12-01-2022

WedneSdAy

DhAkA: January 12, 2022; Poush 28, 1428 BS; Jamadi-us Sani 8,1443 hijri

www.thebangladeshtoday.com; www.bangladeshtoday.net

Regd.No.DA~2065, Vol.19; N o. 252; 12 Pages~Tk.8.00

internAtionAl

EU ends omicron

travel ban on flights

from southern Africa

>Page 7

Covid in Bangladesh

Positivity rate rises

further to 8.97%

DHAKA : Bangladesh is seeing a continuous

rise in Covid-19 cases as 2,458 more

infections along with two more deaths

were reported in 24 hours till Tuesday

morning, reports UNB.

With the fresh cases reported after testing

27,709 samples, the daily positivity

rate jumped again to 8.97 per cent from

Monday's 8.53 per cent during the period,

according to the Directorate General

of Health Services (DGHS).

The country last logged 2,588 cases on

September 9, last year along with 58

deaths in 24 hours.

Bangladesh is currently seeing a surge

of Covid-19 cases as health authorities

logged 10,392 infections in the last 10

days since January 1.

The fresh numbers took the country's

total fatalities to 28,107 while the caseload

mounted to 15, 98, 389 on Tuesday.

The mortality rate remained unchanged

at 1.76 per cent during the period.

The recovery rate kept declining to

97.06 per cent with the recovery of 274

more patients during the 24-hour period.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh's total tally of

Omicron cases reached 30 with detection

of nine more cases on Monday, according

to GISAID, a global initiative on sharing

all influenza data.

On December 9 last year, Bangladesh

again logged zero Covid-related death

after nearly three weeks as the pandemic

was apparently showing signs of easing.

The country reported this year's first

zero Covid-related death in a single day

on November 20 last year along with 178

infections since the pandemic broke out

in Bangladesh in March 2020.

EU assures continued trade

benefits to Bangladesh

after LDC graduation

DHAKA : The European Union (EU) on

Tuesday assured to continue trade benefits

for Bangladesh even after graduation

from LDC, reports UNB.

The newly appointed EU ambassador

to Dhaka Charles Whiteley assured this

while meeting with Tapan Kanti Ghosh,

Senior Secretary, Ministry of Commerce,

at the secretariat office.

The meeting focused on bilateral interests

of trade development and comprehensive

cooperation, including expansion

of trade and commerce between

Bangladesh and the EU.

They also discussed regarding next

schedule of the European Union-

Bangladesh business climate dialogue,

diversification of Bangladesh's

export products, extension of GSP

benefits provided by EU for

Bangladesh; foreign investment in

Bangladesh's logistics sector; organizing

programs on capacity building,

e-commerce, environment, compliance,

market access, continuing

post-graduation cooperation from

LDC, etc.

EU Officials, additional secretaries of

the Commerce Ministry Md. Hafizur

Rahman (Export), Nur Mohammad

Mahbubul Haque (FTA), among others,

were present.

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SportS

Real Madrid dominance leaves

Barca hoping for Clasico upset

in Spanish Super Cup semia

>Page 9

Bangladesh to be governed

with Bangabandhu's

political ideology: PM

DHAKA : Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

on Tuesday said Bangladesh will be governed

as per the ideological speech of

Father of the Nation Bangabandhu

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman that he had

delivered on his historic Homecoming

Day in 1972, reports UNB.

"The Father of the Nation on his

Homecoming Day on January 10, 1972 delivered

his policymaking speech and ideological

directives for governing the country. We've to

go ahead with that ideology; we've to advance

the country with that. And the pace of development

in Bangladesh must not be stalled, no

matter what," she said.

Sheikh Hasina said this while addressing

a discussion meeting here, marking the historic

Homecoming Day of Father of the

Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur

Rahman. Awami League arranged the discussion

at its Bangabandhu Avenue central

office. AL President Sheikh Hasina

presided over the discussion, joining it from

her official residence Ganobhaban.

She said Awami League has been in

power for three consecutive terms elected

by people. "Had we not been elected

by people then we wouldn't be able to

come to power for three consecutive

terms and complete 13 years [in power].

This is the reality. This reality has to be

accepted," she said.

If AL remains in power, the wheels of

development will be moving, Hasina said,

adding that those who had made

Bangladesh a place of killers, war criminals

and corruption, there will be no place for

them in this land. "This (message) has to be

clearly conveyed to them."

The PM reaffirmed her stance that no

one will be allowed to play ducks and

drakes with the rights of people.

Recalling the tumultuous days during the

rule of Father of the Nation after independence,

she said some people had written

columns criticising the government of

Bangabandhu, or created the volatile situation

in the country in the name of a movement

or scientific socialism. "What did they

actually want to do? That's my question but

I didn't get the answer yet," she said.

Coming down heavily on a section of people,

she said, it is the habit of a class of people

to criticise all good works of Awami

League. "Those who never wanted the

Independence of the country, those who

had run the country taking killers and war

criminals with them and wanted to destroy

the development of Bangladesh, some of

their ghosts are still in society and in the

political arena. They're exercising these

unnecessary whims," she said.

Regarding the allegation of wasting

money in the name of development activities,

she said if thousands of crores of Taka

had been wasted in the name of development,

then how Bangladesh became the

role model of development in the world.

Train will carry half of

passengers

Safiqul iSlam (Jami)

The government has announced new

restrictions to prevent the spread of

Omicron, new variants of the epidemic

corona virus. Accordingly, Bangladesh

Railway has taken a new decision regarding

the sale of train tickets. From January 15,

half the passengers will be taken in each

intercity train. In other words, the railways

will sell half of the total number of seats. Of

the 50 per cent tickets, 25 per cent will be

available online and the remaining 25 per

cent at the counter. This information was

given in an order on Tuesday (January 11)

signed by Md. Nahid Hasan Khan Railway

Chief Commercial Manager (CCM-East

and West).

A circular has been issued by the government

restricting the overall activities and

movement to prevent the spread of corona

virus-borne diseases. It has instructions to

carry half the capacity of trains, buses and

launches.

In the case of operation of passenger

intercity trains, some amendments have

been made in ticket sales by ensuring social

distance and use of masks in the interest of

health safety of railway officials and passengers.

These are:

1. Half of the existing number of seats on

intercity trains will be sold to ensure social

distance of passengers.

2. Half of the reduced seats, or 25 percent

of the total number of seats, will be available

at the ticket counter. Tickets for the

remaining half of the seats, i.e. 25 percent of

the total number of seats, will be issued

through mobile app or online.

3. The sale of standing tickets for intercity

trains and station platform tickets will be

completely stopped. 4. According to the

emergency quota and manual approved by

the Ministry of Railways, all types of quotas

will be abolished in the sale of intercity train

tickets except quotas.

5. Passengers need to make sure to wear

masks when selling tickets at the counter

and traveling by train. 6. Catering services

will be provided on intercity trains and

night bedding will be provided in accordance

with the prevailing rules and strict

hygiene rules.

The order further said that the amendments

will be effective from January 15. In

this case, the ticket issued at different times

and other rules of hygiene will remain

unchanged.

the white stone tourist area of Bholaganj in Sylhet is a wonderful green land of natural beauty. the

Bholaganj border is surrounded by high mountains in the indian state of meghalaya. the beauty of

Bholaganj has been multiplied many times by the combination of green hills, cloud cover and white

stones coming down with the hilly slope of the monsoon. every day thousands of nature lovers come

to enjoy this beauty. the picture is taken on tuesday.

photo : Star mail

Engage all stakeholders

in formulating RMG

code of conduct: TIB

DHAKA : Transparency International

Bangladesh (TIB) on Tuesday welcomed

the initiative to frame a unified

code of conduct for the readymade garment

sector, jointly by Bangladesh

Garment Manufacturers and

Exporters Association (BGMEA) and

Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers

and Exporters Association (BKMEA),

reports UNB.

But the TIB suggested engagement

of all stakeholders including RMG

workers and labour bodies,

researchers and social organisations in

the process to formulate an effective

code of conduct, said a press release.

TIB Executive Director Dr

Iftekharuzzaman said the country's

apparel sector has largely been able to

overcome the image crisis created following

the Rana Plaza tragedy by ensuring a

safe work environment through joint

ventures of local and foreign bodies.

But still it needs to go far to accomplish

the desired progress in this sector,

he said.

"In this context, the joint initiative of

BGMEA and BKMEA, the two apex

organisations in the sector, for formulation

of a unified code of conduct is a timely

step," he said.

The TIB chief said if an integrated

code of conduct can be framed and

implemented with the participation of

all stakeholders, it will play a significant

role in ensuring a decent work

environment in this sector and simultaneously

it will set an example in the

world arena.

tom latham and

mominul Haque

shared the trophy

after a 1-1 series

result on tuesday.

photo: BCB

ArtS & Culture

'Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2'

makers dismiss reports

of Vidya's return

>Page 10

Overseas employment turns the

corner after Covid-induced slump

DHAKA : In an encouraging sign of normalcy

returning to the overseas labour

market for Bangladeshis, the number of

workers receiving immigration clearance in

a single month from the Bureau of

Manpower, Employment and Training

crossed 100,000 (1 lakh) last November,

reports UNB.

Only once before, in March 2017, had so

many workers (above 1 lakh) received

BMET clearance in a single month. But the

November figure gains far more significance

coming on the back of the post-Covid

lockdown slump witnessed in the international

labour market.

Shahidul Alam, Director General of BMET,

told UNB that 102,863 (1 lakh 2 thousand

63) workers were provided clearance to go

abroad in November 2021, by far the highest

in a single month since the start of the

pandemic.

According to BMET numbers, 35,732

workers were cleared to go abroad in

January 2021, followed by 49,510 in

February and 61,653 in March. However,

during the second wave of the pandemic in

the country, the number of migrating workers

decreased due to the reimposition of

lockdown in April, dropping to 34,145 and

then even further to 14,200 in May.

Although the number rose to 45,567 in

June, it slumped again to just 12,380 in

SportS DeSk

Despite a bold effort of Liton Das who

struck a counterattacking century,

Bangladesh failed to avoid an innings

defeat in the second and final Test at

Hagley Oval in Christchurch yesterday,

reports BSS.

A New Zealand victory was imminent

when Bangladesh were bowled out for 126

in the first innings, responding to the hosts

mammoth 521-6 declared.

Liton's second Test century, a 114 ball-

102, that included 14 fours and one six gave

Bangladesh a glimmer of hope to avoid the

45th innings defeat in 128 Tests. But New

Zealand's relentless bowling attack ruined

that possibility to clinch the Test by an

innings and 117 runs margin, wrapping up

Bangladesh's second innings for 278 in the

final session on the day three.

The victory inside three days helped the

home side draw the two-match series 1-1

and gave their legendary batter Ross Taylor

a winning farewell. It was Taylor's last Test

July and 19,604 in August.

Shahidul Alam said that the situation started

improving again after the lockdown was

gradually lifted in September. Some

42,000 workers were cleared to go abroad

in September, rising to 65,233 in October,

and culminating in the 'record' figure in

November.

In both October and November, the figure

rose by over 50% compared to the previous

month, driving a belief that Bangladesh

may have turned the corner when it comes

to the overseas labour market.

"Our labour market has recovered because

aviation with different countries has

become normal," Shahidul Alam said.

Out of the 485,895 workers who migrated

in the first 11 months of 2021, 370,014 - 76

percent of the total -went to Saudi Arabia.

Job opportunities have increased for

Bangladeshis in Saudi Arabia after the pandemic,

the DMET DG added.

Besides, 40,086 workers migrated to

Oman, 21,339 to Singapore, 14,274 to UAE,

11,845 to Jordan, 9,728 to Qatar and 936 to

Kuwait during the same period.

Shariful Hasan, head of the migration program

at development organisation BRAC,

told UNB that the employment of about

500,000 workers abroad in a year blighted

by the pandemic is certainly a positive

development.

Tigers taste innings defeat

despite Liton's valiant ton

in his illustrious career, which he made

even more memorable with the wicket of

Ebadot Hossain that brought an end to the

Bangladesh's innings.

In his 112 Tests, Taylor finished with

7623 runs, the highest for New Zealand and

took just three wickets. He had also 8581

runs in ODI and 1909 runs in T20 cricket.

He is one of the few batters in the world to

have played 100 plus International matches

in three formats of cricket.

However on day three, New Zealand had

little to ponder but to enforce follow-on on

Bangladesh as they were ahead of a gigantic

395 runs. Bangladesh openers this time started

patiently before Kyle Jamieson broke

through with the wicket of Shadman Islam

who made 21. Naim Sheikh who got a duck

on his debut innings played 98 balls for his 24

before Tim Southee had him caught by captain

Latham. Before that Neil Wagner

brought an end to Najmul Hossain Shanto's

promising knock, which included five fours

and one six as he made 29 off 36.

wEDnESDAY, jAnUArY 12, 2022

2

ESDO, Muslim Aid distributed

winter clothes in Tetulia

Muslim Aid-UK Bangladesh Field Office and Eco Social Development

Organization (ESDO) jointly distributed winter, hygiene packages and

cash among 323 extremely poor, widows, disabled and unemployed

people of Tetulia upazila of Panchagarh on Tuesday, a press release said.

The winter package includes 1 blanket, 1 children's sweater, 1 pair of

adult wool socks, 1 monkey hat, 1 Vaseline and 10 reusable face masks, 2

sanitary napkins, 5 soaps, 1 kg of detergent powder and 1 kg of detergent.

Besides, unconditional cash of Tk 3,000 was distributed to each of the

323 people and a total of Tk 9 lakh 69 thousand was distributed. Tentulia

Upazila Chairman Kazi Mahmudur Rahman was the chief guest at the

distribution function presided over by Tetulia Nirbahi Executive Officer

Sohag Chandra Saha.

During the time, Upazila Social Service Officer Md. Al Amin and

ESDO's APC Nirmal Majumder, ESDO Panchagarh Zone Zonal Manager

Anwar Hossain, Area Manager Nagendra Nath Roy, Branch Manager

Oliar Rahman and other senior officials and local dignitaries were

present on the occasion.

India logs 168,063 new

COVID-19 cases, total

rises to 35,875,790

NEW DELHI : India's COVID-19 tally rose

to 35,875,790 on Tuesday, as 168,063 new

cases were registered during the past 24

hours, showed the federal health

ministry's latest data.

It is the third consecutive day when

more than 150,000 new cases were

registered over 24 hours in the country,

which is also the first day when the newly

registered cases were lower than the

previous day over the past couple of weeks.

Besides, 277 deaths from the pandemic

since Monday morning took the total

death toll to 484,213. There are still

821,446 active COVID-19 cases

nationwide, despite a rise of 97,827 active

cases during the past 24 hours. This is the

14th consecutive day when the number of

active cases rose in the country.

Muslim Aid-UK Bangladesh Field Office and Eco Social Development Organization (ESDO) jointly

distributed winter, hygiene packages and cash among 323 extremely poor, widows, disabled and

unemployed people of Tetulia upazila of Panchagarh on Tuesday.

Photo: Courtesy

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92

COVID-19 death

number in U.S. likely

undercounted: expert

LONDON : The true

number of deaths from the

COVID-19 pandemic in the

United States is probably

being undercounted-many

deaths are not counted

because they happen

months after infection,

according to an insurance

company CEO.

"The deaths that are being

reported as covid deaths

greatly understate the actual

death losses among

working-age people from

the pandemic," The

Guardian quoted Scott

Davison, CEO of

OneAmerica, as saying.

Deaths from COVID-19

aftermath have been difficult

to track, since the virus may

no longer be present at the

time of death but had

weakened organs or created

fatal new ailments, the

newspaper said.

Meanwhile, an expert

predicted that some 5

million Americans could

skip work this week with

COVID-19, putting strain on

business and transport,

British newspaper Daily

Mail has reported.

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2022

3

A human chain was held in front of National Press Club yesterday demanding increase of age limit

to enter in government service.

Photo : TBT

With love from

China: 5k blankets

for destitutes in

Bangladesh

DHAKA : The Chinese

Embassy in Dhaka has

entrusted the Association of

Bangladesh China Alumni

(ABCA) with the job of

donating 5,000 blankets to

the destitutes living in the

cold-hit districts in

Bangladesh, reports UNB.

Yue Liwen, the Embassy's

cultural counsellor, and

Munshi Faiz Ahmed, the

president of ABCA and

former Bangladeshi

Ambassador to China,

attended the donation

ceremony held at the

Embassy recently, according

to a release.

