The New Nation - Internet Edition

Court Correspondent

A Court of Dhaka yesterday refixed December 5 to submit inquiry report in the case filed against former Prime Minister of Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina for extortioning Taka three crore. Earlier yesterday was fixed to submit the report.

Businessman Noor Ali filed the case accusing the former premier.

Meanwhile, another Court refixed November 22 for hearing the seven-day remand in the sensational Sabbir murder case filed against former State Minister for Home Lutfozzaman Babar.

As the detained former State Minister is ill in the jail, the prosecution could not produce him before the Court. Again former MP Ali Newaz Mahmud Khaiyam elected from Rajbari was yesterday sent to jail in an extortion case. Investigation Officer did not seek remand but he had mentioned in his report that he would seek remand later to quiz the accused about extortion.

Former law-maker's lawyers filed a bail petition, while Metropolitan Maigstrate Md Habibur Rahman Siddiqui rejected the petition and ordered to send him to jail.

BSS, Rajshahi

An Army team arrested eight computer operators, most of them are young, on charge of making forged National/voter identity cards from New-market area under Boalia thana in the city yesterday afternoon.

Acting on tip-off, the team conducted a drive in different computer composing shops in the market and picked up them from three of the shops red-handed while they were making the cards at around 5.30 pm.

According to the local army camp sources at Terakhadia Divisional stadium, the arrested persons were identified as Ezaz Ahmed alias Muna, 20, son of Syed Ali, Sahenul Islam Bakul, 19, son of Shafiqul Islam, Raju, 18, son of Belal Hossain, Rezaul Karim,50, son of Azizul Haque, Yeasin Ali, 19, son of Yead Ali, Roisuddin, 22, son of Meraj Uddin, Bipul, 19, son of Enamul Haque, and Ripon, 19, son of Moon. They are the residents of different places in the city.

Sheikh Arif Bulbon

Although the season for malaria infection is near, the Mosquito Control Wing (MCW) of Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) has not yet taken any step to control the proliferation of female Anopheles, which is responsible for malaria.

Mosquito control has not improved for the last couple of months, though the MCW of the DCC committed to improve the situation.

After the high dengue season, it is malarial fever time, which is caused by a parasite, called Plasmodium and is transmitted through the bites of infected female mosquitoes. City dwellers are now bearing the brunt of additional costs for the purchase of aerosol, mosquito coils and other insect repellents to protect themselves. The slum dwellers and poorer sections of the city suffer most as they are in no way capable of buying expensive mosquito repellents.

"I am forced to set aside additional budget to buy aerosol and other repellents as the DCC has not taken any effective step to control mosquitoes till now," said Abdus Sattar, a resident of East Rampura.

He added saying that he was compelled to spend extra sum of money to install netted windows for protection. But this did not serve the purpose as much as he expected. This scenario is mainly seen in densely populated areas such as Old parts of Dhaka city including, Mitford Hospital, Badda, Basabo, Mugdapara, Gopibagh, Hazaribagh, Mohammadpur, Rayerbazar, Zigatala and some parts of Mirpur. Col Dr Md Showkat Ali, Chief Health Officer of the DCC, said, "We have 4,800 litres of larvicide in our store. When we see a particular space where Anopheles mosquito spreads, we use extensive spray to annihilate them."

Some residents complained that fumigators of the MCW of the DCC demand Tk two for spraying whenever they visit their area. And this situation continues.

The non-government organisations, public representatives and the civil society members should raise public awareness about cleanliness, dengue and malaria infections and eradication of mosquitoes, an official of the MCW of the DCC urged.

In case of malaria, Anopheles mosquitoes gather around the stagnant water and lays eggs on the stagnant water logged in abandoned flower vases, water jars, tubs, refrigerator trays, unused basin and coconut shells, he said.

Nasim-us-Seraj, Chief Entomologist of the DCC, said, "We have started collecting information about patients who were infected since July 1. We have been collecting the addresses of the patients and asked the mosquito crew to spray adulticide and larvicide in the 500 yards around the houses of the affected people."

