30-07-2018

mOnDaY 

Dhaka:July 30, 2018; Srabon 15, 1425 BS; Zilqad 16,1439 hijri 

www.thebangladeshtoday.com; www. tbtbangla.com 

Regd.No.Da~2065, Vol.16; No.191; 12 Pages~Tk.8.00 

inTeRnaTiOnal 

5 relatives dead in 

murder-suicide; 3 at 

Texas nursing home 

>Page 7 

Rajshahi, Barishal and Sylhet 

City Corporation 

polls today 

DHAKA : Rajshahi, Barishal and Sylhet 

city corporations go to polls on Monday 

with the participation of the two major 

political parties-Awami League and BNPahead 

of the 11th national election. 

Awami League mayoral candidates of 

the three city polls claimed that people will 

elect them for the sake of development of 

their respective cities, while their BNP 

rivals aired doubts whether there will be 

any fair elections. 

The voting will start at 8am and continue 

till 4pm without any break. The city 

elections are the last major polls before the 

next general election expected to be held 

in December this year. 

Five mayoral candidates are contesting 

the polls in Rajshahi, while seven mayoral 

contenders are running in Barishal and 

Sylhet each. 

Among the mayoral candidates, 

Awami League's AHM Khairuzzaman 

Liton and BNP's Mosaddek Hossain 

Bulbul are considered as front runners 

in Rajshahi, while AL's Serniabat Sadiq 

Abdullah and BNP's Mujibur Rahman 

Sarwar in Barishal andAL's Badar 

Uddin Kamran and BNP's Arifur 

Rahman in Sylhet. 

In terms of security risks, there are 306 

'important' (Vulnerable) polling stations 

out of 395 in the three city corporations. 

A 24-member security team, comprising 

seven policemen with arms, three 

Battalion Ansar men with arms, two 

embedded Ansar with arms and 12 

embedded Ansar/VDP members with 

sticks will protect each 'important' (vulnerable) 

polling centre, while a 22-member 

security team will guard each normal 

polling station. 

There are 114 'important' polling stations 

out of 138 in Rajshahi City 

Corporation, while 80 'important' stations 

out of 134 in Sylhet City Corporation and 

112 'important' stations out 123 in Barishal 

City Corporation. 

Some 250 security teams of police, Rab, 

BGB, APBn and Ansar remain deployed 

either as mobile or striking force in 

Rajshahi, Barishal and Sylhet city corporations. 

More than 200 teams of police, 

APBn and Ansar, and Rab were deployed 

as striking or mobile force in the election 

areas. 

Besides, 44 platoons of Border Guard of 

Bangladesh (BGB) --15 platoons in 

Rajshahi, 15 platoons in Barishal and 14 

platoons in Sylhet-were deployed in the 

polling areas. Apart from these, an executive 

magistrate remains deployed in each 

of 87 general wards, while a judicial magistrate 

in each of 29 reserved wards in the 

three cities to take action against violation 

of the election code of conduct. 

Instead of ballot papers, electronic voting 

machines (EVMs) will be used in 15 

polling stations --11 polling stations in 

Barishal and two each in Rajshahi and 

Sylhet-to cast votes in the three city elections. 

In Rajshahi city, five candidates are in 

the election race for the mayoral post, 

while there are 160 contestants for 30 general 

councillor posts and 52 women contenders 

for 10 reserved councillor posts. 

A total of 3,18,138 voters can exercise 

their franchise through 138 polling stations 

in Rajshahi city. 

In Barishal city, seven candidates are 

contesting the election for the mayoral 

post, while 95 candidates are there for 30 

general councillor posts, and 34 women 

contenders for 10 reserved councillor 

posts. A total of 2,42,166 voters will be 

allowed to cast their votes under 123 

polling stations in Barishal city. 

In Sylhet city, seven candidates are running 

for the mayoral post, while 127 contestants 

are there for 27 general councillor 

posts and 66 women contenders for nine 

reserved councillor posts. A total of 

3,21,732 voters can exercise their voting 

rights through 134 polling stations in 

Sylhet city. 

On May 29 last, the Election Commission 

announced the election schedules for the 

three city corporations. 

aRT & culTuRe 

Has Katrina Kaif 

already replaced 

Priyanka 

>Page 8 

Joy sees AL win in 

3 city corporations 

DHAKA : Prime Minister's ICT Adviser 

Sajeeb Wazed Joy sees win of three 

Awami League mayoral candidates in 

Barishal, Rajshahi and Sylhet city corporations' 

polls billed for Monday. 

"However, I can quite confidently say 

that in Barishal and Rajshahi Awami 

League will win by a landslide. In Sylhet 

we are slightly ahead, but it is too close 

to call," he said in a Facebook post citing 

a survey report, reports UNB. 

Surveys were conducted throughout 

this month (July 2018) by an independent 

research organization, Research 

Development Center (RDC), he said. 

"My team commissioned three public 

opinion surveys for the imminent 

Barishal, Rajshahi and Sylhet city corporation 

elections," Joy said. 

Of course, with the campaigns in full 

swing until midnight last night the 

results may vary slightly from these 

polls, which were conducted over the 

past month, Joy said. 

In Barishal, the sample size of the survey 

was 1,241 registered voters where 

44 percent supported Serniabat Sadik 

Abdullah (AL), 13.1 percent supported 

Mujibur Rahman Sarowar (BNP) while 

other candidates got supports of only 

0.8 percent. 

Some 23.5 percent were undecided 

and 15.9 percent refused to answer. 

In Rajshahi, the sample size of the 

survey was 1,294 registered voters. In 

the survey, 58.0 percent supported 

Khairuzzaman Liton (AL), 16.4 supported 

Mosaddek Hossain Bulbul 

(BNP) while 0.9 percent supported 

other candidates, he said. 

Some 12.3 remained undecided and 

9.6 percent refused to answer. 

In Sylhet, the sample size of the survey 

was 1,196 registered voters. Some 

33 percent supported Badar Uddin 

Ahmed Kamran (AL), 28.1 percent supported 

Ariful Haque Chowdhury (BNP) 

and 1.3 percent supported other candidates. 

On the other hand, 23 percent 

remained undecided and 12.6 percent 

refused to answer. 

Results were weighted for gender 

based on the composition of the voter 

list for the city corporations and age 

distribution for Barishal, Rajshahi 

and Sylhet cities from the 2011 

Census, said Joy. 

SPORT 

Bangladesh still need 

to improve says 

Mashrafe 

>Page 9 

Agitated students catches fire to the public transports as a bus ploughed through some of their 

fellows at airport road of the capital city yesterday. 

Photo : Star Mail 

2 students killed 

in bus crash 

Students go on rampage in city 

DHAKA : College students went 

berserk as a bus ploughed through 

some of their fellows in front of 

Kurmitola General Hospital on 

Airport Road in the capital on 

Sunday, leaving two dead and 12 

others injured, reports UNB. 

The deceased were identified as 

DiyaKhanamMim, daughter of 

Jahangir Alam of Mohakhali and 

Abdul KarimRajib, son of Nur Islam of 

Ashkona. Both of them were first-year 

students of the college Shaheed 

Ramizuddin Cantonment School and 

College. 

Witnesses said the accident took 

place around 12:30 pm when 

aUttara-bound bus of 'Jabal-e-Noor 

Paribahan' ploughed through the 

students as they were standing 

beside the road. They died on the 

spot. 

The injured were taken to 

Kurmitola General Hospital. They 

said the bus, coming from Mirpur, 

hit the students standing there just 

after it got down from the flyover on 

the busy road. 

Dr. ManjurAlamMorshed, a 

physician at the hospital, said at 

least 14 victims were brought to the 

hospital and two of them were 

declared dead. 

Nine of the injured, including five 

girls and four boys, were shifted to 

the Combined Military Hospital, 

Dhaka. 

The condition of two of the nine 

students was stated to be critical, 

said another physician at Kurmitola 

General Hospital. 

Angered by the tragic incident, the 

students of the college took to the 

streets and put up barricades on 

both sides of the road, disrupting 

traffic from 1 pm to 1:45 pm. They 

also vandalised several vehicles and 

set fire to two buses, including the 

killer one. 

Meanwhile, the traffic on the busy 

road returned to normalcy after law 

enforcers intervened. 

Khaleda seeks HC 

bail in Cumilla 

arson case 

DHAKA : BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia 

on Sunday filed a bail petition with the 

High Court in the case filed under Special 

Power Act over the arson attack in 

Cumilla on Feb 3, 2015, reports UNB. 

The petition was filed with the bench 

of justice A K M Asaduzzaman and 

Justice S M Mojibur Rahman. 

AM Ehsanur Rahman, a member of 

Khaleda Zia's lawyer panel, said that 

Cumilla court denied bail to Khaleda Zia 

on July 27 in the case. So, they filed the 

petition with the HC against the order 

and appealed for her bail, he added. 

Earlier on July 23, the High Court 

directed the Comilla Court to dispose of 

the bail petition filed by Khaleda within 

July 26. 

On July 17, Khaleda Zia filed a petition 

before the court seeking bail in the case. 

Eight people were killed and 20 others 

injured when miscreants hurled a petrol 

bomb at a bus at Jogmohanpur in 

Chouddagram of Cumilla district during 

the BNP-led alliance's movement on 

February 3, 2015. Two cases were filed in 

this connection against Khaleda. 

On Feb 8, Khaleda Zia was sent to jail 

after a special court sentenced her to 

five years' rigorous imprisonment in 

the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case. 

Voting materials being sent to centers for holding RCC election. 

Zohr 

04:04 AM 

12:15 PM 

04:43 PM 

06:48 PM 

08:10 PM 

5:25 6:45 


2 killed in Rajshahi, Munshiganj 'gunfights' 

DHAKA : An unidentified man and a suspected 

criminal were killed in separate 

'gunfights' in Rajshahi and Munshiganj 

districts early Sunday, reports UNB. 

In Rajshahi,an unidentified man was 

killed in a reported gunfight with members 

of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) in 

Nabadanga area of the city around 12:30 

am. Major A M Ashraful Islam, deputy 

commanding officer of Rab-5, said that a 

patrol team of the elite force spotted a torch 

beam at a banana orchard. 

When the team reached there, a gang of 

criminals opened fire on them, forcing 

them to fire back, triggering the gunfight 

which left the unidentified man injured 

with bullets. 

Later, the injured was rushed to Rajshahi 

Medical College Hospital where doctors 

declared him dead. The elite force recovered 

a magazine, two rounds of bullet 

along with a pistol and 38 bottles of 

Phensidyl. 

In Munshiganj,Md Sohrab Hossain, son 

of Yunus Bepari of Rudrapara village in 

Ragra union of Srinagar upazila, was killed 

in a reported gunfight with the Rab members. 

Being informed that a gang of criminals 

was staying in the area, a team of the elite 

force conducted a drive in Chhatrobhog 

area around 4:30 am, said Assistant 

Superintendent Mohitul Islam, company 

commander of Rab-11. 

Quader urges all to 

observe Mourning Day 

with due respect 

DHAKA : Awami League General 

Secretary Obaidul Quader yesterday 

said the Bangalee nation will turn the 

Bangabandhu's independent 

Bangladesh into a developed and prosperous 

country by 2041 under the 

dynamic leadership of Prime Minister 

Sheikh Hasina, reports BSS. 

"We should work together irrespective 

of cast, creed and religion under the 

leadership of Bangabandhu's daughter 

Sheikh Hasina to build a dreamy 

future," he said in a statement issued 

yesterday marking the National 

Mourning Day and the 43rd martyrdom 

anniversary of Father of the Nation 

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur 

Rahman. 

Quader said, "The killers not only 

killed Father of the Nation 

Bangabandhu along with his family 

members, but also killed the spirit of 

Liberation War of the Bangalee nation, 

their progress, prosperity and the dream 

of a beautiful future." 

He said the bullets of the killers killed 

the dream of the whole Bangalee nation 

on August 15, 1975 by assassinating 

Bangabandhu as he dreamt to build a 

'Sonar Bangla' after the supreme sacrifice 

made by 30 lakh martyrdoms 

through an armed struggle. 

Quader, also the road transport and 

bridges minister, said the assassins stigmatized 

the nation by killing 

Bangabandhu along with almost all of 

his family members by conspiring at 

home and abroad as he (Bangabandhu) 

established Bangladesh as a brave 

nation before the world in only three 

years and seven months. 

The killers did not refrain after killing 

Bangabandhu, he said, adding that one 

of the initiators of the killing conspiracy, 

Ziaur Rahman promulgate the hatred 

Indemnity Act to stop the trial of the 

killing of Bangabandhu after grabbing 

power illegally. 

He said, "We carried on the stigma for 

long 21 years. The government under 

the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh 

Hasina freed the nation from the stigma 

by executing death penalty of the killers 

through the regular trial process in 

2010." 

He said some absconding killers of 

Bangabandhu are hatching conspiracies 

till now from abroad. The government 

of Bangabandhu's daughter Sheikh 

Hasina is continuing the process to 

bring back them from abroad for executing 

the verdict. 

Holey Artisan attack 

Tribunal receives 

case docs 

DHAKA : Anti-terrorism Special 

Tribunal here on Sunday received documents, 

including the charge-sheet, of 

the case filed over the terrorist attack on 

Holey Artisan Bakery in the city in 

2016, reports UNB. 

Confirming it, Special Public 

Prosecutor Golam Sarwar said the 

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court 

on Thursday ordered for sending all the 

documents to the Anti-terrorism 

Special Tribunal. Now, the Anti-terrorism 

Special Tribunal Judge Mujibur 

Rahman will deal with the case. 

On July 23, police pressed charges 

against eight people in the sensational 

Holey Artisan cafe attack case. 

Those charge-sheeted are Jahangir 

Alam alias Rajib Gandhi, Mahmudul 

Hasan Mizan, Sohel Mahfuz, Rashidul 

Islam alias Rash, Boro Mizan, Hadisur 

Rahman Sagar, Mamunur Rashid 

Ripon and Shariful Islam Khaled. 

The law enforcers also recommended 

acquitting former North South University 

teacher Hasnat Karim of the charge. 

Meanwhile, Metropolitan Magistrate 

Fahad Bin Amin denied bail to him on 

Thursday. Hasnat Karim, also a businessman, 

was rescued along with 12 

others during the commando operation 

at the Holey Artisan Bakery in the city's 

Gulshan area on July 2 following a 12- 

hour hostage standoff. 

Twenty-two people-nine Italians, 

seven Japanese, one Indian, one 

Bangladeshi-born American and two 

Bangladeshis-were killed in the terror 

attack on the restaurant on July 1, 2016.

NEWS 

MONDAY, 

JULY 30, 2018 

2 

Distinguished guests on the dais at the International quiz competition on 'Surakshit Khadya Abhiyan 

: Asia Quiz Competition on Food Safety 2018' Bangladesh Round, organized by the Department of 

Nutrition and Food Engineering, Daffodil International University. 

Photo : Courtesy 

Two killed in 

Gazipur road 

crash 

GAZIPUR : At least two 

people were killed and six 

others injured in a head-on 

collision between a pickup 

van and a truck on Dhaka- 

Mymensingh highway at 

Ansar More area in 

Sreepur upazila early 

Sunday. 

One of the deceased was 

identified asTarajulIslam 

of Pirganj upazila, reports 

UNB. Delwar Hossain, 

officer-in-charge of Maona 

Highway Police, said a 

Dhaka bound truck 

collided head-on with the 

pickup, leaving two 

passengers of the pickup 

van injured. 

Locals took them to 

Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad 

Medical College Hospital 

where the duty doctor 

declared them dead. 

Career planning workshop for 

BD nationals held in Hague 

DHAKA : Embassy of Bangladesh, the 

Hague in association with 

BrainChain, organized a career 

planning workshop for Bangladeshi 

students and job seekers on Saturday, 

reports UNB. 

BrainChain is an association of 

Bangladeshi professionals who are 

successfully working in Dutch 

companies. 

To prepare Bangladesh origin 

students better, share the challenges 

and opportunities of the Dutch job 

market and firsthand experience of 

facing job interviews, the Embassy 

organized the workshop for the first 

time. 

Every year a good number of 

students come to different 

universities of the Netherlands for 

higher studies, said the Embassy on 

Sunday. 

After successful completion of 

study, they get one year grace period 

to secure a job in the Netherlands 

which will lead to visa extension and 

successful continuation of the job for 

couple of years will ultimately lead to 

the citizenship. 

Embassy officials, members of the 

Embassy family, BrainChain members 

and 13 Bangladesh nationals, who are 

preparing themselves for job, 

participated in the workshop. 

Members of BrainChain guided 

them to prepare themselves as 

potential candidates for job 

market. 

Ambassador Sheikh Mohammed 

Belal thanked BrainChain for its 

trend setting example of "giving back" 

to the motherland and hoped that 

they will continue to include 

innovation in "our innovation" room 

in the Embassy. 

"Our ultimate goal is to see our 

students are back to our country and 

contribute towards our nation 

building utilizing the new found 

insights in the Netherlands," he said. 

US wishes voters a 

peaceful and festive 

day in city polls 

DHAKA : US Embassy in Dhaka on Sunday wished 

Bangladeshi voters in Barishal, Rajshahi and Sylhet a 

"peaceful and festive day" as they are set to cast their votes in 

the three city corporations election billed for Monday, 

reports UNB. 

The Embassy in a post shared on its official Facebook page 

said a peaceful and festive day will help all who want to 

participate freely exercise their democratic right in choosing 

their leaders in the city corporation elections. 

The Embassy of Netherlands in Dhaka in a separate 

Facebook post said Bangladesh has come a very long way in 

its development. 

The economic and social progress of the country should be 

supported and can be further enhanced by strong, inclusive 

and representative institutions at all levels, said the Embassy. 

"Free, fair and inclusive elections are a basic condition for 

any credible democracy," the Facebook post reads. 

Prime Minister's ICT Adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy sees win of 

three Awami League mayoral candidates in Barishal, 

Rajshahi and Sylhet city corporations' polls. 

"I can quite confidently say that in Barishal and Rajshahi 

Awami League will win by a landslide. In Sylhet we are 

slightly ahead, but it is too close to call," he said in a Facebook 

post citing a survey report. 

Silver ornaments, phensidyl 

seized at Benapole 

BENAPOLE : Members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) 

seized silver ornaments and phensidyl syrup smuggled from 

India in Amrakhali area here on Sunday morning, reports 

UNB. 

Tipped off, a BGB team conducted a drive in the area in the 

morning and seized the Indian contraband items, said 

Subedar Monir Hossain, company commander of BGB 

Benapole port. However, no one was arrested in this 

connection, he added. 

One held with Yaba 

in Chattogram 

CHATTOGRAM : Members of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) 

arrested a suspected drug trader and recovered 36,000 Yaba 

tablets from an oil tanker in Bottoli area in the port city on 

Saturday night. 

The arrestee was identified as Ismail, 30, reports UNB. 

Being informed that Yaba tablets were being smuggled 

concealing in an oil tanker of Meghna Petroleum, a team of 

Rab conducted drive and arrested the suspected drug trader 

around 8:30 pm, said Assistant Superintendent of Police 

Mimtanur Rahman, also the assistant director of Rab-7. 

Later, the team recovered the Yaba tablets from the oil 

tanker. They also seized the tanker, he added. 

