06-06-2022
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Monday
DhAkA: June 6, 2022; Jaishtha 23,1429 BS; Zilquad 5,1443 hijri
www.thebangladeshtoday.com; www.bangladeshtoday.net
Regd.No.DA~2065, Vol.20; N o. 36 ; 12 Pages~Tk.8.00
InternatIonal
Cambodians get new
opposition choice in
local elections
>Page 7
sports
Aussie Lee grabs lead
with 54-hole record at
US Women's Open
>Page 9
art & culture
Ferdous, Nipun in new
film 'Sujon Majhi'
>Page 10
Sitakunda fire kills 49
and injures 450
S M AkASh And AShok dAS,
ChAttogrAM BureAu
At the time of writing this report, 49 people
including 9 fire service personnel were
killed and more than 450 were injured in
the fire at BM Depot in Sitakunda,
Chattogram. An experienced team of
Bangladesh Army is working on permanent
fire control, along with 32 units of fire
service, deployed in rows of ambulances.
The Chattogram Civil Surgeon's Office has
canceled the leave of all doctors in
Chattogram. According to the fire service,
there was hydrogen peroxide in the
exploded container depot.
A seven-member inquiry committee
comprising Chattogram Port Authority,
Chattogram Fire Service and district
administration has been formed. The
State Minister for Shipping has said that
the management of the container depot
were wrong and negligent. The prime
minister and the president offered their
condolences. In this regard, the Inspector
General of Fire Service told The
Bangladesh Today that the fire is not going
3 BAEC officials
among 4 killed in
Savar road crash
DHAKA : Four people including three officials
of Bangladesh Atomic Energy
Commission (BAEC) were killed and 40
others injured in a collision among three
vehicles at Boliarpur on Dhaka-Aricha
highway in Savar Sunday morning.
The deceased were identified as BAEC
engineer Kawsar Hossain, 33, testing officer
Arifuzzaman, 32, scientific officer Puja
Sarkar, 33, and bus driver Rajib, 30, said
SI Sabur Khan, in-charge of Aminbazar
police outpost.
Of the injured, 15 are undertoing treatment
at Enam Medical College and
Hospital in Savar.
According to the police, a bus carrying
officials and employees of BAEC was
going to Ganakbari in Savar from the city
in the morning. The bus ploughed through
a road divider after its driver lost control
over the steering and a speeding truck carrying
cows hit the bus from behind at the
same time.
The accident got even deadlier when
another bus hit the damaged the bus and
the truck , leaving three people dead on the
spot and 40 others injured, SI Sabur said.
On information, Savar Fire Service
members and police reached the spot and
rushed the injured to Enam Medical
College and Hospital in Savar.
Severely injured bus driver Rajib died
while undergoing treatment there, said
hospital sources.
The bodies of the deceased were recovered
by Savar Police, said the SI.
On the other hand, BAEC authority
seeks eternal peace of the departed souls
and expressed heartfelt sympathy to the
members of the bereaved families.
Zohr
03:45 AM
12:05 PM
04:35 PM
06:47 PM
08:15 PM
5:10 6:44
to be brought under control in any way.
An expert team from the military
arrived at the scene to bring the fire under
control. At least 39 people, including eight
firefighters, were killed in the blaze,
according to the latest reports. The matter
has been confirmed by Sitakunda Upazila
Nirbahi Officer, Shahadat Hossain.
The fire broke out at 8:30 pm on
Saturday at the BM Container Depot in
Kashem Jute Mill area of Sonaichhari
Union in Sitakunda Upazila. Initially, a
total of 183 firefighters were deployed in
29 units of the fire service. Meanwhile, it
was learned that more than 150 people
were admitted to CMC Hospital but it
could not be confirmed. Military Academy
Hospitals, including various private hospitals
in Chattogram, are open for injured
patients, he said.
Chattogram Agrabad Fire Service
Senior Station Officer Enamul Haque confirmed
the incident to The Bangladesh
Today and said that the fire service officials
rushed to the spot after receiving the news
of the fire. The exact cause of the fire will
be known at the end of the operation.
the first
hajj flight
from
Bangladesh
has left the
country on
Sunday.
Photo : tBt
Witnesses said the blast caused a massive
tremor in an area of 5 to 6 kilometers around
the container depot. The windows of hundreds
of houses in and around the mosque
were shattered, causing extensive damage.
A DNA test has been arranged to identify
the body, said Shahidul Islam, assistant
(AC) commissioner of the city's
Chawkbazar zone. He said the Panchlaish
Model Police Station is preparing an
inquest and sending the body to
Chattogram Medical College (CMC)
morgue for autopsy. There, DNA will be
collected for identification. The bodies of
those whose relatives are missing will be
handed over after DNA testing.
"In this regard, I have no language to say
and I am very shocked and saddened",
remarked Sitakunda MP Mohammad
Didarul Alam to The Bangladesh Today.
Sitakunda Upazila Chairman Abdullah
Al Mamun told The Bangladesh Today
that the need for a lot of blood and the
humanity that the people of Chattogram
have showed to meet this need is rare in
the history of the country.
>(Contd. on page-2)
BERC increases
residential gas price
1 stove 990, 2 stoves 1080 Tk
SAfiqul iSlAM
Thus, people are suffering due to the increase
in the prices of daily necessities. In such a situation,
the price of gas to the residents was
increased. At the consumer level, the price of
natural gas has been increased from TK 9.70
per cubic meter to
TK 22.78 per cubic
meter and increased
to TK 11.91 per cubic
meter. Besides, the
current price of one
stove has been
increased from TK
950 to TK 990 and
for two stoves from
TK 975 to TK 1,080.
The current price
for pre-paid meter customers has been increased
from TK 12.60 paisa to TK 18. Many people think
that this will increase the suffering of the common
people. The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory
Commission issued the order on Sunday regarding
the price of natural gas at the consumer level.
The price of this gas has been effective
from June 1. That means customers will
have to pay this extra bill at the end of
this month. Abu Farooq, acting chairman
of BERC, announced the new rates.
Among others, commission members
Maqbool E Ilahi Chowdhury, Bazlur
Rahman and Kamruzzaman took part.
The highest increase of 259 percent in fertilizer
production, 11.96 percent in large scale
industries, 12 percent in electricity and 15.5
percent in captive has been increased.
However, the price of CNG has not been
increased.In a written statement, Abu
Farooq said the distribution
and transmission
company
had applied with
Petro Bangla in early
January last year
under Section 34 of
6 the Commission
Act.
The hearing was
held from March 21
to 24. At the hearing,
the BERC technical committee recommended
an increase in the price of all types of gas.
The price of gas has been increased as per
section 22 (b) and section 34 of the
Commission Act. It was informed at the
press conference that there would be a deficit
of TK 11,800 crore. Out of this amount, the
government will provide TK 6,800 crore as
subsidy in the budget. On the other hand,
energy security fund and dividends of companies
will be paid at RS 4,800 crore. Asked
how the residential pre-paid meter would be
recharged in June.
A massive fire at a container depot near a port city in southeastern Bangladesh killed at least 49
people, including nine firefighters, and injured more than 100 others.
Photo : tBt
No JSC, JDC exams
this year, says
Education Minister
DHAKA : Like the previous year, Junior
School Certificate (JSC) and Junior Dakhil
Certificate (JDC) examinations will not be
held this year, said Education Minister
Dipu Moni on Sunday.
"Students will be promoted to the next
class on the basis of the results of final
exams in their respective schools.
However, they will receive a certificate
from their respective Board of Education,"
she told reporters at the secretariat.
She said an announcement about the
inclusion of new educational institutions
under the government's monthly payment
order (MPO) will be made within a week.
The online application for MPO inclusion
began on October 10, 2021.
Hajj flight begins
DHAKA : This year's maiden hajj flight of
Biman Bangladesh Airlines carrying 410
pilgrims left Hazrat Shahjalal
International Airport (HSIA) here for
Saudi Arabia yesterday morning.
State Minister for Civil Aviation M
Mahbub Ali and State minister for
Religious Affairs Md Faridul Haque Khan
saw the pilgrims off before the national
flag carrier taking off HSIA around 9 am.
According to the bilateral agreement
between Bangladesh and the Saudi
Arabia, a total of 57,585 Bangladeshis will
be able to perform hajj this year.
The national flag carrier Biman will
carry 29,000 hajj pilgrims by three Boeing
777 aircraft under its 130 dedicated flights
with 65 round trips while the Saudi
Arabian state-owned airlines Saudia and
Flynas transfer rest of the hajjis.
Biman will operate pre-hajj flight till
July 3 to Jeddah and Madina and posthajj
flight from July 14 to August 13.
Saudia and Flynas will start operating
hajj flight from June 10.
BM Container calculates
loss up to 100 crore
SM AkASh, ChAttogrAM BureAu
Private ICDs started their operation in
the country in 1974 with the introduction
of ICDs under the name of Sea Fayers
Limited, then 19 private ICDs were
formed step by step till 2021 without any
policy. In 2016, according to the offdock
policy, there are instructions to set up off
dock within 20 kilometers of the port. In
19 private ICDs,
100% of the exported
goods were loaded
into containers and
taken to the port for
shipping. Besides, 36
types of imported
goods including food
items were brought
to the depot for
unloading.
These ICDs are located
within 1 to 25 kilometers
of Chattogram
port. There are about
19,000 containers in
the BM container
depot in the horrific fire that broke out in
the Bhatiari area of Sitakunda in
Chattogram on June 4. According to the
district administration, several of these
containers contained dangerous combustible
substances.
And that's where the main explosion
took place. Where hydrogen peroxide
was stored. The BM container authorities
have claimed that thousands of crores of
taka have been lost due to the blast.
Mojibur Rahman, managing director of
Smart Group and director of BM
Container Depot, told The Bangladesh
Today that, "I have lost everything. Our
loss in this fire has exceeded about a thousand
crores of taka. The chemical hydrogen
peroxide never burns on its own.
Excessive heat ignites the fire. "If the fire
service had worked properly, nothing
would have happened here."
Asked how many workers worked in the
depot, Mojibur Rahman said there were
more than 100 workers in the depot. We
are bearing the medical expenses of all the
injured. I am working on how I can help
others who have been harmed, how I can
help myself who have been injured. We
are supervising and bearing the medical
expenses of our staff in different hospitals
of Chattogram and Sitakunda.
>(Contd. on page-2)
BD a star of growth, says IFAD
DHAKA : Terming Bangladesh a growth
star in the region, Reehana Rifat Raza, the
regional director of the Asia and Pacific
Division at the International Fund for
Agricultural Development (IFAD), has
urged Bangladesh to keep the focus on rural
development.
"The rural economy is very important. You
know, that's where a large share of people
lives. Despite having heavy urbanization, it's
not a sustainable path in some sense. And we
have to look at how we make rural areas
attractive economic centers," she told UNB in
an interview. The rural areas should be made
'attractive' for economic growth to keep the
people resilient to different shocks both on climate
change and poverty fronts, she said
The economist who visited Bangladesh
recently, said their projects are doing very
well and there is a real benefit on the ground
as they do impact assessments. She said the
countries like Bangladesh which are moving
towards the next level of development have
a real challenge as they have a large number
of populations that live in the rural areas.
"The real challenge is when the structural
change happens, and it happens in all the
economies as they develop. We move from
agriculture to industry and to services," Raza
said, emphasizing that they need to think
about looking at shifting people and see how
they generate the income because agriculture
no longer can serve as the primary
means of livelihood. Raza, who joined IFAD
in May 2022 from the Urban Institute in
Washington D.C., USA, said they are looking
at resilience and offering multiple means
of generating incomes and helping the people
live in the rural areas as climate change
is a big issue there.
Small-scale farmers produce one-third of
the world's food, but receive only 1.7 per cent
of climate finance, according to the international
financial institution and specialized
United Nations agency based in Rome.
IFAD is stepping up its investments globally
to build small-scale farmers' long-term
resilience to climate change by dedicating
40 per cent of its core resources to climate
action over the next three years, up from 35
per cent (equivalent to US$1.2 billion) over
the previous three-year period.
MOnDAY, jUnE 6, 2022
2
Professor Dr. M Lutfar Rahman, Vice Chancellor, Prof. Dr. S M Mahbub Ul Haque, Pro Vice
Chancellor and Prof. Dr. Mostafa Kamal, Dean Academic Affairs of Daffodil International University
are leading the Rally at Daffodil International University brought out to mark the "World
Environment Day 2022".
Photo : Courtesy
Early treatment can cure clubfoot problems: experts
RANGPUR : Experts at a discussion
yesterday said early treatment can cure
the clubfoot problem of babies born
with crooked feet to the tune of 5,000
annually in Bangladesh.
Treatment of babies born with
clubfoot problems should be started as
soon as possible after their birth, they
said.
Walk for Life, a Bangladesh Clubfoot
project run by The Glencoe
Foundation, organized the event with
the support of donor organizations
Miracle Fit and Action on Poverty at a
private medical college here in
observance of the World Clubfoot Day-
2022. Associate Professor and Head of
the Department of Orthopedics and
Traumatology of Rangpur Prime
Medical College and Hospital
(RPMCH) Dr Shariful Haque Sharif,
Social Services officer Md. Nazrul
Islam, Physiotherapist of The Glencoe
Foundation and Walk for Life project
Nazrul Islam Nayeem and President of
Parosh Protibondhi Unnayan Sangstha
Atiar Rahman addressed the
discussion. Dr. Sharif said clubfoot or
crooked foot or curved foot is a type of
birth defect in a baby's body that can be
seen from the time the baby is born.
"This defect affects the structure and
function of one or more organs of the
baby. Children under the age of three
are receiving cost-free treatment and
medical care through The Glencoe
Foundation's Walk for Life project in
Bangladesh," he said.
"As many as 30,500 children with
clubfoot problems have been treated in
the country in the last 14 years from
2009 to May 2022. About 95 percent of
them recovered through treatment," he
said. Physiotherapist Nayeem said the
government is working jointly with
development agencies through
different projects to remove disability
of children from the country.
FBCCI President
mourns deaths in
container depot fire
DHAKA : FBCCI President
Md. Jashim Uddin has
expressed deep sorrow at
the loss of lives and injuries
in BM Container depot fire
at Sitakunda in Chattogram.
In a condolence message
on Sunday, the FBCCI
president prayed for the
salvation of the departed
souls extended his deepest
sympathy to the bereaved
family members.
He called for ensuring
maximum safe working
environment in all industrial
mills, buildings and
warehouses to avoid such
tragic accident in future.
Parliament goes
into budget session
SANGSAD BHABAN : The
Parliament opened its
budget session on Sunday.
The national budget for
FY2022-23 will be debated
and approved during this
18th session of the 11th
Parliament.
The session started at 5pm
with Speaker Shirin
Sharmin Chaudhury in the
chair. Finance Minister
AHM Mustafa Kamal is
slated to place the budget
proposals on June 9.
On May 18 last, President
Abdul Hamid summoned
the JS session exercising
power bestowed upon him
by Article 72(1) of the
Constitution.
JS selects 5-member
panel of chairpersons
SANGSAD BHABAN :
Speaker Shirin Sharmin
Chaudhury on Sunday
nominated a five-member
panel of chairpersons for the
18th session of the 11th
parliament.
The panel members are
Shamsul Islam Tuku, AB
Tajul Islam, Muhibur
Rahman Manik, Mujibul
Huq Chunnu and Hamima
Akhter Khanom.
Sitakunda fire
from page 1
In any difficult situation of the
country, it is visible today that
the people of Chattogram jump
into the service of the highest
humanity.
Sitakunda Model Police Station
OC Abul Kalam Azad told
The Bangladesh Today that
export goods were stored at the
container depot. Upon receiving
the news of the fire, the
police of Model Police Station
went to the spot. The bombardment
struck shortly after
noon in front of a police station,
injuring several policemen.
One policeman's leg was
severed in the blast. He said
people were being stopped at
the entrance of the depot to
avoid the accident and awareness
was being done in the
area's mosque to evacuate the
locals to a safe distance.
The BM container depot,
spread over an area of 26 acres,
employs at least 1,000 people,
sources said. There are more
than a thousand containers
laid out one on top of the other.
In the first case, a fire broke out
in a container full of chemicals
and firefighters had to rush for
three to four hours. Most of the
casualties were caused by curious
crowds who were on duty
at the scene or went live from
their mobile phones and
watching the blaze. The first
flammable container exploded
two hours later, causing extensive
damage. One flammable
container after another on the
back of the container caught
fire. In addition to the chemical
containers, there were containers
of garments and poultry
feed. Drivers were able to rescue
at least 130 car-covered
vans on the east side of the area
when they were able to control
the blaze at 2 am. The fire started
at 8.30 pm and was burning
for a long time. Since late night,
volunteers from thousands of
social, political, religious, government
and non-government
organizations provided services
to CMC Hospital and BM
Container Depot in Shitalpur.
