Falgun 24, 1420
Jamadiul Awal 7, 1435
Regd. No. DA 6238
Vol 1 No 345 SUNDAY, MARCH 9, 2014 | www.dhakatribune.com | SECOND EDITION
Business | INSPECTION TEAM AT WORK
Young doctors
shy away from
teaching
Shortage of lecturers for basic
subjects hits rural medical colleges
n Moniruzzaman Uzzal
The Directorate General of Health Ser-
vices (DGHS) has reportedly failed to
generate adequate response among
young doctors after offering jobs as
lecturers for basic subjects of the MBBS
course at different district-level medi-
cal colleges.
In a circular issued on February 3,
the DGHS invited applications from
doctors working in government or-
ganisations, for the post of lecturers
of anatomy, physiology and biochem-
New doctors not
interested in joining as
teachers for the basic
subjects, as there are
not enough options
to earn extra money
through practice
istry departments at the Sheikh Say-
era Khatun Medical College in Gopal-
ganj, Satkhira Medical College, Shahid
Syed Nazrul Islam Medical College in
Kishoreganj, Noakhali Medical College
and Cox’s Bazar Medical College.
As an incentive for doctors to apply,
the DGHS has also relaxed the manda-
tory requirement for fresh doctors of
staying two years at a root-level health
institute, as those interested in joining
as lecturers would be allowed if they
INSIDE
News
4 Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
yesterday called upon all to build
an equality-based world and society for
ensuring rights, honour and
dignity of women.
Nation
6 Educational activities in six
government high schools in Pirojpur
district are being hampered due to
shortage of teachers.
7 | READY-MADE: RMG INDUSTRY JOBS
stayed only one year at root-level work-
ing stations.
However, the Dhaka Tribune has
learned that despite the offer, only 11
doctors have applied for lectureship:
four of them are seeking positions at
Sheikh Syed Nazrul Islam Medical Col-
lege, four at Cox’s Bazar Medical College
and three at Noakhali Medical College.
Among the total applicants, eight
have applied for physiology and three
for biochemistry posts. No one has ap-
plied to join as a lecturer of anatomy.
DGHS sources said the five medical
colleges had no regular post of lectur-
ers, with the management conducting
classes by appointing teachers from
different public medical colleges on
deputation.
However, no official at the DGHS
could confirm how many lecturers were
needed in total at the medical colleges.
Professor Dr ABM Abdul Hannan,
director (medical education and man-
power development) of the DGHS, told
the Dhaka Tribune that there were not
enough doctors who were interested
to join as teachers at medical colleges
outside Dhaka.
Several medical education special-
ists said the number of teachers for ba-
sic subjects in both public and private
medical colleges has been gradually
decreasing. The shortage of teachers
for basic subjects of MBBS course –
which includes anatomy, physiolo-
gy, biochemistry, microbiology, fo-
rensic medicine, pharmacology and
 PAGE 2 COLUMN 2
Unbeaten Sri Lanka lift Asia Cup
n Raihan Mahmood
Sri Lankan opener Lahiru Thirimanne
continued to haunt Pakistan hitting
another century helping the islanders
win the title of the Asia Cup with a five
wicket win at the Sher-e-Bangla Na-
tional Stadium yesterday.
The southpaw scored 101 for his third
one-day hundred as Sri Lanka scored
261/ 5 in 46.2 overs . Pakistan who opted
to bat first scored 260/5 in 50 overs.
Thirimanne, who also scored a hun-
dred in the tournament’s opening match
against Pakistan smashed 13 boundaries
during his 108-ball knock and shared a
156-run third-wicket partnership with
Mahela Jayawardene, who made 75.Pa-
kistan rode on the unbeaten 114 by
Fawad Alam and a timely 65 of skipper
Misbah-ul Haq. Lasith Malinga, the Sri
Lankan pace spearhead had a five wicket
haul for 56 runs. It would be mentiona-
ble that he also grabbed the same num-
ber of wickets against Pakistan in the
first match of the tournament. l
CAUGHT IN THE ACT
Supporters of upazila chairman candidate Iqbal Hossain Shabuj shoot at the residence of Shreenagar MP Rahmat Ali in Gazipur yesterday. Story on Page 3
Newborn disappears from DMCH
n Mohammad Jamil Khan
A two-day-old child was allegedly
missing from the Intensive Care Unit
of neonatal ward of Dhaka Medical Col-
lege Hospital yesterday.
The grief-stricken 35-year-old moth-
er was at a loss for words since her baby
girl allegedly disappeared from the
newborn unit which is always under
strict security.
Shefali Akter, wife of Mohammad
Khokon, a rickshaw puller, was still
frantically searching for her child in
front of the children’s ward at the time
of writing this report.
Momotaz Begum, elder sister of
The victorious Sri Lankan team with the trophy after beating Pakistan by 5 wickets in the
final at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday.
8 | PALESTINIAN WOMEN JOINING POLICE
Shefali, said her sister married Khokon
a couple of years ago, and had given
birth to her only child in the early hour
of last Thursday.
She added that the child was weak
and doctors referred the her to the new-
born ward for specialised treatment.
Shefali’s husband claimed that he
admitted the baby to the neonatal ward
and the doctors sent him out to buy
some medicine.
“I had no money on me, so I went
home to get some. When I returned to
hospital with medicine and asked for
my child, the physicians said my rela-
tives have taken the baby with them,”
said Khokon.
MUMIT M
14 | FA CUP: ARSENAL SWEEP INTO SEMIS
“I was stunned since none of my
relatives were at the hospital with me,”
explained the stunned father.
“My wife was admitted to 212 No
ward of the hospital and her elder sis-
ter Momotaz was attending,” he added.
In reply to a query, Abdul Khaleq,
commander of Ansar at DMCH, told
the Dhaka Tribune Khokon brought the
baby to the neonatal unit, but the doc-
tors did not receive the baby girl.
“We found a letter with Khokon is-
sued from Gynecology Department
referring to admission, but Khokon did
not admit the child to the ward,” Kha-
leq added.
 PAGE 2 COLUMN 6
Malaysia Airlines flight
goes missing
n Reuters
A Malaysia Airlines flight carrying 227
passengers and 12 crew went missing
off the Vietnamese coast yesterday and
was presumed to have crashed.
There were no reports of bad weath-
er and no sign why the Boeing 777-
200ER would have vanished from radar
screens about an hour after it took off
from Kuala Lumpur for Beijing. There
were no signs of sabotage nor claims of
a terrorist attack.
However, in Europe, news reports
and officials said at least two people on
board may have been carrying stolen
passports.
The Italian foreign ministry said in
Rome that an Italian was listed on the
flight’s manifest although no national
from the country was on board.
The passenger list provided by the
20 pages | Price: Tk10
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Businessman
‘tortured’ in
police camp
n Our Correspondent, Narayanganj
A trader in Narayanganj has alleged
that law enforcers had picked him up
on Thursday and beat him up in custo-
dy at a police camp as he was one of the
traders who protested toll collection by
the police in the area.
Victim Md Ejaj, 32, was later shown
arrest in a land dispute case and pro-
duced before a court. But he was re-
leased on bail as the plaintiff of the case
told the court that he did not know him.
 PAGE 2 COLUMN 1
airline includes Luigi Maraldi, 37, an
Italian citizen. Newspaper Corriere Del-
la Sera reported that Maraldi’s passport
was stolen in Thailand last August. The
Italian Interior Ministry was unable to
immediately comment on the report.
In Vienna, the Austrian foreign min-
istry said an Austrian listed among the
passengers was safe and had reported
his passport stolen two years ago while
he was travelling in Thailand.
Asked for a possible explanation for
the plane’s disappearance, Malaysia
Airlines CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya told
a news conference: “We are not ruling
out any possibilities.”
By late night, there were no con-
firmed signs of the plane or any wreck-
age, over 20 hours after it went miss-
ing. Operations will continue through
the night, officials said.
 PAGE 2 COLUMN 2
2 DHAKA TRIBUNE
Int'l Women's
Day observed
n Tribune Report
With the theme “equality for women
is progress for all”, the International
Women’s Day was observed yesterday
across Bangladesh with a call for all to
ensure women’s rights.
Various socio-cultural organisations
arranged different events, including
rallies and a boat race, highlighting
women’s rights and the progress made
by them in economic, social, political
and other areas.
In the capital, many organisations
held separate programmes at Shahbagh
to mark the day.
The Centre for Men and Masculini-
ties Studies, in collaboration with Dha-
ka University Model United Nations
Association and United Nations Youth
and Students Association of Bangla-
desh organised a rally and a procession
on the DU campus.
Speaking to the occasion, National
Human Rights Commission Chairman
Mizanur Rahman said men have to play
the most pivotal role in ensuring and
protecting women’s dignity, rights and
prestige in the 21st century.
Bikkhubdho Nari Samaj paraded
through the city streets on trucks, call-
ing for an end to violence against wom-
en and elimination of all kinds of dis-
crimination. The women activists were
HT Imam suggests separate divisions for police
and home ministry
n Kailash Sarkar
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s politi-
cal adviser HT Imam last night unveiled
the government plan to reorganise the
home ministry.
He suggested that the government
should not only form separate divi-
sions for police but also for the home
ministry, he said while addressing
as the chief guest at the 34th annual
meeting of the Bangladesh Police Ser-
vice Association held at Rajarbagh Po-
lice Lines Auditorium.
He said: “But it should be clearly
specified which division will work un-
der which ministry.”
“We can use the relations between
the Armed Forces Division and the de-
fence ministry in this regard”, he said.
He said the Fire Service and Civil
Defence should not be under the home
ministry, rather it should go under the
Businessman
 PAGE 1 COLUMN 6
Ejaj at a press conference yesterday told
reporters: “I have three shops at River
View market which is situated between
Narayanganj sadar model police station
and the Marine Police camp. The trucks
which carry goods for several thousand
shops of the market conduct loading
and unloading goods near of the camp.
“In the past, the Marine Police used
to demand Tk20-50 from the trucks
and the traders paid the money with-
out saying anything. But recently af-
ter Sub-Inspector Nazrul came as the
in-charge of the camp, he started de-
manding Tk300 from each truck.
“We protested the toll collection and
decided not to give him a penny,” he
said in a written statement.
As a result, two plainclothes police-
men around 9:30pm on Thursday ha-
rassed two traders of the market in the
name of searching in front of the camp
and took away money from their wallets.
“I saw the incident and protested.
Hearing hue and cry in front of the
camp, SI Nazrul came out of the camp
and dragged me inside,” Ejaj said.
All of a sudden, Nazrul started beat-
ing him up and at one stage tied his
hands with a chair and blindfolded
him. Then the two plainclothes police
men beat him up mercilessly.
As the other shop owners came
forward hearing his screams, Nazrul
behaved rudely with them. He also
threatened to lock up the victim’s ma-
ternal uncle who came to save him.
“After the torture, SI Nazrul sent me
to Sadar model police station that night.
The police men there decided to show
me arrested in a land dispute case,” he
claimed. But, the plaintiff of the case,
Nasir, at the court told the judge that he
had feud over land with his nephews,
not Ejaj who was standing in the dock.
Contacted, SI Nazrul told the Dhaka Tri-
bune that the OC of the Narayanganj mod-
el police station would comment on the
issue. OC Manjur Kader said he would in-
vestigate the incident. “I regret personally
if anything like this happened,” he said. l
accompanied by male supporters.
Biplobi Nari Shanghati brought out a
torch procession in the evening.
At Jahangirnagar University, a co-
lourful grand rally was brought out by
hundreds of students, teachers, uni-
versity officials and staff.
Addressing the rally, JU Vice Chan-
cellor Farzana Islam, the country’s first
female VC, said: “Women are human
beings first. And if we consider them as
human beings, discriminations would
be eliminated.”
In Barisal, women participated in a
country boat race on the Poisarhut River
at Kadambari in Agoiljhara upazila. Wear-
ing colourful outfits, singing and playing
musical instruments, the women rowers
raced their boats with lots of enthusiasm.
Taranga, a non-government organi-
sation, arranged the race with 14 teams,
which were named after native flowers.
Local people, especially female spec-
tators and some foreigner guests, en-
joyed the race from both sides of the river
and cheered on the contestants by clap-
ping, playing music or chanting slogans.
In Chapainawabganj, the district
administration awarded five women
for outstanding performances in their
work and social life.
A women’s fair was organised in
Pirojpur, while various events were
held in Barguna. l
disaster management ministry while
the Para-military Border Guard Bangla-
desh also should not remain under the
home ministry.
He said police is not a separate en-
tity that is separated from the govern-
ment. It is an organ of the government
and for that reason police and defence
should be given special priorities.
“The Navy should be given priorities
for the preservation of our assets in the
sea while the air forces for keeping our
sky limit secured”, he said.
At his speech, the advisor said peo-
ple could see the budget for police but
they do not know about the defence
budget. The defence budget should
also be made public like many other
countries.”
Citing about the mayhem before
the national election centring the War
Crime Trial, he said: “The Jamaat-Shi-
bir and militants had announced a war
Young doctors shy away from teaching
 PAGE 1 COLUMN 2
pathology – has made it difficult for
authorities concerned to conduct aca-
demic activities, they added.
Dr Khondokar Md Sifayetullah, for-
mer DGHS director general and a pro-
fessor of anatomy, termed the trend
as “unfortunate,” and told the Dhaka
Tribune that most young doctors were
uninterested to join as the basic sub-
jects were non-practicing disciplines.
Most of the new doctors want to take
post-graduation degree and run after
money, he added.
The Dhaka Tribune has also acquired
a copy of a letter from the principal of
Malaysia Airlines flight goes missing
 PAGE 1 COLUMN 6
Vietnam said its rescue planes had
spotted two large oil slicks and a col-
umn of smoke off its coastline, but it
was not clear if they were connected to
the missing plane.
“We sent two maritime boats and
some military boats there to clarify,
each boat with about 20 people,” Pham
Quy Tieu, vice minister of transporta-
tion, told Reuters by telephone yester-
day evening. “The oil spills are about
15km long. Those boats will be there in
about three to four hours.”
A crash, if confirmed, would likely
mark the US-built airliner’s deadliest
incident since entering service 19 years
ago. And it would also mark the second
fatal accident involving a Boeing 777
in less than a year. An Asiana Airlines
Boeing 777-200ER crash-landed in San
Francisco in July 2013, killing three
passengers and injuring more than 180.
Boeing said it was monitoring the
situation but had no further comment.
Massive search
A large number of planes and ships
from several countries were scouring
the area where the plane last made con-
tact, about halfway between Malaysia
and the southern tip of Vietnam.
“The search and rescue operations
News
Three workers return home dead from Bahrain
n Rabiul Islam
Six-year-old Akash would never be able
to play with his father, Dulal, who was
Relatives of Mosharraf and Dulal, who were killed in a fire in Bahrain, burst in tears after their coffins reached Shahjalal International
Airport in the capital yesterday
against the country. But police had
tackled it.”
In response to the demands from
the police for granting eight more posts
of grade-1 in the police department, the
advisor said the government has the
will to meet the demand and there is
proverb “Where there is a will there is
a way.”
He also agreed with the necessities
of residential facilities, vehicles and
other logistics for the police.
Mashiur Rahman, the financial
advisor to the PM, State Minister for
Home Asaduzzaman Khan and Inspec-
tor General of Police Hasan Mahmood
Khandker, among others, spoke at
the function chaired by Dhaka Metro-
politan Police Commissioner Benajir
Ahmed.
Mashiur Rahman said the police de-
partment had shown its efficiency but
in course of time the type of crimes are
Pabna Medical College, dated March
2, in which he asked the DGHS direc-
tor (medical education) for recruiting
30 lecturers. The principal added in
the letter that the appointments were
needed on an emergency basis to con-
duct the academic activities of the 6th
batch of MBBS course.
Health ministry sources also said the
principal of Shahid Ziaur Rahman Med-
ical College in Bogra submitted a letter
on February 13 to the health secretary,
mentioning a severe crisis of teachers
for basic subjects and requesting him
to appoint in the vacant posts.
The letter also said all three posts of
will continue as long as necessary,”
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak
told reporters in Kuala Lumpur. He
said 15 air force aircraft, six navy ships
and three coast guard vessels had been
pressed into service by Malaysia.
Vietnam dispatched two navy boats
from Phu Quoc Island and sent two jets
and one helicopter from Ho Chi Minh
City to search for the missing airliner.
It was readying a further seven planes
and nine boats to join the search effort.
Other than Vietnamese and Malay-
sian search operations, China and the
Philippines have also sent ships to the
region to help. The United States, the
Philippines, and Singapore also dis-
patched military planes.
China has also put other ships and
aircraft on standby, said Transport
Minister Yang Chuantang.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi
told reporters in Beijing that China was
“extremely worried” about the fate of
the plane and those on board.
Search and rescue vessels from the
Malaysian maritime enforcement agen-
cy reached the area where the plane
last made contact at about 4:30pm lo-
cal time (0830 GMT) but saw no sign
of wreckage, a Malaysian Maritime En-
forcement Agency told Reuters.
The 11-year-old Boeing, powered by
Sunday, March 9, 2014
supposed to return home soon.
“My son Akash used to say that
he will play with his father when
he returns from Bahrain. He also
changed.
The state minister for home also
agreed with the demands of the police
officials saying that all the demands of
the police were logical.
“As militancy has spread its tenta-
cles across the country the need for a
National Bureau of Counter Terrorism
is a demand of the time”, he said.
IGP Hasan Mahmood Khandker said
additional manpower in the police is
not a demand but a need of the time.
He also stresses the need for a National
Bureau of Counter Terrorism to tackle
militancy.
He claimed that since the Industrial
police was launched the exports in the
country was increased up to 43%.
The DMP commissioner said the po-
lice deserve at least 19 posts of Grade-1.
They should be granted at least 8 more
Grade-1 posts in addition to the exist-
ing three posts. l
professor (one full professor, one asso-
ciate and one assistant professor) at the
anatomy department were vacant.
Other vacant posts at the college in-
cluded one biochemistry professor, one
assistant professor of physiology, one
professor and one assistant professor
of microbiology, one professor and one
lecturer of forensic medicine, one as-
sociate and one assistant professor of
pharmacology, one professor and one
assistant professor of pathology and
one associate professor and one lecturer
of community medicine department.
Professor Dr Rashid-e-Mahbub,
president of Health Rights Movement
Rolls-Royce Trent engines, took off at
12:40am (1640 GMT Friday) from Kuala
Lumpur International Airport and was
apparently flying in good weather con-
ditions when it went missing without a
distress call.
Relatives angry
The disappearance of the plane is a
chilling echo of an Air France flight that
crashed into the South Atlantic on June
1, 2009, killing all 228 people on board.
It vanished for hours and wreckage was
found only two days later.
Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 last
had contact with air traffic controllers
120 nautical miles off the east coast of
the Malaysian town of Kota Bharu, Ma-
laysia Airlines chief executive Ahmad
Jauhari Yahya said in a statement.
Earlier yesterday, the airline had
said people from 14 nationalities were
among the 227 passengers, including at
least 152 Chinese, 38 Malaysians, seven
Indonesians, six Australians, five Indi-
ans, four French and three Americans.
Flight tracking website flightaware.
com showed the plane flew north-
east over Malaysia after take-off and
climbed to an altitude of 35,000 feet.
The flight vanished from the website’s
tracking records a minute later while it
was still climbing.
hoped that his father will bring him
many gifts,” Aklima Begum, 35, wife
of Dulal told the Dhaka Tribune while
receiving the body of her husband
RAJIB DHAR
No Bangladeshi on board ‘crashed’
Malaysia airlines: Ministry
n UNB
No Bangladeshi citizen was on board
the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200,
which had reportedly crashed into the
sea off the coast of Vietnam with 239
people, an official confirmed yesterday.
“Our High Commissioner in Kuala
Lumpur confirmed that there was no
Bangladeshi national on board of the
respective Malaysian Airlines flight to
Beijing,’ Shameem Ahsan, the director
general (external publicity wing) at
the Foreign Ministry told the news
agency.
The aircraft, according to interna-
tional media, came down near Viet-
nam’s Tho Chu Island. A search was
underway.
The Flight MH370 lost contact just
two hours after it took off from Kuala
Lumpur for Beijing.
The Malaysian Airlines plane was
carrying 227 passengers, including two
Bangladesh and ex-president of Ban-
gladesh Medical Association (BMA),
told the Dhaka Tribune that the failure
to create regular position of lecturers
at private medical colleges was one of
the reasons why the DGHS could not
attract doctors to join.
The new doctors are also uninter-
ested in joining as teachers for the ba-
sic subjects, as there are not enough
options to earn extra money through
private practice, Mahbub said, adding
that the health ministry should take a
long-term plan and initiative to attract
doctors to become teachers of basic
subjects. l
Chinese relatives of passengers an-
grily accused the airline of keeping
them in the dark, while state media
criticised the carrier’s poor response.
“There’s no one from the compa-
ny here, we can’t find a single person.
They’ve just shut us in this room and
told us to wait,” said one middle-aged
man at a hotel near Beijing airport
where the relatives were taken.
“We want someone to show their
face. They haven’t even given us the
passenger list,” he said.
Another relative, trying to evade a
throng of reporters, muttered: “They’re
treating us worse than dogs.”
In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Airlines
told passengers’ next of kin to come
to the international airport with their
passports to prepare to fly to the crash
site, which has still not been identified.
About 20-30 families were being kept
in a holding room at the airport, where
they were being guarded by security of-
ficials and kept away from reporters.
Malaysia Airlines has one of the best
safety records among full-service carri-
ers in the Asia-Pacific region.
It identified the pilot of MH370
as Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah, a
53-year-old Malaysian who joined the
carrier in 1981 and has 18,365 hours of
flight experience. l
at Shahjalal International Airport
yesterday.
Dulal had told his son few days ago
that he would return home shortly.
“Akash told me that he will ride on his
father and play,” she said.
On February 28, Mosharraf Hossain,
Md Jalal and Dulal hailed from Comilla
were killed in a fire in Bahrain. Their
bodies reached the Dhaka airport by an
Emirates Airlines flight.
The Wage Earners’ Welfare Board
and the Bangladesh Embassy in Bah-
rain helped to bring the bodies to the
country.
Aklima said her husband had gone
to Bahrain in 2008 by spending Tk3.5
lakh, collected as loans.
“He used to send Tk8,000 every
month for the family’s expenditure.
How will I pay the loan now?” she
questioned and urged the government
for helping the family.
Marzina, 28, wife of Mosharraf, said
they had three sons – Ripon, 9, Rimu,
10, and Emon, 11.
“My husband went abroad at a cost of
around Tk4 lakh. We are still in debt of
Tk1.5 lakh. What can I do now?” she said.
Amena Akhter, 19, wife of Jalal, said
her husband had gone to Bahrain after
managing some Tk5 lakh from different
people as loans.
Md Ziauddin, director of the wel-
fare fund of Wage Earners’ Welfare
Board, said they had given each
family a cheque of Tk35,000 for cost
of transport and burial.
The government would later give
each family Tk3 lakh as financial help,
he added. l
infants, and 12 crew members, the air-
line said.
It said there were 153 passengers
from China, 38 from Malaysia, seven
each from Indonesia and Australia, five
from India, four from the U.S. and oth-
ers from Indonesia, France, New Zea-
land, Canada, Ukraine, Russia, Italy,
Taiwan, the Netherlands and Austria,
reports AP.
If confirmed, it would mark the sec-
ond fatal accident involving a Boeing
777 in less than a year.
Malaysia Airlines Chief Executive
Ahmad Jauhari Yahya told a press brief-
ing that Flight MH370 lost contact with
Malaysian air traffic control at 2:40 am,
about two hours after it had taken off
from Kuala Lumpur.
The plane, which carried passengers
mostly from China but also from other
Asian countries, North America and
Europe, was expected to land in Beijing
at 6:30 am today. l
Newborn
disappears
from DMCH
 PAGE 1 COLUMN 5
The letter was found inside Khokon’s
pocket. Dr Rafi, the on-duty doctor,
issued the letter on March 6, asking
the neonatal physicians to receive the
child patient and give specialised treat-
ment.
The letter read Shefali gave birth
a baby girl who was very weak
and did not cry immediately after
birth. So the child required specialised
treatment.
The Dhaka Tribune visited the
neonatal unit at 5pm yesterday to
check the registrar and find out
whether the baby was received,
but Dr Sadia Islam refused to show
the registrar when she came to know
about the identity of the correspon-
dent.
The on-duty doctor flew into a rage
and asked the correspondent to leave
the ward immediately.
The neonatal unit appears to be se-
cure, with two Answer members – one
male and another female – on guard at
the entrance.
One is allowed to enter the newborn
unit after presenting proper identifica-
tion.
In reply to how a child could go
missing from such a secure place, Brig
Gen Mostafizur Rahman, director of
DMCH, gave his version that the neo-
natal doctors did not receive the baby,
they just gave it first aid.
The baby was born in the hospital
and the gynecology doctors referred it
to the neonatal ward for a checkup, he
added.
Asked about the allegation that
the baby was missing from the
newborn unit, he said: “We have
formed a four-member probe body to
investigate the matter with DMCH As-
sistant Director Dr Jahdul Islam as its
convener.” l

