06-06-2022

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.