11-05-2022

WednesdAy

DhAkA: May 11, 2022; Baishakh 28, 1429 BS; Shawal 9,1443 hijri

www.thebangladeshtoday.com; www.bangladeshtoday.net

Regd.No.DA~2065, Vol.20; N o. 10; 12 Pages~Tk.8.00

InternAtIonAl

Russia pounds

Ukraine's vital port of

Odesa, Mariupol plant

SAfIqUL ISLAM (JAMI)

>Page 7

No headway in sending

Bangladeshi workers to

Malaysia despite agreement

DHAKA : Four months into Malaysia

opened its labour market for Bangladeshi

workers the recruitment remains in a

limbo. A dispute between Dhaka and

Kuala Lumpur on who will hire the workers

and how has rendered ineffective the

late last year's agreement between the two

governments.

Some Bangladeshi recruiting agencies,

grouped in a so-called syndicate, are

allegedly playing their part in stalling the

operation of the agreement signed on

December 19 last year opening the

Malaysian market to Bangladesh after a

four-year ban.

Malaysia, one of the largest destinations

for Bangladeshi workers, currently

employs about seven lakh expatriates from

Bangladesh, according to business sources.

In 2018 the then Malaysian government

of Mahathir Mohammad shut the

door of his country's labour market to

workers from Bangladesh for alleged

irregularities by hiring agencies in both

countries.

At the centre of the latest dispute is that

Malaysian government wants the recruitment

to be done by a selected group of 25

Bangladeshi agencies. Dhaka rejects the

idea as it will leave out many mostly smaller

agencies (over1,500) out of the process

and business.

In 2009, Bangladesh for the first time

was denied access to Malaysian labor market

on allegation of irregularities in recruitment

process.

It changed after on November 26, 2012

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi

Habibul Awal said, "We do not have the

ability to cast electronic voting machine

(EVM) in all the seats in the forthcoming

12th National Assembly elections." We

have not yet decided on the 300 seats.

The commission has not yet made a decision

on whether the ballot will be in EVM

or not. It is under review. He made the

remarks at a training workshop on

Tuesday (May 10) morning at the

Commission's training building to

update the voter list.

The CEC said no decision has yet

been made on voting in full EVM. The

commission will consider the views of

political parties on EVMs. The commission

is not under any pressure in

the statement given by the government

about the election.

Besides, it is not the job of the commission

to bring anyone to the polls. The

main responsibility of the commission is

to conduct fair and impartial elections. If

there is no proper voter list then fair election

is not possible. You just have to be

more discriminating with the help you

render toward other people.

Zohr

03:56 AM

11:58 PM

04:32 PM

06:35 PM

07:57 PM

5:18 6:32

the two countries struck a MoU to send

workers through G2G model. Following

this model the immigration flow from

Bangladesh increased as thousands of

people joined Malaysian labor market officially.

But soon the government model

failed leading to a surge in illegal immigration

to Malaysia from Bangladesh.

In 2016, government again introduced

G2G Plus model under which only 10

recruiting agencies could send workers privately

to Malaysia. Following this model

2.45 lakh workers got jobs in Malaysia.

Soon allegations surfaced that these

agencies started exploiting the job seekers

charging unfairly high fees from them.

They at first fixed the immigration cost at

Tk 36,000 and later increased it to Tk 1.60

Lakh. At one stage these private agencies

even charged Tk 3.5 lakh to 4 lakh per head

in immigration cost.

The corrupt practice soon grabbed attention

of the Malaysian government, which

cancelled the G2G Plus model in a big blow

to Bangladeshi job seekers.

The hope raised by the latest MoU was

quickly dashed after on January 14,

Malaysian Minister for Human Resources

M. Saravan sent a letter to Dhaka to hire

workers through only 25 recruiting agencies,

said the Ministry of Expatriates'

Welfare and Overseas Employment.

In response, Bangladesh Minister for

Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas

Employment Imran Ahmed sent a letter to

his Malaysian counterpart explaining

Dhaka can't accept it.

No final decision taken

to use EVM:CEC

CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal

He said the Election Commission is

determined to make all types of elections,

including national elections, fair and

neutral. The commission has taken all

necessary measures to ensure smooth

conduct of local elections including

Cumilla City.

Regarding the voter list update, the

CEC said that the work of updating the

voter list will start from May 20 across

the country. Transparent voter list is a

prerequisite for transparent and fair elections.

For that you (staff) have to go from

house to house to update the voter list. In

that case, it is important to ensure that no

voter is left out.

He said that this time the update activities

will be completed in four steps. In

the first phase, information will be collected

in 140 upazilas from May 20 to

June 9. At this time, the information collectors

of the Election Commission will

go door to door to collect the information

of new voters.

Regarding EVM, the CEC said, "We

have not yet made a final decision on voting

in EVM." We have already held many

meetings ourselves, there will be more

meetings in the future. Then the decision

will be made. We will conduct the vote as

freely as possible. It belongs to us, the

method also belongs to us.

sports

Bangladesh hockey team

qualify for Asian Games

beating Sri Lanka

>Page 9

Sri Lanka's Pro

government

supporters

vandalize the

camps of anti

government

protestors

outside the

president's

office in

Colombo,

Srilanka.

Photo : AP

Arts & Culture

Tisha finally

returns to work

>Page 10

It rained in the capital on Tuesday due to impact of cyclone Asani in the Bay of Bengal. The

picture was taken from Dhaka University campus.

Photo : Star Mail

Severe Cyclonic

storm 'Asani' to

weaken into

cyclonic storm

DHAKA : Severe Cyclonic storm 'Asani'

over west central bay and adjoining area

moved west-northwestwards over the

same area and is likely to move in a

northwesterly direction and weaken into

a cyclonic storm during next 12 hours

commencing 12 pm on Tuesday, reports

UNB.

It was centered at noon about 1205

kms southwest of Chattogram port, 1170

kms Southwest of Cox's Bazar port, 1055

kms southwest of Mongla port and 1065

kms southwest of Payra port.

Maximum sustained wind speed within

64 kms of the severe cyclone centre is

about 89 kph rising to 117 kph in gusts or

squalls.

Sea will remain high near the severe

cyclone centre.

Maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox's

Bazar, Mongla and Payra have been

advised to keep hoisted distant warning

signal No two.

All fishing boats and trawlers over

North Bay and deep sea have been

advised to remain close to the coast and

proceed with caution.

They are also advised not to venture

into the deep sea.

Court orders newspaper

advertisement for

appearance of 5 militants

DHAKA : A court yesterday ordered

authorities concerned to publish advertisement

on newspaper asking whereabouts

of five members of banned militant

outfit Ansar al-Islam, including its

military wing chief sacked army Major

Ziaul Haque Zia, in a case lodged over

murder of blogger Nazimuddin Samad.

The other four accused are- Akram

Hossain, Md Waliullah alias Oli, Sabbirul

Huq Chowdhury and Mawlana Zuned

Ahmed.

Judge Md Mojibur Rahman of Dhaka

Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal passed

the order as police submit a report on the

order for the attachment of the properties

of the accused.

The court asked authorities to publish

the advertisements on two national

dailies by June 15 and submit report on

that.

The other four accused in the case are-

Rashidun Nabi Bhuiyan alias Tipu alias

Rassel alias Rafiq alias Raihan,

Mozammel Hossain alias Saimon, Md

Arafat Rahman, and Md Sheikh

Abdullah and they are behind the bars

now.

A group of militants hacked and shot

Nazimuddin Samad on April 6, 2016, a

student of Jagannath University, to

death in Lakshmibazar area in Old

Dhaka.

Sri Lanka anti-govt protests

continue despite curfew

COLOMBO : Defying a nationwide curfew

in Sri Lanka, several hundred protesters

continued to chant slogans against the

government Tuesday, a day after violent

clashes saw the resignation of the prime

minister who is blamed, along with his

brother, the president, for leading the

country into its worst economic crisis in

decades, reports UNB.

Protesters swarmed the entrance to

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's office in

the capital, Colombo, for the 32nd day to

demand that he follow in his brother's

footsteps and quit. The site outside

Rajapaksa's office has seen sustained

crowds of thousands for weeks, but had

dropped to hundreds on Tuesday due to a

strict curfew, following clashes yesterday

that left four dead.

A government decree issued Monday

night confirmed the resignation of

Mahinda Rajapaksa, the prime minister.

On Tuesday, anti-government protesters

shouted slogans for the president to

resign and rebuilt the tents damaged in

Monday's attack.

One of the protesters, software engineer

Chamath Bogahawatta, said that

the government "did something very

despicable by bringing in people to provoke

us. I don't think people going to tolerate

their attempts to rule with the help

of military."

"There will be more people joining us.

How long are they going to rule a country

under curfew?" he asked.

The prime minister's resignation came

after violence erupted in front of the

Rajapaksas' offices as his supporters hit

the protesters with wooden and iron poles.

Authorities swiftly deployed armed troops

in many parts of the country and imposed

a curfew until Wednesday.

The ambush by the supporters triggered

immediate anger and chaos, as people

started attacking ruling party politicians.

More than a dozen houses belonging to

ruling party leaders were vandalized and

set ablaze.

At least four people including a ruling

party lawmaker were killed and nearly

200 were wounded Monday night.

Protester Charith Janapriya said, "If

they thought they can stop a huge peoples'

struggle by destroying our tents, I think

they got their answer last night itself."

"What we lost were some tents and

clothes," Janapriya said. "But we got many

more people on our side than we had

before."

The South Asian island nation has been

seething for more than a month, as

protests have spread from the capital to

the countryside. It has drawn people from

across ethnicities, religions and classes

and has even seen a marked revolt from

some Rajapaksa supporters, many of

whom have spent weeks calling for the two

brothers to quit.

The pressure on President Rajapaksa to

quit mounts following his brother's resignation,

analysts say, and comes as the

country's economy has dramatically fallen

apart in recent weeks.

Imports of everything from milk to fuel

have plunged, spawning dire food shortages

and rolling power cuts. People have

been forced to stand in lines for hours to

buy essentials.

Doctors have warned of crippling shortages

of life-saving drugs in hospitals, and

the government has suspended payments

on $7 billion in foreign debt due this year

alone.

Bangladesh per

capita income

surges to US$ 2,824

DHAKA : The country's per capita income

increased by US$ 233 to US$ 2,824 during

FY22, as per a provisional estimate of

Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

Planning Minister MA Mannan disclosed

this at a press briefing after the

meeting of the Executive Committee of the

National Economic Council (Ecnec) held

at the NEC conference room here on

Tuesday. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

chaired the meeting, joining it virtually

from her official residence Ganobhaban.

"Our per capita income went up to US$

2,824 or Tk 241,470 in the 2021-22 fiscal,

which was US$ 2,591 in the last fiscal

(2020-21)," said Mannan.

The GDP's provisional estimate was

done done based on the available data and

statistics of 6-7 months of the current

2021-22. As per the estimate, the GDP

growth rate is 7.25 per cent in the FY22,

which was 6.94 per cent in the last fiscal

year, said the minister.

The country's GDP has increased to

US$ 465 billion (Tk 39,76,500 crore) in

the 2021-22 fiscal from US$ 416 billion

(Tk 35,30,200 crore) in the 2020-21 fiscal.

Among the three major sectors, the

growth rates are 2.20 per cent in the

agriculture sector, 10.44 per cent in the

industrial sector and 6.31 per cent in the

service sector.

No visible progress

made in repatriation

of Rohingyas:

Minister Enamur

DHAKA : No visible progress has been

seen in the repatriation of displaced

Rohingyas to their homeland Myanmar,

said State Minister for Disaster

Management and Relief Dr Enamur

Rahman on Tuesday.

"We sat in a meeting last month and a

list of Rohingyas was provided to

Myanmar. Myanmar authorities received

the list. So far, we have provided lists of

35,000 Rohingyas but they are yet to

inform us about how many people they

will receive," he said.

Enamur came up with the remarks

while talking to reporters after a meeting

with Nicholas Koumjian, the Head of

Independent Investigative Mechanism on

Myanmar (IIMM) at the Secretariat.

IIMM chief came here to investigate the

torture on Rohingyas by Myanmar security

forces before they fled to Bangladesh

and he also sought assistance of Refugee

Relief and Repatriation Commissioner in

Cox's Bazar to collect statements from victim

Rohingyas, he said.

"We also assured him of providing all

necessary support," he added.

However, Nicholas also said that they

will work to gain international support to

send back Rohingyas to their home land

with rights and safety.

Referring to another meeting with a delegation

of USAID, Enamur said the delegation

expressed satisfaction over the

management of Rohingyas in Cox's Bazar.

Two electrocuted

to death in Natore

NATORE : Two people were

electrocuted to death in

Natore on Monday.

The deceased were

identified as Ratan Ali, 32, a

resident of Hamlaikola

village, and Milon Hossain,

28, of Khacchop Bazar area

in Gurudaspur upazila.

Mizanur Rahman Suja,

Biaghat Union Parishad

chairman, confirmed the

deaths of the two locals on

Tuesday.

"Ratan was electrocuted

while trying to plug an

electrical line in his litchi

orchard," he said.

"Milon, on the other hand,

got an electric shock while

repairing a paddy harvesting

machine at a shop in Singra

upazila. He died on the

spot," Mizanur said.

Ahmed Kaysher

received Civic

Award in Leeds

DHAKA : Asghar Khan, the

Lord mayor of Leeds Council

and Councilor, has

conferred Leeds Civic Award

to the director and cofounder

of Saudha society of

poetry and Indian music and

RadhaRaman Folk Festival

poet Ahmed Kaysher on

Saturday.

The reception programme

was held at the Ark Royal

Room of the Leeds Civic

Hall, a press release said.

Member of Parliament for

Leeds North East and the

shadow minister for peace

and disarmament Fabian

Hamilton attended as the

guest speaker, along with a

few community leaders and

performing artists, in the

brief civic reception

arranged by the Lord Mayor

office of Leeds city council,

the release added.

Organizing Secretary of Bangladesh Awami League and National Parliament whip Abu Sayeed

Al Mahmud Swapon MP inaugurated the Dialysis Center of Joypurhat Modern District Hospital

yesterday.

Photo : Masrakul Alam

Statement recording

deferred in Sylhet

custodial death case

SYLHET : A trial court in Sylhet on Tuesday

deferred till Wednesday the recording of

statement in the case of custodial death of a

34-year-old man in 2020.

On October 10, 2020, Rayhan Ahmed, a

resident of Akhalia in Sylhet city, was

allegedly brutally tortured at Bandar Bazar

police outpost. He died the next day at Sylhet

MAG Osmani Medical College and Hospital.

"The trial procedure was deferred as a writ

petition has been filed in the High Court,

seeking quashing of the FIR filed in the case

against the accused-five cops and a local

journalist," said Nowshad Ahmed

Chowdhury, the public prosecutor at Sylhet

Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court.

The five accused cops, including former incharge

of Bandar Bazar police outpost subinspector

Akbar Hossain Bhuiyan, were

produced in the court on Tuesday amid tight

security. On May 5, 2021, Awlad Hossain,

inspector of Police Bureau of Investigation

(PBI) and investigating officer in the case,

submitted a chargesheet in this case against

the six accused.

On April 18, this year the court framed

charges against all the accused. The five

policemen are currently in jail but the sixth

accused is on the run.

The accused in this case are suspended SI

Akbar Hossain Bhuiyan, SI Hasan Uddin,

ASI Asheq Elahi, and constables Titu

Chandra Das and Harunur Rashid, and

Abdullah Al Noman, a journalist who

allegedly deleted the CCTV footage of the

incident.

The case was filed against the accused

following a complaint from Rayhan's wife

Tahmina Akter Tanni at Kotwali Police

Station the next day.

Police had initially rejected the allegation

and claimed that Rayhan was caught by

locals in the Kastghar area during a robbery

attempt and was lynched.

2 crushed

under trains

in B'baria

BRAHMANBARIA : Two

people were crushed under

the wheels of separate trains

at Alamnagar and Jatrapur

areas in Ashuganj upazila of

Barhmanbaria district on

Tuesday.

One of the deceased was

identified as Kaiyum, 55, of

Sylhet district while identity

of another deceased could

not be known.

In Jatrapur, a 25-year-old

unidentified youth was

killed after being hit by

Chattogram-bound

'Mahanagar Prabhati' train

while crossing the rail tracks

in the morning, said Sub-

Inspector (SI) Salauddin

Khan Noman, in-charge of

Brahmanbaria railway

station police outpost.

In Alamnagar, Kaiyum

was killed after being hit by

another train around 9:30

am while crossing the rail

tracks, said the SI.

GD-861/22 (5x3)

weDNeSDAY, MAY 11, 2022

2

Triple murder in Kushtia

3 sentenced to jail unto death

KUSHTIA : A Kushita court on Tuesday

sentenced three people to jail unto death while

eight others to life imprisonment in a case

filed in connection with killing three people in

2009.

Those who got jail term unto death are-

Faruk Sardar, son of Askar Ali of Putladanga

village, Kalu alias Kafil Uddin, son of Ishak Ali

Master of Paschim Abdullahpur village and

Rohan, son of Kalo Majnu of Aryapara in

Sadar upazila.