For four days in a row

since January 7, the

representatives of ABCA

travelled thousands of miles

to the five northern and

southern districts of

Bangladesh, including

Kurigram, Rangpur,

Nilphamari, Satkhira and

Jhalokathi, and delivered

the blankets to the local

people.

60 arrested in DMP

anti-drug drive

DHAKA : Dhaka Metropolitan

Police (DMP) conducted antidrug

drives in different areas

of the capital and arrested 60

people on charges of selling

and consuming drugs in last

24 hours till 6:00 am on

Tuesday, reports UNB.

During the drives, 5744

pieces of contraband yaba

tablets, 259 grams heroin

(brawn sugar) and 1.865 kg

of cannabis were recovered

from the possessions of the

detainees.

As part of the DMP's

regular anti-drug drive,

Detective Branch (DB) and

local police stations raided

various ares in the capital

on Monday 6 am to 6 am

on Tuesday and recovered

drugs.

A total of 49 cases have

been registered with local

police stations against the

arrested people under the

Narcotics Control Act.

The detectives under the

DB ( Lalbagh division) has

arrested three people

identified as Mohammad

Roman Hasan alias Limon,

Parveen alias Halima and

Dil Bahar -along with

5,000 pieces yaba pills

from Bangladesh Bank

Colony area on Monday

night.

DB (Lalbagh Division)

Assistant Commissioner

Madhusudan Das said the

organized crime and car

theft prevention team

under the division arrested

them by conducting a raid

in Bangladesh Bank Colony

area at around 12:35 am

and recovered 5,000 pieces

of yaba pills from their

possessions.

He said the arrested

people used to collect yaba

tablets from Cox's Bazar

and sell it in Dhaka city and

its surrounding areas.

Dhaka is world's second-most

polluted city

DHAKA : The densely populated metropolis

continues to dominate the list of cities with

the worst air quality in the world, reports

UNB.

On Tuesday, Dhaka was ranked the world's

second-most polluted city, as its air quality

index (AQI) was recorded at 200 at 11am,

which is considered 'unhealthy'.

China's Wuhan occupied the top spot with

an AQI score of 218, while India's Kolkata

ranked third with an AQI of 193 in the latest

list of world cities with the worst air quality.

An AQI between 151 and 200 is said to be

'unhealthy' particularly for sensitive groups.

Active children and adults, particularly those

with respiratory diseases such as asthma are

usually advised to avoid all outdoor activities

in this situation. AQI, an index for reporting

daily air quality, is used by government

agencies to inform people how clean or

polluted the air of a certain city is, and what

associated health effects might be a concern

for them. In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on

five criteria pollutants-Particulate Matter

(PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and

Ozone. Dhaka has long been grappling with

air pollution issues. Its air quality usually

turns unhealthy during winter and improves

during monsoon.

A report by the Department of

Environment (DoE) and the World Bank in

March 2019 pointed out that the three main

sources of air pollution in Dhaka "are brick

kilns, fumes from vehicles and dust from

construction sites". With the advent of

winter, the city's air quality starts

deteriorating sharply due to the massive

discharge of pollutant particles from

construction works, rundown roads, brick

kilns and other sources.

Air pollution consistently ranks among the

top risk factors for death and disability

worldwide. Breathing polluted air has long

been recognised as increasing a person's

chances of developing heart disease, chronic

respiratory diseases, lung infections and

cancer, according to several studies.

As per the World Health Organization

(WHO), air pollution kills an estimated

seven million people worldwide every year,

largely as a result of increased mortality from

stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive

pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute

respiratory infections.

DU alumni centenary

reunion prog deferred

DHAKA : Dhaka University Alumni

Association (DUAA) has decided to defer its

centenary reunion programme in the wake

of the newly imposed restrictions over the

rising Omicron cases of Covid, reports UNB.

The decision to suspend the programme

slated for January 13 and 14 was taken as the

government has imposed restrictions on

public movement and other activities, the

association said in a statement.

When the Covid situation eases, the

programme will be scheduled again, it said.

On Monday, the Cabinet Division issued a

notification imposing restrictions to control

the Covid-19 spread that will take effect on

January 13. All kinds of public gatherings,

including social programmes, political and

religious events will remain suspended until

further notice, it said.

Besides, public transport services,

including buses, trains and launches, can

operate only at half of their capacities while

drivers and helpers of all modes of vehicles

should have Covid-19 vaccination

certificates, said the notice.

Bhutan keen on procuring

fertilizer from Bangladesh

DHAKA : Bhutan has expressed keenness in

procuring 2.5 to 3 thousand metric tonnes of

fertilizer from Bangladesh.

Bhutanese Ambassador in Dhaka Rinchen

Kuentsyl expressed the interest while paying

a courtesy call on Industries Minister Nurul

Majid Mahmud Humayun at his office in the

city, said a press release.

In his speech, Humayun thanked Bhutan

for its continues support during the

liberation war of Bangladesh and assured to

work together with the country (Bhutan).

Humayun said, "Bangladesh itself

imports fertilizers. However, as a friendly

country, arrangements will be made to

send the necessary fertilizers from

Karnaphuli Fertilizer Company Limited

(CAFCO) at international prices for

Bhutan."

To this end, he said, a Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU) will be signed soon

with the concerned authorities of

Bangladesh Chemical Industries

Corporation (BCIC) and Bhutan in

collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign

Affairs.

Among others, BCIC Chairman Shah M

Imdadul Haque, Additional Secretary of the

Industries Ministry S Alam and Director of

the South Asia Division of Ministry of

Foreign Affairs Sahab Bin Ahmed, were

present on the occasion.

Bhutan Ambassador to Bangladesh Rinchen Kuentsyl meet Industries

Minister Nurul Majid Humayun at the office room of the ministry

yesterday.

Photo : PID

President summons

16th session of 11th

JS on Jan 16

DHAKA : President M

Abdul Hamid has

summoned the 16th session

(also the first session of

2022) of the 11th Jatiya

Sangsad (JS) on January 16,

said a parliament release.

The session will begin at 4

pm on January 16 (Sunday)

at the Parliament Bhaban in

Sher-e-Bangla Nagar here.

The journalists have been

requested to cover the

parliament session from the

'Sangsad Bangladesh

Television' considering the

public interest under the

COVID-19 situation, it

added.

Speaker opens

screening of film

'Chiranjib Mujib'

DHAKA : Jatiya Sangsad

(JS) Speaker Dr Shirin

Sharmin Chaudhury

yesterday inaugurated the

screening of a full-length

autobiographical feature

film "Chiranjib Mujib" at JS

Bhaban LD Hall marking

the homecoming day of

Bangabandhu, reports BSS

She also enjoyed the

movie.

Chief Whip Noor-e-Alam

Chowdhury, Whips Iqbalur

Rahman, Shamsul Haque

Chowdhury and Abu Sayeed

Al Mahmud Swapan and

Parliament Members Club

General Secretary AB Tazul

Islam were present as the

special guests.

MPs and JS Secretariat

Secretary KM Abdus Salam

were also present.

The film is based on

Bangabandhu's

autobiography "Oshomapto

Attojiboni" and it is

dedicated to Father of the

Nation Bangabandhu

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's

daughters Prime Minister

Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh

Rehana. Prime Minister's

Speechwriter Md Nazrul

Islam directed the film.

Dengue: 3

new patients

hospitalised

in 24 hrs

DHAKA : Three more dengue

patients have been

hospitalised in Dhaka in 24

hours till Tuesday morning,

health authorities said,

reports UNB.

No new death was reported

during this period, according

to the Directorate General of

Health Services (DGHS).

The new three patients are

undergoing treatment at

different hospitals in Dhaka.

A total of 105 dengue

patients -- 95 in Dhaka

division alone, four in

Mymensingh, two each in

Chattogram and Khulna, and

one each in Rajshahi and

Barishal divisions-have died

so far since January, 2021.

Some 43 dengue patients

are receiving treatment in the

country as of Tuesday.

Of them, 27 are receiving

treatment at different

hospitals in the capital while

remaining 16 at hospitals

outside Dhaka.

This year, some 77 patients

have been admitted to

different hospitals with

dengue so far and 34 dengue

patients have left hospital

after recovery, said the DGHS.

Man crushed under

train in Chattogram

CHATTOGRAM : A 55-yearold

man was crushed under

the wheels of a train at

Bhatiari union in Sitakunda

upazila of Chattogram on

Tuesday.

The deceased was identified

as Abdul Matin Badol, a

resident of the union.

Locals said the engine of a

train hit Badol while he was

walking on the rail track at

College Para of the union in

the morning, leaving him

injured.

Missions aboard

observe Bangabandhu's

Homecoming Day

DHAKA : The homecoming day of Father of

the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur

Rahman was observed at Bangladesh

missions abroad with due fervor and

solemnity on Monday.

Marking the day, the Bangladesh Embassy

in Hanoi, Vietnam, Bangladesh High

Commission in Islamabad, Consulate

General of Bangladesh in Kunming, China

and the Bangladesh embassy in Tokyo,

Japan organised various programmes

including paying tributes to Bangabandhu

by placing wreaths at his portrait, offering

prayers, reading out the messages of the

President M Abdul Hamid and the Prime

Minister Sheikh Hasina, holding discussion

and screening documentaries on life and

works of Bangabandhu.

The Bangladesh embassy in Tokyo, Japan

began the ceremony at the Bangabandhu

auditorium of the mission by reading out

separate messages of President Abdul

Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,

marking the historic homecoming day of

Father of the Nation.

Later, at a discussion, speakers discussed

various features of Bangabandhu's

tremendous leadership in creating a nation

as well as his ideology and lifelong struggle

for establishing the right of mass people of

Bangladesh. Bangladesh High Commission

in Islamabad celebrated the homecoming

day of Bangabandhu with due solemnity.

An event was organised at the Chancery

Bhaban with the participation of all officers

of the High Commission as well as some

guests, said a press release here today.

It began with placing of floral wreaths at

the portrait of Father of the Nation by the

acting High Commissioner Mostofa Jamil

Khan and the presence of other officials of

the High Commission.

Messages from the President and the

Prime Minister, released on the occasion,

were read out by the officials of the Mission.

At the discussion, acting High

Commissioner paid rich tribute to the

memory of Father of the Nation

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

The homecoming day of Bangabandhu

was observed with due fervor and solemnity

at the Bangladesh Embassy in Hanoi,

Vietnam.

Bangladesh Ambassador to Vietnam

Samina Naz officially inaugurated the

celebration programme held on the mission

premises, said a press release here today.

Members of expatriate Bangladesh

community, officials and staff of the embassy

were present there.

Marking the day, messages from President

M Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh

Hasina were read out.

On the occasion, special prayers were

offered seeking eternal peace of the departed

souls of Bangabandhu and his family

members as well as prosperity of the nation.

Bangabandhu, the undisputed leader of

the nation and supreme commander of the

country's Liberation War, returned to the

sacred soil of independent Bangladesh via

London and New Delhi on January 10 in

1972, after 290 days of confinement in

Pakistani jail.

'Awareness raising training program for garment, domestic and migrant

workers in Bangladesh' organized a advocacy meeting at National Press

Club yesterday.

Photo : TBT

Malaysian govt wants

to cut out third parties

in foreign recruitment

DHAKA : The Malaysian government has

advised the employers not to make any

payment through intermediaries or third

parties for the purpose of speeding up the

application process as its Cabinet recently

approved the entry of foreign workers for all

employment sectors, reports UNB.

"This is to prevent fraud by irresponsible

parties," said Malaysian Minister for Human

Resources M. Saravanan in a media

statement on recruitment and employment

of foreign workers.

The Malaysian Minister also reminded

employers who want to employ foreign

workers to submit their own applications

and based on the actual needs for foreign

workers.

Employers who use the services of private

employment agencies must also ensure that

the agency is registered and has a license

certified by the Department of Manpower

Peninsular Malaysia under the Private

Employment Agencies Act 1981, according

to the statement.

The entry of foreign workers for all

employment sectors was approved by the

Malaysian Cabinet meeting on December 10,

last year.

This entry will be opened to all sectors

allowed for the employment of foreign

workers namely agriculture, manufacturing,

services, mining and quarrying, construction

and domestic servants.

Previously, approval was given for the

entry of 32,000 foreign workers for the

plantation sector with special exemptions.

All these admissions must comply with the

Standing Operating Procedure (SOP) for the

admission of foreign workers which was

approved by the COVID-19 Ministerial

Quartet Meeting on 14 December 2021,

according to the media statement.

This SOP includes four phases namely prerelease,

on arrival, post-arrival i.e.

quarantine and post-quarantine period.

Accordingly, the Minister will make an

announcement in the near future on the date

of applications that can be submitted by

employers online for the process of hiring

foreign workers for each sector of

employment allowed from the Source

Country.

Efforts underway to resume learning

centres at Rohingya camp: Unicef

DHAKA : Unicef has said all-out efforts are

underway from partners to ensure that the

learning centres in Cox's Bazar Rohingya

camp destroyed by a recent fire can be

resumed as early as possible, reports UNB.

"UNICEF also started repairing damaged

tube wells, latrines, bathing spaces and tapstands

in affected areas,"said UNICEF

Bangladesh Representative Sheldon Yett in a

statement on the recent fire in the Rohingya

refugee camp in Cox's Bazar.

Unicef thanked the local authorities, frontline

responders and all partners whose

tireless work brought the fire under control.

"We also remain vigilant to prevent further

risks for children in the area, child labour for

collection of debris and construction efforts,"

said Yett.

UNICEF is "deeply grieved" and stands in

support of the thousands of Rohingya

refugees affected by the fire that broke out in

the refugee camps on January 9 in Cox's

Bazar.

The fire that swept across Camp 16 burnt

down 300 shelters and damaged another

500, according to UNICEF.

WeDnesDay, January 12, 2022

4

Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam

e-mail: editor@thebangladeshtoday.com

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Check alarming rate

of deforestation

Scientists are sounding the alarm bells in Bangladesh as

forest loss reaches 90 percent, a figure they say will jump

to 100 percent if the country does not begin enforcing its

environment policies. recent official statistics claim that 17 per

cent of the country's land mass is forested. But experts expertly

say that this is an exaggerated figure. They say that under the

real pace of accelerated deforestation caused by unchecked

human intervention, Bangladesh is most unlikely to meet the

millennium development goals (MDG) of having at least 20 per

cent of its lands under forest cover by 2020,

"Deforestation has reached an alarming rate in recent years. If

no changes occur, Bangladesh will have no forest left," said Syed

Ajijur rahman, a Center for International Forestry research

scientist and coauthor of a new journal article titled extent and

Consequences of Tropical Forest Degradation : Successive

Policy Options for Bangladesh ."There are many good policies in

Bangladesh but they are not being carried out. They need to be

strengthened and better enforced."

he provides the example of the private forest ordinance

legislation, which was developed during the 1950s to provide

financial support for smallholder tree growers. "But this has not

yet been translated into action," he said.

Forest coverage in Bangladesh is at one of the lowest rates in

the world. A 2009 Food and Agricultural Organization report

shows that 6.7 percent of the country's surface area is covered by

forest, however weak environmental legislation and pressures of

a growing population results in the loss of 2,000 hectares of

forest per year. FAO also reported that the total volume of forest

decreased from 2.27 million meters squared in 1985 to nearly

0.650 million meters squared in 1996. It estimated that the

worst-affected forests of Bangladesh were the inland deciduous

Sal forests, with more than half being depleted. The trend of

deforestation is expertly and privately claimed to have only

increased and not reversed in the present decade.

The country's Sundarbans mangrove forests, the largest single

tract mangrove formation in the world, are also undergoing

accelerated deforestation, which is impacting on its ability to

provide important ecosystem services, for example, functioning

as a protective barrier against coastal erosion. The Sundarbans

are also home to many species of native flora and also animals,

including the endangered Bengal Tiger.

Bangladesh is one of the most flood-prone countries in the

world due to its location near the world's largest river delta, the

Ganges Delta, with its tributaries flowing into the Bay of Bengal.

eighty percent of the country's surface area are floodplains and

70 percent are less than 10 meters above sea level.

Deforestation and degradation on Bangladesh downstream

life results in frequent and heavy flooding and rapid siltation,

said rahman. The 1998 flood was recognized as one of the worst

in the world's recorded history, with two-thirds of the country

covered by water.

"This impacts on agricultural productivity as some common

crop varieties such as rice, wheat and corn, are not tolerant to

salinity, and flooding also affects people's livelihoods."

The report recommends inter-ministerial collaboration to help

deploy its forestry policies. It advises the government create an

inter-ministerial mitigation program composed of the Agriculture,

Forestry and Information ministries to get the ball rolling.

