The New Nation - Internet Edition

Army Chief calls on President

Army Chief General Moeen U Ahmed called on President
Prof Dr Iajuddin Ahmed at Bangabhaban yesterday. PID
photo

UNB, Dhaka

Army Chief General Moeen U Ahmed called on President Professor Dr Iajuddin Ahmed at Bangabhaban yesterday. During the meeting Gen. Moeen informed the President about various on going development programmes of Bangladesh Army as well as its relief and rehabilitation activities in cyclone Sidr-hit coastal districts. The Army Chief briefed the President about the progress in preparing voter enrollment with photograph and national identity (ID) card. He also apprised the President of preparation of holding the march past at National Parade Ground on the observance of Independence Day on March 26.

Professor Ahmed expressed his satisfaction at the activities of the Army.

Military Secretary to the President Maj. Gen. Mohd Aminul Karim, Secretary to President's office M Sirajul Islam and President's Press Secretary Abdul Awal Howlader were present.

Former MPs refuse to vacate NAM flats: Immediate holding of JS polls demanded

Former Awami League lawmaker Shajahan Khan
addressing a joint press conference of former MPs at NAM
Bhaban at Manik Mia Avenue in the city on Sunday in protest
against government move to evict them from the NAM flats. NN
photo

Staff Reporter

Former lawmakers from BNP, Awami League and Jatiya Party residing in NAM flats made it clear yesterday that they are not leaving the flats under pressure from any quarter.

Addressing a joint press conference at NAM Bhaban at Manik Mia Avenue in the city they also vowed to resist any conspiracy to protect the image of Parliament and its property.

"Despite differences in our political ideology and opinion, we are united and pledge- bound to uphold the prestige and protect the property of Parliament," they said in a statement.

"We express our firm commitment to take up various programmes, including legal means to foil any conspiracy," they added.

"Question does not arise to leave the flats. We are eligible to continue residing in NAM flats utill the formation of the next Parliament. We are ready to fight legal battle, if necessary," they declared.

Former Awami League lawmaker Shajahan Khan readout the statement.

The lawmakers of the Eighth Parliament demanded immediate release of two former premiers-Begum Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina.

They demanded holding of the next general elections as soon as possible to establish an elected government in the country.

Asked whether the lawmakers want to live in the NAM flats for an unlimited period, Shajahan Khan said they do not want to stay there for a long time.

"We want let the election be held immediately. We are ready to leave the apartments as soon as new lawmakers will be elected," he said.

The statement said the NAM Bhaban is the property of the Jatiya Sangsad since it was handed over to the Parliament Secretariat in 2003 to allocate among the lawmakers.

Referring to the decision of the House Committee, which allocated the flats among the MPs, that the statement pointed out that the tenure of the allocation of the flats will remain in force till the gazette notification of MPs elect of Ninth Parliament is published.

"The statement said the move to reallocate the flats contrary to the decision of the committee is tantamount to disrespect to Parliament," it noted.

Without the House Committee, it is out of the jurisdiction even of the Speaker to fix rent and other charges of the flats, the statement said.

The lawmakers expressed their apprehension that there is either direct or indirect pressure to allocate the flats among others by cancelling the allocation given against the lawmakers. They also termed the move immoral and indecent one.

Shajahan Khan demanded holding open trials of the two former premiers so that people could know whether the two leaders are guilty or not.

The press conference was organised following issuance of Works Ministry's notice to pay for the NAM apartments if the lawmakers want to live.

Replying to a question on the lower rent of the flats, Shajahan Khan said they do not pay rent for the flats rather they are paying service charges as per parliamentary rule.

The Ministry of Works recently issued letters to the former lawmakers asking them either to pay rents fixed by the government or vacate the apartments by March 19 this year.

Asked if the former lawmakers will remain united during the prevailing situation, Shajahan Khan of Awami League, Syed Mehedi Ahmed Rumi of BNP and Mojibur Rahman of Jatiya Party said they are ready to work together not only on the issue of NAM flats but also on any national issue in future.