The lifers are-Faruk Mandal, son of

Khorshed Mandal, Liakat Ali, son of Jabed Ali,

Liakat Sheikh, son of Jalil Sheikh, Monowar

Sheikh, son of Esem Sheikh, Akam uddin, son

of Ansar Sheikh, Jamir Uddin, son of Wahed

Ali, Nural alias Nurul, son of Abu Bakkar and

Khakchar Mandal, son of Ommad Mandal. All

of them were members of different outlawed

parties. The court also fined them Tk 25,000

each. All of them were tried in absentia.

According to the prosecution, police recovered

the severed heads of three people-

Shamsuzzoha, Quaiyum and Ayub- from DC

Court area of Kushtia district town on August

10, 2009.

Later, police recovered the beheaded bodies

of the trio from a field of Sonadanga village in

Sadar upazila on the following day.

Quaiyum's brother lodged a complaint

against some unidentified people with

Kushtia Islamic University Police and police

registered an FIR after getting the complaint.

Investigation officer of the case submitted a

chargesheet against 22 people. They were

killed over grabbing a tender of a project of

LGED involving Tk 18 crore . After examining

the records and witnesses, Kushtia Additional

District and Sessions Judge Tajul Islam

handed down the judgment.

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GD-859/22 (10x4)

GD-855/22 (10x4)

WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2022

3

A new trust fund titled 'Enayetullah Khan Memorial Trust Fund' has been established at Dhaka

University. Nasreen Zaman, daughter of Late A.Z.M. Enayetullah Khan handed over a cheaque for

Tk. 25 lac to DU Treasurer Prof. Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed yesterday at the Vice-Chancellor's Launge to

set up this trust fund. DU Vice-Chancellor Prof. Dr. Md. Akhtaruzzaman was present there as chief

guest. Rashed Khan Menon, MP was also present, among others, on this occasion. Photo : Courtesy

‘Enayetullah Khan Memorial

Trust Fund’ established at DU

A new trust fund titled 'Enayetullah

Khan Memorial Trust Fund' has been

established at the Department of Mass

Communication and Journalism of

Dhaka University (DU). Ms. Nasreen

Zaman, daughter of Late A.Z.M.

Enayetullah Khan handed over a

cheaque for Tk. 25 lac to DU Treasurer

Prof. Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed yesterday

at the Vice-Chancellor's Launge to set

up this trust fund. DU Vice-Chancellor

Prof. Dr. Md. Akhtaruzzaman was

present there as chief guest.

Rashed Khan Menon, MP, Registrar

Prabir Kumar Sarker, Dean of the

Faculty of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Zia

Rahman, Chairman of the

Department of Mass Communication

& Journalism Prof. Dr. Abul Mansur

Ahmed and donor's family member

Abu Saleh Mohammad Shahidullah

Khan were present on this occasion.

Out of the income of this trust fund,

every year one student who will secure

the highest CGPA from the

Department of Mass Communication

and Journalism of DU will be awarded

Gold Medal and some meritorious but

financially challenged students of the

same department will be given

'Enayetullah Khan Memorial Trust

Fund'scholarship.

DU Vice-Chancellor Prof. Dr. Md.

Akhtaruzzaman thanked Ms. Nasreen

Zaman for her donation to establish

this trust fund. He hoped that the

students of Mass Communication and

Journalism Department would be

highly inspired and benefitted by this

generous initiative.

It may be mentioned that Late

A.Z.M. Enayetullah Khan was a

student of DU. He was a renowned

journalist. He died on November 10,

2005.

A Memorandum of Understanding between the University of Dhaka and Noakhali Science and

Technology University was signed yesterday at Prof. Abdul Matin Chowdhury Virtual Classroom of

DU to enhance the quality education and research in the fields of ocean science and technology and

create skilled human resources in this arena. Vice-Chancellor of DU Prof. Dr. Md. Akhtaruzzaman

presided over the function.

Photo : Courtesy

Indictment hearing

in Khaleda’s Gatco

graft case June 5

DHAKA : A court yesterday

set June 5 for holding

hearing on charge framing

against BNP chairperson

Begum Khaleda Zia and 17

others in Gatco graft case.

Judge Ali Hossen of Dhaka

Special Judge Court-3 refixed

the date after filing a

plea by defendant lawyer for

extending time of hearing on

charge framing due to

absence of Begum Zia for her

illness.

On September 2, 2007, the

Anti-Corruption Commission

(ACC) filed the case against

13 people, including Khaleda

and her younger son Arafat

Rahman with Tejgaon Police

Station on charges of

misappropriating around

Taka 1,000 crore while

dealing with Global Agro

Trade (Pvt) Company Ltd

(Gatco).

Next day, Khaleda Zia and

Koko were arrested. The case

was included in the

Emergency Powers Act on

September 18 at the same

year.

On May 13, 2008, the antigraft

body pressed charge

sheets against the BNP chief

and 23 others, inflicting 11 in

the case.

Later, the names of six

accused, including Khaleda's

younger son Arafat Rahman

Koko, were dropped out of

the charge sheet following

their deaths on different

dates.

The other accused are - ex-

BNP Minister M Shamsul

Islam, former State Minister

for Power, Energy and

Mineral Resources AK

Mosharraf Hossen, former

Minister Dr Khondoker

Mosharraf Hossen, former

Chattogram Port Authority

(CPA) Chairman Commodore

Julfikar Ali, Jahanara Akber,

wife of deceased former

Minister Colonel (retd)

Akbar Hossain, and their two

sons-Ismail Hossain Saimon

and AKM Musa Kazal, former

Shipping Secretary Julfikar

Haider Chowdhury, former

CPA Member AK Rashid

Uddin Ahmed, GATCO

Directors Shahjahan M Hasib

and Syed Tanvir Ahmed and

Syed Galib Ahmed, CPA

former Chairman ASM

Shahadat Hossain, former

Port Director (transport) AM

Sanowar Hossain and former

Port Member Lutful Kabir.

Probe into Redwan’s

gunfire in Cumilla

going on: Hasan

RANGPUR :

Information and

Broadcasting Minister

Dr. Hasan Mahmud

yesterday said probe is

going on into the

incident of opening

gunfire by Secretary

General of Liberal

Democratic Party (LDP)

Dr. Redwan Ahmed in

Cumilla.

"The incident should

be probed properly to

find out the reasons

behind opening gunfire

by Redwan Ahmed in

response to throwing a

watermelon in

Chandina upazila of

Cumilla district," he

said.

Dr Hasan, also Joint

General Secretary of the

ruling party Awami

League, made the

remarks while

answering questions

asked by local

journalists on Rangpur

Circuit House premises

yesterday afternoon.

Responding to a

question regarding a

blame of BNP Secretary

General Mirja Fakhrul

Islam Alamgir against

Awami League's hand in

the incident, Hasan said

he (Mirja Fakhrul)

supported the action of

opening gunfire by

Redwan Ahmed.

"Israeli soldiers

generally open gunfire

in response to pelting

brickbats by Palestinian

children, but, Redwan

Ahmed opened gunfire

against pelting

watermelon, not even a

brickbat," he said.

Dr Hasan said, "The

incident should be

probed whether

Redwan Ahmed opened

gunfire at the directions

of Mirja Fakhrul Islam

Alamgir or other leaders

of BNP to find out the

real criminals and take

stern actions against

them."

Later, the minister

attended the triennial

conference of Rangpur

Mohanagar Kotwali

Thana Awami League in

the Town Hall

auditorium in the city.

Gas leakage

explosion

injures four in

Narayanganj

DHAKA : Four members of a

family in Fatullah

Narayanganj suffered burn

injuries after a fire broke out

in their house following a gas

leak explosion early yesterday

morning.

The victims were identified

as Anwar Hossain, 40, his

wife Rozina Akhter, 33, and

sons Roman, 17, and Rohan,

9.

The incident occurred at

around 5am at a tin shed

house in Post Office area near

Fatullah Pilot School, said an

official of Narayanganj Fire

Service and Civil Defence.

The injured were taken to

Sheikh Hasina National

Institute of Burn and Plastic

Surgery (SHNIBPS) Hospital

immediately after the incident

with critical condition, Dhaka

Medical College and Hospital

Police Camp In-charge

Bacchu Mia told BSS.

One killed in city

road accident

DHAKA : An unidentified

person was killed as a

speeding CNG-run autorickshaw

hit his bicycle from

behind in the city's Notun

Bazar 100-feet road under

Bhatara Thana around

9:15am yesterday.

The identity of the deceased

could not be known

immediately.

Being critically injured, he

was first taken to Kurmitola

General Hospital.

Later, he was taken to

Dhaka Medical College and

Hospital (DMCH) as his

condition deteriorated, where

the on-duty doctors declared

him dead.

MoU between

DU and

NSTU signed

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

between the University of

Dhaka (DU) and Noakhali

Science and Technology

University (NSTU) was

signed yesterday at Prof.

Abdul Matin Chowdhury

Virtual Classroom of DU to

enhance the quality

education and research in

the fields of ocean science

and technology and create

skilled human resources in

this arena. Vice-Chancellor

of DU Prof. Dr. Md.

Akhtaruzzaman presided

over the function.

Treasurer of DU Prof.

Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed and

Pro-Vice Chancellor of

NSTU Prof. Dr.

Mohammad Abdul Baki

signed the MoU on behalf of

their respective university.

Vice-Chancellor of NSTU

Prof. Dr. Md. Didar-ul-

Alam and Pro-Vice

Chancellor (Academic) of

DU Prof. Dr. A S M Maksud

Kamal were, among others,

present on this occasion.

According to the MoU,

Dhaka University and

Noakhali Science and

Technology University will

jointly conduct research on

ocean science and

technology. Besides, the two

universities will share

laboratory facilities and

exchange scientific

equipments. They will also

jointly organize seminars,

workshops, conferences

and training programs.

DU Vice-Chancellor Prof.

Dr. Md. Akhtaruzzaman

thanked the authorities of

Noakhali Science and

Technology University for

signing the MoU and hoped

that this MoU would play an

effective role to strengthen

education and research on

marine science and create

skilled human resources in

the country. It will also help

in achieving Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs),

he also hoped.

Special allocation in next

budget for disaster-prone

coastal area demanded

Speakers at a press

conference on Tuesday

demanded special allocation

in the ensuing national

budget for next fiscal to face

the natural calamities in the

country's Southwestern

costal areas which are very

vulnerable to climate

change, reports UNB.

They also demanded

declaring Satkhira, Khulna

and Bagerhat districts as

disaster-prone area and

taking necessary measures

to protect the people and

their property from the

strikes of natural calamities.

LEDARS (Local

Environment Development

and Agricultural Research

Society), a non-government

organisation, and

Sundarbans and Coastal

Belt Protection Movement

jointly organised the press

conference at Dhaka

Reporters Unity.

In his presentation,

LEDARS executive director

Mohan Kumar Mandal

called upon the government

to implement the

undertaken government

projects including

construction of sustainable

coastal embankments and

supply of potable water and

taking new projects for the

people of disaster-prone

areas. Coordinator of SCPM

Nikhil Chandra Bhadra

moderated the press

conference while Member

Secretary of Unnayan Dhara

Trust Aminur Rasul Babul,

former president of DRU

Rafiqul Islam Azad, BMA

office secretary Dr. Md.

Shahidullah, SCAN general

secretary Moniruzzaman

Mukul, SKUS chairman

Jasmine Prema, Faith in

Action Program Coordinator

Timon Barai also spoke at

the press conference.

The other demands raised

at the press conference

include seting up adequate

cyclone shelters and

preventive measures in the

coastal areas, ensuring

sustainable and sustainable

solution for coastal potable

water and taking effective

measures to protect the

Sundarbans.

The demands also include

formation of a coastal

development board to look

after the coastal people

facing frequent natural

disasters,

fragile

infrastructure, poverty,

long-term salinity and

endangered agriculture.

The press conference was

informed that Bangladesh

has faced 198 major natural

disasters between 1991 and

2020 due to climate change.

Which has created other

crises including livelihood,

resources, food, water,

shelter of the people of this

country?

LEDARS (Local Environment Development and Agricultural Research

Society), a non-government organisation, and Sundarbans and Coastal

Belt Protection Movement jointly organised a press conference at Dhaka

Reporters Unity.

Photo : Courtesy

Bangladesh sees zero

Covid death for 20th

straight day

DHAKA : Bangladesh

reported 26 Covid cases in

24 hours until Tuesday

morning which took the

total caseload to 1,952,855.

With no new Covid death

reported during this period

for the 20th consecutive

day, the total fatalities from

the pandemic remained

unchanged at 29,127.

The daily test positivity

rate slightly increased to

0.54 per cent from

Monday's 0.40 per cent as

4,745 samples were tested,

according to the

Directorate General of

Health Services (DGHS).

On Monday, the number

of cases was higher as 30

new cases were reported.

The mortality rate

remained unchanged at

1.49 percent. The recovery

rate rose to 97.19 percent

as 265 patients recovered

during this period.

In April, the country

reported only five Covidlinked

deaths and 1,114

new cases, while 14,100

patients recovered from

the disease, according to

the DGHS.

Among the five deaths

during the period, two

were unvaccinated patients

while three were

vaccinated with two doses

of the Covid vaccine.

The country reported its

first zero Covid death in a

single day on November 20

last year, along with 178

cases, since the pandemic

broke out here in March

2020.

On January 28,

Bangladesh logged its

previous highest positivity

rate of 33.37 percent.

The country registered its

highest daily caseload of

16,230 on July 28 last year

and daily fatalities of 264

on August 10 in the same

year.

Bangladesh Embassy in Washington

DC celebrates Mother's Day

DHAKA : Bangladesh

Embassy in Washington DC

celebrated the Mother's Day

on Sunday by paying

profound respect to all

mothers of the world with

particular mention to

Bangamata Sheikh

Fazilatunnesa Mujib, wife of

Father of the Nation

Bangabandhu Sheikh

Mujibur Rahman, for their

great contributions and

sacrifice for society and the

nation.

On the occasion, a

discussion meeting was

organised at the

Bangabandhu Auditorium of

the Embassy, said a press

release.

Bangladesh Ambassador

to the USA M Shahidul paid

deep homage to Bangamata

Fazilatunnesa Mujib at the

discussion.

He recalled Bangamata's

outstanding contributions

and sacrifice for society and

the nation saying,

"Bangamata was the source

of inspirations for Father of

the Nation Bangabandhu

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in

the country's all democratic

movements, including

independence struggle."

Admiring the efforts and

sacrifices of the motherkind,

the ambassador also said

that, "Mothers are playing an

important role in building an

enlightened society alongside

their families by forgetting

their all pains and sorrows."

Rokeya Aktar Kakoli, wife

of Minister (Consulate)

Brigadier General

Mohammad Habibur

Rahman, also took part in the

discussion. Later, a

documentary on the life and

works of Bangamata was

screened.

WedneSdAy, mAy 11, 2022

4

Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam

e-mail: editor@thebangladeshtoday.com

Wednesday, May 11, 2022

Coping with a vital

national issue

Ahigh profile seminar organized jointly by a British research

organization and Bangladesh's Ministry of the Environment was

held in Dhaka couple of years ago. It was attended by foreign

researchers and scientists. Prediction was made from it that some 11 per

cent of Bangladesh could be lost to the sea by 2050 from earth warming

and the consequent sea level rise.

But global climate change is still an uncertain phenomenon. Scientists

themselves are divided on the issue. At any rate, there is a consensus

scientific opinion worldwide that there is nothing very accurately

predictable or ascertainable about climate change and nothing can be

said with absolute certainty or surety.

Scientists are only making some hard guesses based on presently

available statistics that may alter in the near future. For example, they

are only making guesses about glacier meltdown and sea level rise. They

can have no exact estimation of the extent of that rise because there is

now no exact assessment of the rate of glacier meltdown or the melting

of the polar caps. None can, therefore, predict accurately the future rate

of the sea level rise from such ice melting. The same may be only some

centimeters by the middle of the present century and in that case

Bangladesh would not be at all affected by sea level rise.

Besides, the concern that was created about earth warming in the

eighties led to significant steps taken by the most greenhouse gases

emitting country in the nineties and beyond to try and reverse the

process. Most of the major industrialized countries - the main emitting

countries-are adhering to guidelines under the Kyoto protocol to reduce

the level of emission of such gases down to their levels in the seventies.

The USA did not sign the protocol initially but under intense

international pressure it has rejoined the protocol . Besides, the US, on

its own, is taking some measures to emit less greenhouse gases.

Therefore, the outlook in the near future is less and less emission of

greenhouse gases and the same would be beneficially impacting on the

environment and making it unlikely that sea level could rise by several

metres to inundate coastal regions including much of Bangladesh

Unfortunately, not much has been noted so far in the country's annual

development plans (ADPs) to the effect that the government is paying

attention to this issue. Successive governments should have done all in

their powers to help the land accretion process which holds out so much

promise for this land hungry country. Not only doing everything locally

to aid the process of land accretion and consolidation, the governments

should have been proactive in seeking foreign assistance to realise the

same objective.

Already, substantial territories have surfaced in the coastal areas of

Bangladesh. Some of these places have completely surfaced and have

human habitations on them while others remain submerged during

tides to emerge with the ebbing of the tide. The latter types of accreted

lands are likely to gain in elevation to be permanently joined to the

mainland. Indeed, much of present day Bangladesh including the

districts of Faridpur, Barisal, Noakhali, Patuakhali, etc., were formed in

this manner over time.