A program like this should prioritize its agroforestry policies,

rahman added. "The most effective way to reduce deforestation

is through agroforestry. It could bring 'win-win' solutions to

meet both environment and development objectives".

rahman said studies showed that systems such as

agroforestry were more beneficial in comparison to producing

only annual food crops or pasture, because agroforestry systems

could generate income from tree sales and carbon trading

programs, such as reducing emissions from deforestation and

degradation schemes.

he said that agroforestry was hindered by the sector's lack of

underlying structural components. "To implement

agroforestry in Bangladesh, we should focus first of all on

getting supportive factors in place such as banking regulations

and tenure rules," he advised, adding that capacity constraints

of farmers also needed addressing.

rahman suggests that the Forestry Ministry arrange training

programs for different agroforestry types such as home types,

where people plant and tend to trees around the home. "home

types are good because different types of plants - trees, shrubs,

herbaceous plants - can be grown in or adjacent to a home

compound," rahman said.

Another recommended type is cropland agroforestry.

"Practicing agroforestry in croplands, where most trees have

been deforested because of agricultural expansion following a

high rate of development, could regenerate trees."

The report says that intensive cultivation has caused the loss of

thousands of tons of nitrogen and other nutrients from the soil

annually. It is estimated that around 14,000 tons of commercial

fertilizers are needed to replace nutrients in eroded soil, with a

yearly value of approximately US$1.8 million.

The Information Ministry could work to update and distribute

accurate figures, the report says, as official statistics are still gravely

inaccurate and undermine the severity of deforestation in

Bangladesh, which prevents mitigation efforts from sufficiently

responding to the situation.

The research also calls for traditional institutions and the work of

NGOs to get involved. NGOs have proved successful in raising

awareness and promoting agroforestry or alternative farming

methods, rahman said. The NGO, Proshika - The Centre for human

Development, for example, aims to educate low-income people living

in rural areas about the socioeconomic benefits of collective,

sustainable farming with the aim to help people out of poverty.

The concept of

electronic learning

has been spreading

since the use of

electronic means to

address lessons in

the traditional

classrooms and the

use of multimedia in

the processes of

education and the quarterly self-education,

the construction of smart schools and virtual

classrooms that allow students to attend,

interact with lectures and seminars held in

other countries through Internet and

interactive technology. This modern

technique has entered all areas of daily life

and has actually become one of the greatest

areas of benefit of this ICT based education

revolution. In the early 1990s, the term e-

learning emerged as one of the uses of

technology in learning. Identify terminology

as a means of learning new communication

mechanisms: Computer Networks Content

Ports, research Tools, electronic Libraries,

Distance Learning, digital classroom,

multimedia classroom and classes through

the web, electronic learning is characterized

by speed and technology conversions and

human-mediated interactions. The electronic

learning as "a method of learning using

modern communication mechanisms of

computer and its networks and multimedia

of voice and image, drawings and

mechanisms of research, and electronic

offices, as well as Internet portals, either

remotely or in the classroom is important

and intended is the use of technology of all

kinds in the delivery of information to the

learner time, less effort and more useful. It is

an education that is provided electronically

through the internet, the internal networks,

or via multimedia such as CDs, DVDs, and

others. e-learning is defined as an approach

to teaching and learning, representing all or

part of the educational model applied, that is

based on the use of electronic media and

devices as tools for improving access to

training, communication and interaction,

and that facilitates the adoption of new ways

of understanding and developing learning.

Web based learning, Online learning,

Distributed learning, Computer-assisted

KAShMIr is in flames today. This is

not a characterisation of the

violence which has gripped it since

1989. It is far deeper than that. Kashmir

fears that the government of India headed

by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is out

to foist on Jammu and Kashmir a hindu

chief minister for the first time since 1947.

They are not wrong.

The door was opened wide by Mufti

Mohammed Sayeed in 1999, when,

spurning the offer of a coalition with

Omar Abdullah's National Conference, he

formed a coalition with the BJP. Narendra

Modi flew to Srinagar for the Mufti's oathtaking

and rudely snubbed him publicly

when, in his speech, the Mufti suggested

reconciliation with Pakistan. Mufti's

closest adviser, the former chairman of

the J&K Bank and then finance minister,

stitched up the accord in a lengthy

document, couched in the language of

American academia, which gave Kashmir

a rich dose of verbiage but not even a

token concession.

haseeb Drabu, a man for all seasons,

had one ram Madhav as his partner in the

prolonged parleys in, among other places,

Mumbai which has its own charms to

offer especially to the gullible. ram

Madhav was an rSS activist seconded to

Why is e-learning getting popular ?

Gazi mD. abDu rashiD

instruction, or Internet-based learning are

also used synonymously and interchangeably

for this type of learning.

There are several importance of e-learning.

The e-learning has made it much easier to

obtain and access the teacher as soon as

possible outside the official working hours,

because the trainee can now send his inquiries

to the teacher through e-mail, and this

advantage is more useful and appropriate for

the teacher rather than remain restricted to

his office. Increasing the possibility of

communication between students among

them, and between students and school:

Through the ease of communication between

these parties in several directions such as

discussion boards, e-mail, dialogue rooms.

These things increase and stimulate students

to participate and interact with the topics in

question. As the communication tools allow

every student the opportunity to express his

opinion at any time without embarrassment,

unlike the traditional classrooms that deprive

him of this feature either because of the poor

organization of the seats, or the weakness of

the student himself, or shame, or other

reasons, but this type of education provides a

full opportunity for students because they can

send their opinion and voice through available

communication tools from e-mail, discussion

boards and discussion rooms. This feature is

more useful for students who are afraid and

anxious because this method of education

makes students more daring to express their

ideas and find the facts more than they were

the traditional classroom. Online forums, such

as discussion boards and dialogue rooms,

provide opportunities for exchanging views on

topics that increase the chances of benefiting

from the ideas and suggestions presented and

integrating them with the views of the student,

a.G. noorani

which helps to form a solid foundation for the

learner, has strong knowledge, opinions

through the knowledge and skills acquired

through dialogue rooms. It is possible to

receive the scientific material in a way that

suits the student. Some of them are suitable

for the visual method. Some of them are

suitable for the audible or readable method.

Some of them correspond to the practical

method. e-learning and its sources allow the

possibility of applying the sources in many

different ways that allow modification

according to the best method for the trainee. e-

learning allows the learner to focus on

important ideas while writing and compiling

the lecture or lecture, and also allows students

who have difficulty concentrating and

organizing tasks benefit from the material

because they are arranged and coordinated in

an easy and good and important element in

There are several importance of e-learning. The e-learning

has made it much easier to obtain and access the teacher as

soon as possible outside the official working hours, because

the trainee can now send his inquiries to the teacher through

e-mail, and this advantage is more useful and appropriate for

the teacher rather than remain restricted to his office.

them. This is an added advantage for those

who learn in a practical way. Those who teach

through training, if they want to express their

ideas, put them in certain sentences, which

means they have repeated the information

they have been trained on, as students do

when they prepare for a particular exam. The

curriculum is available 24 hours a day, seven

days a week: This feature is useful for people

who are moody or want to learn at a certain

time, because some prefer to learn morning

and evening, as well as for those who bear

personal burdens and responsibilities, this

feature allows everyone to learn in a time that

suits them. This feature makes the student in

a stable state that he can get the information

he wants at the time that suits him, it is not

related to the opening and closing times of the

library, which leads to the student's comfort

and not being tired. The student must adhere

to a fixed, binding and binding schedule of

Kashmir concerns

the BJP. Under the deal the speaker of the

legislative assembly was to belong to the

BJP. Mufti's daughter Mehbooba stuck to

the accord even after her father's death. It

was cancelled much later.

By then, the BJP government in New

Delhi had done its sums and put its results

before parliament on Aug 5, 2019, shortly

after Modi gained a second-term in office

as prime minister in May 2019.

On Aug 5 came the constitutional

tsunami. Some drastic laws and policies

were implemented. July 13, Kashmir

Martyrs' Day, and Dec 5, Sheikh

Abdullah's birth anniversary, were

removed from the official calendar. Urdu

ceased to be the official language.

There came three cruel, dishonest and

brazenly unconstitutional decisions

announced in parliament on Aug 5, 2019.

They were 1) scrapping of Article 370 of

the constitution of India which was

designed to guarantee Kashmir's identity

and autonomy. Under the constitution,

India cannot take any decision on the

'final disposition' of Kashmir without its

consent. Its popular leader Sheikh

Abdullah voiced his protest in 1972 as

preparation for the Indira Gandhi-

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto summit at Shimla.

Kashmir was not even consulted he

angrily declared.

Kashmir's chief minister then was one

Ghulam Mohammed Sadiq, a bogus leftist

to the core. he was the one who brought

the Congress party to Kashmir and

became a congressman. In 1975, Sheikh

Sahib, now chief minister, revived his

National Conference to Indira Gandhi's

dismay. Since 2014, Narendra Modi set

about fulfilling the BJP's dream of the

'abrogation' of Article 370, which was also

Sadiq's dream. But Article 370 was by its

very terms unamendable by the

parliament of India. This was

constitutional hooliganism, which played

on India's growing hindu nationalistic

fervour. Next Ladakh was lopped off to be

directly ruled from New Delhi. Kashmir

continued its partnership constitution

with Jammu. This implied the centre's

amendment of Kashmir's constitution

which parliament had no power lawfully

to do. Kashmir is centrally ruled.

In February 2021, the separate J&K

cadres of India's civil service was

abolished. There are 58 civil service

officers and very few are Muslims. Of the

eight civil service officers from outside

only three are Muslims. Of the top 11

bureaucrats only one is a Muslim.

But the worst blow of Aug 5, 2019, was

collective action for traditional education, but

now it is no longer necessary because modern

technology has provided ways of

communication without having to be present

at a particular time and place so coordination

is not as important as the inconvenience.

Instant evaluation tools provided teachers

with a variety of ways to quickly and easily

build, distribute and classify information. The

provision of the time element is very useful

and important for both the teacher and the

learner. The student has immediate access to

the information in the specified place and

time, so there is no need to go from home to

the classroom, library or office. This saves the

time from loss, and the teacher can keep his

time from loss because it can send what the

student needs through the line of instant

communication. e-learning allows the teacher

to reduce administrative burdens that took a

lot of time in each lecture, such as receipt of

duties and other e-learning has been alleviated

from this burden, it has become possible to

send and receive all these things through

electronic tools with the possibility of knowing

receipt of these documents. e-learning

provides tools that analyze grades, results and

tests as well as the development of statistics

about them and also to send the files and

records of students to the related educational

institutions. The electronic learning is the

provision of educational content (electronic)

through the media based on the computer and

its networks to the recipient in such a way that

allows the possibility of active interaction with

this content and features and with its peers

only simultaneous or not synchronized and

the possibility of completing this learning in

time and place and at the speed that suits

conditions and abilities, as well as the

possibility of managing this learning also

through these media. The adoption of

electronic media such as computers and

networks in the delivery of information to the

recipient, allowing them to interact with this

content and with the teacher and his

peers/students so that this learning can be

managed through these smart/modern/ICT

based media.

The writer is a research officer at

the District Education Office

(Secondary), Munshiganj.

how internal recruitment influence employee performance

There are a range of advantages to

recruiting internally that can be

beneficial for both an organization

and its employees. It helps individuals

experience and enhance competitiveness

to make individuals more skillful and

efficient. It also helps the managers and

governing body and saves their valuable

time. It boosts motivation and gives

reliability upon the organization to be

promoted and awarded. So, here are some

of the key advantages are discussed:

Internal recruitment can result in a

more streamlined onboarding process,

saving time for both the employees and

the company. An existing staff member

may be able to start a new role quickly,

without having to give a long notice

period. They may also undergo a shorter

interview process than an external

candidate, particularly if they are known

to the hiring manager. recruiters can save

time that would be spent posting the job

advertisement and promoting it

externally, easing administrative burden

and improving efficiency.

Most of the organizations choose

internally recruitment because it costs a

company double or more to hire externally

than internally. This is because money is

spent advertising on job boards and via

other recruitment channels, as well as on

necessary hiring procedures such as

background checks. Training costs can be

reduced by doing internal recruitment.

When employees are given the ability to

move upwards in their careers and are

shown that management has a dedication

to promoting their existing employees, it

conveys the message that their work is

valued. Providing more opportunities for

career advancement, or even allowing

lateral movement to different same-level

positions that may interest employees,

can build stronger morale. even if they are

not promoted to a higher-level job,

employees who change roles develop

professionally, and their peers recognize

that they too may have similar

opportunities in the future.

Tanmoy Das

BY choosing internal recruitment, a

company highlights its commitment and

investment in their existing employees. It

enables them to retain top talent within

the organization, while also showing a

clear path of progression to staff

members. This investment in the

workforce can improve morale,

engagement and performance, therefore

providing positive benefits for the

organizations.

When it comes to internal recruitment,

employees know the applicants by nature.

They are familiar with their work

approach and know that there would not

be any culture clashes within the

company. On the other hand, a couple of

hours in an interview does not give

anyone the chance to know the candidate

well enough.

An internal candidate is well-equipped with

the organization's working practices, goals

and policies. Thus, they learn quicker and

offer important insights on how to bind all the

teams together as compared to a new hire.

external recruiting is both timeconsuming

and expensive. It includes tasks

like posting advertisements on portals,

sifting through the resume database and

performing background checks. On the

other hand, internal recruitment is a

surprisingly seamless process through the

company email address.

Looking through hundreds of resumes

is not required as well. hiring managers

can ask the heads of the department for

potential candidates. An existing

employee should be familiar with the

inner workings of the company-the

operations, processes and procedures that

are unique to the organization. They can

bring this experience to a new role, even if

it is in a different team or department. As

such, their learning curve will be shorter

than that of a newly hired employee, who

will need to be taught about the company

from the ground up.

(The writer is a student at the

North South University)

the law on the delimitation of

constituencies. It set up a delimitation

commission. The government appointed

a retired judge of the Bombay high Court

as chairman. On Dec 20, 2021, it revealed

a draft proposal recommending that the

number of assembly seats in Jammu be

increased from 37 to 43 and in Kashmir

from 46 to 47.

The main political parties in the region

feel that the draft proposal favours

Jammu over Muslim-majority Kashmir in

terms of electoral balance. As has been

reported by journalist Tariq Bhat, the

People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration

feels the commission has acted at the

BJP's behest and has disregarded

Kashmir's greater numbers as compared

to Jammu as per the 2011 census; a

calculation based on the census would

have resulted in 51 seats for Kashmir and

39 for Jammu, he pointed out. "There are

15 Muslim-majority seats in Jammu and if

their boundaries have been redrawn in a

manner that they cease to be Muslimmajority,

that will reduce the

representation of Muslims from Jammu

in the assembly."

(The writer is an author and a

lawyer based in Mumbai.)

WedNeSday, JaNuary 12, 2022

5

Natalie Parletta

Heart disease, an umbrella term for

conditions that impair blood flow

including stroke and vascular disease,

affects about 1.2 million Australians and

is one of the leading causes of death

worldwide.

Lifestyle factors, including exercise, are

important for heart disease prevention

and are vital for recovery. While exercise

can be daunting for fear of injury,

experiencing symptoms or having a heart

attack, Dr Angela Spence from Curtin

University says it can be done safely.

Getting it right could even be a life saver.

"When prescribed well, the benefits of

exercise for people with heart disease can

be extensive and include improved

quality of life, physical performance

[and] reduced risk of having another

event and developing additional

conditions," she says.

During a heart attack, heart rate and

blood pressure go up, explains accredited

exercise physiologist Bridget Nash. Heart

rate and blood pressure also go up when

exercising, so this will improve the body's

ability to handle that stress.

But when being active it's important to

focus on intensity, Nash adds, as

medications tend to interfere with heart

rate and blood pressure response.

Before undertaking any exercise

regimen or activity, consult your doctor

or physician. To strengthen the heart's

ability to handle high blood pressure and

heart rate, Nash recommends highintensity

interval training.

How to move: with heart conditions

"But when I say high-intensity interval

training, I don't mean anyone with a

heart condition should be signing up for

the nearest F45 class," she hastens to

add. Completing a 10-second effort at a

perceived exertion level of six to seven

out of 10, followed by 50 seconds of

complete rest and repeating a couple of

times, will hit the mark while allowing

the body to recover quickly. The easiest

way to do this is on a bike, Nash says.

If doing longer spurts of activity,

Spence recommends a lower intensity

level that feels light to moderate - around

two to four out of 10.