A public awareness rally was held on the occasion of World Hepatitis Day 2018 with the initiative of 

Liver Division of Dhaka Medical College Hospital on Saturday. Associate Professor and 

Departmental Head of Hepatitis Department Dr. Farooq Ahmed, ASLDB President and Professor of 

UGC Prof Selimur Rahman, BMA joint-secreatry and cardiac surgeon professor Dr. Kamrul Hasan 

Milon, Principal of Dhaka Medical College, Deputy Principal Professor Dr. Khan Abul Kalam Azad, 

Deputy Professor Dr. Shafiqul Alam Chowdhury, Director of the Hospital Brigadier General AKM 

Nasir Uddin, General Secretary of the Teachers Association, Dr. Debesh Chandra Talukder, Dr Abul 

Hayat Manik, Dr. Shahriar Nabi Shakil, Associate Professor, Dr. Proddut Kumar Saha, Dr. Saiful 

Islam Parvez, Dr. Tanmoy Saha, Dr. Simon and Dr. Saad Ahmed Tonmoy addressed a discussion 

after the rally. 

Photo : TBT 

Combined Physiotherapy Council placed memorandum to health minister demanding establishment 

of Physiotherapy college. 

Photo : TBT

METRO 

MONDAY, JulY 30, 2018 

3 

Matia stresses on Bangladesh-Australia 

cooperation in agriculture 

DHAKA : Agriculture Minister Matia 

Chowdhury on Sunday emphasized on 

exchange of genetic resources between 

Bangladesh and Australia for 

developing stress tolerant varieties of 

different crops. 

Addressing a workshop at 

Bangladesh Agricultural Research 

Council (Barc), the minister welcomed 

a joint effort of Australian Centre for 

International Agricultural Research 

(ACIAR) and Bangladesh's Krishi 

Gobeshona Foundation (KGF) and 

national agricultural research system 

(Nars) in developing stress 

tolerant varieties, particularly of pulses 

and oilseeds as Bangladesh is running 

deficit in production of pulse and 

oilseed, reports UNB. 

KGF organized the workshop titled - 

'Promoting pulses, oilseeds, maize and 

other crops in stress-prone areas in 

Bangladesh'. 

Matia Chowdhury welcomed ACIAR 

for the useful cooperation extended by 

the Australian government and also 

thanked KGF for accelerating 

cooperation in agro-science. 

The agriculture minister said, 

"Considering the recent development 

process of expansion of industries in the 

north we need to develop agriculture in 

the potential region in the south which 

was once known as granary of 

Bangladesh. With the constraints with 

tidal water along with salinity, we need 

to develop sustainable production 

system with profitable farming 

options." 

She said, "There is scope for further 

productivity gain with genetic 

manipulation through increasing 

photosynthetic efficiency of major crops 

which will require support of 

international science." 

She said recent climate events like 

flash floods are damaging crops in Haor 

region. "Short duration and early 

maturing and cold tolerant cropping 

options remain a solution in those 

areas." The northwestern drought 

prone areas have different ecology that 

requires attention of water saving 

farming system, Matia added. 

She also said that the use of modern 

technologies like nanotechnology, GMO, 

hybrid, growing more crops with less 

input, conservation and precision 

agriculture, conserving soil health and 

natural resources have been given 

adequate attention in the just formulated 

National Agricultural Policy 2018. 

In a keynote presentation, Chief 

Executive Officer of Australian Centre 

for International Agricultural Research 

(ACIAR), Prof Andrew Campbell said, 

"Australia (through ACIAR) has been 

working in Bangladesh for over 20 

years - this region is crucial for global 

food security and a high priority for 

ACIAR." 

KGF Executive Director Dr Wais 

Kabir made welcome remarks. 

Senior Secretary, Ministry of 

Agriculture, Mohammad Moinuddin 

Abdullah; Australian High 

Commissioner to Bangladesh, Julia 

Niblett; ACIAR Regional Manager for 

South Asia, Dr Protibha Singh also 

spoke with Bangladesh Agricultural 

Research Council (Barc) Executive 

Chairman Dr Md Kabir Ikramul Haque 

in the chair. 

Emeritus Professor Dr M A Sattar 

Mandal chaired the review session and 

panel discussion with Murdoch 

University, Australia, Prof Richard W 

Bell presenting speech on conservation 

agriculture; Dr Mohammed Mainuddin 

of Commonwealth Scientific and 

Industrial Research Organisation 

(CSIRO), Australia, presenting speech 

on cropping system intensification; and 

Prof W Erskine of University of 

Western Australia presenting 

deliberation on salt tolerant wheat and 

pulses. 

ACIAR is an independent statutory 

authority in Australia. It operates in 

over 30 countries in the Indo-Pacific 

region investing 110 million dollars in 

farm researches in 2017-18 with 15 

percent of its research portfolios 

concentrating in South Asia including 

Bangladesh. 

Bangladesh Ganatantrik Sangskritik Jote organized a protest meeting demanding release of BNP 

Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia. 

Photo : TBT 

39th special 

BCS seat plan 

published 

DHAKA : Bangladesh 

Public Service Commission 

(BPSC) on Sunday published 

the seat plan of the 39th 

Special Bangladesh Civil 

Service (BCS) examination, 

reports UNB. 

The seat plan is available on 

the BPSC website 

www.bpsc.gov.bd. 

BPSC on April 8 published a 

circular for the examination 

seeking applications against 

4792 posts of physicians. 

According to the circular, 

the MCQ examination of 200 

marks is scheduled to be held 

on next Friday, from 3 pm to 5 

pm at 25 centers in the city. 

In the MCQ examination, 

apart from answering 100 

marks' question of Bangla, 

English, Bangladesh, and 

International Affairs, Mental 

Ability and Mathematical 

Reasoning, the candidates 

have to answer 100 marks' 

question on medical science 

or dental science, said the 

circular. 

The application process for 

the 39th special BCS started 

on April 10 and ended on 

April 30. 

The candidates, who will be 

qualified in the MCQ 

examination, have to take part 

in a 100 marks viva later. 

Ranga for improving 

living standard of waste 

management workers 

DHAKA : State Minister 

for Local Government, 

Rural Development and 

Cooperatives Md Mashiur 

Rahman Ranga yesterday 

said the government has 

taken a special initiative to 

improve the living standard 

and socioeconomic status 

of waste management and 

sanitation workers. 

"The government has 

modernized the waste 

management system to 

keep the country's 

municipalities and city 

corporations clean, 

environment friendly and 

healthy," he said, 

addressing a workshop in 

the city. 

Practical Action and 

European Union (EU) 

jointly organized the 

workshop on improving 

living standard and 

socioeconomic status of the 

deprived people engaged in 

the waste management at 

CIRDAP auditorium in the 

city, said an official release. 

Shirin Akhter, MP, EU 

governance team leader to 

Bangladesh Audrey Maillot 

and Practical Action's 

Bangladesh Country 

Director Hasin Jahan 

addressed the workshop as 

special guests. Currently, 

about 60 lakh people are 

involved across the country 

in different stages of waste 

and sludge management to 

keep the cities and 

environment clean, safe 

and healthy, Ranga said, 

adding that 90 percent of 

them have no land for 

habitation. They are also 

being deprived from the 

rights of education, he said 

and urged the affluent 

people and volunteer 

organizations to come 

forward along with the 

government to improve the 

standard of living of the 

disadvantaged group. A 

plan has also been taken to 

turn the huge amount of 

waste, produced in the 

country daily, into 

resources that will be able 

to contribute to the national 

economy, he said. 

Addressing the workshop, 

the other speakers 

emphasized on developing 

capacities of the 

municipalities and city 

corporations, allocating 

sufficient budget, 

developing an effective 

business model at local 

level incorporating the 

waste workers, creating 

new 

business 

opportunities, establishing 

cooperative and national 

platform for the waste 

workers and initiating new 

technology to increase the 

quality of the services and 

reduce health hazards. 

Practical Action in 

association with Karmojibi 

Nari and Municipal 

Association of Bangladesh 

will implement a project to 

improve the living standard 

of thousand of waste and 

sanitation workers in 

Barguna, Bagerhat, 

Faridpur and Gazipur for 

the next three years. The 

EU will fund the project. 

Bangladesh Diploma Engineers Service Association Coordination Council formed a human 

chain in front of National Press Club yesterday demanding implementation of Prime Minister's 

order. 

Photo : TBT 

Jabbar for observing July 

29 as National Post Day 

DHAKA : Posts, Telecommunications 

and ICT Minister Mustafa Jabbar 

yesterday termed July 29 as the glorious 

day for Bangladesh Postal Department 

saying initiatives would be taken to observe 

the day as National Post Day, reports BSS. 

Eight postage stamps were released on 

this day on behalf of Mujibnagar 

Government from Bangladesh Mission's in 

Kolkata and London as part of effort to 

raise global opinion in support of liberation 

of Bangladesh. 

"War of Liberation is our pride. By 

releasing those stamps, Mujibnagar 

Government had revealed the existence of 

Independent Bangladesh globally. We 

should re-release those stamps as we need 

to raise this important part of the liberation 

to our young generation," Jabbar said. 

The minister said these while addressing 

a function on Postage Stamp Day at the 

secretariat. Jabbar released a memorial 

postage stamp of Taka five, a special folder 

of Taka 10 and a data card of Taka 5. A 

special seal was used in this regard. 

Posts and Telecommunication Division 

Secretary Shyam Sunder Sikder, director 

general of postal department Susanta 

Kumar Mandal and Philatelic Association 

of Bangladesh official Anwar Hossain 

Mollik addressed the function, among 

others. 

Anisul invites development partners 

to engage with justice audit 

DHAKA : Law, Justice and 

Parliamentary Affairs 

Minister Anisul Huq 

yesterday invited all 

development partners active 

in supporting justice sector 

reform to engage with the 

justice audit and design their 

interventions in support of 

future steps, reports BSS. 

"I along with the home 

minister have started a 

forum for inter-ministerial 

dialogue, together with 

police, prisons etc. to agree 

on options for future reform. 

I'm confident that the 

findings of the justice audit 

will steer and support this 

discussion. We'll use the 

inter-ministerial forum to 

identify, prioritise and set 

concrete targets for change 

in policy and practice," Huq 

said. 

The law minister said 

these while addressing the 

launching of National 

Justice Audit (NJA) 

programme 

at 

Bangabandhu International 

Conference Centre (BICC) 

this afternoon. 

Chief Justice Syed 

Mahmud Hossain 

addressed the function as 

the chief guest, while Law 

Division Secretary Abu 

Saleh Sheikh Md Zahirul 

Haque, Deputy Head of 

Mission of German Embassy 

Michael Schultheiss, Head 

of DFID Bangladesh Jane 

Edmondson, Head of Rule 

of Law Programme of GIZ 

Permita Sengupta, 

addressed the function, 

among others. 

"To my knowledge, with 

this endeavour, Bangladesh 

becomes the first country in 

the world to conduct such an 

audit of its entire justice 

system and I hope that other 

countries will learn from this 

example," Anisul Huq 

added. 

The law minister said the 

present government is 

committed to digitalizing 

Bangladesh and so wanted 

to move away from a 

narrative report format to 

innovate with new 

technology and bring the 

data to life. 

Bangladesh 

wins bronze 

in Int'l Physics 

Olympiad 

DHAKA : Bangladesh 

has won four bronze 

medals in International 

Physics Olympiad (IPhO) - 

2018. 

A total of 447 students 

from 87 countries took part 

in the 49th ceremony that 

begun on Jul 21 

whilewinnerswere 

announced on Saturday 

(Jul 28) in Lisbon, 

Portugal, reports UNB. 

The bronze medal 

winners are Abrar Al Sadid 

Abir from Chattogram 

College, Irtiza Eram and 

Tahmid Mosaddek from 

Notre Dame College, and 

Rashedul Islam from 

Motijheel Ideal School and 

College in Dhaka. 

Confirming it, Jubaer 

Kabir Tusher, consular 

assistant at Bangladesh 

Embassy in Beirut, 

congratulated the 

Bangladesh team saying, 

"Bangladesh is being ready 

for the future." 

Congratulating them, 

coach of Physics Olympiad 

teamProf Dr Arshad 

Momen in his Facebook 

post said, "Special 

congratulations to Irtiza 

Eram for making a perfect 

score for IPhO. We're 

moving forward." 

It's a very important 

achievement for the 

country, he added. 

Bangladesh has been 

participating IPhO since 

2011. Last year, the country 

won a silver medal along 

with three bronze and one 

honourary medal. 

Anti-drug drive to be continued: Benazir 

DHAKA : Director General of Rapid 

Action Battalion (RAB) Benazir Ahmed 

yesterday vowed that the anti-drug drive 

would be continued aimed at 

eliminating drug abuse from the society 

as part of the government's tough stance 

against the drug menace, reports BSS. 

"The anti-drug campaign will be 

continued until elimination of drug 

abuse in the country," he said while 

addressing a workshop at a city hotel. 

The Department of Narcotics Control 

(DNC) organised the workshop titled 

'Action Plan to Prevent Aggression of 

Abusive Drugs' with DNC Director 

General (DG) M Jamal Uddin Ahmed in 

the chair. 

Benazir Ahmed, in his speech, said, 

"The government has already declared 

zero tolerance against drug abuse… it 

will do everything to build a drug-free 

society." 

He said, "A section of people create 

chaos if we start any campaign against 

drugs. When we start drive against 

militants, they try to find out loopholes 

on TV talks shows. We will win the war 

against the drugs with help of country's 

people as we are employees of the state." 

Benazir Ahmed, also additional 

inspector general of police, said 

following the Prime Minister's direction, 

the law enforcement agencies have 

already destroyed and rooted out 

militancy and their networks from the 

country when they tried to establish 

their existence. 

The RAB DG also requested security 

service division secretary Farid Uddin 

Ahmed Chowdhury to set up separate 

jail for drug traders. 

Benazir said during the 87 days antidrug 

campaign, over 11,000 drug traders 

and peddlers were given imprisonment 

while 55 drug traders died so far. 

He said at least eight camps in eight 

upazilas of Cox's Bazar district should be 

set up to curb drug trading, adding, "If 

all concerned work together, drug 

traders will not be able to escape." 

Security Service Division Secretary 

Farid Uddin Ahmed Chowdhury, Coast 

Guard DG Rear Admiral A M M M 

Aurangzeb Chowdhury and ministry 

officials concerned spoke on the 

occasion. 

The DNC, in collaboration with the 

ministries concerned, has prepared a 

draft 'Drug Action Plan' to 

comprehensively address the issue of 

drug abuse and bring it under control 

through a multitude of initiatives and 

actions. 

Garments Sramik O Shilpa Rakkha Jatiya Mancha formed a human chain in front of National Press 

Club yesterday demanding fair wage. 

Photo : TBT

EDITORIAL 

MONdAY, 

JUlY 30, 2018 

4 

Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam 

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

e-mail: editor@thebangladeshtoday.com 

Monday, July 30, 2018 

Making Bangladesh 

number one in 

global RMG trade 

I 

t 

is a great tribute and recognition of our RMG workers 

and a show of respect to the souls of departed RMG 

workers of Rana Plaza and Tajreen Garments. Bangladesh 

now stands a unique opportunity of achieving the number one 

RMG band in world market if it can successfully carry out 

some ongoing reforms of improving working environment of 

RMG. It will be another milestone Bangladesh can achieve on 

the way of achieving mid income country status by 2021. 

Cheap but hard working honest labour, cheaper gas and 

power helped develop Bangladesh grow in to a preferred 

brand of ready Made Garments (RMG) in the world market. 

In our usual visits to shopping malls in Northern America, 

Western Europe, Middle Eastern countries and even in 

Australia we come across made in Bangladesh quality 

garments products almost everywhere. 

But some incidents of fire and building collapse with special 

mention of Tajrin Garments and Rana plaza dented 

Bangladesh Garment sector reputation quite a bit. But as far 

as competitiveness and quality Bangladesh RMG is still 

number two band just behind China in world market. With 

China intending moving out of low end RMG products 

gradually, Bangladesh stands a huge opportunity of claiming 

the Number One band if we can make some very critical 

reforms and upgrading of our RMG industry. 

Let us try to assess what are the present challenges and what 

needs to be done? 

Some quarter believes USA suspending GSP from 

Bangladesh RMG will cause major impediments. But the 

continued growth of RMG export even after US withdrawal of 

GSP proves the apprehension wrong.USA is only part of 

Bangladesh market > of RMG. Bangladeshi RMG is still 

enjoying preferred brand advantage in EU Countries ,Canada 

, Eastern European countries and in some Middle eastern 

countries. Veteran politician and Commerce Minister Tofael 

Ahmed led Commerce Ministry is also endeavoring to 

implement several reforms in Garments sector and is 

expecting USA to withdraw the suspension in not too distant 

future. 

The important state visit of PM Hasina to China among 

other milestone achievements of potential China Bangladesh 

cooperation and collaboration has also achieved a major 

stepping stone in RMG sector. 

Bangladesh and China have agreed on setting up modern 

self-contained garments village on the outskirts of Dhaka city 

at Gazaria. In addition to that China will have an exclusive 

Chinese industrial zone where Chinese investors will also set 

up export oriented RMG factories and products will be 

exported as Bangladesh brand. Even the Japan visit has also 

opened avenues of Japanese investors making Bangladesh 

their preferred locations for setting up industries including 

RMG. 

There is no denial that enabling environment for RMG and 

competitive edge of Bangladesh RMG in world market led to 

mushrooming of RMG industry of RMG factories in the city 

centers of Dhaka and Chittagong cities and suburbs. Many 

foreign nationals working in Bangladesh RMG sector hardly 

cared for providing minimum working environment and 

facilities of low earning RMG workers. After a few hiccups 

present government is desperately trying to address the issues 

of RMG sector bringing discipline and creating accountability. 

In the recent past high powered committees have conducted 

surveys and auditing and implementation process of their 

recommendation is in place. 

For better control and management all RMG factories from 

the heart of the major city centers should be phased out and 

relocated to properly planned RMG villages having better 

organized and reliable utility services , world class safety and 

security arrangements , accommodation , health care facilities 

of RMG workers. Minimum wages and fringe benefits must be 

reviewed. RMG workers getting at least US$ 250-300 will not 

cause much reduction of profits of huge earning of RMG 

owners. 

For security and safety of RMG workers and the industry a 

special police unit as RMG Police or in a larger concept 

Industrial police unit can be created. It may have a sub unit 

named RMG Intelligence unit for surveillance of possible 

subversive activities in our RMG industry. All foreigners 

working in RMG must have valid work permits and their 

records must be maintained and monitored. 

We must appreciate the RMG boom has done a great work 

in our poverty alleviation as a special section of village girls 

are now self-dependent and supporting their families as well. 

They must get due respect from society. Facilities like day care 

center, community clinic, adult education etc can be set up in 

the special garments village for them. 

SajibWazed IT adviser of PM Hasina is in a mission of 

digitizing different key sectors of Bangladesh. One of his 

prime objectives must be digitizing RMG sector which is 

major revenue earner for Bangladesh. Let all RMG factories 

be digitalized and reliable database created and preserved of 

all RMG related data and information. This will enable 

centralized monitoring of all RMG related business and 

commercial operations including safety and security. The 

information among others must include data base of all 

workers and executives working in RMG including their 

nationality, salary and benefits. Some officials of each RMG 

must be trained to introduce IT facilities in each RMG. 

Bangladesh Foreign missions and Ministry of Foreign 

affairs must work to promote to expand RMG market access 

in countries which may be potential new buyers. 

