e_Paper 28-04-2017

SECOND EDITION 

FRIDAY, APRIL 28, 2017 | Boishakh 15, 1424, Rajab 20, 1438 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 4, No 360 | www.dhakatribune.com | 24 pages plus 24-page Weekend supplement | Price: Tk10 

Easy prey in a concrete jungle › 2 

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN 

WEEKEND 

SUPPLEMENT 

Kitchen 

chronicles › 6 

PM launches ‘Digital 

Island Moheshkhali’ › 2 

BSS 

Food crisis continues 

in Sajek villages › 3 

Travel 

Greece › 12 

Foreign 

Bodies › 14

2 

FRIDAY, APRIL 28, 2017 

DT 

News 

Easy prey in a concrete jungle 

• Bilkis Irani 

A lakeside tree and a plastic bag 

containing a folded bed sheet, some 

plastic sheets for roofing, a few 

dirty clothes and some other odds 

and ends comprise home for sevenyear-old 

Sabina Akter Kulsum. 

She lives on the streets with 

her grandmother Fatema Begum. 

While Fatema, 50, begs to make 

ends meet, Kulsum sells chocolates 

to pedestrians in the area around 

Dhanmondi lake. 

The highlight of her day is attending 

a school for street children, 

located in the lake compound. 

She is frequently sexually harassed 

by men. 

At her age, Kulsum is not only 

unprepared to deal with such situations, 

she does not understand 

why strange men often offer her 

chocolates and food in exchange 

for her to cuddle with them or to go 

away with them. 

Instinctively, however, she has 

always refused. 

Fatema worries for her granddaughter. 

She fears the boys who 

roam the streets at night. “I have 

heard that they forcefully take 

away little girls and rape them,” she 

said, adding: “Sometimes, men corner 

her when I am not around and 

try to touch her and fondle her.” 

Unsure of how else to keep Kulsum 

safe, Fatema is trying in vain 

to rent a house. 

Far from easy street 

Kulsum’s case is not extraordinary. 

Almost every street girl lives 

with the constant risk of sexual 

harassment, especially at night. 

To make matters worse, many 

are married off by their parents by 

the time they reach 12 or 13 years of 

age, because their parents believe 

that is the only way to keep their 

daughters safe. 

Though there are a few night 

shelters in the city, most street 

people are either unaware of them 

or cannot take advantage of them 

because of overcrowding. There 

are no surveys on how many girls 

live on the streets of Dhaka. 

According to many of the people 

living on the streets, park areas 

like Ramna Park, Anwara Park 

and Chandrima Udyan are hubs for 

criminal activities. Many groups 

take advantage of the street girls 

there, especially those who do not 

have parents or guardians. Sometimes 

the street children are forced 

into becoming sex workers, drug 

traffickers or child labourers. 

Similar allegations were made 

by those who squat in the areas 

around the Dhaka airport and Kamalapur 

Railway Station. 

Many of these homeless people 

migrate to the city from their villages, 

either with the hope of building 

a better life for themselves or because 

they have lost their homes or 

have been cast out by their families. 

The city, however, is no friend 

to them. 

Not only do they fail to find 

shelter or jobs, their children are 

forced to suffer with them. 

Who is helping the helpless? 

According to Unicef child protection 

specialist Shabnaz Zahereen, 

the number of rural migrants is increasing 

every year. 

“For those who have already 

migrated, the government has a 

responsibility to protect them and 

to minimise the threats toward the 

girls. These girls live in unsanitary 

situations, with no access to bathroom 

facilities and often fall prey to 

physical assault. The government 

and NGOs should work together to 

take proper action,” she said. 

Shabnaz added that according to 

International Labour Organisation 

definitions, more than one million 

children are child labourers. 

“We know that most of them are 

street children but we do not have 

any specific statistics on how many 

are girls,” she said. 

When questioned about this, 

State Minister for Women and Children 

Affairs Meher Afroz Chumki 

failed to come up with statistics on 

underprivileged girls. 

Bangladesh Shishu Odhikar 

Forum Director Abdus Shohid 

Mahmud blamed the government. 

“Despite having a budget, the government 

does not seriously work on 

this matter. There should be a survey 

and a strong monitoring team 

to protect these unprivileged girls.” 

He suggested that the Department 

of Social Services take an 

initiative to run shelters staffed by 

women for street girls. 

Aparajeyo Bangladesh Executive 

Director Wahida Banu said 

three shelters in Dhaka are home to 

more than 150 girls of varying ages. 

However, the number of shelters 

for the homeless is dwindling 

as there is a marked lack of donations, 

and NGOs are not able to 

continue running the shelters. 

Another major barrier to helping 

the street girls is that landlords do 

not want to rent out houses to NGOs 

who want to convert them into 

shelters for girls, she explained. 

Prime minister launches ‘Digital Island Moheshkhali’ 

• Tribune Desk 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday 

termed Moheshkhali upazila 

under Cox’s Bazar district as the 

country’s first “Digital Island.” 

She made the announcement 

while inaugurating the launching 

of a project titled “Digital Island 

Moheshkhali” that will connect 

the upazila with high-speed internet 

network. She said the project 

would make a huge contribution 

to socio-economic development of 

the upazila. 

A street girl sells books near the Kakoli intersection of Banani in Dhaka. There are no surveys on how many girls live on the streets of Dhaka. The photo was taken on 

September 23, 2014 

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU 

Opening the project digitally 

from her official residence Ganabhaban 

in the morning, the prime 

minister said that such a digital system 

will be introduced in other isolated 

areas in phases, reports UNB. 

“Today’s launch is one more 

step towards the Digital Bangladesh 

Vision 2021, where we will 

have a prosperous and equitable 

middle-income Bangladesh by our 

golden jubilee of independence. 

“What has been done on the Island 

of Moheshkhali, can be replicated 

in other hard to reach areas 

of the country, so that all corners 

of the country can benefit from the 

digital revolution,” Sheikh Hasina 

said via video link to the ceremony, 

according to an International 

Organisation for Migration (IOM) 

press release. 

Sarat Dash, chief of mission for 

IOM Bangladesh, said: “I am grateful 

to the Government of Bangladesh 

for entrusting IOM and extending 

valuable support for the 

project since its inception. 

“I believe this pilot project can 

really set an example on how the use 

“There is a syndicate that captures 

girls,” she said, adding that 

they use these girl children for activities 

like drug trafficking and the 

sex trade. 

“Another factor is, since they become 

used to the freedom of living 

on the streets, it is hard for us to keep 

them in the shelters. Sooner or later, 

the children leave,” said Wahida. 

“Neither the NGOs nor the government 

can tackle this problem 

alone. We all need to work together,” 

she said, stressing the need for 

government support, especially 

in terms of funding, so that NGOs 

can continue to work to help these 

girls. • 

PAGE 1 PHOTO CAPTION 

A street girl sells flowers at Shahbagh 

in Dhaka. Almost every street girl 

lives with the constant risk of sexual 

harassment, especially at night. The 

photo was taken on July 19, 2013 

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN 

of technology in remote areas can 

really bring about social change.” 

KT’s Chief Executive Chang-Gyu 

Hwang, who linked in from South 

Korea via the new network system, 

said: “This project will be a good 

model for other areas in Bangladesh 

and even other countries that 

experience social and digital gap.” 

Korea Telecom already pioneered 

the digital island concept in 

South Korea in 2014 and has now 

been invited to replicate its success 

in Bangladesh. 

The project installed a fibre optic 

cable on Moheshkhali that now 

provides high speed internet to 

30% of the island’s population or 

three of the island’s eight unions. 

The project hopes to extend the 

fibre optic network to privately 

owned enterprises by 2018. 

The government, IOM and KT 

signed a MoU in February 2016 to 

embark upon the creation of the 

digital island project that would 

cost over Tk22 crores. 

KT and IOM hope to hand over 

the entire project to the local community 

to run by June 2019. •

News 3 


Food crisis continues in Sajek villages 

DT 

• S Bashu Das, Bandarban 

The government has allocated 

some 10 tonnes of foodgrains for 

the people of 20-25 villages in remote 

areas of Sajek in Rangamati 

who have been starving for the last 

three months. 

Scarcity of rice because of low 

production in this year’s jhum 

(slash-and-burn method) cultivation 

and eventual skyrocketing of 

its price in the local markets have 

forced around 400 families of 

those villages to go hungry almost 

every day. 

It is the second phase of government 

aid to be distributed among 

the indigenous peoples, some of 

whom have come to the Sajek tourist 

town on April 21 walking rough 

roads and terrains for two to three 

days to receive the rice assistance. 

Price of coarse rice has gone as 

high as Tk90-110 a kg from Tk30-35 

in their locality that include Puran 

Jopui, Notun Jopui, Udolchhari, 

Puran Thangnong, Notun Thangnong 

and Tharum Para villages. 

People need to travel around 

15km to go to Machalong Bazar in 

Sajek Sadar to get rice at fair price. 

Many have resorted to feeding on 

alternatives like spuds and gourds. 

Baghaihat market traders association 

General Secretary Md Jewel 

said the prices of goods are normal 

Low production in the traditional jhum cultivation method has led to a food scarcity in Sajek this year 

in Baghaihat and Machalong, but it 

is increasing by three-four folds for 

the transportation to the markets 

in the affected areas that takes twothree 

days. 

The markets lying within the 

closer reach of those villages are 

situated in Mizoram state of India. 

Opening up border haats along the 

border could have reduced the 

problem of rice price hike, suggested 

the locals. 

Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) 

Affairs Ministry has allocated 10 

tonnes rice under Rangamati district 

administration to assist those 

starving people. More allocations 

will be made after further assesment 

of the situation, according to 

officials. 

State Minister for CHT Affairs 

Bir Bahadur Ushwe Sing told the 

DHAKA TRIBUNE 

Dhaka Tribune that the ministry 

has ready to tackle the “temporary 

crisis” in Sajek. 

“If needed, more foodgrains will 

be allocated,” said the state minister. 

Sajek Union Parishad Member Sushila 

Chakma said food crisis has become 

a yearly phenomenon for the 

hard-to-reach areas in the Sajek valley 

and it is the women and children 

who suffer the most in the crisis. 

The situation this year would 

worsen further if food reliefs are 

not distributed among the affected 

areas on an emergency basis, she 

added. 

She also recommended taking 

longer-term plan to overcome the 

crisis. 

Rangamati Deputy Commissioner 

Prokash Kanti Chowdhury 

said five tonnes of rice had so far 

been distributed in the affected 

areas thourgh the chairmen and 

members of the union parishads. 

The upazila nirbahi officer has 

also been asked to make a list of the 

people starving in those areas. 

According to Sajek Union Parishad 

Chairman Nelson Chakma, 

the local administration gave out 

10kg rice for each of 410 families on 

April 21. 

“We have sought a further allocation 

of 600 tonnes of foodgrains 

to feed these people,” Nelson told 

the Dhaka Tribune, adding that he 

had informed the higher authorities 

about the possible situation 

two months back. 

In recent past, food crisis hit Sajek, 

Bilaichhari, Jurachhari upazilas 

of Rangamati, and in Thanchi and 

Ruma upazilas of Bandarban in 2012. 

Around 6,500 affected families were 

brought under a relief package for 

six months at that time. • 

Four militants dead, two in custody as 

Operation Eagle Hunt ends 

• Md Anwar Hossain 

Choudhury, Chapainawabganj 

Law enforcement officials concluded 

Operation Eagle Hunt yesterday, 

after four militants blew themselves 

up at the militant hideout in 

Shibnagar village under Shibganj 

upazila of Chapainawabganj. 

Rajshahi Range DIG Khurshid 

Hossain announced the successful 

completion of the operation during 

a press briefing at 6:45pm. He 

was accompanied by SWAT Deputy 

Commissioner Proloy Kumar 

Joarder and Chapainawabganj Police 

Superintendent Mujahidul Islam. 

SWAT resumed the operation at 

9:10am yesterday, with gunfire and 

explosions heard from the den almost 

immediately. Subsequently, a 

bomb disposal team arrived at the 

location at 10:30am. 

At 1:08pm, law enforcement 

officials used megaphones to urge 

militant Abu Ali to surrender, in 

the same manner as his family had 

done on Wednesday, but there was 

once again no response. 

However, Sumaiya Begum, suspected 

to be militant Abu’s wife, 

Armed members of the police SWAT and Counter-terrorism Unit outside a militant 

den in Shibganj, Chapainawabganj 

AZAHAR UDDIN 

left the building with a four-yearold 

girl, Sajida Khatun, at 5:30pm. 

According to DIG Khurshid, law 

enforcement officials shot Sumaiya 

in the right leg before taking 

her into custody as they suspected 

she may have had explosives on 

her person. Sumaiya was taken to 

Chapainawabganj Sadar Hospital 

for treatment, where it was found 

that she was three months pregnant. 

Gunfire and explosions at the 

hideout continued until 6:30pm, at 

which point the operation was concluded 

and the building handed 

over to bomb disposal units. 

The bodies of the militants 

were recovered from the hideout 

at 8:30pm and taken to Chapainawabganj 

Sadar Hospital for post 

mortem examination. 

Earlier, at 5:30am on Wednesday, 

CTTC officials cordoned off 

the building in Trimohoni, Shibnagar 

village, suspecting it to be a 

militant hideout. 

According to CTTC, police and 

locals, the owner of the building is 

Saidur Rahman alias Jentu Biswas. 

Abu Ali, 30, rented the building in 

February this year. 

Abu, who is originally from Trimohoni 

in Shibnagar, was a madrasa 

student. After completing his 

studies, he took up trade as a spice 

vendor. During this time, he often 

conflicted with his parents, Afsar 

Ali and Fulsana Begum, regarding 

his overzealous religious ideologies. 

Locals said his mother had 

claimed that Abu moved out of 

their home after one such disagreement. 

They added that Abu rarely interacted 

with others outside of his 

set group of eight to ten friends. 

These men would often be seen 

praying together and were also in 

the habit of observing Eid in accordance 

with Saudi Arabia. 

Locals also alleged that two of 

Abu’s associates, Mahfuzur Rahman 

alias Mohon, 28, and Abdus 

Salam, 35, had been detained by 

police on Tuesday night. 

Police, however, refused to 

comment on the matter.• 

‘There will be no 

load-shedding 

during Iftar, 

Tarabi or Sehri’ 

• Aminur Rahman Rasel 

Considering Ramadan will happen 

during summer this year, the Power 

Division yesterday said there 

will be no load-shedding during 

Iftar, Tarabi and Sehri. 

“We will also generate 10,000MW 

of electricity if needed,” said Power 

Division Secretary Dr Ahmad Kaikaus 

at Bidyut Bhaban during an inter-ministerial 

meeting about power 

supply during Ramadan. 

“If any power distribution company 

needs to use the load-shedding 

method, then they will have 

to schedule that beforehand and 

inform the authorities concerned. 

“The distribution companies 

will have to form a committee and 

distribute the load equally.” 

During peak hours, initiatives 

will be taken to keep appliances 

and heavy machinery that use a lot 

of electricity turned off. 

Gas supply will be increased, 

unnecessary lighting will not be 

allowed in petrol and CNG pumps. 

During the meeting, it was also 

decided that CNG pumps will be 

closed from 5pm to 11pm. •

4 


DT 

News 

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION (UN-AUDITED) 

AS AT 31ST MARCH, 2017 

STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS (UN-AUDITED) 

FOR THE NINE MONTHS ENDED 31ST MARCH, 2017 

Value in Taka '000' 

APEX FOODS LIMITED 

Rupayan Golden Age (5th & 6th Floor), 99 Gulshan Avenue, Gulshan, Dhaka-1212. 

UN-AUDITED NINE MONTHS (Q3) FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE PERIOD ENDED ON 31ST MARCH 2017 


01.07.2016 01.07.2015 01.01.2017 01.01.2016 

As on As on Growth to to Growth to to Growth 

31.03.2017 30.06.2016 % 31.03.2017 31.03.2016 % 31.03.2017 31.03.2016 % 

Like what you’re reading? 