Among others, Selim Reza Habib, Abdul Momin Talukdar, Abu Yusuf Mohammad Khalilur Rahman, Nurul Kabir Shaheen, Abdul Mannan Talukdar, Prof Yunus, Helen Jerin Khan, Jahan Panna, Rezina Islam, Shahana Rahman, Nurjahan Yasmin, Bilkis Jahan Shirin, Rasheda Begum Hira, Saimon Begum, Khodeja Imdad Lata, Chamon Ara, Fahima Hossain Jubilee and Newaz Halima Arly and Majibur Rahman, Hafiz Uddin Ahmed, Lily Chowdhury were present at the press conference.

Hasina not produced before court: Prison authority says, AL chief well in hospital

Sheikh Hasina

bdnews24.com, Dhaka

State and defence lawyers trashed a report by prison authorities on Sheikh Hasina's health condition that was submitted to court Sunday.

The Dhaka court deferred to March 30 the proceedings of the graft case against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina involving the setting up of three barge-mounted power plants.

Judge Md Feroz Alam of the Special Judges' Court-1, set up at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban premises, also ordered the authorities to produce Hasina before the court on March 30.

Former power secretary Toufique-e-Elahi Chowdhury, co-accused in the case, was in the dock Sunday. Six other accused in the case are on the run.

Hasina was not produced before the court Sunday "because of her own reluctance though the condition of her health was fine", the prison authorities said in a report submitted to the court. Hasina's lawyers however trashed the report and termed it false and baseless.

Hasina's lawyer Adv Syed Rezaur Rahman said the Awami League president was not produced before the court because of her deteriorating health condition.

"No relative or lawyer has been allowed to meet Hasina for 13 days. In this situation, we are worried over her wellbeing," another lawyer said.

The report of the prison authorities said Hasina was being provided with the treatment her health condition demanded since the day she was arrested.

"It is an important responsibility of the jail authorities to ensure healthcare of any prisoner," the report said.

It added that Hasina was admitted to Square Hospital on March 11 to ensure proper treatment as advised by her private doctors.

Another of Hasina's lawyers Abdul Mannan Khan countered in court: "We don't believe that Sheikh Hasina was unwilling to appear before court."

"We are worried over the safety of her life. Those who could not kill her by the August 21 grenade attack, they are now plotting to kill her," the lawyer alleged.

Khan also claimed the deputy inspector general of prisons wrote his report on his own, with false pretences.

"If Sheikh Hasina was fine, she would have been returned to the special jail, instead of being kept in hospital."

The judge cautioned the defense lawyers over their comments in court. "You are both politicians and lawyers, I understand."

"But when you are in court, you will use the language of court. There is no scope for making political speeches here."

State's counsel Syed Shamim Ahsan Habib was earlier designated to read out the report of the prison authorities before the court.

However, Habib later requested the court to take action against the jail authorities as they had failed to produce Hasina before the court as scheduled.

On March 17, the judge ordered prison authorities to appraise the court of Hasina's overall condition.

The court had adjourned the hearing on that date to March 23 due to Hasina's absence.

The Anticorruption Commission filed the graft case with Tejgaon police on Sept 2, 2007, naming eight people including Hasina.

The anti-graft body accused Hasina and the others of being variously involved in the exchange of Tk 3 crore in bribes, from Wartsila Power Development Limited Consortium's local representative and Summit Group and United Group representatives, for awarding contracts to set up three barge-mounted power plants in Khulna, Shikalbaha and Haripur.

The ACC also accused Hasina of receiving a large part of the bribe money in the name of the Bangabandhu Memorial Trust during her term as prime minister.

The detained former prime minister was admitted to Square Hospital on March 11, while a number of specialist doctors have advised that she should be sent abroad for appropriate medical treatment.

Sudden ban on SCBA election: Lawyers vow to go ahead as per schedule

Supreme Court lawyers holding an emergency meeting
protesting the ban on election of the Supreme Court Bar
Association (SCBA) yesterday. FocusBangla

Staff Reporter

The government yesterday imposed a ban on the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) election scheduled for today and tomorrow. However, the lawyers and candidates vowed to go ahead with the election as per schedule.

An order signed by Shamsun Nahar, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) asked the association to refrain from holding the election.

