The Bangladesh Today (13-02-2018)

TueSday 

Dhaka : February 13, 2018; Falgun 1, 1424 BS; Jamadi-ul-awal 26, 1439 hijri 

www.thebangladeshtoday.com; www. tbtbangla.com 

Regd.No.Da~2065, Vol.16; No.56; 12 Pages~Tk.8.00 

InTeRnaTIOnal 

71 die in plane 

crash near 

Moscow 

>Page 7 

aRT & CulTuRe 

People know me as I 

paired opposite Salman 

Khan: Zareen Khan 

>Page 8 

SPORT 

Mosaddek's omission: 

Did club pressure 

trump national interest? 

>Page 9 

BD generosity towards 

Rohingyas deserves 

applauds: EU 

Stresses on safe Rohingya return with basic rights 

COX'S BAZAR : Visiting European parliamentary 

delegation on Monday laid 

emphasis on giving back the Rohingyas 

their basic rights and citizenship and 

safe return to Myanmar from 

Bangladesh, reports UNB. 

Delegation leader and char of the delegation 

for Relations with the countries 

of South Asia (DSAS) Jean Lambert said 

Rohingyas certainly have the rights to 

live with their basic rights and citizenship 

right in place. 

She made the remarks while talking to 

press at the UNHCR-run relief distribution 

center in Ukhia upazila after visiting 

Rohingya camp and seeing their plight 

on the ground. 

Lambert said the European 

Parliament expects safe and dignified 

return of Rohingyas to their homes in 

Myanmar. She highly appreciated 

Bangladesh government and people of 

Bangladesh for showing such generosity 

saying it deserves high appreciation. 

State Minister for Foreign Affairs M 

Shahriar Alam said the repatriation is 

getting delayed because it is a complex 

issue. He said the government is moving 

ahead with repatriation process 

focusing on safe homes and safe environment 

for Rohingyas so that 

Rohingyas do not need to come back 

again after repatriation. 

Four teams of Members of European 

Parliament (MEPs) comprising 11 

MEPs arrived here on Saturday and 

Sunday. 

The EU teams visited different parts of 

Kutupalang camp and witnessed relief 

opeartions of international partners 

including UNHCR and IOM. They also 

witnessed health service operations in 

Zohr 

05:19 AM 

12:17 PM 

04:14 PM 

05:55 PM 

07:10 PM 

6:34 5:52 

the Rohingya camp. 

The UNHCR officials also had discussion 

with the visiting delegation members. 

The delegation members also talked 

to Rohingyas who shared their tales of 

sufferings with the delegation members. 

The delegation members are expected 

to visit Myanmar on Thursday. 

Members of the European 

Parliament's Subcommittee on Human 

Rights (DROI) are Pier Antonio Panzeri 

(Chair), Joachim Zeller, Soraya Post and 

Barbara Lochbiler. 

Urmas Paet will represent the 

European Parliament's Committee on 

Foreign Affairs (AFET). 

Marc Tarabella is representing the 

delegation for relations with the countries 

of Southeast Asia and the 

Association of Southeast Asian Nations 

(DASE). 

The members of the delegation for 

Relations with the countries of South 

Asia (DSAS) are Jean Lambert (Chair), 

James Nicholson, Richard Corbet, 

Wajid Khan and Sajjad Karim. 

In October last year, the Council of the 

EU in its conclusions said it may consider 

additional measures if the situation 

does not improve but also stands ready 

to respond accordingly to positive developments. 

However, it is yet to know what the 

conclusions will contain-whether it will 

be arms embargo or targeted sanctions 

on Myanmar government and army. 

On January 16, Bangladesh and 

Myanmar signed a document on 

'Physical Arrangement' which will facilitate 

the return of Rohingyas to their 

homeland from Bangladesh. 

European parliamentary delegation visited Rohingya camps in Cox’sbazar on Monday. 

TANGAIL : A court here on Monday sentenced four 

people to death and another person to seven years' 

imprisonment for killing law student Zakia Sultana 

Rupa after gang rape in a running bus on August 25 last 

year, reports UNB. 

Women and Children Repression Prevention 

Tribunal Judge Abul Hossain Miah pronounced the 

verdict in a crowded courtroom. 

The condemned convicts are bus driver Habib Miah, 

45, son of Shahidul Islam of Mirzapur village in 

Mymensingh Sadar upazila, and bus helpers Shamim 

Miah, 26,son of Khorshed Alam of Nandibari village of 

Mymensingh's Muktagachha upazila, Akram, 35, son of 

late Kamal Hossain of the village, and Jahangir Alam, 

19, son of Emadadul Haque of the Mirzapur village. 

Bus supervisor Safar Ali alias Gendu, 55, son of Sultan 

Ali of the Mirzapur village, was sentenced to seven years' 

imprisonment and fined Tk 1 lakh. 

The court also ordered the authorities concerned to 

give the bus in which Rupa was gang raped as well as the 

Hasina meets 

Pope Francis 

ROME (ITALY) : Prime Minister Sheikh 

Hasina on Monday had a meeting with 

Pope Francis, the spiritual leader of the 

Catholics of the world, at the Holy See in 

Vatican City, reports UNB. 

"The Prime Minister visited Vatican 

City in the morning (Local time) at the 

invitation of the Pope and had an audience 

with him at the Vatican City near the 

Italian capital of Rome," PM's Press 

Secretary Ihsanul Karim said. 

On her arrival at the Vatican City at 

10am, the Prime Minister was given a 

static guard of honour. 

Later, the Prime Minister held the meeting 

with the Pope at his office in Vatican 

City. After the meeting, Sheikh Hasina 

introduced her entourage to the Pope. 

She also presented a painting on natural 

beauty of Bangladesh to the Pope who 

later gave a crest to Sheikh Hasina. The 

Pope also presented souvenirs to the 

Prime Minister's entourage. 

Hasina's meeting with the Pope came 

two months after the catholic community's 

top spiritual leader visited Dhaka 

largely to use his good office in resolving 

the Rohingya crisis mounting pressure 

on Myanmar to stop atrocities on 

Rohingyas and take the displaced people 

back home with dignity. 

Pope Francis visited Bangladesh 

from November 31 to December 2 last 

at the invitation of Prime Minister 

Sheikh Hasina. 

The Prime Minister also had a meeting 

with Secretary State of Vatican City 

Cardinal Pietro Parolin in Vatican City. 

She also visited Sistine Chapel and 

Saint Peter's Basilica. The Sistine Chapel 

is a chapel in the Apostolic Palace, the 

official residence of the Pope, in Vatican 

City from where he delivers the religious 

and functionary papal activities. 

St. Peter's Basilica is an Italian 

Renaissance church in Vatican City, the 

papal enclave within the city of Rome. 

Designed principally by Donato Bramante, 

Michelangelo, Carlo Maderno and Gian 

Lorenzo Bernini, St. Peter's is the most 

renowned work of Renaissance architecture 

and the largest church in the world. 

Photo : Star Mail 

Pahela Falgun 

today 

DHAKA : With blossom of flowers 

and new leaves in trees, 

nature is getting fresh and colorful 

shape that touch heart and 

minds of all ages of people as 

spring (Pahele Falgun) is knocking 

on the door. 

Pahela Falgun, the first day 

of spring of Bengali month 

Falgun, will be celebrated 

today with flowers, poems, 

songs and dances. It brings 

joys and colours both in nature 

and life. 

The winter season has come 

to a close with rising of temperature 

as the people is set to welcome 

Pahela Falgun embracing 

fragrant of nature and exchanging 

love with their beloved ones. 

The spring has been depicted as 

the king of all seasons in poetry 

for it is featured by extra-ordinary 

beauty of nature. 

After the dryness of winter, 

new leaves start to come out 

again and the nature adorns 

the branches with new colorful 

flowers like Shimul, Polash 

and Marigold bringing the 

news of spring. 

Everything in nature gives an 

impression of youthfulness or 

freshness as if the nature takes a 

new birth. 

Colorful flowers, melody of 

birds or mild touch of the sunshine 

- everything will make you 

feel that springtime is the 

nature's festival. 

The festival-loving 

Bangladeshi people welcome 

and celebrate this day with 

great joys and love, and in a 

colourful manner. The blazing 

red and yellow are the representative 

colours of Pohela 

Falgun. 

4 to die for killing Rupa after rape 

fine money to her family as compensation. 

Meanwhile, the prosecution and the family expressed 

their satisfaction over the verdict. 

Special Public Prosecutor Advocate Nasimul Aktar 

Nasim said, "It's a historical verdict. We're happy with 

it. Within only five months and 17 days, the trial of the 

case has been completed." He, however, said the convicts 

can file appeal with the High Court against the verdict. 

Rupa's brother Hafizur Rahman, also complainant 

of the case, demanded speedy execution of the verdict. 

According to prosecution, Rupa, 27, was murdered 

after gang rape in the running bus while returning to 

Mymensingh from Bogra. 

Police recovered her bloodstained body from 

Panchmail area of Madhupur upazila on that night. 

Following post-mortem, she was buried at the town 

central graveyard as unclaimed body. Later, victim's relatives 

identified her seeing her photograph. 

On August 28, police arrested the five accused from 

Mymensingh in this connection. 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had a meeting with Pope Francis at Vatican City on Monday. 

Peaceful movement 

to continue until 

Khaleda's release: BNP 

DHAKA : BNP secretary general Mirza 

Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Monday said 

their party will continue their peaceful 

movement until Khaleda Zia is released 

from jail, reports UNB. 

"You've expressed your anger against the 

jailing of our leader Khaleda Zia and showed 

affection for her by joining the human chain 

braving many obstacles," he said. 

The BNP leader further said," We would 

like to clearly say that our peaceful movement 

will continue until our leader is 

released from jail." 

Fakhrul came up with the remarks while 

addressing a human chain formed by BNP 

leaders and activists in front of the Jatiya 

Press Club. Before going to jail, he said, their 

chairperson asked them to exercise restraint 

and have patience, and 

carry out the movement 

in a peaceful 

manner. "Our current 

programmes are for 

having Khaleda Zia 

released and restoring 

democracy." 

"We demand Khaleda 

Zia be released immediately. 

We'll go to the next 

polls along with our 

leader (Khaleda). No 

polls will be held in the 

country without her participation," 

the BNP 

leader said. 

Fakhrul said their party wants an electiontime 

neutral government and an independent 

and impartial Election Commission to 

hold the 11th parliamentary elections. "We 

want to fulfill people's hopes and aspirations 

by joining a peaceful and credible election. 

Let's carry out a peaceful movement to free 

our leader from jail." 

He urged the government to stop arresting 

their party leaders and activists across 

the country. BNP standing committee 

member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain 

said the country's people did not accept the 

Photo : PID 

'unfair' jailing of Khaleda. "The government 

must release her after withdrawing all the 

false cases filed against her." 

Another party standing committee member 

Mirza Abbas said the next election surely 

be held with the participation of Khaleda, 

no matter how many plots the government 

may hatch against her. "It'll be a nightmare 

if anyone thinks of holding the polls without 

her." 

As part of its countrywide scheduled programme, 

hundreds of BNP leaders and 

activists formed the human chain around 

10:30am and peacefully continued it until 12 

noon protesting the jailing of its chairperson 

Khaleda Zia in a graft case. 

The BNP men took position from Kadam 

Foara to Topkhana intersection and staged 

their protests with a good number of female 

activists and professions joining it. 

They chanted different slogans demanding 

Khaleda's immediate release. 

Huge law enforcers were deployed in and 

around the area to fend off any trouble. 

However, BNP senior joint secretary general 

Ruhul Kabir Rizvi alleged that police 

arrested their party's some leaders and 

activists, including party vice chairman 

Shamsuzzaman Dudu, as they were returning 

home after joining the human chain programme.

NEWS 

TUeSDAY, 

FeBRUARY 13, 2018 

2 

Tarique involved with BD high commission 

attack in London: Obaidul 

COX'S BAZAR : Road Transport 

and Bridges Minister and Awami 

League General SecretaryObaidul 

Quader on Monday claimed that BNP 

senior vice-chairman, Tarique 

Rahman, was involved with the attack 

on Bangladesh High Commission in 

London on February 7, reports UNB. 

Talking to the reporters while 

inaugurating Cox's Bazar-Teknaf road 

yesterday morning, Obaidul said 

"Staying in London, Tarique Zia, is 

instigating different violent activities." 

"The headquarters of Interpol has 

been informed regarding the matter. 

International process to repatriate the 

convicted person (Tarique) was 

underway to take legal steps against 

him," he said. 

Replying to a query on probability of 

split in BNP, the AL leader said "The 

leaders of BNP are enough to split the 

party." 

Earlier on February 7, a day before 

the verdict in the graft case against 

BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, some 

leaders and activists of BNP attacked 

the staff of Bangladesh High 

Commission in London and 

ransacked its furniture which the 

government termed tantamount to an 

attack on Bangladesh. Later on 

Thursday, BNP Chairperson Khaleda 

Zia, also a former prime minister, was 

jailed for five years as she was found 

guilty in the Zia Orphanage Trust 

corruption case. 

The minister inaugurated the road 

in commemoration of ATM Jafor 

Alom, who was killed by West 

Pakistani forces on the night of March 

25 in 1971. 

Dewan Shahnewaz Milad Gazi inaugurating the connecting work of Court Andor School in Habiganj. 

Photo : Mamun Chowdhury 

One dies as 

two trucks 

collide in 

Mymensingh 

Mymensingh: A truck 

driver was killed and four 

others injured in a road 

accident in Chandipasha 

area on the Mymensingh- 

KIshoreganj road in 

Nandail upazila here early 

yesterday, reports BSS. 

The deceased was 

identified as Solaiman, 22, 

son of Faruq Mia of 

Kuliarchar in Kishoreganj 

district. 

Solaiman died on the 

spot and four others 

injured when his truck 

collided head on with 

another truck around 1am, 

said Md Yunus Ali, officerin-charge 

of Nandail police 

station. 

The injured persons were 

admitted to Mymensingh 

Medical College Hospital 

(MMCH). 

Police recovered the body 

and sent it to MMCH 

morgue for an autopsy. 

Police seized the trucks, 

said the OC. 

Youth killed 

in Bogra 

road accident 

BOGRA: A youth was 

killed and two others were 

injured as a bus hit their 

motorbike in Bibirpukur 

area under Kahalu upazila 

of the district this noon, 

reports BSS. 

The deceased was 

identified as Budu Mandol, 

28, son of Rafiq Mandol, a 

resident of Godarpara area 

in Sadar upazila. 

Police said the accident 

occurred on the Bogra- 

Naogaon highway when 

the Naogaon-bound bus 

hit the bike in the area from 

opposite direction, leaving 

the three bike riders 

injured. 

The injured were sent to 

Shaheed Ziaur Rahman 

Medical College Hospital 

where Budu succumbed to 

his injuries. 

we`ÿ r/Rb-896(2)/11/2/18 

GD-231/18 (4 x 3) 

Southeast University 

Literature Award 

2017 held 

Southeast University (SEU) organized the "Literature 

Award Giving Ceremony 2017" on Sunday at its 

permanent campus at Tejgaon, Dhaka. 

Presided over by Prof. Dr. ANM Meshquat Uddin, Vice 

Chancellor of Southeast University, the ceremony was 

attended by Cultural Affairs minister Asaduzzaman Noor 

as the Chief Guest. Md. Rezaul Karim, Chairman, Board of 

Trustees, Southeast University Trust was present as the 

Guest of Honor. Eminent Educationist Emeritus 

Professor Dr. Anisuzzaman, and Professor 

Shamsuzzaman Khan, Director General of Bangla 

Academy were present as Special Guests at the program, 

a press release said. 

Emeritus Professor Serajul Islam Choudhury and 

Fiction Writer Badrun Nahar received the Southest 

University Literature Award 2017. Emeritus Professor Dr. 

Anisuzzaman, and Professor Shamsuzzaman Khan, 

Director General of Bangla Academy were awarded 

lifetime achievement gold medal at the event. Later a 

cultural event was organized where artists of the 

Southeast University Cultural Club performed. 

Members of BoT, SEU Trust; Registrar, Deans, 

Chairmen, Directors of different departments of 

Southeast University were present in the program. 

2 held in Ctg over 

question leak 

CHITTAGONG : Members of Rapid Action Battalion 

(Rab) arrested two members of a gang involved in the SSC 

question paper leak from Dabua Bazar area in Raozan 

Upazila here on Sunday night. 

The arrestees are Md Imran, 18 and Md Nurul Absar 

Sabuj, 20, reports UNB. 

On information, a team of Rab-7 conducted a drive in 

the area and arrested the duo, said Mimtanur Rahman, 

Senior Assistant Director of Rab-7. 

Earlier on Saturday, police arrested eight people, 

including two women and a female student, in connection 

with their suspected involvement in leaking the question 

paper of Mathematics exam. 

'Robber' lynched in 

Munshiganj 

MUNSHIGANJ : A suspected robber was killed in a 

lynch-mob attack at Velua village in Tongibari upazila 

early Monday, reports UNB. 

The deceased was identified as Babul Hossain, 47, a 

resident of Velua village of the upazila. 

A gang of robbers, numbering 15 to 20, swooped on the 

house of one Ayub Ali Sheikh and looted valuables after 

keeping Ayub's family members hostage in the early hours 

of the day, said Yeardous Hasan, officer-in-charge of 

Tongibari Police Station. 

Hearing their hue and cry, local people rushed in and 

chased the robbers. At one stage, they caught one robber 

while the others managed to flee the scene. 

Later, the mob beat the suspected robber up mercilessly, 

leaving him badly injured. The injured was taken to 

Tongibari Upazila Health Complex here he succumbed to 

his injuries. 

6 BNP, Jamaat 

men held in 

Comilla 

COMILLA : Police in 

special drives arrested six 

leaders and activists of BNP 

and Jamaat-e-Islami from 

different upazilas of the 

district, reports UNB. 

Police conducted the 

drives from Sunday night to 

Monday morning and 

arrested them on charge of 

carrying out sabotage. 

The arrestees include five 

BNP men and one Jamaat 

activist. 

6 BNP men held 

from Laxmipur 

human chain 

LAXMIPUR : Police 

arrested six leaders and 

activists of BNP from a 

human chain in front of 

Laxmipur Press Club on 

Monday morning, reports 

UNB. 

As part of its countrywide 

demonstration programme, 

BNP leaders and activists of 

the district formed a human 

chain in front of press club 

protesting the jailing of its 

Chairperson Khaleda Zia in 

a graft case. 

At one stage, police chased 

the party leaders and 

activists to disperse them. 

Later, the law enforcers 

seized their banner and 

detained six of them. 

The arrestees include - 

Shipon, joint general 

secretary of sadar upazila 

Jubo Dal and BNP activists 

Nuru, Rashed and Alamgir. 

School student 

killed in 

Kushtia road 

accident 

KUSHTIA: A school student 

was killed as a trolley 

hit his motorbike at Nagarmohammadpur 

in Sadar 

upazila yesterday morning, 

reports BSS. 

The deceased was identified 

as Ashif Hossain, 15, a 

student of class nine and son 

of Asadul Hossain, a resident 

of Jagonnathpur village 

of the upazila. 

Police said the accident 

occurred when the sandladen 

trolley hit the bike 

from opposite direction in 

the area at about 8 am, leaving 

the bike rider Ashif dead 

on the spot. 

Police recovered the body 

and sent it to Kushtia general 

hospital morgue. 

'3 arms traders' 

held in city 

DHAKA : Members of 

Rapid Action Battalion ( 

Rab) in a drive arrested 

three suspected arms 

traders from Mohammadpur 

area in the capital early 

Monday, reports UNB. 

A team of Rab-2 conducted 

a drive in the area and 

arrested the three along with 

a foreign pistol and 187 

rounds of bullets, said a text 

message sent from Rab-2. 

