The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Country's business people yesterday urged the government to provide protection to their goods transportation during the curfew hours to keep the supply chain uninterrupted.

Especially, the Readymade Garment (RMG) exporters have urged the government to ensure transportation of their goods to and from Chitagong during curfew hours to help meet the deadline of lead-time.

Both the businessmen urged the government to keep their trade outside the purview of curfew. Disruption of supply chain may fuel increase of price of essentials, they said. "We are observing the situation. If the curfew continues for some time, the government should consider exempting the export-based industries," president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Fazlul Haque told newsmen yesterday.

He said production is going on at different places, especially in Narayanganj and Gazipur, where curfew has not been imposed the finished products are stacked in the warehouses.

He noted that the country exports garment products worth about US$25 million a day, and the sector has taken a setback since last night following the curfew.

Anwar-Ul-Alam Chowdhury, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), hoped that the situation would improve soon.

He maintained that the chaos preceding the clampdown needed to be dealt with strictly. The BGMEA president also urged the government to consider exempting the RMG units, its production and shipment from the curfew's restrictions.

The Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industries president, Hossain Khaled, feared that the situation will deepen the country's image crisis, asking the government to keep the export wheel moving.

Talking to The New Nation businessmen from different wholesale markets said the government has to ensure smooth supply of essentials to keep the price stable.

Unless goods transportation is ensured during the curfew hours, it may put negative impact on the market, they said.

BSS, Rangpur

Different government, non- government and donor organisations with the help of the armed forces have further intensified post-flood relief, agro- rehabilitation and medicare services in greater Rangpur districts, official sources said on Thursday night

At the same time, the government has allocated adequate money for every flood-hit district to help the small and marginal farmers in making the upcoming Rabi crop farming successful and to recoup the losses they incurred by the recent floods, officials added.

They said the organisations have stepped up their efforts for distributing relief goods and medicare services and oral saline as well as quickening agro-rehabilitation to mitigate the sufferings of the affected people. Besides, voluntary organisations, affluent people, business community, financial and educational institutions, professional groups side by side with the NGOs and donor agencies including WFP, UNICEF, Oxfam-GB, Save The Children and CARE-Bangladesh have intensified their relief and rehabilitation operation.

The overall diarrhoea situation remains under control as hundreds of medical teams, NGOs and other organisations have also geared up their efforts of providing the victims with medical services and life-saving medicines as water-borne diseases were spreading recently in the flood-hit areas.

The government departments are taking preparations for conducting reconstruction and repair of the damaged infrastructures including bridges, embankments, educational institutions, dams, culverts and roads will be launched from October in the affected areas, officials said.

"Presently, we have put the emphasis on agricultural rehabilitation by providing T-Aman seedlings and seeds of various crops including vegetables to the affected farmers and providing relief goods among the flood-hit people of the districts," they added. Distribution of T-Aman seedlings and crop seeds by the Armed Forces, Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE), Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI) and a number of NGOs are working for the affected marginal farmers.

The government departments intensified distributing T-Aman seedlings and other seeds among the flood-affected farmers in the districts of greater Rangpur.

T-Aman seedlings, prepared in the unaffected districts of the Region, will be distributed among the affected farmers from the first week of the next month by different organisations and NGOS.

Chief Scientific Officer of BRRI, Rangpur Regional Research Centre Dr Abdul Mazid told BSS last night that despite early floods, there are also enough opportunities and possibilities of a bumper T-Aman production this year, if the farmers were provided with adequate quantity of T-Aman seedlings.

"Additional seedlings of different varieties may be brought from the other areas and distributed among the farmers as there are adequate times for T-Aman plantation by the middle of September for beter production," he added.

Some varieties of T-Aman seedlings could be planted by the end of September and there would be an excellent production of the crop as the over-flooded soil has become very fertile for deposition of alluvial soils brought by the floodwaters, he added.

Meanwhile, the government has taken adequate steps for the next Rabi crop farming through ensuring supply of quality seeds including high yielding and hybrid varieties seeds of Boro, potato, maize, wheat and vegetables among the farmers for cultivating the crops in more land, officials said.

The government has allocated a sum of Taka 45.48 lakh for Rangpur alone to provide each affected small and marginal farmer with necessary seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and other agro-inputs free of costs for cultivating Rabi crop in one bigha (33 decimals) land like other flood-hit districts, officials said last night

Staff Reporter

All the boarders of Nawab Fayejunnessa Karmojibi Mohila Hostel, one of the government-run women's hostels for the service holders, had been passing time through a haphazard condition since three days last as the authorities cut the gas connection.