"We have 344 fogger machines, which are still active, to spray adulticide and larvicide. We have at present 15,400 litres of adulticide in the store.

In malarial fever, in the human body, the parasites multiply in the liver, and then infect red blood cells.

Dr Iqbal Kabir, health expert of World Health Organisation (WHO), said, "Key interventions to control malaria are prompt and effective treatment with artemisinin-based combination therapies, use of insecticidal nets by people at risk; and indoor and outdoor spraying with insecticide to control the mosquitoes. Pregnant women and babies are feared to be especially vulnerable to malaria."

BSS, Dhaka

President Professor Dr. Iajuddin Ahmed yesterday called upon the International Lions Club to extend their assistance to mitigate arsenic problems in the country.

He also sought the club's cooperation in facing the adverse impacts of the global warming in Bangladesh, says a Bangabhaban press release.

The President made the request when an 11-member delegation of International Association of Lions Clubs, led by its president Mahendra Amarasuriya paid a courtesy call on him at Bangabhaban here.

Military Secretary to the President Major General Mohd. Aminul Karim, Secretary Md. Sirajul Islam and Press Secretary Abdul Awal Howlader were present during the meeting. Welcoming the delegation, Dr Iajuddin praised the Lions Clubs International for contributing significantly to the well being of the mankind, especially the treatment of eye diseases globally.

Mahendra Amarasuriya apprised the President of the activities of Lions Clubs International in Bangladesh and others 201 countries in the world.

Describing the Lions Club as the biggest philanthropic international organisation, he said they have been working for providing support to the have-nots section of the society in Bangladesh and extending treatment facilities to the people through establishing hospitals in major cities in the country including Dhaka and Chittagong. Mahendra Amarasuriya also sought the President's help to make all donations to the Lions Clubs tax-free.

The President gave a patient hearing to the delegation and assured them of all-out cooperation in serving humanity.

UNB, Dhaka

Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and United Nations Offices in Geneva, presented his credentials to the WTO Director General Pascal Lamy at his office on Tuesday. During the meeting, Dr Debapriya apprised the WTO Director General about the current concerns of Bangladesh relating to marginalisation of the LDCs interest in the Doha Development Round.

He emphasized the need to have commercially meaningful duty-free quota-free market access for LDC exports, operationalisation of LDC modalities for movement of natural persons, ensure food security and protection of special products during agricultural liberalization. The need to have more high quality trade-related foreign aid to alleviate production bottlenecks also came up for discussion.

Court Correspondent

Hearing on a seven-day remand will be held today in an extortion case filed against detained Tareque Rahman, elder son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and Senior Joint Secretary General of BNP.

Imtiaj Bhuiyan, Sub-Inspector of Gulshan Thana in the capital yesterday sought the remand, while Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sultan Mahmud fixed today (Thursday) to hear the remand in presence of the accused.

Aftab Uddin, proprietor of Reza Constructions, filed the case against seven persons including Tareque Rahman and detained businessman Gias Uddin Al-Mamun, for extortioning Taka one crore 32 lakh.

Meanwhile, Md Mamunur Rashid, fourth Subordinate District Judge of Dhaka yesterday granted the Daily Star editors time petition for the last time to submit written statement in a case filed against six Journalists of the daily including the Editor Mahfuz Anam by former Energy Adviser Mahmudur Rahman in default he will hear the case ex-parte.

Mahmudur accused the journalists of printing defamatory, imaginary, created and baseless news item against him in the daily on February 5, this year and he claimed Taka 15 crore for causing damage to his business, defamation to him and members of his family.

BSS, Dhaka

World Bank lead economist for Bangladesh Vinaya Swaroop here on Wednesday said Bangladesh needs a clear vision to become a middle-income country by the year 2016 though it has the capacity and potential to attain the goal.

Bangladesh, he said, has to have US$ 870 per capita income to become a middle-income nation. To achieve this target, it should achieve 7.5 percent annual growth, which is attainable in view of the 'impressive growth record' of the past decade.

He was speaking at a seminar in the conference room of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) chaired by its President Mir Nasir Hossain.

