03-09-2018

MonDaY
Dhaka:September 3, 2018; Bhadra 19, 1425 BS; Zilhajj 22,1439 hijri
www.thebangladeshtoday.com; www. tbtbangla.com
Regd.No.Da~2065, Vol.16; No.217; 12 Pages~Tk.8.00
international
China-Africa trade
deficit prominent
at conference
>Page 7
art & culture
10-minute full body,
no-gear workout
>Page 8
sport
Ronaldo fails to score
again as Juventus
edge Parma
>Page 9
BD's participation in Bimstec
Summit highly acclaimed: PM
DHAKA : Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina on Sunday said her participation
in the 4th Bimstec Summit and
Bangladesh's role in the meetings held
just before the Summit in Kathmandu
have highly been acclaimed by all quarters,
reports UNB.
"In overall consideration, the Summit
and other meetings were very important
for Bangladesh," she said while
addressing a press conference at her
official residence Ganobhaban about
the outcomes of her just-concluded visit
to Nepal for attending the Summit.
The Prime Minister said in her speech
at the opening session of the Summit,
she urged the leaders to face poverty,
adverse impact of climate change and
counterterrorism and other problems
in the Bimstec region with joint and
coordinated efforts.
In the fast changing global scenario,
Sheikh Hasina said, she put emphasis
on reviewing and reorganising 14
important issues of cooperation among
the member countries.
She also called upon the member
countries to work together to develop
the bloc as a more dynamic and fruitful
18,693 hajj pilgrims
return home
DHAKA : A total of 18,693 pilgrims have
returned home in 51 return flights during
the last seven days after performing hajj
in Saudi Arabia, reports UNB.
Among the 51 flights, 29 were operated
by Biman Bangladesh Airlines while
22 by Saudi Arabian Airlines, said
sources of hajj office on Sunday.
The return flights of hajj pilgrims started
on August 27, which would end on
September 27. On August 27, the first
flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines
returned home with 419 pilgrims.
According to hajj bulletin, a total of
105 Bangladeshi hajj pilgrims, including
87 men and 18 women, died in
Saudi Arabia before and after hajj until
Sunday. This year a total of 127298 pilgrims
went to Saudi Arabia from
Bangladesh for performing hajj.
2 staff in BD's Riyadh
Mission suspended
DHAKA : Bangladesh Embassy in
Riyadh has suspended two of its staff
following media reports over the torture
of a Bangladeshi housemaid,
reports UNB.
The housemaid, Runa Laila, has
already returned home. A high-level
investigation committee has formed in
this regard and legal steps will be taken
apart from their removal from job if the
allegations brought against them are
proved, said the Embassy on Sunday.
"The Embassy is committed to protecting
and ensuring the safety of
female workers. The Embassy will follow
zero tolerance policy if any untoward
incident is reported against any
staff," said Bangladesh Ambassador to
Saudi Arabia Golam Moshi.
The safe house for female workers of the
Embassy is monitored by CCTVs round the
clock. The Embassy, however, did not reveal
the names of the two suspended staff.
Zohr
04:25 AM
01:15 AM
04:27 PM
06:18 PM
07:40 PM
5:40 6:15
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina addressing a press conference at
Ganobhaban on Sunday.
Photo : Star Mail
organisation through reorganising the
issues of cooperatives into three main
President calls for social movement
against anarchy attempt
DHAKA : President Abdul Hamid on
Sunday urged the people of all religions
to resist through social movement any
attempt of creating anarchy in the society
in the name of religion, reports
UNB.
He made the call while exchanging
greetings with members of the Hindu
community at a reception at
Bangabhaban marking the
Janmashtami, an annual Hindu festival
that celebrates the birth of Krishna, the
eighth avatar of Vishnu.
"Religion leads people to the way to
truth and right and inspires people for
human welfare. No religion supports
militancy, fundamentalism or terrorism,"
he said.
President Abdul Hamid also urged
the people of all religions to remain alert
so that no person or group can impede
the social discipline using the religion.
The head of the state asked all to build
strong social resistance if anyone tries to
create anarchy and simultaneously
urged all to continue collective endeavour
to keep up the trend of national
development and progress.
clusters namely "Sustainable
Development", Security and Stability"
The President also asked people to
maintain communal harmony at any
cost as the participation of all people
irrespective of religions, castes and
creeds accelerated victory in all struggles
and movements including the
country's great Liberation War.
He stressed utilizing the non-communal
spirit to build a happy and prosperous
Bangladesh envisioned by Father of
the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh
Mujibur Rahman.
"Communal harmony is our great tradition
which strengthens the existing
harmony and friendship more in the
society to build a happy and a prosperous
Bangladesh for the present and
future generation," he said.
The President said that all religious
festivals are celebrated with fervor and
gaiety in Bangladesh. "Each festival
becomes universal with the spontaneous
participation of all religious
minded people. This spontaneity has
helped build social bonding," the
President added.
Greeting the people of Hindu community
on the occasion, the President
Sunday's rain brings serenity to people of Rajshahi.
and "People to People Contact" on priority
basis, she said.
Besides, she underscored the need for
formation of Free Trade Area, enhancing
investment, cooperation on power
sector and investment of capital.
The Prime Minister said she stressed
the importance of consolidating fundamental
legal frameworks to carry forward
the substantive engagements in
the cooperation to produce visible
results.
In her speech, she said, she urged the
Bimstec leaders to further strengthen
the organisation and make it more
effective as well as stressed implementation
of the 16-point Goa Declaration
adopted in 2016.
About the memorandum of understanding
signed on Bimstec power grid
interconnections, Sheikh Hasina hoped
that it will create new areas of cooperation
on electricity in the Bimstec region.
The Prime Minister said she
exchanged views with leaders of the
member states on further increasing
cooperation on bilateral and regional
issues during her participation in the
retreat session of the Summit.
mentioned that Sri Krishna emerged as
social reformer to thwart evil forces and
to protect religion and good people in
the society.
Religious Affairs Minister Principal
Motiur Rahman and secretaries concerned
accompanied the President during
the reception.
Besides, Hindu religious personalities,
leaders of Hindu Religion Welfare
Trust, Bangladesh Puja Udjapan
Parishad, Dhaka Mahanagar
Sarbajonin Puja Committee,
Bangladesh Hindu-Buddha-Christian
Oikya Parishad and people from various
professions of the community joined the
reception. They presented flower bouquets
to the president.
Several lawmakers, judges, ambassadors
and high commissioner of India to
Bangladesh, senior journalists of Hindu
community, among others, also joined
the reception at the president palace.
The invited guests were entertained
with the traditional food items at
Darbar Hall. President went round different
corners there and exchanged
greetings with them.
Photo : Star Mail
Govt plans to implement
10 mega power
projects by 2030
DHAKA : As part of its Power System
Master Plan (PSMP) 2016, the government
is going to implement 10 mega
projects of about 15,000 MW of capacity
by 2030, reports UNB.
Director General of Power Cell
Mohammad Hossain who is involved in
chalking out the plan said the government
has already initiated a move to
implement the plan as per its vision to
raise electricity production to 40,000
MW by 2030 and 60,000 MW by 2041.
However, the government's main
focus in the existing plan is on raising
the electricity production to 24,000
MW by 2021 when the country will be
celebrating its Golden Jubilee at
50thyear of independence, said the
Power Cell chief.
Power Cell, a technical wing of the
Power Division, has been entrusted
with the responsibility to prepare the
PSMP and other power-related plans
to ensure coordination among power
sector entities.
Of the 15,000 MW of power, officials
said, 11,000 MW will come from nine
projects of Power and Energy Ministry
while 4,000 MW from nuclear power
plant under the Ministry of Science
and Technology.
They said implementation of three of
nine mega projects under the Power
and Energy Ministry have already
started while the first phase of 2,400
MW of the 4,000MW nuclear power
started by the Ministry of Science and
Technology.
These are 1320 MW Moittri Super
Govt must go before
polls : BNP
DHAKA : BNP on Sunday warned
that the government must quit as
people will not allow Awami League
to hold the national election under
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Speaking at a press conference at
the party's Nayapaltan central
office, BNP senior joint secretary
general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi also
trashed Awami League general secretary
Obaidul Quader's comment
that Khaleda Zia's release is not possible
out of legal process, reports
UNB.
"This time, you (govt) will have to
go, no matter how many plots and
evil designs you resort to hang onto
power...you must release Khaleda
Zia and hold the election after dissolving
parliament," he said.
The BNP leader said there is no
alternative to holding the election
under a non-party neutral government
to ensure people's voting
tights.
"Sheikh Hasina is the enemy of a
fair election.
Holding the polls
under her means
snatching people's
voting right," he
observed.
Referring to AL
general secretary's
comment that
Khaleda's release
depends on court,
not on Awami
League, Rizvi said
Quader's remark is
not acceptable.
"People have
rejected his comment."
He alleged that
the government is
r e p e a t e d l y
o b s t r u c t i n g
Khaleda's release
on bail from the
apex court through
various tactics.
"Khaleda Zia has
been kept in jail
Thermal Power Project taken by
Bangladesh-India Joint Venture with a
target to implement it by 2019 in
Rampal, 1200 MW Materbari Coalbased
Power Plant of Coal Power
General Company Bangladesh Ltd
(CPGCBL) in Cox's Bazar being
financed by JICA with a targeted
implementation time of 2021 and the
1320 MW Paira Coal-based Power
Pant taken by Bangladesh-China JV.
North-West Power Generation
Company Ltd (NWPGCL) of
Bangladesh and CMC of China has got
engaged to implement the 1320 MW
Paira coal-fired project in Patuakhali.
According to the officials, the
remaining seven mega projects are
now at different stages of implementation
although their physical works
could not yet be started because of
non-settlement of funding and some
other technical issues.
These are 1320 MW Pekua power
plant of EGCB-MITSUI joint venture
(Targeted implementation time 2023),
PDB's 1200 MW Moheshkhali coalfired
power (2024), 1320 MW
Moheshkhali coal-fired power plant
with an implementation target of 2022,
1320 MW Ashuganj power plant (2021),
1200 MW coal-fired power plant of
CPGCL-SEMCROP (2023) and LNGbased
combined cycle power plant of
Reliance Group of India (2023).
The remaining 1600 MW nuclear
power plant has been targeted by the
Ministry of Science and Technology to
implement by 2030.
now at the behest of the government."
The BNP leader said the government
must amend the constitution
to include the provision of the election-time
neutral government for
ensuring a credible and inclusive
election.
He said their party has been on a
movement for restoring people's
voting right to hold the lection
under a non-party administration.
"Any movement for realising people's
demands never failed in the
world. Our movement will also
become successful."
Rizvi alleged that police arrested
their party's 89 activists across the
country, including in the capital,
while observing BNP's 40th
anniversary programmes on
Saturday.
He condemned and protested the
arrest of their party men and
demanded the government release
them immediately.

NEWS
MONDAY,
SEPTEMBER 3, 2018
2
5 held in
Gopalganj for
blackmailing
traders
GOPALGANJ : Police in separate
drives on Saturday night detained
five people on charge of
blackmailing traders and extorting
money from them by taking their
photo with women in compromising
situation, reports UNB.
The arrestees are Kamrul Islam
Molla, 50, Sohag Molla, 28,
ofNilphavillage in Tungipara
upazila, Roice Sikder, 34, of
Manokdaha village of Sadar upazila,
Md Saiful Islam Sikder, 50 of
Nabinbagh, and Sayera Aziz Tithi,
18, daughter of Abdu Aziz of
Gopinathpur village in Sadar
upazila.
Mohammad Sanowar Hossain,
additional superintendent of
Gopalganj police (Sadar Circle) said
the blackmailing gang used to lure
traders of buying goods from them
and invited them to Kamrul Islam's
house. When a victim comes to their
place, the gang forced him to take off
his clothes and pose for pictures
with a female member of the gang,
he said.
Later, the gang demanded huge
money from them and threatened to
circulate the pictures and videos on
the internet.
The gang took away a huge
amount from at least 16
businessmen, he said.
Police arrested the gang members
by tracking their mobile phones
after having written complaint from
cement traders Ripon Fakir of Sadar
upazila and Gazi Anis of Chandra
Dighakia.
The gang allegedly took Tk
2,40,000 from the two traders, the
official added.
A case was filed against them with
Sadar Police Station.
TBT Habiganj Correspondent talking to the Manager of Shaesthaganj Fisheries Extension and
Training Center recently.
Habiganj Correspondent
British PM wraps up Africa tour
with post-Brexit trade promises
British Prime Minister Theresa May ended a three-nation
tour of Africa in Kenya on Thursday, promising post-Brexit
trade continuity and hoping to strengthen ties before quitting
the European Union, reports BSS.
May's first Africa visit is part of a campaign to promote
Britain's global ambitions and relations with just seven
months left until Britain formally leaves the world's biggest
trading bloc.
After meeting with May, Kenyan President Uhuru
Kenyatta said he felt reassured, amid the uncertainty brought
on by Britain's decision to quit the EU next year.
"I don't see Brexit as meaning anything detrimental
towards the strong trade ties we have," Kenyatta said.
Both leaders referenced the historically close ties between
Britain and its former colony.
However May is the first British prime minister to travel to
Kenya for 30 years and, at one point, Kenyatta struggled to
remember the surname of former foreign minister Boris
Johnson, who visited last year, eventually referring to him as
"the bicycle guy".
"We wish to prosper together so let us do business together.
We have democracy in common so let us defend it together,"
said Kenyatta. "And as for our common enemies, such as
terrorism, let us fight it together."
In Kenya, as in South Africa and Nigeria earlier this week,
May was eager to ease worries and emphasise opportunities
as Britain leaves the EU.
"As Britain prepares to leave the European Union we are
committed to a smooth transition that ensures continuity in
our trading relationship with Kenya, ensuring Kenya retains
its duty-free, quota-free access to the UK market," she said.
"Continuity is what's important, to business, to traders: no
cliff-edge, no sudden disruption to trading relationships,"
May added.
The leaders agreed to strengthen security cooperation -
with British soldiers regularly training in Kenya - and to
ensure that proceeds of Kenyan corruption stashed in British
banks would be repatriated to Kenya.
"We signed an agreement to ensure that any proceeds of
corruption in Kenya that end up in the UK will be given back
to the Kenyan people and spent for their benefit," May said.
She added that cooperation on anti-terrorism and law
enforcement was not one way. "Already British terrorists and
child abusers are in UK jails because of our cooperation," she
said.
"Our co-operation today makes our people safer, more
prosperous and more secure - here in Kenya, and in the UK,"
she said. In Nigeria on Wednesday, May met with President
Muhammadu Buhari and oversaw the signing of a security
partnership agreement and establishment of an economic
development forum.
She also held talks on stemming the migrant flow to
Europe from Nigeria, Africa's most populous country.
Human hauler
driver found
dead in Rajshahi
RAJSHAHI : A human hauler driver was
found dead at a banana orchard at
Chakpalashi village in Puthia upazila on
Sunday, reports UNB.
The deceased was identified as Jahangir
Hossain, 35, son of Rajab Ali of Gandagohali
village in the upazila. Local people spotted the
body of Jahangir with his hands and legs tied up
and informed police, said Shakil Uddin Ahmed,
officer-in-charge of Puthia Police Station.
On information, police recovered the body
and sent it to a hospital morgue for autopsy.
The body bore several injury marks, said
police. Snatchers might have killed Jahangir in
a bid to snatch his human hauler, said the OC.
Key US inflation
measure hits 6-year
high in July, up 2.3%
A key measure of annual US inflation rose last
month at the fastest pace seen in six years, pushed by
rising energy costs, the Commerce Department
reported Thursday.
The Federal Reserve's preferred price index, based
on consumer spending, rose 2.3 percent in the 12
months ended in July, according to the monthly
data, which was the strongest rate since March 2012.
Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the
inflation rate also accelerated, rising to 2.0 percent,
which hits the Fed's goal.
With the US economy growing at a brisk pace of
4.2 percent in the second quarter, and
unemployment rate at historic low levels, the central
bank is watching closely for signs prices are
accelerating.
However, Fed officials have said they can tolerate
inflation a little above or below the target. The Fed
has raised the key lending rate twice this year, and is
expected to hike again in September and December.
Energy goods and services surged 13.4 percent
compared to July 2017, while goods prices rose only
1.4 percent.
The Personal Consumption Expenditures price
index rose just 0.1 percent in July compared to June,
and was up 0.2 percent excluding food and energy.
2 killed in
Bogura road
crashes
BOGURA : Two people were
killed in separate road
crashes in Sherpur upazila of
the district early Sunday,
reports UNB.
Abdul Aziz Mandal, incharge
of Bogura Shaheed
Ziaur Rahman Medical
College and Hospital police
camp, said Sazzad Hossain,
24, was killed and 20 others
were injured when a
Rangpur-bound bus collided
head-on with another bus
around 12:30 am at
Mahipur in Sherpur upazila.
In another incident, Taj
Mohammad, 32, a
supervisor of a bus, was
killed and 25 others were
injured when the bus of 'SR
Paribahan' crashed into a
covered van around 2:30 am
at Dhanut intersection in the
upazila. The injured were
taken to Bogura Shaheed
Ziaur Rahman Medical
College and Hospital.
SUST reopens
Monday after
Eid vacation
SHAHJALAL UNIVERSITY
(SYLHET) : The academic
activities at Shahjalal
University of Science and
Technology (SUST) resume
on Monday after the Eid-ul-
Azha vacation, reports UNB.
The university went on the
Eid vacation on August 19,
said its registrar Ishfaqul
Hossain.
Meanwhile, the university
students have started
returning to their
dormitories, he added.
'Shape up or we'll
quit', Trump tells WTO
President Donald Trump has threatened to pull the United
States out of the World Trade Organization if it does not
"shape up."
His remarks, made in an interview with Bloomberg News
on Thursday, were the latest in a series of attacks on
institutions of the global order that the US helped to build
after World War II.
"If they don't shape up, I would withdraw from the WTO,"
Trump told the news agency, describing the agreement to set
the organization up as "the single worst trade deal ever
made".
Trump, who has previously criticized the WTO's dispute
settlement system as being unfavorable to the US, said
Washington had "rarely won a lawsuit" there although things
began changing last year.
"In the last year, we're starting to win a lot," he said.
"You know why? Because they know if we don't, I'm out of
there."
China, which is currently embroiled in a trade war with the
US, joined the WTO in 2001 - a move which US Trade
Representative Robert Lighthizer has described as a mistake.
Trump made the threat as Washington presses challenges
at the WTO against trading partners that have fought back
against tariffs on importers that were imposed by the Trump
administration.
New NAFTA may
affect Brazil's exports
to Mexico: expert
The renegotiation of the North American Free Trade
Agreement (NAFTA) may have a negative effect on Brazil's
exports to Mexico, Jose Augusto de Castro, head of the
Brazilian Foreign Trade Association (AEB), said Thursday.
The renegotiation of NAFTA may affect the Brazilian
automobile sector, since Mexico would have to increase
local production and prioritize trade with the United
States, Castro was quoted by national new agency Agencia
Brasil as saying.
It may even affect the Brazil-Mexico trade agreement
that is under negotiation between the two countries,
Castro said.
Mexico is one of the main markets of Brazil's automobile
sector, importing some 20 percent of Brazil's auto parts.
Castro said the markets for Brazil's manufactured
products need to be preserved.
Washington announced Monday that the United States
and Mexico had reached a preliminary bilateral trade pact
that would replace NAFTA.
