The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Rangpur

"Ensuring Food Security and Poverty Alleviation in Poverty-prone Greater Rangpur" launched by the government at a cost of about Taka 12 crore is progressing well in the area, officials said today.

The Department of Fisheries (DF) in collaboration with NGOs is implementing the project for ensuring food security and poverty alleviation through fish farming and creating jobs for the hardcore poor and unemployed youths in seasonal 'Monga'-prone Rangpur, Nilphamari, Lalmonirhat, Gaibandha and Kurigram districts of greater Rangpur.

Scientists and experts of the Parbotipur Sweetwater Fish Farming Sub-Centre (SFFSC) in collaboration with the concerned District DFs and under the assistance of Bangladesh Fish Research Institute (BFRI) conducted a series of training courses for unemployed youths and fish farmers to increase fish production by providing the fish farmers with the latest technologies.

Besides, huge motivational activities were conducted by the concerned departments during the recently observed Fish Fortnight for preserving indigenous species of fish and increasing production of all varieties of fish in the prospective greater Rangpur region, the officials said.

The officials said the three-year project was launched during the current fiscal to boost the pisciculture sector through increased farming of all variety fishes in the available water bodies, crop fields and floodplains in these five districts where the seasonal 'Monga' repeats every year with different extents of severity.

Development work including renovation, re-excavation, digging, construction of necessary infrastructures and other works of hundreds of abandoned, derelict and hyacinth water bodies including ponds, beels, haors, dried up river beds at suitable places and raising of embankments are still continuing for the project in greater Rangpur.

Our Correspondent, Mymensingh

A girl child was strangulated to death allegedly by her aunt at village Digarkanda in Baira Union in Sadar upazila here Thursday afternoon.

The victim was identified as Jesmin, 6, a pre-primary student of a local BRAC school and daughter of Bachhu Miah and Khodeja Begum of Digarkanda. Police said, a quarrel between Khodeja and Bilkis Akhtar, mother and aunt of Jesmin was occurred yesterday and following the quarrel, Mosharraf Hossain, husband of Bilkis pushed some blows on Bilkis that angered Bilkis to take revenge on Khodeja. Later in the last afternoon, when rain started, Bilkis called Jesmin to her house and allegedly strangulated her wrapping cloth in her mouth and binding rope around her neck. Later Bilkis concealed the body under the earth of her house and she kept firewood on the top of the digging earth to divert the atention of the Jesmin's parents.

As Jesmin was missing after the quarrel and after a massive search she was not found till 10 pm last night, Khodeja suspected Bilkis that she might have killed her daughter. The house of Bilkis was then found under lock and key and she was out side of her house in a normal state. Suspection on Bilkis raised and other members of the family searched the house of Bilkis and found the body of Jesmin under the earth of her house. Family members caught Bilkis red-handed and informed the local union Parishad Chairman .

Being informed, a police team led Assistant Police Superintendent of Kotwali Police Station Apple Mahmud rushed to the spot and arrested Bilkis. On contact, Apple Mahmud said that Bilkis confessed her involvement in the killing following a quarrel with her sister-in-law.

The body was sent to Mymensingh Medical College Hospital (MMCH) morgue for autopsy. A case was lodged in this regard.

UNB, Netrakona

Farmers of the district are facing acute scarcity of transplanted aman and vegetable seeds as seedbeds on vast tract of land were damaged in the current flood.

With the recession of floodwater, farmers of the flood-affected areas returned to field but they can not cultivate their land due to scarcity of seeds.

Department of Agricultural Extension sources said vegetable on 91 hectares worth Tk 27 crore were damaged in the flood in the district Seedbeds on 2,500 hectares worth Tk 4 crore were also damaged totally. Meanwhile, under the post-flood agricultural rehabilitation programme, the government has already taken a decision to produce seedlings on 296 hectares of land for distribution among the farmers free of cost

UNB, Bagerhat

Five pirates were arrested along with two firearms and ammunition from a canal in Sharankhola range of Sundarbans area Wednesday afternoon. Forest Department sources said a gang of pirates went to the canal with a trawler in the name of fishing taking permission from them. But the forest officials chased them later for their suspicious movement and arrested five of the pirates identified as Monir Hossain, 30, Ishaq, 28, Shahid Khandakar, 30, Akbar Gazi, 40, and Maniruzzaman, 32 from Chandeshwar area. They also recovered two firearms and nine rounds of bullet from their trawler. Acute seed crisis prevails in Netrakona.