Government may consider a preferential special pricing of 

gas and electricity for export oriented RMG factories and Tax 

holidays and other benefits for modern RMG units for a given 

time. Bank loans of easier terms should be considered as 

incentives for owners for relocating the RMG from existing 

locations to properly set up RMG villages. Export credits and 

other facilities may be thought of. Also government can 

encourage investors in setting backward and forward linkages 

of RMG industries for achieving more self-reliance. 

Opportunities have emerged for Bangladesh in achieving 

number one RMG branding now. We must grab it with both 

hands. Let China, Korea, Japan be our partners in progress in 

achieving this dream. 

The foundations of today's 

international relations were laid in 

the 17th century, following the 

European wars of religion, which lasted 

80 years, killed eight million people, and 

were ended by a series of peace treaties 

known together as the Peace of 

Westphalia. 

The three principles of the Peace of 

Westphalia are sovereignty, noninterference, 

and the international legal 

equality of states. The concept of 

international relations in the modern 

world was based on these three 

principles, and even though they did not 

always succeed in ending conflicts, they 

remained a reference. 

One of the three principles' advocates in 

the region is the Arab League's secretarygeneral 

Ahmed Aboul Gheit. He believes 

that respecting these principles would 

end the ongoing conflicts that have 

mostly arisen from regional and foreign 

interventions. 

By going back to a previous article I had 

written on the policy of US President 

Donald Trump's administration, we can 

understand his policy to a certain extent 

through these concepts, as they are closer 

to the reasoning of the right wing of the 

Republican Party. 

President Trump has more than once 

criticized what he calls "the influence of 

international organizations," including 

the United Nations and its agencies. He 

also objects to international agreements, 

such as those made by the World Trade 

Organization (WTO), which he considers 

a form of interference in, or contradiction 

with, his country's policies. For this 

reason, Trump has withdrawn from 

UNESCO and most of his country's 

commitment to the Paris Agreement on 

climate change, cut the US contribution 

This week witnessed a big victory for 

the people of Pakistan: a victory for 

democracy. This despite the fact 

that there were many conspiracies 

against Pakistan and there were eight 

deadly terrorist attacks within only 20 

days before this Wednesday's elections. 

Domestic and international forces were 

engaged in sabotaging the elections and 

derailing Pakistan's democratic journey. 

But the brave people of Pakistan defeated 

all of these enemies. 

Pakistan is a democratic country and 

every five years there are general elections 

where the people choose their 

government by free and fair voting. A 

country of 220 million, it has diversified 

political parties. There are around 200 

parties, though some of them are very 

small and their existence may be 

negligible. Throughout the history of 

Pakistan only s few big parties have 

played major roles. 

The official results have not been 

announced yet, but Pakistan Tehreek-e- 

Insaf (PTI) appears to be ahead of all 

other parties. It is likely that PTI will form 

the next government and rule the country 

for the next five years. Imran Khan is the 

chairman of the PTI and likely to be the 

prime minister of Pakistan. 

In Pakistan's parliamentary system, the 

elected prime minister is the leader of the 

country, while the president is a 

ceremonial head of state only. This is 

similar to the British system and is 

followed by many former British colonies 

or member states of the Commonwealth 

of Nations. 

Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi was born in 

Mianwali, Punjab province, on 

November 25, 1952, to Ikramullah Khan 

Niazi Shermankhel and Shaukat 

ABdUlRAHMAN Al-RASHEd 

to some UN refugee agencies, and quit 

the UN Human Rights Council. 

Those who disagree with Trump 

believe the US has a greater political and 

moral responsibility, as a superpower, to 

manage the world. They also believe the 

principles of the Peace of Westphalia, 

written 400 years ago, are no longer valid 

given the enormous changes brought 

about by technology and geopolitical 

shifts. 

Most importantly, however, he is 

threatening to reconsider the US 

involvement in NATO. Washington 

currently pays for a huge chunk of 

NATO's budget - about $650 billion, 

more than twice the amount spent on 

defense by the other 27 NATO countries 

combined. Trump is seeking more say for 

Washington in NATO, and asking other 

NATO member states -including 

Germany - to spend more on defense, 

and make more combat contributions. 

Following the same pattern, and in the 

same sense, the US president is about to 

destroy the North American Free Trade 

Agreement (NAFTA), refusing any US 

commitments to it. 

Thus, we must understand the current 

US administration through its general 

conduct, as well as its statements and 

Khanum (Burki). A quiet and shy boy in 

his youth, Khan grew up in a family with 

four sisters, he being the only son. 

Although his family settled in Lahore, he 

still considers his background Pathan, 

according to his autobiography. 

Imran attended Aitchison College and 

the Cathedral School in Lahore until he 

finished middle school, then entered the 

Royal Grammar School in Worcester, 

England, before completing his formal 

schooling with an undergraduate degree 

in economics from Keble College, Oxford. 

While at university, he was the captain of 

the Oxford University cricket team in 

1974. He and his mother, Shaukat 

Khanum, come from a cricketing family. 

He is the finest cricket player Pakistan has 

ever produced. He played Test cricket for 

Pakistan, and earned the World Cup for 

Pakistan in 1992. 

PTI was founded on April 25, 1996, in 

Lahore. The party won its first seat in 

Parliament during the 2002 elections, 

when Imran Khan won the National 

Assembly seat for Mianwali in his home 

district. The stated goal of its founder 

JUMANA Al TAMIMI 

policy in the Arabian Gulf, in particular, 

and in the Middle East in general. 

Trump is treating the GCC countries 

the same way he is treating America's 

closest neighbors, Canada and Mexico, as 

well as its leading ally Germany. 

Furthermore, he would not accept that 

Turkey and Qatar buy the Russian S-400 

missile system because he believes this 

would give Moscow increased political 

influence and finance its military 

technical capabilities. 

Trump's administration also disagrees 

with Obama's administration - and the 

Democratic Party in general - on mixing 

politics with human rights, and considers 

it an interference in a matter that does not 

concern it, and thus contradicts the first 

principle of the Peace of Westphalia that 

governs international relations between 

nations. 

As I mentioned in my previous article 

about Trump, his administration's policy 

has five pillars, among which are 

strengthening his country's economy, 

and facing its competitors. He believes 

Europe is living off the benefits of the 

Second World War and dares European 

countries to adopt full free trade. 

On the other hand, he accuses China of 

exploiting his country's flexible 

Imran Khan is to ensure justice for all, as 

he believes that a just society has the best 

chance to succeed. 

At the core, PTI just wants to make sure 

that we Pakistanis as a nation are the best 

version of ourselves and able to make a 

name for ourselves in this world. Khan 

believes that Pakistan is a very special 

country, full of natural resources and full 

of earnest and intelligent people. He is 

committed in bringing political stability 

through credible democracy, 

transparency in government and 

accountability of leadership. 

PTI believes in pursuing a foreign policy 

based on a nationalist agenda, which it 

believes will safeguard all of Pakistan's 

national interests and promote greater 

regional cooperation. The party aims to 

forge stronger relationships with 

neighboring countries, but not at the cost 

of Pakistan's national sovereignty or 

territorial integrity. 

PTI hopes to restore Pakistan's 

economic and political sovereignty after 

coming to power. The party would make 

the Kashmir issue a top priority and 

China ties offer reciprocal lessons 

investment system to transfer knowledge, 

steal advanced technology, and threaten 

America's standing. 

Of course, many do not agree with 

Trump; however, his deeds, if not his 

direct speech, are an expression of his 

party's stances - its right wing, in 

particular. 

Those who disagree with Trump 

believe the US has a greater political and 

moral responsibility, as a superpower, to 

manage the world. They also believe the 

principles of the Peace of Westphalia, 

written 400 years ago, are no longer valid 

given the enormous changes brought 

about by technology and geopolitical 

shifts. The surge of migration as a result 

of civil wars, hunger, and economic 

mismanagement may, indeed, justify 

NATO's military intervention or the 

World Bank's economic intervention. 

As a president, Trump does not 

necessarily reflect his personal views on 

the world around him, but mostly reflects 

the views of the party that brought him to 

the White House. Before he became 

president, Trump was known as an 

international investor based in New York, 

and as such, dealt with immigrants and 

foreign investors. 

Trump as an administration, the 

government as institutions, and the party 

are all behind the dramatic changes in US 

foreign policy, which does not have the 

same appreciation for organizations and 

alliances created after the Second World 

War. As for Iran, Trump treats that country 

as a threat to US interests. He believes Iran 

must remember its size when dealing with a 

superpower, and expects his European and 

Arab allies to share with the US 

responsibility on this issue. 

Source : Arab news 

Pakistan witnesses a victory for democracy 

More and more Chinese are 

learning Arabic. It was one of 

those facts that stayed with me 

after a trip to the Chinese capital of 

Beijing. But it should come as no surprise 

since thousands of Chinese are already 

living and working in Arab countries. 

Perhaps, the bigger surprise was to see 

many Arabs, mainly from northern 

African countries, fluently speaking 

Mandarin. 

Language plays a key role in relations 

between nations and people, particularly 

in matters of economy and trade. The 

interest in each other's language is only 

natural since China and the Arabs are 

reviving their historic ties and that will 

provide more opportunities for 

cooperation across several sectors. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to 

the UAE week before last was a milestone 

and it gave a big boost to relations 

between the Gulf state and the Asian 

giant. Trade is one of the cornerstones of 

the relationship. 

Some years back, China had launched 

an initiative to revive the ancient Silk 

Road that helped transport silk and other 

products to the West. The new venture, 

known as the Belt and Road Initiative 

Why is Trump attacking his allies? 

Most importantly, however, he is threatening to reconsider the 

US involvement in NATO. Washington currently pays for a huge 

chunk of NATO's budget - about $650 billion, more than twice the 

amount spent on defense by the other 27 NATO countries 

combined. Trump is seeking more say for Washington in NATO, 

and asking other NATO member states -including Germany - to 

spend more on defense, and make more combat contributions. 

aims to provide connections to Europe, 

Africa as well as other parts of Asia. Arabs 

too are part of the plan, and the UAE has 

signed up to it. 

Besides language that helps in trade, 

the Chinese and Arabs can learn much 

more from each other. Economic ties 

would facilitate an exchange of cultures 

and habits. Each side can adopt practices 

that would be beneficial to them. 

The ability of the Chinese to work for 

long hours and their strong will to 

succeed are qualities that the Arabs could 

inculcate into their culture. On the other 

hand, the Chinese can look at the way 

Arab hospitality helps in fostering better 

ZAMIR AWAN 

At the core, PTI just wants to make sure that we 

Pakistanis as a nation are the best version of 

ourselves and able to make a name for ourselves 

in this world. Khan believes that Pakistan is a very 

special country, full of natural resources and full 

of earnest and intelligent people. He is committed 

in bringing political stability through credible 

democracy, transparency in government and 

accountability of leadership. 

friendships and stronger trade ties. 

During my recent to visit Beijing, I was 

amazed at the number of stores and 

shops that remained open even on 

Sundays. The Chinese official 

accompanying us said: "Of course, 

Chinese are hardworking people." 

Some reports say that the Chinese work 

between 2,000 to 2,200 hours out of 

Some years back, China had launched an 

initiative to revive the ancient Silk Road that 

helped transport silk and other products to 

the West. The new venture, known as the Belt 

and Road Initiative aims to provide 

connections to Europe, Africa as well as other 

parts of Asia. Arabs too are part of the plan, 

and the UAE has signed up to it. 

8,736 hours in a year. This is the 

equivalent of working between five-anda-half 

to six hours every day for 365 days 

a year. This means between 38.5 and 42.5 

hours a week. And it does not include 

annual leave. The British, according to 

United Nations agencies, work 1,677 

would try and solve the issue 

permanently so that Pakistan no longer 

has any border or territorial disputes with 

any of its neighbors. 

It is believed that during the tenure of 

PTI, Pakistan will regain its international 

reputation and will be a contributor to 

peace, harmony and development 

globally. 

Khan is against corruption and the 

status quo. He firmly believes in merit 

and is totally against nepotism. He is 

supported by Pakistani intellectuals in the 

fields of economics, science and 

technology, health, education, 

environment, industry, agriculture and 

others. It is expected that he will rule the 

country with better governance than in 

the past and Pakistan may emerge as a 

rapidly growing economy. 

PTI values the traditional friendship 

between Pakistan and China. Under the 

instruction of its chairman Imran Khan, 

PTI has established a "Pakistan-China 

Cooperation Unit," which will enhance 

the two countries' strategic cooperative 

partnership, especially in the domains of 

economy, trade and technology. Khan 

has appointed Dr Shahzad Waseem as 

head of this unit. The unit has been 

delegated high powers and will be 

operating under Khan directly. 

PTI is a strong supporter of the China- 

Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). 

Khan has been in touch with the Chinese 

ambassador in Pakistan and also had 

meetings with visiting Chinese 

dignitaries. He visited China in 2011 and 

met with the leadership of the Chinese 

government. 

Source : Asia Times 

hours a year, which is nearly 32.25 hours 

a week. The Americans, according to the 

Bureau of Labour Statistics, work an 

average of 34.5 hours per week, or 1,794 

hours a year. In Europe, the people with 

the longest working hours are the Greek 

with an average of 42.3 hours a week, and 

worldwide it is Mexico. The average 

worker in Mexico works 2,255 hours a 

year, or a little over 43 hours a week. 

Costa Rica, South Korea and Chile come 

among the five top countries in terms of 

average working hours. 

Chinese economists say that since 

China lags behind countries such as the 

United Kingdom and the United States in 

production efficiency, the Chinese have to 

work longer hours so as to catch up with 

the West. It's no surprise that China has 

become the second largest economy in 

the world. 

What about the Arabs? They are still far 

behind developed nations. Poor 

production efficiency is certainly one of 

the main reasons. Available figures on 

Arab productivity or working hours are 

very limited. 

Source : Gulf news

LAW & PUBLIC MondAy, 

July 30, 2018 

5 

dissolution of Muslim Marriage 

A social Curse in Bangladesh 

Marriage is the very foundation 

of civil society and no part of 

the laws and institutions of a 

country can be more vital importance 

to its subjects than those which regulate 

the manner and conditions of forming 

and, if necessary, of dissolving, the 

marriage contract. 

Firm union of the husband and wife 

is a necessary condition for a happy 

family life. Islam therefore, insists upon 

the subsistence of a marriage and 

prescribes that breach of marriage 

contract should be avoided. Initially no 

marriage is contracted to be dissolved 

but in unfortunate circumstances the 

matrimonial contract is broken. One of 

the ways of such dissolution is by way of 

divorce. Under Muslim law the divorce 

may take place by the act of the parties 

themselves or by a decree of the court of 

law. however in whatever manner the 

divorce is effected it has not been 

regarded as a rule of life. In Islam, 

divorce is considered as an exception to 

the status of marriage. The Prophet 

declared that among the things which 

have been permitted by law, divorce is 

the worst. Divorce being an evil, it must 

be avoided as far as possible. But in 

some occasions this evil becomes a 

necessity, because when it is impossible 

for the parties to the marriage to carry 

on their union with mutual affection 

and love then it is better to allow them 

to get separated than compel them to 

live together in an atmosphere of 

hatred and disaffection. The basis of 

divorce in Islamic law is the inability of 

the spouses to live together rather than 

any specific cause (or guilt of a party) on 

account of which the parties cannot live 

together. 

It is sometimes suggested that the 

greatest defect of the Islamic system is 

the absolute power given to the 

husband to divorce his wife without 

cause. The reforms of Mohammed 

marked a new departure in the history 

of Eastern legislation. he restrained the 

power of divorce possessed by the 

husband; he gave to the women the 

right of obtaining a separation on 

reasonable grounds; and towards the 

end of his life he went so far as 

practically to forbid its exercise by the 

men without the intervention of 

arbiters or a judge. Prophet dislikes it 

most because it prevented conjugal 

happiness and interfered with the 

proper brining up the children. 

In Bangladesh at a present days the 

Divorce has become an issue dealing 

with all legal attempts at all its three 

stage; before Divorce Notice, at the 

statutory period of 90 days and after 

expiry of statutory period. 

Divorce is the only legal way for 

terminating a Marriage other than act of 

God having its wide impact for a long 

sometimes even for life of not only the 

concern parties but the peoples 

connected with the immediate-past 

family. Simply divorce gives birth of 

many issues mostly legal issues 

consequently legal proceedings in 

different courts and the divorce lawyers/ 

divorce attorneys are the faithful and 

confident friend to the peoples for safe 

way out from such complications. In 

Bangladesh at the present days divorce 

has its non-comparable proposition for 

either side of the separating couples 

which is not an outcome of the law or 

rules for Divorce itself but for some 

irrelevant issues. 

The law and provisions for divorce as 

stated in the Muslim Family Law 

Ordinance, 1961 is the only codified law 

in Bangladesh dealing with the Muslims 

only. For the peoples of other religion 

like Christian and Buddhists there are 

different rules and laws but for the 

hindus still there is no codified law in 

Bangladesh. The rules for marriage and 

divorce has been regulated by the 

legislative enactment proclaimed on 

considering as well as taking the 

personal laws on account for the 

Muslims called Shariah Ain. In the 

western world for divorce or separation 

the parties need lawyers or attorneys but 

so far in Bangladesh the parties do not 

always want to hire lawyers for divorce. 

Considering the economical and social 

aspect of Bangladesh it is still a long way 

far from the mutual separation or 

divorce like the first world though there 

is already law for mutual divorce. 

Naturally when one party wants to 

separate from his/her partner in a very 

few cases the other party accepts the 

same which turns into a relation 

obviously not anything positive and 

then the party having passive part in 

divorce tried to stop the separation. In 

Bangladesh the Divorce Lawyers have 

been asked a very common question 

before starting divorce process is 

whether his partner can file a criminal 

case against him or not. Giving divorce 

to his partner is a statutory right of the 

husband recognized in laws and the 

same is an unconstrained right. 

As a matter of fact in 90% cases 

where the husband served notice for 

divorce his partner/wife after being 

informed about the Divorce Notice 

initiated a criminal case against the 

notice sender and in all cases they 

didn't admit about the Notice by 

showing a date of occurrence before the 

date of notice. Most of the time the 

criminal cases have been filed before 

the learned Magistrate who sends 

major portion of cases to the concerned 

Police Stations with a direction for 

taking legal steps after inquiry or to 

record the same as First Information 

Report (FIR). The sufferers who are 

implicated such false cases under some 

common sections of Acts 1980 and 

2000 for example section 3 / 4 of Act 

1980 and section 11 of Act 2000 a single 

allegation of demanding dowry by the 

Notice sender husband. 

The process of divorce is very simple 

in Bangladesh just in three steps to 

divorce for both husband and Wife 

(When power of giving Divorce has 

been delegated in the Kabin) wanting 

separation: 

i. Give Notice in writing; 

ii. Face the Arbitration Board 

(Appeared or not don't matter); and 

iii. After expiry of 90 days take a 

registration certificate from a registered 

Nikah Registrar (Kaji). 

Giving notice for divorce is itself a 

presumption that the Dower Money 

(Mohrana) has been paid in full but the 

fact is different as in most of the cases it 

has been revealed that portion or entire 

Den-mohr is unpaid and then it is the 

duty of the divorce lawyers to ensure 

payment of dower before completion of 

Divorce. One thing is also important at 

the time of initiating divorce process 

that is to inform the client about paying 

three months maintenance (Iddat) to 

the wife and other maintenance for the 

children, in this regard to avoid court 

proceedings the lawyer should have to 

communicate with the notice receiver 

side and all through try for negotiate all 

these monetary issues. For the wife 

above said three steps are applicable for 

divorce but practically and legally she is 

not in a position to pay any Dower 

Money to her Notice receiver husband 

though she will be responsible for 

maintenance of her minor children. 