Net Profit for the nine months 

ended on 31st March 2017 - - - 5,633 - - 5,633 

Dividend for the year 2015-16 - - - (11,405) - - (11,405) 

Fair valuation surplus/(deficit) 

of investments - - - - - 35,717 35,717 

As at 31st March 2017 57,024 209,088 51,163 135,274 607 196,148 649,304 

01.07.2016 01.07.2015 

to 

to 

31.03.2017 31.03.2016 Growth 

% 

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY (UN-AUDITED) 

FOR THE NINE MONTHS ENDED 31ST MARCH, 2016 

CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES: 


Particulars Share Share Tax Retained Capital Fair Valuation Total 

Collection from revenue 1,257,990 1,570,928 (20) Capital Premium Holiday Earnings Gain Surplus of 

Other Income 23,217 26,018 (11) Reserve Investment 

Interest and other financial charges paid (73,170) (73,712) 1 As at 1st July 2015 57,024 209,088 51,163 174,161 607 130,440 622,483 

Income tax paid (14,724) (19,735) 25 Net Profit for the nine months 

Payment for costs and expenses (1,227,692) (1,380,534) 11 ended on 31st March 2016 - - - (15,928) - - (15,928) 

Net cash generated from operating activities (a) (34,379) 122,965 (128) Dividend for the year 2014-15 - - - (11,405) - - (11,405) 

Fair valuation surplus/(deficit) 

CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES: of investments - - - - - 40,452 40,452 

Prior years' adjustment for deferred tax (13,044) (13,044) 

Property, Plant and Equipment acquired (3,160) (2,216) (43) As at 31st March 2016 57,024 209,088 51,163 146,828 607 157,848 622,558 

Short Term Investments 55,338 (7,588) 829 

Net cash used in investing activities (b) 52,178 (9,804) 632 

Explanatory Notes: 

CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES: (1) These financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and going concern basis . 

(2) No interim dividend paid during the interim period ended on 31st March 2017. 

Working Capital Loan received/(repaid) 40,610 (93,570) 143 (3) Last year's nine month's figures were rearranged where considered necessary to conform to current nine months 

Long Term loan received/(repaid) (22,500) (22,500) 0 presentation. 

Short Term Loan received/(repaid) (30,411) 14,555 (309) (4) No diluted EPS is required to be calculated as there was no dilution during this period. 

Dividend paid (4,265) (4,849) 12 (5) Figures were rounded-off to the nearest thousand Taka. 

Net cash used in financing activities (c) (16,566) (106,364) 84 

Net increase/(decrease) in cash and 

cash equivalents(a+b+c) 1,233 6,797 (82) 

Cash & cash equivalents on opening 10,876 4,318 152 

Cash & cash equivalents on closing 12,109 11,115 9 Note: The details with selected notes of the published nine months financial statements can be available in the web-site 

of the Company . The address of the web-site is www.apexfoods.com 

Net Operating Cash Flow Per Share (6.03) 21.56 (128) 

Sd/- Sd/- Sd/- Sd/- Sd/- 

Zafar Ahmed Shahriar Ahmed Ashim Kumar Barua S. K. Halder Kamrul Islam 

Chairman Managing Director Director Chief Financial Officer Assistant Company Secretary 

SUBSCRIBE TODAY 

STATEMENT OF PROFIT OR LOSS AND OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (UN-AUDITED) 


ASSETS REVENUE 1,258,080 1,576,292 (20) 223,020 454,064 (51) 

Cost of Goods Sold (1,112,832) (1,436,429) (23) (177,173) (398,156) (56) 

Non-Current Assets: 

Property, Plant and Equipment 114,863 131,305 (13) GROSS PROFIT 145,248 139,863 4 45,847 55,908 (18) 

Investments 263,192 223,507 18 

378,055 354,812 7 OPERATING EXPENSES: (143,910) (163,210) (12) (43,808) (51,921) (16) 

Current Assets: Administrative & Selling Overhead (70,740) (89,498) (21) (20,067) (28,202) (29) 

Inventories 730,923 658,163 11 Financial Expenses (73,170) (73,712) (1) (23,741) (23,719) 0 

Trade Receivables 38,711 38,621 0 

Advances, Deposits & Pre- Payments 43,224 26,552 63 OPERATING PROFIT/(LOSS) 1,338 (23,347) 106 2,039 3,987 (49) 

Other Receivables 127,045 130,296 (2) Other Income 20,866 25,387 (18) 3,912 5,261 (26) 

Short Term Investments 270,852 326,190 (17) 

Cash & Cash Equivalents 12,109 10,876 11 PROFIT/(LOSS) BEFORE PPF & WF 22,204 2,040 988 5,951 9,248 (36) 

1,222,864 1,190,698 3 Provision for Contribution to PPF & WF (1,110) (102) 988 (297) (462) 36 

TOTAL ASSETS 1,600,919 1,545,510 4 PROFIT /(LOSS) BEFORE TAX 21,094 1,938 988 5,654 8,786 (36) 

=========== ========== 

EQUITY AND LIABILITIES Tax Expenses: (15,461) (17,866) (13) (3,644) (5,777) 37 

Current tax (16,071) (15,426) 4 (2,828) (3,319) 15 

Shareholders' Equity: Deferred tax (expenses) / Income 610 (2,440) 125 (816) (2,458) 67 

Share Capital 57,024 57,024 0 

Share Premium 209,088 209,088 0 NET PROFIT/(LOSS) AFTER TAX 5,633 (15,928) 135 2,010 3,009 (33) 

Reserve and Surplus 187,044 192,816 (3) 

Fair Valuation Surplus 196,148 160,431 22 Other comprehensive income: 35,717 40,452 3,727 (48,721) 

649,304 619,359 5 Fair valuation surplus/(deficit) of investments 39,686 44,947 (12) 4,141 (54,135) 108 

Non-Current Liabilities: 

Deferred tax (expenses)/income 

Deferred Tax Liabilities 23,909 20,550 16 on share valuation surplus (3,969) (4,495) (12) (414) 5,414 (108) 

Long Term Loan - 22,500 (100) 

23,909 43,050 (44) TOTAL COMPREHENSIVE INCOME 41,350 24,524 69 5,737 (45,712) 113 

Current Liabilities: 

Working Capital Loan (Secured) 753,471 712,861 6 Earning Per Share (EPS) 0.99 (2.79) 135 0.35 0.53 (33) 

Long Term Loan-Current Maturity 30,000 30,000 0 

Short Term Loan 35,460 65,871 (46) 

Trade Payables 42,891 27,741 55 

Other Payables 16,473 20,428 (19) 

Current Tax Liability 36,053 19,982 80 


Other Liabilities 13,358 6,218 115 


927,706 883,101 5 


Total Liabilities 951,615 926,151 3 Particulars Share Share Tax Retained Capital Fair Valuation Total 

TOTAL EQUITY & LIABILITIES 1,600,919 1,545,510 4 Capital Premium Holiday Earnings Gain Surplus of 

=========== ========== Reserve Investment 

Net Asset Value Per Share 113.87 108.61 As at 1st July 2016 57,024 209,088 51,163 141,046 607 160,431 619,359 

Call: 0161-I-WANT-DT (01614926838) | Visit: dhakatribune.com/subscribe 


Dhaka Tribune 

Railway East 

GM Mridha 

and two 

others jailed 

• Anwar Hussain, Chittagong 

Former east zone railway general 

manager Yousuf Ali Mridha and 

two other officials were sentenced 

to four-year imprisonment for corruption 

in the railway’s recruitment 

yesterday. 

Chittagong Divisional Special 

Judge Mir Ruhul Amin delivered 

the verdict in two cases. 

The court also imposed 

Tk10,000 fine each on Mridha, Senior 

Welfare Officer Golam Kibria 

and Additional Chief Mechanical 

Engineer Hafizur Rahman. Another 

three months jail will be imposed 

on the culprits if they fail to pay 

the fine. 

Five others, who had taken 

part in the recruitment tests, were 

cleared of charges. 

The Anti Corruption Commission 

(ACC) filed the two cases with 

kotwali police on September 10 and 

September 13 in 2012, accusing the 

officials of irregularities when recruiting 

for the post of Fuel Checker 

and Ticket Issuer. Mridha, Kibria 

and Hafizur were accused in the 

second case. 

The ACC filed charge sheet 

against the three accused along 

with two other examinees for the 

post of Fuel Checker in 2013. 

Mridha, along with several other 

railway officials and job seekers, 

were accused in 14 cases filed by 

the ACC between 2010 and 2012 for 

corruption in recruiting staff for 

different posts. • 

DPDC fines 

Tk2.5cr over 

corruption 


The Dhaka Power Distribution 

Company Limited (DPDC) fined 

Tk2.5cr during an anti-corruption 

drive in April. 

The authorities of the company 

have operated an anti-corruption 

drive at Motijheel, Adabor, Sher-e- 

Bangla Nagar, Kakrail, Maniknagar, 

Khilgaon, Shyampur and Narayanganj 

and found that 800,000 units 

electricity were being stolen from 

the areas. 

Joyonto Kumar Shikder, secretary 

of DPDC, said: “The corruption is 

taking place because people are not 

aware of the law of the country. We 

are trying to create awareness among 

the users. We will continue the drive 

to stop the corrupted users and ensure 

punishment to the illegal power 

users as per the law of the country.” 

A total of 48 illegal connections 

were cancelled during the drive. •

News 5 


‘Coordinated planning needed to protect Haor areas’ 

• Bilkis Irani 

Rigorous and coordinated planning 

is necessary in order to protect the 

Haor areas from disasters like flash 

flood that is currently causing losses 

worth several thousand crores of 

taka, speakers said yesterday. 

“There is a lack of coordination 

in the planning of Haor development 

and protection,” said eminent 

economist Dr Wahiduddin 

Mahmud at the unveiling ceremony 

of three reports. “A comprehensive 

plan with involvement of all 

ministries concerned is needed for 

the development of the Haor areas.” 

He said since protecting haors is 

a priority as these water bodies are 

free natural reservoirs in the country. 

Govt to reduce SSC 

exam courses 

The reports, “Data Gap Analysis 

for Sustainable Development Goals 

(SDGs): Bangladesh Perspective,” 

“Banking Atlas” and “Environment 

and Climate Change Policy 

Gap Analysis in Haor Areas” – were 

unveiled at the National Economic 

Council conference room in Dhaka. 

Wahiduddin, also a former professor 

of Dhaka University, attended 

the event as a special guest. 

The ceremony was organised 

jointly by the General Economic Division 

of the Planning Commission 

and Support to Sustainable and Inclusive 

Planning (SSIP) project of 

the UNDP Bangladesh. 

Dr Hamidul Haque, professor of 

economics at United International 

University, said it was the policy 

makers’ fault that the haor embankments 

were not strong enough 

to hold the onrush of flood water – 

not the engineers’ who built them. 

“The Department of Agricultural 

Extension is responsible for 

the agricultural development in 

the Haor areas, so they should pay 

more attention to the planning,” he 

added. 

Dr KAS Murshid, director general 

of Bangladesh Institute of Development 

Studies, said people living 

in the Haor areas should be provided 

with skill development training 

so they have better livelihood opportunities. 

Planning Minister AHM Mustafa 

Kamal, who attended the event 

as well, blamed climate change for 

the flood in the Haor areas. 

“We can hardly do anything 

about this situation… our hands 

are tied because the main reason 

behind this is climate change,” he 

said. 

He said an extensive plan formulated 

with the help of experts 

was needed to overcome the present 

situation. 

He also said solar panels would 

be installed in Haor areas for the 

betterment of local people. 

Moreover, the government is 

working to improve the lives of 

nearly 5.7 million marginalised 

people in the country, the minister 

added. 

The speakers also discussed the 

lack of data regarding the indicators 

of the 17 SDGs set by the UN, as 

well as the development of cooperative 

master plan and cancellation 

of lease system and the increase in 

public participation in the banking 

sector. 

DT 

Bangladesh facing ‘considerable’ 

data gap 

There is a “considerable” gap in the 

data collected via monitoring the 

indicators of the SDGs in Bangladesh, 

according to the report titled 

“Data Gap Analysis for Sustainable 

Development Goals (SDGs): Bangladesh 

Perspective,” prepared by 

the General Economic Division. 

The UN set a total of 230 indicators 

to monitor the progress 

of achieving 169 targets under 17 

SDGs. Of them, the government 

currently has complete data on 

only 70 indicators, which is less 

than one-third of the total indicators, 

the report says. 

Of the rest, the government has 

partial data on 108 indicators and 

absolutely no data on 63 indicators, 

according to the report. • 

PID 

• Shohel Mamun 

The government has decided 

to reduce the number of courses 

in the Secondary School 

Certificate (SSC) level examinations, 

according to the education 

minister, yesterday. 

“The number of courses in 

SSC will be reduced as the current 

number is too much pressure 

for the students,” said Education 

Minister Nurul Islam 

Nahid at the ministry after a 

meeting on how to improve 

the education system. 

The meeting was conducted 

with educationists on 

improving the secondary education 

system after which 

the minister said: “Courses 

like drawing, physical studies, 

music and sports will be 

evaluated by school and students 

will not have to appear 

in board examination for these 

subjects in future. 

“The government is also 

planning to scrutinise and edit 

all 12 textbooks of secondary 

level to help students easily 

understand the contents.” 

The books are expected to 

be given to students in next 

academic year. 

When asked about the 

changes made in secondary 

textbooks following recommendations 

by Hefazat-e-Islam, 

noted educationist Professor 

Zafar Iqbal said: “The 

issue is in the Bangla book and 

it is under the jurisdiction of 

educationist Shyamoli Nasrin 

Chowdhury.” 

“The committee can make 

the changes in future if they 

feel,” added Zafar Iqbal, chair 

of a committee formed to improve 

school textbooks. • 

TEMPERATURE FORECAST FOR TODAY 

Dhaka 35 25 Chittagong 31 24 Rajshahi 37 26 Rangpur 32 22 Khulna 38 26 Barisal 36 26 Sylhet 31 21 

Cox’s Bazar 32 25 

DRY WEATHER LIKELY 

FRIDAY, APRIL 28 

DHAKA 

TODAY 

TOMORROW 

SUN SETS 6:26PM 

SUN RISES 5:26AM 

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW 

37.7ºC 

20.0ºC 

Rajshahi 

Sylhet 

Source: Accuweather/UNB 

PRAYER 

TIMES 

Fajr: 4:55am | Jumma: 1:15pm 

Asr: 5:00pm | Magrib: 6:34pm 

Esha: 8:30pm 

Source: Islamic Foundation

6 


DT 

Advertisement

Demand for 

Gopalganj 

division getting 

popular 

• Manoj Kumar Saha, Gopalganj 

The people of Gopalganj, the birthplace 

of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu 

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, 

have demanded that the district 

should be declared a division soon. 

Several hundred activists of different 

parties and common people 

joined a human chain around 10am 

yesterday in front of the press club 

to drum up public support for the 

demand. 

It was organised by different 

socio-cultural and political organisations 

including Awami League, 

Communist Party of Bangladesh 

and Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD). 

The participants include municipality 

Mayor Kazi Liakat Ali Leku, 

Press Club General Secretary Sayed 

Mirajul Islam, Awami League leaders 

Emdadul Haque, JSD leader 

Sheikh Masudur Rahman Masud, 

Dr Abid Hasan Sheikh and Udichi 

district unit President Nazmul Islam. 

They announced that they 

would continue campaigns until the 

government fulfilled their demand. 

Latest, Mymensingh was declared 

as the eighth division of the 

country in 2015. People of Noakhali, 

Jessore and Faridpur districts 

have also been campaigning for 

recognition as divisions. • 

Bhola teacher 

held for 

abusing child 

• MA Ahad Chowdhury Tuhin, 

Bhola 

A seven-year-old madrasa girl has 

been abused sexually by her teacher 

in Bhola town. 

Md Shahabuddin, 22, son of late 

Fazle Hossain from the same area, 

was arrested on Wednesday night, 

hours after the assault. 

An honours student at a local 

college, Shahabuddin was serving 

as a part-time teacher at Hosainia 

Pre-Cadet Madrasa. 

According to police and locals, 

Shahabuddin molested the girl in 

his room after class and threatened 

her not to disclose the incident. 

The family members called Shahabuddin 

at their home after she 

revealed the incident. But the culprit 

tried to settle the matter. Later 

locals gave him a good beating on 

the madrasa premises. Police arrested 

him around 10pm. 

The madrasa authorities filed a 

case again him the same night. 

During interrogation, Shahabuddin 

told the police that he 

just beat up the girl as she had not 

prepared her lessons. • 

News 7 


APEX SPINNING & KNITTING MILLS LIMITED 

Rupayan Golden Age (5th & 6th Floor), 99 Gulshan Avenue, Gulshan, Dhaka-1212. 