Chattogram Civil Surgeon
Elias Chowdhury has called
upon all the doctors and nurses
in Chattogram to cancel
their leave and come to the
spot immediately.
BM Container calculates
from page 1
According to relevant
sources, there are 19 private
container depots in the
whole country. According to
the rules of the Board of
Revenue of the country, it is
mandatory to bring 41 types
of imported cargo containers
through Chattogram
port to such depots and
unload them. On the other
hand, at present no export
goods are loaded in containers
at the port. About 93 per
cent of the exported goods
are brought to these depots
from factories and loaded in
containers and exported
through ports.
In response to a question
as to why the chemical was
hidden, the depot authorities
said, "We did not hide
any information from the
fire service. What we need
most now, from a moral and
humanitarian point of view,
is to stand by the victims,
that is what we are doing."
We are being humiliated in
the media in a purposeful
manner which is a disgrace
to the industrial revolution
of the country.
Chattogram District Commissioner
Mominur Rahman
said over the phone
that there were about
19,000 containers in the
depot, some of which contained
dangerous flammable
substances, which spread
the fire quickly.
According to BM Container
Depot sources, there are
about 19,000 containers in
the depot. There are several
empty containers. Most of
The magnitude of the explosion
was such that the chemicals
were mixed with water and
spread around like lava of fire.
Several people were also burnt
when the heat of the explosion
and the chemicals in the hands
and feet of the people on the
spot started burning. Chattogram
BGMEA vice-president
Rakibul Alam Chowdhury said
they could not find the four
members who were staying
there.
Sitakunda Upazila Nirbahi
Officer (UNO) Shahadat Hossain
told The Bangladesh
Today, "I am at the scene all
the time. Some people were
seriously injured in the blast.
The exact number of people
killed is not known at this time.
It will take more time for the
situation to come under control."
Newton Das, Deputy Assistant
Director of the Fire Service,
told The Bangladesh Today
"We have lost our colleagues at
the BM Container Depot,
which is the biggest tragedy for
the fire service and civil
defense in the history of the
country."
the products in the container
are garments products.
These products were
brought to the depot for
export. The goods exported
through Chattogram port
are first brought to the private
container depot. After
completing the tariff
process, the exported goods
are taken directly to Chattogram
port for shipment.
The company claimed that
it had stockpiled flammable
chemicals such as hydrogen
peroxide with the permission
of the Customs Clearance
and Explosives Directorate
and the concerned
department, but the Directorate
of Explosives clarified
that no approval had been
obtained for the BM container
and its name was not
on their approval list.
GD-1075/22 (5 x 4)
22
GD-1078/22 (6 x 4)
GD-1080/22 (9 x 4)
MONDAY, JUNE 6, 2022
3
A national seminar on "Coastal Development at Disaster Risk: Special allocation Needs in the
National Budget" at the National Press Club on Sunday.
Photo : Courtesy
Integrated action plan will be taken
for the development of the coast
STAFF REPORTER
Planning Minister MA Mannan has
promised to adopt a comprehensive
action plan for the development of the
south-west coast. He said the
government led by Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina believes in balanced
development. So like other areas of the
country, she wants to ensure coastal
development. For this reason, various
projects are being taken up including
construction of sustainable
embankment and solution of water
problem. He also mentioned that the
Haor dam is being considered for the
protection of crops and coastal dams for
the survival of the livelihood.
He made the remarks while
participating in a national seminar on
"Coastal Development at Disaster Risk:
Special allocation Needs in the National
Budget" at the National Press Club on
Sunday. Nikhil Chandra Bhadra,
coordinator of the Sundarbans and
Coastal Protection Movement, presided
over the seminar organized by the nongovernmental
development
organization Faith in Action and the
civic organization Sundarbans and
Coastal Protection Movement. Manjurul
Ahsan Bulbul, Former President of
BUP Celebrates
14th Founding
Anniversary
On Sunday, the 14th founding
anniversary of Bangladesh
University of Professionals
(BUP) was celebrated with
due dignity and excitement.
In the meantime, the
university has entered its 14th
year after successfully
completion of its 13th year. To
celebrate the day, the
buildings were illuminated,
and the corridors were
decorated in various colorful
ways.
To celebrate the day, the
programm has been arranged
in two phases. The first phase
of the programme included
flag hoisting, inauguration of
tree planting and release of
fish fry at BUP Lake by
respected Vice Chancellor. In
addition, 21 stalls were set up
at BUP Concourse under the
supervision of 21 clubs run by
different departments. The
stalls were visited by the
respected Vice Chancellor.
During this time, the
presidents of the clubs briefed
respected VC and senior
officials of BUP about the
current activities of the club,
its success, and future.
In the second part of the
day, a discussion meeting was
organized at Bijoy Auditorium
on the occasion of BUP Day.
BUP VC Major General Md
Mahbub-ul Alam, ndc, afwc,
psc, MPhil, PhD graced the
occasion as the Chief Guest in
the discussion.
Respected Vice-Chancellor
thanked all the former BUP
members for their tireless
work for the present state of
BUP.He advised all the faculty
members, students, officials
and staff to work relentlessly
to take BUP to the zenith of
prosperity. He concluded the
speech by wishing continuous
prosperity and progressof
BUP.
Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists
(BFUJ), delivered the keynote address at
the seminar. Akhtaruzzaman Babu (MP
Khulna-6), Sharifuzzaman, General
Secretary of Citizens' Solidarity,
Moniruzzaman Mukul, General
Secretary of Scan, Nripen Vaidya,
Executive Director of Faith in Action,
Mostafa Kamal Akand of Coast
Foundation, Sakila Parveen, Secretary of
Sports and Culture of Dhaka Journalists
Union and Basanti Rani Mandal, a
sufferer of coastal disaster from Khulna
took part in the seminar.
Speaking as the chief guest, Planning
Minister MA Mannan said the
government is working to develop the
tourism system around the Sundarbans
and coastal areas. Multiple projects have
already been taken up. However, in
order to protect the Sundarbans, it is
necessary to form a joint Sundarbans
Commission with India like Joint River
Commission.
Expressing his commitment to
increase the allocation for coastal
development, the minister said that
under the 'Village will be city' program,
plans have been taken to supply potable
water to all the villages in the country
through pipelines. Along with this
program, rain water conservation
Khaleda’s Gatco graft case
indictment hearing on July 17
DHAKA : A court yesterday
set July 17 for holding
hearing on charge framing
against BNP Chairperson
Begum Khaleda Zia and 17
others in connection with
Gatco graft case.
Judge Ali Hossen of Dhaka
Special Judge Court-3 refixed
the date after filing a
plea by defendant lawyer for
extending time of hearing on
charge framing due to
absence of Begum Zia for her
illness.
On September 2, 2007, the
Anti-Corruption
Commission (ACC) filed the
case against 13 people,
including Khaleda and her
younger son Arafat Rahman
with Tejgaon Police Station
on charges of
misappropriating around
Taka 1,000 crore while
dealing with Global Agro
Trade (Pvt) Company Ltd
(GATCO).
Next day, Khaleda Zia and
Koko were arrested. The case
was included in the
Emergency Powers Act on
September 18 at the same
year.
On May 13, 2008, the antigraft
body pressed charge
sheets against the BNP chief
and 23 others, inflicting 11 in
the case.
Later, the names of six
accused, including Khaleda's
younger son Arafat Rahman
Koko, were dropped out of
the charge sheet following
their deaths on different
dates.
The other accused are-ex-
BNP Minister M Shamsul
Islam, former Minister Dr
Khondoker Mosharraf
projects have been taken up. Pond
renovation and other programs will be
taken.
Demanding an increase in allocation
for various projects in coastal
development, MP Akhtaruzzaman Babu
said that although Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina, daughter of
Bangabandhu, is sincere, allocation is
not being given in coastal projects as
required. Although the cabinet declared
Khulna-Satkhira a disaster risk area, it
was not taken into consideration when
the project was adopted. Allocation for
embankment construction and potable
water projects is not enough. He also
urges to simplify the process to the
development project.
In the keynote address at the seminar,
journalist leader Manjurul Ahsan Bulbul
said that Satkhira, Khulna and Bagerhat
are most at risk among the coastal areas
due to their geographical location,
frequent natural disasters, fragile
infrastructure, poverty, long term
salinity, endangered agriculture and so
on. The people of that region are losing
their dream of survival. They have to give
back that dream. Long-term master plan
initiatives should be taken by declaring
the area as a climate risk area.
On Sunday, the 14th founding anniversary of Bangladesh University
of Professionals (BUP) was celebrated with due dignity and excitement.
Photo : Courtesy
Hossen, former State
Minister for Power, Energy
and Mineral Resources AK
Mosharraf Hossen, former
Chattogram Port Authority
(CPA)
Chairman
Commodore Julfikar Ali,
Jahanara Akber, wife of late
ex-Minister Colonel (retd)
Akbar Hossain and their two
sons-Ismail Hossain Saimon
and AKM Musa Kazal,
former Shipping Secretary
Julfikar Haider Chowdhury,
former CPA Member AK
Rashid Uddin Ahmed,
GATCO Directors Shahjahan
M Hasib, Syed Tanvir
Ahmed and Syed Galib
Ahmed, CPA former
Chairman ASM Shahadat
Hossain, former Port
Director (transport) AM
Sanowar Hossain and former
Port Member Lutful Kabir.
Bangladeshi projects shortlisted for Aga
Khan Award for Architecture 2022
DHAKA : Two Bangladeshi projects
have been shortlisted for the acclaimed
Aga Khan Award for Architecture
(AKAA) 2022 amongst 20 projects
around the world.
Sustainably built structures in the
world's largest Rohingya refugee camps
and a community-driven project
providing public spaces in a riverine
city of Jhenaidah with 250,000
residents- will compete for a share of
the US$ 1 million prize, one of the
largest in architecture.
The twenty shortlisted projects were
selected by an independent Master
Jury from a pool of 463 projects
nominated for the 15th Award Cycle
(2020-2022), said the Aga Khan
Development Network (AKDN) on
Sunday.
Bangladeshi shortlisted projects
include the community spaces in
Rohingya refugee response in Teknaf,
by Rizvi Hassan, Khwaja Fatmi, and
Saad Ben Mostafa: Sustainably built
structures in the world's largest refugee
camps, which occurred collaboratively
in the field without drawings or models,
and Urban River Spaces in Jhenaidah
by Co.Creation.
A community-driven project
providing public spaces in a riverine
city with 250,000 residents, offering
walkways, gardens and cultural
BFUJ, DUJ call
for stopping
terrorist activities
inside JPC
DHAKA : BFUJ-Bangladesh
Federal Union of Journalists
and Dhaka Union of
Journalists (DUJ) have called
for stopping terrorist activities
inside the Jatiya Press Club
(JPC) in the name of holding
political programmes, reports
BSS.
BFUJ President Omar
Faruque and Secretary
General Dip Azad and DUJ
President Sohel Haider
Chowdhury and General
Secretary Akter Hossain
yesterday expressed deep
concern over terrorist
activities by a political party
inside the JPC in the name of
holding
different
programmes.
In a joint statement, they
said, "Leaders and activists of
BNP and its associate bodies
enter the places reserved for
JPC members on the club
premises forcefully almost
every day and humiliate the
JPC members".
The journalist leaders
expressed frustration, saying
that they got no remedy even
after lodging complaints
repeatedly to the JPC
authorities in this regard.
Noting that such insecurity
was never witnessed inside
the JPC, known as the second
home of journalists, they
urged the Home Ministry to
bring the attackers of
journalists and journalist
leaders to justice as soon as
possible and ensure security
inside the JPC as well.
Yunus for creating social business pharm companies
to bring vaccines, medicines to common people
DHAKA : Nobel Laureate Professor
Yunus has proposed creating social
business pharmaceutical companies to
bring vaccines and medicines to all
people at affordable prices.
He came up with the proposal when
he was invited to a parliamentary
breakfast at the Bundestag (German
Parliament) recently by Parliamentary
Secretary of the Ministry of Education
and Research, Mario Brandenburg.
He moderated the hour-long
discussion during the breakfast. The
breakfast was attended by 10
parliament members from diverse
political parties.
Yunus was invited to speak on the
current trend in rise in poverty, impact
of pandemic on the low income people,
impact of Ukrainian war, and the
experiences of application of social
business concept in addressing these
issues.
Prof Yunus pleaded with the
parliament members to support the
campaign to make vaccine a common
good by withdrawing intellectual
facilities, as well as environmental
efforts to increase biodiversity along
the river.
To date, the project comprises two
ghats - steps leading down to platforms
at the river, with adjacent walkways -
and the opening of obstructed
pedestrian pathways leading to them.
Locally available materials such as
brick and concrete were used in the
simple, contextual designs, all built by
local builders and masons; the sitespecific
projects retain all existing trees
and vegetation.
Future phases focus on public use of
the river area with walkways, gardens,
cultural facilities and environmental
efforts to increase biodiversity in the
river.
The AKAA was established by His
Highness the Aga Khan in 1977 to
identify and encourage building
concepts that successfully address the
needs and aspirations of communities
in which Muslims have a significant
presence.
Since it was launched 45 years ago,
122 projects have received the award
and 10,000 building projects have been
documented.
The AKAA has had a storied and
successful presence in Bangladesh with
the Arcadia Education Project in South
Kanarchor (designed by architect Saif
On the occasion of World Environment Day, a rally was held in the campus
on Sunday at the joint initiative of Dhaka University Arboriculture Center
and Estate Office. University Vice-Chancellor Prof. Md. Akhtaruzzaman
was present as the chief guest at the rally. Photo: Courtesy
The Coast Guard Members seized huge banned net worth around Tk 54
crore from Buriganga river on Sunday.
Photo : Courtesy
property right, said the Yunus Centre in
a media release on Sunday.
He highlighted the collapse of the
global system in bringing vaccines to
the people of low income countries.
Parliamentary Secretary Mario
Brandenburg told the participants that
he has already submitted a proposal in
which he called for a greater
governmental support for social
business entrepreneurship. All MPs
present acknowledged that
entrepreneurially driven social business
can go a long way in solving social
problems.
Among the MPs present were Dr.
Holger Becker (SPD), MP Frank
Muller-Rosentritt (FDP), MP Sandra
Bubendorfer-Licht (FDP), MP Volkmar
Klein (CDU), MP Dr. Christiane
Schenderlein (CDU), MP Alexander
Radwan (CSU) and MP Canan Bayram
(Bundnis 90/Die Grunen).
Professor Yunus is visiting Berlin to
attend the tenth anniversary
celebration of Yunus Social Business
(YSB) a company created in Berlin ten
Ul Haque) winning the coveted award
and Amber Loom Denim Shed in
Gazipur (designed by architect Jubair
Hasan) being one of the shortlisted
projects in the last cycle of Awards in
2019.
Past winning projects in the country
include the Bait Ur Rouf Mosque in
Dhaka (designed by architect Marina
Tabassum) and the Friendship Centre
in Gaibandha (designed by architect
Kashef Chowdhury) in 2016, the
Grameen Bank Housing Programme,
the National Assembly Building (1989),
and a school in Rudrapur (2007).
In addition to the above five winners,
Bangladesh has had two other projects
short-listed in the 2010 edition of the
Awards.
Architect Marina Tabassum has been
a member of the AKAA's prestigious
Steering Committee for the fourteenth
(2017 - 2019) and fifteenth (2020-
2022) Award Cycles - a great honour
not only for the architect, but also for
Bangladesh.
Last year, the AKAA announced the
nine-member Master Jury for the 2020
- 2022 Award cycle that included a
renowned Bangladesh architect -
Professor Kazi Khaleed Ashraf -
Director General of the Bengal Institute
for Architecture, Landscapes and
Settlements, Dhaka.
years back to promote social businesses
around the world. The company headed
by Saskia Bruyesten operates in Brazil,
India, Colombia, Uganda, Kenya and
Rwanda help create social businesses in
these countries. YSB has supported
around 2070 social businesses in 5
countries with USD 18 million
disbursed capital, creating employment
of 1.3 million income earners and
engaging atleast 17.8 million customers.
Tenth year celebration was held on
June 2 attended by 150 people coming
from all the countries where YSB
operates, and supporters of YSB in
Germany and other Europeans
countries, corporate leaders, senior
executives of YSBs in all countries
where it operates, and media
representatives. Yunus expressed his
happiness that YSB which was initiated
by two German young women fresh out
of university in their late 20s with no
funds, has reached so many people
around the globe. YSB delegates shared
their achievements and plans for the
next decade.
MoNDAy, JUNE 6, 2022
4
Acting Editor & Publisher : Jobaer Alam
e-mail: editor@thebangladeshtoday.com
Monday, June 6, 2022
Inflation worry
The common man equates it with rising prices while the
economist calls it inflation. Whatever the name given to the
phenomenon known as inflation in economics, some varieties
of it are certainly highly undesirable. However, contrary to the
common conception that all forms of inflation are evil, the reality can
be otherwise.