Finally it is to be said that the process of 

divorce is merely an official process 

guided by the Ordinance, 1961 but for 

smooth and safe ending of divorce 

process the person should have been 

advised to contact with your lawyer or 

an experienced Kaji but before starting 

such process make yourself sure that 

Divorce is the only and last way 

available for you to get rid. 

On the other hand, A Muslim man 

can marry of a Christian Woman; But a 

Muslim woman cannot do that. She 

cannot marry without a Muslim legally. 

Under the Muslim Family Laws 

Ordinance 1961, a man can marry more 

than one by the permission of the 

Arbitrary Council. But a Woman 

cannot do this. It is not only illegal But 

also serious offence. 

The same procedure for divorce has 

also been made applicable to a wife on 

whom the right to divorce has been 

duly delegated and who wishes to 

exercise the right as per provisions of 

the section-8 of the said ordinance. 

These sections incorporate the 

provisions of two forms of talak-ussunnat 

viz. talak Ahsan and talak 

hasan. 

It is argued that Islam has given 

unfettered power to the husband to 

give divorce to his wife without any 

cause. But experience shows that 

greater suffering is endangered by the 

husband's withholding divorce than by 

his irresponsible exercise of this right. 

Under such conditions the power to 

release herself is the surest safeguard 

for the wife. No system of law can 

produce material happiness, but 

humane laws may at least alleviate 

sufferings. And when marital life is 

wrecked, the home utterly broken up 

by misunderstanding, jealousy, cruelty, 

infidelity, what greater boon can a 

spouse have to secure his/her liberty. 

Divorce of course, a social evil in 

itself, but it is a necessary evil. It is 

better to destroy the unity of the family 

than to destroy the future happiness of 

the parties by binding them to a 

companionship that has become 

odious. That's why Quran permits 

divorce partly because to enable men to 

get rid of an odious union. 

It has shown in the dissertation that 

the judiciary has taken efforts to curb 

the practice of arbitrary, unilateral 

pronouncement of divorce by Muslim 

husbands, and affirmed the right of the 

woman to challenge such a divorce. 

There is no doubt that Muslim women 

have recourse to the courts to challenge 

arbitrary unilateral talaq, and hence 

arbitrary talaq becomes a non-issue if 

recourse to law is taken. however, 

many women are unable to take 

recourse to law due to lack of 

awareness, poverty, illiteracy, financial 

implications of litigation and 

community opposition against such a 

move. how can the judgments impact 

women's lives, when women 

themselves, and the communities they 

live in, believe that they have been 

legally divorced? The challenge then is 

to educate women living in 

communities about the legal position 

and enable their access to law, as well as 

to promote community awareness and 

acceptance of the law as stated through 

judgments. 

Writer: P.M. SERAJUL ISLAM The writer is a 

publisher and editor of law related daily 'Shomoyer 

Digonto' and is PhD researcher, columnist and 

human rights activist, lawyer in Bangladesh 

supreme court, & District Court of Kushtia, 

E-mail: seraj.pramanik@gmail.com 

An overview of islamic Banking 

and Finance in Bangladesh 

law Book Corner 

Chowdhury MokiMuddin kJ Ali & Md. MAMonor rAshid 

ThE 

maturity of Islamic 

banking has been 

incomparable as 'no other 

financial industry, market or 

jurisdiction in the last decade has 

witnessed the staggering financial 

engineering and innovation as the 

Islamic finance industry. Statistically 

Islamic banking has had 

phenomenal growth, according to 

the Asian Banker Research Group, 

the world's 100 largest Islamic banks 

have set an annual asset growth rate 

of 26.7% and the global Islamic 

finance industry is experiencing an 

average growth of 15-20% annually. 

however, with the continual 

growth of Islamic banking in the 

Arab and Middle East world, the 

concept has also engaged 

Bangladesh because it has open 

society, experience and active 

banking and finance sector, number 

of reforms has initiated to the 

banking sector. But the most 

important factor, which assists 

Bangladesh to engage in Islamic 

banking, is that the majority of the 

population is Muslim, most of whom 

are keen and interest to obtain 

competitive financial services that 

meet their beliefs. hence, the 

country is in a good position and 

ready to adopt strong Islamic 

banking concept and develop it 

further to its full potential. 

On the other hand, Islamic finance 

is no longer a dream for Muslim 

countries; rather it is a success story 

across the world, including some 

non-Muslim majority countries like, 

USA, UK, Philippines, Thailand, 

hong Kong and Singapore. There 

are about 430 Islamic finance 

institutions and 191 conventional 

institutions having Islamic banking 

and finance windows in 70 countries. 

Their total assets size is around $1.6 

trillion while the potential size is 

around $5 trillion. 

Nevertheless, Islamic banking was 

first introduced in Bangladesh way in 

1983 by foreign investors from Saudi 

Arabia and Kuwait. Currently, 

Bangladesh ranked 10th in the world 

in terms of Islamic banking. Sudan 

came first and Iran second, while 

Saudi Arabia stood fourth and 

Pakistan 13th. At present, 8 (eight) 

full-fledged Islamic banks are in 

operation in Bangladesh by way of 

1,068 branches. The banks are 

Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited 

(IBBL), Al-Arafah Islami Bank 

Limited, Social Islami Bank Limited, 

Export Import Bank of Bangladesh 

Limited (EXIM Bank), Shahjalal 

Islami Bank Limited, First Security 

Islami Bank Limited, ICB Islamic 

Bank Limited and Union Bank 

Limited. Moreover, 19 Islamic 

banking branches of nine 

commercial banks and 25 Islamic 

banking windows of eight 

commercial banks are also providing 

Islamic financial services. In 

addition, in 2017 the Bangladesh 

Bank gave Sonali Bank the nod to 

open six new windows to provide 

Islamic banking service to its clients. 

The bank, however, applied for 

permission to open 16 such windows 

but got the nod for only six. however, 

with a workforce of 30336 people, 

Islamic banking covers 22.72% 

market share of the country's entire 

banking sector in terms of deposits 

and investments. As of June 30, 2017 

the total number of deposits and 

investments in Islamic banking was 

Tk1,99,424.90 crore and 

Tk1,85,244.93 crore respectively. 

According to Bangladesh Bank, in 

2017, Islamic banking assets 

increased 13.2 percent, loans and 

advances grew 17.5 percent and 

deposits 14.7 percent. In contrast, the 

banking industry's deposits rose 12.8 

percent last year and loans and 

advances 15.3 percent. Net profit of 

the Islamic banking sector increased 

18.1 percent in contrast to 4.9 

percent registered by the 

conventional banking industry. 

Moreover, Islamic banks enjoy 

regulatory facilities such as 

maintaining lower reserves in the 

form of liquid assets: 5.5 percent as 

opposed to 13 percent for 

conventional banks. 

More and more banks are showing 

interest in converting into fullfledged 

Islamic banks but the central 

bank is not giving new licences for 

the expansion of the shariahcompliant 

finance. Three 

conventional banks -- Standard, 

Jamuna and IFIC -- had applied to 

the Bangladesh Bank several years 

ago to switch to Islamic banking but 

they did not get the green light. But 

the central bank is reluctant to 

expand Islamic banking as it does 

not have enough resources and 

manpower to regulate the Islamic 

banking industry. 

The another reason is, till date, 

there is no complete Islamic banking 

law to control, guide and supervise 

this sector except the inclusion of 

some Islamic banking provisions in 

the existing Banking Companies Act. 

Though, the Bangladesh Bank had 

issued a guideline for conducting 

Islamic banking on November 9, 

2009, which needs to be updated. 

Inspection and supervision of the 

Islamic banks are being done 

following the general guidelines of 

the Bangladesh Bank, which was 

actually adopted for conventional 

banks. The central bank does not 

even have a separate wing to deal 

with the Islamic banking. Therefore, 

a clear balanced law is required. 

Chowdhury Mokimuddin is a 

Barrister-At-Law & Advocate, Supreme 

Court of Bangladesh. He is the Head of 

Chambers at CM&A LCP 

M Rashid is a member of Young 

International Arbitration Group, LCIA, 

London & an Associate of CM&A LCP 

Text book on The Penal Code, 

1860 

A Comprehensive section 

Analysis and Case-laws thereof 

written By- ArM Borhanuddin, 

Edited & reviewed by: khairul 

islam (Taj) 

Publisher: university 

Publications, dhaka, Bangladesh 

First Published: January, 2009 

latest Edition: 3rd (september, 

2017) 

isBn: 984- 300- 002782-7 

Price: 1,300 Taka 

number of Page: 820 

number of Chapter: 23 

This book on Penal Code is widely 

circulated among the learners and 

Security Forces of Bangladesh. The 

book has been revised with latest 

information where relevant. 

Nearby 100 latest case decisions of 

Bangladesh Supreme Court reported in 

DLR including the latest 68th DLR has 

been added in this book. All the sections 

in the book are written in both English 

and Bengali language. In previous 

edition, there were some spelling 

mistakes. The unwanted mistakes have 

been fixed to the possible extent in the 

very 3rd edition. This book incorporates 

approximately new 1000 footnotes, in 

total about 3,000. 

Suitable analysis and commentary to 

the most important sections are also 

inserted which will facilitate the readers 

enormously. 

The book is a latest origin including 

the full Penal Code and relevant 

commentary and section analysis of the 

said bare Act. This book is an attempt to 

address penal law from the viewpoint of 

Bangladesh. The author's focus is to 

introduce Bangladeshi students to the 

current penal regimes and to familiarize 

them with these system that is highly 

necessary in courtyard. 

The book will keep the reader in touch 

with essential easy interpretation of 

terminologies like- rape, abduction, 

murder, culpable homicide, forgery, 

dacoity, affray, riot, sexual harassment 

as well as crucial day to day life oriented 

terminologies in the field of 

Bangladesh. Most important feature of 

the book is comprehensible language 

and bold text pattern which will suit any 

law pupil. Discussions coming in the 

book can create effective legal 

mechanisms for penal justice. 

Whatever is ones professional 

interest, one will benefit from the 

analyses and recommendations of 

written nicely in this text book. The 

book is suitable for advocates, lawyers, 

academicians, researchers and law 

students of all levels from any university 

or law college.

NATIONAL 

MONDAY, JULY 30, 2018 

6 

Engineer AKM Fazlul Haq Chan MP addressed the tri-annual conference of 5 no Gosaipur union 

Jubo League as the chief guest at Baliachandi Government Primary School in Sreebardi upazila on 

Saturday. Photo: Photo: Shahriar Milton 

Tri-annual conference 

of Jubo League held 

in Sreebardi 

shahriar milton, sherpur Correspondent: 

the tri-annual conference of 5 no Gosaipur union 

Jubo league was held at Baliachandi Government 

primary school in sreebardi upazila of sherpur district 

on saturday. 

upazila Jubo league convener committee member 

rahul amin Bablu chaired the first phase of the 

conference while upazila Jubo league Convener 

Jahidul islam Jewel announced the inauguration of the 

conference. engineer akm Fazlul haq Chan mp was 

present as the chief guest at the occasion. among 

others, Jubo league Joint Convener liakat hossain 

liton, district krishak league president abdul kader, 

former organizing secretary of the upazila awami 

league salahuddin, former agriculture affairs secretary 

amirul islam, district awami league's former cultural 

affairs secretary abdullah saleh, district council 

member abu Zafar, abdullahel al-amin, president of 

the upazila krishak league president abul kashem 

talukder and municipal mayor abu sayeed were also 

present at the occasion. 

in the second phase of the conference, Jahangir alam 

was elected as the president and abdur rashid as the 

general secretary. 

4 JUST students get Prime 

Minister Gold Medal 

shahid Joy, Jashore Correspondent: 

Four meritorious of Jessore university of science & 

technology (Just) was awarded the prime minister Gold 

medal-2017 on Wednesday. the prime minister Gold medal- 

2017 award ceremony under the auspices of university Grants 

Commission (uGC) was held at the shapla hall of prime 

minister's office where the prime minister handed over the gold 

medals among the talented students as the chief guest. 

the meritorious students of the Jessore university of science 

& technology, who received the prime minister Gold medal are, 

aliur rahman from department of petroleum and mining 

engineering under Faculty of engineering and technology, 

shammi akter from Fisheries and marine Bioscience 

department under Biology and technology Faculty, nazia 

naushad lina from nutrition and Food technology 

department under applied science and technology Faculty and 

rabiul islam from physical education and sports science 

department under Faculty of health science. 

nurul islam nahid, education minister, md sohorab 

hossain, secretary of secondary and higher education division 

of the ministry of education, professor dil afroza Begum, uGC 

memeber, professor dr. md anwar hossain, Vice-Chancellor, 

Jessore university of science and technology and Vicechancellors 

from various public and private universities were 

present at the occasion. 

a total of 163 students of various public and private 

universities were awarded the prime minister Gold medal 2017 

in recognition of their securing highest marks/CGpa in their 

respective faculties. 

A view exchange meeting was held with the local government authorities at Grand Taj Restaurant & 

Party Center in Sreemangal upazila of Moulvibazar on Sunday. 

Photo: Sayed Ahmed 

View exchange meeting 

held in Sreemangal 

sayed ahmed, sreemanGal Correspondent: 

a view exchange meeting was held with the 

local government authorities at Grand taj 

restaurant & party Center in sreemangal 

upazila of moulvibazar on sunday for the 

aim establish transparency, increase 

accountability and good governance. 

socheton nagorik Committee sreemangal 

which was formed by the inspiration of 

transparency international Bangladesh 

(tiB) organised the the meeting. 

mohammad rokon uddin, deputy director 

of local Government division, moulvibazar 

was present as the chief guest at the meeting 

while socheton nagorik Committee 

sreemangal president syed nesar ahmad 

Bangladesh achieves laudable 

success in fish production 

ranGpur: Fisheries officials and 

experts at a function said Bangladesh 

achieved tremendous success in fish 

production in last ten years, meeting 

nutrition demand of people with leading 

the country on the way to achieve selfreliance 

in this regard, reports Bss. 

the observation came at the concluding 

and prize giving ceremony of the national 

Fisheries Week-2018 jointly organised by 

upazila Fisheries department and 

upazila administration at Bir 

muktijoddha tipu munshi auditorium in 

kawnia upazila town on saturday 

evening. 

the weeklong programmes included 

colourful rallies, releasing fish fries, 

awareness building and motivational 

activities with a renewed call and fresh 

strategies for further development of the 

prospective fisheries sector. 

With kawnia upazila Fisheries officer 

manjurul islam in the chair, upazila 

nirbahi officer sm nazia sultana 

attended the function as the chief guest. 

assistant upazila Fisheries officers 

mahbub ul alam and Jiban krishna 

chaired the meeting. among others, 

sreemangal upazila parishad Chairman 

randhir kumar deb, 4no shindurkhan 

union parishad chairman md. abdullah alhelal, 

5 no kalapur union parishad 

chairman mujibur rahman, 6 no ashidron 

union parishad chairman rannendra 

prasad Bardhan Jahor, 3 no sreemangal 

union parishad chairman Bhanu lal roy, 7 

no rajghat union parishad Chairman Vijay 

Binarji, local government sub-committee 

convener Jahor tarafdar, tiB program 

manager najma khanam nazu and area 

manager parvez kairy and vice president of 

socheton nagorik Committee sreemangal 

dipendranath Bhattacharya were also 

present and spoke at the meeting. 

sarker, successful fish farmers raju 

ahmed and rezaul karim, among others, 

addressed the function. 

more than 900 people, including fish 

farmers and fishermen, officials and 

employees, political leaders, hatchery 

owners, pisciculture extension workers, 

fish-feed traders, teachers and students 

were present. 

manjurul islam narrated the success 

achieved in increasing fish production in 

kawnia upazila as well as in the district 

where the farmers produced 40,720 

tonnes of fish during last 2017-2018 fiscal 

against annual demand of 63,095 tonnes. 

"the fish production increased by 5,643 

tonnes during the last fiscal while it was 

35,077 tonnes in 2016-2017 fiscal in the 

district and the trend will continue in the 

coming years all over the district," he said. 

the chief guest mentioned tremendous 

economic prospect of the fisheries sector 

in the upazila and called for further 

boosting fish production using the latest 

technologies and protecting the natural 

breeding grounds with stopping hunt of 

smaller fishes. 

2-day long training 

workshop ends at 

CVASU 

s m akash, ChattoGram Bureau ChieF: 

a two day long training 

program of dairy farmers 

titled ' dairy products' 

preparation of dairy farmers 

in Chattogram' ended on 

sunday as arranged by the 

department of dairy and 

poultry science of Chittagong 

Veterinary and animal 

science university. 

19 farmers of Chittagong 

dairy association participated 

at the workshop which was 

held at dairy science lab. in 

the workshop, the farmers 

were trained about various 

dairy products such as curd, 

cheese, butter, ghee etc. 

professor md. halim, dean of 

Veterinary medicine 

department of the university, 

professor of dairy and poultry 

science department Gautam 

kumar debnath and 

Chittagong district livestock 

officer dr md reazul haque 

trained the farmers in the 

workshop. 

BGB seizes silver 

ornaments, phensidyl 

in Benapole 

Jahirul islam ripon, Benapole Correspondent: 

members of Border Guard 

Bangladesh (BGB) seized 

silver ornaments and 

phensidyl syrup from 

smuggled from india in 

amrakhali area in Benapole 

on sunday morning. 

lt. Col ariful haque, 

commanding officer of 49 

Border Guard Bangladesh 

said, tipped off, a BGB team 

conducted a drive in the area 

in the morning and seized 4 

kg silver and 560 bottle 

phensidyl. the goods are 

worth around 8 lakh 15 

thousand taka. however, no 

one was arrested in this 

connection, he added. 

An outsourcing training workshop with educated youths of Kamalganj was inaugurated at 

Kamalganj Upazila Parishad conference room on Sunday. Upazila Parishad chairman, valiant freedom 

fighter Professor Rafiqur Rahman inaugurated the 5-day training workshop as the chief guest 

with Upazila Nirbahi Officer Mohammad Mahmudul Haque in chair. Photo: Pintu Debnath 

Four meritorious of Jessore University of Science & Technology (JUST) Aliur Rahman, Shammi 

Akter, Nazia Naushad Lina and Rabiul Islam was awarded the Prime Minister Gold Medal-2017 

on Wednesday. 

Photo: Shahid Joy 

A two days long training program of dairy farmers which was organised by the Department of 

Dairy and Poultry Science of Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Science University ended on 

Sunday. 

Photo: S M Akash 

20,010 women receive 

technical training 

in RWTTC 

GaiBandha: the 

national Fisheries Week- 

raJshahi: around 

20,010 unemployed women 

received technical and 

vocational training in 

rajshahi Women technical 

training Centre (rWttC) 

during last twelve years since 

2006, reports Bss. 

simultaneously, 11,198 of 

them obtained jobs both in 

home and abroad 

contributing 

to 

socioeconomic development 

of the country. engineer 

nazmul haque, principal of 

rWttC, revealed this while 

addressing a seminar titled 

"Job Fair and employment" 

at the centre hall room. 

rWttC organized the 

seminar in sideline of a 

daylong job fair on saturday 

with financial support from 

skills and training 

enhancement project. 

engineer haque said 

women were given six-month 

training on general 

electronics, architectural 

drafting with autoCad, 

dress-making and 

embroidery, dyeing, printing 

and block boutique, fruit 

processing and preservation 

under skill 

"We provided many women 

who intended to go abroad 

with different trainings 

including vocational and 

housekeeping and many of 

them got jobs," he added. 

president of rajshahi 

Women Chamber of 

Commerce and industry md 

muniruzzman, principal of 

rajshahi mohila polytechnic 

institute omor Faruque, 

principal of Bangladesh 

polytechnic institute syed 

ahmmad Jaki, principal of 

national science and 

technology polytechnic 

kamal hossain and editor of 

daily sonar desh akbarul 

hassan millat also spoke. 

around 12 job providing 

public institutions joined the 

fair and they provided jobs to 

31 women graduated from the 

rWttC on the occasion. 

