SECOND EDITION

PAGE 2VDP man killed during tourist rescue attempt

PAGE 5Mandatory jute packaging deadline extended

PAGE 8Category 4 typhoon displaces 10,000 people in Philippines

PAGE 9Indian villagers kill Muslim accused of cow smuggling

PAGE 3Police: Three-tier security for Durga Puja, Ashura

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015 | Kartik 4, 1422, Moharram 5, 1437 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 183 | www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages | Price: Tk10

WOMAN DIES AS FATHER’S HOSTAGE PAGE 32

8TH PAY SCALE ORDER IN NOVEMBER PAGE 5

PRIVATE SECTOR CREDIT GROWTH SLOW AGAIN PAGE 15

Investigators close in on Tavella and Kunio killersn Mohammad Jamil Khan

Though the investigators claimed to have identi� ed the killers and masterminds behind Italian citizen Cesare Tavella and Japanese Hoshi Kunio murders, the law enforcers are yet to disclose the information due to a lack of concrete evidence.

The planner, who belongs to an anti-gov-ernment political party, chalked out both the killings from a hideout somewhere in the cap-ital, sources in the police’s Rapid Action Bat-talion (RAB) and Detective Branch (DB) said.

“The investigators are now trying to arrest the leader by tracing his location,” a senior of-� cial of DB police said yesterday, adding that the two murders had been conducted by four groups, who looked into the planning, � nanc-ing, publicity and the murders.

Investigators said that they had identi� ed three killers of Tavella and three others who killed Hoshi. Now they are trying to seize the � rearms and the motorcycles.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said that they were very close to making sig-ni� cant breakthrough in the cases. “We hope we can disclose the progress soon,” he added.

The minister alleged that the country and the ruling government were targeted by plot-ters, who cannot tolerate the ongoing devel-opment activities.

“It is a conspiracy. Even the prime minister clari� ed the matter. Those who had opposed the Liberation War in 1971 have now become part of the plot hatched by local and interna-tional groups.”

He also expressed frustration as the US again issued travel alert for its citizens in

Bangladesh. “However, our law enforcement agencies are on alert,” he added.

The government has also trashed as baseless the claim by international terrorist group Is-lamic State of killing the two foreign nationals.

Meanwhile, DMP Commissioner Asaduz-zaman Miah yesterday said that they had not found the involvement of any local militant group in the murder of foreigners. “The in-vestigators have identi� ed the mastermind and the shooter in Tavella murder,” he an-nounced during a press brie� ng at the DMP media centre.

He said that the investigators were collect-ing concrete evidence to arrest the culprits.

The DMP boss termed the killing a planned conspiracy, but refrained from naming a party or individual for the sake of the investigation.

PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Shahriar Alam: No new information on travel alertsn Sheikh Shahariar Zaman

State Minister for Foreign A� airs Shahriar Alam yesterday said the government did not have any new information on travel alert is-sued by foreign countries.

“We did not receive any new information from anybody. They [embassies] told us that they were issuing alert for their citizens on the basis of previous information,” he said while speaking at a press brie� ng at the ministry.

The US Embassy in Dhaka issued a security message on Saturday while the British updat-ed its travel advice on October 9.

However, Washington did not issue any travel alert or warning for Bangladesh but it issued travel alert or warning for Nepal, My-anmar, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and other 40 countries.

Shahriar said the Foreign Ministry contact-ed the Home Ministry about the issue.

“The Home Ministry informed us that they are doing whatever possible to bring the crim-inals to justice,” Shahriar Alam said.

PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Armed Mro group set to surrenderby October 22n S Bashu Das, Bandarban

Around 100 armed activists of Mro National Party are likely to surrender their arms this week, the largest ever incident of surrender after the 1997 Peace Accord.

A list of 70 MNP activists was prepared on Friday during a meeting at Alikadam. Army’s Alikadam zone chief Lt Col Mizanur Rahman, former hill district council member Aung Pru Mro, Sualok Union Chairman Ranglai Mro and four MNP representatives attended the meet-ing, sources said.

The authorities concerned have already seized 60 locals arms and ammunition from the 70 MNP members. Another list of 30 ac-tivists would be � nalised within a couple of days. They are set to hand over their arms at the Kurmnokpata camp at Alikadam on Octo-ber 22.

The group was established in 2011 and they soon engaged in killings, abduction, extortion

PAGE 2 COLUMN 4

A man takes a photograph of the Durga idol on his smartphone in Dhaka University’s Jagannath Hall. Durga Puja, the biggest religious festival of the Hindus, began with the welcoming of the goddess in temples across the country yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015News2DT

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

VDP man killed during tourist rescue attemptn Our Correspondent, Bandarban

A VDP member has been killed and two more law enforcers injured during a joint forces drive to rescue abducted tourists and their guide in Bandarban’s Ruma upazila.

Local sources said Mechong Mro, a mem-ber of the Village Defence Party, died when criminals opened � re on a joint forces team which was conducting a rescue attempt near the Ruma border around noon yesterday.

Army member Kashem and Ansar Sepoy Hannan – who also received gunshot wounds – were � own to the Chittagong Combined Mil-itary Hospital.

Lt Ra� , sta� o� cer for army’s Ruma zone, told the Dhaka Tribune that the Bandarban Sadar zone has used helicopters to send army reinforce-ments to Ruma border following the incident.

On October 3, Jakir Munna, 35, and Abdul-lah Al-Zubayer, 28, both tourists from Dhaka’s Mirpur, and their guide Mangsai Mro went missing in the Raikkhong Pukur Para in Ruma upazila of the hill district.

The brother of Mangsai later told the Dha-ka Tribune that the local commander of the Arakan Liberation Party (ALP) had called him and asked for Tk50 lakh in ransom

On Thursday, joint forces recovered a large amount of arms and ammunition during a drive in Ruma, according to an ISPR press statement. l

Shahriar Alam: No new information on travel alertsTwo foreign citizens – Cesare Tavella and Ho-shi Kunio – were killed on September 28 and October 3 in Dhaka and Rangpur respectively.

The junior minister said on October 5, the government briefed the ambassadors about the killings and security measures taken by the government and asked them to provide their information. The investigation is going on on the basis of information gathered by the intelli-gence agencies, he said.

Asked whether the Western countries issued travel alerts as they are not on good terms with the government, the junior minister ruled it out.

“We have robust engagement with them and there are many manifestation of it,” he said.

He said the security status for Bangladesh is

yellow, which means it is still in second phase and there are 58 countries in the world, which have yellow alert. There are four security sta-tus – green, yellow, orange and red.

Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali said everything is under the control of the govern-ment and it is prepared for anything.

Asked about the recent security message issued by the US embassy, he said there was nothing new in it. “I don’t think it is di� erent or stronger than what was issued earlier,” he said.

The US Embassy issued a security message where it said: “Security agencies in Bangladesh have taken extraordinary measures to increase security for foreigners in Bangladesh, but the terrorist threat remains real and credible.”

The security message also said: “ISIL claimed responsibility for the September 28 killing of an Italian national and the October 3 killing of a Japanese national.”

Asked why the Western countries kept men-tioning about ISIL claim in their alert, the min-ister said: “Why don’t you ask them? We will not respond to what they are circulating.”

Saudi tragedyThe state minister said 137 Bangladeshis were killed in Mina stampede during Hajj and still 53 are missing. He said out of 137, the identi� -cation of 96 have been con� rmed. The rest 41 have been con� rmed Bangladeshis but their identities are yet to be veri� ed. l

Investigators close in on Tavella and Kunio killersAsked about the time required for arresting the murderers, he said: “An investigation cannot be done within any time limit. It may take seven hours to seven years. However, we are hopeful to expose the killers soon.”

In response to another question, the DMP chief said that the police had not targeted any party or group during the investigation.

NGO o� cial Tavella was killed in Dhaka’s Gulshan diplomatic zone on September 28 while Japanese citizen Hoshi Kunio in Rang-pur on October 3. Both of them were shot and killed from behind by gunmen on motorcy-cles. Kunio was staying in Rangpur since early this year and ran a grass farm.

Investigators dealing with Hoshi murder claimed that they had identi� ed the three murderers and were looking for the master-mind. The suspects are members of an an-ti-government party.

On Saturday, Hoshi’s partner Humayun Kabir Hira was placed on a � ve-day fresh re-mand. Investigators said that a pro-BNP lead-er was also held for questioning in the case.

Earlier, a Jubo Dal leader was detained by Rangpur police and remanded. He was sent to jail on the third day of his 10-day remand.

Besides the detention of the suspects, the investigators also found a bank account where a huge � nancial transaction took place. The account also belong to an anti-gov-ernment party. The account holder received around Tk89 lakh from Canada and the UK.

Detectives in Rangpur said that they had got the information after analysing detail phone call records of nearly 100 suspected numbers. There were some abnormal phone calls near the murder spot.

They said that the planning of both the killings including hiring the killers, managing

funds and supply of arms was done by the mastermind from a hideout in Dhaka. Some abnormal cell phone activity founds in Rang-pur district, around the murder spot of Hoshi.

A member of the investigation committee dealing with Tavella murder, requesting an-onymity, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday that they were now trying to recover the � re-arms and the motorcycle used in Tavella mur-der. “The killers are now under surveillance,” he said.

Monirul Islam, joint commissioner of DB police, said that they were conducting drives to arrest the three killers who had taken part in Tavella murder.

Before Tavella murder, a state-run intelli-gence agency submitted a report to the Home Ministry mentioning that an anti-government party might engage in subversive activities to embarrass the ruling government. l

Armed Mro group set to surrenderby October 22and other criminal activities after establishing a camp at Poa Muhuri of Alikadam. They are also active in Thanchi and Lama upazilas.

Sources said that most members of the group in Alikadam and Thanchi would sur-render their arms by October 22.

When contacted, Lt Col Mizan said that they were working to settle the matter.

Alikadam police chief Appela Raju Naha said that he had heard about the ongoing process but yet to receive any formal instruc-tions.

According to locals and police sources, Paale Mro took over the charge of the group after the arrest of its founder Menching Mro in 2012. Menching was killed in a gun� ght with the rival group on April 5, 2012 and Paale on June 7 the same year. Paale was a former councillor of Alikadam sadar union.

More than 37 members of the group were arrested and 42 others surrendered in 2012 during joint drives by the army, Border Guard Bangladesh and police.

The active members have been trying to regroup under the leadership of Menrum Mro of Alikadam.

Then Awami League government and Par-batya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti (PC-JSS) signed a historic deal, dubbed as Peace Accord, on December 2, 1997 to end a dec-ade-long armed struggle in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

Around 2,000 PCJSS members surrendered and handed over their arms and ammunition to the government in four phases as per the Accord. l

Transport workers take position in the middle of the road in Dhaka’s Gulistan yesterday to protest the recent arrest of bus drivers for charging extra fares. They parked their buses so as to occupy both sides of the road during the protest, causing di� culties for commuters RAJIB DHAR

News 3D

TMONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Police: Three-tier security for Durga Puja, Ashuran Kamrul Hasan

A three-tier security will be in place ahead of Durga Puja and Ashura, while the BGB will also be deployed in Dhaka as part of the beefed-up measures, the DMP chief has said.

The enhanced security for the Hindu festival would come in e� ect from the � rst hours of Durga Puja and continue until the immersion of idols are completed, said Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner Asaduzzaman Miah.

Addressing a press conference at DMP me-dia centre yesterday, he said members of Bor-der Guard Bangladesh would be deployed as added security forces in the capital as Durga

Puja and Ashura are overlapping this year. The DMP chief said 6,863 police members

would be deployed at 221 puja mandaps, while a further 2,500 police members would be deployed on Friday evening ahead of Ashura.

Plainclothes police would remain deployed across the city and metal detectors would be used to search temple visitors, Asaduzzaman said, adding that two police control rooms would be set up in Dhakeshwary Temple and Ram Krishna Mission Temple in Dhaka.

The morning processions before immers-ing the Durga idols would have to take place between 10am and 11:30am on Friday as Jum-mah prayers will start in the afternoon, he

said. All idol immersions must be completed before evening as the hours of Ashura would start after sunset, the DMP chief added.

About Ashura processions, he said rallies would be brought out from Mohammadpur, Dhanmondi, Pallabi, Paltan and some other areas of the city.

Earlier, Inspector General of Police AKM Shahidul Haque said they did not have any information regarding any possible militant threat during the puja.

However, su� cient security measures have been taken after concerns were raised by di� erent quarters following the recent mur-ders of two foreigners, he said at a views-ex-change meeting. l

Muhith: US policy towards Bangladesh not comfortable over last seven yearsn Tribune Report

US policy towards Bangladesh has not been very comfortable during the last six or seven years, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said.

He said the US had shown an adverse atti-tude towards two countries – Bangladesh and Russia – but that Bangladesh did not su� er � -nancial losses because of it.

Muhith was speaking to reporters yester-

day at the Finance Ministry auditorium fol-lowing trips to New York to attend the UN General Assembly and Lima, Peru to attend the board meeting of the World Bank and In-ternational Monetary Fund.

“The last seven years of US policy prove my words,” he said, but declined to make a di-rect statement about speci� c US policies.

The � nance minister said it was a matter of US foreign policy and he did not want to com-

ment further.On the recent murders of two foreign na-

tionals, Muhith said: “Do you know how many Bangalis are killed daily in New York? Cities in the United States hold the record for murders committed.”

“Every country has law and order prob-lems. People get killed everywhere in the world,” he said, adding: “The law and order situation in Bangladesh is wonderful.” l

Thales Alenia Space likely to install Bangabandhu satelliten Ishtiaq Husain

Thales Alenia Space, a Franco-Italian aero-space manufacturer, is reportedly the front-runner in getting the job of installing the � rst ever satellite for Bangladesh, BTRC sources have said.

A three-member evaluation committee has reportedly � nalised the winner after evaluat-ing bidding documents for the Bangabandhu satellite implementation project, according to sources in Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission.