A view exchanging meeting was held in Joypurhat yesterday demanding immediate release of Begum
Khaleda Zia.
Photo : Joypurhat Correspondent
Coca-Cola
buys coffee
chain Costa
for o3.9 bn
Coca-Cola on Friday said it
had agreed to buy global
coffee chain Costa from its
owner Whitbread for o3.9
billion ($5.1 billion) , reports
BSS.
"Hot beverages is one of
the few remaining segments
of the total beverage
landscape where Coca-
Cola does not have a global
brand. Costa gives us access
to this market through a
strong coffee platform,"
Coca-Cola chief executive
James Quincey said in a
joint statement. Rupee hits
71-mark for first time ever,
drops 26 paise against US
dollar
Rupee hits 71-mark
for first time ever,
drops 26 paise
against US dollar
The rupee slumped to a
fresh record low of 71 against
the dollar for the first time
ever by falling 26 paise on
persistent demand for the
US currency amid rising
crude prices, reports BSS.
At the Interbank Foreign
Exchange (Forex) market,
the local currency opened
lower at 70.95 a dollar and
slipped further to hit its
lifetime low of 71 from its
previous close of 70.74.
Forex dealers said besides
robust month-end demand
for the American currency
from oil importers, dollar's
strength against its rival
currencies on expectations
of rising interest rates amid
lingering Sino-US trade
tensions, weighed on the
domestic currency.
Yesterday, the rupee slid
further by 15 paise to close at
a fresh lifetime low of 70.74
to the dollar due to strong
demand for the greenback
from oil importers and
surging crude oil prices
stoking inflation fears.
Growing fears about rising
inflation in amid high global
crude oil prices and
consistent outflow of foreign
funds from the domestic
equity market also weighed
on the domestic currency.
Benchmark Brent crude
oil was at USD 78 a barrel in
early Asian trade.
Meanwhile, the BSE
Sensex fell 78.64 points, or
0.20 per cent, to 38,611.46
points in opening trade.
Ansar member found
dead in Gazipur
GAZIPUR : Police recovered the bullet-hit body of an Ansar
member from Morkun area in Tongi on Saturday night,
reports UNB.
The deceased was identified as Junayed, 25.
The victim was deployed on-duty in a warehouse of
National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB), said Subinspector
Ashraful of Tongi Police Station.
His colleagues suspected that Junayed might have
committed suicide as they heard gun-shoot from inside the
bathroom around 11 am and found the bullet-hit body inside
it. On information, police recovered the body.
'Outlaw' killed in
Rajbari 'gunfight'
RAJBARI : An alleged member of an outlawed party was
killed in a reported gunfight with police in Alamdanga area of
Kalukhali upazila early Saturday, reports UNB.
The deceased was identified as Abdul Matin, 35, son of
Abdul Aziz of the area.
Being tipped-off that outlaws were holding a secret
meeting, a team of police conducted a drive in the area
around 1:30 am, said Amirul Islam, officer-in-charge of
Kalukhali Police Station.
When the team reached there, the gang members opened
fire on them, forcing the law enforcers to retaliate, triggering
the gunfight which leftMatindead on the spot.
Police recovered a one shooter gun, 2 cartridges, several
bullet shells and sharp weapons from the spot, the OC added.
Brazil leftist party insists on
banned candidate da Silva
Brazil's main leftist party said Saturday it's sticking with
former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as its presidential
candidate even though the electoral court has thrown him off
the ballot for an election just five weeks away, reports UNB.
Da Silva's vice presidential running mate, former Sao Paulo
Mayor Fernando Haddad told reporters the Workers Party
will continue pushing to somehow get da Silva, 72, who easily
leads in the polls, back on the ballot.
"The people are sovereign regarding the party's candidate.
And that candidate is Lula," Haddad said.
That strategy would keep da Silva in the spotlight until the
absolute last minute, perhaps rallying support from backers
that could then be transferred to a stand-in, likely Haddad,
who is much less popular or charismatic.
The electoral court voted 6-1 early Saturday to reject da
Silva's candidacy because of a corruption conviction that has
been upheld on appeal. Da Silva and the party are appealing
both the conviction and the electoral court ruling.
The ruling had been widely expected and there were no
immediate street protests of the sort that occurred when the
former president was initially arrested.
Da Silva, who was wildly popular when he left office on Jan.
1, 2011, is now a sharply polarizing figure. Many Brazilians
still revere him for pulling millions from poverty during his
eight years in power.
Cyprus police round up 35
Syrian migrants arriving by boat
Cyprus police say they have rounded up 35 Syrian migrants
who arrived by boat in two separate groups on either side of
the east Mediterranean island nation, reports UNB.
Police said a patrol boat on Saturday spotted a speedboat
loaded with 25 Syrians off Cape Greco on the island's
southeastern tip. The eight men, eight women and nine
children were in good health, but a pregnant woman was
taken to hospital as a precaution. Also on Saturday, police
tracked down 10 Syrians on the island's northwestern tip,
who said they had arrived by boat. The group was taken to a
migrant reception center. The arrival of the 35 comes less
and a day after police located another 24 Syrian migrants
who had arrived by speedboat, also in the Cape Greco area.
Blasts from
area of military
airport shake
Syrian capital
A string of powerful blasts
from the direction of a
military airport in Damascus
lit up the skies and shook the
capital city in the early
morning hours on Sunday,
residents and state TV
reported, reports UNB.
The explosions were seen
and heard coming from the
direction of the Mezzeh
airport, southwest of the
capital. The airport has been
targeted in a number of
airstrikes in recent years that
the government has blamed
on Israel.
The state-run Al-Ikhbariya
TV station showed what
appeared to be hand-held
footage shot by residents of
the capital capturing a string
of bright explosions lighting
up the night sky.
The TV station reported,
citing an unnamed military
source, that the explosions
did not come from inside the
airport but from a nearby
munitions depot. The
station said an electrical
short circuit was to blame,
and reported that
emergency services were at
the scene.
The Britain-based Syrian
Observatory for Human
Rights monitoring group
said the explosions came
from inside the Mezzeh air
base and said they were
likely caused by an Israeli
missile strike.
Israel rarely acknowledges
strikes inside Syria but has
said it would use military
action to prevent weapons
transfers to its enemies.
Israel is alarmed by the the
expansion of operations by
Iran and the Lebanese
militant group Hezbollah to
support President Bashar
Assad in Syria's seven-yearlong
civil war.
The blasts come at a tense
moment, as Syrian
government forces prepare
to attack the last refuge of
the opposition in the
northwest of the country.
The U.S. is warning
Damascus against using
chemical weapons in the
battle, while Damascus
alleges that the U.S. is
preparing to falsify a
chemical attack to justify
military operations on Syria.
The U.S., France, and the
U.K. struck military
installations around
Damascus in April this year
after a chlorine gas attack
against rebels under siege
outside the capital.
Begumganj Upazila Awami League organized a press conference yesterday.
Photo : Noakhali Correspondent

METRO
MoNDAY, SePTeMBeR 3, 2018
3
Third screening
session of 10th
IIUSFF begins
DHAKA : The third screening of the
10th International Inter University
Short Film Festival (IIUSFF)- 2018 at
Dhaka University kicked off on Sunday.
Dhaka University Film Society
(DUFS) organized the festival with the
slogan "Take Your Camera, Frame Your
Dream" Society in association with
United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR).
During the three-day event, a total of
100 short films will be screened from
11am to 9pm.
On the second day, there will be
special screening of the short films on
Refugees, a new category introduced in
the festival this year for the first time.
Speaking about the new category,
DUFS President Mir Rezwan Mahmud
said, DUFS has included the section
titled "Short Film on Refugee" to speak
about the forced displaced people
through films with the intiative of
UNHCR.
In the closing ceremony of the event
on September 4, winning short films
will be awarded.
State Minister of Information Tarana
Halim is expected to address the closing
ceremony as the Chief Guest.
The screenings are free for all.
The inaugural session of 10th IIUSFF
was held at the Goethe Institute
Bangladesh on 19th August, 2018 and
the second screening session was held
at the Alliance Française de
Dhaka on 29 to 30th August last.
A special screening session of this
festival is also scheduled on 18th
September 2018 at Star Cineplex of
Bashundhara City in Dhaka.
In 2007, IIUSFF started its journey
with the goal to provide a platform for
the young and talented student
filmmakers in Bangladesh and abroad
to showcase their talent.
Bangladesh is land
of communal
harmony: Quader
DHAKA : Road Transport and Bridges
Minister and General Secretary of Awami
League (AL) Obaidul Quader yesterday said
Bangladesh is a country of communal
harmony as the people of all faiths are living
peacefully, reports BSS
"We have excellent relations among the
people of different religions….they are
practicing their respective religions
peacefully," he told a meeting on the occasion
of the Janmashtami, one of the major Hindu
festivals to mark the birth of Lord Krishna.
Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad and
Dhaka Mahanagar Sarbajonin Puja
Committee jointly organized the meeting.
Haji Md Selim, MP, Dhaka Metropolitan
Police Commissioner Md Asaduzamman Mian
and President of Bangladesh Puja Udjapan
Parishad Milon Kanti Datta and General
Secretary Nirmul Kumar Chatterjee, among
others, addressed the meeting.
Quader said BNP along with their communal
forces launched oppression on the people with
different faiths when the party came to power.
He urged the people of different religious
beliefs to reject BNP-Jamaat led alliance for
building a non-communal Bangladesh.
"Communal harmony is our great heritage",
Quader said mutual harmony and amity
should be kept intact through maintaining
mutual harmony by all.
JU classes resume
today
SAVAR : The regular classes and examinations
in Jahangirnagar University (JU) will be
resumed today after 13 days vacation of Eid-
Ul-Azha.
'Though official activities of the university
already started from August 29, the regular
classes will start from Monday', JU Deputy
Registrar (Acting) Rahima Kaniz told BSS .
JU went on vacation on August 19.
Photo
exhibition on
Rohingya
crisis begins
in city
Tuesday
DHAKA : A two-day photo
exhibition on Rohingya
crisis will begin in the city on
Tuesday, reports BSS.
The exhibition titled
'Rohingya Crisis: 1 Year on'
will be presented by the
government of Bangladesh,
the Inter Sector
Coordination Group and the
United Nations.
It will remain open at
Bay's Edgewater Gallery in
Gulshan from 10 am to 8
pm.
A collection of
photographs will be
displayed shared by the
government and over 40
humanitarian agencies that
are responding to the
Rohingya crisis in Cox's
Bazar.
The photographs bring to
life last year's initial influx,
the resilience of the
Rohingya, the host
community, emergency
mitigation and international
support to the Rohingya
people.
Contributions by IOM,
UNFPA, UNHCR, UNICEF,
WFP and WHO have made
it possible to curate and
present this exhibition of
emotive photographs that
tell a compelling story, said
the organizers.
A press conference was held at Dhaka Reporters Unity yesterday demanding trial of Mukti killing.
Photo : TBT
Govt won't allow
creating anarchy
over religion:
Mosharraf
FARIDPUR : Local Government,
Rural Development and Cooperatives
Minister Khandker Mosharraf
Hossain yesterday said the
government would not allow anyone to
create anarchy in the country in the
name of religion.
"People of all castes and creeds have
been living in the country in harmony
for ages. We believe that religion is for
individuals, festival for all," he said
while addressing a discussion here
marking the Janmashtami, birthday of
Lord Sri Krishna.
Faridpur district Puja Celebration
Committee organised the discussion
on Sridham Sree Angan premises and
brought out a procession from there,
said an official release here.
Faridpur district unit General
Secretary of Bangladesh Mahanam
Sampraday Srimot Biggan Bandhu
Bramhachari presided over the
discussion addressed by Faridpur
Deputy Commissioner (DC) Omme
Salma Tanzia, district AL President
Subal Chandra Saha and Faridpur
municipality Mayor Mahtab Ali
Methu, among others.
Sri Krishna adored the mankind
through his work and lifestyle,
Mosharraf said, adding, "We believe
that idealogy and lesions of Sri Krishna
will further consolidate our communal
harmony and bond of friendship and
brotherhood".
The minister called upon all to work
together for achieving national
progress and prosperity through
strengthening the existing bond of
harmony and fraternity in the country.
10 RMG workers
injured as human
hauler overturns in
Gazipur
GAZIPUR : At least 10 readymade
garment (RMG) workers were injured as
a human hauler overturned on Dhaka-
Mymensingh highway in Bhabanipur
area of the city on Sunday morning,
reports UNB.
Witnesses said the accident took place
on the highway when the human hauler
(locally named as Leguna) carrying a
group of garment workers overturned on
the highway following the reckless
driving by the driver, leaving 10 of the
passengers injured.
Being informed, industrial police and
locals rescued the injured and took them
to Bagher Bazar Kazi General Hospital.
Among the injured, the condition of
four people was critical, said police.
Two killed as train
rams bus in
Chattogram
CHATTOGRAM : Two bus passengers
were killed and 25 others injured after a
train rammed the vehicle at Bariyarhat
Rail Crossing in Mirsharai upazila early
Sunday.One of the deceased was
identified as Sunimal Chakma, reports
UNB.
The accident took place when
Chattogram-bound 'Bijoy Express' hit a
Khagrachhari-bound bus of 'S Alam
Paribahan' in the area around 4 am,
leaving the duo dead on the spot,
saidRobiul Azam, station officer of
Mirsharai Fire Service and Civil Defence.
The accident halted rail
communication on Dhaka-Chattagram
route for two and half hours.
5 shops gutted in
Jashore fire
JASHORE : At least five shops
were gutted as a fire broke out
at Boro Bazar in the district
town on Saturday night, reports
UNB.
Parimal Chandra Kundu,
deputy director of Jashore Fire
Service and Civil Defence, said
the fire broke out around 10:15
pm and gutted the shops.
On information, four firefighting
units rushed in and
doused the fire after one hour of
frantic effort, said the official.
However, the reason behind
the fire could not be known yet.
Man drowned in
Sylhet
SYLHET : A man drowned at
Champa Khari Beel in
Fenchuganj upazila on
Saturday.
The deceased was identified
as Alauddin Miah, 42, a
resident ofRajonpurvillage in
the upazila, reports UNB.
Quoting to family members,
Nazmul Haque, officer-incharge
of Fenchuganj Police
Station, said Alauddin went
missing in the afternoon when
catching fish in the
waterbody.
After a frantic search, a
team of divers from
Fenchuganj Fire Service and
Civil Defence recovered the
body from the
beelaround9pm.
BMSF observed the pen abstention across the country yesterday to formulate time befitting law for
stopping journalism repression.
Photo : TBT
46 rivers
register
rise, 40 fall
DHAKA : Water levels in 46
rivers stations monitored by
Flood Forecasting and
Warning Centre (FFWC)
have marked rise and 40
stations recorded fall.
Among the 94 monitored
water level stations, seven
are steady, a bulletin issued
by FFWC said.
All the major rivers are
flowing below their
respective danger levels.
The Brahmaputra river is
in steady state while the
Jamuna river is in rising
trend which may continue in
next 48 hours.
The Ganges-Padma rivers
are in rising trend which
may continue in next 48
hours.
The Major rivers of the
Upper Meghna basin are in
rising trend which may
continue in next 24 hours.
A total of 50 mm rainfall
was recorded during last 24
hours ending at 6 am
yesterday at Moheshkhola
and 50 mm at Kanaighat.
11 held with
hemp in Sylhet
SYLHET : Members of
Rapid Action Battalion
(Rab) in a drive arrested 11
people along with 140-gram
hemp
from
DakhshinShurmaupazila on
Saturday night, reports
UNB.
The arrestees are Abul
Hossain Mia, 25, Syed Aziz,
28, Md Khairul Miah, 25,
Shahadat Hossain Shuvo,
18, Md Shohel Alam, 28,
Iran Miah, 34, Md Ferdous
Ahmed, 25, Md Mobarak
Hossain Selim, 25, Md Kazol
Miah, 26, Jasim Uddin
Sajib, 22 and Md Elim
Ahmed, 23.
A team of Rab-9
conducted the drive in
Bharthkhola Mosque
Market area of the upazila
headquarters around 8:30
pm and detained them along
the hemp, said Md
Moniruzzaman, senior
assistant director of Rab-9.
The arrestees were handed
over to Dakhshin Surma
Police Station.
BNP out to create
constitutional vacuum: Inu
DHAKA : Information Minister Hasanul Haque Inu on
Sunday said BNP hasn't moved from politics of conspiracy
and all of its demands are aimed at establishing an
'abnormal' government by creating constitutional vacuum,
reports UNB.
He accused BNP of resorting to create constitutional
vacuum by raising demands like Sheikh Hasina's
resignation, dissolution of parliament and holding of polls
under caretaker government.
Inu was attending a conference organised by Jatiya Juba
Jote, youth front of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) as chief
guest at Bangabandhu Avenue.
JSD chief said government or Election Commission have
got nothing to do as per as BNP demand for Khaleda's release
from jail is concerned. It's a matter of court, he added.
Religion should not be
weapon of grabbing
political power: Hanif
DHAKA : Awami League (AL) Joint General Secretary
Mahbubul Alam Hanif yesterday said religion should not be
used as a weapon of grabbing political power.
"Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) had never used the religion
Islam in occupying power. But Jamaat-e-Islami is doing
politics in the country using the name of Islam," he said while
addressing a function on the second consecutive day of the 5-
day refreshers' training course at Islamic Foundation here.
Islamic Foundation (IF) arranged the course for the
trained up Imams, said a press release here.
IF Director General Shamim Mohammad Afjal presided
over the function, the release added.
The country is moving towards progress under the
leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Hanif said,
adding that the premier has worked most for the wellbeing of
Ulemas.
Although BNP was in the state power from 2001 to 2006,
they would not be able to show any instance that they did
something for Islam during their tenures, he said, adding,
"But Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur
Rahman established the Islamic Foundation. He allotted site
for Kakrail mosque".
He also called upon the ulemas to come forward to ensure
welfare for the country.
CUFL to resume
production after 9 months
CHATTOGRAM : The state owned Chattogram Urea
Fertilizer Company Ltd (CUFL) will resume productions
from September 4 next after 9 months shut down due to lack
of gas supply.
The factory was declared closed on December 22 last.
Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company will resume gas
supply to CUFL from Tuesday.
Managing Director of KGDCL Engr. Khair Ahmed
Majumder said as per requirement of the CUFL, KGDCL is
ready to supply gas from next Tuesday.
Following the request of CUFL, KGDCL has taken quick
decision to supply gas to CUFL.
Sources said the daily average demand of gas in the factory
is about 50 mncft. This quantity of gas is simultaneously used
as fuel of the factory, on the other hand used as raw materials
for urea fertilizer production.
Citizens demanding justice over arresting photographer Shahidul Alam.
Tofail for
unity against
evil forces to
build pleasant
society
BHOLA : Awami League
(AL) Presidium Member
and Commerce Minister
Tofail Ahmed yesterday
called upon all to be united
against evil forces to build a
pleasant society.
"We have to be united
against the evil forces to
build a pleasant society," he
told a discussion here
marking the Janmashtami,
birthday of Sri Krishna.
Sheikh Hasina should be
made Prime Minister again
in the upcoming election,
the minister said urging all
to work to this end, reports
BSS.
Bhola district Puja
Udjapan Parishad organised
the discussion at Bangla
School playground here with
its President Principal Dulal
Chandra Ghosh in the chair.