Chamber 

leader 

muniruzzaman viewed 

technical education could be 

effective means of building 

competent and skilled human 

resources and its role is very 

vital for a substantial and 

sustainable growth of national 

economy. 

role of skilled people is also 

very important for earning 

more foreign remittance 

which is significant for 

country's development. 

he said communication 

development and improving 

relations between technical 

institutions and industries is 

very important for providing 

time-fitting technical teaching 

to the women and 

employment for achieving 

sustainable 

goals. 

development 

National Fisheries Week 

ends in Gaibandha 

2018 ended in the district on 

saturday with a call to boost 

production of fishes 

including indigenous ones to 

meet the demand of 

nutrition and create 

employment, reports Bss. 

a concluding ceremony 

was also held at the office of 

district fisheries officer 

(dFo) of the town here on 

saturday afternoon at the 

directive of the higher 

authorities concerned 

though the week was 

celebrated here from July 18 

to July 24. acting deputy 

commissioner (dC) 

muhammad mizanur 

rahman addressed the 

function as the chief guest 

and district controller of food 

m. amzad hossain was 

present at the event as the 

special guests. 

With dFo abdud dayan in 

the chair, the function was 

also addressed, among 

others, by senior assistant 

director Barun Chandra 

Biswas, senior sadar upazila 

fisheries officer sanjoy 

Banerjee, fish cultivator 

saiful islam dulu and 

journalist sarker m. 

shahiduzzaman. 

the speakers in their 

speeches underscored the 

need for enhancing the fish 

production in all the seven 

upazilas here at larger scale 

through motivating the new 

farmers and establishing fish 

sanctuaries in the water 

bodies of the district. 

they also emphasized for 

protecting the mother fishes 

in the haors, bills and other 

water bodies and Jatka in the 

river of Jamuna at the 

initiative of the fisheries 

department involving the 

locals. 

they also demanded of the 

government to provide 

subsidy or the loans with 

nominal interest to help the 

fish farmers produce more 

fishes without economical 

trouble and to brighten the 

fisheries sector as well. 

acting (dC) muhammad 

mizanur rahman in his 

speeches said the fish 

production had been 

increased in the country in 

last few years for taking 

pragmatic steps and adopting 

modern technologies by the 

department. 

terming the fisheries 

sector as the potential one 

muhammad mizanur 

rahman urged all the 

stakeholders to build social 

movement on fish farming 

and mother fishes protecting 

to meet the deficiency of all 

types of fishes in future. 

later, the guests formally 

distributed the crests to the 

students of ahammad uddin 

shah shishu niketan school 

and College of the town who 

participated in the debate on 

fish production marking the 

fisheries week and successful 

farmers.

INTERNATIONAL MoNdAy, 

3 

JuLy 30, 2018 

Police were trying to determine a motive Saturday after they said a man fatally shot four family 

members at two locations, including his father and stepmother inside a Texas nursing home before 

killing himself there too. 

Photo : AP 

5 relatives dead in 

murder-suicide; 3 at 

Texas nursing home 

Police were trying to determine 

a motive Saturday 

after they said a man fatally 

shot four family members at 

two locations, including his 

father and stepmother 

inside a Texas nursing home 

before killing himself there 

too, reports UNB 

Richard Starry fatally shot 

himself inside Retama 

Manor nursing home after 

killing 85-year-old Ernest 

Starry and his wife, Thelma 

Montalvo, Friday night, said 

Enrique Paredez, a police 

lieutenant in the Corpus 

Christi suburb of Robstown. 

A gun was recovered at the 

scene. 

Paredez said a family 

member later called officers 

to the couple's home where 

their 13-year-old adopted 

son and a 41-year-old son of 

Montalvo were also found 

shot to death. The names of 

the other two sons and Montalvo's 

age were not released. 

The reason behind the 

shootings was unclear, Paredez 

said at a Saturday news 

conference. 

"As far as a motive, the 

investigation is too premature 

at this time to determine," 

Paredez said. 

Reuben Garcia, whose 

father lives in the nursing 

home, was inside the home 

at the time of the shooting. 

"I thought it was just a ladder 

that had fallen down, 

that's what it sounded like to 

me. Then I heard somebody 

say run, run," Garcia said. 

"So we ran," getting his 

father out of the building. 

Robstown Police Chief 

Erasmo Flores said during 

the news conference that 

investigators are working 

"diligently" on the case and 

that the results will be presented 

to the district attorney 

for review. 

Iraqi protesters wave national flags in front of the provincial council building during a demonstration 

demanding better public services and jobs, in Basra, 340 miles (550 km) southeast of Baghdad, 

Iraq, Friday. 

AP Photo 

Iraqi PM suspends 

electricity minister 

over poor service 

Iraq's prime minister has 

ordered the suspension of 

the country's electricity minister 

over a power crisis and 

poor service, reports UNB. 

Haider al-Abadi made the 

announcement on his Twitter 

account on Sunday. He 

says the suspension of Qassim 

al-Fahdawi will last until 

an investigation is concluded. 

He didn't elaborate. 

Despite billions of dollars 

spent since the 2003 U.S.- 

led invasion toppled dictator 

Saddam Hussein, many 

Iraqi cities and towns are 

still experiencing severe 

power cuts and rolling 

blackouts. 

The issue has also partly 

fueled this month's protests 

in Iraq's southern Shiite 

heartland, mainly in the 

energy-rich province of Basra. 

The protests turned violent 

when security forces 

opened fire on the angry 

mobs attacking and burning 

government offices and 

those of and political parties. 

Several protesters were 

killed and wounded, while 

others were arrested. 

Heartbreak: Funerals 

begin for Greece's 

wildfire victims 

Funerals for the victims of Greece's lethal wildfire began 

Saturday with the burial of an elderly priest who drowned as 

he sought safety from the flames in the sea off the coastal 

community of Mati, reports UNB. 

Hundreds of people attended Father Spyridon Papapostolou's 

funeral in his parish of Halandri, a northern suburb of 

Athens, the Greek capital. 

Papapostolou, his wife and daughter were among hundreds 

who entered the water to protect themselves from the 

fast-moving flames. But the 83-year-old cleric passed out 

and drowned, while his wife and daughter survived. 

"Father Spyridon was certainly ready for this trip, but not 

in this way, he didn't deserve it," his niece, Ifigenia 

Christodoulou, told The Associated Press. "I hope that he 

prays for all us from up there, just as he has done all these 

years." 

Dimitra Bavavea directed her anger at the "unjust" way 

that so many people - 86 - had lost their lives. The fire was the 

deadliest wildfire in Europe since 1900, according to the 

International Disaster Database run by the Centre for the 

Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters in Brussels. 

"My sorrow is great as is my rage for those who left people 

to burn to death so unjustly," she said. "I hope that those who 

died are in heaven and I thank you Father Spyridon for all 

that you have offered us." 

Greece's public order minister continued to defend authorities' 

response to Monday's blaze. Minister Nikos Toskas told 

state broadcaster ERT it was impossible to evacuate the 

area's 15,000 people in the 90 minutes that Monday's blaze 

roared through the area. 

Cambodians vote in polls with 

main opposition party silenced 

With the main opposition silenced, Cambodians 

were voting in an election Sunday virtually 

certain to return to office Prime Minister 

Hun Sen and his party who have been in power 

for more than three decades, reports UNB. 

Although 20 parties are contesting the polls, 

the only one with the popularity and organization 

to mount a credible challenge, the Cambodian 

National Rescue Party, was dissolved last 

year by the Supreme Court. Its leaders have 

called on supporters to boycott the polls, 

charging they are neither fair nor free. 

Along with fracturing the political opposition, 

Hun Sen's government also silenced critical 

voices in the media and ahead of the polls, 

ordered the temporary blocking of 17 websites, 

citing regulations prohibiting media from disseminating 

information that might affect security. 

The blocked websites included those of 

the U.S. government-funded Voice of America 

as well as local media. Hun Sen, whose 33 

years in power makes him the world's longest 

serving national leader, promised peace and 

prosperity at a rally on the last day of campaigning 

on Friday, but attacked the opposition's 

boycott call and called those who heed it 

"destroyers of democracy." Hun Sen and his 

wife cast their ballots south of the capital shortly 

after polling stations opened. 

His ruling Cambodian People's Party was 

alarmed by the last general election in 2013, 

when the race was close enough for the opposition 

to claim that it would have won except 

for manipulation of the voter registration 

process. 

"This Cambodian election is not going to be 

genuine and it's not going to be free or fair," 

said Phil Robertson from Human Rights 

Watch. "The problem is the opposition party - 

the CNRP - which won 44 percent in the local 

elections in 2017 has been barred. You're talking 

about an election without an opposition." 

Hun Sen, 65, said that he intends to stay in 

power for at least two more five-year terms. 

He was a member of the radical communist 

Khmer Rouge during its successful five-year 

war to topple a pro-American government, 

then defected to Vietnam during Khmer Rouge 

leader Pol Pot's 1975-79 genocidal regime that 

left nearly 2 million dead. He became prime 

minister in 1985 in a Vietnamese-backed single-party 

communist government and led 

Cambodia through a civil war against the 

Khmer Rouge, which eased off with the 1991 

Paris Peace Accords that also installed a democratic 

political framework. 

Exiled opposition leader Sam Rainsy made a 

final appeal to Cambodians by urging them not 

to vote. On his Facebook page, he said that the 

sham election was destroying Cambodia's 

future and called Hun Sen a "real traitor." 

Hun Sen on Saturday met with foreign election 

observers, including those from Russia, 

China and Indonesia. The U.S., the EU and 

Japan declined to send poll watchers, saying 

the election was not credible. 

Northern California 

wildfire raging into 

its fourth day 

Thousands of dazed evacuees struggled to 

keep their emotions in check while trying to 

take care of themselves and their pets as a 

deadly wildfire in Northern California raged 

into its fourth day, reports UNB 

Anna Noland, 49, was evacuated twice in 

three days before learning through video 

footage that the house she last saw under 

dark and windy skies had burned. 

She expected to spend Saturday night at a 

shelter at Simpson College in Redding while 

she searches for another place to live. 

"I think I'm still in shock," Noland said. 

"It's just unbelievable knowing you don't 

have a house to go back to." 

Noland is among the 38,000 people evacuated 

after the Carr Fire roared into the outskirts 

of Redding in Shasta County, leaving 

five people dead, including two firefighters, a 

woman and her two great-grandchildren, 

ages 4 and 5. 

"My babies are dead," Sherry Bledsoe said 

through tears after she and family members 

met with Shasta County sheriff's deputies. 

A vehicle problem ignited the fire Monday, 

but it wasn't until Thursday that the fire 

exploded and raced into communities west 

of Redding before entering city limits. 

On Saturday, it pushed southwest of Redding, 

the largest city in the region, toward the 

tiny communities of Ono, Igo and Gas Point, 

where scorching heat, winds and bone-dry 

conditions complicated firefighting efforts. 

The fire, which grew slightly Saturday to 

131 square miles (340 square kilometers), is 

the largest fire burning in California. Nearly 

5,000 structures were threatened and the 

fire was just 5 percent contained. 

The latest tally of 536 destroyed structures 

was up from 500 earlier in the day, and sure 

to rise. A count by The Associated Press 

found at least 300 of those structures were 

homes. 

Bonnie and Jerry Kieffaber grabbed most 

of their medications when they left their 

home in Redding on Thursday, but they forgot 

his insulin. Days later, police won't let 

them back inside because it's still too dangerous. 

Bonnie Kieffaber, 69, says being away 

from home is expensive. 

"All of our food was there, and now we're 

draining our checking account trying to keep 

gas in the car and buy food too," she said 

while grabbing a hot meal at a Red Cross 

shelter. 

"It's exhausting," she said. "The heat and 

the stress of it all, and praying for everybody 

and all of our friends." 

The firefighters killed in the blaze included 

Don Ray Smith, 81, of Pollock Pines, a bulldozer 

operator who was helping clear vegetation 

in the path of the wildfire. Redding fire 

Inspector Jeremy Stoke was also killed, but 

details of his death were not released. 

Sherry Bledsoe's two children, James 

Roberts, 5, and Emily Roberts, 4, were 

stranded with their great grandmother 

Melody Bledsoe, 70, when walls of flames 

swept through the family's rural property 

Thursday on the outskirts of Redding. 

Israeli-Arab 

lawmaker 

resigns over 

Jewish 

nation bill 

An Israeli Arab lawmaker 

says he is resigning from 

parliament for "ideological 

reasons" to protest the 

recent passage of a controversial 

law enshrining the 

state's Jewish character, 

reports UNB 

Labor lawmaker Zuhair 

Bahloul says Sunday he 

can no longer serve in a 

country that officially marginalizes 

the 20 percent 

Arab minority he represents. 

Bahloul, a former popular 

sports broadcaster, is 

regarded as a symbol of 

Jewish and Arab coexistence. 

His departure marks further 

fallout from the explosive 

bill, which has also 

seen strong opposition 

from a Druze minority that 

serves in the military and 

feels slighted by the legislation. 

Israel's 1948 declaration 

of independence defined 

its nature as a Jewish and 

democratic state. The government 

says the bill merely 

enshrines the country's 

existing character but critics 

say it undercuts its democratic 

values. 

A firefighter makes a stand in front of an advancing wildfire as it approaches a residence on 

Saturday in Redding ,Calif. 

AP photo 

Palestinian protest icon Tamimi 

released from Israeli prison 

Palestinian protest icon Ahed Tamimi 

returned home to a hero's welcome 

in her West Bank village on Sunday 

after Israel released the 17-year-old 

from prison at the end of her eightmonth 

sentence for slapping and kicking 

Israeli soldiers, reports UNB. 

Ahed and her mother, Nariman 

Tamimi, were greeted with banners, 

cheers and Palestinian flags as they 

entered their home village of Nabi 

Saleh. 

Ahed was arrested in December after 

she slapped two Israeli soldiers outside 

her family home. Her mother filmed 

the incident and posted it on Facebook, 

where it went viral and, for many, 

instantly turned Ahed into a symbol of 

resistance to Israel's half-century-old 

military rule over the Palestinians. 

With her unruly mop of curly lightcolored 

hair, the Palestinian teen quickly 

became a local hero and an internationally 

recognizable figure. 

Her supporters see a brave girl who 

struck two armed soldiers in frustration 

after having just learned that Israeli 

troops seriously wounded a 15-year-old 

cousin, shooting him in the head from 

close range with a rubber bullet during 

nearby stone-throwing clashes. 

In Israel, however, she is seen by 

many either as a provocateur, an irritation 

or a threat to the military's deterrence 

policy. Israel has treated her 

actions as a criminal offense, indicting 

her on charges of assault and incitement. 

Her eight-month sentence was 

the result of a plea deal. 

In Nabi Saleh, supporters welcomed 

Tamimi home Sunday with Palestinian 

flags planted on the roof of her home. 

Hundreds of chairs were set up for 

well-wishers in the courtyard. 

"The resistance continues until the 

occupation is removed," Ahed said 

upon her return. "All the female prisoners 

are steadfast. I salute everyone who 

supported me and my case." 

From her home, Ahed headed to a 

visit to the grave of the late Palestinian 

leader Yasser Arafat. 

Her father, Bassem Tamimi, said he 

expects her to take a lead in the struggle 

against Israeli occupation but she is 

also weighing college options. 

Since 2009, residents of Nabi Salah 

have staged regular anti-occupation 

protests that often ended with stonethrowing 

clashes. Ahed has participated 

in such marches from a young age, 

and has had several highly publicized 

run-ins with soldiers. One photo shows 

the then 12-year-old raising a clenched 

fist toward a soldier towering over her. 

In a sign of her popularity, a pair of 

Italian artists painted a large mural of 

her on Israel's West Bank separation 

barrier ahead of her release. Israeli 

police say they were caught in the act 

along with another Palestinian and 

arrested for vandalism. 

Ahed was 16 when she was arrested 

and turned 17 in custody. Her case has 

trained a spotlight on the detention of 

Palestinian minors by Israel, a practice 

that has been criticized by international 

rights groups. Some 300 minors are 

currently being held, according to 

Palestinian figures. 

Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza 

and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast 

war. Palestinians are increasingly disillusioned 

about efforts to establish a 

state in those territories, after more 

than two decades of failed negotiations 

with Israel. 

Polar bear killed after attack 

on Arctic cruise ship guard 

Norwegian authorities 

said a polar bear on Saturday 

attacked and 

injured a polar bear 

guard who was leading 

tourists off a cruise ship 

on an Arctic archipelago. 

The polar bear was shot 

dead by another employee, 

the cruise company 

said, reports UNB. 

The Joint Rescue Coordination 

for Northern 

Norway tweeted that the 

attack occurred when the 

tourists from the MS Bremen 

cruise ship landed 

on the most northern 

island of the Svalbard 

archipelago, a region 

between mainland Norway 

and the North Pole 

that is known for its 

remote terrain, glaciers, 

reindeer and polar bears. 

The German Hapag 

Lloyd Cruises company, 

which operates the MS 

Bremen, told The Associated 

Press that two polar 

bear guards from their 

ship went on the island 

and one of them "was 

attacked by a polar bear 

and injured on his head." 

The polar bear was then 

shot dead "in an act of 

self-defense" by the second 

guard, spokeswoman 

Negar Etminan said. 

The injured man was 

taken by helicopter to the 

town of Longyearbyen on 

Spitsbergen island. He 

was not identified and no 

further information was 

given on him. 

"He was flown out, was 

responsive, and is currently 

undergoing medical 

treatment," Etminan 

said, adding that the victim 

was not in a lifethreatening 

condition. 

She said all cruise ships 

traveling in the northern 

region are obliged to have 

polar bear guards aboard. 

Arctic tourism to the 

region has risen sharply 

in the last few years and is 

now in high season. A 

Longyearbyen port 

schedule showed that 18 

cruise ships will be docking 

at the Arctic port in 

the next week.

ART & CULTURE 

MoNdAy, 

JULy 30, 2018 

8 

SHOWTIME 

UPCOMING MOVIE 

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (3D) 

11:45 am, 3:30 pm, 6:35 pm 

1:00 pm, 4:05 pm, 7:10 pm 

2:50 pm, 6:00 pm 


2:00 pm, 5:10 pm 

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (3D) 

11:30 am, 7:25 pm 

Incredibles 2 (3D) 

2:15 pm 

Ant-Man and the Wasp (3D) 

12:00 pm 

Traffik (2D) 

4:00 pm 

8:00 pm 

Poramon 2 (2D) 

1:00 pm, 4:00 pm, 7:00 pm 

Sultan: The Saviour (2D) 

12:10 pm, 3:30 pm, 7:00 pm 


11:00 am, 2:00 pm, 4:10 pm, 7:20 pm 

Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer 

Vacation (3D) 

10:50 am, 3:00 pm 

Ant-Man and the Wasp (3D) 

10:50 am, 1:30 pm, 5:00 pm, 7:25 pm 

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (3D) 

11:10 am, 1:50 pm, 4:45 pm, 7:20 pm 

Bhaijaan (2D) 

1:40 pm, 7:30 pm 

Poramon 2 (2D) 

10:40 am, 4:30 pm 

Skyscraper (3D) 

12:50 pm, 5:05 pm 7:15 pm 

Equalizer 2 (2D) 

11:30 am, 2:10 pm 4:40 pm, 7:10 pm 

MiLe 22 

An elite American intelligence officer, aided by 

a top-secret tactical command unit, tries to 

smuggle a mysterious police officer with 

sensitive information out of the country. 

