The New Nation - Internet Edition

Nurul Islam takes over as Chief Engineer of LGED

Consequent upon leave preparatory to retirement of Md. Shahidul Hassan, Chief Engineer, LGED Md. Nurul Islam has taken over as the Chief Engineer of the Local Government Engineering Department with effect from the afternoon of 27 August.

Islam was born on 30 December 1951 at the village Kachipara under Bauphal upazila of Patuakhali district. He got his graduation in Civil Engineering from Rajshahi Engineering College in 1975 and later did his Master Degree in Irrigation Engineering from Southampton University, UK in 1988.

Islam began his career as an Assistant Engineer in a project under PWD in 1975, he worked in Ashuganj Fertiliser and Chemical Company Ltd. as an Assistant Engineer from August 1977 to October 1978. He then joined as an Executive Engineer on 26 October 1978 under the Works Programme Wing, which transformed to LGED later. He became a Project Director in 1991 and worked in different projects under LGED till 2002. In 1993, he was promoted to the post of Superintending Engineer of LGED and performed as Head of Integrated Water Resources Management Unit of LGED. In 2007 he became the Additional Chief Engineer of LGED.

He attended a number of international training courses, workshops, seminars, conference and loan negotiation meetings in UK, USA, Canada, Australia, China, Nepal, Korea, Sweden, Tajikistan, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and India.

Lankan Army Chief passes busy day

UNB, Dhaka

Visiting Sri Lankan Chief of Army Staff Lt General GSC Fonseka passes a busy day here by participating in different programmes on Wednesday.

The Sri Lankan Army Chief laid a floral wreath at Shikha Anirban to pay tributes to memory of the members of the Armed Forces martyred during the War of Liberation in 1971.

Then he went to "Senakunja" where he was presented a guard of honour by a smartly turned-out Army contingent.

He inspected the guard and took salute. He planted a sapling at the Senakunja premises.

Later, Sri Lanka Army Chief paid a courtesy call on Chief of Army Staff General Moeen U Ahmed at Army Headquarters. He remained with the Army Chief for some time and discussed on matters of professional interest.

He was also briefed on different activities of Bangladesh Army at Army Headquarters conference room.

Chief of Army Staff General Moeen U Ahmed, Principal Staff Officers of Army Headquarters and entourage of Sri Lanka Army Chief were also present at the briefing.

Then, General Fonseka paid a courtesy call on Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal SM Ziaur Rahman at Air Headquarters.

He remained with the Air Chief for some time and discussed on matters of bilateral issues. Principal Staff Officers and senior BAF officers were present on the occasion.

General Fonseka visited Defence Services Command and Staff College (DSCSC) at Mirpur Cantonment and paid a courtesy call on DSCSC Commandant Major General Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan.

General Fonseka was informed about different activities of DSCSC. He also attended induction ceremony at "Mirpur Hall of Fame" of DSCS.

General Fonseka arrived Dhaka Tuesday on a four-day visit. He is being accompanied by his wife Anoma Indumthi Fonseka and a seven-member military delegation.

On his arrival, Bangladesh Army Quarter Master General Lt. General Md Jahangir Alam Choudhury, on behalf of the Chief of Army Staff, received him at Zia International Airport.

Sri Lankan High Commissioner in Dhaka V Krishna Moorthy was also present at the Airport.

Indian Higher Command Course team calls on Defence Secretary

UNB, Dhaka

Visiting 16-member military delegation of Indian Higher Command Course, led by Brig. JM Devadoss, paid a courtesy call on Defence Secretary Kamrul Hasan at the Ministry of Defence yesterday.

They remained with the Defence Secretary for some time and exchanged greetings.

Joint Secretary (W&D) of the Defence Ministry Brig. General Shah M Sultan Uddin Iqbal was also present on the occasion, said an ISPR release.

Journalist MT Alam's death anniversary tomorrow

Tomorrow is the 6th death anniversary of veteran journalist MT Alam.

He started his journalism from The Daily Dawn of then East Pakistan. He also worked as Joint News Editor of The Bangladesh Times and served in various posts in The New Nation, The Morning Sun, The Financial Express.

Alam was member of Jatiya Press Club.

A Milad Mahfil will be held at his residence to mark his death anniversary. His family members have requested all his relatives , colleagues and wellwishers to attend.