Inflation which is driven by demand can be actually beneficial for
a large number of players in the economic scene. Businesses may be
better off due to it as the expanded demand situation produces the
incentive for them to increase production which in turn increases
their total profits. During demand-pull inflation, the prices of final
goods and services tend to be more flexible in an upwards direction
than the prices of many of the factors of production (i.e., prices of
raw materials, rent, wages, etc. ) which are fixed on fairly long-term
contracts.
Thus, it would not be so much a cause for concern if the current
rising inflation rate in Bangladesh seemed to be of the demand-pull
type. But this is not the case as the inflation here appears to be of the
cost-push type which, if not tamed, has all the potentials of
deepening the economic gloom. A recent issue of the London based
renowned Economist magazine has assessed the inflation rate in
Bangladesh and made a forecast about inflation's further rise in the
country in 2023 which is worrying. Its forecast was that the rate of
inflation in Bangladesh could increase to 6 per cent in 2023 from 5.3
per cent and 3 per cent in previous years. Certainly, the inflation
forecast contrasts sharply with what had been the rather bearable
rate of inflation below 3 per cent for some consecutive years before
2018.
Why the inflation type in Bangladesh is judged as the cost-push
one should be obvious. There is hardly a sign that demand for many
non essential products are on the rise. Any assessment of the
demand situation of non essentials in the market would surely show
up a stagnant demand condition for most of these products. The
demand for products and services such as food, transportation, etc.,
that people consider as indispensable are inelastic. The demand for
these products or services do not taper off as their prices or charges
rise. People in many cases are likely to even incur debt to go on
consuming foods in the same quantities notwithstanding the rise in
their prices. This inelastic demand situation for essential goods is
now being exploited by a class of businessmen in the country who
are resorting to the most unethical raising of prices of essential
commodities in the sure knowledge that people will buy them in the
same amounts and in the same frequency regardless of higher costs.
But the rising prices of essential commodities is cutting into
people's purchasing power and reducing their disposable incomes
which, if left uneroded, could create demand for goods and services
of the non-essential categories. Thus, the essentials' markets being
costlier, is helping to slacken demand for a large number of goods
and services of the non essential categories the demand for which
are income elastic.
On the other hand, energy price is central to production activities
in different fields. Prices of different forms of energy-electricity, gas
and fuel oil-were substantially increased several times during the
last three years and another round of increases are being discuseed
. Higher energy prices had the unwanted impact of making
production processes costlier by increasing one of the most
important factor costs of production. Wages, rents and other costs
may or may not have been adjusted upwards in this period. But
higher energy prices have certainly set the stage for price increases
across the board for many commodities, the demand for higher
wages, higher rents and increases of charges for services in many
areas.
Thus, the ravages of inflation, as a whole, are not only creating
distresses for common consumers by whittling their purchasing
power and decreasing their propensity to save, the same is also
poised to take a toll in the form of reduced investment, loss of
competitiveness and adverse balance of payments situation from the
macro economy.
Cost-push inflation is never good for the macro economy because
its prime casualty are productive activities. When there is cost-push
inflation, profits are squeezed and this situation leads firms to
decrease production activities as there exists not the same scope for
increasing production and profits like under inflation of the
demand-pull type. Decrease in production activities and other cost
cutting measures can worsen unemployment instead of creating
more employment. Economic growth in these circumstances, suffer,
giving rise to all the attendant problems of low growth such as less
employment creation, less income and no change in the poverty
situation which can feed a vicious cycle of continuing stagnating
demand in the economy which in turn discourages newer
investment activities leading to a static situation in respect of the goal
of economic expansion.
Investment activities are the keys to economic growth but these
activities are not encouraged because creditors feel reluctant to
extend greater credits to investors under inflationary conditions
because debtors repay in monetary units which have less purchasing
power than those which they borrowed. Or the creditors might
increase interest rates or keep them unchanged at a higher level as
hedges against inflation. At any rate, the cumulative effect of
inflation comes as a damper for investment when investment is the
only way to get the economy to expand for the benefits of the same
to be experienced at the micro levels.
Furthermore, higher export prices of commodities due to inflation
might fetch temporary gains to exporters but the same are likely to
disappear in the medium and long terms as the higher priced export
products might be considered uncompetitive in relation to other
foreign suppliers of the products who could be prepared to supply at
comparatively lower prices. Higher prices of domestically produced
goods are also likely to cause a decrease in their consumer appeal
and increase in the appeal to consumers for products originating
from import activity or smuggling. Domestic production may
decline from these factors and turn worse the associated problems
of unemployment, loss of income and further depression of the
demand situation. Considering all of these factors and more, it is
high time for those in charge of economic governance to look at the
rising inflation rate as a serious ill which must be treated effectively
with no loss of time.
Iran’s seizure of Greek tankers threatens regional maritime security
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps revealed on Friday that it had
seized two oil tankers belonging to
Greece, which has accused Tehran of
piracy for its taking of Delta Poseidon
and Prudent Warrior.
In already-jittery energy markets, the
attacks have had a destabilizing effect, at
least temporarily, leading to a
significant spike in oil prices around the
world.
The twin attacks, together with other
recent threats to freedom of navigation,
have highlighted the need to counter
Iran's disruptive conduct and safeguard
trade routes and waterways.
The Gulf Cooperation Council and the
US are working together to enhance
regional maritime security against such
threats. In March, the joint GCC-US
maritime security working group met in
Riyadh to coordinate the two sides'
response to all types of maritime threat.
They are also planning additional policy
coordination meetings in the near
future, while practical cooperation is
ongoing under bilateral and other
multilateral frameworks, such as the
Combined Maritime Forces, which was
set up in 2002.
The CMF is a multinational maritime
partnership whose express purpose is to
"uphold the international rules-based
order by countering illicit nonstate
actors on the high seas and promoting
security, stability and prosperity across
approximately 3.2 million square miles
of international waters, which
encompass some of the world's most
important shipping lanes."
Its main focus is promoting security,
stability and a safe maritime
environment. Its mandate also includes
combating narcotics, smuggling and
piracy, as well as engaging and
cooperating with regional and other
partners to strengthen and improve its
DR. ABDEL AZIZ ALUWAISHEG
capabilities to achieve those goals.
When requested, the CMF will also
respond to environmental and
humanitarian incidents.
The CMF has 34 member nations:
Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil,
Canada, Denmark, Egypt, France,
Germany, Greece, Iraq, Italy, Japan,
Jordan, the Republic of Korea, Kuwait,
Malaysia, the Netherlands, New
Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, the
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Saudi
Arabia, the Seychelles, Singapore,
Spain, Thailand, Turkey, the UAE, the
UK, the US, and Yemen. It is
commanded by US Navy Vice Adm.
Brad Cooper, who also serves as
commander of US Naval Forces Central
Command and the US Navy's Fifth
Fleet. All three commands are colocated
at US Naval Support Activity
Bahrain. The deputy commander is the
British Royal Navy's Commodore
Adrian Fryer. Other senior staff roles at
CMF headquarters are filled by
personnel from member nations.
It has had three combined task forces
under its command for some time: CTF
152 deals with maritime security inside
the Arabian Gulf; CTF150 deals with
maritime security outside the Arabian
Gulf; and CTF 151 deals with countering
piracy. The CMF last month announced
the establishment of a new
multinational task force, known as CTF-
MAxIMILIAN HESS
153, to patrol the Red Sea and the Gulf
of Aden.
At any given time, CTF-153 will have
two to eight vessels patrolling the
waterway between Egypt and Saudi
Arabia, through the Bab Al-Mandab
Strait to the waters off the Yemen-
Oman border, according to Cooper. He
said that the creation of the new task
force "reflects a regional consensus on
the importance of maritime security."
CTF-153 will first be led by the Fifth
Fleet's Capt. Robert Francis before
command rotates to other CMF
member countries.
The augmentation of CMF task forces
is motivated by a recognition that Iran
has been escalating its destabilizing
activities over recent months, including
missile and drone attacks on land and in
the sea, as well as the harassment of oil
tankers.
Last July, just a few days before
Ebrahim Raisi was sworn in as Iran's
president, there was a brazen drone
attack on the Mercer Street tanker off
the coast of Oman; it was an early
indicator of the new leadership's
direction. At the time, the foreign
ministers of the G7 nations (Canada,
France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK
and the US), plus the EU, described that
attack as "deliberate and targeted" and
without justification.
Then-Chief of the British Defense
Staff Gen. Nick Carter said that Western
powers needed to retaliate for such
tanker attacks, "otherwise, Tehran will
feel emboldened." Carter told the BBC
that, if a regime of deterrence is not
restored in the Gulf, there will be more
attacks and a higher risk of
"miscalculation" by Iran. "What we
need to be doing, fundamentally, is
calling out Iran for its very reckless
behavior," he said.
There has been no direct retaliation
for the attack on Mercer Street, but
significant efforts have been made to
restore deterrence through upgrading
the capabilities of existing security
frameworks, including the CMF.
After the addition of the new CTF-153,
the CMF's framework and mandate is
sufficient to deal with many threats to
maritime security in the region,
especially when working closely with
national capabilities. However, with the
escalation in the number and
sophistication of recent attacks, more
needs to be done to restore deterrence.
The Red Sea in particular is vast and
largely unpatrolled, creating an inviting
space for mischief-makers.
With the escalation in the number and
sophistication of recent attacks, more
needs to be done to restore deterrence.
A potential source of maritime threats
is Yemen. Although there has been a
fragile truce in place for the past two
months, the Houthis have previously
sent many explosives-laden remotecontrolled
boats into the Red Sea to
attack Saudi and other targets. Iran has
been the main party responsible for
providing the Houthis with drones and
missiles.
Dr. Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg is the GCC
assistant secretary-general for political
affairs and negotiation, and a columnist
for Arab News.
100 days of economic war: Can the West win against Russia?
For 100 days Ukrainians have been
resisting a brutal Russian invasion; they
fight alone but are financially backed by
the West.
The US Senate just passed a $40bn
aid package with bipartisan support, at
least $15bn of which will go to the
Ukrainian armed forces. Much of the
remainder is earmarked for the other
front in the conflict with Russia: the
geo-economic war.
Despite these efforts, however,
Russia's economy remains on its feet -
largely thanks to record-high
hydrocarbon prices and continued
European gas purchases - allowing the
bloody conflict which already claimed
thousands of civilian lives and destroyed
most of Ukraine to continue at full force.
The dire fact that, after all this suffering,
Ukrainians still seem to face at least
another 100 days, if not more, of
ruthless invasion, bloody offensives and
unspeakable atrocities calls for a reexamination
of the West's strategy and
tactics in its economic war against
Russia.
Since the beginning, the West's
primary weapon on the economic front
has been sanctions - severing key
banking linkages, barring Russian
businesses from dollar markets, and
freezing a significant portion of Russia's
war chest. Russian exports, especially
coal exports, have also been targeted.
However, Europe is still having
gruelling discussions over how to fully
ban Russian fuel. So far, the West
appears to have opted to pursue what
can be defined as a "supply-side
strategy" to weaken the Russian
economy but simultaneously failed to
efficiently plan for the predictable costs
such a strategy would inflict on itself.
There are growing calls for further
restrictions and heated discussions over
whether - and how - to put in place a full
embargo on Russian hydrocarbons and
banking. But all parties to the
discussions are aware that the added
cost from such moves would be high.
And as Western attention slowly moves
away from the war - a luxury that
Ukrainians cannot afford - there is a risk
that the resolve for passing more
sanctions may soon weaken.
Putin has demonstrated clearly,
however, that no matter which direction
the West decides to take, he will
continue to prioritise military spending,
even if it means resorting to autarky and
impoverishing his own people.
All this means, that if it really wants to
end Ukraine's devastation promptly and
hold Russia to account for its lawless
actions, the West not only needs to
tighten its sanctions regime against the
Kremlin but also learn to use this
effective weapon of economic warfare in
a much smarter way.
Failure to envisage and prepare for the
It has had three combined task forces under its command for
some time: CTF 152 deals with maritime security inside the Arabian
Gulf; CTF150 deals with maritime security outside the Arabian Gulf;
and CTF 151 deals with countering piracy. The CMF last month
announced the establishment of a new multinational task force,
known as CTF-153, to patrol the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
costs of the war's economic impact thus
far has already undermined the efficacy
of sanctions. And failure to plan for the
ramifications of still-to-be-introduced
measures would risk further weakening
the West's hand in this economic battle.
If Europe implements further
sanctions without developing strategies
to protect European nations from their
costs, it may end up bolstering far-right
arguments against economic resistance
to Putin's regime, such as concerns
raised by France's Marine Le Pen over
how hydrocarbon sanctions may result
in inflation and economic devastation.
Populist right-wing politicians like
Hungary's Viktor Orban or Italy's
Matteo Salvini are also chomping-atthe-bit
for the opportunity to rush back
into Putin's arms, and would use any
further costs acquired from new
sanctions to try and turn public opinion
against the Western efforts to
economically punish and restrain
Russia.
This is not to say in any way that the
West should ease sanctions. On the
contrary, while Ukrainians continue to
fight for their country's survival, not one
inch should be conceded on the supplyside
efforts. But to build the necessary
political support for sustaining, and
winning, the economic war against
Russia, the West also needs to
implement a demand-side strategy.
State investment, international supplychain
and production coordination, and
the underwriting of risk by leading
Western nations can help Ukraine fight
and bankrupt Putin's war machine.
US politics, Canada's
multiculturalism, South America's
geopolitical rise-we bring you the stories
that matter.
The West has a soft underbelly - from
Greece's opposition to Russian shipping
sanctions, to the Netherlands' refusal to
pump more gas in Groningen, to the
opposition in the United States from the
Trumpist right as well as the far left to
allocating more aid for Ukraine.
And while the West has had
significant success building a sanctions
alliance, including Singapore and
Switzerland, the Global South - at risk
from Russian threats to global
agricultural markets and wary of
previous Western policy disasters - is
hesitant to fully put its weight behind a
sanctions regime. To increase the
success of its sanctions regime, the West
needs the support of more nations, and
to achieve this, it needs to ensure it has
developed strategies to protect not only
itself but any potential allies from costs.
There is no way that the West can expect
would-be allies such as Serbia to refuse
Russian gas deals when no genuine
Europe can put forward solutions too, for example socialising
the cost of major increases in gas drilling in the Netherlands.
Such a policy can be implemented far more quickly than
building new LNG terminals, though efforts to build new
energy infrastructure should also receive significant state
support. European export credit agencies should be part of the
fight, significantly expanding their capita could make them a
key factor in making sanctions support and compliance more
attractive for the developing countries.
alternative is on offer.
Nearly one-quarter of the funding
authorised in US President Joe Biden's
Ukraine aid bill is earmarked for
mitigating the war's economic impact on
Ukraine and third countries. It is a start,
but it does not go far enough - Ukraine's
own reconstruction bill is already in the
hundreds of billions of dollars. It is a
band-aid approach, whereas what is
required is the grafting of a new limb to
replace the Russian one Putin has
severed, for Putin's war on Ukraine is a
war against the current world order.
Several Western nations have already
taken significant steps to try and preserve
the status quo and protect themselves
from potential future aggressions by
Russia. For example, many European
states re-embraced defence spending and
Germany even altered constitutional debt
limits to do so.
However, even this newfound sense of
Western unity is insufficient in such a
globalised era - India, for example, is
happy to buy Russian oil at a discount to
global prices. Furthermore, the longer
the war drags on, the more enticing
Moscow's offers to jointly challenge the
US-led order may seem to Beijing,
which has so far refrained from offering
Russia direct economic support.
The West needs to adopt a new
"neomercantilist" approach to
sanctions, embracing "the need for
strategic trade protectionism and other
forms of government economic activism
to promote state wealth and power".
The nature of the geo-economic war is
to remove Russia's state wealth and
power while avoiding the same for the
West and its allies. That does not mean
the ultimate aim should be to end
liberalism and the free-trading world,
but neomercantilist tools can and
should be employed to protect it in the
long run from Russia's existential
threat.
Some of the groundwork for this has
already been done, such as the US
efforts to restructure development
support under the Development
Financial Corporation (DFC). Other
worthwhile proposals include the
Department of Energy offering to sell oil
options and potentially pledge secure
supplies to allies, to help limit
uncertainty. But these efforts do not go
far enough. Just as Congress authorised
Biden's $40bn Ukraine bill, for
example, it rejected a proposal to
effectively expand DFC.
Europe can put forward solutions too,
for example socialising the cost of major
increases in gas drilling in the
Netherlands. Such a policy can be
implemented far more quickly than
building new LNG terminals, though
efforts to build new energy
infrastructure should also receive
significant state support. European
export credit agencies should be part of
the fight, significantly expanding their
capita could make them a key factor in
making sanctions support and
compliance more attractive for the
developing countries.