UPAZILA POLLS
60 injured in factional clashes of AL
n Tribune Report
At least 60 people including six police
personnel were injured yesterday in
Awami League intra party clashes in dif-
ferent upazilas of Gazipur, Chandpur,
Munshiganj and Comilla districts over
the upcoming third phase upazila polls.
Our Gazipur correspondent reports:
At least 50 people including five police
personnel were injured in a clash be-
tween two AL chairman aspirants.
Witness said supporters of Gazipur
Awami League backed candidate Iqbal
Hossain stayed in front of the upazila AL
office while the supporters of another
candidate of AL-Abdul Jalil were cam-
paigning in the area. When both groups
were trying to take position in the upazila
AL office, clashes started between them.
Amir Hossain, officer-in-charge of
Shrepur police station, said supporters
of Iqbal Hossain entered the town firing
bullets and exploding cocktails. To bring
the situation under control the police
fired 41 bullets.
Member of municipal Chattra
League Al Amin, son of Abul Hossain
was critically injured during the clash.
All kinds shops were shutdown and
the tense situation were prevailing in
the area till filing the report.
Chandpur correspondent reports: At
least 20 people including three police
personnel and journalists were injured
in clashes between two Awami League
chairman candidates in two upazilas
over holding a showdown.
Munshiganj correspondent reports:
Three arrested for
attack with arms
in school
n Our Correspondent, Gazipur
Locals and students have caught three
youths with arms after they entered a
school in Basan area of Gazipur yester-
day morning and fired blank shots.
They are Azizul Huq Rocky, 17, Roni,
22, and Imran, 24.
According to locals and the police,
the youths entered Toijuddin High
School in the morning and Rocky beat
up a school boy Khairul Islam Tonmoy.
After learning the matter, Tonmoy’s
parents informed the matter to his
teachers.
At this, Rocky along with his asso-
ciates went to the school and opened
fire. At one stage, the school students
and some locals chased the youths and
nabbed three of them. The rest of the
culprits managed to escape.
On information, Joydevpur police
went to the spot and recovered one
foreign-made pistol and two rounds
of bullets from their possession. Dur-
ing that time, the agitated mob hurled
brick chips towards the police car.
Sub-Inspector of Bhogra police out-
post Ekramul Haque said: “Rocky is an
SSC examinee of the school while Rony
and Imran are honours students.”
A case was filed with Joydevpur po-
lice in this regard. l
One loses life
to save sister’s
wedding ornaments
n Our Correspondent, Comilla
A youth succumbed to his injuries in
Comilla yesterday after being injured
while trying to save some gold orna-
ments that he had purchased for her
younger sister’s wedding from the
hands of armed snatchers.
Victim Gopal Chandra Das, 25,
hailed from Malakhala village of Daud-
kandi upazila.
Police and eye witnesses said Gopal
after buying some gold ornaments from
Gouripur Bazar on Friday had taken a
shared CNG auto-rickshaw to go back
home. He also had Tk42,000 cash with
him. At that time, some snatchers got
into the auto-rickshaw and tried to take
away the ornaments and cash from him.
Gopal instantly jumped off the
speeding vehicle and shouted for help.
Locals then caught three snatchers and
handed them over to the police after a
good beating.
The detainees are Mizan, 38, Mosta-
fa, 40, and Mofazzal, 25.
Gopal was admitted to upazila health
complex and later transferred to Dhaka
for better treatment. He, however, suc-
cumbed to injuries early yesterday.
Sub-Inspector Asaduzzaman Asad,
the in-charge of Gouripur police out-
post, told the Dhaka Tribune that a
murder case had been filed with Daud-
kandi model police station and the po-
lice were conducting raids at different
places to arrest the other snatchers. l
DHAKA TRIBUNE
At least 10 people, including officer-in-
charge of Gazaria police station, were
injured in clashes between AL support-
ed candidates centering campaigns in
Munshiganj upazila polls.
The one and half hour long clashes
took place between the supporters of
BARI giving ‘preferential treatment’ Towki remembered on
to pesticide companies first death anniversary
n Abu Bakar Siddique
The Bangladesh Agricultural Research
Institute (BARI) is allegedly giving
preferential treatment to several pes-
ticide companies by prescribing their
products to Bt Brinjal farmers in its
published booklet.
In a booklet titled “Variety Devel-
opment and Developing Technology
of Modern Bt Variety in Bangladesh,”
the BARI reportedly promoted differ-
ent products by prescribing several
brand names of insecticides to be used
against different types of insects and
plant diseases.
The different products, which in-
clude fungicides and miticides, are
made by foreign companies, while
they are marketed and distributed by
Cambridge International Examinations together with the British Council congratulate high achieving learners from Bangladesh, in the
capital yesterday
AL picks Amina for Suchitra as
reserved seat nominee
n Tribune Report
The ruling Awami League has changed
one of its nominated candidates for
the elections to reserve seat MPs for
women in 10th parliament, to be held
on April 3.
The AL offered nomination to Amina
Ahmed, wife of National Awami Party
(NAP) President Mozaffar Ahmed, and
cancelled the nomination of Suchitra
Tanchangya from Bandarban district,
Presidium member Obaidul Quader
confirmed to the Dhaka Tribune yes-
terday.
Also a member of the party’s Par-
liamentary Board, Obaidul said Amina
was a reserve seat lawmaker in ninth
News
AL backed candidate Amirul Islam and
AL rebel candidate Refayet Ullah Khan.
OC Mamun-ur-Rashid was injured
during the clash. Comilla correspond-
ent reports: Several clashes took places
among the candidates in Nangolkot,
Burichnag and Brahmanpara upazilas
local companies. The manufacturers
are located in countries like Germany,
Singapore and Italy.
“We have mentioned the brand
names of the chemicals in the booklet
as examples, so that the farmers will be
aware about them,” said Rafiqul Islam
Mondol, director general of the BARI.
However, he admitted that men-
tioning the name of any brand to the
farmers was unethical, as it promoted
particular products.
Currently, about 3,000 registered
chemicals are used as pesticides,
herbicides and fungicides in
Bangladesh, with the products being
marketed by local companies under
different brand names to fight pests
and plant diseases.
Preferring to stay unnamed, an offi-
parliament too.
Mozaffar’s NAP is an ally of the AL-
led ruling 14-party alliance.
When contacted, Suchitra told the
Dhaka Tribune that she had not been
informed about the cancelation of her
nomination.
“Some local leaders are hatching
conspiracy against me alleging that I
do not belong to the Awami League
family. But I have been involved with
the Awami League and I hope that the
party will not do injustice with me,”
she said.
The party would submit the list of its
nominees to the Election Commission
today, Mrinal Kanti Das, AL’s deputy of-
fice secretary, told the Dhaka Tribune.
Sunday, March 9, 2014
of the district.
In Burichang upazila, four candi-
dates are contesting for the chairman
post. Those are- BNP backed Mizanur
Rahman, Awami League backed Akhlak
Haider, rebel candidate of Awami
League Sazzad Hossain and Jatiya Party
cial of a pesticide company that is pro-
moted in the BARI booklet, said such
promotion by government officials
helps increase sales to some extent.
However, the BARI director general
said the brand names were mentioned
with good intention, and not for pro-
moting any product.
Nazrul Islam, pesticide regulatory
officer of the Department of Agricul-
ture Extension (DAE), also echoed the
BARI DG on the issue.
Although there is a moral barrier
against the promotion of any brand by
the government, agriculture officers
sometimes have to mention brand
names to make farmers aware about
the use of particular products to get
good result against some pests and dis-
eases, Nazrul said. l
MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU
Meanwhile, many district-level
leaders and activists including those
from Kurigram have expressed aggra-
vation for not getting any candidate
from their districts.
Our correspondents report that the
ruling party men from those districts
fear that they would be deprived of de-
velopment activities in their localities.
Obaidul said they had prioritised the
candidates from districts which had no
representation in parliament previously.
“The reserve seat MP nomination
will not be any part of development
activities. Our Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina is aware about the issue and she
believes in balanced development all
over the country,” he said. l
DHAKA TRIBUNE
(Ershad) backed Shafiqur Rahman Arun.
Supporters of Akhlak Haider and
Sazzad Hossain locked in a clash cen-
tering tearing down posters of the can-
didates. The supporters of Sazzad set
fire to the election office of Akhlak in
Fokirbaza area. l
Family still awaits justice
n Our Correspondent, Narayanganj
The family of Tanvir Mohammad
Towki, an A-level student from
Narayanganj who was found dead two
days after he had gone missing, is still
waiting for justice after a year as the
killers have not yet been arrested.
A rally styled ‘Mother and Children
Rally’ was organised yesterday by Sant-
rash Nirmul Towki Mancha in commemo-
ration of the boy and was held at Chashara
Shaheed Minar. Yesterday marked the
first death anniversary of the boy.
It saddens people when they see
parents struggling for justice for their
son’s murder during the government’s
tenure that claims to be a pro-liberation
administration, said rights activist Sul-
tana Kamal while addressing the rally.
“People now have to decide wheth-
er or not they will tolerate the culture
of absence of justice,” Sultana Kamal,
also a former adviser to caretaker gov-
ernment, said.
Since Towki’s death, his father Rafi-
ur Rabbi, convener of Narayanganj
Gonojagoron Mancha, has been accus-
ing the family of controversial Awami
League leader Shamim Osman of killing
B Chy hits back at Hasina
n UNB
President of Bikalpadhara Bangladesh
AQM Badruddoza Chowdhury yester-
day strongly deplored the prime min-
ister’s remarks over his meeting with
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia.
He said Hasina had exposed her bad
taste by calling the former president
“Badu Kaka.”
“It is a manifestation of bad taste
of a person like the honourable prime
minister by making fun of calling a for-
mer president Badu Kaka,” Badruddoza
said in a statement.
He also said it was an unbecoming
comment by a prime minister as well
as a daughter of Bangabandhu Sheikh
Mujibur Rahman.
One of the founding members of
the BNP, Badruddoza later resigned as
president of the BNP-Jamaat’s 2001-06
3
CPB: Power hike
to hit the poor
people hard
n UNB
Communist Party of Bangladesh
(CPB) yesterday demanded that the
government to cut down the prices of
electricity instead of hiking the rates
further.
“If the power tariff goes up, it will
have multiple effects as prices of all es-
sential commodities will increase,” said
CPB leader Ruhin Hossain Prince while
addressing a rally in front of National
Press Club in the capital.
The rally, organised by Segunbag-
icha unit of CPB, also demanded the
cancellation of the existing “minimum
billing” system.
The leaders at the rally also noted
that the rise in power tariffs will result
in hike in house rents as well.
Criticising the Power Ministry’s
role, they said the move of hike power
price has proved that the government
is trying to protect the interest of the
wealthy population.
They said the rural consumers are
now paying the highest rate for elec-
tricity.
Noting that some 9 lakh rural
people consume electricity worth
of Tk 55 crore, but they pay Tk 98
crore, the leaders also added: “The
government must decrease the power
price for the rural people instead of
raising it.”
The leaders severely criticised the
government’s purchase of power from
rental power plants saying that the
rental power serves only the interests
of the vested quarters. l
his son. Towki secured an outstanding
result in his A-level exams which was
published a day after the boy had gone
missing. Out of 300, he had scored 294
in chemistry and 297 in physics.
“Those who killed Towki must re-
member that they are the murderers.
Perhaps they aren’t being identified
because of the ill politics but people of
Narayanganj know who the killers are.
Truth cannot be kept hidden,” Sultana
Kamal observed.
The right activist also slammed the
authority because of failure to reveal
names of the killers and arrest them.
She urged everyone to be conscious of
justice for the 17-year-old boy.
Speaking at the rally, Towki’s moth-
er Rownok Rehana said: “The state has
failed to provide our children with se-
curity and safety. While assuming pow-
er, our Prime Minister vowed that the
people would be safe. Now she has to
stand before people as she has broken
that commitment.”
Following the rally, a website on
Towki was launched and a documenta-
ry was screened illustrating the move-
ment people of Narayanganj initiated
after the boy had been killed. l
government.
On Thursday night, Badruddoza had
a meeting with Khaleda at her Gulshan
office where he had urged the BNP chief
to send a proposal to the government
for engaging in a dialogue aiming
at holding a free, fair and inclusive
fresh national election. The two parties
also agreed to work together over the
issue.
Pointing at the meeting, Hasina at
a rally at Suhrawardy Udyan on Fri-
day said the BNP chairperson was now
looking for newer excuses to wage a
fresh movement.
“Now she [Khaleda] is supplicating
those whom she had driven away be-
fore. I have seen in a picture that she
wearing a red saree is talking to Badu
Kaka [Badruddoza]. I do not know
whether Badu Kaka went there with a
bunch of Rajanigandha [flower].” l
4 DHAKA TRIBUNE
PM: Minus-two formula
male-dominated
society’s agenda
n UNB
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday
alleged that it was the male-dominated
society that had tried to implement
the much-talked-about “minus-two”
formula, excluding Sheikh Hasina and
Khaleda Zia from politics during the
last caretaker government
The prime minister came up with
the allegation while delivering her
speech at a function marking the Inter-
national Women’s Day at Bangabandhu
International Conference Centre.
Sheikh Hasina said now the number
of female political leaders at the top has
marked a rise as the ruling party chief
is a woman and the leaders of the op-
position is also a woman apart from the
female leader of another political party.
“That demonstrates that the efforts of
the male-dominated society have failed.
What will they call it now? Instead of
two, we’re now three,” she wondered.
Hasina called upon all to vow afresh
to establish an equality-based world
where rights, honour equal and dignity
of women would be enhanced.
Mentioning that the country’s more
than half of the population are women
the prime minister said achieving the
desired socioeconomic progress is
impossible pushing the women away
from the development process.
In this connection, she called upon
both men and women to work together
for building poverty- and illiteracy-free
Bangladesh through ensuring women
empowerment, equal rights, equal op-
portunities and their involvement in
the mainstream national development.
Prof Yusuf Ali dies
Bangladesh Medical Studies and Re-
search (BMSRI) founder member &
Chairman Professor Mohammad Yusuf
Ali, MRCP (Glasgow), FRCP (Edinburg)
died at the age of 91 on Wednesday at
Bangladesh Medical College Hospital.
Professor Ali’s janaja was held yes-
terday and he was laid to rest at Azim-
pur Graveyard, said a press release.
He left behind wife, two sons & three
daughters. He was honouring the Post
of Chairman of Bangladesh Medical
College and Hospital, Uttara Modern
Medical College Hospital and Bangla-
desh Dental College from the inception
till his demise. l
WEATHER
Partly cloudy sky
n UNB
Weather may remain dry with tempo-
rary partly cloudy sky over the country
until 6pm today.
Day and night temperature may re-
main nearly unchanged over the coun-
try, Met Office said.
The sun sets in the capital at 6:05pm
today and rises at 6:13am tomorrow.
Country’s highest temperature 32.0
degrees Celsius was recorded yesterday
in Rangamati and Cox’s Bazar and low-
est 11.0 degrees in Srimangal.
Highest and lowest temperature re-
corded in some major cities yesterday
were:
City High Low
Dhaka 29.4 16.0
Chittagong 30.8 17.6
Rajshahi 29.7 13.4
Rangpur 29.2 13.5
Khulna 30.5 16.3
Barisal 30.1 15.0
Sylhet 31.0 15.5
Cox’s Bazar 32.0 18.8
PRAYER TIMES
Fajar 4:59am
Sunrise 6:14am
Zohr 12:09am
Asr 4:25pm
Magrib 6:04pm
Esha 7:20pm
Source: IslamicFinder.org
Hasina urged the country’s womenfolk
to be well-educated and establish them-
selves as equally as their male counter-
parts are in society saying they will have
to build their own fortune as no one will
come forward to help change their fate.
She mentioned that Bangladesh has
been acclaimed across the world as a
model when it comes to women em-
powerment and development, and said
the credit of such achievement should
go to those women who established
rights and dignity breaking the socio-
economic and political shackles.
Sheikh Hasina also recognised the
role of men in this regard saying they
worked alongside with their female
counterparts as co-fighters rising above
the patriarchy.
Expressing her sorrow over the ill-
efforts of a section of society to keep
the women confined to the four walls
of home, the Prime Minister said they
want to push the womenfolk out of
rights of education and outside jobs by
misinterpreting the religion.
“This section is doing these things
when our mothers and sisters are play-
ing a laudable role in their development
and political empowerment,” she said.
Hasina urged people to create so-
cial awareness to stop falsehood in the
name of religion to hold women hos-
tage, and propaganda against women
by reciting in the name of religion.
She explained that it is the religion
Islam that has ensured the dignity of
women and recognised their right to ed-
ucation as well as their right to property.
“Many female Sahabas, including Bibi
Khadiza, had engaged in business.” l
Bapa censures Sonai River grabbers Divisional office for
n Tribune Report
govt accommodation
on cards
Environmental activists have urged the
government to save Sonai River in Hab-
iganj by evicting all illegal establish-
ments including under-construction
Saiham Future Complex on the river
in line with a decision made by the Na-
tional River Taskforce.
“The government agencies con-
cerned including water resources min-
istry, Bangladesh Water Development
Board and Habiganj district adminis-
tration should follow the instruction of
the National River Taskforce immedi-
ately to evict the encroachers on Sonai
OIC chief’s flight rescheduled, to arrive today
n UNB
Secretary General of the Organisation of
Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Iyad Ameen
Madani, scheduled to reach Dhaka yes-
terday evening on a four-day official vis-
it, is now supposed to arrive early today.
As per his fresh flight schedule, the
OIC secretary general – who will be
leading a five-member delegation – is
supposed to arrive at 3:50am on an Eti-
Shaky Pirojpur buildings put
employees at risk
n Our Correspondent, Pirojpur
Employees working at complaint cen-
tre and 33/11KV substation of Pirojpur
Power Division have found themselves
at risk as the buildings have been in di-
lapidated condition for years.
The authorities concerned have
been informed of the situation, though
no step has yet been taken in this re-
gard.
The complaint centre is located be-
side Shahid Omar Faruk road in Piroj-
pur town. Linesman of the centre Shy-
amlal Boral said he and an assistant
worked in shifts at the building mea-
suring 15ft by 12 ft.
Speaking about the faulty building,
Shyamlal said rods were now visible as
those had come out of the roof.
“Plaster from the ceiling sometimes
drop down and during rainy season,
water falls on my body. This has
been the condition for many years,” he
said.
Switchboard attendant of the
33/11KV substation Anwar Hossain said
two air conditioners were installed
to keep the equipment cool. “One of
those, however, went out of service
and the other has almost stopped
working as well.”
“Electricity is supplied to differ-
ent areas of the district from here but
the authorities have been ignoring the
need to repair the building,” Anwar ob-
News
Police intercept the rally brought out by the BNP female activists on the occasion of the International Women’s Day in front of the party’s head office in the capital’s Naya Paltan
yesterday
River,” Sharif Jamil, joint secretary of
Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (Bapa),
said at a press briefing yesterday.
Bapa organised the event at Dhaka
Reporters Unity auditorium.
Sharif Jamil said the taskforce had di-
rected the related agencies to evict the
encroachers at its 22nd meeting held on
July 30 last year. But it was ignored.
He alleged that construction work of
the complex had started in 2003 by fill-
ing up the river area illegally with the
help of different government agencies.
Saiham Group had also violated the
Wetland Conservation Act, 2000 and
the National Water Act which prohibits
had Airways flight, said Shameem Ah-
san, director general (external publicity
wing) at the foreign ministry.
The official, however, did not elabo-
rate the reasons behind the flight re-
scheduling.
This will be Madani’s first visit to
Bangladesh after assuming office as
the secretary general recently and the
purpose of the visit is to strengthen the
existing cooperation between the OIC
served, adding power supply would be
severely disrupted if any accident oc-
curred in the building.
The local counsellor (complaint
centre and sub-centre/substation)
said he was aware of the building’s
condition but the higher authorities
Sunday, March 9, 2014
construction by stopping natural water
flow, said Abdul Matin, the Bapa gen-
eral secretary.
He demanded exemplary punish-
ment for those who had violated the
laws and destroyed the river’s ecology
for their own benefits.
Matin also urged the government to
form a monitoring cell that would work to
save the existing water bodies of the coun-
try from encroachment and pollution.
Sharif Jamil, also the Buriganga
Riverkeeper, in his speech also de-
manded demarcation of all rivers in the
country in a proper way to avoid illegal
encroachment. l
and Bangladesh, according to the for-
eign ministry.
He is scheduled to meet Prime Min-
ister Sheikh Hasina at Jatiya Sangsad
Bhaban at 6:30pm today, after holding
meetings with Finance Minister AMA
Muhith, Foreign Minister AH Mah-
mood Ali and Foreign Secretary M Sha-
hidul Haque at the secretariat and for-
eign ministry respectively, according to
a foreign ministry media release. l
had shown reluctance to carry out
necessary repair work.
Contacted, deputy assistant engi-
neer of West Zone Power Distribution
Company’s (WZPDC) Pirojpur office Md
Saidur Rahman said repair work had
started. l
n Mohosinul Karim
The housing and public works ministry
is likely to set up new office for direc-
torate of government accommodation
in all divisional cities across the coun-
try for put an end to the sufferings of
the public servants regarding accom-
modation.
A proposal of the ministry has been
sent to the finance ministry for approv-
al, after getting the nod of the public
administration ministry.
Director of the Directorate of Gov-
ernment Accommodation Ashraful Is-
lam told the Dhaka Tribune on Thurs-
day “We have taken this initiative to
eliminate the sufferings of division
level officials in getting allocation of of-
ficial residences.
“The public works ministry is wait-
ing for finance ministry’s respond to
start its work. The offices would be es-
tablished immediate after getting the
approval,” he added.
According to the officials, the alloca-
Seven injured in fire
incidents in 3 districts
n Tribune Report
Three family members in Dhaka, one
female worker in Chittagong and three
people in Cox’s Bazar were injured in
separate fire incidents yesterday.
In the capital’s Azimpur, a couple
along with their daughter sustained
burn injuries in a fire at their kitchen at
the Government Staff Quarters.
Injured Salamat Hossain, 48, an of-
fice assistant at the foreign ministry,
his wife Lovely Akhter, 40, and their
daughter Lima Akhter, 17, were rushed
to the Burn and Plastic Surgery unit
at Dhaka Medical College Hospital by
their neighbours.
Victim Salamat said his wife’s sharee
caught a fire while she had been heat-
ing water on a burner around 7am and
he and his daughter sustained injuries
while trying to put the fire out.
According to the DMCH the condi-
tion of the couple was critical as Sala-
mat sustained injuries in 30 percent
of his body and his wife in 48 percent
of her body while their daughter sus-
tained minor injuries.
Police and the victims suspect that the
fire might have been originated from the
stagnant gas leaked from the pipeline.
In the meantime, a female worker
of a poultry farm received burn inju-
ries as the farm was gutted in a fire in
Kalurghat area of Chittagong city in the
morning.
The injured worker Kohinur Aktar, 35,
RAJIB DHAR
tion activities of government accom-
modations are being done by two divi-
sional offices of the directorate, one in
Dhaka and the other in Chittagong.
These two look after the arrange-
ment of around 20,000 government ac-
commodation in the two divisions. Of
those, around 14,000 accommodations
are in Dhaka.
Rest of the division head quarters
and districts officials housing are be-
ing allocated by deputy commissioners
and executive engineers of the district
offices of Public Works Department.
Considering the sufferings of the
officials, the initiative of establishing
new offices for five divisional head
quarters were taken. The offices will
look after the accommodations for the
division level officials.
Ashraf said: “We hope that the fi-
nance ministry’ approval will come
soon. We will start its work immediate
after the approval, as we have already
received approval from the public ad-
ministration ministry.” l
wife of Abdul Majid, was admitted into
Burn and Plastic Surgery unit of Chit-
tagong Medical College Hospital, said
fire brigade and CMCH police sources.
Jasim Uddin, deputy assistant direc-
tor of Chittagong Fire Service and Civil
Defense, said a fire originated from an
electric short circuit at Badiul Alam’s
poultry farm under Uttar Mohora of
Kalurghat area around 4:30am and en-
gulfed the adjacent Nabila poultry farm.
On information, two fire fighting
units from Agrabad and Kalurghat Fire
Stations rushed to the spot and doused
the blaze after two hours effort, the
DAD added.
In a separate incident, a devastating
fire burned down around six business
organisations and four households in
Ramu upazila of Cox’s Bazar.
The incident occurred in front of
Ramu Girl’s High School in Choumuho-
ni Bus Station area around 12pm.
Three people received injuries and
were admitted to Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hos-
pital. Locals claimed that the fire had
caused a damage worth over Tk 50 crore.
Four houses owned by Ruhul Amin,
Surut Alam, Md Shamsu and Ahammad
Hossain were also gutted.
On information, fire fighters rushed
to the spot and doused the blaze after
two hours of frantic effort.
The library owner Md Akhtar said
the fire originated from the gas stove
of Ruhul Amin’s kitchen. Later, the fire
raged through the whole area. l

Rajuk, Palli Samity await HC order over Zinda Park Minister closes
n Abu Hayat Mahmud
Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Ra-
juk) and Ograpothik Palli Samity are
waiting for High Court directives re-
garding lease of maintenance of the
Zinda Park, a natural wonder, located
at Rupganj upazila in Narayanganj.
On February 26, one of the initiators
of Zinda Park, Ograpothik Palli Samity,
filed a writ petition in the High Court to
retain its maintenance power over the
park, when Rajuk attempted to evacu-
ate the locals from the park.
Earlier in 2008, the Rajuk canceled a
housing project in the area after protest
by environment activists and local people.
The park is currently located under
a housing project ‘Purbachal Town’ by
apex government-run city develop-
ment authority Rajuk.
Following the writ, the High Court
issued a show cause to Rajuk to explain
why it should not direct Rajuk to grant
lease to the petitioners as per the Town
Improvement Act.
On February 27, Rajuk sent a letter
to Ograpothik Palli Samity announcing
that it would conduct an eviction drive
at the Zinda Park in sector 30 under Pur-
bachal Town on March 3, however, Ra-
juk could not carry out the drive in the
face of protests by Ograpothik Palli Sam-
ity members, green actvists and locals.
On Februaty 4 the Samity sent an
application to the Prime Minister re-
questing to grant them lease of the
park’s maintenance.
Md Tabarak Hossain Kumkum,
founder of Ograpothik Palli Samity built
the park in 1984 on 100 bighas of land
in the village of Zinda. At that time the
parks was named as Oikotan Eco Resort.
The park has trees, ponds, recre-
ation facilities, educational institu-
Tk17 lakh looted from Primary education week begins today
senior secretary’s house n
n Tribune Report
A gang of robbers looted Tk17 lakh in
cash and other valuables from the resi-
dence of a senior government official in
the capital’s Mohammadpur area yes-
terday after holding his family hostage
at gunpoint, police said.
The incident took place at the house
of Abdul Halim, senior secretary to the
public administration ministry, at Ta-
jmahal Road early yesterday.
“The gang, comprising six to seven
members, entered the house from the
roof of the building and held all the
family members hostage at gunpoint,”
said Biplab Kumer Sarkar, deputy com-
Women take part in a boat race on the Paisarhaat River marking the International Women’s Day yesterday
Goldsmith goes
missing
n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong
A goldsmith in Hazari Lane under the
city went missing on Friday. The victim
was identified as Bappa Dhar, 23.
AKM Mohiudin Selim, officer-in-charge
of Kotwali police station, said Bappa had
told his family members at 10am on the
day that he was going to Patiya upazila to
deliver an order of jewellry.
Bappa’s cell phone was found
switched off in the afternoon while the
family members tried to contact him.
The OC said police were trying to
track his cellphone as they were look-
ing into the matter.
Badal Dhar, the father of the victim,
lodged a general dairy in this connection.
It may be mentioned that some mis-
creants giving their identities as RAB and
DB men picked up a gold trader, Mridul
Chowdhury, from in front of his residence
in the port city on February 11 while he
was rescued alive in Comilla on February
18 as the abductors left him there. l
BRTC official
Tourists ride a paddle-boat at the Zinda Park at Rupganj upazila in Narayanganj
tions and clubs. Abdullah Al Shahin,
secretary of Ograpothik Palli Samity
told the Dhaka Tribune: “Locals built
the park three decades ago. The issue
missioner of Tejgaon police.
The police officer said the rob-
bers also assaulted the family mem-
bers when the secretary’s wife de-
layed in handing over the keys of the
almirah.
The family members said the
alleged criminals at one state snatched
away the keys from her hand and
made off with gold jewellery and Tk17
lakh in cash.
Mohammadpur police said the pro-
cess was on for filing a case in this con-
nection.
“We are trying to arrest the robbers
and recover the looted ornaments and
cash money,” said Biplab Sarkar. l
Mohila Dal procession foiled
n UNB
The police yesterday foiled Jatiyataba-
di Mohila Dal’s bid to hold a procession
in the city, to mark the International
Women’s Day.
Police sources said they intervened,
as the women front of the BNP did not
take any official permission for the pro-
gramme.
Mohila Dal will hold nationwide
black-flag processions tomorrow to
protest the police action, its general
secretary Shirin Sultana announced at
a press conference at the BNP’s Nayap-
altan central office.
Earlier in the day, police forces in-
tercepted activists of the BNP’s women
wing when they tried to bring out the
procession from in front of its Nayapal-
tan central office around 10:20am.
At one stage, the Mohila Dal
activists scuffled with law enforcers,
forcing deployment of addition police
force around the BNP office to foil the
programme.
DHAKA TRIBUNE News
is now pending with High Court. I hope
the court will give order in favour of the
villagers.”
“We will save the park at any cost
BSS
The National Primary Education Week
2014 will be observed from today in
a befitting manner, under the aus-
pices of the Ministry of Primary and
Mass Education.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is ex-
pected to inaugurate a number of pro-
grammes of the week at a function at
the Osmani Memorial Auditorium in
the city.
Primary and Mass Education Min-
ister Mostafizur Rahman will preside
over the function, which will be at-
tended teachers, students and educa-
tionists.
President Abdul Hamid and Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina gave separate
messages marking the day.
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Additional Police Commissioner
(Motijheel zone) Asaduzzaman told
reporters that the Mohila Dal was not
allowed to stage their programme as
they had no permission from the Dhaka
Metropolitan Police (DMP).
Shirin, however, said they sought
permission for the peaceful programme
nearly a week ago, adding: “But the au-
thorities did not inform us that we have
been denied permission.”
She alleged that police did not allow
women to hold a programme on the
International Women’s Day, as the law
enforcers have turned into a force of
the ruling party.
BNP acting secretary general Mirza
Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, who was pres-
ent at the press conference, strongly
condemned the police action.
“It is very unfortunate that when
the country’s prime minister, speaker
and opposition leader are all women,
the Mohila Dal was obstructed from
holding their programme on the Inter-
national Women’s Day,” Fakhrul said. l
Sunday, March 9, 2014
from Rajuk’s disgraceful move,” he
added.
Nurul Huda, chairman of Rajuk,
said: “The owners of the park were
In his message, the president
stressed the need for building a skilled
and knowledgeable workforce for
implementing the “Vision-2021,” as
declared by the government aimed
at turning Bangladesh into a tech-
savvy country.
Hamid sought support from all to
achieve the millennium development
goals and Vision-2021, and wished the
week’s programme a success.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in an-
other message, said there was no alterna-
tive to building an educated and skilled
workforce to expedite balanced develop-
ment of the country, besides building an
IT-dependent modern nation.
In doing so, she said, the govern-
ment has given special emphasis on
education for all.
‘Keep Gulshan Lake pollution free’
n BSS
A colourful procession was brought
out in the capital yesterday for creating
awareness among the people to keep
the Gulshan Lake pollution-free and
preserve its beauty.
Environment and Forest Secretary
M Shafiqur Rahman Patwari led the
procession that started from Banani
Chairman Bari playground and ended
through a rally at the western end of
Prof Farid Uddin elected President,
Prof Rashid GS of UTAB
n UNB
Prof Farid Uddin Ahmed, dean of Social
Science faculty of Dhaka University,
and Prof Rashid Askari, teacher of En-
glish Department of Islamic University,
were elected as president and general
secretary respectively of University
Teachers’ Association of Bangladesh
(UTAB) yesterday.
Prof Farid Uddin , an economics
ACI awards eight eminent women personalities on the occasion of International Women’s day, in the capital yesterday
ABU HAYAT MAHMUD
given price of the land when Rajuk ac-
quired it. The Samity is trying to get
hold off the park with muscle power to
turn it into a source of profit making.” l
The prime minister listed the gov-
ernment’s manifold development
activities including development of
school infrastructure, ensuring supply
of safe drinking water, introduction of
uniform education and stipends for
disadvantaged children.
She added that the distribution of
textbooks to primary school students
on the first day of the year and intro-
duction of e-book were among the de-
velopment activities.
“I hope that the continuation of
development in the education sector
will help implement the ‘Vision-2021’,
paving the way for building a poverty
and hunger-free non-communal Ban-
gladesh,” she said.
The premier also wished the week’s
programme a success. l
Gulshan’s Road 34.
At the rally, the secretary stressed
the need for participation of the civil
society in activities aimed at saving the
capital’s environment side by side with
the government initiatives.
The capital’s Gulshan-Baridhara
Lake was officially declared an
Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) in 2001
to save the water body from becoming
further polluted and protect it from
encroachment.
teacher, is also serving as the president
of DU Teachers’ Association (DUTA)
while Prof Rashid as the general secre-
tary of IU Teachers Association.
Prof Parimal Bala, president of Ja-
gannath University Teachers Associa-
tion (JnUTA) was elected as treasurer of
the UTAB executive committee formed
at a meeting held at DU Teacher’s Club
in the university campus.
Besides, Rajshahi University teacher
5
n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong
Communications Minister Obaidul
Quader yesterday ordered BRTC chair-
man to close an official due to negli-
gence on duty in Chittagong.
Sources said during a sudden visit at
the bus depot of BRTC in the district’s
Natunpara, the minister had found that
Mohammad Kamruzzaman, manager
(operation) of the depot, had been ab-
sent in his office. The minister told the
journalists: “I ordered the BRTC chair-
man to close the official as I found him
insincere in his duty.”
He also ordered the depot authorities
to repair all the damaged buses within
a month and ply the buses on the road
which were kept idle in the depot.
Later, the minister visited the ex-
pansion work of Chittagong-Rangamati
Highway while he said about 31% work
had been completed and the entire
work would be completed within 2015.
“We are unlucky that we did not get
enough budget for the project while
the project work is being delayed for
fund crisis and negligence of project
officials,” he said.
The minister also said that the con-
struction work of 50 kilometres out
of 192 kilometres of the Dhaka-Chit-
tagong Highway Four-Lane project had
been completed.
The minister ordered to police and
local administrations to look after the
highways’ expanded portions. l
BSF detains two
BGB men
n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi
The Indian Border Security Force on
Friday night arrested two on-duty
members of the Border Guard Bangla-
desh at Bakchar frontier under Chapa-
inawabganj sadar upazila.
They were handed over to the BGB
authorities yesterday morning, after
nearly 14 hours.
Local sources said the two BGB men
had been caught by the BSF around
10pm on Friday while they were pa-
trolling near the Bakchar outpost.
Hearing the news, the BGB author-
ities contacted their counterpart and a
flag meeting was held at Khandua camp
under Murshidabad district of India.
They reached a mutual understand-
ing at the meeting and the BSF handed
over the BGB men to the authorities
concerned.
Rajshahi 37 BGB Commanding Offi-
cer Lt Col Nazim Khan told the Dhaka
Tribune that the BSF had not arrest-
ed them. The BGB men lost their path
while patrolling the area and the BSF
men gave them shelter at their camp. l
Speakers at the rally sought to reclaim
the lake from illegal occupation and pre-
serve the water retention capacity of the
lake as well as its beautification.
Former election commissioner M
Sohul Hossain, former secretary Mo-
hammad Ali, former NBR member
Mahmubur Rahman and Dhaka Uni-
versity Teachers Association (DUTA)
President Prof Farid Uddin, leaders of
different socio-cultural organisations
among others took part in the event. l
Prof Quamrul Hasan Majumder,
Chittagong University teacher Prof
Benu Kumar Dey, Jahangirnagar
University teacher Farid Ahmed,
president of Bangladesh Agricultural
University Teachers Association
(BAUTA) Prof Lutful Hassan and
President of Bangladesh Open
University Teachers’ Association
(BOUTA) Prof Dr Mohsin Uddin were
elected as vice-presidents. l
DHAKA TRIBUNE
6 DHAKA TRIBUNE
Teacher shortage
hits government
schools in Pirojpur
n Our Correspondent, Pirojpur
Educational activities in six govern-
ment high schools in Pirojpur district
are being hampered due to shortage of
teachers.
According to sources, the total posts
in these schools are 161, of which 67 are
lying vacant.
The academic works of the schools
are run by acting headmaster. As a re-
sult, sometimes it is difficult to take
decisions.
‘I am taking classes for
Bangla and sometime
also work as acting
headmaster. It is
difficult for me do the
two things at a time as
sometimes I have to
attend meetings’
Bhandoria Bandar Government Girls’
High School was nationalised in 1986.
Around 400 students are studying in
the school. Among a total of 13 posts in-
cluding head master, seven posts have
remained vacant for many days.
Shopna Roy, acting head master,
said: “No teachers were recruited for
accounting, English, physics, geogra-
phy, Bangla and Social Science sub-
jects.”
“Guest teachers are taking classes
for those subjects. In return, we give
them remuneration,” he said.
Senjuti Ray, a ninth grade student
of the school said: “We are continu-
ing study in huge crisis due to lack of
teachers.”
Md Babar Talukder, acting head
master of Kaukhali KG Union Govt
High School said: “There are around
475 students in the school.”
The total posts of teachers includ-
The Turan Paribahan bus that fell into a roadside ditch injuring 19 college students
NEWS IN BRIEF
Minor boy drowns in Rajshahi
A minor boy drowned in a pond in Shah
Makhdum Mazar area of the city on Fri-
day. The dead Mim, 4, was son of Firoz, a
resident of the area. SM Abdus Sobhan,
officer-in-charge of Boalia Police Station,
said Mim had gone missing on Thursday.
Later, his body was spotted afloat in a
pond near Shah Makhdum Shrine in the
afternoon. – UNB
Fire gutted houses in Magura
Several houses were gutted when a fire
broke out in Abdullapur village under
Magura Sadar upazila of the district
yesterday. Fire service sources said the
fire originated from the kitchen of one
Bakiar Rahman this morning and imme-
diately engulfed the adjacent area. Fire
Service units doused the flame after half
an hour struggle. No casualties were
reported. - BSS
Mental patient killed in Pabna
A mental patient was killed by a fellow
patient in Pabna Mental Hospital yes-
terday morning. The victim was Joynal
Abedin, 45. He was admitted in the
hospital on January, 12, this year. Police
and the mental hospital sources said
the victim was undergoing treatment in
ward number 9 of the hospital. Another
patient Ashraful Islam of the same ward
killed him with piece of heavy metal
in the toilet of the ward around 9am
yesterday. – Our Correspondent
ing head master are 16 while there are
now 14 teachers. There are no teachers
for Hindu religion and accounting sub-
jects.
Babar said: “The works of head mas-
ter are done by acting head master.”
Jahangir Hossain, acting head mas-
ter of Kaukhali SB Government Girls’
High School said: “Many posts of 17
teachers have remained vacant for
years. There are also 500 students in
the school.”
Himagshu Kumar Ghorami, acting
head master of Govt High School Na-
zipur Sirajul Haque said: “I am taking
classes for Bangla and sometime also
work as acting headmaster. It is difficult
for me do the two things at a time as
sometimes I have to attend meetings.”
Raihan Ahad and Sourav Halder,
students of class X said their studies
were being hampered due to lack of
teachers.
Nazma Ara Khanom, acting head
mistress of Pirojpur Government Girls’
High School said: “We have not had a
geography teacher for more than 12
years.”
She added, 30 teachers were present
among a total of 52. The number of stu-
dents was 1523.
“The posts of two clerks have re-
mained vacant since two years. We
have only one fourth-class employee
among a total of five,” the acting head
mistress added.
Teacher Abu Bokkor said: “We do not
have a headmaster for last 12 years and
there is no acting headmaster either.”
Shampa Rani, acting head mistress
of Pirojpur Govt High School said:
“Around 1475 students are studying in
the school. 18 posts of teachers among
a total of 52 have remained vacant for
many days. It is tough to run such a big
institution with acting head master.”
The district education officer said
the teachers had made complaints over
lack of teachers in important posts in-
cluding headmaster post in their insti-
tutions. l
5 killed, 30 injured in accidents
n Tribune Report
A total of three people were killed and
47 injured in separate road accidents
yesterday in Patuakhali, Jhenaidah,
Bhola and Natore.
In Patuakhali, 19 were injured after
a Madaripur-bound picnic bus with
around 45 Madaripur Government Na-
zimuddin College students fell into a
roadside ditch on the Kuakata-Patu-
akhali road in the morning, reports our
Barisal correspondent.
Officer-in-Charge Tarekuzzaman
of Kalapara police station said the bus
of Turan Paribahon had lost control
near Rajopara of Kalapara upazila
around 8am. He said the students
were returning from Kuakata after their
picnic.
The driver and the conductor of the
bus fled the scene after the accident, he
added.
Among the 19 injured, 16 were re-
leased after primary treatment at
Kalapara Upazila Health Complex.
The other three were sent to Ba-
risal Sher E Bangla Medical College
Hospital.
In Jhenaidah, a man was killed and
six injured after a bus and a local hu-
man haulier collided head-on near
Kala-Lakkhipur area on the Jhenaidah-
Dhaka highway in the afternoon, re-
ports our correspondent.
The dead was Sudeb Kundu, 60. The
Nation
An indigenous woman sorting turmeric from Jhum for drying and selling in local market of Khagrachhari, an area famous for cultivating it
Dilapidated roads cause trouble in Pirojpur
n Our Correspondent, Pirojpur
Around 20km roads among a total of
31km roads stretching from Pirojpur-
Nazirpur-Tungipara have remained
in awfully dilapidated conditions for
months, much to the sufferings of hun-
dreds of passengers in that region.
The width of the road is 32 feet. Sev-
eral big potholes developed in the mid-
dle of the highway. This is the straight
road for the locals of Patharghata up-
zila in Barisal and Mathbaria upazila in
Pirojpur to the Bangabandhu Mazhar in
Tungipara upazila of Gopalganj.
Passengers have to ply through
a time-consuming alternative route
since they can’t use the highway due to
its decrepit condition.
In a recent visit to the highway it
FOCUS BANGLA
injured were rushed to Magura Sadar
Hospital.
In-charge of Hatgopalpur police out-
post Abdul Momin said the dead was
travelling on the human haulier. The
Chuadanga-bound JR Paribahan bus
from Dhaka managed to flee immedi-
ately.
In Bhola, a nine-year-old schoolboy
was killed in a road accident on the
Kabir Miah Brick Field Road in Joya vil-
lage of the district’s Borhanuddin upa-
zila, reports UNB.
The dead M Yeamin was a class II
student of a local primary school.
Witnesses said the accident took
place around 9am when a goods-laden
shallow engine-run vehicle ran over
Yeamin while he was crossing the road
on way to his school, leaving him dead
on the spot.
In Natore, a man was killed and five
others were injured when a microbus
crashed into a roadside tree in Kachi-
hata area of Gurudaspur upazila under
Natore district, reports BSS.
Fuad Ruhani, officer-in-charge of
Bonparha Highway Police Outpost,
said the deceased was identified as
Shahidul Islam, 37, of Bagatiparha upa-
zila of the district.
He said the accident took place
around 7:30am when the vehicle’s driv-
er lost control over the steering after
crossing the Kachhikatha No 10 bridge
on Bonpara- Hatikumrul highway. l
Sunday, March 9, 2014
FOCUS BANGLA
was noticed that the condition of the
roads from Pirojpur town to Kodomtola
said: “Dust from the roads enter into
the nose and eyes of the school chil-
Riazul Islam, a bus driver informed
that his vehicle got damaged earlier
Bazar and from northern part of Chark- dren while crossing the highway due on February 17 while heading towards
hola Bridge to Nazirpur Bridge are quite to its poor condition. As a result, they Pirojpur through the road. It cost him
good. But passengers have to face tre- have been facing breathing problems.” Tk1300 to repair it.
mendous troubles while plying the Bacchu Mia, a microbus driver said: Atiqul Islam, deputy assistant en-
middle part of the road starting after “During summer season drivers don’t gineer of Pirojpur Road Division said:
Kodomtoli Bazar to Charkhola Bridge. dare to cross the highway. Usually driv- “Two companies including BTSL and
Delwar Hossain, a resident of Ko- ers avoid the road as bumpy rides dam- RBJB were awarded the contract of
domtola area said: ‘’The area goes un- age our vehicles. Passengers have to Tk10.31 lakh on October 19, 2010 for
der knee-deep water during rainy sea- pay extra fare while going through an carpeting works on 7km road. Carpet-
son.’’ alternative way. Sometimes, they don’t ing of 4km of the road has been com-
Zakir Hossain of Sriramkathi area agree to pay higher fares.” pleted and work of the rest 3km re-
of Nazirpur upazila said: “We go to Alamgir Hossain, president of Bus- mained unfinished. We issued a letter
Pirojpur through Durgapur area under Labour Union of Pirojpur said: “Vehi- to them to finish the work as soon as
Sriramkathu union of Nazirpur upazila. cles move slowly due to the run-down possible.”
We try to avoid the highway as it has a condition of the road.” “We made a project of Tk40 crore to
lot of cracks and dust in different parts.” Nur-e-Alam Siddique, a Local of repair the road and sent it to the higher
Headmaster of Panchpara Govern- Matibhanga area said: “It is difficult to officials. The work will be started after
ment Primary School Sonjoy Malongi cross the road by walking.” getting allocation,” he added. l
Extension of Dhaka Shishu Hospital Project
Dhaka Shishu Hospital
Sher-E-Bangla Nagar
Dhaka-1207
Tender No.002/2013-14 Date:08/03/2014
INVITATION FOR TENDER
01 Project Name Extension of Dhaka Shishu Hospital Project
02 Agency Dhaka Shishu Hospital, Dhaka
03 Procuring Entity Name Project Director, EDSHP, Dhaka Shishu Hospital, Dhaka-1207.
04 Invitation for Medical Equipments & Others Instruments
05 Completion of Work 45( forty five days) from the date of contract signing
06 Invitation Ref No DSH Ex. Project/2013-14/104-105
07 Fiscal Year 2013-2014
08 Procurement Method OTM, National
09 Budget and source of Funds GOB
10 Tender Last Selling Date 22.03.2014, 2.00PM
11 Tender Closing Date & Time 24.03.2014, 12.00PM
12 Tender Opening Date and Time 24.03.2014, 1.00PM
13 Name & Address of the office Office of the Project Director, EDSHP, Dhaka Shishu Hospital,
Dhaka-1207
14 Selling Tender Document 1. Office of the Project Director, EDSHP, Dhaka Shishu Hospital,
Dhaka-1207.
15 Receiving Tender Document 1. Office of the Project Director, EDSHP, Dhaka Shishu Hospital,
Dhaka-1207.
16 Opening Tender Document
2. Sher-E-Bangla Nagar Police Station, Dhaka.
Office of the Project Director, EDSHP, Dhaka Shishu Hospital,
Dhaka-1207.
17 Price of Schedule Tk. 3,000 (Three thousand only)
Lot Short Description Tender Security Eligibility of Tenderer
Package No. G-02
No (Detail are in the Schedule)
01 4 Nos Medical 2.5% tender security of the quoted Stated in Tender Data Sheet
Equipments & Others amount from any schedule Bank by Pay
Instruments Order in favour of Extension of Dhaka
Shishu Hospital Project.
02 01 No Medical
Equipment
18 Name of official Inviting Tender Prof. Dr. Md. Abdul Aziz
19 Designation of official Inviting Project Director
Tender
20 Address of official Inviting Office of the Project Director, EDSHP, Dhaka Shishu Hospital, Dhaka-1207
Tender
21 Contract Details of Official 02-9104211-20
Inviting Tender
22 Special Instruction 1. If the date of selling, receiving & opening of tender is disturbed under
any unavoidable circumstances, the next working day will be applicable.
2. Tenderer will have to supply the requisite goods on priority and
necessary basis of the procurement authority within schedule time after
issuing work order upon availability of fund. And the Item/Quantity may
be Increase/ Decrease as per allotment.
3. Authority reserves the right to accept or reject all the tenders.
This tender notice can be seen at www.dhakashishuhospital.org/tender
Project Director
Extension of Dhaka Shishu Hospital Project
DG-44/14 (10"×4) Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka-1207

