kerani Bonam Karnegi 

Masud Mahiuddin’s seven-episode TV series, Kerani Bonam 

Karnegi stars Mosharraf Karim, Jui Karim, Shatabdi Wadud, Rashed 

Manum Opu and Shamima Tushti which will be aired on Asian TV, 

from Eid day to sixth day of Eid at 9pm, everyday. 

Sona Banu 

Sona Banu, a directorial venture of Salauddin 

Lavlu, will be aired on the Eid day on Channel I, at 

9:35pm. Written by Kazi Shahidul Islam, the single 

TELEFILM 

Written and directed by Tauquir 

Ahmed, the telefilm titled 

Pratipakkhya will be aired on 

Channel i on the sixth day of 

Eid, at 2:30pm. The telefilm stars 

Bhabna, Moushumi Nag, Arman 

Parvez Murad, Rajeeb Salehin and 

Tauquir Ahmed. 

Pashapashi 

Shatabdi Wadud and Azmeri Asha starring 

Pashapashi tells the story of an ordinary young 

man who becomes extraordinary in the society 

through his intention and determination of 

making a change. Directed by Shibbir Ahmed 

Manna, the single episode drama will be aired on 

Desh TV on the fourth day of Eid, at 7:35pm. 

Chhaya 

Written by Bipasha Hayat, the play is directed by 

Tania Ahmed and casts Nobel, Mamo, Nyeem and 

Saberi Alam which will be aired on Channel i on 

third day of Eid, at 9:35pm. 

Wind of Change, Season 2 

Continuing on its success from Season 1, Wind of Change, which 

features live studio-recorded music performances by established 

and emerging artists, is set to return on Gaan Bangla TV. 

Artistes of the second season will be a combination of seasoned 

and young singers including Ostad Niaz Mohammad Chowdhury, 

Bari Siddiqui, Subir Nandi, Bappa Mazumder, Kaushik Hossain 

Taposh, Jane Alam, Aditi Mohsin, Chisti Baul, Hridoy Khan, Pathik 

Nabi, Belal Khan, Luipa and Shamim. 

Kaushik Hossain Taposh directed the music for the show while 

it features many talented musicians from all over the world playing 

instruments or as backing vocals. 

The show will be aired on the first three days of Eid-ul-Adha. •

Showtime 

23 


DT 

The timeless creations of Abdul Jabbar 

• Nasir Rayhan 

Legendary singer Abdul Jabbar, 

who breathed his last on August 

30, was a trendsetter of modern 

Bangla music. Throughout his 

career, Jabbar has influenced 

many of his contemporaries and 

successors with his unique style of 

singing and composition. Many of 

Jabbar’s tracks eventually turned 

into yardsticks for modern Bangla 

music for its artistic affluence and 

are equally applauded till date. 

Most of his popular numbers were 

created during the 60’s and 70’s, 

yet the endurance of his sonorous 

voice managed to reach even 

millennials. 

In order to pay tribute to 

the legendary artist, Showtime 

decided to feature some of Abdul 

Jabbar’s best tracks. 

Tumi ki dekhecho kobhu 

jiboner porajoy 

Abdul Jabbar voiced the number for 

1968’s popular film Etotuku Asha, 

directed by Narayan Ghosh Mita 

which also featured the recently 

demised veteran actor Nayak Raj 

Razzak, Sujata, Hasmot, Altaf and 

others. The song was later enlisted 

as one of the best Bengali songs of 

all time in a 2006 BBC survey. 

Salam salam hajar salam 

First aired on the Swadhin Bangla 

Betar Kendra during the Liberation 

War, the song was written by Fazal 

A Khoda and was tuned by Abdul 

Jabbar himself. “Salam salam 

hajar salam” inspired thousands of 

Bengalis during the turbulence of 

the Liberation War and eventually 

turned into one of the sounds of 

the war. 

Ore neel doriya 

First recorded for 1978’s popular 

fi l m Sareng Bou, over the years, 

the song “Ore neel doriya” has 

managed to appeal to the audience 

regardless of their age, race or 

taste in genres. The song, lipsynced 

by Farook, is still popular 

among listeners and has been 

rendered by numerous artists from 

within and beyond the borders 

of Bangladesh. The song is also 

considered to be one of the main 

reasons behind the success of the 

film Sareng Bou. 

Pich dhala ei poth 

“Pich dhala ei poth” is yet another 

popular playback number of 

Jabbar, who lent his voice for the 

Razzak-Babita starrer of the same 

title. Tuned by Rabin Ghosh and 

written by Jaman Chowdhury, the 

enticing bohemianism of the track 

is yet another testament to how 

timeless his tracks are. 

