The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Dhaka

Foreign Adviser Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury on Thursday stressed the need for broad national consensus to fight the threat of extremism and religious fundamentalism.

Addressing the launching ceremony of a private think tank, Centre for Foreign Affairs Studies (CFAS), at Bangladesh Enterprise Institute (BEI) here as the chief guest, the foreign adviser said, "We have a number of policy challenges, in domestic, as well as in regional and international contexts."

Presided over by Chairman of CFAS ambassador Ashfaqur Rahman, the function was also addressed by former ambassadors Muhammad Zamir and Dr Afsarul Quader, Professor Dr Ahrar Ahmed, and Chief Editor of BSS Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhury.

The foreign adviser said the country's think tanks - both existing and emerging - can help identify new priorities for the country's policy.

"We need to pursue our offensive interests more vigorously," he said adding, "In the climate change debate, mitigation is our defensive interests while adaptation support and technology transfer represent offensive interests."

Dr Iftekhar Chowdhury said the country's research and advocacy groups should be able to preempt national interests and induce and encourage policy makers to act on time. They have to be endowed with agility and flexibility.

BSS, Dhaka

A total of 485,000 Bangladeshi workers have gone abroad on employment this year till November 14 as per statistics provided by the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare here on Thursday.

Everyday on an average 2500 to 3000 are departing for their destinations. So far 709,000 have been cleared of immigration, and this number is also increasing daily, an official press release said.

These figures constitute record numbers. In no other previous year so many have gone abroad. Last year the total number was 381,000.

The flow to Malaysia is also continuing. Every day on an average 900 to 1000 workers are going to that country, the press release added.

"Government understands that such vast numbers also mean greater problems. We are doing the best to address the problems so that hardship is reduced," a spokesman of the ministry said.

Dr. Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, adviser in-charge of the ministry, observed: "Welfare of our workers must receive priority. Also we must keep looking out for newer and better markets and enhancing our skills accordingly."

"Bangladeshi expatriates are our greatest assets for development, and society owes them a debt of gratitude," he added.

BSS, Dhaka

Most of the essentials, including rice, flour, lentil, onion, soybean and palm oil, were sold at cheaper prices in BDR run sales centers and markets in the city on Wednesday in comparison to ordinary city markets.

According to a market report of the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) on Thursday, the price of coarse rice in different markets, including Kamalapur, New Market, Karwanbazar, Kalyanpur, Kachukhet and Mohammadpur, ranged between Taka 23 and Taka 25 per kg yesterday.

Rice was sold at Taka 23 at BDR-run open markets and Taka 20 at BDR-run sales centres on Wednesday while in Kolkata per kg coarse rice was sold at a price equivalent to Bangladesh Taka 21.62.

Each kg of packet flour was selling at Taka 37 and 38 and in ordinary markets while the price of the item was Taka 39 in BDR- run open markets and Taka 35 at BDR-run sales centres. In Kolkata, the flour is being sold at Taka 25.22 per kg, the report said.

The price of imported gram (Chhola) was between Taka 46 and Taka 50 per kg in different retail markets yesterday while in Kolkata, the item is being sold at Taka 57.65. The item is being sold at Taka 56 in BDR-run open markets and Taka 55 at BDR-run sales centres.

Sugar is being sold between Taka 29 and 31 per kg in ordinary markets compared to Taka 26.78 in Kolkata and Taka 31 in BDR-run open markets.

The price of green chili, however, is ranging from Taka 32 to Taka 46 per kg in ordinary city markets. The item is sold at Taka 38 at BDR-run open markets. The green chili in Kolkata is being sold at a price equivalent to Taka 26.78.

Potato is being sold at Taka 20 to Taka 22 per kg in the ordinary markets. The price of potato in BDR-run open market is Taka 21 and at BDR sales centres Taka 18. In Kolkata, the price of the item is equivalent to Taka 16.07.

BSS, Rajbari

A court here has sentenced one person to 17 years' in jail in an arms case.

District and Sessions Judge, Rajbari Belayet Hossain awarded the verdict against the convict Salah Ahmed Sujon on Wednesday.

The prosecution story in brief, is that, police arrested Sujon from Daulatdia Launch ghat under Rajbari district with a 22-bore pistol and 41 bullets on August 17,2006.

The police filed chargesheet against him with the court after investigation.

The judge after examining prosecution witnesses and relevant evidence pronounced the judgement.

