The New Nation - Internet Edition

6 horses, one linked to Nehru-era presented to Bangladesh

Bangladesh's Army Chief General Moeen U Ahmed (L)
receives a horse from his Indian counterpart Deepak Kapoor
after inspecting the guard of honour in New Delhi on Monday.
Reuters

Staff reporter

The six horses presented to Bangladesh Army Chief General Moeen U Ahmed by his Indian counterpart General Deepak Kapoor at a ceremony at the South Bloc, in New Delhi in India yesterday, included a fourth generation offspring of stallions that was presented to first Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru by his Soviet counterpart, an senior Indian military Commander told journalists after the function, according to a news received in Dhaka yesterday.

The six horses are valued at a little over Rs.35 million (US $850,000), a leading Indian daily-Times of India said.

Speaking about the horses, Lt. Gen. Narayan Mohanty, who heads the Indian Army's Remount and Veterinary Corps (RVC), said they would be used for breeding and helping to improve the standard of equestrian sports in Bangladesh.

"Their offspring will be trained in show jumping and other equestrian sports,"' Mohanty told journalists after the presentation ceremony.

The horses have been bred at the RVC's equine breeding farms at Hissar in Haryana and Babugarh in Uttar Pradesh, both an hour's drive from Delhi.

Each of the stallions is worth Rs.10 million, while each mare is valued at Rs.4 million.

Interestingly, one of the stallions-Valiant-is the fourth generation offspring of a horse named Sumrak that the then Soviet government presented to India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

The horses will be taken by truck to the Bangladesh border, where they will be handed over to the Bangladesh authorities.

Gen Moeen meets Pranab, other ministers: India asked to expedite 5 lakh tons rice export: Security issues discussed with Indian Army Chief

Staff Reporter

Army Chief General Moeen U Ahmed yesterday requested Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee to expedite the despatch of the 5 lakh metric tons of rice to Bangladesh which Bangladesh has decided to procure at the government-to- government level.

General Moeen, who yesterday formally commenced his high-profile weeklong official visit to India with a view to improve the bilateral political, economic, cultural and security relations between the two countries, made the request at an exclusive meeting with Pranab Mukherjee at the latter's office in New Delhi.

The Bangladesh General attended a number of important official ceremonies and meetings in New Delhi yesterday, according to news received in Dhaka from New Delhi last evening.

The Army Chief laid a floral wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti in early morning, which was followed by formal reception in the lawn of the South Block when a smartly turned out contingent of the Indian Army gave him a guard of honour, following which his Indian counterpart General Deepak Kapoor, on behalf India, presented six horses to the Bangladesh Army.

General Moeen had an exclusive meeting with Indian Army Chief General Kapoor at the latter's office. He also met the Chief of Indian Air Force Air Chief Marshal F H Major, and the Vice Chief of the Indian Navy Vice Admiral Nirmal Verma.

The Bangladesh Army Chief had a luncheon meeting with the Indian minister of state for commerce Jairam Ramesh, followed by calls on the Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and the Indian Minister of State for Defence M M Pallam Raju.

According to leading Indian dailies, General Moeen is also expected to meet Indian President Prativa Patil and Prime Minister Dr Monmahan Singh.

During his meeting with Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, there were discussions on specific ways in which both Bangladesh and India could carry forward their bilateral relations through a process of accretion in terms of concrete progress in all areas where such cooperation would be beneficial to both Bangladesh and India.

General Moeen also requested the Indian External Affairs Minister to allow Bangladeshi private importers to also import rice from India in addition to the government procurement of 5 lakh metric tons of rice.

In reply, Pranab Meukherjee informed General Moeen that notification has been made for the first 50 thousand metric tons out of the 5 lakh tons of rice and the processes for the despatch of the remaining amount would also be completed soon.

Pranab Mukherjee, the number two senior leader of the Indian Government after Prime Minister Dr Monmahan Singh, assured him that the Government of India would actively consider this request.

During his discussions with Pranab and Jairam, the visiting Bangladesh Army Chief also discussed various possibilities to further improve trade and commerce between the two countries and growth-oriented and trade-creating investments.

During his meetings with them, the Army Chief was also informed that the final notification on the duty-free export of 8 million pieces of readymade garments from Bangladesh into India would be issued soon.