Lands have already emerged from the sea in the coastal areas and

more lands from the sea will hopefully rise in the future. But the natural

process is a long one. It can be hastened and the technology for it is not

so prohibitive or complex either. For Bangladesh, it involves only

quickening the process of accretion by establishing structures like cross

dams to speed up the rate of deposition of silt in areas that have accreted

or nearly accreted.

The country is likely to get a generous response from the

international community in matters of fund availability and technical

supports if it can show that it is really keen to accrete more lands and

has put the endeavor under a systematic policy framework. Holland is

one country which has the most experience in getting lands out of the

sea. Today, the Dutch have not only solved these problems through

sophisticated engineering works, they have permanently reclaimed vast

stretches of lands from the sea and are keeping them dry for various

uses within secure barriers or sea walls.

Bangladesh may not have to embark on projects on the same scale as

were carried out in Holland because of its relatively better elevation. It

can use its huge reservoir of cheap manpower to build simpler projects

to get the same kind of results as were achieved in Holland. But for this

purpose it needs to engage in a time-bound and result oriented

framework of assistance and consultation with that country.

Besides, the government of Bangladesh ought to also appeal to the

international community to provide funds to it for the purpose. The

developed countries, specially the United States, are the main

contributors to the greenhouse syndrome which could affect

Bangladesh. Therefore, it would be only conscionable for these

countries to help out Bangladesh in projects designed to secure its

coastal areas and for their enlargement.

One may say that the cyclone hazards can be serious in the coastal

areas. But these hazards are not as these used to be in the past. Few

people have died from these cyclones in recent years and much less

resources were destroyed from cyclones . The creation of a network of

cyclone shelters and other forms of preparedness for disasters have led

to such favourable developments. With the establishment of a greater

number of cyclone shelters and extending the system of preparedness,

there would be no reason for a far bigger number of people than at

present not to be living and working safely in viable occupations in the

coastal areas including the already accreted lands and the about to be

accreted lands. This would only disprove the other prediction made at

the climate change seminar - the displacement of some 5.5 million

people from Bangladesh's coastal areas by 2050.

Apart from greater human settlement in the coastal areas or accreted

lands to ease the pressure of population, the same areas can play a far

bigger role for the national economy in contrast to the present. Coastal

areas-specially the coastal islands-are hugely prospective from the

perspective of tourism. Tourist resorts established in the coastal

islands-like in the Maldives-can be very paying in terms of foreign

tourist arrivals. The same prospects are also there in many places in the

coastal areas.

Shrimp has been a major item in our export trade in recent years. The

coastal areas are exclusively suitable for shrimp cultivation for the

export market. Extension of planned shrimp cultivation in the coastal

area is possible to many times increase earnings from this sector. Not

only shrimp, but sea fishes, crabs, etc., that are generally described as

frozen food and exported from Bangladesh, the catches or cultivation

of these can be remarkably increased in the coastal area with

infrastructure developments by the public sector to promote more

private sector investments into such activities.

Valuable deposits of minerals exist in the sandy beaches of the coastal

areas such as zircon, rutile, titanium, etc. It is quite possible to extract

these minerals and earn huge amounts in foreign currency. The coastal

areas are also known to have huge deposits of hydrocarbons like oil and

gas. Only limited exploitation of these resources have started with the

offshore drilling at Sangu for gas. But gradually, over time, these energy

resources can be tapped extensively for the benefit of the country.

Covering more than three-quarters

of the planet, the oceans absorbs

up to 30% of the carbon dioxide

produced by humans - a massive buffer

to the impacts of global warming.

Like clean air and fresh water, the

oceans are a global public good -

unrivaled in their importance as the

largest and most critical ecosystem on

the planet. More than 3 billion people

depend on marine and coastal

ecosystems and biodiversity for their

livelihoods.

The global Blue Economy - made up

of oil and gas, fisheries, coastal and

marine tourism, shipping, ports,

renewable energy, and marine and

coastal ecosystems - contributes

around US$3 trillion per year, or about

5%, to the world's GDP. In Vietnam, a

country with a coastline of more than

3,000 kilometers, the economy of the

sea and coastal provinces and cities

accounts for almost half of its gross

domestic product.

But our oceans are facing serious

threats from climate change, becoming

more acidic, losing oxygen, and heating

up. Left unchecked, this will have

devastating impacts on both life under

the sea and life on land, and ultimately

on the very survival of people and our

planet. Imagine a sea without living

creatures, be it fish or coral.

Key indicators - from water and

environmental quality to ecosystem

diversity and productivity - have all

declined. Sea-level rise is threatening

the survival of small island developing

states, and coastal livelihoods and

infrastructure also face serious risks.

And this is just what is easily

measurable. There are also

immeasurable values such as

tranquility and beauty, the

interdependence and social cohesion

among communities that live by and

with the sea, and the mysteries of the

deep that have furthered scientific

inquiry and discovery.

Recent reviews show that a 1-meter

rise in sea level would impact 11% of

Vietnam's population and 7% of its

agricultural land. Depending on the

severity of sea-level rise, climate change

Will BRICS tumble amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine?

As international sanctions over

the war in Ukraine slow

Russia's growth, global

knock-on effects - from higher gas

prices to faster inflation - are easy to

see. Others, like whether the

Russian invasion will lead to an end

of the official grouping of emerging

economies known colloquially as

the BRICS, require closer

examination.

The BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India,

China and South Africa - is a

political body created about seven

years after I coined the original

term in 2001 (with a small "s" for

plural rather than a large "S" for

South Africa) to represent the

changing economic power drivers of

the world economy. They were

identified for their significant

influence on developing-country

affairs, including integration into

the global economy.

Although the central piece of my

original thesis was to highlight the

need for representative global

governance, the BRICs acronym

garnered acceptance because of the

rising economic powers of these

countries, especially China. While

leaders of the BRICs were excited by

the publicity for their economic

potential, their attraction to the

idea of a club was also to foster

political recognition beyond the

global institutions dominated by

the United States.

Indeed, it is this initial motivation

that keeps them enthusiastic

members today, rather than

undertaking any genuine joint

policy development. That impulse

will remain regardless of Russia's

military adventurism, which is why

I suspect the BRICS political entity

will live on for quite some time.

Whether it matters is another

question entirely.

The aggregate size of the BRICS

countries is dominated by China,

which, according to data from the

end of 2021, had an economy in

The time is now for Vietnam’s Blue Economy

KAnni WignArAjA And CAiTlin WieSen

may eventually expose 38?46% of

Vietnam's population to flooding.

Additionally, ocean pollution,

especially plastics and marine litter, is

directly affecting human and marine

well-being. Globally, an estimated 8

million to 20 million tons of plastic

enters the ocean every year, and

microplastics have now been found in

marine food chains reaching the

extreme depths of the ocean. These

plastics are now in our bloodstreams.

In Vietnam, an estimated 3.7 million

metric tons of plastic waste is generated

every year, of which only 10-15% is

recycled. Around 2,000 tons of plastic

waste leaks from the country into the

ocean every day.

Removing plastic debris from the

ocean floors would be like moving

mountains. While trying to find ways to

address this removal, the issue of

plastic production also must be tackled

at the source before it further pollutes

ocean and human life.

As one of the countries most

vulnerable to climate change, Vietnam

is determined to play a part in the

global climate response.

At the COP26 meeting in Glasgow

last November, Prime Minister Pham

Minh Chinh pledged that Vietnam

would achieve net-zero emissions by

2050.

The country is developing robust

plans for sustainable development of its

Blue Economy, ensuring that the

benefits the ocean provides can be

protected, preserved, and improved to

provide for both current and future

nominal US dollar terms of about

$18 trillion. This is more than six

times the size of India's economy,

about 10 times Brazil's and Russia's,

and some 55 times the size of South

Africa's. Collectively, the BRICS

today are worth about $25 trillion,

roughly the size of the US economy.

But China is the only BRICS

country with an economic

performance that has exceeded the

potential anticipated in 2001. India

has come close, but 20 years on,

Brazil and Russia have

disappointed significantly, while

South Africa has done even worse.

In this sense, many economists,

businesspeople and journalists have

stopped paying much attention to

the BRICS nations' collective

actions.

With Chinese involvement, the

BRICS remain an economic force,

and because of this, it remains

feasible that by the mid- to late

2030s, their collective economic

size may become as large as the

Group of Six (the G7 minus

Canada). On the other hand,

without China, the collective weight

of the others would be greatly

dependent on India achieving its

true potential.

Given the current state of affairs,

the superficial awareness grows

that the group may find it harder to

be truly influential. I have

sometimes joked that, economically

at least, maybe it should be thought

of as simply the "ICs," to symbolize

jim O'neill

generations.

This will be key if Vietnam is to

achieve the Sustainable Development

Goals by 2030. Last month, the

Ministry of Natural Resources and

Environment (MONRE) assigned the

Vietnam Administration of Seas and

Islands (VASI) to work with partners to

develop a sustainable development

strategy for the maritime economy.

The United Nations Development

Program (UNDP) is supporting VASI to

Key indicators - from water and environmental quality to ecosystem

diversity and productivity - have all declined. Sea-level rise is threatening

the survival of small island developing states, and coastal livelihoods

and infrastructure also face serious risks. And this is just what is

easily measurable. There are also immeasurable values such as tranquility

and beauty, the interdependence and social cohesion among

communities that live by and with the sea, and the mysteries of the

deep that have furthered scientific inquiry and discovery.

identify six marine economic sectors

and to envisage the potential of the

country's Blue Economy by assessing

the contribution of these sectors to

Vietnam's sustainable development.

Other UNDP projects in the country,

such as integrated coastal management

(ICM) - combining the management of

human activities with the protection of

critical ecosystems - support

sustainable development that

encompasses coastal and marine

management, watersheds, river basins,

and other associated ecosystems.

While the potential is huge for

Vietnam's fisheries and aquaculture,

and marine renewable energy -

especially offshore wind, biodiversity

ecosystem services, and tourism - the

key is to balance the growth of these

closely linked sectors, as the

development of one industry can have

impacts on the others.

For this reason, strong and

comprehensive national marine spatial

planning is needed, including a master

plan that transcends provincial

boundaries, which can help the country

the economic importance of China

and India.

Certainly, for Brazil and Russia to

justify the global economic

recognition that the BRICs acronym

provided, it is time to start

performing dramatically better

(which in Russia's case seems

especially unlikely).

The aggregate size of the BriCS countries is dominated by

China, which, according to data from the end of 2021, had an

economy in nominal US dollar terms of about $18 trillion. This

is more than six times the size of india's economy, about 10

times Brazil's and russia's, and some 55 times the size of South

Africa's. Collectively, the BriCS today are worth about $25

trillion, roughly the size of the US economy.

Against this background, let's

consider the BRICS in the context of

the Russian invasion.

As I wrote in the Financial Times

last November to mark the 20th

anniversary of the BRICs, the

political club has not undertaken

any major joint policy initiative

since it was created, except for the

formation of the BRICS

Development Bank (now called the

New Development Bank).

It is disappointing that despite the

economic weakness of three

members, there has been little

appetite for initiatives that might

boost their individual or collective

economic performance.

Evidence of this apathy can be

seen in India's fraught bilateral

diplomatic, security, and defense

ties with China. Indian Prime

Minister Narendra Modi has yet to

attend a single meeting for China's

much-discussed Belt and Road

Initiative, snubs that are reflective

of India's objections to China's ties

to Pakistan.

In areas where there could be

exceptional benefits of economic

cooperation - such as trade

focus on prioritizing public investment

and encourage the private sector to

invest in projects using green

technologies for low carbon

development of sectors such as offshore

wind and tidal energy, industry,

transport, and marine coastal tourism.

The promotion of nature-based

solutions remains essential,

particularly as climate change is

happening at a speed and scale that are

higher than anticipated, drastically

affecting biodiversity and ecosystems.

Any delays, and these plans and actions

could be too late.

Vietnam has already made significant

and commendable progress in

establishing a comprehensive protected

areas system, which so far includes 16

marine areas such as the Tam Giang -

Cau Hai Lagoon - in the Central region.

About 12 million hectares of wetlands

nationwide provide primary livelihoods

and additional income for around 20

million people, and act as storm-surge

buffer zones and carbon sinks, and

prevent saline intrusion.

The UNDP, in its GCF coastal resilience

project, is supporting the rehabilitation

and regeneration of 4,000 hectares of

coastal mangroves to protect vulnerable

communities and livelihoods.

It is also critical to promote gender

equality and strengthen the role of

women, ethnic minorities, and other

vulnerable groups in the Blue

Economy, including opportunities in

marine-related activities to realize their

economic and social potential and to

enable them to protect natural

resources, while increasing

opportunities for decent work.

Ensuring that the ocean is not

compromised for economic growth -

with the well-being of both defining

progress - is fundamental to securing

the protection of a resilient Blue

Economy. This is a challenge not only

for the governments and people of

Vietnam, but for the world.

Kanni Wignaraja is a UN assistant

secretary general and director of the

United Nations Development Program's

Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific

agreements or infectious-disease

prevention - the BRICS, led by the

ICs, has been completely absent.

Viewed in this context, the

political club excels at symbolism

and little else, highlighting the

ongoing, deteriorating state of

global governance institutions that I

had hoped the BRICS' creation

might improve. To be fair, it is also

true for other global clubs, both

those with and without the BRICS.

Even the G20, which gave the

BRICS countries an individual

global voice, has been disappointing

since 2008, when it was

instrumental in navigating the

global financial crisis.

The BRICS' mixed response to the

Russian invasion highlights the

realities of the BRICS group today.

While Brazil, India, China and

South Africa have all refused to

criticize Russia's hostilities in

Ukraine and have not voted against

the invasion at the United Nations,

none have done anything actively to

support Russia, either. I doubt this

position will change.

As for Russia, which is

economically not much bigger than

South Korea, its global slide will

continue, unless there are huge

reforms.

President Vladimir Putin realized

long ago that his country couldn't

keep its early-noughties economic

boom going, and instead has

appealed to the historical and

nationalist tendencies of many

Russian citizens to keep his

popularity. This will have long-term

negative consequences for Russia.

It will also virtually ensure that

the BRICS grouping remains little

more than a symbolic shell of

unreached potential.

Jim O'Neill is a former chief

economist at Goldman Sachs

and served as a UK treasury

minister

WeDneSDay, May 11, 2022

5

eMMa BRyCe

In February 2022, a Dutch-owned

fishing trawler released a silvery

stream of 100,000 dead fish,

which carpeted several thousand

square metres of ocean off the

coast of France. The vessel's

owners blamed the discharge on a

faulty net. Environmental groups

alleged that the fish were

intentionally dumped.

Whatever the truth, that

spectacle of squandered sea life

was the tip of the iceberg: figures

from WWF show that in 2019, at

least 230,000 tonnes of fish were

dumped in EU waters. Most of the

waste - 92% - is related to bottomtrawling,

a fishing method that

scrapes the seafloor,

indiscriminately scooping up

everything in its path.

But this figure is a small fraction

of an even larger global issue. The

UN Food and Agriculture

Organization (FAO) estimates

that 35% of all fish, crustaceans

and molluscs harvested from

oceans, lakes and fish farms are

wasted or lost before they ever

reach a plate.

Fish are highly perishable and

fragile, which makes them more

vulnerable to waste, a problem

that is compounded by

haemorrhaging fish at every step

of the supply chain. Fish waste is

especially shocking, says Pete

Pearson, senior director for food

waste at WWF, because they "are

wild animals, so we are harvesting

wildlife".

Fish populations are already

threatened by overfishing,

pollution, and the climate crisis.

With current rates of fish

consumption projected to double

by 2050, waste is increasingly on

the radar of regulators. "We have

to do something about it," says

Omar Peñarubia, a fisheries

officer at the FAO. That begins,

experts say, with understanding

exactly what is driving waste

between harvest and plate. The

task is made difficult by fisheries'

notoriously opaque supply chains,

and incomplete datasets that are

also inconsistent, although the

evidence is clear that most fish

waste starts at the point of

extraction.

Just under half of all fish

consumed by people is wildcaught

at sea. "There's such

abundance that we've grown to be

OK with certain loss rates,"

Pearson says, although noting that

34% of global marine stocks are

now overfished. Bycatch

(unintentionally caught,

unwanted fish) is a growing

problem, too: roughly 10% of

wild-caught fish are discarded

worldwide each year, representing

8.6m tonnes of animals. The main

culprits are imprecise fishing gear

and policies that allow fishers to

discard non-target species.

There's an economic driver, too.

"I think there is a strong

connection between subsidies and

waste in the water," says Rashid

Sumaila, professor of ocean and

fisheries economics at the

University of British Columbia.

Although subsidies were

historically devised to support

small-scale fishers, today 80% of

$35.4bn (£26.4bn) in annual

fishing subsidies goes to a handful

of industrial fleets, Sumaila's

research shows. These include

gargantuan bottom trawlers that

are uniquely equipped to travel

out to the high seas and overfish,

The growing threat of fish waste

Some of the 100,000 dead fish that were thrown into the sea off the coast of la Rochelle, France, by a

factory ship in February.

Photo: aFP

leading to discards on an

industrial scale.

The impact of illegal and

unreported fishing is also

important, says Sumaila, as it is

likely contributing tonnes more

bycatch to global fish waste.

Fish waste is about more than

just the physical loss of fish: for

the 3 billion people whose diets

depend on fish, it is a lost

nutritional opportunity.