In another arms case, the assistant judge of Special

Tribunal-4 of Rajbari, Rafiqul Islam sentenced three persons to 7 years' in jail the same day.

The accused were arrested on July 13, 2005 with firearms from Nivanan village under Pangsha upazila of the district.

The judge declared the verdict against Channu, Moslem and Shaukat alias Bellah after hearing both the sides.

BSS, Rangpur

The government has fixed a record Boro farming target this season in all the 16 northern districts of the country.

Sources in the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) yesterday said the department has fixed a production target of 59,58,980 tonnes of Boro rice from 15,08,137 hectares for the current Rabi season against 56,78,523 tonnes from 14,40,261 hectares in the last season.

A total of 67,876 hectares more land than that of the previous season's target will be brought under Boro farming this time for recouping the losses caused by the recent flash floods in many areas of the region, sources said.

Considering the previous success and colossal damages caused to the agri-sector by the recent floods, special steps have been taken this time by DAE, BADC, BRRI and BARI to bring more land under Boro farming including cultivation of hybrid varieties of Boro paddy at larger scales aiming to increase the production further.

Talking to BSS, Deputy Director of DAE, Rangpur, Kamal Shariful Alam said special emphasis has been put in using the latest technologies and quality hybrid seeds this time to help the farmers achieve the target and bumper Boro yield during the current season.

"Hybrid varieties of Boro paddy like Jagoron, Hira, Sonar Bangla, Aftab, LC-50, ACI-1 and ACI-2, Aloron, Supreme Seed etc will be cultivated in 50,000 hectares land out of a total of 1,17,140 hectares targeted land this season in Rangpur alone and these hybrid varieties were cultivated in only 32,000 hectares land last time," he added.

Similarly, massive initiative has been taken for farming of hybrid variety Boro paddy on more and more land in all other districts of the region to increase the overall rice production this year, he said.

DAE experts said the farmers could achieve more yield this year as special awareness building and training activities are being conducted for them on the latest agro-technologies and provided with all possible facilities by different agricultural organisations of the government.

The government has been distributing quality Boro seeds, fertilisers and other agri-inputs among the small and marginal flood-hit farmers and the authorities concerned and the Armed Forces are closely monitoring the overall fertiliser, diesel and power supply situation for smooth farming of Boro crop this season, officials said.

There are tremendous potentialities of increasing the overall rice production by up to 50 percent than that of the previous annual productions through ensuring supply of quality hybrid variety seeds to the farmers during both T-Aman and Boro farming seasons, they further added.

BSS, Rangpur

Police arrested 17 persons, including suspected criminals, from different places in the district during the last 24 hours till Thursday noon, police sources said.

The arrested persons included absconding warrantees, accused in different cases, drug-peddlers and traffickers, anti-social elements and thieves.

Police also seized a good quantity of smuggled ganja, 300 litres of fermented wine, Phensidyl, stolen goods and other illegal items during the raids.

Of the arrested, Kotwali police rounded up six persons, Gangachara police one, Taraganj police one, Badarganj police one, Mithapukur police four, Pirganj police one, Pirgachha police one and Kawnia police arrested two persons during the drives.

The arrested persons were sent to jail hajat when police produced them before the concerned Rangpur courts today, the sources said.

BSS, Dhaka

Five readymade garments importing houses of Sydney, Australia are visiting BATEXPO-2007 being held here from November 15 to 17.

The importing Australian companies are LOWES, Host Supplies Ltd, Gazal Apparel Ltd, Pretty Girl Fashion Group and Koala Clothing Australia Ltd, according to a message received here from Bangladesh High Commission in Canberra.

Among the firms LOWES, Gazal Apparel Ltd and Host Supplies have already placed orders to import from Bangladesh.

Gazal Apparel is also planning to go for joint venture for manufacturing shirts and school wear in Bangladesh. Host Supplies is importing towel and they are also interested to import other home textiles including bed sheets and quilt covers, said the message.

BSS, Chittagong

A court here yesterday sentenced five persons to life imprisonment for killing a businessman in 1997.

Third Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Ekramul Hoq Chowdhury delivered the verdict.

The convicts are Didar, Saifuddin alias Hero, Rupak Dey, Ajoy Rakkhit and Mohammad Ayub of Fatikcchari and Raozan upazilas.