Noted journalist Peer
Habibur Rahman addressed
the discussion as the special
guest.
Tofail urged the Hindu
community to feel safe
saying, "We are with you and
will be with you in the
future".
When the AL remains in
power, the people of the
country live in peace, the AL
leader said, adding that
under the leadership of
Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina, the country has
become a role model for
development in the world.
In the function, the
minister assured the Hindu
community leaders that the
exiting crematory of the
district will be transformed
into modern one before the
next general election.
Bhola municipality Mayor
Md Maniruzzaman and
Bhola district unit acting
Secretary Jahirul Islam
Nakib addressed the
discussion, among others.
Photo : TBT

EDITORIAL
MoNDAy,
SePTeMBeR 3, 2018
4
Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam
Telephone: +8802-9104683-84, Fax: 9127103
e-mail: editor@thebangladeshtoday.com
Monday, September 3, 2018
Majority voters don't
want President
Trump impeached
Today, the impeachment of Donald Trump exists on the
brink of plausibility. The sine qua non of an
impeachment investigation, to say nothing of actual
votes to charge and remove the President, is a Democratic
takeover of the House in the November elections. Such a
change now looks better than possible, maybe even
probable. At the same time, the President appears to be in
ever-greater legal peril from dual investigations, one led by
Robert Mueller, the special counsel, and the other by federal
prosecutors in New York.
Trump supporters seem to welcome a fight over the issue.
"If the Democrats move for impeachment, I think they are
playing right into the hands of the President," according to
Anthony Scaramucci, Trump's former White House
communications director . "He doesn't have Richard Nixon's
attention span or his O.C.D. about record-keeping. There
are no e-mails or tapes. He didn't do anything wrong on
Russia, so he'll be exonerated." Scaramucci added, "You are
dealing with a human Pac-Man. He's the toughest son of a
bitch I've ever met in my life." Christopher Ruddy, the chief
executive of the Newsmax Web site, who sees the President
regularly at Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, told me, "The guy
loves a fight and will see this one as easily winnable."
Republicans believe a push for impeachment would likely
be a disaster for the Democrats in the midterms. According
to Steve Bannon, Trump's former top strategist, "Anger and
fear drive off-year elections, and we are going to talk about
how the Democrats want to shut us up by impeaching
Trump when they couldn't beat him in 2016. People are
talking about the Republicans losing forty seats in the
House, but if we make the election a referendum on
impeachment we could break even or pick up a few."
Opposition to impeachment seems to be a rare point of
agreement between Trump's followers and the leadership of
the Democratic Party. According to Nancy Pelosi, the
Democratic leader in the House, "I don't like to talk about
impeachment." She explained, "Impeachment is not a
political tool. It has to be based on just the law and the facts.
When I was Speaker, people wanted me to impeach George
Bush for the war in Iraq because it was based on false
information, but you can't just go from one impeachment to
the next. When we are in the majority, we are going to try to
be unifying, and there is no way to do impeachment in a
bipartisan way right now." The numbers back up Pelosi's
wariness. According to a Quinnipiac University poll taken in
April, fifty-two per cent of American voters oppose
impeachment. Another poll from around the same time
reported that forty-seven per cent would definitely vote
against a candidate who wanted to remove Trump from
office.
Still, a powerful grassroots movement has formed in
support of impeachment, a political cousin of sorts to the
recent pushes for women's rights and gun control.
According to Quinnipiac, seventy-one per cent of Democrats
already favor impeachment. To proponents, a nearly fiftyfifty
split among the voting public at this early date, before
Mueller has reported his findings, is significant. In
primaries for the 2018 elections, some prominent
Democrats, such as Gavin Newsom, the lieutenant governor
of California, who is running for governor, made support for
impeachment a major part of their platforms. Tom Steyer, a
San Francisco billionaire, has since last year been running
television advertisements supporting impeachment, and has
generated a mailing list of more than 5.2 million people.
Steyer is now on a thirty-city speaking tour. For the
moment, he and his followers are outcasts from the
Washington consensus. But their passion, and the mounting
evidence against the President, raises the question of
whether the drive for impeachment is more likely to result in
Trump's removal from office or in a Democratic civil war.
For roughly the first two centuries of the American
republic, there was an informal taboo on advocating for
impeachment, even among a President's most outspoken
critics. Only one Presidential impeachment proceeding
occurred during this period: in 1868, Andrew Johnson was
impeached by the House but remained in office after being
acquitted in the Senate by a single vote.
But in the present Congress, there's a surprisingly
vigorous impeachment lobby expanding on the work that Al
Green began. Steve Cohen, a Democrat from Tennessee and
the ranking member of the Constitution and Civil Justice
subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee, has
fleshed Green's bare-bones proposal out into a full
impeachment resolution. Cohen's indictment has five
counts. The first charges Trump with obstruction of justice,
based largely on Comey's account of how the President tried
to restrain the Russia investigation and then fired Comey
when he would not oblige. The second count, referring to
Trump's business interests, including his hotels, asserts that
he violated the foreign-emoluments clause of the
Constitution, which bars federal officeholders from
receiving payments from foreign governments. In a similar
vein, the third count asserts that Trump directed federal
money to his businesses and hotels domestically. The fourth
count charges him with abuse of power for his criticisms of
federal judges and for his pardon of Joe Arpaio, the former
sheriff of Maricopa County, in Arizona. The final count
claims that Trump undermined the
But even Republicans who voted for Clinton's
impeachment now regard it as, at best, a mixed success.
Steve Chabot, who represents a district in Cincinnati, said,
"If the Democrats go in that direction, they are likely to learn
a lesson that we learned in 1998. Even if the country starts
out with you, they get sick of the process pretty quickly."
Senator Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, who was a
member of the Judiciary Committee in 1998, has an even
more negative view. "It blew up in our faces and helped
President Clinton," he said. "If Democrats keep up what
they're doing, the whole thing will just be shirts and skins-
Democrats versus Republicans-and that's a no-win when it
comes to impeachment. It has to be bipartisan, or it's going
to be a failure."
Free speech faces a new dark age unless we tackle the digital thugs
Never before has it been so easy to
communicate, to express one's views,
to write, publish, talk or broadcast.
Yet, instead of ushering in the golden age for
free speech and rational inquiry that so
many of us expected, the very technologies
that were meant to liberate us are being used
to stifle expression and stamp out dissent.
"You can't say that", "you must say this":
On social media, in universities and
increasingly in every other institution across
the land, a hideous battle is raging, and
liberty is losing. The range of views that can
be expressed without fear of reprisal has
narrowed dramatically, partly because we've
lost the language and manners required to
disagree constructively.
Whoever holds a different opinion - on
Brexit, on social issues, on anything - is
dismissed as "bonkers", "mad", "laugh out
loud" stupid, to be chased out of the village.
There is no longer any sense of
proportionality, just an all-or-nothing, snap
assessment. Like in the witch-hunts of yore,
the burden of proof is reversed: You must
prove you are not guilty of offending others'
feelings, which is impossible.
The strategy, for the tens of thousands of
activists working in digital packs, is to bully,
shame and destroy anybody who doesn't
agree with them, who dares to express a
different opinion or who fails to signal their
virtue appropriately. Ad hominem attacks
were once seen as bad form; today they are
rationalised using bogus theories. Reality in
the era of fake news no longer matters: If
somebody believes that somebody said or
meant something, then it must be true. A
vague feeling is enough.
Nobody from the sensible Left or sensible
Right is immune from this catastrophic
outbreak of nihilism; everything and
everyone is fair game. Take Victoria Atkins,
Britain's Women's Minister, who said that
she is "a little cautious" about the number of
teenagers undergoing gender reassignment
treatment. She was immediately targeted for
annihilation. It's an attempt at imposing
digital "speech licences": Those who do not
meet the fashionable orthodoxy of the
moment have no right to be heard.
The aim is to encourage self-censorship,
policed by an army of vigilantes. It's
working: Nobody ever comes to the defence
of those being trashed, and mainstream
Britain is quietly withdrawing, ensuring that
the public discourse is ever more dominated
by the angriest voices.
The new moral police is much like the old,
or at least that which existed during
medieval times; they are seeking to enforce a
new religion for western atheists. It is a
sickening charade: How can such people not
see what they are doing? There is good and
evil, sacred texts (the tenets of cultural
Marxism, most of the time), supporting
documents (dubious "evidence" produced
by prejudiced social scientists, much of
which cannot be replicated), a priesthood,
an original sin (western imperialism),
excommunications (for those who question
the unquestionable), confessions (on
Twitter, usually), repentance and of course
the constant Inquisition and use of the autoda-fe.
Irony is well and truly dead.
The reality is that free speech isn't just
about a legal system that allows you, with
some restrictions, to say, write or publish
what you want. No, free speech describes an
ALLISTeR heATh
SuRAj GoGoI
entire ethical system that places the utmost
value on people's right to express their
beliefs, to dissent, to think for themselves, to
debate, to discuss and, yes, to err. It is an
integral element of the classical liberal
character, and, for a short while, such an
approach became the norm in many
Western countries.
Real freedom of expression implies some
measure of openness, of curiosity, the ability
to listen, at least occasionally, to others and
to learn to live with difference. It is an
approach, an attitude, not merely a set of
laws, a "human right" or a constitutional
amendment; it is based on a realistic,
humble approach to the limits of human
knowledge. It is optimistic about the ability
of good ideas to weed out bad ones; for most
free speech advocates, getting to the truth is
an iterative process of trial and error.
Free speech, understood in this way, is
thus the embodiment of western liberalism,
of the enlightenment values that have
transformed the world for the better. Of
course, there will always be some
boundaries, and rightly so. But a society
where most speech is technically allowed,
but any deviations from arbitrary and highly
controlled norms trigger instant action from
outrage mobs isn't free any longer.
True friends of free speech genuinely
relish living in an intellectually diverse
society, one characterised by a constant
clash of visions, where ideas are held up to
scrutiny. In her Friends of Voltaire, the
British writer Evelyn Beatrice Hall
summarised his thoughts aptly: "I
disapprove of what you say, but I will defend
to the death your right to say it," a phrase
often wrongly attributed to the French
philosopher. It used to be cited so often as to
have become cliched. Today, one rarely
hears it.
Technology alone didn't trigger this
revolution: With the decline of
Communism, elites have embraced a new
form of cultural collectivism. Individualism
is passe: The validity of an argument is no
longer to be assessed directly and
objectively, these idiot savants in our
universities now believe. Instead, the only
thing that matters is the group that the
speaker or writer is deemed to belong to.
What category of person said something is
key; what they said less so.
Some people belong to powerful groups
(such as white men), others are oppressed
(most but not all minorities). Any arguments
made by the former are inherently biased
and can be labelled at will as a form of
"violence", a way of inflicting "microaggressions"
on the latter. It is a denial of
reason, a massive leap back into the dark
ages, but this framework rationalises the
thuggish behaviour of the Twitter
extremists. It makes it easy to shut down
viewpoints, and to dismiss critics as
suffering from false consciousness. It has
empowered those, like British Labour Party
leader Jeremy Corbyn, who want the state to
control newspapers. The decline of free
speech is now the greatest threat facing
Britain and the West. Without the freedom
to think freely, to question, to disagree, we
are nothing. When will we finally have the
courage to rise up and put the new
totalitarians back in their box?
Source: Gulf news
Re-imagining the Assamese identity under the shadow of NRC
Cultural worlds are fluid, and so are
humans. Assimilation and
migration are intrinsic to any
society. Thus Assam is not an
aberration. Anyone studying Assam
knows how complex and layered its
history is. So it is obvious that the
articulation of Assamese identity has
also undergone multiple changes.
The Assam Movement was primarily
a cultural movement. It defined the
measurements of the "son of the soil"
and an outsider. On its aftermath,
Assamese and Assam were viewed
through certain fixed categories and a
homogeneous self was projected
through the movement. It also defined
the migrant as an "illegal" or "alien"
entity, who as a common enemy
defined the Assamese self.
I wish to share some time with the
idea of culture in general and Assamese
culture in particular, as articulated by
two stalwarts of Assamese cultural and
social world, Jyoti Prasad Agarwala and
Bishnu Prasad Rabha. In their
articulation of cultural worlds, one finds
a fine balance of political emotions and
freedom.
In his novel Our Village, Agarwala
writes: "Culture can distribute light in
society." For him, those deeds, those
thoughts, those actions that make one's
contemporary life beautiful and
meaningful are culture. On the other
hand, those acts, thoughts, actions and
behaviors that degrade people, that
make people's life sad, corrupted, sick,
unhappy, one that turns humans into
demons, are against culture.
The human journey is a cultural
journey toward light and beauty.
Agarwala thought that in worshiping
that beauty we decorate our culture.
"Worshiping beauty is culture," he
writes. In this context, he recognizes the
After writing four articles on this
promising sector, this week I will
conclude my health care series
with part five tackling a highly
important supporting service to
hospitals and health centers around
Saudi Arabia which is the health care
catering market.
The health care food catering market
in Saudi Arabia is worth an estimated
SR2.6 billion ($600 million) and
growing at 4.8 percent a year in real
terms.
The number of annual meals served
grew at a compound annual growth rate
(CAGR) of 4.8 percent from around 132
million in 2012 to 159 million in 2016
driven by the consistent growth in the
number of hospitals and number of
beds in the Kingdom which have grown
at a CAGR of 2.8 percent and 4.8
percent, respectively, over the past five
years.
Out of total allocations of SR890
billion ($237 billion) in the 2017
budget, health and "social
development" account for SR120
Nobody from the sensible Left or sensible Right is immune
from this catastrophic outbreak of nihilism; everything and
everyone is fair game. Take Victoria Atkins, Britain's Women's
Minister, who said that she is "a little cautious" about the
number of teenagers undergoing gender reassignment
treatment. She was immediately targeted for annihilation.
role of an artist in creating beauty. In
his definition of an artist, even an
intellectual may find a place for
opposing cultural forces, for in their
opposition, they protect beauty.
Hemanga Biswas in his essay
"Jyotiprasad, an Artist of Life"
narrates about a meeting with
Agarwala in Tezpur. In that meeting,
Agarwala expressed the need for a
new kind of "cultural conscience"
without which freedom would not be
possible. He insisted that every
language is his mother tongue. In
invoking such an idea of the cultural
world and its association with people,
he resonates with many humanists
that we know of.
Agarwala'a celebration of beauty is
pregnant with pluralism and devoid of
religious distinctions. Instead of
distinctions, he seeks to cultivate beauty
and worship it. Only in the worship of
beauty is full human potential realized.
He bestows freedom in a human being
to create beauty and happiness, even if
it is at the cost of creating new norms of
culture. Rabha's understanding of the
Assamese cultural world is not far from
Agarwala's. Rabha recognizes a
syncretic Assamese culture that
embraces Satriya, Bhatiya and Janajati
traditions. In his essay "Assamese
Saudi health care sector: Where are the opportunities?
BASIL M.K. AL-GhALAyINI
billion, an increase of 15 percent on the
previous year.
Much of this spending is aimed at
boosting infrastructure, including plans
for 38 new health centers with a total of
9,100 hospital beds. This comes on top
of 23 new hospitals and 4,250 beds that
were added last year as well as two
additional medical cities with a total of
2,350 beds.
As a result, the market (number of
hospital beds) over the next five years
and beyond is likely to grow between 4
percent and 7 percent per annum in real
Culture," he accepts with all humility
the role of hills and plains, of rivers and
wastelands, of tea gardens and
mountains, of the great traditions and
little traditions in constituting what we
call Assamese.
In his understanding of Assamese, the
Nagas, the Meiteis, the Mizos, the
Khasis, the Jaintias, the many tribes of
Arunachal and Assam and people from
different religion find a place. He
recognizes the cultural debts of all the
groups and places alike, and frames
Assamese as a cultural complex with is
heterogeneous and accommodating
nature. For him, Assam is a place of
The human journey is a cultural journey toward light and
beauty. Agarwala thought that in worshiping that beauty
we decorate our culture. "Worshiping beauty is culture,"
he writes. In this context, he recognizes the role of an
artist in creating beauty. In his definition of an artist, even
an intellectual may find a place for opposing cultural
forces, for in their opposition, they protect beauty.
flow and a cultural landscape that is
touched by various contiguous groups
and in its practice, it lights up many
cultural worlds.
The farmer, the daily wage laborer
and the poor found a special place in the
thought processes and activism of
Agarwala and Rabha. For them, if a
culture or society is to develop or
become beautiful, we need to think of
the downtrodden the most. Rabha
writes in the same essay that "craft,
culture and civilization are not in the
hands of the poor … but with the daily
wage laborer and farmer, with the poor
Assamese."
They were nationalist, of course, but
terms driven by two core drivers.
The first driver is the projected
growth in the population as Saudi
Arabia has one of the fastest growing
populations in the world, indicating a
spiraling future demand for health care
facilities.
The second driver is to meet the
country's target by bringing health care
penetration rates closer to international
levels from 23 to 27 hospital beds per
The number of annual meals served grew at a
compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.8 percent
from around 132 million in 2012 to 159 million in 2016
driven by the consistent growth in the number of
hospitals and number of beds in the Kingdom which
have grown at a CAGR of 2.8 percent and 4.8 percent,
respectively, over the past five years.
10,000 inhabitants. (High-income
countries bed density reaches 54 beds
per 10,000 inhabitants.)
they also celebrated humanity, and
their measurements of social
boundaries were as broad as they can
get. They showed us that accepting
cultural debts opens up a culture,
enriches it, not the other way around. It
saves us from being chauvinistic and
fascist.
They belong to a state that later was
torn apart by questions of language,
ethnicity and uneven development.
Under such a predicament, the cultural
worlds also took a toll. The caste
Assamese nature of the Assam
Movement and everyday politics
redefined the boundaries and
measurement of the Assamese identity.
That constructed identity is far away
from what Rabha and Agarwala
imagined. The identity that the All
Assam Students Union or other
cultural, literary and political
organizations draw for us today is
narrow and selfish.
Anthropologist Johannes Fabian
notes that sharing time in the field, and
with interlocutors, makes
(ethnographic) knowledge possible.
Many contemporary anthropologists
see it as a political act of finding
"possible worlds."
I believe such sharing of time
"intentionally" with historical
characters, their articulations, events
and texts also carries the same potential
of thinking about who we are and find
possible worlds. Rabha and Agarwala
offer such possible worlds, and rearticulate
the measurements of
Assamese identity, appreciate the
cultural debts and imagine a culture
that may distinguish itself from
another, but doesn't necessarily turn
that difference into hate.
Source: Asia times
According to official sources, while
there are fewer than 100 companies
eligible to bid on health care food
catering opportunities being
tendered by the government, fewer
than 20 are classified and qualified to
take on such a business (which have
the provision of food catering services
to health care facilities above SR42
million). Of these qualified
companies, between three and seven
are active and leading the health care
catering market segment. The rest
operate principally on the fringe,
particularly covering secondary
areas.
Expansion of health care centers and
hospital beds, along with the shortage
of highly classified catering companies,
will make the sector highly attractive in
the next five to 10 years, which might
open new doors for investors to set up
new companies or merge with existing
ones or even partner with leading global
operators.
Source: Arab news

LAW & PUBLIC MONDAY,
SepTeMBer 3, 2017
5
LegAL QuerY :
Dear Sir, AssalamuWalaikum,
I am a Bangladeshi, now living in USA. I am
married since 2005; still we don't have any child.
We did a lot of treatment, but no result. Now we
have decided to adopt a child from Bangladesh.