Recently, the evaluation committee hand-ed over its report to the chairman of the reg-ulatory body for initiating further steps, the sources said, adding that the commission will send the report to the Post and Telecommuni-cation Division very soon.

On condition of anonymity, a high-up of the BTRC told the Dhaka Tribune that even though MDA Corporation of Canada had the lowest bid of $222.75m, it did not win the ten-der because of some inconsistencies in the price quoted in the tender.

The o� cial said MDA mentioned addition-al equipments that were not included in the price, meaning the government would have to pay for those equipments later. So if the gov-ernment selected MDA, it would be a costlier move than picking the second-lowest bidder.

Considering all facts, the committee re-portedly selected Thales Alenia Space, who had the second-lowest bid of $248m.

Four international companies – Great Wall Industry Corporation of China, MDA Corpo-ration, Thales Alenia Space, and Orbital ATK from USA – participated in the tender pro-cess of the installation and post-installation support services for launching the country’s � rst-ever satellite.

Bangladesh has already signed a deal with Russia-based Intersputnik for taking lease of an orbital slot. The government is hoping to launch the satellite by the end of 2017, but it is likely that the deadline will be missed.

Once the satellite is launched into orbit, it will eventually help the country save $14m annually. The government can also earn by renting the satellite.

The estimated cost of the project is Tk2,967 crore, out of which around Tk1,652 crore will be provided by the winning bidder, while the rest will be paid by the government. l

Dhaka pedestrians only seem to use foot over-bridges when policemen, leaving aside their crime-busting duties, force them to. This photo of jaywalkers crossing the road with an empty foot over-bridge in the background was taken in the capital's Farmgate area yesterday SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

70,000 return from Hajj in 20 daysn Tribune Report

A total of 70,000 Bangladeshi Hajj pilgrims re-turned from Saudi Arabia in the last 20 days.

The post-Hajj return � ights will continue till 28 October, 2015.

Tasmin Akter, assistant manager (PR) of the national � ag carrier said the Biman Bangladesh carried all the pilgrims through regular � ights.

Hajj � ights began on August 16 and contin-ued till 17 September.

This year, a total of 1,01758 pilgrims per-formed Hajj from Bangladesh. Of them the Bi-man carried 51,000 while the rest were ferried by Saudi Airlines. A total of 285 dedicated � ights were operated by the national � ag carrier and 61 scheduled � ights for carrying the pilgrims. l

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015News4DT

Educational institutions to be peer inspectedn Tribune Report

The government has introduced peer inspec-tion in educational institutions in place of manual inspections and audits.

The plan will be implemented in schools, colleges and madrasas where heads of the similar local institutions will inspect the other institutions at the end of the sessions, Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said yesterday.

The minister made the announcement while inaugurating the system at a function organised to observe 35th anniversary of Di-rectorate of Inspection and Audit under the Education Ministry in the capital.

Addressing the programme, Education Secretary Nazrul Islam Khan said the govern-ment can inspect 1,700 educational institu-tions on average through the Directorate of Inspection and Audit (DIA) while the number of such institutions is around 36,000.

“It will take 20 years to inspect all the insti-tutions whereas it is required to inspect them regularly for the development of education,” he said adding that the peer system was intro-duced keeping the issue in mind.

According to the new peer system, heads of similar types of educational institutions of a upazila will inspect other schools, colleges and madrasas of the same upazila at the end of sessions. l

Family: Man in land dispute with policeman murderedn Kamrul Hasan

No case was � led over the death of 60-year-old Shamsul Haque in the capital’s Nayatola as of yesterday, with police claiming he had died of old age problems.

But family members claimed yesterday that he had been beaten to death by accom-plices of Dhaka Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner (logistics and procurement) Imam Hossain. They say the police now re-fuse to take a case.

Shamsul’s family say he was killed in a dispute over a piece of land. They claim that Shamsul’s autopsy was delayed and ex-pressed doubts about the preliminary probe into the death.

Shamsul married twice and lived with both his wives. His � rst wife, Nazma Begum, refused to comment on his death but his second wife, Jhorna Begum, said Nazma, while returning home on Saturday evening, had seen � ve or six men, including Imam’s brothers Morshed and Shahidul, running out of the house.

“Nazma came in and found Shamsul bleeding from the forehead. He was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.”

Jhorna said: “He leased some shops on the land but one of the lessees forged a land deed and sold the property to Imam. The police o� cial later grabbed the land and began col-lecting rent.

“Shamsul � led a case and the court de-clared him the owner of the land. But the dis-pute with the policeman continued,” she said.

Shamsul’s autopsy was done yesterday by

Dr Pradip Kumar Das of the Dhaka Medical College forensic department. He said the rea-son for the death could not be determined but that tissue samples had been sent to the lab for further testing. “There is a deep injury on Shamsul’s forehead,” Dr Pradip said.

Imam said yesterday that he bought the land two years ago but had a dispute with Shamsul over the land’s boundary.

“The real cause of Shamsul’s death can be known after seeing the autopsy report,” Imam added. l

Railway to build � ve-star hotel n Shohel Mamun

Bangladesh Railway (BR) is planning its � rst ever � ve-star hotel, to be built in Chittagong.

It is the � rst time a government department is being allowed to build such a facility.

BR has issued a notice inviting prospective partners for the public-private partnership (PPP) project.

AFM Masudur Rahman, director (engineer-ing) of BR said: “The Railway has 4.14 acres of land on the Zakir Hossain Road in Chittagong town which is currently unused.”

The proposed � ve-star hotel will be a 10-storey building with space for commercial use. BR plans to build commercial complexes elsewehere in Chittagong and in Khulna and Comilla. l

O� cials skip ACC questioning over Karnaphuli recruitment n Tribune Report

Three government o� cials, including a depu-ty commissioner, yesterday skipped an inter-rogation of the Anti-Corruption Commission.

Satkhira Deputy Commissioner Nazmul Ahsan, Local Government Division Deputy Secretary Abdul Kader and Energy and Miner-al Resources Division Deputy Secretary Sohel Ahmed were scheduled to be questioned about allegations of corruption in Karnaphuli Gas Dis-tribution Company Limited’s recruitment.

The corruption allegations against the three public servants include hiring 57 em-ployees at Karnaphuli gas � eld without any prior notice and without any credentials. l

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015News 5

DT

Source: Accuweather/UNB

D H A K ATODAY TOMORROW

SUN SETS 5:30PM SUN RISES 5:58AM

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

34.5ºC 21.4ºC

Sayedpur Srimangal

SourceL IslamicFinder.org

F O R E C A S T F O R T O D A YDhaka 33 22

Chittagong 31 24

Rajshahi 32 21

Rangpur 33 22

Khulna 32 20

Barisal 32 21

Sylhet 32 20

Cox’s Bazar 31 24

PRAYER TIMESFajr 4:42am

Sunrise 5:56amZohr 11:44am

Asr 3:55pmMagrib 5:31pm

Esha 6:46pm

WEATHER

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19

THUNDERSHOWER LIKELY

Mandatory jute packaging deadline extendedn Abu Bakar Siddique

The government has extended a deadline, al-lowing the rice-making sector a few more days to shift from polythene to jute for packaging.

As part of the implementation of the Jute Packaging Act 2010, which makes use of jute mandatory in packaging across businesses, October 25 was the last date for the shift.

However, considering a request from busi-nessmen, who said they were not ready, the government has extended the deadline until the end of November, said Mohammad Kefae-tullah, director of the Department of Jute.

The jute packaging act – enacted in 2014 to revive the once leading foreign currency earning sector of the country – considers the rice-making sector, the rice-millers to be spe-ci� c, as one of the key focus points.

According to the act, paddy, rice, wheat, maze, fertiliser and sugar must be packaged in jute bags. Violators face a maximum of one year in jail or a � ne of Tk50,000 or both for using non-degradable synthetics to package commodities.

Kefaetullah said that the government will now go tough against violators; mobile courts have been operating across the country since June 1 and no violation will be excused after the November deadline expires.

He also said that the rice-millers use around 1.4 million sacks every year and if only they could be made to switch to jute packaging, the entire situation would change.

Nirod Baran Saha, convener of the Naogaon Rice Millers’ Association, told the Dhaka Trib-une that they also want to use jute packaging.

“But price of rice will go up if we switch to jute sacks instead of polythene. A 50kg jute sack costs Tk30 more than a polythene sack of the same capacity,” he said.

According to the Jute Department, around 750 million jute bags will be used annual-ly and 50% of the jute production would be consumed locally once the packaging act is implemented.

Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) believes that the sector will regain its lost strength overnight if only 20% of the busi-nesses start using jute bags. l

2 more JMB men held in Sirajganjn Our Correspondent, Sirajganj

Another two members of banned militant out� t Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) were arrested in Sirajganj early yester-day, bringing the total number of such arrests in the district to seven in a week.

Detectives arrested Md Motaleb Hossain, 22, son of Md Abul Kashem of Karigar Para in Sirajganj Sadar upazila, and Md Hazrat Ali, 33, son of late Shukur Mahmud of Baraitali village in Kazipur upazila, from their own houses.

The two were remanded for three days each after police produced them before the court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Supriya Rahman at noon with a seven-day remand plea.

Motaleb studies computer science at Siraj-ganj Polytechnic Institute.

On October 11, police detained three JMB members – Omar Ali Akand, 28, and Idris Ali Akand, 30, and Shoaib Hossain Babu.

Based on information received from the three, police later detained Mahmudul Hasan, 20, and Sultan Mahmud, 45, on October 15.

Deputy Inspector of the Detective Branch of police Rawshan Ali said information ob-tained from Sultan during interrogation led to the arrest of Motaleb and Hazrat.

He said Sultan and Babu had given confes-sional statements under Section 164. l

JMB man under 3-day remandn FM Mizanur Rahaman, Chittagong

A Chittagong court yesterday placed an al-leged JMB member in three-day remand in connection with an arms recovery case.

Metropolitan Magistrate Abdul Kader grant-ed the remand against Minhajul Islam Sajid.

The case was lodged with Karnaphuli po-lice station, said ADC Kazi Muttaki Ibn Minan.

Earlier on Saturday, Minhaj was arrested from Tangail’s Nagarpur; on the same day he gave a confessional statement admitting his involvement in a recent mugging that killed three men in Sadarghat.

On September 23, a team of JMB men blast-ed several grenades while mugging a local businessman at Majirghat area of Sadarghat; two JMB men and the businessman – Satya Gopal – were killed in the bomb blast.

On October 5, police arrested � ve JMB men including Tow� qul Islam alias Javed, 22, head of explosive wing of JMB in Chittagong dis-trict. Nine handmade grenades, arms ammu-nitions and a large amount of bomb-making materials were seized from their possession. l

Kamrul at court on last day of depositionn Our Correspondent, Sylhet

A Sylhet court yesterday completed recording of testimonies of prosecution witnesses and set tomorrow for cross-examination of the 13 accused in teenager Rajon murder case.

The court of Metropolitan Sessions Judge Akbar Hossain Mridha set October 25 for the prosecution and the defence arguments, fol-lowing which the court will set date for deliv-ering verdict in the sensational case.

The verdict would be pronounced shortly, public prosecutor Misbah Uddin told reporters.

Yesterday, investigation o� cer, DB Inspec-tor Suranjit Talukder, deposed as the 36th and last prosecution witness. Depositions in the fast-track case began on October 1.

Earlier in the day, police produced Kamrul Islam, the prime accused, before the court. The defence submitted two applications – one for bail of the accused and the other for recalling all the accused, but the court reject-ed both the petitions.

People present on the court premises chanted slogans demanding capital punish-ment of Kamrul Islam. Some of the activists

also threw shoes at him around 11:30am. They also demonstrated when Kamrul was taken to the police van after the court proceedings.

The family members of 13-year-old boy Sheikh Samiul Alam Rajon, who was tortured to death on July 8 by the accused, demanded death penalty for the killers. Two of the ac-cused are still on the run.

On Thursday, a police team brought Kam-rul back from Saudi Arabia. He � ed the coun-try allegedly with the help of some o� cials of Jalalabad police on July 10 but was caught by expatriate Bangladeshis in Jeddah on July 13. l

Eighth Pay Scale Order likely in Novembern Tribune Report

Finance Minister AMA Muhith said civil serv-ants will be promoted under the cumulative in-crement system in the 8th Pay Scale, instead of the old time scale and selection grade system.

Sources said the order will likely be issued in the � rst week of November.

He told reporters yesterday that some public servants, especially second class employees, do not understand cumulative increment system.

“We hope that public servants will under-stand the cumulative increment system when it is implemented,” Muhith said.

The � nance minister said the public uni-versity teachers’ movement had become uncongenial. The education minister is now leading an initiative to resolve the dispute.

Sources said the Implementation Wing had already sent a summary of the pay scale order to Senior Finance Secretary Mahbub Ahmed for approval. After the secretary’s approval, the order will be sent to the � nance minis-ter for approval before being passed on for vetting by the Law and Parliamentary A� airs Ministry.

Senior Finance Secretary Mahbub Ahmed said the Eighth Pay Scale Order will be issued in the � rst week of November, after being vet-ted by the Law Ministry and being signed by the president of the republic. l

A goods-laden truck falls over on its side on this road in Jatrabari, Dhaka yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015News6DT

Fresh remand prayer for barrister Shakila rejectedn FM Mizanur Rahaman, Chittagong

A court in Chittagong yesterday rejected a remand prayer of Rapid Action Battalion for Supreme Court lawyer Shakila Farzana, a sus-pected militant � nancier, in a case � led with Hathazari police station.

Barrister Shakila was produced before the court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Shiplu Kumar Dey by RAB 7 with a � ve-day remand petition. The court rejected the plea and sent her to jail, Shakila’s lawyer Abdus Sattar said.

Earlier, Shakila was remanded in the case � led under the Anti-Ter-rorism Act and she gave confessional statement before the court.

“We informed the court about a notice of the Appellate Divi-sion of the Supreme Court,” Sattar said.

Earlier, Shakila was admitted to Chittagong Medical College Hospital on September 11.