Release Date : 17 August 2018 (USA) 

Director : Peter Berg 

Writers : Lea Carpenter, Graham Roland 

Stars : Mark Wahlberg, Lauren Cohan, 

Ronda Rousey 

Taglines : Option 1: Diplomacy. Option 2: 

Military. Meet Option 3 

Genre : Action 

Budget : 35 million USD 

Company : STX Entertainment 

Country : USA 

Language : English 

Filming Locations : Bogotá, Colombia, Atlanta, 

Georgia, USA 

Storyline 

In a visceral modern thriller from the director of 

Lone Survivor, Mark Wahlberg stars as James 

Silva, an operative of the CIA's most highly-prized 

and least-understood unit. Aided by a top-secret 

tactical command team, Silva must retrieve and 

transport an asset who holds life-threatening 

information to Mile 22 for extraction before the 

enemy closes in. 

Tom Cruise's latest, "Mission Impossible - 

Fallout," is on its way to a No. 1 debut at the 

North American box office with an estimated 

$59 million. 

Should predictions hold, Paramount's sixth 

installment of the franchise will finish on the 

upper end of recent forecasts, which ranged 

from $50 million to $65 million at 4,386 sites. 

It will also come out ahead of its predecessor 

"Mission Impossible - Rogue Nation," which 

debuted to $55 million in 2015, and also mark a 

franchise best. "Rogue Nation" went on to gross 

Box office 

'Mission 

Impossible - 

Fallout' 

soaring to $59 

Million Debut 

Finally in US 

theaters since 27 

July 2018 

$682 million worldwide. 

Christopher McQuarrie directed "Mission: 

Impossible - Fallout," after having directed 

"Rogue Nation." He also wrote the script for 

"Fallout." The movie is produced and financed 

by Paramount and partner Skydance 

Productions, headed by David Ellison. Cruise is 

a producer along with McQuarrie, J.J. Abrams 

and Jake Myers. Exec producers are Ellison, 

Dana Goldberg, and Don Granger. 

(Source: Variety.com) 

Mahakal to stage 'Srabon 

DHAKA : The first show of 'Srabon 

Tragedy', based on the tragic 

assassination of Bangabandhu, will 

be held in the city in August, the 

month of national mourning, 

reports UNB. 

The opening show of the drama 

will be held on August 3 (Friday) 

while the second performance of 

the play is scheduled to be staged 

on August 4 (Saturday) at 

Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy 

(BSA). 

Meanwhile, a special exhibition for 

the invited guests will be held at 

4:30 pm in the Experimental 

Theatre Hall, BSA on Sunday 

before the opening exhibition 

while two technical shows will be 

held on August 3 and 4 in the same 

Tragedy' friday 

venue. 

The drama was patronised by the 

Ministry of Cultural Affairs and 

different government and nongovernment 

organisations to pay 

tribute to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. 

Assistant professor of Department 

of Theatre and Performance 

Studies of Dhaka University is in 

direction of the play while 

associate professor of 

Jahangirnagar University's Drama 

and Dramatics Department Anan 

Zaman wrote it. 

Mahakal will bring its 40th theatre 

production on stage in the month 

of mourning as a mournful 

narration of the tragic death of the 

Father of the Nation and the 

history to the new generation. 

Mahakal troupe members said it 

took almost 10 months to review 

the manuscript through study 

while the troupe has continued 

their rehearsal for one and half 

months. 

'Srabon Tragedy', a research-based 

performance, is the depiction of 

the tragic assassination of 

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur 

Rahman and his family members 

while the play will focus on 

Bangabandhu's participation in 

different movements. 

The theatre troupe arranged a 

special show (script reading 

performance) of 'Srabon Tragedy' 

on August 16, 2017, as a part of the 

primary analysis to pay homage to 

the father of the nation. 

H o roScoPe 

ArieS 

(March 21 - April 20): 

Natives of Aries are often 

confident and energetic 

people, who should consider 

setting up arrangements for larger family 

gatherings like reunions. Natives of this 

sign are often driving forces in the 

professional and political areas. 

TAUrUS 

(April 21 - May 21): The 

obstacles you face at the 

moment may be daunting 

but you have what it takes 

to overcome them. Don't try to avoid 

what fate sends your way over the next 

few days - it is designed to strengthen 

you, not destroy you. 

GeMiNi 

(May 22 - June 21): There 

may be times when you 

would like nothing better 

than to cut yourself off 

from the world at large but that simply 

isn't possible. Make the best job of 

what you are expected to do and try to 

steal a few hours for yourself later on. 

cANcer 

(June 22 - July 23): Some 

things are important and 

some things are not and if 

you don't yet know the 

difference then it's time you found out. 

This should be a productive time for 

you but you need to learn how to say 

"no" when people ask you for favours. 

Leo 

(July 24 - Aug. 23): If you 

are not yet getting the 

rewards and the respect you 

deserve don't worry, in a 

matter of days your name will be on 

everybody's lips. The sun in Aries makes 

you both creative and adventurous, so 

do something out of the ordinary. 

VirGo 

(Aug. 24 - Sept. 23): You may 

be tempted to go on a 

journey today but the planets 

warn it could lead you in 

some unforeseen directions, so make 

sure you take a map and don't promise 

to be at a certain place at a specific time 

- because you won't make it. 

LiBrA 

(Sept. 24 - Oct. 23): At 

some stage over the next 

few days you will see or 

hear something that makes 

you view the world in a new light. A 

change of perspective will lead to new 

ways of thinking, ways that answer all 

the questions you have been asking. 

ScorPio 

(Oct. 24 - Nov. 22): Find 

out why a partner or loved 

one is behaving so 

erratically, then do what 

you can to assist them. Most likely 

their problems are nowhere near as big 

as they think they are and can quite 

easily be corrected - as can your own! 

SAGiTTAriUS 

(Nov. 23 - Dec. 21): Yours is 

a sign of boundless selfconfidence 

and that's good 

because you will need it 

over the next few days. If you are not 

happy in your current environment 

don't be afraid to pack a bag and take 

off for a few days. 

cAPricorN 

(Dec. 22 - Jan. 20): You seem 

to lack purpose at the 

moment but that will change 

if you look for ways to express 

yourself. Whatever challenges come your 

way, and there will be plenty, see them as 

opportunities to be embraced rather than 

as threats to be avoided. 

AQUAriUS 

(Jan. 21 - Feb. 19): Stay calm 

and keep setbacks in 

perspective. If you can learn 

to take yourself a bit less 

seriously over the coming week then your 

problems, such as they are, will fade into 

insignificance. Rest assured your successes 

will always outnumber your failures. 

PiSceS 

(Feb. 20 - Mar. 20): It does 

not matter if other people 

approve of what you are 

doing, it matters only that 

it means something to you. The very 

last thing you should be doing now is 

asking friends and family for their 

opinions - it's your views that count. 

On Friday, Ali Abbas Zafar announced on Twitter 

that Priyanka Chopra is not going to be a part of his 

forthcoming film, Bharat, that also stars Salman 

Khan. He tweeted, "Yes Priyanka Chopra is no more 

part of @Bharat_TheFilm & and the reason is very 

very special , she told us in the Nick of time about 

her decision and we are very happy for her ... Team 

Bharat wishes @priyankachopra loads of love & 

happiness for life." 

Yes Priyanka Chopra is no more part of and the 

reason is very very special , she told us in the Nick of 

time about her decision and we are very happy for 

her ... Team Bharat wishes happiness for life ?????? 

Rumours now suggest that either Katrina Kaif or 

Jacqueline Fernandez is likely to replace Priyanka 

in the film. They both have worked with Salman in 

big ticket projects in the past. 

Now, a source has been quoted by DNA saying 

that Katrina has agreed to join the project. The 

source said, "Producers Atul and Alvira Agnihotri 

share a warm relationship with Katrina Kaif and 

when this whole mishap happened, they just called 

her and sorted out her dates. She will play the lead 

opposite Salman Khan now." 

However, Priyanka is still a part of Shonali Bose's 

The Sky Is Pink. Priyanka will play a mother in the 

movie which also stars Farhan Akhtar and Zaira 

Wasim. Roy Kapur Films shared a short video on 

their Instagram page of the crew getting together 

and ideating about the film. Priyanka joined the 

film earlier this month. 

i would be a fool to make a 

biopic on myself : Akshay 

Has Katrina Kaif already 

replaced Priyanka 

Bollywood is witnessing a rising trend of 

adapting real-life stories for biopics but Akshay 

Kumar says he would never make a movie on 

himself. Recently, Rajkumar Hirani's Sanju, a 

biopic on Sanjay Dutt, did great business at the 

box office but was criticised for whitewashing the 

actor's image. "I would never ever make a biopic 

on myself and I will never write a book on 

myself," Akshay said in an interview. 

"There are so many amazing stories in history, 

like Tapan Das (his character in Gold), 

Arunachalam Muruganantham on whose life 

Padman was based, who have steered India in a 

positive direction. I would be a fool to make a 

biopic on myself. I would never even think of it, it 

will be a shallow thing to do for myself. I want to 

make biopic on real heroes and not reel heroes," 

he added. 

Hindi cinema has been churning out biopics 

one after the other, with a string of films such as 

Super 30, Manto, Manikarnika: The Queen of 

Jhansi, a film on Olympic champion Abhinav 

Bindra and Prime Minister Narendra Modi 

already lined-up for theatrical release. 

Asked if the industry is going overboard with 

biopics, Akshay said, "It is a known (fact) in our 

industry that if something works, almost 

everyone does the same thing and this is not just 

about biopic or sports biopic or something else. If 

a few films fail, everyone will run after something 

else."Besides Gold, the actor also has 2.0, 

Housefull 4 and Kesari in his kitty.

SPORTS 

MONDAy, JULy 30, 2018 

9 

Bangladesh's players celebrate their 2-1 series win against West Indies on Saturday. 

Photo: AP 

Bangladesh still need to improve 

says Mashrafe 

Sports Desk: Bangladesh cannot lose 

sight of their need to improve 

consistently after the ODI series win 

over West Indies, their captain 

Mashrafe Mortaza has warned. The 18- 

run win in Basseterre on Saturday 

came after Tamim Iqbal, 

Mahmudullah and Mashrafe combined 

to put up a big score, before Rubel 

Hossain and Mehidy Hasan Miraz took 

key wickets to stall the home side's 

progress, leaving Rovman Powell, 

despite his big-hitting, too much to do 

in the last 10 overs. 

"If you consider the last three or four 

months, we really needed to win this 

series," Mashrafe said. "It is a good sign 

ahead of the Asia Cup. But we have a lot 

to improve. A series win isn't 

everything. We have missed out on a lot 

of areas. Rubel did exactly what the 

team needed, which is a sign of our 

improvement but we need them 

consistently. We need to improve in our 

batting too. 

"I think we were still short by 20-25 

runs. We should have taken an early 

wicket because they have a top-heavy 

line-up. Getting rid of [Evin] Lewis 

early meant that Gayle had a bigger 

challenge. He was going well but 

Rubel's breakthrough eased it for the 

rest of the bowlers. Getting regular 

India awaits 

Kohli magic 

in England 

Tests 

Sports Desk: Virat Kohli 

has plundered Test runs in 

virtually every corner of 

the cricket world but 

England is a scoring desert 

for India's superstar 

captain ahead of a tricky 

five-match series, reports 

BSS. 

He returned from his 

first England series in 

2014 with just 134 runs 

from five Tests, unable to 

counter swing bowlers. 

India, with Mahendra 

Singh Dhoni as captain, 

lost the series 3-1. 

The 29-year-old Kohli is 

now back in England as 

reigning International 

Cricket Council player of the 

year and the world's leading 

batsman with an average of 

over 53 in 66 Tests. 

He has hit 301 runs in six 

limited-overs matches on 

the tour. India won the 

Twenty20 series and lost 

the 

one-day 

internationals, but Kohli 

knows that his Test 

performance - starting in 

Edgbaston on Wednesday 

Former India skipper 

Mohammad Azharuddin 

said Kohli is a completely 

different batsman from 

the last tour and an 

exemplary leader of the 

top-ranked Test side in the 

world. "At that time, it was 

his first tour… now he has 

got so many runs behind 

him and I think will 

perform wonderfully 

well," Azharuddin told 

AFP. 

"He has led India in so 

many Test matches so I 

don't think he will have 

any pressure now as far as 

leadership is concerned." 

Kohli struggled against 

seam bowlers in 2014 with 

England paceman James 

Anderson dismissing the 

right-handed batsman 

four times in the series. 

wickets worked in our favour." 

Mashrafe said the players had needed 

a couple of days to get the three-run 

loss in the second ODI out of their 

systems, and the desire within the team 

to bounce back was what helped them 

in the third game. 

"There's always an aftershock 

[following such a close defeat]. We 

regrouped in the two days in between," 

Mashrafe said. "We had optional 

training, so only those who needed to 

train went out. 

"We said to each other that we 

needed to use this last opportunity to 

win the series. I think this win will be a 

turning point for our mental strength." 

Tamim Iqbal, who was adjudged 

player of the match for his second 

hundred in the ODI series and player of 

the series for being the highest scorer 

with 287 runs, said coming back after a 

disastrous Test series made the ODI 

series win more pleasing. Bangladesh 

broke many unenviable records with 

their batting performances in the two 

Tests. 

"It is a very pleasing win," he said. "I 

think we won an ODI series [for the 

first time] after 2016 although we won 

matches during this period. It was very 

important that we did well in the ODI 

series after the way the Test matches 

Sports Desk: Bowlers Kagiso Rabada and 

Tabraiz Shamsi starred in South Africa's 

convincing five-wicket victory over Sri Lanka 

in the first one-day international in 

Dambulla on Sunday, reports BSS. 

Rabada and Shamsi claimed four wickets 

each to help bowl out Sri Lanka for 193, a 

total the visitors passed in just 31 overs to 

take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. 

South Africa's chase depended on an 86- 

run third-wicket stand between Quinton de 

Kock and skipper Faf du Plessis, who both 

hit 47. 

Off spinner Akila Dananjaya struck at 

crucial moments to get three wickets but 

Jean-Paul Duminy ensured a swift chase 

with his 32-ball unbeaten 53. 

But it was a superb opening pace spell 

from Rabada and Shamsi's career-best 

figures of 4-33 with his left-arm wrist spin 

that led South Africa to their first victory on 

tour after being swept aside in a two-Test 

series. Sri Lanka's innings lasted just 34.3 

overs but batsman Kusal Perera hit a gritty 

81 to lift the hosts from a precarious 36-5 

following their decision to bat first. 

Kusal, whose 72-ball stay included seven 

fours and a six, put on a crucial 92-run sixthwicket 

stand with Thisara Perera, who made 

49 to give the team total some respect. 

Kusal and Thisara counter-attacked to hit 

went. "We came back strongly in the 

first ODI and although we should have 

won the second game too, nobody gave 

up hope. I think it was the most 

pleasing aspect. The best feeling is 

when you score runs and your team 

wins. I think my hard work paid off. I 

was patient in all three matches." 

After Tamim fell for 103, Bangladesh 

needed to press on in the last 11.5 overs. 

Mashrafe promoted himself to No 6, 

adding 53 runs for the fifth wicket with 

Mahmudullah. Bangladesh reaching a 

300-plus total was only possible 

through his 25-ball 36, and 

Mahmudullah's unbeaten 49-ball 67. 

Mashrafe said coach Steve Rhodes 

wanted to start the big hitting from the 

35th over, which is why Mashrafe 

moved himself up- the order. 

"Coach wanted to change the trigger 

after 35 overs. So I told him that I should 

go," Mashrafe said. "It would be harder 

for a batsman to start hitting as there's a 

value to his wicket. I thought I should 

take the risk. Coached backed me. 

"I always feel at ease seeing 

[Mahmudullah] Riyad at the wicket. 

We have had small partnerships in the 

past. He has always done well in the 

crisis moments. I think Tamim, Shakib, 

Mushfiqur and Riyad were outstanding 

in this series." 

South Africa beat Sri 

Lanka in 1st ODI 

the South African bowlers to all parts of the 

ground as Sri Lanka reached 100 in the 16th 

over. The left-handed batting duo cashed in 

on the inexperience of rookie pacemen 

Willem Mulder and Andile Phehlukwayo as 

they plundered runs. 

But the introduction of spin in the 18th 

over put Sri Lanka in trouble again. Shamsi 

broke the dangerous partnership by getting 

Thisara caught behind. Kusal kept up the 

good work to get his fourth ODI fifty and got 

support from Akila Dananjaya with a 38-run 

partnership. 

He finally fell to Shamsi after attempting a 

reverse sweep to get caught at point and the 

innings folded soon after. South Africa had a 

wobbly start to their chase after opener 

Hashim Amla and Aiden Markram fell to the 

guile of Dananjaya, who opened the attack 

for the hosts. The left-right batting 

combination of de Kock and du Plessis 

blunted Sri Lanka's spin threat with their 

measured approach. 

However de Kock and du Plessis were 

denied their fifties after Dananjaya and leftarm 

spinner Lakshan Sandakan got the 

batsmen out respectively. Duminy, who hit 

six fours and two sixes, kept calm to 

complete his 26th ODI half-century and the 

veteran left-hand batsman hit the winning 

runs. 

Kagiso Rabada celebrates a wicket in South Africa's comfortable ODI win 

over Sri Lanka. 

Photo: AP 

Putin awards 

Russia's chief 

coach with 

Alexander 

Nevsky Order 

Sports Desk: Russian 

President Vladimir Putin 

presented the coaching staff 

and players of the national 

football team with state 

awards on Saturday, reports 

BSS. 

The Russian team's chief 

coach Stanislav Cherchesov 

was bestowed with the 

Alexander Nevsky Order, 

while the Order of Honor 

was awarded to goalkeeper 

Igor Akinfeev and central 

defender 

Sergey 

Ignashevich. 

Honorary certificates were 

also given to other players 

and coaches. 

This summer Russia 

hosted its first-ever FIFA 

World Cup, which kicked off 

in Moscow with a 

remarkable opening show at 

Luzhniki Stadium on the 

evening of June 14 and 

ended with a spectacular 

final match, played also at 

the Luzhniki Stadium, 

where France confidently 

defeated Croatia 4-2 to win 

the much-coveted World 

Cup Trophy. 

The national football team 

of hosts Russia managed to 

make it to the quarterfinals 

stage of this world 

championship, 

where 

Croatia edged them out in a 

4-3 penalty shootout win on 

July 7 at the Fisht Arena in 

Sochi. Earlier President 

praised the performance of 

the team and urged the 

players to "keep the fighting 

spirit" for the upcoming 

football events. 

Baker breaks 

100m backstroke 

world record 

Sports Desk: Kathleen 

Baker set a world record of 

58.00sec Saturday to win 

the 100m backstroke at the 

US 

swimming 

championships, reports 

BSS. 