The details about the 

arrestees could not be 

known immediately. 

Australia opens 

national inquiry 

into finance sector 

Australia opened a longawaited 

inquiry into its 

massively-profitable 

finance industry Monday 

after a string of scandals 

rocked confidence in the 

sector. 

The country's "big four" 

banks-among the 

developed world's 

wealthiest -have been 

under increasing scrutiny in 

recent years amid 

allegations of dodgy 

financial and life insurance 

advice, and mortgage fraud. 

There have also been 

claims of anti-money 

laundering laws being 

breached and benchmark 

interest rates rigged. 

Prime Minister Malcolm 

Turnbull had long resisted 

Labor opposition calls for a 

royal commission into 

misconduct, claiming it 

would be a waste of money, 

but mounting political 

pressure forced his hand. 

With uncertainty over the 

issue hurting offshore 

investor confidence, he 

announced the inquiry late 

last year to probe "the 

nation's banks, big and 

small, wealth managers, 

Guests seen at the Award Giving Ceremony. 

Singapore retail 

sales grow by 4.6 

pct year-on-year 

in December 2017 

Singapore's retail sales went 

up 4.6 percent year on year 

last December, comparing to 

a re-calculated 5 percent rise 

in November, the Department 

of Statistics of Singapore 

announced on Monday. 

The retail sales dropped 0.2 

percent month on month on a 

seasonally adjusted basis in 

December, comparing to a 4.9 

percent month-on-month 

growth in the previous month. 

Excluding motor vehicles, 

the retail sales declined 2.6 

percent month on month but 

inched up 0.6 percent year on 

year in December, as against a 

2.7 percent month-on-month 

growth and a 4.4 percent 

year-on-year growth in 

November. 

According to the 

department, the total retail 

sales value in December was 

estimated at 4.3 billion 

Singapore dollars (about 3.24 

billion U.S. dollars). 

Meanwhile, the sales of food 

and beverage services 

decreased 0.9 percent month 

on month in December and 

rose 3.1 percent year on year. 

The sales value was estimated 

at 726 million Singapore 

dollars. 

superannuation providers, 

insurance companies". 

Australian Bankers' 

Association head Anna 

Bligh said the hearings may 

be uncomfortable. 

"It's important that it (the 

inquiry) gets to the matters 

that have disturbed the 

public," she told ABC radio. 

"I do expect this will be 

painful for banks and their 

staff." 

The Royal Commission 

into Misconduct in the 

Banking, Superannuation 

and Financial Services 

Industry has the power to 

summon witnesses and 

take evidence. 

GD-236/18 (6 x 3) 

While it can authorise 

police to apply for search 

warrants and witnesses 

who fail to appear may be 

arrested, it is not able to 

order compensation to 

those affected by any 

wrongdoings. 

It can, however, make 

recommendations for the 

government to consider, 

such as changing 

regulations governing the 

sector. 

Commissioner Kenneth 

Hayne, a former High 

Court judge, has 12 months 

to conduct his investigation 

and lodge a report with 

Canberra. 

Alibaba buys into home 

improvement business 

Alibaba is to pay 5.5 billion yuan (870 million U.S. dollars) 

to buy a 15 percent stake in Easyhome, a domestic home 

improvement chain. 

Alibaba will help digitalize Easyhome's outlets and 

"improve customer experience," according to their 

agreement, Alibaba sources said. 

Beijing-based Easyhome had 223 outlets across the 

country at the end of 2017, recording sales of more than 60 

billion yuan last year. 

Alibaba has invested in the retail sector in recent years, 

covering home appliances, digital products, fast-moving 

consumer goods, catering and home improvements. 

Global markets 

seeing 'necessary 

corrections': IMF 

chief 

The latest volatility in 

global financial markets 

represents "necessary 

corrections", IMF chief 

Christine Lagarde said in 

Dubai on Sunday, in the wake 

of a Wall Street plunge. 

"The market trepidations 

that we have seen in the last 

few days are not worrying me. 

"Those market movements 

were clearly, in our view, 

necessary 

market 

corrections," she told an 

audience at Dubai's World 

Government Forum. 

Wall Street stocks ended a 

bruising week on a benign 

note, courtesy of a late-session 

surge on Friday, while equity 

markets in Europe and Asia 

fell sharply in volatile trading. 

"I would not focus on what 

has happened in the last few 

days. I would focus on the 

imperatives of change going 

forward and the need to fix 

the roof," Lagarde said. 

On Saturday, she had urged 

Arab countries to slash public 

wages and subsidies in order 

to rein in spending, achieve 

sustainable growth and create 

jobs. Speaking at the one-day 

Arab Fiscal Forum in Dubai, 

Lagarde welcomed 

"promising" reforms adopted 

by some Arab states, but 

insisted much more was 

needed to overcome daunting 

economic and social 

problems. 

Photo : Courtesy

METRO 

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2018 

3 

World Radio Day Today 

DHAKA : The World Radio Day 2018 will be 

observed in the country as elsewhere across 

the world today highlighting the importance 

of the radio to the people, reports BSS. 

The United Nations Organisation for 

Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO) 

in its 36 general conference on November 3, 

2011 approved a proposal to celebrate the 

day on February 13 across the world as the 

World Radio Day. 

The objective of the day is to raise 

awareness about the importance of radio, 

facilitate access to information through 

radio and enhance networking among 

broadcasters. 

With the slogan 'Radio and Sports', 

Bangladesh Betar has chalked out a-daylong 

programmes at the Jatiya Betar Bhaban in 

the city's Agargaon area today, said an 

official release here today. 

Marking the day, a colourful procession 

will be brought from Jatiya Betar Bhaban in 

the morning. 

Apart from this, a discussion will be held 

at the auditorium of Jatiya Betar Bhaban. 

Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu is 

expected to lead the rally and address the 

inaugural function as the chief guest while 

State Minister of the ministry Tarana Halim 

will also address the event. 

On the eve of the day, President Abdul 

Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina 

issued separate messages greeting all 

concerned, including officers, employees, 

technicians and audience of the Bangladesh 

Betar and wishing all programmes of the 

day a success. 

They also termed the theme of this year 

'Radio and Sports' as time befitting. 

Since its inception in 1939, Bangladesh 

Betar has been playing an important role as 

a strongest medium, President Abdul 

Hamid said, adding that "It also played 

important role during our War of Liberation 

in 1971". 

Pre-calamities warning news of the Betar 

give direction to the people, he said, adding 

that it is also playing an effective role in the 

sports field recently along with broadcasting 

agricultural, educational, population and 

health related issues. 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in her 

message, termed the Bangladesh Betar 

as the country's largest and 

strongest medium and said it has been 

playing vital role in developing the country 

and boosting culture since its inception. 

"Our government has ensured free flow of 

information to accelerate the national 

development. We reach the information 

services to the doorsteps of the people 

through launching Jatiya Tattha Batayan 

and Union Information and Service 

Centers," the premier said. 

"We enacted the Right to Information 

(RTI) Act-2009 and established 

Information Commission, including 

formulating National Broadcast Policy, for 

the first time," she said, adding that a total of 

44 private television channels, 22 FM radios 

and 32 community radios got approval and 

they are enjoying full freedom now. 

Sheikh Hasina also hopped that 

Bangladesh Betar would play a pivotal role 

in building hunger and poverty free, happy 

and prosperous 'Sonar Bangla' dreamt by 

Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh 

Mujibur Rahman. 

Pro BNP-Jamaat 

panel sweeps Ctg 

Bar polls 

CHITTAGONG : The lawyers' 

panel, backed by BNP and 

Jamaat, has swept the 

Chittagong Bar Association 

election bagging 12 out of 19 

posts, including that of the 

secretary, reports UNB. 

Awami League-backed 

lawyers' panel got the rest 

seven posts, including that of 

the president. 

Sheikh Iftekhar Saimul 

Chowdhury has been elected 

president of the body while 

Mohamamd Nazim Uddin 

Chowdhury from Pro BNP- 

Jamaat panel has been elected 

general secretary. 

Chief 

Election 

Commissioner and senior 

lawyer advocate Nazmul 

Ahsan Khan Alamgir 

Chowdhury announced the 

results on Sunday midnight. 

The daylong voting of the 

election concluded around 

4:00pm starting from 9:00am 

on Sunday after 3,715 lawyers 

cast their votes. 56 lawyers 

competed for 19 posts of the 

body. 

Jatiyatabadi Lawyers Forum 

secretary general and 

Supreme Court Bar 

Association secretary Mahbub 

Uddin Khokon congratulated 

the pro-BNP lawyers' panel for 

their victory in the election. 

ECNEC recently approved the feasibility study project for constructing eight long bridges and 185 

kilometers road at Haor region of Sunamganj and Brahmanbaria district. After the approval of the 

project, necessary steps were taken to implement the survey activity and on Monday, an agreement 

was signed between LGED and Center for Environmental and Geographic Information Services 

(CEGIS) at LGED headquarter for environmental and social impact assessment in those areas. LGED 

Chief Engineer Abul Kalam Azad, Additional Chief Engineer Joynal Abedin and Noor Mohammad, 

Executive Director of CEGIS Md. Wazee Ullah, and LGED Project Director Bipul Chandra Bonik were 

present in the signing ceremony. 

Photo : Courtesy 

Bangabandhu Sangskritik Jote organized a discussion meeting at National Press Club yesterday 

marking the 90th birth anniversary of Language Hero Advocate Gaziul Haque. Photo : TBT. 

Chief justice 

calls on 

president 

DHAKA : Chief Justice Syed 

Mahmud Hossain yesterday 

paid a courtesy call on 

President M Abdul Hamid at 

Bangabhaban yesterday 

afternoon, reports BSS. 

The chief justice 

congratulated M Abdul 

Hamid for being reelected as 

the President of the Republic 

for the second consecutive 

term, President's Press 

Secretary Joynal Abedin told 

BSS. 

During the meeting, Syed 

Mahmud Hossain apprised 

the president of various 

activities of the Supreme 

Court, the Bangabhaban 

spokesman added. 

Abdul Hamid also 

thanked the chief justice 

hoping that country's 

judiciary would be able to 

work independently led by 

him (CJ). Secretaries 

concerned to the President's 

office were present. 

Kamal for 

attracting more 

European tourists 

DHAKA : Civil Aviation and 

Tourism Minister 

Shahjahan Kamal has said 

the Bangladesh government 

took all kinds of tourismfriendly 

measures besides 

ensuring safety and security 

to attract more foreign 

tourists including different 

European countries. 

The minister made the 

remark while briefing 

foreign journalists and 

international tour operators 

after inaugurating 

Bangladesh pavilion at 

"Borsa International 

Tourism Fair 2018" in Italy 

on Sunday, according to a 

message received here from 

Italy. 

The Bangladesh Tourism 

Board along with a number 

of local tour operators are 

taking part at the three-day 

fair where 2,000 companies 

from nearly 100 countries 

are displaying various 

products related to travel 

and leisure. 

The minister said 

Bangladesh is an exciting 

tourist destination for all as 

it has blend of splendid 

natural beauty and rich 

cultural and archeological 

heritages. 

The Bangladesh tourism 

minister also held bilateral 

talks with Italian deputy 

minister for Heritage and 

Culture and Tourism Dr 

Dorina Bianchi and Mayor 

of Milan Giuseppe Sala to 

discuss various matters 

related to bilateral mutual 

interests. 

Landslide halts 

Kapasia-Sreepur road 

communication 

HC for steps to remove haziness 

from Children Act, 2013 

DHAKA : The High Court (HC) yesterday asked the authority 

concerned to let it know the measures taken for removing 

lack of clarity from The Children Act, 2013 within next 

Sunday, reports BSS. 

A division bench of the HC comprising Justice M Enayetur 

Rahim and Justice Shahidul Karim passed the order. 

Social Welfare Secretary has also been asked to inform the 

court of the matter in written by the stipulated time. 

Earlier on October 31 in 2016, the court issued a rule asking 

secretaries of Social Welfare and Legislative and Drafting 

why contempt of court rule should not be issued against 

them for their failure to give explanation on the Children Act 

in accordance with the court order. 

Deputy attorney general Farhad Ahmed and assistant 

attorney general Yusuf Mahmud Morshed moved the court 

on behalf of the state. 

The court issued the rule after accused in four separate 

cases lodged on charges of raping children in Dhaka, Cox's 

Bazar and Rangpur, filed bail petitions with the High Court. 

All the accused in the cases are adults. 

The HC issued a rule asking for submitting explanation 

from the Children Court for granting bail petitions of the 

adult accused. The four judges of the courts submitted their 

explanations in line with the court order. 

Iqvmv-RtZt-76/18 

GD-238/18 (4 x 3) 

GAZIPUR : Road 

communication between 

Kapasia and Sreepur has 

been suspended since 

Monday morning due to 

landslide 

at 

Doshunarayanpur Bazar on 

the bank of Sitalakshya river, 

reports UNB. 

About 10,000 square feet 

of land including crop fields AvBGmwcAvi/wegvb/2018/16 

and a part of the road 

11/02/18 

subsided on Sunday night, 

said locals adding that 

GD-235/18 (8 x 4) residents of the area got 

panicky by this incident. GD-233/18 (7 x 3) 

Speaker calls 

on President 

DHAKA : Bangladesh Jatiya 

Sangsad (JS) Speaker Dr 

Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury 

yesterday made a courtesy 

call on President M Abdul 

Hamid at Bangabhaban 

here, reports BSS. 

The 

Speaker 

congratulated M Abdul 

Hamid for being reelected as 

the President of Bangladesh 

for the second consecutive 

term, President's Press 

Secretary Joynal Abedin told 

BSS this afternoon. 

During the meeting, the 

Speaker apprised the 

President of overall activities 

of the parliament. President 

Hamid also thanked Dr 

Chaudhury for her overall 

activities in the parliament. 

Secretaries concerned to 

the President and high 

officials were present.

EDITORIAL 

TUESDAy, 

FEBRUARy 13, 2018 

4 

Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam 

Telephone: +8802-9104683-84, Fax: 9127103 

e-mail: editor@thebangladeshtoday.com 

Tuesday, February 13, 2018 

Phobia in Indo- 

Bangladesh relations 

More than 47 years after the independence of 

Bangladesh, some quarters in this country 

are still convinced that our vast neighbour to 

the east, west and north, is not well disposed towards 

us. They see India as a typical aggressor nation bent on 

destroying the sovereignty or independence of 

Bangladesh. 

It would not matter if they were restricted in their 

belief to themselves. But the problem is that such beliefs 

can become the dominant ideology of major political 

parties in this country. They can draw inspiration from 

it or base their politics on it. In that case, such phobias 

can indeed become detrimental to positive interactions 

in different fields between the two neighbouring 

countries for the benefit of both. 

For example, successive governments in Bangladesh 

except for the government that ruled for a short period 

in the immediate post-independence period, took the 

posture of standing up to India on various issues. The 

governments and the political parties they represented 

behaved as if India was like a bully or like a Goliath and 

tiny Bangladesh heroically defended itself like a David 

against the evil Indian designs. Thus, a negative 

perception could develop in people's mind in 

Bangladesh about India's intentions in relation to this 

country. Some diehard elements even went so far as to 

spread apprehensions that India would some day 

gobble up Bangladesh like Sikkim. 

If India had expansionist designs against Bangladesh, 

then the best time for it was after the independence of 

Bangladesh when its forces had invaded this country. 

Russian forces came into East European countries in 

the course of the Second World War but did not leave. 

The Russian forces remained stationed there for nearly 

four decades and ensured the total subservience of 

these countries to Moscow's desires and needs. For all 

practical purposes, the East European countries only 

had a namesake independence and they were vassal 

entities of Moscow- politically, economically and 

strategically. 

If India so desired, it could try for such a relationship 

with Bangladesh. Its armed forces would not be simply 

pulled out in 1972 .That these forces were pulled out 

soon after the independence ofBangladesh was the best 

proof that India truly wanted Bangladesh to develop as 

a sovereign and independent entity. 

Notwithstanding propaganda that India exploits 

Bangladesh commercially and economically, the 

realities are far different. Bangladesh, no doubt, is an 

important destination for Indian exports. But Indian 

businesses have won market shares in Bangladesh by 

their own right as efficient producers and suppliers of 

goods. They are not necessarily bullying Bangladesh 

into buying their products. It is not that only India gains 

from such exports for Bangladesh also gains. The 

geographical nearness means that the freight costs or 

per unit costs of the delivery of an Indian product is 

cheaper for Bangladesh than from any other import 

source and also the quality of Indian products are 

found to be satisfactory. Bangladesh's export oriented 

readymade garments (RMG) sector obtains a bulk of 

its raw materials or fabrics from India at costs cheaper 

than from China and other suppliers and the goods also 

arrive faster helping quicker production which in turn 

shortens the lead time for the local RMG exporters. 

Bangladesh has for many years met a substantial part 

of its requirements of food grains from India. Cheap 

and reliable import of food grains fromIndia has helped 

food security in Bangladesh. Even this year when food 

grain production slumped round the world and India 

was also a part of this decline in food grain production, 

India has gone on to progressively keep its pledge to 

supply 0.5 million tons of rice to Bangladesh at a price 

which is notably lower than the prevailing international 

prices. Bangladesh has to import a large and wide 

range of products and importing these from India prove 

to be comparatively cheaper and reach this country 

faster in contrast to any other regional source. Even the 

sacrificial cows for the religious Eid-ul-Azha festival in 

Bangladesh come in great number from India. Without 

this trade, many persons in Bangladeshis would have to 

go without observing the religious rite of animal 

sacrifice. 

If Bangladesh has not been exporting as much to 

India, the same can be traced to the fact that Indian 

producers of the goods that Bangladesh would likely 

export to India, they are more efficient producers in 

terms of quality and offer better competitive prices than 

the Bangladeshi ones. In many cases, Bangladeshi 

exporters cannot meet the quality certification 

requirements of that country. But in the media in 

Bangladesh, India is often blamed for keeping 

Bangladeshi products out of its market by setting nontariff 

barriers. 

IMAGINE a group of citizens living 

in a densely populated lower 

middle-income neighbourhood in 

Lahore. Chances are that they will face 

any or all of these municipal failures: 

trash piles in a public space or in an 

empty plot; a dysfunctional sanitation 

system; an unpaved or patchy street; 

and non-functioning street lights. How 

would they go about resolving such 

collectively encountered problems? 

One response would be to wait 

patiently for a bureaucrat in the 

municipal administration to take notice 

and divert some funding to their area. 

This could take anywhere between a 

year to never. Another would be to hope 

someone in their vicinity is a) wellconnected, 

and b) able to lobby and 

redirect political attention through the 

local MPA/MNA, or since 2016, 

through a local Union Council 

representative. 

This particular mechanism is likely to 

be most effective in competitive 

constituencies around election time 

when politicians become more attentive 

to voter concerns. In interim periods, 

political contact and responsiveness 

nosedives, as demonstrated by a survey 

conducted by the Institute of 

Development and Economic 

Alternatives in Lahore. Only 17 per cent 

of male respondents in their sample, 

and a shockingly low 3pc of female 

respondents, reported any contact with 

any political party worker in the four 

years after the 2013 general election. 

The wilful secession of participatory 

rights is a pervasive feature of a number 

of domains in Pakistan. 

The two pathways described are not 

abstract theorising; they constitute 

lived reality in vast swathes of a city of 

11 million people. At a supply-side level, 

Domestic American politics has 

become so cripplingly partisan 

that Congress can't pass a longterm 

spending bill or deal with critical 

issues such as immigration reform, 

comprehensive health-care reform, or 

provide the massive funding needed to 

repair the country's crumbling 

infrastructure. Due to this deep and 

bitter divide - fuelled, in part, by United 

States President Donald Trump's 

inflammatory tweets; the harsh and 

inflammatory rhetoric from the 

pundits; and the media's penchant to 

create feeding frenzies over "gotcha" 

scandalous news stories - Washington 

has turned decidedly inward and 

disturbingly dysfunctional. 