During discussions with Indian Minister of State for Defence M M Pallam Raju, several ideas regarding training of armed forces personnel in each other's training institutions, capacity building in the area of specialised treatment in medical institutions, sharing of experience on disaster management, and greater interaction on matters relating to participation of the troops of the two countries in UN Peacekeeping Operations came up for discussion.

Analysts in New Delhi said General Moeen is regarded in India as a key person in the affairs of the state in Bangladesh, as his forces are backing the Caretaker Government since the January 11 (2007) changeover that saved the country from plunging into a civil war following a month of political violence.

General Moeen is seen playing a different role than that of his predecessors, who had captured power directly and ruled Bangladesh for 15 years until December 1990, when a people's uprising ousted the last military ruler, General Hossain Mohammad Ershad.

General Moeen has repeatedly said the Army has no intention of taking power, but would assist in the establishment of a democratic government.

His visit is considered in the Indian capital as Bangladesh Government's keen interests to improve bilateral relations with the next-door neighbour, as it pursues an anti-corruption drive and implements reforms ahead of its return to an elected Government through a free, fair and credible elections before the end of this year.

During General Moeen's meeting with General Deepak Kapoor, the Chiefs of the Armies of the two countries expressed the hope that the friendly relations that tie both India and Bangladesh would progress from strength to strength, and that the discussions during the visit of General Moeen to India would make an important contribution in this regard.

They had extensive discussions on the possible ways of further promoting cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries in the areas of training, sharing of experience in disaster management, advanced information sharing on floods and tsunami, and participation of troops of the two countries in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations.

They discussed about further ways to improve the method and scope of sharing of information. The overall security environment in the region also came up in the discussion. The specific concerns of the two countries on security related issues was also discussed.

Both the Army Chiefs underscored that they attached special importance to constant engagement and need for cooperation to address these concerns.

The Bangladesh Army Chief was given a comprehensive briefing on 'India's Security Perspective' and on 'Overview on Indian Army'.

Earlier, after the guard of honour and the presentation ceremony at the South Block, General Moeen said, "This will definitely enhance the relationship between the two offices in particular and in general of course between Bangladesh and India."

General Kapoor said, "We have very strong friendship ties with Bangladesh ever since its formation, so it's only a token and a gesture of friendship between our countries."

No deviation from poll roadmap: CEC: AL demands specific date for election, withdrawal of emergency

Chief Election Commissioner Dr ATM Shamsul Huda
addressing the Awami League leaders at the second phase of
dialogue at the Election Commission office in the city on
Monday. AL Acting President Zillur Rahman led the 10-member
delegation. FocusBangla

Staff Reporter

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Dr ATM Shamsul Huda yesterday categorically said that the forthcoming parliamentary elections must be held by December this year as per the election roadmap announced by the Commission.

"Do or die we, the elections will be held according to the roadmap. We do not want to be branded as national betrayer by skipping off the roadmap," he said this while the Awami League (AL) delegation during their second-round dialogue with the Commission asked him to remove the latest spell of confusion on holding the polls.

The 10-member AL delegation, led by its Acting President Zillur Rahman, demanded for a specific date for parliamentary polls to remove people's doubts about holding the polls and immediate withdrawal of the state of emergency to create a congenial pre-election atmosphere.

The AL leader said there is no need to prolong the state of emergency in force. "Withdrawal of emergency is required to create a congenial atmosphere before the elections," he said.

Zillur Rahman observed there is no necessity of delimitating the constituencies and holding local body elections prior to the parliamentary polls.

He demanded announcing war criminals as ineligible to contest the polls and not registering their parties with the Commission.

The AL leader called for immediate release of party President Sheikh Hasina and General Secretary Abdul Jalil.

Responding to AL's demand, the CEC said it would not be wise to announce the exact date so early. "The date will be announced when time will come," he said adding, "All works of the Commission are aimed at creating a congenial atmosphere for the elections."

He referred that the Commission requested the Chief Adviser to create a congenial atmosphere before the polls and he (Chief Adviser) assured him that everything would be done timely. "We do not know whether the state of emergency will be withdrawn or relaxed-a congenial atmosphere must be in place," he observed.

The CEC said the Commission would send recommendations made by the political parties to the Chief Adviser for the consideration.

He said the Commission is on track to meet all the five components of its agenda, such as preparation of voters' list and holding city-corporation elections.