Cardio-based activity helps improve

blood flow around the heart, she says but

strength training is also important, as it

can build muscle as well as improving

self-confidence to perform activities of

daily living.

Nash agrees, saying: "The importance

of exercise is to increase the efficiency of

the muscles to de-load the heart. A strong

muscle is an efficient muscle."

Get out your dancing shoes! Nash is a

big fan of dance for a social class activity.

Not only can dancing be fun, but it can be

a safer option without the one-on-one

attention you might have with an

exercise physiologist.

"A dance class, ballroom, jive or tap

gets the heart rate up a little, but not an

Bike riding is an ideal way to do high-intensity interval training that strengthens the heart's

ability to handle high blood pressure.

Photo: Getty images

awful lot," she says. "And it's a great way

to build some strength along the way."

Water aerobics is also a good option,

says Spence. She describes a recent study

in which people with stable heart disease

who took part in a 12-week water-based

circuit exercise program (three 60-

minute sessions a week) improved their

fitness and leg strength while also

reducing body fat - a key risk factor for

heart disease.

The world's your oyster when it comes

to opportunities for free exercise, just by

increasing incidental activity. "Reducing

sedentary behaviours can be a great way

of incorporating more activity into your

day," says Spence, "simply by modifying

your habits."

To achieve current recommendations

for exercise in people with heart disease -

30 minutes of moderate intensity activity

on most, if not all, days of the week - try

breaking up time sitting down, listening

to podcasts or audiobooks while walking,

cleaning or gardening. Use active modes

of transport like getting off the bus one

stop earlier or parking the car further

away from the shops. Indeed, "walking

will always be one of the easiest, most

available and most affordable hearthealthy

exercises", Nash says.

t could be risky exercising at a

prolonged intensity rating of eight out of

10 without rest, Nash warns. She

suggests not starting any new exercise

without expert supervision and an

individually tailored program,

particularly if you have resting blood

pressure of 180/100 or higher. Heart

Research Australia recommends

consulting a health professional if

exercise feels uncomfortable or painful.

Are there any exercises to avoid? "Avoid

being inactive," says Spence.

Jamie WaterS

Dr Nate Zinsser, a top US army psychologist

renowned for helping lieutenants and officers

build their confidence, is giving me a talking-to.

We've been discussing highly disciplined writers

who sit at their desks at 9am each day, no matter

the circumstances, and assertively punch out

stories. "I definitely don't do that," I say,

remarking that I envy their confidence to sit and

deliver. An aggressive perfectionist streak

combined with niggling impostor syndrome

insecurities mean I need conditions to be just-so

in order to have faith that I'll produce anything

decent. Zinsser blanches.

"The statement 'I don't do that' is a decision

you're making about yourself," he says, speaking

over video call from his office at the US Military

Academy in upstate New York; behind him

there's a whiteboard, ornamental Japanese

swords and photos of athletes he's counselled,

including the Olympic-medal-winning US

men's bobsled team. "A constructive shift in

your thinking would be the idea that, 'Whether

or not I got the right amount of sleep the night

before or had a good breakfast, once 9 o'clock

strikes, I am at my desk, lights on, ready to go -

and I'm producing good stuff,'" he says. "That's

a belief about yourself that you can de-li-berate-ly

cultivate," he adds, stretching out each

syllable in "deliberately" so there can be no

question that in this matter, as in all selfconfidence-related

issues, change lies with me.

Delivered with a gentle assuredness, rather

than barked across the screen, it's not the tone

you might expect from a man who for 27 years

has directed the academy's performance

psychology programme. Indeed, the only thing

about him that screams "army" is his black

jacket, which has the word emblazoned in

capitals across its front. With his snow-white

beard and softly yawning New Jersey twang, the

67-year-old has a calm, almost paternalistic

presence. His brand of optimism is far more

reserved than the full-throttle enthusiasm often

associated with self-help gurus. "We don't live in

a world of sunshine and lollipops," as he puts it.

"We live in a real world of deadlines, sweat,

blisters and muscle fatigue, and we have to look

at what is a constructive way to think in those

situations."

In addition to his army duties, in his private

practice Zinsser has worked with a glittering

roster of clients, including neurosurgeons,

congressional candidates, ballerinas, writers

and star athletes, such as two-time Super Bowlwinning

quarterback Eli Manning. Whether

their arena is the surgical table or the running

track, they come to him for gamechanging

advice on how to dispel those pesky naysaying

voices in their head so that they can deliver

knockout performances under pressure. And

now he's distilled his knowledge into a book,

The Confident Mind: A Battle-Tested Guide to

Unshakable Performance.

I'm hoping to glean some tips from the famed

confidence-whisperer. While hardly a quivering

mess, I do have a habit of second-guessing

myself in parts of my professional - and social -

life. And the thought of public speaking sends

me into a cold sweat. The chance to smooth out

the chinks in my self-belief armour and come

away with a quarterback's swagger is tempting

to say the least.

But is it realistic? We tend to view confidence

as a magical elixir that's only available to

Olympic sprinters, CEOs and other creatures

blessed with rare talent, puffed-out chests and

Colgate-white teeth (plus, the odd blustering

buffoon). For most of us, being an adult means

having a PhD in our multitude of shortcomings,

foibles and crippling insecurities. And while I

can improve my fitness with a Peloton, and my

inner calm with meditation, surely I can't just

learn how to think highly of myself, can I? How

to be unflappable under pressure? How to

believe - with a surety that overrides any

lingering doubts - that I can be good at

anything?

In his poised, methodical way, Zinsser is here

to tell me that, if I doggedly commit to altering

the story I tell myself about myself, then yes: yes

I can.

First, some housekeeping: Zinsser wants to

straighten out some common misconceptions

around confidence - starting with how we define

How to learn the trick of confidence

Can suggestions from Nate Zinsser help gain wavering self-belief?

Photo: Pål Hansen

it. Although we tend to think of it as a sense of

belief in one's own ability, he finds this

unhelpful because it neglects a crucial fact: we

are hardwired to perform skills unconsciously.

When we're in the zone - whether during a

tennis match, maths exam or violin concerto -

we're not critically assessing each movement

but operating in a free-flowing state. "If you're

hung up with the mechanics, and trying to think

about what you're doing as you're doing it, you

access a whole lot of neural pathways that tie

you up," he says. He defines confidence, then, as

having "the sense of certainty about your ability

that allows you to do something without

thinking about it: that allows you to execute

more or less unconsciously."

Being in this state makes success possible, not

guaranteed. It won't conceal a lack of ability, but

it will enable you to go into a performance

thinking: "I've got this money in my wallet and

now I can spend it - let's see if I've got enough,"

he says. Without confidence, we'll never know

how good - how talented, how skilled - an

individual really is.

Zinsser doesn't particularly see confidence as

a product of genetics. Nor is it necessarily linked

to competence. Sure, we idolise superstar

athletes whose talent and bravado seem to go

hand-in-hand, but he comes across just as many

gifted people lacking self-belief. "The

unfortunate fact I have seen is that our actual

competence is higher than our degree of

confidence in it," he says, speaking about the

population generally. "It's the conclusion you

draw about yourself from experiences of success

[that breeds confidence]," he says. "Unless you

make those conclusions, the actual success that

you have might not do you any good."

He believes confidence is cultivated during

childhood - "how you were encouraged as a

young person to think about yourself" - and cites

as an example King Richard, the recent biopic

showing Richard Williams constantly telling his

daughters Serena and Venus that they were

destined to become the world's best tennis

players.

Can anyone become more confident or is it

only attainable for certain individuals? He

pauses for a few beats, chewing over his words.

"I think it's quite possible for anyone to develop

a greater sense of certainty," he says, eventually.

"Some people might have to overcome more

baggage from their past than others, but I'm

quite a believer in that kind of human potential."

In any event, there's no such thing as "a

confident person"; it's more that you're

confident in a particular skill or situation (and

even within a skill, you'll feel better about some

things than others). Case in point: Eli Manning.

The former NFL superstar, who twice led the

New York Giants to Super Bowl triumphs, "was

very confident in his ability to throw certain

balls and reach certain defences, but he did not

like to stand up and talk in front of a crowd,"

says Zinsser. "I'm convinced that's the case for

all of us: I don't think there's anybody who's

confident across the board."

"Have you ever produced good work in

suboptimal conditions?" asks Zinsser

rhetorically. We're back to helping me forge a

bulletproof writing mindset. "I would think so,"

he continues, "otherwise, you wouldn't be in the

job you're in. So what you need to be

reinforcing, a story that you need to tell yourself

about yourself, is: 'I work well, despite

distractions. I work well, in almost any

condition. My editor can count on me to deliver

quality work, even when things are chaotic

around me.'"

This rather simple reframing of how I view

myself feels pretty significant. And I put it into

immediate practice: in a meta situation, I'm

writing this article from a cramped plane seat en

route to Australia, a series of pre-flight texts

from my editor demanding reassurance that I

will be able to deliver words by the deadline still

warming my phone. With each blood-curdling

wail from a baby in a nearby bassinet, I repeat

my new mantra about myself with an

increasingly feverish vigour.

Yet there's much more to be done. Zinsser

likens confidence to a mental "bank account"

that we must constantly top up with valuable

deposits. That includes mining our memories

for instances of when we have done things well.

After each training session, or day at work, we

should devote about five minutes to reflecting

on things we have accomplished and

committing them to our "internal hard drive".

No victory is too small for inclusion. (He also

notes that it's worth spending time looking

ahead and envisioning, in realistic HD-film

quality, the dreams you most desire.)

This can apply to whatever knee-knocking

situation is keeping you up. Plagued with

impostor-syndrome thoughts of not being

qualified to do your job? "I'd tell you to give me

the whole of your résumé," says Zinsser. "We're

so good at overlooking the skills that we have

cultivated, the effort that we have put in to

develop ourselves to the point where we are

indeed employable and competent. Look for

some of the reasons that you are indeed the

genuine person for the job."

His book contains countless tactics for

keeping that bank account fat by recasting how

you think about your missteps. Some are

sourced from Martin Seligman, the father of

"positive psychology". These acknowledge that

you will have negative thoughts and will make

mistakes, but you can effectively see them off by

viewing them as "temporary ("It's just this one

time"), limited ("It's just in this one place") and

non-representative ("that's not the truth about

me"). There are physical techniques, too:

keeping your shoulders slightly back and eyes

straight ahead will improve your posture, while

focusing on breathing during a performance can

be a powerful way to bring a feeling of control

and yank you into the present moment. (Note

that none of these require you to obnoxiously

strut about like The Wolf of Wall Street.)

The most extreme example of selective

thinking, the "shooter's mentality" pursued by

Golden State Warriors basketballer Stephen

Curry, involves treating missed shots as

temporary and as an omen that you're about to

experience a return to fortune ("I'm bound to

make the next one"), while viewing successes as

permanent ("Now I'm on a roll").

One nagging thought I had while reading

these passages: building confidence often

requires you to ignore logic. This took me back

to the late 2000s when, as a tennis-obsessed

teen who travelled around Australia competing

in tournaments, my on-court confidence was

fragile at best. If my warmup went badly, I was

convinced the whole match would be a disaster.

And I couldn't get my head into the game if I had

assessed, pre-encounter, that my opponent was

better than me - smoother technique, bigger

shots, flashy overseas academy training. In

those instances, I was defeated before the match

started. As often happens when we enter a

situation devoid of confidence, it became a selffulling

prophecy.

If someone had told me about the shooter's

mentality, which Zinsser calls a "thermonuclear

psychological weapon", I would've said: "Great,

but how am I actually meant to believe these

things?" To cast aside all reason and buy into a

fantasyland where errors lead to success and

success also leads to success?

If I'm being honest it sounds slightly

delusional, I tell Zinsser now. It is, he replies.

But the way to wholeheartedly believe in it is to

practise it, repeating these mantras, memories

and mental tricks until the story they tell

becomes "your dominant way of thinking about

yourself in that context", he says. "It's got to

become your dominant habit of thinking about

yourself - just like you brush your teeth every

morning and night - if you want it to materialise

in a challenging atmosphere. You can't just turn

it on. It has to be already in you." He can't say

how long this could take: for some clients it's

happened after only a few sessions, while for

others it has taken six months of conscientious

observance before it became endemic to their

thinking.

In case confidence wasn't slippery enough,

once you have gained it, the struggle continues.

"We're all imperfect beings and, no matter how

many times you practise that second serve,

occasionally you're going to mess it up," says

Zinsser. Confidence is more delicate than a

handblown vase. Acquiring some of it "doesn't

mean you're going to have it for ever. It can

easily be knocked down. You're going to have to

wake up again tomorrow and rebuild it."

Talk of confidence has been around for as long

as humans have been going into battle. Zinsser's

book opens with a quote from the legendary

Chinese general Sun Tzu who, in his fifthcentury

BC treatise The Art of War, declared:

"Victorious warriors win first and then go to

war, while defeated warriors go to war first and

then seek to win."

Yet now, perhaps more than ever, individuals

need to embrace self-assured thinking. Modern

society is, at best, "very ambivalent" about

confidence and is not about to puff us up, says

Zinsser. Growing up, we're taught that a

soupçon of it is good; any more and we risk

becoming smug or arrogant and therefore

unlikable. Zinsser believes the biggest hurdle to

striving for greater confidence is "the misguided

impression that if I become certain about

myself, I will somehow become lazy and

complacent and I will lose my fire and

motivation to improve," he says. "Boy, is that a

big misconception."

As part of our education and socialisation,

we're taught to focus on fixing imperfections

and mistakes, marking every facet of our lives

with red pens. "There is a curious tendency in

our modern world to over-identify with our

shortcomings and even define ourselves by our

mistakes, presumed limitations, and all the

things we can't yet do," writes Zinsser. While he

admits that there's a time for being a harsh

critic, "there's also just as much value in being

one's best friend".

Social media hasn't helped the cause. "The

24/7, nonstop barrage of messages are always

putting these somewhat false images in front of

us: 'Look at me, at this place, enjoying this

wonderful day and this fabulous drink," he says.

"It tends to make us think, 'Well, gee, I'm not in

a beautiful location with a beautiful someone

enjoying a beautiful drink. What's wrong with

me?'"

Are we less confident than previous

generations? There's another long, reflective

pause from Zinsser. In the 1950s and 1960s, he

says, "There was a whole generation or two of

folks who really grew up believing, 'Things can

be better, I can have a great life, I can succeed.

Today, with the generation that's grown up

online, I'm not sure there's the same general

level of optimism," he says. "My sense is that

maybe we're not quite as confident and

optimistic now."

A few minutes

of joy before

starting work

StePHaNie CoNvery

"If it's your job to eat a frog, you'd better do it first

thing in the morning" is a bit of wisdom

attributed to Mark Twain that has inspired

many an entrepreneurial go-getter. But in my 37

years of endeavour, procrastination, discipline

and punishment, one thing I have learned is that

even the worst days are infinitely better if you

start them not by swallowing the frog, but by

being just a little bit kind to yourself.

Consider: which activities bring you joy?

What's your idea of bliss or comfort? What do

you do to feel most like yourself? Now, imagine:

what if that blissful, comforting, singular joy was

the thing you woke up to?

Maybe your joy is having a bubble bath. What

if you started having them first thing in the

morning, in the quiet, before anyone else in the

house was awake? Maybe it's lying on the couch,

reading a poem. What if you did that with your

coffee in the morning sun? Maybe it's listening

to your favourite heavy metal song at earsplitting

volume. Maybe it's sketching, or

throwing a stick for the dog, or staying in bed,

doing other bedtime things.

I think many of us are doing mornings all

wrong. We've been telling ourselves that

because they so often involve gruel and grind,

this is what they must always be. But that is kind

of the point, because even with the tightest

schedule and the most soul-destroying list of

tasks to accomplish, it's all the more difficult and

important to tend to your soul - to make time for

your own desires, joys, pleasures.

My advice is: do that first. Very first. For five

minutes, if that's all you have.

My joys are fairly small, like reading a good

novel and knitting, sometimes both at once.

Frequently, now, these are the first things I do

when I wake up. Even on workdays. Especially

on workdays. Sometimes I get up earlier so I can

do them - it's the closest I get to the childlike joy

of knowing when I open my eyes there will be a

treat under the tree. Yes, I know the frog is

waiting - maybe a whole pond of them - but it's

so much easier to get out of bed knowing that

between the frog and me sits a little slice of pure

joy.

Consider: what activities bring you

joy?

Photo: Collected

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2022 6

Shapla Mohila Sangha distributed food items among 1260 helpless women and 260 children of Daulatdia

brothel of Goalundo upazila recently.