The prosecution story, in brief, is that the convicts kidnapped businessman Abdus Sattar from his business firm, Rangdhanu Shilpaloy, in Kazir Dewry area in the city on October 5, 1997.

The businessman was murdered shortly after he was kidnapped and the body was sent to Chittagong Medical College Hospital within two hours of his abduction.

The miscreants earlier threatened Sattar with dire consequences if he failed to give money to them as extortion.

Tofail Ahmed, father of the victim, filed a case with Kotwali police against five persons in connection with the killing.

The court after examining 10 prosecution witnesses and other evidence pronounced the verdict.

BSS, Dhaka

Chief Adviser Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday apprised President Prof Dr Iajuddin Ahmed of the steps taken to face the cyclone, control price hike of essentials, reach fertiliser to farmers and create an atmosphere for a free poll in the country.

The Chief Adviser also informed the President of the government's measures for holding the next general election in the line of the road map of the Election Commission (EC). He said the government is looking for possibilities of holding the election earlier than the schedule of the EC.

Dr Fakhruddin said this when he called on Prof Iajuddin at Bangabhaban here.

The Chief Adviser said the government is monitoring the situation created from possible severe storms caused by the cyclone in the Bay of Bengal.

He said the government has undertaken all necessary precautionary measures to save the life and property of people if the cyclone hit the coasts.

Dr Fakhruddin also apprised the President of the measures undertaken by the government to ensure smooth supply of fertiliser to the farmers.

Describing the satisfactory stock of urea fertiliser, he said the government has taken steps to make the fertiliser supply chain more effective and efficient by increasing the number of dealers and developing the scientific system to assess the actual demand of fertilizer in the country.

He informed the President that the government is providing a huge amount of subsidy for fertilizer to reach the item to farmers at a cheaper price.

The Chief Adviser hoped that the smooth supply of the fertilizer, including urea, TSP and MOP to the farmers, would be ensured very soon.

He also stressed the need for developing the agriculture research sector and increasing cultivation of vegetables encouraging the farmers about kitchen gardening.

President Iajuddin expressed his satisfaction over the measures undertaken by the government on different issues, including the cyclone and the price hike of essentials.

He also prayed for the blessings of Almighty Allah for saving the countrymen from the cyclone.

Military Secretary to the President Major General Mohd. Abdul Karim, Secretary Md Sirajul Islam, Secretary of the Chief Advisers Office Kazi M Aminul Islam, Press Secretary to the Chief Adviser Syed Fahim Munaim and Press Secretary to the President Abdul Awal Howlader were present.

BSS, Bogra

Bogra Cantonment Public School and College elected the best educational institution in 2007 among all the Cantonment Public schools and colleges under Bangladesh Army.

Principal of the Bogra Cantt. Public School and College Lieutenant Col. Mohammad Golam Kibria Chowdhury said Bangladesh Army selects the best cantonment public school every year for the Army Chief' award on the basis of SSC and HSC results.

Some 211 students passed the SSC examination 2007 from the Bogra Cantonment Public School. Of them, 179 students got GPA-5 (A+) and 32 students GPA-4.00, he added.

GOC of Bogra Cantonment Major General Mohammad Shamim Chowdhury handed over the 'Army Chief' trophy to Lieutenant Col. Mohammad Golam Kibria Chowdhury on behalf of the Army Chief on Wednesday.

Chairman of the School Governing Body Brig. Gen. Chowdhury Hasan Sarwardi was present on the occasion.

Staff Reporter

Pran-Prothom Alo National Pickles Contest-2007 ended through a colourful prize giving ceremony among the winners of the contest at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre yesterday.

Raushan Ara Begum of Chittagong was awarded Air flight ticket of Dhaka-Kualalumpur-Dhaka as her pickle was selected as the best of the year.

Actor and Film Director Suchanda as chief guest distributed the prizes among the winners, while Editor of the Daily Prothom Alo Matiur Rahman and Deputy Managing Director of Pran-RFL group Ahsan Khan Chowdhury were present at the function.

Above 5000 items of pickles of approximately 1000 candidates through the country have competed in the 8th national contest.

The contest was conducted under the supervision of Principal of Home Economics College Dr Firoza Sultana, while eminent singers Abida Sultana, Shakila Jafar, TV actresses Afroza Banu, Tania and fashion designer Mahin Khan were judges in the contest.