Dr Huda said there is no problem in holding the local-body elections and carry on delimitation works ahead of the national election as separate sets of people are in place to do separate jobs.

He said 50 percent of the voter list would be completed within this month by registering four crore voters. "A draft voter list will be published by June 30. We did not miss any deadline except completing the political dialogues," he said.

About delimitation of some 50 constituencies, the CEC said it is the constitutional obligation to carry on delimitation of constituencies after publication of each population census.

Meanwhile, Zillur Rahman told reporters that they are convinced with EC's words and the roadmap to hold the elections by 2008.

AL Presidium Member Tofael Ahmed blamed the Commission for failing to go forward on according to the timeline set in the roadmap for completing political dialogue by November 28 and finalising the electoral rules by February 27.

He also apprehended that the local body elections also could not be held as per the roadmap. "The failure of Commission not to pursue the roadmap properly creates a lot of hesitation and confusion in holding the elections in time," he said.

Briefing journalists Tofael Ahmed said the Commission has created the crisis over inviting BNP to the dialogue and the Commission will have to solve it.

The solution to the BNP-problem lies in the hand of the Commission and it should resolve the matter quickly, he said.

Election Commissioners-Sohul Hussain and Brig Gen (Retd) Shakhawat Hossain, among others, were present during the dialogue while senior AL leaders Amir Hossain Amu, Abdur Razzak, Tofail Ahmed, Sajeda Chowdhury, Suranjit Sen Gupta, Motia Chowdhury, Kazi Zafrullah and Acting General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam joined the AL delegation.

Tofail Ahmed urged the CEC not to hold local government elections before the general elections, identifying vulnerable polling centres after consultation with political parties and stop involving party cadres in poll process.

The Commission also held dialogue with Jatiya Party (Ershad) and Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) after and before that of with the AL.

During the meeting, Acting Chairman of Jatiya Party Anisul Islam Mahmud urged the Commission not to register bracketed parties with the Commission.

He also emphasised the need for holding a meaningful elections saying that if necessary the elections should be held under the state of emergency, if necessary.

"We want withdrawal of emergency. But we do not want that holding a meaningful election is disrupted due to withdrawal of emergency," he said.

Jatiya Party leaders-ABM Ruhul Amin Howlader, GM Kader, among others were in the 16-member delegation.

CPB General Secretary Mujahidul Islam Selim raised a number of proposals on electoral reforms including disallowing registration of parties backed by anti-liberation forces and keeping campaign expenses within Tk 3 lakh.

The proposals also include increasing of reserved seats for women and holding direct elections for these seats, relaxing the registration conditions of political parties and preparing voter lists according to the CHT accord.

He also demanded resumption of indoor politics and lifting of the ban on politics.

"The caretaker government should reinstate people's civil and democratic rights, he observed"

The second round of electoral reforms dialogues began on Feb 24.

Indo-Bangladesh Bangla Games: Bangladesh swimmers retain supremacy

Dolly Akhter of Bangladesh shows her gold medal
after clinching the medal in the women's 50 metre breast
stroke of the Second Indo-Bangladesh Bangla Games at the
Mirpur National Swimming Complex on Monday.
FocusBangla

Sports Reporter

The swimmers of Bangladesh retained their supremacy on the concluding day of the swimming competition of the Second Indo-Bangladesh Bangla Games at the Mirpur National Swimming Complex on Monday. Bangladeshi swimmers bagged six gold medals on the concluding day (Monday) while their counterpart West Bengal of India got rest of the five gold medals.

Monalisa Mondol of West Bengal clinched seven gold medals in the individuals events and claimed two gold medals from the team's events.

After finishing of the swimming competition Bangladesh captured 18 gold medals while West Bengal claimed 14 gold medals.

In the women's 50 metre

breast stroke, Dolly Akhter of Bangladesh gained gold and her compatriot Mahfuza Khatun bagged silver while Monalisa Mondol of West Bengal got bronze.

In the men's 50 metre breast stroke, Md Kamal Hossain of Bangladesh clinched gold and his compatriot Karar Samedul Islam collected silver while Sourav Kundo of West Bengal earned bronze.

In the women's 50 metre butterfly, Monalisa Mondol of West Bengal captured gold and her compatriot Shalini Banarji claimed silver while Sonia Akhter of Bangladesh earned bronze.