Focused more on fighting for the sake 

of fighting and scoring points against 

political opponents, too little attention 

is paid to America's role in the rest of 

the world. The only times that Congress 

will attend to international matters is 

when there is, at stake, a domestic 

political advantage in appeasing 

supporters or striking out at rivals. As a 

result, there will be Congressional 

debates on punishing groups that 

support boycotting Israel, imposing 

sanctions on Iran or Russia, Russia's 

meddling in America's elections, or 

building a wall between the US and 

Mexico. But scant attention is given to 

addressing the US role in critical 

conflict areas from Somalia and Yemen, 

to Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan 

This reality came into sharp focus, a 

A non-participatory democracy 

they point to two basic issues: the first is 

the outdated and highly opaque 

architecture of municipal governance, 

wherein little fiscal and administrative 

powers are devolved to elected local 

governments. In the functioning of an 

array of provincially controlled (and 

overlapping) bureaucratic bodies, most 

notably the behemoth Lahore 

Development Authority, citizen contact, 

cognisance, and responsiveness are the 

first few victims. 

The second issue is the lack of 

organised contact between political 

parties and regular citizens, which 

undermines the former's primary 

responsibility as aggregators and 

articulators of the latter's interests. 

Pakistan's parties demonstrate low 

levels of organisational capacity for 

such basic functions, which is one 

reason for both their episodic lapses 

into crises and the prevailing low levels 

of trust in political elites and processes. 

There is, however, a demand-side 

component to this dysfunctionality. A 

third pathway to resolving municipal 

few days back, at an event hosted by my 

institute. It was our 20th annual 

Congressional dinner. This has long 

been one of my favourite affairs since 

it's a small gathering that brings 

together the Arab American members 

of Congress, the Arab ambassadors to 

the US, and a select number of 

members of our board, many of whom 

have rich political experience. 

It is, by design, an intimate, private 

and off-the-record dinner, providing 

the attendees with an opportunity to 

"let down their hair" and have a frank 

and open conversation about critical 

issues facing the US-Arab relationship. 

This year's dinner discussion, 

however, was different and the 

difference was illustrative of the serious 

problems plaguing American politics 

and the impact that this is having on the 

UMAIR JAvED 

service-delivery issues at the 

neighbourhood level would have been 

collective action of some kind. This 

could take the shape of residents 

making monetary contributions 

towards resolving the issue on their 

own, or mobilising collectively to place 

sustained pressure on service-delivery 

concerns through associational 

platforms (such as a neighbourhood 

residents' body). 

Existing evidence from other contexts 

The two pathways described are not abstract theorising; they 

constitute lived reality in vast swathes of a city of 11 million 

people. At a supply-side level, they point to two basic issues: 

the first is the outdated and highly opaque architecture of 

municipal governance, wherein little fiscal and administrative 

powers are devolved to elected local governments. In the 

functioning of an array of provincially controlled (and 

overlapping) bureaucratic bodies, most notably the behemoth 

lahore Development Authority, citizen contact, cognisance, 

and responsiveness are the first few victims. 

JAMES J. ZogBy 

tells us that the odds of timely and 

efficient solutions through collective 

action are greater than a reliance on the 

salience of one or two well-connected 

individuals and the ephemeral 

generosity of elected representatives. 

The participatory angle of politics and 

governance is largely missing in a city 

like Lahore. Part of this is certainly 

traceable to the bureaucratic and 

political context in which citizens find 

themselves. As mentioned earlier, 

parties are weak and poorly organised, 

while governance is centralised and 

bureaucratic. Such autocratic 

ability of our country to meaningfully 

engage in the world. 

Despite the presence of some Arab 

ambassadors whose countries are 

facing serious internal and regional 

challenges and whose situations are 

directly impacted by US policies, and 

despite the eloquent presentations 

made by these ambassadors, the 

discussions kept returning to the 

country's dysfunctional partisan divide. 

To their credit, the Congressional 

representatives and other participants, 

some of whom were senior political 

figures with long and distinguished 

careers in both the Democratic and 

Republican parties, never descended 

into rancour or finger-pointing. The 

concerns they raised were heart-felt 

and thoughtful. They lamented the 

demise of the political parties, which 

contingencies have helped perpetuate a 

weak associational culture, where the 

idea of coming together and forming 

platforms to resolve a collectively 

encountered problem is often not on 

the table. 

This inadequacy is found across both 

high- and low-income groups. For 

poorer citizens, the calculus involved in 

collective action play a deterring role. 

The opportunity cost of time spent 

organising and mobilising is often very 

high, thus increasing a reliance on 

individual brokers and patrons for 

problem-solving needs. 

However, even in Lahore's middleand 

high-income areas, where 

residents have both time and financial 

resources, participatory activity is 

highly curtailed and often limited to 

mosque and bazaar committees. This 

pales in comparison to urban India, 

where middle-class citizens utilise 

associational platforms for mobilising 

around environmental and servicedelivery 

concerns. One major example 

from across the border is the 

ubiquitous Resident Welfare 

Associations (RWAs), which have 

proven to be influential shapers of the 

urban planning process and are now 

emerging as important nodes of 

managing services. 

There are few parallels to the RWAs 

or similar bodies in a city like Lahore. 

The vast majority of middle- and highincome 

citizens have entered into a 

bargain with benevolent despots - ie 

housing society developers (such as 

Bahria and DHA), where they forgo 

their voice and participatory rights in 

exchange for improved, private 

municipal services. 

Source: Dawn 

American political dysfunction has turned the nation inward 

It all looked so good when the year 

started. Global stock markets were 

going gangbusters. The IMF talked 

of growth of 3.9 percent with all regions 

growing simultaneously for the first 

time since the financial crisis. 

It all sounded so great. The 

exuberance at the World Economic 

Forum's Davos meeting was eerily 

reminiscent of 2006, which worried 

many analysts. Then it happened: A 

higher-than-expected wage growth 

spooked the markets who were fearing 

the re-emergence of inflation and more 

than the expected three rate rises by the 

Federal Reserve (Fed) this year. It was 

always a question of how to wean 

expectations off the drug of combined 

low interest rates and expansionary 

monetary policies. 

Both the Fed and the European 

Central Bank are shrinking their 

balance sheets; and the Fed is raising 

rates. It was not a matter of if, but when 

there would be a wake-up call. 

The ferocity and velocity of this wakeup 

call stunned markets. The last two 

weeks saw $4 trillion wiped off global 

stock markets in as little as two days. 

Up to Feb. 2, equities lived in a 

sustained goldilocks environment and 

volatility was all but gone. It came back 

with avengeance with the volatility 

index VIX reaching 51 at times. (The 

multi-year average for the VIX stands 

at 20.) While this was a correction and 

Focused more on fighting for the sake of fighting and scoring points against 

political opponents, too little attention is paid to America's role in the rest of the 

world. The only times that Congress will attend to international matters is when 

there is, at stake, a domestic political advantage in appeasing supporters or 

striking out at rivals. As a result, there will be Congressional debates on 

punishing groups that support boycotting Israel, imposing sanctions on Iran or 

Russia, Russia's meddling in America's elections, or building a wall between the 

US and Mexico. But scant attention is given to addressing the US role in critical 

conflict areas from Somalia and yemen, to Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. 

not necessarily a crisis, the movements 

of global stock markets were 

exacerbated by computer-led 

exchange-traded mechanisms. They 

reacted vehemently to the spikes in 

volatility. 

We must get used to the end of cheap 

money and expansionary monetary 

policies on both sides of the Atlantic. 

We will still have to get used to the 

new normal, which is the end of cheap 

money and expansionary monetary 

policies on both sides of the Atlantic. 

Such adjustments are never easy. 

Therefore volatility is back, which in 

itself is not necessarily a bad thing. 

There was little attention focused on 

what this new normal will mean for 

emerging markets. Although the S&P 

500 was down by around 10 percent, 

the i-shares of the MSCI Emerging 

Markets Index were down by 12 

percent. 

This is a large drop. We still have not 

seen the magnitude of outflows from 

emerging markets which we witnessed 

during the "taper tantrum" of 2013, 

when tightening noises from the Fed 

opened the floodgates from emerging 

markets assets and currencies. 

The reason is simple: Many emerging 

markets have reduced their reliance on 

the US, which is why the stock markets 

reacted badly while the currencies held 

relatively stable. 

Emerging markets underperformed 

between 2010 and 2016 and have 

finally rebounded. The earnings 

outlook is positive and the economies 

are set to grow. As most of them are 

one participant described as once 

having played the role of mediating 

institutions that engaged and provided 

meaningful access to their members, 

but now served mainly as fund-raising 

vehicles. The once important role 

played by the parties had now been 

eclipsed by billionaire donors and their 

well-funded agenda-driven political 

action committees. Our participants 

also decried the transformation of cable 

television from conveyors of news into 

partisan entertainment vehicles that, 

instead of informing the public, served 

to inflame and polarise political 

discourse. And they expressed growing 

concern with the inability of Congress 

and some political leaders to engage in 

civil and productive discourse, making 

it increasingly impossible to reach 

compromise on critical issues facing the 

nation. 

The discussion was thoughtful and 

quite instructive, but despite repeated 

efforts to refocus participants on the US 

role in the Arab world, we kept drifting 

back to our preoccupation with the 

politics in America. And so, issues such 

as the needs of Syrian refugees and the 

destabilising impact they are having on 

host countries; the humanitarian crisis 

in Yemen; the deteriorating situation in 

the Occupied Territories; and the 

potential for an expanding US military 

role in Syria, without a strategic vision, 

received too little attention. 

Source: Gulf news 

After the wake-up call, volatility is the new normal 

CoRnElIA MEyER 

It all sounded so great. The exuberance at 

the World Economic Forum's Davos meeting 

was eerily reminiscent of 2006, which 

worried many analysts. Then it happened: A 

higher-than-expected wage growth spooked 

the markets who were fearing the reemergence 

of inflation and more than the 

expected three rate rises by the Federal 

Reserve (Fed) this year. 

export-driven, the trajectory of the 

global economy in general, and China 

in particular, will matter greatly. 

As for the GCC economies, the stock 

market indices are all down to varying 

degrees. The sovereign wealth funds 

will have been hit heavily by the 

turmoil. However, they are wise, longterm 

investors who can navigate the 

vagaries of the markets without getting 

spooked. 

Most of the GCC economies other 

than Dubai are still based on oil and 

highly correlated to oil markets. The 

success of the OPEC/non-OPEC deal to 

restrict production and the subsequent 

rise in price has done wonders for their 

government investment programs, 

which are important in that part of the 

world. 

Brent is no longer flirting with $70 

and has readjusted to somewhere 

between $60 and $65. This is still way 

above where we were two years or even 

one year ago. It means that the GCC 

governments' investment programs 

might still be reasonably on track, 

which is good news for the economy. All 

in all the fundamentals for economies 

based on oil do not look bad as long as 

demand is set to grow and the 

OPEC/non-OPEC deal holds. There 

will be volatility, but that is the new 

normal. 

Source: Arab News

ENVIRONMENT 

TuESDAY, FEBRuARY 13, 2018 

5 

We are turning space into a junkyard 

Kevin McKenna 

David Attenborough's Blue Planet series 

raised our awareness of rubbish tips 

traversing our oceans and choking some of 

our most beloved marine species. This has 

led to a global debate about how we 

manufacture and dispose of plastics. The 

Scottish government announced that it is to 

host an international conference in 2019 to 

discuss action on marine litter. It's ideal 

territory for any government seeking to be 

regarded as edgy and cool on this year's 

fashionable cause. No one could disagree 

with its aims and purpose and, more 

importantly, nothing that emerges from it 

will commit anyone to spending money or 

risking the growth of emerging industries. 

Perhaps soon our marine technology will 

have advanced to the stage where we can 

actually interpret what whales and dolphins 

are saying and begin to solicit their views on 

the subject. These creatures are believed to 

possess remarkable intelligence. If we 

reached the stage where we could converse 

with them, perhaps we could appoint some 

of them as environment tsars in western 

governments: that would sort the wheat 

from the chaff in all the chattering about 

human impact on the health of marine life. 

As the debate about our slatternly 

disposal of plastics was raging down on 

Earth we were all acclaiming a fresh 

addition to the garbage dump swirling 

above us in space. The billionaire car 

manufacturer Elon Musk launched one of 

his Tesla Roadsters to Mars in a rocket 

produced by his company, SpaceX. 

According to people who know about this 

stuff, it was the biggest and most powerful 

rocket launched since the Apollo series and 

Saturn V. We further learned that the 

rocket, the Falcon Heavy, uses 27 Merlin 

rocket engines to develop 22,819kN of 

thrust. I'm assured that this can carry a 64- 

tonne payload into low Earth orbit or 

geosynchronous orbit: more than sufficient 

SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket on the launch pad carrying Elon's Musk's red Tesla Roadster. 

for propelling a sports car to Mars. I won't 

pretend I understand the science but let's 

just say that Musk won't be getting invited 

to address an environmental summit in the 

near future. 

You might be tempted to dismiss this as 

an expensive publicity stunt by a billionaire 

playboy with too much time on his hands. 

But in reality it's an important step towards 

a time when space travel for your average 

indolent millionaire will become 

commonplace. It will probably become 

another way of managing your finances 

when Mars inevitably becomes the ultimate 

off-shore tax haven. 

Quite what our fetish for space 

exploration and spending billions on the 

technology required to feed this does to the 

environment is a serious matter. There's a 

dissonance emerging here. On Earth, we're 

organising summits and setting up carbon 

footprint-reduction targets all over the 

shop. Yet, up in yonder outer space we've 

established a giant garbage dump replete 

with huge hulks of rusting metal and, as of 

last week, a $200k American sports car. 

Photo: SpaceX 

Indeed, the whole issue of rocket 

emissions needs to be considered if we're 

serious about the environment. These 

emissions deliver gases and particles into 

the Earth's upper atmosphere and this will 

be addressed later this year at the UN's 

quadrennial global ozone assessment 

conference. Martin Ross, a senior project 

engineer for civil and commercial launch 

projects at the Aerospace Corporation in 

California, told the online journal 

Space.com that rocket soot accumulates in 

the upper stratosphere, where the particles 

absorb sunlight. "This accumulation heats 

the upper stratosphere, changing chemical 

reaction rates and likely leading to ozone 

loss." He added: "The 2018 assessment is 

really the first one to have a substantial 

section on rocket emissions, not just a 

passing thought… we now understand that 

the climate and ozone impacts of rocket 

exhaust are completely intertwined." 

And if we're discussing space, then we 

ought to be discussing the impact of all 

these rockets on our potential neighbours in 

the galaxy. I've always found it curious that 

despite spending even more billions over 

decades trying to locate other forms of 

intelligent life we've had nary a cheep back; 

not even a single intergalactic WhatsApp 

message. So either our neighbours are a 

rude shower or they simply don't exist. But 

what if there's another, more sinister 

explanation: that they do exist but are so far 

ahead of us in intelligence that they've 

created the means to put themselves out of 

our reach, perhaps with a giant jamming 

device. 

This would explain all those sightings of 

extraterrestrial spacecraft and kidnappings. 

Every so often, they check us out to see if 

we've advanced to a stage where they feel 

they can have a reasonable chat with us. 

Such visits are bound to have left them 

disappointed. In recent months, I can 

imagine one of their scouts reporting back: 

"Look, 2,000 years ago, the leader of the 

civilised world in Rome gave his horse a seat 

in his cabinet; now the most civilised 

country in the world has appointed some 

medieval bampot called Trump. They're still 

savages." 

I can only imagine, too, how resentful 

they're getting at us disfiguring their 

neighbourhood with obsolete metal junk. If 

I was them I'd be sorely tempted to invade 

us to sort this out or simply send a short, 

sharp reminder that our actions have 

consequences. Mind how you go. 

Bill Gates way of 

cleaning up the planet 

Reef fish are often caught using potassium cyanide and then injected with antibiotics to keep them 

alive. 

Photo: James Morgan 

The dire future for 

Coral Triangle reef fish 

Environment Desk 

The US$1 billion a year Live Reef Fish 

for Food Trade (LRFFT) is threatening 

the future of key reef predator species 

like grouper, coral trout and Napoleon 

wrasse, according to a recent study. 

The study - published by WWF, the 

Swire Institute of Marine Sciences at 

the University of Hong Kong (HKU) 

and ADM Capital Foundation - urges 

swift action towards regulating an 

industry that's decimating stocks of 

these species across the Coral Triangle, 

threatening poor communities that rely 

on the fishery for their livelihoods. 

The Live Reef Fish for Food Trade 

(LRFFT) is largely fuelled by 

consumers in Hong Kong, and 

mainland China, for whom reef species 

are a delicacy - dishes that must be 

served at formal dining occasions such 

as weddings. While campaigns against 

shark-finning have achieved some 

success, it is difficult to raise similar 

levels of awareness about these less 

iconic species, in spite of their crucial 

role in sustaining reef ecosystems. 

Though small in size compared to 

other fisheries, the LRFFT is 

disproportionately valuable, thanks to 

prestige driven demand. Napoleon 

Wrasse for example can fetch more 

than $600 per kilo, according to the 

report. And the estimated US$1 billion 

a year in revenue only accounts for the 

legal side of the business. 

"The real value of the trade is 

unknown, since much is traded illegally 

on the black market," says Geoffrey 

Muldoon, Senior Manager of the WWF 

Coral Triangle Programme. The report 

estimates that the volume of LRFFT 

imports into Hong Kong are being 

underestimated by as much as 50%. 

"Traders, transport and logistics 

carriers are allowed to exploit a vacuum 

created by inadequate and outdated 

regulation, loopholes in the law and lax 

enforcement," says Muldoon. 

The 15-20 reef species that make up 

the bulk of the trade - most of them 

types of grouper - are especially 

vulnerable since they are relatively slow 

to mature. The market's unrelenting 

demand means that fishers are taking 

increasing numbers of juveniles before 

they've had a chance to spawn. 

"The rate at which we are taking reef 

fish from our oceans, including 

juveniles, is simply not sustainable," 

says Dr Yvonne Sadovy, a professor of 

biological sciences and the study's lead 

author. "It is critical Hong Kong takes 

steps to regulate before it is too late." 

Some have touted mariculture as a 

potential solution, but while there is a 

growing market for farmed grouper, 

these operations don't actually reduce 

pressure on wild populations. It's 

difficult to hatchery-produce species 

like coral trout in commercial 

quantities, so juveniles are still taken 

from the wild for grow out. Also, 

consumers tend to believe that wild 

caught fish are superior in quality, 

which in turn makes them more 

valuable to traders. 

With Chinese New Year arriving on 

16th February, dinner tables across 

southern China and southeast Asia will 

be laden with the obligatory plates of 

steamed grouper. But consumers will 

likely have little idea of where their fish 

came from, or how it was caught. 

Few will know that fishers often 

favour potassium cyanide as a means of 

stunning fish so they are easier to catch. 

Or that fishers use compressor engines 

to pump air through hose pipes, often 

going 40-metres and beyond in search 

of their ever-dwindling catch. Many are 

killed or crippled by decompression 

sickness. 

There are sustainable alternatives - 

consumers can download apps that 

offer guidance on sourcing fish that's 

sustainably caught. The LRFFT offers 

virtually no sustainable options 

however, due to byzantine and 

secretive supply chains and aggressive 

monopolies. 

The study includes a number of 

recommendations for government to 

play its part by including stronger 

regulations to crack down on the 

rampant illegal trade. Traders and 

retailers meanwhile are encouraged to 

make traceability a priority. 

"We are not talking about not eating 

fish at all," says Dr Sadovy. "What we 

are talking about is not eating so many 

wild fish that we destroy their 

populations. "We need to know where 

seafood comes from, that it's legally 

sourced, safe to eat, and that it is 

sustainable". 