Winners of the first places of four departments of the contest were awarded Dhaka-Katmandu-Dhaka air flight tickets. They are Ismat Ara, Syeda Runa Jaman, Parul Khandokar and Sarmin Sultana of Dhaka.

Besides, Latifa Khanam, Zuhura Hafiz, Khosruba Kabir Khuku of Jessore, Maksuda Gazi, Maksuda Khanam of Dhaka, Farida Akter Banu of Dinajpur, Sampa of Narsingdi and Jamuna Das of Comilla were awarded in the contest.

Staff Reporter

Mohammad Shahim, an electric shop employee was stabbed to death allegedly by his friends at the city's Kailash Ghosh Lane under Kotwali thana yesterday.

Police detained a 20-year-old youth, one of the friends of the deceased.

Shahin was a son of Asad Ali of 14, Kailash Ghosh Lane under Kotwali thana.

Delwar, the elder brother of the deceased, said that Shahin went out of home at about 11:00pm. When Shahin was returning home, Shahin's friends Hossain, Khoka, Tapas and Sujan stabbed him indiscriminately near Shoni Mandir at about 1:15am.

Another friend Selim rushed Shahin to Dhaka Medical College Hospital where he expired.

Delwar said they stabbed his brother following an earlier feud.

Sub-Inspector Anwar Hossain of Kotwali thana said they detained Tapas in this connection. But no case was filed till filing of the report.

Staff Reporter

Rapid Action Battalion (RAB-) yesterday arrested five employees of the Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training office at the city's Kakrail Area on charge of taking bribe through cheating people.

The arrested employees were identified as Mahbubur Rahman, 57, Mohammad Ishaq, 50, Amir Hossain, 45, Abdul Jalil, 39, and Nazrul Islam, 35.

RAB-3 sources said they arrested the government employees while they were taking the bribe from the people who went to the office for their various purposes.

RAB also said acting on a tip-off that the government officials had been carrying on such cheating illicit other activities for a long time. Therefore, the plain clothed RAB personnel took position at the office and caught the employees red handed. RAB said they also seized Tk 8,000 from their possession.

The arrested employees were handed over to Ramna police.

Sub-Inspector Tofayel Ahmed of Ramna thana said no case was filed till filing of this report in this connection.

UNB, Rajshahi

A speedy trial court here on Thursday sentenced four persons to death for the killing of a minor boy after abduction in Sirajganj.

The condemned convicts are Ershad Ali, Ashraful Islam Rintu, Noor Mohammad alias Kalu dakat and Abul Kalam of Bharmohani village in Salanga upazila of Sirajganj district.

They all were in the dock and broke down in tears hearing the pronouncement of the judgement.

According to the prosecution, the convicts abducted co-villager Ashiqur Rahman Niloy, 9, son of Abdul Halim, on January 12, 06 and demanded Tk 6 lakh in ransom from his parents. For non-compliance, the boy was murdered and his body dumped into the septic tank of neighbor Maleque's house. The body was recovered two days after the abduction.

Leon's father filed a case with Salanga thana, accusing nine persons of killing his son.

After examining records and 18 witnesses, Speedy Tribunal Judge ATM Mesbauddoula found the four guilty and handed down the verdict. The rest five were acquitted of the charge as the allegation against them "could not be proved".

Staff Reporter

Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) led by Dr Ferdous Ahmed Quoreshy yesterday announced a 111-member convening committee of the party, which would be made to a 201-member committee.

This was disclosed yesterday through a news release signed by the Convener of the party Dr Ferdous Ahmed Quoreshy yesterday. The party would organise a grand rally to form a national committee of the party.

About eight former ministers and 28 formers ministers are named in the convening committee.

Five joint conveners of the party are former ministers and Jatiya Party leaders Tajul Islam Chowdhury, Nur Muhammad Khan, former minister and Awami League leader Abul Hasan Chowdhury, former MP and general secretary of Krishak Sramik Janata League Advocate Fazlur Rahman and former Awami league leader Maj Gen (Retd) NA Rafiqul Hossain.

About 24 AL leaders of different rank were named in the convening committee, while 23 were from JP and 22 from BNP.

Film director Kazi Hayat, eminent singer and journalist Sanjib Chowdhury and former national team footballer Ashraf Uddin Ahmed Chunnu were named as members of the committee.

A former leader of Islami Chhatra Shibir was also named in the 101-member convening committee. Amir Hossain, former departmental secretary of the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami.