"The narrative is that we have to

produce more to feed the growing

masses, but the greatest pathway

to [increasing] supply is reducing

loss and waste," says Shakuntala

Thilsted, global lead for nutrition

and public health at World Fish

and winner of the 2021 World

Food Prize.

Many see controlled aquaculture

systems (or "fish farms") - which

generate more than half our fish

supply - as a solution to the waste

of wild fishing. But Dave Love,

senior scientist at the Johns

Hopkins Center for a Livable

Future, says that various factors,

such as disease, are driving

considerable losses on farms, too.

"Mortality in fish ponds is actually

a significant source of lost

potential food," Love says.

Fish waste continues after

harvest - though how it unfolds

differs depending on location. The

FAO estimates that 27% of all fish

globally is lost or wasted after

landing, but in low-income

countries the fish is more likely to

be unintentionally lost than

wasted, says Peñarubia.

One study showed that in

Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo,

65% of lost fish on land was

attributable to poor handling, lack

of storage and cooling facilities on

fishing vessels and along the

lengthy supply chain.

Fish disappear after

distribution, too, but here the

culprits are retailers and

consumers, almost exclusively in

middle-and high-income

countries. In North America,

Oceania and Europe, fish waste at

consumption far outstrips that of

any other region in the world.

Pearson thinks retailers in the

US partly contribute to the

problem by prioritising large,

fresh fish to sell at a premium,

which quickly spoil. "This is the

real tragedy, because it's moved all

the way through the supply chain,

and then we're comfortable with a

10% to 30% loss rate in the

grocery store," he says.

When retailers prioritise fresh

fish, "the ripple effect is that

consumers are more likely to

waste that in their homes," says

Love, who published research

showing that retailers were

responsible for about 16% of

wasted seafood in the US, while up

to 63% comes down to consumers

putting uneaten fish in the bin.

Solutions do exist to reduce fish

spoilage along the supply chain.

Increasing access to cold-chain

technologies in low-income

countries, along with methods

such as solar-powered drying

tents, could extend the shelf life of

fish. Fishers and processors also

need training on better fish

handling and storage to limit loss,

Peñarubia says.

At the consumer end, Pearson

and Love argue that we should

encourage more people to opt for

frozen fish, which could reduce

demand for fresh fish in grocery

stores, and limit the amount that

is lost in retail and people's homes.

Thilsted suggests diversifying

our appetites beyond the

ubiquitous fish fillet to smaller fish

and bivalves, which can be

consumed whole to reduce waste.

"If our notion of 'fish' is a fillet on

a pan, then we are already far

down the path of loss and waste,

because we have reduced the

edible part to such a small portion

of the whole."

Existing fish byproducts can be

captured and turned into new

ones. Fish heads, fins, and bones

from the fishing industry are

already a source of fertiliser and

feed; now innovators are finding

uses for everything from fish skin

for burn treatments, and

crustacean waste to make

biodegradable packaging.

"The idea of full utilisation is

something that needs to be

pervasive across all food supply

chains" says Pearson, who

cautions, however, that we

shouldn't overstate these

solutions. Unless fish byproducts

replace a share of fish demand,

they are simply making use of

waste - not reducing it at source.

Ultimately, prevention is the

best solution, starting at sea,

where this problem begins,

Pearson says. Fishers need to be

equipped with more selective gear

for fishing, and aided by policies

that discourage discards. Sumaila

underscores the need for "good

subsidies" that can be channelled

towards fisheries that help

replenish wild stocks: "We need to

spend taxpayers' money in ways

that reinforce positive feedback

from people to nature, and nature

to people," he says.

For generations we've believed

"the ocean is huge, and we can just

take whatever we want," says

Pearson. "Now we're coming to

see the limits of that. And when

you have limits, it requires you to

become more efficient."

Asia's weather is hitting extremes

a labourer in Delhi, india.

Matt anDReWS

The final days of April saw

further unbearable

temperatures recorded in

India and Pakistan.

Temperatures peaked at 49C

in Jacobabad, Pakistan on 30

April, with a high of 47.2C

observed in Banda, India.

The Indian Meteorological

Department confirmed that

average temperatures in

April were the highest for

northern and central parts of

the country since records

began over 100 years ago.

Heatwaves are a common

occurrence at this time of

year in India and Pakistan,

but scientists believe the

intensity, duration and

arrival time of the conditions

witnessed so far this year are

caused by rising global

temperatures. Despite a

slight respite in the extreme

heat over the past few days,

temperatures are set to

intensify once more this

weekend and into next week

with

maximum

temperatures expected to

approach 50C in parts of

Photo: Manish Swarup

north-west India and

Pakistan.

In stark contrast to intense

heat across northern India

and Pakistan, tropical parts

of south-east Asia have seen

unusually low temperatures

for the time of year. On 2

May, the Hong Kong

Observatory reached 16.4C.

This was the lowest May

temperature recorded since

1917, and broke the previous

record set in 2013. The

southern Chinese city of

Guangzhou observed a

temperature of just 13.7C on

the same day, the lowest

temperature ever recorded

during May. On 4 May, a

minimum temperature of

13.6C was also recorded in

the Umphang district,

Thailand. This is the lowest

temperature ever recorded in

May in Thailand.

The cool weather was a

result of a north-east

monsoon and unsettled

conditions, but these low

temperatures won't come as

any consolation to northern

India and Pakistan with

dangerous temperatures

expected to return over the

coming days.

Meanwhile, Australia has

seen its first cold outbreak of

the year after the seventh

warmest April on record. A

cold front brought a

significant drop in

temperature to south-eastern

parts of the country on

Wednesday with

temperatures 4-8C below the

average for parts of South

Australia, Victoria, New

South Wales and Tasmania.

Heavy rain and strong winds

affected Tasmania on

Thursday and Friday thanks

to a deep area of low

pressure. Referred to as an

"east coast low" by

meteorologists, these

features occur several times a

year and can bring some of

the most destructive weather

conditions, including heavy

rain, strong winds and flash

flooding.

toM leVitt

An H3N8 strain of bird flu

has been detected in

humans for the first time, in

China's central province of

Henan.

The four-year-old boy

infected had been in contact

with chickens and crows

raised at his home,

according to reports from

China's National Health

Commission.

Avian influenza or bird flu

as it is commonly known is a

highly contagious viral

disease with the first reports

of human cases in the 1990s.

Some strains of the bird

flu, such as with H3N8 now,

have been passed to humans

but this is currently very

rare, and usually occurs after

very close contact with

infected birds or animals.

H3N8 viruses circulate

widely in birds and in horses

and have also been detected

in dogs in North America.

"We often see a virus

spread to a human and then

not spread any further so a

single case is not a cause of

great concern," said Sir Peter

Horby, professor of

emerging infectious diseases

and global health, University

of Oxford.

"There is no reason to

think it will go any further,"

said Prof Paul Digard from

the Roslin Institute,

University of Edinburgh,

adding that Chinese

China detects first human case

of H3N8 bird flu strain

authorities had not reported

any illness in the immediate

contacts of the infected boy.

However, Horby and other

disease experts said the

widespread transmission

and record number of

outbreaks of avian flu in

birds across the UK, US and

Europe this year was a cause

of concern as it increased the

opportunity for avian

viruses to mix and mutate

and for human infection.

"I do generally believe we

need to be increasing

influence surveillance

globally quite concertedly

right now. Apart from

H3N8, we have seen a

number of other new

spillover events of influenza

from poultry to people over

recent years including H5N8

H3n8 viruses circulate widely in birds and horses.

in Russia and H7N9 and

H10N3 in China," said

Alexandra Phelan, assistant

professor at the centre for

global health science and

security at Georgetown

University.

Marius Gilbert, an

epidemiologist at the

Université Libre de

Bruxelles in Belgium, said a

novel virus should always be

Photo: VCG

Jane Hill

In recent years, many of us have

come to appreciate the huge

importance of insects to our

natural ecosystems - from the

life-enhancing beauty of

butterflies to the vital role that

pollinating insects play in our

food supply. So it's hardly

surprising there is huge concern

over the so-called

"insectageddon".

A recent study adds to an

emerging narrative of severe

decline and builds on the

perception that there were more

insects in nature in years gone

by - and that things were better

in the past. One often-cited

memory is that car windshields

used to be splattered with

insects, and this latest study

uses a "splat rate" to conclude

that numbers of flying insects

have plunged by almost 60% in

Britain between 2004 and 2021.

But how reliable is this

conclusion, and how worried

should we be?

Understanding the severity of

insect decline requires detailed

and long-term records of

species changes. Britain has a

long history of monitoring

nature going back many

decades, so we can rely on one

of the best datasets in the world

to help us understand these

changes and what might be

causing them. The

"splatometer" joins other

established monitoring

initiatives including light traps

for moths and other night-flying

insects, and walk-and-count

transects for butterflies.

So if we have so much

information, why is there still

debate about the severity of

decline? An important finding

from recent analyses is that

patterns of change are more

complex than statements

pointing to catastrophic

declines would have you

believe. We know that nature is

dynamic, so there is often

considerable turnover in which

species occur at any given site,

and a constant reshuffling of

communities. One 2020 study

of more than 5,000 species in

Britain highlights winners and

losers. Analysis of nearly 50

years of insect data reveals longterm

declines in moths but not

aphids, and that there is

evidence of shorter-term

periods of recovery - a decidedly

more optimistic picture than

you might imagine.

It illustrates the complexity of

Is there any possibility of

‘insectageddon’?

We should be focusing our efforts to ensure the actions we are taking to combat the climate crisis are

also benefiting biodiversity.

Photo: Dragomir Radovanovic

the landscape when reporting

on the wellbeing of insect

populations. Understanding

why some species are losers but

others are winners is key for

developing action plans to help

all nature thrive.

Another problem is that the

types of datasets that are

analysed, such as the number of

species at a site or types of

species present, and the

measurements that are taken

may not always tell the same

story. Deciding which historical

baselines to compare changes

against is also important, given

that short-term reporting may

not reflect long-term trends,

especially in insects whose

populations can respond very

quickly to their environment.

This high variability of insect

populations means we need

gold-standard data to

distinguish between long-term

trends and normal year-to-year

variation.

Let's be clear: most

researchers are concerned

about insect declines, but most

will also caution against the

increasingly common

hyperbole of impending doom.

Instead, we should be focusing

our efforts to ensure the actions

we are taking to combat the

climate crisis are also benefiting

biodiversity. Given the current

focus on tree planting and

increasing woodlands in the

UK, it is concerning that moth

declines are worst in

woodlands, for instance.

Our appreciation of green

spaces together with

government commitments for

nature recovery are cause for

optimism. There are many

examples where careful

management and restoration of

sites can hugely boost

biodiversity, but we need to be

doing this over much more of

the landscape. The introduction

of butterflies into the Cotswolds

and Rockingham Forest are

examples of success. For many

species, we already know how to

manage landscapes to ensure

their success. And that, of

course, may mean more insects

splattered on car windscreens.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2022

6

Barishal City Corporation Mayor Serniabat Sadiq Abdullah welcomed Agriculture Minister

Dr Abdur Razzaque in Barishal yesterday.

Photo : Shah Jalal

63-yr-old killed

over property feud

in Chuadanga

CHUADANGA : A 63-year

old private contractor was

killed allegedly over a

property dispute in

Chuadanga district on

Monday night.

The deceased was

identified as Kamal Hossain,

a resident of the Munshiganj

Clinic Para area in

Alamdanga upazila.

Locals spotted a severely

injured Kamal lying

unconscious near Protigya

Nursing Home around 11pm

and informed cops.

A team from the local

police station rushed to the

spot and took Kamal to the

nursing home and then to

Chuadanga Sadar Hospital

where doctors declared him

dead on arrival around

12am.

"The body had injury

marks," said Ahsanul

Haque, duty doctor at

Chuadanga Sadar Hospital.

Abdul Alim, officer-incharge

of Alamdanga police

station, said, "We got to

know that the victim had a

land dispute with a local

youth, named Shadhin, who

might have plotted his

murder."

"The body was sent for an

autopsy and a probe is on.

Efforts are also on to nab the

suspect," said the OC.

Two electrocuted

to death in Natore

NATORE : Two people were

electrocuted to death in

Natore on Monday.

The deceased were

identified as Ratan Ali, 32, a

resident of Hamlaikola

village, and Milon Hossain,

28, of Khacchop Bazar area

in Gurudaspur upazila,

reports UNB.

Mizanur Rahman Suja,

Biaghat Union Parishad

chairman, confirmed the

deaths of the two locals on

Tuesday.

"Ratan was electrocuted

while trying to plug an

electrical line in his litchi

orchard," he said.

"Milon, on the other hand,

got an electric shock while

repairing a paddy harvesting

machine at a shop in Singra

upazila. He died on the

spot," Mizanur said.

Mudslide kills

two workers in

Tangail

TANGAIL : Two workers

were killed and three others

injured in a mudslide while

digging a septic tank in the

municipality area yesterday.

The deceased were

identified as Nidhon Pal, 45,

and Anand Pal, 55. Both

were the residents at Kashil

Palpara village under Basail

upazila in the district.

Local people said the

accident occurred yesterday

noon at Ashekpur Indira

Para in the town. They died

on the spot.

Bumper Boro rice production

likely in Rangpur region

RANGPUR : A bumper production of Boro

rice is likely in Rangpur agriculture region

where harvest of the major cereal crop

continues in full swing with excellent yield rate

making farmers happy this season.

Officials of the Department of Agricultural

Extension (DAE) said farmers have already

harvested Boro rice on 12.24 percent of their

cultivated land area with an average yield

rate. The DAE has fixed a target of

producing 22,07,132 tonnes of clean Boro

rice (33,10,698 tonnes in terms of paddy)

from 5,03,550 hectares of land for all five

districts under Rangpur agriculture region

this season. "Farmers have finally brought

5,05,235 hectares of land under Boro rice

cultivation exceeding the fixed farming

target by 1,685 hectares of land or 0.33

percent," Additional Director of the DAE's

Rangpur region Agriculturist Md. Tauhidul

Ikbal told BSS.

Farmers have cultivated Boro rice on more

land area after getting special assistance from

the government aiming at further enhancing

rice production in the region this season. "Till

Monday, farmers have harvested Boro rice on

61,851 hectares of land in the region

producing over 2,28,291 tonnes of clean rice at

the average yield rate of 3.69 tonnes of clean

rice per hectare," Ikbal said.

Many farmers are utilising combined

harvester machines for harvesting Boro paddy

on one acre of land using one machine in an

hour spending Taka 3,000 only against Taka

6,000 to 8,000 for the same purpose on one

acre of land by engaging labourers. The

government through the DAE has distributed

combined harvester machines to farmers and

groups of farmers at Taka 14 lakh per unit

against the real price of Taka 28 lakh at 50

percent subsidised rates.

Besides, farmers are easily harvesting their

cultivated Boro rice on crop lands using reaper

machines in the region.

"The field level DAE officials extended

necessary assistance to farmers and provided

latest technologies to them to make the Boro

rice cultivation program a success this

season," Ikbal said.

Senior Coordinator (Agriculture and

Environment) of RDRS Bangladesh

Agriculturist Mamunur Rashid said the

government ensured smooth supply of

fertilisers, pesticides, diesel and electricity to

farmers to make the Boro rice farming

program a success. "Following various

pragmatic steps of the government and

cultivation of high yielding and hybrid

varieties of Boro rice on more land area, a

bumper production of Boro rice is expected

this season," Rashid said.

Talking to BSS, farmer Ariful Haque Batul

of village Najirdigar in Rangpur Sadar said

sharecroppers are continuing harvest of Boro

rice on his six acres of land and getting

excellent yield this season."I am harvesting

my cultivated Boro rice on four acres of land

and getting excellent yield this season," said

farmer Manik Mian of village Darshona in

Rangpur Sadar upazila.

Similarly, farmers Mossarraf Hossain,

Solaiman Ali, Abdul Hye and Anwar Hossain

of different villages in Rangpur said they are

harvesting Boro rice after successfully

cultivating the crop on their crop lands this

season.

In Dhamoirhat, Mobile Court fined tk 50,000 to National Petroleum and

Filling Station for forging.

Photo : Rejuan

Farmers urged to cultivate BRRI

dhan-84 in Rajshahi

RAJSHAHI : Agricultural researchers and

extension officials have urged the farmers to

bring more other lands under BRRI dhan-84, a

zinc-enriched and drought-tolerant paddy

variety, in the Rajshahi region, including its vast

Barind Tract, during the Boro season.

They told the grassroots farmers that the

newly innovated paddy variety has opened up a

door of enormous prospects of mitigating zinc

and protein deficiency besides fighting diarrhea

and pneumonia-induced childhood deaths and

stunting.

Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI)

released the variety for all over the country last

year after a latest breakthrough in research in

the field. It's a short-duration, high-yielding

variety of rice which can be cultivated in season.

They made these observations while addressing

a farmers' field day on production and

improved technology expansion of the zincenriched

BRRI dhan-84 at Daingpara village

under Paba upazila in the district. World Vision

Bangladesh and the Department of Agriculture

Extension (DAE) jointly hosted the field day

with the main thrust of disseminating ideas

among the grassroots farmers on how to boost

the production of the paddy variety.