John Vidal 

It's nothing much to look at, but the 

tangle of pipes, pumps, tanks, reactors, 

chimneys and ducts on a messy 

industrial estate outside the logging 

town of Squamish in western Canada 

could just provide the fix to stop the 

world tipping into runaway climate 

change and substitute dwindling 

supplies of conventional fuel. 

It could also make Harvard superstar 

physicist David Keith, Microsoft cofounder 

Bill Gates and oil sands 

magnate Norman Murray Edwards 

more money than they could ever 

dream of. The idea is grandiose yet 

simple: decarbonise the global economy 

by extracting global-warming carbon 

dioxide (CO2) straight from the air, 

using arrays of giant fans and patented 

chemical whizzery; and then use the gas 

to make clean, carbon-neutral synthetic 

diesel and petrol to drive the world's 

ships, planes and trucks. 

The hope is that the combination of 

direct air capture (DAC), water 

electrolysis and fuels synthesis used to 

produce liquid hydrocarbon fuels can be 

made to work at a global scale, for little 

more than it costs to extract and sell 

fossil fuel today. This would 

revolutionise the world's transport 

industry, which emits nearly one-third 

of total climate-changing emissions. It 

would be the equivalent of mechanising 

photosynthesis. 

The individual technologies may not 

be new, but their combination at an 

industrial scale would be 

groundbreaking. Carbon Engineering, 

the company set up in 2009 by leading 

geoengineer Keith, with money from 

Gates and Murray, has constructed a 

prototype plant, installed large fans, and 

has been extracting around one tonne of 

pure CO2 every day for a year. At 

present it is released back into the air. 

But Carbon Engineering (CE) has just 

passed another milestone. Working 

with California energy company 

Greyrock, it has now begun directly 

synthesising a mixture of petrol and 

diesel, using only CO2 captured from 

the air and hydrogen split from water 

with clean electricity - a process they call 

Air to Fuels (A2F). 

"A2F is a potentially game-changing 

technology, which if successfully scaled 

up will allow us to harness cheap, 

intermittent renewable electricity to 

drive synthesis of liquid fuels that are 

compatible with modern infrastructure 

and engines," says Geoff Holmes of CE. 

"This offers an alternative to biofuels 

and a complement to electric vehicles in 

the effort to displace fossil fuels from 

transportation." 

Synthetic fuels have been made from 

CO2 and H2 before, on a small scale. 

"But," Holmes adds, "we think our pilot 

plant is the first instance of Air to Fuels 

where all the equipment has large-scale 

industrial precedent, and thus gives real 

indication of commercial performance 

and viability, and leads directly to scaleup 

and deployment." 

The next step is to raise the money, 

scale up and then commercialise the 

process using low-carbon electricity like 

solar PV (photovoltaics). Company 

publicity envisages massive walls of 

extractor fans sited outside cities and on 

non-agricultural land, supplying CO2 

for fuel synthesis, and eventually for 

direct sequestration. 

"A2F is the future," says Holmes, 

"because it needs 100 times less land 

and water than biofuels, and can be 

scaled up and sited anywhere. But for it 

to work, it will have to reduce costs to 

little more than it costs to extract oil 

today, and - even trickier - persuade 

countries to set a global carbon price." 

Meanwhile, 4,500 miles away, in a 

large blue shed on a small industrial 

estate in the South Yorkshire coalfield 

outside Sheffield, the UK Carbon 

Capture and Storage Research Centre 

(UKCCSRC) is experimenting with 

other ways to produce negative 

emissions. 

The UKCCSRC is what remains of 

Britain's official foray into carbon 

capture and storage (CCS), which David 

Cameron had backed strongly until 

2015. £1bn was ringfenced for a 

competition between large companies 

to extract CO2 from coal and gas plants 

and then store it, possibly in old North 

Sea gas wells. But the plan unravelled as 

austerity bit, and the UK's only running 

CCS pilot plant, at Ferrybridge power 

station, was abandoned. 

The Sheffield laboratory is funded by 

£2.7m of government money and run 

by Sheffield University. It is researching 

different fuels, temperatures, solvents 

and heating speeds to best capture the 

CO2 for the next generation of CCS 

plants, and is capturing 50 tonnes of 

CO2 a year. And because Britain is 

phasing out coal power stations, the 

focus is on achieving negative emissions 

by removing and storing CO2 emitted 

from biomass plants, which burn 

pulverised wood. As the wood has 

already absorbed carbon while it grows, 

it is more or less carbon-neutral when 

burned. If linked to a carbon capture 

plant, it theoretically removes carbon 

from the atmosphere. 

Known as Beccs (bioenergy with 

carbon capture and storage), this 

negative emissions technology is seen as 

vital if the UK is to meet its long-term 

climate target of an 80% cut in 

emissions at 1990 levels by 2050, 

according to UKCCSRC director 

Professor Jon Gibbins. The plan, he 

says, is to capture emissions from 

clusters of major industries, such as 

refineries and steelworks in places like 

Teesside, to reduce the costs of 

transporting and storing it 

underground. 

"Direct air capture is no substitute for 

using conventional CCS," says Gibbins. 

"Cutting emissions from existing 

sources at the scale of millions of tonnes 

a year, to stop the CO2 getting into the 

air in the first place, is the first priority. 

"The best use for all negative emission 

technologies is to offset emissions that 

are happening now - paid for by the 

emitters, or by the fossil fuel suppliers. 

We need to get to net zero emissions 

before the sustainable CO2 emissions 

are used up. This is estimated at around 

1,000bn tonnes, or around 20-30 years 

of global emissions based on current 

trends," he says. "Having to go to net 

negative emissions is obviously unfair 

and might well prove an unfeasible 

burden for a future global society 

already burdened by climate change." 

The challenge is daunting. Worldwide 

manmade emissions must be brought 

to "net zero" no later than 2090, says 

the UN's climate body, the 

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate 

Change (IPCC). That means balancing 

the amount of carbon released by 

humans with an equivalent amount 

sequestered or offset, or buying enough 

carbon credits to make up the 

difference. 

An artists impression of what Carbon Engineering's ambitious 

direct air capture project. 

Photo: Carbon Engineering

NATIONAL 

MonDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2018 

6 

Barisal University vice-chancellor, Professor Dr. Imamul Haque inaugurating "Pitha Uthsob" 

arranged by Bangla Department yesterday on the university campus. 

Photo: TBT 

Programmes taken to observe 

Amar Ekushey in Rajshahi 

RAJSHAHI: Different government, 

non-government, volunteer and cultural 

organizations including the Rajshahi City 

Corporation (RCC) and the district 

administration have chalked out 

elaborate programmes to observe the 

Amar Ekushey and International Mother 

Language Day in a befitting manner on 

February 21, reports BSS. 

The programmes include placing of 

wreaths at Shaheed Minar, hoisting of 

national flags at half-mast atop all public 

and private buildings, mourning 

procession and decoration of the city 

3-day digital 

innovation fair 

begins tomorrow 

in Rajshahi 

RAJSHAHI: A three-day 

'Digital Innovation-2018' fair 

will start from tomorrow in 

the city aims at encouraging 

people to use Information and 

Communication Technology 

(ICT) for building 'Digital 

Bangladesh', reports BSS. 

The fair organised by 

District Administration will 

be held at the playground of 

Rajshahi College. Latest ICT 

products, multi-media 

classroom, mobile banking 

and e-learning items will be 

display in around 70 stalls 

under five pavilions at the fair. 

The information was 

disclosed in a press briefing 

held at conference hall of 

Deputy Commissioner here 

today. Deputy Commissioner 

Helal Mahmud Sharif and 

Additional Deputy 

Commissioner (Education 

and ICT) Nasima Khatun 

addressed it as focal persons. 

Helal Mahmud Sharif said 

the fair is a step towards 

providing extensive services 

to the citizen. Through this 

fair, citizens from district 

levels will avail the scope of 

getting aware of the e-services 

at their doorsteps. 

Besides, they would get to 

experience some important 

and regular services in-venue 

to understand the mechanics 

and advantages of these 

electronically 

services. 

transformed 

streets with miniature national and 

coloured-flags inscribed with Bengali 

alphabets 

The programmes also include holding 

qurankhwani and discussion at the 

Islamic Foundation office, art and literary 

competitions for school and college 

students at the Shishu Academy and 

screening of documentary films on the 

Language Movement. 

Language veterans will be accorded a 

reception on the occasion. Besides, a 

discussion and cultural function will be 

organised at the auditorium of Shilpakala 

Academy, the officials concerned said. 

The RCC has taken up elaborate 

programmes to observe the day. RCC 

Mayor Mosaddique Hossain Bulbul is 

likely to open the day's programme by 

placing wreaths at Bhuban Mohan Park 

Shaheed Minar at zero hours, RCC 

officials told BSS here yesterday. 

Meanwhile, Rajshahi University, 

Rajshahi University of Engineering and 

Technology (RUET), Rajshahi Medical 

College and other educational 

institutions adopted various programmes 

to observe the day. 

BCL protests attack 

on Bangladesh 

mission in London 

RANGPUR: The district 

unit of Bangladesh Chhatra 

League (BCL) staged a 

procession here on Sunday 

afternoon protesting the 

Wednesday's attack on the 

Bangladesh High 

Commission in London by 

the BNP-Jamaat men, 

reports BSS. 

Hundreds of the leaders 

and activists of the district 

unit of BCL brought out the 

protest procession that 

paraded the main city 

streets. After the procession, 

a protest rally was held on 

the Zahaj Company Mour 

premises in the city. 

In the procession, they 

also chanted slogans 

demanding imprisonment 

of acting chairman of BNP 

Tarique Rahman and BNP- 

Jamaat men for the attack 

during which the 

photograph of Father of the 

Nation Bangabandhu 

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman 

was torn. 

Presided over by President 

of district BCL Mehedee 

Hassan Rony, its General 

Secretary Rakibul Hassan 

Kanon moderated the postprocession 

rally. 

Vice-presidents of district 

BCL Shariful Islam Sharif, 

Shahinul Islam Ghazi and 

Motaleb Hossain, its Joint 

Secretaries Mostafa Parvez 

Rion and Mohaiminul 

Hasib, Organising 

Secretaries Abu Hossain, 

Adnan Hossain, Belal 

Hossain Apel and Atikul 

Islam Atik, Publicity 

Secretary Moktar Elahi 

Murad, addressed, among 

others. 

Strongly condemning the 

attack on the Bangladesh 

High Commission in 

London, the BCL leaders 

said that they will go for a 

tougher movement if the 

perpetrators are not brought 

to justice. 

Rony said the students of 

Bangladesh will never 

tolerate humiliation of 

Bangabandhu's photograph 

and demanded for 

immediate identification of 

the attackers and 

confiscation of their 

passports to bring them to 

justice. 

Digital innovation fair 

begins in Panchagarh 

Panchagarh: A three day digital innovation fair began on 

the premises of Panchagarh government auditorium today. 

District administration is arranging the fair, reports BSS. 

Kabir-Bin Anowar, director general (administration) of 

Prime Minister Office' A2i project inaugurated the fair as the 

chief guest. 

A discussion addressed by Zila parishad chairman 

Amanulla Bacchu as the chief guest was also held at the 

auditorium. 

Naimuzzaman Mukta, Prime Minister Office's A2i project 

officer, and additional police super ATM Sahin Ahamed were 

present there as special guests. 

Apart from this, government high officials, teachers and 

students took part in the rally as well as discussion. A total of 

51 stalls were set up on the fair premises. 

Earlier, a rally led by additional deputy commissioner 

Golam Azom was brought out from DC office premises that 

paraded the thoroughfares of the district town. 

State Minister for Textile and Jute Mirza Azam handing over prize among winners of "Unfinished 

Memoir: Book Study Evolution" competition yesterday at Shaheed Minar Muktomancha arranged by 

Itihash Charcha Parisad at Melandah Upazila under Jamalpur district. Photo: Ruhul Amin 

JU teachers, 

senators for 

stopping of 

ragging 

JU CORRESPONDENT 

The teachers and senators 

ofJahangirnagar 

University (JU) called for 

an immediate abolition of 

'ragging 'to the fresher 

students on the campus. 

JU 

Teachers' 

Association, at a press meet 

in Social Sciences Faculty 

building, called for the 

unity against the ongoing 

degenerate culture while 

'Shikkhak Mancha, at a 

press conference in New 

Arts building, urged the 

authorities for the 

measures to end 

harassment on Sunday. 

In the meantime, they 

expressed their deep 

concern and called on all 

the stake-holders of the 

university for unity against 

ragging. 

To raise awareness 

against the issue, they 

visited different 

dormitories of the 

university and talked to the 

students. 

On the other hand,on 

Monday,JU senators 

formed a human chain in 

front of JU registrar 

building demanding an 

end to ragging. 

Earlier on Thursday, 

Mizanur Rahman, a 1st 

year student of CSE 

department, lost his 

mental balance after he 

was victimized of ragging 

by his senior fellows. 

He was now staying with 

his parents in Dhaka under 

doctor's supervision. 

Bangladesh advancing 

fast under leadership 

of Prime Minister: Anwar 

THAKURGAON: 

Bangladesh has become a 

digital country and has been 

advancing fast toward a 

middle income nation and 

subsequently, a developed 

country, under the dynamic 

leadership of Prime Minister 

Sheikh Hasina, reports BSS. 

"With becoming a digital 

country, Bangladesh has 

achieved laudable success in 

every sector all over the 

country," said Director 

General (Admin) and 

Project Director of Access to 

Information (A2I) 

Programme of the Prime 

Minister's Office (PMO) 

Kabir Bin Anwar. 

He made the observations 

at a discussion after 

inaugurating a 3-day Digital 

Innovation Fair-2018 by 

releasing balloons on 

Thakurgaon Zila School 

ground here on Sunday 

afternoon as the chief guest. 


district 

administration with 

assistance of the A2I 

Programme has been 

arranging the fair for 

bridging the people with 

ICT, rights to information 

and getting government 

services in digital methods 

to further speed up the 

ongoing digitisation 

activities. 


district 

administrations, 

government departments, 

NGOs and private 

organisations, union digital 

centres, financial and 

educational institutions and 

entrepreneurs have set up 

70 stalls on the fair ground 

displaying their various 

innovations. 

With 

Deputy 

Commissioner Abdul Awal 

in the chair, People's 

Perspective Expert of the 

A2I Programme at the PMO 

Naimuzzaman Mukta, 

Additional Police Super 

Dewan Lalon Ahmed, Zila 

parisahd Chairman 

Muhammad Sadek 

Koraeshi, Civil Surgeon Dr 

Abu Musa Md Khairul 

Kabir, addressed the 

occasion, among others. 

The speakers said the 

government launched the 

A2I Programme for reaching 

all services to the people at 

their doorsteps quickly in a 

hassle-free manner through 

the digitised Information 

and Communication 

Technologies (ICT) at the 

lowest costs. 

They said the union digital 

centres, e-service centres 

and web-portals set up at 

districts, upazilas, 

pourashavas and city 

corporations are providing 

e-services to the people 

while the directorates and 

ministries are also providing 

similar automated services. 

The chief guest hoped the 

fair would help make a 

bridge between the common 

people and ICT for building 

a middle income nation and 

subsequently, a developed 

Bangladesh equal for all 

citizens. 

Encroachers and political stalwarts grab canal, owned by Kuakata municipality and construct establishments. 

The photo was taken from Kuakata under Patuakhali district. 

RAJSHAHI: Flower 

farming has gradually been 

increasing commercially in 

the region including its vast 

Barind tract as the growers 

are getting good yield and 

price, reports BSS. 

In the current season, 

farmers cultivated different 

varieties of flower including 

gladiolus, ganda, rose, 

rojonigondha and gerbera in 

Godagari, Kakonhat, 

Mundumala, Tanore, 

Amnura, Nachole, 

Gomostapur, Sapahar, 

Porsha, Niamatpur and other 

adjoining areas. 

Officials of Department of 

Agriculture Extension (DAE) 

here said the farmers have 

been cultivating flower here 

as they are getting lucrative 

market price. 

Kayum Ali, a farmer of 

Gopalpur village under 

Godagari Upazila, has 

changed his fate after 

cultivating gladiolus flower. 

In 2012, he made profit 

through cultivating flower on 

ten decimals of land first 

taking suggestion and 

cooperation of Sub-Assistant 

Agriculture Officer Ashraful 

Islam. 

"I have brought one and 

half bighas of land under the 

flower farming with 

expenditure of around Taka 

25,000 this year," Kayum 

said, adding that he sold 

flower worth Taka 1.80 lakh. 

"I am hopeful over making 

profit of around Taka 1.85 

lakh in a season and 

increasing the acreage in the 

years to come," he said with 

smiling face. 

Upazila Agriculture Officer 

Shafiqul Islam said soil and 

environment of Barind area is 

suitable for flower farming. 

There is enormous scope of 

boosting flower yield if timely 

irrigation and fertilization 

was ensured, he added. 

He told BSS today that the 

DAE has adopted necessary 

measures for imparting 

trainings to farmers for 

expansion of flower farming 

in the region. Deb Dulal Dhali, 

Deputy Director of DAE, said 

there is a big market for 

flowers in Rajshahi, 

Chapainawabgonj and other 

neighbouring districts. 

Gladiolus sticks of different 

colours like white, red, yellow, 

scarlet, pink, violet, rosy, 

lipstick and blue are grown in 

the same plot, flower growers 

said. The flower is harvested 

within 70 days and grows all 

over the year, they added. 

Business leaders and 

Agriculturists have suggested 

boosting cultivation of 

indigenous flowers to reduce 

dependence on import as the 

demand of flowers has 

recently been increased 

sharply in the region. 

"Due to quality of soil, the 

region has a diversity of 

ornamental plants which 

needs to be scientifically 

cultivated for promoting 

Four presumed 

drug traders 

held in 

Palashbari 

GAIBANDHA: Detective 

police arrested four alleged 

drug traders including a 

female with 320 pieces of 

yaba tablets conducting a 

drive in Muraripur area 

under Betkapa union of 

Palashbari upazila of the 

district yesterday, reports 

BSS. 

The arrestees were 

identified as Javed Ali, 

Rashidul Islam alias Lal 

Miah, Baten Miah, and 

Jabenur Begum. 

Acting on a tip-off, a team 

of Detective Branch of police 

conducted the raid in the 

area and arrested four 

suspected drug traders with 

yaba tablets, police officials 

familiar with the drive said. 

A case was filed with 

Palasbari Police Station in 

this connection. 

Later, the arrested were 

sent to jail by a local court as 

they were produced before 

it. 

Flower farming gains popularity in Rajshahi 

RANGPUR: Experts and academicians at a 

seminar called upon the agriculture scientists 

and researchers to enhance research on cotton 

cultivation and inspire the farmers in 

increasing farming of the highly profitable 

crop, reports BSS. 

They came up with the call at the seminar on 

'Prospects of Cotton Production in the 

Northern Region of Bangladesh' organised by 

Cotton Development Board (CDB) on Sunday 

at Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and 

Technology University (HSTU) auditorium in 

Dinajpur district town. 

Presided over by Executive Director of CDB 

at Khamarbari Dr Md Farid Uddin, cotton 

farmers of Rangpur region, academicians, 

researchers, scientists, officials, teachers and 

students of HSTU participated in the seminar. 

Vice-chancellor of HSTU Professor Dr M 

Abul Kashem attended the seminar, arranged 

for promoting cotton farming in the northern 

region, as the chief guest. 

Rangpur Regional Deputy Director of CDB 

Md Elias Mian, its Additional Director at 

export," said Md 

Muniruzzaman, President of 

Rajshahi Chamber of 

Commerce and Industry. 