The authorities did the job as the angry boarders locked the canteen in protest against various allegations and mismanagement of the authorities, including the hike of seat rent, low quality canteen service, misbehaviour.

Besides, the boarders staged demonstration demanding the immediate solution of their problems and appointing of the hostel super and a matron. According to the Hostel sources, the hostel had been running without a hostel super, matron and adequate manpower.

A number of the boarders explained their sufferings saying that due to the gas line disconnection, they had been spending their days without food.

One of the boarders, Umme-Jannatul Nahar Sumi, a lecturer of Dhaka Residential Model College, alleged, "We do not get any facilities from the hostel. All the staff misbehave with us."

She added that the hostel employees always issued threats saying that they would cancel their seats if anyone goes against the employees.

Some other boarders alleged that although the senior officials are informed of these things, they never take any action in this regard.

When contacted, Mahfuza Akter, assistant hostel Super, yesterday admited the inadequacy of their manpower and said, "Although, there is no hostel super, she herself is trying to solve the boarders' demands".

Sheikh Arif Bulbon

Banned polythene shopping bags have come back to Dhaka city markets as a section of unscrupulous manufacturers have been producing and marketing the products.

The magistrates, who are assigned to launch drive against the illegal manufacturers, marketers and users of polythene bags, cannot take effective steps due to lack of enforcement of legal power, said a magistrate who is conducting such drive.

He added that it is very essential to amend the existing law giving more power to the magistrates so that they can take action against those who manufacture and market polythene bags. However, the Bangladesh Environment Protection Act 1995 had given power only to the Poribesh Adalat (Environment Court), which can take action against the manufacturers and users of illegal shopping bags and fine up to Tk 10 lakh and award imprisonment of 10 years or both, said an environmentalist

The environment court also can seal off the factory and remove materials, but there is no power for magistrate in the act to take action or conduct drive against them, he added.

In 2000, the government in an amendment to the Environment Protection Act 1995, gave power to the special magistrates to fine with the highest Tk 10,000 and award imprisonment of six years to the manufacturers and users of the produces, but they have no power to seize or seal off the factory.

The government, however, has recently allowed 50-micron and 55-micron polypropylene bag for packaging of the consumer goods.

The Government conditionally allowed the BCIC to use 50-micron polypropylene bags or to package of fertiliser and 55-micron bags for the Forest Department and the Commerce Ministry for using in tea plant, said an official of the Environment and Forest Ministry. According to the rules, the 50-micron and 55-micron specifications and usages have to inscribe on the bags in both Bengali and English. Manufacturers will have to take permission from the Department of Environment (DoE), he added.

The recent permission of 50-micron and 55-micron polythene bags may broaden the scope of producing more poly bags illegally, feared environmentalists who also demanded proper monitoring of it

Meanwhile, the government imposed a ban on manufacturing, marketing and use of polythene bags in Dhaka city on January 1, 2002, followed by a nationwide ban on April 8 in the same year.

More than 400 factories are now manufacturing polythene bags in Dhaka and about 300 of them located in the old part of Dhaka city.

The main wholesale markets of polythene bags include Chawkbazar, Begumbazar and Moulavibazar, which cater to the retail markets in the city and other districts.

BSS, Dhaka

A sudden burst of rains totaled 119 mm in northern Dhaka on Friday which also kept the day's maximum temperature to 30.5 degrees Celsius while the met office forecast some more rains with moderately heavy to heavy showers over the country.

The met office sources said during the 12 hours between 6 am and 6 PM on Friday after Dhaka the next highest 33 mm rainfall was recorded in Chitagong followed by 40 mm at Rajshahi, 29 mm at Mymensingh, 25 mm at Patuakhali, 15 mm at Rangpur and 9 mm at Faridpur.

The highest maximum temperature of 35.2C was recorded in Jessore and the lowest minimum of 24.5C at Khepupara.

Before the day's maximum temperature of 30.5C Dhaka recorded the minimum of 27.7C, Chitagong the maximum of 28.4C and minimum 25.3C, Rajshahi maximum 33C and minimum 29.6C, Khulna maximum 31.5C and minimum 27.5C, Barisal maximum 31.2C and minimum 26C and Sylhet maximum 33.7C and minimum 25.2C.