Senior Economist of the WB Sandeep Mahajan presented the key-note paper at the seminar, while CPD executive director Prof Mustafizur Rahman and Journalist Mahfuzullah were among the discussants.

Sandeep said Bangladesh needs transition from agriculture to deeper labour intensive manufacturing and to make agriculture at the same time more productive. Its manufacturing base should also be globally competitive, he said.

It should also become more globally integrated by becoming partner to the global supply chains and attractive to global investment maps. There should be also transition to diverse, dynamic urban centers with Dhaka remaining the forefront of urban activities.

Moreover, strengthening governance, human development, development of port, power and road infrastructure will remain the core issue for the transition to the middle income nation, he said.

Mir Nasir said Bangladesh is passing through a transition to good governance and if the World Bank provides the right kind of support to the government and to the private sector, in particular, the goal remains within the reach.

He urged the WB to provide development assistance for the country without any strings attached so that things may be adjusted with the country's specific requirements.

UNB, London

Bangladesh at the world tourism summit in London called for international support for preserving country's coastal tourism industry and adapting to the challenges of global climate change.

"Bangladesh calls upon the international community to provide environmentally vulnerable and low-lying Least Developed Countries financial and technical support for capacity building and adaptation to the challenges of global climate change," Civil Aviation and Tourism Advisor Maj Gen (retd) MA Matin said.

He was making a statement at the World Tourism Ministers' Summit on Tourism and Climate Change being held in London November 12-15, said a message received here Wednesday.

The Adviser is leading the Bangladesh delegation to the Ministerial Summit which is being held in conjunction with World Travel Market, the apex body for global Tour Operators, and organised jointly by the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) and International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). Tourism Ministers from 87 countries are participating in the three-day summit. Among them are several Ministers of Tourism from the Asian region, including from India, Pakistan, the Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and Brunei. Terming Bangladesh's coastal tourism resources as the hub of the country's eco-tourism industry, Matin urged all stakeholders to climate change negotiations and the global tourism industry to support Bangladesh in preserving its eco-tourism destinations and bio-diversity, including the 'Sunderbans', the world's largest mangrove forest, the coral island of St. Martin's and other UNESCO World Heritage sites.

The Advisor also cautioned the international community that "with continued rise in global sea levels, 18 percent of Bangladesh's coastal lands may be inundated, threatening the livelihood and habitat of nearly 15 million of its population. "A vast majority of our biodiversity, agro-based coastal tourism resources, natural eco-systems and indigenous heritage sites, the very heart and soul of our eco-tourism industry, would also be seriously threatened as a consequence of climate change and consequent climate hazards," Matin told the summit.

The Adviser also proposed inclusion in the UNWTO 'Davos Declaration' of the special vulnerabilities and needs of low-lying LDCs such as Bangladesh and her proposal for enhanced contribution by developed countries to the UNFCC LDC Trust Fund for supporting LDC initiatives to participate in Clean Development Mechanisms and a low carbon Tourism and travel industry.

The Ministerial Summit adopted Tuesday the 'Davos Declaration' on Tourism and Climate Change to be endorsed by the World Tourism Assembly to be held in Cartagena later this month and at the UNFCCC Conference to be held in Bali in December this year.

Staff Reporter

The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday filed two cases against former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's assignment officer Firoj Mahmud Iqbal on charges of obtaining illegal wealth and causing financial loss to the national exchequer by abusing power.

Iqbal's wife Imtiaz Begum was also made accused in the case of acquiring illegal wealth.

ACC deputy director Syed Iqbal Hossain filed a case against Firoj and his wife with Ramna police station for amassing moveable and immovable property worth over Tk 1.47 crore beyond their known sources of income.

Firoj possesses assets worth about Tk 89.67 lakh while the rest worth about Tk 58 lakh are in his wife's name. The ACC officer filed another case against Firoj with Tejgaon police station for causing a loss of about Tk 35 lakh to the national exchequer through abuse of his post and power.

According to the FIR, during 2001 and 2006 Firoj as the assignment officer of the Prime Minister used two vehicles of Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) and three of Essentials Drugs Company Limited for personal use.