UNB, Chittagong

Five BCL activists, four in absentia, were yesterday sentenced to life imprisonment for sensational murder of a rival within the party in the city eight years ago.

Rupak Dev was handed down the punishment while four other convicts Didarul Alam Dider, Saifuddin, Ayub and Prajjut Rakhsit remained fugitive.

The court also fined the convicts Tk 20,000 each, in default, to suffer two years more rigorous imprisonment.

According to the prosecution, the accused abducted Abdus Sattar, Joint Secretary of BCL Jamalkhan ward unit from a shop at CDA Market in the city's Kazir Deury on October 5, 1997 following intra-party conflict.

Police recovered the bullet-riddled body of Sattar from Dhebar Par of Lalkhan Bazar on the following day.

UNB, Dhaka

Foreign Advisor Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury Thursday said Bangladeshi think-tanks can help identify pragmatic new priorities for the foreign policy, which has been traditionally focused on defensive interests.

"There is a need to change the paradigm. We need to pursue our offensive interests more vigorously," he said speaking on " Our Foreign Policy and the Contribution of Think Tanks" at the BEI auditorium.

Citing example he said, "In the climate-change debate, mitigation is our defensive interests while adaptation support and technology transfer represent offensive interests."

The Centre for Foreign Affairs Studies (CFAS), a new thin-tank outfit, organized the function. CFAS chairman Amb Ashfaqur Rahman also spoke at the function.

The Advisor said policy research and advocacy groups should be able to preempt national interests and induce and encourage policymakers to act on time.

"They must be endowed with agility and flexibility. They cannot afford to be supertankers and take-forever to take a new angle," he told the function.

Dr Chowdhury said pursuing an optimal foreign policy requires coordination and collaboration among all stakeholders. Think-tanks are one such stakeholder. They, however, have the added responsibility to help synthesize consensus that takes into account the primacy of national interest.

Achieving the foreign policy objectives also requires cross-border cooperation, be it bilateral or multilateral.

"We can no longer consider the counterparts in our foreign policy as monoliths or unitary entities," the Advisor said, adding the counterparts also have multiple stakeholders, their think-tanks among them.

Dr Chowdhury said it is imperative that think-tanks across national borders, across interests, form alliances to further enlightened national interests. There, too, one can reap the first mover's advantage.

He noted that think-tanks often face the challenging task of striking a balance between objectivity and public expectation. They cannot just remain confined to thinking. They must also know how best to communicate their thoughts, without succumbing to populist pressure. The former Bangladesh permanent representative to the UN said, "We have a number of policy challenges, in domestic, as well as in regional and international contexts. Some of these are daunting - resolving them will require not only groundbreaking research but also consensus building."

He viewed that the national efforts to fight the threat of extremism and religious fundamentalism would require a broad political consensus and an "egalitarian social policy to address their root causes".

"We will have to think how our different educational systems, while meeting our varying professional and spiritual needs, can remain compatible with each other," the Advisor told the function. He said think-tanks could contribute to enhancing understanding on the need for an inclusive education system that is necessary to fight poverty, inequality and fundamentalism.

Dr Chowdhury, however, reminded that credibility of a think-tank largely depends on the quality of its research, its objectivity and professionalism.

"A research institution should not be a shop, delivering 'made-to-order thoughts'. It should not be prescriptive either," he said, adding that intellectual independence is absolutely essential for a think-tank to do its job right.

UNB, Bagerhat

A court here on Wednesday sentenced 9 people to life term imprisonment for killing a Jubo Dal leader 12 years back. The lifers are Abul Hossain, Bakkar Khan, Sardar Masudur Rahman, Anisur Rahman, Sarafat Khandakar, Jakir Hossain Khan, Shaheen Talukdar, Bhuttu Talukdar and Asgar.

The court also fined them Tk 5,000 each, in default to suffer six months more in jail. Six of the convicts were present in the dock while Shaheen Talukdar, Bhuttu Talukdar and Asgar remained absconding. According to the prosecution the convicts swooped on local Jubo Dal leader Aminul Huda Bachchu and beat and stabbed him mercilessly at Pancha Digirpar in the town in August 27, 1995 following a previous enmity.

Local people rescued him in critical condition and admitted him to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Bachchu's bother Najmul Huda filed a murder case with Sadar thana accusing 14 people.

After examining the witnesses and records Additional District and Sessions Judge Osman Haidar handed down the verdict acquitting five others.