Ready-made: Roles for engineering and business
graduates in the garments industry
n Nakibul Hoq and Naiian Yazdani
As I entered into
the state-of-the-art
facility of HR Textile
Mills Ltd, whose local
brands include Pride
Group and Urban
Truth and whose
global export revenue
amounts to 50 million dollars, my
preconceived notions about the industry
that serves as the blood and health-line of
the country’s economy were shattered.
Walking in, to my surprise, I was
greeted with courtesy from around
fifteen children of ages three to six,
all of whose mothers worked in the
cutting and sewing lines of the factory.
These kids were looked after by the
attendants at the Daycare Center,
which has been set up as a joint
collaboration between the factory
and Fulki, a local NGO working for
the welfare of garment workers in the
country. It was a sign of how much
corporate social responsibility has
progressed in Bangladesh.
Graduates need to remember
the importance of foreign
languages
This was a far cry from what I had imag-
ined. I recalled the colourful sketch
of the bloodstained garment with the
“Made in Bangladesh” tagline that had
been circulated en masse via social me-
dia in the aftermath of the Rana Plaza
disaster. The first brand image that the
term “Made in Bangladesh” connotes to
is one of devastation of human lives, of
cheap, high quality garments made at
the expense of poor working conditions
in a third-world country. The reality
was quite different, with an organised
assembly line of employees working
away purposefully. Particularly inter-
esting was the roles played by those
with professional degrees.
The Ready-Made Garments (RMG)
sector in Bangladesh has modernised
How to make the most of meetings
n Ahsan Sajid
Meetings are a main-
stay of working in
groups. They can be
held to arrive at a col-
lective decision, gen-
erate ideas, receive
status reports, plan-
ning, etc. Whatever
the reason, the purpose of all meetings
is at its core the same – to establish an
objective and seeing it through.
Meetings that do not establish an
objective are prone to getting derailed
and turning into bad meetings. You
know you have had a bad meeting when
it seems to have gone on for ages, you
don’t have a clearer idea of the objective
at hand than when you went in and you
wonder what purpose was served by
having it. An effective meeting on the
other hand should make you feel ac-
complished and motivate you to hit the
ground running for whatever lies ahead.
Whatever the purpose of a meeting,
an effective one hits three criteria – it
reaches the objective the meeting has
established, it does not waste anyone’s
time, participants leave with a better
DHAKA TRIBUNE
and has become the primary source
of employment for those with profes-
sional degrees. With sophisticated en-
gineering and business perspectives
in place, the sector mainly employs
energetic, ambitious young graduates
with the inherent ability to bring order
to chaos.
Efficiency is of paramount impor-
tance since costs have to be kept to a
minimum, and thereby the industrial
engineer’s role involves identifying
synergies and methodologies to max-
imise the output from the manufac-
turing lines. This can take the form of
capacity measurement, time and mo-
tion analysis and constant planning to
ensure that the order is shipped prior to
the deadline and with as few errors as
humanly possible.
The industry, with its security and
opportunity attracts some serious tal-
ent. “We have had 10,000 applications
during last year’s recruitment season.
Out of them we selected only 12,” says
Mr Mohammad A Momen, Professor at
the Institute of Business Administra-
tion (University of Dhaka) and Director
at HR Textile Mills Ltd.
He adds: “Most of our hand-picked
professionals come from the most rig-
orous of academic backgrounds. We
have textile engineers from different
renowned textile universities, indus-
trial engineers from BUET, AUST and
SUST, and business graduates from
IBA.”
The RMG “low cost and high out-
put” business model brings with it reg-
ular challenges. While the glare falls on
the assembly line, a significant amount
of research and development is under-
taken prior to production.
For example, product development
utilises textile engineers who shut them-
selves up in laboratories for days to create
a sample successfully and in accordance
with the buyer’s specifications and inter-
national standards. The buyer is of the
utmost importance and no amount of re-
spite can be undertaken until the buyer
is satisfied with the product.
This requires extreme dedication
and diligence, and the ability to work
with all sorts of equipment before pro-
ducing the perfect sample in collabora-
tion with your team.
grasp of what’s at hand and what their
tasks are going forward.
Unless you are the one convening
the meeting, it is not easy to steer the
meeting towards a valuable direction
on your own if everyone else keeps be-
ing distractive. However, whether you
are merely a participant or the modera-
tor, following are a number of tips that
may help ensure the aforementioned
three criteria for running effective
meetings are met.
Establishing objective
Establishing an objective for a meeting
gives it a roadmap to follow, without
which all participants would simply
be making disorganised contributions
with no direction. An effective meeting
serves a purpose, meaning it aims to
achieve a desired outcome. Establish-
ing an objective is figuring out what
this desirable outcome is.
To make sure a meeting is not being
called to discuss things at random with
no consideration of the ideal outcome,
ask yourself the following questions.
Does the meeting require a decision to
be made? Is it to generate ideas or for ev-
erybody to update one another? Is there
Career
Engineers have to work with the
most sophisticated equipment imag-
inable shipped in from various parts
of the world. The industry is in a con-
stant state of renewal, with new ma-
chineries and computer-aided design-
ing programmes, so the interest levels
remain high for curious minds. While
engineers do have the opportunity to
indulge their technical skills, at the end
of the day the business needs to be prof-
itable.
Enter business graduates, for whom
there are enormous opportunities also.
A business graduate can be found in
management, finance and corporate
relations.
Budgets, costs and revenues whir
around these places constantly and a
quantitative slant is required. Buyers
will push for the lowest possible prices,
and it is essential that the optimum pos-
sible price for the products be attained.
anything in specific that you have to
communicate to the rest of the group? Is
there going to be any planning involved?
For the meeting to be an effective one,
participants need to be clear about what
the objective of the meeting is.
The answers to the questions posed,
among a number of other possibilities,
are examples of a meeting objective.
Therefore, this step is necessary before
calling a meeting or planning for it. Once
you have the desired outcome clearly de-
fined, it is easy to determine things like
how long the meeting should be or who
needs to be present and who can sit it out.
Making the most of time
Time is a finite resource, and ought to
be treated like it. Every participant of
a meeting owes it to the others to not
waste time. If a meeting has ten atten-
dants, each of whom wastes ten min-
utes, they have just cost the company
an hour and a half in total.
In the previous step, the meeting’s
objective has been established, and the
rest of the meeting should be conduct-
ed accordingly to further this objective.
There are a number of ways to trim
the fat around the edges and making
Sunday, March 9, 2014
It is a well-known fact that the costs
of production give Bangladesh the ul-
timate competitive advantage in the
global RMG market. However, the high
level of competition both within Ban-
gladesh and outside it means there is
a thin line between profitability and
overpricing.
It is also important for business
graduates in this sector to understand
the functionality of the machines they
are purchasing and employing. Manag-
ing capital costs will be essential in the
business, particularly for those seeking
growth. Although they do not need the
engineer’s insight, minimum technical
competency is required to understand
the structure they are working on. This
balancing act is taken a step further
when addressing the safety issues that
have plagued Bangladesh.
Without doubt, decisions regarding
expenditure can have an impact on
sure time is utilised perfectly. For ex-
ample, if the meeting is to troubleshoot
a problem, participants should arrive
with viable solutions already in mind
instead of coming up with ideas during
the meeting. It is important to figure
out if there are required tasks that can
be taken care of before the meeting be-
gins and to attend to them.
When a meeting involves multiple
talking points, it is essential to prior-
itise which ones must be covered be-
fore others. It is important to sequence
them in a particular order, and to allo-
cate sets of time for each point.
A common source of time loss is
when individuals are invited to the
meeting simply as figureheads, with lit-
tle to contribute. The person calling the
meeting should list necessary partici-
pants and leave out redundant names.
Apprising all participants
Meeting participants should come
out of a meeting better informed than
when they went in. To ensure this, a
number of issues need to be taken into
consideration. If you are moderating
the meeting, make sure everyone is
aware of the meeting’s agenda before
the start of the meeting, so they can
offer suggestions such as taking items
off the list or adding to it. If you are a
participant, try to understand what the
objective of the meeting is and at the
end ask yourself if you recognise what
your steps are to be, going forward.
Meetings often get unbalanced by
certain individuals dominating the dis-
cussion time, but an effective meeting
provides time to all participants for
their contribution. At the end of each
topic, one participant should sum-
marise the discussion and repeat what
deliverables are expected of which in-
dividual. All participants should agree
it is a fair summary.
One participant must be assigned to
keep note of all tasks generated during
the meeting, and who has been as-
signed which. This person should ide-
ally compile a meeting summary, and
provide a copy for all participants and
any other member concerned. This is a
crucial step to making a meeting effec-
tive, one that often gets overlooked.
The success of a meeting can be mea-
sured against the completion of the meet-
ing objective originally established. l
the lives of the workers. For example,
a decision to purchase a cheaper and
lower standard of electrical arrange-
ment, which subsequently fails, may
be disastrous. The focus on governance
means that management need to be ac-
countable for all its decisions.
Graduates need to remember the
importance of foreign languages, since
buyers are sourced from all corners of
the world. The ability to communicate
effectively in different languages, and
not just English, is a distinct advantage
during recruitment. “Cultural aware-
ness” – the term that business school
professors use to describe the ability to
understand different cultures and cus-
toms to act accordingly is crucial.
Perhaps the best part about working
in the RMG sector for both engineers
and business graduates is the contri-
bution to the economy of the country.
The industry has helped Bangladesh to
Workday idioms
n Career Desk
Back-room boys
- This term refers
to people who do
important work but
have no contact with
BIZ the public.
VOCAB
Busman’s holiday - A
busman’s holiday is when you spend your
spare time or your holidays doing the same
sort of activity as you do in your job.
Dead wood - The term dead wood refers
to people or things which are no longer
considered useful or necessary.
On the dole - A person who receives
financial assistance from the government
when they are unemployed is on the dole.
Dream ticket - If you refer to two people
as a dream ticket, you think they would
work well together and be successful.
Golden handcuffs - The term golden
handcuffs refers to a large sum of money
or a generous financial arrangement
granted to an executive as an incentive to
stay in their job, or to ensure long-term
cooperation after their departure.
Golden parachute - A golden parachute is
a clause in an executive’s employment con-
tract stating that the executive will receive
certain large benefits if their employment
is terminated.
WORDS OF WISDOM
7
SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN
earn foreign currency like never before,
and is constantly creating jobs from the
bottom up, a satisfaction that a com-
fortable banking or a multinational job
cannot provide.
This is a challenging industry and
requires those with the ability to work
under pressure and of course, in light
of recent events, with integrity. With
those two attributes, one can establish
a strong, secure career and contribute
in an industry that provides the heart-
beat of the Bangladeshi economy. l
Nakibul Hoq is a Research Analyst at
GradConnect, an international career
information and advisory firm. You can
email him at nakib@grad-connect.com.
Naiian Yazdani is the Director of Strategy at
GradConnect. You can email him at naiian@
grad-connect.com and find more career
information at www.grad-insights.com and
www.grad-connect.com.
Glass ceiling - This term refers to a dis-
criminatory barrier perceived by women
and minorities that prevents them from
rising to positions of power or responsi-
bility.
Number cruncher - This is a humorous
way of referring to someone who is an
accountant or who is very good at working
with numbers and calculations.
Paid peanuts - If you are paid peanuts,
you have a very low salary.
Play second fiddle - If you play second
fiddle to another person, you accept to be
second in importance to that person, or
have a lower position.
Plum job - A desirable position which is
well-paid and considered relatively easy is
called a plum job.
Separate sheep from goats - If you
separate the sheep from the goats, you ex-
amine a group of people and decide which
are suitable and which are not.
Another string to your bow - If you
have another string to your bow, you have
another skill or possible course of action if
everything else fails.
Waiting in the wings - If someone is
waiting in the wings, they are waiting for
an opportunity to take action, especially
to replace someone else in their job or
position.
Always be yourself, express
yourself, have faith in your-
self, do not go out and look
for a successful personality
and duplicate it
– Bruce Lee
8 DHAKA TRIBUNE
Suspected Russian Ukrainians feel the pinch as Crimea crisis simmers
spyware targets EU, US n
n Reuters, London/Boston
A sophisticated piece of spyware has
been quietly infecting hundreds of
government computers across Europe
and the United States in one of the
most complex cyber espionage pro-
grams uncovered to date.
Several security researchers and
Western intelligence officers say they
believe the malware, widely known as
Turla, is the work of the Russian gov-
ernment and linked to the same soft-
ware used to launch a massive breach
on the US military uncovered in 2008.
It was also linked to a previously
known, massive global cyber spying
operation dubbed Red October target-
ing diplomatic, military and nuclear
research networks.
Those assessments were based on
analysis of tactics employed by hack-
ers, along with technical indicators and
the victims they targeted.
“It is sophisticated malware that’s
linked to other Russian exploits, uses
encryption and targets western gov-
ernments. It has Russian paw prints
all over it,” said Jim Lewis, a former US
foreign service officer, now senior fel-
low at the Center for Strategic and In-
ternational Studies in Washington.
However, security experts caution
that while the case for saying Turla
looks Russian may be strong, it is im-
possible to confirm those suspicions
unless Moscow claims responsibility.
Developers often use techniques to
cloud their identity.
The threat surfaced this week after
Palestinian women join West
Bank anti-riot police
n AFP, Jericho
Instructors bark orders to a column of
Palestinian women recruited to an an-
ti-riot unit, part of an effort to tackle
problems caused by conservative atti-
tudes in the West Bank force.
Decked out with helmets, assault
boots, batons and shields, the students
at the Jericho police school weather a
barrage from stone throwers, before
rushing to arrest the “troublemakers.”
“There is no difference between the
training for men and women for com-
bat abilities and searching cars and
houses,” said one of the instructors,
Lieutenant Naama Shalalfat.
“Law enforcement is not reserved
for men,” she told AFP.
The recruits, who are taking class-
room lessons to supplement the training
exercises, belong to a new all-female an-
ti-riot unit, which will be made up of 220
members and will be deployed across
the West Bank when it is operational.
A Palestinian policewoman takes part in a training session that aims at preparing a special women’s unit to intervene during riots, in the
West Bank city of Jericho
Rebel Free Syrian army confirms new chief
n AFP, Beirut
The rebel Free Syrian Army has con-
firmed the appointment of its new
chief, Brigadier General Abdel Ilah al-
Bashir, after former head General Se-
lim Idriss had initially refused to step
down.
The FSA confirmed “the dismissal of
Idriss and the appointment of... Bashir
as head of the Supreme Military Coun-
cil,” in a statement late on Friday.
Bashir, who defected from the gov-
ernment army to join rebels fighting in
a little known German anti-virus firm,
G Data, published a report on the virus,
which it called Uroburos, the name text
in the code that may be a reference to
the Greek symbol of a serpent eating its
own tail.
Experts in state-sponsored cy-
ber attacks say that Russian govern-
ment-backed hackers are known for
being highly disciplined, adept at hiding
their tracks, extremely effective at main-
taining control of infected networks and
more selective in choosing targets than
their Chinese counterparts.
“They know that most people don’t
have either the technical knowledge or
the fortitude to win a battle with them.
When they recognize that someone
is onto them, they just go dormant,”
said one expert who helps victims of
state-sponsored hacking.
A former Western intelligence offi-
cial commented: “They can draw on
some very high grade programmers
and engineers, including the many who
work for organized criminal groups,
but also function as privateers.”
Russia’s Federal Security Bureau de-
clined to omment as did Pentagon and
US Department of Homeland Security
officials.
On Friday, Britain’s BAE Systems
Applied Intelligence - the cyber arm of
Britain’s premier defence contractor -
published its own research on the spy-
ware, which it called “snake.”
The sheer sophistication of the soft-
ware, it said, went well beyond that
previously encountered - although it
did not attribute blame for the attack. l
Colonel Ramadan Awad, deputy po-
lice chief for the West Bank, says the
unit was formed in response to prob-
lems caused by old attitudes towards
women in the territory.
“The idea behind training this unit
goes back to 2009, when a women’s
demonstration in the streets of He-
bron (in the West Bank) degenerated
into acts of vandalism, while the police
couldn’t intervene because we live in a
conservative society,” Awad said.
Lieutenant Osama Awda, 28, says he
is “training police officers of both sexes
in martial arts and self-defence before
moving on to law enforcement.”
He says that with his three col-
leagues, two men and a woman, he
trains 500 female recruits every year.
Rashida Brahma, a 22-year-old recruit
at the Jericho school, says she wanted to
be one of the first to work in a profession
long seen as off-limits to women.
“My main reason for joining the police
after school was to serve the homeland
southern Syria, had originally been ap-
pointed to head the FSA in mid-February.
But Idriss and several senior com-
manders in the field rejected his dis-
missal, with some branding it as an
undemocratic “coup.”
The FSA’s Higher Military Council
removed Idriss from his position in
February, citing the “difficulties faced
by the Syrian revolution” in its battle
with the regime of President Bashar
al-Assad.
Idriss and his allies had blamed the
opposition’s defence minister Assaad
World
AFP, Kiev
As world powers and international in-
stitutions cobble together aid packages
for a debt-laden Ukraine on the brink of
default, regular Ukrainians feeling the
pinch fear they will see none of the cash.
At an outdoor market north of Kiev’s
city centre on Friday, stallholders sold
everything from colourful stuffed toys to
freshly baked pastries and bouquets of
flowers for International Women’s Day.
But buyers were few and far be-
tween. “People have started to buy
much less, they’re being more eco-
nomical,” said Sonya, 59, wrapped in
a thick coat despite the spring weath-
er and selling jars of honey and bees-
wax candles outside the Petrivka met-
ro station.
Nikolay, a 23-year-old from Crimea,
said: “I think everyone is trying to save
their money because they’re getting
ready in case the situation changes for
the worse” on the tense Black Sea pen-
insula.
He, too, has seen a drop in custom-
ers at his tiny shop, where he sells sun-
glasses and US-style baseball caps.
Irina and Sergiy Lutay, a retired cou-
ple shopping for household appliances
at a nearby chain store, said they had
taken their savings out of the bank in
January, before pro-Moscow president
Viktor Yanukovych was ousted.
“We fear the situation will escalate
so we want our money to be safe,” said
Irina.
The escalation in Ukraine – which
began with violent clashes that killed
100 people in three months and has
now moved over to Crimea – has add-
ed one more headache to a country al-
and to get a job that only men had been
able to do until then,” she says, just after
practising how to disarm an attacker.
Only three% of the Palestinian po-
lice force’s 8,000 members are women,
but other branches of the security forc-
es are making tentative steps to boost
women’s numbers in their ranks.
This week, a group of 23 wom-
en finished their training to join the
presidential guard, which protects
key figures and carries out special
operations.
But despite signs of limited prog-
ress, the level of women’s participation
in the Palestinian labour force remains
low, at about 17.3% compared with
69.3% for men, according to figures
from the Central Statistics Office pub-
lished ahead of International Women’s
Day on Saturday.
The ratio is a little more balanced in
the public sector, where 40.6% of em-
ployees were women and 59.4% men in
2012, according to the same source. l
AFP
Mustafa for his removal.
But earlier this week, opposition
chief Ahmad Jarba had met with sever-
al top military leaders, including Idriss
and Mustafa.
During the meeting it was agreed
both Idriss and Mustafa would quit
their positions and Idriss would be
named military advisor to Jarba.
Considered the “moderate” rebel
group, the Western-backed FSA was
once the country’s strongest armed op-
position force but is now increasingly
marginalised by Islamists. l
Sunday, March 9, 2014
A Ukrainian Catholic woman prays during a religious procession near the Dinamo stadium
close to Independence square in central Kiev
ready struggling with massive debt and
a huge fiscal deficit.
The European Commission and
United States this week pledged bil-
lions of euros in aid to shore up the
stricken economy after dramatic warn-
ings the country could default within
days.
A mission of the International Mon-
etary Fund also arrived on Tuesday to
assess the situation in view of further
aid to Ukraine’s new government,
Russia open to ‘equal’ dialogue
with West on Ukraine: Lavrov
n AFP, Moscow
Russia is open to having an “honest,
equal” dialogue with foreign states on
the crisis in Ukraine, Foreign Minister
Sergei Lavrov said yesterday.
“We are open to an honest, equal
and objective dialogue with our for-
eign partners to find a way to help all of
Ukraine come out of the crisis,” Lavrov
said at a televised news conference in
Moscow with his Tajik counterpart, in
a clear reference to the West.
“We are ready to continue dia-
logue on the understanding that this
dialogue should be honest and part-
Libya rebels start exporting oil
n Reuters
Armed protesters who have seized oil
ports in eastern Libya  said yesterday
they had started exporting oil, bypass-
ing the Tripoli government, with their
first shipment going to a North Kore-
an-flagged tanker.
Officials at state-run National Oil
Corp (NOC) confirmed earlier on Sat-
urday that the tanker was docked at
the Es-Sider port, which is under the
control of a rebel group demanding
autonomy and a greater share of
Turkey frees five
charged over
2007 murders
of Christians
n AFP, Ankara
A Turkish court has freed five men ac-
cused of torturing and murdering three
Christian missionaries in 2007, after
the suspects’ time in detention while
on trial exceeded new legal limits, local
media said Saturday. The men walked
free from their high-security prison in
the eastern city of Malatya on Friday,
according to Dogan news agency.
German missionary Tilmann Geske
and Turkish converts Necati Aydin and
Ugur Yuksel had their throats slit in
April 2007 after being tied up and in-
terrogated about missionary activities.
The three victims were members of
the tiny Protestant community in the
conservative city. The trial of the five
men accused of the attack is still going
on seven years later. Under a new law
passed by the Turkish parliament last
month, the detention limit for suspects
on trial who have not yet been convicted
was lowered to five years, paving the way
for the five accused to be released on bail.
The murders at the time fuelled
fear among Turkey’s tiny Christian
minorities and raised concern over ris-
ing nationalism and hostility towards
non-Muslims in Turkey. l
AFP
which has said it will need 25 billion
euros ($35 billion) over two years.
But regular Ukrainians were dis-
trustful of any deals, even as the na-
tional currency – the hryvnia – has
tumbled and many have complained of
higher prices.
‘Politicians will steal aid’
“The aid will not help Ukrainians,” said
Lutay.
“The prospects are unclear because
sooner or later Ukraine will have to
ner-like, without attempts to portray
us as one of the sides in the conflict.”
Lavrov added: “This crisis was not
created by us (Russia). All the more, it
was created in defiance of our repeated
and longstanding warnings.”
Tensions between Moscow and
the West have surged in recent days
as pro-Moscow forces took over the
Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula of Crimea,
which then announced plans to hold a
referendum on becoming part of Russia.
Lavrov has held talks with Western
officials including US Secretary of State
John Kerry, but without reaching any
breakthrough.
Libya’s oil wealth.
“We started exporting oil. This is our
first shipment,” said a spokesman for
the protesters, who have seized Es-Sid-
er and two other ports.
The tanker Morning Glory, which
had been circling off the Libyan coast
for days, was preparing to load crude at
the port, said an oil official, asking not
to be identified. Oil workers at the port
confirmed the docking.
“We have informed the government
and the defense ministry so they can
take action,” the official said, adding
US veteran to be
honoured 70 years
after World War II
n Reuters
An 89-year-old US World War Two veteran
who was wounded when his plane crashed
in occupied France in 1944 is due to be
honoured yesterday with a medal he
declined 70 years ago.
Richard Faulkner was 19 when the B-17
bomber in which he was flying collided
with another allied aircraft, killing every-
one except the staff sergeant, who found
himself stranded behind enemy lines.
When he escaped Nazi-controlled
territory Faulkner was offered the Purple
Heart, but he declined it.
The Purple Heart is awarded to
members of the US armed forces who
are wounded in battle and posthumously
if they are killed in action or die after
being wounded in action. About a year
ago Faulkner found himself regretting
his decision because he wanted his
grandchildren to have something by
which they could remember his military
service, said his daughter-in-law Mary
Ellen Faulkner.
She said the veteran had felt awkward
about receiving an award given the deaths
of the other servicemen.
give the money back to the EU,” said
his wife Iryna.
“Before this escalation of the situ-
ation, Ukraine had lots of debt. Now
there will be more.”
Sunglasses salesman Nikolay
agreed: “This money proposed by the
EU and other institutions will not reach
ordinary people.
“There are a lot of fears that politi-
cians will steal this money,” he added,
reflecting the widespread notion in
Ukraine that most politicians are cor-
rupt – even with a new government in
place.
For small and medium-sized compa-
nies however, the only hope lay in in-
ternational aid that would help revive
the economy and force the government
to carry out necessary reforms, said
Oleksandra Selina, the executive direc-
tor of a motor oil importing company.
“Ukraine needs help,” she told AFP.
“Only if we have help from out-
side, the IMF, European countries and
the United States, will we have some
changes.... Without this help we will
not survive.”
Russian energy giant Gazprom on
Friday warned Ukraine it could cut off
gas supplies if Kiev did not pay a bill for
debt that now stands at $1.89 billion.
But after meeting with interim
prime minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and
his economic team, the IMF’s Europe-
an Department Director Reza Moghad-
am sounded an upbeat note.
Moghadam said he was “positively
impressed with the authorities’ deter-
mination, sense of responsibility and
commitment to an agenda of economic
reform and transparency.” l
The Russian foreign minister launched
a new attack on the Ukrainian govern-
ment that took power after the overthrow
of president Viktor Yanukovych and said
terror and chaos were reigning in the
country. “The so-called temporary govern-
ment is not independent and depends very
unfortunately on radical nationalists who
carried out an armed seizure of power,” Lav-
rov said. “There is no kind of de facto state
control for law and order.”
Lavrov said far-right radicals of the
Pravy Sektor (Right Sector) group were
“playing the tune” and accused them
of using methods of “terror and intim-
idation.” l
that the tanker’s crew “are trying to
buy oil illegally.”
There was no immediate word from
the government, but Prime Minister Ali
Zeidan and the justice minister sched-
uled news conferences in the after-
noon.
NOC has declared force majeure at
the seized ports in the east.
Libya’s government has tried to end
a wave of protests at oil ports and fields
across the North African country that
have slashed oil output, the country’s
lifeline, to a trickle. l
She reached out to her father-in-law’s
congressman, Democrat Dan Maffei,
whose office determined that the veter-
an was still eligible to receive the medal.
Maffei plans to visit Richard Faulkner’s
Auburn, New York, home on Saturday
to present the award, his office said in a
statement.
Faulkner was in the gun turret under
the belly of the lumbering B-17 when the
accident occurred, slicing his plane in two.
He parachuted out.
“The next thing I knew I was in under
my chute on a side hill,” Faulkner recalled
in an online posting on Scribd.com.
German soldiers searched for him, but
the wounded airman hid and was later
sheltered in a hayloft by a farmer.
Faulkner connected with French resis-
tance fighters, who helped him get to the
coast, where downed Allied airmen were
picked up by British ships.
When the torpedo boat that rescued
Faulkner was attacked by German aircraft,
he took up gunner duties to replace a man
who was killed by enemy fire.
Faulkner made it to the safety of
England on April 16, 1944 after 29 days
behind enemy lines. l