DAE Deputy Director Mozder Hossain,

Upazila Agriculture Officer Shafiqul Islam and

World Vision Senior Manager Sebastian

Purification addressed the meeting.

The meeting was told that the BRRI dhan 84

is a zinc-fortified breed and has been developed

to meet the necessary requirement of

micronutrient for a human body coupled with

ensuring food security.

Each kilogram of rice of BRRI dhan-84

contained 19 mg of zinc and 9 percent of protein

which will ensure high nutrition and will play a

significant role in prevention of diseases; Zinc

also played a vital role in prevention of liverrelated

diseases.

18,829 more doses

Covid-19 jabs

administered in

Rangpur

RANGPUR : More 18,829

doses of Covid-19 jabs were

administered on Monday

raising the number of

inoculated vaccines to two

crore 77 lakh 81 thousand and

328 doses in Rangpur

division.

Health officials said, among

the 18,829 doses of the jabs

inoculated on Monday, 535

were administered as the first

doses, 5,494 as the second

doses and 12,800 as the

booster doses.

"Till Monday, a total of

1,35,24,419 people got the first

doses of Covid-19 jabs, and of

them, 1,27,65,974 got the

second doses and 14,90,935

got the booster doses,"

Divisional Director (Health)

Dr. Abu Md. Zakirul Islam

told BSS.

Meanwhile, the number of

Covid-19 infected patients

rose to 64,138 in the division

as one fresh positive case was

diagnosed after testing 38 new

samples on Monday.

The number of healed Covid-

19 patients remained steady at

62,782 in the division where no

new patients recovered during

the last 24 hours ending at 8

am, Tuesday.

"Besides, the

number of casualties remained

steady at 1,284 in the division as

no new death was reported

during the last 24 hours in the

division," Dr. Islam said.

Heroin, leaf bidis

seized in C'nawabganj

CHAPAINAWABGANJ :

Members of Border Guard

Bangladesh (BGB) recovered

150 grams of heroin and 8,000

pieces of smuggled leaf bidis

from Shibganj upazilas of the

district on Tuesday night.

Acting on a tip-off, a patrol

team of BGB from Sonamasjid

Border outpost conducted a

raid in Gopalpur area of the

upazila at around 9.30 pm and

found the heroin and the bidis

in an abandoned condition, a

BGB official said.

Police seizes 27,000

liters of edible oils in

Rajshahi

RAJSHAHI : Police in a

three-hour raid seized

around 27,000 liters of edible

oil, including 20,000 liters of

soyabean oil, from two

godawons at Taherpur area

under Bagmara upazila in the

district on Tuesday night.

Additional Superintendent

of Police Ifte Khayer Alam

told BSS yesterday morning

that they also arrested one

person for his involvement in

hoarding the huge edible oil.

He said they conducted the

raid from 7pm to 10 pm in the

two storages and recovered

19,176 liters of soyabean oil

and 7,548 liters of mustard

oil. Shahidul Islam Swapan,

40, and his brother Rafiqul

Islam, 45, hoarded the edible

oil in the godawons with an

ulterior motive to gain more

profit through creating

artificial crises.

Groundnut brings smile on

Manikganj char people's faces

MANIKGANJ : The farmers of char areas of

Daulatpur, Shibalaya and Harirampur

upazilas of the district are happy with getting

bumper output of groundnut as harvesting

of the cash crop has started on the barren

char lands during the current Kharif-1

season.

Department of Agriculture Extension

(DAE) officials here said the groundnut is

generally cultivated on the sandy land.

Experimentally, some local farmers started

to cultivate groundnut on their barren land

which would remain fallow all over the year

in the char areas for the last few years, they

said, adding that seeing their success, a

number of farmers now are cultivating

groundnut in the vast char areas of the

Jamuna and the Padma rivers.

The char farmers are getting fair prices of

the crop between Taka 2,500 and 3,000 per

mound as per its quality while it has high

demand in the local markets.

DAE office sources said they set a target of

groundnut cultivation on 2,600 hectares of

land in the upazilas of the district, but more

than 2,700 hectares of land has been

cultivated during the Kharif-1 season in the

district, exceeding its fixed target.

Rifazuddin, one groundnut cultivator of

Charkalikapur of Baghutia union of

Daulatpur upazila, said he had cultivated

groundnut on two bighas of land this season

and was getting expected production and

prices.

Md. Haydar Ali, another groundnut

cultivator of Harirampur upazila, said

groundnut cultivation is gaining popularity

in the char areas as it grows in the sandy

barren land and it needs no irrigation and

fertilizer.

Now groundnut became one of the cash

crops for the char people, he said, adding

groundnut is cultivated twice in the year in

the winter and summer seasons.

The sources said the cultivators are getting

opportunities to sell their crops at the

nearest bazaars and even at their homes as a

good number of buyers regularly visit the

areas for searching the groundnuts. A group

of middle men also earn attractive money

trading this seasonal crop.

Abu Mohammad Enayet Ullah, Deputy

Director of DAE, said the sandy land of char

area is suitable for groundnut cultivation and

its cultivation is gaining popularity in the

three upazilas day by day.

Deputy Commissioner of Jhalakathi Md Johor Ali addressing the Fisheries

Task Force Committee meeting yesterday.

Photo : Manik Roy

Man killed over land dispute in Chuadanga

CHUADANGA : A 64-year-old man was

killed in a clash between two groups of

people over a land dispute in front of

Pratigya Nursing Home in Munshiganj

Jehala area under Alamdanga upazila of the

district on Wednesday night.

The deceased was identified as Kamal

Hossain, 64, son of late Jahan Ali of

Majherpara in Jehala village of Alamdanga

upazila.

Locals said there had been a long-standing

dispute between Kamal Hossain and his

relative Shadhin Ali over the ownership of a

piece of land in the village.

On Monday night, Kamal Hossain came

out of his house for personal work. Then, he

was stabbed and beaten by several people

including Swadhin around 11.30pm, leaving

him injured critically on the spot.

Later, police and locals rescued and took

him to the emergency department of

Chuadanga Sadar Hospital where on-duty

doctors declared Kamal dead.

Md. Ahsanul Haque, a doctor of the

emergency department of Chuadanga Sadar

Hospital, said he was beaten by a sharp

weapon.

Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Alamdanga

Police Station Md Abdul Alim said police

were working to unearth the mystery of the

murder and several teams of police are

working to arrest the accused.

Soyabean traders fined Taka

75,000 in Rajshahi

RAJSHAHI : Three traders were fined Taka 75,000 for their alleged involvement in

manipulation of soyabean selling in different markets in the city yesterday.

Department of National Consumers Rights Protection (DNCRP) conducted separate raids

at Shaheb Bazar and Boharampur areas and found some of the businessmen involved in

hoarding and selling the edible oil at a high price compared to the fixed one.

DNCRP Assistant Director Hassan Al Maruf told BSS that they found 132 bottles of

Soyabean oil remaining hoarded in Messers Humayun Store at Saheb Bazar and they fined

its owner Humayun Kabir Taka 20,000.

They also found the Messers Nurunnabi Traders at Boharampur crossing selling Soyabean

oil at exorbitant price and fined its owner Nurunnabi Taka 50,000 on the spot.

Nazrul Islam, Owner of Messers Pappu and Brothers at Saheb Bazar, was also fined Taka

5,000 on charge of selling the edible oil at hiking price.

Hassan said their drive against irregularities and manipulation in selling edible oil will

continue for the greater interests of the public in general.

Birth anniversary of Rai Shaheb Binod Bihari was held in Paikgacha upazila of Khulna yesterday.

A discussion meeting was organized on the occasion.

Photo : Sk Deen Mahmud

Indonesian sailors

seize $82M of cocaine

floating off port

JAKARTA : Sailors deployed

to secure travel during the

Eid al-Fitr holiday made

Indonesia's biggest cocaine

seizure after finding plastic

packages of the drugs

floating at sea, the navy said.

Indonesia is a major hub

for drug trafficking in

Southeast Asia and has strict

drug laws, with convicted

smugglers sometimes

executed by firing squad,

reports UNB.

The four black packages

containing 179 kilograms

(nearly 400 pounds) of

cocaine worth 1.2 trillion

rupiah ($82.6 million) were

found floating near Merak

port on Java island on

Sunday, the navy's deputy

chief of staff said at a news

conference Monday.

Smuggling drugs by

throwing packages and a

buoy into the sea is a

common tactic, Vice Adm.

Ahmadi Heri Purwono said.

Smugglers likely put the

drugs in the water near a

port for them to be moved by

a speedboat and were

monitoring the packages

when they were seized by the

navy, he said.

"This is a spectacular

seizure of cocaine,

considering its huge value

and the impact on the

people as a result of the illicit

drugs," Purwono said. No

one has been arrested.

GD-860/22 (6x3)

Russian forces pounded away at the vital port of Odesa, Ukrainian officials said Tuesday, as part of

an apparent effort to disrupt supply lines and weapons shipments.

Photo : AP

Russia pounds Ukraine's vital

port of Odesa, Mariupol plant

ZAPORIZHZHIA : Russian

forces pounded away at the

vital port of Odesa,

Ukrainian officials said

Tuesday, as part of an

apparent effort to disrupt

supply lines and weapons

shipments. On the other end

of the southern coast, they

hammered a steel plant

where Ukrainian fighters are

denying Moscow full control

of another critical port,

reports UNB.

Days after the dramatic

rescue of what some officials

said were the last civilians

trapped at the plant in

Mariupol, authorities said

about 100 were still believed

to be in the network of

underground tunnels under

bombardment. The strikes

come as the grisly toll of the

war continued to take shape,

with the Ukrainians saying

they found the bodies of 44

civilians in the rubble of a

building in the northeast that

was destroyed weeks ago.

The Ukrainian military

said Tuesday that Russian

forces fired seven missiles a

day earlier from the air at the

crucial Black Sea port of

Odesa, hitting a shopping

center and a warehouse. One

person was killed and five

were wounded, the military

said.

Ukraine alleged at least

some of the munitions used

dated back to the Soviet era,

making them unreliable in

targeting. But the Center for

Defense Strategies, a

Ukrainian think tank

tracking the war, said

Moscow did use some

precision weapons against

Odesa: Kinzhal, or "Dagger,"

hypersonic air-to-surface

missiles.

Ukrainian, British and

American officials warn

Russia is rapidly using up its

stock of precision weapons

and may not be able to

quickly build more, raising

the risk of more imprecise

rockets being used as the

conflict grinds on.

Ever since President

Vladimir Putin's forces failed

to take Kyiv in the early days

of the war, he has said his

focus is the country's eastern

industrial heartland of the

Donbas - but one general has

suggested Moscow's aims

also include cutting Ukraine

off from its entire Black Sea

coast.

That would give it a swath

of territory that would link

Russia to both the Crimean

Peninsula, which it seized in

2014, and Transnistria, a

pro-Russian breakaway

region of Moldova.

Even if it falls short in the

goal of severing Ukraine

from the Black Sea Coast -

and it appears to lack the

forces to do so - continuing

missile strikes on Odesa

reflect the city's importance

as a strategic transport hub.

The Russian military has

repeatedly targeted the city's

airport and claimed that it

has destroyed several

batches of the Western

weapons that have been key

to Ukraine's resistance.

Odesa, Ukraine's largest

port, is also a major gateway

for grain shipments, and

Russia's blockade of it is

already threatening global

food supplies. And the city is

also a cultural jewel, dear to

Ukrainians and Russians

alike and targeting carries

symbolic significance as well.

The strikes came the same

day Russian President

Vladimir Putin marked his

country's biggest patriotic

holiday without being able to

boast of major new

battlefield successes. On

Monday, he watched troops

march in formation and

military hardware roll by in a

Victory Day parade on

Moscow's Red Square to

celebrate the Soviet Union's

role in the 1945 defeat of

Nazi Germany.

A symbol of Russia's

difficulties is the city of

Mariupol, where Russian

forces have sought for weeks

to end the resistance of

GD-862/22 (4x3)

weDnesDAY, MAY 11, 2022

7

For widows in Africa, COVID-19

stole husbands, homes, future

UMUIDA : As Anayo Mbah went into labor

with her sixth child, her husband battled

COVID-19 in another hospital across town.

Jonas, a young motorcycle taxi driver, had

been placed on oxygen after he started

coughing up blood.

Jonas would never meet his daughter,

Chinaza. Hours after the birth, Mbah's

sister-in-law called to say he was gone. Staff

at the hospital in southeastern Nigeria soon

asked Mbah and her newborn to leave. No

one had come to pay her bill.

Mbah began the rites of widowhood at the

home where she lived with her in-laws: Her

head was shaved, and she was dressed in

white clothing. But just weeks into the

mourning period that traditionally lasts six

months, her late husband's relatives

stopped providing food, then confronted

her directly.

"They told me that it was better for me to

find my own way," Mbah, now 29, said.

"They said even if I have to go and remarry,

that I should do so. That the earlier I leave

the house, the better for me and my

children."

She left on foot for her mother's home

with only a plastic bag of belongings for

Chinaza and her other children.

"I decided that I might die if I continue to

stay here with my children," she said.

Across Africa, widowhood has long

befallen great numbers of women -

particularly in the continent's least

developed countries where medical

facilities are scarce. Many widows are

young, having married men decades older.

And in some countries, men frequently

have more than one wife, leaving several

widows behind when they die.

Now, the coronavirus pandemic has

created an even larger population of

widows on the continent, with African men

far more likely to die of the virus than

women, and it has exacerbated the issues

they face. Women such as Mbah say the

pandemic has taken more than their

husbands: In their widowhood, it's cost

them their extended families, their homes

and their futures.

As Anayo Mbah went into labor with her sixth child, her husband battled

COVID-19 in another hospital across town. Jonas, a young motorcycle taxi driver,

had been placed on oxygen after he started coughing up blood. Photo : AP

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3584(15) 10/05/2022

GD-858/22 (6x4)

GD-856/22 (7x4)

WedneSdAY, MAY 11, 2022

8

IBTRA launches Entrepreneurship

Development program

Islami Bank Training and Research

Academy (IBTRA) launched a monthlong

Entrepreneurship Development

Program at Chattogram Regional Center

on Tuesday. Mohammed Monirul

Moula, Managing Director and CEO of

the bank inaugurated the workshop

virtually as chief guest, a press release

said.

To celebrate success, realme GT Master Edition

now available at special offer of 31,990tk

Since setting the youngsters

as the target audience,

realme, the world's fastestgrowing

smartphone brand,

witnessed the sales of the GT

series rapidly increasing and

growing by 550% globally

compared to the same time

in 2021, making the flagship

lines' sales volume breaking

5 million in total. To

celebrate global success and

give youth experience of

flagship GT ME now

available at special price of

Tk. 31,990 only.

GT 2 Series and GT Neo

Series are the main

contributors to the

significant growth

GT 2 Series was launched

globally at MWC 2022 and

gained overwhelming

attention from tech fans and

media: more than 16,000

fans lined up outside pop-up

stores in 6 countries across

Europe to get their hands on

the handset and be among

the first to purchase it. The

device is warmly welcomed

due to the modern

technologies equipped to

deliver a premium holistic

mobile experience to users.

In other words, GT 2 Series

is our most premium

flagship ever, featuring

Qualcomm's latest and

fastest processor, the

Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, the

world's first 2K AMOLED

flat display, and the world's

first biopolymer back

‘Seeds for the Future’ winners visit

Huawei Headquarter in Bangladesh

An eye-opening experience for the

visitors Winners of the last year's Seeds

for the Future program have recently

paid a visit to the Huawei Bangladesh

Headquarter located in the capital. In a

special session during their visit the

Head of Public Affairs and

Communications Department, Yuying

Karl, guided them in their further

growth.

Huawei keeps organizing different

programs to do its bit for developing

the talent ecosystem and equip the

youth of the country with future-fit

skills. Seeds for the Future is such a

program that is organized every year.

Last year, 15 students from different

universities were selected as the

winners from Bangladesh, a press

release said.

With this visit, the champions were

given an opportunity to experience how

different operations and services are

done at Huawei's office. It was an eyeopening

experience for them as they

got the chance to learn from experts

and develop insights on different

pertinent ICT-related topics such as

Arif Hossain Khan, General Manager

of Bangladesh Bank and Head of

Chattogram Office (Current Charge)

attenede the program as special guest.

SM Rabiul Hassan, Principal, IBTRA

presided over the function. Meah Md.

Barkat Ullah, Head of Chattogram South

Zone and Mohammad Nurul Hossain,

Head of Chattogram North Zone also

design. Not only becoming a

must-have item for tech

fans, but the unconventional

creation has also been

recognized by experts and

has been awarded "Best of

MWC" by leading media,

including Digital Trends,

XDA, WIRED, and Android

Authority.

This growth is also

strongly fueled by the realme

GT NEO Series, especially

the newly launched GT NEO

3. This device is the world's

fastest charging smartphone

with 150W UltraDart

charging coupled with

MediaTek Dimensity 8100

CPU, which improves

performance and saves

more power, not to mention

the high-grade triple

camera, 120Hz smooth

display, and stylish design.

The GT NEO 3 proves its

place as the perfect

smartphone for the young

and gaming lovers with the

overwhelming sales result,

breaking 100,000 units in

under 10 hours in China's

first sale.

New drivers in European

and Chinese Markets

This achievement is also

contributed by successes in

the European and Chinese

markets. GT Series sales

have increased by more than

90 times in Europe (the

same price segment) and

reached 474% growth yearon-year

in China. These

networking and cloud services.