Photo: Akheruzzaman Mridha

shapla Mohila sangha distributes

food items in goalundo

aKhTerUZZaMan Mridha, goalUndo CorresPondenT

distribution of various food items was

held on sunday (january 9) afternoon

among 1260 helpless women and 260

children of daulatdia brothel of

goalundo upazila. These food items are

distributed on behalf of shapla Mohila

sangha, a private development

organization.

Chanchala Mandal, executive

director of shapla Mohila sangha

chaired the occasion while Ziaur

rahman moderated the occasion.

Mustard fields

wear eye catching

looks in gaibandha

gaiBandha: Mustard

fields, which are now in full

bloom in the vast tracts of

land in the district, have

already worn eye catching

yellow looks to all with an

expectation of bumper

production against the crop,

reports Bss.

according to sources the

cultivation of mustard has

gained much popularity to the

farmers of the district in

recent years for getting

desired production and fair

prices of the crop.

department of agriculture

extension (dae) office

sources said a total of 9460

hectares of land of all the

seven upazilas of the district

were brought under the

mustard farming during the

current season.

of the total, some 855

hectares of land were

cultivated in sadar Upazila,

1250 in sadullapur Upazila,

850 in Palashbari Upazila,

4150 in gobindaganj Upazila,

1330 in sundarganj Upazila,

735in saghata Upazila and

290in fulchhari Upazila in

the district.

now, the farmers are so

much busy to nurture the

mustard field as per the

directions of the field level sub

assistant agriculture officials

to get desired production

against the crop.

sub assistant agriculture

officer who worked in field

level said the farmers of the

district had been showing

more interest in cultivating

mustard in recent years after

getting repeated bumper

production and better prices

of the robi crop.

district Training officer of

dae dr. rezaul islam said

favorable climatic condition,

proper distribution of high

quality seed, timely supply of

fertilizers and other agri

inputs to the growers and less

pest attacks in the field are the

reasons behind the

expectation.

Meanwhile, the commercial

banks including rajshahi

Krishi Unnayan Bank also

disbursed soft loan to the

growers during the season to

boost production of the crop,

bank sources said.

Talking to the Bss deputy

director of dae Md. Belal

Uddin said the lands owned

by marginal farmers were also

brought under this cultivation

this year to help them earn

economic benefit from the

crop.

during the time, goalundo Upazila

nirbahi officer (Uno) azizul haque

Khan Mamun, goalundo Municipality

Mayor Md. nazrul islam Mandal,

goalundo ghat Police station officerin-Charge

(oC) swapan Kumar

Majumder, daulatdia Union Parishad

Chairman abdur rahman Mandal,

goalundo Upazila awami league

joint-secretary Mohammad ali

Mollah, daulatdia Union awami

league President Mosharraf Pramanik

were among others also present at the

iCU ambulance provided by india

will play a pivotal role in healthcare

in sunamganj: niraj Kumar

sUnaMganj CorresPondenT

assistant high Commissioner of the indian

embassy niraj Kumar jaiswal said that the

district of haor is sunamganj so the people

of this district are very hardworking. Being a

district of haor, the quality of health care in

sunamganj is not very good. however, the

government of india today handed over the

keys of an iCU ambulance to sunamganj

Municipality Mayor nader Bakht on behalf

of the government of india. hopefully, this

iCU ambulance will play a role in the health

care of sunamganj.

This was stated by assistant high

Commissioner of the indian embassy niraj

Kumar jaiswal while addressing as a special

guest at the handing over of keys of an iCU

ambulance provided by the government of

india to the people of sunamganj at a

discussion meeting organized by sunamganj

Municipality on Tuesday afternoon.

Planning Minister Ma Mannan MP

addressed the discussion as the chief guest in

the virtual meeting chaired by sunamganj

Municipality Mayor nader Bakht and

moderated by journalist Pankaj Kanti dey.

during the time, sunamganj district

awami league Vice-President and Member

of Parliament for sunamganj-5 Mahibur

rahman Manik, second secretary to the

indian high Commissioner Tg ramesh,

additional deputy Commissioner (general)

asim Chandra Banik, additional

superintendent of Police (Crime) Md. abu

saeed, Civil surgeon dr. shams Uddin,

former civil surgeon heroic freedom fighter.

abdul hekim, Tahirpur Upazila Parishad

Chairman Karuna sindhu Chowdhury

Babul, jamalganj Upazila Parishad

Chairman iqbal al azad, educationist Babu

dhurjuti Kumar Basu, sunamganj

government College former principal

occasion.

The distribution program was held at

daulatdia railway station shahid Minar

premises. at the occasion, food items

were distributed to 1260 women at a

rate of 25 kg each with a sack of rice, 6

kg potatoes, 5 kg pulses, 1 kg salt, 1 liter

soybean oil, 5 soaps and 1 mask each.

Besides, 4 packets of biscuits, 1 kg of

sugar, one packet of powdered milk

weighing 250 grams and two packets of

semolina weighing 500 grams were

given to 260 children.

Assistant High Commissioner of the Indian Embassy Niraj Kumar Jaiswal

handed over the keys of an ICU ambulance provided by the Government of

India to the people of Sunamganj at a discussion meeting organized by

Sunamganj Municipality on Tuesday afternoon.

TBT photo

Parimal Kanti dey were among others also

present at the occasion.

56 more test positive for

Covid-19 in rajshahi

rajshahi: fifty six more people have tested

positive for Covid-19 in the division on Monday,

taking the caseload to 1,00,123 since the

pandemic began in March, 2020, reports Bss.

The new positive cases are showing a rising

trend compared to the previous day's figure of

31, said dr habibul ahsan Talukder, divisional

director of health.

Meanwhile, the recovery count rose to

96,403 in the division after 20 patients were

discharged from the hospitals on the same day.

The death toll remained steady at 1,693,

including 688 in Bogura, 327 in rajshahi with

209 in its city and 175 in natore as no new

fatality was reported during the past 24 hours,

dr Talukder added. Besides, all the positive

cases of Covid-19 have, so far, been brought

under necessary treatment while 23,239 were

kept in isolation units of different dedicated

hospitals for institutional quarantine. of them,

20,006 have been released.

Meanwhile, 25 more people have been sent

to home and institutional quarantine afresh

while 22 others were released from isolation

during the same time.

of the 56 new cases, 23 were detected in

rajshahi city, followed by nine in Pabna, seven

in natore, six each in naogaon and Bogura,

four in joypurhat and one in sirajganj districts.

With the newly detected patients, the

district-wise break-up of the total cases now

stands at 28,493 in rajshahi including 23,048

in its city, 5,690 in Chapainawabganj, 6,483 in

naogaon, 8,484 in natore, 4,769 in joypurhat,

21,856 in Bogura, 11,448 in sirajganj and

12,8900 in Pabna.

TCB continues

selling essentials in

rangpur division

rangPUr: Trading

Corporation of Bangladesh

(TCB) continues open market

sales of essential commodities

at fair price through its 283

authorized dealers benefiting

the low-income group and

common people in seven

districts of rangpur division,

reports Bss.

officials at rangpur

regional TCB office today said

the dealers are selling sugar at

Taka 55 per kg, bottled soyabean

oil at Taka 110 per liter,

lentil Taka 60 per kg and

onion at Taka 30 per kg under

the program. "The

government is selling

essential commodities aiming

at keeping prices of those

under control and assisting

common people in getting

those at fair prices," said

rangpur regional office

Chief of TCB Pratap Kumar.

a total of 283 TCB dealers

have been appointed for

selling essentials in seven

districts of rangpur,

dinajpur, Panchagarh,

Thakurgaon, nilphamari,

Kurigram and lalmonirhat in

rangpur division. of them,

146 TCB authorized dealers

are selling the essential

commodities in rotation in

rangpur district, including 27

are selling the same in

rangpur city and 119 in seven

upazilas of the district.

Besides, 41 TCB authorized

dealers are selling the

essential commodities in

Kurigram, 26 in dinajpur, 25

in lalmonirhat, 20 in

nilphamari, 13 in Thakurgaon

and 12 in Panchagarh

districts. "among the total

283 dealers, 20 are selling the

essential commodities daily

on a rotation basis, including

six in rangpur city and 14

others at upazila levels in

seven districts," Pratap said.

Two-day long

science fair

inaugurated

in Morrelganj

M Palash sharif, Morrelganj

CorresPondenT

The 43rd national

science and Technology

Week and science fair

was inaugurated at

Morrelganj in Bagerhat

on Tuesday noon. The fair

was inaugurated by the

Upazila Chairman adv.

shah-e-alam Bacchu.

assistant

Commissioner (land) Md

ali hasan chaired the

occasion while among

others, Upazila Mohila

Vice Chairman fahima

Khanam, district Council

Member Professor afroza

akter lina, academic

supervisor of the

department of secondary

education Md Baki

Billah, iCT officer Tridip

das, Md ashfaq alam and

asilaha Pilot high school

headmaster Md abdur

Malek were also present

at the occasion. This time

33 educational

institutions of science

have participated.

over 13.08-lakh tonnes

onion production expected

in rajshahi division

rajshahi: over 13.09

lakh tonnes of onion is

expected to be produced

from around 90,430

hectares of land in all eight

districts of the division

during the ongoing rabi

season, reports Bss.

The department of

agricultural extension

(dae) has set a target of

producing around 4.95 lakh

tonnes of the cooking

ingredient from 31,430

hectares of land in four

districts of rajshahi

agricultural Zone, while 8.13

lakh tonnes from 59,000

hectares in four other

districts of Bogura Zone.

The dae has already

intensified steps for

enhancing onion production

through encouraging the

farmers to cultivate it for

fulfilling the country's

demand.

sirajul islam, additional

director of dae, said the

grassroots farmers are being

given ideas and modern

knowledge to get good yield

through the best

management of fertilizer,

irrigation and pesticides.

simultaneously, the

farmers are also seen

showing their interests in

onion farming side by side

with paddy, wheat, maize

and winter vegetables amid

massive demand and

exorbitant price of the spice

crop in the present market.

agriculturist islam said

around 9,000 farmers were

given seeds and fertilizers

The 43rd National Science and Technology Week and Science Fair was inaugurated

at Morrelganj in Bagerhat on Tuesday noon.

Photo: M Palash Sharif

View exchange meeting held at

nangla UP of Melandaha Upazila

rUhUl aMin raZU, Melandaha CorresPondenT

The newly elected chairman of nangla Union

Parishad no. 04 of Melandaha Upazila of

jamalpur, reserved women members and

general members held a view exchange

meeting in observance of taking

responsibilities with the participation of

esteemed dignitaries of the area on Tuesday.

The meeting was presided over by the newly

elected Chairman of the Union Parishad (4

times)and Melandaha Bazar Banik samiti

worth around Taka 25.12

crore as incentives for onion

farming on 9,000 bighas of

land in the division under

the current rabi season's

agricultural incentive

programme.

each of the farmers was

given the support for onion

farming on ten decimals of

land.

Meanwhile, the farmers

are seen bustling with

transplanting seedlings of

summer onion everywhere

in the region with the hope

of satisfactory yield and

market price.

sub assistant agriculture

officer atanu sarker told

Bss that around sixty

percent transplantation has

been completed so far.

Many other farmers are

also seen very busy with

harvesting and marketing of

the tuber onion at present.

Currently, both the

wholesale and retail markets

are abundant with the newly

harvested tuber onion

reducing the price hike of

the cooking ingredient.

The onion is being sold at

Taka 35 to 40 per kilogram

in retail markets at present.

around 21,000 hectares of

land were brought under the

tuber onion cultivation in

the division this year.

nurul islam, 46, a farmer

of Mathura village under

Bagmara Upazila, said he

cultivated onion on two

bighas of land this year. he

got lucrative prices for the

crops in the past couple of

months.

in rajshahi, onion of

Tahirpur variety is very

much popular in the region

as most of the farmers

cultivate it for a long time,

Moyez Uddin, another

farmer of ghasigram village

under Mohanpur Upazila,

said.

Mijanur rahman, 45, a

farmer of Krishnapur village

under Tanore Upazila, said

there is a bright prospect of

bringing more acreage

under onion farming in the

Barind region as the farmers

are very much interested to

cultivate the crop for its less

water consuming feature.

rahman said he is very

happy cultivating various

less-water consuming crops

like onions.

"i had to face many

troubles to manage

irrigation water for boro

cultivation," he said. But, the

cultivation of water-saving

crops is suitable for the

farmers of the area, he

added.

Upazila agriculture

officer shamimul islam said

onion farming spreads this

year than previous year.

Various government and

non-government entities

including Barind

Multipurpose development

authority (BMda) have

been conducting different

motivational programmes

among the farmers to

promote the water-saving

crops in the drought-prone

Barind area.

President Upazila scouts Commissioner

valiant freedom fighter Kismat Pasha. during

the time, revolutionary President of Upazila

Muktijoddha Command sM Mosharraf

hossain Prince and the Vice President of the

Upazila Muktijoddha sontan Command

Muktijoddha sontan jahangir alam, Mujibur

rahman (Madhu Master), abdus samad

Mandal, abdus samad (Chan Member) and

Mosharraf hossain and others. at that time

reserved women members and general

members of the Union Parishad were present.

The newly elected chairman of Nangla Union Parishad No. 04 of Melandaha Upazila of

Jamalpur, reserved women members and general members held a view exchange meeting in

observance of taking responsibilities on Tuesday.

Photo: Ruhul Amin Razu

In a medical first, doctors transplanted a pig heart into a patient in a last-ditch

effort to save his life and a Maryland hospital said Monday that he's doing well

three days after the highly experimental surgery.

Photo : AP

GD-72/22 (5x3)

GD-62/22 (10x3)

i

EU ends omicron travel ban on

flights from southern Africa

BRUSSELS : The European Union ended travel restrictions

on flights from southern Africa on Monday well over a month

after imposing them to in hopes of containing the spread of

the omicron variant of the coronavirus, reports UNB.

The highly contagious variant was first discovered in

southern Africa in late November and the 27-nation bloc

restricted travel for visitors from that region, where the

variant brought on a sudden surge of infections.

Omicron has since become the dominant variant and is

responsible in the EU and many other nations for a

unprecedent increase in infections. That made the travel ban

from southern Africa a moot point.

The French EU presidency announced Monday that the 27

member states agreed "to lift the emergency break to allow

air travel to resume with southern African countries."

It insisted that travelers from South Africa and neighboring

countries will still be subject to the other health measures on

vaccinations and recovery from the disease that other thirdnation

visitors also face.

N. Korea fires possible

missile into sea amid

stalled talks

SEOUL : North Korea on Tuesday fired what appeared to be

a ballistic missile into its eastern sea, its second weapons

launch in a week, the militaries of South Korea and Japan

said.

This month's launches follow a series of weapons tests in

2021 that underscored how North Korea continues to expand

its military capabilities during a self-imposed pandemic

lockdown and deadlocked nuclear talks with the United

States.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korea likely

fired a single ballistic missile from an inland area to its

eastern sea, and that the South Korean and U.S. militaries

were analyzing the launch. It didn't immediately say how far

the weapon flew.

Japan's Prime Minister's Office and Defense Ministry also

said the weapon was possibly a ballistic missile, but officials

didn't immediately provide more details.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said officials were checking

the safety of ships and aircraft around Japan, but there were

no immediate reports of disruptions or damage.

"It is extremely regrettable that North Korea has continued

to fire" missiles so soon after the U.N. Security Council

discussed its response to the North's earlier launch, Kishida

said.

The Offices of Guam Homeland Security and Civil Defense

said they were monitoring the reports of the launch but that

no immediate threat was assessed for Guam, a major U.S.

military hub in the Pacific.

The launch came six days after North Korea fired a ballistic

missile into the sea in what it later described as a successful

test of a hypersonic missile, a type of weaponry it claimed to

have first tested in September.

Kim Dong-yub, a professor at the University of North

Korean Studies in Seoul, said North Korea may have tested

its purported hypersonic missile again in response to the

South Korean military playing down last week's test.

Seoul's Defense Ministry said after that test that North

Korea had exaggerated its capabilities and had tested a

conventional ballistic missile the South was capable of

intercepting. The ministry said it doubts that North Korea

has acquired the technologies needed for a hypersonic

weapon.

Michael Parks, Pulitzer winning

foreign correspondent, dies

LOS ANGELES : Michael Parks, the former top editor of the

Los Angeles Times who spent 25 years as a foreign

correspondent and won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on

the struggle to end apartheid in South Africa, has died. He

was 78, reports UNB.