In the men's 50 metre butterfly, Jewel Ahmed of Bangladesh clinched gold while Sumonto Nath of West Bengal gained silver and his compatriot Akbor Ali Mir got bronze.

In the women's 200 metre back stroke, Triparna Paul of West Bengal achieved gold and her compatriots Shayanti Chatarjee, Tahrina Nasrin earned silver and bronze respectively.

In the men's 200 metre back stroke, Rubel Rana of Bangladesh gained gold while his compatriot Md Rabiul Alam bagged silver.

In the women's 200 metre free style, Triparna Paul of West Bengal captured gold and her compatriots Priyanka Karmaker, Shalini Benarjee claimed silver and bronze respectively.

In the men's 200 metre free style, Md Nazmul Haque of Bangladesh grabbed gold and his compatriot Jewel Ahmed claimed silver while Akbor Ali Mir of West Bengal got bronze.

In the women's 200 metre individual medley, Monalisa Mondol of West Bengal clinched gold and her compatriots Chandrima Nandi, Sheema Manna bagged silver and bronze respectively.

In the men's 4x100 metre medly relay, Bangladesh team captured gold while West Bengal team earned silver. Bangladesh team consists of Rubel Rana, Md Kamal Hossain, Jewel Ahmed and Nazrul Islam.

In the women's 4x100 metre medley relay, West Bengal team clinched gold while Bangladesh team earned silver.

HC verdict on Hasina’s case: Hearing on govt appeal adjourns till today

Security steps were tightened around the Supreme
Court building yesterday during the appeal hearing against
the High Court verdict on an extortion case against Awami
League President Sheikh Hasina. Banglar Chokh

Staff Reporter

The Supreme Court yesterday adjourned the hearing on the government's petition, seeking permission to appeal against the High Court's judgment that dismissed the Tk 2.99 crore extortion case against Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina, till today.

A six-member full bench of the Appellate Division headed by the Chief Justice Md Ruhul Amin passed the order after holding a hearing on the appeal.

The hearing began at the full bench of the Appellate Division at 9:40am.

On behalf of the government, Additional Attorney General Advocate Salahuddin Ahmed took part in the hearing for dismissing the High Court verdict, while Barrister Rafique-ul-Huque took part in the hearing on behalf of Sheikh Hasina.

Taking part in the hearing, Advocate Salahuddin Ahmed told the court that the emergency situation was prevailing in the country. "It was right to place the extortion case against Sheikh Hasina filed by businessman Ajam J Chowdhury under the Emergency Power Rules for quick disposal of the case," he said.

Ahmed said: "The impact of the High Court judgement in this case will fall on many corruption cases. Even, many cases may be dismissed. The Emergency Power Rules were formulated to address corruption at all levels of our national life. The extortion case against Sheikh Hasina was included in the Emergency Power Rules examining the existing laws and merit of the case. So, it will be wise to assist the caretaker government for suppressing the pervasive corruption dismissing the High Court judgement."

In response, Sheikh Hasina's chief counsel Barrister Rafique-ul-Huque, quoting the constitution of Bangladesh and different laws, said, "The inclusion of the case in the Emergency Power Rules was contrary to the constitution. The High Court gave its landmark judgement appointing seven lawyers as amicus curie, taking their valuable opinion into account and examining various aspects of relevant laws. Different articles of the Emergency Power Rules clearly state that the trial of any incident happens during the period of emergency must take place under the Emergency Power Rules. The Supreme Court is the custodian of the Constitution of Bangladesh."

After hearing both sides, the full bench of the Appellate Division adjourned the date of hearing for today (Tuesday).

On June 13 last year, Azam J Chowdhury, managing director of Eastcoast Trading Pvt Ltd, charged detained Hasina, also a former premier, and her cousin and former minister Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim with extorting Tk 2.99 crore from him in exchange for awarding him the contract of setting up Siddhirganj Power Plant in Narayanganj.

Earlier on February 6, the High Court declared illegal bringing the case under Emergency Power Rules and also scrapped it.

Obama's security comes close to presidential one

Barack Obama

Agencies

There is a hushed worry on the minds of many supporters of Senator Barack Obama, echoing in conversations from state to state, rally to rally: Will he be safe?

In Colorado, two sisters say they pray daily for his safety. In New Mexico, a daughter says she persuaded her mother to still vote for Obama, even though the mother feared that winning would put him in danger. And at a rally here, a woman expressed worries that a message of hope and change, in addition to his race, made him more vulnerable to violence.