Schoolboy killed by miscreant

in Laxmipur

UNB, Laxmipur

A schoolboy was killed Saturday night by a miscreant for giving witness against him in village arbitration at Sonapur village in Sadar upazila. Police and local sources said Shipon, student of class VI of Sonapur Salim Smriti High School, before the village elders said he saw co-villager Mozammel stealing a pigeon on Thursday.

Being angered at this Mozammel took him to a nearby jungle Saturday night in the name of taking him to the local bazar and killed him with a sharp weapon.

On information, police recovered the body of Shipon, son of Kala Mia, Sunday morning and sent it hospital morgue for autopsy.

A murder case was filed.

UNB, Shariatpur

A minor schoolgirl girl was violated by a miscreant at Charerkandi village in Sadar upazila Saturday evening.

Police said spoiled Liton, 25, son of Shikim Ali of the village, took his co-villager Iman Hossain Matubbar's 10 years old daughter to a remote cropland when she was returning home from nearby Gayatala bazar in the evening.

Later, he violated her there and at one stage fled away when local people chased him hearing the hue and cry of the victim. The victim, a student of class four, was rushed to a local hospital in critical. A case was filed.

UNB, Habiganj

Work for digging a new well at Habiganj gas field of Shahjibazar started today (Monday) expecting to produce 25 million cft gas from the well daily. Petro Bangla Chairman Dr Sheikh Abdur Rashid inaugurated the digging work of well no. 11 at about 11am.

Official sources said the work would continue for 100 days for digging to a depth of about 3,150 feet Some 246 million cft of gas is being produced daily from nine wells of the gas field that explored in 1963. Besides, one of its wells has been declared abandoned.

UNB, Kurigram

A court official was crushed under the wheels of a jeep at the C&B crossing in the town Monday. The dead was identified as Abdul Mannan, 55, a peshkar (bailiff) of the district judge's court Police said when Mannan was going to work by rickshaw, a jeep, coming from opposite direction, rammed the three-wheeler and ran over him at about 9am.

A case was filed with sadar thana.

UNB, Chandpur

A minor schoolboy was killed in a road accident at Dherora village in Hajiganj upazila Tuesday morning. The dead was identified as Tanvir Ahmed Gazi, 9, son of Al Mamun Gazi and a student of class III of a primary school at Damudya upazila in Shariatpur district

Police and witnesses said Tanvir, who came to his maternal uncle's house at Dherora village recently, died on the spot as a Ramganj bound speeding bus from Chandpur hit him while he was crossing the road at about 10am.

Police sized the bus but its driver and helper managed to flee. A case was filed.

UNB, Panchagarh

A two-year-old baby drowned at a pond at Shahapara village in Sadar upazila on Tuesday. Local people said Swapan, 2, son of Sultan, suddenly slipped into a nearby pond and drowned when he went out of the house with his grandmother. In another incident, a youth was arrested on charge of raping and killing a primary schoolgirl at Mirgar Modyapara in Sadar upazila on Monday.

When produced the court granted killer Jasimuddin Babu, 19, three-day police remand. Police said he murdered Rimu, daughter of Imamuddin, after rape on August 8.

Our Correspondent, Barisal

A criminal case has been filed with Kotwali Police Station against about four hundred students of Barisal Govt Brojo Mohon College in connection with the incidents of vandalism, assaults on police.

Anwar Hussain, sub inspector of Kotwali police model station, as complainant lodged the case (no. 53) at Wednesday night under section 147,148,332,333 and 373 of penal code.

Khemo Saye, sub inspector on duty of Kotwali, acknowledging the facts said Shahidul Karim, another sub inspector, has been given charge of investigation.

It may be mentionable that vandalism and clashes from Tuesday night to Wednesday noon at least 26 rooms of B M College were ransacked and looted, more than fifty including 13 police, 2 journalists, public injured, 8 transports and 4 shops damaged.

Police controlled the situation by firing tear gas cells, rubber bullets and with the helps of teachers.

It was a relaxed form of curfew in Barisal with peoples roaming on streets in hartal and holiday mood and over all situation was peaceful and no untoward incident or arrest has been reported so far. In the morning some shops were opened in different streets and lanes, but later at about 10 am on Thursday morning most of the shops except medicine shops were closed down by law enforcers. City dwellers faced troubles from shortage of food, essential goods as grocery shops, markets and bazaars were closed.