Parks died of kidney failure and a heart attack at

Huntington Hospital in Pasadena, California, late Saturday

after suddenly falling ill at home earlier in the day, his son,

Christopher Parks, told the Los Angeles Times.

Parks was foreign correspondent for the Times and the

Baltimore Sun and covered some of the 20th century's most

momentous events, including the Vietnam War and the

collapse of the Soviet Union.

After nearly three years as top editor at the Times, he

taught at the University of Southern California's Annenberg

School for Communication and Journalism for 20 years and

served two stints as director of its journalism school.

"His remarkable life and career remain a testament to

journalism not just being a job, but a calling. Michael shared

his deep knowledge and experience with all of us, and we will

be forever better because of it," Willow Bay, dean of USC

Annenberg, said in a statement.

Parks won the 1987 Pulitzer for international reporting.

The prize jury commended him for "balanced and

comprehensive coverage of South Africa."

"Michael was an extraordinarily gifted foreign

correspondent, one of the finest of his generation," said Scott

Kraft, who succeeded Parks as the Times' Johannesburg

bureau chief and is now the newspaper's managing editor.

From 1980 to 1995, Parks was the Times' bureau chief in

Beijing, Johannesburg, Moscow and Jerusalem. After stints

as deputy foreign editor and managing editor, he was named

the newspaper's editor in 1997.

Parks' tenure came to a dramatic end after a newsroom

uproar over a profit-sharing arrangement the Times struck

with Staples Center on revenue from ads in an October 1999

issue of the Times Magazine that was devoted to the opening

of the downtown arena.

Times writers and editors were furious when they learned

that top newspaper executives had struck the ad deal, saying

it undercut the integrity and independence of their

journalism by giving the subject of the magazine a stake in its

profits. Although Parks said he had not known about the

profit-sharing until after the magazine was written and

edited, but he did learn about it in time to have stopped it

from being published, which he did not do. He later

expressed.

GD-66/22 (16x3)

wEdnEsdAY, jAnUArY 12, 2022

7

The European Union ended travel restrictions on flights from southern

Africa on Monday well over a month after imposing them to in hopes of containing

the spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus. Photo : Internet



WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2022

8

Ma'aden leads Saudi mining sector

growth with wide range of projects

A closing ceremony for successfully completion of subscription of SJIBL Mudaraba Perpetual Bond

of BDT. 500 (five hundred) crore was held at Shahjalal Islami Bank Corporate Head Office on 11

January 2022. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Shahjalal Islami Bank Ltd. Mohammed

Younus was present as the Chief Guest while the Managing Director & CEO of the Bank M. Shahidul

Islam presided over the ceremony. The Head of Public Relations Division (PRD) of the Bank Md.

Shamsuddoha moderated the program. The Trading of SJIBL Mudaraba Perpetual Bond under 'N'

Category started on 26 December 2021 at both Dhaka Stock Exchange Limited and Chattagram

Stock Exchange Limited. The subscription of the Bond successfully completed on 28th December

2021.The UCB Investment Limited played the role of issue manager and Lead arranger, whose is

CEO Tanzim Alamgir.

Photo : Courtesy

European stocks

bounce back on

eve of US

inflation data

LONDON : Europe's major

equity markets rebounded

Tuesday from recent falls,

despite earlier Asian losses,

as investors fished for

bargain shares on the eve

of key US inflation data,

dealers said.

In late morning deals,

Frankfurt won 1.3 percent,

London stocks added 0.6

percent and Paris gained

1.5 percent, after all three

began the week in negative

territory.

World oil prices also

recovered from Monday's

drop but the dollar traded

mixed.

Bitcoin advanced close to

$42,000, one day after the

world's most popular

cryptocurrency sank below

$40,000 on fears of

reduced liquidity as a result

of US monetary policy

tightening.

Richard Hunter, head of

markets at Interactive

Investor, pointed to "some

tentative buying activity ...

as investors sought to

benefit from the recent

dips."

However, he cautioned

that markets remain

overshadowed by surging

inflation-and central bank

efforts to contain it.

"The backdrop remains

unchanged, with the pace

and amount of (US)

interest rate rises likely to

become clearer over the

next few sessions in the

face of persistent inflation,"

Hunter added.

Digital Campaign Season-13 kicks off

Marcel offers free fridge, TV, AC in every hour

To mark the 'Happy New

Year' celebration, the

popular local electronics

brand 'Marcel' has resumed

its digital campaign across

the country.

This time, the campaign's

Season-13 was commenced

with the offer of special

customer's benefits on the

purchase of any sorts of

Marcel products, including

fridge, air conditioner,

television, washing machine,

microwave oven, rice

cooker, blender, gas stove

and different kinds of fan

like ceiling, rechargeable

table fan, wall fan, pedestal

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Youth

Development Department and NRBC Bank at a city hotel on Tuesday to

build the entrepreneurs.

Photo : Courtesy

In Cuba, queueing for hours

‘just to be able to eat’

HAVANA : Cubans are no strangers to queuing

for everything from bread to toothpaste, often

standing for hours under a blazing sun with no

access to a toilet or drinking water, and always

with the fear of leaving empty-handed, reports

BSS.

It is a daily ordeal Cubans have endured for

about 60 years of communist rule, now worsened

by the coronavirus pandemic, a steep economic

downturn and tightened US sanctions.

"I spent almost all night here just to buy

something. It is not easy, it is a big sacrifice just to

be able to eat," shopper Edelvis Miranda, 47, told

AFP at a market in Havana last week.

The homemaker had taken her place in the

queue at about 1:00 am, and finally left around 11

hours later, just before noon.

"It was worth it, because I found everything.

Now some rest, and then back to the queue

again," she said on her way home with two liters

of oil, two packets of chicken, some minced meat

and detergent.

Cuba recorded an official inflation rate of 70

percent in 2021, when the economy recovered a

modest two percent after an 11-percent drop in

2020, signaling the nation's worst economic

crisis in almost three decades.

With government reserves dwindling, food

fan and exhaust fan, says a

press release.

Marcel authorities made

the announcement at a

declaration programme of

'Digital Campaign Season-

13' at the company's

corporate office in the

capital on Monday morning

(January 10, 2022).

The programme was

attended by, among others,

Deputy Managing directors

Nazrul Islam Sarker, Eva

Rizwana Nilu and Md.

Humayun Kabir, Senior

Executive Directors SM

Zahid Hasan, Engineer

Ariful Ambia, Dr. Md.

Shakhawat Hossen, Chief

Marketing Officer Md. Firoj

Alam, Digital Campaign's

Coordinator Nazmul

Hossain Evan and other

senior officials of the

company.

As per the offer declared

under the campaign's

'Season-13', customers could

get various sorts of brand

new products as free on the

registration of Marcel

products he/she had

purchased. The free

products are included:

refrigerator, TV, AC,

washing machine,

microwave oven, rice

Marcel's higher officials attend the declaration programme of 'Digital

Campaign Season-13'.

Photo : Courtesy

imports-some $2 billion worth per year before

the pandemic struck-had to be drastically cut

back in the country of 11.2 million.

Last May, the government said imports, which

normally cover 80 percent of the island's needs,

were at their lowest level since 2009.

The shortages affect everyone; even the wellheeled

have to contend with long lines, though

they often pay other people to hold their place.

Those who can come armed with snacks,

water, coffee or a wooden bench to sit on.

Often, police are at hand to keep order in

queues that stretch down several street blocks.

At a market in the capital, an announcement

comes an hour before opening time that there are

five products available for the day-an unusual

bounty that sends a ripple of excitement through

a line of about 400 hopeful shoppers.

But then, the let-down. Only 250 of them can

get in.

"This is undignified," grumbled Rolando

Lopez, a 66-year-old pensioner who was not

among the lucky ones.

A few dozen among the luckless quickly form a

queue for the next day's shopping, designating

night "guards" to ensure no one loses their place.

"It is the daily struggle of the Cuban. What else

can you do?" asked housewife Maria Rosabal, 55.

cooker, blender, gas stove as

well as other kinds of

electrical appliances, home

and kitchen appliances.

This offer was come into

effective from January 10,

2022.

At the function, Marcel

authorities informed that

they have been making

customers' database to bring

its after sales under the

online automation. The

prime objective of this

initiative is to provide swift

and best after sales service.

To accelerate the process of

creating customer database,

Marcel has been conducting

the digital campaign. As of

now, the local brand

conducted twelve seasons of

the campaign. Now, 13th

season was started. During

this season, the details of the

customers and their

purchased products

including the name of the

customer, contact number

and the model number of

the purchased product are

being stored on a server

Marcel so that customers

can avail the service from

any Marcel service center

any time, even if the

warranty card is lost.

RIYADH: The Gulf's largest miner,

the Arabian Mining Co., known as

Ma'aden, has formed the backbone

of Saudi Arabia's mining sector

since it was established in 1997.

Its role in the Kingdom became

more prominent when the Saudi

Vision 2030 was launched in 2016,

which introduced plans to diversify

the economy from its reliance on oil.

Mining was identified as a key

industry that would aid economic

transformation.

With a market cap topping SR100

billion ($26.9 billion), the mining

firm is among the Kingdom's 10

biggest players by market value and

is one of the fastest-growing mining

companies in the world.

Despite COVID-19 industrial

slowdowns that have hindered

many firms, Ma'aden remained

influential in shaping the Saudi

mining sector through a wide range

£150,000

starting salaries

as firms fight

for staff

A professional recruitment

firm says it is placing

graduate lawyers on starting

salaries as high as £150,000

amid a shortage of workers,

reports BBC

Alan Bannatyne, chief

financial officer at Robert

Walters, told the BBC people

in many UK industries were

quitting for better paid jobs

amid soaring demand.

"15% is the minimum pay

rise we're seeing, but some

are increasing their salaries

by up to 50%," he said.

"Unless something

significant happens, 2022

should be even better for

staff."

Robert Walters, which

focuses on placing

professionals in roles, said

firms were in a "fierce

competition for talent" and it

was "incredibly hard to find

the right people".

As a result, Mr Bannatyne

said salary inflation was the

highest he had seen in 20

years, although there had

been "winners and losers"

from Covid and not everyone

was in a position to pay well.

"Bricks-and-mortar

retailers and airlines have

really struggled so will

probably not be paying

bonuses or giving pay rises,"

he told the BBC.

"So they become a hunting

ground for other high growth

businesses, such as online

retailers, anything to do with

technology and digital, and

manufacturers of household

goods."

Robert Walters, which has

offices in Asia, Europe and

the US, said it had seen its

best December for sales ever,

with net fee income up 39%

globally.

Job vacancies surge past

one million in new record

Demand in the final three

months of the year was

strongest in Asia Pacific, it

said, but the trend of staff

shortages was apparent

worldwide including in the

UK.

of projects, investments and

acquisitions in the Kingdom and

abroad.

Amid efforts to fully exploit the

Kingdom's reserves, Ma'aden will begin

operations in the largest gold mine in

the country in the Makkah region, on

the western coast of the Arabian

Peninsula. Work will commence in the

first quarter of the year.

"This project is our largest gold

mine," Ma'aden CEO Abdulaziz Al-

Harbi told Arab News in an

interview last October.

The firm is on course to become

one of the top three global

phosphate fertilizer producers in

the world. It closed the preoperational

stage of the $900

million ammonia plant in Ras Al-

Khair industrial city in mid-2021,

marking the first project expansion.

The mine will play a crucial role in

achieving the company's target of

producing 1 million ounces of gold

per year by 2025.

The firm is on course to become

one of the top three global

phosphate fertilizer producers in

the world. It closed the preoperational

stage of the $900

million ammonia plant in Ras Al-

Khair industrial city in mid-2021,

marking the first project of its

"Phosphate 3" portfolio expansion.

"The ammonia plant expansion

will add over 1 million tons

ammonia production to reach 3.3

million tons, making Ma'aden one

of the largest ammonia producers

east of the Suez Canal," Al-Harbi

noted.

Ma'aden has also consistently

managed to attract foreign

investors, including US firm Alcoa,

which has a 25 percent stake in two

of Ma'aden's subsidiaries as part of

a $10.8 billion joint venture.

The Premier Bank Limited has achieved 2nd position for collecting Dhaka WASA

bill in the financial year 2020-2021. A programme titled Dhaka WASA Bill

Collection Award was held at Pan Pacific Sonargaon in Dhaka where Md Tazul

Islam, Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives handed

over the certificate and crest to Managing Director & CEO of the Premier Bank

Limited M. Reazul Karim (FCMA). Among others, Prof. Shibly Rubayat-Ul-Islam,

Chairman, Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission was present as special

guest.

Photo : Courtesy

RFL organizes beach cleaning

program in Cox’s Bazar

TEL Plastics, a household products brand of

country's leading business conglomerate RFL

Group, organizeda 'Beach Cleaning' program

aimingto maintain environmental balance and

creating awareness among the people. RFL

Group's Managing Director RN Paul

inaugurated the event on Tuesday morning at

Cox's Bazar beach, the world's longest beach.

More than five hundred officials of RFL Group

participated in the event and they cleaned

rubbish lying on the beach from Sugandha to

Kolatoli point on Cox's Bazar beach. TEL Plastics

organized the event in association with Dhaka

Round Table and Cox's Bazar Tourist Police.

Addressing the occasion, RN Paul said, "As

country's leading business conglomerate, RFL

has social responsibility. We carry out various

programs throughout the year as part of our

social responsibilities. As part of this, we have

organized 'Beach Cleaning' program at Cox's

Bazar sea beach."

He added, "The objective of this program is to

create awareness so that no one throws garbage

on the beach. We want to carry out such

programs in different river ports of the country

and Patengasea beach in Chittagong and

Kuakatasea beach in Patuakhali".

KamrulHasan, Executive Director of Tel Plastics

and Fahim Hossain, Head of Marketing, among

others, were present on the occasion.

First Security Islami Bank Ltd. inaugurated 2 sub-branches on January 11, 2022 with a view to providing

shariah based banking services to its clients. The Sub branches are- Trishal Sub-branch at

Abdul Matin Sarkar Plaza, Trishal, Mymensingh and Dey-para Bazar Sub-branch at Arafat Complex,

Dey-para Bazar, Kachua, Bagerhat. Syed Waseque Md Ali, Managing Director of the Bank inaugurated

those sub-branches through video conference. Among others, Abdul Aziz and Md. Mustafa Khair,

Additional Managing Director(s), Md. Zahurul Haque and Md. Masudur Rahman Shah, Deputy

Managing Director(s) along with other high officials were present in the occasion. A Doa Mahfil was

organized in this regard.

Photo : Courtesy

WeDneSDAY, JAnuArY 12, 2022

9

Since 2010, 40 meetings have brought 16 Barcelona victories, 10 draws and 14 wins for real

Madrid.

photo: Ap

Real Madrid dominance leaves Barca hoping

for Clasico upset in Spanish Super Cup semi

SportS DeSk

It is traditional to say

there are no favourites in

the Clasico but this time

even Real Madrid coach

GD-74/22 (13 x 3)

Carlo Ancelotti was

unable to keep up the

pretence, reports BSS.

For the past decade,

there has been some

Bangladesh Power Development Board

we`ÿ r/Rb- 514(3)/11/01/2022

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Ref. No. 27.11.1500.741.03.05.22.1065

InvItatIon for e-tenders

justification in the usual

platitudes, the assertion

that games between Real

Madrid and Barcelona

have a rhythm unto

themselves, that form is

no measure and the victor

will be the one that holds

firmer in the heat of the

battle.

Any superiority has been

fleeting, a strong run of

form here, a vulnerable

coach there. Sometimes

the dynamic has

depended simply on the

competition the game has

been played in.

Since 2010, 40 meetings

have brought 16 Barcelona

victories, 10 draws and 14

wins for Real Madrid.

Pep Guardiola's

Barcelona team were the

last to enjoy real

dominance, beginning a

run of five consecutive

wins in 2008 that

included a 6-2 thrashing

at the Santiago Bernabeu

and a 5-0 humiliation at

Camp Nou. Across those

five games, Barcelona

claimed an aggregate

score of 16-2.

Since then, neither club

had put together four wins

on the bounce against the

other, until this season,

when Madrid ground out a

2-1 victory in the rain at

Camp Nou in October, in

what was the first meeting

of the two clubs since

Lionel Messi departed last

summer.

Japan's golden

oldie ‘King

Kazu’ joins new

team at 54

SportS DeSk

Japanese football star

Kazuyoshi Miura extended

his decades-long playing

career at the age of 54 on

Tuesday with a move to a

fourth-tier club managed by

his older brother, reports

BSS.