China draws ‘red
line’ on North Korea
Says it won’t allow war on peninsula
n Reuters
China declared a “red line” on North
Korea yesterday, saying that it will not
permit chaos or war on the Korean pen-
insula, and that peace can only come
through denuclearization.
China is North Korea’s most im-
portant diplomatic and economic sup-
porter, though Beijing’s patience with
Pyongyang has been severely tested
following three nuclear tests and nu-
merous bouts of saber rattling, includ-
ing missile launches.
“The Korean peninsula is right
on China’s doorstep. We have a red
line, that is, we will not allow war or
instability on the Korean peninsu-
la,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang
Yi told reporters on the sidelines of
China’s annual largely rubber-stamp
parliament.
Wang called upon all parties to “exer-
cise restraint,” adding that “genuine and
lasting peace” on the peninsula was only
possible with denuclearization.
US Secretary of State John Kerry
visited China last month and said af-
ter talks in Beijing that China and the
United States were discussing specific
ways to press North Korea to give up its
nuclear program.
Western countries and indepen-
dent experts have accused China of
failing to implement properly UN
sanctions on North Korea, includ-
ing punitive measures adopted after
Philippines ‘won’t
rush defence accord’
for Obama visit
n AFP, Manila
The Philippines said yesterday it would
not rush to complete a defence accord
with the United States just so it can be
sealed by the time President Barack
Obama visits next month.
President Benigno Aquino’s spokes-
man Herminio Coloma said there was
no timetable to complete the agreement
which would allow more US troops and
equipment access to the Philippines.
The agreement, which the two close
allies have been discussing for sever-
al years, is seen as part of a Philippine
effort to counter China’s aggressive
moves to back its claims to most of the
South China Sea.
Asked by reporters if the accord
would be completed before Obama’s
visit, Coloma said, “the government’s
priority is not with a timetable or with
rushing something.”
“In our view, it is not deadlines but the
quality and content of the agreement that
is more worthy of attention,” he added.
The Philippines has been hoping for
increased US assistance for its poor-
ly-equipped military amid growing ter-
ritorial tensions with China. l
Thousands rally
for end to nuclear
Taiwan
n AFP, Taipei
Tens of thousands marched in Taiwan
Saturday to call for an end to nuclear
energy on the island, ahead of the third
anniversary of the Fukushima atomic
disaster in Japan, organisers said.
In Taipei, protesters held placards
and flags painted with slogans such
as “No Nuke, No more Fukushima”
and “No Nuke, Save Taiwan” as they
marched the streets of the capital in
the rainy cold weather.
Worries about Taiwan’s atomic facil-
ities have grown since a 9.0-magnitude
earthquake and tsunami struck Japan
on March 11, 2011, crippling a nuclear
power plant in Fukushima.
Protest organisers demanded the
government immediately halt con-
struction of a new nuclear power plant
and remove nuclear waste from an off-
shore islet, while moving to stop using
nuclear energy altogether, said Liu Hui-
min, a spokeswoman for the National
Nuclear Abolition Action Platform.
“We urge the government to face
anti-nuclear demands from the people
instead of trying to stall the issues or
suppress different opinions,” she said.
The Taipei event drew over 50,000
people, while three other rallies held
simultaneously across the island had a
combined turnout of more than 30,000,
according to an initial estimate by or-
ganisers. Taiwan lies near the junction
of two tectonic plates and is regularly
hit by earthquakes, raising fears that its
nuclear facilities could be vulnerable. l
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Pyongyang’s third nuclear test in
February last year.
North Korea has forged ahead with its
nuclear development after declaring the
so-called six-party talks dead in 2008,
overturning its commitments made un-
der a 2005 disarmament deal aimed at
rewarding it with economic incentives.
Wang reiterated China’s calls for a
resumption of the talks between North
Korea, South Korea, the United States,
Japan, Russia and host China.
“Confrontation can only bring
tension, and war can only cause di-
saster,” Wang said. “Some dialogue
is better than none, and better early
than later.”
UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights Navi Pillay urged world powers
last month to refer North Korea to the
prosecutor of the International Crimi-
nal Court following a UN report docu-
menting crimes against humanity com-
parable to Nazi-era atrocities.
China has rejected what it said was
“unreasonable criticism” of Beijing in
the UN report, but has not said directly
whether it would veto any proceedings
in the Security Council to bring Pyong-
yang to book.
The team also recommended target-
ed UN sanctions against civil officials
and military commanders suspected
of the worst crimes. North Korea is al-
ready subject to UN sanctions for refus-
ing to give up its atomic bomb
program. l
China defiant on territory BJP announces 2nd list
claims, demands respect of candidates for polls
n AP, Beijing
China will never make concessions in
territorial disputes with its neighbors,
while good relations with the US de-
pend on Washington respecting Bei-
jing’s sovereignty claims, Foreign Min-
ister Wang Yi said Saturday.
Sounding a defiant note in his first na-
tional news conference since taking
office a year ago, Wang touched on dis-
putes with Japan, the Philippines and
others that have sharpened tensions in
the Asia Pacific.
China has used its coast guard to as-
sert its claim to the entire South China
Sea and its island groups and has regu-
larly confronted Japanese patrol boats
surrounding a string of uninhabited
East China Sea islands controlled by
Tokyo but claimed by Beijing.
“We will never bully smaller coun-
ties, yet we will never accept unreason-
able demands from smaller countries,”
Wang told reporters at a briefing on the
sidelines of the weeklong session of
the National People’s Congress, China’s
ceremonial legislature.
“On issues of territory and sover-
Protests mark Japan earthquake anniversary
Some 200 people stand hand-in-hand on a beach to face the Pacific Ocean as the sun rises above the horizon in Iwaki city in Fukushima
prefecture on March 8, three days before the third anniversary of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, which killed more than 18,000
people
n Agencies, Koriyama, Japan
Marches have taken place in Japan
to mark the third anniversary of the
Fukushima earthquake and tsunami that
left nearly 20,000 people dead or missing
and devastated local infrastructure.
Although the anniversary of the
World
Will Arvind Kejriwal’s Gujarat blitzkrieg earn AAP votes?
Arvind Kejriwal
eignty, China’s position is firm and
clear: We will not take anything that is
not ours, but we will defend every inch
of territory that belongs to us,” Wang
said.
Wang took a similar tough stance on
Japan, although he conceded the cur-
rent standoff that has sent relations to
a new low was not in the interest of ei-
ther party. He said that Japan, however,
was solely responsible for the impasse,
partly as a result of leading public fig-
ures there questioning apologies made
over Tokyo’s World War II aggression.
“On the two issues of principle — his-
tory and territory — there is no room for
compromise. If some people in Japan in-
sist on overturning the verdict on its past
aggression” that will not be condoned by
China or the world, Wang said.
While relations with the US have
generally been good by comparison,
Wang indicated that Beijing still felt
slighted by US criticism of its human
rights record and unresponsive to its
arguments over territorial claims.
“The China-US relationship is both
very important and very complex,”
Wang said. l
event falls on Tuesday, several events
and protests were planned in the re-
gion yesterday, when more people
could attend them.
In snowy Koriyama, a committee of
anti-nuclear groups – mostly unions -
coordinated the “No Nuclear Fukushi-
ma Citizen’s Rally” to commemorate
Sunday, March 9, 2014
AFP
n Agencies
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) yes-
terday announced its second list of 52
candidates for the upcoming Indian
general elections with former Karnata-
ka chief ministers BS Yeddyurappa and
DV Sadananda Gowda and Rajya Sabha
MP Chandan Mitra among the promi-
nent names.
BJP had earlier
announced its first
list of candidates in
eight states
With its second list on Saturday, the
party has announced a total of 106
candidates for the Lok Sabha elections
that will be held between April 7 and
May 12. The third list of BJP’s LS can-
didates would be announced after an
election meeting on March 13.
The BJP has decided to field Yed-
dyurappa from Shimoga in Karnataka
and journalist-turned-politician Mitra
AFP
the disaster and to warn the communi-
ty of what they said were the dangers
of nuclear energy.
“I’m here because I want to hear the
voices of the people who live here,”
said Hiroyuki Inoue, a 34-year-old con-
struction worker who had travelled
from Tokyo for the event, which in-
n Agencies
Narendra Modi can be challenged
in his own den. This is the message
Arvind Kejriwal managed to put
across by carrying out a four-day tour
of Gujarat to verify Modi’s claims of
exemplary development in the state,
analysts say.
The Aam Aadmi Party chief went
to meet Modi at his residence without
an appointment, TV cameras in tow,
and ask him 17 questions. The move
has been interpreted variously here,
but all agree the fledgling party would
make a dent into Congress’ space in the
long run.
“At Kanpur, Kejriwal had chal-
lenged Modi to contest against him in
Varanasi. Now, he very effectively put
across the challenge at Modi’s door-
step,” said Prakash Shah, an Ahmed-
abad based civil society activist and
political analyst.
“It’s a psychological victory for Ke-
jriwal,” he said.
According to Vidyut Joshi, former
vice-chancellor Bhavnagar University,
Kejriwal was successful in laying the
foundation of “alternative politics,”
which the Congress could not.
“Kejriwal tried to bring out the
contradictions in the state. His Modi
myth-busting may have been pre-de-
termined, but it did lay the founda-
tion of a non-BJP, non-Congress force
here,” he said.
Both the major parties the BJP
and Congress have been dominat-
ing the Lok Sabha  elections  in the
state, which has 26 seats, in the past
two  elections. While in 2004, BJP
won 14 seats and the Congress 12.
In 2009, BJP increased its tally to 15
from Hooghly in West Bengal. Gowda
will contest from Bangalore Central.
BJP MP Ananth Kumar will contest from
his constituency, Bangalore South. The
Congress is likely to field Aadhaar chair-
man Nandan Nilekani from the Banga-
lore South Lok Sabha seat.
The BJP announced the names of 20
LS nominees from Karnataka on Satur-
day. Candidates for the remaining eight
seats in the state would be announced
after the next poll meeting of the party.
The saffron party did not name
its LS candidate from Bellary. BJP
leader Sushma Swaraj on Thursday
opposed any merger or tie-up with
the BSR Congress, a party floated
by an aide of the Reddy brothers of
Bellary. “I am opposed to the BSR
alliance or merger with BJP in Kar-
nataka...,” she tweeted.
The BJP had earlier announced its first
list of 54 candidates for Lok Sabha seats
in eight states with former party presi-
dent Nitin Gadkari, magician PC Sorcar,
former Himachal Pradesh chief minister
Shanta Kumar and youth wing chief An-
urag Thakur among the big names. l
cluded local vendors and entertainers.
The capital voted in a man many
see as a pro-nuclear candidate , Yoichi
Misuzoe, as its governor in February,
a sign, some say, that political will to
listen to the concerns in the affected
communities is waning there.
“I don’t support Masuzoe – there are
some people who have forgotten [the
ongoing nuclear crisis] but many of us
haven’t,” said Inoue.
Koriyama was a place to which
many were evacuated from the 20km
nuclear exclusion zone, only to find
out that Koriyama itself, about 55km
west of the damaged Daiichi plant, had
higher levels of radiation.
“We’ve had a lot of problems since
the nuclear accident, and of course, it
could happen again,” said Junpei Sato,
31, who was attending the event with
his 4-year-old daughter, Ririko.
According to sources, the Tokoku re-
gion in northeast Japan violently shook
to the magnitude 9.0 earthquake, ush-
ering in a tsunami with waves higher
than 20m crashing several kilometers
into coastline, crushing and washing
away entire communities in its path.
An estimated 136,000 people in
Fukushima Prefecture remain dis-
placed from their homes.
In the three years since the earth-
quake, there have been reports of leaks
and other issues at the still damaged
plant, whose presence and instability
have largely overshadowed the recovery
effort in the region. In Fukushima City, a
rally of over 1,000 people gathered in a
hall, listening to speakers from different
areas talk about what they’d lost over
the course of the past three years. l
9
compared with Congress 11.
The saffron party won its highest
number of seats in the state under for-
mer chief minister Keshubhai Patel in
1999, when it won 20 seats, reducing
the Congress tally to six.
Modi has not been able to repeat the
feat despite his claims of development
and good governance.  This election,
however, the BJP’s PM nominee ex-
pects to better Patel’s record.
Will Kejriwal’s four-day blitzkrieg
spoil BJP’s ambitions or dent Congress’
vote bank?
“It would be foolish to assume that
AAP will make a debut here, Kejriwal’s
stunt or no stunt,” Joshi said.
“Modi has mesmerised voters with
his claims of development and they
would vote en mass to his party this
election. It would take time for Kejri-
wal to bust Modi’s myth. It would not
happen immediately.”
Indu Kumar Jani, a social activ-
ist, differs with Joshi and believes
the AAP could win five to six seats
in Gujarat.
“Kejriwal in his visit has made an
impression on the neutral and anti-BJP
voters who could have voted for the
Congress in the absence of an alterna-
tive. This section of voters will vote for
AAP,” he said.     
During his tour, which started
on March 5, Kejriwal not only ques-
tioned Modi’s “vikashpurush” image,
but also called the state’s develop-
ment model flawed. He had visited
primary health centres and schools
and met farmers.
At Mundra, in Kutch district, he said
only industrialists such as Ambani and
Adani have developed at the cost of the
common man.l
Sri Lanka mass
grave over old
burial site
n AFP, Colombo
Sri Lankan authorities halted excava-
tions after recovering 81 skeletal re-
mains from an unmarked mass grave
atop an old burial ground in the island’s
former war zone, an official
said Saturday.
Judicial medical officer Dhanan-
jaya Waidyaratne said digging at a
depth of about two metres (6.7 feet)
led to the old cemetery and the au-
thorities did not want to go deeper
and disturbed those who had been
properly buried.
“We have gathered skeletal remains
from upper layers and grouped them
into 81 boxes,” Waidyaratne told AFP.
“These remains were in a mass grave
buried in a haphazard way compared to
the properly laid out graves we found
at a depth of two metres.”
He said forensic tests were being
done in respect of the 81 groups of skel-
etal remains to establish the cause and
time of death.
“It is quite possible that these
people were buried over the old
cemetery and we need further inves-
tigations,” Waidyaratne. “This pro-
cess is going to take a lot of time in
the laboratory.”
The mass grave is the first uncovered
in the former northern war zone since
troops defeated Tamil rebels nearly
five years ago following a decades-long
conflict for a separate homeland for
ethnic minority Tamils.
Sri Lanka’s government, which is
facing allegations of war crimes while
crushing the rebels nearly five years
ago, has sought to head off concerns
that its soldiers could have been in-
volved in the grave, saying the Man-
nar area had long been a Tamil rebel
stronghold.
Colombo has also said that Indi-
an troops deployed on an abortive
peace-keeping mission in Sri Lanka
between 1987 and 1990 also briefly had
control over the coastal Mannar region.
Police have not yet been able to identi-
fy the remains.
But the Roman Catholic Bishop of
Mannar, Rayappu Joseph, has said that
the victims could be members of the lo-
cal Tamil community.
Mannar has a large concentration
of Tamils, and was the scene of many
battles between troops and Tamil
rebels during the island’s 37-year-
old separatist war which ended in
May 2009.
The UN estimates the war claimed at
least 100,000 lives.
Last year, construction workers
stumbled on another mass grave in
central Sri Lanka, hundreds of kilome-
tres (miles) from the conflict zone.
At least 154 people were found in
that grave in Matale district, the scene
of an anti-government uprising be-
tween 1987 and 1990 unrelated to the
Tamil separatist conflict.
Remains from that grave have been
sent to China for further tests. l
10 DHAKA TRIBUNE Editorial Sunday, March 9, 2014

www.dhakatribune.com Letters to the Editor

Make helping business LETTER OF THE DAY

part of ministry’s reform Pay commission needs to start functioning New taxi cabs for Dhaka city

T
March 7
he government has announced plans to reorganise the The Bangladesh government formed a pay commission for government employees, headed by Dr Moham-
soon
March 2
home ministry. mad Farashuddin, the former governor of Bangladesh Bank, last November. Recently Bangladesh Bureau
It is welcome that the prime minister has spoken of her of Statistics, in a projection event on national annual income stated the country’s per capita income had We already have too many vehicles for the
recognition that this move is needed to allow people to access increased by $414 over the last five years, from $630 five years ago to $1,044 in the fiscal year 2012-2013. roads in Dhaka, and now they’re thinking of
services more easily. Five years have passed since the last pay scale was introduced. The inflation in aggregate over these years bringing in new taxicabs??
We call on the government to pay special attention to the has crossed 55%, and government employees are facing grave financial hardships. This means that though Rafsan Reza
harm done to business by extortion, when looking at the police the national income has increased, the income of government, semi-government and autonomous body
as part of the home ministry’s reorganisation. employees has reduced.
Many business owners and entrepreneurs are subjected to It is high time employee incomes were raised, considering the increase of per capital income as well as
chandbaji and intimidation by politically connected crimi- reduction in real income owing to inflation. Of course the government has allowed a 20% dearness allow-
nals. Small businesses ance as interim relief to employees. However, no meeting of the pay commission has been held, though it
and factory owners was formed four months ago. It takes time to make recommendations, but if no meeting is held, how can
alike have to live with recommendations be made? The pay commission should start functioning as soon as possible.
frequent demands and Md Ashraf Hossain
threats.
Police are often Use home ministry
unable to arrest such
criminals because they changes to empower Pay the proper price for
have or are perceived to police to act against Ashraf hints at amending power
have the protection of
local political leaders.
extortionists law for partisan local polls
March 3

This phenomenon is March 4 This is a concise and compelling argument for

made worse by insti-
tutional factors which It makes perfect sense to have all local gov-
help local thugs to ernment elections on a party basis. In a de-
become protected. For instance, the fact that thanas are seen as mocracy, political parties with the mandate
being under control of local MPs rather than the home ministry of the people are supposed to rule at all levels
or independent police, exacerbates problems if an MP is are though it is necessary, first, to have open,
beholden to local criminals for election purposes. transparent and accountable political parties
It is essential that the police are free and seen to be free to – parties that have lists of all their members,
root out this type of activity. practice internal democracy at all levels of the
Small businesses are the backbone of the economy and party (all committees elected directly by the
employ a large part of the population, so it is in the country’s party members through secret ballots and
interest to eliminate the costs to the economy and the harm local committees nominate candidates for
done to rule of law by extortion. elections), limit the term of the party leaders,
Reforms to the Home ministry should be used to further em- differentiate between party and state/gov-
power the police to act against extortionists and give encour- ernment, and allow members to determine
agement to entrepreneurs and investors. party policies and strategies.
However, Ashraful’s second point about
stopping the public disclosure of assets
and liabilities of all candidates running in an
election is not acceptable. The courts have
already ruled that all candidates contesting
the urgent need to slash subsidies to the power
sector and steer consumers toward finally
paying the market-driven, economically imper- Indoor smoke-induced diseases
ative “proper price of power.” The deleterious
impact of profligate subsidies is proven beyond
may kill 30m people by 2030
March 3
doubt. This largesse is no longer economically
defensible. Point is, can this government be But tobacco businesses create employment for
trusted to honestly and competently manage thousands in Bangladesh. Millions of people de-
this necessary transition without resorting to pend on this tobacco industry. So, my opinion
arbitrary policies and eventually fleecing the is simple. The Almighty will balance everything
consumer? out in the end. So why are some people think-
Ronnie ing so much about it? What will be, will be.
Riyasat Azim Sunvy
Upazila polls: AL ignores
allies’ proposal Be Heard
March 3
Write to us at:
The so-called 14 party alliance (I bet nobody
Dhaka Tribune
can name the 14 parties!) seems to live in a

Second submarine cable

elections make public disclosure of their as- make-believe world. They themselves could not FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath
sets and liabilities so this is not reversible – win the seats of their leaders in the last farcical Sukrabad, Dhaka-1207

a good investment
after all, it was on the basis of the judgment general elections without AL, so how would they
of our former chief justice Khairul that the contribute to the victory of AL candidates in the Email us at: letters@dhakatribune.com
caretaker government system was abolished upazila polls? In fact, their leaders could not have Send us your Op-Ed articles:

B
by Hasina, so the question of abolishing the won a upazila chairman of vice chairman seat in
opinion@dhakatribune.com
angladesh has officially joined the SEA-ME-WE 5 con- provision of public disclosure of candidates a fair election. It seems as if AL understands this
sortium of 15 telecommunications companies, which is assets and liabilities will be a contempt of very well, and thus kept these parties, and party Visit our website: www.dhakatribune.com
laying an undersea cable link between Europe , Singapore court and illegal. individuals, out of the local government polls
Come join our Facebook community:
and East Asia. DB which make perfect political sense.
Offering speeds of up to 100-gigabit-per-second, the new deep purple blue https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune
20000km link will be a welcome addition to the country’s com-
munications infrastructure.
Undersea cables are vital as a complement to satellite net-
works and terrestrial connections, and for helping to overcome
bottlenecks that slow down the internet. CALVIN AND HOBBES
The country’s exist-
ing sole submarine cable
link (SEA-ME-WE-4,)
secured in 2006, has al-
ready demonstrated the
value to the economy of BSCCL has shown
linking into global net-
works in this way, with
foresight by opting
BSCCL currently being in early to secure
able to export surplus
internet bandwidth to
connectivity
other countries.
It is welcome news
that BSCCL has shown
foresight by opting in
early to this new consortium, because it is important to plan for
a future when the economy will need much more access and
secure connectivity than today. In the early 1990s, the country
missed an earlier opportunity for a undersea link (SEA-ME-
WE-3,) so it is encouraging to note lessons have been learned PEANUTS
from the past.
The second submarine cable will provide the country with
an additional bandwidth of 1,400Gbps and ensure back up if
the older connection goes down.
By offering faster speeds, it will help the whole economy
and will be a boon for call centres, software firms and business-
es working in global outsourcing. The government should also
encourage further improvements to internet connectivity by
continuing to enable private firms to invest in new terrestrial
and satellite links.

CROSSWORD SUDOKU YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS

ACROSS DOWN Crossword
1 Separated (5) 1 Bowman (6)
4 Clenched hand (4) 2 Book of the Bible (4)
7 Sophisticated (6) 3 Woody plant (4) How to solve
8 Old aircraft (5) Sudoku:
4 Abstains from food (5)
10 Break suddenly (4) Fill in the
5 Tavern (3)
blank spaces
11 Swindle (5) 6 Time of the year (6) with the
12 Do wrong (3) 9 Land measure (4) numbers
14 Halt (4) 13 Titanium dioxide (6) 1 – 9. Every
17 Regrets (4) Sudoku
15 Mountain lake (4) row, column
19 Whichever it may be (3) and 3 x 3 box
16 Cable-carrying towers (6)
20 Unlucky contestant (5) must contain
18 Review unsparingly (5)
23 Electric insulator (4) all nine digits
21 To let stand! (4)
25 Dance (5) with no num-
22 Comfort (4) ber repeating.
26 Workshop machines (6)
24 Domestic animal (3)
27 Festivity (4)
28 Looks after (5)

Deprived of a legal platform, parties like Jamaat could lash out with more violence
Confronting Jamaat the smart way
B
n Esam Sohail
oth sets of my grandparents
left their ancestral homes
to come to the new country
they had helped carve
in 1947, a country whose
birth was opposed tooth and nail by
Jamaat-e-Islami, often through violent
means.
Their children – my parents, uncles,
aunts – all went on to get a university
education irrespective of gender, and
many moved into their professional
lives. The fact that Jamaat and its like-
minded types have opposed female
higher education was not lost on my
grandparents or their children and
grandchildren. As they say in North
American idiom, I came by my distaste
for Jamaat honestly.
In adulthood, I have few illusions
about how Jamaat and its type of fun-
damentalists will treat someone like
me, whose religious beliefs will likely
mark him as an apostate for starters.
Add to that the fact that I have raised
money for Israeli children’s charities
and count more than a few Jews as
personal friends.
Top it off with the article I wrote
twelve years ago in a major Middle
Eastern daily arguing – long before it
was fashionable to do so – that trials
for the genocide of 1971 were a histor-
ical and moral necessity for Bangla-
D R
Miley’s purposeless revolution
n Mohammad N Miraly
“W
e Can’t Stop” is a revo-
lutionary anthem. It is
a mutiny against an old
morality that preaches restraint, to be
replaced by a new consumerism that
preaches rabid individualism.
Its pace is marked, a slow march
on the palaces of power, a declaration
of independence from authority. “It’s
our party we can do what we want” –
the victorious chant of the successful
revolutionaries, ousting The Man from
his corner office, taking the night in
celebration, kissing who they want,
like an American soldier in Times
Square newly freed from the threat of
anti-capitalist invasion.
The chorus appears mid-march:
“We can’t stop. We won’t stop.” A
fiery square full of youths paused in a
unified cry, promising a never-ending
struggle against the tyranny of dawns
past. “Can’t you see it’s we who own
the night,” they ask incredulously,
suddenly aware of their own power,
the power of the people, the “cracy”
of the “demos.”
The video starts with Miley scissor-
ing herself free from an ankle bracelet,
unshackling herself from lawfulness.
Red Beats and EOS lip balms every-
where, the “young twerkers” are
finally free to indulge wantonness that
was previously restricted by out-dated
morality that preached moderation
DHAKA TRIBUNE
desh. Now you get the picture of the
tender mercies that will be shown to
me were I to find myself at the receiv-
ing end of Jamaat-Shibir hospitality.
It is not despite this perspective,
but rather precisely because of it, that
I find it highly imprudent to consider
the “banning” of that party. I know a
thing or two about history and politics,
having taught those subjects, written
about them, and engaged in more than
a few presidential campaigns includ-
ing those of George Bush (both father
and son).
Meet Jamaat sponsored violence with targeted,
focused, and lawful retribution on the perpetrators
In more ways than one, physics resem-
bles politics: Compressing the volume
for matter inwards increases its
pressure outwards. As we have seen in
place after place, from the communists
at the turn of the century in Russia,
to the Nazis in 1930s Germany, to the
Muslim Brotherhood in the Nasser-Sa-
dat era in Egypt, ideologically rigid
parties only become more extreme
over gratification, prudence over
extravagance, communitarianism over
consumerism.
That is their victory – the supplant-
ing of a moral order by an indifferent
one. Their democratic impulse is
piloted by a materialist machine, and
fuelled by an unbridled pursuit of
desire. But without moral purpose,
we become hollow. We get tricked into
believing that the need to fulfil desire
fulfils the need to have purpose.
Her non-conformist
revolutionaries look the
same, talk the same,
and act the same
The authority of consumerism gave
these revolutionaries the freedom
to indulge their most purposeless
whims, to get lost in the abyss of
individualism, to play with abandon-
ing Narcissus’s pool. The authority of
consumerism is devoid of purpose. Its
acolytes float aimlessly through a life
without calling, fooled into doing what
the market demands, hoodwinked into
thinking they have a choice.
Op-Ed
and more violent when deprived of
some legal operating space.
More important, proscribing these
organisations not only does not
eviscerate them but, rather, falsely
embellishes them with a certain aura
of romanticised martyrdom that only
serves to attract those disaffected
for one reason or another. In the real
world outside of boisterous rallies at
Suhrawardy Udyan, that is the messy
situation that the best laid intentions
create.
Does this mean we keep quiet as the
Jamaat-Shibir types keep on hyping
the nonsense that their version of holy
scriptures is the only “real constitu-
tion?” Not at all. The trick is to opt
for the smart approach instead of the
emotionally satisfying one. The wis-
dom of Sun-Tzu should be the guiding
principle herein: Keep friends close,
but adversaries closer.
The higher judiciary’s directive is a
M S
The video is a celebration of what
the revolutionaries have won – the
freedom to buy what they’re told to
buy, the freedom to be who they’re
told to be.
In a surreptitious way, it’s in on
the joke. It caricatures excess, the
traditional preserve of the rich. In their
revolution to usurp The Man, they’ve
won his freedom of indulgence. It’s a
revolution without a cause – a manu-
factured victory.
In an orgy of destruction that
parodies pop consumerism, it pays
homage to that Pyrrhic victory. Eating
a hundred-dollar-bill-sandwich is a
big middle finger not only to the rich,
but also to the poor, who have neither
sandwiches nor hundred dollar bills.
The destruction of a “freedom fry
skull” is a wink again to the hungry
masses, a stratum to whom these
nouveau revolutionaries act as both
role model and in an Orwellian twist,
the new Man.
You have the freedom to do what
we do, they say; if you can afford it.
A purposeless revolution is charac-
terised by its focus on aesthetics, lack of
content, and desperate need to be con-
temporary. The most striking thing about
a purposeless revolution is its obsession
with image – the refuge of the superficial
and the uniform of the hollow.
In a way, the video knows this. A
telling scene is a toy sheep in front of
a six paned mirror staring at equally
Sunday, March 9, 2014
RAJIB DHAR
good start in that it did not ban Jamaat
but ruled that the party could not par-
ticipate in elections without bringing
its charter into sync with the republi-
can nature of the constitution. Beyond
that, expose the links of this organi-
sation not just to what happened four
decades ago, but what ails society
today in terms of misogynistic parallel
justice systems, hostility to education,
and physical violence in areas where
Jamaat holds sway.
Instead of enabling madrasa edu-
cation, the objective should be to em-
ulate Kemal Ataturk and absorb that
sector in its entirety into the regular
public education system over a period
of a few years.
And last but not least, meet Jamaat
sponsored violence with targeted,
focused, and lawful retribution on
the perpetrators instead of making
speeches about how other opposition
parties are surreptitiously involved in
imagined conspiracies. Bottom line,
give Jamaat space to operate, but put
enough pressure through the law and
social activism so that eventually the
party has two choices: Become civi-
lized or become marginalised.
Either choice is more palatable than
the status quo. l
Esam Sohail is an educational research
analyst and college lecturer of social
sciences. He writes from Kansas, USA.
vapid reflections of itself. The punch
line – they’re all wearing sunglasses.
Miley seems to be conscious of
this critique of consumerist culture.
She carries her sheep under her arms,
aware of the irony that in the fight
for independence from conformism,
we end up conforming to some other
image anyway.
Her non-conformist revolutionar-
ies look the same, talk the same, and
act the same –they adopt the image
fed to them by a powerful marketing
machine that coerces them to want to
buy what it wants to sell. She seems to
be aware of the irony, and buys into it,
ironically.
Buying into it means donning that
sheep’s sunglasses, being confronted
at every turn by a reflection of a super-
ficial identity constructed by someone
else, by the machine of consumerism
– the new authority, the new morality,
the new dictator of what’s-right-now.
We buy into its promise that hap-
piness is in purposelessness, in the
conspicuous consumption of every
desire, and that emptiness will be
filled by losing ourselves in frivolity
and destruction.
We lose ourselves in the endless
void of license.
We can do what we want, says
the new order. But just because you
can doesn’t mean you should – said
the old. Freedom doesn’t come with
moral license to abuse freedom. Their
Chasing dreams
n Afsana Tazreen and
Belem Vallina González
L
et us hear the story of Shumi
Begum. She was born in a family
of eight. Shumi would silently
watch her brother go to school while
she along with her five sisters spent
the day helping their mother with
household chores. Her father, a land-
less farmer was too poor and ignorant
to send his daughters to school.
She grows up believing
herself to be weak and
does not dare to dream
for the fear of failure
She watched her sisters being married
off to men much older than them, as
that would cost the family less money.
When Shumi’s turn came, she was
only 13 years old, while her husband
was 45.
The reason for the ridiculous age
disparity was lower dowry. After a
year, teenage Shumi gave birth to a
premature stillborn daughter. Her un-
educated and superstitious husband
abandoned her as she had failed to
give him “an heir.” Her own family was
not too happy to have her back either.
To them, she was just another
mouth to feed. Shumi’s story is not
exclusive. Women like Shumi usu-
ally remain as the most neglected
creatures in their own homes and
soon start begging on the streets to
survive. Sometimes they even rush
into another bad marriage out of sheer
desperation.
Yesterday was International Wom-
en’s Day, is widely celebrated all over
the world. However, the sad part is
that most women in Bangladesh are
not even aware that such a day exists.
Women are still treated as second-class
citizens, mostly in rural societies. The
global Lancet study, 2011, identified
that the female body mass index was
the lowest in Bangladesh, which clear-
ly indicates unequal distribution of
food at the households of the patriar-
chal society of the country.
They seldom protest against the
inequality as they have been system-
atically brainwashed over generations
into believing that they are weak,
powerless, and need a male figure to
“protect” them.
From the day a girl is born in a
Bangladeshi family, she is taught
by her family that she is inferior to
her brother. She neither defies nor
questions the absurd notion as she
never sees her mother questioning
her father’s superiority. She grows up
believing herself to be weak and does
not dare to dream for the fear of fail-
ure. Thus she loses her own identity in
the maze of the carefully crafted social
web and accepts her place as a sec-
A Y
revolution supplanted the old morality
with a licentious consumerism in
which we worship pretend versions
of ourselves – like Miley making out
with a plastic Barbie doll version of her
fabricated Barbie doll self.
The song is a sad, slow commen-
tary on the lies we’re sold. The song is
about lies of freedom – freedom to be
sold a false dream and to be coerced
into buying it. It’s a commentary on
the failed revolution to be in charge of
our lives and of ourselves.
When we threw out the old author-
ity, we didn’t replace its ethical base,
its moral purpose. We only started
11
ond-grade citizen in her own country.
Her life’s sole purpose becomes finding
a husband, raising his children, and
spending the rest of her life in a futile
attempt to please everyone.
However, even that is not easily
achieved. She has to be “young and
beautiful” in order to attract “suitable
husbands.” Being below 18 years of age
and having a lighter skin colour means
that her parents have to pay less money
to the husband’s family. So parents of-
ten hurriedly marry off their daughters
while they are still in their teens and do
not allow them to get educated.
Now let us back up a bit and go
to Shumi’s story. What do you think
happened to her? Do you think that
she resigned to her fate like the others?
The answer is pleasantly surprising.
Shumi decided to make a turnaround
and realised that no one will “take
care” of her and that she needed to
take matters in her own hands. She
sold the only gold bangle she owned
and with the help of a micro lending
organisation she bought a handloom
for weaving cotton saris five years ago.
Since then there was no looking back.
Today she owns five looms and has
eight women working for her. She no
longer has to depend on her family or a
husband to support her financially.
This year’s theme of International
Women’s Day was “Inspiring Change.”
It called for challenging the status
quo for women’s equality and asked
women to believe in their potential to
make the changes that they would like
to see in their lives and societies de-
spite the many gendered barriers going
against them. It was a reminder to all
the women out there that they matter
despite what their governments, soci-
ety, or families tell them. The day was
not only to pause and remember how
far women have come since the first
International Women’s Day 101 years
ago, but it was also a reminder of how
far they still have to go.
It was also a reminder
of how far they still
have to go
The fact that a woman from a remote
village in Bangladesh managed to
make a change in her life and to the
lives of several other women, is very
inspiring. However, one Shumi is not
enough. When others will dare to
pursue Shumi’s path and chase their
dreams instead of being held back
by lopsided societal norms and laws,
International Women’s Day will be
something to truly celebrate. l
Afsana Tazreen is Research Associate, Centre
for Enterprise and Society (CES), ULAB.
Belem Vallina González is Director of Centre
for Sustainable Development at ULAB.
S
AFP
the revolution because we were sold
#YOLO. But with the Happy Meal of
freedom-to-do-what-you-want, we
got the prize of an imprisoning cycle
of consumerism that enslaves us to
purposelessness, to false promises of
happiness, and a dark truth of empti-
ness.
“This is our house,” she says. But
it’s not mortgage-free, they reply. l
Mohammad N Miraly is an educator and
film producer. He holds a PhD from McGill
University in religion, ethics, and public
policy, and is the author of themiralyblog.
wordpress.com.
12 DHAKA TRIBUNE Entertainment Sunday, March 9, 2014