The order issued to the Secretary of the SCBA said that no permission had been sought from the Dhaka Metropolitan Police for the election. It mentioned that taking prior approval from the DMP authority is necessary for conducting such activities in line with the emergency powers rules.

At a hastily called meeting at the association Hall Room, SCBA President Barrister Amir-ul-Islam protested the imposition of the ban on the election.

Barrister Amir-ul-Islam told the meeting that they would hold the election on schedule.

Candidates including Barrister Shafique Ahmed, Advocate Khandaker Mahbub Hossain attended the meeting.

SCBA Secretary Advocate AM Amin Uddin told The New Nation last night that they have sent a letter to the police authority explaining that as per the emergency rules it is not necessary to seek permission to hold such election.

"We hope that the police administration will extend its all-out cooperation to the polls," he said.

It may be mentioned that the election is being held without panels restoring the association's 10-year-old tradition.

A total of 40 candidates are contesting the election for 14 posts of the executive committee of the association.

It may be mentioned that the last year's election scheduled for March 27 and March 28 could not be held due to imposition of such restriction in view of the state of emergency.

Bumper potato crop likely: Govt appoints 540 new OMS dealers

Staff Reporter

The Government has appointed 540 new Open Market Sales (OMS) dealers across the country to control the soaring prices of foodstuff, Food Adviser AMM Shawkat Ali said yesterday.

According to him, the country currently has six lakh tons of food reserves, which will not be hampered by the Government's decision to increase the number of OMS, he said.

Bangladesh is about to harvest a bumper potato crop, which is likely to offset pressure of food shortage.

According to the report, potato production in the country in current season is likely to rise 35 per cent more than seven million tonnes due to favourable weather conditions.

The government will focus on meeting domestic demand and has no immediate plan to boost exports to major markets Malaysia and Singapore, where it ships 10,000 tonnes of potato annually, official said.

The price of rice, wheat, edible oil and pulses almost doubled over the last 12 months, due to repeated floods and Cyclone Sidr late last year, along with soaring global prices, the report said.

To meet the shortfall, Bangladesh has imported 2.9 million tonnes of rice and wheat in the current fiscal year.

Adviser Dr Shawkat said the Government has appointed 540 more dealers for increasing the sale of foodstuffs and ongoing meeting of the Advisory Council is going to decide what kind of foodstuffs would be sold under the OMS programme.

The Food Adviser also said, two dealers in each upazila are selling food materials now and the Government would appoint one or two more dealers in each to expand the distribution chain. He also said that the Government would allocate more food for dealers to mitigate public sufferings.

Responding to a question Dr Shawkat informed that the Government is considering to sell potatoes along with rice under OMS.

"As there is lack of storage facility following a bumper production of the crop in several areas of the country so the Government is thinking about using potatoes along with rice under VGF card," he added.

Dhaka-Kolkata train service starts on Pahela Baishakh

Staff Reporter

Bangladesh and India have agreed to whistle-start the much-awaited Dhaka-Kolkata passenger train service on Pahela Baishakh, the first day of the Bengali New Year.

The decision was taken at a bilateral meeting between Communications Adviser Maj Gen (retd) Ghulam Quader and Indian High Commissioner in Bangladesh Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty at the Communications Ministry.

During the meeting, Chak-ravarty urged the Bangladesh government to also start container rail service between the two countries after the launching of the passenger train service.

Communications Secretary Dr Mohammad Mahbubur Rahman, foreign secretary Md Towhid Hossain and additional secretary of the Communications Ministry ATK Ismail were present at the meeting.

Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty told newsmen that they discussed bilateral issues at the meeting.

"The Dhaka-Kolkata passenger train service would be launched from Pahela Baishakh--there is no doubt about it. Though some infrastructures are yet to be completed, they would be ready within a short period," Chakravarty said.

Responding to a query, he said fencing boxes on no man's land would not create any problem for starting off the rail communications.

The High Commissioner hoped that the relationship between the two countries would strengthen after the launching of the train service connecting the capitals of Bangladesh and the West Bengal of India.

Communications Secretary Mahbubur Rahman told newsmen that a three-day bilateral talk between the two countries would start on April 1 when the authorities of both the governments would sign the agreement on the Dhaka-Kolkata train service.