He said various species of 

flowers are grown in the 

region and measures should 

be taken to cultivate more so 

that flower can be turned into 

an export-oriented industry. 

Dr Md Khalequzzaman, a 

professor of Rajshahi 

University, said flowers are 

the most beautiful gifts of 

nature and people of all age 

loves flower so farmers 

should be encouraged to 

promote flower farming in 

the region. 

Experts for enhancing research 

on cotton cultivation 

Khamarbari Md Akhteruzzaman and Professor 

of the Department of Genetics and Plant 

Breeding at HSTU Professor Dr Bhabendra 

Kumar took part as main discussants. 

Agriculturist Fahinur Rahman Shatil and 

Sabiha Roksana of CDB moderated different 

sessions in the seminar. 

Chief guest Professor Kashem said 

Bangladesh has achieved outstanding success 

in developing rice and wheat cultivation 

through research works to increase production 

of these major cereal crops for attaining food 

security. 

"So why, we have to enhance research on 

cotton farming and inform the farmers about 

benefits of its cultivation so that they come 

forward spontaneously to promote cotton 

farming to reap more profits," he added. 

Dr Farid said the farmers can cultivate two 

more crops on the same land after cultivating 

cotton annually in Rangpur region where a 

tendency of tobacco farming is still prevailing 

despite government efforts of discouraging 

tobacco cultivation.

INTERNATIONAL 

TuEsdAY, fEbRuARY 13, 2018 

7 

Emergency services arrived at the crash site on foot. 

A passenger plane carrying 71 

people crashed minutes after 

take-off from Moscow's Domodedovo 

airport killing everyone on 

board, reports Al Jazeera. 

Saratov Airlines Flight 703 went 

down on Sunday near Ramenskoye 

town, about 40km from 

Moscow's second-largest airport. 

Maxim Sololov, Russia's transportation 

minister, confirmed 

there were no survivors. The 

Antonov An-148 aircraft had 65 

passengers and six crew members 

on board when it went down. The 

plane was heading from the Russian 

capital to Orsk city, about 

1,500km away, near the border 

with Kazakhstan. 

It was not immediately clear 

what caused the crash. "Witnesses 

Photo: Internet 

Russian minister: 71 die in 

plane crash near Moscow 

Pacific nation 

of Tonga 

braces for 

Cyclone Gita 

Some people in Tonga are 

nailing pieces of wood over 

their windows while others 

are evacuating as they 

brace for a cyclone that is 

due to hit Monday night, 

reports BBC. 

The Pacific island nation 

has declared a state of 

emergency in anticipation 

of Cyclone Gita. Weather 

experts say Gita is packing 

sustained winds of 195 

kilometers per hour (121 

miles per hour) and is 

expected to intensify 

before making landfall. 

The storm has strengthened 

since hitting Samoa 

and American Samoa last 

week, where it caused 

damage to buildings, 

widespread power outages 

and flooding. 

President Donald Trump 

on Sunday declared an 

emergency in American 

Samoa, a U.S. territory. 

The declaration allows the 

Federal Emergency Management 

Agency to provide 

equipment and 

resources. Tonga is home 

to about 105,000 people. 

said they saw a burning plane 

falling out of the sky," said Al 

Jazeera's Rory Challands, reporting 

from Moscow. 

Russian investigators said "no 

reports about technical malfunctions 

were received from the 

plane's crew" ahead of the crash. 

The Russian transport ministry 

was investigating possible causes 

including weather conditions and 

pilot error, Interfax news agency 

said. Russian President Vladimir 

Putin extended his condolences to 

those who lost relatives in the 

crash. 

"The president has instructed 

the government to set up a special 

commission over the plane crash 

in the Moscow region," Tass news 

agency quoted Putin's press secretary 

Dmitry Peskov as saying. A 

source from the emergency services 

told Interfax the airplane had 

been manufactured less than 

eight years ago. Saratov Airlines is 

one of a number of small regional 

airlines operating in Russia. 

In December 2016, a military 

plane carrying Russia's Red Army 

Choir went down after taking off 

from the Black Sea resort of Sochi, 

killing all 92 people on board. 

Pilot error was blamed for that 

crash. 

A plane carrying the Lokomotiv 

Yaroslavl ice hockey team skidded 

off the runway during take-off 

and slammed into a tower in 

Septemer 2011, killing 44 players 

and staff in the city of Yaroslavl. 

One crew member survived. 

Pakistani leading rights activist, 

Asma Jehangir, dead at 66 

Asma Jehangir, one of Pakistan's most 

prominent right activists and lawyers, died 

on Sunday of a heart attack in the eastern 

city of Lahore at the age of 66, her daughter 

said, reports Dawn. 

News of Jehangir's sudden death shook 

political, social and media circles in Pakistan, 

as well as government ranks. President 

Mamnoon Hussain, Prime Minister 

Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and others offered 

condolences. Jehangir suffered a heart 

attack late on Saturday night and was 

rushed to hospital where she died early on 

Sunday, her daughter Munizae said. Born 

on Jan. 27 in 1952, Jehangir had a prominent 

career both as a lawyer and rights 

activist. She has served as chairwoman of 

the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, 

and was widely respected for her outspoken 

criticism of the country's militant and 

extreme Islamist groups and unparalleled 

record as rights activist. Jehangir also served 

as president of the Supreme Court's Bar 

Association and was a U.N. rapporteur on 

human right and extrajudicial killings. 

She was on Time magazine's list of 100 

most influential women. "We have lost a 

human rights giant. She was a tireless advocate 

for inalienable rights of all people and 

for equality - whether in her capacity as a 

Pakistani lawyer in the domestic justice system, 

as a global civil society activist, or as a 

Special Rapporteur," the U.N. Secretary- 

General Antonio Guterres in a statement. 

"Asma was brilliant, deeply principled, 

courageous and kind," he said. "Asma will 

not be forgotten." A fierce defender of 

democracy, she often criticized Pakistan's 

military and intelligence. She defended 

minority Christians charged with blasphemy, 

an offense that under Pakistan's controversial 

law carries the death penalty. She was 

repeatedly threatened by the country's militant 

religious right whom she criticized loudly 

and often. 

A champion of human rights, Jehangir was 

unafraid to speak loudly against those attacking 

minority religions and women. She won 

scores of international awards. Several years 

ago, she briefly sent her family out of the country 

following threats from militant groups. 

Friends, relatives, activists and journalists 

thronged to her residence in Lahore to express 

their grief. Local TV stations broadcast footage 

showing public figures and Jehangir's friends 

sobbing and consoling each other outside her 

residence as her body was brought home from 

hospital. Zohra Yousuf, a former chairwoman 

of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, 

said she lost a "great friend and great warrior of 

human rights." "No one can replace Asma, ... 

She was unmatched and unparalleled, we suffered 

a great loss today," Yousuf said. 

Activist Marvi Sarmad tweeted: "Today it's 

not only Pakistan who will cry. The entire 

South Asia shall mourn Asma Jehangir." 

"'Speaking truth to power,' a phrase we often 

use, Asma Jehangir lived, practiced till her 

last breath," said another activist, Raza 

Ahmed Rumi. 

Dems taking another run at blocked 

memo on Russia probe 

Democrats on the House Intelligence 

Committee are prepared to 

black out parts of their memo about 

the FBI's Russia investigation to 

ensure there's no harmful spilling 

of secrets, then try again to get 

President Donald Trump to let it 

come out. A White House aide said 

Sunday he's confident it will be 

released once Democrats "clean it 

up, reports Dawn. 

That possible nudge toward 

progress came as both sides traded 

steamy recriminations over the 

matter. Rep. Adam Schiff of California, 

senior Democrat on the 

House Intelligence Committee, said 

Trump is putting his personal 

interest above the country's in 

blocking a memo that "completely 

undermines his claim of vindication" 

in special counsel Robert 

Mueller's continuing investigation 

of the 2016 Trump campaign's relationship 

with Russian interests and 

Russia's meddling in the election. 

"The president doesn't want the 

public to see the underlying facts," 

Schiff said on CBS's "Face the 

Nation." 

The White House legislative 

director, Marc Short, countered 

that Democrats padded their memo 

with sensitive information, knowing 

Trump would stop its release, in 

an effort to make him look obstructionist. 

"We're not afraid of transparency," 

Short said on NBC's 

"Meet the Press." ''I think you're 

going to see us release the memo." 

Trump overrode strong Justice 

Department objections when he 

declassified a Republican memo 

alleging an abuse of surveillance 

powers in the FBI's Russia investigation. 

The FBI expressed "grave 

concerns" about the memo's accuracy 

and the Justice Department 

said in advance that its release, 

without proper review, would be 

"extraordinarily reckless." But 

Trump has blocked the Democratic 

document, which tries to counter 

the Republican allegations of surveillance 

excesses. The president 

has the authority to keep such 

information under wraps, and exercised 

it only against the Democrats. 

"Their goal here is to put the FBI 

on trial, to put Bob Mueller's investigation 

on trial, and the president 

is only too happy to accommodate," 

Schiff said. 

Prince Harry, 

Meghan 

Markle offer 

details on 

the big day 

Prince Harry and 

fiancee American 

actress Meghan Markle 

have released more 

details about their May 

19 wedding, revealing 

that the event will 

include a carriage ride 

through Windsor so they 

can share the big day 

with the public, reports 

CNN. 

The couple will marry at 

noon in St. George's 

Chapel, the 15th century 

church on the grounds of 

Windsor Castle that has 

long been the backdrop of 

choice for royal occasions. 

Harry's grandmother, 

Queen Elizabeth II, gave 

permission for use of the 

venue and will attend the 

wedding. 

Kensington Palace 

said in a statement that 

the couple is "hugely 

grateful" for the many 

good wishes they have 

received and they hope 

the carriage ride will 

give the general public a 

chance to take part. 

"They hope this short 

journey will provide an 

opportunity for more 

people to come together 

around Windsor and to 

enjoy the atmosphere of 

this special day," the 

palace said. 

Archbishop of Canterbury 

Justin Welby is to 

marry the couple. A 

reception for the couple 

and guests from the congregation 

will be held in 

St. George's Hall after 

the carriage ride. 

Prince Charles, the 

father of the groom, will 

give a private evening 

reception for the couple, 

close friends and 

family at an undisclosed 

location. 

Tens of thousands of Greeks 

protest Macedonia's name 

Leaders of South Africa's governing 

ANC party are due to meet to 

decide the future of President 

Jacob Zuma, reports BBC. 

The National Executive Committee 

(NEC) is likely to ask him to 

step down, says BBC Africa Correspondent 

Andrew Harding. ANC 

president Cyril Ramaphosa 

acknowledged on Sunday that the 

issue was causing "disunity and 

discord". Mr Zuma, 75, faces a 

number of corruption charges 

after nine years in power. 

"We know you want closure", Mr 

Ramaphosa told a crowd marking 

100 years since the birth of the 

country's first black president, 

Nelson Mandela. An NEC meeting 

was called off last week following 

direct talks between Mr Zuma and 

Mr Ramaphosa, who is the deputy 

Harvey Weinstein 

New York state sues 

Weinstein Company 

New York prosecutors have 

filed a lawsuit against the 

Weinstein Company, alleging 

that the studio failed to 

protect staff from Harvey 

Weinstein, reports BBC. 

The film producer is facing 

dozens of allegations of sexual 

abuse, including rape, 

but denies non-consensual 

sex. The lawsuit alleges Mr 

Weinstein abused female 

employees and made verbal 

threats to kill staff members. 

A lawyer for Mr Weinstein 

said a "fair investigation" 

would show that many of the 

allegations were without 

merit. 

The Weinstein Company 

is yet to comment. New York 

Attorney General Eric 

Schneiderman said on Sunday 

that he had filed the suit 

against the Weinstein Company, 

as well as Mr Weinstein 

and his brother Robert, 

who co-founded the studio. 

He is seeking an unspecified 

sum to cover damages, plus 

penalties, for victims of 

alleged abuse by Harvey 

Weinstein, 65. The document 

alleges that Mr Weinstein 

sexually harassed and 

abused women employed by 

the studio for years. 

It accuses senior executives 

at the company, including 

Robert Weinstein, of failing 

to prevent the mistreatment 

of staff despite being 

presented with evidence. 

The lawsuit follows a fourmonth 

investigation and 

cites multiple examples of 

alleged misconduct by Mr 

Weinstein, including: 

Requiring his drivers to 

"keep condoms and erectile 

dysfunction injections in the 

car at all times" The requirement 

for his assistants to 

schedule "personals for sexual 

activity" both during 

office hours and after work. 

The film producer's contract 

allegedly contained the 

proviso that mistreatment 

claims would result in a 

financial penalty, rather 

than be prohibited, which 

"effectively monetised" sexual 

harassment. 

In response, Mr Weinstein's 

lawyer Ben Brafman 

said while his client's behaviour 

"was not without fault", 

there was "no criminality". 

"At the end of the inquiry it 

will be clear that Harvey 

Weinstein promoted more 

women to key executive 

positions than any other 

industry leader and there 

was zero discrimination at 

either Miramax or [the 

Weinstein Company]." he 

said. 

The suit casts doubt over 

the sale of the Weinstein 

Company, which has been 

battling bankruptcy and is in 

talks with investors. Mr 

Schneiderman said his 

investigation was continuing, 

but he had brought the 

suit out of concern that a 

possible sale would leave 

alleged victims without adequate 

compensation, and 

could benefit "perpetrators 

or enablers". It is reported 

that businesswoman Maria 

president as well as the new leader 

of the party. 

Mr Zuma has resisted increasing 

pressure to quit since December, 

when Mr Ramaphosa replaced him 

as leader of the ANC (African 

National Congress). Correspondents 

say that if the NEC agrees to 

recall Mr Zuma, it would be very 

difficult for him to resist. 

"As you have all heard, the 

National Executive Committee of 

the ANC will be meeting tomorrow... 

and because our people want 

this matter to be finalised, the NEC 

will be doing precisely that," Mr 

Ramaphosa told the rally in Cape 

Town. He acknowledged the ANC 

was suffering "a period of difficulty, 

disunity and discord" and said 

he wanted to replace it with "a new 

beginning". 

The issue of Jacob Zuma threatens to split the ANC ahead of elections in 2019. 

Contreras-Sweet has led 

talks to buy the studio for 

$500m (£362m). But after 

news of the suit emerged, 

negotiations are now said to 

be on hold. Investors 

baulked at the prospect of 

the lawsuit adding conditions 

to the sale, Variety 

reported. 

In October last year, The 

New York Times published a 

Harvey Weinstein is facing dozens of accusations 

of abuse. 

Photo: Internet 

story detailing decades of 

allegations of sexual harassment 

against Mr Weinstein. 

Since then more than 50 

women, among them some 

of the biggest names in Hollywood, 

have accused the 

film producer of sexual 

assault, harassment, abuse 

and rape. In the wake of the 

allegations, Mr Weinstein 

was sacked by the board of 

his company. He is under 

investigation by UK and US 

police but no charges have 

been brought. Mr Weinstein, 

who was once among 

the most powerful men in 

Hollywood, has admitted 

that his behaviour has 

"caused a lot of pain" but has 

described many of the allegations 

against him as 

"patently false". 

He pledged to tackle the corruption 

that has marred Mr Zuma's 

time in office. Mr Ramaphosa 

urged South Africans to restore the 

values that Mr Mandela - also 

known as Madiba - stood for, and 

said those who had stolen state 

assets would be brought to justice. 

"We must work together as 

Madiba taught us to push back the 

frontiers of poverty, unemployment 

and inequality," he said. Mr 

Zuma's presidency has been overshadowed 

by allegations of corruption. 

In recent years his links to the 

wealthy India-born Gupta family, 

who are alleged to have influenced 

the government, have caused his 

popularity to plummet. Both Mr 

Zuma and the Guptas deny the 

allegations. 

Photo: Internet

ART & CULTURE 

TUeSDAY, 

FeBrUArY 13, 2018 

8 

People know me as 

I paired opposite 

Salman Khan: 

Zareen Khan 

Zareen Khan, who debuted 

alongside Salman Khan in Veer, 

has been a part of several 

Bollywood films like Housefull 2 

and Ready. The 1921 actor says 

that it was only after Hate Story 

3 that people have started seeing 

her in a different light, reports 

The Indian Express. 

Actor Zareen Khan says her 

Bollywood debut film Veer is 

very close to her heart and that 

Six-day 

film festival 

starts at DU 

Dhaka : A six-day film festival began 

at the TSC Auditorium of Dhaka 

University, reports UNB. 

Dhaka University Film Society 

(DUFS) organised the event marking 

the International Mother Language 

Day. 

The 17th edition of the festival, 

titled 'Amar Bhasar Chalachitra' 

featuring 19 Bangladeshi films began 

with the screening of Mostofa Sarwar 

Farooki directed 'Doob'. 

Former Vice Chancellor of the 

University and moderator of the club 

A A M S Arefin Siddique inaugurated 

the festival 

Nine classic Bangla films and ten 

contemporary films will be screened 

at the festival while DUFS will 

honour a filmmaker with Hiralal Sen 

Padak for the second time. 

Five BangladesSh filmS 'Haldaa', 

'Bhubhan Majhi', 'Khacha', 'Gohin 

Baluchar' and 'Rina Brown' will 

compete for the award. 

DUFS has been organising the 

annual film festival with the slogan 

'Sustha Chalachitra, Sustha Darshak' 

since its inception in 2000 to 

promote Bangla films and help 

change the taste of audiences and 

bring out more talented filmmakers. 

people today know her because 

she was paired opposite 

superstar Salman Khan. Ever 

since her debut in 2010, Zareen 

featured in films like Ready and 

Housefull. 

Asked if starring in big budget 

films initially helped her shape 

her career, Zareen told IANS 

over the phone from Mumbai: 

"Today if people know me it is 

because of Veer, even if the 

Bhumi 

Pednekar, 

Karan to 

attend Berlin 

film festival 

movie did not do well. It is 

because I was paired opposite 

Salman Khan that today people 

know me. So, Veer in spite of not 

doing well, will be very dear to 

my heart because it was my first 

film." 

The actress says that her role 

was not that important in the 

other films she got then as 

compared to those that are 

offered to her now. 

"Those (films) did too, but not 

what all these films that I am 

doing right now did for me 

because my role was not that 

important. 

In Ready, I did only one song, 

in Housefull 2 there were a lot of 

other people and I had a very 

small role. So, maybe I was not 

really noticed or I did not get to 

do much in the film," she said. 

The actress, 30, says it was after 

After making it to the Forbes India's 

under 30 list, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan 

actress Bhumi Pednekar is all set to 

represent India with Karan Johar at Berlin 

International Film Festival, reports NDTV. 

Actor Bhumi Pednekar has been invited 

along with filmmaker Karan Johar to 

represent Indian cinema at the forthcoming 

Berlin International Film Festival. 

"I am most honoured and humbled to be 

invited by the Berlinale. The fact that I will 

represent India and its evolving cinema is 

itself a huge moment of pride for me," 

Bhumi said in a statement. The actor, who 

has been lauded for two back-to-back hits 

Toilet: Ek Prem Katha and Shubh Mangal 

Saavdhan- both of which gave a dose of 

entertainment with a message - was also 

recently a part of Forbes India's 30 Under 30 

list. Bhumi is counted amongst the most 

promising talents in Hindi cinema today. 

the erotic thriller Hate Story 3, 

filmmakers saw her in a 

different light. 

"It was after Hate Story 3 that 

people have started seeing me 

in a different light and offering 

me films that they feel I can be a 

solo part of. I think it is not 

about doing big films. It is about 

how important your role is in a 

movie and what that does for 

you," she added. 

Being an actress who has consciously 

chosen high content cinema right from her 

debut with "Dum Laga Ke Haisha", Bhumi 

will be representing and highlighting the 

evolution of mainstream Hindi cinema at the 

Berlinale. Berlinale is set to take place from 

February 15-25. 