Miura, known as "King

Kazu", said he would "strive

to help the team win on the

pitch" after joining Suzuka

Point Getters.

The move was announced

at 11:11am on January 11 --

with the former

international forward set to

wear the number 11 shirt

next season.

Miura, who turns 55 in

February, said last month

that he had offers from

several clubs in Japan and

overseas, after turning out

for Yokohama FC last

season in the J-League's top

flight. He managed just one

minute of league action as

his team finished bottom of

the table.

He is hoping to make

more of an impact for his

new side, who are managed

by brother Yasutoshi.

Miura has been at more

than a dozen clubs spanning

Brazil, Japan, Italy, Croatia

and Australia.

"I'm thankful that I've

been given the chance to

play here," he said in a

statement released by his

new club. Miura said last

month that he had been

offered a new deal by

Yokohama but wanted more

playing time.

Japanese

gymnastics

legend

Uchimura

retires at 33

SportS DeSk

Two-time Olympic gymnastics

all-around champion Kohei

Uchimura has retired aged 33,

his management said

Tuesday, ending the career of

one of the sport's all-time

greats, reports BSS.

Uchimura claimed gold at

the 2012 and 2016 Games,

won the Olympic team title

with Japan in Rio and was

crowned all-around world

champion six times. But he

suffered disappointment in

his Olympic swansong,

falling off the horizontal

bar and failing to reach the

final at last year's Tokyo

Games. Uchimura's final

competition was at the world

championships last October in

Kitakyushu, the Japanese city

where he was born.

He finished sixth in the

horizontal bar final but was

given a rapturous reception

by the home crowd after

sticking a textbook landing

from his dismount.

He told AFP after that

event that he would take

time to consider his next

move, but acknowledged

there was "a new generation

emerging" in gymnastics.

Revered in Japan,

Uchimura was also a crowd

favourite because of his

easy-going personality and

love of chocolate.

At the Rio Games in 2016

he made headlines by

racking up a 500,000 yen

($4,500) phone bill playing

Pokemon Go.

But he was strictly

business when it came to

competition, winning silver

in the all-around and team

events in his Olympic debut

in 2008.

He then became the first

man to win back-to-back

Olympic all-around golds, in

2012 and 2016, and also

claimed the world title every

year in between. But

shoulder injuries began to

take their toll and in 2019 he

described his chances of

appearing at the Tokyo

Games as "a fairytale".

West Indies,

Ireland agree

to postpone

second ODI

SportS DeSk

West Indies and Ireland have

decided to postpone the

second ODI, scheduled for

Tuesday (January 11) after

the emergence of three new

Covid cases in the visitors'

camp after the latest round of

testing. That combined with

two injuries in the squad has

left Ireland severely depleted

to compete, reports BSS.

The boards of the two

participating teams issued a

joint statement confirming

the postponement of the

game at Sabina Park, Jamaica

and stated that they were in

discussions and "working to

explore all possibilities for the

series to be completed."

Ireland have been hit by a

raft of Covid cases in the

last month, forcing the

abandonment of their ODI

series against USA. While

cases had emerged among

the support staff and family

members, the players

themselves were deemed

close contacts.

Paul Stirling and Shane

Getkate subsequently tested

positive after that series was

cancelled and were

quarantined in Florida.

Ireland, who trail the threematch

series after a 24-run

loss in the first ODI, also have

Andy McBrine and Mark

Adair currently out injured.

The former displayed some

symptoms of concussion after

being hit in the the first ODI.

As per schedule, the teams

were to play the third ODI on

January 14 before rounding

off the tour with a one-off

T20I on January 16.

Jahanara Alam writes to BCB, alleges

mismanagement and bias

SportS DeSk

Bangladesh Cricket Board chief executive

Nizamuddin Chowdhury revealed that

national-team discard Jahanara Alam has

submitted a letter to the board, accusing

selector Manjurul Islam of mismanagement

and bias, reports AP.

Jahanara submitted her observation

before she was dropped from the national

squad for the ICC Commonwealth Games

Qualifier 2022, set to be held in Malaysia.

Confirming the development to Cricbuzz,

Chowdhury said the board would look into

the matter raised by the senior player.

"Yes, we have received a letter from her

(Jahanara) and will look into it and we will

take required steps after taking everything

into consideration," said Nizamuddin.

"When a cricketer of Jahanara's stature

tells us anything naturally it will be taken

seriously and we will try to find out the truth

about her observation."

Cricbuzz understands that in the letter,

Jahanara has labelled national selector

Manjurul Islam along with a few other

members of the team management as being

"biased".

Jahanara Alam was left out of the Commonwealth Games qualifier.

photo: BCB

Millions more locked down as

China battles Omicron spread

SportS DeSk

Five million residents of a central Chinese

city started home confinement Tuesday in a

new lockdown to curb the spread of the

highly transmissible Omicron variant of the

coronavirus, according to state media,

reports BSS.

Beijing is on high alert for new outbreaks as

it prepares to host the Winter Olympics next

month, sticking to a "zero-Covid" strategy of

targeted lockdowns, border restrictions and

lengthy quarantines. While those measures

have kept the number of new cases far lower

we`ÿ r/Rb- 515(2)/11/01/2022

GD-73/22 (7 x 3)

19

Jahanara has also apprised the board

about different incidents that took place

within the team from their camp at the

residential camp in Sylhet last year till the

ICC World Cup qualifier.

A BCB official had insisted that the former

Bangladesh skipper had been left out due to

disciplinary issues following several

instances of misbehaviour with the team

management during the ICC Women's

World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, a tour on

which she took nine wickets from six games

(including a three-match ODI series)..

Jahanara, who made her T20I debut in

2011, is the fourth-highest wicket-taker for

Bangladesh in the shortest format, having

claimed 38 wickets in 40 matches.

Meanwhile, the team management has

claimed that Jahanara was responsible for

there being different groups within the team

and that she was not supportive to new

national skipper Nigar Sultana Joty.

"We have decided to exclude her as we

wanted to give a message to everyone but

this does not imply all is gone for her as she

is very much in our World Cup plan," an high

official of BCB women's wing confirmed

Cricbuzz.

than virus hotspots in the United States and

Europe, Beijing is currently battling local

flare-ups in multiple cities.

The fast-spreading Omicron strain presents

a fresh challenge, with two cases in Anyang --

the newly locked down city in Henan province

-- linked to a growing infection cluster in the

northern metropolis of Tianjin, some 400

kilometres (250 miles) away.

Authorities in Anyang announced the

lockdown late Monday, issuing a notice

ordering residents not to leave their homes or

drive cars on the roads, state news agency

Xinhua reported.

WeDNesDAY, JANUARY 12, 2022

10

Nirab, Tama in new

music video 'Emoni

Ek Dhandha'

TBT RepoRT

Ilias to run for president in

film artistes' assoc

TBT RepoRT

Popular film actor Ilias Kanchan is

going to run for president in the

upcoming election of Bangladesh

Film Artistes' Association, said a

press release on Monday.

The election will be held on

January 28.

According to the press release,

Ilias Kanchan will run for president

while actress Nipun Akter will run

for general secretary from the same

panel. Ilias said other members of

Romain Lacourbas, a cinematographer who worked on

'The Witcher' season 2, has praised Henry Cavill for his

dedication to the role. 'The Witcher' season 2 was

released on Netflix earlier in December and gained

much success, clocking in over 142 million viewing

hours in only three days. The streaming giant is already

the panel, including Nipun, offered

to vie for the post of president.

Considering the current situation in

the industry, ''I agreed'', said the

release.

He also said "if we win, we all

work together and the industry will

move forward", added the release.

"I have to make some plans to

save our industry. First of all, we

have to increase the number of

films because without films, the

halls cannot run. Taka one

thousand crore is being given for

the construction of cinema halls

across the country, he added. "I

want to revitalize the industry and I

am moving forward with this".

He said the government has

many initiatives about the film

industry adding that the prime

minister has taken many initiatives

for the betterment of cinema. "I

also want our industry to move

forward with something good."

Ilias Kanchan-Nipun panel will

collect nomination papers on

January 11, read the release.

'Witcher' S2 cinematographer

praises Henry's dedication

second season was filled with tension and action,

picking up from the first season, where Ciri and Geralt

managed to find each other after Geralt claimed the

Law of Surprise on her father before she was born. The

acclaimed actor is attached to many major franchises,

having played Superman in the DCEU and antagonist

Dhallywood actors Nirab Hossain and Tama Mirza, who starred

together in several silver-screen projects before, have joined hands for

a music video by TM Records.

Titled 'Emoni Ek Dhandha', the song is sung by SI Tutul. Its lyrics,

composition and music are done by Kaushik Hossain Taposh. Under

the direction of Taneem Rahman Angshu, the music video is styled and

produced by TM Records Chairperson Farzana Munny.

Meanwhile, the record label unveiled an official poster and also a

teaser for the upcoming music video on its YouTube channel. The

release date of 'Emoni Ek Dhandha' is yet to be announced.

Nirab, who recently appeared in another music video released from

the same record label for a song by Arfin Rumey, said, "I think the plan

TM Records has introduced for the music is extraordinary. They are

into both the song and also the video to take it to global-standard. In the

1990s or early 2000s, we used to listen to only audio songs. But now the

audiences like to get a music video for songs. It's the trend now".

Regarding the music video for 'Emoni Ek Dhandha', he said, "We shot

it for three days in Sylhet and its surrounding areas. It was also shot in

a railway station and hilly areas. The locations were extremely

beautiful. Entire bogie of a train was hired for the shooting. It was shot

early in November." Nirab and Tama Mirza were earlier seen together

in the films like 'Bolo Na Tumi Amar', 'Tomar Majhe Ami', 'Nodijon'

and 'Game Returns'. On the career front, Nirab is currently gearing up

to resume shooting for Saif Chandan directed film 'Koyla' where he

co-stars with Shabnam Bubly.

TBT RepoRT

Popular actress of Dhallywood, Pori Moni is expecting her first

child with her 'Gunnin' co-star, Sariful Razz, whom she married

in October last year. The couple kept their wedding a secret for

around three months.

Confirming the news on Monday, Razz said, "I am very

happy right now. I and Pori got married on October 17 upon

consent from both of our families. We will announce a party

soon". "Right now, we are staying together and celebrating by

ourselves," the Networker Baire famed actor Razz said

further.

Regarding tying the knot with Pori, he added, "Yes, it was a big

decision. But I always follow my heart. It will not hamper our

Pori Moni expecting

first child

work or our career. We fell in love with each other and decided

to get married". Pori Moni and Sariful Razz were shooting for

Giasuddin Selim's 'Gunnin' for the past few months. They

developed an affair while shooting for the web-film. Director

Selim said, "Yes, I guess they fell in love with each other on the

sets. Three days ago, they gave me the good news that they got

married. I am so happy for them and wish them luck."

Elaborating about their love story, Razz went on saying, "If I

start to talk about my love story it will take a whole day and you

have to write it down. But what I can say is, what I feel for her is

very different and unique. We share good chemistry and

bonding. I never felt such for anyone else. She (Pori) is a

beautiful woman, what's not to love about her?"

Shariful Razz rose to fame as a runway model before making

his cinematic debut with Redoan Rony's movie 'Ice Cream' in

2016. In August last year, he hit headlines by surviving a car

crash in Gulshan along with several of his co-artistes from the

web film 'Networker Baire'.

'Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2' makers dismiss

reports of Vidya's return

committed to another season, which will continue to

star Cavill in the lead role, as well as a prequel series,

'The Witcher: Blood Origin', due to release next year.

The Witcher follows Geralt (Cavill), one of the last

monster hunters known as "witchers" still alive. The

August Walker in 'Mission: Impossible - Fallout'. Cavill

is not new to being part of much-loved franchises and

has spoken openly in the past about his love for many

of the characters he plays.

Source: Variety

Vidya Balan essayed the role of

Monjulika in 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa'. It

is one of her most loved

characters. Recently, a report

suggested that Vidya will be seen

as Monjulika in 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa

2' starring Kartik Aaryan, Kiara

Advani and Tabu. But now the

makers issued a statement saying

that it is untrue.

The report suggested that Vidya

and 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa' director

Anees Bazmee's equation goes

back to 2011 when the actress

made a cameo appearance in his

film, 'Thank You'. Vidya made the

character of Monjulika, ghost of a

royal dancer, memorable. It is still not clear whether Vidya will

be seen dancing to 'Aami je tomar' again or appears after the

climax. Now, the makers issued a statement saying that the

recent rumours of Vidya being a

part of 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2' are

untrue.

Vidya's acting journey started

from a young age and she had her

Bollywood debut in 2005 with the

critically-acclaimed romantic film

'Parineeta', co-starring Saif Ali

Khan and Sanjay Dutt in the lead

roles.

The actress is the recipient of

several awards, including a

National Film Award and six

Filmfare Awards. Vidya had her

first acting role in the 1995 hit

sitcom 'Hum Paanch', which also

starred veteran actor Shoma

Anand. The actress was last seen in 'Sherni' that was released

on the OTT platform.

Source:Times of India

H o R o s c o p e

ARIes

(March 21 - April 20) : Today you might learn

something about a friend that could be rather

disconcerting, Aries. There could be a dark

side to this person that you weren't previously aware of, and

this could cause you to want to withdraw for a while and

reevaluate your involvement with this individual. When

considering it, remember that we all have our dark sides.

Could what you've discovered simply be this factor, or does

this go too far beyond it for you? Think about it!

TAURUs

(April 21 - May 21) : Outside responsibilities

might temporarily interfere with your love

life, Taurus. You may feel a strong desire to

get together with a love partner early in the

evening, but circumstances may necessitate your working

odd hours. This can be frustrating, as you've been looking

forward to this for a long time, but you could meet your

friend later in the evening. Don't be afraid to ask. Most

people understand when situations like this crop up.

GeMINI

(May 22 - June 21) : Today you're likely to find

your routine too boring for words, Gemini,

and may have a sudden powerful urge to cut

loose and play some serious hooky. Still, you

may feel the pull of obligation. This conflicted feeling should

pass. If it persists beyond today, however, you might need to

reevaluate certain areas of your life. There are lots of

opportunities out there, and life is too short to be stuck in a

situation that doesn't allow you to grow.

cANceR

(June 22 - July 23) : You could be feeling

especially sensual and passionate today,

Cancer, and you'll want to get together

with a love interest. However, other responsibilities

could get in your way. This could provide you with the

perfect excuse to sink into gloom, but don't fall into this

trap. Get whatever business you're facing handled and

out of the way. Or perhaps you can arrange to finish it

tomorrow. Then set up that hot date!

Leo

(July 24 - Aug. 23): You may feel a bit of

disappointment today, Leo. You might

tend to view whatever snags you've hit on

the path to accomplishing your goals as

personal failures, and if you let it, this idea could persist

with you throughout the day. Try to remain objective,

and don't lose sight of the big picture. You haven't even

lost a battle - at worst, it's a minor conflict! Chances are

that if you continue working hard you'll still win the war!

VIRGo

(Aug. 24 - Sept. 23): A rather disheartening

phone call could come to you today, Virgo.

This might bring news of a setback in one

of your projects that is only temporary but

nonetheless frustrating. You'll probably have to deal with

some trivial little details you'd rather not bother with,

and this could take up too much valuable time. Hang in

there - you're still doing well! Don't let your frustrations

get the best of you.

LIBRA

(Sept. 24 - Oct. 23): After the rush of

energy over the past few days, Libra,

today you may feel a powerful letdown.

Not every day can be filled with

adventure and excitement. For now, you just need to

take care of the routine matters that are a byproduct

of life on Earth. However, keep in mind that there are

many weekends coming up, and with the right kind

of planning you can get excitement back into your life.

scoRpIo

(Oct. 24 - Nov. 22) : A goal that you've been

trying to reach may be temporarily

stalled, Scorpio, and you could be

tempted to slip into despair, wondering

if it will ever really happen. Remember that the

keyword for today is "temporary." Whatever obstacles

are in your way will eventually be overcome and your

goal should be to continue to advance in the direction

you want. In the meantime, take care of your chores.

sAGITTARIUs

(Nov. 23 - Dec. 21): Today you might realize

that you need to make a certain purchase,

Sagittarius. Perhaps your home or car

requires some important repairs, or maybe

some new equipment is necessary for your work. This could

prove rather disheartening, as it might involve spending

money that you'd rather use for something more exciting.