"Some infrastructures regarding the launching of the train service between two countries would be completed within a short time," he adding.

He further said Bangladesh would also construct-fencing boxes near zero line and it would be started at an appropriate time.

The two-way Dhaka-Kolkata passenger train serving would run once a week, he informed.

Dual citizenship allowed for British-Bangladeshis'

Staff Reporter

British passport-holder Non Resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) could maintain their Bangladeshi citizenship automatically under a new dual citizenship rule, without any certification from the Bangladesh Ministry of Home Affairs, a Bangladesh Home Ministry circular notified yesterday.

According to the circular, recently the Home Ministry has scrapped its previous circulars, notifications, orders or instructions issued under the Bangladesh Citizenship Temporary Provision-1972, a senior official of the Foreign Ministry said.

Chief Adviser Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed, during his London visit last week, conveyed the Government decision at a news conference with ethnic Bangladeshis at the Bangladesh High Commission on March 18.

Showing the Government notification to the journalists, the Chief Adviser said from now on, British passport-holder Bangladeshis would automatically retain their Bangladeshi citizenships.

"This will put an end to a longstanding problem of the Bangladeshi-Britons in retaining the dual citizenship," the official said.

Around five lakh Bangladeshi-Britons are living in the United Kingdom.

According to the Home Ministry circular, despite acquiring the British citizenship, a Bangladeshi will be able to retain Bangladeshi citizenship unless one relinquishes one's allegiance to Bangladesh "voluntarily".

Secondly, a Bangladeshi-Britons will not require permission from Bangladesh Government for retaining dual citizenship.

Thirdly, Bangladeshi citizens acquiring British citizenships will be able to preserve and use Bangladeshi passports.

Fourthly, Bangladeshi-British citizens will be able to get their Bangladeshi passports renewed after expiry of dates

Fifthly, a new Bangladeshi passport could be issued for those who have already acquired the British citizenship.

This notification will be applicable only for the expatriate Bangladeshis living in the UK, as mentioned.

Rats run riot in CHT

Shahidul Islam

About 15 lakh people in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh, Mizoram State of India and some nearly inaccessible areas of Myanmar, which share common borders with the two countries, are facing acute food shortage due to infestation of rats, according to aid groups, including the UNDP, and news agencies.

A plague of rats rapidly followed, feasting on the bamboo's protein-rich avocado-like fruit, before swarming to consume the farmers' rice paddies, grain harvests and food stockpiles in this areas, they added.

"According to the Action Aid, up to a million people are now facing hunger alone in Mizoram, where the rats plague began in October last year. The rates started invading CHT (Bangladesh) areas in December creating famine for nearly 300,000 people and launch their campaign towards nearby areas of Myanmar in late January this year, the UNDP said. The fruit of the Melocanna baccifera, which flourishes across hundreds of thousands of acres of Mizoram, is delicious to rodents and attracts rats from neighbouring states and countries. Locals suspect it has aphrodisiac qualities for rats, fuelling their numbers.

Scientists have found that more baby rats survive when the bamboo has flowered as the adult male rats, which are known to eat their newborn offspring, tend to leave them alone when they have had their fill of fruit.

Bamboo flowers seeds are high in protein and, when the rats eat them, they breed four times faster than normal. As a result, litters of up to 13 rats survive and are ready to reproduce themselves within three months, researchers said.

The people of this vast bamboo growing areas spreading over parts of India, Bangladesh and Myanmar were apprehending ars that they might face famine between 2007 to 2009 due to the rat plague, which occurs on regular basis every 47 to 50 years, the scientists noted

The area experienced the last appearance of the bamboo flower and the famine, known locally as mautam, ('bamboo death'), in 1959, which triggered over 22 years of violent guerilla unrest in this areas, including Mizoram.

"Politicians had then dismissed villagers' warnings of imminent disaster as local folklore. This time nobody has questioned the bamboo legend," said Mrinal Gohain, of charity Action Aid.

'There were rats all over the fields. Farmers would go to harvest their crops and find that the entire field had been eaten overnight," he added according to report ran by London-based influential daily The Guardian yesterday.