Un-audited Nine Months (Q3) Financial Statements for the period ended on 31st March 2017 

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION (UN-AUDITED) 

STATEMENT OF PROFIT OR LOSS AND OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (UN-AUDITED) 

AS AT 31ST MARCH, 2017 FOR THE NINE MONTHS ENDED 31ST MARCH, 2017 

Value in Taka '000' Value in Taka '000' Value in Taka '000' 

01.07.2016 01.07.2015 01.01.2017 01.01.2016 

As on As on Growth to to Growth to to Growth 

31.03.2017 30.06.2016 % 31.03.2017 31.03.2016 % 31.03.2017 31.03.2016 % 

ASSETS 

REVENUE 2,416,028 2,498,624 (3) 817,926 885,176 (8) 

Non-Current Assets: 326,518 271,915 Cost of Goods Sold 2,210,993 2,296,422 (4) 746,595 811,785 (8) 

Property, Plant and Equipment 302,064 250,630 21 

Investment 24,454 21,285 15 GROSS PROFIT 205,035 202,202 1 71,331 73,391 (3) 

Current Assets: 960,978 1,189,581 OPERATING EXPENSES: 172,543 166,469 4 58,832 57,133 3 

Inventories 208,935 193,149 8 Administrative & Selling Overhead 168,184 162,184 4 57,427 55,129 4 

Trade Receivables 311,912 437,866 (29) Financial Expenses 4,359 4,285 2 1,405 2,004 (30) 

Advances, Deposits & Pre- Payments 112,435 148,874 (24) 

Other Receivables 10,614 21,763 (51) OPERATING PROFIT 32,492 35,733 (9) 12,499 16,258 (23) 

Cash & Cash Equivalents 317,082 387,929 (18) Other Income 3,369 3,887 (13) 421 1,158 (64) 

TOTAL ASSETS 1,287,496 1,461,496 (12) PROFIT BEFORE PPF & WF 35,861 39,620 (9) 12,920 17,416 (26) 

========================== Provision for Contribution to PPF & WF - 1,981 (100) - 871 (100) 

EQUITY AND LIABILITIES PROFIT BEFORE TAX 35,861 37,639 (5) 12,920 16,545 (22) 

Shareholders' Equity: 435,325 434,056 Tax Expenses: 18,963 18,576 2 6,560 9,049 (28) 

Share Capital 84,000 84,000 0 Provision for tax 19,389 16,702 16 6,750 6,813 (1) 

Share Premium 15,000 15,000 0 Deferred Tax Expenses/(Income) (426) 1,874 (123) (190) 2,236 (108) 

Reserve and Surplus 323,806 325,388 (0) 

Fair Valuation Surplus of Investment 12,519 9,668 29 NET PROFIT AFTER TAX 16,898 19,063 (11) 6,360 7,496 (15) 

Non-Current Liabilities: 3,793 3,902 OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME: 2,851 2,245 27 (419) (752) (44) 

Deferred Tax Liability 3,793 3,902 (3) Fair Valuation Surplus / ( Deficit ) of Investment 3,168 2,495 27 (465) (836) (44) 

Deferred Tax (Exp.)/Income on share valuation Surplus (317) (250) 27 46 84 (45) 

Current Liabilities: 848,378 1,023,538 

Working Capital Loan (Secured) (52,626) 83,790 (163) TOTAL COMPREHENSIVE INCOME 19,749 21,308 (7) 5,941 6,744 (12) 

Short Term Loan 82,093 54,616 50 

Trade Payables 687,045 745,164 (8) Earnings Per Share (EPS) 2.01 2.27 (11) 0.76 0.89 (15) 

Other Payables 131,866 139,968 (6) 


Total Liabilities 852,171 1,027,440 (17) 


TOTAL EQUITY AND LIABILITIES 1,287,496 1,461,496 (12) Value in Taka '000' 

============ ============= Particulars Share Share Tax Retained Fair Capital Total 

Net Asset Value Per Share 51.82 51.67 Capital Premium Holiday Earnings Valuation Gain 

Reserve 

Surplus 

STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS (UN-AUDITED) 

As at 30 June, 2016 84,000 15,000 129,701 192,935 9,668 2,752 434,056 



ended on 31st March 2017 - - - 16,898 - - 16,898 


Final dividend for 15 months period 

01.07.2016 01.07.2015 from 01 April' 2015 to 30th June'2016 - - - (18,480) - (18,480) 

to to Growth Fair Valuation Surplus/(deficit) of Investment 2,851 2,851 

31.03.2017 31.03.2016 % As at 31st March 2017 84,000 15,000 129,701 191,353 12,519 2,752 435,325 

CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES: 

Collection from revenue 2,541,982 2,649,321 (4) 


Other Income 3,028 3,666 (17) 

FOR THE NINE MONTHS ENDED 31ST MARCH, 2016 

Interest and financial charges paid (66,485) (68,473) (3) Value in Taka '000' 

Income tax paid (23,191) (19,218) 21 Particulars Share Share Tax Retained Fair Capital Total 

Payment for costs and expenses (2,312,688) (2,604,481) (11) Capital Premium Holiday Earnings Valuation Gain 

Net cash generated from operating activities (a) 142,646 (39,185) (464) Reserve Surplus 

As at 30 June, 2015 84,000 15,000 129,701 186,283 7,985 2,752 425,721 

CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES: 


Property, Plant and Equipment acquired (87,159) (22,158) 293 ended on 31st March 2016 - - - 19,063 - - 19,063 

Net cash used in investing activities (b) (87,159) (22,158) 293 Final dividend for the period 2014-2015 - - - (16,800) - (16,800) 

Fair Valuation Surplus/(deficit) of Investment 2,245 2,245 

CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Previous year adjustment of deferred tax (799) (799) 

Working Capital Loan received/(repaid) (136,416) 34,085 (500) As at 31st March 2016 84,000 15,000 129,701 188,546 9,431 2,752 429,430 

Term loan received/(repaid) 27,477 44,739 (39) 

Dividend Paid (17,395) (16,074) 8 Explanatory Notes: 

Net cash used from financing activities (c) (126,334) 62,750 (301) (1) These financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and going concern basis. 

(2) No interim dividend paid during the interim period ended on 31st March 2017. 

Net increase/(decrease) in cash and 

(3) No diluted EPS is required to be calculated as there was no dilution during this period. 

cash equivalents(a+b+c) (70,847) 1,407 (5,135) (4) Last year's 3rd quarter figures have been re-arranged where considered necessary to confirm to current 3rd quarter presentation. 

Cash & cash equivalents on opening 387,929 411,412 (6) (5) Figures were rounded-off to the nearest thousand Taka. 

Cash & cash equivalents on closing 317,082 412,819 (23) 

Note: The details with selected notes of the published nine months financial statements can be available inthe web-site of 

Net Operating Cash Flow Per Share 16.98 (4.66) 

the Company . The address of the web-site is www.apexknitting.com 

Sd/- Sd/- Sd/- Sd/- Sd/- 

Zafar Ahmed Zahur Ahmed PhD Shahriar Ahmed Kamruzzaman FCA Kamrul Islam 

Chairman Managing Director Director Chief Financial Officer Assistant Company Secretary 

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Dhaka Tribune 

DT

DT 

8 

World 


Israel strikes Syrian arms depot near Damascus 

international airport 


Israeli strikes have hit an arms 

depot operated by the Lebanese 

Hezbollah group near Damascus 

airport, Syrian opposition sources 

said. 

Witnesses said a total of five 

strikes occurred near the Damascus 

airport road, about 25km from the 

capital, early on Thursday. 

Syrian state TV quoted a military 

source saying rockets fired 

from Israeli territory targeted a 

military area in the south-western 

part of the airport which caused 

explosions. 

A news agency, citing an intelligence 

source, said the depot that 

was targeted handles a significant 

amount of weapons that Tehran, a 

major regional ally of Syrian President 

Bashar al-Assad, sends regularly 

by air. 

The source said the arms depot 

gets a major part of the weapons 

supplied to an array of Iranian 

backed armed groups, led by Hezbollah, 

which have thousands of 

fighters engaged in battle against 

Syrian rebels. 

Rami Abdurrahman, head of the 

UK-based Syrian Observatory for 

Human Rights, said the blasts were 

heard across the capital, jolting residents 

awake. 

Activist-operated Diary of a 

Mortar, which reports from Damascus, 

said the explosions near 

the airport road were followed by 

flames rising above the area. 

‘Unacceptable’ 

The Kremlin strongly criticised Israeli 

air strikes on targets inside 

Syria on Thursday, saying Israel and 

other countries should avoid any 

action that heightened tension in 

the region. 

“We consider that all countries 

should avoid any actions that lead 

to higher tensions in such a troubled 

region and call for Syrian sovereignty 

to be respected,” Kremlin spokesman 

Dmitry Peskov told reporters, 

when asked about the attack. 

Russia and Israel were in constant 

contact about the situation 

in Syria through various channels, 

said Peskov. • 

Palestinians strike in support of 

protesting prisoners 

Israeli security forces disperse Palestinian demonstrators protesting in support of 

Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike on April 23 

AFP 

• AFP, Ramallah 

Palestinians held a general strike on 

Thursday in solidarity with hundreds 

of prisoners in Israeli jails on hunger 

strike for 11 days, with some officials 

calling it the largest in years. 

Stores were closed and roads 

empty across the West Bank, the 

Palestinian territory occupied by 

Tehrik-e-Taliban: Pakistan using prisoner for propaganda 


The Taliban in Pakistan has accused the 

country’s premier intelligence service of 

using a notorious captured militant leader 

to give the impression the group is being 

funded by foreign spy agencies to orchestrate 

attacks, a militant spokesman said. 

Meanwhile, two Pakistani intelligence 

officials said Thursday an overnight 

US drone strike killed seven militants 

in a tribal region near the Afghan 

border, the first such strike since 2014. 

Mohammad Khurasani, spokesman 

for Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, commented 

late Wednesday after the Pakistani army 

released a video of militant Ahsanullah 

Ahsan. In the video, the ex-spokesman of 

the group said he surrendered to authorities 

after seeing his leaders receiving help 

from Indian and Afghan intelligence services 

to orchestrate attacks in Pakistan. 

Nafees Zakaria, spokesman for Pakistan’s 

foreign ministry, said Thursday 

Israel for 50 years. 

In the city of Ramallah, several 

dozen people gathered at a tent set 

up in a central square where a protest 

march was to begin. 

The strike was called in all cities 

in the West Bank, with only doctors 

and students nearing graduation 

excluded. Palestinian bus services 

were also on strike in Israeli-annexed 

east Jerusalem. 

Palestinian officials say some 

1,500 prisoners are participating 

in the hunger strike that began on 

April 17, with detainees ingesting 

only water and salt. Israeli authorities 

have put the number at around 

1,200. Some 6,500 Palestinians 

are currently detained by Israel 

for a range of offences and alleged 

crimes. Around 500 are being held 

under Israel’s system of administrative 

detention, which allows for 

imprisonment without charge. 

Palestinian prisoners have 

mounted repeated hunger strikes, 

but rarely on such a scale. The hunger 

strike is being led by Palestinian 

leader and prominent prisoner 

Marwan Barghouti, serving five life 

sentences over his role in the second 

Palestinian intifada, or uprising, of 

2000 to 2005. The prisoners have 

issued demands ranging from better 

medical care to phone access. • 

that Ahsan had laid down arms and revealed 

the role of foreign spy agencies in 

attacks in Pakistan. 

However, Khurasani said Pakistan’s Inter-Services 

Intelligence was using a “prisoner” 

for propaganda against the group. 

He refuted what he called ISI’s “childish” 

acts and “non-serious” claims of Ahsan. 

Scores of attacks claimed by Ahsan in 

the past include the 2012 attack on teenage 

Nobel prize winner Malala Yousafzai, 

who was shot in in the head in Pakistan’s 

A photo taken from the rebel-held town of Douma shows flames rising in the 

distance which are believed to be coming from Damascus International Airport 

following an explosion early in the morning of April 27 

AFP 

Protester, three soldiers 

killed in Indian Kashmir 

• AFP, Srinagar 

scenic valley of Swat for her advocacy for 

women’s education. 

Ahsan quit Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan 

in 2014 and joined the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar 

group. He was a senior figure in that group 

before his surrender to authorities. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar 

is behind dozens of attacks 

on civilians and Pakistan security agencies. 

Pakistani army officials have said that 

the head of the Pakistani Taliban, Mullah 

Fazalullah, has ordered scores of attacks, 

including the assault on Malala, and that 

Troops in Indian-administered 

Kashmir on Thursday opened fire 

on a crowd of demonstrators outside 

an army garrison where militants 

earlier killed three soldiers, 

hitting one civilian who later died. 

Police said the soldiers fired 

on a crowd of protesters who 

threw rocks at an army jeep as it 

emerged from the barracks, hitting 

a 40-year-old man. 

“In response they fired and injured 

a man. He later died,” the 

inspector general of police for the 

region Javid Gillani said. 

Police had earlier fired tear gas 

and live bullets into the air to try 

to break up demonstrations after 

what one officer called “intense 

clashes”. 

The violence followed a predawn 

assault on the garrison in 

Kupwara district, near the de-facto 

border known as the Line of Control 

that divides Kashmir between 

India and Pakistan. • 

Indian army arrive near the site of a gunfight in Srinagar on April 27 

AFP 

he is hiding in Afghanistan. 

Shahhussain Murtazawi, acting 

spokesman for Afghan President Ashraf 

Ghani, said Afghanistan is in a war 

against terrorism and Kabul has never 

supported terrorism against others. 

Without naming Pakistan, he said Kabul 

expects other states not to allow their 

soil to be used to stage attacks against 

Afghanistan. 

There was no immediate comment 

from India. •

World 

Le Pen, Macron spar as French 

presidential race narrows 

• Reuters, Paris 

Far-right French presidential candidate 

Marine Le Pen took a fishing-boat 

ride on Thursday as two 

polls suggested the underdog had 

made a more impressive start to the 

last lap of campaigning than the favourite, 

centrist Emmanuel Macron. 

Since last Sunday’s opening ballot 

sent them into a two-way runoff on 

May 7, the battle has intensified, notably 

on the public relations front, between 

two candidates who both say 

their adversary will ruin the country. 

A daily Opinionway poll showed 

Macron still clear favourite, but his 

predicted score, which has almost 

always been 60% or higher over the 

past few months, dipped to 59% for 

the first time since mid-March. 

The progression of Macron and 

Le Pen to the second round on April 

23 sent the euro sharply higher and 

lifted French stocks. 

Investors fear Le Pen’s anti-EU 

policies could lead to a break-up 

of the bloc and its single currency, 

but they are following polls which 

have shown that of all her main 

opponents, Macron has the largest 

predicted winning margin over her. 

Youths walk behind a banner which reads,”Neither Macron, Nor Le Pen - The Uprising is Now” at a demonstration to protest 

the results of the first round of the presidential election in Nantes, France on April 27 

REUTERS 

Macron, a centrist ex-banker, 

took to Twitter to deride the National 

Front leader, whose fishing 

boat outing in jeans and a white 

jacket won her extensive TV coverage 

for a second straight day. 

Flanked by fans and fishermen 

in the Port de Grau port west of 

Marseille, Le Pen told a horde of 

journalists on the quayside that she 

would defend all seafarers and all 

endangered sectors against invasive 

European Union regulations. 

Hitting out at Macron, she said: 

“Let me warn you, that man will destroy 

our entire social and economic 

structure.” 

The independent centrist, a 

39-year-old who did a stint as a minister 

in the outgoing Socialist government 

before breaking away to launch 

a cross-partisan political movement, 

mocked his 48-year-old foe in turn 

on the Twitter social network. 

“Madame Le Pen is gone fishing. 

Enjoy the outing. The exit from 

Europe that she is proposing will 

spell the end of French fisheries,” 

he said. 

The skirmishing has intensified 

with the countdown to May 7. 

It took a spectacular turn in 

front of TV cameras on Wednesday 

when Le Pen paid a surprise visit to 

a doomed tumble-drier plant in her 

opponent’s home town and promised 

to save it just as Macron was in a 

meeting with labour representatives 

behind closed-doors nearby. • 

9 


DT 

Trump vows to 

terminate Nafta 

if no fair deal 

• AFP, Washington, DC 

US President Donald Trump tempered 

his agreement to renegotiate 

Nafta Thursday with a warning that 

the trade agreement with Canada 

and Mexico would be terminated if 

there is no “fair deal.” 

Trump campaigned for president 

on promises to scrap Nafta, 

calling it “the worst trade deal 

maybe ever signed” and a “disaster” 

that has resulted in millions 

of US industrial jobs lost mostly to 

Mexico. 

