The New Nation - Internet Edition

Navigation threatened due to fall in water level, emergence of shoals

BSS, Chandpur

Navigation to and from Chandpur has been affected seriously due to rapid fall in water level of all rivers in the district and emergence of shoals.

Shoals have appeared in many places on the rivers of Padma, Meghna and Dakatia due to heavy siltation during the last few years.

Plying of riverine transports along different river routes have become very risky as well as time consuming.

According to Water Development Board's Chandpur office sources, water level recorded in Padma, Meghna and Dakatia were lower than normal during the current season.

Some eyewitnesses claimed that about 10 to 15 feet layer of siltation have appeared on the riverbeds of the rivers Padma and Meghna.

Locals warned that the ground and surface water will go down further affecting seriously the ecological balance and causing acute crisis of water.

Now water transport including steamers, launches, country boats plying between Chandpur-Dhaka, Chandpur-Barisal, Chandpur-Narayanganj, Chandpur- Khulna have to cover an additional distance of four to five kilometers to reach respective destination by diverting the original routes.

Eyewitnesses said passengers of steamers and launches plying on these routes have to suffer due to hidden shoals in different areas. Sometimes passengers on board are stranded for hours together in the middle of the river as the vessels sometimes hit hidden shoals and stream.

About 150 launches and other vessels are plying in these routes everyday. BIWTA is responsible to locate the sunken shoals on these riverbeds.

Experts observed that rivers Padma and Dakatia are flowing years together without dredging and suggested early dredging of these rivers. Dredging of rivers is convenient during the dry season, they told BSS adding, river transport system along Chandpur route will improve considerably following dredging.

Communications, trade and business of the area will be improved if dredging of these rivers are done in due time, the pointed out.

Six smugglers, drug peddlers arrested in Lalmonirhat

Our Correspondent, Lalmonirhat

Five drug peddlers and takers include the identified left hand to Lalmonirhat municipality chairman and the president of poura BNP Mosharof Hossain Rana, the driver of Lalmonirhat CS office were arrested red handed with hemp, wine, phendsydil at Vatibari village of Mogholhat union unader Lalmonirhat sadar upazila at night on Wednesday.

The arrested are identified as the identified left hand to municipality chairman and locally called king of drug Nuruzzaman,32, his bodyguard Moza Uddin,35, smuggling syndicate member Swapon,28, cadre of BNP Hati Akbar,40, and the driver of Lalmonirhat Civil Surgeon CS office Sobuj Ali,36.

Police said, in a tip off, a team of Lalmonirhat sadar police led by officer incharge OC Abu Bakkar Siddique raided the house of Nuruzzaman at Vatibari at on Wednesday night and the police caught red handed to them with one kg hem, ten bottles wine and phendsydil.

Police source added that the arrested Nuruzzaman made his home with under ground for conducting drug business bravely showing the influence of Lalmonirhat municipality chairman Rana.

Nuruzzaman and Hati Akbar made threat to police that if the municipality chairman hear the news he will bail them from thana and the OC must be transfered in Rangamati. The arrested requested to police for free them at the spot in reference of chairman, police said.

In another hand, the Aditmari thana police arrested the chairman of Hatibandha border smuggling syndicate Nazmul Islam Nazu, 40, with Indian cloths worth Tk 50 thousand from the Hatibandha town on Wednesday night .

OC of Hatibandha thana Abdur Rashid told this correspondent arrested smuggler Nazu had been conducting his illegal trade since long and he was out of any trace. After long investigation, the thana police arrested him red handed. He is called chairman of border smuggling syndicate at Hatibandha area.

Cows distributed in Sirajganj

BSS, Sirajganj

Bangladesh Army officials distributed six cows among the poor people in front of Bhasa Sainik auditorium of the town on Sunday.

Army Camp Officer Major Emran was present on the occasion as the Chief guest. He handed over the cows to Rezaul Karim and Mainuddin. To make them self relient.

Cold wave paralyses normal life in Naogaon

Our Correspondent, Naogaon

The cold wave has almost paralysed the normal activities of life throughout Naogaon district covering total eleven upazilas. The cold wave has caused suffering to the people in different ways.

The day labourers are suffering much as they have no warm clothes to protect them from the severe cold, including children and old men who have been affected with different cold related diseases.

The dense fog and severe cold are affecting the potato plants and the Boro seedlings. Now winter clothes has yet been sanctioned and distributed among the ultra poor by the government.

Diarrhoea and cold diseses have broken out in the district reported.

Work for preparing voter list begins in Islampur

BSS, Jamalpur

Work for preparing the voter list with photographs and national identity cards in Islampur upazila began on Wednesday.

Commander of Jamalpur Army Camp Lt Col Abu Hena Mostafa inaugurated the work at the Islampur Model Primary School centre.

A total of 14 centres have been set up in Islampur Pourasabha and Islampur union to prepare the voter list.

When contacted upazila election officer Abdur Rahim said the work will continue in phases in the 75 centres in the upazila and the work will be completed by February 7 next.