UNB, Jhenidah

Outlawed Purba Banglar Communist Party (ML-Janajuddha) has threatened to kill five journalists in Shailakupa upazila of the district

The five newsmen who received death threat were identified as Bimal Kumar Saha, district correspondent of Daily Itefaq, Akmal Hossain, Shailakupa upazila correspondent of Manabzamin, Abdur Rahman Milton, Shailakupa correspondent of Bhorer Kagoj, Sohag Kumar Biswas, Shailakupa correspondent of Amar Desh, and Zahidul Islam Mohon, district correspondent of Purbanchal and president of Shailakupa upazila press club.

All the five journalists live in different places of Shailakupa pazila. The outlawed party issued the death threat in small-sized posters pasted at different places in Shailakupa upazila on Thursday night

In the posters, the outlawed party said they would start their mission in Shailakupa upazila by killing five journalists. However, it did not cite any reason for the planned killing. Local people and the journalists came to know about the posters this (Friday) morning and immediately informed the police. Police later took away the posters to the thana. Shailakupa thana Officer-in-Charge (O/C) Babul Akhter said steps have been taken for ensuring the security of the journalists.

UNB, Dhaka

The Power Ministry wants the Rural Power Company Limited (RPCL) to setle its dispute with the former German-based LIPPS (Lahmeyer International Palli Power Services) outside the court

The Power Ministry has already requested the Law Ministry to take measures to sit with LIPPS across the table for an out of court setlement

"We've already referred the mater to the Law Ministry seeking its opinion… also requested it to take measures to setle the dispute with LIPPS outside the court," Power and Energy Adviser Tapan Chowdhury told UNB.

Following a dispute on illegal termination of a power plant operation and maintenance contract, the LIPPS last year won a Tk 200 crore international arbitration case against RPCL at Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC).

The RPCL was established jointly by the Rural Electrification Board (REB) and five rural electricity co-operatives known as Palli Bidyut Samity (PBS) which set up the 70 MW Mymensingh power plant (Phase-I) in 1999 with the financial assistance of Asian Development Bank (ADB).

After installation of the Mymensingh plant, with the ADBN guidelines, the RPCL appointed the LIPPS for Operation and Maintenance (O&M) of the power plant under an international agreement

LIPPS was basically a joint venture enterprise of RPCL and its German consulting counterpart Lahmeyer International GmbH.

RPCL and Lahmeyer respectively had 35% and 65% of shares in LIPPS. Later, under the direction of the donor agencies, RPCL divested its entire 35% share in LIPPS to Lahmeyer GmbH. In the meantime, a Bangladeshi entrepreneur, who was the local representative of Lahmeyer, took over the LIPPS from its German owners. Since 2000, the LIPPS had been successfully operating the Mymensingh plant that led the RPCL to obtain the Asian Development Bank's recognition as a best power plant in Asia.

BSS, Islamabad

Former prime minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif is disqualified to contest elections because the conviction in a plane hijack conspiracy case remains as the sentence awarded to PML-N leader was not pardoned but only remited by General Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's top law officer has said.

Atorney General (AG) Malik Qayyum said the sentence awarded to the former premier was not pardoned but remited by the president, adding that the stigma of conviction remains. Qayyum said the sentence of fine and property confiscation would be applicable and (Sharif) is disqualified from contesting the elections.

"The law will take its own course, whenever the petitioners come to Pakistan. A Rs. 500 milliom fine is imposed on Nawaz Sharif in the plane conspiracy case that will be recovered through the confiscation of his property," Qayyum was quoted as saying by the Daily Times newspaper Friday.

The AG said there was a difference between pardon and remission. If the president grants pardon, the conviction is abolished, but in case of a remission only the imprisonment is taken away and the sentence of fine and the confiscation of property remains intact with the stigma of conviction.

Because of this conviction, the AG said, Sharif was unable to contest the elections, and is rendered disqualified under Article 62 of the Constitution.

However, a former chief justice of Pakistan Saeeduz Zaman Siddiqui said that according to Article 45 of the Constitution the cases in which President Musharraf pardoned the former premier cannot be reopened nor can the sentences be revived. "Once pardoned after conviction a sentence can't be revived, but if a case is pending then this is a different mater and the Sharif brothers will have to face them in court," Justice (retd) Siddiqui told Geo television Thursday.

Former chief justice Siddiqui said that no person could be disqualified from contesting the elections on the basis of moral turpitude and the hijacking case against Nawaz didn't come under any such condition.

He said a person could only be disqualified from contesting the polls if he got a conviction in a NAB case, and that Nawaz had never been convicted in any such mater. He said that any person could contest the elections while facing cases in courts.

The former premier was sentenced to life imprisonment in a plane hijack conspiracy case. He was charged with hijacking a commercial PIA flight carrying General Musharraf and other passengers from Colombo on October 12, 1999.