Sattar said Shakila had been su� ering from high blood pressure and kidney problems. The court yesterday asked the authorities concerned to submit her medical board report within three days.

“She is now undergoing treatment at the Jail Hospital,” the defence lawyer said.

Shakila was arrested on August 18 from outside her chamber along with two of her associates. The trio claimed that they had deposited money to an account which was taken as advance and that they were unaware of the owner of the account.

The account is owned by Moniruzzaman Don, a top leader of militant group Shahid Hamza Brigade now in jail.

RAB said that the Chittagong-based group was formed in No-vember, 2013 by former members of Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, Hefazat-e-Islam and other mil-itant groups.

Shakila is the incumbent joint general secretary of the Su-preme Court wing of Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum, a pro-BNP lawyers’ body. She is the daughter of Syed Wahidul Alam, a former BNP whip and lawmaker from Chittagong during 2001-06 tenure. l

20th death anniversary of Jahurul Islam today n Tribune Report

Today is the 20th death anniversary of the founder of Islam Group Al-Hajj Jahurul Islam.

He died at the age of 67. On October 19, 1995, Al-Hajj Jahurul Is-

lam died at 2:30am due to a cardiac arrest in Singapore.

A prominent businessman, entrepreneur and a social activist, Jahurul Islam was born

in Bhagalpur village of Kishoreganj district on August 1, 1928. All relatives and well-wishers are invited to attend a milad

and doa ma h� l to be held in Bhagalpur, Kishoregonj today. l

Queen Mary interested in collaborating with BD unisn Tribune Report

Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) is interested to estab-lish academic and research collaboration with leading universi-ties in Bangladesh.

A four-member QMUL delegation led by its Vice-Principal (Inter-national) Prof David Sadler expressed the interest when they called on University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman Prof Abdul Mannan at his o� ce yesterday, according to a (UGC) press release.

Other members of the delegation were Nabeel Vehra, region-al manager, Prof Frances Bowen, deputy head at the School of Business, and Dr Faisal Tariq, lecturer at the School of Electron-ics and Engineering, at the QMUL.

As the press release stated, the UGC chairman assured them of extending necessary cooperation in regard to their interest. Other aspects of higher education such as faculty development and joint research collaboration were discussed as well. l

Two passport o� cials to face corruption chargesn Tribune Report

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has decided to run an inquiry into the alleged corruption of two Dha-ka Regional passport o� cials.

The commission at its regular meet-ing decided to look into the involve-ment of those two o� cials with amass-

ing illegal wealth.The o� cials are Deputy Director

Abu Said and Majharul Islam who are now working in Chittagong and Noakhali passport o� ces respectively.

An o� cial of the commission said the duo while working in Dhaka of-� ce in connivance with each other amassed illegal wealth by taking bribe

from job seekers in exchange for their appointment to the passport o� ce.

After the commission received the allegations against those two o� cials it decided to run an inquiry, the o� cial informed.

The ACC appointed Assistant Di-rector Debobroto Mondol to run the inquiry. l

Iran nuke deal a reality now as US lifts sanctionsn AFP, Washinton, DC

President Barack Obama ordered the US government Sunday to take steps towards lifting sanctions on Iran, in accordance with the historic nuclear deal struck between six world powers and Tehran.

Obama’s directive comes 90 days after the UN Security Council endorsed the accord signed in Vienna in July, a milestone referred to as “Adoption Day.”

“I hereby direct you to take all necessary steps to give e� ect to the US commitments with respect to sanctions,” Obama said in a memorandum addressed to the US secretar-ies of state, energy, commerce and the treas-ury.

The measures will take e� ect upon con-� rmation by the Secretary of State that Iran has met its commitments under the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), as the accord is known, Obama said.

“This is an important day for all of us and a critical � rst step in the process of ensuring that Iran’s nuclear program will be exclu-sively for peaceful purposes,” Secretary of State John Kerry added in a statement.

But no sanctions will be lifted immedi-ately -- full relief will come not on “adoption day” but on “implementation day,” the point when the IAEA is able to certify that Iran has fully complied with its end of the bargain.

Under the deal with world powers, Iran will dramatically reduce its uranium enrich-ment program, surrender or dilute most of its highly enriched fuel and open its nuclear sites to inspectors from the IAEA, the UN nu-clear watchdog.

In return, the United States, Europe and other countries will rescind a raft of eco-

nomic sanctions imposed on Iran because of fears that its nuclear research program con-cealed plans to develop an atomic bomb.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and Iranian Foreign Min-ister Mohammad Javad Zarif were also set Sunday to make statements on the lifting of crippling sanctions on Tehran.

Tehran has said it hopes “implementa-tion day” will come quickly, in less than two months, but Washington envisages a longer timeframe.

“For us it’s important that it’s done right, not that it’s done quickly,” a senior admin-istration o� cial told reporters. “We cannot imagine less than two months.” l

INSIDE

7D

TWorldMONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Cat 4 typhoon hits Philippines, displaces 10,000 peoplePowerful typhoon Koppu ploughed into the northeastern Philippines before dawn on Sun-day destroying homes and displacing 10,000 people and whipping up coastal surges four metres high, disaster agency o� cials said PAGE 8

Blair committed UK to Iraq war a year before invasionFormer British prime minister Tony Blair was committed to joining the US in the Iraq war a year before the 2003 invasion, documents ob-tained by Sunday Mail newspaper suggested PAGE 9

Police arrest 2 Delhi teenagers over toddler rapeIndia police said Sunday they have arrested two teenagers over the rape of a toddler, the latest sexual assault on a child in the capital to ignite public anger PAGE 10

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015World8DT

SOUTH ASIA

AUSTRALIA & PACIFIC

AFRICA

EAST ASIA

MID EAST

Nepal elects � rst woman speaker in parliamentNepal’s parliament elected its � rst woman speaker on Friday, as the country continued forming its new government after the adoption of a landmark constitution last month. Maoist parliamentarian Onsari Gharti Magar was unanimously elected as the House speaker after her only competitor, Anuradha Thapa of Nepal Majdoor Kisan Party, withdrew her candidacy. Magar, 37, held the position of the deputy speaker in Nepal’s second constituent assembly and tendered her resignation this week to pave way for the election. -AFP

Malaysia opposition submits no-con� dence motion against PMMalaysia’s opposition on Saturday submitted a notice for a no-con� dence vote against embattled Prime Minister Najib Razak, as he faces increasing calls to answer a barrage of corruption allegations. However, the motion is unlikely to succeed as Najib’s party holds a majority in parliament. Critics want Najib to explain massive sums allegedly missing from state-owned development company 1MDB, which he launched, and nearly $700m in mysterious transfers made to his personal bank accounts. Najib vehemently have denied any wrongdoing. -AFP

Turnout low in Egypt’s long-awaited parliamentary pollsEgyptians turned out in low numbers on Sunday to vote in the � rst phase of an election hailed by Pres-ident Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as a milestone on the road to democracy but shunned by critics who say the new chamber will rubber stamp his decisions. Egypt has had no parliament since June 2012 when a court dissolved the democratically-elected main chamber, then dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood. Polling stations showed light turnout and little enthusiasm. Egypt’s constitution, passed by referendum before Sisi won a presidential vote in mid-2014, endows the new parliament with wide-ranging powers. On paper, it can reject the president’s choice for prime minister or even impeach the president. -REUTERS

Japan shows o� naval power, makes China waryAn armada of carriers, cruiser, destroyers and subma-rines gathered o� Japan’s coast on Sunday in a display of naval power that showcased Tokyo’s latest warships and signalled wider engagement by the US Navy in the western Paci� c. Joining the Japanese navy were vessels from India, South Korea, Australia, France and the US. Neighbouring China, which has strained ties with several Southeast Asian countries over territorial claims in the disputed South China Sea, has said it is wary of Japan’s changing defence posture. -REUTERS

Arrest warrant issued against Iraq minister on graft chargesIraqi authorities have called for the arrest of Trade Minis-ter Milas Mohammed Abdul Kareem and his brother following a corruption investigation, judicial spokesman Abdul-Sattar al-Birqdar said on Sunday. Two o� cials at the trade ministry’s legal section said the minister faced charges related to accepting bribes, receiving illegal bene� ts, and misusing his position. -REUTERS

Q&A

Why the Philippines most storm-exposed country?Here’s a rundown of just how bad the problem is–

Q1: How many storms on average strike the Philippines every year?

A1: On average, eight or nine tropical storms make landfall in the Philippines each year, with another 10 entering Philippine waters. In 2013, only six storms have a� ected the country. The worst year was 1993, when 19 cyclones pummeled the coastline.

Q2: What is the average death toll?A2: Eight of the top 10 deadliest cyclones to hit the Philippines had a death toll reaching between 1,000 and 2,000 people. The deadliest storm on record was Haiyan (internationally known as Yolanda), which killed more than 7,350 in 2013.

Q3: What was the worst until now?A3: Typhoon Haiyan was the strongest tropical cy-clone to devastate the country, according to the World Meteorological Organisation. It packed sustained winds of 314km/h and gusts of 380km/h.

Q4: Why is the damage so bad?A4: Situated in a vast expanse of warm ocean water on the western rim of the Paci� c Ocean, the Philippines is the most exposed country in the world to tropical storms. With more than 7,000 islands, the coastline is vulnerable to storm surges. It’s also one of the poorest countries in the world, with a GDP per capita of just $4,500 in 2012. A large number of the country’s 96m people live in areas with poor infrastructure and � imsy housing. Northern Luzon and eastern Visayas are the areas most frequently hit by tropical storms.

Source: TIME.COM

FACTBOX

Philippines’ 10 deadliest typhoonsPowerful typhoon Koppu wrecked houses, tore down trees and unleashed landslides and � oods across a wide area of the northern Phil-ippines on Sunday, the latest in a never-ending series of often-deadly storms that plague the Southeast Asian archipelago. With more than 7,100 islands, the country is hit by an average of 20 typhoons or tropical storms each year. The storms are created above the warmer wa-ters of the Paci� c Ocean near the equator, and the Philippines’ islands are often the � rst ma-jor landmass they hit as they move northwest.

The following are the 10 deadliest ty-phoons on record in the Philippines:

1. Super typhoon Haiyan (international name: Yolanda), the strongest storm ever recorded on land, destroys entire towns across the central Philippines on Novem-ber 8, 2013. When the government stopped its count months later, more than 7,350 people were listed as dead or missing.

2. Tropical Storm Uring (international name: Thelma) unleashes � ash � oods on the cen-tral city of Ormoc on Leyte island on No-vember 15, 1991, killing more than 5,100.

3. Typhoon Pablo (international name: Bo-pha) smashes into the main southern is-land of Mindanao on December 3, 2012. Rarely hit by major storms, the unpre-pared region su� ers about 1,900 people dead or missing.

4. Typhoon Nitang (international name: Ike)

hits the central Philippines on August 31, 1984, killing 1,363 people.

5. Typhoon Sendong (international name: Washi )hits the northern part of Mindanao island on December 16, 2011, killing at least 1,080 people.

6. Floods and landslides unleashed by ty-phoon Trix kill 995 people in the Bicol region of the main island of Luzon on Oc-tober 16, 1952.

7. Typhoon Amy rakes across the central is-lands in December 1951, with � oods, land-slides and a massive storm surge killing 991 people.

8. Typhoon Sisang (international name: Nina) hits the eastern city of Legaspi on November 25, 1987, triggering giant storm surges and unleashing mudslides down Mayon volcano that claim 979 lives.

9. Typhoon Frank (international name: Feng-shen) tracks an erratic and destructive path across the central islands and nearby areas from June 20, 2008, killing 938 people.

10. Typhoon Rosing (international name: An-gela), with gusts of up to 260 kilometers an hour, causes carnage in Bicol and later Manila from November 2, 1995, killing 936 people. l

Source: AFP

Cat 4 typhoon hits Philippines, displaces 10,000 peoplen Reuters, Manila

Powerful typhoon Koppu ploughed into the northeastern Philippines before dawn on Sunday destroying homes and displacing 10,000 people and whipping up coastal surg-es four metres high, disaster agency o� cials said.

There were no reports of casualties after the category four typhoon, with central de-structive winds of 175km/h, made landfall around 1am (local time) near the town of Casiguran in Aurora province.

Koppu dumped heavy rain, causing � ood-ing and damaging roads and bridges, and top-pled power and communication lines.

“There are still no reports of casualty, thank God,” said Alexander Pama, executive director of National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

“Initially, we are getting many houses were destroyed, power lines toppled and trees blocking major roads,” he said, adding 10,000 people had been displaced in north-eastern Luzon, the country’s main island.

The weather bureau said Koppu will re-main over Luzon for three days due to a high pressure in the north and another typhoon in the northwest Paci� c.

Authorities said 30 � ights and ferry servic-

es in the north were grounded. Some com-muter bus suspended services due threats of landslides in mountain areas.

On Friday, President Benigno Aquino ap-pealed on television to people not to panic and to make preparations. The last time Aqui-

no made a televised appeal was in 2013, the day before super typhoon Haiyan struck the central Philippines, killing more than 6,300 people and leaving millions homeless.