The versatile actress is not only on a roll in 

her career but also recently made it to the 

Forbes India's under 30 list. While 

expressing her excitement about it Bhumi 

took to Twitter abd wrote, "Thank you 

@forbes_india for the recognition.Being a 

part of this list,with such dynamic people is 

truly an honour .More power to all of you 

????? #forbes30under30 #achiever 

#dreamer #love #forbesindia" Meanwhile on 

the work front, the Shubh Mangal Saavdhan 

actress, Bhumi is currently shooting for 

Sushant Singh Rajput starrer Son Chiraiya 

which is helmed by Abhishek Chaubey. 

You are not my 

friend: Kim 

Cattrall blasts 

Sarah Jessica 

Parker 

Kim Cattrall and Sarah Jessica Parker had 

reportedly been at odds since filming Sex and the 

City together, reports BBC. 

Actress Kim Cattrall vented her anger at former 

Sex and the City co-star Sarah Jessica Parker, 

saying she was not her friend. The two had 

reportedly been at odds since filming the show 

together, with the demise of any prospects for a 

third Sex and the City film bringing the animosity 

back to the surface, reports 

hollywoodreporter.com. Cattrall took to 

Instangram to vent her anger on Saturday. "I 

don't need your love or support at this tragic time 

Sarah Jessica Parker," she posted. In the caption, 

she called Parker a "hypocrite" and "cruel". 

She said, "Let me make this very clear. (If I 

haven't already) You are not my family. You are 

not my friend. So I'm writing to tell you one last 

time to stop exploiting our tragedy in order to 

restore your 'nice girl' persona." 

According to hollywoodreporter.com, Cattrall 

was likely referring to the recent death of her 

brother Chris, which Parker discussed at the 

Paley Centre for media's An Evening With the 

Cast of Divorce in New York on Thursday. 

Parker had also left a message of condolence on 

Cattrall's Instagram post announcing her 

brother's passing, as had Cynthia Nixon, one of 

Cattrall and Parker's other Sex and the City costars 

On Instagram, Cattrall also linked to a New 

York Post article from October entitled "Inside 

the mean-girls culture that destroyed Sex and the 

City. In the article, a clique that excluded Cattrall 

is described as having been formed on the set of 

Sex and the City particularly after creator and 

producer Darren Star left and Parker's friend 

Michael Patrick King took over, which led to 

Cattrall's reluctance to participate in the first Sex 

and the City film. 

LONDON - Dr Luke's legal team 

subpoena Lady Gaga to testify in 

case in connection to Kesha, reports 

EWN. 

The music producer is keen for the 

star to hand over evidence such as 

text messages sent between her and 

Kesha in which the Tik Tok singer 

stated she was abused by Luke and 

claimed there was another victim. 

The producer's legal team said in a 

statement obtained by PEOPLE: "In 

connection with Dr. Luke's 

defamation claims against Kesha, 

various third parties are being 

deposed by both sides, including 

celebrities. 

"Dr. Luke's counsel served a 

subpoena on Lady Gaga because she 

has relevant information regarding, 

among other things, false 

statements about Dr. Luke made to 

her by Kesha. This motion has 

Lady Gaga Subpoenaed 

To Testify In Dr Luke 

And Kesha Case 

become necessary because Dr. 

Luke's counsel has not been able to 

obtain, despite repeated request, a 

deposition date from Lady Gaga." 

In 2014, Kesha, 30, accused Dr. 

Luke of sexually abusing her, 

drugging her, and emotionally 

abusing her for years but he has 

denied the claims. 

And the statement goes onto say 

Gaga, 33, was allegedly encouraged 

to embark on a "smear campaign" 

against the 43-year-old producer. 

However, she has hit back at Dr 

Luke and insisted he has 

exaggerated her role in the case to 

gain press attention and that her 

evidence is merely providing 

necessary support to get to the 

truth. 

A statement from Lady Gaga's 

representative to PEOPLE said: "As 

Lady Gaga's legal team will present 

to the court, she has provided all of 

the relevant information in her 

possession and is at most an 

ancillary witness in this process. Dr. 

Luke's team is attempting to 

manipulate the truth and draw 

press attention to their case by 

exaggerating Lady Gaga's role and 

falsely accusing her of dodging 

reasonable requests." 

She recently submitted a number 

of emails to court in which the 

music producer slammed her 

weight and was critical of her 

appearance. 

Dr Luke - whose real name is 

Lukasz Gottwald - reportedly wants 

to add a defamation charge to his 

own lawsuit against Kesha over the 

text messages to Lady Gaga. 

H o r o S C o P e 

ArIeS 

(March 21 - April 20): If others go out of 

their way to pick holes in your 

arguments today just ignore them. 

Having said that, it could be there is 

something you have overlooked and at least one 

kind person will try to warn you, so don't be too 

eager to be rude. 

TAUrUS 

(April 21 - May 21): Your main task 

today is to resist the temptation to look 

at the world as if everything that 

happens is a disaster or a tragedy. Focus 

only on good news today - there is still plenty of it if 

you care to look. It's about attitude, not events. 

GeMINI 

(May 22 - June 21): Check the small 

print carefully before putting pen to 

paper today because you could have 

been misled into thinking that you 

have got the best of a deal when, in fact, others will 

profit a lot more than you do. Details are always 

important. 

CANCer 

(June 22 - July 23): The more others 

want you to do something you don't 

think is in your best interests the more 

you must resist. Your arguments for 

giving it a miss may not sound convincing but what 

matters is that you stick to your guns. They can't 

force you. 

Leo 

(July 24 - Aug. 23): Cosmic activity in 

your fellow fire sign of Aries has filled 

your head with no end of big ideas but 

not all of them are practical, so don't get 

carried away. You are under no obligation to hurry, 

so bide your time and think things through. 

VIrGo 

(Aug. 24 - Sept. 23): Someone who 

usually has only nice things to say 

about you will go right the other way 

and say something hurtful today, but 

you must not let it get to you. Sometimes you can 

be too sensitive for your own good. Don't take 

yourself so seriously. 

LIBrA 

(Sept. 24 - Oct. 23): You have 

nothing to prove and lots to gain and 

everything to look forward to. That is 

the message of the stars today and 

even if you don't quite believe it what happens 

over the next few days will bring a smile to your 

face. It's about time! 

SCorPIo 

(Oct. 24 - Nov. 22): If someone you 

don't know very well tells you what a 

great guy you are it's a sure sign they are 

after something. That something is 

most likely to be your money, so act cool and don't 

give them a thing, no matter how nicely they ask. 

SAGITTArIUS 

(Nov. 23 - Dec. 21): Your current run 

of good fortune is sure to come to an 

end eventually but there is no reason 

to suppose it will be any time soon. 

The planets indicate there are plenty of good 

things still to look forward to, the first of which 

will arrive today. 

CAPrICorN 

(Dec. 22 - Jan. 20): For some strange 

reason you can see enemies in every 

direction at the moment but most if 

not all of them exist only in your 

imagination, so get a grip on yourself and get 

things done. Your only real enemy is your lack of 

self-belief. 

AQUArIUS 

(Jan. 21 - Feb. 19): You tend to believe in 

yourself to such a degree that you think 

nothing is beyond you, and that's good, 

but even an Aquarius has limits and you 

may need to remind yourself what those limits are. A 

little bit of realism will go a long way. 

PISCeS 

(Feb. 20 - Mar. 20): Yes, you should 

let other people have the last word. 

Yes, you should let other people lead 

the way. You may not entirely 

approve of what they say, still less of what they 

do, but so long as you don't get the blame why 

should you worry?

SPORTS 

TUESDAy, FEBRUARy 13, 2018 

9 

Mosaddek's omission: Did club pressure trump national interest? 

State minister, 

deputy minister 

condoles death 

of Sona Mia 

DHAKA: State minister 

for Youth and Sports Dr. 

Biren Sikder MP expressed 

deep shock at the death of 

Abdur Razzak Sona Miah, 

the former national hockey 

player, a press release said 

yesterday, reports BSS. 

In a condolence message 

the State minister said the 

country's sports area face 

irreparable loss at the 

death of Sona Miah. He 

conveyed sympathy to the 

bereaved family members 

and prayed for eternal 

peace of the departed soul. 

In another message, 

deputy minister for Youth 

and Sports Arif Khan Joy 

MP also conveyed deep 

sympathy to the bereaved 

family members and 

prayed salvation for the 

departed soul. 

Sona Mia died on Sunday 

last at his Lalbagh's 

residence in the city. 

Photo: Internet. 

Russian Olympic skate 

captain pays tribute to 

crash victims 

GANGNEUNG, South Korea: Russian 

Olympic figure skating team captain 

Ekaterina Bobrova paid an emotional tribute 

Monday to the 71 victims of a plane crash 

near Moscow, saying that despite securing a 

silver medal "it's a dark day for us", reports 

BSS. 

The 27-year-old led the Olympic Athletes 

from Russia (OAR) to silver in the team 

event behind Canada, their second medal of 

the Games. 

"For me it's difficult to say the following as 

we are very happy that we won but in our 

country there was an air crash last night -- 71 

people perished," she said. 

Her voice cracking she continued: "As 

team captain and on behalf of all the coaches 

I would like to convey my sincere 

condolences to the families, it's a great 

sorrow for our country. "With this tragedy 

it's a dark day for us, a day of sorrow." 

In one of Russia's worst aviation accidents 

an Antonov An-148 plane went down in the 

Ramensky district on the outskirts of 

Moscow on Sunday after taking off from 

Domodedovo airport in the capital. 

Sixty-five passengers and six crew 

members were on board, Russia's office of 

transport investigations said in a statement. 

Earlier Bobrova had saluted the vocal flagwaving 

Russian fans at the Gangneung Ice 

Arena. 

"For us it means a lot to have this huge 

support from the stands," added one of the 

168 Russians competing under a neutral flag 

and known as OAR after Russia was banned 

as punishment for state-sponsored doping. 

"As we were leaving it felt like we were on 

our home turf. 

"Our athletes felt they could feel positive 

energy flowing onto the ice, like sitting under 

blanket with a cup of tea. 

"I will remember this feeling forever," said 

the former European champion. 

Unlike their supporters, Russian athletes 

are not allowed to brandish or even carry the 

Russian tricolour as part of the ban and must 

tread carefully in what they say. 

Any criticism of the International Olympic 

Committee (IOC) would likely see the ban 

extended beyond Pyeongchang. 

The OAR team event silver medal followed 

the bronze secured by short track speed 

skater Semen Elistratov on Saturday. 

Liverpool's Salah is the idol 

of his Egyptian village 

CAIRO: Deep in Egypt's Nile Delta 

region, the children of Nagrig village 

have a clear goal in life: they want to 

become football stars like Mohamed 

Salah, Liverpool's top scorer and 

Africa's top player, reports BSS. 

Salah, who hails from their village, 

has been one of the sensations of the 

Premier League since joining 

Liverpool-his goal in the victory against 

Southampton on Sunday was his 29th 

of the season. 

Further enhancing his status as a 

national hero, Salah played a key role in 

leading Egypt to the World Cup finals 

in Russia later this year. 

On Wednesday his talent will be on 

show in the Champions League as 

Liverpool tackle Porto. 

Mohamed Abdel-Gawad, 12, gazes in 

admiration at the three-storey house 

where Salah was born and raised, 

which overlooks a narrow dirt road like 

most of the houses in the village, about 

120 kilometres (75 miles) northwest of 

Cairo. "I hope to be like Mohamed 

Salah when I grow up," Abdel-Gawad 

told AFP. 

"Mohamed Salah has become a 

professional player because of his 

ethics and humbleness." 

In Nagrig as well as in Basyoun, the 

closest town, the youth centres were 

renamed after the Egyptian star. 

Fully aware that his success has 

become an inspiration for children in 

Egypt and Africa more widely, Salah 

addressed them in his acceptance 

speech when he won the African player 

of the year accolade in January, telling 

them: "Never stop dreaming, never 

stop believing." 

While the house of the player's father, 

Salah Ghali, resembles others in the 

village, it was quieter: no-one was 

looking out of an open window, and no 

clothes hung from the house. The 

village has been the focus of huge 

media interest as Salah has risen to 

stardom, but family members at his 

house in Nagrig refused to talk to 

reporters "out of respect for his 

wishes". 

Salah's journey, figuratively as well as 

literally, was anything but easy. 

"His talent clearly showed from the 

beginning," said Ghamri Abdel- 

Hameed el-Saadani, who was the 

juniors coach at the Nagrig Youth 

Centre, where Salah started training at 

the age of eight. Still, Salah's success is 

not just due to his talent, "it's also a 

product of a will of steel, effort, and 

determination", said Saadani. 

The mayor of the village, Maher 

Shateyya, a family friend, bursts with 

pride when he talks about Nagrig's 

most famous son. 

"Mohamed was only 14 when he 

joined the Arab Contractors club in 

Cairo, and he had to spend nearly 10 

hours a day in transport to make it to 

and from practice," said Shateyya of 

Salah's "journey of torment". 

Nagrig to Basyoun, then to Tanta city, 

the capital of Al-Gharbiya province, 

then a bus to downtown Cairo, and a 

final ride to the Nasr City 

neighbourhood where the club is 

located. 

Salah grew up in a sporty family, with 

his father and two uncles having played 

football at the youth club in Nagrig. 

"When his father noticed his son's 

talent, he strived to enrol him at a big 

club," said Shateyya. 

"In the beginning, Salah played with 

the team in Basyoun town, then he 

moved to Tanta city before he was 

taken by the Arab Contractors team." 

Barcelona failed to score for the first time in La Liga this season as Getafe picked up a hard-fought 

point at the Nou Camp. 

Photo: BBC 

Crash, bang, wallop-high 

winds disrupt Olympics 

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea: 

High winds caused havoc at the 

Pyeongchang Winter Olympics on 

Monday as the women's slopestyle 

snowboarding final descended into 

chaos and alpine skiing suffered its 

second postponement in as many days, 

reports BSS. 

Almost all competitors crashed in the 

women's slopestyle final at a 

windswept Phoenix Park, where strong 

gusts forced the cancellation of 

Sunday's qualifiers and delayed 

Monday's final by more than an hour. 

It came after ski chiefs called off the 

women's giant slalom and rescheduled 

it to Thursday-the same day as the 

postponed men's downhill. 

The windy conditions contributed to 

an icy chill in Pyeongchang's 

mountains, where forecast 

temperatures of -15 degrees Celsius (5 

Fahrenheit) were due to feel like -25. 

Several snowboarders voiced their 

unhappiness at the gusting conditions 

at Phoenix Park, and complained that 

the slopestyle final should have been 

CSA investigating racial abuse towards Tahir. 

Three matches 

of DPL to be 

held today 

DHAKA: After a day recess, 

the Dhaka Premier Division 

Cricket League will be held at 

three separate venues in the 

city's adjoining area with 

three matches are billed for 

the day, reports BSS. 

On the day, table topper 

Dhaka Abahani Ltd will take 

on Brothers Union Club at 

Khan Shaheb Osman Ali 

Cricket Stadium in Fatullah, 

Gazi Group Cricketers meet 

Khelaghar Samaj Kalyan 

Samity at BSKP ground no 3 

while Prime Doleshwar 

Sporting Club play against 

Kalabagan Krira Chakra at 

BKSP ground no 4. 

All the matches kick off at 9 

am. 

After the second matches, 

Abahani Ltd dominated the 

league table with maintaining 

their all win run in the points 

table with four points from 

two matches while Brothers 

Union Club following them 

also securing four points from 

two outings. 

Gazi Group Cricketers 

placed in eighth position with 

two points with one win and 

one defeat while bottomranked 

Khelaghar Samaj 

Kalyan Samity yet to open 

their account following their 

two consecutive defeats. 

postponed. 

"So many people got hurt because of 

the wind already," said Austria's Anna 

Gasser, calling the competition a 

"lottery". "I don't think it was a fair 

competition and I'm a little 

disappointed in the organisation that 

they pulled through with it." 

Britain's Aimee Fuller, who finished 

17th after crashing, branded the 

conditions among the toughest she had 

competed in and said she had "no 

chance" of landing her last jump when 

she was caught by a strong gust. 

"There were huge gusts of wind-I've 

decided to call it the Pyeongchang 

Gust," said the 26-year-old. 

Even the gold medal-winner Jamie 

Anderson, who defended her title from 

2014, fell during her run. Two women 

suffered competition-ending injuries 

on the course in training. 

Separately, organisers said fans who 

couldn't make the rescheduled alpine 

ski finals, which are among the 

showpiece Winter Olympics events, 

would be entitled to refunds. 

They admitted the wind disruption 

was a "headache"-but said it was too 

early to talk about extending the Games 

beyond its scheduled final day of 

February 25. 

"I think it's a little bit early to discuss 

that yet," said International Olympic 

Committee spokesman Mark Adams. 

"I think Nagano (1998) had the 

downhill five minutes before the 

closing ceremony so there's plenty of 

time, there's reserve spaces for 

competition." Adams admitted it was 

difficult to rejig a packed schedule, but 

said the IOC usually accepts the advice 

of individual sports federations when it 

comes to postponing events. 

"The main thing for us is the athletes' 

safety. Each federation has a wealth of 

experience on their sport and we really 

bow to that," he said. 

"Of course we have to coordinate the 

whole schedule, it's quite a headache, 

getting all the different sports to run in 

a different way. But obviously we would 

never take a decision that would put in 

jeopardy the safety of the athletes." 

Photo: Internet. 

RugbyU: Wallaby 

great Shehadie 

dies aged 92 

SYDNEY: Former 

Wallabies captain and 

administrator Sir Nicholas 

Shehadie, one of only two 

Australian rugby players to 

be knighted, has died aged 

92, reports BSS. 

Shehadie, who played 30 

Tests between 1947 and 

1958, a record at the time 

with three of those as 

captain, passed away in 

hospital late Sunday, Rugby 

Australia said. 

He was regarded as one of 

the all-time great prop 

forwards and an institution 

in the Australian team for a 

decade, playing a total of 114 

games for the Wallabies. 

Shehadie was inducted 

into the International Rugby 

Board (IRB) Hall of Fame in 

2011 in recognition of his 

services to the game and for 

being a key architect in 

establishing the World Cup. 

His lobbying helped the 

IRB vote to create a World 

Cup in 1985 and he was 

appointed joint chairman on 

the Rugby World Cup 

committee. 

His post-playing career 

was just as formidable and 

he served as Lord Mayor of 

Sydney in 1973 -- a period 

marked by the official 

opening of the Sydney Opera 

House. 

Shehadie was knighted in 

1976 for his mayoral service, 

becoming only the second 

Wallaby to receive the 

honour after Sir Edward 

"Weary" Dunlop. 

He was also appointed a 

companion of the Order of 

Australia in 1990. 

"(He was) a wonderful, 

wonderful Australian ... a 

beautiful man," former 

Wallabies coach and radio 

broadcaster Alan Jones said. 

"It's going to leave a hole in 

the heart of many because 

people like Nick Shehadie 

don't come along very 

often." 

Shehadie, husband of 

former New South Wales 

state governor Dame Marie 

Bashir, served as president 

of Rugby Australia from 

1980-86 and was also 

chairman of the 

multicultural SBS television 

network between 1981 and 

1999. 

Business leaders and 

politicians honoured him on 

social media. 

"Sir Nicholas Shehadie 

improved everything he was 

involved with," former 

prime minister Tony Abbott 

tweeted. 

"He improved rugby as 

Wallaby captain, improved 

our city (Sydney) as Lord 

Mayor and even managed to 

improve SBS as its 

chairman. He radiated 

warmth and was perfectly at 

home in a boardroom or a 

bar." 

Sport Australia Hall of 

Fame chairman John 

Bertrand said: "Sir Nicholas 

was a great Australian on 

many levels. An inspiration 

to rugby union and the 

broader sport community. 