Emergency lifting pre-condition for credible polls: UK envoy

BSS, Sylhet

British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Stephan Evans on Wednesday said withdrawal of emergency is one of the preconditions of holding a credible election.

"We understand that the Chief Adviser of Bangladesh is speaking about the withdrawal of emergency in phases," he said. "But, I think there should be a time a limit to withdraw emergency," he added.

Ending his three-day visit in the country's Northeastern divisional city, the British High Commissioner made these observations at a press briefing, held at the conference room of Hotel Rose View here.

Stephen termed the last Monday's incident on the Dhaka University campus as a "painful event" and said political parties should take initiative to stop all kinds of violence and calm down their workers and supporters as well. "Because, it is the responsibility of all political parties," he said.

On a query, the British envoy high commissioner said there are lots of things for holding a credible election. The Election Commission, he added, has already completed technical works like preparation of the voters' list and computer data system.

Stephen further said that participation of all political parties is a must for holding a credible election.

Second Secretary John Raiyan and press secretary Naznin Ferdousi were present.

Bangladeshi farmer wounded by BSF in Lalmonirhat

UNB, Lalmonirhat

A Bangladeshi farmer was shot and injured by Indian Border Security Force (BSF) on Banchuki border in Hatibandha upazila yesterday afternoon.

The farmer was identified as Jhantu, 32, son of late Anwar Hossain of the Banchuki village.

Witnesses and BDR sources said Jhantu was grazing cows on the frontier village at about 3pm when BSF troops of 151 Battalion opened fire on him, leaving him critically wounded.

He was rushed to Hatibandha Health Complex for treatment.

BDR later strongly protested the BSF firing. A tense situation was prevailing in the border area following the incident.

Upazila elections before JS polls EC reaffirms

UNB, Dhaka

The Election Commission reaffirmed that it is moving ahead with October 23 as a tentative date for holding upazila elections before the stalled general election that the politicians want first.

But, the EC failed to make clear the schedule-announcing date and the number of upazilas going to the polls at the first go.

"October 23 is a possible date for holding the upazila polls-it's a preliminary discussion. It cannot be said for sure," Election Commission secretary M Humayun Kabir told reporters at his office on Wednesday afternoon.

He said the number of upazilas going to the election fully depends on preparation of the final voter list, and that's why the commission could not finalize the number of the upazilas.

Asked whether the upazila polls would be held in two phases, as some newspaper reports go, the EC secretary said the commission did not finalize whether the polls would be staggered or not. "It will be immature to say about it," he said.

About Dhaka City Corporation election, M Humayun Kabir said the EC has a plan to hold the DCC election after finalizing the voter list. "The date of the DCC election is also yet to be finalized."

Replying to a question, he said upazila elections would be nonparty but the leaders of political parties could participate in the election campaign due to the High Court verdict.

Outlaw leader killed in crossfire

UNB, Rajshahi

A top leader of outlawed Purbo Banglar Communist Party was killed in a shootout with police at Goyalkandi Madhyapara village in Bagmara upazila early yesterday.

The deceased was identified as Sirajul Islam alias Surya, 30, son of late Ihsak Ali of Namkan village and a leader of PBCP (Lal Pataka).

Police said Siraj was wanted in five criminal cases, including murder.

Acting on a tip-off, a police team from Bagmara thana rushed to the spot early hours today and found 30 to 35 underground activists were holding a secret meeting.

Sensing the presence of police, the activists opened fire. Police retaliated triggering a gun battle. Soon the activists retreated leaving behind Siraj fatally wounded.

Police rushed him to Bagmara Health Complex where doctors declared him dead.

A shutter gun with five rounds of bullet was recovered from the spot.

EC to send observation mission considering lifting of emergency

UNB, Dhaka

The European Commission will take decision on sending election-observer mission to Bangladesh considering the relaxation of the emergency rules as normally the EC does not observe elections where the state of emergency remains in place.

The remarks were made to reporters by EC Head of the Delegation Ambassador Stefan Frowein after holding an hour-long meeting with Foreign Affairs Advisor Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury at the Foreign Ministry.

Frowein, who led an eight-member delegation of the EU countries' envoys, said the European Commissioner for External Affairs would take the final decision about sending the election-observation mission to Dhaka by the end of September analyzing the given situation.

"That's normally the case," he said when asked whether the EC does not send its observation mission to an emergency-bound country.