An average of 20 typhoons hit the Philip-pines every year. l

People brave wind and rains brought on typhoon Koppu as they collect recyclable materials from debris washed ashore along Roxas boulevard in Manila on October 18, 2015, as the typhoon hit Aurora province, northeast of Manila AFP

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015World 9

DT

GERMANY

UNITED KINGDOM

REST OF THE EUROPE

UNITED STATES

REST OF THE AMERICAS

Cologne mayor candidate stabbed in anti-refugee attackAn independent candidate running for mayor of the German city of Cologne was stabbed in the neck and severely wounded on Saturday in an attack that police said appeared to be motivated by her support for refugees. Henriette Reker and an aide were both severely injured by the attacker, a 44-year-old man, while campaigning in the western German city, police said. -REUTERS

China’s Xi lauds Britain for ‘visionary’ opennessChinese President Xi Jinping heaped praise on Britain for what he called a “visionary and strategic choice” to strengthen commercial ties with China, as he prepared for a state visit to the UK. “The UK has stated that it will be the Western country that is most open to China. This is a visionary and strategic choice that fully meets Britain’s own long-term interest,” Xi said in a written response to questions from the news agency. -REUTERS

Swiss parliament seen tilting right over migrant fearsThe Swiss voted Sunday for a new parliament, with ini-tial projections showing the populist right strengthen-ing its already dominant position amid concerns over migration and asylum rules. Polling stations closed at noon (local time) after only a few hours, as most Swiss vote in advance by post or online. Early projections from some of Switzerland’s 26 cantons hinted that the country’s largest party, the populist right-wing anti-im-migration Swiss People’s Party (SVP), had made gains and could possibly tip the scale in parliament towards a slight centre-right majority. -AFP

Judge rules in favour of controversial Texas birth certi� cation lawsTexas o� cials do not have to make it easier for undoc-umented immigrants to get birth certi� cates for their children born in the state while a legal challenge pro-ceeds in court, a federal judge ruled. US District Judge Robert Pitman declined to grant a preliminary injunction on Friday in a civil rights lawsuit � led in May over how Texas is complying with the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, which grants citizenship to any child born on US soil, regardless of parentage. In the lawsuit, the plainti� s sought a court order that Texas-born children of immigrants are entitled to birth certi� cates. -REUTERS

Canadian contenders in � nal days of polls campaignCanada’s political leaders began their � nal weekend dashes on Saturday before voters decide on Monday whether to grant Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper a rare fourth consecutive mandate after a long and hard-fought campaign. The Liberals are leading the Conservatives by as much as 8% points in polls, sitting as high as 38% , very close to what is needed to win a ma-jority in Parliament. However, an Ekos poll released on Friday said the Conservatives had a narrow lead among those who had voted in advance polls. -REUTERS

Iran to boost military support for Syrian AFP, Tehran

Iran is to step up its military support for the Syrian regime in the form of advice on � ght-ing terrorism, Deputy Foreign Minister Hos-sein Amir Abdollahian said Saturday.

Abdollahian, quoted by state television, denied that his country had � ghters on the ground in the Syrian con� ict.

“We have military advisers in Iraq and Syr-ia at the request of the governments of the two countries ... We are going to step up our aid to Syria in the form of advice on the � ght against terrorism,” he said.

On Friday, a US o� cial said as many as 2,000 � ghters from Iran and its regional al-lies were supporting Syrian army’s o� ensives against rebels in coordination with Russia.

Iran is a key ally of President Bashar al-As-sad and has stood by since an uprising against his regime broke out in 2011.

A senior Iranian o� cial said Thursday on a visit to Syria that Tehran would consider send-ing � ghters if Damascus requested them.

“If Syria makes a request (for Iranian forc-es), we will study the request and make a de-cision,” said Alaedin Boroujerdi, chairman of the Iranian parliament’s national security and foreign policy committee. “What’s important is that Iran is serious about the � ght against ter-rorism,” he added. “We have supplied aid and weapons and sent advisors to Syria and Iraq.” l

Blair committed UK to Iraq war a year before invasionn AFP, London

Former British prime minister Tony Blair was committed to joining the US in the Iraq war a year before the 2003 invasion, documents ob-tained by Sunday Mail newspaper suggested.

The revelations focus on a memo alleg-edly written by former US secretary of state Colin Powell on March 28, 2002 to then president George Bush a week before the US leader’s meeting with Blair at his ranch in Crawford, Texas.

“On Iraq, Blair will be with us should mil-itary operations be necessary,” wrote Powell, in a document the Mail on Sunday published on its website.

“He is convinced on two points: the threat is real; and success against Saddam will yield more regional success,” Powell said, referring to former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, who was eventually ousted in the 2003 US-led in-vasion.

The Mail on Sunday said the memo and other sensitive documents were part of a batch of secret emails held on the private server of Democratic presidential candi-date Hillary Clinton which US courts have

forced her to reveal.A separate quote from Powell assured Bush

“the UK will follow our lead in the Middle East,” while other statements suggest Blair’s willingness to present “strategic, tactical and public a� airs lines” to strengthen public sup-port for the Iraq war.

Blair, who served as prime minister be-tween 1997 and 2007, has repeatedly denied rushing to war. Under his leadership, Britain made the second biggest troop contribution to the Iraq invasion, and British forces were stationed in the country until 2011.

The decision to back the invasion is now deeply unpopular in Britain and has haunted Blair’s Labour Party ever since.

A controversial inquiry by former civ-il servant John Chilcot into the decisions leading up to the war was expected to take a year to report, but is still not public despite being announced by the government six years ago.

“This story is nothing new. The memo is consistent with what Mr Blair was saying pub-licly at the time and with Mr Blair’s evidence given to the Chilcot Inquiry” said a spokes-person for Blair’s o� ce. l

Two wingsuit jumpers receive training at Tianmenshan scenic spot in Zhangjiajie, Hunan province, October 13. They are among the daredevils who will take part in the fourth International Wingsuit Campaign, which will take place from Friday to Sunday CFP

Indian villagers kill Muslim accused of smuggling cowsn Reuters, Dharmasala

Villagers in northern India have killed a Muslim man for allegedly smuggling cattle, Himachal Pradesh po-lice said on Saturday, in violence critics say is fuelled by the Hindu nationalist government seeking a na-tionwide ban of cow slaughter and beef trade.

A group of local villagers attacked the victim, known only as Noman, and four other men on Wednesday evening after seeing them transporting cattle in a truck, a senior police o� cial said.

Noman was beaten to death, while the other four

men, who survived the attack, were charged with animal smuggling and cow slaughter, the o� cial said.

“We have already started the lookout for the ac-cused,” said Soumya Sambasivan, the local police super-intendent. “As it was a mob attack, so far we have reg-istered the case for murder against unknown people.”

India is the world’s largest exporter of beef and its � fth biggest consumer, but cow slaughter is forbid-den in some regions, including the state of Himachal Pradesh, as many Hindus regard the animal as sacred.

Two weeks ago a Muslim man died after being kicked and beaten by a group of Hindus over ru-

mours he ate beef in the town of Dadri, 50km from the capital, New Delhi. Beef is widely eaten by Hin-dus in parts of the south, as well as by other groups including minority Muslims and Christians. Tougher measures to safeguard cows are often used as a ral-lying call by politicians seeking to win Hindu votes, sometimes leading to Hindu-Muslim riots.

Opponents have accused Prime Minister Naren-dra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of looking to create religious tension in order to polarise voters in a crucial and tight election that began in the northern state of Bihar earlier this month. l

Israel, US military ties back on trackn Reuters, Tel Aviv

Israel and the US signalled on Sunday they were putting disputes over the Iran nuclear deal behind them, announcing resumed talks on US defence aid for Israel as it hosted Wash-ington’s top general and a joint air force drill.

The allies had been looking to agree on a 10-year military aid package to extend the current US grants to Israel worth $3bn annu-ally, which are due to expire in 2017.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu froze those negotiations ahead of the July deal reached between Iran and world powers.

The most senior US military o� cer, Joint Chiefs of Sta� chairman Marine General Jo-seph Dunford, arrived in Israel on Saturday in his � rst foreign trip since assuming the post on October 1. Israel also launched, at a south-ern desert base, a two-week air force drill with the US known as “Blue Flag.” l

World10DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Police arrest 2 Delhi teenagers over toddler rapen AFP, New Delhi

India police said Sunday they have arrested two teenagers over the rape of a toddler, the latest sexual assault on a child in the capital to ignite public anger.

Twenty police teams questioned more than 250 suspects before arresting the juve-

niles over the attack on the two-year-old girl, who was found bleeding in a park near her New Delhi home on Friday night.

“Delhi police have solved (the crime) by apprehending two juveniles in the rape case of a child,” Dependra Pathak, a Delhi police commissioner, told reporters.

“Further investigation is on. All concerned

evidences are been collected,” Pathak said.Both boys lived in the same poor western

neighbourhood as the toddler and one of them was known to her family, Pathak said.

The assault on the toddler, who is recov-ering in hospital, was the second within 24 hours after a � ve-year-old girl was gang-raped at a neighbour’s house in east Delhi.

Three men have been arrested over that at-tack which also occurred on Friday evening, with both incidents sparking protests and re-newed anger over sexual violence in the capital.

India recorded 36,735 rape cases in 2014 – 2,096 of them in Delhi. Experts say those � g-ures likely under-represent the true scale of the crimes. l

INSIDE

We welcome Sunday’s launch of the country’s � rst Software Technology park at the vacant Janata Tower in Karwan Bazar.

It coincides with the start of construction works for the Hi-Tech park being developed by TechnoSity and Malaysia’s

IRIS Corporation Berhad Technology at Kaliakoir in Gazipur. The long-term target industries for their new 40-acre block include bi-technology, IT, BPO, and robotics, as well as new facilities for training institutes and incubating new businesses.

These developments are an encouraging step forward for government plans to develop more high-tech zones and attract more higher value manufacturing and knowledge-intensive companies in Bangladesh.

It is also encouraging to see the government hail the success of home grown Bangladeshi businesses such as Walton, which has successfully boosted investment in mobile phones and ICT to create employment opportunities for about 15,000 people, with plans in progress to employ nearly 100,000 people by 2021

Bangladesh urgently needs to invest in more new technology industries to advance the economy and generate more new high-value jobs.

As global competition increases and living standards rise, the country cannot a� ord to keep still. It is essential to keep the economy focused on future opportunities. Helping our businesses and entrepreneurs move up the value chain is key to help diversify and modernise the economy and enhance our ability to increase exports.

The government should encourage more such initiatives by assisting investors with land acquisition, tax bene� ts, and increasing investment in higher education and research to grow the workforce for new ICT parks.

Improving training and developing new clusters and hubs of expertise are important to help new industries to scale up in size and build a virtuous cycle of growth in new investment.

Investing in new technology industries is vital to the future of our economy

Setting the bar for tomorrow’s leaders

Is it getting hot in here?Irony of fate, Bangladesh has a long way to go in the case of creating awareness. Though the country is considered as one of the worst victims of climate change, almost two-thirds of its population has no clear idea about it

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One man’s meat is another man’s poisonWith valid reason, the de� nition of secularism comes up again -- do we do whatever we feel like, irrespective of the fact that it hurts someone else, or do we practice some restraint for the sake of peaceful co-existence?

We seem to have forgotten that the role of a leader is to empower citizens, listen to their troubles, and come up with possible solutions. Instead, being a political leader in Bangladesh has become synonymous with � amboyant exhibitions of power and wealth

Climbing the technology ladder

11D

TEditorialMONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

BIGSTOCK

Opinion12DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

n Towheed Feroze

I am not a great beef fan but have been a little perturbed by recent episodes in India, where � ery debates accompanied by incidents of social unrest have taken

place over the issue of allowing (or not per-mitting) the consumption of beef.

To think rationally and without any bias, perhaps for a few days of Durga Puja, the major Hindu religious festival, consumption of beef can be limited or stopped as a mark of respect for another faith which holds the cow sacred.

Just to put the issue into perspective: Would most people in Bangladesh like to see pigs being slaughtered and the meat distrib-uted during a religious festival?

However, to demand a complete ban on the meat and ask Muslims to refrain from eating beef seems bigoted.

Wise to keep in mind that the Muslim population in India is more than or equal to the entire population in Bangladesh. While they are a minority, making e� orts to restrict the eating habits of an entire section of the nation's population hardly seem democratic.

Needless to say, the beef complexity, unless addressed with an attitude of com-promise from both Muslims and Hindus, will widen the social division, triggering, perhaps, further regrettable incidents.

In all the brouhaha, the lynching of a Muslim man has come to the forefront, and the rather hard-line stance of a Haryana chief minister, Khattar, hasn’t helped either.

Looking at the episodes from a distance, one fears that seeds for a religion-based con� agration are being planted with cold, calculated moves.

When India is being applauded for being a major economic power in the current global scenario, a faith-based social upheaval is the last thing the nation needs. Now, when ten-sions between Muslims and Hindus escalate, Bangladesh also gets entangled in the issue because, here, our largest religious minority is formed of Hindus.

Just for information, with Durga Puja just a few days away, with certain parts of Dhaka get-ting a facelift for celebrations, common sense won’t permit anyone to take a cow outside on the road near a temple and slaughter it.

This common sense is also followed in major traditional rice-� sh-meat restaurants where only chicken and mutton are o� ered in the anticipation that non-beef eaters may also be among the patrons. A good example is the famous Star Hotel.

This is just respect for the religious belief of another person. Christians in Dhaka get their regular supply of pork from Tejkuni Bazaar in Farmgate, and while this is a known fact, no one is going around demanding the closure of these specialised abattoirs.

Reportedly, the beef incident has been whipped up with political motives in mind -- a reminder that, in South Asia, exploitation of delicate matters for sel� sh personal gains is far from over.

With valid reason, the de� nition of secu-larism comes up again -- do we do whatever we feel like, irrespective of the fact that it

hurts someone else, or do we practice some restraint for the sake of peaceful co-exist-ence?

Religion-based fanaticism has never worked; history is replete with unsavoury examples. For a certain period, such extreme ideology has served someone’s purpose, in-evitably leaving a multi-faith society deeply fragmented. Whose faith is right and whose is wrong, whose practices are logical and whose aren’t should no longer be a matter of debate.

The history of human civilisation has one signi� cant lesson: The more one harps on about one’s own faith with chauvinistic fer-

vour, the bigger the chances of con� ict plus communal tension. We should have learned that after so many futile crusades, incidences of communal violence, and countless dead bodies.

It’s hardly necessary to denounce those Western people as debauched because they lie half-naked on the sea-beach revealing most parts of their body, and head for the bar for a weekend drink. Neither is it right to look at any bearded man and a hijab-wearing woman and inevitably think, “now where are they hiding the grenades and the AK-47?”

If the tolerance level is widened a little, no contrast would appear too stark. Forgive me,

while religious piety is becoming more of an obsession, willingness to allow other faiths the right space is shrinking.