He will be dearly missed, 

and our thoughts are with 

the Shehadie family." 

He is survived by his wife, 

three children and six 

grandchildren. 

Potter holds off big guns to 

win Pebble Beach title 

PEBBLE BEACH, United States: Ted 

Potter got off to a hot start for the second 

straight day en route to a closing round 

of 69 to capture the Pebble Beach 

National Pro-Am tournament by three 

strokes on Sunday, reports BSS. 

Potter found his groove this week in 

the California sunshine as he has 

bounced back from a broken ankle in 

2014 to record just his second win on 

the USPGA Tour and first in five years. 

Potter maintained his deft touch on 

Sunday to finish with a 17-under 270 

total and hold off a star-studded chasing 

pack that included Dustin Johnson, Phil 

Mickelson and Jason Day of Australia. 

"It is pleasing," Potter said. "I 

struggled when broke I my ankle. You 

don't know what is going to happen with 

your golf swing or your career. To come 

back from that it is unbelievable right 

now." 

Mickelson, who shot a five-under 67, 

Day (70), Johnson (72) and Chez Reavie 

(68) finished in a tie for second at 14- 

under 273. 

American Kevin Streelman (68) 

finished alone in sixth and Scott 

Stallings (66) was seventh at 12-under 

275, five shots adrift of Potter. 

Potter's only prior USPGA Tour win 

came at the Greenbrier Classic back in 

2012. In 2014, he broke his ankle in a 

freak accident stepping off a curb. The 

injury required surgery and he has 

battled back since, earning his PGA 

Tour card via the Web.com Tour last 

season. 

"It feels so good right now," he said. "I 

get my second career win after five years 

away from it." 

Potter shot a 62 on Saturday, grabbing 

the solo lead with four birdies on his 

back nine. But it was on the front nine 

that he really sizzled, playing the first 

seven holes in seven-under par with five 

birdies and an eagle. 

On Sunday, he drained four birdies in 

his first seven holes to extend his lead. 

That included a birdie chip from the 

rough on the par-three seventh hole.

ECONOMY & BUSINESS 

TUESDAy, 

THE 

BANGLADESHTODAY 

FEBRUARy 13, 2018 

10 

83rd meeting of the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of Standard Bank Limited held on 12 February 2018. Chairman 

of the committee S. S. Nizamuddin Ahmed presided over the meeting. The meeting was attended by the members of the committee 

Kamal Mostafa Chowdhury, Kazi Sanaul Hoq, Md. Nazmus Salehin, Managing Director & CEO of the Bank Mamun-Ur- 

Rashid, Additional Managing Director Md. Tariqul Azam and Deputy Managing Director Md. Motaleb Hossain. Photo: Courtesy 

Investment in renminbi part of long-term 

strategy: German central bank 

The Bundesbank's decision 

to hold some currency 

reserves in Chinese yuan is 

part of a long-term strategy, 

and the investment will be 

effected as long as the 

preparations have been 

completed, the German 

central bank told Xinhua in a 

recent interview. 

"The Executive Board's 

decision to invest in Chinese 

renminbi going forward was 

taken in the summer of 2017," 

the Bundesbank said in an 

email to Xinhua. 

"Once the requisite 

organisational and technical 

preparations have been 

completed, the investment in 

renminbi will be effected," it 

added. 

The central bank also stated 

that the decision to include 

the yuan is part of a long-term 

strategy and reflects the 

increased importance of the 

Chinese currency in the global 

financial system. 

As of January 2018, the 

Bundesbank's foreign 

exchange reserves were about 

31.2 billion euros, of which 

nearly 80 percent were 

securities assets, and at the 

moment the reserves are 

invested not only in U.S. 

dollar and yen, but also in 

Australian dollar since 2012, 

according to the German 

central bank. 

As most central banks' 

reserves are held in dollars, 

any shift into other 

currencies, such as the yuan, 

will come at the expense of 

the greenback. 

"The reason to use dollar 

reserves to invest in yuan was 

mainly motivated by the fact 

the CNY is primarily quoted 

against the U.S. dollar, which 

simplifies the process of 

convertibility and minimizes 

the transaction costs to build 

the small CNY portfolio," the 

European Central Bank told 

Xinhua. 

Last June, the ECB 

announced that it had 

exchanged 500 million euros 

worth of U.S. dollar reserves 

into yuan securities. 

The HSH Nordbank AG 

analyst Marius Schad 

believed that the IMF's 

decision to include the Yuan 

within its basket of reserve 

currencies in 2015 triggered 

this reshuffling of forex 

reserves. The world's central 

banks seriously take the IMF 

basket into account when 

allocating their reserves. 

Major shifts by the IMF will 

be accompanied by portfolio 

changes in time. 

"Unsurprisingly, both the 

ECB's and Bundesbank's 

decision have been 

primarily affected by the 

IMF recognition," Marius told 

Xinhua, "But this is 

not the whole story. The 

inclusion of the Yuan by 

major central banks 

reflects both China's 

leading role within the world 

economy and the Yuan's 

rising role within the 

world's currency system." 

However,he said that the 

shift towards yuan assets has 

to be seen as more symbolic 

than an economic necessity. 

Presently, only about 1 

percent of the ECB's forex 

reserves are held in yuan, 

according the data from the 

ECB. 

Many experts believe that 

the Belt and Road Initiative 

will boost a more widespread 

use of the yuan in the 

countries which China 

invested in and traded with. 

The role of a reserve 

currency is significant with 

respect to funding, financing 

and investing, said the 

analyst. 

He also suggested more 

supportive policies including 

equity market linkages such 

as the Shanghai Hong Kong 

Stock Connect to further 

encourage 

yuan's 

internationalization. 

He concluded that the more 

the yuan would be used in 

international finance and 

trade, the more likely it would 

become a reserve currency. 

Asian markets mostly 

rise but warnings of 

fresh volatility 

Asian markets mostly 

rose on Monday as buyers 

cautiously returned after 

last week's global rout, with 

confidence boosted by a 

rally on Wall Street but 

analysts warning of further 

volatility. 

After a stellar 2017 and a 

January that saw record 

and multi-year highs 

around the world, traders 

are scurrying to the hills 

this month as a strong 

economic outlookparticularly 

in the UShealthy 

corporate earnings 

and rising inflation have 

sent borrowing costs 

surging. 

Equity markets, for years 

buoyed by post-crisis 

stimulus, have spiralled 

into the red as traders fret 

that the era of cheap cash is 

at an end. 

But Monday got off to a 

calm start. 

Hong Kong, which sank 

more than nine percent last 

week, was up 0.7 percent in 

the afternoon while 

Shanghai closed up 0.8 

percent and Singapore rose 

0.6 percent. 

Seoul gained 0.9 percent, 

with traders cheered by 

signs of a thaw in relations 

between North and South 

Korea during the Winter 

Olympics after Kim Jong 

Un-whose sister attended 

the opening ceremony in 

Pyeongchang-invited the 

South's President Moon 

Jae-in for a summit in 

Pyongyang. 

Taipei added 0.5 percent 

and Bangkok 0.3 percent 

but Sydney eased 0.3 

percent and Manila dipped 

0.5 percent. Tokyo was 

closed for a public holiday. 

The gains came after a 

late rally on Wall Street 

helped all three main 

indexes end on a positive 

note Friday, though still 

well down over the week. 

However, there are 

expectations that profittaking 

will lead to further 

losses, with Brian 

Culpepper at James 

Investment Research 

warning: "Stocks are 

extremely expensive." 

Eyes are now on the 

release this week of US 

inflation figures, which 

market-watchers say will 

be key to future 

movements. 

"With powerful US 

economic signals and 

interest rates most 

certainly to 

rise quicker than 

expected, last week's 

tumult could be little more 

than the 

start of the equity 

rollercoaster," said Stephen 

Innes, head of Asia-Pacific 

trading at OANDA. 

"Given all this ruckus 

started with an uptick in 

the wage growth 

component from this 

month's (US jobs report) 

release, this week's US 

inflation data will be a 

monster of a print." 

While the week got off to 

a positive start, energy 

firms took another hiding 

after further recent falls in 

the price of oil due to rising 

US production and the 

spillover from the equity 

market rout. 

Both main contracts were 

up Monday but they are 

more than 10 percent down 

from their highs in 

January. 

Innes added that oil 

prices could take another 

hit soon after the head of 

Russian energy giant 

Gazprom Neft said last 

week that producers could 

adjust their commitments 

under a Moscow-OPEC 

output cap deal as soon as 

next quarter. 

"Crude oil prices 

experienced a disastrous 

week as US production 

fears materialised on 

incremental supply and 

stockpiles," said Avtar 

Sandhu, an analyst at 

Phillip Securities 

Singapore. 

"Prices will face a tough 

time as US shale producers 

look set to take advantage 

of higher margins." 

On currency markets, the 

dollar suffered further 

selling against the safehaven 

yen, while the euro 

and the pound held their 

gains against the greenback 

on expectations of higher 

borrowing costs in Europe 

and Britain. 

Heinken cheers 

rising profits in 

2017 

Dutch brewing giant 

Heineken said Monday that 

profits jumped by a quarter in 

2017, thanks to higher sales of 

its premium brand beer 

across nearly all regions. 

Heineken said in a 

statement that its net profit 

rose by 25.6 percent to 1.93 

billion euros ($2.4 billion) last 

year on a 5.3-percent increase 

in sales to 21.9 billion euros. 

"We delivered strong results 

in 2017 with all the regions 

contributing to organic 

growth in volume, revenue 

and operating profit," 

Heineken's chief executive 

Jean-Francois van Boxmeer 

said. 

"The Heineken brand 

performed very well and 

Heineken 0.0 (non-alcoholic 

beer) was launched in 16 

countries," he said in a 

statement. 

Sales of its premium brand 

were up 4.5 percent, "one of 

the brand's strongest 

performances in recent years 

with positive volume 

performance across all 

regions apart from Asia 

Pacific," the Amsterdambased 

group said. 

Islami Bank Bangladesh 

Ltd has appointed Md. 

Shamsuzzaman and 

Mohammed Monirul 

Moula as Additional 

Managing Directors of the 

bank, a press release said. 

Md. Shamsuzzaman, 

AMD of the bank has been 

heading the bank's 

Operations Wing. Earlier 

he served the bank as 

Deputy Managing 

Director. M. 

Shamsuzzaman started 

his Banking career as a 

Probationary Officer in 

1984 and served in its 

branches, zones and Head 

Office in different 

capacities. He obtained his 

post-graduation from 

Chittagong University. He 

had assignment as Chief 

Anti-Money Laundering 

15 months after note ban, 

RBI still processing 

returned notes 

The RBI has said that Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 

notes, returned to banks when the 

government demonetised high value 

currency 15 months ago, are still being 

"processed for their arithmetical accuracy 

and genuineness". 

This is being done in an "expedited 

manner", the central bank said. 

"Specific bank notes are being processed 

for their arithmetical accuracy and 

genuineness and the reconciliation for the 

same is ongoing. This information can, 

therefore, be shared on completion of the 

process and reconciliation," the RBI said in 

reply to an RTI application filed by a PTI 

correspondent. 

To a query on the number of demonetised 

notes, it said, "...subject to future corrections 

if any, arising in the course of verification 

process, the estimated value of specified 

bank notes received as on June 30, 2017 is 

Rs 15.28 trillion (lakh crore)". 

Asked to provide the details of the 

deadline for finishing the counting of 

demonetised notes, the RBI said "specified 

bank notes are being processed in an 

expedited manner". 

As on date, 59 sophisticated Currency 

Compliance Officer 

(CAMLCO). He worked as 

Bank's first remittance 

promoter in Bahrian 

during 1995-1997. He 

travelled KSA, Bahrain, 

Malaysia & Thailand to 

attend different 

International conference 

on Islamic Finance and 

banking. He has written 

many books related to 

Islamic Banking & finance 

including Anti Money 

Laundering and 

combating financing 

terrorism. 

Mohammed Monirul 

Moula, AMD of the bank 

has been heading the 

Verification and Processing (CVPS) 

machines are in operation in RBI for the 

purpose, it said. 

The reply did not specify the location of 

the machines. 

"Besides, eight CVPS machines available 

with commercial banks are also being used. 

In addition to this, seven more CVPS 

machines on lease basis have been installed 

at RBI regional offices," the RTI reply said. 

The government had on November 8, 

2016 banned the use of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 

notes and allowed the holders of these 

currency bills to deposit them with banks or 

use them at certain notified utilities. 

In its annual report for 2016-17 released 

on August 30 last year, the RBI said Rs 

15.28 lakh crore, or 99 per cent of the 

demonetised notes, had returned to the 

banking system. 

The central bank said in the report, for the 

year ended June 30, 2017, that only Rs 

16,050 crore of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore in old 

high denomination notes had not returned. 

As on November 8, 2016, there were 

1,716.5 crore pieces of Rs 500 and 685.8 

crore pieces of Rs 1,000 notes in circulation, 

totalling Rs 15.44 lakh crore, it had said. 

IBBL appointed two Additional 

Managing Directors 

bank's Corporate 

Investment Wing. Earlier 

he served the bank as 

Deputy Managing 

Director and Head of 

Retail Investment Wing. 

He joined Islami Bank in 

1986 as a Probationary 

Officer and served in its 

branches, zones and Head 

Office in different 

capacities. He obtained 

Masters Degree with 

Honors in Economics 

from Chittagong 

University. He visited 

different countries 

including Bahrain, 

Malaysia, Thailand, Itali 

and Sri Lanka for 

attending Training and 

Seminar on banking. He is 

a Diplomaed Associate of 

the Institute of Bakers, 

Bangladesh. 

Md. Touhidul Alam Khan, Deputy Managing Director & Chief Business Officer of Prime Bank inaugurated 

a Coastal Vessel "M. V. Chaklader-6" as chief guest at sadarghat, Dhaka recently. The Coastal 

Vessel "M. V. Chaklader-6" of Chaklader Shipping Lines Ltd. (CSL), a concern of MEP Group 

financed by Prime Bank. Shamsul Alam Chaklader - Chairman and Dr. Jahangir Alam Chaklader - 

Managing Director of MEP group along with other senior officials of both the organizations were 

also present on the occasion. 

Photo: Courtesy 

Beijing invests 

78 bln USD in 

transport in 

past 5 yrs 

Beijing invested 492.2 billion 

yuan (77.9 billion U.S. dollars) 

in transport over the past five 

years, local authorities said 

Sunday. 

The investment represented 

a 44-percent increase from the 

340 billion yuan in the fiveyear 

period to 2016 as the city 

sought to ease traffic jams and 

improve transport networks 

connecting neighboring 

regions, said the Beijing 

Municipal Commission of 

Transport. 

Seventy-five percent of the 

money was spent on public 

transport, and authorities 

attracted 57.8 billion yuan of 

investment through publicprivate 

partnership and buildoperate-transfer 

modes, it said. 

With 22 subway lines in 

operation, the total length of 

rail transit in the Chinese 

capital had increased to 608 

km by the end of 2017 from 

442 km five years ago. 

Meanwhile, the total length 

of expressways had increased 

to 1,017 km from 922 km while 

that of arterial roads had 

increased to 1,365 km from 

1,226 km. 

As the authorities seek to 

integrate Beijing with its 

neighbors Tianjin and Hebei, 

they have been building more 

high-speed railways and 

highways in the region. 

Touting 'transformation', 

French PM seeks 

investment in Dubai 

France's Prime Minister Edouard Philippe 

promised lower taxes and a businessfriendly 

France at a global summit in Dubai 

on Sunday, seeking investment from the oilrich 

Gulf region. "France is undergoing great 

transformation," Philippe said, addressing a 

thousand-strong audience at Dubai's World 

Government Summit. 

Philippe pledged a "favourable framework 

for business and investment" and a drop in 

corporate taxes in France. 

The annual summit, often dubbed the 

Davos of the Middle East, brings together a 

cosmopolitan lineup of business and political 

figures-with Indian Prime Minister 

Narendra Modi as this year's guest of 

honour. 

The French premier sought to contrast the 

policies of President Emmanuel Macron 

with the isolationist trends of other Western 

nations, including Britain leaving the 

European Union and US President Donald 

Trump's election. On Saturday, the French 

premier met the heads of the two largest 

sovereign funds in the United Arab 

Emirates, as well as Abu Dhabi Crown Prince 

Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan. 

"What I felt was their continued interest in 

what we were doing and prospects available 

in France," he said. 

With sovereign funds worth more than 

$800 billion, but only a fraction of thataround 

$3 billion-invested in France, Paris is 

working to capture a larger share of UAE 

petrodollars. Philippe on Sunday oversaw 

the signing in Dubai of a $16 billion purchase 

by Emirates Airlines of the Airbus A380 

superjumbo commercial airliner-a lifeline 

for the company. 

"We must make our country more 

attractive to foreign investors, and there is 

work to be done," he told members of the 

French community in the United Arab 

Emirates late Saturday, speaking on board a 

French warship docked in Dubai. 

The UAE hosts three French military 

bases. It has also become a major 

contributor to the French-backed coalition 

fighting jihadists in Africa's Sahel region, 

pledging $30 million in December. 

Iraq seeks $88.2 b for 

reconstruction: minister 

Iraq needs $88.2 billion to rebuild after 

three years of war against the Islamic State 

group, Planning Minister Salman al-Jumaili 

said Monday at an international conference 

on the country's reconstruction in Kuwait. 

The estimate was based on an assessment 

study by Iraqi and international experts, the 

minister told the opening session of the 

three-day conference. 

Qusai Abdelfattah, director general at the 

planning ministry, said $22 billion of those 

funds were needed immediately and the rest 

for the medium term.

MISCELLANEOUS 

11 

tUEsDAY, FEbrUArY 13, 2018 

Energy riches fuel bitcoin craze 

for speculation-shy Iceland 

Iceland is expected to use 

more energy "mining" 

bitcoins and other virtual 

currencies this year than it 

uses to power its homes, 

reports Reuters. 

With massive amounts of 

electricity needed to run the 

computers that create 

bitcoins, large virtual 

currency companies have 

established a base in the 

North Atlantic island nation 

blessed with an abundance of 

renewable energy. The new 

industry's relatively sudden 

growth prompted lawmaker 

Smari McCarthy of Iceland's 

Pirate Party to suggest taxing 

the profits of bitcoin mines. 

The initiative is likely to be 

well received by Icelanders, 

who are skeptical of 

speculative financial ventures 

after the country's 

catastrophic 2008 banking 

crash. 

The energy demand has 

developed because of the 

soaring cost of producing and 

collecting virtual currencies. 

Computers are used to make 

the complex calculations that 

verify a running ledger of all 

the transactions in virtual 

currencies around the world. 

In return, the miners claim 

a fraction of a coin not yet in 

circulation. In the case of 

bitcoin, a total of 21 million 

can be mined, leaving about 

4.2 million left to create. As 

more bitcoin enter 

circulation, more powerful 

computers are needed to 

keep up with the calculations 

- and that means more 

energy. The serene coastal 

town of Keflavik on Iceland's 

desolate southern peninsula 

has over the past months 

boomed as an international 

hub for mining bitcoins and 

other virtual currencies. 

Local fishermen, chatting 

over steaming cups of coffee 

at the harbor gas station, are 

puzzled by the phenomenon, 

which has spawned oversize 

construction sites on the 

outskirts of town. 

Among the main 

attractions of setting up 

bitcoin mines at the edge of 

the Arctic Circle is the natural 

cooling for computer servers 

and the competitive prices for 

Iceland's abundance of 

renewable energy from 

geothermal and hydroelectric 

power plants. Johann Snorri 

Sigurbergsson, a business 

development manager at the 

energy company Hitaveita 

Sudurnesja, said he expected 

Iceland's virtual currency 

mining to double its energy 

consumption to about 100 

megawatts this year. That is 

more than households use on 

the island nation of 340,000, 

according to Iceland's 

National Energy Authority. 