Regarding this arrangement, Yuying

Karl, Head of Public Affairs and

Communications Department, Huawei

Bangladesh, says, "We are happy to

host the winners of Seeds for the Future

today at our headquarter. We want to

do everything for developing ICT

talents in the country and give them

proper exposure so that they can gather

proper ICT knowledge. I believe today's

visit will help the champions in forming

addressed on the occasion. SME and

Special Programs Department of

Bangladesh Bank has taken initiative to

conduct

Entrepreneurship

Development Program through

scheduled banks across the country.

Targeting the young, realme celebrates

a strong start for 2022 with premium

segment breakthrough.

positive figures show the

viability and success of our

"Go Premium" strategy to

focus on the opportunities in

China and Europe.

In the future, realme, the

world's fastest-growing

smartphone brand, will

maintain the momentum to

produce tech-trendy

premium handsets that

integrate tech innovations

and modern cultures for the

young generations

worldwide. With the

resounding support from

our community, it is possible

for us to continuously

dedicate and create new

values for the technology

industry and life standards.

ideas about different technical and

networking issues prevalent in the

industry."

It is mentionable that Seeds for the

Future is Huawei's flagship CSR

program dedicated to top STEM and

non-STEM students worldwide. First

launched in Bangladesh in 2014, this

program has been nurturing ICT

talents since its initiation. 'Seeds for the

Future' has been implemented in

around 130 countries worldwide so far.

Safwan

Choudhury

Re-elected

as Vice

Chairman of

Bank Asia

Mohd. Safwan Choudhury

has been re-elected as Vice

Chairman of Bank Asia Ltd.,

at the 473rd meeting of the

Board of Directors of the

Bank held recently. Mohd.

Safwan Choudhury is an

eminent industrialist of the

country, a press release said.

He is a former President of

Sylhet Chamber of

Commerce & Industry.

Choudhury is the Managing

Director of M. Ahmed Tea &

Lands Co. Ltd., Phulbari Tea

Estates Ltd., M. Ahmed Cold

Storage Ltd., Premier

Dyeing & Calendaring Ltd.

and M. Ahmed Food &

Spices Ltd. He also served as

the Chairman of Bangladesh

Tea Association. He is the

President of FIVDB, an NGO

providing primary

education to the

underprivileged children.

‘Nagad’ Rewards 50 Winners of

‘Nagad Letter’ Campaign

The Postal Department's

Mobile Financial Service has

launched the 'Nagad_Letter'

campaign through which

customers got the

opportunity to convey their

affection and feelings about

'Nagad' through letters. The

best letters were selected as

winners and received

exciting prizes from Nagad.

Nagad declared the 50

winners after the five-day

campaign garnered countless

letters from the participants.

Customers have actively

taken part in this campaign

through digital platforms

using the hashtag #Nagad_

Chithi via two official

Facebook pages of Nagad

and directly at 'Nagad'

service points across the

country.

The best 50 letters were

selected from thousands of

participants who shared their

experiences with 'Nagad'.

Participants submitted

letters expressing how

'Nagad' has made financial

transactions more

convenient, making their

lives simpler than before.

Arif Rahman, the winner

from Bogra Sadar Upazila,

conveyed his gratitude to the

Nagad through a letter. He

wrote, "Nagad is the only

mobile financial service that

has managed to disrupt the

market's existing monopoly.

Nintendo

outlook

cautious,

annual net

profit solid

TOKYO : Nintendo on

Tuesday issued a cautious

forecast for the current

financial year as it reported a

solid 2021-22 net profit of

477.7 billion yen ($3.7

billion), down 0.6 percent

on-year.

The gaming giant, which

has benefited from a string

of popular titles including

the January release of

"Pokemon Legends:

Arceus", expects net profit

for 2022-23 of 340 billion

yen.

Danish inflation hits highest

level since 1984

COPENHAGEN : Danish inflation hit a near

four-decade high in April, as energy and food

prices soared, official figures showed

Tuesday.

Denmark's consumer price index (CPI),

rose 6.7 percent in April, compared to a year

earlier, the highest rate since June 1984,

according to Statistics Denmark.

Prices of goods have meanwhile risen by

10.3 percent over the past year, a rate last

matched in November 1982, the official

statistics keeper said.

"Within goods, price increases for

electricity, food, fuel and gas are very much

evident in April 2022," the agency said in a

statement.

Excluding energy and unprocessed

I prefer Nagad since it has

the lowest cash-out charge,

free bill-pay, and other

innovative features."

Md. Shaheed Khan,

another winner from Khulna,

said, "Nagad has made

services so interesting and

easy that I do not have words

to describe it. Among all the

services, 'Nagad Islamic'

account is my favorite since it

is an interest-free Shariabased

account. My friends

were likewise intrigued by

'Nagad Islamic' account and

started using it when I

recommended it to them."

Thousands of customers,

like Arif Rahman and

Shaheen Khan, participated

in the 'Nagad_Letter'

campaign by expressing their

appreciation for Nagad.

Previously, 'Nagad,' has

taken various initiatives

around the campaign. Nagad

has unveiled intriguing letter

cards, at Nagad Sheba Point

for the participants.

Customers shared their

experiences with 'Nagad' in

the form of stories on one

side of the letter card, and

there was a slot on the other

side of the letter card for

participants to write their

names and addresses.

Thousands of loyal

customers wrote letters to

Nagad conveying their

thoughts. Besides, people

have been acquainted with

the nearly extinct tradition of

letter writing through this

initiative.

foodstuffs, Danish consumer prices rose 3.6

percent, which is still up from 3.2 percent in

March.

Fuel and food prices have soared

worldwide following Russia's invasion of

Ukraine as the conflict and Western

sanctions on Moscow have disrupted

supplies.

While central banks in the United States,

Britain and other countries have hiked

interest rates in bids to tame inflation,

Denmark's Nationalbanken cut its key rate

in September to protect the Danish krone's

exchange rate, which is pegged to the euro.

The European Central Bank has kept its

own rates unchanged so far despite soaring

inflation in the eurozone.

Rising prices buoy Bayer's

first quarter profits

FRANKFURT : German chemicals giant

Bayer on Tuesday reported a sizeable

increase in its net profits, as prices for its

agricultural products increased.

The group recorded a net profit of 3.3

billion euros ($3.5 billion) through the first

three months of the year, up from 2.1 billion

euros in the same period in 2021.

The improvement came on the back of

stronger sales, with revenues climbing to

14.6 billion euros in the first quarter of 2022,

from 12.3 billion euros last year.

Top-line progress was driven by Bayer's

agricultural division, where revenues rose by

22 percent year-on-year to 8.4 billion euros.

Sales of seeds and pesticides grew by

double-digits in all regions "mainly due to

price increases" for its products, Bayer said

in a statement. The result was also boosted

by a reduction in legal costs related US

lawsuits against its Roundup weedkiller.

MAPUTO : The International Monetary

Fund (IMF) on Tuesday signed off on $456

million in credit to Mozambique, the first

such aid awarded since a catastrophic debt

scandal erupted six years ago.

The outlines of the deal had been

announced in late March.

The statement finalising the agreement

marks Mozambique's return to good graces

after the "hidden debt" scandal, when the

government took out $2 billion in loans that

it concealed from parliament, the public and

other lenders.

"The three-year arrangement will help

support the economic recovery and policies

to reduce public debt and financing

vulnerabilities," the IMF said in a statement.

"The program supports the authorities'

ambitious reform agenda," it added.

Bayer has been plagued by legal woes since

it bought Roundup producer Monsanto in

2018, with a series of claims by cancer

patients who say the glyphosate chemical in

the weedkiller caused them to fall ill.

The group had set aside billions of dollars

to cover the costs of the lawsuits, while the

German firm maintains it has not committed

any wrongdoing.

While Russia's invasion of Ukraine has

upended supply chains for many

manufacturers and driven up the cost of

energy, Bayer said its first-quarter sales and

earnings "were not negatively impacted" by

the conflict. Nonetheless, Bayer left its

outlook for the year unchanged "despite the

great uncertainties" arising from the war,

CEO Werner Baumann said in a statement.

Together the countries represented around

three percent of Bayer's sales, the company

said.

Regarding the campaign,

Sheikh Aminur Rahman,

Chief Marketing Officer

(CMO) of Nagad, said, "Our

Nagad-letter campaign has

received an unparalleled

response from the

customers. Participants

expressed their thoughts

regarding Nagad through

their letters. Hence, each

participant is a winner to us.

However, since it is a

competition, we must go

through the selection

procedure to declare the

winners. Congratulations to

the winners and everyone

who participated actively.

We believe that 'Nagad' will

go a long way with the

support of our loving

customers."

IMF backs new Mozambique

loan, six years after scandal

The scandal triggered Mozambique's worst

economic crisis since independence from

Portugal four decades ago.

The government contracted secret loans

amounting to $2 billion (1.8 billion euros) in

2013 and 2014 from international banks to

buy a tuna-fishing fleet and surveillance

vessels.

Maputo masked the loans from parliament

but the debt came to light in 2016,

prompting donors, including the IMF, to

turn off financial support.

An independent audit later found $500

million had been diverted and remains

unaccounted for.

Prosecutors have charged 19 high-profile

people over the scandal, forcing a former

president and other top officials to testify in

a case that has gripped the nation.

WedneSdAY, MAY 11, 2022

9

Bangladesh national hockey team confirmed their Asian Games berth as they beat Sri Lanka by 3-1 goals in their

second Pool B match of the Asian Games qualifier held on Tuesday in Bangkok, Thailand. Photo : Internet

Bangladesh hockey team qualify for

Asian Games beating Sri Lanka

DHAKA : Bangladesh national hockey

team confirmed their Asian Games

berth as they beat Sri Lanka by 3-1 goals

in their second Pool B match of the

Asian Games qualifier held on Tuesday

in Bangkok, Thailand.

The second successive victory also

took the men in red and green into the

last four of the nine-team qualifiers with

a match in hand against Singapore. The

match will be held on Thursday (May

12).

After the barren first quarter,

Bangladesh tool lead in the 18th minute

ST. JOHN'S : Keacy Carty has become the first

player from St. Maarten to be picked for the

West Indies.

The 25-year-old Carty and fast bowlers

Jayden Seales and Shermon Lewis were chosen

for their first West Indies limited-overs

international squad on Monday for short tours

of the Netherlands and Pakistan. Seales and

Lewis, however, have played at test level.

Not considered for selection were former

captain Jason Holder and top-order batters

Shimron Hetmyer and Evin Lewis. Holder is

being rested to manage his workload, Hetmyer

is home for the birth of his first child, and Lewis

through Ashraful Islam's penalty

corner. The second goal came for

Bangladesh in the 23rd minute from a

penalty stroke.

Sri Lanka however offered strong

resistance in the third quarter creating

number of penalty corner but could not

convert any of those into a goal.

However, the Islanders pulled one

back in the 44th minute to bring some

excitement into the match before

Bangladesh took the match away with

Roman Sarkar scoring the team's third

goal in the 53rd minute.

Carty is first St Maarten cricketer

picked for West Indies

didn't meet fitness criteria.

The 25-year-old Carty scored 57 and 49

against England in March in a test warmup

game for the CWI President's XI.

"We were impressed with Carty and the way

he goes about his innings," head selector

Desmond Haynes said of the uncapped batter.

"We saw several glimpses of his ability the way

he played against England. We hope that giving

him this opportunity he will recognize the

importance of representing West Indies. We

think he is a young batsman with great

promise, and this is the kind of tour he can

show he fits in."

Japanese athlete collapses,

vomits after sanitiser swig

TOKYO : Japanese

authorities have pledged to

investigate a mix-up that

saw high school athletes

given hand sanitiser to

drink during a race, with

one student falling ill after

taking a swig.

Competition organisers

for a girls' 5,000-metre

walking race held last

weekend in central Japan's

Yamanashi prefecture

mistakenly poured the

sanitiser into cups and

placed them at a drinks

station for athletes.

Yamanashi's high school

sport federation said the

sanitiser had been stored

in an unlabelled plastic

bottle alongside those

containing drinking water

in a cardboard box.

Alcohol-based hand

sanitiser is commonly used

to protect against Covid-19

and has become

ubiquitous in Japan and

other countries since the

pandemic began.

One athlete collapsed,

vomited and dropped out

of the race after drinking

the sanitiser, while two

others spat it out and

continued.

In all, three athletes were

taken to hospital for

treatment and were

reported to be recovering.

Yamanashi governor

Kotaro Nagasaki said

Monday that there would

be a third-party

investigation.

"On behalf of the

prefecture, I would like to

offer a sincere apology to

the athlete and her family,"

he said.

Earlier, on Saturday last, Bangladesh

got off to a winning start in the

tournament as they beat Indonesia by 3-

1 goals in their pool B opening match.

Bangladesh hockey team: Biplob

Kujur, Abu Sayeed Nippon, Khorshedur

Rahman, Farhd Ahmed Shitul, Ashraful

Islam, Sohanur Rahman Sabuz, Mehedi

Hasan, Rezaul Karim Babu, Sarwar

Hossain, Roman Sarkar, Naim Uddin,

Fazle Hossain Rabbi, Prince Lal

Samanta, Rasel Mahmud Jimmy, Milon

Hossain, Rakibul Hasan, Arshad

Hossain and Pushkor Khisha Mimo.

Fiorentina

strike early

to beat

Roma

PARIS : Fiorentina scored

twice in the first 11 minutes

to beat Roma 2-0 on

Monday and climb back into

Serie A minor European

places.

In a battle of out-of form

sides, Nicolas Gonzalez

converted a fifth minute

penalty awarded after he

was mowed down by Rick

Karsdorp.

Six minutes later the

Roma defence allowed

Giacomo Bonaventura the

time to bury a shot in the

bottom corner.

Roma coach Jose

Mourinho picked nine of the

starting 11 who drew in

Leicester on Thursday to

reach the Europa League

final but the team stretched

their winless league run to

five games.

Fiorentina ended a run of

four games without a victory

and overtook Atalanta to

climb into seventh, which

this season will bring

qualification for the Europa

Conference League.

Both are level on points

with Roma who trail

neighbours Lazio by three

points.

The two Rome clubs

occupy the two Europa

League places.

Japanese authorities have pledged to investigate a mix-up that saw high school athletes given hand

sanitiser to drink during a race, with one student falling ill after taking a swig. Photo : Internet

Charles and Whitaker

junior hope to keep families'

Olympic tradition aflame

PARIS : Harry Charles and Jack Whitaker

aspired to be a pilot and a footballer

respectively but now their sights are set on

emulating their famous fathers in winning

show jumping medals at the 2024 Olympics.

Charles's father Peter won team gold in

2012 and Whitaker's father John and uncle

Michael took team silver in 1984.

They are part of a proud British Olympic

record in showjumping-Nick Skelton also

won individual gold aged 58 in 2016.

Now their legacy has passed to a new

generation.

Charles, 22, and Whitaker, 20, will get a

good guide to their potential competitiveness

in Paris in two years time when they take

part in the Rolex Grand Prix at the Royal

Windsor Horse Show on May 12-15.

Charles has already had a taste of an

Olympics having reached the individual final

in Tokyo last year.

"It is the best atmosphere at a horse show I

have seen," he told AFP.

"Now I am two years away from Paris

which has been a big, big goal for many

years.

"I want to go there and compete for a

medal."

He said Windsor would also be an

important test for his horse Aralyn Blue.

"My horse at the Windsor Grand Prix I

would say will be my number one horse for

the Olympics," he said.

Whitaker rides Q Pavarotti N whom he

terms "a sharp bugger" but a "fantastic

jumper" and agrees Windsor is a

"barometer" of where rider and horse are on

the road to Paris.

"The Olympics is massive and the main

goal for nearly any athlete," he said.

"You want to not only go there but also

have a chance of a medal and on top of that

try to win. Hopefully!"

Both Charles and Whitaker say that

despite their family's illustrious history there

was no pressure put on them to take up the

sport.

"I had no pressure from either of my

parents, we could choose our own paths,"

said Charles.

"I wanted to be a pilot till I was 16 and even

now I have a big interest, I have flying

lessons on my day off.

"However, when I was around 16-17 I

decided showjumping was what I wanted to

do. "You cannot beat that winning feeling."

For a while Whitaker eyed glory in another

sport. "Showjumping was never really forced

on me," he said.

"I was a keen football player at school but I

was also riding at 15. The two sports take up

time so you have to make your mind up.

"I felt I had a better chance of making it in

show jumping even though I was at

Nottingham Forest for a couple of years from

13-14."

Harry Charles and Jack Whitaker aspired to be a pilot and a footballer

respectively but now their sights are set on emulating their famous fathers

in winning show jumping medals at the 2024 Olympics. Photo : Internet

ROME : Stan Wawrinka believes he

has what it takes to get back to

playing "great tennis" again, the

former world number three said after

claiming his first victory in 15 months

at the Italian Open on Monday.

The 37-year-old Swiss knocked out

14th seed Reilly Opelka 3-6, 7-5, 6-2

in the Rome first round to win for the

first time since last year's Australian

Open.

Playing just his third match of the

season, the three-time Grand Slam

champion rallied from a set and a

break down to beat the 6ft 11 inch (2.1

metre) American and set up a second

round with Serbian qualifier Laslo

Djere.