Asked what would be the EC's decision about Bangladesh, Frowein said, "We'll have to see how the relaxation goes."

However, he said, it's the EU Commissioner to take the final decision by end of September.

In June last, an Exploratory Mission of the European Commission visited Dhaka and submitted its report on the pre-election situation to the EC Commissioner.

Asked whether they are confident about the holding of the general election in the third week of December according to the roadmap, Frowein said the Election Commission would announce the date for the elections and they are confident since it is still on in December.

Italian Ambassador Ms Itala Maria Marta Occi, Netherlands Ambassador Ms Bea Ten Tusscher, French CDA Patrick Branco Ruivo, Swedish CDA Ola Hallgren, German CDA Rolf Dieter Reinhard, Danish CDA Jan Moller Hansen, UK Head of Political Affairs Simon Lever and Arturo Manuel Perez Martinez were on the delegation.

Later, Iftekhar told the reporters that the discussions ranged from development cooperation to the preparations for the elections.

He said European support to the electoral process also featured in the discussions. The possibility of the deployment of a Mission to Bangladesh to observe the elections in December was also discussed.

Iftekhar said the European Commission would take a decision in this regard, possibly by the end of September.

Uniform 'khatme tarabi' urged

BSS, Dhaka

Islamic Foundation Bangladesh on Wednesday called for following an identical course in saying the 'khatme tarabih' prayers in all mosques of the country during the holy month of Ramzan.

Reciting from the holy Quran in different volumes in different mosques creates problems for the devotees to maintain continuity when they have to change mosques for various reasons, said an Islamic Foundation press release.

"This creates dissatisfaction and mental pressure among the devotees, and at the same time, they are deprived of the divine blessings (sawab) of 'khatme tarabih," the release said.

To resolve this problem, the Islamic Foundation suggested recitation of one and a half chapters (paara) every day for first six days, and one chapter (paara) each in next 21 days to complete the whole Quran on the night of 27th Ramzan.

The Islamic Foundation requested the imams, mosque management committees, devotees and all concerned to follow this uniformity in reciting from the holy Quran in the 'khatme tarabih' prayers, said the press release.

Bangladesh-Thailand celebrates 36 yrs of diplomatic ties

BSS, Dhaka

Foreign Adviser Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury received the Thai Ambassador to Bangladesh Chaiermpoi Thanchitt at the Foreign Ministry on Wednesday morning.

The Thai ambassador invited the foreign adviser to be the chief guest at an event in Dhaka marking the 36th anniversary of Bangladesh-Thailand diplomatic relations.

They discussed the forthcoming meeting between Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag of Thailand and the Foreign Adviser scheduled to take place in New Delhi today on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC Minister Meeting.

They also agreed that the Joint commission between Bangladesh and Thailand which has been dormant for several years, should be revived soon, possibly by March-April next year.

The ambassador apprised the foreign adviser of the latest positive developments with regard to the Thai-Cambodia border issue.

"I am looking forward to my first meeting with the new Thai Foreign Minister today, in many ways we have had an identical diplomatic career which should help our friendship," Dr Iftekhar Chowdhury told the media afterwards.

3 killed in Narsingdi road accident

UNB, Narsingdi

Three people were killed and two others injured in a fatal road accident at Baghata in Sadar upazila yesterday early morning.

The identities of the dead could not be known immediately.

Police and witnesses said the accident occurred on Dhaka-Sylhet highway when a microbus carrying newspapers rammed into a stationary truck at about 5:00am.

The microbus got twisted and three of its passengers died on the spot while two others sustained critical injuries.

The injured were rushed to the Sadar hospital.

Police recovered the bodies and sent those to the same hospital morgue for autopsy.

2 bodies recovered from Buriganga after boat capsize

UNB, Keraniganj

Two bodies were recovered from river

Buriganga yesterday while another person remained missing following Tuesday night's boat capsize.

The deceased were identified as Mohiuddin, 24, and Shaheen, 23, hailed from Kagujitola of the city's Sutrapur area.

Witnesses said three people, including the boatman, swam ashore after a mobile dredging machine hit the boat carrying them near Shyambazar ghat at about 10pm.

Fire fighters from Sadarghat recovered the two bodies from the river till 5pm while Iqbal Hossain, 25, remained missing.

Rescue operation was going on in the river to trace the missing youth.