Due to the personal use of these five vehicles, the government incurred a loss of Tk 15,03,637 for fuel and Tk 19,87,131 for other expenses, the FIR said.

Meanwhile, according to sources, the Commission yesterday approved the filing of cases against former State Minister for Power Prof Rafiqul Islam, Uttara Group chairman Giridhari Lal Modi and Bogra BNP leader Shahidul Islam Bablu for acquiring wealth disproportionate to their known sources of income.

The Commission also approved issuing notices to three corrupt suspects - Awami League presidium member Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury, former BNP state minister Maj (Retd) Kamrul Islam and AL leader AKM Rahmatullah - directing them to submit their wealth statements.

BSS, Rajshahi

Speakers at a day-long orientation of media personnel here on Wednesday underscored the need for enacting a law for protecting consumers' rights in the country.

The speakers said the consumers' rights in the developed nations focus on the right to information, choice, redress and representation, but we are deprived of such privileges.

Protection of consumers' rights is a must for making the human body free from all sort of hazards as the issue is well accepted throughout the world and in the free market economy.

Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) arranged the orientation styled "Energy Consumers Rights and Responsibilities" in joint collaboration with USAID and National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) at Safawang Community Centre.

Vice-Chancellor of Rajshahi University Professor Dr. Altaf Hossain attended the opening session as the chief guest with CAB local unit president Kazi Giash in the chair.

NARUC Chief Abdullah Hel Mostafa, CAB General Secretary Quazi Faruque and Treasurer Khalilur Rahman Sajal presented four keynote papers on different aspects of consumers' rights protection and rights including energy sectors and its regulatory frameworks.

They said importance should be given to alternative energy sources like solar energy, biomass, wind, geothermal, marine renewable energy, waste and other renewable energies to reduce pressure on natural gas for power supply.

Staff Reporter

Diploma holders from the Medical Assistant Schools under the Health Department of the 1997 batch, urged the government to relax the age limit for the appointment of medical assistants, claiming that no Government circular was issued for job after their passing.

They demanded this yesterday at a press conference at the Dhaka Reporters Unity and said they would be v timised, if the 30 years age limit was not relaxed by the Health Department.

They said the Government issued a circular in the national dailies on November 8 for the appointment of 3,176 people-whose age was under 30 years-as medical assistants, but some two thousands students have so far passed from the Medical Schools since 1997. They alleged that all students, who had passed in 1997, did not get a chance to apply for the post and the age of most of the students, who had passed in 1998 and 1999, has crossed the age limit.

They told reporters that about 500 students would be disallowed from applying because of the age bar.

The government should give chance to the students, who have crossed the age limit, on humanitarian grounds, as the Government has issued the circular after a long gap of 10 to 11 years, the added.

Julia Khatun, Nilufar Khatun, Momena Aktar and Lutfur Rahman of Tangail Medical Assistant School, among others, were present at the conference.

Staff Reporter

Bangladesh Khetmajur Union yesterday demanded of the government to introduce village rationing system to face the price hike of essentials and to meet the Monga crisis.

Leaders of the organisation demanded this at a press conference at its office.

They also urged the Government to make the OMS programme more effective and fix the price of rice at Tk 13 instead of Tk 19 in the OMS to make easy for the poor people.

It also urged the Government to start 'Employment Security Scheme' for at least 100 days for the people of the Monga affected area.

The union will submit memorandum taking signatures from mass people to the district and upazila administration from November 24 to 30 to realise the above-mentioned demands.

At the press conference Saiful Haque, General Secretary of the union in a written speech said last year the Government allocated Tk 55 crore for the people of Monga affected area but it could not reach the poor people due to corruption and bureaucratic complexity.

He said the Government should reduce bureaucratic complexity to make sure that the poor people would be benefited by the Government's initiatives.

Paresh Chandra Shaha, President of the union, Banhi Shikha Zamali, Aktaruzzaman Azad, Abu Hasan Tipu and Apolo Zamali were present at the conference.