"I've got the best protection in the world," Obama, of Illinois, said in an interview, reprising a line he tells supporters who raise the issue with him. "So stop worrying."

Yet worry they do, with the spring of 1968 seared into their memories, when the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Senator Robert F. Kennedy were assassinated in a span of two months.

Obama was 6 at the time, and like many of his admirers, he has only read about the violence that traumatized the nation. But those recollections and images are often invoked by older voters, who watch his candidacy with fascination, as well as an uneasy air of apprehension, as Democrats inch closer to selecting their nominee.

Obama has had Secret Service agents surrounding him since May 3, the earliest a candidate has ever been provided protection. (He reluctantly gave in to the insistent urging of Senator Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, and others in Congress.) As his rallies have swelled in size, his security has increased, coming close to rivaling that given to a sitting president.

His wife, Michelle Obama, voiced concerns about his safety before he was elected to the Senate. Three years ago, she said she dreaded the day her husband received Secret Service protection, because it would mean serious threats had been made against him.

Among friends and advisers, danger is something Obama rarely mentions.

"It's not something that I'm spending time thinking about day to day," said Obama, who has been given the Secret Service nickname Renegade, a way for agents to quickly identify him. "I made a decision to get into this race. I think anybody who decides to run for president recognizes that there are some risks involved, just like there are risks in anything."

Not long ago, his advisers worried that some black voters might not support his candidacy out of a fierce desire to protect him. It was a particular concern in South Carolina, but Obama said he believed the worry was also rooted in "a fear of failure."

Now that he has won a string of primaries and caucuses in all corners of the country, and built a coalition of black and white voters, failure would seem to be less of an issue. The fears, however, remain.

Representative Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi and chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, raised concerns in a letter in January to officials who oversee the Secret Service. While Obama was already receiving protection. Thompson said that the intense interest in the election prompted him to make sure that Obama and the other candidates were offered adequate security.

South Africa beat Bangladesh by five wickets

Jacques Kallis: MOM

UNB, Dhaka

Having trailed in the first innings, visiting South Africa came back strongly in the second innings to beat Bangladesh by five wickets much to the relief of the visitors who had virtually sighted an embarrassing defeat in the hands of test minnows.

With a deficit of 22 runs in the first innings, South Africa, second in the ICC test ranking, initially bowled the Tigers cheaply in the second innings at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur and later their batsmen took the Proteas to safety to avert one of the

sensational upsets in Bangladesh cricket history.

However, Bangladesh's Australian coach Jamie Siddons was happy as his team avoided innings defeat this time against the formidable Proteas as they suffered innings defeats on four occasions in 2002 and 2003.

But the local fans were very upset as Bangladesh failed to capitalize the advantages came their way on the 2nd day (dismissing the tourists 170 runs) as they did in Multan against Pakistan and in Fatullah against mighty Australia.

The second and last match of the Warid test series between two teams will be held at the Bir Shreshtha Shaheed Ruhul Amin Stadium (BSSRAS) in Chittagong from February 29 to March 4.

The first of the three-match ODI series will be held on March 9 at BSSRAS in Chittagong while the rest two ODI matches will be held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on March 12 and 14.

In the day's match, South Africa resumed the 2nd innings with 178 for 4 in 57 overs needing just 27 runs to win with six wickets in hand in the remaining two days, faced no trouble to chase the winning target of 205 runs playing just 10.5 overs on the day.

South Africa reached the target scoring 208 for 5 in 67.5 overs with 44 minutes of resumption of the play, losing the lone wicket of Ashwell Prince.

Prince, who played a couple of drives earlier off local celebrated pacer Shahadat Hossain Rajib, was unlucky to be the victim of leg before though the delivery from Rajib pitched outside the leg stump.

Middle order batsman Prince scored 38 runs off 60 balls featuring five boundaries, leaving the team total at 193 for five wickets in 62.4 overs, just 12 runs away from the victory.

Proteas wicket keeper Mark Boucher, who made the world record in the series on the 3rd day (Sunday) with 417 dismissals to better the Australian Adam Gilchrist's record of 416 dismissals, yesterday scored the match-winning run hitting a boundary off a Rafique's delivery.

Earlier, AB De Villier, who spent several uncomfortable moments against the left arm spinner Mohammad Rafique, clipped two fours of Shahdat Hossain Rajib to being the score level.