Biday dao go bondhu tomra 

The emotionally captivating lyrics 

of the track, “Biday dao go bondhu 

tomra” turned it into one of Abdul 

Jabbar’s best playback ventures 

ever. 

Ek buk jwala niye bondhu 

tumi 

First sung for 1975’s film Mastan, 

the song “Ek buk jwala niye 

bondhu tumi” was written by 

Ahmed Zaman Chowdhury and 

tuned by Azad Rahman. Upon the 

release of the film, the playback 

number become very popular and 

sustained in the hearts of Bangla 

music aficionados. 

Shotru tumi bondhu tumi 

The melancholic song was sung by 

the singer for Anurag (1979) which 

starred the hit on-screen duo of 

Razzak-Shabana. Abdul Jabbar 

poured his heart out in the song 

composing it on beautiful lyrics 

which was highly appreciated by 

all. 

Tumi acho, shobi ache 

Sung for Shabana-Farooque starrer 

fi l m Shokhi tumi kar, the alluring 

lyrics of the track added an extra 

dimension to the number. If you 

are looking to experience the 

vintage flavour of romantic Bangla 

tracks, listening to “Tumi acho 

shobi ache” is a must. 

Tara bhora raate 

Last but surely not the least, 

his track “Tara bhora raate” is 

undoubtedly one of Jabbar’s 

best works in the list of his 

finest playback tracks. Jabbar 

voiced the number based on 

Azizur Rahman’s tune and 

Muslehuddin’s lyrics in 1961. The 

lyrics tuned with the talented 

voice of Jabbar is still able to 

drown listeners into a state of 

melancholy, anywhere, anytime.• 

WHAT TO WATCH 

Black Mass 

WB, 3:53pm 

While his brother Bill remains 

a powerful leader in the 

Massachusetts Senate, Irish 

hoodlum James “Whitey” Bulger 

continues to pursue a life of 

crime in 1970s Boston. 

Cast: Johnny Depp, Benedict 

Cumberbatch, Dakota Johnson 

Suicide Squad 

HBO, 5:20pm 

In the aftermath of Superman’s 

death, a secret government 

agency is formed by US 

intelligence officer Amanda 

Waller to assemble a team of 

the world’s most dangerous 

supervillains to execute 

dangerous black ops missions. 

Cast: Will Smith, Jared Leto, 

Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, 

Viola Davis, Jai Courtney 

Skyfall 

Movies Now, 9:30pm 

When Bond’s latest assignment 

goes gravely wrong and agents 

around the world are exposed, 

MI6 is attacked forcing M to 

relocate the agency. These events 

cause her authority and position 

to be challenged by Gareth 

Mallory, the new Chairman of 

the Intelligence and Security 

Committee. With MI6 now 

compromised from both inside 

and out, M is left with one ally 

she can trust: Bond. 

Cast: Daniel Craig, Javier 

Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie 

Harris 

Kung Fu Panda 3 

Star Movies, 7:38pm 

Living large and loving life, 

Po realises that he has a lot to 

learn if he’s going to fulfill the 

next challenge from his beloved 

instructor. After reuniting with 

his long-lost father, Po must 

transition from student to 

teacher and train a group of funloving, 

clumsy pandas to become 

martial-arts fighters. 

Voices of: Jack Black, Bryan 

Cranston, Dustin Hoffman, 

Angelina Jolie, JK Simmons •

24 


DT 

MUMBAI BUILDING COLLAPSES 

AFTER HEAVY RAINS, 12 KILLED › 8 

Back Page 

TAMIM FINED FOR BREACHING 

ICC’S CODE OF CONDUCT › 18 

THE TIMELESS CREATIONS 

OF ABDUL JABBAR › 23 

Nano as ‘Sobari’: The first ‘Made in Bangladesh’ car 

• Shohel Mamun 

BUSINESS 

Nitol Niloy Group has outlined 

plans to launch the first car to be 

built in Bangladesh, using the technical 

expertise and financial muscle 

of India’s Tata Motors Limited. 

Nitol Niloy chairman Abdul Matlub 

Ahmad said he is determined 

to establish the new vehicle as 

the “national car of Bangladesh”, 

replicating the success of the Tato 

Nano which was launched in India 

in 2008. 

“Five years from now, every other 

car sold will be made in Bangladesh,” 

said Mr Matlub, who is one 

of the country’s most successful 

entrepreneurs. 

The company is first planning 

to build a small factory near Dhaka 

for assembling Tata Nano cars cars, 

before moving to a larger plant to 

start manufacturing. 

“Once we move towards manufacturing, 

it will be a great source 

of employment for our people,” the 

chairman said. 