To end on a light note, Bangladesh is a Muslim majority country. While entering the country, no Bangladeshi national can bring in alcohol, though there is no dearth of the “devil’s liquid” here.

In Dhaka city alone, there are about 20 licensed bars where a person (information about religious inclination never required at the gate) can walk in and catch stars.

Those who drink go there, while those who don’t are not even interested to know where such watering holes are located. In fact, vices of all delicious sorts are all around; if you do not look for them, they won’t come to seduce you.

In the same way, if you do not eat beef, no one will come and try to force it down your mouth.

Maybe, a little “don’t look at something which does not concern you” should be culti-vated along with some common sense based on respect for someone else’s faith. l

Towheed Feroze is a journalist currently working in the development sector.

One man’s meat is another man’s poisonIndia's ban on beef is more of a political move than anything else

With valid reason, the de� nition of secularism comes up again -- do we do whatever we feel like, irrespective of the fact that it hurts someone else, or do we practice some restraint for the sake of peaceful co-existence?

No religious metaphors to be found here DHAKA TRIBUNE

Opinion 13D

TMONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

n Aaqib Md Shatil

Indian survey ship INS Sandhayak, on May 9, 1981, reached a small island in the Bay of Bengal, resulting in a decade-long debate over the sovereignty of Bangla-

desh. And as the latter decided to take the bull by the horns and send three gunboats to claim the island, the diplomats of both countries had to hold a meeting within three months to solve the crisis peacefully.

However, neither by diplomacy nor by force, was the crisis solved. Though a mari-time boundary verdict awarded the area of the island to India, it was submerged in 2010 in the Bay of Bengal. This island was nothing but the South Talpatti or New Moore.

In March 2010, Sugata Hazra, of the School of Oceanographic Studies at Jadavpur University, Kolkata, said that the island had disappeared, providing some satellite images and opined that climate change is to blame.

He added that, due to global warming, temperatures in the Bay of Bengal area have been rising at an annual rate of 0.4 degrees Celsius and in the 2000-2009 decade, sea wa-ter level rose at a rate of 5mm a year. This rise of sea level due to the climate change had led to the disappearance of the island from the map, thus putting an end to the decade-long dispute. This explains how fast sea level is rising due to climate change. Though this was an interesting case, climate change is not

merely interesting; rather, it is devastating, especially for Bangladesh.

The Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) last year met in Yokohama, Japan, with the prediction that global sea levels could rise more than three feet by 2100. If this prediction comes true, one-third of Bangladesh will be inundated by 2100.

Another study suggests that, by 2050, 17% of Bangladesh will be underwater, creating almost 18 million climate refugees. Moreo-ver, in an analysis of decades of tidal records published in 2014, Dr John Pethick, a former professor of coastal science at Newcastle University in England, found that high tides in Bangladesh were rising 10 times faster than the global average, indicating the possi-bility of a future world map by 2100 without Bangladesh.

Bangladesh is not only vulnerable because of its possible inundation but also because of its geographical location that has made Bangladesh such a disaster prone country. Bangladesh has the biggest river delta of the world, with one of the largest bays in the

south troubled by natural calamities like � oods, cyclones, tornadoes, and nor'west-ers. Some of the adverse e� ects of climate change are being noticed for the last decade. Bangladesh has been left with no option but to act on it.

The � rst thing to do, in this regard, is to create awareness among the people all across the world, because countries like Bangladesh, Maldives or Tuvalu have little to do in order to prevent climate change by reducing carbon emissions. But if the adverse e� ects of cli-mate change can be brought to the attention of the world and they can be convinced to act on it, it will be a major success.

Irony of fate, Bangladesh has a long way to go in the case of creating awareness. Though the country is considered as one of the worst victims of climate change, almost two-thirds of its population has no clear idea about it according to a survey conducted by Gallup World Poll. Many of them had never even heard of it. In Bangladesh, where erosion and � ood are major problems, people often consider the e� ects of climate change as fait accompli.

The Ministry of Foreign A� airs and the United Nations Youth and Students Asso-ciation of Bangladesh (UNYSAB) are doing something out of the box that can engage the future leaders both from inside and outside the country by organising an international model United Nations.

This November, before the UN Climate Change Conference 2015 or COP21 in Paris, the foreign ministry and UNYSAB are organis-ing the second session of Bangladesh interna-tional model United Nations under the theme “Climate change for sustainable future.” The conference will start on November 21 at Hotel Pan Paci� c Sonargaon, Dhaka.

This simulation of United Nations general assembly is going to be the largest one of its kind to ever take place in Bangladesh which will host around 1,000 youths. Students from India, Nepal, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bhutan, Laos, Canada, Denmark, Sierra Leone, the US and the UK will be attending the conference, both as delegates and dais members, along with the students of Bangladesh.

Delegates participating in the conference from across the world will discuss on the 16 agendas related with the theme of the confer-ence for four days in a row and will move for a consensus to pass them as resolutions.

As a delegate, one must have vast knowl-edge of the issue that is going to be brought up in the conference. The delegate, assigned

with a country and a certain committee, needs to go through articles, journals, and books that corroborate the facts he or she is going to address. It is being hoped that the conference is going to make the delegates aware of climate change, irrespective of the stance their countries have taken regarding the issue.

The equation that is expected to be applied here is quite simple. The leaders of those countries which are responsible for the larger shares of carbon emission, are seen still dilly-dallying and seem reluctant to take immediate steps to stop climate change by reducing carbon emission. So, it is better to focus on the future leaders. This conference is aimed at making the future leaders of the world aware of the adverse e� ects of climate change. If properly implemented, this is going to be a great help for the future of Bangladesh.

In addition, the foreign ministry wants to hear the voices of the youths of the nation, engage them with the climate action process, create awareness, and demonstrate that in the upcoming COP21. Hopefully, BIMUN 2015 will be facilitating the proper platform for that, and also as a platform to save the future of the country. l

Aaqib Md Shatil is an Executive of Brand Development at Build Better Bangladesh Foundation.

Is it getting hot in here?Climate change is too important an issue to ignore, especially in Bangladesh

Irony of fate, Bangladesh has a long way to go in the case of creating awareness. Though the country is considered as one of the worst victims of climate change, almost two-thirds of its population has no clear idea about it

With temperatures rising, global warming is a very real threat BIGSTOCK

Opinion14DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

n Ishtiaque Hossain

Whenever the subject of politics comes up, we automatically visualise waves of people parading down the streets,

shouting, breaking cars, and causing damage to civilian property. It’s always some political leader explaining why the current state of a� airs is the fault of some other politician, usually their predecessor from the opposition party. Rarely do we see our political leaders actually going out to meet the masses, unless it is election time.

Most of our politicians are so focused on scoring votes and winning elections that they forget that there is a lot to be done after the elections as well. Politicians who hold o� ce are supposed to be public servants, not public suppressors. We seem to have forgotten that the role of a leader is to empower citizens, listen to their troubles, and come up with possible

solutions. Instead, being a political leader in Bangladesh has become synonymous with � amboyant exhibitions of power and wealth. But thanks to “Shopner Desh,” we may experience a drastic shift.

In early October, the � rst movement of its kind was launched in Khulna Division, Bangladesh -- Shopner Desh, a citizen-empowerment movement spear-headed by Bobby Hajjaj, an academic lecturer at North South University and a former candidate for the DNCC mayoral polls 2015. The movement began its journey by holding discussions and seminars at numerous degree colleges and local press clubs in Rajbari, Magura, Jhenaidah, and Jessore. Hajjaj, followed by his band of volunteers, engaged with local communities, listened to their problems, and urged for discussions on possible solutions.

The members of the Shopner Desh movement also disseminated information on health-care and behavioural changes that ensure healthier living. The movement also included free medical camps for the poorer communities, organised with the help of the Bangladesh Medical College Alumni Association (BMCAA).

“By engaging with local communities on a personal level, we get to � nd out problems that were previously unknown to us. For example, many residents of Keshabpur village su� er from ear infections and hearing problems. After we discussed this further, we realised it was because many villagers bathed in the pond by taking dips, and the water entering their ear canals would cause

infections. Such problems can be easily remedied and prevented by following some simple precautions, which we are trying to teach the locals,” said Amin Mohammad, a volunteer of the Shopner Desh movement.

When asked about what exactly Shopner Desh hopes to accomplish in the future, Hajjaj says: “It is a nation-wide citizen-empowerment movement. We are trying to inspire positive societal change by urging the citizens of this great nation to take action in building a better and more prosperous Bangladesh. Instead of complaining and waiting for solutions, we want to encourage the citizens to come up with solutions themselves. Thus, enabling them to build the nation of their dreams.”

As seen from pictures posted on Hajjaj’s social media pro� le, the movement has received enormous response from the youth and elderly alike. Many students joined the movement on the spot, donning Shopner Desh T-shirts. They helped clean the adjacent areas of their respective institutions and helped conduct the medical camps in their areas with volunteer doctors from the BMCAA.

Personally, I’m hoping that emerging new leaders who aspire to be politicians one day will take a page out of Shopner Desh’s book and start a whole new trend on how to go about serving the people, not just for votes, but for building a more wholesome nation. l

Ishtiaque Hossain is a volunteer working at Shopner Desh. Shopner Desh is a citizen-empowerment movement.

Setting the bar for tomorrow’s leadersShopner Desh seeks to empower Bangladeshi citizens and build a template for future politicians

We seem to have forgotten that the role of a leader is to empower citizens, listen to their troubles, and come up with possible solutions. Instead, being a political leader in Bangladesh has become synonymous with � amboyant exhibitions of power and wealth

True leaders listen to everyone before making themselves be heard BIGSTOCK

15D

TBusinessINSIDE

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

China must hasten infrastructure investment to stabilise growthIncreased infrastructure investment is key to stabilising China’s economic growth, a top state advisor said on Sunday, while calling on the central bank to lower the cost of � nancing for companies and in-crease overall credit. PAGE 17

DSEX slips to 4-month low Stocks continued to tumble for the third consecutive day yesterday, sending the benchmark index to nearly a four-month low as investors’ con� dence was at a low ebb. PAGE 16

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MOVEMENT OF DSEX INDEX

Weak in� ation puts ECB in tight spot at Malta meetingFalling prices in the eurozone are turning up the heat on the European Central Bank to prevent the single currency area from slipping into a dangerous downward spiral of de� ation. PAGE 18

Capital Market Snapshot: SundayDSE

Broad Index 4,608.0 -1.5% ▼

30 Index 1,743.5 -1.3% ▼

Turnover in Mn Tk 3,108.9 -23.1% ▼

Turnover in Mn Volume 85.2 -25.9% ▼

CSE

All Share Index 14,082.8 -1.7% ▼

30 Index 12,506 -1.6% ▼

Selected Index 8,567.9 -1.7% ▼

Turnover in Mn Tk 299.4 -15.8% ▼

Turnover in Mn Volume 8.4 -17.3% ▼

PRIVATE SECTOR CREDIT GROWTH TREND 2015

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e-transaction introduced for savings instruments

n Tribune Report

Investors of savings instruments will now be able to withdraw pro� t easily from their bank accounts through the electronic services introduced by the central bank yesterday.

Bangladesh Bank introduced the system of sending savings money di-rectly to the clients’ bank account.

The central bank governor, Atiur

Rahman, attended the inauguration ceremony of the automated system as the chief guest while its Executive Di-rector Ahsan Ullah chaired the event held at Bangladesh Bank headquarters.

The e-system will rid investors of hassles, the governor said. He added that the initiative is a part of digital � -nancial inclusion.

The e-system will save investor’s time and reduce hassle, said Ahsan. l

Private sector credit growth back to slower pace n Jebun Nesa Alo

Private sector credit growth came back to slower pace again in recent months due to lack of credit demand.

The authorities concerned claimed that investment barriers including lack of elec-tricity and gas supply still exist, resulting in slow credit in� ow.

The credit growth dropped to 12.7% in August compared to 13% in July this year, ac-cording to the Bangladesh Bank statement.

Banking sector experienced momentum in growth from December last year with the rising rate at 13%. The rate hovered between 13.5% and 13.6% till May this year. Later the credit growth started to decline and came to below 13% in August again.

“Businessmen are reluctant to expand their business as the barriers they have been facing are still prevailing,” said Allah Ma-lik Kazemi, change management adviser to Bangladesh Bank.

He said businesses are still su� ering for gas and electricity supply which are major barriers to investment.

Drop in demand for export in the in-

ternational market amid global recession also accounted for slower credit growth, he claimed.

Lower export and import growth due to price fall in commodities in the international market accounted for slower credit growth, said Mohammed Nurul Amin, managing di-rector of Meghna bank.

Though the country came out of political unrest, uncertainty still refrains business-men from further investment, he observed.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Bank continued to mop up excess liquidity from the banks every day to retain the call money rate at higher than the bank rate of 5%.

The central bank is mopping up over Tk13,000 crore per day from the market through reverse repo at the rate of 5.25%, ac-cording to the recent data.

The amount of excess liquidity withdrawn from the markets was between Tk6,000 crore to Tk7,000 crore per day during Eid ul-Azha as there was credit demand to celebrate the festival.

But the amount of excess liquidity went up in the market just after the festival and the central bank started to seize more mon-

ey, paying close to Tk700 crore as interest per day to the banks.

The call money rate would come to 1% if central bank would not mop up money from the market, said Kazemi.

He said the government is unhappy with the central bank due to lower pro� t, but there is nothing but to mop up money from the banks, paying interest.

In� ation which is the major concern of the central bank to maintain within the tar-geted limit of 6.2% will be a� ected by excess liquidity, he explained.

Banks will su� er a huge loss due to sluggish credit demand, said Nurul Amin, Meghna Bank managing director.

“Banks could get returns up to 15% from credit, but instead of that they are investing money to the government bond at 5.25% due to lack of credit demand,” he said.

The lending rate is continuously falling over the last two years and stood at 11.51% in August against which the deposit rate was 6.74%.