But on Wednesday, the White 

House said Trump “agreed not to 

terminate Nafta at this time” during 

calls with Mexican President 

Enrique Pena Nieto and Canadian 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. 

On Thursday, Trump confirmed 

that was the case. 

“I received calls from the President 

of Mexico and the Prime Minister 

of Canada asking to renegotiate 

Nafta rather than terminate,” 

the president tweeted. 

“I agreed, subject to the fact 

that if we do not reach a fair deal 

for all, we will then terminate Nafta. 

Relationships are good - deal 

very possible!” • 

Female Muslim 

clerics in Indonesia 

issue rare fatwas 

• AFP, Cirebon 

Female Islamic clerics in Indonesia 

declared a series of fatwas Thursday, 

including one to tackle child 

marriage, a rare example of women 

taking a leading religious role in 

the Muslim-majority country. 

The fatwas, religious edicts 

that have no legal force but are 

influential, were issued at the 

end of a three-day congress of 

female clerics in the country 

with the world’s biggest Muslim 

population. 

The meeting in Cirebon on 

Java island, billed as the world’s 

first major gathering of female 

Muslim clerics, attracted hundreds 

of participants. Most were 

Indonesian but there were also 

clerics from Pakistan, India and 

Saudi Arabia. 

They issued a series of fatwas 

at the end of the gathering, the 

most eye-catching of which was 

aimed at tackling child marriage. 

It urged the government to raise 

the minimum legal age for women 

to marry to 18 from the current 

age of 16. 

The UN childrens’ agency 

Unicef defines child marriage as 

a formal marriage or informal union 

before age 18, and says women 

are most affected. 

The problem is widespread in 

Indonesia, with one in four women 

marrying before 18, according 

to the agency. 

Religious Affairs Minister Lukman 

Hakim Saifuddin, who attended 

the meeting, suggested 

authorities would examine the 

proposal: “I will take this recommendation 

to the government.” 

He also praised the gathering: 

“This congress succeeded in 

fighting for justice in the relationship 

between men and women.” 

Among the other fatwas issued 

was one against women 

being sexually abused; and one 

against environmental destruction, 

in a country that struggles 

every year with huge fires that 

are started illegally and devastate 

vast swathes of rainforest. 

Fatwas are regularly issued 

in Indonesia but it is usually the 

male-dominated Indonesian 

Ulema Council, the country’s 

highest Islamic authority, that 

declares them. •

DT 

10 

Business 


CAPITAL MARKET SNAPSHOT: THURSDAY 

DSE Broad Index 5,534.4 0.3% ▲ Index 1,273.9 0.4% ▲ 30 Index 2,034.7 -0.2% ▼ Turnover in Mn Tk 6,988.5 3.1% ▲ Turnover in Mn Vol 219.3 11.2% ▲ 

CSE All Share Index 17,161.4 0.5% ▲ 30 Index 15,250.3 0.0% ▲ Selected Index 10,407.1 0.4% ▲ Turnover in Mn Tk 391.8 -17.8% ▼ Turnover in Mn Vol 14.8 -16.3% ▼ 

Tofail: Costly dollar to 

raise prices of essentials 

• Ibrahim Hossain Ovi 

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed 

said prices of imported essential 

commodities such as edible oil may 

increase due to hike of US dollar, 

affecting the living cost of people. 

“Prices of imported essential 

products such as edible oil will 

increase if the prices of US dollar 

went up. It will affect the living 

cost of consumers,” he told journalists 

after a meeting with Vietnam 

Ambassador to Bangladesh 

Tran Van Khoa yesterday. 

“It is unfortunate, but true that 

the prices of US dollar has suddenly 

gone up ahead of Ramadan. 

However, the government has investigated 

the reason of sudden increase 

of price sand taken initiative 

to control the situation,” commerce 

minister said. 

“During the last two days, I 

talked to Bangladesh Bank governor. 

He has already taken effective 

measures. As a result, prices 

of a US dollar came down to Tk82 

from TK84,” Tofail said. He hoped 

the dollar rate against Taka would 

came down bellow Tk80 shortly. 

As of yesterday, according to 

Bangladesh Bank, US dollar was 

sold at Tk80.13, which was also 

sold at Tk84 at money exchange 

and at Tk86 in the curb markets. 

‘I hope that the 

prices of US dollar 

will be normal soon 

as Bangladesh Bank 

has already provided 

US dollar to the 

banks’ 

“Protection of consumers rights is 

our duty. That is why the commerce 

ministry will sit with the country’s 

business people including retailers 

on April 30 to discuss the issues so 

the prices of essential products do 

not increase,” Tofail said. 

The minsters smelt rat that it 

could be that some of the bank increased 

the prices of dollars when 

other banks buy from a certain 

bank as it doesn’t have enough 

supply. 

Bangladesh has over $32bn 

worth of foreign exchange reserves. 

It would not bring negative 

impact on the economy, if the central 

bank provides $200m to the 

banks, commerce minister Ahmed. 

He argued that if the central 

bank provides US dollar to the certain 

bank, there is no chance for 

price hike. 

“I hope that the prices of US dollar 

will be normal soon as Bangladesh 

Bank has already provided US 

dollar to the banks.” 

Replying to a question, Tofail 

Ahmed said the prices of rice would 

not increase further as “there is 

enough stock”. 

But the prices of rice increased 

slightly due to the government 

purchase announcement, which is 

offering Tk1.5 higher compared to 

that of the previous year. 

Meanwhile, Tran Van Khoa 

urged the Bangladesh government 

to renew deals that already expired 

to reduce trade gap between Bangladesh 

and Vietnam. 

According to the Bangladesh 

Bank data, bilateral trade between 

Bangladesh and Vietnam stood 

at $452m as of fiscal year 2015- 

16. Bangladesh exported goods 

of $65m and imported products 

worth $387m. • 

Infrastructure, expertise 

crisis hit exploration of 

blue economy 

• Shariful Islam 

Speakers at a programme observed 

that it is necessary to develop policy, 

infrastructure and expertise to 

explore the potentials of emerging 

blue economy in a bid to eradicating 

poverty and creating employment. 

They made the observations at 

a seminar styled “Blue Economy: 

New Frontier, New Possibility” organised 

by Dhaka Chamber of Commerce 

and Industry (DCCI) at its 

headquarters in Dhaka yesterday. 

DCCI President Abul Kasem 

Khan chaired the event while Water 

Resources Minister Anisul Islam 

Mahmud addressed the seminar as 

the chief guest. The programme 

was also attended by Thai Ambassador 

Panpimon Suwannapongse, 

Malaysian High Commissioner Nur 

Ashikin binti Mohd Taib and Brunei 

Darussalam High Commissioner 

Masurai Masri as special guests. 

“The Bay of Bengal could be the 

powerhouse of our economy by exploring 

the potentials of blue economy. 

Though we have a very small 

findings, our businesses should go 

for deep sea fishing, trusting that 

the sector has a tremendous potential,” 

said Anisul Islam Mahmud. 

He said the blue economy will 

also open maritime economic activities 

including aquaculture, 

coastal shipping, coastal and cruise 

tourism, offshore drilling, renewable 

energy, biotechnology, salt production 

and shipbuilding. 

The government has already set 

up a cell – Blue Economy Cell (BEC) 

– for tapping the opportunities 

from blue economy, the minister 

said, hoping that Bangladesh will 

benefit from blue economy. 

“Bangladesh consistently maintains 

6.5% GDP growth over the 

last 10 years and now it is time to 

achieve 7%-8% GDP growth to become 

a middle-income country by 

2021. Blue economy would play a 

role in this regard,” added Anisul. 

In his address, Abul Kasem 

Khan said: “Like India, we need to 

explore new offshore gas reserves 

under the sea as the gas reserve in 

the mainland is limited. Feasibility 

study needs to be conducted focusing 

on the viability of power generation 

from tidal wave.” 

He called upon the government 

to formulate a National Blue Ocean 

Economy Development Policy. • 

AG automobiles inaugurates the Ford Mastang – an American automobile manufactured by Ford – in its own showroom at 

Uttara in the city yesterday 

MEHEDI HASAN

Business 11 


Korea Telecom poised to transform 

Moheshkhali into digitised island 

Sun-joo Lee, head of Korea Telecom (KT) Sustainability Management Centre, talks to 

Dhaka Tribune’s Ishtiaq Husain in an exclusive interview 

The GiGA island project of Korea 

Telecom is going to crave a real 

boon for Moheshkhali – an island 

famous for its beauty and tranquillity 

in the Bay of Bengal. 

The project aims to transform 

Moheshkhali into a digitised island, 

ensuing quality life with the 

help of technology, said Sun-joo 

Lee, head of Korea Telecom (KT) 

Sustainability Management Centre. 

She added that GiGA will bring 

Moheshkhali under ICT, and thus 

it will contribute to socio-economic 

development, besides removing 

electricity shortage and setting up 

high-speed internet. 

Lee gave her insight in an exclusive 

interview with the Dhaka Tribune 

yesterday. 

What types of infrastructure are 

you going to build in Moheshkhali? 

Moheshkali is the location for the 

first KT (Korea Telecom) ‘GiGA Island’ 

project in Bangladesh. GiGA 

Island is an initiative from KT that 

aims to enhance the quality of life 

and provide better access in terms 

of education, culture and healthcare 

for people who live in remote 

areas, such as highlands and islands, 

by providing high-s peed internet 

network and customised ICT 

solutions. Until now, the island had 

inadequate public services such as 

education, medical care, and information 

access due to its geographic 

limitations and poor telecommunications/IT 

environment. However, 

with KT’s GiGA Island project coming 

to Moheshkali, everything is 

poised to transform. 

How will digital technologies 

work to transform the life of 

Moheshkhali people? 

KT has built a ‘GiGA Microwave’ to 

link the island and inland area, and 

‘GiGA Wire’ using copper wire for 

intra-island traffic. This infrastructure 

will help the island eliminate 

the problem of shortage of electricity 

and internet, and over 30% 

of the residents will be enabled 

to communicate using internet or 

telephones. This infrastructure 

serves as a ‘Virtual Bridge’ that 

links the distance of 11.6km between 

the inland area of Cox’s Bazar 

and the island with a maximum 

internet speed of 500Mbps. 

In addition to the virtual bridge 

infrastructure, KT is also providing 

teleconferencing solutions – the 

‘KBOX’ – to 12 different educational 

institutions on Moheshkhali Island 

to support remote education for 

elementary school students. These 

Sun-joo Lee 

students on Moheshkhali 

Island are now offered 

quality English classes 

from highly skilled teachers 

in Dhaka three times a 

week. 

Lastly, Ultrasound 

and Yodoc, are two highspeed 

internet-based mobile 

healthcare solutions 

that will be provided to 

the medical institutes on 

Moheshkhali Island. The 

mobile ultrasonic instruments 

are expected to aid 

swift treatment by facilitating 

knowledge sharing 

with inland hospitals 

without any hardware 

equipment. Yodoc is a diagnostic 

solution that can 

detect nearly 10 types of 

diseases such as diabetes 

or liver cell disease. 

COURTESY 

How did Korean people 

change their life through 

GiGA island project? 

Over the past two years, 

KT has implemented several 

successful SDGs projects 

based on technologies 

developed for five 

GiGA stories in Korea. 

There are five operational 

GiGA projects currently 

in Korea: in Imja-do 

Island, Daeseongdong, 

Baengnyeong-do Island, 

Cheonghak-dong, and 

Gyodongdo. 

Among them, Cheonghak-dong, 

which is located at 

800m above sea level, in the middle 

of Jiri Mountain, has a high 

possibility of isolation and accident 

due to the nature of the mountainous 

area. It was necessary to improve 

the whole of infrastructure 

such as education, culture, and 

medical care because it was not 

easy for the residents of Cheonghak-dong 

to communicate with the 

outside world. With KT’s GiGA LTE 

and GiGA Wi-Fi facilities, the network 

speed has been improved in 

Cheonghak-dong, a place where it 

is difficult to construct optical cable. 

KT constructed a converged 

solution across the entire living 

infrastructure such as education, 

culture, medicine care, etc. 

Why are you interested to build 

such project in Bangladesh? 

KT has strived to realise 

Digital Bangladesh with our 

telecommunications technologies 

DT 

since 2004. This GiGA Island 

project in Bangladesh was initiated 

with the purpose of helping 

Bangladeshis live a better quality 

life through ICT, and to achieve this 

vision, KT has been working closely 

with the Bangladesh government. 

The Bangladesh Ministry of ICT, 

International Organisation for 

Migration (IOM) and KT signed 

a trilateral MOU at Mobile World 

Congress 2016 in Spain, and State 

Minister of ICT, Zunaid Ahmed, 

visited the ‘GiGA Island’ in Korea 

during May last year. 

How would Bangladesh get benefit 

from this project? 

Bangladesh is trying to move forward 

with great national development 

strategies like ‘Digital Bangladesh 

2021’ and other activities. 

The government is trying to provide 

residents with better access 

to public services living on islands 

and highlands through ICT. •

DT 

12 

Editorial 


TODAY 

Good for TV, bad 

for democracy 

In short, TV debates would encourage 

us to judge the leaders we send 

to Westminster with the values of 

Hollywood 

PAGE 13 

A wider scope 

for justice 

Bangladesh judiciaries are overburdened 

with 3.1 million case backlogs, which are 

increasing every year 

PAGE 14 

Swept away 

AZAHAR UDDIN 

Are we hypocrites? 

It shows that words like love, sex, and 

desire are still taboo in Bangladesh. 

In such a society, how can one claim 

protection from domestic violence and 

marital rape? 

PAGE 15 

Be heard 

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The views expressed in opinion 

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or its publisher. 

Flash floods are not new to Bangladesh. 

But this year it has come early, right before 

harvest time, and has wreaked havoc in almost all 

haor areas. 

What is more important to understand is that the 

government has failed time and again to invest in flood 

defenses, protect the wetlands, and guarantee flood relief 

to all affected people. 

It is also unfortunate that the estimated Tk1,000 crore 

loss in Netrakona by flash floods is said to have been caused 

by dereliction of duty of government officials. 

Reports about flawed repair work, breaches in 

embankment, misuse of funds by local Workforce 

Development Board are only few examples of negligence. 

This is no longer a matter of climate change and its 

consequences, but this month’s early flash floods stand 

to be an example of negligence, poor maintenance, and 

corruption. 

What we face now is an imminent threat of food shortage 

on a large scale. Already, people in multiple upazillas, 

including Bishwambarpur, are facing food shortage and are 

bound to rely on Open Market Sale points, which too is an 

inefficient and inadequate system to provide flood relief. 

The government, local authorities, and officials need to 

counter this catastrophe that visits us again and again, and 

seek long-term sustainable solutions. 

Officials making visits to flood-affected areas cannot 

help the farmers and locals, nor can it prevent food 

shortage on a national scale. We can only hope that the 

prime minister meets this issue head-on and invests in 

feasible solutions. 

What we face now is 

an imminent threat 

of food shortage on a 

large scale

Opinion 13 

Good for TV, bad for democracy 

TV debates are hardly an effective means of choosing a capable leader 

DT 


smart decisions based on sound 

principles and an honest reading 

of the evidence, then we shouldn’t 

choose them based on their ability 

to smile. 

Pre-cooked gags and laugh lines don’t reveal a candidate’s true colours 

In short, TV debates would encourage us to 

judge the leaders we send to Westminster with 

the values of Hollywood 

• Azeem Ibrahim 

Theresa May has poured 

cold water on any 

prospect for having TV 

debates, claiming she 

wants “to get out and about 

and meet voters” rather than be 

stuffed in a TV studio. 

Politically, it is the correct 

decision. 

Debates for someone in the 

prime minister’s position have 

only a downside. When the 

election is a foregone conclusion 

and the only question is whether 

your majority will be three figures 

or above, why rock the boat with 

an unpredictable event? 

The opposition will claim that 

May is running scared from having 

a face-to-face but she is right when 

she claims she is held to account 

every week in parliament at Prime 

Minister’s Questions. 

But more importantly, 

according to Opinium, only 14% 

of people believe Corbyn will 

make a better prime minister than 

May. Why then, allow him to look 

prime ministerial by affording him 

an opportunity to share a stage 

with the actual prime minister, 

when that is an image people have 

clearly not considered? 

But political calculations aside, 

even if the polls were neck and 

neck, debates are damaging to 

democracy. 

Advocates argue that they are 

the cure to our unhealthy political 

system needs, that they inject a 

dose of glitzy competition into 

our stale old electoral process, 

and that they will help you make a 

better democratic choice. 