For Nitol Niloy to label a car as 

‘made in Bangladesh’, the company 

will have to manufacture 30% of 

all components locally. 

Once this condition is fulfilled, 

the car will be branded as a ‘Sobari’, 

which translates as ‘Everyone’s’. 

It could then be exported duty 

free to 40 countries worldwide in 

what the business magnate believes 

would be a “great leap forward 

for the automobile industry 

in Bangladesh”. 

The locallyassembled 

automatic car may 

be sold within a price 

range of Tk6-8lakh 

“The endeavour will not only help 

customers purchase a private car at 

a cheaper price, but also create an 

opportunity for Bangladesh to develop 

an automobile industry,” he 

told the Dhaka Tribune. 

The business tycoon hopes his 

company will be able offer the locally-assembled 

automatic car 

within a price range of Tk6-8lakh, 

undercutting the current Tk9 lakh 

price of a Nano car. 

“We expect the government will 

fix lower duties and taxes on cars 

which will be assembled in Bangladesh,” 

Mr Matlub said. 

He added that the Bangladesh 

government had responded “very 

positively” towards the initiative. 

“The government under the 

leadership of Sheikh Hasina has already 

stated its plan to support any 

sort of manufacturing activities in 

Bangladesh and assembling is a 

part of the manufacturing process,” 

he said. 

Mr Matlub was confident the 

Sobari would be able to compete 

with the recondition Japanese cars 

which have flooded the streets of 

Dhaka. 

“People of every nation have a 

soft corner for their own products 

and they initially compromise with 

the quality for their local products,” 

he said. 

“In India, you will see Indian 

cars running alongside Japanese 

cars even though their’ quality is 

yet to be on par. And we will offer 

brand new cars while Japanese 

cars arrive here after being used for 

three to four years.” • 

Main Eid jamat 

at 8am 



The main prayer of Eid-ul-Azha 

will be held at the national 

mosque in Dhaka at 8am Saturday. 

Senior Pesh Imam of Baitul 

Mukarram National Mosque 

Mawlana Muhammad Mizanur 

Rahman will lead the main Eid 

congregation at the Eidgah, reports 

BSS. 

A total of five Eid congregations 

will be held at the Baitul 

Mukarram National Mosquethe 

first one will be held at 7am, 

second at 8am, third at 9am, 

fourth at 10am and the last one at 

10.45am. 

Adequate water supply and 

security arrangements have already 

been made at the Baitul 

Mukaram National Mosque to facilitate 

the Eid-ul-Azha prayers. 

One Eid congregation will be 

held at the south plaza of the 

Sangsad Bhaban at 7.30 am. 

Two Eid congregations will 

be held at the Dhaka University 

central mosque - the first one at 

8am and the second at 9am. 

Apart from this, two separate 

Eid congregations will be 

held in the field adjacent to Salimullah 

Muslim Hall Main gate 

and Shahidullah Hall lawn of 

Dhaka University at 8am. 

All the preparations, including 

overall security arrangements 

for holding Eid congregation 

there are underway, 

authorities said. • 

Novera Ahmed in front of one of her paintings 

Govt plans to purchase 

Novera Ahmed paintings 

• Asif Showkat Kallol 


The Ministry of Cultural Affairs 

plans to purchase 10 paintings 

by the late sculptor Novera 

Ahmed to enrich the country’s 

treasure trove of culture. 

Asaduzzaman Noor, minister 

of cultural affairs, wrote 

a letter to Minister of Finance 

AMA Muhith, citing a cost of 

$47,000 or a little over Tk38 

lakh for the acquisition. 

The cultural ministry requires 

an advance of $5,000 to 

book the 10 paintings, which 

are now with Novera’s husband 

Gregoire de Brouhns in Paris. 

The ministerial letter reads 

that the money could be disbursed 

from the Unexpected 

Budget Management Fund. The 

NOVERA’S FACEBOOK PAGE 

appropriation of the funds will 

require the prime minister’s approval. 

The finance mminister noted 

: “We are proud of sculptor 

Novera Ahmed. Her sculptures 

adorn our museums but we still 

have to get one of her paintings.” 

Novera Ahmed was an eminent 

sculptor from Bangladesh. 

One of the more prolific artists 

of her time, she was widely 

praised by her peers. Novera 

worked with Hamidur Rahman 

to design the Central Shaheed 

Minar. She was among the earliest 

sculptors in Bangladesh to 

adopt western influences and 

produced nearly 100 sculptures 

in Dhaka from 1956-1960. The 

government honoured her with 

the Ekushey Padak in 1997. Novera 

passed away in May 2015.• 

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 

8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207. Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com

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