Another vector of this approach
should be a Western acknowledgement
that food system inequality, fragility and
interdependency mean Russia's
blockades will potentially be far more
crippling to the Global South. A
Western merchant marine and aid plan
should be developed immediately to
mitigate this and build credibility with
would-be-allies threatened by Putin's
perfidiousness.
Finally, the US must remember it has
a geo-economic lever more powerful
than any other - the use of federal
reserve swap lines. The selective
offering of such support could help
bring even the most reticent partners
into line with Western sanctions given
its potential to provide economic and
monetary stability.
Demand-side policies are the carrots
to the supply-side policies' sticks in the
West's geo-economic war against
Russia. They must be the focus of the
coming offensives, for without them this
war will be far more costly and difficult
to win.
Maximilian Hess is a Fellow at the
Foreign Policy Research Institute and a
Political Risk consultant based in
London.
MonDay, June 6, 2022
5
Protesters in Kathmandu call for reform of the rape laws.
SaRah JohnSon
A young woman's account on
TikTok of being drugged, raped and
then blackmailed by a beauty
pageant organiser when she was 16
years old has provoked outrage in
Nepal and prompted calls to reform
the country's "grossly inadequate"
rape laws.
In one of a series of videos, which
together have been viewed millions of
times, the former model and child
actor broke down in tears as she talked
about Nepal's statute of limitations
that dictates survivors must report
cases of rape within one year of the
offence being committed.
Days after the videos were posted on
the social media site on 18 May,
hundreds of protesters took to the
streets calling for change to the
country's rape laws, and on 24 May six
lawyers filed a petition at the supreme
court demanding the repeal of the
statute. As a result of public pressure,
a man has been arrested in connection
with the case but under a section of
the law related to human trafficking.
Dechen Lama, a human rights
lawyer who also works for the Forum
for Women, Law and Development, a
Nepali rights organisation, said: "The
law is not comprehensive …… It leads
to so much unfairness and injustice. It
has to be changed. There are so many
loopholes in the rape law, most
particularly the statute of limitation
and the definition of rape."
Nepal's 2017 penal code extended
the statute of limitations on reporting
rape allegations from 35 days to a
year. A report by the international
women's rights organisation Equality
Now found that in comparison with
five other south Asian countries,
Nepal has the shortest statute of
limitations on sexual violence cases.
Activists and lawyers say the law
stands as a barrier to justice for rape
survivors and that it helps
perpetrators to evade punishment.
Smriti Singh, Amnesty International's
south Asia deputy regional director,
said the stigma, shame, intimidation
and trauma associated with rape
stopped many people from coming
forward.
"This case has brought attention to
Photo: Prabin Ranabhat
Protesters call for age old
Nepali laws on rape
how grossly inadequate and
ineffective the provision [for rape
survivors] is at this point," she said.
"The one-year limitation is really
outdated and harmful. It does not
factor in the stigma that survivors face
when reporting cases of sexual and
gender-based violence."
It is not just the statute of limitations
that needs to change, according to
campaigners. The definition of rape in
Nepal's penal code only recognises a
crime committed by a male against a
female, and not against people of
other genders. Nonconsensual sexual
acts are not included within the
definition of rape, and marital rape
receives a lesser punishment.
"This can be a watershed moment
for Nepal," said Singh. "From a
human rights perspective, this
incident has triggered a conversation
around how inadequate provisions
are. "I think it's a good opportunity for
the authorities to take a moment and
go back and see whether rape laws are
in line with international human
rights standards, and if not, to bring
them in line."
RaCheL Kitonyo
For decades, smoking has
been on the rise, driving more
than 100m deaths in the 20th
century alone and creating
health and other costs of
about $1,500bn a year that
have hampering global
growth. According to a report
from the global health policy
organisation Vital Strategies
and the University of Illinois
Chicago in the latest edition of
the Tobacco Atlas, the era of
big tobacco is coming to an
end: there is an unequivocal
drop in global smoking rates,
to 19.6% in 2019 from 22.6%
in 2007.
Concealed in the figures,
however, is a plan to turn
tobacco back into a growth
industry by focusing on
Africa. Global progress
against the "tobacco
epidemic" is driven by large
declines mostly in nations
that have raised taxes on
tobacco, limited marketing,
mounted hard-hitting public
information campaigns, and
banned smoking in many
public places. Our research
shows that the decline in
smoking in Africa has been
small, and adult prevalence
increased in 10 of the
continent's countries between
1990 and 2019.
As outlined in research from
the University of Bath, a
partner in the tobacco
industry watchdog, Stopping
Tobacco Organisations and
Products (Stop): "To protect
their profits, transnational
tobacco companies (TTCs)
began shifting their business
to relatively untapped
markets in parts of the world
where the opportunity for
growth is largely unrestricted
… Nowhere is this
underexploited prospect as
ripe for the picking as Africa.
TTCs are expanding into
African countries, where,
excluding South Africa, the
tobacco market grew by
almost 70% through the
1990s and the first decade of
the 21st century."
Taxation is the most
effective way to control
tobacco use but Africa has a
poor record in this area.
Tobacconomics' cigarette tax
scorecard rates nations on a
scale of 0 to 5, with 5
indicating the best
performance. Compared with
leaders such as New Zealand
or Ecuador (4.63), which are
making rapid progress,
Africa on its way to the
world's ashtray
countries such as Kenya
(0.88), Zimbabwe (1.38),
Chad and Central African
Republic (both at 0.75) show
that tobacco is lightly taxed
across most of the continent.
Cheap cigarettes suit
international tobacco
multinationals. As profits are
choked off in the west, big
tobacco has homed in on
African communities, and
especially their young people,
as incubators for deadly new
initiatives. The Africa Centre
for Tobacco reported in 2016
how shops and pushcarts
peddling cigarettes alongside
sweets were operating near
schools in Cameroon and
Burkina Faso. The Tobacco
Atlas lays out stark data on the
industry's global youth focus,
finding smoking rates among
13- to 15-year-olds increasing
in 63 countries.
Ironically, keeping
cigarettes affordable for poor
people has been used by
industry lobbyists as an
argument against taxation.
However, it ignores the fact
that those groups are more
sensitive to price, and the
health, social and economic
benefits of higher taxes - fewer
people starting to smoke and
more quitting - accrue much
more to these groups. The
positive impact can also be
amplified by governments
that use tobacco tax revenues
for the benefit of those same
groups, such as supporting
programmes to help people
stop smoking.
Another industry argument
is that tobacco cultivation in
many east and southern
African countries is an
important part of the
economy. The tobacco
industry lobbies governments
to stall action for fear of
hurting farmers, but the
Tobacco Atlas identifies
recent research that
demonstrates that most
tobacco growers are
impoverished and
governments would serve
them better by helping them
transition to more profitable
crops.
We cannot let Africa be the
world's ashtray. Governments
should act now to raise
tobacco taxes to at least World
Health Organizationrecommended
levels, restrict
marketing to young people,
create policies that control
access to tobacco products,
and protect policymaking
from interference by the
tobacco industry. Smoking
rates on the continent are still
relatively low, and the tobacco
epidemic that has already
scarred the US and Europe
will not inevitably take off in
Africa if we act now to protect
the next generation.
African economies remain
vulnerable; the vestiges of
colonialism are still at play.
We can work together to
ensure that global
corporations based in highincome
countries don't siphon
profits out of lower-income
countries at the cost of their
people's health. Less than 2%
of all development aid is
dedicated to noncommunicable
disease
prevention and the figure is
even more dismal for Africa -
an oversight leading to
preventable premature deaths
and increased costs, as well as
leaving populations more
vulnerable to health shocks
such as Covid. Financial and
technical aid for tobacco
control should be readily
available to protect Africa's
one billion people from being
the next growth market.
It is heartening to see
tobacco's influence on the
wane anywhere in the world,
but this edition of the Tobacco
Atlas exposes an industry
hard at work to make Africa
the new frontier for smoking.
It will take a concerted effort
to implement established
tobacco control measures to
resist the powerful
multinationals looking to
profit at the expense of
people's health. As highincome
countries act to
ensure tobacco-free futures,
we need to use those same
policy measures to prevent
tomorrow's health crises
across Africa.
a woman selling tobacco in nairobi. Cigarettes are often sold singly in many
developing countries.
Photo: David Levene
Lizzy DavieS
The children of Bees Haven kindergarten
are about 15 minutes into their weekly
taekwondo class when their instructor has
some stern words for them. "You guys are
not panting," says Lizzanne Adhiambo,
with a grin. "I want to see the power! Let's
punch!"
Aside from a certain amount of
confusion over left and right hands,
Adhiambo's pupils obey. With alternating
arms they punch out in front of them, 15
four- to six-year-olds, wearing white
training uniforms , shouting "Yeah!" as
the instructor counts from 1 to 10.
"They love it so much," says Beryl Itindi,
director of the pre-primary school in
Syokimau, on the south-western outskirts
of Nairobi. After class, the children sit
down for lunch of beef stew, leafy greens,
ugali - maize flour porridge - and fresh
fruit. "Thank you for our food and our
many blessings," they chorus. "Amen."
These children are at the forefront of
new efforts to foster lifelong habits of
exercise and healthy eating - and stave off
a foe increasingly visible in Kenya's towns
and cities: obesity. As in much of Africa,
the number of people classed as obese in
Kenya is on the rise: by 2030, the World
Obesity Atlas says 1.4 million five to 19-
year-olds will be obese. The WHO
considers a person with a body mass
index (BMI) over 25 to be overweight,
while a BMI over 30 is obese.
A 2015 survey - the most recent
undertaken - found 20% of Kenyan men
and more than 50% of women were either
overweight or obese. In a report last year,
Kenya's government recognised obesity as
a major risk factor for non-communicable
diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes and
cancer, which are responsible for 39% of
deaths in Kenya - up from 27% in 2014.
"The statistics show that obesity is
growing at a very alarming rate, not just in
Kenya but in the region and world," says
Stephen Kimutai Tanui, strategy manager
for Wellness for Greatness, the
organisation behind the taekwondo
classes.
The education the group is giving
children was sorely lacking when Tanui,
32, was a child: "We were not told that
physical activity has very many benefits …
not just to enjoyment and performance in
school but to our health."
In a country stalked by hunger and
where more than three million people are
Kenya’s hidden food crisis
Francis njuguna, a community health worker, advises local people on growing vegetables.
Photo: Brian otieno
classed as acutely food insecure, the
priority was getting enough food,
irrespective of its nutritional value, he
says. "When we were young, that link
between good nutrition and good health
was missing," says Tanui. "In Kenya and
in most African countries we have a
problem with malnutrition, and that's
what everyone focuses on. People should
have food, but we should also focus on
getting good and healthy foods, because
the rates at which obesity is growing, they
are going hand in hand: malnutrition and
obesity. It's a terrible burden."
In parts of the rural north and east, the
worst drought for 40 years is driving
thousands of Kenyans from their homes.
According to the International Federation
of the Red Cross, approximately 755,000
children under five will be acutely
malnourished throughout 2022.
In Nairobi, where fast food chains such
as KFC, Burger King and Domino's stand
on every other street corner, and
billboards push "vitamin-enriched"
chocolate drinks to motorists on the
heaving roads, the problem is "completely
different" says Dr Davis Ombui, a
diabetologist. "People get to jobs in the
morning, get into office, get back into their
cars, go home. They don't walk to work as
much, and fast food is now a big thing in
Nairobi."
The result is clear at his private clinic
surgeries. "We are seeing younger and
younger people diagnosed at a younger
age. Today I had someone who was 21 .
Type 2 diabetes. It's all because of obesity;
all because of the lifestyle."
Last year the ministry of health
published a strategic plan to respond to its
"epidemiological transition" in disease
burden from communicable diseases,
such as malaria and tuberculosis, to the
rising burden of NCDs. It recognised
obesity as a major risk factor, but doctors
fear there is little concrete action.
"You might find these policies are there
on paper," says Ombui. "But no one is
translating that into action on the ground.
I'm sure if you go to the cabinet you'll find
really nice policy papers that were
sponsored by WHO and [other]
organisations - just gathering dust."
The health ministry was approached for
comment. The government's target is to
reduce obesity prevalence from 28% in
2020 to 26% in 2025, and the clock is
ticking. By 2030, NCD deaths are
expected to increase by 55%.
And there remains a lingering
association in society between excess fat
and material success. "You find young
people at university want to add weight
and grow a belly as a status symbol. It's
that bad," says Stephen Ogweno, CEO of
Stowelink, a youth-led enterprise aimed at
combating NCDs. "There is still this
perception that needs to change."
For well-off Kenyans, Dr Wyckliffe
Kaisha has the answer. One of the few
surgeons in the country to perform
bariatric - or weight loss - surgery such as
gastric bypasses, he has seen a significant
increase in patients, partly due to Covid-
19, which alerted more people to the
ramifications of obesity, diabetes and
hypertension.
One of his patients, a 29-year-old who
last year had a sleeve gastrectomy -
involving removing part of her stomach -
has no regrets. "It requires somebody to
be psychologically and emotionally
prepared because it is not easy, especially
if you're used to taking a lot of junk [food].
I really loved chips. Nowadays I can't even
stand the smell of fries," she says.
The woman, who does not want her
name published, says she has lost 40kg:
"At least now I can walk up stairs. I don't
have to depend on lifts."Bariatric surgery
has its critics, but Kaisha insists it is
beneficial for the vast majority. His
bugbear is with insurers, who refuse to
cover the procedure, meaning only the
wealthy can afford his $5,000 charges.
He has told insurers that bariatric
surgery is cost-effective as it prevents
conditions developing. "They still reject it
and say it is cosmetic surgery. But it is not
at all," he says. The village of Njathaini, on
the northern outskirts of Nairobi, is a
world away from Kaisha's clientele. With
high unemployment and little disposable
income, it is in places like this that
intervention is urgent, says Ogweno.
Thanks to genetics, diet and lack of
exercise, Ogweno, 26, once weighed
almost 20st. Driven by wanting to "look
like Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson" he lost
weight at university and competed in Mr
Fitness contests.
He wants to prove that obesity, diabetes
and cancer don't just affect "the old and
the rich." What he and his colleagues
found in Njathaini shocked them: "[This
is] a very low-income community, and
almost 70% of the homes here live with
diabetes or hypertension," says Ogweno,
sitting in the village chief's office.
Traditional diets in poor
neighbourhoods rely heavily on
carbohydrates and cooking fat with
vertiginously high levels of transfats,
known to increase the risk of heart
disease. At one Njathaini shop, you can
buy a cabbage for 70 shillings (50p). At
another, a few doors down, there are bags
of crisps for 20 shillings, and fried bread
rolls are 10 shillings.
Then there's the sugar. "Soft drinks are
more available than clean water," says
Ogweno. The shops are fully stocked with
fizzy drinks, and bunting advertising
Sprite, Coca Cola and Fanta, as well as
water, greets every customer.
Francis Njuguna, a community health
worker, was born and bred in Njathaini.
"Before, it [obesity] was a non-issue.
There were very few cases. But nowadays
there's a lot of people," he says. Working
with Stowelink, Njuguna advises local
people on growing vegetables as well as
other cash crops. "Kale, tomatoes, onions,
spinach" are all possible, he says.
The worst aspect, says Ogweno, is that
once people are diagnosed with
conditions associated with obesity, they
struggle to get treatment. "If you're not
formally employed … you are almost
always not covered [by national health
insurance] and if you are sick you have to
pay out of pocket," he says. This applies,
for instance, to insulin for diabetics.
"People literally have to rally the whole
village to contribute cash to then go and
do that because otherwise it's a death
sentence."
Ogweno, whose aunt died from diabetes
after seeking help from a traditional
healer, feels the government is moving,
slowly and belatedly, to take NCDs
seriously. For the moment, then, it is the
Bees Haven children forging the way.
Exuberant after their training, the
kindergarten's martial artists eat their
lunch enthusiastically - even the managu
greens. Often the children arrive rather
shy, says Itindi, the director, and the
exercise "really opens them up both
mentally and physically."
MONDAY, JUNE 6, 2022
6
On the occasion of World Environment Day, Rahela-Hazrat Model School and Agricultural
Technology Center, Trishal, Mymensingh has jointly organized a tree sapling distribution program
and discussion meeting.
Photo : Mominul Islam
Around two
lakh students
to appear in
SSC exams in
Rajshahi
RAJSHAHI : Around two
lakh students are going to
appear in the Secondary
School Certificate (SSC)
examinations under the
Board of Intermediate and
Secondary Education
(BISE), Rajshahi this year.
Already, 270 examination
centres have been finalized
and sending of examination
materials and other inputs
have started.