Wawrinka missed the majority of

the 2021 season dealing with a foot

injury that required two surgeries.

His ranking has dropped to 361 in

the world and he admits there were

moments during his time away from

the sport where he felt he was "way

too far to be able to come back".

DHAKA : Country's ace archer Ruman

Sana booked the spot of final in the

recurve men's individual event in the

ongoing Asia Cup World Ranking

tournament stage-2 as he thumped

his Uzbekistan rival Sadikov

Amirkhan) by straight 6-0 set points

in the semifinal held on Monday in

Sulaymaniyah, Iraq.

Ruman will meet his Indian rival

Chauhan Mrinal in the final of this

event scheduled to be held on

Wednesday (May 11), reports UNB.

On way the semifinal, Ruman Sana

beat his compatriot Hakim Ahmed

Rubel by 6-2 set points in the

quarterfinal.

On the other hand, Hakim Ahmed

Rubel reached pre quarterfinal

beating his Pakistan rival Tayyab

Muhammad by 6-0 set points in the

The desire to end his career on his

own terms helped him work hard to

rehabilitate his foot.

"After two surgeries, at my age, I

could easily stop playing because my

career is way better than what I

expected when I grew up, when I was

young," Wawrinka said on Monday.

"But I still have this fire on me. I still

believe that I can play great tennis. I

still believe that I make some big

results, maybe not now, but in few

months."

Meanwhile, Canadian Denis

Shapovalov apologised after losing

his cool in an argument with chair

umpire Richard Haigh during his 7-6

(7/5), 3-6, 6-3 victory over Italian

Lorenzo Sonego.

Late in the second set, Shapovalov

had a second serve overruled by

Haigh and crossed the net to his

opponent's side of the court to show

the official the ball mark.

The umpire explained to

Shapovalov he would have to give

round of sixteen and ensured the

quarterfinal spot defeating his Uzbek

rival Chen Yao Yuy by 7-1 set points,

but he eventually lost the his

compatriot Ruman Sana by 2-6 set

points in the quarterfinal.

In the compound women's

individual event, Shamoly Roy

confirmed the spot of last four

defeating her Indian rival Swami Aditi

Gopichand 143-139 in the

quarterfinal. However she could not

cross the last four hurdle as she lost to

her Indian rival Chaudhary Sakshi

140-143 in the semifinal while Suma

Biswas failed to reach the final after

losing to her Indian rival Kaur

Parmeet 137-146 in the semifinal.

Earlier on Sunday last, the archers

of Bangladesh secured three medals

by reaching finals of the three events

China face unexpected

French challenge at

Thomas and Uber Cup

BANGKOK : Reigning

champions China faced an

unexpected challenge from

the young French team on the

second day of badminton's

Thomas and Uber Cup in

Thailand on Monday.

The men's Thomas Cup and

women's Uber Cup see the

world's top nations compete

in Bangkok's Impact Arena,

with the Chinese looking to

defend their Thomas Cup

crown.

French challenger Christo

Popov made China's Lu

Guang Zu pay for every shot

before the world number 25

wrested a win 25-23, 24-26,

21-15 in a match that lasted

just under two hours.

"It's not every year that

France has challenged China,

and we have a brilliant team

coming up with young guns,"

said Popov.

"Today we have the level to

compare ourselves, maybe

not win every match, but we

can make it difficult for

China, for sure. And that's

what we showed in the first

match."

China's men's team ended

the second day of Group C as

top dogs, 5-0.

Elsewhere in the men's,

Denmark were untroubled by

the competition from Algeria

and quickly won the field.

World number one Viktor

Axelsen was first up in the

morning and made swift

work of opponent Youcef

Sabri Medel 21-9, 21-11,

ending the game in 20

minutes.

Following his compatriot

with equal efficiency, world

number three Anders

Antonsen beat Algerian

Mohamed Abderrahime

Belarbi 21-5, 21-8.

In the women's Uber Cup,

Thailand had a battle on their

hands against Malaysia, but

ended the bout 3-1.

World number eight

Ratchanok Intanon had an

uphill fight against young

Malaysian player Goh Jin

Wei, who opened strongly

only to falter against her

vastly more experienced

opponent to finish 14-21, 21-

14, 21-15.

Veteran Wawrinka rekindles fire

with rare win in Rome

him a code violation - which would

result in a point penalty since it was

his second of the match - because

players are not allowed to cross over

the net.

"That's just the rule," said the

umpire before Shapovalov

responded: "No it's not. It's stupid."

When the Italian crowd erupted,

booing Shapovalov for the lengthy

stoppage in play, the 13th seed aimed

a swear word at the fans as he yelled

at them to "shut up".

Shapovalov also tried to get a

heckler ejected from the stadium

before play resumed. The Canadian's

second serve was deemed out

resulting in a double fault, and he

received a point penalty which

handed Sonego a break and

eventually the second set.

After clinching the decider,

Shapovalov apologised to the umpire

and later acknowledged he was

wrong to cross the net.

Ruman reach final in recurve individual event

and now Bangladesh has the

opportunity to win four medals in the

tournament.

On Sunday last, Bangladesh archery

team featuring Ruman Sana Hakim

Ahmed Rubel and Abdur Rahman Alif

reached final in the recurve men's

team event eliminating Iran by 5-4 set

points in the semifinal while in the

recurve women's team event,

Bangladesh women's archery team

comprising Nasrin Akter, Diya

Siddique and Beauty Roy set the final

clash with India defeating Uzbekistan

by 5-1 sets in the semifinal.

In the compound men's team event,

Bangladesh archery team featuring

Mohammad Ashikuzzaman, Newaz

Ahmed Rakib and Mithu Rahman set

the final clash with India after beating

Kazakhstan 231-228 in the semifinal.

WEdNEsdAY, MAY 11, 2022

10

World premiere of ‘Mujib

Amar Pita’ held

Tisha finally

returns

to work

TBT REPORT

Nusrat Imrose Tisha, the popular TV

actress returned to work after giving

birth a daughter in January this year.

The actress again has started her

work with the shooting of 'Mujib' on

Sunday (May 8). She confirmed the

news on Facebook page posting a

photo with her daughter Ilham.

Earlier, Tisha started the shooting

of the film 'Mujib' in April, 2021.

Tisha's part of the film has been shot

in Mumbai of India.

In the movie, she played the role of

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur

Rahman's wife Renu (Sheikh

Fazilatunnesa Mujib).

Tisha stopped shooting when she

knew that she is going to be mother.

Before, the name of the film was

'Bangabandhu'. Later, the name was

changed to 'Mujib: Akti Jatir

Rupokar'. Indian director Shyam

Benegal has directed the film.

The world premiere of

'Mujib Amar Pita' (Sheikh

Mujibur Rahman is my

father) was held at Bombay

Theatre Hall in Queens of

New York City on Sunday

(April 8), reports UNB.

The animated film, based

on the life and works of

Father of the Nation

Bangabandhu Sheikh

Mujibur Rahman, the

architect of the nation, was

screened abroad for the first

time after its release in

Bangladesh.

Information and

Communication Technology

(ICT) Division made the

animation film to spread the

heroic and successful story of

Bangabandhu to the new

generation across the globe.

Liberation War Affairs

Minister AKM Mozammel

Haque was present at the

programme as the chief guest

while state minister for ICT

Zunaid Ahmed Palak was

present as the special guest.

Lawmakers Md Nurul

Amin, Aparajita Haque, and

Nahid Izhar Khan were also

present.

Bangladesh Consul

General in New York Dr.

Mohammad Monirul

Islam,moderated the

function while Permanent

Representative of Bangladesh

to the United Nations

Ambassador Rabab Fatima,

and Managing Director of

Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park

Authority Bikarno Kumar

Ghose were also present.

Sohel Mohammad Rana

directed the film which will

later be screened in various

cities in the United States,

said the ICT Division.

Asif, Mimi’s ‘Mittha

Bolte Parina’ released

Scarlet Witch's role in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of

Madness seems to function as the MCU's version of one the

best X-Men stories which the Fox movies failed to adapt

twice. After undergoing numerous changes in WandaVision,

the now-called Scarlet Witch will return to the big screen in

Doctor Strange 2. In addition to

Doctor Strange and Wanda,

Multiverse of Madness will feature

several Marvel characters, such as

America Chavez, What If...? 's

Supreme Strange, and Patrick

Stewart's Professor X.

Those who have only followed

Wanda's journey through the

movies might find it difficult to

understand her role in Multiverse of

Madness, as the Disney+ series WandaVision has advanced

the character's story further than any other film. The events

which took place in Westview helped Wanda grieve the loss of

Vision, as she started to go down a dangerous route. Wanda

has grown close to Agatha Harkness and is now in possession

TBT REPORT

Asif Akbar is one of the most popular singers of

the country. He has won the hearts millions by

his wonderful performance. The singer's new

song 'Mittha Bolte Parina' has been released on

the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.

The track was released on May 3 on the

YouTube channel of Dhruba Music Station

(DMS) with music video. Singer Mimi has lent

her voice to the song with Asif. The song has

been composed by Nazir Mahmud while its

lyrics have been written by Snahashis Ghosh.

Musfiq Litu has arranged the music of the

track. Yamin Elan ahd made the video of it.

About the song, Asif Akbar said, "Mittha

Bolte Parina is a romantic genre song. I'm

amazed with Mimi's singing style. I hope the

audience will enjoy the song."

Mimi said, "It is a wonderful experience to

work with Asif bhai. I think, Asif's fan has get a

different type song. I'm getting huge positive

response from the audience."

Besides DMS, the song is available on many

national and international apps.

The MCU can finally do justice to X-Men’s

best story the movies failed

of the chaos magic book known as the Darkhold.

Now that Wanda is the mother of a pair of twins whose

souls may be lost to the Multiverse, she has additional

motivation which could drive her down a similar path to the

X-Men's Jean Grey. Although not much is known regarding

how Scarlet Witch's story will play out

in Doctor Strange 2, this appears to

be the most powerful that Wanda

has been in the MCU. However, with

great power could also come great

calamity. The stories of Scarlet Witch

and Jean Grey have always echoed

each other in the comics, and the

same is happening in the MCU. After

originally being introduced in

Avengers: Age of Ultron as an

"enhanced" being with her mutant powers downgraded,

Wanda has finally started to receive the cinematic attention

she deserves. However, the arc that was chosen for Scarlet

Witch in the MCU draws inspiration from the more troubling

side of the character's history.

Source: Collider

Kriti to dash off to Ladakh for

‘Ganapath’ with Tiger!

Kriti Sanon leads the industry

today as one of the most talented,

gorgeous actresses with a

massive lineup that extends

genres. The actress who has only

recently returned from a shoot

schedule in Mauritius for

'Shehzada', has been busy

shooting one film after the other

from her lineup and is now all set

to jet off for yet another long

schedule for her next.

A source close to the actress

revealed, "Kriti will be going for

almost half a month to Ladakh to

shoot for 'Ganapath'. This will

also be the first time she is ever

going to the union territory so she

is really looking forward to the

schedule there."

'Ganapath' will show the

actress in an out and out action

role which is really exciting for

Kriti Sanon's fans. She is being

trained by Harsh Verma, the first

Indian to be part of the Shaolin

performing monks' team and he

was all praises for the actress in a

recent interview with a leading

paper.

He had said, "Kriti Sanon is a

good listener; she grasps things

very quickly. The kind of martial

arts she had performed in this

film, will change her image totally

and the audience - she will be

called 'action queen' hereafter."

Besides her action flick,

'Ganapath', Kriti Sanon also has

the romantic comedy,

'Shehzada', horror comedy,

'Bhediya' the mythological

drama, 'Adipurush' along with

the unannounced project by

Anurag Kashyap.

Source: Hindustan Times

H O R O s c O P E

ARIEs

Today your intellectual and

expressive abilities should receive a

boost from the planets. It's an

excellent time to organize your thoughts about

presenting a project to a possible collaborator,

engage in trade, or write. In terms of your

private life, it's also a good time to examine the

latest events, certain aspects of which are still

partially misunderstood.

TAURUs

Overall, the forecast for today is fairly

good. The aspects seem to favor figuring

out the meaning of all that's transpired

over the past several weeks. It's an

opportunity for you to take a leisurely look at the

distance you've covered moving toward your goals.

Since it's an auspicious day for social activities, why not

get together with friends and discuss the latest events

with them?

GEMINI

Have you felt somewhat lost for the past

few days? The fog may lift today and

enable you to situate yourself at last.

You're probably eager to settle a

question that has nagged at you and interfered with

your judgment. However, you should be patient,

especially if it has to do with emotional matters. Try

to understand, but don't take immediate action.

You'll be more objective beginning tomorrow.

cANcER

You may have been feeling somewhat

disillusioned. Perhaps you lost sight of

your goals or misplaced your faith in

yourself. You'll feel some relief

beginning today. This is an opportunity to end what

has been a somewhat apathetic and moody phase

and begin a new one that's based on work and

meditation. As you can imagine, this new phase will

be much more fulfilling!

LEO

You might be tempted to settle certain

matters by radical means. The

visionary part of you means you're

painfully aware of the world's wrongs.

You see no reason not to take action to correct them.

But the forces in play are so powerful that you can't

expect to institute a new order in one day. If you

have an emotional question to resolve, it would be

better to wait a few days before making a decision.

VIRGO

Today will be fairly calm in terms of

outside events, but your inner world is

likely to be in a rush of activity. Today you

wish you could find the solution to your

heartaches as well as your career predicaments. You'd

like to achieve some supreme understanding of the

events that took place over the past month. First you

must force your brain to slow down. Haste makes

waste, as you know!

LIBRA

You have a lot of thinking to do about

your professional goals, Libra. You'll go

over the elements to see if there isn't

some way to approach things differently.

Are there new paths you could try or ways to improve

things? Your mind will go a thousand miles a minute

today. Those who spend time with you may be totally

exhausted by the end of the day because of all the

questions you ask!

scORPIO

You just can't do everything at once,

Scorpio. How do you expect to reduce

your stress and recuperate while at

the same time continue to be a

superstar performer in every area of your life?

Don't pressure yourself to perform today. If you do,

you're likely to deplete your reserves even further.

Take it easy, rest, and relax! You've earned this

little break.

sAGITTARIUs

This is a good moment to adapt your logic

and reason to reality, Sagittarius. If you

don't, you're going to run into some

intellectual problems. Everyone knows that you find new

ideas plentiful, but unless you have plans to be a novelist,

link your thinking to reality. The "pie in the sky" thinking

that you engage in isn't particularly useful to the rest of

us living here in the real world.

cAPRIcORN

It's going to be a little difficult talking

to you today, Capricorn. You, who can

be easily influenced by others, will be

listening to and criticizing everything

that people say. Nothing emotional or vague is

going to get into your head. It's as if you've installed

an extremely fine filter that lets in only what you

allow. You're going to appear to be a real expert.

Don't show off too much!

AQUARIUs

Have you been reviewing your family

history lately, Aquarius? Of special

interest is your cultural background.

What educational, social, and religious

environment were you born into? What are its

values? In the end, do you feel a strong affinity with

them now or are those views different from the ones

you hold? These are interesting avenues of thought

for you today.

PIscEs

It's time to elevate your sense of self,

Pisces. You're just as good as anyone

else, so why don't you believe it? The

problem is that you're very sensitive

about having an ego. Even though you know

everyone does, you punish yourself for its existence!

This is a noble idea, but it doesn't do you any good.

You'll never be perfect and neither will anyone else.

What are you worrying about?

weDNeSDAY, MAY 11, 2022

11

Probe body formed after rescue of newborn

from Barishal hospital's toilet pipe

BARISHAL : A probe committee on Tuesday

started its investigation over rescuing a

newborn from the sewerage pipe of Barishal

Sher-e-Bangla Medical College and Hospital

(SBMCH) after her mother gave birth in a

toilet of the maternity ward.

Dr HM Saiful Islam, director of SBMCH,

formed the three-member probe committee

on Sunday.

Dr HM Saiful Islam said the probe

committee headed by pediatric department

chief Professor Dr Mujibur Rahman

Talukder has been asked to submit a report

within three working days.

Meanwhile, Professor Mujibur Rahman

Talukder said the newborn and his mother

both are currently doing well.

"The baby has oxygen saturation at 97.

Hopefully, they will be released from the

hospital within 1-2 days" he said.

On Saturday afternoon, Shilpi Begum, the

mother, accidentally delivered the baby girl

on a high commode of the toilet of maternity

ward.

The prematurely born baby slipped toilet's

pipeline and got stuck some metres below,

said baby's father Neyamat Ullah, a fisher

from Swarupkathi upazila in Pirojpur.

The hospital immediately informed the

nearby Fire Service office to rescue the baby.

But before they arrived Neyamat broke the

pipe on the second floor of the hospital

building and rescued the baby who suffered

slight bruises.

Pulitzer Prizes award Washington

Post for Jan. 6 coverage

NEW YORK : The Washington Post won the

Pulitzer Prize in public service journalism

Monday for its coverage of the Jan. 6

insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, an attack on

democracy that was a shocking start to a

tumultuous year that also saw the end of the

United States' longest war, in Afghanistan,

reports UNB.

The Post's extensive reporting, published

in a sophisticated interactive series, found

numerous problems and failures in political

systems and security before, during and after

the Jan. 6, 2021, riot in the newspaper's own

backyard.