Would you please inform me about the legal
formalities we have to maintain now and to avoid
the future crisis?
Regards,
Nowshin Chowdhury
uSA.
LegAL OpINION :
Thanks for your query. Child Adoption is a
process whereby a person assumes the parenting
of another, usually a child, from that person's
biological or legal parent or parents, and, in so
doing, permanently transfers all rights and
responsibilities, along with filiation, from the
biological parent or parents.Actually like other
countries, there is no independent central
government adoption authority in Bangladesh.
The Family Court has the sole jurisdiction over
such family matters.
To adopt a child from Bangladesh, firstly you
need to contact with a lawyer who has the
expertise in the family matters and who may
initiate guardianship proceedings.Secondly, by
This week Your Legal Adviser is
A.B.M Shahjahan Akanda (Masum)
Advocate, Supreme Court of Bangladesh.
He is the Head of the chamber of a renowned law
firm, namely, 'Law for Nations', which has
expertise mainly in banking law, tax law,
commercial law, corporate law, family law,
employment and labor law, land law,constitutional
law, criminal law and in conducting litigations
before courts of different hierarchies. He can be
reached at - cell:01711459590, E-mail:
law.abm@gmail.com.
the supervision of your lawyer or by your own,
have to find an orphan or any parents who is
interested to give their child to any childless
couple.
Then thirdly, an Irrevocable release/undertaking,
of the sole or surviving biological parent (if any) of
the child or by the orphanage authority from whom
you adopted the child before a Notary Public, 1st
Class Magistrate in Bangladesh in Bangladesh, has
to be executed.
Fourthly, it is necessary to obtain custody of the
child from the court. Family Courts are located in
all districts of Bangladesh and generally must be
contacted in person. The Family Court reviews the
character and capacity of the proposed guardian
to care for the child.And therefore, may give the
permission of guardianship of the child.
After obtaining the permission regarding the
custody of the child from the court, the fifth step is
to obtain the no objection certificate from the
Ministry of Foreign affairs, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Then you have to apply for child's passport and
must enclose the birth certificate of the child with
the passport application. Lastly, after getting the
passport of the child from the passport office, you
will be required to apply for the child's immigrant
visa. Remember one thing, you are going to be the
legal guardian and parents of an innocent child so
must take care of the child.
The necessity of reforms and proper execution of
the law concerning road traffic in Bangladesh
Maruf Islam Chowdhury
An efficient
transportation system is
one of the most vital
elements for the effective
development of a
country. However, while
using transportation,
whether public or
private, when they have
to face excess traffic
congestion, several types
of pollution along with a
haphazard traffic control
system, the journey on
the road becomes
somewhat of a daytime
nightmare! On top of
that, the number of
accidents in Dhaka city
and an alarming number
of accidents on the
highways throughout the
country is also a major
concern. These are
merely drawbacks and
difficulties faced relating
to transportation,
whereas there are
several other sectors
which the government
has to deal with. So,
ultimately the question
arises "Is it practically
possible for the
government to deal with
and resolve so many
problems faced in all
sectors of a country?".
The answer would
definitely be yes, but the
question remains that in
what ways these can be
resolved most effectively
and whether it would
take an unbearably long
time for these to be
resolved or a relatively
shorter period of time.
In order to find out the
possible solutions to
such formidable tasks
requires some analysis.
There are several lowcost
solutions to Dhaka's
traffic congestion such
as U-loops and
underpasses which
should be given more
attention and priority as
these have turned out to
be effective and
convenient for a majority
part of the concerned
population. The relevant
traffic law of Bangladesh
concerning the duty to
obey traffic signs has
been laid down in a
rather generalised
context. In order to
properly enforce the law
concerning traffic, the
necessity of specific legal
provisions, including
exemplary punishment
for violation of those
provisions, is
paramount. For
example, specific
provisions concerning
violation of traffic police
signals by public buses,
private cars, autorickshaws,
rickshaws,
motorcycles and other
vehicles along with the
specific punishment for
violation of those
provisions is necessary
to be specifically
categorised under the
traffic law. In case of
violation of the traffic
rules, the procedure to
be followed by the
concerned traffic police
officer must be laid
down in a separate set of
rules, e.g. in a 'Code for
Traffic Regulation' which
is unfortunately rather
non-existent in our
country, breach of which
strict procedural action
needs to be taken.
Since in our country,
there is the customary
malpractice of bribery,
the concerned traffic
authority, the BRTA
should be given the
responsibility to govern
the activities of the
traffic police by virtue of
a Regulation issued by
the governing authorities
so that monitoring
through CCTV can be
feasible. In order to
materialise such a
concept, strict rules need
to be set following
particular instructions to
the traffic police in
stopping vehicles
violating traffic signals
only on specific zones
where CCTV surveillance
is available. In order to
ensure that such
procedure is followed by
the traffic police, a
senior member of the
monitoring team of the
particular area should, in
random visits, take
record in a diary which
is to be submitted to the
traffic controlling
authority. Such
monitoring may be
viable if traffic
regulating offices are
built in each police
station throughout
Dhaka City so that all
the traffic police
activities for each signal
can be monitored by the
relevant authority within
the ambit of that
particular police station.
In order to regulate
and bring uniform to a
road traffic control
system which appears
from the outlook to be
unsystematic and
disorganised, specific
legal provisions
regarding the type of
offences along with the
relevant punishment for
violation of those legal
provisions is necessary.
Over-population is
definitely a major
drawback in properly
executing the road traffic
law but if the law can
strictly be implemented,
possibly with the use of
modern technology, then
it would be feasible to
control the entire road
traffic system
throughout the city and
then throughout the
country.
According to the new
proposed Road Traffic
Act 2018, which will
eventually replace the
current Motor Vehicles
Ordinance 1983, the
maximum punishment
for driving without
licence is to be increased
from 4 months'
imprisonment to 6
months' imprisonment
and the maximum fine is
to increase from Tk.500
to Tk.25,000. The
penalty for using
vehicles on the road
without registration is to
be increased from a
maximum imprisonment
of 3 months to 6 months
and the maximum fine is
to be increased from
Tk.2,000 to Tk.50,000.
The maximum penalty
for vehicles without any
fitness certificate is to be
increased from 3
months' imprisonment
to 6 months'
imprisonment and the
maximum fine is to
increase from Tk.2,000
to Tk.25,000.
Under the proposed
law, certain new
provisions have also
been inserted. Unlike the
existing ordinance, the
new law has fixed the
minimum age and
academic qualification
for a driving licence -
one must pass Class 8 to
be a driver, and Class 5
to be a driver's assistant.
The new law will also
introduce a 12-point
system for each driving
licence - a system that
many countries have.
For each violation of
traffic rules - i.e. not
using seat belts, talking
on mobile phones while
driving, driving on the
wrong side of the road,
ignoring traffic signals,
racing, reckless driving,
parking in the wrong
place, bad behaviour
with passengers, etc. - in
any such incident, a
driver will lose one
point. Upon losing all 12
points, the licence will
be cancelled.
There are also certain
steps which the
concerned authorities
can take in order to
control the number of
vehicles being used on
the roads. For example,
fixing the maximum
number of vehicles a
family or organization
can use, or fixing the
number or type of
vehicles that can run on
a particular road or
zone, aiming to control
traffic jam.
A vital issue in order
to reduce road accidents
is to set fixed number of
driving hours for bus
drivers, especially on
long routes, where
tiredness or lack of
concentration on the
highways put the lives of
all the passengers at
serious risk. The
authorities concerned
can fix the working
hours of drivers and
helpers of buses, trucks,
covered vans and other
vehicles, which must be
followed by the
transport owners.
Despite the fact that
there have been several
major ongoing projects
and activities carried out
by the government, it
always appears that the
actions needed to be
taken by the government
through the concerned
authorities isn't
sufficient enough. The
main reason behind this
is that our country,
Bangladesh, during the
comparatively short
duration since
independence had to
and is still having to
endure several political
conflict and unrest,
which ultimately leads
to countless economic
backlash. Although it is
definitely upon the
government to deal with
all the problems by
enacting new laws and
enforcing those, it is also
our duty, as citizens, to
not only stand up for
our rights but to cooperate
with the
government and law
enforcers. Enforcing
particular laws,
especially the road
traffic law, would
require very strict
implementation as there
are many people who
lack the basic
understanding of, for
example, risky road
crossing where foot
over-bridges are
available, driving on the
wrong side of the road,
reckless driving,
ignoring traffic rules,
etc., but this
implementation would
become simpler and
more effective if we
utilise our selfconsciousness
from our
part in following traffic
rules and spread such
understanding of
necessity for compliance
instead of ignorant or
negligent violation along
with challenging any
failure by the
government with
constructive criticism
and suggested actions
required so that the
opportunity to rectify
such failures can
properly and efficiently
be dealt with.
The writer is a Barrister-at-
Law, Advocate

NATIONAL
MoNDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2018
6
Narsingdi District Awami League President and State Minister for Water Resources Lt Col ((Retd) Nazrul
Islam Hiru Birpratik MP as the chief guest addressed a discussion meeting marking the 43rd martyrdom
anniversary of Bangabandhu and National Mourning Day at Monohardi municipal square in Monohardi
upazila on Friday.
Photo: Anwar Hossain
Discussion on 43rd Martyrdom Anniversary
of Bangabandhu held in Monohardi
anwar hossaIn, monohardI Correspondent:
a discussion meeting was held at
monohardi municipal square in monohardi
upazila on Friday, marking the 43rd
martyrdom anniversary of Bangabandhu
and national mourning day.
manohardi Upazila awami League
president, advocate md Fazlul haque
chaired the meeting while narsingdi district
awami League president and state minister
for water resources Lt Col ((retd) nazrul
Islam hiru Birpratik mp was present as the
chief guest. among others, the local mp adv
nurul majid mahmud humayun, narsingdi
district awami League's general secretary
and district council chairman alhaj abdul
matin Bhuiyan, district awami League joint
secretary nazrul majid mahmud swapan,
narsingdi city awami League president and
municipal mayor alhaj Kamruzzaman
Kamrul, monohardi municipal mayor
mohammad aminur rashid sujan,
monohardi Upazila's former Liberation
Commander motiur rahman tara,
monohardi municipal awami League
president md Kafil Uddin, general secretary
abdus samad molla Jadu, Krishak League
convener ramjan ali, Jubo League president
Lion ms engineer Iqbal ahmed,
swechchhasebak league president atiqul
hossain milon, chairmen and leaders of
different unions, were also present at the
occasion. priyashish roy, general secretary
of the upazila awami League conducted the
meeting.
the chief guest in his speech said that,
urged all to unite and make the mourning
turn into force to continue the trend of
development and to cast vote to boat and
elect prime minister sheikh hasina's
nominated candidate in the upcoming
general election.
Bakshiganj local lawmaker Abul Kalam Azad as the chief guest distributed
the cheques for the savings to the beneficiary women from the Rural
Employment and Road Maintenance Program-2 (RERMP-2) which is run
by Local Government Engineering (LGED) at the upazila chattar on
Sunday.
Photo: GM Fatiul Hafiz Babu
Magura-1 constituency MP, Freedom Fighter Major General A. T. M. Abdul
Wahhab (ret) as the chief guest addressed a prize distribution ceremony of
Bangabandhu and Bangamata Gold Cup primary School football tournament
at Sheikh Russel mini Stedium at Sreepur upazila under Magura district on
Friday. The program was presided by Sreepur Upazila Nirbahi officer Dilara
Rahman and Sreepur Upazila Education officer Md Mosharraf Hossain delivered
the welcome speech. Among others, former upazila freedom fighter commander
Ekram Ali Biswas, Sadar union parishad Chairman Md Moshiar
Rahman and Dariapur union parishad Chairman Md Jakir Hassain Kanon
were also present at the occasion.
Photo: M R Jinnah
Female workers
receive Tk 53.2
lakh savings in
Bakshiganj
gm FatIUL haFIZ BaBU,
BaKshIganJ Correspondent:
a total of 70 female
workers of 7 unions of
Baksiganj upazila of
Jamalpur have got their
savings tk 76000 each
which is tk 53,20000 in
total earned from the rural
employment and road
maintenance program-2
(rermp-2) which is run by
Local government
engineering (Lged)on
sunday.
Local lawmaker abul
Kalam azad formally
distributed the cheques for
the savings to the beneficiary
women at a function
organised by Bakshiganj
Lged held at the upazila
chattar as the chief guest.
among others, Bakshiganj
Uno abu hasan siddique,
Upazila engineer
mohammad ramzan ali,
Upazila Juba League
Convener nepal Chandra
saha and social worker
emdadul haque emdad
were also present during the
distribution.
Rajarhat marks
Janmashtami
with various
programmes
ashadUZZaman ashad,
raJarhat Correspondent:
Janmastami was
celebrated in rajarhat
upazila of Kurigram
district on sunday through
various programmes
including a grand rally,
Krishna puja and a
discussion meeting.
a colorful rally from the
upazila central durga
temple was brought out
which paraded the main
roads of the city.
Later a discussion
meeting was held which
was chaired by president of
the Central durga mandir
Committee president ram
Jeevan Kundur. among
others, Babu surya Kamal
mishra, convener of
Upazila hindu, Buddhist,
Christian Unity Council,
rajarhat thana officer Incharge
mokhlesur
rahman, secretary of the
temple management
Committee and president
of rajarhat press Club
arun Jadu, rangpur
metropolitan awami
League's freedom fighter
affairs secretary Zahid
Iqbal Bappi, Union
chairman rabindranath
Karmakar and retired
police officer arun pal
were also present at the
occasion.
Human chain protests drug addiction in Chattogram
Chattogram Correspondent:
national environment and human
rights Foundation formed a human
chain on sunday at Chattogram press
Club in protest of drug addiction. the
human chain demanded immediate
arrests of drug addicts who attacked
project manager of the organization
arman tarek (24). Vice-president of the
Foundation and saima properties (pvt.)
ltd organizational secretary abdul
mannan chaired the human chain.
among others saima properties (pvt.) ltd
mim hasan, Vice Chairman of the
Committee roksana mahbuba Lovely,
Joint secretary general abdul Karim,
organizing secretary shibir ahmed
osman, Finance secretary Jalal ahmed,
district Committee vice-president adsm
omar Faruk, general secretary ekramul
haque mamun, Joint secretary sajjat
hossain saddam, organizing secretary
said. nurul Islam, publicity secretary
salauddin Quader were also present at
the occasion. speakers said that on
august 28, drug dealers attacked arman
tarek in his village of south hilimili,
satkania while he was protesting against
drug abuse. now he is fighting for life at
Chittagong agrabad Islamia hospital.
his condition is alarming. the speakers
immediately demanded the arrest of
these drug addicts.
Traditional boat race
held in Gaibandha
gaIBandha: a traditional boat race
locally known as 'nouka Baich' was held at
Kisamat Balua in the ghagot river adjacent to
Bheramara railway bridge under sadar
upazila of the district on saturday, reports
Bss.
the race started at 10 am and ended around
5:30 in the afternoon. a total of 14 teams of
three upazilas of the district and dewanganj
upazila of Jamalpur district participated in
the boat race. each team had a leader who
stood in the middle of the boat and inspired
the participants. amid playing of music and
drums, thousands people, including a good
number of women from the district town,
enjoyed the race.
the teams coming from dewanganj upazila
stood first and second and while the team of
sadullapur upazila won the third position in
the competition. Later, a prize distribution
ceremony was held on the bank of the river.
Local lawmaker mahabub ara Begum gini
distributed the prizes among the winners as
the chief guest. gaibandha pourasabha
mayor and Zila Krira sangstha general
secretary advocate shah masud Zahangir
Kabir milon was present at the event as the
special guest.
Janmashtami
observed in
Pirganj
JanmashtamI oBserVed In pIrganJ
Bishnu roy, pirganj
Correspondent: Janmashtami, one
of the major religious festivals of the
hindu community marking the
birth day of lord sree Krishna, was
observed in pirganj upazila with
pomp and gaiety and due religious
fervor. marking the day a jubilant
procession was brought out and a
discussion meeting was also held.
the jubilant procession was
organized by Upazila puja Udjapan
parishad and was brought out from
the college haat Central durga
mandir. the procession paraded the
main streets of the town and ended
pilot high school and College. In the
rally, people of different categories
including public representatives,
government officials, men and
women participated.
Later, a discussion meeting was
held at pilot high school and College
which was chaired by puja Udjapan
parishad president gopal Chandra
roy. among others, former mp
emdadul haque, Upazila nirbahi
officer awm raihan shah, former
principal of pirganj government
College Krishna mohan roy,
Upazila hindu Buddhist Christian
Unity Council president atul
Chandra roy, general secretary
gopi Krishna roy and former Vice-
Chancellor of women's College
Bivuti Kumar roy was also present
at the occasion.
A jubilant procession was organised in observance of Janmashtami, one of the major religious festivals
of the Hindu community marking the birth day of lord Sree Krishna in Pirganj upazila on
Sunday.
Photo: Bishnu Roy
A colorful rally was brought out marking Janmashtami, one of the major religious festivals of the Hindu community
marking the birth day of lord Sree Krishna in Rajarhat upazila on Sunday.
Photo: Ashaduzzaman Ashad
Chief Engineer of the Education Engineering Department (EED) Dewan Mohammad Hanzala paid tribute to the
Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman by placing a floral wreath at his shrine at Tungipara
of Gopalganj on Sunday.
Photo: S M Nazrul Islam
EED Chief Engineer pays homage
to Bangabandhu at Tungipara
s m naZrUL IsLam, gopLaganJ
Correspondent:
dewan mohammad
hanzala, Chief engineer
of the education
engineering department
(eed) paid tribute to the
Father of the nation
Bangabandhu sheikh
mujibur rahman at his
mausoleum at tungipara
of gopalganj on sunday.
the Chief enginer paid
his homage placing a
floral wreath at the
shrine of Bangabandhu
in the morning.
Later, the Chief
engineer along with
engineers association of
engineering
department,
Bangabandhu diploma
engineering council,
diploma engineer
association, diploma
engineering central
council swadhinota
Karmachari parishad
paid tributes to
Bangabandhu by placing
wreaths at his tomb.
after paying tribute,
the chief engineer offered
Fateha and joined a
prayer seeking eternal
peace of the departed
soul of Bangabandhu and
his family. during the
time, district awami
League general secretary
mahbub ali Khan,
executive engineer of
gopalganj zone tarek
anwar Jahidi, pirojpur,
Bagerhat, Khulna,
Faridpur, madaripur
Zone executive
engineers and officers
and employees were also
present at the occasion.

INTERNATIONAL mONDAY,
7
SePTemBeR 3, 2018
China-Africa trade deficit
prominent at conference
African leaders will likely press their Chinese
hosts at a conference this week to help narrow
their trade deficits with Beijing by shifting
more manufacturing to their continent,
the chief executive of the biggest African
bank said, reports UNB.
China has passed Europe and the United
States as the biggest trading partner of most
African countries. Most run large deficits
with Beijing, exporting minerals and buying
Chinese manufactured goods.
"The question of the trade imbalance is one
that I think will be placed firmly on the table
by the African delegates," the chief executive
of South Africa's Standard Bank Group, Sim
Tshabalala, told reporters.
China's commercial presence in Africa has
prompted complaints in some countries that
the continent gets too little from the relationship.
Africa is a major target of Beijing's "Belt
and Road" initiative to build ports, highways
and other trade-related infrastructure, but
some critics in Tanzania, Kenya and other
countries say they leave hosts with too much
debt.