Think of the trouble this expenditure should save you,

however, and you'll see the value of it all.

cApRIcoRN

(Dec. 22 - Jan. 20): The weight of too many

responsibilities, perhaps involving family, a

job, or group affiliation, could be very much

on your mind today, Capricorn. You may feel like Atlas,

carrying the world on your shoulders! You're tired. Perhaps

you need to reevaluate your commitments - your innate

kindness may have caused you to make too many. Fulfill the

ones you have, but think twice before making any new ones.

You're important too, after all.

AQUARIUs

(Jan. 21 - Feb. 19) : You may have your

ups and downs today, Aquarius. You

could get at least one phone call of the

"good news, bad news" variety, and this

could have your moods swinging back and forth like a

pendulum. Try to stay centered. Take the good news

as encouragement, and as for the bad news, try to

consider it objectively and figure out ways to turn it to

your advantage. There's always a way. Hang in there!

pIsces

(Feb. 20 - Mar. 20) : Normally you tend to be a very

spiritually oriented person, Pisces, but today you

might find metaphysical concepts of all kinds

rather baffling. Whether these are ideas you've

embraced for a long time or new ones you've just discovered, you

may find nagging little doubts creeping in, temporarily causing

your faith to waver. This is a healthy development, however. A

little doubt now and then can weed out concepts that don't work

for you and reaffirm your belief in others.

weDneSDAY, JAnUArY 12, 2022

11

Ashrayan -2 project has brought

smiles on the faces of poor

people: Tofazzal hossain

ShAhID Joy, JAShoRe CoRReSPonDenT

on the occasion of Mujib Borsho,

training has been held on Tuesday at PTI

Auditorium in Jashore with the

participation of Divisional

Commissioners and District and Upazila

Administration officials for the smooth

implementation of the third phase of

housing construction activities under

Ashrayan -2 project.

Khulna Divisional Commissioner Md

Ismail hossain presided over the

occasion while senior secretary of the

Prime Minister's office Md Tofazzal

hossain Mia was the chief guest at the

occasion while Secretary of the Ministry

of Disaster and Relief Md Mohsin,

Asrayan-2 Project Director (Joint

Secretary) Abu Saleh Mohammad

Ferdous Khan spoke as the special

guests at the occasion. Senior Secretary

Md. Tofazzal hossain Mia in his speech

said that Ashrayan -2 project has

brought smiles on the faces of poor

people. The project has provided not

only housing for the homeless but also

potable water and sanitation facilities

which is helping our country to reach the

goal of SDG. Getting the opportunity to

do something for these people is the best

thing any government official can do.

During the time, Jashore, Kushtia,

Meherpur, Jhenaidah, Chuadanga and

Magura District Deputy Commissioners,

Deputy Directors, Government of

Dhaka, executive engineer Public

Works, Additional Deputy

Commissioner (Revenue) District Relief

and Rehabilitation officer and 32

Upazila Upazila executives officers,

Assistant Commissioners (Land),

Project Implementation officers (PIos),

Upazila engineers participated in the

training.

Indonesia to lift coal export ban in phases

A training was held with the participation of Divisional Commissioners and District and Upazila

Administration officials for the smooth implementation of the third phase of housing construction

activities under Ashrayan -2 project in Jashore on Tuesday.

Photo: Shahid Joy

JAKARTA : Indonesian authorities have said that the

country will resume coal export in phases starting from

Wednesday, with dozens of ships carrying coal cleared to

depart on Tuesday.

Coordinating Minister for Maritime and Investment

Affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan told a press conference

late Monday that the official regulation to lift the coal

export ban was being finalized.

The world's largest thermal coal exporter imposed on

Dec. 31, 2021, a policy to ban coal exports for the entire

month of January this year to avert a looming power

crisis in the country that could lead to widespread

blackouts. The government said the crisis occurred

because most mining companies had failed to meet their

domestic market obligation, under which they must

supply 25 percent of annual production to the local

market.

Pandjaitan said the ban would be lifted as the Southeast

Asian country's domestic coal reserves has gradually

increased and "the situation was getting better."

The decision to resume coal exports also came after

increasing pressures from Asian countries, including

Japan, South Korea and the Philippines that rely on

Indonesia's coal for their energy supplies, and protests

from mining companies as the ban would cause them to

lose millions of U.S. dollars.

35.01.3600.429.07.251.22-56

162 11/01/2022

GD-70/22 (7x4)



GD-69/22 (12x4)

GD-65/22 (8x4)

Wednesday, dhaka: January 12, 2022; poush 28, 1428 bs; Jamadi-us sani 8, 1443 hijri

Covid restrictions

maybe to stop

BNP rallies:Rizvi

DHAKA : BNP on Tuesday aired a doubt

whether the government imposed fresh

restrictions, including on public gatherings,

to stop the party's rallies and meetings.

"People are questioning whether

the restrictions have been imposed only

to prevent BNP's rallies. Because people

have awakened against the government,"

said BNP senior joint secretary general

Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

Speaking at a press conference at

BNP's Nayapaltan central office, he also

said the government has become sacred

as people have started joining their

party's rallies breaking section 144.

"We would like to clearly say the fall of

the current regime can't be resisted, no

matter how many conspiracies are

hatched. People can no longer be suppressed

by resorting to conspiracies with

cases, conviction and restrictions," Rizvi

warned.

Amid the spike in Covid cases due to

the transmission of the Omicron variant,

the government on Monday imposed

various restrictions, including public

gatherings, social programmes, political

and religious events. The restrictions will

be effective on January 13.

Replying to a question, Rizvi said their

party's planned rallies in the second

phase will continue amid the government's

restrictions. "The programme

that we've already announced will continue.

Our party still didn't change its

decision in this regard," he added.

On January 5, the party announced to

hold rallies in its 40 more organisational

districts from January 8 in the second

phase to force the government to allow

its chairperson Khaleda Zia to go abroad

for advanced medical treatment.

As per the schedule, the party was supposed

to hold rallies in six days-January

8, 12, 15, 17, 22 and 24-- to mount pressure

on the government to allow Khaleda

Zia to go abroad for treatment.

Provision restricting MPs'

joining in local polls campaign

is discriminatory : Hasan

DHAKA : Information and

Broadcasting Minister Dr Hasan

Mahmud yesterday said the provision

that restrict MPs' participation

in the campaign of local government

elections is discriminatory.

"Lawmaker Shamim Osman has

declared that he would work in

favour of the 'Boat' (the electoral symbol

of Awami League) in

Narayanganj City Corporation polls. I

think that it is the right decision. But,

I saw that some media have claimed

that he (Shamim Osman) violated the

electoral code of conduct," he said.

According to the electoral code of

conduct of the Election Commission

(EC), lawmakers cannot take part in

campaign of any local government

elections. But, there are no such types

of code of conducts in neighbouring

countries even in Europe," he continued.

The minister stated these replying

to a query of the reporters at his official

residence in the city's Mintu Road area.

Mentioning that lawmakers of other

countries can take part in the electioneering,

Hasan said, "Even, the chief

ministers and ministers of the neighbouring

country can take part in polls

campaign without protocol."

These types of restrictions were not

seen even in 2015, he said, adding

that now many claimed that such

provision is undemocratic.

Replying to another query over a

comment of BNP leader Ruhul Kabir

Rizvi on the COVID-19 issue, the

minister said it has seemed that BNP

leaders are now talking nonsense as

they have lost their sagacity after failing

to countenance Awami League

politically.

He said many countries even the

neighbouring ones could not deal

with the ongoing COVID-19 successfully

like Bangladesh.

The role of the Prime Minister was

lauded across the globe and the country's

economy is still boosting due to

appropriate measures in controlling

the COVID-19 epidemic, he added.

The minister said the position of

Bangladesh is the third among the 20

countries which have been able to

keep positive GDP growth in the last

year amidst the pandemic.

Uttering that BNP leaders spread

confusions over COVID-19 inoculation

though they have taken the jabs,

Hasan said, "We want their sound

health and hope that they would also

take booster doses," he added.

He said the countrymen have rejected

the destructive politics of BNP. They

(BNP) took shelter of destructive politics

in 2013, 2014 and 2015 when they

killed people through arson attacks, he

said. "The people of Bangladesh have

refused BNP's destructive politics and

they (people) would resist them if they

(BNP) want to carry out such types of

destruction again.

Earlier, the minister virtually

addressed the function of distributing

sheep and construction materials

among the ethnic groups, bicycles

and scholarships among students

under special assistance of the Prime

Minister's Office, awards among the

winners and the vaccination programme

for the 12-year to 18-year

students of his own constituency

Ranguniya Upazila.

an old ship is being repaired at a dockyard near shitalakshya river near rupganj

purbachal.

photo: pba

Classroom crisis disrupts

teaching at JnU

Nakibul ahsaN Nishad, JNu CorrespoNdeNt

Severe crisis of classrooms at Jagannath

University (JnU) are hampering teaching

activities. Faculty members and students

of some departments are continuing

their educational activities by borrowing

classrooms from other departments.

At the same time teachers of

some departments are sharing the

same room. They think that this crisis

will become more evident after the

admission of students in the 2020-21

academic year.

The university currently has six faculties,

two institutes and 36 departments.

But it has a shortage of classrooms.

Although the departments

have their own classrooms, they are

less than required. There are at least 10

semesters in each department but

there are a maximum of two or three

classrooms. As a result, students of

other semesters stand at the door of

that classroom before the end of the

class of one semester. It disturbs the

minds of the teachers and students in

the classroom and also makes the students

at the door feel uncomfortable.

Meanwhile, the work of the new academic

building was completed but no

new department was shifted there. There

used to be six classrooms on the ground

floor of the 'Rafiq Building' of the university

before the closure of Covid-19 pandemic.

Department of Statistics shared

two rooms and the Department of

Mathematics, Department of Chemistry,

Department of Botany shared one room

each. It also had one seminar room.

Later, the ground floor of this very building

was renovated to a modern medical

centre, counselling center and registrar's

office were set up on one side. As a result,

the university currently has only one

classroom in the Department of

Statistics and Botany. According to the

students of the Statistics Department,

the number of classrooms remaining

after the office of the Registrar's office is

only one in two classrooms on the

ground floor of Rafiq building. There is

only one classroom for the five batches of

the department. In this one classroom, it

is becoming impossible for them to conduct

classes of five batches. Participation

in regular classes and exams is disrupted.

In addition, there is only one toilet for

more than four hundred students in the

statistics department. There is also a

nominal lab, where no more than 20 students

can take classes and most of the

computers are broken.

The university's utility building has

three departments - Music, Theatre

and Fine Arts. All three departments

are facing the same issues. The students

said that they have to face several

problems during the practical classes.

At present eight batches are being

studied at the same time including the

current masters and new batch in

Theatre while the classrooms of the

department are only four.

Concerns have been raised about whether the amar ekushey book Fair to be held in February or not as the new variant of Corona

'omicron' has become more prevalent. however, the bangla academy is preparing to organize a book fair in compliance with the health

rules. Workers are busy in setting up stalls at suhrawardy udyan in dhaka on tuesday ahead of the book fair. photo : star Mail

Dhaleshwari trawler capsize

Another body

retrieved

NARAYANGANJ : Divers on

Tuesday recovered the body of a one

and a half year old child from the

Dhaleshwari River, a week after a

trawler capsized in the river off the

coast of Narayanganj Sadar upazila,

reports UNB.

The deceased were identified as

Tasfia.

The divers from the local fire service

retrieved the body from the river

near Dharmaganj around 9:30 am,

said deputy director of Narayanganj

Fire Service and Civil Defense

Abdullah Al Arefin.

With the child's body, bodies of all

10 missing passenger have been

recovered, the official said.

The divers recovered six bodies on

Sunday and three on Monday from

the river.

Earlier on January 5, the trawler,

with nearly 70 people on board,

overturned as Dhaka-bound passenger

launch Farhan-6, hit it near

Dharmaganj in Fatulla.

While many passengers managed

to swim to safety, at least 10 people

went missing.

Police detained four people,

including the driver and master of

MV Farhan-6, Babu Lal Baidya,

assistant director of the Bangladesh

Inland Water Transport Authority in

Narayanganj said.

A case was also filed in this regard

on the following day.

No unnecessary

cases being filed

against BNP

men: Kamal

KURIGRAM : Home Minister

Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, MP,

yesterday said here no unnecessary

cases are being filed against the BNP

leaders and activists.

"Cases were filed against the BNP

leaders and activists on the basis of

specific allegations of vandalism and

terrorist activities," he said this while

distributing blankets among 1000

poor, destitute and helpless people

at the bank of Dharla River near the

town. Rapid Action Battalion (RAB-

13) organized the blankets distribution

ceremony.

The minister said that Bangladesh

and India are working jointly to stop

border killings, adding, "Home

Ministers level meetings of both sides

and DGs of BGB and BSF were held

regularly to stop border killings."

"A decision was taken in principal

to stop firings at the border between

the two sides. Even then some untoward

incidents took place at the

other borders including Kurigram.

Those incidents are being investigated,"

he added.

State Minister for Primary and

Mass Education Zakir Hossain,

local lawmakers Aslam Hossain

Saudagar, Panir Uddin Ahmed and

Professor MA Matin, RAB Director

General Chowdhury Abdullah Al

Mamun and additional director

general Colonel KM Azad spoke on

the occasion.

3 accused held for raping and

strangling young girl in Ctg

Gazi JoyNal abediN, raozaN CorrespoNdeNt

A lover killed his girlfriend by strangling her in

a moving car and hanging a scarf around her

neck in Chattogram. Raozan police have

arrested three accused involved in such a

shocking murder on noon and sent them to jail

through a court with the help of Jatrabari

police station.

On November 20, 2022, members of Raozan

Police Station recovered the body of an unidentified

young woman from a place called

Sikdertek on the east side of East Gujra Old

Rugunandan Chowdhury Hat under Raozan

Police Station. The accused

were arrested after uncovering

the identity and murder

of the body of the

unidentified girl with the

help of technology, led by

Officer-in-Charge of

Raozan Police Station

Abdullah Al Harun and

Inspector of Police

(Investigation) Md Kaiser

Hamid.

The deceased has been

identified as Amena Akter

Rahi Prakash Sharmin, 22,

daughter of Nur Hossain of

Kutubdia Para in Ward 1 of

Cox's Bazar district.

Raozan police inspector

who took part in the operation (investigation)

Md Kaiser Hamid told The Bangladesh Today

that the culprit had a long love affair with

Vvctim Sharmin for 3 years. In this temptation,

victim Sharmin was raped several times in the

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temptation of marriage. When Sharmin

became pregnant, the main culprit pressured

her to have an abortion.

When main accused Badsha started cheating

again, in 2019, Victim Sharmin became the

plaintiff and filed a case against Badsha with

Cox's Bazar Sadar Police Station (34 / 11-11-

2019) under the Women and Child Abuse

Prevention Act. Badsha was arrested in this

case and was imprisoned for 3 months and 18

days on bail.

Later, the accused party created pressure to

withdraw the case. In the

meantime, Sharmin was

brought to Chittagong from

Cox's Bazar on November

11 after being tempted in

various ways by showing

the temptation of remarriage.

He spent the night at

the Golden City Hotel in

Laldighi and rented a house

in the EPZ area of the city.

There, the accused Badsha

along with his sister's

brother-in-law Akter

Hossain planned to kill

Sharmin.

Accordingly, on

November 13 and 16, took

Sharmin to different parts

of Chittagong city through CNG-powered

autorickshaws. On November 19, Sharmin was

again taken to a secluded spot in the

Chandraghona Lichu Bagan area of

Chattogram to be killed.

JaPa strong even after 31 years

out of power : GM Quader

RANGPUR : Jatiya Party (JaPa) Chairman Golam

Muhammad Quader, MP, yesterday said the party is

still very strong even after remaining out of power

for the last 31 years. "Our support is growing and the

strength of JaPa is increasing everyday. We are not

saying this baselessly and you (journalists) can check

it," Quader said this while talking to journalists after

arriving at Rangpur Circuit House.

Quader said, "Many more people are coming to

our processions and meetings. Different media are

showing interest to listen to us. Our confidence has

increased a lot. We hope that it will increase further

in the future."

Quader expressed deep concern over the situation

as millions of people, including young people, are

turning to drugs everyday leading to a catastrophic situation

for the next generations. JaPa MP Adilur

Rahman Adel, its Presidium Member, Rangpur city

unit President and Mayor of Rangpur Mostafizar

Rahman Mostafa, Vice-chairman of the central committee

and Rangpur city unit General Secretary SM

Yasir, Organizing Secretary of the central committee

and General Secretary of district unit Alhaj Abdur

Razzaque and leaders of the party were present.

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12-01-2022

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