Prof Ariful Islam,
Controller of Examinations
of BISE, told the local
journalists that 1.96 lakh
students are scheduled to
take part in the
examinations this year and
1,86,251 of them are regular
and 10,154 others are
irregular.
The examinations will be
held from June 19 like other
education boards in the
country, he added.
RAJSHAHI : Entrepreneurs
should work with innovations
for substantial and
sustainable expansion and
promotion of their business.
They should also have basic
knowledge related to expand
their business together with
making those profitable
through attaining trust of the
buyers in general.
Business experts came up
with the observation while
addressing a daylong seminar
titled "Business expansion
and necessity of knowledge
resources to face business
related challenges" at
Nanking Darbar Hall in the
city on Saturday.
The Department of Patent,
Design and Trademarks
hosted the seminar with
participation of businessmen,
chamber
leaders,
entrepreneurs and other
stakeholders. Registrar of the
department Zanendra Nath
Sarker, Deputy Registrar
Kankon Chakma and
Assistant Registrars Kousik
Uddin and Habibur Rahman
conducted the training
sessions as resource persons
disseminating their expertise
Ex-mayor of Dhamrai
municipality jailed
in graft case
DHAKA : A Dhaka court
yesterday sentenced former
mayor of Dhamrai
municipality Dewan Nazim
Uddin to four-year
imprisonment in a case
lodged for amassing illegal
wealth and concealing
information about his assets.
Judge Sheikh Hafizur
Rahman of Dhaka Special
Judge Court-9 pronounced
the judgment yesterday in
presence of the convict and
sent him to jail afterwards
with conviction warrant.
'Massive tree plantation
crucial for a safer planet’
RANGPUR : Massive tree plantation has
become crucial for a safer planet by reducing
environmental degradation that threatens
life, livelihoods, ecosystems, habitation and
civilization.
Officials and experts viewed this on
Sunday at a discussion jointly organised by
the district administration and Department
of Environment (DoE) at the conference
room of the Deputy Commissioner in
observance of the World Environmental
Day-2022
Elaborate programs, including rally,
painting competitions for children on
environment, distribution of saplings, tree
plantation, distribution of prizes and cultural
functions, were taken in observance of the
day.
Earlier, government and NGO officials,
environmentalists, students, teachers,
politicians, professionals, civil society
members, community leaders and elite,
participated in a rally that paraded the city
streets.
Divisional Commissioner Md. Abdul
Wahhab Bhuiyan attended the discussion as
the chief guest with Deputy Commissioner
Md. Asib Ahsan in the chair.
Rangpur Metropolitan Police
Commissioner Abdul Alim Mahmud,
Divisional Director of the DoE Syed Farhad
Hossain, Superintendent of Police Md.
Ferdous Ali Chowdhury and Deputy Director
of the DoE Md. Mizanur Rahman addressed
the discussion as special guests.
Syed Farhad Hossain discussed the
ongoing environmental degradation being
caused by climate change due to global
warming and massive steps taken by the
government to cope with the situation.
He narrated severe consequences of
climate change and environmental
degradation and urged all to work unitedly in
saving the planet from unthinkable
catastrophes through tree plantation and
other measures.
The speakers laid importance on reducing
emission of industrial smokes, release of
poisonous wastes, indiscriminate felling of
trees and ensuring better water and waste
management to reduce environmental
degradation.
Abdul Alim Mahmud called upon all
concerned for innovating and adopting
effective technologies alongside tree
plantation to cope with the adverse impacts
of climate change to keep crop production
increasing for food security.
The chief guest stressed on massive tree
plantation and taking effective steps to
reduce environmental degradation to save
agriculture, ecology, biodiversity and
ecosystems and adapt to adverse impacts of
climate change for a safer planet.
Entrepreneurs urged to work with innovative thinking
on the business promotion
issue.
BSCIC deputy general
Manager Zafar Bayazid and
President of Bangladesh Silk
Industries Owners
Association Liakat Ali also
spoke. Registrar Zanendra
Nath Sarker said availing
patent and trademarks is
needed before marketing any
of the innovative products and
urged the entrepreneurs to be
careful in this regard.
He told the attending
businessmen
and
entrepreneurs that when any
product becomes popular, its
brand value becomes more
than the total assets. So, the
innovators should receive the
patent, design and
trademarks of his product
first.
Mr. Sarker also said the
present government has been
extending requisite facilities
to the business sector and
urged the entrepreneurs to
expand their business after
deriving total benefits of the
state facilities.
Upazila Ansar rally has been held with all Ansars of Tahirpur upazila of
Sunamganj. Upazila Nirbahi Officer Md. Raihan Kabir addressed the rally as the
chief guest at the office of Upazila Ansar VDP. Photo : Jahangir Alom Bhuiya
Pabna Deputy Commissioner Biswas Russell Hossain addsressing a discussion
meeting at the conference room of Pabna Deputy Commissioner yesterday on the
occasion of World Environment Day.
Photo : Abdul Hamid Khan
World Environment
Day observed
in Narail
NARAIL : The World
Environment Day-2022 was
observed in the town
yesterday in a befitting
manner.
Marking the day, a rally
participated
by
environmentalists, students,
teachers, politicians,
professionals, civil society
members, community
leaders and elite, was
brought out in the town
yesterday morning and it
paraded different streets.
A discussion, organised by
the Department of
Environment (DoE), was
also held at the Conference
Room of the Deputy
Commissioner.
Deputy Commissioner Md
Habibur Rahman addressed
the discussion as the chief
guest while Additional
Deputy Commissioner Md
Fakrul Hasan was in the
chair.
It was addressed, among
others, by Zila Parishad
secretary Dr Md Lutfor
Rahman, Civil Surgeon Dr.
Nasima Akhter and
municipality mayor
Anjuman Ara.
Bangladesh is a
land of communal
harmony: Rangpur
Mayor
RANGPUR : Mayor of
Rangpur Mostafizar
Rahman Mostafa has said
Bangladesh is a land of
communal harmony and
people will never allow any
evil force to destroy
communal peace.
"The prevailing communal
harmony glorifies
Bangladesh globally," he
said this while addressing a
meeting organized by
Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist
Christian Unity Council
(BHBCUC) on Saturday
afternoon as the chief guest.
President of Rangpur City
unit of the organization
Subrata sparkler Mukul
presided over the
"Introduction of Rangpur
District and City
Committees of BHBCUC
and its Rangpur Divisional
Representative Meeting'
held at Shilpokola Academy
auditorium in the city.
Presidium Member of the
Central Committee of
BHBCUC Manoranjan Sheel
Gopal MP, formally
inaugurated the meeting
and delivered a welcome
speech.
Joint General Secretary of
the Central Executive
Committee of BHBCUC Shri
Ramen Mandal addressed
the event as the keynote
speaker.
Presidium Member of the
Central Committee of
BHBCUC Khoka Ram Roy,
its Organizing Secretary
Gopal Chandra Barman,
Joint Organizing Secretary
Lakshmi Kant Roy Sumon,
Central Executive
Committee Members Shri
Nikhil Majumder and Dr.
Rathindranath Sarkar
addressed as guests of
honour.
Presidents and General
Secretaries of the district
and upazila units of
BHBCUC from all eight
districts of Rangpur division
addressed the event.
Greeting leaders of
Rangpur district and city
units of BHBCUC, Mayor
Mostafa said people of
different faiths, castes,
creeds and religions have
been living together on
Bangladesh soil in peace,
harmony and friendly
environment setting up a
glaring example of
brotherhood globally.
He called upon the people
of all religions and faiths to
further cement the peaceful
communal coexistence and
strengthen brotherhood
among the people of all
faiths and work unitedly in
the process of building a
developed Bangladesh by
2041.
Protecting biodiversity
from further degradation
underscored
RAJSHAHI : Generating awareness
among the public in general can be the best
way of survival of all living beings through
protecting the environment and wildlife
from further degradation.
Environment has been facing a serious
threat due to various natural and manmade
catastrophes posing an identical threat to the
planet Earth at present. So, all the
government, non-government and volunteer
organizations should forward and work
together.
Experts and administrative officials came
up with the observation while addressing a
post-rally discussion on the issue.
The Department of Environment (DoE)
and District Administration jointly
organised the discussion at Shilpakala
Academy auditorium in observance of the
World Environment Day-2022.
"Only One Earth: Living Sustainably in
Harmony with Nature" was the main theme
of the day.
On the occasion, prizes were distributed
among the winners of art competitions for
children.
Commissioner of Rajshahi Division GSM
Zafarullah and Commissioner of Rajshahi
Metropolitan Police Abu Kalam Siddique
addressed the discussion as chief and special
guests respectively, while Deputy
Commissioner Abdul Jalil was in the chair.
Mahmuda Parveen, Deputy Director of
DoE, Rajshahi, welcomed the participants.
Prof Sabrina Naz, Director of the Institute
of Environmental Sciences in Rajshahi
University, illustrated the aspects of
protecting the environment besides its
harming factors during her keynote
presentation.
She also said emphasis should be given on
providing positive incentives for the
reduction of emissions from deforestation
and forest degradation and enhancing
biodiversity conservation as well as
promoting sustainable development goals of
the region.
Dr Naz identically mentioned that
substantial and sustainable reduction of
plastic pollution can be the vital means of
protecting water bodies and environment as
well from further degradation.
Currently, plastic pollution is being judged
as a major threat to the whole ecosystem. So,
creating public awareness on the issue has
become indispensable.
Commissioner Zafarullah expressed
concern over an increasing use of plastics for
packaging perishable foods. He said city
corporations and municipalities across the
country are not yet ready to adopt the
strategy of reduce, reuse and recycle, a 3R
strategy formulated by DoE.
He called for creating awareness among all
concerned including the younger
generations to prevent environmental
degradation that severely threatens the
existence of the whole planet, its habitation
and civilization.
Earlier, a colourful rally was brought out
from the city's Bangabandhu Crossing and
that ended at the meeting venue after
parading main thoroughfares of the city.
On the occasion of World Environment Day in Barishal, a rickshaw rally was
organized by the Non-Government organizations in Barishal demanding 100%
renewable energy as per Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan. Photo : Md Shah Jalal
A human chain was formed at Sreemangal upazila of Moulvibazar district yesterday
on the occasion of World Environment Day. Photo : Sayed Ahmed
1.28,587 Covid-19 booster doses
administered in Rangpur Saturday
RANGPUR : As many as 1,28,587 booster
doses of Covid-19 jabs were administered
in Rangpur division on Saturday as the
weeklong Covid-19 booster dose campaign
began across the country.
Health officials said a total of 1,40,030
more doses of Covid-19 jabs were
administered on Saturday raising the
number of inoculated vaccines to two crore
82 lakh 81 thousand and 294 doses in the
division.
Health officials said, among the 1,40,030
doses of the jabs inoculated on Saturday,
1,439 were administered as the first doses,
10,004 as the second doses and 1,28,587
as the booster doses.
"Till Saturday, a total of 1,35,37,711
people got the first doses of Covid-19 jabs,
and of them, 1,28,76,505 got the second
doses and 18,67,078 got the booster
doses," Divisional Director (Health) Dr.
Abu Md. Zakirul Islam told BSS.
Meanwhile, the number of Covid-19
infected patients remained steady at
64,143 in the division as no fresh positive
cases were diagnosed after testing 28 new
samples on Saturday.
The number of healed Covid-19 patients
remained steady at 62,785 in the division
where no new patients recovered during
the last 24 hours ending at 8 am on
Sunday.
"Besides, the number of casualties
remained steady at 1,284 in the division as
no new deaths were reported during the
last 24 hours," Dr. Islam added.
MonDAY, june 6, 2022
7
American spy agencies
review their misses on
Ukraine, Russia
WASHINGTON : The
question was posed in a
private briefing to U.S.
intelligence officials weeks
before Russia launched its
invasion in late February:
Was Ukraine's leader,
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, made
in the mold of Britain's
Winston Churchill or
Afghanistan's Ashraf Ghani?
In other words, would
Zelenskyy lead a historic
resistance or flee while his
government collapsed?
Ultimately, U.S. intelligence
agencies underestimated
Zelenskyy and Ukraine while
overestimating Russia and its
president, even as they
accurately predicted Vladimir
Putin would order an
invasion.
But Kyiv, Ukraine's capital,
did not fall in a few days, as
the the United States had
expected. And while
American spy agencies have
been credited with supporting
Ukraine's resistance, they
now face bipartisan pressure
to review what they got wrong
beforehand - especially after
their mistakes in judging
Afghanistan last year.
Intelligence officials have
begun a review of how their
agencies judge the will and
ability of foreign governments
to fight. The review is taking
place while U.S. intelligence
continues to have a critical
role in Ukraine and as the
White House ramps up
weapons deliveries and
support to Ukraine, trying to
predict what Putin might see
as escalatory and seeking to
avoid a direct war with
Russia.
President Joe Biden's
administration announced it
would give Ukraine a small
number of high-tech,
medium-range rocket
systems, a weapon that
Ukraine has long wanted.
Since the war began on Feb.
24, the White House has
approved shipping drones,
anti-tank and anti-aircraft
systems, and millions of
rounds of ammunition. The
U.S. has lifted early
restrictions on intelligencesharing
to provide
information that Ukraine has
used to strike critical targets,
including the flagship of the
Russian navy.
GD-1073/22 (3x3)
Cambodians vote Sunday in local elections that are their first chance to go to the polls since the ruling
party of long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen swept a 2018 general election that was widely criticized
as unfair.
Photo : Internet
Cambodians get new opposition
choice in local elections
PHNOM PENH : Cambodians vote
Sunday in local elections that are their
first chance to go to the polls since the
ruling party of long-serving Prime
Minister Hun Sen swept a 2018 general
election that was widely criticized as
unfair.
Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party
is certain to sail to easy victory again
following what the U.N. Human Rights
Office charged Thursday was a pattern of
"threats, intimidation and obstruction
targeting opposition candidates. "
"Candidates have faced numerous
restrictions and reprisals that have
hindered their activities, with
imprisonment of a number of
candidates that appears designed to curb
political campaigning," the agency said.
It added that at least six opposition
candidates and activists were in
detention four days before the polls,
awaiting trial, while others summonsed
on politically motivated charges had
gone into hiding.
Cambodia's delegation at the U.N.
Geneva offices said in a statement that
the criticism was "erroneous, politicized
and selective." It said "all political
parties, including opposition ones, have
fully exercised their rights in line with
the laws and registered schedules
without any threats and obstruction."
Hun Sen, an authoritarian ruler in a
nominally democratic state, has held
power for 37 years. He has said he
intends to stay in office until 2028 and
has endorsed one of his sons to succeed
him.
His party is the only one to field
candidates nationwide in all 1,652
communes. Its only serious rival, the
Candlelight Party, has candidates in
1,632 communes, and the royalist
FUNCINPEC Party has challengers in
688 communes. There are a total of
82,786 candidates from 17 political
parties with 9.2 million registered voters.
Heavy rain hits Florida, flooding
stands Miami vehicle
MIAMI : Parts of South
Florida were experiencing
road flooding from heavy
rain and wind Saturday as a
storm system that battered
Mexico moves across the
state.
Officials in Miami warned
drivers about road
conditions as many cars
were stuck on flooded
streets.
"This is a dangerous and
life-threatening situation.
Traveling during these
conditions is not
recommended. It's better to
wait. Turn around, don't
drown," the city of Miami
tweeted. The city was towing
stranded vehicles from
flooder roadways.
The National Hurricane
Center in Miami said the
storm once known as Agatha
in the Pacific Ocean will be
known as Alex in the
Atlantic Ocean basin, if it
reaches tropical storm
status.
At 11 a.m. EDT, a tropical
storm warning was in effect
for portions of the state's east
coast and the northwestern
Bahamas. Bermuda was
under a tropical storm watch.
The storm's center was
disorganized, but appeared to
be reforming near the Florida
east coast. The storm is
expected to reach tropical
storm strength off Florida's
eastern coast by Saturday
night and is expected to
strengthen through Monday
as it moves away from
Florida and into the Atlantic
Ocean.
The local elections are held a year
ahead of the general election, and are
regarded as a test of the parties' strength.
In the last communal elections in
2017, the main opposition Cambodia
National Rescue Party made an
unexpectedly strong showing, which led
Hun Sen's government to crack down on
it as well as independent media. The
party was dissolved by the Supreme
Court on a charge of treason, widely seen
as politically motivated, and the free
press was driven out of business or
cowed into submission. Without the
Cambodian National Rescue Party on
the ballot, Hun Sen's party was assured
of victory in the general election the
following year. Several Western nations
imposed sanctions on the government
after concluding the 2018 election was
neither free nor fair. The harshest
measure came from the European
Union, which withdrew some
preferential trading privileges.
India records 4,270
new COVID-19 cases,
15 more deaths
NEW DELHI : India's COVID-
19 tally rose to 43,176,817 on
Sunday, as 4,270 new cases
were registered during the past
24 hours across the country,
showed the federal health
ministry's latest data.