"I would expect African leaders to put on
the table the opportunity that arises from
building the African continent's manufacturing
capability in a way that is in the best
interests of the African continent but benefits
china as well," Tshabalala said Saturday.
The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation,
opening Monday, brings together leaders
from China and more than 50 African countries.
Dozens of African leaders have met
with Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of
the conference.
The participants are looking for ways to
"advance common growth and development,"
said South Africa's foreign minister,
Lindiwe Sisulu.
China's President Xi Jinping, left, and Ghana's President Nana Akufo-Addo, right, review the honor
guard of Chinese People's Liberation Army during the welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the
People Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
Photo : AP
US general assumes
NATO command in
Afghanistan
U.S. Army Gen. Austin Miller has assumed command of
the 41-nation NATO mission in Afghanistan following a
handover ceremony, reports UNB.
Miller took over Sunday from Gen. John Nicholson,
who held the post for more than two years, at a ceremony
attended by senior Afghan officials and foreign
ambassadors.
The handover comes at a time when Afghan forces are
struggling to contain a resurgent Taliban and an increasingly
powerful Islamic State affiliate. The Taliban control
several districts across Afghanistan, and both groups
have launched a relentless wave of attacks in recent
months.
The NATO mission began with the U.S.-led invasion
that toppled the Taliban after the Sept. 11 attacks. The
U.S. and NATO formally ended their combat mission
in 2014 but still routinely come to the aid of Afghan
forces.
Boats collide on Colorado
River; 13 injured and 2
missing
At least 13 people have been injured and two others are
missing after two recreational boats collided on the Colorado
River near the California border with Arizona,
reports UNB.
Eric Sherwin, spokesman for the San Bernardino
County Fire District, says the vessels collided head-on
Saturday evening. The force of the crash caused one of
the boats to sink and the other sustained heavy damage.
He says two people are missing and "presumed submerged."
The search for them has been postponed
because of darkness.
Sherwin says one person has life-threatening injuries
and was transported to a hospital in Las Vegas. A dozen
others were injured but not seriously.
The crash happened in Moabi Regional Park, a popular
water recreation area along the border about 290 miles
(467 kilometers) east of Los Angeles.
Some Chinese manufacturers are expanding
to Africa but the bulk of Chinese investment
goes into mining or construction of
roads and other infrastructure. A stateowned
automaker, BAIC Group, announced
plans this year to start producing electric cars
in South Africa.
As Chinese manufacturers move to making
higher-value products, "the slack that is produced
as a consequence can be taken up by
African economies," according to Tshabalala.
Standard Bank represents the biggest Chinese
investment in Africa to date, after stateowned
Industrial and Commerce Bank of
China Ltd. agreed in 2007 to buy 20 percent
of the African lender for $5.5 billion. Since
then, the two banks say they have collaborated
on channeling billions of dollars of Chinese
investment into Africa.
Some 300 companies account for the
majority of China's business activity in
Africa, but the region also has some 30,000
smaller Chinese firms that are of growing
importance, said Francois Gamet, head of
Standard Bank Group's Asian operation.
Asked about concerns over Africa's rising
debts to China, the banks said those still are
relatively small and most countries can repay
them.
"The reality is that Chinese debt as a percentage
of total African debt is still relatively
small," said Kenny Fihla, Standard Bank's
chief executive for corporate banking.
Governments in the region have "fiscal discipline,"
said Tshabalala.
"Wars, pestilence, violence and conflict
have declined," he said. "We are quite comfortable
that most of these countries have
both the ability and the willingness to meet
their obligations."
Funeral
held for 6 of
10 children
killed in
Chicago fire
Six white caskets were
arranged in a semi-circle
during the funeral for six of
the 10 children who died in
Chicago's worst fire in over a
decade, reports UNB.
The funeral held Saturday
at Our Lady of Tepeyac
Catholic Church honored
five siblings and a cousin
killed in the Aug. 28 apartment
fire .
They were 14-year-old
Cesar Contreras, 13-year-old
Nathan Contreras, 11-yearold
Xavier Contreras, 5-
year-old Ariel Garcia, 3-
month-old Amayah Almaraz
and their cousin, 14-year-old
Adrian Hernandez.
The Chicago Sun-Times
reports family members
wore white T-shirts with the
airbrushed names of the
children during the funeral.
Arrangements are pending
for the four other children
killed in the fire.
Investigators say the fire
started in the rear of the
apartment building during a
sleepover. The cause is
under investigation.
City officials issued more
than 40 code violations Friday
against the building's
owner.
Dutch terror threat
level stays at 4 of 5
The Netherlands' counter-terror chief says the country's
threat level will remain at four on a scale that tops out at
five following a double stabbing at the city's main railway
station that officials say had a "terrorist motive."
Dick Schoof says on Twitter that: "Sadly, this reprehensible
act fits into the current threat assessment."
A 19-year-old Afghan citizen has been arrested in Friday's
attack at Central Station. Two U.S. citizens were
stabbed and authorities say they are hospitalized with
serious but not life-threatening injuries, reports UNB.
Authorities in Amsterdam say a 19-year-old Afghan citizen
who was shot and detained after a double stabbing
at the city's main railway station had a "terrorist motive."
The Dutch capital's government said in a statement
issued Saturday that investigators reached that conclusion
based on the suspect's first statements to police.
The suspect allegedly stabbed two American tourists
on Friday before police shot and wounded him. He holds
a German residency permit and was identified as Jawed
S. in line with Dutch privacy rules.
The Americans are recovering in a hospital. Their identities
have not been released. The suspect also is hospitalized.
Amsterdam City Hall says German authorities
searched the suspect's home and seized data storage
devices that would be analyzed as part of the investigation.
The suspect is to be arraigned Monday at a closed-door
hearing. The exact charges he could face have not been
released.
The U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands says that two
people stabbed in an attack at the Dutch capital's main
railway station on Friday are both American citizens.
Police shot and wounded a 19-year-old Afghani man
immediately after the attack and are questioning him as
a suspect.
Ambassador Pete Hoekstra issued a written statement
Saturday saying embassy officials had been in touch with
the victims or their families. Police say they have serious
but not life threatening injuries.
Hoekstra says, "We wish them a speedy recovery and
are working closely with the City of Amsterdam to provide
assistance to them and their families."
Police say they are still trying to establish a motive for
the attack and say it was possibly motivated by extremism.
At least three people were killed, including a child, after a suicide bomber detonated an explosivesladen
vehicle outside the compound of a district headquarters in Somalia's capital, police said
Sunday.
Photo : AP
Suicide car bombing in Somalia’s
capital kills at least 3
At least three people were killed,
including a child, after a suicide
bomber detonated an explosivesladen
vehicle outside the compound of
a district headquarters in Somalia's
capital, police said Sunday, reports
UNB.
Capt. Mohamed Hussein said the
bomber tried to speed through a
checkpoint but was stopped by security
forces, prompting him to detonate
the vehicle near the gate of Howlwadag
district headquarters.
He said another four people were
Pompeo speaks
to Iraqi leaders
at 'this critical
time'
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
spoke Saturday with two
Iraqi leaders to express support
for Iraq's efforts to form a
"moderate, nationalist" government
that would serve all
Iraqis, his spokeswoman said,
reports UNB.
The results of Iraq's parliamentary
elections were ratified
two weeks ago, paving the
way for a new parliament to
convene and elect a president
and a prime minister, who
would form a new government.
The process is complicated
by political wrangling. A
coalition led by maverick Shiite
cleric Muqtada al-Sadr won
the largest number of seats,
54, followed by an alliance of
government-sanctioned militias
known as Hashed, with
47.
In his call with Prime Minister
Haider al-Abadi, Pompeo
"emphasized the importance
of safeguarding Iraq's sovereignty
during this critical
time," spokeswoman Heather
Nauert said.
He also spoke with Vice
President Ayad Allawi,
expressing U.S. hopes that the
new Iraqi government
"includes all communities and
serves all of the Iraqi people."
Pompeo also tweeted his
concern with the political situation
in Iraq, saying he had
just spoken with Brett
McGurk, the special U.S. presidential.
wounded, mostly young students at a
nearby Islamic school. Officials
warned there could be more casualties
as the blast pulled down nearby buildings
including a mosque.
"They have literally failed to achieve
their goal of inflicting maximum casualties,"
Hussein said, accusing the al-
Qaida-linked extremist group al-
Shabab of carrying out the attack.
There was no immediate claim of
responsibility for the explosion, which
shattered a period of calm in seaside
Mogadishu. The Somalia-based al-
Shabab often targets the capital with
bombings, including a truck bombing
in October that left at least 512 people
dead.
Somali troops are meant to take over
the Horn of Africa nation's security in
the coming years from an African
Union force but concerns about their
readiness remain high. The U.N. Security
Council recently voted to delay the
reduction of troops in the AU force
from October to February and the target
date to hand over security to
Somali forces to December 2021.
Study shows health,
reaction-time declines
in firefighters
Randy Brooks' son had a request three
years ago: What could his dad do to make
wildland firefighting safer?
To Brooks, a professor at the University
of Idaho's College of Natural Resources
who deals with wildland firefighting, it was
more of a command, reports UNB.
His son, Bo Brooks, is a wildland firefighter
who a few days earlier during that
2015 fire season fled a wall of flames that
killed three of his fellow firefighters in eastern
Washington.
The result of the conversation was an
online survey that drew some 400 firefighters
who mostly identified mental and
physical fatigue as the primary cause of
injuries to firefighters who are often confronted
with a changing, dangerous environment.
But a self-selecting online survey is not
necessarily representative of what's happening
in the field. So Randy Brooks decided
to apply some science.
That led to an ongoing health-monitoring
study involving wrist-worn motion
monitors and body composition measurements
that last year found health declines
and deteriorating reaction times among
firefighters as the season progressed.
"A lot of them face peer pressure to perform
all the time," Brooks said. "Others
feel pressured to protect natural resources
and structures at all costs."
About 19,000 firefighters are currently in
the field fighting nearly 40 large wildfires.
Fourteen firefighters have died this year as
wildfires have scorched about 3,500
square miles (9,000 square kilometers)
and destroyed about 3,000 homes.
The study last year found firefighters lost
muscle mass but gained fat based on bodycomposition
testing before and after the
season.
The firefighters also wore a wrist device
called a Readiband from a company called
Fatigue Science. The device keeps track of
how many hours of sleep a person gets.
Formulas developed by the U.S. military
then calculate fatigue, based on a lack of
sleep. That's used to predict alertness and
reaction times, which get worse as fatigue
levels rise.
Firefighters in the field can get as little as
six hours of sleep or less each night. The
devices found that not only did reaction
times falter as firefighters remained longer
on a fire before getting a mandatory break,
Brooks said, but firefighters also tended to
take longer to recover as the season progressed.
Sometimes, fatigue levels reached
a level that suggested reaction times
slowed down so much it took firefighters
twice as long to react.
Brooks said his initial thoughts are that
wildland firefighters might need better
nutrition to stay fit and mentally sharp.
But last year's study had only nine firefighters.
Brooks this year has expanded the
study to 18 firefighters, 16 men and two
women. They're smokejumpers, meaning
they parachute from airplanes to fight
fires.
Brooks said that next year he hopes to
have about 100 firefighters and include
hotshot crews, a ground-based wildland
firefighter that can, like smokejumpers, be
deployed on a national basis.
Smokejumpers in the study often eat premade
meals. Brooks wants to find out if
maybe those meals are behind some of the
puzzling results from last year's study, such
as a loss in muscle mass.
To Brooks, a professor at the University of Idaho's College of Natural Resources who deals with wildland
firefighting, it was more of a command.
Photo : AP

ART & CULTURE
MONdAy,
SEPTEMBER 3, 2018
8
10-minute full body,
no-gear workout
In our busy schedules, it is hard to find time to
go to the gym and workout for an hour. If you can
relate to this, this video is for you. You don't need
a lot of space and time to do this 10-minute full
body, no-gear work workout shown by Simran
Khosla who is a fitness expert and a diet
consultant.
cardiovascular system as well.
Wide and narrow squat
To perform this exercise, stand straight with
your feet and fist clasped. Now bend down the
way you would in a normal squat and when you
get up, rise with your right leg a little wide apart
and bend down again (sumo squat). Now come
back to the first pose and do this on the other side.
Repeat 30 times.
High knee jumps
To perform this easy exercise, stand straight
with your feet hip-width apart. Now place your
palms in front of you, hovering just over your
belly button. Now start bringing your knees up
alternatively so as to touch them with your palms.
Do 50 reps as quickly as you can.
Alternate toe touch
To do this exercise, stand straight with your feet
apart and hands straight out on both the side.
Now bend and touch your left feet with your right
hand and come up. Next touch your right feet with
your left hand. Repeat one by one, 30 times.
Bear crawls
To do this exercise you can use a mat if you wish
to. Get down on your fours with your arms
straight, exactly like you would in a downward
dog position. Now start crawling forward with
your feet at the same place and hands moving
forward one by one. Now come back to the
original position (downward dog) and repeat 10
times.
THE APPARITION
A journalist is sent by the Vatican to investigate a young
girl claiming to be visited by the Virgin Mary.
Release Date : 7 September 2018 (USA)
Director : Xavier Giannoli
Writers : Jacques Fieschi, Xavier Giannoli
Stars : Vincent Lindon, Galatéa Bellugi, Patrick
d'Assumçao
Genres : Drama
Taglines : No matter where life takes you... Faith
takes you further
Also known as : La aparición
Runtime : 144 minutes
Company : Curiosa Films, Gabriel, Proximus
Country : France
Language : French, Italian, English
Filming location : France
STORylINE :
Jacques "Vincent Lindon"
is a journalist at a large
regional newspaper in
France. His reputation as an
impartial investigator
attracts the attention of the
Vatican, who recruit him to
lead a committee to explore
the legitimacy of a saintly
apparition in a small French
village-a true canonical
investigation. Upon his
arrival, he meets the young
novitiate Anna, who claims
to have personally
witnessed an apparition of
the Virgin Mary. Shes
garnered an impressive
following in the village but
is torn between her faith
and the many solicitations
she receives. Confronted
with opposing views from
clergy members and
skeptics, Jacques finds his
belief system profoundly
shaken as he works to
uncover the hidden
motivations and pressures
at work.
|Source: IMDb]
Comic book series on 'Superhero' dara
singh to motivate youth in punjab
Why should you try it?
Short periods of intense workouts can be more
effective than longer workouts done with
moderate efforts. And the workout done using
only your own body weight is great for your
H O ROSCOPE
ARIES
(March 21 - April 20): Natives
of Aries are often confident and
energetic people, who should
consider setting up arrangements for larger
family gatherings like reunions. Natives of this
sign are often driving forces in the professional
and political areas.
TAURUS
(April 21 - May 21): The
obstacles you face at the
moment may be daunting but
you have what it takes to overcome them.
Don't try to avoid what fate sends your way
over the next few days - it is designed to
strengthen you, not destroy you.
GEMINI
(May 22 - June 21): There may
be times when you would like
nothing better than to cut
yourself off from the world at
large but that simply isn't possible. Make
the best job of what you are expected to do
and try to steal a few hours for yourself
later on.
CANCER
(June 22 - July 23): Some
things are important and some
things are not and if you don't
yet know the difference then it's time you
found out. This should be a productive time
for you but you need to learn how to say
"no" when people ask you for favours.
lEO
(July 24 - Aug. 23): If you are
not yet getting the rewards and
the respect you deserve don't
worry, in a matter of days your name will be
on everybody's lips. The sun in Aries makes
you both creative and adventurous, so do
something out of the ordinary.
VIRGO
(Aug. 24 - Sept. 23): You may be
tempted to go on a journey today
but the planets warn it could
lead you in some unforeseen
directions, so make sure you take a map and
don't promise to be at a certain place at a
specific time - because you won't make it.
Mountain climbers
Get on your fours with your back and legs
straight and hands right below your shoulders.
Now start moving legs the way you did in high
knee jumps. Repeat 50 times.
Plank jacks
Come into the plank position with your elbows
on the ground. Now open your legs wide apart
with a jump and close them. Do this with speed,
repeat 20 times.
Crunches
To perform this exercise, lie down on your back
with your back straight and hands by your side.
Now take your legs straight up and bend them
from the knees making a 90-degree angle. Clasp
your hands behind your head. Now curl up come
forward so that your neck, head and shoulders lift
off the floor. Gently pull your abdomin inward.
Hold on at the top and get back gently on the
floor. repeat 25 times.
Flutter kicks
Lie down on the floor with your back straight
and hands by your side. Lift your neck, shoulders
and head a little up the way you did in the
exercise. Now start moving your legs alternatively
as high as you can. Repeat 25 times.
|Source: TOI]
lIBRA
(Sept. 24 - Oct. 23): At some
stage over the next few days
you will see or hear something
that makes you view the world in a new
light. A change of perspective will lead to
new ways of thinking, ways that answer all
the questions you have been asking.
SCORPIO
(Oct. 24 - Nov. 22): Find out
why a partner or loved one is
behaving so erratically, then
do what you can to assist them. Most likely
their problems are nowhere near as big as
they think they are and can quite easily be
corrected - as can your own!
SAGITTARIUS
(Nov. 23 - Dec. 21): Yours is a
sign of boundless selfconfidence
and that's good
because you will need it over
the next few days. If you are not happy in
your current environment don't be afraid to
pack a bag and take off for a few days.
CAPRICORN
(Dec. 22 - Jan. 20): You seem to
lack purpose at the moment but
that will change if you look for
ways to express yourself.
Whatever challenges come your way, and there
will be plenty, see them as opportunities to be
embraced rather than as threats to be avoided.
AQUARIUS
(Jan. 21 - Feb. 19): Stay calm and
keep setbacks in perspective. If
you can learn to take yourself a bit
less seriously over the coming
week then your problems, such as they are, will
fade into insignificance. Rest assured your
successes will always outnumber your failures.
PISCES
(Feb. 20 - Mar. 20): It does not
matter if other people approve
of what you are doing, it
matters only that it means
something to you. The very last
thing you should be doing now is asking
friends and family for their opinions - it's
your views that count.
The heroic exploits of legendary Dara Singh,
in the ring and outside it, would soon come in a
graphic avatar as a comic book series is set to be
launched on the wrestling icon's life. Graphic
artist George Emmanual, speaking to over the
phone from Mumbai, said Dara Singh was as
'institution' known across the globe for his
achievements in wrestling as well as the film
industry.
"The motive behind the launch of the comic
book series, particularly in Punjab, is related to
the rising drug menace among youth. The
comic books would motivate youth and
children on how to exercise, proper diet, and
valuable tips to keep the body fit and fine,"
Emmanual said.
The son of the wrestler, Vindu Dara Singh,
may introduce the comic series first in Punjab in
November close to his father's birth
anniversary, he said. Dara Singh was born on
November 19, 1928.
Tips for achieving a fit and muscular physique
would also there in these comics, he said. Eyecatching
sketches of the sturdy Dara Singh in the
comic series will motivate children to workout,
Emmanual said.
"The dialogues will be by Mumbai-based
Maruk, who is a renowned dialogue
writer," he said.
Attention parents: don't let
your kids play this sports
before they turn 12!
When it comes to taking care of
their children, parents do not
leave any stone unturned. They
make sure they eat well, sleep
well and engage in good physical
activities for their overall health.