AB De Villier remained unbeaten with 19 runs off 80 balls hitting two fours while Mark Boucher was also not out scoring five runs in 14 balls with a boundary.

All-rounder Jacques Kallis, who caused the major damage to the hosts 2nd innings taking five wickets for 30 runs in 14 overs with four maidens, was adjudged man of the match. He received a prize money of US dollar 1500 from CEO of Warid Telecom Muneer Farooqui.

Shahadat Hossain Rajib, who bagged two wickets on Sunday, finished with three wickets for 70 runs in 19 overs while veteran spinner grabbed two wickets for 54 runs in 27.5 overs.

Among the local boys opening batsman Junead Siddique proved his worth scoring 74 runs in a run drought 2nd innings of 182 runs while pacer Shahadat Hossain Rajib emerged the prime bowler claiming nine wickets, including his career-best 6 for 27 in the first innings.

Bangladesh 1st innings- 192 for all in 54.4 overs; Aftab 44, Ashraful 34, Shakib 30, Mashrafee 29, Nafees 25, Bashar 11, Mushfiqur 7, Junaed 1, Tamim 0, Rafique 0, extras 11, Morkel 5/50, Steyn 3/27 and Botha 2/57.

South Africa 1st innings- 170 for all in 60.3 overs; Villiers 46, Amla 25, Botha 25, Kallis 17, Boucher 11, Smith 10, Prince 10, Steyn not out 7, McKenzie 5, extras 10, Rajib 6/27, Rafique 2/25 and Ashraful 1/9.

Bangladesh 2nd innings -182 for all in 73 overs (Overnight score 125 for 4 in 48 overs), Junaed 74, Ashraful 24, Aftab 24, Nafees 16, Rafique 14, Mashrafee 11, Shakib 3, Bashar 2, Musfiqur 2, Tamim 2, extras 9, Kallis 5/30, Steyn 4/48 and Ntiny 1/35.

South Africa 2nd innings- 208 for 5 in 67.5 overs (Overnight 178 for 4 in 57 overs) Smith 62, Amla 46, McKenzie 26, Prince 38, Villiers not out 19, Kallis 7, Boucher not out 5, extras 5, Rajib 3/70, Rafique 2/54.

Soyabean price fixed at Tk 106.50 per kg, Palm oil Tk. 99.50

Staff Reporter

After a three and half hour long meeting with the importers and wholesalers the government Monday fixed a high price for edible oil further increasing the burden on the common people.

Per kilogram (kg) of soyabean oil will be sold at Tk 106.50 and palm oil at Tk 99.50 at retailers end until March 9, the meeting decided in the absence of representatives from retailers level. At present per kg of soyabean oil is selling between Tk 110 and Tk 115.

President of the Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners and Banaspati Manufacturers Association MA Rouf Chowdhury on February 13 at a meeting in commerce ministry pledged not to raise edible oil price until February 24. But he raised the price by Tk 250 per 40 litres within two days of the meeting.

In the face of criticism from a cross section of people Rouf Chowdhury remained absent in Mondays meeting at the commerce ministry.

Commerce Adviser Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman told newsmen that price of edible oil will be re-fixed again on March 9.

He said the government fixed price of edible oil to free people from the unstable price situation. The government will closely monitor market price of essentials, the adviser said.

He informed newsmen that a high-powered committee has been formed to give the monitoring activities an institutional shape. Commerce adviser will head the committee, which will comprise the commerce secretary, director general of Bangladesh Rifles, representatives from National Board of Revenue, Bangladesh Bank and importers.

He said out of nine core food items, rice, pulse, wheat and edible oil price will be monitored by this committee.

Commerce Secretary Firoz Ahmed, BDR DG Major General Shakil Ahmed, City Group chairman and one of the big importers of the country Fazlur Rahman, general secretary of Moulavibazar Edible Oil Bebshayee Samity Abul Hashem and representatives from different importing company were present, among others, on the occasion.

'Most of disabled children remain out of school’

Staff Reporter

Some 10 per cent of the total population is disabled. At least, 1.5 million people are severely handicapped and have no working ability and are living a sub human life.

At present, 96 per cent children with disabilities do not have access to primary education in the country and 72 per cent parents faced difficulties in enrolling their children at educational institutions.