Arnob to give music

Apu Biswas signs for
Raja Handsome
Dhallywood heartthrob Apu Biswas signed for Bio-
scopewala Productions’ upcoming film Raja Hand-
some as the lead heroine opposite to Shakib Khan.
Apu and Shakib are one of the most successful
duos in the history of Bangladeshi film industry.
They have given a huge number of hit films in the
past: Jaan Amar Jaan, Koti Takar Kabin, Chacchu,
Bhalobashlei Ghor Badha Jay Na, Mon Jekhane
Hridoy Shekhane and King Khan to name a few.
They have recently finished shooting for Red di-
rected by Shafi Uddin Shafi.
Raja handsome is set to hit the big screen around
October of this year while the shooting is scheduled
direction in Tollywood
to begin in late March.
Shayan Chowdhury Arnob, one of the
biggest names in the music industry
of recent times, is working in Tolly-
A fast-paced action thriller, the story of Raja wood. He has signed as the music di-
Handsome revolves around a diamond necklace rector for Mainak Bhaumik’s new film
heist. Apu Biswas with her enthralling expression Kolkata Calling.
said, “As soon as I heard the story I loved it, it is a It is a fusion film where Tolly-
very different and unique story.” wood’s star Parambrata Chatterjee
For supporting roles Misha Shawdagar, Amit will be seen in the lead role. Director
Hasan, Ahmed Sharif, Amir Shiraji and many oth- Mainak Bhaumik said: “I love Arnob’s
ers will also be playing important roles of the movie unique style of singing and composi-
directed by Badiul Alam Khokon. tion. I know him from his school days
Several other high profile actors and actresses and I am a big fan of his works. I be- titled Megh Bolechhe Jabo Jabo.
have been rumored to be joining the all-star cast, lieve he will communicate with my Aside from giving music direction
yet producers still remain hush about who else has thoughts and interpret them accord- in Kolkata Calling, Arnob will be lend-
signed on to the film so far. Fuad Al-Muqtadir is ingly.” ing his voice in two more Tollywood
working as the music director. l There will be five to six songs in movies Parambrata Chatterjee’s Lorai
the film including a Rabindra Sangeet and Kaushik Ganguly’s Khad. l

Crafts fair brings rural touch

TODAY IN DHAKA
Film

to the city dwellers

The handicrafts of rural Bangladesh
are popular to the city dwellers. To
acknowledge the hard work of the
craftsmen, a four-day fair featuring
arts and crafts by craftsmen from
across the country will end at the
Bengal Shilpalaya today. Four par-
ticipants of the fair were bestowed
with the Master Craft Persons Award,
which has been initiated from the
late ‘90s. The award-giving ceremo-
ny took place on March 6, on the in-
augural day of the fair.
from Narsingdi won for his home tex-
tile, Rafiqul Islam from Dhaka bagged
the award for his colourful rickshaw
painting, Shonkori Tudu from Ra-
jshahi got selected for her rural home
decoration and Parveen Akter from
Noakhali was the last contender for
her Comilla’s khadi. Each of them was
honoured with Tk50,000.
The fair is a treat for the urbanites
as it is a rare occasion where so many
traditional handicrafts are available
for purchase at a single venue. The
small shops are packed with brilliant
and original traditional crafts of the
Enders Game
Avatar 3D
Aakash Koto Dure
Thor: The Dark World 3D
harmonious atmosphere in the midst The Hobbit: The Desolation of
of all the bustle and can take pleasure Smaug in 3D
in songs of the mystic philosopher Frozen in 3D
Lalon fakir and other folk songs while Shunte Ki Pao
rummaging through the packed stalls. Agnee
Secretary of Cultural Affairs of the Time: 10am - 10pm
Government of Bangladesh, Ranjit Star Cineplex,
Kumar Biswas was the chief guest Bashundhara City
who handed out the Master Craft Robocop, Gravity
Persons Award and inaugurated Captain Phillips, Elysium
the crafts fair at the Bengal Shilpa- Time: 12:30pm – 9:30pm
laya premises. Creator of traditional Blockbuster Cinemas
hand-fans, eminent craftsperson Jamuna Future Park
and recipient of NCCB award, Suchi- Ka- 244, Pragati Avenue
tra Sutradhar was present on the oc- Kuril

Prova and Shahed in

Titled Master Craft Persons Award country such as Manipuri Saree, fan- casion as a special guest.
and Crafts Fair, the festival is organ- cy goods with glass work, clay dolls, Luva Nahid Chowdhury, director Exhibition
ised jointly by the National Crafts toys, flutes, handmade home decors, general of Bengal Foundation and vice Fragments of the Unknown

Last Seven Days

Council of Bangladesh (NCCB) and
Bengal Foundation.
Of the four winners, Joynal Abedin
jewelries, rickshaw paintings, shonk-
ho and many other dazzling goods.
Gathered crowd at the fair enjoys a
president of the crafts programme, art- By Najma Akhter
ist and designer Chandra Shekhar Saha Time: 12pm – 8pm
spoke on the inaugural ceremony. l Bengal Gallery of Fine Arts
House 42, Road 16 (New) / 27 (old)
Dhanmondi

Popular actor Prova paired up with actor-director of the small screen, Sha- War and Colonies 1914-1918
hed, in a drama titled Last Seven Days. The drama is directed by Sokal Rare photographs of World War II
Ahmed and the story of the drama is by Shafiqur Rahman Shantan. An ex- Time: 3pm – 9pm
ceptional story, where Prova will be seen acting with Shahed as a couple. Alliance Francaise de Dhaka
About working with Shahed, Prova said: “He is always a very smart actor.
He experiments with his acting skills and I always try to learn something Conspiratual
new when I work with this brilliant personality.” By Ra Kajol
About his role in the drama Last Seven Days, Shahed said: “I am real- Shilpangan Gallery
ly very satisfied with everything about this drama. I think the audience House 47, Road 13
will appreciate our performance.” The director of the drama, Sokal Ahmed Dhanmondi
said: “I can vouch that Last Seven Days will be one of the best drama of
the year. So, I cordially request the audience to watch this wonderful play Crafts Fair
which has a beautiful story and brilliant characters.” Bengal Shilpalaya
The drama will be aired on a satellite TV channel very soon. l Dhanmondi

A Tale of Isaiah Washington returns Kareena to pair up with Fawad Khan

Tangua Haor at
Drik Gallery
A photography exhibition titled
A Tale of Tangua Haor organised
by International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
at the Drik gallery will end this
evening.
The exhibition is about of
striking photographs of nature,
animals and people of Tangua
Haor taken by 24 photographers,
nature-lovers and conservation-
ists. The story of Tangua Haor is
illustrated here through 70 mes-
merising photographs.
Located at the Indo-Bangla
border under Sunamganj district,
the Tangua Haor is known for
its rich bio-diversity including
numerous species of plants, fish
and birds.
As a globally important
to Grey’s Anatomy
Actor who played Dr Preston Burke
was let go seven years ago in a con-
troversial move. Seven years after
his controversial exit, Isaiah Wash-
ington is heading back to Grey’s
Anatomy.
Oh, but it will be a short visit to
Seattle Grace. The actor, who played
Dr Preston Burke on the medical
drama, will reprise his role in one
episode set to air in May, an ABC
spokesperson confirmed. The spe-
cific date of the episode was not re-
vealed.
It’s sure to be an interesting re-
turn. Washington was fired from the
Shonda Rhimes series in the wake of
growing tension on the set — head-
lines circulated that he directed gay
slurs at then-closeted co-star TR
Knight and was involved in on-set
disputes with his co-stars.
The reunion comes as one of its
original cast members, Sandra Oh, is
set to bid farewell to the series at the
end of its current 10th season. View-
ers will recall that Cristina Yang was
involved with Burke (Washington)
and had at one time been engaged.
“It’s important to me that Cris-
tina’s journey unfolds exactly as it
should,” Rhimes said in a statement.
“Burke is vital to that journey — he
gives her story that full-circle mo-
ment we need to properly say good-
bye to our beloved Cristina Yang.” l
is already making his presence felt in like, KKK has walked away with the
Bollywood. project. Good for her, considering
After walking out of Karan Johar’s Earlier rumours were rife that a Yash Raj film can wonders to an
ambitious film Shuddhi, Kareena
Kapoor Khan’s much-hyped film
Parineeti Chopra was also being
considered for the YRF film. But looks
actor’s career, no? Something Kareena
desperately needs. l
Bombay Samurai with Farhan Akhtar
also took a back seat. It is sure Kareena
isn’t worried as the B-town beauty has
now bagged a plum project.
It is heard Saif Ali Khan’s wife has
bagged Yash Raj Films next featuring
Pakistani heartthrob Fawad Khan in
the lead. Though there has been no
official announcement regarding the
same, a Pakistani newspaper recently
confirmed the news about Kareena
and Fawad coming together for an YRF
film. Apparently, it’s an intense love
story and will go on floors at the end of
this year.
Fawad, who shot to fame with
television soap Humsafar, will make
his Bollywood debut with Khoobsurat
opposite Sonam Kapoor. If the
grapevine is indeed true then Fawad

Aamir criticises Bollywood’s

wetland the Haor has been
termed Ramsar Area. The
exhibition and publication of the

portrayal of women
album caters to raise awareness
about conservation of the unique
natural resources and beauty of
the Haor.
The photographs also industry,” he told women journal- Jayate, which centred around the
represents the unique lifestyle of ists at IWPC on the eve of Women’s topic of rape, he said they were
the people residing in the region. Bollywood should be more careful Day. shocked to find stories of apathy
A book titled Tangua Album with the way it portrays women as “I don’t know where to start, and inhumanity.
was also launched at the inaugural movies make a huge impact social- maybe take a small set of people “We were faced with such inhu-
ceremony of the exhibition on ly, feels Aamir Khan. because we are affecting minds. We manity that it was difficult to ab-
March 7. Quazi Kholiquzzaman The 48-year-old star said over have to look at that carefully,” he sorb it. It was a ravaging period in
Ahmad, Chairman, Palli Karma- the years he has become very care- said. the entire research,” he said, adding
Shahayak Foundation (PKSF), ful about how gender dynamics are The actor joked that his activism that the attempt has been to have a
Ishtiaq Uddin Ahmad, Country presented in his films. often lands him in trouble with the crisis centre for rape victims which
Representative, IUCN and curator “I have become much more people in Bollywood as he starts will help them get swift justice.
of the exhibition Enam Ul Haque, careful and sensitive. That process talking about social issues in show- The actor said he is prepared
contributing photographers does not stop. It is a learning pro- biz parties. to hear negative stories about the
and renowned conservationists cess. We have to really look how we Talking about the research show as certain people were bound
were present at the inaugural are portraying women in our film on the first episode of Satyamev to attack it. l
ceremony. l

Sport
Did you know?
Fawad Alam scores
114* against Sri
Lanka yesterday to
become first left-hand
middle-order batsman
to hit a century for
Pakistan in ODIs
SCORECARD
Pakistan
Sharjeel Khan c Thisara b Malinga 8
Shehzad c Sangakkara b Malinga 5
Hafeez c Sangakkara b Malinga 3
Misbah-ul Haq c Perera b Malinga 65
Fawad Alam not out 114
Umar Akmal c Priyanjan b Malinga 59
Shahid Afridi not out 0 hibited excellent temperament under
Extras: (lb1, w5) 6 pressure and showed no mercy in dis-
Total: (for five wkts; 50 overs) 260
Fall of wickets
1-8, 2-17, 3-18, 4-140, 5-255
Bowling
Malinga 10-0-56-5, Lakmal 10-2-41-0,
Senanayake 9-0-54-0, Thisara 10-1-66-
0, Mathews 7-1-23-0, de Silva 4-0-19-0
Sri Lanka
K Perera st Akmal b Ajmal 42
L Thirimanne b Ajmal 101
K Sangakkara lbw b Ajmal 0
M Jayawardene c Sharjeel b Talha 75
A Priyanjan c Akmal b Khan 13
A Mathews not out 16
C de Silva not out 6
Extras: (b1, lb1, nb1, w5) 8 Malinga for his five-
Total: (for five wkts; 46.2 overs) 261
Fall of wickets
1-56, 2-56, 3-212, 4-233, 5-247
Bowling
Hafeez 9-0-42-0, Gul 6-0-44-0 , Khan
9-0-56-1, Ajmal 10-2-26-3, Talha 6.2-
0-56-1, Afridi 6-0-35-0
Result
Sri Lanka won by five wickets
Pakistan’s Umar Akmal (L) joins Fawad
Alam to celebrate the latter’s century
against Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup final at
SBNS yesterday MUMIT M
Women lose first T20I
Javeria Khan’s quick half-century
helped set up Pakistan Women’s 13-
run win against Bangladesh Women at
the Sheikh Kamal International Cricket
Stadium.
Pakistan, batting first, made 126 for
4 on the back of Javeria’s 55-ball 58,
and her 109-run association for the
third wicket with Bismah Maroof who
scored 39. No other batter reached
double digits for the visitors, but Ban-
gladesh were made to rue the 19 extras
they conceded, including 11 wides.
Bangladesh began solidly, as the
openers Shamina Sultana and Ayasha
Rahman put up 30 by the sixth over,
but three wickets in the space of eight
deliveries hampered their progress.
Sri Lanka’s consistency pays off
Injuries, lack of perfect
application in crucial
times and last over de-
feats are the story of Ban-
gladesh team in the Asia
Cup cricket that conclud-
ed yesterday. Lack of a
cohesive middle order, absence o f MS
Dhoni and dearth of death over bowling
specialist haunted India while Afghani-
stan showed their worth of entering
the elite cricket tournament of Asia. Sri
Lanka and Pakistan were the consistent
teams, who survived tough challenges
to make it to the final where Sri Lanka
handed the defending champions a five-
wicket defeat to have the last laugh.
The strain was too much for Ban-
gladesh as the Tigers went to play the
Asia Cup when their mental and physi-
cal frame was not in a consistent po-
sition after a grueling series against
Sri Lanka. Skipper Mushfiqur Rahim,
opener Tamim Iqbal, pacer Mashrafe
bin Mortaza and spinner Sohag Gazi
fell prey of injuries while the absence
of ill-mannered all-rounder Shakib al
Hasan added more awes for the Tigers.
Bangladesh scored 280 against In-
dia and 326 against Pakistan in solid
batting efforts. It was a bold statement
from Mushfiq as the Bangladesh skipper
made 117 runs in 113 balls, only to see his
splendid effort fall short to his counter-
part Virat Kohli’s ton as India romped to
victory with his 136 off 122 balls. India
won the match in the 49th over. Bangla-
desh’s highest score in the ODI was also
Mathews glad to break the ‘final’ jinx
Fargana Hoque (35) helped the team
recover from 33 for 3 to 100 for 4 by the
18th over, but they were ultimately un-
able to maintain the required rate and Sri Lankan captain Angelo Mathews
were restricted to 113 for 6 from their was glad to break their final jinx as they
20 overs. Asmavia Iqbla snared two had earlier lost in several finals to leave
wickets for Pakistan, while Sania Khan, empty handed. The young captain
Sana Mir and Anam Amin chipped in helped his side lift their fifth Asia Cup
with a scalp each. l trophy, first after 2008.
“We had to break the barrier and
I am glad that we broke that barrier
BRIEF SCORE between Sri Lanka and the finals. The
Pakistan Women credit should go to the whole team.
126/ 4 in 20 overs We had a tremendous six weeks here
(Javeria 58, Maroof 39) and we remain unbeatable. We played
Bangladesh Women some great cricket,” said Mathews at
the post-match conference at SBNS
113/ 6 in 20 overs
yesterday.
(Fargana 35, Asmavia 2-22)
The islanders exhibited tremendous
Pakistan won by 13 runs
fighting character during their six week
ruined as the bowlers were untidy in were left out on their toes to get ready
the last five overs and Pakistan cruised for another Afghan challenge in the first
to victory with one ball to spare. match of the World T20.
Bangladesh’s sigh of sorrow was nev- It will be arguable whether India was
er to end and losing to Afghanistan in in a light mood in the Asia Cup as stand
the very first encounter also pointed out in skipper Kohli felt the absence of the
Bangladesh’s inadequate homework re- experienced names in the middle order.
garding the crucial match. Till landing The new look middle-order and integ-
in Bangladesh, Afghanistan made their rity in dying overs resulted in an early
intentions clear and said in media that departure for the Indians. India lost two
they targeted one win and it is against matches to Sri Lanka and Pakistan and it
was Kumar Sangakkara and Shahid Af-
MOST RUNS ridi who defied India respectively with
Player Inns Runs Ave 100 50 their lusty blows in the dying stages.
Thirimanne (SL) 5 279 55.80 2 0 Pakistan showed a lot of mental
Akmal (Pak) 5 253 84.33 1 2 integrity after they arrived in Bangla-
Sangakkara (SL) 5 248 49.60 1 2 desh under an uncomfortable situa-
Shehzad (Pak) 5 228 45.60 1 1 tion regarding some political jagged-
Anamul (Ban) 4 227 56.75 1 1 ness. While Bangladesh terminating
their tour to Pakistan and the ban on
MOST WICKETS Pakistan cricketers in Dhaka Premier
Player Mat Runs Wkts BBI Econ
League were also reasons. However,
Malinga (SL) 4 189 11 5/52 5.42
the team was received warmly by the
Ajmal (Pak) 5 202 11 3/26 4.12
cricket fans of Bangladesh.
Mendis (SL) 3 126 9 4/60 4.84
After almost five weeks in Bangla-
Ashwin (India) 4 167 9 3/31 4.21
desh, Sri Lanka are still unbeaten and
Shami (India) 4 230 9 4/50 6.16
their win yesterday was only the ex-
ample of their true class. Malinga fired
Bangladesh as the home side is less au- when needed, he had two five-wicket
thoritative in comparison to the other hauls against Pakistan, Sangakkara and
three teams. Restricting Afghanistan Mahela’s willow shone when it mattered
to 90/5 in 27 over put Bangladesh in a while the young guns like Thirimanne,
relaxing atmosphere that allowed the Kusal Perera and the efficient skipper
Afghans to stage a fight back and score Angelo Mathews proved how consistent
254/6. The shock of not being able to re- they are as a team. Thirimanne, with a
strict the opponents took its toll as Ban- hundred yesterday, became the highest
gladesh ultimately were all out on 222 run scorer with 279 runs and Malinga
for a landmark upset. Afghanistan said emerged as the highest wicket taker with
the victory would shape the next ten 11 scalps – just showing Sri Lanka’s au-
years of their cricket while Bangladesh thority and superiority in the Asia Cup. l
0 0 7
DAYS TO GO
stay in Bnagladesh and Mathews said,
“We have always been a team where we
never give up. We keep fighting till the
last ball is bowled. We actually showed
that a few times. I am glad that the fight-
ing spirit is there. The guys really want-
ed to do well today, a big game and big
tournament, we haven’t won a major
trophy in quite a while, so the boys were
eager to go out there and perform.”
However, he admitted losing San-
gakkara did make them panic but also
praised Lahiru Thirimanne for his ap-
proach along with Mahela Jayawardene.
“He (Lahiru) has been amazing for
us, he got injured in the last series,
but he came back for us. He was very
courageous to come up and play. You
push him up the order, down the order,
Mahela Jayawardene (L) and Lahiru Thirimanne cross over for a run during their 156-run partnership in the Asia Cup final against Pakistan
at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday
Mahela levels scores after 14 years
It took Mahela Jayawardene 14 years
to set the scores right against Pakistan
in an Asia Cup final in Bangladesh. The
last time the two sides met at the final
of the premier Asian tournament was
in 2000 in Dhaka’s Bangabandhu Na-
tional Stadium (BNS) when Pakistan
beat them by 39 runs to lift the trophy.
With time BNS has gone to host foot-
ball from cricket and with time play-
ers from the 2000 final also retired.
However, the only remaining players
from 2000 are Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi
and Sri Lanka’s Jayawardene who met
again in Bangladesh at a new venue.
\Jayawardene was out on a duck in
that final and he was run out by Afridi
in his second ball, but with time the
Sunday, March 9, 2014
14 United sink
woeful Baggies
5th Asia Cup glory
for Sri Lanka
Lasith Malinga’s he-
roic with the ball fol-
lowed by the third ODI
hundred of Lahiru
Thirimanne enabled Sri
Lanka lift their fifth Asia
Cup trophy by defeating
defending champions Pakistan by five
wickets at Sher-e-Bangla National Sta-
dium yesterday.
    It was the third occasion for Sri
Lanka yesterday who won a tour-
nament chasing more
than 250 runs
a n d the credits
were shared b y
wicket
haul and Thirimanne for his second
hundred in the tournament – the first
was also against Pakistan in the open-
ing game at Fatullah.
 Sri Lanka were off to a 56-run part-
nership in their chase of 260 before
Saeed Ajmal struck twice in two balls
to create a panic. Ajmal in his second
over of the game first removed Kusal
Perera, who went down the track only
to see the bells removed by Umar Ak-
mal, before trapping the big fish Kumar
Sangakkara lbw for a golden duck.
  The in-form Sangakkara’s departure
was a huge boost for the Pakistanis, but a
156-run stand between Thirimanne and
Mahela Jayawardene for the third-wick-
et saw the Lankans break out of trouble
to set a sturdy sail towards the target.
Both Mahela and Thirimanne ex-
wherever he gets the opportunity, he
scores runs for us,” he said.
However, despite enjoying an un-
beaten run so far in Bangladesh, the
Lankan captain said the World T20
We have always been a team
where we never give up.
We keep fighting till the last
ball is bowled. We actually
showed that a few times
ahead is a completely new tournament
and they will start fresh. “T20 is a fun-
ny game and a different format as well.
It’s a fresh tournament, it’s a World
Cup and all the teams are quite even.
veteran grew in to one of Sri Lanka’s
best batsman and after four off-beat
matches in this edition, where he
scored 13, 9, 14 and 0, he made 75 in the
final yesterday which helped his side
lift the trophy after 2008. Sri Lanka,
chasing 260, were pushed to the back
foot when Saeed Ajmal struck twice in
two balls to remove Kusal Perera and
the in-form Kumar Sangakkara with
the scorecard reading 56. The right-
handed Jayawardene added 156 for
the third wicket with Thirimanne as
Sri Lanka eventually cruised to their
target with five overs to spare. At the
twilight of his career, it was certainly
a very valuable contribution from Ma-
hela who helped add another trophy
for the cabinet.
Meanwhile, Afridi has remained to
DHAKA TRIBUNE 13
15 Barcelona suffer
shock defeat
patching the bad balls for runs. The part-
nership was eventually broken by Mo-
hammad Talha in the 38th over when
Mahela was caught on 75, but by then
victory was well in sight of Sri Lanka. 
Thirimanne lost another partner,
Priyanjan, in the 42nd over before het
put out an in swinging yorker off Ju-
naed Khan to square leg in the next
over to land his second ton in the tour-
nament.
Thirimanne became Ajmal’s third
victim with Sri Lanka on 247 for 5. The
dismissal did not create any further dra-
ma as skipper Angelo Mathews hit the
winning runs with three overs to spare. 
Earlier, it was Malinga who gave
the eventual winners the flying start
in front of packed stands at SBNS. Ma-
linga removed opener Sharjeel Khan
in the opening over and the spearhead
the in-form Ahmed Shahzad and Mo-
hammed Hafeez in his following overs
to reduce Pakistan to 18 for three. 
Fawad Alam and Misbah-ul-Haq
(65) repaired the damage by adding 122
runs which shifted the momentum and
enabled Pakistan go for the late surge
with wickets in hand. After Misbah’s
dismissal Akmal played a quickfire 42-
ball 59 while Fawad remained unbeat-
en on 114 off 134 to guide Pakistan to a
challenging 260 for five.
Meanwhile it was Malinga who took
all the five wickets and create a unique
world record of claiming all five wick-
ets in an innings of an ODI match. l
There will be a lot of competition. We
just have one week to turn up and
then play our first game. We will enjoy
the win today and be back in a week’s
time,” said Mathews.
Meanwhile, Misbah-ul-Haq blamed
for not taking early wickets as it cost
them in the end. “I think in matches
like this, you need early wickets which
we didn’t get. Saeed got good break-
throughs. We needed partnerships in
bowling as well which it didn’t happen.
They bowled not according to the field
that was set,” said Misbah.
However the Pakistani skipper
praised his charges and said they played
well throughout the tournament while
he also hailed Fawad Alam for his cen-
tury in the big game yesterday. l
MUMIT M
be unpredictable with his performance
but has also grown as Pakistan’s trump
card in the format. Criticised for his
careless batting approach, it was his
match winning knocks against India
and Bangladesh that helped Pakistan
reach yesterday’s final.
The others from those squads of
2000 are either commentators or
coaches in current time. Moin Khan
is Pakistan’s head coach while Mo-
hammad Akram is the bowling coach.
Meanwhile in the Sri Lankan camp,
Chaminda Vaas is the bowling coach
and Marvan Atapattu is their batting
coach. Wasim Akram and Russell Ar-
nold, who also played the final in 2000,
were also present at the Sher-e-Bangla
National Stadium yesterday but only as
commentators. l
14
Celtic to sign 13-year-old goalkeeper
Scottish champions Celtic are set to sign 13-year-old goalkeeper Joshua
Rae after beating Liverpool and Everton for his signature. Rae has yet to make
his professional debut for Scottish second-tier side Hamilton Academical, but
he is already regarded as one of the brightest goalkeeping prospects in Britain.
The teenager had previously been for trials with Liverpool, Everton, Celtic and
Atletico Madrid and was due to return to Anfield for a second spell when the
Glasgow giants stepped in to clinch a deal.
Manchester United's Phil Jones (L) celebrates with team mates after scoring against West Bromwich Albion during their English Premier League match at The Hawthorns in West
Bromwich, central England yesterday
Juventus seeking revenge
Juventus host Fioren-
tina for the first of three
matches between the
sides in the next fort-
night with revenge firm-
ly on their minds as the
scudetto battle with Roma enters a
crucial phase.
Juventus will host La Viola twice
in five days, the sides’ first leg of a
Europa League last-16 tie following
Sunday’s Serie A clash, before
travelling to Florence for the second
leg on March 20.
Antonio Conte’s champions hold
an 11-point lead on Roma, who have a
game in hand, and boast the league’s
best strike force in Carlos Tevez (15
goals) and Fernando Llorente (11), who
have scored 26 times between them.
Despite the favourable statistics,
Llorente said the Bianconeri will be
looking to their only defeat this season
so far -- a 4-2 reverse to Fiorentina in
October -- as inspiration in the first of
their trilogy of fixtures.
“We’re looking for revenge,” said
Llorente. “Fiorentina are the only side
that have beaten us this season so we
Messi vomiting
not normal admits
Barca boss
Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino has
voiced his concern for star player Lio-
nel Messi after the Argentine was seen
vomiting during his country’s goalless
draw with Romania on Wednesday.
Messi was also sick on the pitch
recently in Barca’s 3-1 defeat at Real
Sociedad and Martino admitted the
player has visited specialists to try and
resolve the problem.
“It is not a normal situation, but there
is no alarm. He has been to see specialists
but as yet they haven’t found a solution.
“The important thing is that it doesn’t
affect him from doing his job. It is some-
thing that he has had for a while now.”
Messi was just one of a number of
Barca players away on international
duty in midweek with Brazilian duo
Neymar and Dani Alves only returning
to training on Friday.
And Martino lamented having such
little time to prepare for the Catalans
visit to relegation threatened Vallado-
lid on Saturday.
Barca currently trail leaders Real
Madrid by a point, but can take top
spot for 24 hours with a win as Madrid
are not in action until Levante visit the
Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday. l
–AFP
have to show that what happened
there was a flash in the pan.”
Juventus have been unbeaten since
then but will be without midfielder An-
drea Pirlo due to suspension although
Conte can count on a central midfield
boasting Paul Pogba, Arturo Vidal and
Claudio Marchisio.
Vidal suffered a scare in midweek
when he came off early with a muscle
FIXTURES
Juventus v Fiorentina
Bologna v Sassuolo
Chievo v Geona
Inter v Torino
Lazio v Atalanta
Parma v Verona
Sampdoria v Livorno
Napoli v Roma
problem while playing for Chile against
Germany, but he is expected to start.
Juve’s bid for a third consecutive
scudetto, meanwhile, has been given a
small boost by Napoli’s virtual abdica-
tion from the title race.
Napoli host Roma in Sunday’s late
game but coach Rafael Benitez said
Stylish Arsenal sweep
into semi-finals
Arsenal cruised into
the FA Cup semi-finals
as a late brace from
substitute Olivier Giroud sealed a 4-1
win over Everton at the Emirates Sta-
dium on Saturday.
Arsene Wenger’s side remain on
course to finally end their nine-year
trophy drought thanks to an enterpris-
ing quarter-final display in the spring
sunshine in north London.
Mesut Ozil ended his three-month
wait for a goal to give the hosts a per-
fect start before Lukaku’s equaliser.
Once Mikel Arteta had converted a
penalty midway through the second
half there was only ever going to be one
winner and France forward Giroud’s late
double ensured Arsenal can look forward
to a last-four date at Wembley in April.
Everton looked in trouble from the
moment midfielder Ozil slid home the
seventh minute opener for Arsenal.
Cazorla made the most of a slip by
James McCarthy and his perfectly-
weighted pass ensured the out-of-form
Ozil scored his first goal since December.
Ironically Ozil’s last goal came
against Everton and you could see his
confidence lifted as well as that of his
DHAKA TRIBUNE Sport
Djokovic looking for fresh start
A stuttering start to 2014 doesn’t have world number two Novak Djokovic
pushing the panic button just yet. The Serbian star admits his failure to win a
fourth straight Australian Open crown in January gave his early 2014 campaign a
different flavor. But the world’s second-ranked player insisted Friday he trusts he
has the tools to turn things around. “It’s a different feel, definitely,” said Djokovic,
who will launch his campaign at the Indian Wells ATP Masters this weekend
against Romanian Victor Hanescu.
their challenge is virtually over: “I’m
not going to lie, it’s gone.”
Roma midfielder Kevin Strootman
gave coach Rudi Garcia a scare in mid-
week when he hobbled off the Nether-
lands’ friendly against France with a
suspected knee injury.
However the Dutch international
has been given the all clear and is set to
start in Garcia’s preferred 4-3-3 along-
side Miralem Pjanic and Radja Naing-
golan.
Roma, however, will be without
Daniele De Rossi for the first of a three-
match suspension handed down for
punching Mauro Icardi in a hotly-con-
tested encounter with Inter last week.
Inter claimed a share of the spoils af-
ter their 1-1 draw and with Parma only
one point off the pace in sixth with a
game in hand, Walter Mazzarri’s men
would welcome three points at home
against Torino.
Defenders Walter Samuel and Juan
Jesus are both serving suspensions
meaning Hugo Campagnaro and An-
drea Ranocchia step in.
Mazzarri is set to stick with the
front pairing of Icardi and Rodrigo
Palacio which has added punch to his
attack of late. l
teammates.
Arsenal were looking to expose
stand-in Robles at every opportunity,
but they were caught by a quick coun-
ter-attack that ended in Everton’s 32nd
minute equaliser.
For all Arsenal’s dominance at the
start of the second half, Everton should
have taken the lead in the 53rd minute
through Barkley.
A Thomas Vermaelen mistake was
seized upon by Lukaku and his pass
gave Barkley a clear sight of goal, only
for the England midfielder to curl his
shot past Fabianski’s right-hand post.
In an increasingly tight game it ap-
peared a mistake might prove the dif-
ference, and so it proved as Gareth
Barry’s clumsy trip on Oxlade-Cham-
berlain left referee Mark Clattenburg
with no choice but to point to the spot.
Arteta’s first penalty was converted
and, after Clattenburg ordered a re-
take for encroachment, the Spaniard
stepped up to once again beat Robles in
the 68th minute.
Then Giroud’s two late goals fin-
ished it off as the Frenchman pocked
home Sagna’s 83rd minute cross and a
quickfire three-man attack was ended
with Giroud tapping in two minutes
later to send Arsenal to Wembley. l
Sunday, March 9, 2014
–AFP
REUTERS
City won’t be distracted
by Barca clash
Manuel Pellegrini in-
sists his Manchester
City side will not be
distracted by their Champions League
tie against Barcelona when they take
on FA Cup holders Wigan on Sunday.
Pellegrini’s team trail Barcelona 2-0
ahead of Wednesday’s last-16 second
leg, but before turning their attention
to the Catalan giants, City must focus
on an FA Cup quarter-final revenge
mission against the Latics at Eastlands.
City suffered a shocking 1-0 loss
against Wigan, who were then in the
Premier League, in last season’s FA Cup
final, a defeat which proved to be Ro-
berto Mancini’s final match in charge.
Pellegrini’s men have struggled on
occasions against second tier opposi-
tion in the cups this season.
They were taken to a replay by
Blackburn in the FA Cup and trailed 2-0
to Watford in the early stages of their
fourth round tie.
But Pellegrini, whose side won the
first leg of a potential domestic treble
with their League Cup final success
Arsenal's Olivier Giroud scores the second goal against Everton during their FA Cup quarter final match at the Emirates stadium
in London yesterday
Marseille suffer derby woe
French giants Marseille’s hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions
League suffered a huge blow with a 1-0 defeat at home to struggling Nice in
the Cote d’Azur derby on Friday. Marseille coach Jose Anigo had complained
before the game about the quick turnaround just 48 hours after Wednesday’s
international friendlies. And his fears proved justified as the former European
champions produced a poor display and fell to Valentin Eysseric’s sumptuous
66th-minute free-kick.
United sink
woeful Baggies
Manchester United
kept their faltering
push for a Champions
League place alive with
a breezy 3-0 victory at
West Bromwich Albion in the Premier
League on Saturday.
Goals from Phil Jones, Wayne
Rooney and Danny Welbeck gave Unit-
ed back-to-back league wins for the
first time since December, following
their 2-0 success at Crystal Palace last
month.
Victory took the defending
champions to within nine points of
fourth-place Manchester City, although
they have played two more games,
while Pepe Mel’s West Brom remain a
point above the relegation zone in 17th
place.
United’s last game at The Hawthorns
had been Alex Ferguson’s last as
manager and his successor, David
Moyes, was looking for a reaction to his
side’s shock 2-0 loss to Olympiakos in
the Champions League.
After Marouane Fellaini had seen
a header cleared off the line and West
Brom goalkeeper Ben Foster had tipped
a header from Rafael da Silva onto his
over Sunderland last weekend, is not
concerned about City taking Uwe Ro-
sler’s Championship side lightly.
“We are just thinking about the
game against Wigan,” Pellegrini said.
“We know it is a tough game, it is
not an easy game, they are playing very
well, they win all their last matches so
when we finish on Sunday the FA Cup
we will just start thinking about Barce-
lona.
“I am looking to every competition
with the same importance. On Sun-
day we have to play FA Cup, so we are
thinking about FA Cup.
“When we finish that we will try to
make a good match against Barcelona
to try and have our revenge and con-
tinue in the Champions League.
“Maybe it is not easy for us to play
against different teams in the way we
always want to do it but it is very im-
portant to try to continue the way we
want to do it.”
Pellegrini acknowledges it will have
an impact on the match and said: “I
know he has an important link with
this club also but now he is the manag-
er of Wigan and he will want to win.” l
–AFP
crossbar, United broke through in the
34th minute.
A free-kick wide on the right gave
Robin van Persie an opportunity to
whip a cross into the box and Jones
stole in front of a clutch of defenders to
beat Foster with a glancing near-post
header.
In reply, Claudio Yacob and Victor
Anichebe each went close for West
Brom, but Foster was fortunate to es-
cape censure after he miscalculated an
attempt to control a lofted pass from
Juan Mata outside his area and the ball
struck him on the hand.
West Brom forced United onto the
back foot early in the second half, with
Zoltan Gera testing David De Gea at his
near post and Mata hooking away a low
cross from Anichebe.
However, United tightened their
grip on proceedings in the 65th min-
ute, with Rooney nodding in a cross
from Rafael at the back post to claim
his 11th league goal of the campaign.
Gera tested De Gea again as West
Brom probed for a path back into
the game, but Welbeck killed off
the home fans’ hopes of a comeback
in the 82nd minute when he ran onto
Rooney’s through ball to curl a shot
past Foster. l
Van Gaal hoping
Champions League
final disrupts Spain
Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal is
hoping as many Spain players as pos-
sible feature in the Champions League
final on May 24 so the holders have less
time to prepare for their June 13 World
Cup Group B clash.
Spain coach Vicente del Bosque may
have to wait until after the European
club showpiece in Lisbon before he can
begin preparations for the finals in Bra-
zil with squad members from the likes
of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern
Munich.
In a worse case scenario, if Bar-
ca and Real meet in the Champions
League final, 12 or more Spain players
could be involved, including midfield-
ers Xavi, Xabi Alonso, Andres Iniesta,
Sergio Busquets and Cesc Fabregas and
first and second choice goalkeepers
Iker Casillas and Victor Valdes.
Van Gaal may have to wait for Bay-
ern’s Arjen Robben to join up with the
squad but others like Robin van Persie
of Manchester United or Paris St Ger-
main’s Gregory van der Wiel are un-
likely to play in Lisbon. l
REUTERS