But have you ever given a
Dara Singh defeated renowned and
powerful competitors in the field of wrestling
which put him in limelight worldwide,
Emmanual said adding all this would be a
thought to the risks involved
while your kids go off to play?
No, we do not mean the risks of
any freak accident, we mean the
actual involvement in the sports
that may pose a serious threat to
your child's brain?
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (3D)
12:45 pm, 3:30 pm, 6:20 pm
Incredibles (3D)
3:30 pm, 6:15 pm
Mission: Impossible - Fallout (3D)
11:30 am, 12:30 pm, 1:45 pm, 4:45 pm, 7:05 pm
Alpha (3D)
11:30 pm, 4:45 pm, 8:00 pm
The Spy Who Dumped Me (2D)
11:30 am, 4:20 pm, 6:30 pm
Captain Khan (2D)
12:30 am, 1:50 pm, 3:30 pm, 7:20 pm
*Authority reserves the right for any changes.
SHOWTIME
Confused? Let us enlighten you
As you already know, certain
sports games are riskier to play
as compared to others. As per the
findings from a long-term study-
-conducted by researchers at
Boston University--playing
tackle football before the age of
12 doubles the risk of behavioural
and cognitive issues.
SHOULD YOU BE WORRIED?
This shocking finding--which
may prevent you from sending
your kids to play football--was
the result of a new study
conducted on 214 former
athletes.
The researchers found that
players who started playing
before the age of 12 had a twofold
risk of problems related to
behavioural regulation and a
threefold risk of clinically
elevated depression scores.
WHY DOES IT HAPPEN?
According to one of the authors
of the research study--published
in the journal Nature's
part of the narrative in these comics.
Dara Singh's childhood in the village where he
a considerable time will feature in the stories
which will show how friendly and generous he
was with his childhood friends.
Emmanual was asked about the idea behind
the comic book series. "I had an idea which was
discussed with Vindu Dara Singh who was
happy to know that a comic series book could be
introduced about the life of his late father,"
Emmanual said.
Indian youth need role models like Dara
Singh, a pure Punjabi at heart, and it would help
in keeping them away from drug addiction, he
added. Dara Singh would be depicted as a
superhero in the comics, Emmanual said.
The legendary wrestler had earned the title
'Rustom-e-Hind' in his life time, he added. "The
work on illustration was on at war-footing for
the last nine months with high-end computer
techniques. Free on-line access would also be
provided," Emmanual said.
Telling about his past experience, Emmanual
said earlier he had developed a graphic novel
based on the life of Sikh warrior Hari Singh
Nalwa, which he claimed was a unique do
graphic documentation on the Sikh general and
how he used weaponry in battles.
|Source: TOI]
Translational Psychiatry--Robert
Stern, "The brain is going
through this incredible time of
growth between the years of 10
and 12, and if you subject that
developing brain to repetitive
head impacts, it may cause
problems later in life."
SO NO MORE FOOTBALL?
The eye-opening research also
focuses on the fact that the
football game retirees who
started playing before the age of
12 had decreased mental
flexibility when compared to
those who began playing when
they were 12 or older.
The bottom line is since the
human brain rapidly develops
during childhood, it is best that
your children should avoid
playing tackle football at least
during their teenage years.
There are plenty of other sports
available like basketball and
running if you are worried about
your child's physical fitness.
|Source: TOI]
Mission: Impossible - Fallout (3D)
11:00 am, 2:00 pm, 4:10 pm, 7:20 pm
The Darkest Minds (2D)
1:50 pm
Ant-Man and the Wasp (3D)
10:50 am, 1:30 pm, 5:00 pm, 7:25 pm
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (3D)
11:10 am, 4:00 pm, 6:50 pm
Alpha (3D)
10:40 am, 12:40 pm, 2:45 pm, 4:50 pm, 7:00 pm
Mile22 (2D)
10:50 am, 1:00 pm, 3:10 pm, 5:20 pm, 7:30 pm
Bhaijaan (2D)
1:30 pm, 7:20 pm
Poramon 2 (2D)
10:30 am, 4:20 pm
*Authority reserves the right for any changes.

SPORTS
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2018
9
Munro, Bravo star as Knight Riders
continue winning streak
Benzema celebrates with Sergio Ramos after scoring a goal against Leganes on Saturday. Photo: AP
Benzema nets brace as Real
Madrid beat Leganes
Sports Desk:
Cristiano Ronaldo's departure will
be judged on bigger games than this
but Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale
continue to provide the smoothest of
transitions after each scored in a 4-1
thumping of Leganes on Saturday,
reports AP.
Benzema grabbed a double in the
second half and might have sealed his
hat-trick had Sergio Ramos passed on
the penalty he scored after a foul on
Marco Asensio.
Bale had earlier broken the deadlock
with a smart half-volley, which was
briefly cancelled out by Leganes'
Guido Carrillo, who converted his own
spot-kick to ensure Thibaut Courtois'
first Madrid contribution was to pick
the ball out of his own net.
Rejuvenated under their new coach
Julen Lopetegui and, perhaps,
liberated by the absence of Ronaldo,
Bale and Benzema sizzled again at the
Santiago Bernabeu, with Bale now
owning three goals and Benzema four
from the first three La Liga games of
the season.
Shortly before the final whistle blew
here, it was impossible not to note that
a third Juventus match has now
passed, a victory over Parma in Serie
A, without Ronaldo finding the net.
Real have also taken maximum
points from their opening three
fixtures, a feat not to be overlooked
given this time last year they were
already five behind Barcelona.
Leganes' underwhelming start
under new boss Mauricio Pellegrino
continues. They are yet to post a
victory.
Keylor Navas was named last
season's best goalkeeper by UEFA on
Thursday but was only deemed
second choice here by Lopetegui, who
handed Courtois his debut after
joining from Chelsea earlier this
month.
Luka Modric took the place of Isco,
in a midfield three with Casemiro and
Toni Kroos. Bale and Asensio
supported Benzema up front.
Real's confident start saw Asensio
skip in behind but his lifted finish
floated just over, before Bale's cross
was too quick for the straining head of
Benzema at the back post.
The first goal came after Ramos'
pass found Dani Carvajal as the
furthest man forward and the fullback's
clever header back towards the
penalty spot wrong-footed everyone
except Bale. The Welshman arched
his right leg over the bouncing ball, his
finish just enough to beat Ivan Cuellar.
Real looked in control but, against
the run of play, Leganes earned a
lifeline when Casemiro tripped Javier
Eraso in the box. Carrillo sidefooted
left as Courtois dived right.
Benzema was unlucky to restore the
lead when his fired shot was denied
only by the foot of Cuellar but the
striker did not have to wait long. Three
minutes into the second half he
headed in Asensio's cross from the left
after winning a tussle with Leganes'
Jonathan Silva.
Referee Jaime Latre initially blew
for a foul but, after consulting VAR,
the replay showed Silva had been the
aggressor and the goal stood.
There was no doubt about
Benzema's second. He exchanged a
one-two with Modric on the edge of
the area and, drifting right, dragged
his shot left, back across goal and into
the bottom corner.
He might have had his hat-trick had
Ramos opted to delegate penalty
duties after Asensio fell over a
thoughtless challenge from Leganes
captain Unai Bustinza. But Ramos
took the spot-kick and made no
mistake.
Sports Desk:
Trinbago Knight Riders continued
to uphold their role in the three-horse
race for the regular season CPL
crown, rejoining Jamaica Tallawahs
and Guyana Amazon Warriors at the
top of the table after completing a
season sweep of St Kitts & Nevis
Patriots with a 46-run win at Warner
Park, reports Cricinfo.
Colin Munro's consistency
propelled the Knight Riders to
another win as the New Zealander
notched his fourth fifty in seven
matches before Dwayne Bravo raided
the Patriots attack with a whirlwind
knock that included five successive
sixes off Alzarri Joseph in the 19th
over to put the target well out of reach
for the Patriots.
Sunil Narine's lean run of form in
CPL 2018 continued when he was out
slogging to long-on in the second over
for 6. But Narine's lack of runs - 56 in
seven innings - has been covered by
Munro's ruthless run-making.
Entering at No. 3, Munro ensured the
innings didn't skip a beat, striking an
unbeaten 76 off 50 balls. Munro took
41 balls to reach his half-century, the
slowest of his four fifties this season,
but his innings was the perfect
platform to give Dwayne a
freewheeling license at the death. In
the process, he reclaimed the CPL
2018 runs lead from Kieron Pollard
with 346 at an average of 57.66.
Dwayne entered with 20 balls left in
the innings following the dismissal of
Darren Bravo in the 17th, splicing
Sheldon Cottrell to mid-off for 18.
Dwayne came on strike for the start of
the 19th over facing Joseph, who up
until that point had been brilliant with
figures of 3-0-13-2. Joseph had
bowled both Chris Lynn and Brendon
McCullum by them with sheer pace,
but guile was needed to displace
Dwayne from the crease and the
'Champion' dancer's experience
showed up the 21-year-old in the
sequence that won the match.
After a dot ball to start the over,
Dwayne proceeded to smash five
consecutive sixes. The first two were
driven over mid-on and mid-off
respectively before the third was
flicked over deep square leg. The
creme de la creme was the fourth
maximum in the sequence. After
three straight full balls had gone over
the rope, Joseph tried a wide bouncer
but Bravo stayed in his crease and
used his wrists to uppercut it with
enough oomph to clear the point
boundary. When Joseph went full
once more off the final ball, Dwayne
drove him sweetly over wide mid-on.
Munro took back the reins for the
final over, driving a four and six over
mid-off as part of an 18-run 20th off
Cottrell to take TKR to 199. Munro's
strike rate was modest before the final
burst, but he was efficient in only
absorbing 12 dot balls, scoring off 76%
of his deliveries in the end. He wasn't
particularly fluent during a 78-run
third-wicket partnership with
McCullum and played a back-seat
role in the unbroken 66-run stand
with Dwayne, but provided the spine
that was central to another TKR win.
Behind Ali Khan and Dwayne, TKR
has struggled to settle on a third pacebowling
option this season. Javon
Searles, Shannon Gabriel and Kevon
Cooper had all shuffled through the
role with not much success. Searching
for a solution, TKR called 22-year-old
Anderson Phillip into the XI for his
season debut and his performance
was just what the doctor ordered for
their success in the field.
Anderson came on in the fifth over
and had Chris Gayle edging a cut
behind three balls later for the first
wicket of the chase. Only an edged
yorker through through fine leg by
new batsman Rassie van der Dussen
denied Phillip a wicket maiden.
Patriots were 78 for 2 in 10 with Evin
Lewis 49 off 34 balls, in a decent
position for a major launch as has
been the case for chasing teams in
CPL 2018, but Phillip scuttled that
plan by trapping Lewis two overs later
for 53, beating him for pace with a full
ball after Lewis shuffled too far across
his stumps.
Phillip came back in the 19th to
mathematically clinch the match with
the wicket of Brandon King, getting
him caught off the leading edge. His
figures were spoiled by a cosmetic
four and six by Carlos Brathwaite
later in the over but by then Phillip
had provided a much-needed fillip
that TKR had been missing from their
third seam option.
Ronaldo fails to score again
as Juventus edge Parma
Sports Desk:
Cristiano Ronaldo was left
waiting for his first
Juventus goal after drawing
another blank as the
titleholders won 2-1 at
Parma in Serie A on
Saturday to maintain their
100 percent record, reports
AP.
An early Mario
Mandzukic goal and a
second-half strike from
Blaise Matuidi gave Juve
their third win in as many
league games this season,
although Ronaldo was left
without a goal in his first
270 minutes with the Turin
side.
Ivory Coast forward
Gervinho scored in between
for Parma, his first goal
since joining them in the
close season.
"[Ronaldo] has to deal
with different difficulties in
Serie A but he had a good
game overall," said
Juventus
coach
Massimiliano Allegri. "The
international break will
make him sharper.
"He's the world's best
player, he wants to score at
all costs but he needs to
remain calm and the goals
will come in a burst."
Juventus got the perfect
start when Mandzukic's
header from a Juan
Cuadrado cross hit Simone
Iacoponi and rebounded
kindly to the Croatian
forward who turned the ball
into the empty net.
Ronaldo sent a header
looping over the bar with his
first goal attempt but
Parma, who have been to
the fourth tier and back
since beating Juve 1-0 in
their last meeting in 2015,
forced their way back into
the game.
Leo Stulac thumped a free
kick against the crossbar
before Gervinho levelled in
the 33rd minute, turning
the ball in with his knee
after Roberto Inglese flicked
on Massimo Gobbi's cross.
Juventus took control
after halftime and French
World Cup winner Matuidi
struck the winner from
Mandzukic's flick just
before the hour.
Ronaldo kept trying but it
was a frustrating night for
the World Player of the Year
as Parma cut off the supply
lines and prevented him
getting in any of his dipping
long-range shots.
The forward's best chance
came when a loose ball
landed at his feet but
Ronaldo shot wide and was
also left frustrated when
Parma goalkeeper Luigi
Sepe managed to intercept a
cross and took the ball off
his head.
Sharapova lights up
US Open again with
win over Ostapenko
Sports Desk:
Maria Sharapova's love
affair with New York nights
continued Saturday as the
2006 US Open champion
swept past 10th-seeded Jelena
Ostapenko and into the fourth
round at Flushing Meadows,
reports BSS.
Sharapova is now
undefeated in 22 night
matches at the Billie Jean
King National Tennis Center.
"There's no doubt I feed off
this energy," Sharapova said.
"We all spend so much time
on the back courts with our
teams practicing.
"When you get a chance to
come out here why not give
everything that you have."
After some shaky moments
in her first two matches,
Sharapova charged through
the opening set, aided by 27
unforced errors from 2017
French Open champion
Ostapenko. Sharapova next
faces Spain's Carla Suarez
Navarro, who ousted sixthseeded
Caroline Garcia of
France 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4).
Ronaldo was left waiting for his first Juventus goal after drawing another blank as the titleholders
won 2-1 at Parma in Serie A on Saturday.
Photo: AP
Colin Munro cracked an impressive unbeaten hand of 76.
Simpson seizes PGA
lead with English
trio on his heels
Sports Desk:
Webb Simpson closed with an eagle from
70 feet to seize a one-stroke lead over
England's Justin Rose and Tyrrell Hatton
after Saturday's second round of the PGA
Dell Technologies Championship, reports
BSS.
The 33-year-old American, seeking his
second title in seven seasons at TPC Boston,
rolled in his dramatic third shot at the par-5
18th to complete a bogey-free eight-under
par 63 to stand on 11-under 131 after 36
holes. "To eagle the last was exciting and you
just kind of laugh at those, because you're not
trying to make them, you're just trying to get
them close," Simpson said.
"Those moments are always fun on the last
hole. Honestly, it brings back 2011, making a
couple of putts when I won. Just a great
atmosphere out there."
Hatton, who also fired a 63, was level with
Rose, who shot 67, on 132 with England's
Tommy Fleetwood fourth on 134 and
Australia's Cameron Smith and Mexican
Abraham Ancer another stroke adrift.
Simpson, who birdied the first playoff hole
in 2011 at TPC Boston to beat Chez Reavie
and collect his second PGA title, also fired a
63 in the second round of the Players
Championship in May on his way to winning
his fifth career PGA title.
World number 17 Simpson was the last of
eight qualifiers on points for a spot on the US
Ryder Cup squad that will defend the trophy
against Europe later this month in France.
Battling the top English trio for victory
could be a taste of the Ryder Cup showdown
coming September 28-30 at Le Golf
National. Since clinching his spot at the PGA
Championship, Simpson has finished
second at Greensboro and shot a final-round
62 last week in New Jersey, a sign he hopes
of more success to come. "I don't want to just
have a couple of good years and have it go
away for two years," Simpson said.
"There are a few guys that are always top-
10 in the world. I want to do that."
Hatton uses a putter his Scottish-born
caddie, Mark Crane, bought last week in New
Jersey. Hatton supervised the purchase by
social media, admitting he was embarrassed
to visit a sports store. "Mark was in store
buying it and I was on 'What's App', a video,
with him, because I was too embarrassed to
go into the store to buy a putter," Hatton
said.
"He made a good choice. But it's just one of
those things. It's not obviously normal that
this happens." Fleetwood birdied six of his
first 10 holes to shoot 65.
"It was a story today of a few more putts
dropping," he said. "I holed a few putts and
that's it. I think I had five or six lip-outs
yesterday. The game is about making a score
and today I did it better than yesterday."
Aussie Power passes
Foyt for second on
IndyCar pole list
Sports Desk: Australian driver Will Power
passed IndyCar legend A.J. Foyt for second
on the all-time series poles list Saturday by
setting the qualifying pace for Sunday's
Portland Grand Prix, reports BSS.
The 37-year-old Queenslander won his
54th career IndyCar pole position and fourth
of the 2018 season by turning a top pole
qualifying lap over the 1.964-mile Oregon
road course in 57.3467 seconds.
That boosted Power, this year's
Indianapolis 500 champion, out of a
deadlock with four-time Indy 500 winner
Foyt on the all-time pole list, pushing the
Aussie 13 shy of Mario Andretti's all-time
record of 67 IndyCar pole starts.
"To be up with names like Foyt, pretty
special and humbling," Power said. "I need
to catch Mario now. I don't think that will
happen. That's a lot of poles. But, yeah,
unbelievable. I would never have dreamed of
being up there with names like A.J. Foyt."
Photo: AP
Cremer ruled out
of South Africa,
Bangladesh tours
due to surgery
Sports Desk:
Graeme Cremer, the former
Zimbabwe captain, will miss
the forthcoming tours of
South Africa and Bangladesh
after undergoing a knee
surgery, Zimbabwe Cricket
announced on Sunday
(September 2), reports
Cricbuzz.
Cremer, who was sacked as
Zimbabwe's captain after they
failed to qualify for the World
Cup, has been struggling with
the knee problem for a period
of time. He aggravated the
injury during a preparation
camp for the tours of
Bangladesh and South Africa
and underwent the surgery
last week.
"Following months of knee
discomfort and pain, with
conservative interventions
failing to bring relief from the
symptoms, Cremer finally
went for knee surgery on the
23rd of August," national
team physiotherapist Anesu
Mupotaringa said. "The
surgery went well and Cremer
is now recovering well at
home. We are looking at
minimum six-eight weeks
before he can return to action,
which definitely rules him out
of the South Africa and
Bangladesh tours," he added.
Meanwhile, Kyle Jarvis,
Zimbabwe's pacer, who
injured his bowling hand
during the T20I tri-series
game versus Pakistan, is
undergoing rehabilitation and
has joined the training camp.
Solomon Mire, the all
rounder, has made a complete
recovery from his ankle
injury.

ECONOMY & BUSINESS
BANGLADESHTODAY 10
THE
MONDAy, SEPTEMBER 3, 2018
Indian rupee touches record
low as Asia markets tumble
A day-long conference of Bangladesh Krishi Bank (BKB) for the Chief Regional and Branch
Managers of Mymensingh division was held at the NAPE auditorium on September 01, 2018. The
Divisional Commissioner of Mymensingh Mahmud Hasan addressing the conference as chief guest.
The Managing Director of the bank Md. Ali Hossain Prodhania gave special emphasis as special guest
on new agricultural credit disbursement in all agricultural families along with regular loan disbursement,
loan recovery, deposit mobilization & remittance collection directing to achieve all targets
100% to make every branch into profitable ones .The Deputy Managing Director, the General
Managers of Operation & Administration also delivered lecture as b guests . The General Manager of
the Division Md. Solaiman presided over the meeting. Among others, concerned officials were present
on the occasion.