Baker, silver medalist in 

the event at the 2016 Rio 

Olympics, improved on the 

world record of 58.10 set by 

Canadian Kylie Masse at the 

World Championships in 

Budapest on July 25 of last 

year. Baker, who tied for first 

with Regan Smith in the 

200m backstroke this week, 

clocked a blistering 27.90sec 

over the first 50m and held 

on for the victory. 

She notched the first world 

record of the 

championships, the 

selection meeting for next 

month's Pan Pacific 

Championships in Tokyo. 

Silva scores twice 

as Man City rallies 

to beat Bayern 

Sports Desk: Pepe Guardiola finished 

Manchester City's US tour with a deserved 3- 

2 victory over former club Bayern Munich, 

but his evening was soured with an injury to 

new signing Riyad Mahrez, reports BSS. 

Two goals from substitute Bernardo Silva 

helped Manchester City come from 2-0 

down to end a run of two defeats in this 

International Champions Cup campaign 

with youngster Lukas Nmecha scoring in 

between. 

Mahrez, however, went down twice with 

what looked like an ankle problem. 

He was eventually forced off after just 27 

minutes and looked in discomfort. 

With the traditional English season opener 

- the Community Shield - taking place next 

Sunday at Wembley against Chelsea, coach 

Guardiola will assess the Algerian's fitness as 

the start of the Premier League campaign 

looms into view. 

Meanwhile Guardiola's squad flew back to 

Manchester at the end of the Saturday 

match. 

City's opening games against Borussia 

Dortmund and Liverpool had both ended in 

narrow defeats, but with Guardiola opting 

for familiarity - eight players in the starting 

lineup here had begun all three games of this 

US tour - it was another young side full of 

running. 

"We analyzed our mistakes in the previous 

games and did it better against Bayern 

Munich," said Guardiola. "We were able to 

play good and overcome the situation when 

we were 2-0 down." 

Bayern's main men Arjen Robben and 

Franck Ribery looked dangerous on the ball, 

yet with Mahrez afforded plenty of space in 

midfield the English champions dominated 

the early stages and really should have 

opened the scoring. 

Mahrez, who had already spent a few 

minutes getting treatment after being 

challenged, sent German-born City striker 

Nmecha through only for his shot be saved 

Rubel reprimanded 

for breaching ICC 

Code of Conduct 

Sports Desk: Pacer Rubel Hossain has received an 

official reprimand for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code 

of Conduct during the deciding ODI against the West 

Indies on Saturday, which the visitors won by 18 runs in 

St Kitts to take the series by 2-1, said an ICC media 

release yesterday, reports BSS. 

Rubel was found to have breached Article 2.1.4 of the 

ICC Code of Conduct for players and player Support 

Personnel, which relates to "Using language or a gesture 

that is obscene, offensive or insulting during an 

international match". 

In addition to the reprimand, one demerit point has 

been added to the fast bowler's disciplinary record. 

Rubel now has two demerit points after he had received 

one demerit point for showing dissent during the 

second T20I against Afghanistan in Dehradun in last 

month. As such, he now has two demerit points against 

his name. 

The incident happened in the 28th over of the Windies' 

run-chase when Rubel used an inappropriate word, 

which was picked up by the stump mic, after Shimron 

Hetmyer edged him for a boundary. 

After the end of the match, Rubel admitted the offence 

and accepted the sanction proposed by Chris Broad of 

the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees and, as 

such, there was no need for a formal hearing. 

The charge was leveled by on-field umpires S. Ravi, and 

Joel Wilson, third umpire Richard Illingworth Nigel 

Duguid Marais Erasmus and fourth umpire Nick Cook. 

Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official 

reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50 per cent of a 

player's match fee, and one or two demerit points. 

by Sven Ulreich. 

It wasn't long before Nmecha had the 

opportunity to make amends as another 

classy through ball from Mahrez set him free, 

but this time he was denied by the post. 

That was to prove a costly couple of misses 

because on 14 minutes, Bayern were ahead. 

The lively Rafinha found space on the right 

and his cross was headed in by Meritan 

Shabani. 

It was a good team goal and on 23 minutes, 

Ribery and Robben combined for number 

two. The French midfielder's lofted through 

ball found the Dutchman in the area and his 

two touches - one to control and one to 

expertly lift the ball past Claudio Bravo - 

were top class. 

And all of a sudden, a difficult evening for 

Guardiola darkened on 27 minutes when 

Mahrez was forced to leave the field with an 

injured ankle. 

"We will see, maybe it is not a problem," 

said Guardiola. 

The Algerian limped off to be replaced by 

Portuguese midfielder Silva, who scored the 

goal his team's display had deserved on the 

stroke of half-time. 

The former Monaco star ran unchallenged 

25 yards out and produced an excellent low, 

curling finish leaving Ulreich with no chance. 

The Bayern keeper was being kept busy 

and on 51 minutes, he was picking the ball 

out of the back of the net once more after 

Silva fed Foden and when his curling shot 

was parried, Nmecha was on hand to steer 

home from close. 

No-one could begrudge this young City 

side a share of the spoils, but the game was 

turned on its head with 20 minutes 

remaining. A first City appearance for 17- 

year-old Spanish attacking midfielder 

Adrian Bernabe quickly resulted in a third 

goal for Guardiola's side. The former 

Barcelona youngster teed up Silva who 

wriggled clear in the area before drilling low 

past Ulreich for the winner. 

Two goals from substitute Bernardo Silva (R) helped Manchester City 

come from 2-0 down to end a run of two defeats in their International 

Champions Cup campaign with a 3-2 win over Bayern Munich. Photo: AP 

Say I'm your No.1: goalkeeper 

Buffon faces fight at PSG 

Sports Desk: Italy legend Gianluigi Buffon has a fight on 

his hands for the Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper's shirt as 

coach Thomas Tuchel revealed he had not yet decided who 

was his number one, reports BSS. 

Buffon has made his first move abroad at the age of 40 but 

faces stiff competition at the French club, which shares his 

ambition of a first Champions League title. 

Tuchel has an embarrassment of goalkeeping riches 

including Alphonse Areola, a member of France's World 

Cup-winning squad, German international Kevin Trapp, 

Sebastien Cibois and Remy Descamps. 

"He's (Buffon) not afraid to fight for his place, Kevin and 

Alphonse are not afraid to fight for their place," Tuchel said 

in Singapore, ahead of Monday's friendly with Atletico 

Madrid. "This is the kind of competition that I would love to 

have in every other position." The German added: "This is a 

situation we need to handle relaxed but clearly. When 

everybody is there and everybody has shown up and 

everybody is healthy at the top level, then it's time to decide." 

Buffon has not had the easiest of starts with PSG, shipping 

four goals in his first two friendly appearances against 

Bayern Munich and Arsenal. Buffon, who clocked up 656 

appearances in 17 years at Juventus, insisted he never 

expected simply to be handed a starting spot. "In 24 years of 

my career, nobody has ever told me that I had the number 

one shirt by right. It's come through hard training and being 

selected based on merit," he said. "So I'll continue to do that 

and also work towards developing the other goalkeepers in 

the squad." The 2006 World Cup-winner also denied that the 

chance of winning an elusive Champions League title was the 

main motivation behind his move to PSG on a one-year deal. 

"This decision was made so I could continue… to play at the 

top level," he said. "I've always been excited by the thought of 

a challenge abroad, a challenge as ambitious and important 

as this one at Paris. "I think after 40 years in Italy, a change 

will be good for me from a personal point of view as well as a 

professional one."

ECONOMY & BUSINESS 

BANGLADESHTODAY 10 

THE 

MONDAY, JULY 30, 2018 

Caution, skepticism over unpredictable 

EU-U.S. trade talks: News Analysis 

Islami Bank Training and Research Academy (IBTRA) organized a training titled "Financial 

Education for the Youth with a view to Implementing SDGs' at the academy premises recently. 

Professor Md. Kamal Uddin, Ph.D, Director of the bank and Treasurer of University of Dhaka 

addressed the closing session of the program as chief guest. Md. Mahbub ul Alam, Managing 

Director and CEO of the bank inaugurated the daylong program. Presided over by Dr. Mahmood 

Ahmed, Director General of IBTRA, the program was addressed by Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman and 

Muhammad Zillur Rahman Al-Mahmud, Senior Vice Presidents of the bank as special guest. 

Students from different public and private universities took part in this program. Photo: Courtesy 

Russia's Central 

Bank keeps key 

rate at 7.25 pc 

The Bank of Russia has 

decided to keep the key 

rate at 7.25% per annum, 

noting that monetary 

policy is highly likely to 

shift to a neutral stance in 

2019. 

"Though annual inflation 

remains below the target, it 

is tending to return to 4%," 

the regulator said in a 

statement following its 

board meeting on Friday. 

"The balance of risks is 

shifted towards 

proinflationary risks. 

Uncertainty persists over 

how strongly the tax 

measures may affect 

inflation expectations and 

how the external 

conditions will develop," 

the statement said. 

The decision was 

expected as the majority of 

analysts projected on 

Thursday that the Central 

Bank would keep its key 

rate, waiting for the 

business' reaction on the 

upcoming VAT hike and 

amid growing inflationary 

expectations. 

According to the 

regulator, monetary policy 

is likely to shift to a neutral 

stance in 2019. "Given the 

effect of the planned fiscal 

measures on inflation and 

inflation expectations, 

monetary conditions 

should remain to some 

extent tight to limit the 

scale of secondary effects 

and stabilize annual 

inflation close to 4% over 

the forecast horizon," the 

Bank of Russia said on 

Friday. 

Meanwhile, the balance 

of risks is shifted towards 

proinflationary risks, 

which the regulator said is 

related to uncertainty 

persisting over how 

strongly the tax measures 

may affect inflation 

expectations and how the 

external conditions will 

develop. 

The regulator expects 

consumer prices to grow by 

3.5-4% per year at the end 

of 2018, and annual 

inflation to temporarily 

overshoot 4% in 2019. "The 

annual growth rate of 

consumer prices is 

expected to return to 4% in 

early 2020," it said. 

According to the Central 

Bank, annual inflation 

remains low. "It stood at 

2.3% in June and is 

expected to hold within the 

2.5-2.6% range in July in 

line with the Bank of 

Russia's forecast," the 

statement said. 

The Bank of Russia 

forecasts that in 2018 the 

Russian economy will post 

a 1.5-2% growth rate, 

which corresponds to its 

potential amid the 

remaining structural 

limitations. 

"The FIFA World Cup 

made a positive 

contribution to the annual 

GDP growth rate in Q2 

(0.1-0.2 percentage 

points)," the statement 

said. The regulator's board 

of directors will hold its 

next key rate review 

meeting on September 14, 

2018. 

Poland may 

take Filipino 

workers: 

Minister 

Poland, whose right-wing 

government opposes taking in 

migrants, may have to look to 

Filipino workers to cover a 

growing labour shortage 

hurting the economy, a senior 

official said Saturday. 

"We are on course to 

conclude an agreement. I 

hope that in the autumn we 

will be able to at least sign a 

preliminary accord" with the 

Philippine authorities, Deputy 

Labour Minister Stanislaw 

Szwed said according to a PAP 

news agency report. 

Szwed noted that Poland 

and the Philippines were both 

Roman Catholic countries 

and so shared many cultural 

values. 

Poland was in particular 

looking to attract qualified 

workers, in the IT, medical 

and construction sectors, he 

added. 

According to analyst 

forecasts, Poland by 2030 will 

be short of four million 

workers, partly the result of 

continued emigration of its 

own workforce to other EU 

countries and partly due to a 

low birth rate. 

Up to now, Poland has 

relied on neighbouring 

Ukraine to fill the gap, with a 

million Ukrainians in the 

country already and up to 

another 300,000 expected in 

the next few years. 

Observers remain cautious and 

skeptical after the European Union 

(EU) and the United States claim to 

have averted a trade war with an 

agreement to "work together towards 

zero tariffs." 

The reasons are mainly related to the 

U.S. President Donald Trump 

administration's unpredictability, the 

rough relationship endured by 

Brussels and Washington lately, and 

most importantly the fact that nothing 

concrete has been agreed on. 

On Wednesday, European 

Commission President Jean-Claude 

Juncker and Trump hailed a "new 

phase" in relations during their 

meeting at the White House. 

For his part, Trump shelved a threat 

to slap tariffs on European cars; whilst 

in return, Juncker promised that the 

EU would buy more liquefied natural 

gas and soybeans from America. 

But away from the back-slapping 

and smiles, caution and skepticism 

remain, as details of any firm 

agreement are glaringly short in 

supply. 

"Of course you have to have the 

caveat that the devil will be in the 

details," European parliamentarian 

Richard Corbett told Xinhua. "It's an 

agreement to start a process and with 

Trump you can never be sure whether 

that will be followed up properly." 

And given the Trump 

administration's unpredictable trackrecord, 

there are fears that any new 

talks could quickly unravel. Despite 

that, both Trump and Juncker vowed 

to address the steel and aluminum 

tariffs which kicked off the dispute 

earlier this year. 

"It was started unilaterally by Trump 

without foundation really and using 

the security argument on products 

that really have nothing to do with 

security. Taking unilateral action like 

that is not the proper way of doing 

things," Corbett said, adding that 

Brussels and Washington had endured 

an uncomfortable relationship lately. 

"I can understand people feeling 

uncomfortable when they are with 

Trump," Corbett added. 

Experts and commentators on both 

sides of the Atlantic urged caution 

after the talks, as Juncker arrived in 

Washington without a specific trade 

offer, nor was one agreed. 

"Some of the heat seems to have 

gone out of the situation for now, but 

unfortunately with this president what 

he says one week, might be 

contradicted by what he says the 

following week, so you can't really take 

anything for granted," Chris 

Horseman, a journalist specializing in 

agriculture and trade policy, told 

Xinhua. 

"I don't think anything concrete has 

been achieved, as of today the same 

tariffs are in place throughout - it's 

basically an agreement to talk, but it's 

fairly loosely formulated. It's really just 

a promise to talk rather than a 

commitment to ultimately do 

anything," Horseman added. 

This year Mercantile Bank Limited awarded the Mercantile Bank Sommanona- 2018 to 5 eminent 

persons. At a graceful program held yesterday on Saturday at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka, Tofail 

Ahmed M.P., the Minister of the Ministry of Commerce of the Government of the People's Republic 

of Bangladesh as the Chief Guest handed over the gold medals, crests, & cheques of Tk.3.00 lac each 

to the awardees. Cultural Minister Asaduzzaman Noor, MP was present in the occasion as Special 

Guest. Bank's Chairman A.K.M. Shaheed Reza presided over the program and Managing Director & 

CEO Kazi Masihur Rahman delivered the welcome speech. In the chief guest's Tofail Ahmed M.P. 

said that along with banking business, Mercantile Bank's recognition of the country's eminent personalities 

is truly a praiseworthy effort. 

Photo: Courtesy 

Walton releases cassette type AC 

Customers prefer ionizer and smart AC with inverter technology 

The country's electronics 

giant Walton has brought 

cassette type commercial airconditioners 

or AC in the 

local market considering the 

huge customers' demand. 

Prices of Walton brand 

42,000 BTU (British 

Thermal Unit) and 52,000 

BTU were fixed at Tk 

1,35,000 and Tk 1,55,000 

respectively, says a press 

release. 

According to Walton 

sources, sales of Walton 

brand air-conditioners were 

gone up sharply across the 

country. During the period of 

January to June of the 

current year, sales of Walton 

air conditioners were jumped 

up by more than 20 percent 

compared to the sales of the 

corresponding period of the 

previous year. The 1.5 tons 

and 2 tons Smart AC of 

Walton, which was released 

in the current year, pushed 

the overall AC sales to go up. 

Walton air conditioners 

with ionizer, smart and huge 

power efficient inverter 

technologies, manufactured 

at Walton Hi-Tech Industries 

Limited at Chandra in 

Gazipur, have been turned 

into the customers' prime 

attraction. 

Walton ACs with ionizer 

technology will ensure pure 

and healthy air across the 

room through filtering dusts, 

smoke, bacteria and odor 

from room air. 

On the other hand, Walton 

ACs with inverter 

technology's compressor 

would consume 60 percent 

lesser electricity than the 

general technology's ACs, he 

added. 

In addition, he noted that 

Walton 'Smart AC' could 

monitor the power 

consumption units, daily or 

monthly electricity bill of it, 

compressors condition like 

overload or normal, power 

connection situation like on 

or off, and high or low voltage 

supply to it, in his/her mobile 

phone from any corner of the 

world. 

Now, Walton is 

manufacturing and 

marketing 18,000 BTU's or 

1.5 tons and 24,000 BTU's or 

2 tons IoT and inverter 

technology's Smart AC at Tk 

65,000 and Tk 78,000 

respectively in the local 

market. In addition, people 

can buy Walton brand's 

inverter air-conditioners of 

1.5 tons and 2 tons at Tk 

63,500 and Tk 76,500 

respectively. Prices of Walton 

brand 1.5 tons and 2 ton AC 

with ionizer technology are 

Tk 49,900 and Tk 56,900 

respectively. In addition, 

Walton brand 17200 BTU 

and 12000 BTU's AC are 

priced at Tk 45,900 and Tk 

35,900 respectively. 

Engineer Md. Ishaque 

Rony, chief operating officer 

of Walton AC, said, Walton is 

manufacturing and 

marketing world-class airconditioners 

with perfect 

BTU (British Thermal Unit). 

They added the world's latest 

technologies and features to 

Walton ACs like IoT based 

Smart AC, Inverter and 

Ionizer technologies ACs. 

Walton for the first time in 

Bangladesh applied 'Golden 

Fin' technologies to Walton 

ACs. The Walton airconditioners 

have been 

released in the local market 

just after getting testing 

certificate from the 

Bangladesh Accreditation 

Board authorized 

international standard 

NUSDAT-UTS testing lab. 

Now, six-month 

replacement guaranty is 

offered on Walton ACs. Users 

are offered up to eight years 

guaranty on the compressor 

of Walton ACs and 36-month 

installment facility during 

purchase. 

Regal Furniture on Tuesday organised its dealers' conference at International Convention City 

Bashundhara. More than 600 distributors, engaged to bed, sofa, almirah, wardrobe, dressing table, 

chair, shoe rack and other products, took part at the conference. Ahsan Khan Chowdhury, Chairman 

and CEO of PRAN-RFL Group, R N Paul, Managing Director of RFL Group, Dilip Kumar Sutradhar, 

Chief Operating Officer of Regal Furniture, Debashish Sarker, Head of Marketing and Mohammad 

Bidduth Molla, Head of Sales, were present at the function. 


Arif Quadri, Managing Director (Acting) of United Commercial Bank Limited (UCB) inaugurated a 

week long Workshop on Advanced General Banking at UCB Learning & Development Centre, 

Gulshan, Dhaka Abul Ali Ahad, Head of Learning & Development and Senior Officials of the Bank 

were present to grace the occasion. 


UCB inaugurates a week long Workshop 

Arif Quadri, Managing Director 

(Acting) of United Commercial Bank 

Limited (UCB) inaugurated a week 

long Workshop on Advanced General 

Banking at UCB Learning & 

Development Centre, Gulshan, Dhaka 

on Thursday, 26 July 2018. The week 

long workshop aims at providing 

advance level knowledge on General 

Banking including case studies and 

discussions on recent trends in 

banking. Mr Abul Ali Ahad, Head of 

Learning & Development and Senior 

Officials of the Bank were present to 

grace the occasion, a press release said.