QUICK BYTES
Gregory’s, Rahmatullah
in rugby final today
St.Gregory’s and Rahmatullah High
School will lock horns in the final of the
Health First Mini Rugby at the Paltan
Ground at 4pm today. In the semifinals
yesterday St. Gregory’s overpowered
Ali Ahmad High School 31-0 while
Rahmatullah High School outplayed
Karatitola CMS Memorial High School
15-5. Zobera Rahman Linu, the Guin-
ness record holder of the highest num-
ber of national titles holder in women’s
table tennis, will be the chief guest on
the occasion.
–Tribune Desk
Xavi dreams of being
Barca’s head coach
Playmaker Xavi, who has won 22
trophies in 16 glittering seasons with
Barcelona, said on Saturday that he
would love to take over as head coach
one day. The 34-year-old has made
more than 700 appearances for the
Catalan club, winning three Champions
Leagues and seven La Liga titles since
making his debut in August 1998. Xavi’s
contract at the Nou Camp expires in
2016 and the Spain midfielder wants to
move into management once his play-
ing days are over. Asked in an interview
with Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper if
he would like to coach Barcelona in the
future, Xavi replied: “I’d love to, yes ...
but that is for the future. Right now I
love to play football.
–Reuters
Four share lead
at windy WGC
Former runner-up Dustin Johnson fired
a two-over 74 to grab a share of the
lead at a gusty WGC-Cadillac Cham-
pionship on Friday, while Northern
Ireland’s Rory McIlroy kept pace with a
74. Defending champion Tiger Woods
carded a 73 in difficult conditions, and
despite the over-par round jumped 28
places into a share of 25th at the $9
million PGA Tour event. Woods won
this title for the seventh time last year.
“I played pretty well. A 74 is about
as high as it was going to go. I think
I played a lot better than that,” said
Johnson, who finished second in this
event in 2011. “It’s really tough.”
–AFP
Vidic to remain
United skipper
Manchester United manager David
Moyes has confirmed that Nemanja
Vidic will remain captain until the end
of the season despite Inter Milan an-
nouncing the defender will join them in
the summer. Vidic revealed he would
be leaving Old Trafford after more
than eight years earlier this year. Inter
Milan have now confirmed that he has
signed a pre-contract agreement with
them and will move to Italy in the sum-
mer. There are also doubts about the
long-term futures of fellow defenders
Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra. Moyes
insists that Vidic’s move will not affect
the captaincy.
–AFP
DAY’S WATCH
Sony Six
NBA 2013-14
6:30AM
Cleveland v New York
9:30AM
LA Clippers v Atlanta
11:00PM
Chicago v Miami
9:00PM
Rugby Six Nation 2014
England v Wales: Round 4
Star Sports 4
Italian Serie A
5:30PM
Juventus v Fiorentina
8:00PM
Inter Milan v Torino
10:00PM
FA Cup
Man City v Wigan
Star Sports HD1
La Liga
12:00AM
Real Madrid v Levante
2:00AM
Valencia v Athletic Bilbao
Star Sports 2
1:45AM
Italian Serie A
Napoli v Roma
Ten Cricket
6:30PM
South Africa v Australia
1st T20
Ten Action
10:00PM
French Ligue 1 2013/14
Lorient v Saint- Etienne
Valladolid's midfielder Fausto Rossi (R) celebrates after scoring as Barcelona's goalkeeper Valdes (L) reacts during their La Liga match at the Jose Zorilla stadium in Valladolid yesterday
Barcelona suffer shock defeat
Barcelona slumped to their third de-
feat in seven league games as they lost
away to relegation-threatened Vallado-
lid 1-0 on Saturday.
Italian Fausto Rossi scored the only
goal of the game as he slammed home
from close range after 17 minutes.
Valladolid goalkeeper Diego Marino
was forced into four saves by Lionel
Messi, but it was Neymar who had the
best chance to level when he ballooned
over just before the hour mark.
South Africa, Australia prepare for World T20
SQUADS
South Africa
Faf du Plessis (captain), Kyle Abbott, Hashim
Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock
(wkt), AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Beuran
Hendricks, Imran Tahir, David Miller, Albie
Morkel, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Aaron
Phangiso, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe.
Australia
George Bailey (captain), Dan Christian,
Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Faulkner, Aaron
Finch, Brad Haddin (wkt), Moises Henriques,
Brad Hodge, Brad Hogg, Glenn Maxwell,
James Muirhead, Mitchell Starc, David War-
ner, Shane Watson, Cameron White.
Shirin new queen of track,
Mezbah retains 100m title
Juvenile athlete Mezbah Ahmed of
Bangladesh Navy retained his title as
the fastest man of the country in 100m
sprint while BKSP athlete Shirin Akter
was crowned the new queen of the
track after winning gold in the wom-
en’s 100m sprint in the 38th National
Athletics Championship at the Army
Stadium yesterday.
BJMC topped the medal chart to
finish as champions winning 11 gold,
13 silver and nine bronze while Navy
followed them in second place de-
spite winning the same number of gold
along with three silver and two bronze.
Army finished third with nine gold, 15
silver and 11 bronze.
Victoria Azarenka (BLR) grimaces as she holds her left ankle during her match against
Lauren Davis (not pictured) at the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden
DHAKA TRIBUNE Sport
However, the Catalans couldn’t
find a way through and could fall four
points behind La Liga leaders Real Ma-
drid should Los Blancos beat Levante
at home on Sunday.
Victory for Valladolid also has sig-
nificant consequences at the other end
of the table as La Pucela move out of
the relegation zone with just their fifth
league win of the campaign.
Rossi opened the scoring with his first
goal for Valladolid as he took advantage
of a ricochet off two Barca defenders in-
side the area to fire past Victor Valdes.
South Africa and Australia will be aim-
ing to hone their Twenty20 interna-
tional skills when they start a three-
match series at St George’s Park on
Sunday.
Coming after a high-intensity Test
series, a succession of 20-overs games
would not normally have much more
than entertainment value, but for both
teams it provides an opportunity to
prepare for the World Twenty20, which
starts in Bangladesh a week after the
last match of the series.
Both squads show considerable
Mezbah, the former athlete of BKSP
who also clinched 100m title in the 8th
Bangladesh Games, clocked the fast-
est time in recent years 10.52s and also
broke his own personal record to clinch
the first spot. Kazi Shah Imran of Navy
and Rajat Kanti of BJMC won silver and
bronze medals clocking 10.80s and
10.85s respectively.
The 18-year-old from Bagerhat,
Mezbah also claimed 200m spring title
on the opening day and for the first
time he won both 100m and 200m title.
His previous record was 10.75s in the
last Bangladesh Games.
In the absence of Nazmun Nahar
Beauty, BKSP’s Shirin Akter bagged
the women’s 100m title crossing the
touchline in 11.84s, 0.51 seconds less
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Barca reacted as the first-half drew
to a close and Marino had to be alive
to deny Messi twice from range before
Cesc Fabregas also tested the keeper
with a drive from the edge of the box.
Marino made another good save
just three minutes after the restart as
the Argentine squeezed a shot towards
goal with his weaker right foot from a
narrow angle.
Neymar then had a great chance to
equalise when he blasted over from
close range after being brilliantly
played in by Fabregas.
changes from the Test teams, with new
captains and new players in key roles.
With fast bowling spearhead
Mitchell Johnson withdrawn to enable
him to rest ahead of the world event,
Australia’s squad includes only three
players who appeared in the Test
series.
Nine of South Africa’s 16-man
squad played in the Tests but Kyle
Abbott, Quinton de Kock and Wayne
Parnell only appeared in one Test each,
while fast bowler Dale Steyn will miss
at least the first two matches after
suffering a hamstring strain during the
third Test.
than silver winner Irin Akter of BKSP.
BJMC’s Papia Rani Sarkar finished third
clocking 12.69s. Shirin finished second
in both 100m and 200m spring in the
last Bangladesh Games.
In the day’s other events, Shafiqul Is-
lam won gold in men’s hammer throw;
Nazma Akter grabbed gold in women’s
javelin throw; Arifuzzaman Raju fin-
ished first in men’s high jump; Sumi
Khatun and Mehedi Hassan won gold
in men’s and women’s 800m; Hazera
Khatun won gold in women’s shot-put.
Shohagi Akter, Nasima Akter, Pa-
pia Rani Sarkar and Beauty won gold
in women’s 4*400m relay while Ruhul
Biswas, Sabbir Hossain, Alamgir Hos-
sain and Swapon Ali claimed gold in
men’s relay. l
Unseeded Davis
upsets Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka’s fighting spirit just
wasn’t enough on Friday as the injured
third seed was sent packing from In-
dian Wells by 66th-ranked American
Lauren Davis.
With the world number four from
Belarus hobbled by a painful left foot,
the 20-year-old Davis triumphed 6-0,
7-6 (7/2).
“Basically all I had was my fight-
ing spirit today,” said Azarenka, who
was playing her first tournament since
a quarter-final exit at the Australian
Open.
She had returned to the practice
court less than a week earlier, after
three weeks in a protective boot.
“I wanted to give my best shot,” Az-
arenka said. “Obviously it was maybe a
little bit too early. But I gave a fight. I’m
pretty proud of whatever I did today.
“You also have to give her credit,”
Azarenka said of Davis. “In this situa-
tion it’s not easy to close the match and
she’s done it.”
Davis notched her first win against a
top-10 player. She booked a third-round
meeting with compatriot Varvara Lep-
chenko, who upset 29th-seeded Dan-
iela Hantuchova, the 2002 and 2007
champion, 6-3, 6-2 in 84 minutes. l
AFP
That pass was to be the former Ar-
senal captain’s last significant involve-
ment as he was replaced by Alexis
Sanchez with just under half an hour
remaining.
Gerard Pique and Neymar were also
withdrawn as Martino made a desper-
ate last attempt to influence the game
by introducing Sergi Roberto and Cris-
tian Tello.
And the result could have been even
worse for Barca had Oscar not waste-
fully spooned over Valdet Rama’s cut-
back moments later. l
Abbott is not part of the World T20
squad but was called up as cover for
Steyn.
There are injury concerns over two
other fast bowlers, Parnell and new-
comer Beuran Hendricks, who will
both have fitness tests ahead of the first
match after suffering recent injuries.
It is a particularly important period
for South African T20 captain Faf du
Plessis.
Following the retirement of Graeme
Smith, Du Plessis and former school-
mate AB de Villiers, the one-day interna-
tional captain, are the two leading can-
didates to take over the Test leadership.
Team Ispahani and Aces players concentrate over their next deals in the final of the
National Team Bridge yesterday
Ispahani clinch 30th
National Team Bridge
Team Ispahani clinched the coveted
National Team Bridge competition.
They beat Team Aces with a score of
231 against 166 International Match
Points (IMPS). The final, which took
place on Friday and Saturday, was held
with 96 boards of automated shuffled
cards split over six rounds.
Team Ispahani was led by Mirza
Sajid Ispahani while the other mem-
bers of the squad were Shah Zia Ul
Haq, AHM Kamruzzaman, Rashedul
Hasan, Asifur Rahman Chowdhury and
Moshiur Rahman.
Shah Zia Ul Haq of the winning team
Rested Wawrinka aims to
build on Aussie Open triumph
Now that the magnitude of his Aus-
tralian Open triumph has sunk in,
Switzerland’s Stanislas Wawrinka is
aiming to build on his first Grand Slam
triumph.
The unassuming Swiss, playing his
first tournament since he beat Rafael
Nadal in the final at Melbourne in Janu-
ary, is the third seed in the ATP Masters
tournament in the California desert.
He put a toe back in the water on Fri-
day by teaming with compatriot Roger
15
Huntelaar hat-trick
ends Schalke crisis,
Bayern march on
Dutch striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
scored a hat-trick and had a penalty
saved as Schalke 04 bounced back
from last week’s heavy defeats to ease
past Hoffenheim 4-0 on Saturday and
tighten their hold on fourth spot.
Leaders Bayern Munich’s unstoppa-
ble march towards the Bundesliga title
continued with Thomas Mueller and
Mario Mandzukic grabbing two goals
each as the reigning champions de-
molished hosts VfL Wolfsburg 6-1 for a
league record 16th consecutive victory.
Bayern extended their lead at the
top to a staggering 23 points from sec-
ond-placed Borussia Dortmund. l
RESULTS
Schalke 04 4 0 Hoffenheim
Huntelaar 6, 28, 79,
Chinedu Obasi Ogbuke 55
M'gladbach 1 2 FC Augsburg
Rafael 5 Altintop 35, Werner 81
VfB Stuttgart 2 2 Braunschweig
Maxim 30, Hochscheidt 24,
Harnik 35 Bicakcic 82
Hanover 1 1 Leverkusen
Rudnevs 33 Castro 28
VfL Wolfsburg 1 6 Bayern Munich
Naldo 17 Shaqiri 26, Mueller 63, 78,
Mandzukic 66, 80, Ribery 71
Hamburg 1 1 Frankfurt
Calhanoglu 72-P Madlung 29
The South African squad includes
short-game specialists such as hard-
hitting left-handed batsman David
Miller and all-rounder Albie Morkel,
who returns to international action af-
ter a two-year absence.
Australia will be captained by bats-
man George Bailey, who was dropped
from the Test team after playing in all
five Ashes Tests against England earlier
in the summer.
The tourists have a strong line-up
of quick-scoring batsmen, including
opener Aaron Finch, who hit a world
T20 international record score of 156
against England in 2013. l
COURTESY
expressed his content to the Dhaka Tri-
bune and said, “We look forward to com-
pete and be successful in the world are-
na. For doing that we must disseminate
the game to universities and colleges.”
The tournament commenced on
February 28 at Engineering Recreation
Club with the participation of 12 teams.
Bridge is a highly popular card game
around the world and it is regarded as
the top among the mind games. Many
international festivals and competitions
are arranged throughout the world as
the game sharpens the decision making
and calculation skills of players which
help them immensely to augment men-
tal growth and cognitive abilities. l
Federer in a 6-2, 6-7 (4/7) 10-6 first-
round doubles win over sixth seeds
Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-Ul-Haq
Qureshi, who lifted the doubles title in
Dubai last week.
“I feel great,” said Wawrinka, who
helped Switzerland into the Davis Cup
quarter-finals shortly after his Austra-
lian Open triumph but then withdrew
from the ATP tournament in Rotter-
dam saying his legs weren’t up to it.
“I was home after Davis Cup for three-
and-a-half weeks, but since I’m here
practising ... I’m really happy,” he said. l
16 DHAKA TRIBUNE Back Page Sunday, March 9, 2014

Fresh confrontations in Crimea

n Reuters
The mood darkened in Russian-occu-
pied Crimea on Saturday after overnight
confrontations between Russian troops
and besieged Ukrainian soldiers raised
tensions on the ground in the biggest
East-West face-off since the Cold War.
‘The situation is
changed. Tensions are
much higher now. You
have to go’
Pressure levels have increased mark-
edly in the two days since the region’s
pro-Moscow leadership declared that it
is now part of Russia and announced a
March 16 referendum to confirm it.
President Vladimir Putin declared a
week ago that Russia has the right to in-
vade Ukraine to protect Russian citizens,
and his parliament has voted to change
the law to make it easier to annex territory.
So far, Russia’s seizure of the Black
Sea peninsula has remained bloodless,
but its forces have become increasingly
aggressive towards Ukrainian troops,
who are trapped in bases and have of-
fered no resistance.
Russian troops drove a truck into a
missile defence post in Sevastopol, the
home of both their Black Sea Fleet and
the Ukrainian navy, and took control of
it overnight. A Reuters reporting team
at the scene said no-one was hurt.
Ukraine’s border service said Rus-
sian troops had also seized a border
guard outpost in the east of the penin-
sula overnight, kicking the Ukrainian
officers and their families out of their
apartments in the middle of the night.
“The situation is changed. Tensions
are much higher now. You have to go.
You can’t film here,” said a Russian
soldier carrying a heavy machine gun,
his face covered except for his eyes, at
a Ukrainian navy base in Novozernoye.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikor-
ski said on Saturday Poland had evacuated
its consulate in Sevastopol due to “con-
tinuing disturbances by Russian forces”.
About 100 armed Russians are keep-
ing watch over the Ukrainians at the
base, where a Russian ship has been
scuttled at the entrance to keep the
Ukrainians from sailing out.
“Things are difficult and the atmo-
sphere has got worse. The Russians
threaten us when we go and get food
supplies and point their guns at us,”
said Vadim Filipenko, the Ukrainian
deputy commander at the base. l Pro-Ukrainian supporters carry Ukrainian flags as they march during a rally in Simferopol yesterday REUTERS

CAAB yet to meet International Civil Aviation Organisation’s conditions

Airlines business in Bangladesh might be at risk if blacklisted
n Tazlina Zamila Khan
The Civil Aviation Authority, Bangla-
desh risks falling into ‘Significant Safe-
ty Concern’ list of International Civil
Aviation Organisation again as it is yet
to meet all conditions set by the inter-
national authority.
If blacklisted, the Civil Aviation Au-
thority, Bangladesh (CAAB) would face
a bar to registering for new internation-
al air route which would ultimately
help foreign airlines to gain the upper
hand in airline business, a CAAB offi-
cial said, asking not to be named.
He said Bangladesh civil aviation
was dropped from the safety concern
list of ICAO ‘on condition’ in July 2012.
The US Federal Aviation Administra-
tion also ranked the CAAB category 2
because of failing to meet standards of
the International Civil Aviation Organ-
isation.
Of the conditions imposed by the
ICAO, one was to have full-time staff
under a new structured organogram,
the official said, adding that most offi-
cials of the CAAB had been working on
temporary basis.
The same requirement was imposed
on CAAB by the US authorities.
Top CAAB officials believed that
the current organogram was not
well-structured, with two of its eight
categories remaining unfilled.
The posts of Grade 1 and Grade 8
have fallen vacant since the organo-
gram came into being.
The officials proposed to upgrade
the post of chairman to grade 1 from
grade 2 in order to fill the category, but
no decision was made for grade 8.
The grades range from one to eight,
including the first-class staff –chairman,
director, chief engineers and others.
However, to achieve the category
1 status from the Federal Aviation Ad-
ministration of USA, every country
must meet the ICAO standard of all its
eight audit areas.
The eight are primary aviation leg-
islation, organisational structure and
safety oversight functions, personnel
licensing, flight operations, airworthi-
ness, accident and incident investiga-
tion, air navigation services and aero-
dromes and ground aids.
The CAAB failed to meet seven of
the eight audit areas, according to the
International Civil Aviation Organisa-
tion safety audit report.
Around 11 civil aviation authorities
of different countries like India, Baha-
mas, Barbados, Curacao, Indonesia,
Nicaragua, Serbia, Sint Maarten, Uru-
guay and Bangladesh fall into FAA’s
category 2.
Usually, the civil aviation authority
of a country falls into category 2 for
having a poor standard in at least one
critical area of the eight in comparison
with the global standard percentage.
The Civil Aviation Authority, Ban-
gladesh has only met the standard of
one category, which is flight opera-
tions. Here, the CAAB achieved 81.15%
while global standard was 66.04%.
The CAAB got the lowest percentage
in accident and incident investigation
category which was 3.09% while the
international standard was 53.59%.
At the legislation category it ob-
tained 33.33% while the global stan-
dard 63.03%.
At the organisational structure and
safety oversight functions, personnel
licensing, airworthiness, air navigation
services and aerodromes and grounds
aids, the CAAB obtained 53.85%, 65.82%,
72.97%, 34.67% and 54.68% respectively
while the global standards were 63.64%,
71.62%, 73.03%, 54.65 and 57.75%.
In 1996, the Federal Aviation Ad-
ministration banned Dhaka-New York
flight of Biman due to its category 2
rating.
Besides, the US Department of De-
fence doesn’t permit its personnel to
use air carriers from category 2 coun-
tries.
Contacted,  Air Cdre M Shafiqul
Alam, acting chairman and member
(Operations and Planning) of CAAB,
confirmed the matter.
He told the Dhaka Tribune, “I agree
there are some ups and downs in the
standards of audit areas, but we are
working to raise our standard.”
He added that, “It is tough to meet
all ICAO standards as we have lack of
manpower. Once we were on the black-
list, but not now.”
The requirement of FAA was a new
structured organogram, the acting
chairman said, adding that after the
Civil Aviation Ministry approved the
organogram, the FAA team would be
invited for re-assessment of the CAAB
which might take place in June this
year. l

BB Governor:
Central Bank to
encourage young
savers
n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong
Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Atiur
Rahman yesterday said the central
bank would issue a circular within few
days so that street children can open
bank account with Tk 10 to save their
income.
He said this while addressing the
School Banking Conference as chief
guest, at Bangladesh Bank Colony High
School playground in Agrabad at Chit-
tagong.
“Although Habib Bank was the first to
introduce school banking in the country
in the sixties [1960s], but school bank-
ing was still very rare,” he said.
Atiur said he took initiatives for
developing school banking after tak-
ing office. “We introduced a policy for
school banking last year, where young
people between 6-18 years can open
account starting from Tk 100 and use
the opportunity to save their money for
education, stipend money and so on.”
From November 2, 2010 till Decem-
ber 31, 2013, some 2,86,000 school stu-
dents have opened bank accounts un-
der school banking procedures and Tk
304 crore have been deposited in these
accounts.
Minors falling victim to trafficking
n Tribune Report
While being trafficked to India, three
Bangladeshi children were rescued by
a team of Border Guard Bangladesh
(BGB) from Zakiganj border of Sylhet
around 9am yesterday.
All of them are from different villag-
es of Zakiganj upazila.
They are, Sharmin Akhter, 8, daugh-
ter of Aziz Uddin of Sharifganj village,
Halima Akhter, 9, daughter of Abdul
Members of the Border Guards Bangladesh yesterday rescued three children from being
trafficked out of the country at Jakiganj border area in Sylhet. A child trafficker has also
been detained in this connection
Sabur of Pilakandi village and Mah-
bub Ahmed, 9, son of Mosadder Ali of
Amonsid village.
Commanding Officer of BGB battal-
ion 41 Lt Col Shah Alam said acting on
a tip-off, a team of BGB led by Nayek
Subedar Abdur Razzak conducted a
drive at the Pilkandi border and arrest-
ed the trafficker identified as, Shahab
Uddin Shaju, 22.
Shaju, who is an alleged in several
cases of human trafficking, had kid-
DHAKA TRIBUNE
napped the children while they were
returning from a waz mahfil. A case
had been filed against Shaju with Zaki-
ganj police station, he said.
Officer-in-Charge of the police sta-
tion Yunus Mia said: “We are investi-
gating into the matter.”
Police yesterday arrested two from
Char Moddhonagar area of Fotullah
upazila of Narayanganj district in con-
nection with trafficking of two teenage
girls and forcing them into prostitution
in Qatar, confirmed Fotullah model
thana Officer-in-Charge Akter Hossain.
The detainees are Al-Amin, 30 and
Afiz Uddin, 43. Sub-Inspector of Fotul- Robbers dug a tunnel leading to the bank’s vault from a nearby furniture shop by
lah model thana Nazmul said: “Al-Amin using gas cylinder DHAKA TRIBUNE
and Afiz Uddin lured the girls with offer
of a good job in Dubai and sold them at
a brothel in Qatar.” Tk32.5 lakh stolen from
Bogra’s Sonali Bank
A case was filed in this connection
in October, last year. A female SSC ex-
aminee was kidnapped from the same
upazila yesterday.
The victim’s mother Selina Begum
filed a case in this connection.
n Hasibur Rahman Bilu, Bogra He said around Tk32.52 lakh was in
the vault on Thursday Azhar Ali, cashier of
The examinee went to Pagla High About Tk32.5 lakh was stolen from the branch, told the Dhaka Tribune that
School in the upazila to sit for an exam. Sonali Bank’s Adamdighi branch in Bogra Tk32.51 lakh was missing from the vault.
After coming out of the centre, a local, yesterday. The amount might increase.
Kanchan Sheikh and his associates, Lut- Burglars dug a tunnel from a nearby fur- Over yesterday’s incident, four people
fur Sheikh and Zabed Sheikh, had kid- niture shop to reach the vault of the bank. including a security guard of the branch
napped her, according to Selina Begum. In similar fashion robbers took away were detained for their alleged involve-
“We are trying to rescue the abduct- Tk16.40 crore from the Sonali Bank main ment in the incident, Officer-in-Charge of
ed,” said the officer-in-charge. l branch of Kishoreganj on January 24 by Adamdighi police Md Nazrul Islam said.
digging a tunnel from an adjacent house. The detainees are security guards Mi-
Bank officials called police about lon Hossain and Purno Devnath; Ashraful

Chlorine in water hampers IV fluids production

“No government charge will be ap-
plied for this type of account,” he added.
BB Executive Director M Mahfuzur
Rahman presided over the programme,
where Mohammad Masud Kamal Bhu-
iyan, executive director of BB in Chit-
tagong, was also present. l
n Moniruzzaman Uzzal
The high-dosage of chlorine in the wa-
ter supplied by Dhaka Water Supply and
Sewerage Authority (Wasa) has report-
edly been hampering the production
process of intravenous (IV) fluid unit at
the Institute of Public Health (IPH).
The only public IV fluid unit of the
country produces around 8,000 to
9,000 bags of saline each day that are
distributed to public hospitals across
the country.
The local water pump of Dhaka Wasa
reportedly provides the IV fluid unit
daily with around 50,000 litres of water
needed to continue normal production.
However, production at the IV flu-
id unit has faced a setback during the
last few weeks, as the Sayedabad water
pump has allegedly been supplying wa-
ter dosed with a large amount of chlorine
in order to purify the polluted water.
Despite attempts by the IPH authori-
ty to sterilise the chlorine-mixed water,
production had to be shut down for a
few days at the IV fluid unit last month.
Frequent load-shedding and low gas
pressure has also been causing trouble
for normal production by the unit.
Dr Shubimol Singha Chowdhury, the
director of IPH, told the Dhaka Tribune
that it was near impossible to continue the
normal production of saline, as Wasa had
been supplying water mixed with strong
doses of chlorine for the last few weeks.
Shubimol has already asked the
sub-divisional engineer of Wasa for a
4:30pm after they found the vault broken. Islam, owner of an adjacent furniture
Shamsuddin Sharif, manager of the shop, and Shahin, an employee of the
branch, said the bank was closed on Friday shop.
solution to the problem.
In a letter to Wasa authority, he men-
but it was open yesterday on the occasion
of election for women’s reserved seats in
Bogra Additional Superintendent of
Police Abu Sayem said the robbers used
tioned that production would have to parliament. gas flame to break the vault. l
be suspended if the problem persisted,
as well as requesting Wasa to supply
water from deep tube-well instead of
the Sayedabad water treatment plant.
Sources said two gas generators
(1000kVA) – bought by the IPH to over-
come the load-shedding crisis – could
not be run, as it had no gas connection.
However, authorities have also report-
edly asked Titas gas for providing a
new connection.
The IV fluid unit produces different
types of intravenous fluids including
normal saline, cholera saline, baby sa-
line, 3% sodium chloride and haemodi-
alysis fluid.l

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207.
Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com
Continue to the
Business section...