Photo: Courtesy
Japan central bank
chief says no rate
hike for 'long time'
The Bank of Japan will not raise interest
rates "for quite a long time", its chief said in
an interview published Saturday even as its
US and European peers tighten monetary
policy, reports BSS.
Haruhiko Kuroda dismissed speculation
that the central bank was planning to
adjust its super-loose policy, aimed at
keeping long-term interest rates
around zero percent and short-term rates
at minus 0.1 percent
"We don't intend to raise them for quite a
long time," he told the mass-circulation
Yomiuri newspaper.
The BoJ has struggled for years to reach
the 2.0 percent inflation rate thought
necessary to turbocharge Japan's economy,
and has defended its decision to maintain
monetary easing even as other central banks
tighten policy.
After its last policy meeting in July, the BoJ
said it "intends to maintain the current
extremely low levels of short-and long-term
interest rates for an extended period of
time."
Kuroda told the Yomiuri that "an extended
period" - a phrase borrowed from the US
Africa Ireland Economic
Forum to be held in
Dublin
An economic forum aimed
at strengthening the economic
ties between Ireland and
Africa will be held in Dublin in
October, said the Irish foreign
ministry on Thursday, reports
BSS.
Entitled Africa Ireland
Economic Forum 2018, the
one-day event, slated at The
Convention Center Dublin on
Oct. 11, will be attended by
top-level political and
business leaders from both
Ireland and Africa, said the
ministry in a press release.
Keynote speakers will
include Irish Deputy Prime
Minister and Foreign Minister
Simon Coveney and the
Cabinet Secretary for Trade,
Industry and Cooperatives
from Kenya, Peter Munya, it
said.
The forum, organized by the
Department of Foreign Affairs
and Trade in partnership with
African embassies in Ireland,
is the sixth edition of its kind
since its inception in 2010,
according to the ministry.
Topics of the forum will
include challenges and
opportunities for business in
Africa, case studies of Irish
companies operating in
Africa, women's role in Africa-
Ireland business, and
supports available to Irish
businesses operating in
central bank - meant "quite a long time."
"We don't specify the period, such as
whether it is one year, three years or five
years," he was quoted as saying.
"It's a commitment that we will maintain
the current low levels (of rates) as long as
uncertainty lingers."
His remarks are in sharp contrast to the
direction the US and European central banks
are taking. The US Federal Reserve is
expected to raise interest rates twice more by
the end of the year while the European
Central Bank is exiting massive monetary
easing.
Kuroda argued that the continuation of the
BoJ's easing policy would "naturally" lead to
2.0 percent inflation even if later than earlier
thought, the Yomiuri said.
The prospect that Japanese interest rates
will stay low for the foreseeable future should
keep the yen low, but the currency has often
rallied in recent times due to safe-haven
buying in times of financial uncertainty.
Mostly recently the yen rose against other
major currencies when the Turkish lira
plunged due to Ankara's frictions with
Washington, rattling financial markets.
Africa, it said.
Africa is the world's fastest
growing continent, said
Simon Coveney in the press
release.
"Our trade with Africa has
increased by 13 percent since
2014. Irish food and drink
companies have been
particularly successful," he
said.
According to Bord Bia (Irish
Food Board), a state agency
responsible for helping Irish
companies to market their
food and drink products
overseas, Irish agrifood
exports to Africa have
increased by 28 percent over
the last two years.
Italy seeks
to reassure
markets
over budget
Italy's new antiestablishment
government
sought to reassure financial
markets about its upcoming
budget on Sunday amid
increasing concern Rome
could breach EU spending
limits as it comes under
pressure to fulfil its antiausterity
electoral promises,
reports BSS.
With Italy's debt currently
standing at a whopping 132
percent of output, financial
markets appear to be
increasingly nervous about
the ability of the new
populist government to get
its finances under control.
On Friday, the so-called
"yield spread" - which
measures the difference in
perceived risk between
Italian and ultra-safe
German government bonds
- was wider than it has been
in the past 12 months.
But in an interview with La
Repubblica newspaper on
Sunday, Italian finance
minister Giovanni Tria
insisted that the spread
would narrow once Rome
unveiled its budget plans.
"Italy isn't fragile. It isn't
the sick man of Europe,"
Tria said.
"The government has
already said several times
that budget stability will be
respected. And with the new
budget law in the coming
weeks, these intentions will
be translated into action,"
the minister said, in
comments made during a
visit to China.
"As a result, the spread will
narrow." Nevertheless,
international rating agencies
appear sceptical.
On Friday, Fitch lowered
its outlook on Italy's
sovereign debt rating from
"stable" to "negative",
meaning that it could be
downgraded in the future.
"Following the formation
of the country's new
coalition government,
(Fitch) expects a degree of
fiscal loosening that would
leave Italy's very high level of
public debt more exposed to
potential shocks," the rating
agency said in a report.
S.Korea's industrial output rebounds
in July amid worry about slowdown
Industrial output in South Korea
rebounded last month amid rising
worry about economic slowdown
caused mainly by weak labor market
conditions, a government report
showed Friday, reports BSS.
Production in all industries grew 0.5
percent in July from a month earlier,
after falling 0.7 percent in June,
according to Statistics Korea.
Output in the mining and
manufacturing sectors rose 0.4 percent
in the month on solid demand for
chemicals and transport equipment
that offset soft demand for
automobiles.
Manufacturers logged an average
capacity ratio of 74.3 percent in July, up
0.9 percentage points from the
previous month.
Industrial production increased on
brisk exports, but companies refrained
from spending capital on new facilities.
Facility investment declined 0.6
percent in July from a month ago,
keeping a downward momentum for
five straight months. It marked the
longest downward trend in almost 20
years.
The cyclical factor for leading
indicators, which reflect future
economic conditions, dipped 0.2 points
in July from a month earlier, dimming
the economic outlook. The figure for
coincident indicators kept sliding for
four months in a row.
Exports, which account for about half
of the economy, topped 50 billion U.S.
dollars for five months to July, in which
the outbound shipment posted the
second-biggest export reading.
However, the labor market
conditions continued to weaken despite
the government's efforts to create
decent jobs.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in
prioritized job creation, especially for
the younger generation, among his
economic policies, but it had yet to take
effect.
The government unveiled its 2019
budget plan, which is mainly focused
on creating quality jobs and securing
social welfare, in a bid to bolster the
Moon-advocated economic policy,
called income-driven growth that aims
to increase household income, foster
innovative industries and create a fair
market.
Production in the services industry
was unchanged in July from the
previous month. Retail sales gained 0.5
percent last month, continuing to grow
for two months.
Completed construction inched
down 0.1 percent in July from a month
earlier as the government sought to
control speculative investment in the
real estate market.
Emerging market currencies sank in
Asia on Friday, with the Indian rupee at
a record low as dealers fear contagion
from financial crises in Argentina and
Turkey, reports BSS.
A report that Donald Trump is
planning to impose tariffs on a further
$200 billion of Chinese imports as
soon as next week has added to the
fright on trading floors, with most
equity markets across the region also
down.
Forex traders have been dumping
emerging market currencies after
Argentina's peso became the latest to
hit the buffers on concerns about the
country's economy.
The peso hit a record low near 40 to
the dollar Thursday despite the central
bank hiking interest rates 15 percentage
points to 60 percent. It has lost 53
percent of its value since the start of the
year as the government of President
Mauricio Macri faces a financial
catastrophe.
At the same time Turkey's lira
continues to face heavy selling after a
deputy central bank governor resigned
with the economy facing a possible
recession, made worse by US sanctions.
The currency has also lost about half its
value this year.
The flight out of emerging market
units hit India, where the rupee fell to
71 against the dollar for the first time on
Friday. The embattled currency has has
lost about 10 percent this year.
And the Indonesian rupiah also
dived, briefly hitting the 14,750 to the
dollar mark seen during the Asian
financial crisis in 1998.
Both countries' problems have been
exacerbated by ballooning current
account deficits, while a series of
interest rate hikes has failed to staunch
the selling in their currencies.
"The spillover from the resurfacing
emerging-market turmoil in the
Argentina peso and Turkish lira is
weighing on EM Asia currencies," Ken
Cheung, senior FX strategist at Mizuho
Bank in Singapore, told Bloomberg
News.
Other emerging market and highyielding
currencies were also in the red
with South Korea's won down 0.4
percent, Australia's dollar 0.6 percent
down
and the South African rand 0.8
percent off.
Global markets have gone into
reverse since Bloomberg said Trump
wanted to impose the new levies on
Chinese goods as soon as public
consultation ends next week. The move
would add to the $50 billion already
levied.
The report follows talks last week
between the world's top two economies
-
All three major Wall Street indexes
ended down, with the S&P 500 and
Nasdaq ending a streak of four
straight days of records.
Tokyo ended marginally lower, while
Hong Kong sank one percent and
Shanghai lost 0.5 percent. A betterthan-forecast
reading on Chinese
manufacturing activity was unable to
lift the gloom.
Sydney fell 0.5 percent, while
Singapore was off 0.2 percent.
Wellington, Taipei, Manila and Jakarta
were also sharply lower but Seoul rose
0.7 percent.
Global markets had started the week
on a high, fuelled by hopes for a new
Canada-US-Mexico trade pact and
easing Brexit fears
"One thing's for sure - Sino-US trade
developments are destined to be the
defining feature of September's
markets," said Ray Attrill, head of
foreign-exchange strategy at the
National Australia Bank.
"We are inclined to take the headlines
that Trump is minded to announce his
intentions to ratchet up tariffs on China
as early as next week at face value."
Trump's latest comments come
ahead of a summit between Trump and
Chinese President Xi Jinping in
November, with some observers saying
they are part of a strategy by the tycoon
to win concessions.
In early European trade London and
Paris each fell 0.3 percent, while
Frankfurt was 0.6 percent off.
Muklesur Rahman, Managing Director of Shimanto Bank Limited, poses for a photo session after
inaugurating its 2nd founding anniversary programme at its head office in the city on Saturday. High
officials of the Bank were also present.
Photo: Courtesy
Argentine peso recovering after
record low against dollar
Argentina's peso was
recovering on Friday after
President Mauricio Macri's
bid to secure accelerated
IMF funding sparked two
days of crashes that sent it
to a record low against the
dollar, reports BSS.
The peso recovered
almost five percent on
Friday to end the day at
37.98 to the dollar, as the
Central Bank sold $250
million of its reserves to put
the brakes on the peso's
plummet.
It had lost 20 percent of
its value over the previous
two days.
The peso was trading at
almost 40 to the dollar at
the end of Thursday after
the Central Bank hiked
interest rates to 60 percent
- the highest in the world -
in a desperate bid to
stabilize a currency in
freefall since Macri
revealed the day before he
had asked the International
Monetary Fund to advance
the remainder of an agreed
$50 billion loan.
An initial $15 billion
tranche was released by the
IMF when the three-year
stand-by loan was agreed in
June, with another $3
billion due next month.
Part of that first
installment was meant to
help shore up the peso, but
that backfired after Macri's
announcement as the crisis
in investor confidence
deepened.
"It is now unclear if that
will be enough to stabilize
the government's finances
amid persistent reserve
drain," said Europe-based
Deutsche Bank analyst Jim
Reid.
Argentina's currency has
lost more than 50 percent
of its value against the
dollar since the start of
2018, when the rate was 18
to one.
Inflation over the last 12
months is at around 30
percent.
"It's a worrying situation,
our salaries have lost 15
percent of their value," said
46-year-old bank
employee, Monica Vaccaro.
Finance Minister Nicolas
Dujovne is heading to
Washington next week to
"continue to progress" talks
with the IMF on
"additional disbursements
in 2019."
The IMF released a
statement saying its "goal is
to rapidly conclude these
talks and submit the
revised economic plan to
the Executive Board."
Chief spokesman Gerry
Rice said the IMF was
"confident that the strong
commitment and
determination of the
Argentine authorities will
help the country overcome
the current difficulties."
Argentina isn't out of the
water yet, according to
independent researchers
Capital Economics, who
released a report warning
that "investor confidence is
fragile."
And it said that if the
"government fails to deliver
a convincing austerity plan
on Monday" that would be
a "trigger for further falls in
the peso."
Macri's request had seen
the peso lose almost 7.0
percent on Wednesday and
when it opened on
Thursday down another
4.0 percent, the Central
Bank decided to intervene,
pledging to keep interest
rates at 60 percent until
December at least.
But that measure didn't
stop the fall as the peso
ended the day down 13.5
percent.
On Friday, the S&P
ratings agency placed
Argentina's short- and
long-term credit ratings
under review for a possible
downgrade.
Although it praised
Macri's efforts to "stabilize
the economy through
difficult austerity
measures," it said that
"recent pressure on the
Argentine currency could
jeopardize the effective
implementation of
economic adjustment
measures."
Cabinet Chief Marcos
Pena had tried to downplay
the crash, saying: "We are
not facing economic failure.
"This is a transformation,
not failure. In that
transformation there are
difficult moments."
The peso crash did at
least have a positive impact
on markets, though, with
the Merval index on the
Buenos Aires stock market
jumping 5.34 percent by
close on Thursday on the
back of strong
performances in the
petroleum sector, notably
by Brazilian giant
Petrobras.
Macri's government has
committed to reducing its
budget deficit to 2.7 percent
this year, from 3.9 percent
in 2017, and to 1.3 percent
of GDP next year in return
for IMF support.
Speaking on Thursday at
the opening of the Council
of the Americas business
chamber in Buenos Aires,
Pena blamed Argentina's
economic woes on the freespending
policies of Macri's
predecessor, Cristina
Kirchner and her left-wing
government.
Deutsche Bank's Reid
says Argentina is managing
its "currency crisis in a
more conventional
manner" now with the
central bank raising
interest rates "to the
highest in the world."
Chinese airlines'
profit hit by fuel
costs, weak yuan
China's major airlines
mostly saw their earnings
battered in the first half of
the year as a weaker Chinese
yuan and higher fuel prices
offset steadily rising
passenger traffic, reports
BSS.
Net profit at China Eastern
Airlines for January-June
plunged 48 percent on-year
to 2.3 billion yuan ($337
million), the company said
Thursday in a statement to
the Hong Kong stock
exchange, where it is listed.
"China's civil aviation
industry continued to
maintain a rapid, above
double-digit growth rate, yet
also faced challenges such as
a sharp rise in fuel prices,
large fluctuations in …
exchange rates and
intensifying market
competition," the Shanghaibased
carrier said.
China Southern Airlines,
Asia's largest carrier, said
earlier in the week that profit
slumped 24 percent to 2.1
billion yuan. However, it
said revenue grew 12 percent
and it posted similar gains in
passenger numbers, the
latest in what has become
routinely good news in the
underlying business of
Chinese airlines.
Flag carrier Air China
bucked the trend, posting a
4.05 percent profit gain to
3.5 billion yuan.
Air China noted, however,
that fast growth in transport
capacity may have outpaced
demand during the period.
The three governmentcontrolled
airlines have
ramped up their presence in
the booming domestic
market after previously
expanding overseas routes.
China is now the world's
second-largest aviation
market, and increasing
demand for air travel among
its growing middle class is
expected to ultimately push
it past the United States.

MISCELLANEOUS
MoNDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2018
11
Egypt's president
ratifies law to
monitor social media
Egypt's presidency has ratified a controversial legislation
imposing regulations on social media that is says aims to
crack down on fake news, reports UNB.
The law, published in the country's official gazette on
Saturday, places social media accounts with over 5,000
followers under the supervision of the top media authority,
which can block them if found to be disseminating false
news.
In August, the president ratified an anti-cybercrime law
empowering authorities to order the blocking of websites
that publish content considered a threat to national security.
Amnesty International criticized both legislations in a July
statement saying they "give the state near-total control over
print, online and broadcast media."
Egypt has regularly jailed journalists as part of a crackdown
on dissent since the 2013 military overthrow of an elected but
divisive Islamist president.
Trump visits golf course
while Washington
mourns McCain
For President Donald Trump, it was just like any other
Saturday.
As political dignitaries gathered in Washington to
memorialize Sen. John McCain, the president tweeted
familiar grievances and headed to the golf course, reports
UNB.
McCain's family had made clear the president was not
welcome at the funeral for the six-term senator and
decorated war veteran at the Washington National
Cathedral. Seated in the pews were three former presidents,
a host of lawmakers, and top officials from around the world.
Speakers at the service did not mention Trump by name but
repeatedly drew contrasts between McCain's record of
service and the divisive politics of the day.
The White House did not answer questions about whether
Trump played golf or if he watched the service from afar.
Dressed in a white polo shirt and baseball hat, Trump left
the White House in the morning as the late senator's
daughter, Meghan McCain, delivered an emotional address
that served as a direct rebuke of Trump and his policies. The
tributes still underway, the presidential motorcade whisked
him to Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia.
Throughout the day, Trump tweeted gripes about trade
talks with Canada and the Justice Department. By
midafternoon he had not named McCain, who had been an
infuriating foil in a long-running feud that did not end with
the senator's illness and death. Earlier in the week, Trump
drew sharp rebukes for offering a terse statement about
McCain's death under pressure following two days of nearsilence.
The feelings of many at the memorial were quite clear.
Meghan McCain drew applause when she said, "The America
of John McCain has no need to be made great again because
America was always great."
As the memorial service unfolded, some Trump allies
jumped to his defense.
"@realDonaldTrump ran for @POTUS ONE time and
WON! Some people will never recover from that," tweeted
Katrina Pierson, an adviser to Trump's re-election campaign.
Trump has frequented his golf courses in Virginia, New
Jersey and Florida throughout his presidency, though the
White House often will not say if he plays. Trump repeatedly
blistered President Barack Obama during the 2016 campaign
for golfing, telling cheering supporters that as president he'd
be far too busy working for them.
"I'm not gonna have time to go play golf," he would shout.
Trump's visit to the course drew some direct commentary.
When the president left his club in the midafternoon a small
group of protesters greeted him. Their signs read "Lock Him
Up" and "RIP John McCain, a hero."
Ugandan opposition
pop star flies to US for
treatment
A Ugandan pop star-turned-opposition lawmaker said
Saturday he has arrived in the United States for medical care
after allegedly being tortured while in detention, reports
UNB.
Bobi Wine, whose real name is Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, said
on Twitter Saturday that he suffered "brutal torture" by
soldiers with the presidential guard, allegations the
government has denied.
He posted a photo of himself in an airport corridor, sitting
in a wheelchair and holding crutches, though it wasn't clear
which city he was in.
Ssentamu left Uganda late Friday after an attempt to leave
the previous day was blocked by officials who said he needed
first to get clearance from the government because of his
allegations of torture.
The holding of Ssentamu caused sporadic protests in some
parts of the capital, Kampala.
Ssentamu and several other lawmakers are charged with
treason over an incident on Aug. 13 in which the president's
motorcade was pelted with stones. Ssentamu was freed on
bail Monday.
Video posted by human rights attorney Nicholas Opiyo
showed the 36-year-old singer in his trademark red beret and
carrying crutches as he was wheeled to the departure gate
late Friday, saluting and thanking supporters along the way.
Another lawmaker who was blocked on Thursday from
flying to India for treatment, Francis Zaake, was still being
held in a hospital Friday night.
Ssentamu has emerged as a powerful opposition voice
among youth frustrated by President Yoweri Museveni, 74,
who has been in power for 32 years and oversaw a
constitutional change last year to remove an age limit on the
presidency.