Education of disabled children is under the Ministry of Social Welfare and not under the Ministry of Education. This is one of the main obstacles for the disabled children to get proper education.

Among 3.4 million eligible disabled children in the country only 1,700 are currently enrolled in special needs schools.

The mortality rate is doubled among disabled children in the country, which was 14 per cent in rural areas in 2001. Besides, disabled people do not have access to micro-credit.

This was disclosed at a day-long seminar on 'Towards a New Disability Law in Bangladesh in the Light of Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities' organised by Action on Disability and Development (ADD) at Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in the city yesterday.

Prof Muzaffar Ahmed, economist, and Brig Gen (Retd) Abdul Malek, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser, were present as chief guests in two separate sessions.

Prof Michael Stein of Harvard Law School of Harvard University, and Dr Abdullah Al Faruque, Chairman of Law of Chittagong University, presented keynote papers.

Dr Stefan Frowein, Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Commission, Barrister Ameer-ul-Islam, President of Supreme Court Bar, MA Hye Howlader, Secretary of Ministry of Social Welfare, Justice Golam Rabbani, Khandakar Jahurul Alam, President of NFOWD, Fr RW Timm, CSC, Farah Kabir, Country Director of ActionAid Bangladesh, Mark Harrison, East Anglia University, Mosharraf Hossain, Country Director of ADD, among others, spoke at the seminar.

Speakers said formation of a working group having representation from different sectors to prepare the draft law 'Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities' (CRPD) and disability rights movement would act as a catalyst and facilitator to pull sector specific expertise in the working group.

They urged the government to take initiatives to strengthen the capacity of disability focal points on disability issues and countrywide consultation on draft law and place it before the policymakers.

They also urged the government to persuade the policymakers to incorporate the law.

The government is responsive and has already ratified the Convention, now it must proceed to revise the laws. The non-governmental sector may further assist the government by getting together and working on a model draft. Mutual cooperation can help to avoid the pitfall and shortcomings in laws could prepared from a single perspective, said one of the speakers.

CA addresses view-exchange meeting in Mymensingh: People urged to vote judiciously in next polls

UNB, Mymensingh

Chief Adviser Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday urged the people to cast their valuable votes judiciously in local body and national elections, and elect honest and dedicated candidates to fulfill the nation's aspirations for a strong and sustainable democracy.

"It's imperative to elect such capable and honest persons who can be the genuine public representatives to drive the nation to its desired goals," he said.

The Chief Adviser said at a largely attended opinion-exchange meeting of government officials, professionals and the common people from Mymensingh, Sherpur, Netrakona, Kishoreganj and Jamalpur at the local stadium.

Around 2,500 people, including elected local government representatives, teachers, farmers, businessmen, journalists and NGO representatives were present at the meeting.

The district administration organised the meeting conducted by Dhaka Divisional Commissioner Ikram Ahmed.

Home Affairs Adviser Maj Gen (retd) MA Matin, LGRD and Cooperatives Adviser M Anwarul Iqbal and representatives from different professions addressed the meeting.

Home Adviser MA Matin was assigned to gather information about problems and prospects of Kishoreganj and Netrakona districts while M Anwarul Iqbal from Jamalpur and Sherpur districts. The Chief Adviser, in his introductory remarks, said the government and the Election Commission are taking all necessary steps and preparations for holding free, fair transparent and credible elections both at the local and national levels.

Referring to the EC's move to hold local government polls, including elections to the city corporations, Dr Ahmed said holding of the city corporation elections would perhaps be the first polls under the present government.

Appreciating the people for their cooperation in preparing the voter list with photographs, he said, "An unprecedented response was received from all sections of the people to the ongoing voter listing work."

He hoped that the voter listing would be completed very quickly.

Quoting the Election Commission, the head of the caretaker government informed the meeting that inclusion of half of the total eligible voters in the list would be completed within this (February) month.

Referring to dialogue between the EC and political parties, Dr Ahmed said, "On completion of the series of dialogues, everything about the electoral reforms will be made public."

About local government system, the CA said the government has decided in principle to strengthen the local government system and is working to that end to consolidate the foundation of democracy.

He also assured that the government is giving attention to increasing financial solvency of the local government institutions and their institutional capacities.

Mentioning an assembly of the elected representatives of local government bodies in Dhaka, the CA said the allowances of chairmen and members will be raised. He said a decision has been taken to increase their allowances, which is a step towards empowering the local government system.