They are wrong, for at least 

three big reasons. 

Measures the wrong qualities 

The first is simply that party 

leaders’ debates measure the 

wrong qualities. In the first TV 

debate in the UK, when David 

Cameron, Gordon Brown, and Nick 

Clegg squared off against each 

other, every viewer came away 

with a personal opinion of each 

candidate. 

If you watched the debates, 

you’ll probably have felt this 

yourself. But step back a little, and 

ask yourself what these opinions 

were based on. 

When we watch TV candidates 

talk, most of us base our feelings 

about them on qualities which 

have nothing to do with whether 

they would be a good leader or 

not. We measure how fluently they 

speak, how genuinely they smile, 

and how sincere they seem. 

We notice that one seems to 

have done his policy homework 

while another has been badly 

briefed; one seems to have taken 

media presentation classes and 

knows to look directly into the 

camera, while the other splits his 

attention between the cameras 

and the studio audience. 

We compare their demeanors: 

Do they seem shifty like Nixon 

in his famous TV debate against 

Kennedy, or slick like Clinton 

against Bush senior? Do they 

pause too much? Do they hesitate 

and reach for unfortunate words? 

Are they ugly? 

In short, TV debates would 

encourage us to judge the leaders 

we send to Westminster with the 

values of Hollywood. 

The danger is that in the minds 

of many viewers, cogent policies 

take second place to whiter teeth 

or a stronger jawline. 

These are the wrong qualities 

by which to measure potential 

statesmen. Being likeable doesn’t 

necessarily mean you’re a good 

manager of people or a team. 

It doesn’t mean you have 

the skills to manage gargantuan 

BIGSTOCK 

projects. It doesn’t necessarily 

mean you’re honest. But most 

of all, it doesn’t mean you have 

the leadership qualities to lead a 

political party, let alone a country. 

Gives the wrong incentives 

The second danger of TV debates 

is that they give politicians a set 

of perverse incentives. In the long 

run, if party leaders’ debates were 

to prove a regular feature of British 

democratic environment, it would 

change who succeeded in politics, 

and who decided to enter in the 

first place. 

Imagine the front-ranking 

opposition front-bencher, with 

decades of work and experience 

behind him, forced to conclude 

he was under-qualified to lead his 

party because he lacked a full head 

of hair. Or the shadow cabinet 

team, waiting to listen to speeches 

by two leadership contenders, 

knowing before either candidate 

has stepped on to the podium 

who they will vote for as leader by 

looking at their faces alone. 

These are the incentives that TV 

debates encourage and they are 

bad for politics. 

Dumbs down content 

The third reason is that TV debates 

are part of the process of dumbing 

down. If we want leaders who can 

ensure the security and well-being 

of the country, then we shouldn’t 

choose them based on how they 

look under TV lights. 

If we want politicians who take 

Upholding the value of oratory 

There is perhaps one counter 

argument which we should 

consider, and that is the value 

and virtue of political oratory. 

Barack Obama showed how even 

in the age when the compacted 

communications of Twitter and 

texting seem to be the norm, 

good political oratory can still lift 

hearts. 

Surely a party leaders’ TV 

debate here in Britain would 

provide a golden chance for 

talented party leaders, now and 

in the future, to shine, even to 

inspire? 

There are two answers to that. 

The first is that the best oratory 

comes from speeches, not debates. 

The public will watch a speech 

hoping for poetry, but at a debate, 

they want answers. Whereas 

speeches are an opportunity 

for scale and scansion, debates 

demand quick draw putdowns. 

Where speeches lend 

themselves to vision, debates 

demand accuracy. In short, 

however much we may want to 

foster British politicians who can 

inspire like Obama, TV debates are 

not the means to do it. 

The second answer is that in 

this country, we already have one 

of the best venues for political 

oratory any politician could wish 

for -- parliament. 

Steeped in a rich history of 

great orators, like Gladstone, 

Bevan, and Churchill, not for 

nothing is it called “the Mother 

of Parliaments.” That it is rarely 

watched is surely an effect of 

mundane oratory, not its cause. 

No TV debate in a hastilyassembled 

television studio could 

match it as a ready-made televised 

invitation to young politicians to 

polish their oratory. 

Rather, TV debates are likely to 

bring the political debates down 

into the mud, and encourage 

politicians to serve us pre-cooked 

gags and laugh lines. 

TV debates may be good for 

the TV channels, which want 

them, but they would be bad for 

democracy. • 

Azeem Ibrahim is Senior Fellow at 

the Centre for Global Policy and Adj 

Research Professor at the Strategic 

Studies Institute. He tweets @ 

AzeemIbrahim. This article was first 

published in Al Arabiya and has been 

reprinted with special permission.

14 


DT 

Opinion 

A wider scope for justice 

We have not been able to utilise the alternative dispute resolution system fully 

Making justice more efficient 

BIGSTOCK 

• Munir Uddin Shamim 

Bangladesh has had a long 

tradition of communitybased 

alternative 

dispute resolution 

(ADR) system, widely known as 

shalish. Numerous studies show 

that the ADR is a very effective 

tool in delivering justice due to 

“settlement within the locality, 

being easily approachable, and 

lesser cost” (UNDP). 

Unfortunately our formal 

justice system has not utilised the 

scope of ADR in full swing. 

Both the Village Court Act 2006 

and the Conciliation of Dispute 

(municipal areas) Board Act 2004 

have incorporated the spirit of the 

mediation process to deal with 

both civil and criminal matters. 

However, the scope to use ADR in 

the criminal justice system is still 

very limited. 

In this context, the initiation 

of ADR services at the District 

Legal Aid (DLA) offices through 

the section 21A of the Legal 

Aid Services Act (LASA) 2000 

(amended in 2013) has created new 

hope. 

Alternative dispute resolution 

It has made the ADR system an 

essential part of the government 

legal aid. The District Legal Aid 

Officers (DLAO) now can settle 

disputes through mediation, if the 

cases are referred to them by any 

court or tribunal. 

The government has also 

enacted the Legal Advice and 

ADR Rules 2015, which delegates 

the power to DLAOs to mediate 

disputes with the consent of both 

parties. 

In 2014, attempts for mediation 

were made in 290 cases, of which 

58% were resolved and Tk4.6 

million were realised. In 2015 

and 2016, the numbers of cases 

attempted for mediation were 705 

and 2,609 respectively. 

Year-wise, net growth rates for 

the last two years have been 143% 

and 270% respectively. Among the 

cases attempted for mediation, 

75% in 2015 and 81% in 2016 were 

successfully resolved, and Tk6.8m 

and Tk20.4m respectively were 

realised. 

Year-to-year growth rates in 

money realisation were 48% in 

2015 and 200.3% in 2016. Growth 

rate in beneficiaries of ADR 

services from 2014 to 2016 is 

266%. Following an enactment of 

Legal Advice and ADR Rules 2015, 

DLAO started pre-case and postcase 

mediation. Statistics shows 

that pre-case mediation services 

are becoming very popular (400% 

increased by 1 year), and the 

cases diverted from the courts for 

mediation are also increasing (33% 

increased from 2015 to 2016). 

The above statistics 

demonstrate how an institutional 

framework enables people to use 

alternative ways, which have been 

existed as social capital, to resolve 

their disputes. In fact, inclusion 

of ADR system in the government 

legal aid structure creates multidimensional 

opportunities. 

Bangladesh judiciaries are 

overburdened with 3.1 million case 

backlogs, which are increasing 

(1.5% in 2016) every year. The 

existing rate in case backlogs is 

associated with the ongoing gap 

between the newly filed cases and 

the total number of cases disposed 

in the given year (5% in 2016). 

Closing the gap 

This gap cannot be addressed 

without having an efficient 

mechanism for diversion in 

place. The pre-case and post-case 

mediation services by DLA office 

can be that tool, if it is utilised at 

full blast. 

DLAOs are judicial officers. 

They are well-conversant with 

legal procedures. Therefore, 

the justice seekers would feel 

comfort with the DLAO-led 

mediation. Alternatively, DLAOs 

are part of judicial administrative 

structure. Thus, judges would 

also feel comfort to refer the 

compoundable cases to DLAOs for 

mediation. 

This linkage will also facilitate 

an effective follow-up process for 

the referred cases. The legal aid 

committees at different levels, if 

they are fully activated, can also 

play vital roles in promoting the 

DLAO-led mediation. However, 

these opportunities cannot 

fully be utilised unless CrPC is 

amended and the existing scope of 

compoundable cases is extended. 

NLASO also has some other 

challenges to implement this rule. 

It is under-resourced in terms 

of person-power, budget, and 

infrastructure. As of December 

2016, only 24 districts have fulltime 

DLAOs. 

Legal aid activities in 

other districts are run by the 

Bangladesh judiciaries are overburdened with 

3.1 million case backlogs, which are increasing 

every year 

designated judicial officers, who 

disproportionately share their time 

between DLA offices and court. 

DLA offices are not well-equipped 

with required support staff and 

logistics. 

For mediation, sending notice 

to both parties is mandatory. But 

most of the DLA offices have no 

jarikarok (process server). As a 

result, they are dependent on 

the nezarat section of either CJM 

court or the district judge court. 

This dependency gets the process 

delayed. 

Mediation process also requires 

special skills, particularly in 

negotiation and facilitation. It 

also requires an understanding 

of gender perspectives to make 

sure that female justice-seekers 

are comfortable in terms of time, 

place, process, language, and 

privacy. In this respect, training 

for DLAOs on mediation and 

gender will increase the quality 

of the services and customer 

satisfactions. 

The role of NGOs 

NGOs have a long experience in 

ADR. They have already created 

some resources on participatory 

and gender-responsive mediation. 

Since the government-NGO 

partnership worked well in health 

and education sectors, NLASO 

may think of replicating similar 

partnerships in the legal aid sector. 

By nature, mediation focuses 

on conflict resolution while the 

mainstream courts focus on the 

disposal of cases. Disposal of a 

case does not necessarily mean the 

end of dispute. In some cases, it 

may create new dispute, resulting 

in filling new cases. A successful 

mediation directly contributes 

towards the restoration of mutual 

relationship, peace, and social 

solidarity. 

The 7th five-year-plan very 

rightly considers inclusion of 

ADR in DLAO as part of judicial 

reform. To ensure easy and 

affordable access to justice, it 

also emphasised on building 

institutional capacity of NLASO 

and fixed a target to settle disputes 

under ADR (at least 25,000 yearly 

by 2020). 

It is clear that implementation 

of ADR by DLA offices would contribute 

to achieving the plan’s target, 

and fulfilling the commitment 

in the SDGs for ensuring access 

to justice for all. But it requires 

unbroken collective efforts by the 

all stake-holders who are active in 

the justice sector. • 

Munir Uddin Shamim is working on a 

bilateral technical project on justice 

reform as National Project Coordinator.

Are we hypocrites? 

Opinion 15 

We claim to care about human rights, but steer clear of topics that make us uncomfortable 

DT 


• Arpeeta Shams Mizan 

Human rights is a 

buzzword. 

Yes, it is 2017, 

and sure, the human 

rights paradigm has widened 

considerably in the past few 

decades. The reality -- the bleak, 

harsh, and disappointing reality -- 

is that even today there are many 

who welcome only a censored and 

modified version of human rights. 

They will support and promote 

human rights, maybe even fight 

for it, but only so long as the 

definition of human rights is to 

their liking. They have formed 

their own abridged version of 

what human rights means, and 

shall take the opposing bench no 

sooner than they find out that 

human rights is contrary to their 

subjective belief. 

East vs West 

This debate has kind of become a 

classic. The West hails itself as the 

harbinger of human rights, though 

the Cold War divided the West and 

consequently “divided” human 

rights into the civil-political (CP) 

and the economic-social-cultural 

(ESC). 

Despite the superficiality of the 

division, it held ground, and ESC 

rights fell behind. Therefore, in 

Bangladesh, more often than not, 

human rights activism translates 

into CP rights activism. 

We raise our voices against 

the violations caused by section 

57 of the ICT Act, or section 54 of 

the Code of Criminal Procedure, 

or voter intimidation, or banning 

the rallies of opposition parties, 

but we don’t do the same for 

environmental pollution, or 

unhealthy food, or our poor health 

and education system. 

Some voices do get raised, and 

decisions like Mohiuddin Farooq v 

Bangladesh (relating to protection 

of environment) do get delivered, 

but they are not enough and lack 

prominence. 

Why? 

One reason is that it is easy to 

spot the CP rights violation, and 

demand rectification, whereas 

fighting for ESC rights requires a 

lot more patience, resources, and 

strong will. The recent Rampal 

power-plant issue is a good 

example. And then there is the 

issue of cultural relativism. 

Since the Indonesian Foreign 

Minister Ali Alatas in his 1993 

address to World Conference on 

Human Rights in Vienna talked 

about the clash of values between 

West and Orient regarding human 

rights, many have used cultural 

relativism as a shield to continue 

practices which the Western 

definition constitutes as human 

rights violations, but in the Orient 

are deemed as tradition, custom, 

and culture. 

This is where we want to get 

more comfortable. 

Double standards 

We want rights, but we enter into 

commando mode when there is a 

demand for cultural identity of the 

indigenous people (small ethnic 

minorities). We want freedom of 

expression, but we start protesting 

when an atheist writes or says 

something. 

We want women’s rights, but 

marital rape seems like a joke to 

us. We want health rights, but we 

hush up terms like menstruation. 

We want family rights, but tell 

them to shut up when a youth 

talks about sex. We want health 

education, but we feel as though 

using contraceptive is blasphemy. 

How do we define this double 

standard? Are we all hypocrites? 

Maybe not. Maybe the answer 

is much simpler. Maybe, for us, 

human right is only those rights 

accepted by the majority as OK. 

It shows that words 

like love, sex, and 

desire are still taboo 

in Bangladesh. 

In such a society, 

how can one claim 

protection from 

domestic violence 

and marital rape? 

This is the feeling I got a few weeks 

ago while conducting a session 

at the Commonwealth Youth for 

Human Rights and Democracy 

Network (CYHRDN) workshop 

on youth empowerment through 

human rights education held at 

the ASA University, Bangladesh. 

With a bustling presence of 

35 young people, I spoke about 

how the Bangladeshi youth were 

victims of ESC rights violations. 

People seemed to be having a good 

time, and actively participating 

with questions and remarks. 

But when I mentioned 

the LGBTQ community, 

Kalpana Chakma, and about 

the Ahmadiyya community, 

Many Bangladeshis still feel that all Rohingya are criminals 

the audience was clearly 

uncomfortable. 

The future might be bleak 

Who was my audience? Bright 

law students of Bangladesh, who 

want to be human rights advocates 

and defenders in the future. The 

question I got was straightforward: 

“You talk about freedom of 

thought, but why should I support 

someone if I don’t believe in what 

he did?” 

Well, fair enough. It was 

definitely a good question. 

Freedom of thought and 

conscience cannot force one to 

support another’s beliefs. But 

in this question, I found two 

disturbing issues. 

First, the participant was 

unwilling to clarify “what” 

a certain LGBT activist did. 

Repeatedly I asked, “what 

was it he did that you find 

unsupportable?” The answer was: 

“Oh, we all know, I don’t want to 

speak about it.” 

It shows that words like love, 

sex, and desire are still taboo in 

Bangladesh. In such a society, how 

can one claim protection from 

domestic violence and marital 

rape? 

Don’t interfere in what a spouse 

did to another, that’s their private 

matter, we keep saying. But not 

when it involves two consenting 

adults who identify within the 

LGBT spectrum. Only then do we 

make it our job to intervene. 

Selective advocacy 

That brings me to the second 

point: This apparent respect for 

rights is selective and majoritarian. 

It was hard for the participant 

to imagine Xulhaz just as a 

person. He is only a gay person, 

a gay rights activist. It is hard to 

differentiate between supporting 

gay rights (no one is obliged to), 

and opposing plain and simple 

murder of a human being, gay or 

not. 

It was equally hard for some 

other participants to care about 

the enforced disappearance of 

indigenous rights activist Kalpana 

Chakma. Their argument: “You are 

talking about this Kalpana because 

you knew her (I never did). Why 

should we know about her, since 

she never fought for a national 

cause? It is not like she was like 

Ilias Ali, a national level leader.” 

Again, it was hard for them 

to understand that enforced 

disappearance, be it of a 

mainstream Muslim Bangali male 

political leader or a non-Muslim 

non-Bangali woman leader, is the 

same, because both of them are 

human beings. 

I went there to help the youth 

learn about human rights. But 

MD MANIK 

maybe it was I who learned more. 