Although no hunger deaths had yet been reported, stockpiles of food were rapidly dwindling and few villagers had enough money to buy the subsidised supply of relief rice, he said. Most farmers had no seed for new crops and the true impact of the disaster would only be felt later in the year.

A BBC report said the blossoming, the rat problem, and the food shortages began two years ago in India then moved into Bangladesh in January and have now headed south into Myanmar as well.

In the Chittagong Hill Tracts, many people remember that time as well. One of them is the 93-year-old king of the Marma tribe, Raja Aung Shue Prue Chowdhury.

He tells journalists that the rats then "were as big as pigs".

Mizoram's villager Gohain said, 'The crisis is unfolding and is going to get worse. We anticipate that if this continues we will see something terrible happening here.'

Sangram, a rat catcher in the remote village of Theihkyong in CHT (Bangladeshi), has never been busier and nor has his work been as important as it is now. He has placed rat-traps along field boundaries.

It has become more than a job. Sangram now needs the rats to keep his family members alive. They eat two bowls of smoked rat a day, accompanied by the wild roots he finds in the forest.

"My wife, my five children and I normally eat rice, but the rats have destroyed everything," the grim-faced Sangram said, adding,"All we have left are the rats and these wild potatoes."

We are in big trouble and want the people to realise that, said Raja Aung Shue Prue Chowdhury, said, adding, The luckier villagers in the worst-affected areas were living on one meal a day, he said, while thousands more were foraging in the forests for food, surviving on roots, herbs and leaves.

Meanwhile, the Army backed Caretaker Government has taken an extensive relief programme for the people of CHT, where about 5,00,000 residents have already migrated to nearby areas leaving their villages due to food shortage caused by the rat plague.

The Indian State of Mizoram in declared a disaster in December but the crisis has been largely unreported within India, where national media tend to pay little attention to the problems endured by the nation's 700 million rural population, preferring to focus on Delhi-centred political intrigue and Bollywood gossip, The Guardian observed.

The Indian Government and relief agencies are finally beginning to believe them and are waking up to the problem, which extends far beyond the boundaries of this single village.

No detail on official efforts to combat the rat-plague and food shortage could be available in Dhaka from Yangoon till filing of this last night.

JN University student injured in clash dies

DU Correspondent

A student of Jagannath University (JN) died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital yesterday after being badly injured in an attack by his rival group on the campus on Saturday.

The dead, identified as Kajol Devnath, was a third-year student of Bangla Department of JU and an activist of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD). He hailed from Barisal District.

Sanjib Devnath, maternal uncle of the Kajol, filed a case with Kotwali Police Station in this connection.

Following the news of the death of Kajol, a tense situation was prevailing on the campus yesterday, sources said.

Sources said a tussle occurred between two rival JCD activists on Saturday over a trifling matter that turned into a group clash leaving 10 students injured, including Kajol in critical condition. The other injured are Noman, Monir, Mohsin, Shahadat, Sumon, Jewel and Arif belonging to JCD JN unit general secretary Anisur Rahman Khokon's group and Jani and Rana belonging to JCD JN unit president ABM Pervez's group.

Later, police used batons to bring the situation under control and arrested Shaon, a JCD activist, from the spot.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) filed a case against 14 JCD leaders and activists of Dhaka University with the Shahbagh Police Station.

The BCL filed the case following a clash with JCD leaders and activists at the Surja Sen Hall of Dhaka University (DU) on Saturday night.

Some 20 students from both the groups were injured in the incident, which happened allegedly during the occupation of the room of the JCD vice president by BCL men.

The accused of the case are Karim Sarker, JCD Surja Sen Hall unit general secretary, Sayeed, vice president, Rasel, Mehedi, Sumon, Sohag, Rajib, Amran, Rokon, Kawsar, Shibli, Zahid, Taher and Pintu.

Later, leaders of the JCD and BCL met Vice Chancellor Prof SMA Faiz separately and demanded punishment to those responsible for the incident. The VC assured them of looking into the matter soon.

Bid to resolve national crisis: Dialogue among govt, army, political parties urged

Staff Reporter

Multilateral dialogue among army, political party and government is essential to resolve national crisis, said speakers at a roundtable yesterday.

National Democratic Party (NDP) organised the roundtable to mark National Independence Day at the National Press Club.