The singer won a parliament seat last year without the
backing of a political party.
Dozens of global musicians including Chris Martin,
Angelique Kidjo and Brian Eno last week issued an open
letter condemning the treatment of Ssentamu, who in his
first public appearance after his arrest had to walk with
support and appeared to cry.
The treason charges have heightened concerns about a
crackdown on the opposition in this East African nation.
Museveni, a close U.S. security ally, has spoken in recent
days about "unprincipled politicians taking advantage of our
unemployed youth to lure them into riots and
demonstrations."
Non-Government Primary School Association formed a human chain in the capital city yesterday for
nationalization.
Photo : TBT
McCain ends 81-year
journey with burial
at Naval Academy
John McCain is being laid to rest at
the U.S. Naval Academy after a fiveday
procession that served as a final
call to arms for a nation he warned
could lose its civility and sense of
shared purpose, reports UNB.
The private ceremony in
Annapolis, Maryland, was as
carefully planned as the rest of
McCain's farewell tour, which began
in Arizona after he died Aug. 25
from brain cancer and stretched to
Washington.
On Saturday, speeches by his
daughter Meghan and two former
presidents - Republican George
W. Bush and Democrat Barack
Obama - remembered McCain as a
patriot who could bridge painful
rivalries. But even as their
remarks made clear their
admiration for him, they
represented a repudiation of
President Donald Trump's brand
of tough-talking, divisive politics.
"So much of our politics, our
public life, our public discourse can
seem small and mean and petty,
'Strict law
enforcement
crucial to road
safety'
RAJSHAHI: Administrative and police officials at a
training session here unanimously observed that strict
enforcement of traffic rules besides creating wideranging
mass-awareness has become an urgent need to
ensure road safety, reports BSS.
They mentioned that the country experiences over
5,000 road accidents in every year claiming over 4,000
lives and injuring many others. The total loss of
properties in the accidents is estimated over Taka 5000
crore which is 2 percent of the country's total GDP.
They were addressing the inaugural session of an
eight-day training workshop styled "Citizens Duty for
Road Safety" in the conference hall of divisional office of
Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) in the city
on Saturday.
The district administration organized the workshop
with the main thrust of disseminating ideas relating to
the existing traffic rules among drivers so that they can
avert road accident.
Chaired by Deputy Commissioner SM Abdul Kader, the
session was addressed, among others, by Additional
District Magistrate Nasima Khatun, Superintendent of
Police Md Shahidullah, Assistant Commissioner (Traffic)
of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police Anirban Chakravarty
and BRTA Assistant Director Kamrul Islam.
The speakers mentioned that the drivers alone are not
responsible for any accident but other reasons like
frequent movement of the pedestrians is equally
responsible.
They underlined the need for a strict enforcement of
laws together with collective efforts of all to reduce road
accidents significantly.
Enhancement of competence and awareness of the
professional drivers and others concerned is very
important to this end.
Abdul Kader observed that road accidents could have
reduced substantially if the authorities concerned had
discharged duties properly while providing driving
licenses and fitness certificates.
He told the meeting that the government has launched
training so that the drivers can get proper training round
the year.
A step has also been taken to incorporate the issue of
road accident and its causes and prevention ways in the
course-curriculum besides other various programs to
reduce the country's road accidents by 50 percent within
the next 15 years, he added.
trafficking in bombast and insult
and phony controversies and
manufactured outrage," Obama
said. "It's a politics that pretends to
be brave and tough but in fact is
born in fear. John called on us to be
bigger than that. He called on us to
be better than that."
McCain was gone, said Bush, who
called his 2000 rival for the GOP
presidential nomination a friend.
"John's voice will always come as a
whisper over our shoulder - we are
better than this, America is better
than this," Bush said.
But it was Meghan McCain's
emotional remarks that most
bluntly rebuked Trump, who had
mocked her father for getting
captured in Vietnam. At the pulpit
of the spectacular cathedral, with
Trump's daughter Ivanka in the
audience, McCain's daughter
delivered a broadside against the
uninvited president.
"The America of John McCain,"
she declared with a steely stare, "has
no need to be made great again
because America was always great."
The audience of Washington's
military, civilian and other leaders
burst into applause.
With that, McCain's family,
including his 106-year-old mother,
Roberta, is escorting his remains to
Annapolis on Sunday.
McCain's choice of burial location
was as deliberate as the other details
of his procession. He picked the
historic site overlooking the Severn
River over the grandeur of Arlington
National Cemetery, where his father
and grandfather, both admirals, are
buried. Larson, McCain's beloved
friend from their Class of 1958, had
reserved four plots at the storied
cemetery - two for McCain and
himself, and two for their wives,
now widows. Larson died in 2014,
and McCain wrote in his recent
memoir that he wanted to be buried
next to his friend, "near where it
began."
Trump was to remain in
Washington. He spent Saturday
tweeting and golfing in Virginia.
Workshop on
online power
connection held
in Rangpur
RANGPUR: Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board
(BREB) organised a workshop on Online Power
Connection System evolved by its own experts at
Rangpur Palli Bidyut Samity (PBS-2) at its Paglapeer
headquarters here on Saturday, reports BSS.
The daylong workshop was arranged with a view to
providing new power connections to the clients of BREB
through digitised online services quickly in a completely
hassle-free manner.
General mangers, deputy general mangers (technical),
assistant general managers and junior engineers (IT) of
all PBSs under Rangpur zone, entrepreneurs of union
digital centres, BREB clients, civil society members and
journalists participated in the workshop.
Member (planning and development) of BREB Md
Abdus Salam attended the workshop as the chief guest
with its general manager of Rangpur PBS-2 Engineer Md
Ali Hossain in the chair.
Director (technical) of the Geographic Information
System (GIS) Directorate of BREB Md Golam Mostafa,
its Director (Technical) of the ICT Directorate Hedayetul
Islam, Superintending Engineer (Additional Charge) for
Rangpur Zone Md Enamul Haque and President of the
PBS-2 Board Abu Hena Md Anwarul Islam attended as
special guests.
The high officials elaborately discussed the online
application process evolved by the IT experts of BREB
for providing power connections to the clients easily in a
hassle-free manner.
The chief guest said the customers would not need to
go PBS offices to get power connections and they would
get the same quickly through online registration and
paying necessary money by availing the Rocket mobile
banking services.
He directed the BREB and PBS officials and engineers
to popularise the online power connection system among
the people and ensure providing power connection to
eliminate proximity to free the organisations from
corruptions and irregularities.
Two customers Sirajul Islam of Paglapeer Haridebpur
and Mariyam Begum of Uttam Hajirhat villages under
Rangpur PBS-2 were given residential electricity
connections soon after their online applications while
the workshop was progressing.
African banker: Trade
deficit prominent at
China conference
The chief executive of Africa's largest bank says the
continent's leaders are likely to press their Chinese hosts at a
conference this week to help narrow their trade imbalances
with Beijing by shifting more manufacturing to Africa,
reports UNB.
China has passed Europe and the United States as the
biggest trading partner of most African countries. Most run
large trade deficits with Beijing, exporting minerals and
buying Chinese manufactured goods.
The chief executive of South Africa's Standard Bank Group,
Sim Tshabalala, told reporters he believed the trade
imbalance "will be placed firmly on the table" by delegates to
the conference this week in Beijing.
China's commercial presence in Africa has prompted
complaints in some countries that the continent gets too little
economic benefit from the relationship.
Hope and caution in
North Korea as Kim
Jong Un shifts gears
Tanned and wearing a swimsuit, So Myong Il walks to the
barbecue pit and throws on some clams, reports UNB.
He obviously loves the beach he's on as well as the rugged,
emerald Chilbo mountains that rise abruptly behind it. He
loves them enough to forget, for a moment at least, that he is
a senior official sent to deliver an ideology-soaked pitch
singing their praises and instead lets the natural beauty
surrounding him speak for itself.
Comrade So sees great things for North Korean attractions
like this.
Hotels, big and small. Tourists from all over the country,
maybe the world. "As long as we have the leadership of our
respected Marshal," he says, referring to leader Kim Jong
Un, "our future will be bright indeed."
So wouldn't think of questioning the leader, but there is a
hint of apprehension in his voice. And he isn't alone.
North Korea is pushing ahead with a new strategy of
economic development and the intensified diplomacy with
China, South Korea and the United States that such a move
requires. But hopes for a better future are mixed with
concern over potential downsides of political or social
volatility, and something that's harder to articulate: a fear of
the unknown - even if it appears far more promising than the
arduous path the country has been on for decades.
Even before announcing in January that he had sufficiently
perfected his nuclear arsenal and could start to focus on other
things, Kim has held economic development to be his
primary long-term concern.
He has allowed markets and entrepreneurialism to flourish
and, since succeeding his father as leader seven years ago,
has dramatically transformed the skyline of the capital,
Pyongyang, with several high-rise districts. The
transformation in the east coast city of Wonsan, where Kim
has a summer villa, has been almost as spectacular.
As Kim prepares for the 70th anniversary of North Korea's
founding on Sept. 9, his ambitious development plan is being
implemented, from the small-time renovation of town halls
to the almost biblical-scale mobilization of "soldier-builders,"
who are working around the clock to turn the remote
northern city of Samjiyon into yet another showcase of
Pyongyang-style socialism.
Air safety warnings
around key African
hub during strike
Air traffic officials in East Africa are warning of risky
conditions for flights in the region around Ethiopia's
international airport after air traffic controllers there went on
strike over pay, reports UNB.
Addis Ababa is home to state-owned Ethiopian Airlines,
which calls itself Africa's largest carrier. The city is a
diplomatic hub as the African Union headquarters and a
commercial center in the capital of one of Africa's fastestgrowing
economies.
A Kenya Air Traffic Controllers' Association official, Peter
Ang'awa, confirmed to The Associated Press that "issues of
concern have been raised by professionals in the industry.
We have raised those issues."
An International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations
safety bulletin says air controllers indicate that aircraft are
entering the adjacent Nairobi and Khartoum airspaces "in an
uncoordinated manner." It says aircraft may not be receiving
appropriate instructions.
Ethiopia's civil aviation chief, Wosenyeleh Hunegnaw,
confirmed to the AP that Kenya and Sudan have raised
concerns about the safety of inbound and outbound flights in
Ethiopia but called the allegations "totally unfounded and an
utter lie."
All of the claims have been assessed case by case based on
radar data, he said.
"Air traffic controllers across the world have the tendency
to collaborate in a show of solidarity when issues related to
benefits and pay are raised, and we have informed this to the
international civil aviation body," Wosenyeleh said.
Ethiopian air traffic controllers began the strike on
Monday after disputes over pay and calls for more
employment benefits. The average monthly salary for an air
traffic controller is around $540.
"They will not achieve their goal by sabotage," the civil
aviation chief said.
He said retired air traffic controllers, some brought in from
other countries and current employees working overtime are
handling the situation.

UNITING PEOPLE EVERYDAY
Monday, dhaka, SePteMber 3, 2018, bhadra 19, 1425 bS, ZIlhaj 22, 1439 hIjrI
youth Conference
2018 in city oct 14
Country's 30pc voters young, says convenor
DHAKA : The Citizen's
Platform for SDGs
(Sustainable Development
Goals), Bangladesh will
organise a day-long conference
titled 'Youth Conference
2018: Bangladesh and
Agenda 2030 -Aspirations of
the Youth' in the city on
October 14.
The objective of the conference
is to make the youth
aware about SDGs and their
roles in implementing the
goals, said the organizers,
reports UNB.
The conference logo, website,
registration, photography
and short-film contests
have already been launched,
said a press release.
Director, Dialogue and
Communication, Centre for
Policy Dialogue (CPD)
Anisatul Fatema Yousuf is the
coordinator of the platform.
In the press release, distinguished
Fellow of CPD and
convenor of the platform Dr
Debapriya Bhattacharya said
nearly 30 per cent of the total
voters in the next general
election is young.
"So, the voice and aspirations
of the youth should be
heard and considered while
designing policies for national
development. The Youth
Conference 2018 will be a
platform for recognising
youth aspirations and inspiring
them to get engaged with
the national policy influencing
process," he was quoted
as saying in a press release.
The core group members of
the platform and executive
director of Transparency
International Bangladesh
(TIB) Dr Iftekharuzzaman
and Executive Director,
Manusher Jonno Foundation
Shaheen Anam also emphasised
and elaborated on the
importance of engaging
youth in the SDG implementation,
said the press release.
The conference activities
include research on youth
employment in Bangladesh,
fair showcasing youth activities,
policy dialogues on
youth concerning issues,
mapping on the NGOs working
on youth Bangladesh,
analysis of government initiatives
on youth development,
analysis of youth agenda in
election manifestoes, youthissue
based policy briefs,
launch of e-library on youth
activities, short-film and
photo competition, cultural
session and a youth declaration
2018.
'tejgaon roads to
remain free of
illegal parking again'
DHAKA : Dhaka North
City Corporation (DNCC)
Panel Mayor Jamal Mostafa
on Sunday said roads near
the Tejgaon truck stand will
remain free from illegal
parking from Monday,
reports UNB.
He came up with the information
while talking to
reporters following a meeting
with truck owners and
workers after visiting the
roads which were illegally
occupied.
Jamal said they were
working to free all the roads
of Dhaka to lessen city
dwellers' sufferings.
At the meeting held at the
office of the truck ownersworkers'
association, the
owners and workers
promised to keep the roads
in truck stand area free of
illegal parking.
"We're working with devotion
to implement the vision
of late DNCC Mayor Annisul
Huq to make modern city
free of traffic chaos," the
DNCC panel mayor added.
two bus passengers were killed and 25 others injured after a train smashed the bus at baroiyarhat
level crossing in Mirsarai upazila early Sunday.
Photo : Star Mail
Gymkhana lake: a breath of
fresh air for narayanganj
NARAYANGANJ : In rapidly urbanising,
largely industrial Narayanganj,
restoration work on the man-made
Gymkhana Lake is proving literally to be
a breath of fresh air for the city's nearly
1.5 million dwellers, reports UNB.
Part of the larger Baburail Canal
Restoration project undertaken by the
Narayanganj City Corporation under
mayor Selina Hayat Ivy, the lake named
after the city's historic Gymkhana Club is
already a popular recreation spot, where
residents flock to avail the opportunities
it provides for play, enjoying some leisure
time or just to hang out with friends in an
outdoor setting without the feeling of
choking yourself on smog.
Some of them call it the 'Hatirjheel of
Narayanganj'- after the sprawling, midtown
drainage and sanitation project
that, with some choice beautifications,
turned into something of an urban oasis
for the besieged residents of capital
Dhaka. The much smaller, more compact
Gymkhana Lake is bordered on its south
side by the Morgan School in Deobhog,
from where it stretches till the Mobarak
Shah Road.
There is seating provided by the NCC at
the north side of lake, while Sheikh
Russel Park is an emerging east side
development, currently featuring an
open stage that gives it the feeling of the
Rabindra Sarobar on Dhanmandi Lake.
Though the park has no lighting system
yet, illumination is not a problem thanks
to the NCC's recent shift to LED lighting
A pedestrian bridge in the middle of
the lake is another beautiful spot on the
Gymkhana Lake. Elevated and secluded,
it is particularly attractive to young couples
on moonlit nights.
A public toilet, a gymnasium and
intriguingly a ladies' swimming pool
are in the pipeline of plans around the
lake, under the Sheikh Russell Park
development component, according to
Mayor Ivy.
holy janmashtami, the birth celebration of Sri krishna and one of the major festivals of the hindu
community, was observed yesterday across the country.
Photo : Star Mail
Chalan Beel boat capsize
two more bodies
recovered
PABNA : The bodies of two
people, who went missing as a
boat sank in the Chalan Beel in
Chatmohar upazilaon
Fridayevening, were recovered
onSunday morning,
reports UNB.
The deceased were identified
as Billal Hossain Goni, scientific
officer of Ishwardi
Regional Agricultural
Research Station, and Rafiqul
Islam Swapan.
A team of divers recovered
their bodies in the morning,
said Chatmohar Upazila
Nirbahi Officer Oshim Kumar.
Earlier, the bodies of Momtaz
Pervin Sheuli, 45, wife of Billal
Hossain, ShahanzPervin Parul,
wife of Mosharraf Hossain
Musa, and Sadia Khatun, 12,
daughter of Rafiqul Islam were
recovered on Saturday. Five
people went missing as a boat
sank in thebeelaround7:30
pmon Friday when a crackdeveloped
at its bottom.
janmashtami celebrated
in country
136 businessmen
to get CIP cards
today
DHAKA : The government will award commercially important
person (CIP) cards to 136 businessmen for their extraordinary
performances in respective fields in 2015.
Commerce minister Tofail Ahmed will hand over the CIP
cards among the awardees at a function to be held at
Radisson Hotel in the city today, reports BSS
Out of the 136 businessmen, 94 will receive the status for
outstanding performances in exports of different types of
products while 42 will get the status under the ex-officio category
of different business chambers and trade bodies.
Among various privileges, the CIPs get special passes to
enter the secretariat, use special stickers on their cars, and
receive invitations to attend some public functions.
They also get priority in seat reservations in airlines, railways,
roads and public transports in the waterways, and get
letters of introduction from the foreign ministry for travelling
abroad. They and their dependants will also get cabins in hospitals
on a priority basis.
DHAKA : The holy Janmashtami, the birth
celebration of Sri Krishna and one of the
major festivals of the Hindu community, was
observed yesterday in the capital and elsewhere
across the country with due religious
fervour and enthusiasm.
According to the Hindu Puran (mythology),
Sri Sri Krishna was born on the eighth tithi of
Shukla Pakkha (fortnight of the new moon) in
the Bangla month of Bhadra and he takes
birth in ages in the world to safeguard the
good and pious people from the hands of bad
persons by establishing truth, justice and
beauty in all sphere of the society.
Different political, socio-cultural and religious
organisations chalked out elaborate programmes
in observance of the Janmashtami.
The day was a public holiday.
In separate messages, President M Abdul
Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
greeted members of the Hindu community on
the occasion of Janmashtami.
To mark the festival, President Abdul
Hamid also hosted a reception to the eminent
citizens of Hindu community at Bangabhaban
at 11 am today with a call to continue communal
harmony to build a happy and prosperous
Bangladesh as envisioned by Father of the
Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur
Rahman.
National dailies published special articles
while Bangladesh Betar, Bangladesh
Television, private TV channels and radio stations
aired special programmes highlighting
different aspects of the eventful life of Sri
Krishna and activities among his disciples
during the worldly days.
The Mohanagar Sarbojonin Puja
Committee has taken a two-day programme
at the Dhakeshwari National Temple to mark
the birth festival of Lord Krishna.
The programme includes prayers for welfare
of the nation and the country tomorrow
through Sri Sri Geeta Jagya at 8 am.
A colourful Janmashtami procession was
brought out at 3 pm from the Dakeswari
National Temple today and ended at Bahadur
Shah Park after parading different city streets,
including Palasy Crossing, Central Shaheed
Minar, Doel Chhattar, High Court, Dhaka
South City Corporation Building, Gulistan and
Nawabpur Road.
Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam, Advisory Editor: Advocate Molla Mohammad Abu Kawser, Managing, Editor: Tapash Ray Sarker, News Editor : Saiful Islam, printed at Sonali Printing Press, 2/1/A, Arambagh 167, Inner Circular Road, Eden Complex, Motijheel, Dhaka.
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