Some highway transports left for destination out side the city at early morning but vehicular traffic on the city roads remained closed and moved outside the city boundary line. Confusion predicted as to whether courts would be held or not and it increased when police brought prisoners from their custody to court for regular atendances.

However ultimately courts were not held after law enforcers ordered the court officials and advocates to leave the premises.

Financial and educational institutions remained closed while some schools though opened in the morning later closed by the law enforcers.

Hundreds of mass peoples came out of houses and rushed in search of foods and essentials after curfew relaxed for 3 hours in the city on Thursday.

Students and passengers stranded in different points and stations of the city and out skirts also started moving towards their destination and shelters from 4 pm.

However number of transports on city roads were very few to accommodate the rush of passengers and large shops and super markets remained closed.

College authorities said male students already vacated their hostels and female students took the chances of break of curfew went to their destination and took shelters in the houses of their local guardians.

Water and road transports in short routes started to ply after relaxation of curfew.

However long route water and river transports towards other metropolitan cities including capital city of Dhaka were not plied as curfew resumed after 7 pm.

Advocate Majibor Rahman Sarwar, Mayor of Barisal City Corporation, has been brought to Barisal central jail by road from Dhaka at about 2-20 pm Thursday noon and would be produced before the court on August 26 to face the hearing about remand prayer of prosecution in terrorist Terra Shahjahan lynching case.

Mir Kasem, sub inspector of Barisal Kotwali model police station and investigation officer of the case, acknowledging the fact, said that on July 19 Munim Hassan, magistrate of the Barisal sadar upazila magistrate court granted the prayer of shown-arrest of Mayor Sarwar in that case and ordered the authority to produce him before the court as early as possible for hearing of remand prayer in presence of the accused.

According to that Mayor Sarwar was sent to Barisal by road from Dhaka central jail under police escort and hearing about the prayer of interrogation under seven days remand in Barisal police custody would be held on Sunday in presence of accused, SI Mir Kasem added.

PANCHAGARH, Aug 26: Speakers at a seminar here on Thursday stressed the need for upholding cooperative atitude and joint efforts to bring down domestic violence and social crimes to zero level for a beter and peaceful society. The speakers while addressing the seminar on "Role of the Civil Society and Professionals in Preventing Domestic Violence" opined for undertaking a collective initiative by the civil society for building a crime-free society with no domestic violence. Jointly organised by CRD, a local NGO, and Bangladesh National Women Layers' Association (BNWLA) in cooperation with Panchagarh district administration the seminar was held at the conference room of Panchagarh Collectorate. With Executive Director of BNWLA Advocate Salma Ali in the chair, the workshop was atended by Deputy Commissioner of Panchagarh M Hafiz Uddin as chief guest, reports BSS.

KHULNA, August 26: Khulna City Corporation (KCC) here today inked an agreement with Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET) on the promotion of renewable energy (PRE). The agreement envisages a Taka 3.60 lakh project to conduct a three-month baseline survey in urban households as well as small and medium enterprises in the city for solar energy, KCC sources said. In a joint collaboration with the University of Bremen, Germany, the KUET will carry out the survey. Mayor of Khulna Sheikh Tayebur Rahman and KUET Vice Chancellor Dr. M. Nawsher Ali Moral signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations at the mayor's residence. Dr. Mizanur Rahman and Dr. Nurunnabi Mollah of KUET and Chief Executive Officer Mokhlesur Rahman and Chief Engineer Liakat Ali Sharif of KCC were present, reports BSS.

RAJSHAHI, Aug 26: An elderly man was killed in a road accident at Narayanpara area under Bagmara Upazila of the district this morning. Police quoting witnesses said the accident occurred when a Rajshahi-bound passenger bus ran over Tanzer Ali, 65, killing him on the spot while he was crossing the road at around 6.00 AM. A case was filed with Bagmara Thana in this connection. However, driver of the killer bus managed to escape with his vehicle, reports BSS.

RAJSHAHI, Aug 26: Police, in separate anti-crime drives, arrested 31 alleged criminals on various charges from different areas in city and nine thanas of the district in the last 24 hours ending this evening, police sources said. Of the arrested, 11 were rounded up from different areas in the metropolis and 20 others from nine Upazilas of the district Traffic Police filed five cases under motor vehicles ordinance and seized a truck without registration and other valid documents during the raids against the faulty motor vehicles in different parts of the city during the same time, reports BSS.