Dr Ahmed said price spiral on the international market has caused the last year's price hike of essential commodities on the local market.

He said the government is giving priority to agriculture sector for boosting rice and food production. "As a result, the farmers will get fair prices of their produces while the market prices of the commodities will be stabilised," he assured the people.

In this regard, the CA said, allocation in ADP has been increased for taking short-term and mid-term projects like providing better fertilizers and seeds, and ensuring a better irrigation management.

Responding to demands of the people from different districts, he said the government would take effective decisions on short-term schemes, which are essentials to solve the problems.

Besides, Dr Ahmed said, the government has taken an initiative to launch long-term projects.

About fertilizer distribution, he agreed with some of the speakers that there has been some mismanagement in fertilizer distribution and assured that it would be overcome soon.

Replying to some of his audience, the Chief Adviser said the government is thinking about open market sale of fertilizer and also taking steps for its marketing and distribution.

In this regard, he mentioned that a committee, headed by an adviser, has been formed to make recommendations for proper distribution and management of fertilizer.

After the meeting, the Chief Adviser exchanged pleasantries with the people.

Hospital staff found dead

Staff Reporter

A senior technician of Suhrawardy Hospital, Pallab Sen Gupta, was found dead yesterday morning at his official quarters in Agargaon under Tejgaon police station in the capital.

Pallab worked as a senior technician in the pathology department of the hospital, said Sukanto Kumar, a colleague of the deceased. Pallab was the son of late Naresh Sen Gupta of Mymensingh district.

Pallab and his 13 years old handicapped son Partha Sen were at the residence on Sunday night, while his wife Anju Rani Dutta, a senior nurse of the Orthopaedics Hospital in Shamoly, was on duty, he added.

When Anju returned home in the morning she found the body of Pallab hanging from the ceiling fan. She also found Pallab's hands and legs tied with scotch tape.

Police recovered his body and sent it to Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for autopsy.

Duty officer of Tejgaon police station Dipok Kumar Pall said Police suspected that miscreants hanged Pallab after strangulating him to death. The wife of Pallab filed an unnatural death case in this connection.

EC invitation to Hafiz: HC sets Feb 27 for hearing Khaleda's writ

UNB, Dhaka

The High Court set tomorrow for the much-awaited hearing on the writ of detained BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia challenging the validity of the Election Commission invitation to the reformist faction of her party for dialogue on electoral reforms.

A division bench comprising Justice Mirza Hossain Haider and Justice Mamnoon Rahman today (Monday) fixed the date through upgrading its cause list, as Dr Kamal Hossain, counsel for the EC, mentioned the knotty matter for early hearings.

The BNP-leadership dispute arose when on November 5 last year the EC, ignoring Khaleda-appointed BNP secretary general Khandker Delwar Hossain, sent a letter to Maj (Retd)

Hafiz to participate in the dialogue with political parties preparatory to holding the stalled elections.

Aggrieved at the decision, Khaleda Zia, also the immediate-past premier, moved to the High Court for seeking redress.

On November 18 the same year, the High Court, responding to Khaleda's writ, had stayed operation of the EC letter to the BNP standing committee-nominated acting secretary general, Major Hafiz, causing the Election Commission to inconclusively conclude the crucial first round of its reform dialogue with political parties.

The court also issued a rule upon the EC, the acting secretary general and six members of the BNP standing committee and the chief adviser of the caretaker government to explain why the impugned letter 'should not be declared illegal'.

On September 2 last year, hours before her arrest in connection with a corruption case amid a crackdown on politicians in the interim period, the ex-PM and BNP chief expelled her secretary general Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan on charge of anti-party activities and appointed Khandker Delwar secretary general.

On October 29, an impromptu meeting of the BNP standing committee declared M Saifur Rahman and Maj (Retd) Hafiz acting chairperson and acting secretary general respectively, in a sort of inner-party coup.

The EC took the decision on the plea of "doctrine of necessity" in the wake of a tug-of-war between the two squabbling groups in the BNP.

Since the BNP leadership depends on the decision of the High Court ruling, the EC could not complete its dialogue programme with the political parties on electoral reforms.

And now the EC has embarked upon a second round of dialogue-this time without BNP on the talk list-as time is running out of the EC-declared timeline for holding the stalled general election by December.