MISCELLANEOUS 

MOnDAY, jULY 30, 2018 

11 

City Bank and bKash Limited, the largest mobile financial service provider in the country yesterday 

announced a strategic partnership, enabling their customers to enjoy a bundle of services, including 

instant fund transfer between bank account to bKash account, credit card bill payment and cash withdrawal 

from ATM by bKash customers. Under this agreement, City Bank customers will be able to transfer 

fund instantly from their City Bank account to bKash wallet using Bank's digital banking platform 

called City touch via mobile app and web. Similar facility of instant fund transfer from bKash account to 

City Bank account will also be available. Moreover, City Bank credit card members will be able to pay their 

credit card bills from their bKash wallet while bKash customers will be able to withdraw cash from any of 

the 350 City Bank ATMs across the country. 


Mongla Port Authority to collect 

mobile harbour crane 

DHAKA : The Ministry of Shipping 

yesterday signed a Memorandum of 

Understanding (MoU) with Saif Powertec 

Limited for purchasing a mobile harbour 

crane for the Mongla Port. 

"We are going to collect a mobile harbor 

crane for loading and unloading containers 

to and from ships with efficiency," said 

Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan at the 

signing ceremony at Secretariat. 

Mongla Port Authority (MPA) Chairman 

Commodore AKM Faruque Hassan and 

Managing Director of Saif Powertec Limited 

Tarafder Ruhul Amin signed the MoU on 

behalf of their respective sides while 

Secretary of the ministry M Abdus Samad 

was present. 

The government has taken a set of 

development projects for gearing up import 

and export activities through the port. Under 

the moves, the deal was signed for 

purchasing the crane, said the minister. 

"Under the leadership of the Prime 

Minister Sheikh Hasina it would be possible 

to collect a mobile harbour crane after 68 

years of founding the port," he said. 

The Mongla Port, which was previously 

known as Chalna Port, was founded in 

Bagerhat in 1950. It is now the second 

busiest seaport of the country. 

Many international shipping companies 

have turned to Mongla as an alternative due 

to increasing congestion in the country's 

largest seaport in Chittagong. 

Bangladesh role model 

in facing climate change 

hazards: Experts 

KHULNA : Experts at a workshop yesterday dubbed Bangladesh as a role model in facing 

problems being triggered by climate change, reports BSS. 

They said Bangladesh is facing onslaughts of different natural disasters due to climate 

change and in view of this reality common people of the country have devised different 

methods and techniques to cope with the calamities. Researcher and Professor of 

International Center For Climate Change (ICCC) of Independent University Sarder Shafiqul 

Alam spoke on the occasion. 

In his speech, Alam said many researchers of developed countries use to visit Bangladesh 

to enrich their skills in disaster management. Department of Local Government Engineering 

Department (LGED) in Khulna organized the workshop on Climate Change Hazards, Impact 

and Adaptation, under the Coastal Climate Resilient Project and financed by Asian 

Development Bank(ADB) at Khulna Circuit House. Executive Engineer of LGED Rakibul 

Islam chaired the workshop while Deputy Director of LGED in Khulna addressed as chief 

guest. Additional Police Super Badiuzzaman, among others, also spoke. Government and 

NGO officials, leaders of different professional bodies attended the workshop. 

Bangladesh 

wins bronze 

in Int'l Physics 

Olympiad 

DHAKA : Bangladesh has 

won four bronze medals in 

International Physics 

Olympiad (IPhO) - 2018. 

A total of 447 students from 

87 countries took part in the 

49th ceremony that begun on 

Jul 21 whilewinnerswere 

announced on Saturday (Jul 

28) in Lisbon, Portugal, 

reports UNB. 

The bronze medal winners 

are Abrar Al Sadid Abir from 

Chattogram College, Irtiza 

Eram and Tahmid Mosaddek 

from Notre Dame College, 

and Rashedul Islam from 

Motijheel Ideal School and 

College in Dhaka. 

Confirming it, Jubaer Kabir 

Tusher, consular assistant at 

Bangladesh Embassy in 

Beirut, congratulated the 

Bangladesh team saying, 

"Bangladesh is being ready 

for the future." 

Congratulating them, coach 

of Physics Olympiad 

teamProf Dr Arshad Momen 

in his Facebook post said, 

"Special congratulations to 

Irtiza Eram for making a 

perfect score for IPhO. We're 

moving forward." 

It's a very important 

achievement for the country, 

he added. Bangladesh has 

been participating IPhO since 

2011. Last year, the country 

won a silver medal along with 

three bronze and one 

honourary medal. 

Economic Affairs Adviser to the Prime Minister Dr. Mashiur Rahman paying tribute to the former whip of 

parliament Mostafa Rashidi Suja at Khula Awami League office yesterday. Photo : Titas Chakrabarthey. 

GD-970/18 (10 x 4) 

GD-969/18 (12 x 4)

UNITING PEOPLE EVERYDAY 

MoNDAy, DHAkA, July 30, 2018, SRABAN 15, 1425 BS, ZilQAD 16, 1439 HiJRi 

A rare photo of the Father of Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was given to Prime 

Minister Sheikh Hasina in the capital yesterday. 


PM pays last 

respect to Mostafa 

Rashidi Suja 

DHAKA : Prime Minister 

Sheikh Hasina on Sunday paid 

last respect to Awami League 

MP from Khulna-4 constituency 

SM Mostafa Rashidi 

Suja by placing wreaths on his 

coffin at the South Plaza of 

Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban, 

reports UNB. 

After placing the wreaths, 

the Prime Minister stood there 

in solemn silence for some 

time as a mark of profound 

respect to the memory of Suja, 

who was also the general secretary 

of Khulna district 

Awami League. 

Flanked by senior leaders 

and parliament members of 

the party, Sheikh Hasina, also 

the Awami League president, 

laid another wreath on the coffin 

on behalf of the party. 

Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin 

Chaudhury also paid homage 

to Suja by laying a wreath on 

Suja's coffin. Wreaths were 

also placed on the coffin on 

behalf of President Abdul 

Hamid and Leader of the 

Opposition in Parliament 

Begum Raushan Ershad. 

Earlier, a namaz-e-janaza of 

Suja was held at the South 

Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad. 

A large number of people, 

including ministers, MPs, 

senior leaders of different 

political parties and officials 

and employees of the 

Jatiya Sangsad attended 

the janaza. 

The Domes of 

Fabedougou 

INTERESTING NEWS 

These weathered rocks in the village of 

Fabedougou, near Banfora, in south-western 

Burkina Faso resemble the sandstone 

towers of Bungle Bungle Range in Australia. 

But the Domes of Fabedougou have an 

entirely different origin. 

While the Bungle Bungle Range is barely 

half a million years old, the sandstones 

comprising the Domes of Fabedougou are 

nearly 2 billion years old or Middle 

Proterozoic. Usually, a 2 billion year old 

rock would have been metamorphosed by 

the extreme heat and pressure generated by 

the dynamic nature of the Earth’s crust. But 

not the Domes of Fabedougou. Despite 

being that old, the sandstones have been 

PM for eliminating militancy, 

terrorism through scouting 

DHAKA : Emphasis the 

importance of nursing and 

flourishing scouting and 

girl-guide activities, Prime 

Minister Sheikh Hasina on 

Sunday hoped that militancy, 

terrorism, drug abuse 

and other anti-social menaces 

will be rooted out from 

the country with this, 

reports UNB. 

"I believe these types of 

social activities are very 

much important alongside 

academic ones. So I think 

these scout and girl-guide 

movement should be 

strengthened and expanded 

further through which we'll 

be able to stamp out militancy, 

terrorism, drug abuse 

and other anti-social activities 

from the country," she 

said while distributing 

Shapla Cub Award at her 

official residence 

Ganobhaban. 

The Prime Minister 

expressed her belief that the 

conscious children who are 

in scouting and girl guiding 

will be able to advance the 

country in the future. 

Briefly describing various 

steps taken to expand the 

scout and girl-guide movement 

in the country, she 

said Bangladesh Scouts has 

its activities in all the educational 

institutions, including 

primary schools, as per the 

government's directives. 

"But, the activities of girl 

guides in the girls' schools 

are not up to the mark. But 

once it was there. I saw that 

in my childhood," she said. 

Sheikh Hasina directed 

the Education Minister, 

Primary and Mass 

Education Minister and officials 

of Bangladesh Girl 

Guides Association and 

Bangladesh Scouts to build 

girl guides in every school. "I 

think each girls' school 

should have a unit of girl 

guides," she said. 

She said the government 

has directed the officials to 

expand scouting in the 

country and they have taken 

steps to this end. "You've 

reaped its success," she said, 

adding that the girl guides' 

activities should get more 

attention. 

The Prime Minister mentioned 

that there are 10 

zones of girl guides. In some 

places, the activities are 

going on in rented offices 

while some have own places 

but no offices. "I think 

offices should be constructed 

there. We've constructed 

barely metamorphosed and are surprisingly 

young looking. They are so well-preserved 

that some of these rocks even have ripples 

and dunes created by ancient water and 

wind flow. As the Earth Story notes, these 

Domes are actually ancient sand dunes. 

This whole area was once under a big 

ocean packed with free-flowing sediments. 

Over time, the sediments settled down and 

compacted to form sedimentary rocks of 

different thickness. Through a process of 

weathering and fracturing these rocks were 

molded into domes and craggy fingers 

pointing skyward. Differential weathering 

gives the rocks their layered looked, with 

each layer weathering at a different rate 

depending upon their composition. 

10-storey building in Dhaka. 

If offices are set up in zonal 

areas, the activities of the 

girl guides will further be 

expanded." 

She said through scouting 

and girl-guide activities, the 

children are learning many 

things, including humane 

attitudes and conscience. 

"When the children will go 

for their livelihood, these 

qualities will play a vital role 

in the development of the 

country and nation." 

Hasina said Father of the 

Nation Bangabandhu 

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman 

wanted to build a povertyand 

hunger-free country 

and Bangladesh has started 

its journey towards that 

direction. 

She mentioned that the 

Awami League government 

has been able to establish 

Bangladesh as the role 

model of development 

before the entire world. 

"We're trying to take the 

country forward and for 

that, the new generation has 

to be well-educated. They've 

to acquire patriotism, learn 

to love the country and 

nation and devote themselves 

for the welfare of people," 

she said. 

Mahmudur gets 

6 months bail 

in defamation 

case 

DHAKA :The High Court on 

Sunday granted a 6-month 

bail to Amar Desh acting editor 

Mahmudur Rahman in a 

defamation case filed against 

him for making derogatory 

remarks about Bangabandhu 

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina 

and Tulip Siddiq, reports 

UNB. 

An HC bench of Justice 

AKM Asaduzzaman and 

Justice SM Mozibur Rahman 

granted the bail when 

Mahmudur Rahman sought 

bail appearing before the 

court. 

Advocate AJ Mohammad 

Ali, Adilur Rahman Shuvra 

and Barrister Tanvir Ahmed 

Al Amin stood for Mahmudur 

while deputy attorney general 

Bashir Ullah represented the 

state. 

On December 1 last year, 

Mahmudur allegedly made 

derogatory comments about 

Bangabandhu and Hasina at a 

seminar on restoration of 

democracy and the role of 

media organised by 

Bangladesh Democratic 

Council at the Jatiya Press 

Club in Dhaka. 

Later, Nazmul HaqKiron, 

the then joint convener of 

Sunamganj District unit 

Chhatra League, filed a case 

against Mahmudur Rahman 

for making the 'derogatory 

remarks' with a court in 

Sunamganj. 

6.6 kg gold seized, 

Civil Aviation staff 

held at Dhaka airport 

DHAKA : Customs 

Preventive team at Hazrat 

Shahjalal International 

Airport detained three people, 

including an employee of Civil 

Aviation Authority 

Bangladesh (CAAB) in connection 

with recovery of 57 

gold bars worth around Tk 

3.32 crore from the mosque of 

the airport on Sunday. 

The arrestees are CAAB 

Cleaning Shift in-charge Md 

Jamal Uddin Patwari and two 

passengers - Ekramul Hoque 

and Jahidul Hoque Salman 

Bhuiyan. 

Earlier, the two passengers 

landed at the airport by an aircraft 

of Emirates Airlines from 

Dubai in the morning. 

Othello Chowdhury, Deputy 

Commissioner of Customs 

(Preventive) told UNB that 

tipped off a special preventive 

team detained the CAAB 

employee along with the two 

passengers from the mosque, 

adjacent to air-lounge of 

Mutual Trust Bank in the 

same floor around 9 am as the 

two passengers were handing 

over a bag containing the gold 

consignment to Jamal Uddin. 

Later, the three detained 

people were taken to Customs 

Lounge and 57 gold bars 

weighing around 6.63 kgs 

were recovered from inside 

cigarette packet, which was 

kept hidden inside the bag, 

Othello said. 

Current market value of the 

recovered gold is around Tk 

3.32 crore, he said. 

Amar Desh acting editor Mahmudur Rahman appeared before court to seek bail in a 

defamation case. 


Ecnec okays Tk 2,511cr project 

to expand science edu 

DHAKA :The Executive Committee of the National Economic 

Council (Ecnec)on Sunday approved nine projects with the total 

estimated cost of Tk 7,539 crore, including a Tk 2,511-crore project 

to expand the scope for science education in some 200 government 

colleges across the country, reports UNB. 

The approval came from an Ecnec meeting held at NEC conference 

room here with Ecnec Chairperson and Prime Minister 

Sheikh Hasina in the chair. 

Briefing reporters after the meeting, Planning Minister AHM 

Mustafa Kamal said, "A total of nine projects were approved 

involving an overall cost of Tk 7,539.13 crore." 

Of the total estimated cost, he said, Tk 6,751.66 crore will come 

from the national exchequer, while Tk 528.90 crore as project 

assistance and Tk 258.57 crore from the own funds of the organisations 

concerned. 

Eight of the projects are new while another is revised one. 

In terms of cost, the biggest project is 'Expansion of Science 

Education's Scope in Government Colleges Project' involving Tk 

2,511.51 crore. The entire cost will come from government funds. 

About the project, the Planning Minister said the Secondary 

and Higher Education Division under the Ministry of Education 

will implement the project by June 2021. 

The goals of the project are to extend infrastructures, expand 

scope for ICT and science research and enhance skills of teachers 

with a view to expanding scope for science education. 

The interest of students and the youth for science education 

has declined in recent times, though science and technology are 

indispensable in the current world, the minister said. 

According to data of the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational 

Information and Statistics, students in science education at the 

higher secondary level declined by 11.12 percent compared to 

arts and business studies during the period between 1990 to 

2013. 

BNP works out strategies to deal 

with 'adversities' in city polls 

DHAKA : In the wake of 

Khulna and Gazipur polls, 

BNP has worked out 'strategies' 

to apply in Monday's 

elections to three city corporations 

to ensure the presence 

of its polling agents at 

all the centres and encourage 

party supporters to cast 

their votes 'braving all odds', 

reports UNB. 

Talking to UNB, some 

party senior leaders said 

they will in no way engage in 

any violence in the polls as 

they have worked out plans 

to face any unwanted situation 

tactfully instead of 

applying force. 

If their plans do not work 

and the elections are not 

held in a free and fair manner, 

they said, it will only 

justify further their demand 

for holding the next general 

election under a non-party 

and neutral administration. 

As part of their strategies, 

party leaders said they have 

formed centre-based committees 

and appointed those 

as polling agents who are 

influential and active in 

their areas so that they can 

go to the polling stations. 

Besides, they said, a group 

of their party leaders and 

activists will take position 

near polling stations to prevent 

the ouster of their 

party's polling agents and 

obstructing voters. 

Another group will visit 

the houses of party supporters 

to encourage female voters 

to go to voting centres. 

The BNP leaders said they 

have trained their polling 

agents and given them various 

directions about facing 

any unwarranted situation 

and check vote frauds. 

They also said the polling 

agents of their party backedcouncillor 

candidates are 

also given direction to work 

for mayoral candidates, if 

necessary. 

Contacted, BNP standing 

committee member 

Khandaker Mosharraf said 

the government is ready to 

hold the elections to 

Rajshahi, Sylhet and 

Barishal applying the 

Gazipur and Khulna-election 

model to ensure the victory 

of the ruling party candidates. 

"We'll try to resist their 

evil designs with our strategies 

and together with people," 

he added. 

BNP vice chairman 

Shamsuzzaman Dudu said 

they have a plan to put up a 

peaceful resistance together 

with people against vote rigging 

and election irregularities. 

"We'll apply some 

strategies, but we won't be 

able to fight with law 

enforcers as they have 

arms." 

He said if the elections are 

not held in a fair and credible 

manner, the true face of 

the current government and 

the EC will get exposed 

again before people just 

months before the national 

election. 

BNP senior joint secretary 

general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi 

said though there is no 'visible 

sign' of fair voting in the 

three cities, BNP candidates 

and supporters will remain 

out there in the field till the 

last moment of the polling. 

He said they fear that the 

ruling party will try to influence 

the polls by using the 

law enforcers. "If it happens, 

the Election Commission 

will have to be accountable 

to people." 

BNP joint secretary general 

Syed Moazzem Hossain 

Alal said police and the EC 

are the main opponents of 

BNP, not of Awami League, 

in the three city polls. "Our 

main concern is what will be 

the role of police and the EC. 

We've enough strength to 

tackle our political opponents. 

But it's difficult to 

fight law enforcers and state 

machinery." 

Sensing danger in polls, Quader trying 

to reach out to opponents: Mosharraf 

DHAKA : BNP senior leader Khandaker Mosharraf 

Hossain on Sunday said Awami League general secretary 

Obaidul Quader has got busy holding meetings with different 

political parties sensing danger in the next general election, 

reports UNB. 

"The Awami League general secretary has started roaming 

around as they are in danger (over the next polls). Even, he 

visited the homes of some politicians," he said. 

Mosharraf, a BNP standing committee member, came up 

with the remarks while speaking at a discussion arranged by 

Jatiyatabadi Nagorik Dal at the Jatiya Press Club. 

Obaidul Quader, also the Road Transport and Bridges 

Minister, recently visited the office of Communist Party of 

Bangladesh (CPB) and had a meeting with Krishak Sramik 

Janata League president Kader Siddiqui and ex-BNP leader 

barrister Nazmul Huda. 

The ruling party general secretary also hinted about talking 

to BNP secretary general over phone to discuss the election 

issue instead of holding any formal dialogue. 

Reacting to Quader's remark, Mosharraf said BNP secretary 

general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir will tell the AL 

leader about holding the election under a non-party neutral 

administration, dissolving parliament and deploying army if 

he phones or holds a meeting with him. "He (Fakhrul) has 

nothing to say about these issues, even if you (Quader) meet 

our secretary general at his home." 

Besides, the BNP leader said their party chairperson 

Khaleda Zia's release from jail and BNP's participation in the 

election are interlinked. 

He also warned that people will not accept any election in 

the country without the participation of the BNP chairperson. 

About three city polls scheduled to be held on Monday, 

Mosharraf said the government is set to hold the elections to 

Rajshahi, Sylhet and Barishal applying the Gazipur and 

Khulna-election model to ensure the victory of the ruling 

party candidates. 

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, Cell : 01832166882; Email: Editor : editor@thebangladeshtoday.com, Advertisement: ads@thebangladeshtoday.com, News: newsbangla@thebangladeshtoday.com, contact@thebangladeshtoday.com, website: www.thebangladeshtoday.com

30-07-2018

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