Business
 B3 Privacy groups ask regu-
lators to halt Facebook’s
$19bn WhatsApp deal
7 ‘lucky’ districts Accord-Alliance inspection team cites
may get separate three concerns with workers safety
budget next fiscal
n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi
n Asif Showkat Kallol
Only seven lucky districts, out of 64,
have been chosen for bringing under
district budget in the upcoming finan-
cial year although the existing laws do
not permit the local bodies to imple-
ment any financial budget.
The likely lucky seven districts are
Bhola district of Barisal division, Ran-
gamati of Chittagong division, Go-
palganj of Dhaka division, Magura of
Khulna division, Bogra of Rajshahi di-
vision, Panchagarh of Rangpur divi-
sion, and Sunamganj of Sylhet.
Finance division has initially iden-
tified the seven districts to bring them
under the district budget.
Without enacting the necessary
laws to empower the local bodies to
utilise the allocated monetary bud-
get, the government had also allocated
similar budget for Tangail district in
the last fiscal year, which yielded no
positive results so far.
Although the lucky-seven districts
are yet to be named for the budget al-
location of Tk.7 crore, the division are,
however, named as Dhaka, Chittagong,
Khulna, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Sylhet,
and Barisal, according to officials.
Initially finance division has  iden-
tified Bhola district of Barisal division
, Rangamati district of Chittagong divi-
sion, Gopalganj district  of Dhaka divi-
sion , Magura district of Khulna division
, Bogra district of Rajshahi  division,
Panchagarh district of Rangpur divi-
sion,  and Sunamganj  district of  Sylhet
Budget wing of the finance divi-
sion will soon place a proposal to the
finance minister for giving his consent
in allocating the funds for the seven
districts.
However, a number of officials at the
finance ministry, however, declined to
Russian Ollo seeks spectrum
merger of its two wings
n Muhammad Zahidul Islam
The two Russian telecom partners -
Bangladesh Internet Exchange Ltd
(BIEL) and New Generation Graphics
Limited (NGGL) - are now trying to
merge their spectrum, which is not al-
lowed under the law.
BIEL and NGGL operate under a
common brand name “Ollo.”
They jointly wrote to the telecom
regulator asking for a no objection cer-
tificate (NoC) for the merger.
The regulator immediately sent
the proposal to the government for
approval. It’s under the government’s
scrutiny now.
“To become a strong competitor in
the country’s wireless internet mar-
ket and build a wider network making
available the latest technology to peo-
ple, we have sought merger of spec-
trum,” said a joint statement of the two
ISP providers.
“BIEL-NGGL issue is very sensitive
for us. That’s why we do not make any
comment on their merger and have
sent it to the government for approv-
al,” a BTRC commissioner said request-
ing anonymity.
BTRC said according to its legal con-
sultancy firm the merger could be done.
85% people unaware about benefits of internet use
Speakers tell dialogue as affordability, lack of education and adoption main challenges
n Tribune Report
More than 85% people of the country do
not know why they should use internet and
how to use the technology for their personal
development.
Experts and telecom operators in the
country revealed the figure at a dialogue ti-
tled “Empowerment of Society and Internet
for All” at a hotel in Dhaka yesterday.
Leading mobile phone operator
Grameenphone and its parent company
Telenor organized the dialogue as GP ac-
knowledged their responsibility in educat-
B4 World's first car decorat-
ed with gold leaf
make any comment on the newly-intro-
duced zila budget as they think that the
separate allocation is not at all meaning-
ful without enacting any relevant laws.
The district administration will not
be able to implement the budget if
because of legal complexity. Tangail
district could not implement one Tk.
one crore annual budget in the current
fiscal year. The finance division did
not ask the district commissioner even
over telephone to implement the dis-
trict budget, said the officials.
The districts administration will not
be able execute the allocated budget
until and unless they were given the
authority to implement their budgets.
The government always takes initia-
tives to empower local government but
all the efforts go in vein as there have
been no related-laws, Shujan Chair-
man Badiul Alam Majumdar told the
Dhaka Tribune.
All the successive governments
have so far failed to empower district
level administration as the govern-
ments are not willing to undertake a
national policy to really strengthen the
local bodies, he also said.
Immediately after the 5 January
general polls, the finance minister AMA
Muhith had promised that the govern-
ment would bring seven districts of the
seven divisions under separate budget
allocations from fiscal year 2014-15.
The districts will be simply brought
under the district budget as part of the
government policy to decentralize the
annual budget, he added.
Tangail is the first district that was
selected in the current financial year
for implementing the zila budget by
the finance ministry. Under the new
concept, the budget allocation for Tan-
gail in the annual budget was shown
separately. l
“Now the ball is in the government’s
court. They have to decide about it.”
BIEL managing director Yulua Ak-
styutina is currently not in the country
while none from the company wanted
to make any comment.
According to the Telecom Act, a li-
cence issued or the right of allotted fre-
quency or of usage under the section4
of article 55 is not transferable.
In a meeting, BTRC cited the section
and the proposal was sent to their legal
firm Lex Council for opinion.
Lex Council recommended the pro-
posal to be approved.
A senior official of the regulator
said: “BTRC has taken a policy. When
there will be a matter which could be
against the law, the regulator straightly
forward its legal firm and seek opin-
ion.”
Barrister Aneek R Haque, a former
legal consultant of BTRC, told the Dha-
ka Tribune that if BTRC allows a com-
pany to merge spectrum with another
one, it would not be lawful and could
be challenged in court.
“You can’t do everything with the
power of your muscles,” he said.
Both of the Russian firms came
to Bangladesh in early 2010 and
bought two different internet service
ing the people.
“Users number is a challenge for us to
flourish the internet-related business as 85%
people have no idea about it,” GP chief ex-
ecutive officer Vivek Sood told the meeting.
“The overall ecosystem is not ready to flour-
ish the business. It should be developed.”
Referring to global figures, Vivek said
every two young people out of three prefer
to connect with each other through social
media, but in Bangladesh the number is very
frustrating.
Munir Hasan, President of Wikimedia
Bangladesh, said the internet price is the
Accord and Alliance have identified
three concerns related with workers’
safety in the Bangladesh apparel fac-
tories.
They include exceeding the
load-bearing of floors, flawed electri-
cal wires and piling of finished goods
in the stairs and floors.
Accord and Alliance, two groups of
ready-made garment retailers, found it
during their recent inspection of facto-
ries.
A press conference will be held on
Tuesday in the city to present the in-
spection findings, a source concerned
told the Dhaka Tribune.
“They (the factories) have too much
weight (placed on floors), too much
stock of machinery and too muck stock
of finished goods on the floors and in
the passages,” Rob Wayss, executive
director (Bangladesh operations) of
Accord, told the Dhaka Tribune.
The common fault with the power
lines was the weakly placed wires on
the walls and mess in switch boards,
he said.
Piling of finished goods on the stair-
cases and lack of fire exits were the
common findings about fire safety.
“All factories must have fire doors
so smokes and flames cannot come out
to the stairs from the floors during fire
incidents,” said Rob Wayss.
Accord has primarily suggested
conducting maintenance of electrical
wires, properly managing of loads on
each floor and installing fire doors so
that workers can see inside.
As of Friday, March 7, the Alliance
has inspected over 240 factories while
the Accord engineers inspected around
70 factories.
Following the findings of Accord
inspection, a review panel asked two
factories - Softex and Fame Sweater
- to suspend production and retrofit
them before.
The panel also directed Jeans Care,
providers (ISP) BIEL and NGGL with
seven megahertz spectrum each on 3.5
band.
Soon after the purchase, the two en-
tities BIEL and NGGL jointly launched
Wi-Max service in the country under
the brand name “Ollo” without taking
licences.
It was challenged in the court.
BIEL recently took Wi-Max licence
for Tk246.71 crore with 20 megahertz
spectrum with FDD support, though
the market price would be not less
than Tk3,200 crore.
FDD-supported spectrum is the
most valuable spectrum which can
also deliver quality voice with data ser-
vice.
Earlier in 2011, the NGGL also re-
ceived 20 megahertz spectrum from
800 bands without any charge.
With the huge spectrum taken at
different times, the two firms have
become now what the market insid-
ers say the “spectrum mughol” of the
country.
Mobile phone operators bought the
spectrum at Tk150 crore per megahertz
in 2011.
The operators also received spec-
trum from 2,100 bands for 3G service
at a cost of $21mper megahertz. l
main barrier to grow the market.
“Whenever I visited any University, I
tell the students why you do not block the
roads to put pressure on the government in
reducing the internet price. If the students
are aware of it, the government is bound to
think this way,” he said.
Students also need to understand that
every one lakh new internet users create 8
new jobs, he shared a study finding.
Raihan Shamsi, CEO of Accenture Ban-
gladesh, a sister concern of Grameenphone,
proposed providing incentive to the users
for e-billing, m-banking.
Accord and Alliance will inspect a total of 2,100 RMG factories of the country
a RMG factory located in the city’s Te-
jgaon, to take immediate steps to im-
prove safety standards. Otherwise the
production will be closed.
On the other, Alliance did not find
any factory, which needed retrofitting.
“During inspection, we did not find
any factory which needed to be re-
located or retrofitted,” said M Rabin,
managing director of Alliance.
He said the culture of piling up
finished goods on the floors and in
the passage of exits would need to be
Government to ease
Ethylene Oxide import
n Asif Showkat Kallol
The government is going the amend to
the existing import policy order 2012-15
for easing the bulk-import of Ethylene
Oxide to help flourish the local bottled
gas industries in the country.
Admitting the fact, commerce sec-
retary Mahbub Ahmed yesterday said,
“The proposal will be placed at the next
cabinet committee on economic affairs
for getting the necessary approval.”
If the import policy order is relaxed,
the local pharmaceuticals industries,
producing anti-septic products, and
garment industries will be benefited,
he added.
As the local pharmaceutical com-
panies are now facing production dis-
ruption due to the shortage of the Eth-
ylene Oxide, bulk-import of Ethylene
Oxide will solve the crisis.
The country would be able to save
huge amount of foreign currency if
the local manufactures could produce
necessary bottled gas in the country,
according to officials.
On December 5, 2013, the local
joint-venture company JMI Industri-
al Gas Limited sent a proposal to the
commerce ministry with a request to
amend the existing import policy for
easing the bulk import of Ethylene Ox-
Ahteram Uddin from browser ‘Opera’
pointed out three challenges to prospective
internet boom – affordability, and lack of ed-
ucation and adoption.
MA Mobin Khan, CEO of EATL, said tele-
coms would spend cores of dollars for 3G. If
they do not deploy internet in the rural ar-
eas, it will be meaningless. “The government
should put pressure on the operators to go
through rural areas to boost internet users.”
Mostafa Aminur Rashid, Chairman of
handset provider Symphony, said currently
three lakh smart phones are being import-
ed annually as compared to only 50,000 to
SUNDAY, MARCH 9, 2014 www.dhakatribune.com/business
changed.
Accord, a platform of 150 European
retailers, launched on February 20 the
first phase of inspection involving fire
and structural integrity and inspected
over 65 factories.
In the first phase, Accord has set a
target of inspecting 200 apparel facto-
ries, from which its signatories source
products.
The factories will be inspected in a
four-week time from February 20.
The issue of fire and building safety
ide as the existing import policy order
does not allow any private firms to im-
port Ethylene Oxide in a bulk amount.
The two paragraphs will be include
in the provision of 26(26) of import pol-
icy order 2012-15 fiscal year to amend
the existing policy order.
'The proposal will be
placed at the next
cabinet committee on
economic affairs for
getting the necessary
approval'
As per the commerce ministry pro-
posal, the local bottled gas indus-
tries would be allowed to import bulk
amount of Ethylene Oxide only with
prior approval from the Board of In-
vestment, Chief Inspector of Depart-
ment of Explosive and the directorate
concerned.
“The private firms will bottle Eth-
ylene Oxide to sell it to the license hold-
ers of the Ethylene Oxide. The sales ac-
count will be maintained by the private
firms that are accountable to the author-
ity concerned, according to proposal. l
60,000 just one year ago.
Shameem Ahsan, president of Basis,
stressed the need for creating more local
contents to help flourish the internet mar-
ket. “People will use internet if they see
benefits in terms of services like health, ag-
riculture and banking. So we need to make
available the services at affordable prices as
early as possible.”
Hakon Bruaset Kjøl, senior vice president
of Telenor Group, Sonia Bashir Kabir, CEO
of DELL and Nesar Maksud Khan of Dhaka
Chamber of Commerce and Industry also
attended meeting.
REUTERS
came under the spotlight last year, fol-
lowing the catastrophic incident at the
Rana Plaza building collapse that killed
over 1,100 workers.
After the factory disaster, the re-
tailers’ platform made a commitment
to provide financial and technical
supports to improve fire and building
safety standard of RMG factories, from
which they source products.
Accord will inspect 1,500 factories
and Alliance over 600 factories follow-
ing a common set of standards. l
Chittagong
International Trade
Fair begins
n Tushar Hayat, Chittagong
The month-long Chittagong Interna-
tional Trade Fair began at Polo Ground
in the port city yesterday.
Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed
attended the inaugural function as
chief guest while Housing and Public
Works Minister Engineer Mosharraf
Hossain was also present.
Chittagong Chamber of Commerce
and Industry (CCCI) is organising the
22nd fair. CCCI president Mahabub
Alam presided over the function.
More than 400 stalls including 12
premier gold pavilions, eight premier
pavilions, 16 standard pavilions, two
mini mega pavilions, 127 premier
mega booths, 50 mega booths and
38 premier booths have been set up at
the fair.
Companies from India, China, Iran
and Pakistan are participating in the
fair while Thailand is taking part as the
partner country.
The function was also addressed,
among others, by Member of Parlia-
ment MA Latif, president of Federation
of Chambers of Commerce and Indus-
try Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed, CCCI
senior vice president Nurun Newaj
Salim and vice president Sayad Jamal
Ahmed. l
Speakers said 50% of the people do not
have a mobile connection and only 30% of
the total subscriber base uses mobile internet.
Operators said they are investing billions
to develop networks, but many of those
who stand to gain the most are not aware of
what they are missing.
They said getting Bangladesh’s budding
entrepreneurs and vast rural population on-
line, and enabling them to take advantage of
education, healthcare, financial and e-gov-
ernment services, will be a shot in the arm
for the economy and a life-changing endeav-
or for almost 80 million people. l
B2 DHAKA TRIBUNE Stock Sunday, March 9, 2014

Volatility rules
DSE GAINERS
DSE key features Aver-
Closing (% Closing Weekly Weekly Weekly Turnover Latest Latest
March 02-06, 2014 Company
change)
age (%
average closing high low in million EPS PE
change)
Turnover 23,102.72 Rupali Life Insur.-A 23.02 20.30 120.97 124.00 124.60 100.70 181.478 5.33 22.7

stock market
(Million Taka) Standard Ceramic -A 22.43 21.38 46.10 46.40 46.80 35.50 3.945 1.06 43.5
Marico BD Ltd-A 20.69 23.11 1,166.47 1,172.90 1,200.00 1,020.00 85.771 46.53 25.1
Turnover 386,648,958 Renwick Jajneswar-A 16.44 14.59 235.36 242.90 243.40 208.00 53.482 5.32 44.2
(Volume) Square Textile -A 11.25 10.14 111.47 112.70 113.40 95.00 354.662 6.40 17.4
National Tubes -A 11.22 7.75 133.67 137.80 138.60 108.00 226.755 2.26 59.1
Number of Contract 492,376 Meghna Life Ins. -A 8.51 7.83 154.93 155.60 160.00 140.00 204.999 6.45 24.0
n Tribune Report It said throughout the week,
market hanged around 4,695-level Traded Issues 299
ICB -A 8.10 7.62 1,768.38 1,778.50 1,865.00 1,610.00 112.306 40.46 43.7
Stylecraft -A 7.03 6.92 1,133.33 1,134.50 1,180.00 1,100.00 2.712 47.83 23.7
High volatility ruled stocks in the closing at around 4,700 points. Fall GlaxoSK (BD) -A 6.98 8.12 1,274.50 1,279.60 1,301.00 1,175.00 65.345 45.35 28.1
past week, as investors remained in turnover demonstrated investors’ Issue Gain 67
edgy over the market direction. lack of intention to sell off at lower (Avg. Price Basis) CSE GAINERS
Of the five trading sessions, the price, it said. Issue Loss 227 Closing (%
Aver-
Closing Weekly Weekly Weekly Turnover Latest Latest
market gained marginally two ses- Some banks in the past week Company age (%
(Avg. Price Basis) change) average closing high low in million EPS PE
change)
sions and closed lower in three ses- have declared robust earnings
Libra Infusions-A 30.90 30.90 510.50 510.50 521.00 500.00 0.204 3.04 167.9
sions with lacklustre trading. growth which might bring back the Unchanged Issue (Avg. 5 Standard Ceramic -A 29.83 24.23 44.97 47.00 47.00 38.00 0.485 1.06 42.4
During the week that ended confidence of the participants to- Price Basis) Rupali Life Insur.-A 23.34 20.38 121.25 124.70 124.70 103.00 4.084 5.33 22.7
Thursday, the benchmark DSEX fell wards the market and set the direc- Marico BD Ltd-A 22.77 23.17 1178.26 1178.30 1280.00 1021.10 2.703 46.53 25.3
50 points or 1% to close at 4,699, tion, said the stock broker. Market Capital Equity 2,309.75 Square Textile -A 9.61 10.18 112.06 112.90 113.50 100.40 18.533 6.40 17.5
extending losses for the second con- “Money market was highly liquid (Billion. Tk.) Meghna Life Ins. -A 8.87 4.30 150.67 155.80 158.00 144.50 7.876 6.45 23.4
secutive week. The blue chips com- during the week and weighted aver- 28.00 Bangladesh Lamps -A 8.24 5.67 148.78 152.40 157.80 139.40 2.443 -0.77 -ve
Market Capital Equity Nitol Insurance -A 7.43 7.43 37.60 37.60 37.70 35.00 0.109 2.75 13.7
prising DS30 was down 4 points or age call money rate has come down
0.3% to 1,690. However, Shariah In- to 6.71%, which was almost 7% one (Billion US$) Berger Paints-A 7.09 6.65 1014.90 1019.10 1030.00 960.00 2.197 41.85 24.3
week earlier.” Phoenix Insur -A 6.82 7.50 47.00 47.00 47.00 43.50 0.033 3.81 12.3
dex DSES gained marginally 9 points
or 1% to 1,011. Losers took a strong lead over the
Chittagong Stock Exchange Se- gainers as out of 299 issues traded
lective Categories Index CSCX lost during the week, 219 declined, 65
79 points or 1% to 9,208. advanced and 15 issues remained
The average daily turnover at DSE unchanged on the DSE.
came down to Tk462 crore, register- In the past week, micro cap and
ing a fall of 9% over the previous mid cap performed well. Besides,
week. “Surge in market volatility pharmaceuticals and, fuel and pow-
kept investors much more cautious er had leading positions in turnover,
this week,” said IDLC Investments capturing 13% and 12.6% respective-
in its weekly analysis. ly of the week’s total value.
In addition, re-balancing of port- Among the major sectors, phar-
folio ahead of corporate declara- maceuticals posted the highest gain
tions was prominent and kept mar- of 4.6% in the past week, driven by
ket sentiment vibrant, it said. heavyweight Square Pharmaceuticals
Large cap scrips got investors’ that rose over 5%. Food and allied lost
special attention. Resultantly, par- the most 5%, followed by banks 3%,
ticipation hovered centering on
heavy weighted scrips, the mer-
chant bank added.
fuel and power 0.9% and non-bank-
ing financial institution 0.08%.
Square Pharmaceuticals domi-
CSE key features
March 02-06, 2014
Turnover (Million Taka)
Weekly news from trade server
“The main bourse of the country nated the past week’s top turnover 2,051.67 EBL: The Board of Directors has recom- Tk. 2.90, consolidated NAV per share of Tk. reported net profit after tax of Tk. 852.83
has experienced a mini fall at the chart with shares worth Tk14 crore Turnover (Volume) mended 20% cash dividend for the year 23.27 and consolidated NOCFPS of Tk. 1.71 million, EPS of Tk. 7.49, NAV per Share of Tk.
41,805,926
beginning session of the week fol- changing hands. Other turnover ended on December 31, 2013. Date of AGM: for the year ended on December 31, 2013. 49.03 and NOCFPS of Tk. 11.59 for the year
lowed by flat movement, showing leaders included Olympic Indus- Number of Contract 73,129 31.03.2014, Time: 10:30 AM, Venue: Bang- BRACBANK: The Board of Directors has ended on December 31, 2013 as against Tk.
participants’ indecision about the tries, Grameenphone, Bangladesh abandhu International Conference Centre recommended 10% cash dividend and 10% 814.98 million, Tk. 7.16 (restated), Tk. 47.70
trend of the market,” said Lanka Submarine Cable Company Ltd and
Traded Issues 251 (BICC), Agargaon, Dhaka. Record date: stock dividend for the year ended on De- and Tk. 6.19 respectively for the year ended
Bangla Securities. Lafarge Surma Cement. l Issue Gain 58 11.03.2014. The Company has also reported cember 31, 2013. Date of AGM: 10.04.2014, on December 31, 2012.
(Avg. Price Basis) consolidated EPS of Tk. 4.15, consolidated Time: 10:00 AM, Venue: BRAC-CDM, SOUTHEASTB: The Board of Directors has
NAV per share of Tk. 30.37 and consolidat- Savar, Dhaka. Record date: 11.03.2014. The recommended 16% cash dividend and 5%
Issue Loss 291 ed NOCFPS of Tk. 20.58 for the year ended Company has also reported Consolidated stock dividend for the year ended on De-
Weekly capital market highlights (Avg. Price Basis) on December 31, 2013. Profit after tax of Tk. 1,339.35 million, con- cember 31, 2013. Date of AGM: 31.03.2014,
PRIMEFIN: The Board of Directors has solidated EPS of Tk. 3.20, consolidated NAV Time: 10:00 AM, Venue: Bashundhara
DSE Broad Index : 4699.62837 (-) 1.06% ▼ Unchanged Issue (Avg. 1
recommended 15% cash dividend for the per share of Tk. 29.38 and consolidated Convention Centre-2, Block-C, Umme
DSE - 30 Index : 1690.12242 (-) 0.22% Price Basis)
▼ year ended on December 31, 2013. Date of NOCFPS of Tk. 11.42 for the year ended on Kulsum Road, Bashundhara R/A, Baridhara,
Market Capital Equity 2,208.07 AGM: 30.03.2014, Time: 10:30 AM, Venue: December 31, 2013. Dhaka-1229. Record date: 13.03.2014. The
CSE All Share Index: 14570.6825 (-) 0.70% ▼ ALARABANK: The Board of Directors has Company has also reported Consolidated
(Billion. Tk.) Bashundhara Convention Centre, Block-C,
CSE - 30 Index : 12322.0854 (-) 0.32% ▼ Market Capital Equity 26.76
Umme Kulsum Road, Bashundhara R.A., recommended 13.50% stock dividend for the EPS of Tk. 3.87, Consolidated NAV per share
Baridhara, Dhaka. Record date: 11.03.2014. year ended on December 31, 2013. Date of of Tk. 25.11 and Consolidated NOCFPS of
CSE Selected Index : 9207.7533 (-) 0.85% ▼ (Billion US$) The Company has also reported consolidat- AGM: 30.03.2014, Time: 10:00 AM, Venue: Tk. 23.58 for the year ended on December
ed net profit after tax of Tk. 370.68 million, Ichamati Hall, Hotel Agrabad, Chittagong. 31, 2013.
DSE LOSERS consolidated EPS of Tk. 1.10, consolidated Record date: 13.03.2014. The Company has DUTCHBANGL: The Board of Directors has
Aver-
Closing (% Closing Weekly Weekly Weekly Turnover Latest Latest NAV per share of Tk. 19.24 and consolidated also reported consolidated EPS of Tk. 2.46, recommended 40% cash dividend for the
Company age (%
change) average closing high low in million EPS PE NOCFPS of Tk. 0.81 for the year ended on consolidated NAV per share of Tk. 19.29 and General Public Shareholders and Foreign
change)
Reliance Insur -A -16.60 -16.55 64.93 64.30 79.80 64.00 8.717 4.63 14.0 December 31, 2013. consolidated NOCFPS of Tk. 10.67 for the Sponsors/Shareholders for the year ended
Prime Finance-A -14.53 -14.70 25.47 25.30 29.50 23.50 121.172 1.10 23.2 UCBL: The Board of Directors has recom- year ended on December 31, 2013. on December 31, 2013. The Local Sponsors
Uttara Finance -A -12.35 -13.02 79.61 80.90 94.90 73.40 255.096 7.49 10.6 mended 20% cash dividend for the year MARICO: The Board of Directors of the (holding total 122,634,240 shares of Tk.
Rahima Food -Z -10.84 -8.20 59.86 59.20 67.50 58.60 13.238 -1.00 -ve ended on December 31, 2013. Date of AGM: Company has declared 500% interim cash 10.00 each) of the Company will not receive
Dutch Ban. Bnk- A -10.80 -10.27 104.62 104.90 118.60 101.00 59.059 10.00 10.5 17.04.2014, Time and Venue: To be notified dividend for the year ending on 31st March any dividend. The total amount of Tk.
Northern Jute -Z -9.86 -8.57 64.00 64.00 64.00 64.00 0.026 -10.24 -ve later on. Record date: 11.03.2014. The Compa- 2014 based on 9 months financials for the 309,463,040.00 (40% cash dividend for
GeminiSeaFood-Z -9.64 -11.11 160.00 162.20 179.10 156.00 0.322 6.44 24.8
ny has also reported EPS of Tk. 3.66, NAV per period ended 31st December 2013. Record 77,365,760 shares of Tk. 10.00 each) will be
LankaBangla Fin. -A -9.58 -9.68 65.07 65.10 68.70 62.00 131.334 4.36 14.9
share of Tk. 24.51 and NOCFPS of Tk. (2.90) date for entitlement of interim dividend: payable to the General Public Shareholders
Meghna Con. Milk -B -9.35 -8.40 9.81 9.70 11.50 9.70 1.130 -4.58 -ve
Phoenix Finance-A -8.43 -8.91 31.70 31.50 35.00 29.50 27.745 2.60 12.2 for the year ended on December 31, 2013. 12.03.2014. and Foreign Sponsors/Shareholders. Date of
PUBALIBANK: The Board of Directors has UTTARAFIN: The Board of Directors has AGM: 30.03.2014, Time: 10:00 AM, Venue:
CSE LOSERS recommended 10% stock dividend for the recommended 30% cash dividend for the 'Ballroom' of Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel,
Aver- year ended on December 31, 2013. Date of year ended on December 31, 2013. Date of Dhaka. Record date: 13.03.2014. The Com-
Closing (% Closing Weekly Weekly Weekly Turnover Latest Latest
Company age (% AGM: 25.03.2014, Time: 10:30 AM, Venue: AGM: 30.04.2014, Time: 10:00 AM, Venue: pany has also reported EPS of Tk. 10.00,
change) average closing high low in million EPS PE
change)
Bashundhara Convention Center, Baridhara, Spectra Convention Centre, House #19, NAV per share of Tk. 63.21 and NOCFPS of
Aziz PipesZ -16.96 -16.78 19.10 19.10 21.00 18.60 0.065 0.59 32.4
Dhaka. Record date: 10.03.2014. The Com- Road #7, Gulshan-1, Dhaka-1212. Record Tk. 68.34 for the year ended on December
Prime Finance-A -13.85 -14.05 25.63 25.50 28.80 25.20 17.813 1.10 23.3
Uttara Finance -A -12.88 -13.57 79.64 81.20 95.60 77.20 13.038 7.49 10.6 pany has also reported consolidated EPS of date: 12.03.2014. The Company has also 31, 2013.
Prime Insur -A -11.00 -3.21 27.46 27.50 29.50 27.00 0.149 2.23 12.3
Dutch Ban. Bnk- A -10.80 -8.09 105.70 105.70 115.30 105.50 1.313 10.00 10.6
NCCBL Mutual Fund-1-A -10.00 -9.16 8.13 8.10 8.40 7.90 0.122 1.03 7.9
Samata LeatheR -Z -9.59 -9.06 24.50 24.50 24.50 24.50 0.086 -0.04 -ve
LankaBangla Fin. -A -8.89 -9.44 65.24 65.60 67.60 64.70 11.912 4.36 15.0
National Housing Fin.-B -8.24 -9.41 30.80 31.20 34.90 28.00 0.660 1.39 22.2
First Lease- A -7.94 -6.56 29.50 29.00 31.60 28.80 2.999 2.07 14.3