Besides, 15 deaths from the
pandemic registered across the
country since Saturday
morning took the total death
toll to 524,692.
There are still 24,052 active
COVID-19 cases in the country
with an increase of 1,636 active
cases during the past 24 hours.
Supreme Leader acknowledges
Iran took Greek oil tankers
TEHRAN : Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah
Ali Khamenei acknowledged Saturday that
Iran took two Greek oil tankers last month in
helicopter-launched raids in the Persian Gulf.
The confiscations were retaliation for
Greece's role in the U.S. seizure of crude oil
from an Iranian-flagged tanker the same
week in the Mediterranean Sea over violating
Washington's harsh sanctions on the Islamic
Republic.
"They steal Iranian oil off the Greek coast,
then our brave men who don't fear death
respond and seized the enemy's oil tanker,"
Khamenei said during an 80-minute speech
on the anniversary of the death of the late
founder of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah
Ruhollah Khomeini. "But they use their
media empire and extensive propaganda to
accuse Iran of piracy."
"Who is the pirate? You stole our oil, we
took it back from you. Taking back a stolen
property is not called stealing," he added.
The seizures ratcheted up tensions between
Iran and the West already simmering over
Iran's tattered 2015 nuclear deal with world
powers. Tehran has been enriching more
GD-1079/22 (7x3)
uranium, closer to weapons-grade levels than
ever before, causing concern that negotiators
won't find a way back to the accord and
raising the risk of a wider war.
Iran's seizure of the tankers was the latest
in a string of hijackings and explosions to
roil a region that includes the Strait of
Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian
Gulf through which a fifth of all traded oil
passes. The incidents began after then-
President Donald Trump unilaterally
withdrew the U.S. from the nuclear deal,
which saw Tehran drastically limit its
enrichment of uranium in exchange for the
lifting of economic sanctions.
The U.S. Navy blamed Iran for a series of
limpet mine attacks on vessels that
damaged tankers in 2019, as well as for a
fatal drone attack on an Israeli-linked oil
tanker that killed two European crew
members in 2021.
Iranian hijackers also stormed and briefly
captured a Panama-flagged asphalt tanker
off the United Arab Emirates last year and
briefly seized and held a Vietnamese tanker
in November.
†kL nvwmbvi g~jbxwZ
MÖvg kn‡ii DbœwZ
GD-1072/22 (5x4)
GD-1074/22 (7x4)
Recently United Commercial Bank Ltd has started a 10 days Banking Foundation Course at Learning &
Development Center, Head Office. The program was inaugurated by N. Mustafa Tarek, Deputy
Managing Director. Masud Rayhan, Head of Learning & Development Center along with other L&D
Officials of UCB were also present during the inauguration".
Photo : Courtesy
Nagad Holds Distributors Meet-2022
The Postal Department's
mobile financial service
Nagad organized 'Nagad
Tycoons Meet' or
'Distributors Meet 2022'.
Distributors, regional
managers, and market
directors of Nagad from
across the country
participated in the event
under the slogan 'The Winner
of Change'.
The 'Tycoons Meet 2022'
was held at the capital's fivestar
hotel Le Meridien
recently. 164 distributors,
regional managers and
market directors from
throughout the country
attended the one-day event.
The occasion was also
attended by Tanvir A.
Mishuk, Founder and
Managing Director of Nagad,
Rahel Ahmed, Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) of
Nagad, Executive Directors,
and many other department
heads and higher officials of
the organization.
The 'Nagad Tycoons Meet
2022 event started in the
morning and continued till
night. In addition to
conducting several
workshops, distributors,
regional managers and
market directors from various
regions were recognized for
their accomplishments based
on goals or performances
during the day-long event.
Distributors from around the
nation were thrilled to receive
the crest and exclusive
rewards from Nagad in
recognition of their
outstanding performance.
In addition, the popular
mobile financial service
Nagad has arranged a cultural
program to enhance the
appeal of 'Nagad Tycoons
Meet 2022'. The audience
was captivated by the standup
comedy of popular actor Saju
Khadem, the dance
performance of Bengali film
actress Nusrat Faria and
finally popular songs
performed by legendary
singer Kumar Biswajit.
Addressing the distributor,
Regional Managers and
Market Directors, Tanvir A
Mishuk, Founder and
Managing Director of Nagad
stated, "Since its inception,
Nagad has been the world's
fastest-growing MFS, with
over 6 crore valued customers
with nearly BDT 1,000
average daily transactions.
This has only been made
possible due to your
collaboration
and
partnership. "When I wanted
to introduce Nagad, many
people advised against it" he
stated. The negative facts
concerning monopolistic
domination and the MFS
industry were the primary
factors. However, you were
the first one to believe in me
at that time. Thank you very
much. I would not be here
today if it weren't for you."
"We were far behind in
terms of financial inclusion in
the country," stated Rahel
Ahmed, CEO of Nagad.
Appropriate digital
innovation was required to
pull the ordinary people of the
country into this financial
inclusion. At that time, like a
meteor, Nagad came into play
as a change-maker. The
service has extended
throughout Bangladesh and
you are the driving force
behind this. Furthermore, by
utilizing e-KYC and Nagad D-
KYC, many people have been
brought under financial
inclusion through you."
National Housing Finance and Investments
Ltd declared 15.00pc Cash Dividend
Mercedes recalls
one million older
cars: German
authority
BERLIN : German carmaker
Mercedes-Benz is recalling
nearly one million older
vehicles worldwide due to a
potential problem with the
braking system, the federal
transport authority (KBA)
said.
The KBA said in a statement
dated June 1 and reported late
Saturday in German media
that the recall affected cars
built between 2004 and 2015,
of the SUV series ML and GL
and the R-Class luxury
minivan.
"Corrosion on the brake
booster can in the worst case
lead to the connection
between the brake pedal and
the braking system being
interrupted," the KBA said.
"As a consequence, the
service brake can stop
functioning."
The KBA said that
worldwide 993,407 vehicles
were being recalled, including
around 70,000 in Germany.
Mercedes-Benz confirmed
the recall later in a statement
sent to AFP, saying the move
was based on "analysis of
isolated reports for certain
vehicles".
"In rare cases of very severe
corrosion, it might be possible
for a particularly strong or
hard braking manoeuvre to
cause mechanical damage to
the brake booster, whereby
the connection between brake
pedal and brake system would
fail," Mercedes said.
"In such a very rare case, it
would not be possible to
decelerate the vehicle via the
service brake. Thus, the risk of
a crash or injury would be
increased."
The company said it would
"start with the recall
immediately" and contact the
owners of the "potentially
affected vehicles".
MONDAY, JUNE 6, 2022
Baby formula plant
linked to US shortage
resumes production
WASHINGTON : Production resumed Saturday at an Abbott
Nutrition baby formula plant in the US whose closure helped
fuel a crippling nationwide shortage.
The facility in Sturges, Michigan has met initial government
sanitary requirements for reopening, the company said in a
statement.
The plant, a major producer of formula, shut down and issued
a product recall in February after the death of two babies raised
concerns over contamination.
Subsequent shortages were particularly worrying to parents
of infants with allergies or with certain metabolic conditions.
They desperately scoured stores and online sources for the
specialized formulas.
Their concerns became so acute that President Joe Biden met
virtually this week with infant-food executives and insisted his
administration was doing everything it could to help.
The crisis, coming at a time when soaring inflation and
supply-chain delays have fanned a growing sense of unease
among many ordinary Americans, has been seized on by Biden
critics to question the competence of his administration.
Abbott, which controls about 40 percent of the US baby food
market, said Saturday that it was restarting production of its
hypoallergenic EleCare formula and that the product should be
back on store shelves around June 20.
"We're also working hard to fulfill the steps necessary to
restart production of Similac and other formulas," Abbott said.
"We will ramp production as quickly as we can while meeting
all requirements."
The formula shortages, initially caused by supply chain
blockages and a lack of workers due to the pandemic, were
exacerbated when Abbott closed its Sturges plant.
The plant was shut down amid complaints the plant lacked
adequate protections against contamination from bacteriacomplaints
echoed after a six-week inspection by US Food and
Drug Administration agents.
"Frankly, the inspection results were shocking," FDA chief
Robert Califf told members of a House subcommittee last
month.
There was standing water in key equipment that presented
"the potential for bacterial contamination," plus leaks in the
roof and a lack of basic hygiene facilities, he said.
But Abbott officials, while apologizing for the formula
shortage, have said there is no conclusive evidence linking the
formula to infant illnesses or deaths.
For Biden, the issue had blown up into a political maelstrom.
He told reporters Wednesday that he was only informed
about the looming problem in early April and that he had pulled
all the levers of government to resolve shortages ever since.
"I don't think anyone anticipated the impact of the shutdown
of one facility," Biden said at a virtual meeting with the
executives from five companies helping to take up the slack
caused by Abbott's problems.
"Once we learned the extent of it and how broad it was, it
kicked everything into gear," Biden said.
8
Managing inventories
a pandemic headache
for US businesses
NEW YORK : More than two
years into the Covid-19
pandemic, American
businesses are still struggling
to manage their inventories in
a feast-or-famine cycle caused
by fickle consumer demand.
"We have way too much
inventory right now," said
Ginny Pasqualone, chief
executive of Sparkledots, a
children's clothing
manufacturer.
"It's important that we have
a large selection of
merchandise that our clients
can choose from," she said,
but store traffic has been hit
by inflation concerns, with
some customers "very scared
that they're not going to
survive another recession."
For now, Sparkledots is
holding more goods in
inventory, but that ties up
company capital and limits its
ability to add to its 18-worker
staff.
"It sucks our growth for the
future," Pasqualone said.
Such is the dilemma
affecting businesses of all
sizes.
Large store chains like
Walmart, Target and Macy's
have acknowledged in recent
weeks that they misread
consumer patterns, leaving
them with excess supplies of
appliances, casual clothing
and bicycles.
Bicycles were a hot
commodity early in the
pandemic, prompting
surprisingly large orders, said
Wayne Sosin, owner of
Worksman Cycles, a New
York manufacturer best
known for its tricycles.
"Retailers bought whatever
they could as if bike sales
would continue to have
unprecedented demand,"
Sosin said. "It was so obvious
to me that (this) would not
last."
Still, Sosin said demand
remains strong in some parts
of the business, placing stress
on supplies of some key
bicycle parts.
The 23rd Annual General Meeting
(AGM) of National Housing Finance
and Investments Limited was held on
Thursday, 2nd June, 2022 at 12.00
noon through virtual platform. The
shareholders approved 15.00% Cash
Dividend for the year 2021. I may be
noted that National Housing also
declared 15% cash dividend in the
year 2020, a press release said.
The Meeting was presided over by
Mahbubur Rahman, Chairman of the
Company. In the AGM Syed M. Altaf
Hussain, Vice-Chairman, Abdul-
Muyeed Chowdhury, Chairman
Audit Committee, all other Directors,
Promoters, and a large number of
Shareholders along with
Mohammad Shamsul Islam,
Managing Director and Md. Sarwar
Kamal FCS, Company Secretary were
present. The shareholders
appreciated and thanked to the Board
of Directors and management for the
continuous success of the Company.
National Housing is one of the
largest Financial Institution in the
country incorporated by 3 Banks, 7
Insurance Companies and &
country's renowned corporate body
engaged mainly with Home Loan.
Total shareholders' equity of the
company is Tk. 2,182.23 million as on
December 31, 2021. The Net profit
after Tax of the company is Tk.
261.28 million, EPS Tk. 2.23 and Net
Asset Value per Share (NAV) Tk.
18.65.
Al-Arafah Islami Bank Ltd. has opened 'Hajj Booth' to provide services of Hajj pilgrims at Ashkona Hajj
Camp, on 5 Jun, 2022. Managing Director and CEO of the Bank Farman R. Chowdhury inaugurated the
booth as Chief Guest. Presided by Deputy Managing Director Md. Shafiqur Rahman Deputy Managing
Directors SM Jaffar, Abdullah Al Mamun, Senior Vice President Md. Mujibul Kader, Engr. Mohammad
Habib Ullah, SM Abu Jaffar, Senior Vice President Jalal Ahmed and Nazmul Huda were also present on the
occasion. After the inauguration Managing Director and CEO Farman R Chowdhury handed over gift items
to the pilgrims. The Bank will provide the pilgrims free passport endorsement, foreign currency exchange,
information and various other services from the newly opened booth.
Photo : Courtesy
Social Islami Bank Limited (SIBL) arranged Employees Get Together at Brac Learning Center in
Sreemangal with the employees of branches and sub-branches of Sylhet region recently. Dr. Md. Mahbub
Ul Alam, Chairman of the Bank, was present as chief guest while Zafar Alam, Managing Director and CEO
of the Bank, presided over the ceremony. Abu Reza Md. Yeahia, Additional Managing Director, was present
as special guest in the program. Abu RushdIftekharulHaque, Head of Trade Finance Division, and Md.
Moniruzzaman, Head of Marketing & Brand Communication of the Bank, were also present on the occasion.
Photo : Courtesy
RFL launches new generation cooker hood
Rangpur Metal Industries
Limited, a concern of
country's leading business
conglomerate RFL, has
brought new cooker hood
using latest technology to the
market. Rangpur Metal
Industries Ltd Director Md.
Moniruzzaman has unveiled
the product at an event held
at RFL Group's head office in
Badda recently, a press
release said.
Addressing the occasion,
Md. Moniruzzaman said,
"People's live have changed a
lot. That's why, we have
brought a new featured
cooker hood to the market to
make people's lives easier and
more comfortable. This
cooker hood has various
features including automatic
motion sensor, touch control
switch, auto heat clean
technology, tempered glass
panel, stainless steel filter and
750m3/h enriched air
suction, which ensures the
highest quality."
He added that the
automatic motion sensor can
be used without touching the
hand. In addition, a 2-watt
LED light has been added to
the hood to work safely in low
light and a powerful 150-watt
motor with two speeds has
been used, capable of blowing
180 cubic meters of air per
hour. As a result, lowering the
temperature will bring relief
to the kitchen.
Shariful Islam, Head of
Marketing, Rangpur Metal
Industries Limited, said, "Hot
steam escapes from the
kitchen for using the kitchen
hood. This is why cooking
becomes comfortable."
At present, RFL has a total
of 8 different types of cooker
hoods of different sizes. The
price ranges of cooker hoods
are between Tk7,060 and Tk
31,765. Buyers will be able to
purchase the product from
RFL's Best Buy and Easy
Build. There is also a free
home delivery and free
installation facilities within a
maximum of three days when
ordering from the popular e-
commerce
site
www.othoba.com.
Md.
Nazmul
Haque,Assistant General
Manager (Operations) of
Rangpur Metal Industries
Limited, Finance Controller
Md. Zahir Uddin, Deputy
Manager (Accounts)
BinodKumer Sarker and Sub-
Assistant Brand Manager Md.
Ashrafuzzaman and other
senior officials of the
companywere present.
MONDAY, JUNE 6, 2022
9
Benzema-The Good,
The Bad and the Ugly
side of French football
PARIS: French football star
Karim Benzema, who
provokes passionate
opinions-being adored or
disliked in equal measurehas
made a spectacular
return to "Les Bleus" despite
the "sex tape" scandal in
which he has finally waived
an appeal against his oneyear
suspended sentence,
reports BSS.
The 34-year-old's talent on
the pitch is indisputable. He
has a swathe of league titles
with both Lyon and Real
Madrid as well as five
Champions League trophies
and is a serious contender
for the next Ballon d'Or.
Even seven-time laureate
Lionel Messi says he
deserves it. "There's no
doubt, it's very clear that
Benzema has had a
spectacular year and has
ended it by winning the
Champions League," Messi
said. But on Friday, his
brilliant opening goal was
not enough to save France
from a 2-1 defeat against
Denmark in Paris.
Australia's Minjee Lee fired a four-under-par 67 to set a 54-hole scoring record
and seize a three-stroke lead after Saturday's third round of the 77th US
Women's Open.
Photo: BSS
Aussie Lee grabs lead with 54-hole record at US Women's Open
WASHINGTON : Australia's
Minjee Lee fired a fourunder-par
67 to set a 54-hole
scoring record and seize a
three-stroke lead after
Saturday's third round of the
77th US Women's Open,
reports BSS.
The 26-year-old from
Perth answered a lone bogey
with five birdies, four in a
row starting at the ninth
hole, to stand on 13-under
200 entering the final round
at Pine Needles in Southern
Pines, North Carolina.
"I was pretty solid all day,"
Lee said. "I was making pars
when I needed to. I made a
bogey but then made those
birdies. It was nice to get
those going and finish with
all pars. I'm looking forward
to tomorrow."