The "compellingly told and vividly

presented account" gave the public "a

thorough and unflinching understanding of

one of the nation's darkest days," said

Marjorie Miller, administrator of the prizes,

in announcing the award.

Five Getty Images photographers were

awarded one of the two prizes in breaking

news photography for their coverage of the

riot.

The other prize awarded in breaking news

photography went to Los Angeles Times

correspondent and photographer Marcus

Yam, for work related to the fall of Kabul.

The U.S. pullout and resurrection of the

Taliban's grip on Afghanistan permeated

across categories, with The New York Times

winning in the international reporting

category for reporting challenging official

accounts of civilian deaths from U.S.

airstrikes in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Pulitzer Prizes, administered by

Columbia University and considered the

most prestigious in American journalism,

recognize work in 15 journalism categories

and seven arts categories. This year's awards,

which were livestreamed, honored work

produced in 2021.

DIU holds orientation

for Fresher's of

Summer-2022

The orientation program for

the newly enrolled students of

Fall Semester 2018 of Daffodil

International University (DIU)

was held on Tuesday at

permanent campus of DIU,

Ashulia, Dhaka. Professor Dr.

S M MahbubUl Islam

Majumdar, Acting Vice

Chancellor of Daffodil

International University was

present in the orientation

program as the chief guest.

Conducted by Dr. Syed

Mizanur Rahman, Director

Student Affairs, the program

was addressed by Deans and

Head of the departments of the

university.

While addressing as the

chief guest Professor Dr. S M

MahbubUl Islam Majumdar

said that Daffodil International

University has become a top

ranked university in

Bangladesh with the

contribution of students,

teachers, officials and parents.

Recently

Daffodil

International University

recognized as the QS ranked

university in Banghladesh. In

future, Daffodil International

University dreams be the

world's one of the best

universities and implementing

the cherished dream, Daffodil

University is strictly

maintaining its' standard and

quality of education and

developing required

infrastructure. he added.

Professor Dr. S M

MahbubUl Islam Majumdar

also said that 13 hundred

graduates of Daffodil

International University

already have become

entrepreneurs.

Newly enrolled students of Summer Semester 2022 of Daffodil International University at the orientation

program.

Photo : Courtesy

S (22)(124)

GD-853/22 (6x4)

GD-857/22 (11x4)

GD-854/22 (7x4)

Wednesday, Dhaka: May 11, 2022; Baishakh 28, 1429 BS; Shawal 9, 1443 hijri

Ecnec clears 11 projects

involving Tk 5,826 cr

DHAKA : The Executive Committee of

the National Economic Council (Ecnec)

on Tuesday approved a total of 11 development

projects involving Tk 5,826

crore, reports UNB.

The approval came at the Ecnec meeting

held at the NEC Conference Room

here. Ecnec Chair and Prime Minister

Sheikh Hasina presided over the meeting

who joined it virtually from her official

residence Ganobhban.

"Today we endorsed 11 projects including

three revised ones. The overall estimated

cost of the projects is Tk 5,825.75

crore (additional costs of the revised

projects were counted here)," said

Planning Minister MA Mannan at a press

briefing after the meeting.

Of the total cost, Tk 3,963.38 crore will

be financed from the government's fund,

while Tk 1,220.46 will come from the

funds of the organisations concerned and

the rest Tk 641.90 crore from foreign

sources. Among the projects, Power,

Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry

placed three projects; two others by the

LGRD and Cooperatives Ministry, and the

Road Transport and Bridges Ministry each;

and one each by the Shipping Ministry, the

Home Ministry, the Education Ministry

and the Posts, Telecommunications

Ministry and IT Ministry.

In terms of the cost, three largest fresh

Success in Koilashtila drives

Petrobangla to go for workover

operation in Semutang

DHAKA : After the success in the

Koilashtila Gas field in discovery of new

gas, Petrobangla has now started a

workover operation in the Semutang Gas

field, reports UNB.

According to official sources, Bangladesh

Petroleum Exploration and Production

Company Limited (Bapex), a subsidiary of

the state-owned Petrobangla, started the

job on Tuesday.

Bapex managing director Mohammad

Ali formally inaugurated the workover

operation at the gas field, located in

Manikchari area of hill district

Khagrachari in the country's south-east.

According to official sources, the

Semutang Gas field was originally discovered

by a British company in 1969.

But the production of gas from the field

was not found to be commercially viable

and it was abandoned.

Later Bapex drilled a number of wells

in the gas field and the first gas production

came in 2009 with daily production

of 15 million cubic feet.

But within a few years, when the daily

production fell to 4-5 MMCFD, Cairn

Energy, a foreign oil company, was

engaged in the field.

Again the state-owned Bapex was

given the responsibility of the gas field

when Russian company Gazprom was

projects are Improvement of Sherpur

(Kanasakhola) -Bhimganj-Narayankhola-

Paranganj-Mymensingh (Rahmatpur)

Road project with Tk 1,842 crore;

Establishment of Sheikh Kamal IT

Training Incubation Centers (14 ones)

with Tk 1,115 crore; and Renovation and

Modernization of Existing 33/11kv

Wooden Pole Mounted Substations in

BREB (Phase-1) project involving with

estimated cost of Tk 680 crore.

The five other new projects include

Implementation of Smart Distribution

System in NESCO area with Tk 241

crore; Establishment of Sheikh Zahurul

Haque Rural Development Academy,

Jashore project with Tk 199 crore;

Navigability improvement and restoration

of Ghorautra and Bolai-Srigang

rivers Mithamin Upazila, Dhanu and

Namakura rivers in Itna Upazila, and

Dhaleshwari River in Ashtagram Upazila

under Kishoreganj with Tk 342 crore.

Construction of Ansar and VDP

Armories (40 ones in 1st phase) project

with Tk 65 crore; and Improvement of

Hili (land port)-Dugdugi-Ghoraghat

national highway, reconstruction of

existing narrow or dilapidated culverts of

3 important roads and construction of

rigid pavement and drainage for the

roads in the market areas in Dinajpur

project with Tk 464 crore.

engaged to conduct well No-6 in the field.

Officials said the Bapex will now conduct

workover operation at Well No-5

which was synchronized with Well No-6.

An official of Bapex informed that it

may take 2-3 months to complete the

workover operation to find a new production

capacity from the gas field.

Petrobangla chairman Nazmul Ahsan said

that the workover operation was undertaken

as part of the government's plan to extract

more gas from internal sources.

Petrobangla discovered about 20

MMCFD gas from a similar well at

Kailashtila field through workover operation

which started flowing into the

national grid from Monday, boosting the

country's overall supply of the fuel.

Sylhet Gas Field Limited (SGFL), a

subsidiary of Petrobangla discovered the

new gas on 2 May at the Kailashtila field

from an abandoned well through a workover

process. Bapex conducted the

workover operation at the field.

So far, seven wells have been drilled in

the Kailashtila gas field, of which two are

now producing about 29 MMCFD gas.

Energy industry insiders said the new,

but small, discovery will give a minimum

relief to the government when the country

has been experiencing a huge gas

shortage of more than 600 MMCFD.

Prime Minister Sheikh hasina addressing the uS-Bangladesh Business Council at her official residence

ganobhaban.

Photo : Courtesy

Precautions taken

in Chattogram

ahead of cyclone

S M AkASh, ChAttogrAM BureAu

The local public welfare organization has

started preparations in advance to avoid

all kinds of damage in Chattogram due to

the effect of cyclone-Ashani.

The naval police authorities have

sounded an alarm on Tuesday morning,

May 10, to prevent people and small,

medium-sized boats from entering the

deep sea. Small and medium-sized boats

and fishing trawlers in the deep sea

began anchoring at a safe place near the

coast on Monday afternoon, May 9, and

continue to do so.

According to the Chattogram Patenga

Meteorological Office, the cyclone's eye

was 1,180 km south of Chittagong port

and 1,040 km southwest of Mongla seaport

at 8 am on May 10, so the seaports

of Bangladesh have been asked to display

remote warning signal number 2. All

fishing boats and trawlers in the North

Bay have been asked to move cautiously

along the coast.

Abul Kalam Chowdhury, Public

Relations Officer, Chattogram City

Corporation, told The Bangladesh Today

that the control room has been opened,

for any need and to know the news,

please call 031-630739 and 031-633649

of the control room.

According to the district administration,

preparations will be made on the

basis of the decision taken after the

Chattogram Deputy Commissioner held

a zoom meeting with the officials of the

Ministry of Water Resources on May 10

about the cyclone.

Meanwhile, the Chattogram Region

Superintendent of Police said that miking

is being done by the naval police to

create awareness on the shores of the sea

to avoid any damage. Stakeholders are

being instructed to ensure that people do

not venture into the sea and that small

and medium-sized vessels do not enter

the deep sea and remain safe around the

coast.

Apart from government agencies,

preparations have been made by

Chattogram

Metropolitan

PM urges US companies to boost

investment in Bangladesh

DHAKA : Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

on Tuesday said Bangladesh needs

enhanced investment from its friendly

countries, especially from the USA, as it

aspires to become a developed and prosperous

country by 2041, reports UNB.

"Bangladesh has been recommended

to graduate from the LDC in 2026. We

are aspiring to become a developed and

prosperous country by 2041. For that

purpose, we need enhanced investment

from our friendly countries, especially

from the USA," she said.

The prime minister said this at a meeting

with the first-ever visiting Executive

Business Delegation of the US-

Bangladesh Business Council at her official

residence Ganobhaban.

She said that Bangladesh is now an

attractive investment destination. Along

with physical infrastructure, the government

has upgraded and eased the rules

and regulations relating to investment

and business.

"Bangladesh has the most liberal

investment policy in South Asia and that

foreign investment is protected by acts of

Parliament and bilateral treaties," she

said. Highlighting her government's

development programmes she mentioned

that the entire country has recently

been brought under electricity coverage.

"We are upgrading our road, railway

and water communications by implementing

some mega projects," she said.

Hasina told the delegation that her

government is setting up 100 special economic

zones for domestic and foreign

investors across the country.

"We may earmark one of the zones

exclusively for the US investors, if you

desire so," she said.

She said that demographic dividend,

and government's focus on developing

skilled manpower ensures that investors

here get skilled human resources at competitive

wages.

The prime minister said that

Bangladesh-US friendship is based on

common values and shared interests and

it is reflected in expanding overall business

relations. "Our trade relations can

be further strengthened with duty-free

access and other trade privileges in the

US market," she said.

In this regard she said Bangladesh is

ready to commence Free Trade

Agreement-FTA negotiations with the

US at an appropriate time.

She mentioned that export volume

increased by more than USD 3 billion

during the last five years. The export volume

rose to USD 7.6 billion in 2021-22

from USD 5.8 billion in 2016-17.

Since independence, she said, the US

has been one of the trusted development

partners and it is contributing to

Bangladesh's socio-economic progress.

The USA is the single largest source of

FDI and export market for Bangladesh.

"I believe US companies will take the

advantage and invest more in potential

sectors like power and energy, ICT, infrastructure,

light engineering products,

mobile phone and electronic goods, automobile,

agro-processing, pharmaceuticals,

ceramics, among others."

She said that the government is pursuing

a long-term growth strategy for its citizens

which is sustainable as acknowledged

by the global economists and

organisations.

Hasina said that the government has

taken pledge to realise the "Golden Bangla",

the dream of Father of the Nation

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to

turn Bangladesh into a poverty- and

hunger-free prosperous country.

"With such strong prospect, I would

now assure you of the best possible policy

framework to ease our business and

investment climate," she told the delegation.

She hoped that the US-Bangladesh

Energy Taskforce which was launched in

September 2021 will help advance energy

cooperation between the stakeholders

of both countries.

"Likewise, the proposed US-

Bangladesh Digital Economy Taskforce

will contribute in deepening the cooperation

of companies of both countries to

ensure our sustainable development."

Next general

elections as per

constitution,

Quader reiterates

DHAKA : Awami League General

Secretary Obaidul Quader yesterday reiterated

that the next general elections

would be held in line with the provisions

of the Constitution, issuing a fresh warning

to the BNP that there is no scope of

bargaining to this end.

"I will ask the BNP not to bargain to

this end. No result will be found after

bargaining. The government will not go

out of the constitution. It will support the

Election Commission in the same way

that elections are held in other countries

of the world," he told a joint meeting

here.

The ruling Awami League organized

the meeting with its associate bodies'

presidents and general secretaries as well

as presidents and general secretaries of

the AL city North and South units at its

central office in city's Bangabndhu

Avenue.

Speaking at the meeting, Quader also

the Road Transport and Bridges

Minister, said that the BNP should take

preparations for next general elections

and there is no alternative to the polls in

changing the state power.

"If the people vote for you in the next

general elections and elect you, we will

lose. But, we will always be in favour of

fair elections," the AL general secretary

added.

"With the confidence of the people, we

will hold free, fair and credible elections.

As per the people's mandate, we will ask

the BNP to join the polls without bargaining

here and there," he said.

11 Africans

remanded over

Facebook fraud

DHAKA : A court yesterday placed 11

men from different African countries on

three-day remand each in a case lodged

over forgery on Facebook.

The 11 accused are-Henri Osita

Okechuk, Chism Emanuel Obaijulu,

Okaku Peter, Obina Sande, Oneka Emba,

Chism Anthony Ekuyenj, Okeya Ajubike,

Anujarah Ojuyemena Daniyel, Anuruka

Jinika Fransis, Luka, and Domadu

Chinedo.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate

Mamunur Rahman Siddiqui passed the

order yesterday.

Earlier on April 27, investigation officer

and detective branch Sub-Inspector

(SI) Mohammad Shafikul Alam had produced

the accused before the court and

pleaded to place them on 10-day remand

in the case. The court on that day had set

on Tuesday to hold hearing on the matter.

Another court on April 21 had placed

the accused on four-day remand each in

a case lodged under Digital Security Act

with Pallabi Police Station.

Detective branch had arrested the 11

accused from different areas in Pallabi

and Bhatara on April 20. Police recovered

a dollar trick machine, 18 bundles of

fake notes wrapped in silver fabric, 17

mobile phones, two laptops, chemical

and copies of warrants of different cases

from their possession.

there is no soybean oil in the small shops of the capital. ordinary people cannot buy oil. Small

traders are also in trouble. the picture was taken from tejgaon area on tuesday. Photo : Star Mail

SAF arranged in Dhaka to accelerate

apparel sustainability in post-Covid

DHAKA : Policy makers, industry leaders,

brands' representatives and fashion campaigners

from home and abroad gathered

yesterday to accelerate momentum of sustainability

in Bangladesh apparel industry.

More than 50 speakers as well as 20

green growth exhibitors from over 20

countries participated in the 3rd edition of

Sustainable Apparel Forum (SAF) organized

by Bangladesh Apparel Exchange

(BAE) partnering with Bangladesh

Garment Manufacturers and Exporters

Association (BGMEA), said a press release.

Ongoing important apparel sustainability

issues such as climate action, environmental

social and governance (ESG) and

green finance, purchasing practices, due

diligence and legislation, and circular economy

were discussed at the five plenary sessions

along with opening and closing plenaries

of the SAF.

Speakers of the SAF include commerce

minister Tipu Munshi, MP, Dhaka North

City Corporation mayor and former president,

BGMEA Md. Atiqul Islam, ambassador

and head of delegation of the

European Union to Bangladesh Charles

Whiteley, ambassador of the Kingdom of

the Netherlands to Bangladesh Anne Van

Leeuwen, ambassador of Bangladesh to

the Kingdom of the Netherlands Riaz

Hamidullah, BGMEA president Faruque

Hassan, BKMEA executive president

Mohammad Hatem, head of unit for social

economy and creative industries,

European Commission Anna

Athanasopoulou, financial sector and regulatory

engagement lead centre for

responsible business conduct, OECD

Barbara Bijelic, among others.

The SAF also showcased opportunities

for much-needed green financing in the

industry. Founder and CEO of Bangladesh

Apparel Exchange (BAE) Mostafiz Uddin

said "At this year's SAF we have brought all

the fashion stakeholders under one roof to

accelerate the momentum of sustainability

in Bangladesh apparel industry, especially

after the Covid-19 pandemic which has

had immense impact on global apparel

supply chain."

He said "This is high-level networking

where it has been discussed how we can

turn the needle so that the lofty sustainability

goals our industry so often talks about

are translated into meaningful, practical

actions?"

Md. Atiqul Islam said: "The RMG industry

of Bangladesh has been vigilant in ensuring

the safety regulations, especially after the

disastrous event of Rana Plaza."He urged a

collaborated approach to ensure more ethical

and sustainable industry.

Anne Van Leeuwen said there has been

significant improvements in the apparel

industry of Bangladesh as per as safety and

sustainability is concerned. However, there

is still work to be done to promote sustainability

in the sector for which stakeholders'

engagement and collaboration is the key,

he added.

Faruque Hassan said today the clothing

factories of Bangladesh are not only safer,

but also have become more dynamic, modern,

energy-efficient and environmentfriendly.

Mentioning that Bangladesh has

the highest number of green garment factories

in the world, he said "We believe that

sustainability is not a sprint, it's a

marathon. We are committed to maintaining

the excellence in social and environmental

areas which we already achieved,

also we focus on upscaling our business

capabilities."

11-05-2022

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