I learned that most law students 

in Bangladesh are happy to defend 

human rights from within their 

comfort zone. 

They will talk about Shahbagh, 

both for and against, possibly 

because it looks “smart.” But 

they will not talk about the rights 

of minorities, or marital abuse, 

because those topics are too 

uncomfortable. 

They will talk about religious 

persecution of Hindus, Christians, 

and Buddhists, but not of atheists 

or Ahmadiyyas, because these 

groups do not follow a recognised 

religious establishment. 

They will talk about child 

marriage, but not the potential 

statelessness of the Rohingya- 

Bangladeshi mixed marriages. 

Because many feel that all 

Rohingyas are, without exception, 

criminals, and xenophobia seems 

to be working well for us. 

It seems as though they want 

to be rebels within their comfort 

zone. 

They are not up for a tough 

fight. Human rights advocacy in 

Bangladesh still is a comfortable 

play zone. • 

Arpeeta Shams Mizan is a Lecturer of 

Law at the University of Dhaka, and the 

Bangladesh representative of Street 

Law Global.

16 


DT 

Downtime 

CROSSWORD 

ACROSS 

1 Liable (3) 

3 Percussion instrument 

(4) 

6 Ill-mannered (4) 

7 Insect (3) 

9 Cult (4) 

10 Large (3) 

11 Rodents (4) 

13 Select group (5) 

16 Minute particles (5) 

18 Level (4) 

19 Male swan (3) 

20 Fish (4) 

21 Self (3) 

23 Country (4) 

24 Narrow beams (4) 

25 Tavern (3) 

DOWN 

1 Proverb (5) 

2 Female swan (3) 

4 Regrets (4) 

5 Floor covering (3) 

6 Automaton (5) 

8 Hackneyed (5) 

9 Slender support (4) 

12 Make up for (5) 

14 Molten rock (4) 

15 Ship’s small room (5) 

17 Disdain (5) 

18 Desire with rivalry (4) 

20 Hill (3) 

22 Spirit (3) 

CODE-CRACKER 

How to solve: Each number in our 

CODE-CRACKER grid represents a 

different letter of the alphabet. For 

example, today 15 represents A so fill A 

every time the figure 15 appears. 

You have two letters in the control 

grid to start you off. Enter them in the 

appropriate squares in the main grid, then 

use your knowledge of words to work out 

which letters go in the missing squares. 

Some letters of the alphabet may not be 

used. 

As you get the letters, fill in the other 

squares with the same number in the 

main grid, and the control grid. Check 

off the list of alphabetical letters as you 

identify them. 

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 

CALVIN AND HOBBES 

SUDOKU 

How to solve: Fill in the blank spaces with the 

numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must 

contain all nine digits with no number repeating. 

PEANUTS 

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS 

CODE-CRACKER 

CROSSWORD 

DILBERT 

SUDOKU

What’s on 

17 


DT 

EVENTS AROUND TOWN TODAY 

EXHIBITION 

MOVIE 

THEATRE 

STAR CINEPLEX 

Where Bashundhara City, Dhaka 

What Movie showtime (April 28) 

THREADS OF CHANGE: CELEBRATING THE LIVES OF 

GARMENTS WORKERS 

When 4-8pm 

Where Bengal Art Lounge, Gulshan 1, Dhaka 

What An exhibition by internationally acclaimed 

photographer Alison Wright. Organised by Fashion 

Revolution Bangladesh and Snv Netherlands Development 

Organization. 

KONJUSH (MOLIERE’S THE MISER) 

When 7pm 

Where Jatiyo Natyashala, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, 

Dhaka 

What A Lok Natyadal (Siddheshwari) production. Directed 

by Liaquat Ali Lucky. For bookings, call 01752 622508, 01737 

280889. 

THE EXHIBITION 

When 2-5pm 

Where Jatra Biroti, 60 Kemal Ataturk Ave, Dhaka 

What Exhibition by child innovators on their favourite works, 

and talks futuristic technologies. 

MUSIC 

JATRA BIROTI LIVE PERFORMANCES 

When 7-11pm 

Where Jatra Biroti, 60 Kemal Ataturk Ave, Dhaka 

What Second week of Bhabnogor artists presenting 

Charyapada songs. Entry Tk300. 

Smurfs: The Lost Village (3D): 

10:50am, 12:45pm, 5:30pm 

Dhat Teri Ki (2D): 4:20pm, 7:20pm 

Ghost in the Shell (3D): 1pm, 

7:20pm 

Incarnate (2D): 11am, 3:15pm, 

5:15pm 

Fast & Furious 8 (3D): 10:50am, 

1:40pm, 2:45pm, 4:30pm, 6:40pm, 

7:20pm, 7:30pm 

Fast & Furious 8 (2D): 10:50am, 

1:30pm 

Lion (2D): 11:10am, 1:40pm 

The Boss Baby (3D): 11:20am, 

4:10pm 

Beauty and the Beast (3D): 1:50pm, 

4:30pm, 7:10pm 

BLOCKBUSTER CINEMAS 

Where Jamuna Future Park, Dhaka 

What Movie showtime (April 28) 

CIRCUS CIRCUS 

When 7pm 

Where Experimental Hall, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, 

Dhaka 

What A Prachyanat production on cultural oppression in 

post-war Bangladesh. Directed by Azad Abul Kalam. For 

bookings, call 01752 622508, 01737 280889. 

OPEKKHOMAAN 

When 7pm 

Where Studio Theatre Hall, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, 

Dhaka 

What A Nagorik Natya Sampradaya production of Syed 

Shamsul Haq’s play. Directed by Ataur Rahman. For 

bookings, call 01676 985157. 

SCREENING 

MUSICLAY 

When 4-7pm 

Where Clay Station Dhaka, Hs 28, Rd 20, Block K, Banani, 

Dhaka 

What Accoustic music by Palki Ahmad and Rushnaf Wadud. 

Entry Tk300. 

Power Rangers (2D): 11:40am, 

2:15pm, 5pm, 7:30pm 

Rings (2D): 2:50pm 

La La Land (2D): 4:50pm 

The Shack (2D): 12:10pm, 7:35pm 

Swatta (2D): 1pm, 4pm, 7pm 

Fast and Furious 8 (3D): 11:30am, 

11:35am, 2:15pm, 2:20pm, 5pm, 

5:05pm, 7:45pm, 7:50pm 

TESTIMONY OF A THREAD 

When 6-8pm 

Where Bengal Art Lounge, Gulshan 1, Dhaka 

What A documentary by Kamar Ahmad Simon on the RMG 

industry.

DT 

18 

Sports 


BCB surprised 

at PCB decision 

to call off tour 

• Tribune Report 

The BCB expressed surprise at Pakistan’s 

decision to call off their 

tour of Bangladesh in July-August 

this year. 

BCB’s chairman of the media 

and communications committee 

however, said they are yet to receive 

official confirmation from the 

PCB. 

“We are really surprised. Even a 

month ago we knew that the tour 

was on. There was a discussion between 

both board chiefs (Nazmul 

Hasan and Shaharyar Khan) during 

this week’s ICC meeting in Dubai. 

This upcoming series was ours to 

host, in accordance with the FTP 

(Future Tours Programme),” said 

Jalal yesterday. 

“In 2015, the two boards went 

into a deal according to which we 

were supposed to play two series in 

the following two years in Bangladesh,” 

he added. 

According to the board director, 

Bangladesh don’t want to play in 

Pakistan and are willing to stick to 

the previous FTP. 

“There was even a financial issue, 

which was dealt with at the time. 

They said they wanted to play here 

(Bangladesh) till 2017. They wanted 

Bangladesh to play two T20Is in Pakistan 

before continuing the series 

here. We don’t want to play there. 

We want to stick to our schedule, 

according to which the whole series 

was supposed to be played in Bangladesh,” 

explained Jalal. 

Jalal informed that they got to 

know about Pakistan’s decision 

to call off the Bangladesh tour 

through media. 

“If the series does get officially 

cancelled, we have to go into 

discussions with them. We have 

cleared the financial issues so 

there’s no need to talk about those 

things now. We haven’t heard anything 

from them in official correspondence. 

We heard it through 

media that they want to cancel the 

tour,” he said. 

The last time Bangladesh toured 

Pakistan was in 2007-08, for five 

ODIs. Since then, Pakistan have 

toured Bangladesh twice, in 2011- 

12 and 2015. 

The PCB said it was cancelling 

this year’s tour because Bangladesh 

had not shared with a return 

visit. If the tour is finally called 

off, Bangladesh will have a break 

in July as there are no fixtures announced 

yet after the 2017 Champions 

Trophy. 

However, there is a proposed 

home series against Australia in 

late August after the CA postponed 

its FTP tour, which was scheduled 

for October, 2015. • 

Pakistan postpone Bangladesh tour 

• AFP, Karachi 

Pakistan’s cricket chief said yesterday 

that a scheduled visit to 

Bangladesh this summer has been 

postponed for at least a year after 

the Bangladeshis refused to reciprocate 

the tour because of security 

fears. 

Pakistan was due to play two 

Tests, three one-day internationals 

and a Twenty20 match in Bangladesh 

in July and August. 

But the militancy-wracked 

country has been forced to host 

most of its matches overseas after 

Scene from the ICC meeting in Dubai 

an attack on the Sri Lankan team in 

2009, barring a limited over series 

against Zimbabwe in 2015. 

Security has improved over the 

past two years and some foreign 

players have tentatively endorsed 

returning. 

But cricket chief Shaharyar 

Khan said Bangladesh had turned 

down the invitation. 

He told AFP he had spoken to 

Bangladesh cricket board representatives 

on the sidelines of 

an International Cricket Council 

meeting in Dubai, and “decided to 

postpone the series for one or two 

years”. 

“But we will definitely play 

them,” Khan added. 

“We toured Bangladesh in 2012 

and 2015 without Bangladesh reciprocating 

so we hope they will 

discuss further and find a solution,” 

he said. 

When Pakistan last toured 

Bangladesh in 2015 they demanded 

a share of the revenue, and were 

reportedly paid $325,000 by the 

hosts. 

Since the suspension of international 

cricket Pakistan have been 

forced to play all their home series 

in the neutral venues of the United 

Arab Emirates. 

But the successful staging of the 

Pakistan Super League in Lahore 

in March has boosted long-held 

hopes of bringing the sport home 

to the cricket-obsessed nation. 

The Pakistan Cricket Board sees 

a World XI tour of the country in 

September for a short Twenty20 

series as another positive step. 

“Some progress has also been 

made on the World XI tour and we 

hope that tour will further help us 

in reviving international cricket in 

Pakistan,” said Khan. • 

ICC board approves rollback of 'Big Three' decision 

• Reuters, Mumbai 

The International Cricket Council's 

board has voted to pass a new 

financial model that will reverse 

a 2014 decision which effectively 

put India, England and Australia in 

control of the game's finances and 

administration. 

Under the new financial model 

and governance structure, the split 

of revenues from the ICC for the 

years 2016 to 2023 will be altered 

to address the imbalance currently 

favouring the three boards. 

The measure was passed by 13 

votes to one, the governing body 

said in a statement yesterday after 

its meetings at its headquarters in 

Dubai. 

The Indian cricket board (BCCI), 

according to local media, was the 

only one to oppose the new financial 

model, which would see their 

revenue share cut by almost half. 

Based on current forecasts 

for revenues and costs, the BCCI 

would now receive $293m across 

the eight-year cycle, down from 

the $570m it would have received 

under the 2014 arrangement. 

The ICC said the England and 

Wales Cricket Board would be the 

second-best earners with $143m, 

Zimbabwe would receive $94m 

while the remaining seven full 

members would get $132m each in 

the new model. 

A revised constitution, which 

will allow the ICC to include additional 

full members in the future, 

was also approved by 12 votes to 

two. The decisions would have 

to be ratified at the ICC's annual 

conference in June. ICC chairman 

Shashank Manohar, who has been 

critical of the “Big Three” model, 

welcomed the vote. 

"This is another step forward for 

world cricket and I look forward to 

concluding the work at the Annual 

Conference," former BCCI chief 

Manohar, who will step down in 

June due to personal reasons, said. 

"I am confident we can provide 

a strong foundation for the sport to 

grow and improve globally in the 

future through the adoption of the 

revised financial model and governance 

structure." 

India, meanwhile, have yet to 

submit their squad for the upcoming 

Champions Trophy. The BCCI 

failed to deliver the squad info by 

the Tuesday midnight deadline 

and has not ruled out boycotting 

the tournament altogether. 

The ICC board members were 

also briefed on the security situation 

in Pakistan following the visit 

of the ICC delegation to the final of 

the country's Twenty20 league in 

March in Lahore. 

"The feasibility of further matches 

in Pakistan involving a World XI 

is now being considered from a security 

and budget perspective," the 

ICC said in a statement. • 

t Opening a pathway to include 

additional Full Members in the 

future subject to meeting membership 

criteria 

t Removing the Affiliate level of 

membership so there are only 

two levels; Full Member and Associate 

Member 

t Introducing an independent female 

director to the board 

t Introducing membership criteria 

and forming a Membership 

Committee to consider membership 

applications 

t Introducing a deputy chairman 

of the board who will be a sitting 

director elected by the board to 

stand in for the chairman in the 

event that he or she is unable to 

fulfil their duties 

t Equally weighting votes for all 

board members regardless of 

membership status 

t Entitling all members to attend 

the Annual General Meeting

Sports 

19 


DT 

Mohammedan’s Raqibul Hasan plays a shot during their DPL game against 

Khelaghar in Fatullah yesterday 

MD MANIK 

Dominant Prime Bank 

reach DPL summit 


Prime Bank Cricket Club moved to 

the top of the points table following 

their comprehensive 130-run 

victory over Victoria Sporting Club 

in round four of the Dhaka Premier 

Division Cricket League 2016-17 

season yesterday. 

With eight points, Prime joined 

Gazi Group Cricketers at the summit 

of the league table. 

In the other two matches, Mohammedan 

Sporting Club Limited 

beat Khelaghar Samaj Kalyan Samity 

by four wickets while Brothers 

Union defeated Partex Sporting 

Club by seven wickets. 

Brothers v Partex, BKSP 3 

Boosted by Nihaduzzaman’s four 

wickets, Brothers skittled Partex 

out for just 102 in 30.5 overs. Only 

three Partex batsmen reached 

double figures with Sazzadul 

Haque, batting at No 8, scoring the 

highest 42 off 55 balls. Player of 

the match Nihaduzzaman’s effort 

was complemented well by his 

fellow bowlers as Nayeem Hasan 

and Kamrul Islam picked up two 

wickets each. 

Chasing the small target, Brothers 

reached their destination in 17.5 

overs losing three wickets. Farhad 

Hossain top-scored with an unbeaten 

35. 

Mohammedan v Khelaghar, 

Fatullah 

Mohammedan registered their 

second win of the tournament 

when they got the better of 

Khelaghar. Khelaghar were well on 

track at one stage, having scored 

111 for the loss of three wickets in 

24.3 overs. 

However, a batting debacle 

meant Khelaghar added only 

78 losing their remaining seven 

wickets. . Enamul Haque Jr bagged 

three wickets for Mohammedan. 

Chasing 190, Mohammedan 

lost only four wickets and reached 

their target in 44.5 overs. Raqibul 

Hasan led the chase from the 

front with an undefeated 76. His 

122-ball innings included half a 

dozen boundaries and three over 

boundaries. 

Prime v Victoria, BKSP 4 

Riding on Mehedi Maruf’s 103-ball 

101, featuring a dozen fours and a 

couple of sixes, Prime posted 283 

on the board in 49.4 overs. Mehedi 

overall stitched together three 50- 

plus partnerships. He added the 

most - 55 – alongside Abhumanyu 

Easwaran for the second wicket. 

Monir Hossain notched three wickets 

for Victoria. 

Defending the target, Prime's 

bowling attack saw as many as 

eight bowlers used. Ariful Haque 

DPL, ROUND 4 

VICTORIA 153 in 33.5 overs (Hayet 42, 

Ariful 3/14) lost to PRIME 283 in 49.4 

overs (Maruf 101, Monir 3/44) by 130 runs 

MOHAMMEDAN 190/6 in 44.5 

overs (Raqibul 76*, Robiul 3/20) beat 

KHELAGHAR 189 in 45.4 overs (Robiul 

63, Amit 53) by four wickets 

BROTHERS 103/3 in 17.5 overs (Farhad 

35*, Mizanur 33) beat PARTEX 102 in 

30.5 overs (Sazzadul 42, Nihaduzzaman 

4/21) by seven wickets 

DPL POINTS TABLE 

Teams Mat Won Lost Pts 

Prime 4 4 0 8 

Gazi 4 4 0 8 

Abahani 4 3 1 6 

Rupganj 4 3 1 6 

Sk Jamal 4 3 1 6 

Doleshwar 4 2 2 4 

Mohammedan 4 2 2 4 

Brothers 4 1 3 2 

Khelaghar 4 1 3 2 

Kalabagan 4 1 3 2 

Victoria 4 0 4 0 

Partex 4 0 4 0 

topped the chart with three wickets. 