Surge in market volatility kept

ANALYST investors much more cautious
last week

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY

DSE CSE Total DSE TURNOVER LEADERS
Sector
Million Taka % change Million Taka % change Million Taka % change Volume Value in % of total Weekly Price Weekly Weekly Weekly Weekly
Company
Bank 2078.18 9.00 246.29 11.86 2324.47 9.23 shares million turnover closing change opening high low average
NBFI 1396.22 6.04 92.58 4.46 1488.80 5.91 Square Pharma -A 5,167,356 1419.96 6.15 279.80 5.31 265.70 285.00 243.00 279.48
Investment 435.77 1.89 31.81 1.53 467.59 1.86 Olympic Ind. -A 4,380,978 982.78 4.25 224.00 -0.22 224.50 235.00 206.00 224.67
Engineering 2029.03 8.78 186.34 8.97 2215.37 8.80 Grameenphone-A 4,331,579 943.68 4.08 214.70 0.33 214.00 224.00 200.00 214.87
Food & Allied 1605.31 6.95 121.94 5.87 1727.25 6.86 BD Submarine Cable-A 4,107,129 933.55 4.04 228.00 3.97 219.30 238.50 201.80 228.90
Fuel & Power 2875.43 12.45 165.09 7.95 3040.52 12.08 LafargeS Cement-Z 19,009,000 781.30 3.38 43.00 6.17 40.50 43.90 38.10 42.90
Jute 13.54 0.06 0.00 0.00 13.54 0.05 Meghna Petroleum -A 2,565,354 736.84 3.19 283.90 -0.32 284.80 294.70 259.00 284.10
Textile 2037.40 8.82 168.71 8.13 2206.11 8.76 Jamuna Oil -A 2,691,307 631.17 2.73 231.20 -0.52 232.40 240.00 214.00 231.39
Pharma & Chemical 2981.85 12.91 218.76 10.54 3200.61 12.71 HeidelbergCement -A 1,255,090 579.94 2.51 458.60 2.50 447.40 473.00 410.00 458.66
Paper & Packaging 4.16 0.02 9.49 0.46 13.65 0.05 Padma Oil Co. -A 1,688,096 566.57 2.45 329.50 0.70 327.20 349.00 300.00 330.35
BSC-A 884,870 554.74 2.40 624.00 -3.22 644.75 650.75 615.00 622.25
Service 85.71 0.37 8.28 0.40 93.99 0.37
Leather 762.05 3.30 40.86 1.97 802.91 3.19
CSE TURNOVER LEADERS
Ceramic 74.05 0.32 6.16 0.30 80.21 0.32
Volume Value in % of total Weekly Price Weekly Weekly Weekly Weekly
Cement 1977.15 8.56 168.55 8.12 2145.69 8.52 Company
shares million turnover closing change opening high low average
Information Technology 236.67 1.02 26.45 1.27 263.12 1.05 BD Submarine Cable-A 901,193 205.00 10.01 228.10 4.59 218.10 238.00 218.40 228.96
General Insurance 337.00 1.46 8.78 0.42 345.78 1.37 Grameenphone-A 533,000 116.23 5.68 214.10 0.23 213.60 224.00 211.00 214.53
Life Insurance 1261.67 5.46 55.02 2.65 1316.69 5.23 BSC-A 184,300 115.64 5.65 624.80 -2.91 643.50 648.00 612.00 623.11
Telecom 1877.23 8.13 321.23 15.47 2198.46 8.73 LafargeS Cement-Z 2,411,000 98.38 4.80 43.00 6.44 40.40 43.60 36.10 42.72
Travel & Leisure 231.80 1.00 43.88 2.11 275.67 1.09 Square Pharma -A 331,818 91.15 4.45 279.90 5.62 265.00 281.00 265.50 279.79
Miscellaneous 799.69 3.46 155.84 7.51 955.53 3.79 UCBL - A 2,768,650 79.22 3.87 28.30 0.71 28.10 29.80 26.00 28.47
Debenture 2.82 0.01 0.25 0.01 3.07 0.01 Singer BD -A 227,198 57.96 2.83 256.20 -1.31 259.60 262.30 248.30 256.05
Padma Oil Co. -A 152,125 51.11 2.50 329.70 0.73 327.30 344.90 327.10 330.13
Prepared exclusively for Dhaka Tribune by Business Information Automation Service Line (BIASL), on the basis of information collected from daily stock quotations and Olympic Ind. -A 217,875 49.06 2.40 223.60 -0.71 225.20 235.00 216.50 224.46
audited reports of the listed companies. High level of caution has been taken to collect and present the above information and data. The publisher will not take any responsibility
if any body uses this information and data for his/her investment decision. For any query please email to biasl@bol-online.com or call 01552153562 or go to www.biasl.net Southeast Bank-A 2,143,484 48.93 2.39 23.00 5.02 21.90 24.80 20.90 23.07

China’s commerce minister
warns against over-expansion
n AFP, Beijing
China’s commerce minister on Friday
warned industries and companies not
to over-expand, after the collapse last
year of a key unit of the world’s biggest
solar firm.
The country’s decades-long boom
has turned it into the world’s second-
largest economy and a key driver of
global growth, but at the same time
major internal imbalances have devel-
oped.
China’s Suntech Power, once the
world’s biggest maker of solar cells and
panels, sought market share by driving
down prices to levels some competitors
claim were loss-making. However, its
main Chinese unit, Wuxi Suntech, filed
for bankruptcy last March with debts of
hundreds of millions of dollars.
“What we should take into account
is that some industries should not de-
velop overly fast, particularly expand
blindly,” Gao Hucheng told reporters.
“They should not either rely on the
foreign market for the majority of their
product sales,” he added.
Disputes over solar panels shook
trade relations between China and the
European Union and United States last
MasterCard, Visa form
group to enhance
payment security
n Reuters
Visa Inc and MasterCard Inc, the
world’s two largest payment networks,
have formed a new cross-industry
group to improve payment system se-
curity following a number of high-pro-
file data breaches.
The new group, which will include
banks, credit unions, retailers and
industry trade groups, will initially
focus on the adoption of the safer
‘EMV’ chip technology in the United
States, MasterCard and Visa said on
Friday.
EMV chip technology, already used
in Europe and Asia, stores information
on computer chips rather than on tra-
ditional magnetic strips. EMV stands
for Europay, MasterCard and Visa, the
companies that launched the technol-
ogy.
The move follows several data
breaches at US retailers, including one
at Target Corp late last year involving
the theft of about 40 million credit and
debit card records.
“We remain insistent that US retail-
ers’ customers be given the same pro-
tections as consumers in more than 80
countries who have both a chip and
a PIN securing their credit and debit
cards,” National Retail Federation Gen-
eral Counsel Mallory Duncan said in a
statement.
MasterCard and Visa had already set
a deadline of October 2015 for US retail-
ers to adopt the new payment technol-
ogy.
But banks and retailers have been
dragging their feet over the required
upgrade, at odds over who should bear
Etihad Airways resumes its Dollar stuck in tight range ahead of US jobs data
flight at Abu Dhabi hub n AFP, Tokyo
n Tribune Business Desk
Several thousand Etihad Airways pas-
sengers affected by disruptions at Abu
Dhabi International Airport have now
been able to resume their journeys,
while others continue to be assisted by
hundreds of extra Etihad Airways staff
at the Abu Dhabi hub and across the
airline’s network.
A total of 6,600 passengers were im-
pacted by delayed services on Thurs-
day, all of whom have since travelled
Export Import Bank of Bangladesh Limited shifted its Boardbazar branch to a new location
at Hazi Fazlul Haque Plaza in Boardbazar, National University,Gazipur Sadar, Gazipur
yesterday with a view to provide better service. The bank’s MD and CEO Dr Mohammed
Haider Ali Miah inaugurated the shifted branch
DHAKA TRIBUNE
year, which accuse Beijing of unfairly
subsidising the industry.
The sector is still hampered by fall-
out from overproduction combined
with falling prices for cells and panels.
China’s first-ever default on a do-
mestic corporate bond was anticipated
Friday as Shanghai-based Chaori So-
lar Energy Science & Technology said
Tuesday it was unable to make full
bond interest payments due Friday.
'China pays great attention to the progress of the
TPP negotiations and is assessing the situations of
the talks. We are also maintaining communications
with the major negotiating parties'
Gao’s comments came at a news con-
ference on the sidelines of the annual
session of the National People’s Con-
gress, China’s Communist Party-led
parliament.
On Wednesday, Premier Li Keqiang
announced a growth target of “around
7.5%” for this year and reiterated the
importance of fostering consumer de-
mand.
the cost, which experts say could be as
much as $10bn.
Target said last month it was accel-
erating a $100m programme to imple-
ment the use of chip-enabled smart
cards to protect against cyber threat,
with a goal to have the technology in
place by early 2015.
EMV cards are harder to counter-
feit and better protect sensitive data
through encryption.
They can also require users to enter
a personal identification number, or
PIN, to make purchases, adding an ex-
tra layer of security.
“The recent high-profile breaches
have served as a catalyst for much
needed collaboration between the re-
tail and financial services industry on
the issue of payment security,” Visa
President Ryan McInerney said in the
statement. l
out of Abu Dhabi International Airport.
Hotel accommodation has been
provided in Abu Dhabi for more than
a thousand guests who missed their
onward connections and extra flights
were operated on Friday to help clear
the passenger backlog at the airport,
said a press release. In addition, of the
3,100 passengers affected by cancelled
services on Thursday, 2,800 are expect-
ed to be re-accommodated on Friday.
Flights have departed to a variety of
destinations including Dhaka. l
Business
China’s leadership is vowing to
transform the country’s economic
growth model away from an over-
reliance on often wasteful investment
projects and instead make private de-
mand the driver for the country’s fu-
ture development.
Asked about the Trans-Pacific Part-
nership (TPP), a huge US-led free trade
area currently under negotiation which
so far excludes China, Gao said that
Beijing has an open attitude to global
trade and investment deals.
“We think the TPP is an important
negotiation and an FTA of high stan-
dard,” Gao said.
“China pays great attention to the
progress of the TPP negotiations and is
assessing the situations of the talks. We
are also maintaining communications
with the major negotiating parties.” l
Samsung
jumps into
crowded
music market
n AFP, Washington
Samsung on Friday unveiled a free
music service for users of its Galaxy
smartphones, entering a crowded mar-
ket that includes Pandora, Spotify and
Apple’s iTunes.
The service dubbed “Milk Music”
will offer some 200 ad-free radio sta-
tions to US customers with Samsung
Galaxy devices.
“Milk introduces a fresh approach
to music that reflects our innovation
leadership and our focus on creating
best-in-class consumer experiences,”
said Gregory Lee, president and chief
executive of Samsung Telecommuni-
cations America.
“We’re offering consumers amazing,
rich music experiences built around
what matters most to them and their
lifestyle.”
Milk is powered by the radio ser-
vice Slacker. The company suggested it
may take a page from Apple by offering
“unique music programming from top
selling and emerging artists” available
exclusively through the platform.
The South Korean Electronics
giant, which is the world’s biggest
smartphone maker and is challenging
Apple in the US market, said the service
will be offered with no log-in required
and no need to browse for a specific
artist or song.
It will have 200 genre-based and
curated stations and some 13 million
songs, and like other service will allow
six song skips per hour per station.
Apple last year introduced its
ad-supported iTunes radio service,
which also allows customers to
make purchases from the iTunes
catalog.l
The dollar moved narrowly against
the yen and euro in Asia on Friday as
investors await US jobs data later in
the day for clues about the state of the
world’s largest economy.
The US currency fetched 103.00 yen
in Tokyo afternoon trade, slightly down
from 103.08 yen in New York Thursday
afternoon, but higher than the 102.72
yen in Tokyo earlier Thursday.
The euro, which gained Thursday
on the European Central Bank’s upbeat
outlook on the eurozone economy,
slipped to $1.3856 and 142.72 yen from
$1.3861 and 142.88 yen.
The ECB on Thursday held its interest
rates unchanged for the fourth month in
a row, assessing that the nascent recov-
ery in the bloc remains on track.
Most economic data released re-
cently suggest that the spectre of de-
flation - the destructive spiral of falling
prices in which consumers put off pur-
chases, thus destroying salaries, jobs
and investment - is being kept at bay.
But investors were watching to see
if policymakers would pull the trigger
on further easing measures.
“Forex markets were more interest-
ed in what the ECB did with its growth
and inflation forecasts,” rather than
Sunday, March 9, 2014
US household
wealth above
$80tn
n Reuters
US household net worth jumped to a
new high at the end of last year, as the
value of real estate and shareholdings
rose and bank accounts swelled.
The Federal Reserve said on Thurs-
day net worth increased $2.95tn to
$80.66tn in the fourth quarter, eclips-
ing a previous record high.
The value of households’ property,
consumer goods, bank deposits and
stocks all increased in the quarter.
The Fed said household net worth
rose 14% in the full year, driven by a
$5.6tn rise in the value of shares and a
$2.3tn increase in the value of real es-
tate.
The US central bank has used ultra-
loose monetary policy to encourage a
recovery in the nation’s housing mar-
ket following a severe 2007-2009 reces-
sion, which has also helped drive US
stocks to record highs.
Increases in housing wealth make
it easier for families to borrow against
the equity in their homes, while over-
all wealth gains make consumers feel
generally more comfortable spending
their money. Many economists think
consumers spend a few cents of every
dollar they gain in wealth. l
Privacy groups ask regulators to halt
Facebook’s $19bn WhatsApp deal
n Reuters, San Francisco
Privacy advocates have asked US reg-
ulators to halt Facebook Inc’s $19bn
acquisition of messaging service
WhatsApp until there is a clearer un-
derstanding of how the company in-
tends to use the personal data of What-
sApp’s 450 million users.
WhatsApp, a service that allows
mobile phone users to send each oth-
er messages, has had a longstanding
commitment to not collect user data
for advertising purposes.
But there’s no guarantee that that
commitment will hold true once the
service becomes part of Facebook,
according to the filing to the Federal
Trade Commission by the Electronic
Privacy Information Center and the
Center for Digital Democracy, both
non-profit groups.
The complaint asks regulators to
the Ukraine crisis, National Australia
bank said in a note.
The United States and Russia are
working to resolve the crisis in East-
ern Europe, which flared when law-
makers agreed to sending troops into
the mainly Russian-speaking Crimean
peninsula after the ousting of Ukraine’s
pro-Moscow government.
The dollar won support from data
that showed jobless benefit claims fell
last week to a three-month low, raising
expectations for a strong monthly em-
Oil prices up on US jobs
optimism, Ukraine
n AFP, Singapore
Oil prices rose in Asian trade Friday
ahead of the release of a key monthly
US jobs report while investors keep an
eye on the crisis in Ukraine’s Crimean
peninsula.
New York’s main contract, West
Texas Intermediate for April delivery,
rose 37 cents to $101.93 in afternoon
Asian trade. Brent North Sea crude for
April was up 37 cents at $108.47.
Investors are expecting the US
non-farm payrolls report for February
due out later Friday to mirror strong
jobless claims figures released on
Thursday.
First-time claims for unemploy-
ment benefits fell to a three-month low
of 323,000 in the week ending March
1, from the prior week’s revised read-
ing of 349,000, the Labour Department
said.
Analysts had expected the claims to
fall to 338,000.
“It’s all about payrolls today. It will
be interesting to see if it will be another
weather-restrained result, and more
importantly, if the unemployment rate
comes down towards the psychologi-
cal 6.5% mark,” United Overseas Bank
investigate the deal “specifically with
regard to the ability of Facebook to ac-
cess WhatsApp’s store of user mobile
phone numbers and metadata.”
Facebook, the world’s No1 social
network with 1.2 billion users, gen-
erates the majority of its revenue by
showing ads that target users by age,
gender and other traits.
“As we have said repeatedly, What-
sapp will operate as a separate com-
pany and will honor its commitments
to privacy and security,” Facebook said
in a statement in response to the filing.
The FTC declined to comment.
Facebook stunned the technol-
ogy industry last month when it an-
nounced its intention to buy the five-
year old WhatsApp for $19bn in cash
and stock. WhatsApp does not show
ads on its service, charging some of its
users a $1 annual fee to use the service.
WhatsApp stores users’ mobile
ployment report later Friday.
“If non-farm payrolls are disap-
pointing again, the pair will likely pull
back to around 102.50 yen after the
recent gains,” Osao Iizuka, head of FX
trading at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust and
Banking, told Dow Jones Newswires.
But sharp declines in the greenback
were unlikely as the market has fac-
tored in a possibly weak figure due to
harsh winter weather, he added.
The dollar was lower against other
Asia-Pacific currencies.
B3
said in a commentary.
Mounting tensions over Russia’s
incursion into Ukraine’s Crimean pen-
insula continue to provide strong sup-
port to oil prices, analysts said.
The ex-Soviet state is in danger
of breaking apart after Crimea’s
parliament unanimously voted to join
Russia, in a sharp escalation of the
worst East-West security crisis since
the Cold War.
Both Kiev’s new Western-backed in-
terim leaders and US President Barack
Obama denounced the decision as ille-
gal and illegitimate.
Washington has slapped visa
bans on Russians and Ukrainians in-
volved in the Crimean incursion,
the latest series of moves by the US
administration to punish Mos-
cow, while the European Union has
also imposed punitive measures in-
cluding freezing visa and financial
talks.
“The complications arising from
Eastern Europe (are) likely to pro-
vide good support to crude oil due
to fears over disruptions,” Tan Chee
Tat, an investment analyst at
Phillip Futures in Singapore, said in a
note. l
REUTERS
phone numbers, but unlike many on-
line services, it does not collect user
names, emails, and other contact in-
formation.
Despite assurances by WhatsApp
and Facebook that the privacy policies
will not change, the groups that wrote
the FTC filing note that Facebook has
in the past amended an acquired-com-
pany’s privacy policies, such as the
Instagram photo-sharing service that
Facebook acquired in 2012.
Regulators must require that Face-
book “insulate” WhatsApp user infor-
mation from access by Facebook’s data
collection practices, reads the com-
plaint.
“WhatsApp users could not
reasonably have anticipated that by
selecting a pro-privacy messaging
service, they would subject their
data to Facebook’s data collection
practices,” reads the filing. l
REUTERS
It weakened to 11,415 Indonesian
rupiah from 11,545 rupiah Thursday, to
61.02 Indian rupees from 61.75 rupees
and to 44.46 Philippine pesos from
44.70 pesos.
The greenback also declined to
1,063.58 South Korean won from 1,066.45
won, to 32.28 Thai baht from 32.30 baht,
and to Sg$1.2643 from Sg$1.2676.
The Australian dollar rose to 90.85
US cents from 90.18 cents, while the
Chinese yuan bought 16.84 yen against
16.76 yen. l
B4
Online motorbike
sales rise
n Faisal Mahmud
Motorbike enthusiasts have found on-
line market as their desired place to
score a deal.
It was found the sale of motorbikes
has been increasing cumulatively in
the online market as dealers across
the country added a new dimension to
marketing.
Now, the buyers do not need to go
to different showrooms to compare the
pricing and conditions of motorbikes
– they can just go online and have all
prices and models.
Country’s leading online market
place, Bikroy.com, says the number
of second hand motorbike advertise-
ments in January has increased by 13%
since November. In January more than
6,500 advertisements was uploaded on
their site alone.
According to statistics from Bikroy.
com, Bajaj Pulsar was the most popu-
lar second hand motorbike online. In
January, a total of 870 advertisements
of Bajaj Pulsar have been uploaded
on Bikroy.com at an average price of
Tk155,000 each.
The price depends on the model
Emerging markets face painful carry trade bay-back
n Reuters, London
Emerging economies may be on the
cusp of a great unwinding of borrow-
low invest-high carry trades, through
which an estimated $2tn has flooded
mainly into their debt markets in the
past five years.
The latest cycle of carry trades is the
third in little over two decades and its
estimated size is roughly double that of
its predecessor. A reversal poses a spe-
cific risk to debt markets, especially in
China, where investors who facilitated
a corporate lending binge face both
currency and credit losses.
With investors demanding higher
compensation for growing political and
economic risks, even aggressive inter-
est rate hikes by emerging market cen-
tral banks defending their currencies
may not be enough to keep the carry
party swinging.
Since the Federal Reserve started of-
fering cheap money under its quantita-
tive easing policy in late 2008, emerg-
ing banks and corporates have issued
LEADERSHIP SUMMIT 2014
Overcoming challenges
Major General Richard M Burr, Deputy
Commanding General, US Army Asia Pacific
n Tribune Business Desk
In the modern globalised, interdepen-
dent world, leadership challenges are
increasingly complex. Despite our pref-
erences for a simple, linear solution,
the answers to these challenges often
follow a convoluted path. How can
leaders approach challenges across in-
creasingly long distances, over ethnic,
cultural, and linguistic barriers, while
maintaining partnerships and building
the strength of an enterprise?   United States Army Pacific on 17 Janu-
Major General Richard Burr has lived
these challenges all over the world.  His
insight as a military leader has applica-
tions for many aspects of human en-
deavour.
Major General Richard (Rick) Max-
well Burr, DSC AM MVO, born in 1964 is
a senior officer in the Australian Army
DILBERT
DHAKA TRIBUNE Back Page
Brand Model
Average price Number of
for uploaded ads uploaded
ads in Jan in Jan
Bajaj Pulsar Tk155,000 870
TVS Apache Tk160,000 260
Yamhaa FZ S Tk180,000 245
Hero CBZ Tk140,000 190
year of motorbikes, condition and
mileage. For example, there is a Bajaj
Puslar 2012 model year available
for Tk175,000. There is also a 2008
year model available online for
Tk105,000.
A significant number of motorbike
dealers are regularly posting advertise-
ments online market places and selling
their cars without any peril.
Kamal from Universe motors says
that motorbike selling is up again after
the political turmoil. Akbar from Halim
Motors says that the prices of motor-
bikes are in an upward trend.
“The demand of motorbikes is
growing more than the supply in
Banlgadesh and that is the main
reason for the increase in prices,” said
Akbar. l
substantial volumes of foreign curren-
cy-denominated bonds and borrowed
heavily from overseas banks.
According to Bank of America Mer-
rill Lynch, external bond issuance from
emerging markets more than doubled
to $2tn in the five years to end-Sep-
tember 2013. Including bank loans, EM
had attracted investment from abroad
totalling $5tn by autumn 2013, nearly
$2tn more than five years ago.
In return, investors enjoyed quick
profits by borrowing in low-yielding
currencies like the dollar and euro to
invest in high-yielding emerging debt.
Some retail investors have begun
unwinding these trades. EPFR-tracked
bond funds have lost over $11bn this
year, compared with outflows of $14bn
for the whole of 2013.
But institutional investors - which
make up the bulk of EM carry trades -
have yet to head to the exits.
"On a net basis it has not unwound,
or in fact it may have increased further
... But as some people put it, carry is a
rental profit. You have to give it back
and is currently serving as the Deputy
Commanding General – Operations,
United States Army Pacific.
Burr joined the Australian Army
at the age of 17 as an officer cadet and
attended the Royal Military College,
Duntroon. After graduation from Dun-
troon, Burr served as a platoon com-
mander in the 8th/9th Battalion, Royal
Australian Regiment.
In 2002, Burr commanded Austra-
lian troops in Afghanistan and Austra-
lian troops during Operation Falconer
in 2003. In 2008, Burr commanded Spe-
cial Forces operations in Afghanistan.
On 21 August 2012, United States
Army Secretary John M McHugh an-
nounced that Burr would be seconded
to the United States Army, to become
Deputy Commander, United States
Army Pacific (USARPAC). Burr will su-
pervise training and USARPAC liaison
with countries in Southeast Asia and
Australasia. He will report to Lieuten-
ant General Frank Wiercinski.
He has spent the majority of his
military career with Australian Special
Forces units. He is also the patron of the
Defence Australian Rules Football As-
sociation. On 31 October 2012 he stood
down as the Commander 1st Division
and assumed the post as Deputy Com-
manding General – Operations of the
ary 2013. Burr is the first non-American
to serve in this position.
At the Leadership Summit 2014, Ma-
jor General Richard M Burr will share
his insights and learning in leadership
under the title: Building a Coalition -
Inspiring Teamwork amongst Diverse
Partners. l
WORLD'S FIRST CAR DECORATED WITH GOLD LEAF
A view of the inside of a Carlsson CS50 Versailles edition car model at the stand of the German car tuning company during the Geneva Motor Show yesterday, in Geneva. For
extravagance, luxury and bling-bling lovers, the German manufacturer Carlsson presents the World's first car decorated with gold leaf. Around thousand gold leafs were used to cover
the body of the tuned model car, a Mercedes S500 new generation, which is part of a special edition of 25 copies only
at some point," said Salman Ahmed,
strategist at Lombard Odier Investment
Managers.
"This time, carry trades are more
concentrated in the high-duration
corporate bond market. Money went
into the 10-year and seven-year debt.
It's a much riskier situation because
you have FX exposure and underlying
credit and duration exposure."
Duration is a commonly used mea-
sure of risk that indicates how price-
sensitive a bond is to changes in inter-
est rates.
Average interest rates in emerging
economies have bounced off post-
crisis lows after aggressive monetary
tightening by the likes of Turkey and
Russia. But analysts said that was un-
likely to kick off a new round of carry
trades.
"EM carry is happening at a time
when developed equities are doing
well. There's competition between DM
and EM," Ahmed said. "You are choos-
ing 10% carry and political and FX
risks, or a 15% gain without any risks.
Middle East drought a threat to global food prices
n Reuters, Amman
The Middle East's driest winter in
several decades could pose a threat
to global food prices, with local crops
depleted and farmers' livelihoods
blighted, UN experts and climatolo-
gists say.
Varying degrees of drought are
hitting almost two thirds of the
limited arable land across Syria,
Lebanon, Jordan, the Palestinian
territories and Iraq.
"Going back to the last 100 years,
I don't think you can get a five-year
span that's been as dry," said Moham-
mad Raafi Hossain, a UN Food and
Agriculture Organisation (FAO) envi-
ronmental economist.
The dry season has already hurt
prospects for the cereal harvest in ar-
eas of Syria and to a lesser extent Iraq.
Several of the countries under pres-
sure are already significant buyers of
grain from international markets.
"When governments that are re-
sponsible for importing basic food-
stuffs have shortages in production,
they will go to outside markets, where
the extra demand will no doubt push
global food prices higher," said Nakd
Khamis, seed expert and consultant
to the FAO.
The Standard Precipitation Index
(SPI) shows the region has not had
such low rainfall since at least 1970.
This was part of the initial findings
of a joint technical study on Drought
Risk Management undertaken by sev-
eral U.N. agencies, including the FAO,
UNDP and UNESCO, that would be
formally published later this month,
Hossain said.
Water and agriculture authorities,
alongside specialist UN agencies, have
begun preparing plans to officially
declare a state of drought that spreads
beyond the Eastern Middle East to
Morocco and as far south as Yemen,
climatologists and officials say.
Drought is becoming more severe
in parts of the Eastern Mediterranean
and Iraq, while Syria, having seen
several droughts in recent decades, is
again being hit hard, said Mohamad
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Carry may have to go further higher to
bring people back."
Emerging markets have seen carry
trades fuel a boom-and-bust cycle be-
fore. The first, driven by foreign banks,
funded East Asian economic expansion
before ending in 1997 with the Asian fi-
nancial crisis.
The second was the gigantic yen car-
ry trade that built up in the early 2000s,
during which an estimated $1tn poured
into big emerging economies before a
rapid unravelling in 2008.
Some cash from carry trades which
have been unwound this time may
be making its way into high-yielding
corporate debt in developed markets,
according to Yves Bonzon, chief in-
vestment officer at Pictet Wealth Man-
agement.
"You borrow/short and leverage DM
corporate debt with five-to-seven year
duration risk, or maybe the euro zone
periphery," he said. "As long as you
have global capital flows and local reg-
ulations you will have carry trades, it is
inevitable."
Khawlie, a natural resources expert
with Planinc, an international consul-
tancy focused on geospatial studies
in the Middle East and Africa (MENA)
region.
In Jordan, among the 10 countries
facing the worst water shortages glob-
ally, Hazem al-Nasser, minister of
water and irrigation, told Reuters pre-
cipitation levels were the lowest since
records began 60 years ago.
Even after an exceptionally heavy
snow storm that hit the region in mid-
December, the kingdom's dams are
still only 42% full, down from 80%
last year, officials say.
When governments that are responsible for
importing basic foodstuffs have shortages in
production, they will go to outside markets,
where the extra demand will no doubt push
global food prices higher
In Lebanon, where climate change
has stripped its mountain slopes
of the snow needed to recharge
groundwater basins, rain is "way
below the average", said Beirut-based
ecosystem and livelihoods consultant
Fady Asmar, who works with UN
agencies.
He said the stress on water re-
sources from prodigal usage was ex-
acerbated by the presence of nearly a
million registered refugees since the
Syrian civil war began in 2011.
Only Israel will not face acute
problems, helped by its long-term in-
vestment in desalination plants and
pioneering water management tech-
niques.
In Iraq and Syria, where most of
the country is too arid for agriculture,
civil conflict and lack of water storage
facilities will add to the hardship of
rural communities dependent on crop
cultivation and livestock.
UN-based field studies show that
China risks
China could be one of the biggest vic-
tims if yuan carry trades unwind. Years
of stable appreciation in the yuan end-
ed abruptly last week when the central
bank let the currency make its biggest
weekly decline since 1994.
BofA says Chinese banks and corpo-
rates issued $655bn in foreign currency
bonds in the five years to September
2013, five times more than the prior
five-year period to 2008.
The volume of outstanding external
bonds grew by five times, to $239.7bn.
However, Chinese corporates have
also borrowed in the shadow banking
sector, which sold "trust" products to
investors.
China's domestic bond market was
worth 9.3tn yuan ($1.5tn) at the end of
last year, but the real size of its private
sector credit market is unknown.
Part of these funds were raised over-
seas. Net lending by Hong Kong-based
banks - key participants in intermediat-
ing China carry trades - rose to 148% of
Hong Kong's GDP in late 2013, from just
over 30% of households in Iraq, Syria
and to a lesser extent the Palestinian
territories and Jordan, are connected
with agriculture.
"Crop production is going down
because of drought, and so in these
agro-pastoral economies you are
looking at many, many lives that are
now affected," Hossain said.
In Iraq, which once boasted the
largest tracts of fertile arable land in
the region, it is only three years since
the last major cycle of drought ended,
which covered more than 73% of the
country.
Extracts from a soon-to-be released
UN-commissioned study says drought
in Iraq will persist, increasing in
severity from 2017 to 2026, increasing
further the dependence on foreign
food imports by one of the top grains
importers in the world.
The UN study extracts say Turkey,
where much of Iraq and Syria's wa-
ter resources originate, has cut the
volume of water flowing into the Eu-
phrates and Tigris rivers by dam con-
struction to meet their own growing
domestic needs.
Syria
A poor rain season in Syria has already
hit its 2014 wheat outlook in the main
rain-fed areas in the north eastern
parts of the country, which should
be ready for harvest in June and July,
Syrian agriculturalists say.
Experts say that even if late heavy
rain comes in March, this will not save
the rain-fed cereal harvest, which
farmers are already resigned to rel-
AFP
18% in 2007.
Yuan-denominated "dim sum"
bonds designed to attract foreign in-
vestors have turned into a 600bn yuan-
plus market in a little over three years,
mainly out of Hong Kong.
"The Trust sector in China could cre-
ate rollover risks that reverse a glutton-
ous carry trade with China, but partly
financed overseas," BofA Merrill said in
a client note.
Credit risk is also rising. China re-
corded its first domestic bond default
when loss-making solar equipment
producer Chaori Solar missed an inter-
est payment.
Any combination of higher US
yields, tighter regulation on trust prod-
ucts, further yuan appreciation or vola-
tile currency could trigger an unwind
in China carry trades.
"There is speculation they are clean-
ing out speculators," said Jeff Kalin-
owski, EM bond portfolio specialist at
T Rowe Price. "The general view is that
liberalisation will bring greater volatil-
ity. It's less of a carry trade bet." l
egating to animal fodder.
"When there is delay in rains, then
the cereals will eventually wilt. An-
nual growth has not been achieved for
the rain to come and continue matu-
rity of the stalks," Asmar said.
Crop production in the conflict-
torn country that once boasted bum-
per wheat seasons is expected to de-
cline further.
Syria's wheat production is now
pinned on the irrigated sown areas
that depend on the Euphrates and un-
derground water, which before 2011
accounted for no more than 40% of
total annual production.
The drought and war could slash
Syria's total wheat output to less
than a third of its pre-crisis harvest of
around 3.5 million tonnes to just over
a million tonnes in 2014. Agricultural
experts say the most favourable esti-
mates for last year's harvest did not
exceed 2 million tonnes.
Drought that peaked in severity
during 2008 and 2009 but persisted
into 2010 was blamed by some ex-
perts in Syria for the soaring food
prices that aggravated social tensions
and in turn triggered the 2011 uprising
against President Bashar al-Assad.
"Prior to the protests, food costs
were soaring. In fact, because of
these food costs, the protests were
instigated, so this was brought on by
drought and lack of planning," said
FAO's Hossain.
Economic hardship was aggra-
vated by faltering public subsidy
schemes that once efficiently distrib-
uted subsidised fertilisers and seeds
to millions of drought-hit farmers in
both Syria and Iraq, agro-economists
add.
Middle-Eastern experts predict
more frequent drought cycles in com-
ing years, accompanied by delayed
winter rainy seasons that damage
fruits by promoting premature flow-
ering and prevent cereal crops grow-
ing to full maturity.
"The climate change cycles are
now shorter, which means ... we will
eventually have less rain and more
frequent droughts," Fady Asmar said. l