Lee's total broke the old
54-hole tournament mark
set by American Juli Inkster
in 1999 at Old Waverly and
made her the player to catch
on Sunday for the record
$1.8 million top prize. "A
three-shot lead is a nice
cushion but it's not enough
to let your heart calm down,"
Lee said. "I'm going to be
really focused tomorrow, try
and stay calm and
concentrate on every shot
I'm making."
American Mina Harigae
shot 70 to stand second on
203 with England's Bronte
Law third on 206 after a 68.
Booters hold first
training session
in Malaysia
DHAKA : The national
booters had their first
training session today
(Saturday) at Malaysia
under the supervision of
head coach Javier Cabrera,
reports BSS.
The national booters
participated in a team
meeting, gym and
swimming session at Team
Hotel in the morning. They
also held a one and half hour
practice session at the Mini
Shah Alam Stadium in
Malaysia in the afternoon.
All the players and officials
of the team are well and fit
and there is no injury
problem in the team,
according to a message
received here from
Bangladesh Football
Federation this afternoon.
Earlier, Bangladesh
national football team
reached Malaysia from
Indonesia Thursday last to
participate in the AFC Asian
Cup China 2023 qualifiers
scheduled to be held from
June 8-14 in Malaysia.
Bangladesh which was
placed at group E along with
Bahrain Turkmenistan and
Malaysia in the AFC Asian
Cup, will play the first match
against Bahrain on June 8,
face against Turkmenistan
on June 11 and meet host
Malaysia on June 14.
Nadal aims to be French Open's oldest
champion against pupil Ruud
PARIS:Rafael Nadal will become the oldest
man to win the French Open title if he
defeats Casper Ruud, the Norwegian whose
clay court talents he has personally helped
foster, reports BSS.
Nadal will be playing in his 14th Roland
Garros final on Sunday and 30th overall at
the Grand Slams.
Victory will deliver a record-extending
22nd major and 14th French Open, 17 years
after his title winning debut in Paris.
The 36-year-od Nadal is, however, as
surprised as anyone to have got this far.
A chronic left foot injury which has
plagued him throughout his career flared up
again in Rome last month, putting a serious
question mark over him even making it to
the French capital. "Without a doubt, I'd
prefer to lose the final and have a new foot,"
admitted Nadal who has not hidden the
brutal reality that every match he plays at
Roland Garros may be his last.
Despite his fears, Nadal has impressively
battled his way into Sunday's championship
match. He needed five sets and more than
four hours to see off Felix Auger-Aliassime in
the last 16 and another four hours to get past
Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals.
Alexander Zverev then pushed him all the
way for three hours in the semi-finals until a
sickening ankle injury forced the German
world number three to quit on crutches.
Despite the German's bold all-or-nothing
challenge, Nadal still cut an impressive
presence on court, at one point coming out
on top in a lung-busting 44-shot rally.
Spain's Rafael Nadal will be playing in his 14th Roland Garros final on
Sunday and 30th overall at the Grand Slams.
Photo: AP
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MONdAY, JUNE 6, 2022
10
Ferdous, Nipun in new
film ‘Sujon Majhi’
TBT REPORT
Popular Dhallywood actors
Ferdous Ahmed and Nipun Akter
will be seen in a new film titled
'Sujon Majhi'. The movie is being
directed by noted filmmaker
Delowar Jahan Jhontu.
'Sujon Majhi' has been made on
the life in a rural background.
Ferdous will play a character of
rural boatman, while Nipun will be
seen acting as an urban girl in the
romantic film. The shooting of the
film has been started recently.
About the project, Ferdous said,
"Delowar Jahan Jhontu is an
experienced filmmaker. 'Sujon
Majhi' is a romantic folk genre
film. After a long time, I have
acted in a folk film. The audience
will get to see this type of rural
movie in a new way. I hope the
viewers will like our work."
Nipun shared, "There are not
much of movies in rural settings.
I have joined this project for that
reason. Jhontu uncle is a
talented director. I'm looking
The Thor: Love and
Thunder trailer revealed a
buff new look for Natalie
Portman's MCU
character. As the Mighty
Thor, Natalie Portman's
Jane Foster was seen
sporting some muscular
biceps in the final shot of
the trailer. This clip
provided the first official
look of Portman incostume
as the MCU's
Mighty Thor.
Having been absent
from the MCU since
2013's Thor: The Dark
World, Portman's Jane
Foster is about to make
her long-awaited return to
the movies in Taika
Waititi's Thor: Love and
Thunder. However, her
forward to working with him."
Produced by Abu Syed Khan,
the film is made under the
banner of Shemanti Music. The
film also stars Kazi Hayat, Selim,
Siam Khan, Gangua and others.
role in the movie won't be
at all similar to what it was
before. Jane will go from
Thor's human, nonpowered
love interest to a
new incarnation of the
God of Thunder and the
next owner of Mjolnir.
How exactly the movie
would pull it off, how it
would her interpret her
Mighty Thor origin from
Marvel Comics, and how
her transformation would
translate to the big screen
were among the biggest
questions ahead of the
trailer.
Natalie Portman's
muscled arms in the Thor:
Love and Thunder trailer
prove that the actress has
made some notable
changes to her physique
for the role. How she
obtained her new look
was discussed in an
interview with Vanity
Earlier, Ferdous and Nipun
were teamed up in several films
like 'Bayanno Theke Ekattor',
'Shorgo Theke Norok', 'Obujh
Bou' and 'Ontordhan', and
others.
How Natalie got so buff for
‘Thor: Love & Thunder’
In the eve of celebrating my 44th birthday (12-06-
2022), I convey gratefulness to the Allah Almighty and
to my parents. My appreciation goes to my younger
siblings and life partner who have supported me in
difficult times.
(SI Sohel Rana, Superstar)
Fair. Portman said she
worked with a trainer
named Naomi Pendergast
for four months before the
shoot. During this time,
she consumed protein
shakes and did a great
deal of weight training
that she wasn't
accustomed to before the
movie. According to
Portman, her Thor 4
workout consisted of a lot
of "agility work" and
"strength work". The
details of these exercises
haven't been disclosed,
but other comments from
the actress were indicative
of just how intense they
were. Portman previously
described being "super
tired" after her Thor 4
workouts.
Source: Collider
Akhi Alamgir’s party
song ‘Pagol Banaili’
TBT REPORT
Akhi Alamgir is going to release
her new song, 'Pagol Banaili' on
YouTube on the occasion of
Eid-ul-Azha. The song is
composed by Sahriar Rafat and
the lyrics of the song were
written by Arfin Rumey.
"The song 'Pagol Banail' is a
very beautiful song. It is going
to be a party song. I really liked
its lyrics and melody," said
Akhi Alamgir.
"I've sung to Rafat's
composition earlier. The song
'Shironame Tumi Amar' was
also composed by him and he
also sang that song with me.
The new song is going to be a
different one. I hope everyone
will like it," she added.
"The song has come to life
with the voice of Akhi Alamgir.
Rafat has made a wonderful
melody and music composition
Basking in the success of her last film
Bhool Bhuliayaa 2, Kiara Advani has
been slaying it like a pro. Apart from
being one of the most successful actresses
of recent times, the actress often makes
heads turn owing to her fashion choices.
After BB 2 with Kartik Aaryan, the actress
is now gearing up for the release of her
upcoming film JugJugg Jeeyo. Headline
by Kiara and Varun Dhawan, it also stars
Neetu Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Prajakta Koli
and Maniesh Paul in the lead roles.
On the personal front, Kiara is
rumoured to be dating her Shershaah costar
Sidharth Malhotra. Recently, reports
for the song. I hope everyone
will like this song," said Arfin
Rumey.
Akhi Alamgir said that she
has also sang a new original
song composed by talented
composer Mannan
Mohammad recently and now
passing busy time performing
stage shows. She is going to
perform in Dhaka this month.
Akhi Alamgir's latest song
'Keno Eto Bhoy' was composed
by Bappa Mazumder and
Maruf Hasan written its lyrics.
Bappa Mazumder directed the
music video and the song was
uploaded from Bappa
Mazumder's YouTube channel.
This March, Akhi received her
fifth international award from
the 'SAARC Film Journalists
Forum'. Earlier, she won three
international honours from
Kolkata and one from Dubai.
Akhi Alamgir is the only
singer in Bangladesh who won
the National Film Award for
both singing and acting. She
won the National Film Award
for her first performance as a
child artiste in the film 'Bhat
De' directed by Amjad Hossain.
Kiara reveals mantra of healthy
relationship with Sidharth
of their break-up had surfaced but were
soon dismissed.
If you want to know what kind of
qualities Kiara Advani is looking for in
her partner then this piece of news is for
you. In her latest interview, the Good
Newwz actress has spilled the beans on
what is she looking for in her partner.
Kiara told Cosmopolitan India, "I'd want
someone who just makes me feel loved,
seen and heard, and does not take me for
granted." Well, we wonder is Sidharth is
listening!
Not only that, Kiara went on to reveal
her mantra for a happy and healthy
Later, she won the National
Film Award for the song
'Golpo Kothar Oi Kalploke
Jani' tuned by Runa Laila and
Gazi Mazharul Anwar wrote
the lyrics for the film 'Ekti
Cinemar Golpo' which was
directed by her father.
James to perform at Coke Studio Bangla live concert on June 9
TBT REPORT
James is all set to rock Coke Studio
Bangla live concert at the Army
Stadium on June 9. After the Covid
outbreak, James is going to sing in a big
concert again. Besides, Warfaze,
Nemesis, Lalon Band, Introit, Jalali
Set, Shayan Chowdhury Arnob, and all
the talented artistes of Coke Studio
Bangla will perform at the concert.
Under the slogan 'Concert will be
Magical', the concert will start at 4:00
pm and will continue till 9:00 pm. The
gates will be open at 1:30 pm.
Apart from the bands, the mastermind
behind coke studio Shayan Chowdhury
Arnob, Animes Roy, Momtaz, Mizan
Rahman, Rituraj Baidya, Nandita, Nigar
Sultana, and Ripon (Boga Taleb) will also
perform at the concert. The audience can
purchase the ticket through the Coke
Studio Bangla Live website and another
added attraction for the viewers is that
they can also take a picture with the
FIFA original trophy at the event.
relationship. She told the magazine,
"There should be no egos. I feel the worst
thing you can do in a relationship is to
allow your ego to come in the way. For
me, a healthy relationship is one where
there is clear, respectful communication.
You need to accept each other for who
you are and nurture that".
A couple of days back, reports of Kiara
Advani and Sidharth Malhotra calling it
quits had surfaced. However, during the
screening of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, the
couple was seen hugging and stealing
glances leaving their fans overjoyed.
Earlier, Kiara Advani was in news
when she had revealed being dumbstruck
after seeing Salman Khan. Spilling the
beans on the same, Kiara had told
Mumbai Mirror, "Salman was sitting
outside his vanity van, waiting to be
called for a shot. I was 17 then and my
mom nudged me to greet him. She was
shocked when I didn't say a word. I was
struck dumb, literally! I already knew
him, but the aura around him was so
strong.''
In terms of work, Kiara will next be
seen in 'Govinda Naam Mera' alongside
Vicky Kaushal and Bhumi Pednekar and
also in 'RC 15' co-starring Ram Charan.
Source: IANS
H O R O S c O P E
ARIES
Today your intellectual and
expressive abilities should receive a
boost from the planets. It's an
excellent time to organize your thoughts about
presenting a project to a possible collaborator,
engage in trade, or write. In terms of your
private life, it's also a good time to examine the
latest events, certain aspects of which are still
partially misunderstood.
TAURUS
Overall, the forecast for today is fairly
good. The aspects seem to favor figuring
out the meaning of all that's transpired
over the past several weeks. It's an
opportunity for you to take a leisurely look at the
distance you've covered moving toward your goals.
Since it's an auspicious day for social activities, why not
get together with friends and discuss the latest events
with them?
GEMINI
Have you felt somewhat lost for the past
few days? The fog may lift today and
enable you to situate yourself at last.
You're probably eager to settle a
question that has nagged at you and interfered with
your judgment. However, you should be patient,
especially if it has to do with emotional matters. Try
to understand, but don't take immediate action.
You'll be more objective beginning tomorrow.
cANcER
You may have been feeling somewhat
disillusioned. Perhaps you lost sight of
your goals or misplaced your faith in
yourself. You'll feel some relief
beginning today. This is an opportunity to end what
has been a somewhat apathetic and moody phase
and begin a new one that's based on work and
meditation. As you can imagine, this new phase will
be much more fulfilling!
LEO
You might be tempted to settle certain
matters by radical means. The
visionary part of you means you're
painfully aware of the world's wrongs.
You see no reason not to take action to correct them.
But the forces in play are so powerful that you can't
expect to institute a new order in one day. If you
have an emotional question to resolve, it would be
better to wait a few days before making a decision.
VIRGO
Today will be fairly calm in terms of
outside events, but your inner world is
likely to be in a rush of activity. Today you
wish you could find the solution to your
heartaches as well as your career predicaments. You'd
like to achieve some supreme understanding of the
events that took place over the past month. First you
must force your brain to slow down. Haste makes
waste, as you know!
LIBRA
You have a lot of thinking to do about
your professional goals, Libra. You'll go
over the elements to see if there isn't
some way to approach things differently.
Are there new paths you could try or ways to improve
things? Your mind will go a thousand miles a minute
today. Those who spend time with you may be totally
exhausted by the end of the day because of all the
questions you ask!
ScORPIO
You just can't do everything at once,
Scorpio. How do you expect to reduce
your stress and recuperate while at
the same time continue to be a
superstar performer in every area of your life?
Don't pressure yourself to perform today. If you do,
you're likely to deplete your reserves even further.
Take it easy, rest, and relax! You've earned this
little break.
SAGITTARIUS
This is a good moment to adapt your logic
and reason to reality, Sagittarius. If you
don't, you're going to run into some
intellectual problems. Everyone knows that you find new
ideas plentiful, but unless you have plans to be a novelist,
link your thinking to reality. The "pie in the sky" thinking
that you engage in isn't particularly useful to the rest of
us living here in the real world.
cAPRIcORN
It's going to be a little difficult talking
to you today, Capricorn. You, who can
be easily influenced by others, will be
listening to and criticizing everything
that people say. Nothing emotional or vague is
going to get into your head. It's as if you've installed
an extremely fine filter that lets in only what you
allow. You're going to appear to be a real expert.
Don't show off too much!
AQUARIUS
Have you been reviewing your family
history lately, Aquarius? Of special
interest is your cultural background.
What educational, social, and religious
environment were you born into? What are its
values? In the end, do you feel a strong affinity with
them now or are those views different from the ones
you hold? These are interesting avenues of thought
for you today.
PIScES
It's time to elevate your sense of self,
Pisces. You're just as good as anyone
else, so why don't you believe it? The
problem is that you're very sensitive
about having an ego. Even though you know
everyone does, you punish yourself for its existence!
This is a noble idea, but it doesn't do you any good.
You'll never be perfect and neither will anyone else.
What are you worrying about?
MonDAY, JunE 6, 2022
11
Hindu banker and a worker from
India fatally shot in Kashmir
SRINAGAR : Assailants fatally shot a
Hindu bank manager and a worker in
targeted shootings in Indian-controlled
Kashmir on Thursday, according to
police who blamed the attacks on
militants fighting against Indian rule of
the disputed region, reports UNB.
Militants shot and wounded two
Hindu workers at a brick factory near
Chadoora town on Thursday night,
Jammu-Kashmir police said in a
statement. They were taken to a
hospital, where one of the workers from
India's Bihar state died.
Earlier Thursday, suspected militants
shot and killed a bank manager, Vijay
Kumar, in southern Kulgam district, a
separate Jammu-Kashmir police
statement said. Kumar, from India's
Rajasthan state, died at a hospital
following the shooting.
CCTV footage circulating on social
media shows a masked assailant walk
into the bank and fire shots at Kumar
with what appears to be a handgun.
Muslim-majority Kashmir has
witnessed a spate of targeted killings in
recent months. They come as Indian
troops have continued their
counterinsurgency operations across
the region amid a clampdown on
dissent and media freedom, which
critics have likened to a militaristic
policy.
On Tuesday, suspected militants, also
in Kulgam, shot and killed a Hindu
schoolteacher, Rajini Bala.
After that killing, Hindu government
employees staged protests in several
areas, demanding the government
relocate them from Kashmir to safer
areas in the Hindu-dominated Jammu
region. They accused the government
of making them "scapegoats" and
"cannon fodder" to showcase normalcy
in the region and chanted slogans like
"The only solution is relocation."
Hundreds of Hindus who had
returned to the region after 2010 as
part of a government resettlement plan
Joypurhat district Awami League organized a tree-plantation program at
Joypurhat government college campus yesterday on the occasion of World
Environment Day.