The spread gap between lending and de-posit rate remained at the expected level of below 5% since March due to fall in lending rate. l

Banks could get returns up to 15% from credit, but instead of that they are investing money to the government bond at 5.25% due to lack of credit demand

Business16DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

BRACU VC: Digital revolution creates unique challenges in marketingn Tribune Report

BRAC University Vice-Chancellor Syed Saad Andaleeb said dramatic changes in the socie-ty caused by the digital revolution, especially social media, created new opportunities and unique challenges in marketing.

He was speaking as a distinguished panelist at an interactive session on “Diversity in Mar-keting” at the World Marketing Summit held in Tokyo on 13th this month, said a press release.

His deliberation was on “E� ectiveness of diversity in marketing in emerging markets”

The two-day summit covered new market-ing trends aimed at building a new sense of dynamism for companies and industries.

“Dramatic changes in society caused by the digital revolution, including social media and big data, have created new opportunities and unique challenges which every country needs to address,” said Syed Andaleeb.

He joined the summit in invitation of Pro-fessor Phillip Kotler, regarded as the guru of modern marketing.

With more than 30 speakers and 2,500 at-tendees, this year’s WMS represents a major

event in the world of marketing. Building on the knowledge and know-

how of Prof Kotler, an international group of marketing all-stars comprised of academics and practitioners was brought together at the summit to re� ect on making a better world through marketing.

For the � rst time, the format of the pres-entations was interactive, giving attendees an opportunity to listen to a range of new think-ing in marketing. Interactive sessions covered topics such as branding, 21st century market-ing models and social marketing. l

DSEX slips to 4-month low n Tribune Report

Stocks continued to tumble for the third con-secutive day yesterday, sending the bench-mark index to nearly a four-month low as in-vestors’ con� dence was at a low ebb.

The Dhaka Stock Exchange benchmark in-dex DSEX was down over 68 points or 1.5% to 4,608 – its lowest since July 9 this year and the highest single-day drop in recent months.

The Shariah index DSES lost 20 points or 1.9% to 1,094. The blue chip comprising index DS30 dropped 23 points or 1.3% to 1,743.

The Chittagong Stock Exchange Selective Category Index CSCX slumped 143 points to 8,567.

The absence of buyers brought activities down to a mere Tk300-crore, 23% lower over the previous session’s value.

All the large cap sectors declined except food and allied, surging 2%.

Cement continued to witness heavy losses, dropping more than 4.5%, followed by power 2.3%, banks 1% and NBFIs 1.3%.

IDLC Investments said the weekend could not pacify investors’ sentiment, rather esca-lated fear which accelerated the market’s un-constrained nosedive for third consecutive session.

Doubt in prospect of selective large caps

have turned epidemic to the entire market, it said, adding that investors’ conviction on their holdings was shaken up and they resort-ed to dumping mode for capital protection.

Lanka Bangla Securities said it was a weak start for the week as equity benchmark lost around one and a half percent, pulled down by bank, real estate and pharma stocks.

It said the benchmark index hit its strong

support at 4,600 level as investors were sulk-ing over the continual drop in index reading.

“A few fundamental stocks closed � at with positive bias as quarterly earnings were very well on the buyers’ radar.”

Debutant KDS Accessories in its second trading day lost about 17% to over Tk73 a share after jumping 329% on its o� er value in the � rst trading day. l

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MOVEMENT OF DSEX INDEX

Steps taken to diversify markets for jute goods export n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi

The government has taken initiatives to ex-pand export of jute products including sacks, bags and yarn through diversi� cation of mar-kets to bring their glorious past back and to boost export earnings.

The initiative came at the eight meeting of “Policy Making Committee” of Commerce Ministry aimed at expediting the activities of commercial wings abroad to expand the country’s export.

As per the decision, a team of Textiles and Jute Ministry will visit Iran and Turkey to extend export market for jute and jute goods, Senior Commerce Secretary Heday-etullah Al Mamoon told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

“We have chosen these two countries as there is a huge opportunity for export of jute goods there. We have conveyed the decision to the ministry which will inform us about the visit,” Mamoon said, adding that the issue will be broadly discussed in the next meeting.

Besides, the ministry will carry on a fea-sibility study on countries like Nigeria and Ghana, which produce Koko and co� ee, in or-der to explore market for jute goods.

Bangladesh will provide visa on arrival for those countries, the meeting decided.

In the meeting, EPB Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive O� cer (CEO) Shubhashish Bose said a feasibility study can be launched in those countries that export rice, co� ee and koko to expand export baskets.

Stakeholders said jute product export to Iran is decreasing due to imposed embargo. Bangladeshi exporters are facing trouble in exporting jute goods to African countries due to lack of mission and visa complexity, they added.

According to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data, in 2014-15 � scal year, Bangladesh earned $49.83m from Iran, of which $48.32m came from jute goods, including sacks, bags and jute � bers. It fetched $720.88m from tur-key, of which over $205m was from jute and jute goods.

In the last � scal year, Bangladesh exported jute goods worth $868.5m, which was 5.34% higher compared to $824.5m a year ago. l

Muhith hopes 7% GDP growth this � scal due to political calmness n Tribune Report

Finance Minister AMA Muhith said the econo-my might grow at 7% this � scal year as politi-cal environment remained calm although the World Bank and International Monetary Fund projection is 6.8%.

He was speaking at a press conference at the � nance ministry auditorium yesterday organised on his return home after attending the United Nations General Assembly meet-ings in New York. He also attended meetings with World Bank and IMF.

“There is no hartal now in Bangladesh as people declined to support any such destructive programmes. This is a big step forward.

“So I hope the GDP growth will be better (than WB and IMF forecasts),” � nance minister said.

He said: “Such rejection of violent politics is a big warning for the politicians involved in evil politics.”

Muhith said at the World Bank and IMF meetings the delegate emphasised more in-vestment on electricity, infrastructure and connectivity.

Regarding budget assistance from World Bank, � nance minister said it was an on-going process to get $500m from the global lender as the budget support in next � scal year.

He also said the Taka-Bond would be is-sued in six months in the international bond market and the fund raised would be used in construction of the Padma bridge. l

Panelists pose at the World Marketing Summit in Tokyo, Japan on October 13

Business 17D

TMONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

China must hasten infrastructure investment to stabilise growthn Reuters, Beijing

Increased infrastructure investment is key to stabilising China’s economic growth, a top state advisor said on Sun-day, while calling on the central bank to lower the cost of � nancing for compa-nies and increase overall credit.

“Keeping relatively high growth of infrastructure investment is key to sta-bilizing economic growth” since prop-erty and manufacturing investment remains weak, said Yu Bin, head of the micro economy research department at the State Council’s Development Re-search Centre.

China needs to speed up its 172 hy-dropower projects, develop 800 million mu (53 million hectares) of high-stand-ard agricultural land and increase in-vestment in rural roads, Yu said.

Yu’s comments come a day before the Chinese government is due to re-lease third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth � gures, and were published in the government-owned

Economic Daily on Sunday.Many economists expect China to

report that July-Sept economic growth dropped below 7% for the � rst time since the global � nancial crisis.

Premier Li Keqiang said on Saturday that with the global economic recov-ery losing steam, achieving domestic growth of around 7% is “not easy”.

President Xi Jinping also acknowl-edged “concerns about the Chinese economy” but sought to allay them in a written interview with Reuters.

The Chinese government has taken several measures in recent months to accelerate construction investment, in part by attracting private � nancing through the increased used of pub-lic-private partnerships (PPP).

The Ministry of Finance (MOF) in September published details for 206 proposed PPP projects, worth a total value of 659 billion yuan ($104bn), in-cluding an expressway in Beijing.

MOF last month also launched a 180bn yuan fund with China’s biggest

banks and � nancial institutions to in-vest in PPP projects.

Yu also called for the central bank to be alert to macro-economic adjust-ments�lowering the cost of � nance for companies and allow for credit growth, while maintaining a prudent monetary policy.

“Given the short-term rising down-ward pressure, it does not bene� t Chi-na’s structural adjustment if economic growth is too slow or too fast,” he said.

China has already launched a wave of measures to drive economic growth since late 2014, including cutting benchmark interest rates � ve times since November and lowering the re-serve requirement ratio for lenders.

Many economists expect the central bank to further cut interest rates and the reserve requirement ratio by year-end.

Yu also said China should implement � scal, taxation and � nancial policies to encourage companies to merge and restructure, and allow bankruptcies to solve the problem of over capacity. l

Buildings in construction are seen among mist during a hazy day in Rizhao, Shandong province, China REUTERS

BTRC not to approve Teletalk proposals until dues paidn Ishtiaq Husain

Telecommunication regulator BTRC has warned that it wouldn’t approve any equipment purchase proposal of Teletalk until the state-owned mobile phone operator pays its dues.

The decision has been taken in a recent meeting as the operator has not been paying its dues to the BTRC for years, which amounts to TK1585.13 crore. Teletalk has not paid any fees and charges since the start of operation in 2004.

Although the meeting approved the purchase proposal of Femto Cell equipment used usually in 3G spectrum, warning had been issued for future proposals, said a BTRC o� cial.

He said the regulator had reminded Teletalk several times of its long-standing dues, but the operator repeatedly ignored and stayed without response to such reminders.

BTRC even sent a number of letters to Post and Telecommuni-cations Division on the matter. Last in August, the regulatory body chairman raised the issue to state minister for post and telecommu-nications with a DO letter.

At that time the telecom watchdog also asked the operator to pay all dues in 21 days. BTRC said if they failed to give the money by the stipulated time, the BTRC would take actions under Bangladesh Telecommunication Act 2001.

Teletalk Managing Director Giasuddin Ahmed, however, declined to make any comment. He said as the matter was between two gov-ernment entities, the government was to decide on the dues.

Four private operators paid $20m each for per Mhz 3G spectrum during the 3G auction in 2013. They also deposited a total of $80m to the BTRC as earnest money for participating in the auction.

But the state-owned operator didn’t pay any amount of money for 3G although it was the � rst to be allowed to provide 3G services in Bangladesh.

Telecom industry experts said the state-owned operator was re-ceiving favours from the regulator compared to private operators in the payments of taxes and revenues to the government exchequer.

An o� cial said the BTRC authorities think if they continue to give more time to Teletalk in realising dues, it will be a discrimination to private operators, which will ultimately a� ect the level-playing � eld in the country’s telecommunication sector. l

First Software Technology Park launched n Tribune Report

The � rst Software Technology Park in the country was launched yesterday.

Sajeeb Wazed Joy, ICT advisor to the prime minister, inaugu-rated the event at ICT Division while Zunaid Ahmed Palak, state minister for ICT, was present at the function.

“We have a plan to develop the country like Malaysia, India specially in the ICT sector,” Joy said at the inaugural function.

He said there is a proverb in Silicon Valley that no start-up venture succeeds without repeated initiative.

Joy suggested not being disappointed as a young entrepre-neur in the wake of failure. What is necessary is to try over and over again for success, he added.

The ICT advisor also inaugurated the initiative titled “Connect-ing start-ups’ competition. Under the competition, the winners will be o� ered space on the 3rd � oor of Janata Tower.

Recently, the government established Software Technology Park (STP) at the tower.

The government declared Janata Tower to be a Software Tech-nology Park for expansion of the country’s high-tech industry, according to Bangladesh High-tech Park Authority Law 2010. l

Business18DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

CORPORATE NEWS

Standard Chartered Bank and Mutual Trust Bank Limited have recently signed a Straight2Bank exchange agreement. Abrar A Anwar, CEO of Standard Chartered Bank and Anis A Khan, MD & CEO of Mutual Trust Bank Limited signed the agreement

NCC Bank Ltd has recently donated Tk50 lakh to the PM’s Relief & Welfare Fund as part of its corporate social responsibility. The bank’s chairperson SM Abu Mohsin and its vice chairperson, Sohela Hossain handed over the cheque to Prime Minister Seikh Hasina at Ganabhaban

Muhammed Ali, MD of United Commercial Bank Limited has recently congratulated Dr Atiur Rahman, governor of Bangladesh Bank with � ower bouquet on being awarded as ‘Central Bank Governor of the Year for Asia 2015’ by UK based � nancial newspaper, The Emerging Markets

Mercantile Bank Limited has recently donated Tk1 crore to Prime Minister’s Relief Fund as part of its corporate social responsibility. The bank’s chairperson, Al-Haj Akram Hussain and its vice chairperson, MS Ahsan handed over the cheque to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at Gonobhabon

Weak in� ation puts ECB in tight spot at Malta meetingn AFP, Frankfurt

Falling prices in the eurozone are turning up the heat on the European Central Bank to pre-vent the single currency area from slipping into a dangerous downward spiral of de� ation.

But many ECB watchers say they do not ex-pect the guardian of the euro to take any action just yet when its decision-making governing council convenes in Malta this coming week.

Consumer prices in the eurozone slipped by 0.1% in September, according to data pub-lished by Eurostat.

That “heaps pressure on the ECB to step up its stimulative action at its meeting” on Thursday, said IHS Global Insight analyst Howard Archer.

With area-wide interest rates currently at what ECB chief Mario Draghi perceives to be their lower end, any additional easing action would likely take the form of an extension of the central bank’s bond purchase programme, known as quantitative easing or QE, the ex-pert said.

‘Wait and see’ “But it looks most likely that the ECB will hold � re on more QE, as a number of govern-ing council members appear to be in ‘wait and see’ mood,” Archer said.

A number of top ECB policymakers, includ-ing Draghi himself, have recently insisted it is too early to judge whether further action is needed. Also by December the ECB will have compiled its own new sta� forecasts, which could well bolster the case for more stimulus.

“Recent comments from governing coun-cil members suggest that the ECB may not be ready to increase its policy support when it meets” in Malta, said Jennifer McKeown of Capital Economics.

But Draghi would likely reiterate concerns about the in� ation outlook and risks from emerging markets, stressing again that the ECB was ready to do more if needed.

“We still see it announcing a pick-up in the pace of its asset purchases before long, if not at this meeting then perhaps following the December meeting,” McKeown said.