The combined effort saw Victoria 

crumble for only 153 with Sahfiul 

Hayet’s 42 the highest in the 

innings. • 

India keep Champions Trophy squad on hold 

• AFP, New Delhi 

India are refusing to unveil their 

squad for the Champions Trophy 

amid speculation they might 

pull out because of a row with the 

sport's governing body over revenue 

sharing. 

The powerful Board of Control 

for Cricket in India has already 

BGB clinch Shadhinota 

Cup Kabaddi 


BGB emerged as the champion 

in the Bashundhara Shadhinota 

Cup Kabaddi 2017 at Shaheed 

Suhrawardi Indoor Stadium in Mirpur 

yesterday. 

In what was a competitive final, 

BGB defeated Bangladesh Navy by 

just two points (29-27). BGB were 

ahead 17-12 at halftime. 

Tipu Sultan of BGB was adjudged 

player of the match and 

man of the tournament. 

The champion received Tk0.2m 

missed the agreed April 25 deadline 

for naming their squad for the 

eight-nation event beginning in 

England and Wales on June 1. 

The other seven nations have 

named their squads but India are 

unlikely to face any sanction from 

the ICC under the rules of the 50- 

over tournament. 

India's reluctance stems from 

while the runners-up side got 

Tk0.1m. Ten teams participated in 

the five day-long tournament that 

started on Sunday. 

Biren Sikder, State Minister for 

Youth and Sports, Bangladesh Kabaddi 

Feferation general secretary 

and Additional DIG, Habibur Rahman, 

Bashundhara Group advisor 

Major General (retd.) Mahbub 

Haider Khan, Swedish Ambassador 

John Frisell and North Korea Ambassador 

Ri Song Hyon were present 

among others in the closing 

ceremony. • 

their long-running opposition to 

changes in the financial and governance 

structure of the ICC which 

would reduce their influence and 

earnings along with the other members 

of the so-called "big three" 

Australia and England. The ICC 

board meeting in Dubai voted in 

favour of the new financial model 

despite the BCCI voting against. • 

Siddikur 34th after first round 


Bangladesh golfer Siddikur Rahman 

posted a one-over-par 73 in 

the opening round to share 34th 

position while Jake Higginbottom 

of Australia battled to a four-under-par 

68 to take the opening 

round lead at the Yeangder Heritage 

yesterday. Siddikur carded two 

birdies and three bogeys on a rain 

and wind swept day. 

Higginbottom, who regained his 

Asian Tour card through Qualifying 

School earlier this year, returned 

with five birdies against one bogey. 

Chikkarangappa S. of India, Danthai 

Boonma of Thailand, Sung Maochang 

of Chinese Taipei and Sangpil 

Yoon of Korea were a further shot 

back in tied second place at the 

$300,000 Asian Tour event. • 

Action from the 2017 Shadhinota Cup Kabaddi final between BGB and Bangladesh Navy in Dhaka yesterday 

MD MANIK

20 


DT 

Dortmund stun 

Bayern to reach 

Cup final 

• Reuters, Munich 

Borussia Dortmund reached the 

German Cup final for a record 

fourth successive season after 

staging a thrilling five-minute, 

two-goal comeback to stun holder 

and host Bayern Munich 3-2 on 

Wednesday. Teenager Ousmane 

Dembele scored one goal and set 

up another in a five minute spell in 

the second half to help Dortmund 

come back from 2-1 down after 

having taken a 19th-minute lead 

through Marco Reus. 

The Bavarians have now failed 

to win any of their last five matches 

in all competitions and following 

last week's Champions League 

exit to Real Madrid, have only the 

league title to aim for. 

The visitors looked sharper at 

the start and pounced on a defensive 

mistake by defender Javi 

Martinez in the 19th minute, with 

Raphael Guerreiro's shot bouncing 

off the post and Reus sweeping in 

to score. The host roared back and 

Martinez made amends for his mistake 

in the 29th, heading in the 

equaliser with Bayern playing deep 

crosses from the wings to stretch 

the Dortmund defence. 

Xabi Alonso delivered a perfect 

ball for Franck Ribery on the left in 

the 41st and the Frenchman found 

Mats Hummels whose low drive 

put them ahead against his former 

club. Bayern hit the woodwork in 

the second half through Arjen Robben 

and should have added at least 

one more goal after missing several 

more chances with the Dortmund 

defence completely overrun. 

But the visitor carved out an unlikely 

equaliser when Pierre-Emerick 

Aubameyang nodded in a 

Dembele cross in the 69th. The 

19-year-old scored the winner five 

minutes later, curling a superb shot 

past keeper Sven Ulreich to complete 

a quick break after Lahm had 

lost possession. • 

Sports 

RESULTS 

Barcelona 7-1 Osasuna 

Messi 12, 61, Torres 48 

Gomes 30, 57, Alcacer 64, 86, 

Mascherano 67-P 

Leganes 3-0 Las Palmas 

Neves 55, 61-P, Guerrero 59 

Valencia 2-3 Real Sociedad 

Nani 68-P, 

Alves 1-og, 

Zaza 72 

Jose 30-P, 

Oyarzabal 65 

Deportivo 2-6 Real Madrid 

Andone 35, Morata 1, Rodriguez 14, 66, 

Joselu 84 Vazquez 44, Isco 77, Casemiro 87 

POINTS TABLE 

Teams P W D L GD Pts 

Barcelona 34 24 6 4 68 78 

Real Madrid 33 24 6 3 52 78 

Atletico Madrid 34 20 8 6 35 68 

Sevilla 33 19 8 6 19 65 

Villarreal 34 17 9 8 22 60 

Deportivo's Florin Andone and Real 

Madrid's Isco in action during their 

La Liga match at Riazor Stadium on 

Wednesday 

REUTERS 

Real, Barca still neck and neck after big wins 

• Reuters, Barcelona 

Real Madrid thrashed Deportivo 

la Coruna 6-2 to stay level with 

Barcelona at the top of La Liga 

on Wednesday after the Catalan 

crushed Osasuna 7-1, condemning 

the minnow to relegation. 

Lionel Messi, Andre Gomes and 

Paco Alcacer scored twice each and 

Javier Mascherano netted his first 

goal for the club from the penalty 

spot as Barcelona built on Sunday's 

Clasico victory. Real showed they 

would not be easily toppled. 

Zinedine Zidane made nine 

changes for the trip to the Riazor 

but Madrid’s reserves still made 

light work of Depor, with Isco running 

the show and finding the net 

along with James Rodriguez, who 

hit a brace, Alvaro Morata, Lucas 

Vazquez and substitute Casemiro. 

Madrid have 78 points from 33 

games, while Barcelona have the 

same tally from one game more. 

Osasuna, rooted in 20th place, 

were relegated after 17th-placed 

Leganes beat Las Palmas 3-0 to 

move 12 points clear of the bottom 

club, an insurmountable total with 

four games to go because of their 

inferior head-to-head record. 

“We had to win. We have suffered 

a lot since January. We’ve 

lacked both points and luck, and 

when that’s the case it’s hard to 

turn things around,” said Osasuna 

coach Petar Vasiljevic. 

Messi opened the scoring with 

a mazy dribble capped with a neat 

chip over goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu 

before Gomes volleyed home 

Ivan Rakitic’s cross to double the 

lead. Roberto Torres whipped in a 

free kick just after halftime to drag 

his team back into the match before 

Barcelona ran riot with a flurry 

of goals. 

“I think it was a complete performance," 

said Barcelona coach 

Luis Enrique. "When they got back 

to 2-1, which was the worst moment 

because they’re back in the 

game and you never know, we were 

able to put our foot on the accelerator 

and close the game out. 

“The way we played, we deserved 

to win by a large margin.” 

Madrid deserved much the 

same against Depor after dominating 

from the start. 

It took Alvaro Morata just 52 

seconds to find the net after being 

played in by Isco with James Rodriguez 

slamming home the second 

from a Lucas Vazquez cross. 

Florin Andone scored from close 

range, stabbing home Gael Kakuta’s 

cross-shot in the 35th minute, 

to give his side a glimmer of hope 

but nine minutes later Vazquez 

scored Madrid's third. Rodriguez 

and Isco struck before Joselu’s 

header gave Depor fans some late 

cheer but Casemiro had the last 

word and restored Madrid's fourgoal 

lead in the 87th minute. 

"Isco was phenomenal," said Zidane. 

"He does things on the pitch 

that not everybody can. The fans 

congratulated him, I am happy for 

him, for the work he does. When he 

has to play he always does his job." • 

Tottenham's Christian Eriksen celebrates scoring their first goal during their EPL 

match against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Wednesday 

REUTERS 

Eriksen fires Spurs, Huth helps Arsenal 

• AFP, London 

Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen 

netted a superb 30-yard goal 

as Tottenham Hotspur downed 

Crystal Palace 1-0 on Wednesday 

to keep their Premier League title 

hopes alive. 

Leader Chelsea, who beat Tottenham 

4-2 in the FA Cup semi-finals 

on Saturday courtesy a virtuoso 

display, went seven points clear 

by beating Southampton on Tuesday, 

but Spurs' win trimmed the 

gap back to four points. 

Eriksen struck in the 78th minute 

and Arsenal also left it late, 

Robert Huth's 85th-minute own 

RESULTS 

Arsenal 1-0 Leicester 

Huth 85-og 

Middlesbrough 1-0 Sunderland 

De Roon 8 

Crystal Palace 0-1 Tottenham 

Eriksen 78 

goal giving Arsene Wenger's men 

a 1-0 win that left them four points 

off the Champions League places. 

Palace had won six, drawn one 

and lost one of their previous eight 

league games and had the best of 

the first half against Spurs, Christian 

Benteke working Hugo Lloris 

and Andros Townsend firing over. 

Mauricio Pochettino took decisive 

action at half-time, sending 

on Son Heung-Min and Moussa 

Sissoko in place of Mousa Dembele 

and Victor Wanyama. 

Palace lost Mamadou Sakho 

to a potentially serious injury in 

the 57th minute, the in-form centre-back, 

who is on loan from Liverpool, 

stretchered off after twisting 

his left knee. 

Eriksen came to the rescue with 

12 minutes to play, gathering Harry 

Kane's pass and arrowing a glorious 

shot into the bottom-left corner 

to secure an eighth successive 

league win. •

Sports 

21 


DT 

Maria marks comeback 

from ban with win 

• Reuters, Stuttgart 

Former world number one 

Maria Sharapova made a winning 

comeback to the tour 

on Wednesday following her 

15-month doping ban, beating 

Italian Roberta Vinci in straight 

sets in the first round of the 

Stuttgart Grand Prix. 

The 30-year-old Russian, 

a three-time winner on Stuttgart’s 

clay courts, received a 

controversial wild card for the 

German tournament, having 

had no ranking points after 

more than a year out following 

her suspension. 

She had a nervous start in 

front of a supportive crowd but 

quickly found her strokes and 

her trademark shrieks to power 

past the world number 36 7-5 

6-3 and set up a second-round 

clash against fellow Russian 

Ekaterina Makarova. 

Sharapova has also received 

invitations to play in Madrid 

and Rome and will find out in 

May whether she will be given 

a wild card for the French 

Open. • 

Maria Sharapova of Russia returns against Roberta Vinci of Italy during 

the Stuttgart Tennis Grand Prix in Germany on Wednesday REUTERS 

PSG rout Monaco to 

reach French Cup final 

• AFP, Paris 

Edinson Cavani celebrated his 

new contract with his 45th 

goal of the season as holder 

PSG demolished an inexperienced 

Monaco 5-0 to reach 

the French Cup final against 

Angers. Julian Draxler prodded 

PSG ahead on 26 minutes 

and Cavani, who on Tuesday 

signed an extension through to 

2020, swiftly doubled the lead 

as Unai Emery's side dominated 

their opponent. 

Safwan Mbae bundled into 

CRICKET 

SONY SIX 

4:30 PM 

Indian Premier League 2017 

Kolkata v Delhi 

8:30 PM 

Punjab v Hyderabad 

FOOTBALL 

STAR SPORTS SELECT HD 2 

12:30 AM 

Bundesliga 2016/17 

Bayer 04 Leverkusen v FC Schalke 

04 

TEN 1 

12:45 AM 

DAY’S WATCH 

RESULT 

PSG 5-0 Monaco 

Draxler 26, Cavani 31, Mbae 50-og, 

Matuidi 52, Marquinhos 90 

his own net after half-time 

and Blaise Matuidi tapped in 

a fourth before Marquinhos 

rounded out a resounding victory 

in the final minute. PSG 

thrashed Monaco 4-1 at the 

start of the month to lift their 

fourth straight League Cup title 

and are chasing a third successive 

sweep of the domestic 

trophies in France. • 

Sky Bet EFL 2016/17 

Cardiff City v Newcastle United 

TEN 1 HD 

12:40 AM 

Serie A TIM 2016/17 

Atalanta v Juventus 

TEN 2 

12:35 AM 

French Ligue 1 2016/17 

Angers v Olympique Lyon 

TENNIS 

TEN 1 HD 

4:30 PM 

ATP World Tour 500 2017 

Barcelona Open BancSabadell QFs

22 


DT 

Showtime 

Vinod Khanna: 

Another legend passes 

away 

• Showtime Desk 

Veteran actor and Gurudaspur 

MP Vinod Khanna passed away 

on Thursday in Mumbai. The 

actor, who was part of several 

Bollywood hits like Amar Akbar 

Anthony and The Burning Train, 

was admitted to the HN Reliance 

Foundation and Research Centre 

in Gurgaon, Mumbai recently. 

His life story is nothing 

short of a Bollywood script. 

A handsome young man who 

left everything at the peak of 

his career to attain ‘Nirvana’, 

he returned and conquered 

Bollywood again. He truly was an 

enigma and his fans did not just 

admire his acting, but the way he 

lived his life. 

Khanna debuted in 1968 

with Man Ka Meet and is best 

remembered for his performance 

in films like Mere Apne, Mera 

Gaon Mera Desh, Imitihaan, 

Inkaar, Amar Akbar Anthony, 

Lahu ke Do Rang, Qurbani, 

Dayavaan and Jurm. He was 

last seen in the Shah Rukh 

Khan starrer 2015 film 

Dilwale. 

However, Khanna 

shocked his ardent fans 

when he decided to quit 

Bollywood to follow the 

path of his guru Osho 

Rajneesh. That too at a 

time when he was fresh 

from the blockbuster 

success of 

Feroz 

Khan’s Qurbani and 

The Burning Train. 

Especially after 

Qurbani, many 

film critics 

were of the 

opinion that 

if there is 

one actor 

who could 

dethrone 

Amitabh 

Bachchan 

from his 

Numero Uno 

position, that was 

Vinod Khanna, a 

fact even Mahesh Bhatt 

revealed while talking to an 

online source. 

But Vinod had something 

else in mind. According to senior 

journalist Bhawana Somaya for 

Quint, “When the news first 

reached our ears, nobody took 

it seriously and it was dismissed 

as a crazy rumor. But slowly, as 

days went by, 

directors 

confided 

that he 

had 

stalled all 

his new 

projects 

indefinitely 

and producers 

confirmed that Vinod Khanna 

was returning signing amounts. 

This was indeed serious!” 

After a sabbatical, Vinod Khanna 

returned to filmdom with films 

like Mukul Anand’s Insaaf, 

Feroz Khan’s superhit Dayavan, 

Mahesh Bhatt’s Jurm, and Yash 

Chopra’s Chandni. He was 

involved in successful films but 

couldn’t touch the peak that he 

once left in the early 80s. 

The veteran actor’s demise 

has sent shock waves through 

the industry, and as a mark 

of respect, the premiere of 

Baahubali 2: The Conclusion in 

Mumbai has been cancelled. 

Distributor of the Hindi dubbed 

version of SS Rajamouli’s 

Baahubali 2, Karan Johar, 

took to Twitter to make the 

announcement. He wrote, “As a 

mark of respect to our beloved 

Vinod Khanna the entire team of 

Baahubali has decided to cancel 

the premiere tonight...” 