Photo : Masrakul Alam
that provided them with jobs and
housing fled the Kashmir Valley after
the killing of Bala, according to
Kashmiri Hindu activists. Some 4,000
Kashmiri Hindus, who are locally
known as Pandits, have been recruited
for government jobs under the
program.
Those employees have been on a
strike since May 13 after a Hindu
revenue clerk was killed inside an office
complex in Chadoora town.
In the aftermath of the clerk's killing,
hundreds of Pandits - an estimated
200,000 of whom fled Kashmir after
an anti-India rebellion erupted in 1989
- organized for the first time
simultaneous street protests at several
locations in the region demanding
better security.
"We were tricked into thinking that
the government is rehabilitating us
under an employment package," said
Jyoti Bhat, a local Hindu teacher who
joined the program seven years ago.
North Korea test-fires
salvo of short-range
missiles
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA :
North Korea test-fired a
barrage of short-range ballistic
missiles from multiple
locations toward the sea on
Sunday, South Korea's military
said, extending a provocative
streak in weapons
demonstrations this year that
U.S. and South Korean officials
say may culminate with a
nuclear test explosion. Possibly
setting a single-day record for
North Korean ballistic launches,
eight missiles were fired in
succession over 35 minutes
from at least four different
locations, including from
western and eastern coastal
areas and two inland areas
north of and near the capital.
Chairman of Akboria Care Faundation Hasan Ali Alal distributed saplings among over five hundred
males and females in Bogura yesterday on the occasion of World Environment Day. Photo : Azahar Ali
Teachers after Texas attack:
'None of us are built for this'
CHARLESTON : Teacher Jessica Salfia
was putting up graduation balloons last
month at her West Virginia high school
when two of them popped, setting off panic
in a crowded hallway between classes.
One student dropped to the floor. Two
others lunged into open classrooms. Salfia
quickly shouted, "It's balloons! Balloons!"
and apologized as the teenagers realized
the noise didn't come from gunshots.
The moment of terror at Spring Mills
High School in Martinsburg, about 80
miles (124 kilometers) northwest of
Washington happened May 23, the day
before a gunman fatally shot 19 children
and two teachers in a classroom in Uvalde,
Texas. The reaction reflects the fear that
pervades the nation's schools and taxes its
teachers - even those who have never
experienced such violence - and it comes
on top of the strain imposed by the
coronavirus pandemic.
Salfia has a more direct connection to
gun threats than most. Her mother, also a
West Virginia teacher, found herself staring
down a student with a gun in her classroom
seven years ago.
GD-1071/22 (5x4)
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1245
GD-1076/22 (10x4)
GD-1070/22 (8x4)
Monday, Dhaka: June 6, 2022; Jaishtha 23, 1429 BS; Zilquad 5, 1443 Hijri
WB to provide
Tk 255cr food aid to
Rohingyas:Enamur
DHAKA : State Minister for Disaster
Management and Relief Dr Mohammad
Enamur Rahman has said that the World
Bank (WB) will provide Taka 255 crore
as food aid to the Rohingya refugees.
"Under the agreement, the WFP will
provide food assistance to the Rohingyas
in Cox's Bazar through the 'Safety Net
System for the Poorest' which is being
funded by the World Bank," he said.
The state minister told the newsmen
after signing an agreement with the
World Food Programme (WFP) at the
ministry's conference room in the
Secretariat, said a press release.
"The project will provide nutrition education
to women and assistance to children
under the age of five in health centres.
It will also provide training and necessary
equipments for gardening, tree
plantation and try to protect both trees
and mountain slopes," Enamur said.
He mentioned that the project is
expected to reduce anti-social crimes and
increase awareness among the Rohingya
refugees, according to the release.
EC suspends Chambal
UP election in Ctg
DHAKA : The Election Commission has
suspended the election of Chambal
Union Parishad at Banshkhali upazila in
Chattogram over violation of election
regulations by a chairman candidate.
In a press release on Sunday the commission
said the election slated for June
15 has been suspended until further notice.
According to the notice, chairman
candidate of Chambal UP Mujibul
Haque Chowdhury has announced that
he will hire men to help people for pressing
the EVM button and threatened to
snatch win in the election using EVM as
per his wish.
He also said he would have collected all
the votes by night if there was no EVM
which has been published in different
newspaper and television reports. Local
Administration and Election Officer
found proof of the statement later
through a probe.
"Such actions are criminal offence according
to the Union Council (Election
Behaviour) Rules, 2016 and The Local
Government (Union Parishads) Rules
,2010. The commission directs to file a
case against the Chambal UP chairman
candidate," said the EC.
RMG workers
stage demo in city
demanding wage hike
DHAKA : Hundreds of workers of different
garment factories in Mirpur area of
the city have been staging demonstrations
demanding a hike in wages.
Abu Raihan Mohammad Saleh, joint
commissioner of traffic (north), said workers
of different garment factories took to
the streets at Mirpur-10 Golchhatar area
after 8 am. Later, workers of garment
workers from adjacent areas, including
Kazipara, Shewrapar and Agargaon, also
joined them to express their solidarity with
them. A number of garment factories were
vandalised during the demonstrations.
Vehicular movement from Mirpur-1 to
Agargaon remained halted for several
hours, causing sufferings to the commuters
especially the officer goers.
Balance development
with environment:PM
DHAKA : Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
on Sunday underlined the need for protecting
the environment to ensure sustainable
development in the country.
"For sustainable development there
should be coordination with environment
and development. Otherwise,
development cannot be sustainable," she
said. The premier was speaking at the
Tree Fair and Campaign for Tree
Plantation programme to mark the
World Environment Day at
Bangabandhu International Conference
Centre (BICC).
Hasina virtually joined the event from
her official residence Ganobhaban.
The theme for World Environment
Day this year is "Only One Earth", with
focus on "living sustainably in harmony
with nature".
The PM said that while going for development
that everyone has to adopt the
nature based solution. "This is urgently
needed," she said. She said that every
development project in the country has
to fulfill one condition: to plant at least
five trees for each tree felled for it.
Bangladesh, she said, needs development
for improving the people's lives.
But the development must be fairly balanced
with the nature and environment,
she observed. She mentioned her government
is setting up 100 economic
zones across the country to prevent indiscriminate
industrialization and preserve
the arable lands.
She said these projects have provision
of harvesting rain water to preserve the
ground water. The PM reiterated her call
not to leave a single inch of arable land
uncultivated as the world is under threat
of scarcity of food grains due to Covid-19
pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war.
"Our land is fertile and we have manpower,
we have to produce our own
crops, we will produce whatever we need,
we will have to shun our dependency on
others," she said. She said the manpower
of Environment Ministry has been
increased to 1133 from 265, the environment
directorate office has been set up in
50 districts and gradually every district
will get an office.
Environment, Forest and Climate
Change Minister Md Shahab Uddin,
Deputy Minister Habibun Nahar, chairman
of parliamentary affairs committee
on Environment, Forest and Climate
Change Ministry Saber Hossain
Chowdhury also spoke on the occasion
while its Secretary Dr Farhina Ahmed
gave the address of welcome.
A video documentary on the government
activities to protect the environment
was also screened.
Earlier, the forest minister, on behalf of
the prime minister, handed over awards
including Bangabandhu Award for
Wildlife Conservation and National
Environment Award among the recipients.
The PM also inaugurated the
National Environment Fair and National
Tree Fair 2022 at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar.
The Environment, Forest and Climate
Change ministry is holding a month-long
'National Tree Plantation Campaign' and
a week-long 'Tree Fair 2022' across the
country as part of the World
Environment Day programme.
'National Tree Plantation Campaign'
will be held from June 5 to July 4 while
'Tree Fair 2022' will take place from June
5-11. The theme of this year is
'Brikhaprane Prokriti-Protibesh, Agami
Projanmer Teksai Bangladesh'.
Hasina called upon all to plant tree
saplings to create green afforestation
aimed at maintaining a healthy and safe
environment in the country.
She mentioned that her party Awami
League began tree plantation programme
during 1984-85 when there was
no discussion on the issue of environment
in the world.
As part of the programmes, the Awami
League began along with its associate
bodies tree plantation campaign on the
first day Bangla month Asharh every year
to create afforestation in the country, she
added.
HC orders to set up information
centre at SC within 60 days
DHAKA : The High Court (HC) has
ordered to set up an information centre
following the obligations of the Right to
Information Act-2009(RTI) at the
Supreme Court(SC) within 60 days.
A two-member HC bench comprising
Justice Md Mozibur Rahman Mia and
Justice Khijir Hayat pronounced the verdict
after hearing a writ petition, reports
UNB.
The writ petition was filed by Advocate
Shishir Monir on May 26. Shishir conducted
the hearing himself while Deputy
Attorney General Bipul Bagmar stood
for the state.
Replying to questions after the pronouncement
of the verdict, Shishir said
that instructions have been given to the
Registrar General of the SC along with
Registrars of both the Appellate and the
HC divisions to set up the information
centre.
According to the writ petition, the
Right to Information Act-2009 directs to
establish information cells and recruit
Information Officers(IO) in all the constitutional
institutions of the country,
including the government and the
autonomous bodies.
The writ petition also says that free
flow of information is peoples' constitutional
right according to section 39 of the
constitution. People are deprived of this
right due to the absence of information
cells and information officers at public
offices.
"The plaintiff had requested the
Registrar of the HC for providing information
regarding capital punishment.
The plaintiff didn't get any response
from him. Later, he submitted a request
to the Registrar General of the SC to
implement the RTI-2009 Act. The plaintiff
finally had to file a writ petition after
not receiving any response from the SC
official either," adds the writ petition.
On Sunday, 2,456 metric tonnes of wheat arrived in 42 wagons from India at Hilli land port
in Dinajpur.
Photo : Star Mail
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina planted tree at Ganabhaban yesterday
on the occasion of World Environment Day.
Photo : PID
BNP holds dialogues with
obscure parties:Hasan
DHAKA : Information and Broadcasting
Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud yesterday
said BNP is holding dialogues with some
obscure parties and their allies, meaning
they are conducting dialogues within
themselves.
"I saw in newspapers that BNP is holding
dialogues with the parties of its own
so-called alliance though some parties
have fled from the coalition which means
they are holding discussions with themselves.
Besides, the party is also discussing
with some unregistered political
parties. This unregistered political parties
are being called alien parties," he
added.
The minister added that the dialogue is
ridiculous and it reveals their political
bankruptcy.
Hasan said this to reporters after
exchanging views with the newly elected
executive members of Crime Reporters
Association of Bangladesh (CRAB).
Replying to a query over the Sitakunda
tragedy, he said the Prime Minister is
looking into the matter herself and gave
necessary instructions to all concerned.
"Our party leaders and activists were
given directives to donate blood and
extend other necessary help to the victims.
All leaders and activists of Awami
Inflationary pressure
hurts low-income
families:New Survey
DHAKA : The current inflationary pressures
has eroded the real income and adversely
affected food security and essential expenditures
of the low-income households in
Bangladesh. This has also significantly disrupted
their economic recovery from the
COVID-19 shock, says a latest survey.
In a virtual press conference on Sunday,
titled "Inflation, Coping, and Recovery
Challenges" Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman,
executive chairman of Power and
Participation Research Centre (PPRC), and
Dr Imran Matin, executive director of BRAC
Institute of Governance and Development
(BIGD), highlighted these trends.
They presented these findings from the
latest round of a survey in a joint PPRC-
BIGD study, which has been capturing, since
April 2020, the evolving economic crisis
among low-income communities in
Bangladesh due to COVID-19 through multiple
rounds of surveys among a large sample
of urban slum and rural population.
Almost 4,000 households were surveyed
in the fifth round conducted in May
this year, according to the survey.
They show that per capita daily incomes
League, Jubo League, Chhatra League,
Swechchhasebak League and other associate
bodies are participating in the rescue
operation," he added.
He said investigation will be carried
out to find out whether the incident is an
accident or sabotage. It is necessary to
find out the real issue of the tragedy, said
Hasan, also Awami League joint general
secretary.
Earlier, the minister extended thanks
to the newly elected CRAB executive
members.
Hasan said the crime reporters often
face big risks to write their reports on
crimes.
CRAB president Mirza Mehedi Tomal,
vice president Md Jahangir Alam, general
secretary Asaduzzaman Biku, joint secretary
Imran Hossain Suman, treasurer
Saiful Islam Mantu, organising secretary
Ataur Rahman office secretary Ismail
Hossain Imu, publicity secretary Rudra
Russel, sports secretary SM Mintu
Hossain, training and information technology
secretary Sazzad Mahmud Khan,
welfare secretary Nahid Tanmoy, international
secretary Shahin Alam, executive
members Md Amanur Rahman
Roni, Sirazul Islam and Mohammd
Zakaria were present.
were steadily recovering after the second
lockdown-which increased by a 27% from
August 2021 to January 2022- but have
started reversing again by a 6% between
January and May 2022 due to inflation,
disrupting the expected recovery of real
incomes to that of pre-pandemic times.
Dr Rahman said inflation has compounded
the COVID-induced disruptions
to economic recovery, with real incomes of
poorer households still 15% below pre-
COVID levels two years from the onset of
the pandemic. The recent fall in daily per
capita real incomes in the urban slums
(8%) has been sharper than that in the
rural areas (3%).
Livelihoods in urban slums were already
more severely affected by COVID and
recovering more slowly, compared to
those in villages. The inflation has further
slowed the recovery in the slums, according
to the survey. The inflationary pressure
also appears to have pulled more women
to find work; 40% of female respondents
in the survey were engaged in incomegenerating
activities in January, which
jumped to 52% in May.
Youth whose
Facebook Live
captured blast
amid fire turns
up dead
CHATTOGRAM : The young man whose
Facebook Live broadcast captured the
deadly explosion that occurred as firefighters
fought the initial blaze at the BM
Container Depot in Sitakunda on
Saturday night has, as feared, died.
The deceased was identified as Oliur
Rahman, son of Ashik Miah of
Moulvibazar. He was a young worker at
the Container Depot.
Oliur remained missing until Sunday
noon. Later, his co-workers identified his
body at Chattogram Medical College and
Hospital (CMCH), confirmed one of his
co-workers Ruel.
Ruel said Oliur might have died from
the impact of the blast.
He said, "It was dinner time when the
explosion occurred. We left the depot for
dinner, but Oliur stayed there to make it
live on Facebook."
Oliur went live from his Facebook
when the massive fire broke out at the
container depot in Sitakunda on
Saturday night. He was informing everyone
about the fire on Facebook Live.
The broadcast firefighters and other
depot staff are struggling to contain the
fire. Around 41 minutes into his broadcast,
a blast occurs and the screen goes
black, indicating whoever was holding
the phone had clearly lost control of it.
People calling Oliur's phone from
that point onwards found it switched
off and he went missing. The blast
amid the fire is suspected to have also
been the cause for the greatest loss of
firefighters in a single incident in
Bangladesh's history.
Oliur's relatives went to the CMCH to
receive his body, said Ruel.
"The death toll from the fire climbed to
49 and there were seven fire service
members among the deceased," said
Anisur Rahman, deputy director of Fire
Service and Civil Defense, while briefing
reporters at Chattogram Medical College
and Hospital over the deadly fire incident.
Besides, over 200 people suffered
injuries.
Chattogram Fire Service and Civil
Defense Assistant Director Faruk
Hossain Shikdar said a large explosion
rocked the area on Saturday night.
"The explosion was heard within a
radius of 4km from the spot," Faruk
added.
A total of 15-20 explosions occurred at
the depot following the fire, he said.
Shahjahan Shikdar, deputy assistant
director of Fire Service and Civil Defense
headquarters (media), said 13 firefighters
are undergoing treatment at Chattogram
Combined Military Hospital (CMH).
Blockchain Olympiad
Bangladesh-2022
begins today
DHAKA : Three-day "Blockchain
Olympiad Bangladesh-2022" is going to
begin today with the theme "Inspiring
Empowerment and Innovation."
Planning Minister MA Mannan is
expected to inaugurate the Olympiad as
the chief guest on June 6 at 10 am at
Krishibid Institution (KIB) auditorium,
said a press release.
Bangladesh Computer Council (BCC)
informed this at a press conference held
at the BCC auditorium, ICT Tower in the
city's Agargaon yesterday.
The three-day event will include
awards ceremony, and seminars on
blockchain.
State Minister for Information and
Communication Technology (ICT)
Zunaid Ahmed Palak will be the chief
guest at the closing ceremony to be held
on June 8.
Derailment halts
Dhaka's rail link with
northern districts
GAZIPUR : Rail communications
between Dhaka and the northern
parts of the country have remained
suspended since Sunday noon due
to the derailment of a train in
Gazipur, officials said.
In-charge of Joydebpur Railway
Junction Police outpost Shahidul
Islam said that four bogies of the
freight train veered off the tracks
near Joydebpur Railway Station at
noon.
A number of trains got stranded
due to the derailment.