QE is an ambitious scheme, launched in March, to buy more than one trillion euros ($1.1tn) worth of public sector bonds to pump liquidity into the system at a rate of 60bn eu-ros per month until September 2016.

While falling prices might appear to be good for consumers, they can be poisonous to the economy, because they may persuade consumers to delay purchases in the hope of lower prices, in turn prompting companies to hold o� investment and hiring.

The ECB calculates that in� ation rates of close to but just under 2% are conducive to healthy economic growth.

Ready to actDraghi has repeatedly said that the ECB would be ready to take further stimulative action if necessary.

And analysts believe that such action could take the form of an extension of the QE programme beyond September 2016 or an ac-celeration or increase in the total amount of bonds purchased.

But executive board member Benoit Coeure recently said it was too early to specu-late about such a move, pointing out that only a third of the current QE programme had been executed so far.

And with the bene� cial e� ects of a range of other policy measures -- unprecedented amounts of liquidity and historically low interest rates -- still only gradually making themselves felt, it was “premature to discuss” a new QE programme, Coeure said.

Nevertheless, “it is certainly our duty to be prepared to cope with all kinds of contingen-cies,” he added.

The head of the Austrian central bank, Ew-ald Nowotny, said the ECB was “clearly” miss-ing its in� ation target.

While acknowledging that sharp falls in commodity and oil prices -- factors outside the central bank’s control -- were the main cause, “core in� ation rates are clearly below our target,” Nowotny said.

Commerzbank economist Michael Schu-bert said he did not expect Draghi to an-nounce any new measures on Thursday.

But he was “likely to stress the central bank’s readiness to adjust the duration, vol-ume and structure of the QE purchase pro-gramme if need be.”

Hard economic data “also suggest adher-ing to a wait-and-see stance for now,” the economist argued.

New forecastsThe governing council should have the latest results of the ECB’s Survey of Professional Forecasters (SPF) at the meeting, even if the data would probably only be o� cially re-leased a day later, he said.

In the last survey, the SPF suggested that the likelihood of the ECB falling short of its target in the long term had risen somewhat, Schubert said.

“Should it climb further ... this would sup-port our expectation that the ECB will decide to increase the volume of asset purchases in December,” he concluded. l

News 19D

TMONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Illegal ISPs active in Khulnan Our Correspondent, Khulna

At least � ve of the 14 internet service pro-viders in Khulna are operating without any licence from the government, the Dhaka Trib-une has learnt.

In the Khulna metropolitan area, four na-tionwide providers – ISN, Ispahani, Link3, and BD dot com – are working with proper licens-ing. Five others – BK Online, Fast Com, Red Network, Green Communication and Cyber Cafe – also claim that they have been granted permission to provide internet connections in the area.

However, names of many of the internet service providers (ISP) that claimed of start-

ing operations after 2014 could not be found in the BTRC’s o� cial lists, as the lists had not been updated.

According to the Bangladesh Telecommu-nication Regulatory Act 2011, operating with-out a licence might lead to 10 years of impris-onment, or Tk30 crore in � nes, or both.

The ISPs can obtain a licence for a fee of Tk3,600, but they must also have bank sol-vency and a valid trade licence.

Md Abdul Quayum, owner of Red Network, said his ISP has to operate under strict regula-tions since acquiring a licence from the BTRC, but many other ISPs were running their busi-ness without any licence or any monitoring.

As a result, the authorised ISPs were facing

losses and the government was losing a large amount of revenue, Quayum said. He added that lax monitoring was also increasing the risk of illegal VoIP services.

Khandaker Iftekharul Haque, market-ing manager for Khulna Fibre Link, told the Dhaka Tribune that the ISP could not start ground-level operations as it was still trying to acquire a licence. However, limited oper-ations were being run among the people in-volved with the ISP, he added.

Business Soft Solution (BSS), one of the ISPs operating without the legal paperworks, claimed they have been granted clearance by authorities concerned after applying for a li-cence.

After calling their o� ce number, an o� cial identifying himself as Abdul Motin said they have applied to the BTRC, but was yet to re-ceive a licence.

When the Dhaka Tribune contacted the o� ce of another alleged unauthorised ISP, Speed Net, an o� cial picked up the phone. However, he declined to provide his identity and refused to comment on whether the ISP had obtained any licence.

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulato-ry Commission (BTRC) Assistant Director Be-layet Hossain said the names of all the licensed ISPs are mentioned in the commission’s web-site. But when visiting the site, it was seen that the lists of ISPs were not updated. l

Nasim addresses anti-dengue procession in the capitaln Abu Hayat Mahmud

Health Minister Mohammad Nasim has called upon people to remove broken particles from their houses to decrease the risk of being af-fected with dengue fever.

“Throw away abandoned and broken par-ticles from your house as rainwater can be accumulated there. Aedes mosquitoes, the bearer of the fever, is known to breed in plac-es where rainwater collects,” he said while addressing a procession of Dhaka North City Corporation yesterday. DNCC brought out the procession to aware people about the meas-ures to prevent dengue fever yesterday.

Led by DNCC Mayor Annisul Huq, the awareness procession started at 11am from Gul-

shan in the capital. Health Minister Moham-mad Nasim joined the event as the chief guest.

“Do not be afraid if you are diagnosed with dengue. Proper treatment facilities are availa-ble at every hospital in the country. If anyone is infected by dengue fever, they should go to the hospital immediately rather than taking any medicine without prescription,” Nasim said.

The rally started from the Gulshan Youth Club and ended after reaching the Nagar Bhaban. The minister urged all ward coun-cillors to carry out more such awareness pro-grammes on dengue prevention.

“Our country will be freed from dengue because people of this country are rapidly becoming aware of the disease. It is now free from malaria,” he said. l

5 members of CNG-theft gang heldn Tribune Report

Police in a drive arrested � ve members of a CNG-run auto rickshaw theft syndicate from Bayezid area early yesterday.

The arrestees, Imtiaj Uddin Saimon, 21, Alauddin, 20, Shaheen, 22 and Yasin Arafat, 24, have been involved in the stealing of vehi-cles in the district for long.

O� cer-in-Charge of Bakalia police station Mohammed Mohsin said the members of the

gang had snatched a CNG-run auto rickshaw fastening CNG driver from Bakalia’s Kolpolok area in August.

Police arrested the � ve from Bayezid area following a tip o� . They were also accused in another CNG mugging case lodged with Bayezid police station, said the OC.

Meanwhile, Bakalia police also arrested three burglars from Masterpole- Bowba-zar area in the city with eight stolen mobile phones and around 40 SIM cards. l

Minor boy tortured in Barisaln Our Correspondent, Barisal

Another minor boy was tortured by some youths at Harta Bazar, Wazirpur upazila in Barisal.

Although the incident took place 10 days back, the heinous act came to the light yes-terday after footage of the torture was leaked.

A case was � led in this connection with Wazirpur police station against � ve identi� ed persons and three to four unidenti� ed men.

Police arrested a man identi� ed as Yunus Akon, 22, son of Aziz Akon in this connection.

Accused of the case are Khokon Bepari, Tarik Akon, Shaymal Mal, Swapan Ripon and

Munir. According to the case, some hoodlums numbering seven to eight caught Rabiul, 12, on charges of stealing Tk60,000 from a � sh-sell-ing depot owned by Sobhan Bepari at Harta Bazar, Wazirpur police station on October 9.

Then, the youths tied up Rabiul with a pil-lar and tortured him over the night, leaving him critically injured.

On receiving information, Rabiul’s uncle rushed to the spot and rescued the boy with the help of local people in the morning.

Tortured Rabiul admitted to Wazirpur Upazi-la Health Complex. Dr Sabyasachi, medical of-� cer of the hospital, said there were several in-jury marks on di� erent parts of Rabiul’s body. l

Dhaka North City Corporation brings out a procession to aware people over the prevention and cure of dengue fever in the capital’s Gulshan area yesterday MEHEDI HASAN

News20DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Dysfunctional tools hampering Habiganj hospital servicesn Our Correspondent, Habiganj

Some important medical instruments at Habiganj Sadar Hos-pital have been out of order for six months, forcing patients to seek diagnosis at expensive private facilities.

Services such as taking X-ray or undergoing ultrasonogr-pahy are not available at the hospital because of the break-down of necessary equipment. The dysfunctional apparatus have not been repaired.

Many patients ironically said the hospital itself had become sick and need treatment.

Going to private healthcare centres for costly diagnostic services have hit the poor in the district the hardest.

The hospital authorities said they had informed the top o� -cials in writing but no step had been taken to solve the problem.

They said patients would continue to bear the brunt of the anomaly unless the medical tools were � xed.

Rumana Akhter, who lives in Ujirpur village of Baniachong upazila, told the Dhaka Tribune that she went to the sadar

hospital to undergo ultrasonography but was not aware of the fact that the service was not available.

“I was later compelled to go to a private clinic nearby and spend Tk1,300 for this. I struggled to a� ord the money and it was of course an additional expense,” she said. Sajlu Miah of Bahula village said the hospital authorities did not appear to be concerned about the non-functional equipment at all.

“It has been six months and they did nothing. Hundreds of patients who need to take X-ray are returning from the hospi-

tal empty-handed every day,” he said. Paresh Chandra Das, a doctor at the hospital, said he was

hopeful that the inoperative equipment would be � xed soon.“It is a pity that we are unable to provide medical care for

patients seeking several diagnostic services because the nec-essary tools are not working,” he said.

The hospital’s caretaker, Dr Md Najibur Shahid, said min-istry o� cials had been informed of the situation. “We are ex-pecting that the problem will be resolved soon,” he added. l

Killer of Lipi yetto be arrestedn Our Correspondent, Khulna

Killer of Sonia Rabbi Sultana Lipi, daughter-in-law of former MP Mollah Jalaluddin of Khulna 4 constituency, could not be arrested yet after 11 days she was shot dead.

Sub-Inspector Zahirul Islam, investigation o� cer of the case, said the police conducted drives in many areas of the city to arrest Molla Hedaet, brother-in-law of Lipi and main accused of the killing. But he could not be arrested yet.

Lipi was shot dead by miscreants at her South Central Road residence in Khulna city on October 7.

On information, police went to the spot and started investi-gation to look into the motive behind the killing, Zahirul said.

Later, a case was � led accusing Hedaet in connection with the incident and his � rearm was seized. l

Murders of foreigners cannot create instabilityn Our Correspondent, Lalmonirhat

Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan said incidents of two for-eigners killing could not create instability in development work of the country.

He came up with the remark at a press brie� ng at Patgram in Lalmonirhat yesterday after a meeting with the members of of Burimari Land port Development advisory committee.

The minister said the recent killings of an Italian and a Jap-anese citizen in the country had raised concern from foreign governments about the danger of violent attacks against their citizens abroad.

But it could not keep any impact on our business.He said the murders of two foreigners were a ‘planned ef-

fort’ to destabilise cannot create instability in Bangladesh.On September 28, Italian aid worker Cesare Tavella was

shot dead by assailants in Dhaka.Four days later, Japanese citizen Kunio Hoshi was gunned

down in Rangpur. l

Two killed in gun� ght n Our Correspondent, Cox’s Bazar

Two alleged criminals were killed in a gun� ght in Railgate area, Cox’s Bazar Sadar upazila yesterday.

The deceased were Nur Alam, chief of ‘Nur Alam Bahini’ and his associate Kalu.

Police said the gun� ght had ensued between the support-ers of Ranjan Bahini and Nur Alam Bahini around 2pm over establishing supremacy in the area. l

SECTION: WRITING

A friend has agreed to look after your house and pet while

you are on holiday.

Write a letter to your friend. In your letter

• give contact details for when you are away

• give instructions about how to care for your pet

• describe other household duties

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear .....................,

Administrative training at NSUNorth South University’s office of the administration has organised a training session for their administrative officers. The inaugural ceremony of this training session was held on October 18 at the NSU campus.

The training session will mainly focus on employee’s office etiquette, stress management, professional integrity, punctuality and work environment. Individuals who are conducting the training are specialised in their fields. M A Kashem, chairman, BOT, inaugurated the session as the chief guest while Prof Gour Gobinda Goswami, vice-chancellor in charge, gave the opening speech of the ceremony. l

Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka, celebrated the course completion of ACBA sixth batch at the Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban, University of Dhaka on October 16.

Pro vice-chancellor of academics of DU Professor Dr Nasreen Ahmad was the chief guest of the ceremony. Prof Dr Anwar Hossain, former director, IBA and vice-chancellor, South East University graced the occasion as special guests. The director in-charge of IBA, Professor Dr Syed Ferhat Anwar, chaired the certi� cate awarding session. Dr Md Mohiuddin, co-ordinator ACBA and chairperson, MDP Program and Sutapa Bhattachargee, assistant professor, IBA also spoke on the occasion. l

Media and mass communication department of American International University, Bangladesh (AIUB) organised a seminar on “Contemporary Ethical and Legal Challenges for Journalists” in the AIUB auditorium on October 12. The keynote speaker in the seminar was Manjurul Ahsan Bulbul, editor-in-chief, ATN Bangla and president of Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ). Professor Dr AJM Sha� ul Alam Bhuiyan, chairperson of the department of TV and Film Studies, Dhaka University and adviser of the department of media and mass communication, AIUB, delivered the welcome speech with his inspiring and motivational words. l

United International University (UIU) organised the 8th Inter Private University Table Tennis Tournament - 2015 in their own campus recently.

UIU vice-chancellor Professor M Rezwan Khan distributed the prize among the winners as the chief guest. Pro vice-chancellor Prof Chowdhury Mo� zur Rahman, treasurer Habib Abu Ibrahim, registrar Prof ASM Salahuddin and DSA were present at the time.