Earlier, the election office completed the voter registration work. A total of 1,55,574

Cattle improvement farm loses functional activity

BSS, Rajshahi

'Rajshahi Dairy and Cattle Improvement Farm' has lost its functional activity at a larger extent despite enormous potentiality relating to expansion of dairy farming leading to meeting up the deficiency of milk and meat.

According to the sources concerned, the farm is now on the verge of nonfunctional due to multifarious reasons especially political pressure and other unethical interferences during the last 15 to 20 years.

The farm was established on a huge 139 acres of land in Rajabarihat area under Godagari upazila of the district with the prime objective of breeding domestic animal along with increasing good breed of cattle.

Other objectives of the farm include production of milk and meat and to supply calves for artificial breeding to the Central Cattle Breeding and Milk Farm at Savar.

Production of good breed cattle from existing indigenous stock by applying artificial breeding technology particularly Shahiwal and local cattle cross breeding was another aim of the farm.

To attain the goals, fodder yard, cattle-shed, afforestation, pond and residential buildings had been arranged on the acquired lands subsequently.

In addition to rearing 528 cows including 329 calves and 191 milching ones, the farm has been operating an artificial insemination laboratory and a nitrogen plant for distributing frozen semen to various places in the region after collecting from the good breed bull at present.

Talking to BSS Farm Manager Shafiqul Alam said the farm has been failing to meet the demand of the beneficiaries during the last couple of years due to various constraints it had been facing for long.

To explore the existing reasons of the ineffectiveness of the farm, six Cavalry Battalion of Bangladesh Army conducted an extensive analytical survey and found that the farm had been incurring loss to around Taka 27.5 lakh every year in average during the last two decades consecutively.

Deputy Commanding Officer of the battalion Major Kaiser Ahmed told BSS that the earning of the farm was Taka 20.81 lakh against expenditure of Taka 94.78 lakh in 2005-06 fiscal year.

Major Kaiser said the farm has a huge scope to become a profitable organization through utilizing its existing valuable resources especially the 96 acres of fertile land.

In this context, he said emphasis should be given on undertaking effective steps in the greater interest of bringing dynamism in overall activities of the farm.

Current nets seized

Narayanganj, Jan 15: A team of Coast Guard seized some 150 maunds of current nets worth Tk 50 lakh from 25 shops in Mukterbazar in Munsiganj district on Monday. The team raided the shops of the bazar in the morning and recovered the nets kept illegally. The nets were later handed over to police. In another drive, they seized two boats load of timbers from the Buriganga river near Fatullah in the district in the evening, reports UNB.

Youth stabbed to death in Comilla

Comilla, Jan 15: Assailants stabbed a young man to death at Nayanagar village in Daudkandi upazila on Sunday night. The deceased was identified as Mafizul Islam, son of Sarafat Ali of the village. Mafizul recently returned home from Malaysia. Locals said the assailants attacked Mafizul on his way home from Goalmari bazar at about 9pm. They stabbed him to death and left away the body in a paddy field near his house. On information, police recovered the body from the paddy field on Monday morning. The body was sent to the hospital morgue for autopsy. A case was filed, reports UNB.

Rapist gets life in Chuadanga

Chuadanga, Jan 15: A special court here Monday convicted a man and awarded him life term imprisonment for violating a teenage girl. The court also fined the convict Milon, Tk 5000, in default, to suffer one month more RI. According to prosecution, Milon of Kashipur village of Jibannagar upazila raped Lipi Khatun on February 26,2006. A case was filed. After examining records and 14 witnesses, judge of Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal Sarker Abul Mansur Ahmed handed down the verdict, reports UNB.

Housewife beaten to death

Sirajganj, Jan 15: A housewife was beaten to death allegedly by her husband for dowry at Wapda badh area in Tarash upazila Sunday. Police said Nur Hossain used to torture his wife Sabana,22, for bringing dowry from her father's house. On that fateful night, he beat her to death at one stage of altercation over dowry. On information police recovered the body and sent to hospital morgue. Police arrested Nur Hossain. A case was filed, reports UNB.

Two killed in road mishaps

Comilla, Jan 15: A motorcyclist and his companion were killed as a truck hit a motorbike at Bijoypur in sadar Dakkhin upazila on Comilla-Noakhali road Monday. Police said a Noakhali bound truck from Comilla hit the motorbike, killing an unidentified man, aged about 31, on the spot and injuring another youth. Injured Faysal,31,of Nabiganj upaizla of Habiganj district, was admitted to sadar hospital where he succumbed. A case was filed, reports UNB.

Four hurt in Sirajganj clash

Sunamganj, Jan 15: Four people were seriously injured in a clash between two groups of people in Dutma bazar in Tahirpur upazila on Monday. Witnesses said the clash erupted at about 11am between the people of Alek and Ashik Nur following an altercation over catching fish in a local water body. Followers of the two rival groups equipped with lethal weapons swooped on each other, leaving four people seriously injured from both sides, reports UNB.