Khanna joined politics in 1997 

and was elected from Gurdaspur 

on a BJP ticket in the following 

year’s Lok Sabha poll. During the 

time of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee 

government, he became Union 

minister for culture and tourism 

in 2002. Later, he became a 

minister of state in the Ministry 

of External Affairs. Khanna 

lost the 2009 election, but was 

elected again from Gurdaspur in 

2014. 

He married Geetanjali Khanna 

in 1971, but was divorced and 

remarried again in 1990, this 

time with Kavita Khanna. He 

is survived by three sons and 

one daughter - actors Akshaye 

Khanna and Rahul Khanna, 

as well as the younger 

Sakshi Khanna and Shraddha 

Khanna.• 

Fashion Revolution 

Week 2017 


Fashion Revolution is encouraging 

individuals around the world 

to ask brands “who made my 

clothes” during the Fashion 

Revolution Week, held from 

April 24 to 30, to demand greater 

transparency and help improve the 

working conditions and wages of 

the people who make the clothes. 

Fashion Revolution 

Bangladesh and SNV Netherlands 

Development Organisation have 

jointly organised an exhibition 

titled Threads of Change: 

Celebrating the Lives of Garment 

Workers. 

Inaugurated by Leoni 

Margaretha Cuelenaere, 

Ambassador of the Kingdom of the 

Netherlands in Bangladesh, the 

exhibition is running at the Bengal 

Art Lounge, 60 Gulshan Avenue, 

Dhaka till April 30, starting at 3pm 

and ending at 8pm on each day. 

Nawshin Khair, Country 

Coordinator, Fashion Revolution 

Bangladesh, and Farhtheeba 

Rahat Khan, Team Leader, SNV 

Netherlands Development 

Organisation were present at the 

event. 

The exhibition showcases 

photographs by internationally 

acclaimed photographer Alison 

Wright, reflecting the lives of 

workers from the apparel industry 

of Bangladesh. About 75 million 

people work directly in the fashion 

and textiles industry. Many are 

subject to exploitation; verbal and 

physical abuse, working in unsafe 

conditions, with very little pay. 

Despite some steps forward 

since the Rana Plaza garment 

factory collapsed in 2013 killing 

1,138 people, not enough has 

changed. Inspired by the work 

SNV has been doing in garments 

factories all over Bangladesh, the 

photographs taken by Wright are 

a reflection of the changes in the 

lives of garments workers since the 

development organisation started 

their project. 

Apart from the exhibition, 

every day there will be film 

screenings made on various 

aspects of the RMG industry from 

6pm onwards. 

Kamar Ahmad Simon’s 

documentary Testimony of a 

Thread will be screened today 

at 6:00pm. Winner of ‘The 

Asian Pitch Award 2013’, the 52 

minutes documentary explores 

the connecting worlds of hope 

Kelly R Ryan, Cultural Affairs Officer, The American Center; Andrea Brouillette- 

Rodriguez, Counselor for Political and Economic Affairs, Embassy of the United 

States of America; H.E. Leoni Margaretha Cuelenaere, Ambassador of the 

Kingdom of Netherlands in Bangladesh; Nawshin Khair, Country Coordinator, 

Fashion Revolution Bangladesh; Asif Kamal, Communication Adviser, SNV 

Netherlands Development Organisations; Farhtheeba Rahat Khan, Team Leader, 

and despair around the clothing 

industry, lately marked for manmade 

catastrophes like the Rana 

Plaza collapse in 2013. 

Besides, two panel discussions 

will also take place on April 30, 

2017, 3:30pm onwards. 

Fashion Revolution Week 2017, 

which takes place worldwide, 

features events and activities 

to encourage people to think 

differently about the clothes they 

buy and wear and inspire them to 

make a positive difference. 

Fashion Revolution, a non-profit 

organisation with a presence in 

more than 90 countries, is a global 

movement that works for a more 

sustainable fashion industry, 

campaigning for systemic reform 

of the industry with a special 

focus on the need for greater 

transparency in the fashion supply 

chain.•

Showtime 

23 


DT 

In conversation with Joy Shahriar 

• Nasir Rayhan 

Talented musician 

and entrepreneur 

Joy Shahriar, who is 

currently busy working 

on his fourth single 

album, sat down with 

Showtime to talk about 

his latest work, passions 

and upcoming projects. 

You have been applauded for 

your last venture, the remake of 

“Dhonodhanne Pushpe Bhora.” 

What made you select the song? 

Firstly, the song is one of my 

favourite tracks ever. Secondly, 

when we think about doing a 

patriotic song, “Dhonodhanne 

Pushpe Bhora” is among the 

first few to come to one’s mind. 

Actually, this is the third time I’ve 

worked on the song. Previously, 

Bappa Bhai and I devised the 

rearrangement of the song once, 

then we refurbished 

the song again 

for a program 

congratulating our 

Prime Minister 

for receiving an 

award from 

UNICEF. I 

think this 

proves how 

much I 

love the 

song! 

You have previously collaborated 

with Nachiketa. How was your 

experience working with him? 

I’ve listened to numerous song 

writers, but he inspires me the 

most, and it was a privilege 

working with him. I consider 

myself lucky because I got to work 

with Shilajeet Da that year as 

well. It was the first time that he 

sang a song for Bangladesh. 2016 

was therefore a great year for me, 

since I’ve collaborated with some 

senior artists of the Bangladeshi 

and Indian industry. I’ve recently 

released a duet album titled 

Shopno Somuddur with Kumar 

Bishwajeet Da, the artist who 

has been my musical hero since 

childhood. I have also worked with 

the likes of Bappa Bhai, Tahsan 

Bhai and other senior artists of the 

country. 

How are things on the business 

front? 

(Smiles) ... I am all about music, 

as a result, I sell music as an 

entrepreneur. Most musicians in 

our country have to face a lot of 

systematic problems, including 

copyright issues, artist-company 

spats and a lot of other things 

which, I too, have experienced 

personally as a musician. With 

a goal to resolve such issues, 

I’ve started my own venture 

AajobRecords back in 2014, which 

has almost 500 tracks to it’s credit 

till date. Besides, I have a fashion 

house named Shopnobaaz at 

Aziz Co-operative Super Market, 

which started its journey in 2006. 

The best thing about being an 

entrepreneur is that I can actually 

work on my dreams. When I have 

a record label of my own, I can 

experiment with my music and I 

can produce the merchandise the 

way I want. The same goes with 

the t-shirts Shopnobaaz produces 

- I wear what I really want to wear 

and none of these ever distract me 

from my music since I love what 

I do. 

What’s next for your fans? 

My last album was released more 

than two years ago. Since then, 

I have collaborated with many 

artists and worked on many 

projects. But the best news for my 

fans would be that I am putting the 

final touches on my fourth single 

album, which I believe will be 

released on the occasion of Eid. • 

Jonathan Demme 

passes away 


The Silence of the Lambs director 

Jonathan Demme passed away 

on Wednesday morning in 

New York at the age of 73. The 

American film-maker, producer 

and screenwriter, whose Oscarwinning 

thriller The Silence of the 

Lambs created a buzz worldwide 

and introduced one of the most 

indelible villains in history, also 

directed Philadelphia, Rachel 

Getting Married, the 2004 remake 

of The Manchurian Candidate, and 

several music docs and videos. 

According to a statement from 

Demme’s publicist, he died of 

complications from oesophageal 

cancer. “Sadly, I can confirm 

that Jonathan passed away early 

this morning in his Manhattan 

apartment, surrounded by his 

wife, Joanne Howard, and three 

children,” the publicist said. There 

will be a private family funeral. 

Tributes to Demme are still 

pouring out of Hollywood. “I 

am heartbroken to lose a friend, 

a mentor, a guy so singular and 

dynamic, you’d have to design a 

hurricane to contain him,” Jodie 

Foster said in a statement to 

Rolling Stone. 

In a statement to 

Entertainment Weekly, Oscar 

winning actor Tom Hanks said, 

“Jonathan was as quirky as his 

comedies, and as deep as his 

dramas. He was pure energy – 

the unstoppable cheerleader for 

anyone creative. Jonathan taught 

us how big a heart a person can 

have, and how it will guide 

how we live and what we 

do for a living. He was the 

grandest of men.” 

Musician Bruce 

Springsteen wrote 

on his official 

website, “He was 

an inspiration for 

me, a beautiful 

film-maker and a 

great spirit. Always 

smiling, always 

involved with the world, and 

always pushing you to go for your 

best. He’ll be deeply missed.” 

Demme was known for his 

dramatic close-ups in films. 

Beginning with Rachel Getting 

Married (2008), Demme adopted 

a documentary style of filmmaking, 

which has also been 

lauded by the audience and 

critics. •

24 


DT 

Back Page 

TOFAIL: COSTLY DOLLAR TO 

RAISE PRICES OF ESSENTIALS › 10 

PAKISTAN POSTPONE 

BANGLADESH TOUR › 18 

IN CONVERSATION WITH 

JOY SHAHRIAR › 23 

Workplace deaths double in 2016 

699 died and 703 were injured in the workplace last year 

• Adil Sakhawat 

Bangladesh has experienced 1,402 

casualties in the workplace last year, 

a report of the Bangladesh Institute 

of Labour Studies (BILS) says. 

The report, scheduled to be 

released on April 30, says the 

number of the casualties almost 

doubled from 2015. In 2016, 699 

workers died in the workplace and 

703 people were injured. 

In 2015, the number of deaths was 

745, in 2014 it was 1,288 and in 2013 

it was 7,650, including the victims of 

the Rana Plaza building collapse. 

The riskiest sector appears to be 

transport, where 249 workers died 

last year. 

Last year, the ready made garments 

(RMG) sector experienced 

nine worker deaths and 206 injuries. 

Of the injured, 145 were female. 

The RMG sector is recognised as 

formal sector and after the Rana Plaza 

incident many compliance measures 

were taken by the government. 

BILS Senior Researcher Afzal Kabir 

Khan said although compliance 

measures to ensure safety at the RMG 

workplaces were taken but they were 

not implemented fully in all factories. 

“There are more non-compliant 

factories than compliant ones in 

the country. BGMEA (the garments 

sector trade body) say they have listed 

5,000 compliant factories, but I 

think there are 5,000 more outside 

that list,” he said. 

Many compliant factories also 

forward orders to sub-contract factories 

who are often non- compliant. 

“Also, there are not enough labour 

inspectors to monitor all compliance 

measures.” 

Casualties at construction sites 

present a more alarming picture. In 

2016, there were 182 casualties on 

construction sites, of which 85 were 

deaths and 97 injuries. 

But construction workers are not 

recognised by the Labour law 2013. 

Afzal Kabir Khan said: “Eighty 

percent of the workers are in the informal 

sector. They are not covered 

by the labour act. So this is not a law 

for the workers. 

“This is why employers in the informal 

sectors find it easy to abuse 

workers,” he said. 

Even in the agricultural sector, 

the country experienced 48 causalities, 

among whom 46 people were 

killed in the workplace. 

Agricultural workers are not covered 

by the labour act either. 

Rabiul Awal, a welder, fell from the third floor of a building in Libya. He is now under treatment at CRP 

Afzal however, praised the trade 

unions’ and government’s initiatives 

to include domestic workers 

in the law and initiatives to ensure 

insurance coverage for construction 

workers. 

“Although it will no doubt be a 

long journey, we still hope that all 

workers from the informal sectors 

will be included in the labour act 

and everyone’s safety at the workplace 

will be ensured,” he said. 

At the Centre for Rehabilitation 

of the Paralysed (CRP) in Savar, this 

correspondent found that currently 

37 patients are admitted there 

with workplace injuries and most of 

them are informal sector workers. 

Most of them were injured by 

falling from a height, falling while 

carrying a heavy load or hit by a 

heavy falling object. 

The CRP is a non-profit that provides 

low-cost treatment for patients 

with injuries and disabilities 

who cannot afford such treatment. 

Asked about the safety measures 

at their workplace, the injured 

workers admitted at CRP said there 

were none. 

From July 2015 to June 2016, 93 

people were admitted to the CRP 

with workplace injuries. 

Md Shafiq-ul Islam, the executive 

director of CRP, said: “The number 

of patients getting admitted here are 

going up. 

“It is distressing that employers 

are still not becoming conscious 

about ensuring the safety of workers 

in the workplace.” 

Shafiq thinks the traditional work 

‘THROW HIM OUT OF THE FACTORY’ 

Alauddin, 30, was a day labourer at a 

factory named Mirrakkel in Gazipur, 

outside the capital who worked for 

Tk400 a day. To earn this amount he 

had to take 35kg load on his head and 

carry them around the factory. 

“I was carrying that load over my 

head and went to the second floor. 

Suddenly I fell and became senseless. 

“I heard from my colleagues that 

my employers ordered others to throw 

out me out of the factory, because I had 

joined only a day before the accident.” 

Asked if he had been paid anything, 

he replied: “Why would they? 

They denied to even recognise that I 

worked there. 

“Later one of my colleagues 

brought me to a nearby hospital.” 

Delwar, 34, father of an eight-yearold 

girl, is admitted at CRP with complete 

ASIA A disability, which means 

his whole upper body is impaired. 

Delwar was a contractual day labourer 

from Naogaon who used to cut 

trees in Sherpur for Tk300 a day. 

“One day while I was up in a tree 

cutting a branch, I suddenly fell down. 

I could not remember anything afterwards,” 

he said. 

“Later I heard from my wife that 

my employer gave ne Tk5,000 for an 

ambulance. They would not give me 

anything more than that.” • 

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU 

practices in the country is responsible 

for many workplace casualties. 

“RMG workers are working 

continuously in the same posture 

without any break every day, which 

might cause disability or injury at 

one point,” he said. 

The government needs to ensure 

safety measures for workers in the 

informal sectors, he said. 

“For that we need a central 

framework that will ensure safety 

measures, insurance schemes and 

accident schemes.” 

The International Labour Organisation 

estimates that over 2.3 million 

fatalities and 300 million accidents 

causing injuries occur in the 

workplace each year. 

However, these estimates do not 

properly reflect the magnitude of 

the problem, nor the real impact of 

occupational accidents and diseases 

on workers, families and economies. 

This year on the eve of the World 

Day for Safety and Health at Work 

2017, the international body asked 

member nations to produce better 

national data for a better understanding 

of work-related accidents, 

injuries and diseases and to underpin 

effective policies and strategies. 

ILO’s Director-General Guy Ryder 

said in a message for the day 

that countries that have good data 

will be better placed to fulfil their 

commitment to implement and 

report on the global plan of action 

to end poverty, protect the planet, 

and ensure prosperity for all under 

the United Nations 2030 Agenda for 

Sustainable Development. • 

Govt to ensure 

workplace safety 

in non-RMG 

factories 

• Ibrahim Hossain Ovi 

The government is planning to undertake 

a project costing around 

Tk200-250 crore to launch safety 

inspection in factories other than 

the RMG ones to ensure workplace 

safety. 

Senior Secretary of Labour and 

Employment Mikail Shipar made 

the announcement yesterday during 

a press conference ahead of the 

World Day for Safety and Health at 

Work, which will be observed today. 

This year’s theme for the day is 

“Optimise the collection and use 

of Occupational Safety and Health 

data.” 

Bangladesh is observing the day 

for the second time, although it has 

been observed by the International 

Labour Organisation around the 

world since 2003. 

State Minister for Labour and 

Employment Md Mujibul Haque 

presided over the press conference, 

where speakers discussed 

workplace safety and health issues 

in the country. 

“Our Labour Act is comprehensive 

and applicable for all industrial 

sectors, not just the RMG sector,” 

said Shipar. 

The RMG industry of Bangladesh 

is worth $28 billion and employs 

nearly four million people. 

Because it is such an important 

industry for the country, the focus 

regarding workplace safety has 

been entirely on this sector, especially 

since the Rana Plaza disaster, 

he said. 

“But now we are focusing on 

other sectors – i.e. chemical factories, 

shipping industry, etc – as 

well. A proposal on this project will 

be placed before the government 

soon,” he added. 

The project will especially focus 

on the manufacturing units that 

use boiler, as there have been a 

number of accidents involving factory 

boilers in recent times. 

State Minister Mujibul said there 

are about 8.3 million manufacturing 

units that are contributing to the 

country’s economic development. 

“We are working to ensure 

workplace safety and health in 

non-RMG factories as well, especially 

the vulnerable ones, because 

workplace safety is a right under 

the law of the country,” the state 

minister said. • 

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 

8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207. Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com

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