In another case, an accountability court sentenced him to 14 years imprisonment on April 6, 2000, after conducting his trial in Atock Fort on the charges of purchasing and misusing an official helicopter.

A Rawalpindi accountability court has recently re-opened three accountability references against him. The lawyers of the Sharifs claim that the president had pardoned two major sentences and that a pardon could not be rescinded in any case.

UNB, Kishoreganj

Department of Public Health Engineering has taken an initiative to set up 547 deep tubewells to ensure supply of safe water as arsenic has been detected in 16,322 hand driven tubewells of the district

Officials said arsenic was found in 1,067 tubewells in Sadar upazila, 2,225 in Karimganj, 1,614 in Tarail, 267 in Hossainpur, 178 in Pakundia, 1,613 in Katiadi, 1,834 in Bajitpur, 3,806 in Bhairab, 782 in Kuliarchar, 755 in Austagram, 982 in Nikli, 187 in Mithail and 1,012 in Itna upazilas.

M Salah Uddin, executive engineer of District DPHE, said they have taken initiatives for testing arsenic in tubewell water in very upazila of the district and marked arsenic-contaminated tubewells with red colour.

He said the work of installing deep tubewells has already been started in different upazila, which will be completed soon. He also urged people not to drink arsenic-contaminated water.

BSS, Washington

US Senator John Warner, an influential Republican on military affairs, urged President George W. Bush on Thursday to start a limited withdrawal of US troops from Iraq by Christmas.

The move would send a signal to the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki and regional nations that the US commitment to Iraq is not open ended, said Warner, who returned recently from Iraq.

"I say to the president, respectfully, pick whatever number you wish," Warner told reporters. Warner said he recognised that US forces "are gaining momentum" in places like Baghdad and the western province of Anbar. "You do not want to lose the momentum, but certainly in 160,000-plus, say, 5,000 could begin to redeploy and be home to their families and loved ones no later than Christmas of this year," he said. There are currently some 162,000 US troops in Iraq, according to Pentagon figures.

Echoing what Bush said on January 10 when the president announced a "surge" of 30,000 extra US troops in Iraq, Warner said the US military presence was not an open-ended commitment

He emphasised that he "is not in any way trying to pull the rug out from under the troops," and that he "firmly" supports the goals that Bush has set in both Iraq and the region. "I don't, for a minute, advocate any rapid pull-out or any other type of actions of that nature," said Warner, adding that he has voted against proposals for a withdrawal timetable. Warner said he urged Bush to "take into consideration the need to send a sharp and clear message throughout the region, to the United States, and one that people can understand.

"I think no clearer form of that than if the president were to announce on (September 15) that, in consultation with our senior military commanders, he's decided to initiate the first step in a withdrawal of our forces." General David Petraeus, the US military commander in Iraq, is to deliver a much-anticipated progress report on the war to the US Congress by September 15.

Warner, a former secretary of the navy, referred to the new US intelligence estimate, out Thursday, which says that it will take up to 12 months for any possible political reconciliation in Iraq.

"We simply cannot, as a nation, stand and put our troops at continuous risk of loss of life and limb without beginning to take some decisive action which will get everybody's atention," Warner said. He added: "I really firmly believe the Iraqi government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Maliki, have let our troops down."

BSS, Mymensingh

The work for preparing of voter list with photographs and national ID cards is going on in full swing with much enthusiasm in the Pourasabha area here.

The work is conducting by election commission in cooperation with Bangladesh Army.

District election officer Rashedul Islam told BSS today that registration with photograph of five wards (one to five wards) was completed on August 22. A total of 34,153 eligible voters were photographed and finger prints were taken in 26 centres in the five wards of the pourasabha. e

Sources said work on registration of voters with photographs in another five wards ( ward 6 to 10) in 2nd phase started from Thursday.

Sources said, the distribution of forms and collection process by the data collectors are continuing in 21 wards of the pourasabha.

A total of one lakh 16 thousand 87 forms have already been distributed till August 23.

To complete the listing of voters with photographs along with national ID cards, 21 assistant registration officers, 107 supervisors, 516 data collectors and 260 data entry operators are working in this regard.

To make the programme a success, motivational work and publicity with mike is continuing in the town. District information officer Md. Tayub Ali told BSS that they are continuing publicity with mike to motivate the people to be a voter with photograph. A big motivational colourful rally was held yesterday in the town.

Chairman and ward commissioners of pourasabha are working in their respective wards and election officers are supervising the work. Army officers are also supervising the programme to make the programme a success.