At the largest of three 

bitcoin "farms" currently 

operating within Keflavik - 

called "Mjolnir" after the 

hammer of Thor, the Norse 

god of thunder - high metal 

fences surround 50 meterlong 

(164 foot) warehouse 

buildings stacked with 

computer rigs. The data 

centers here are specially 

designed to utilize the 

constant wind on the bare 

peninsula. Walls are only 

partial on each side, allowing 

a draft of cold air to cool 

down the equipment. 

Genesis Mining, founded 

in Germany, moved to 

Iceland in 2014 when the 

price of bitcoin fluctuated 

from $350 to $1000. Today, 

one bitcoin is valued at about 

$8,000, according to 

tracking site Coindesk, after 

peaking at almost $19,500 in 

December. The currency 

took a hit in January when 

China announced it would 

move to wipe out its bitcoin 

mining industry, following 

concerns of excessive 

electricity consumption. The 

last time Iceland was an 

international hub for 

finance, the venture ended 

with a giant bank crash, 

making the country one of 

the symbols of the 2008 

global financial crisis. 

UK official warns Oxfam to 

hand over all info on sex case 

Sex predators are targeting aid 

organizations because of the chaotic 

environments in which they work, 

Britain's top development official 

warned Sunday as she threatened to pull 

public funding from Oxfam unless it 

came clean about a sexual misconduct 

scandal in Haiti, reports Reuters. 

Development Secretary Penny 

Mordaunt excoriated the leadership of 

Oxfam for its handling of allegations 

that some of the anti-poverty charity's 

staff in Haiti used prostitutes, including 

Haitians who might have been minors at 

the time. 

Oxfam demonstrated a "failure of 

leadership" when it failed to fully inform 

authorities and because it didn't prevent 

the alleged perpetrators from going to 

work for other charities, she said. 

Mordaunt made clear that all aid 

agencies must show "moral leadership" 

in tackling sex abuse or risk losing their 

taxpayer funding. 

"What is so disturbing about Oxfam is 

that when this was reported to them, 

they completely failed to do the right 

thing," Mordaunt told the BBC on 

Sunday. "That's what we need to focus 

on, and that's what ultimately will stop 

predatory individuals from being able to 

take advantage of vulnerable people." 

Oxfam announced seven measures 

Sunday designed to strengthen its 

handling of sexual abuse allegations. 

The package includes improving the 

vetting of employees, creating an 

external complaint line for 

whistleblowers and working with other 

charities to overcome the "legal 

difficulties" that kept them from sharing 

information on sexual misconduct cases. 

The Times of London reported last 

week that seven former Oxfam staff 

members who worked in Haiti after the 

2010 earthquake that devastated the 

country were the subject of misconduct 

allegations that included the use of 

prostitutes and downloading 

pornography. Oxfam's investigation into 

the charges was hampered by a 

"determination to keep it out of the 

public eye," the Times said. 

The newspaper's sister publication, the 

Sunday Times, said the problem goes 

beyond Oxfam. More than 120 people 

working for British charities were 

accused of sexual abuse in the past year, 

the newspaper reported, though it did 

not specify the exact dates or the source 

of the information. Oxfam had 87 cases, 

the largest number of any charity, but 

the Times also mentioned Save the 

Children, the British Red Cross and 

Christian Aid. 

In response, Save the Children said it 

investigated 31 cases of sexual 

harassment last year, which resulted in 

16 people being fired and 10 being 

referred to police or other authorities. 

None of the cases involved children and 

all of them occurred abroad, the charity 

said. The British Red Cross said it hasn't 

dismissed staff members working 

overseas for sexual abuse, harassment or 

pedophilia in at least the past five years. 

There were a "small number" of sexual 

harassment cases last year in the U.K., 

and the Red Cross said that "appropriate 

was taken" in all cases, though it did not 

specify what the actions were. 

Christian Aid said it investigated two 

sexual misconduct cases in the last 12 

months, resulting in the dismissal of one 

worker and less severe disciplinary 

action in the other. Oxfam has said it 

dismissed four people and allowed three 

others to resign after an internal 2011 

investigation revealed that sexual 

misconduct, bullying, intimidation and a 

failure to protect staff hampered the 

charity's Haiti operation. Allegations 

that staff members had sex with minors 

were "not proven," it said. 

The charity said it reported the 

findings to Britain's charity regulator 

and to major donors, including the 

Department for International 

Development, the department Mordaunt 

heads. The department gave Oxfam 31.7 

million pounds ($43.8 million) last year. 

Mordaunt took issue with the notion 

that her department had been fully 

informed, saying the charity didn't 

disclose that the Haiti case involved 

sexual misconduct. Oxfam also 

incorrectly told the government that no 

aid beneficiaries were harmed, she said. 

When asked by BBC interviewer 

Andrew Marr whether the statement 

about no harm coming to Haitians was 

"a lie," Mordaunt replied: "Well, quite. 

She said she would meet Oxfam leaders 

Monday to discuss the case. "If they do 

not hand over all the information they 

have from their investigation and 

subsequently to the relevant 

authorities,... then I cannot work with 

them anymore as an aid delivery 

partner," Mordaunt said. 

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GD-234/18 (8 x 4) 

GD-237/18 (10 x 4)

UNITING PEOPLE EVERYDAY 

TueSDAy, DHAKA, FeBRuARy 13, 2018, FAlguN 1, 1424 BS, JAMADI-ul-AwAl 26, 1439 HIJRI 

Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain paid a courtesy call on President M Abdul Hamid at 

Bangabhaban yesterday. 

Photo: Star Mail 

Rohingyas now facing more dangers 

for impending monsoon: IOM 

Govt, partners working to make camps safe during monsoon: Shahriar 

DHAKA : Despite escaping violence 

in their homeland, the impending 

cyclone and monsoon season mean 

the Rohingyas now face more lifethreatening 

dangers from the weather 

and environmental conditions in 

Bangladesh, says the UN Migration 

Agency on Monday, reports UNB. 

Most now live in extremely basic 

shelters in desperately overcrowded 

camps built on steep and precarious 

sandy slopes at severe risk of deadly 

landslides and flooding, it said. 

Meanwhile, State Minister for 

Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam, now 

in Cox's Bazar, said securing the 

camps during rainy season is in 

progress. "The government and foreign 

friends are working relentlessly to 

finish it before the monsoon," he 

tweeted on Monday. 

IOM, with UK support, is helping to 

provide lifesaving shelter, medical 

care, protection and other vital services 

to Rohingyas and host communities 

in the Cox's Bazar area. 

IOM's emergency preparations are 

already being put into action and the 

organisation is now working with the 

government of Bangladesh as well as 

members of the local and refugee 

communities to help mitigate major 

The Basement Cemetery of The 

New Haven Green Church 

INTERESTING NEWS 

The New Haven Green in downtown 

New Haven, a city in Connecticut, USA, is 

a small park of about 16 acres. Being surrounded 

by buildings of the Yale 

University, courthouses, the New Haven 

Free Public Library and numerous 

municipal and commercial structures, the 

park stays typically busy throughout the 

day. During public events such as classical 

music and jazz concerts, and art festivals, 

which the Green regularly holds, the 

crowd can swell to hundreds of thousands. 

For some who are aware of the 

park’s legacy, this is somewhat disturbingly 

morbid. 

The Green was built in 1638 and was 

originally conceived as a trade center and 

town square, and was in fact known as 

"the marketplace". This common land at 

the heart of the thriving commercial port 

was used for various purposes. It was the 

disasters in the weeks ahead, said the 

IOM. However, the UN agency said 

time is running out and the size of the 

camps and scale of the environmental 

challenges where they are situated 

means agencies and the government 

must be ready to response to major 

emergencies. 

British Foreign Secretary Boris 

Johnson recently met with Rohingyas 

in Bangladesh and described as 

"unimaginable" the conditions they 

will face when the monsoon hits their 

camps in coming weeks. 

The British foreign secretary, who 

also met with state counsellor Aung 

San Suu Kyi in Myanmar on Sunday 

promised to help after refugees broke 

down in tears while telling him their 

experiences, fears and concerns at a 

meeting hosted by IOM, the UN 

migration Agency. More than 

688,000 Rohingya have sought safety 

in the Cox's Bazar area of Bangladesh 

since late August 2017 after fleeing 

violence in Myanmar, with more continuing 

to arrive every week. Johnson 

described the suffering of the 

Rohingya as "one of the most shocking 

humanitarian disasters of our time". 

Both male community representatives 

and members of IOM's women 

site of the first meetinghouse. It contained 

the town's watch house, the jail, 

and the first school. The Green also held a 

succession of statehouses and was used as 

parade grounds for the New Haven militia. 

Unbelievably, there was still room left 

in the Green to bury people. 

For the first 150 years of New Haven’s 

existence, the Green was used as the main 

burial grounds for the residents of the 

community. But when the grounds started 

to become much too cluttered with 

gravestones the practice was stopped and 

a new burial ground was established. The 

last burial took place in 1821. 

Soon after, many of the headstones on 

the Green were removed and relocated to 

the new cemetery—the Grove Street 

Cemetery, located two blocks away adjacent 

to the Yale University campus—for 

preservation. But the remains themselves 

were not moved. In the mid-1800s, in an 

effort to reclaim the land, several feet of 

support groups who attended the 

meeting, hosted at an IOM site management 

centre, told Johnson they 

wanted to return to Myanmar, but 

only if conditions were safe. 

UK backing is enabling IOM to work 

on key road projects to ensure 

refugees and people in the host community 

can continue to receive vital 

services and access to emergency support 

when the rains hit. 

It is also supporting the government 

of Bangladesh to develop evacuation 

plans as well as providing groundlevel 

training for refugees and members 

of the local community to provide 

first aid in emergency situations. 

This week the IOM, with UK support, 

launched the roll out of Upgrade 

Shelter Kits which will help 120,000 

families from the refugee and local 

community make their shelters and 

surrounding ground more secure 

ahead of the monsoon. 

IOM's emergency coordinator in 

Cox's Bazar Manuel Pereira said the 

UK's support has been invaluable in 

helping IOM to provide Rohingyas 

with life-saving services during the initial 

crisis and meet their continuing 

basic needs in these extremely challenging 

circumstances. 

2 to die, 4 get life 

term for killing 

Andha Sangstha 

secy gen 

DHAKA : A court here on 

Monday sentenced two people 

to death and four others 

to life imprisonment for 

killing Jatiya Andha 

Sangstha Secretary General 

Khalilur Rahman in 2011, 

reports UNB. 

The condemned convicts 

are Ramjan Ali alias Ramjan 

and Md Tipu Miah while the 

lifers are Jahidul Islam, 

Shahed Mostafa, Md 

Minhajuddin and Hasanur 

Rahman. Of them, Ramjan 

and Hasanur were tried in 

absentia. 

On January 1, 2011, 

Khalilur Rahman was shot to 

death by his rivals at a house 

of Janata Housing in 

Mirpur-1 of the city. 

Victim's wife Hasina 

Parvin filed a case with 

Mirpur Police Station 

against 10 people the following 

day. 

On July 31, 2013, the 

Detective Branch of police 

submitted a chargesheet 

against all the 10 accused. 

The court framed charge 

against them on May 10, 

2015. 

After examining the 

records and witnesses, judge 

of the Dhaka Speedy Trial 

Tribunal-4 Abdur Rahman 

Sardar pronounced the verdict 

acquitting four other 

accused-Ayub Ali, Nurul 

Alam Siddique, Yakub Ali 

and Sohag Hossain 

Howlader-as the allegation 

brought against them could 

not be proved. 

BNP men form 

human chain 

protesting 

Khaleda's jailing 

DHAKA : As part of its 

countrywide scheduled 

programme, BNP leaders 

and activists formed a 

human chain in the city on 

Monday protesting the jailing 

of its chairperson 

Khaleda Zia in a graft case. 

Several hundred BNP 

leaders and followers 

formed the human chain 

around 10:30 am in front of 

Jatiya Press Club amid 

tight security, reports UNB. 

They chanted different 

slogans demanding the 

release of Khaleda Zia 

immediately. 

Police cordoned off the 

protesters to fend off any 

trouble. 

BNP's district, thana, 

upzila and city units are 

also scheduled to observe 

the programmes at their 

convenient time and places. 

Earlier on Saturday, Rizvi 

announced a three-day 

protest programme at a 

press briefing at BNP's 

Nayapaltan central office. 

As part of the programmes, 

the party will 

also hold an hour-long sitin 

programme on Tuesday 

and a hunger strike from 

9am to 5pm on Wednesday 

across the country. 

DHAKA : Country's mobile phone 

operators are facing various allegations, 

including frequent call drops, 

network unavailability and slow 

internet speed, which deprive some 

145.111 million phone users of quality 

services, reports UNB. 

According to information provided 

by the Bangladesh 

Telecommunication Regulatory 

Commission (BTRC), phone users 

lodged some 3,522 complaints 

against the mobile phone operators 

from December 7 to 31 last year. 

Of them, Grameenphone faced 

1,973 allegations while Robi 604, 

Airtel221, Banglalink 612, Teletalk 

104 and Citycell eight. 

While talking to UNB, Posts, 

Telecommunications and IT Minister 

Mustafa Jabbar termed the call-drop 

rate alongside the slow internet speed 

'alarming'. 

To overcome the situation, he asked 

the BTRC to conduct stricter monitoring 

against the telecom companies 

throughout the month of February, 

saying they will take action, including 

cancellation of licences if needed, 

based on the surveillance. 

"The harassment of customers 

won't be tolerated. There'll be no 

compromise with the mobile phone 

operators. Fixing those challenges 

will be our first priority," the minister 

said. 

Defence continues 

arguments in Aug 21 

grenade attack case 

DHAKA : The defence yesterday 

continued placing 

arguments in the August 21, 

2004 grenade attack case. 

Judge Shahed Nur Uddin 

of Dhaka Speedy Trial 

Tribunal-1 set up near old 

Dhaka Central Jail at 

Nazimuddin Road here 

adjourned the hearing till 

today upon completion of the 

arguments for the 43rd days. 

Defence lawyer Advocate 

Mizanur Rahman partially 

submitted his arguments 

before the court on Monday 

on behalf of his client Arif 

Hasan Suman. The court will 

hear the incomplete arguments 

of Mizanur today. 

Counsels of the fugitive 

accused BNP senior vice 

chairman Tarique Rahman, 

Maulana Liton alias Jubair, 

Mufti Shafiqur Rahman, Md 

Iqbal, Maulana Tajuddin, 

Jahangir Alam Badar, Ratul 

Ahmed Babu, Mohibul 

Mottakin, owner of Hanif 

Paribahan Md Hanif, Md 

Khalil, former BNP lawmaker 

Shah Mofazzal Hossain 

Kaikobad, BNP leader Haris 

Chowdhury, Anisul 

Mursalin, and Mufti Abdul 

Hai, concluded placing arguments 

for their respective 

clients. 

Lawyers of the detained 

accused in the cases, Uzzal 

alias rattan, Munshi 

Mohibullah alias Ovi, Abdul 

Hannan alias Maulana 

Sabbir, Hafez Maulana 

Yeahia, Maulana Md Sayed 

alias Doctor Zafor, also completed 

arguments. The prosecution 

on December 27, 

2017, concluded its arguments 

on facts and pleaded 

for maximum punishment 

for the accused in the trial. 

Chief Prosecutor of the case 

Syed Rezaur Rahman moved 

for the state. A total of 24 AL 

leaders and workers including 

the then Mohila Awami 

League President and wife of 

late President Zillur 

Rahman, Ivy Rahman, were 

killed and 500 others were 

injured in the grenade 

attacks on an Awami League 

rally at Bangabandhu 

Avenue on August 21 in 

2004. 

Now BTRC decides to keep 

internet undisrupted 

DHAKA : A day after giving instruction to mobile phone 

operators to slow down internet speed Bangladesh 

Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) on 

Monday directed them to keep internet service undisputed, 

reports UNB. 

President of Internet Service Providers Association of 

Bangladesh (ASPAB) M A Hakim confirmed the matter on 

Monday morning. As per the Sunday's instruction, the operators 

slowed down internet speed for around ten minutes on 

Monday morning. Later, the speed became normal again following 

the new instruction. 

Earlier, on Sunday BTRC instructed mobile phone operators 

to curb the internet speed from 8 am to 10:30 am on the 

exam days from February 12 to February 24 and from 12 pm 

to 2:30 pm on February 18 in a bid to prevent question paper 

leakage during the ongoing School Certificate (SSC) examinations. 

BNP leaders and activists formed human chain in front of Press Club yesterday. Photo: Star Mail 

Call-drop rate, slow internet 

speed ‘alarming’ 

He also noted that Bangladesh cannot 

be digitised if quality mobile service 

and fast internet speed at a reasonable 

price are not ensured. 

Md Ariful Haque, a Grameenphone 

user, told UNB that his calls end 

abruptly and this has been happening 

on a more frequent basis nowadays, 

not to mention 3G internet speed 

often shifting to 2G.Robi user Md 

Jahangir Alam and Banglalink subscriber 

Sharna echoed Ariful. 

BTRC Director General 

(Engineering and Operation) Colonel 

Md Mustafa Kamal told UNB that 

they conducted a survey in 

Mymensingh and Sylhet divisions 

using the state-of-the-art machines to 

assess the operators' service quality. 

He said they put forward the survey 

findings to the operators and 

instructed them to take necessary 

actions. "Such surveys will gradually 

be conducted in all the divisions and 

appropriate steps will be taken." 

A policy framework titled 'Quality 

of Service Regulations 2018' is being 

prepared draft of which has been put 

on BTRC's website for feedback and it 

is set to be approved by the commission 

soon. 

BTRC Secretary Md Sarwar Alam 

said the mobile phone operators cannot 

deliver quality services for not 

having adequate spectrum. 

"Hopefully, they'll purchase necessary 

spectrum through the next auction 

which will eliminate the complaints 

in future." 

All the mobile operators have 

applied for participating in the 

upcoming 2100/1800/900 MHz 

spectrum auction, which will be held 

on Tuesday. 

Subject to paying both the licence 

and spectrum fees, the BTRC will 

hand over the spectrum to the operators 

the next day. 

According to the guidelines, the rate 

for 1800 MHz will be $30 million per 

MHz, $27 million per MHz for 2100 

MHz and $30 million per MHz for 

900 MHz spectrum. 

Secretary General and CEO of 

Association of Mobile Telecom 

Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) 

TIM Nurul Kabir told UNB that the 

operators are bound to deliver quality 

services to their users, and all of them 

are working to improve their services. 

"I hope the service will improve after 

acquiring necessary spectra in the 

upcoming auction." 

According to the latest BTRC calculation, 

the number of mobile phone 

users in the country stands at 145.111 

million as of January 29, 2018. 

Of them, 6.53 crore use 

Grameenphone while 4.29 crore 

Robi, 3.23 crore Banglalink, 44.94 

lakh people use state-owned Teletalk, 

a rise from previous 32.41 lakh. 

Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam, Advisory Editor: Advocate Molla Mohammad Abu Kawser, Managing, Editor: Tapash Ray Sarker, News Editor : Saiful Islam, printed at Sonali Printing Press, 2/1/A, Arambagh 167, Inner Circular Road, Eden Complex, Motijheel, Dhaka. 

Editorial and News Office: K.K Bhaban (Level-04) 69/K, Green Road, Panthapath, Dhaka-1205. Tel : +8802-9611884-85, Cell : 01832166882; Email: Editor : editor@thebangladeshtoday.com, Advertisement: ads@thebangladeshtoday.com, News: newsbangla@thebangladeshtoday.com, contact@thebangladeshtoday.com, website: www.thebangladeshtoday.com

The Bangladesh Today (13-02-2018)

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