Former Prime Minister Kazi Zafar sent a written speech, as he was absent because of illness. He said the dream of the people to establish democracy and to get rid of poverty couldn't be fulfilled after thirty-seven years of Independence. National unity is a must to ensure corruption free society, to be economically self-dependent and to establish democracy.

ASM Abdur Rab said, the independence was our greatest achievement. But the sufferings of people could not be reduced. The persons who are responsible for this must be punished. The formula of caretaker government is absolutely wrong and this causes the opportunity to politicise the judiciary.

He urged the Government to form "Constitutional Reform Commission" before the national election.

Khandakar Golam Murtoza, Chairman of NDP, called on the people to be united to press the government to hold credible national election. He condemned the unexpected foreign interference in country's internal politics and urged the government as well as individuals to take stern action against this.

Former Minister Kazi Firoj Rashid said, the people of Bangladesh did not accept military rule before and would not accept it in future. The masses would take action against any conspiracy.

Alamgir Majumder, Adv Nitai Roy, Syed Didar Bakth, Abdul Malek Ratan, among others, were present.

Acid attacks in country fall for a fifth year

Staff Reporter

The number of acid attacks in Bangladesh fell to an eight-year low last year, a sign that tough laws and a massive prevention drive is bearing fruit, a campaign group said yesterday.

Such attacks used to be common in Bangladesh, with people embroiled in property disputes or spurned male suitors disfiguring their victims - mostly women.

The annual figures compiled by the Acid Survivors' Foundation (ASF) showed that the acid attack dropped from 221 in 2006 to 187 in 2007, the fifth consecutive year of decline.

Monira Rahman, Executive Director of the ASF, said,

"Some 57 per cent of the attacks were targeted against women and 18 per cent against children."

The group attributed the decline to a massive prevention campaign it has launched in collaboration with non-government organisations (NGOs), and tougher punishments for offenders.

Under the acid control laws, enacted in 2002, an attacker faces a minimum seven years in jail or even the death penalty. As many as 490 cases of acid attacks were recorded in the country in 2002.

According to the ASF, more than 2,627 people have been attacked with acid since May 1999. Of them, 1,500 have been rehabilitated by the ASF and other charities with the assistance from top local companies and international NGOs.

Frequent disruption in optical fiber cable: Investigation yields little

Chittagong Correspondent

Reasons behind the repeated cutting of Chittagong-Cox's Bazaar optical fiber cable, only fastest data exchange backbone in the country, are still undetected causing frequent dislocation of cyber connectivity apart from huge revenue loss to the government.

According to the latest report of the BTTB, at least seven of the 32 such incidents had been speculated as 'sabotage' what needed even deeper investigations and the remedial moves. Unfortunately, no security agency has taken up the matter with due significance.

Officials of the BTTB preferring anonymity alleged that the people involved in the project had manipulated nearly a half of the allocation and finished the project without security protections.

They blamed the project supervisors for twisting the preconditions what had been endorsed in the tender. It is widely believed that the secrets will come out if the Project Director is rightly interrogated.

The contractors allegedly did not use concrete-turf top and bottom of the cable for its safeguard. Dislocation of the cyber connectivity due to the cable cutting lasted for eight hours to 72 hours.

As the country lacks alternative backbone, telecommunication engineers think any act of sabotage may put the country's information exchange system in total disarray.

Internet service providers and cellular phone operators urged the BTTB and authority concerned to immediately investigate the incidents of snapping of optical fiber cable for the sake of their smoother operations.

Information Technology experts think that the BTTB, sole public agency for taking care of the submarine cable, needs to be more efficient and must plan remedial t tackle the accidents.

"I strongly believe that technological advancement is necessary for any country to prosper in the current global scenario and to that end, we urge the relevant authorities to ensure that our internet and telephone connectivity are properly protected and maintained at all times," an IT expert commented.

The BTTB entered the SEA-ME-WE-4 project that linked 14 countries Singapore to France via Malaysia, Thailand, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria and Italy with 16 landing points.

The SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cable landed at the world's longest beach in Cox's Bazaar. The BTTB built a 165-kilometers optical fiber link from Cox's Bazaar cable landing station to Chittagong.