Men’s team champions were from NSU and runners-up were from UIU. Men’s singles champion Raihan Kaisar Sunny was from NSU and runner-up Tamin Iqbal was from UIU. Men’s doubles champion Tamin Iqbal and Nizam were from UIU and men’s doubles runners-up Fahim and Ahnab were from BRACU. l

BRAC University and its Centre for Entrepreneurship Development (CED) step ahead for an entrepreneurship development programme. CED established a Business Incubation Centre in 2013 for that purpose as well. Under the programme, a business plan competition was arranged, where 22 groups are participated and a group called Choice Ninja received the champion prize. In the award giving ceremony, director of BRAC Business School, CED and associate professor Dr Rezaur Razzak, programme manager Afsana Chowdhury and CED sta� were present. l

Education 21D

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MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Administrative training at NSU

ACBA sixth batch certi� cate awarding ceremony

Seminar on journalism held at AIUB

8th Inter Private University Table Tennis Tournament at UIU

Business competition award giving ceremony at BRAC University

IELTS

Practice with us every week and be on top of your game.

test practice

Here’s a sample of the IELTS General Training Writing.

Read the instructions for each task carefully.

Write at least 150 words.

You have 20 minutes.

Venue: Bashundhara, BaridharaTest date: October 31Module type: IELTS Academic Registration deadline: October 19

Test date: November 7Module type: IELTS Academic Registration deadline: October 28

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Test date: November 7Module type: IELTS General Training Registration deadline: October 26

Test date: November 21Module type: IELTS Academic Registration deadline: November 9

Venue: BananiTest date: November 7Module type: IELTS General Training Registration deadline: October 26

Test date: November 14Module type: IELTS Academic Registration deadline: November 2

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IELTSdates and locations

Features22DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 201522D

T

Europe’s enigma is as stark closer homen Prakash Bhandari

Europe is facing an unprecedented refugee situation as desperate families from war-torn Syria and political crisis-ridden Hungary

are making a beeline for various countries there, travelling long distances by train, road, rickety boats and even walking to reach a “safe haven.” More than 19 million people have been forced to flee their home countries because of war, persecution or oppression, with another 42,500 joining the ever-growing numbers every day. Most of them look at Europe as their next home.

But no one cares to know about the thousands of refugees who are floating in the Andaman Sea, seeking a place to land in the hope of finding food and jobs. In May and June this year, an estimated 6,000 refugees were helplessly stranded in overcrowded boats in the Andaman Sea without access to drinking water, food or medical supplies.

When Thailand navy helicopters dropped food packets in the Andaman Sea for a large number of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis who had been abandoned by human traffickers, the refugees jumped into the water to grab them. They recieved a proper meal after several days as the crew of the ship had escaped because of a crackdown from the Thai government to prevent the entry of illegal Rohingyas. They have striking similarities with Bangladeshis, particularly the Muslims, among the Rohingyas (an ethnic people from Myanmar) by dint of speaking Bengali, dress and food habits. Such Bengali-speaking Rohingyas and Bangladeshis were found stranded not only in the Andaman Sea but also along the coasts of Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. These “boat people,” as they are called, are victims of human trafficking who have been tricked by agents with promises of a better future in those Southeast Asian countries.

Unmindful, the Myanmar government has been completely ignoring these ethnic people who look di� erent and resemble Bangladeshis. The apathy of the Myanmar government has forced them to become � oating co� ns on the sea

Features 23D

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MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

“Bengalis” is a term often used pejoratively by Myanmar o� cials to describe the Muslim Rohingya minority, 1.3 million of whom live in the predominantly Buddhist country but are not recognised citizens. The widespread persecution of the impoverished community in the Rakhine state of Myanmar is one of the primary causes for the current regional exodus alongside growing numbers trying to escape poverty in neighbouring Bangladesh.

A large number of Rohingyas have faced the wrath of Myanmar’s Buddhist rulers and are � eeing Arakan in the face of persecution. Several thousand Rohingyas died in Arakan and more than 150,000 of them have been herded into the so-called “internally displaced people camps” with no adequate provisions for food, clothing or healthcare and without future prospects of livelihood. All these reasons have forced the Rohingyas to migrate to neighbouring countries as illegal migrants after abandoning their centuries-old homes in the hope of a better future. In India, more than 130,000 of them live in Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Assam, Orissa, Maharashtra, Bihar and even Kashmir.

These Rohingyas are identi� ed as Bangladeshis and a large number of them have entered the Kashmir valley and married natives, creating ethnic strife. So much so that the Union government recently called a meeting of the chief secretaries of all the states where they reside in large numbers. The Indian government is trying to frame a uniform policy to confront the illegal Rohingyas who enter India.

The Rohingya Muslims are stateless and live in apartheid-like conditions in Rakhine state, denied Myanmarese citizenship. Three years back, 140,000 of them were displaced in deadly clashes with majority Buddhists and, later, over 100,000 � ed overseas, to mainly Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.

“For years, the Rohingyas have been subjected to maltreatment that has been described by international watchers as ‘crimes against humanity’ or ‘manifest genocide,’” says Maji-Ul- Haque, a former Foreign Service o� cial. “Unmindful, the Myanmar government has been completely ignoring these ethnic people who look di� erent and resemble Bangladeshis. The apathy of the Myanmar government has forced them to become � oating co� ns on the sea.”

As a result, Bangladesh now has many Rohingyas from Myanmar migrating to its shores. The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics even launched a headcount of such Rohingyas, who live in � ve districts bordering India. Several years ago, the USA had taken the initiative of accepting Rohingyas and even resettling them in other “third countries” that include Canada, Australia, the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Sweden and Norway.

There were 309 Rohingyas relocated to Canada, 242 to Australia, 190 to the UK, 82 to Ireland, 56 to New Zealand, 19 to Sweden, 14 to the USA and four to Norway. But the process, which started in 2006, has now been stalled. The USA initiated the move again but Australia has refused to take them as this would further encourage illegal migration of the “boat people.”

“The Australians feel that by giving asylum to Rohingyas it would be committing

a grave mistake. If they are provided refugee status, it would encourage more such illegal migrants,” says Muhammed Zameer, a former Bangladesh ambassador.

In Bangladesh, there is a documented case load of 32,713 Rohingya refugees, which the authorities want interested “third countries” to adopt. But as they are uneducated, most countries � nd it di� cult to resettle them. They can only be accepted as labourers, sweepers or cleaners, at best. Gambia, being an Islamic nation, has o� ered to take the Rohingyas as they are “Muslim brethren” and Gambians feel they cannot turn a blind eye to Muslims starving. The Philippines has signaled that it is ready to take in thousands of migrants stranded on Asia’s seas, becoming the � rst country to announce such a move. It is a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention and the government has taken this stand on emotional lines as, being a Catholic nation, it feels that serving humanity is a noble cause. The Philippines’ stand is laudable but it has also clari� ed that genuine asylum seekers need to be sorted from those who are simply looking for greener pastures.

Bangladesh’s State Minister for Home A� airs Asaduzzaman Khan maintains that the majority of boat people are Rohingyas, while the Myanmar government has countered the claim by saying they are Bangladeshis.

The Bangladesh government feels threatened with a large in� ux of Rohingyas, who, on the other hand, feel that they could � t into Muslim-majority Bangladesh more easily. But to prevent the Rohingyas from entering Bangladesh, the government has decided to set up border operation posts in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

However, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was critical of the large number of “boat people” who were abandoned in the Andaman Sea by human tra� ckers. “It is not true that everybody is moving this way because of want. Many people put their lives in danger to go abroad by illegal means, chasing the proverbial ‘golden deer,’” she said.

The o� cial document The Bangladeshi Country Report 2012 on human tra� cking

says that continuing disparities and discriminations against marginalised communities, especially women, are some of the major reasons for the forced migrations. Factors such as poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, lack of awareness, gender discrimination, gender-based violence, natural disasters and lack of proper implementation of the 2012 Prevention of Human Tra� cking Act are also to blame.

Thousands of Rohingyas choose this path, but does the European situation di� er from the one in the Andaman Sea? EU members have all rati� ed the Refugee Convention on top of the 1967 Protocol, while Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand have not. Similarly, the 1954 Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons was signed by most EU member-states, but again not by those Asian countries. Both conventions are relevant to the situation of the Rohingyas as they � t the de� nition of “stateless persons” and “refugees.”

Even though the Asian countries involved have not signed the conventions, most of the rights enshrined in them have become part of international human rights law and should, therefore, be respected by all countries. This means that countries cannot, for example, force refugees to return to their country of origin or discriminate against stateless persons in their immigration policies.

The recent experience of refugees trying to reach Europe and also the case of the Rohingyas and Bangladeshis warrant a relook at the UN’s old conventions and protocols. l

There were 309 Rohingyas relocated to Canada, 242 to Australia, 190 to the UK, 82 to Ireland, 56 to New Zealand, 19 to Sweden, 14 to the USA and four to Norway. But the process, which started in 2006, has now been stalled. The USA initiated the move again but Australia has refused to take them as this would further encourage illegal migration of the “boat people”

Prakash Bhandari is a prominent Indian journalist who writes for di� erent Indian media

Photo: Rajib Dhar

Photo: Rajib Dhar

Fitness24DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Sedentary no more!13 tips to get up and about

n Anika Rabbani

As you read this, I’m guessing you possibly are seated on a chair by your computer, or peering into your smartphone, or perhaps hunched up over a newspaper. If I were you, I would straighten my lower back, lift the ribcage and turn your chin up slightly before commencing onto the next sentence. Why? Because you breathe much better, have much more energy and are a smarter thinker when your posture is better, and this is super helpful if you happen to be caught up in a sedentary life.

Many of us, unfortunately, are shackled to stressful jobs that require a lot of sitting. Work aside, living in the busy city, we spend a great amount of time waiting in tra� c and when out socialising we are again sitting, worse, consuming great or small amounts of trans-fats and ca� eine!

This is the life? Think againMost of us spend half of our waking hours sitting – working or watching TV. Extended periods of sitting (and laziness) have been known to invite deadly diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer and obesity into the body.

In the yoga world, we say sitting too much depletes the energy at the pelvic � oor or muladhara chakra and makes one dull and lazy.

Here are some ideas to battle against the state of sedentary: • At the workplace, each hour, spend 20

minutes standing without shoes and working at the desk. Friday snooze button aside, I am a big fan of setting alarms. So set one up and google how to create a standing workstation. Make sure the boss isn’t around.

• Stand up to answer phone calls – you sound more con� dent too. Suck in your stomach as you do this.

• When sitting in your chair, check your spine alignment. Chances are, the lower back is slumped and people frequently sit on top of their tailbones as opposed to the sit bones (the bones in your butt). I like to use a little cushion behind my lower back as a prop, both in the car and in chairs. Maybe this is how I never run out of energy.

• If you use a computer, keep your neck, shoulder, wrists and elbows relaxed. Relax the jaw and eyes too.

• Keep moving the legs up and down under the desk to keep the blood � owing and keep your quads strong. I love ankle rotations and � exing/ spreading the toes. The idea is to keep moving and this allows the energy to � ow. Wrist, shoulder and neck rotations are great too.

• Drink lots of water and don’t get so caught up in work that you forget to take frequent bathroom breaks.

• Deep breathing steady breathing can calm you in times of stress or pressure while yogic breathing exercises such as kapalbhati will instantly give you a rush of energy and wakefulness as would a cup of co� ee. The amazing part is that it costs you nothing.

• If you can slip away unnoticed for a few minutes, try out a shoulder-stand or head-stand to rejuvenate. If you don’t know what either of these are, then just lie down on the � oor and raise your legs up against a wall for a few minutes. It’s deeply relaxing. The blood and energy starts to � ow in an antigravity motion and this bene� ts your mood, heart and blood pressure!

• If you are going to be sitting most of the eight hours straight, it would be a good idea to watch your diet. I know we cannot live without rice at lunchtime, but try to cut down on the amount to one measuring cup only. Replace it with an extra helping of vegetables or other interesting dishes. Don’t miss out on protein and complex carbs. Eat foods that are cooked fresh and avoid anything that comes out of a can or the bakery and is laced with sugar. Sugar is poison when it comes to good health – it’s that simple. So are arti� cial sweeteners.

• Snack frequently to keep your blood sugar balanced – nuts, cottage cheese, cucumber/carrot slices with a hummus dip, two slices of cheese and crackers etc. Pick food that grows directly out of the earth and contains sunlight. These foods are best for you and will give you sustained energy for all these hours when you have to put out the best version of yourself to the world.

• Find a gym nearby, slip out for a quick run

on the treadmill. Don’t wait for the doctor to tell you to start walking and push you a pill you need to take for the rest of your life that will eventually kill your vital organs. No gym? Find a park, or the street. Run. Gradually build pace. Work that heart and pump those lungs.

• If you are a smoker switch to nicotine gum and download a free quit plan. Today. Please don’t make me go into my why-you-should tirade. Smoking is so 1920’s – not cool.

• Last but not the least, dress well. Spend money doing your nails and hair. Buy eco-friendly and local products for your beauty regime. Buy and dress in local, natural fabrics. You’d be doing your country’s economics a favour.

Self-love is the best investment and it is not vain. It means you care about and value yourself and in turn can do the same for others. l

Studio107 - Road 107, House 14, Gulshan 211:00am Sun & Wed - Women’s Yoga 7:00pm Mon - Vinyasa Flow4:00-5:00pm Fri & Sat ~ Ashtanga for Everyone (beginner)

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Anika Rabbani is a certi� ed yoga instructor who teaches at Studio107, Gulshan 2. Drop her a line at anika.rabbani@gmail.com or � nd her on Facebook “Anika’s Yoga” or twitter @yoganika

25D

TSportINSIDE

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Siddikur � nishes 17th in Macau OpenBangladesh golfer Siddikur Rahman concluded his campaign in the Venetian Macau Open at 17th position, tied along-side six others, following the end of the fourth and � nal round at Macau Golf and Country Club yesterday. Siddikur carded one-under-par 70 yesterday. PAGE 26

Sweden face Denmark in Scandinavian swansongSweden and Denmark’s playo� for a place in the Euro 2016 � nals will be much more than just another Scandinavian derby. The excitement that went around the room as the Swedes were pitted against the Danes in yesterday’s draw only hinted at the intensity of the battle ahead. PAGE 27

Barca boss hails ‘unstoppable’ NeymarBarca coach Luis Enrique labelled star striker Neymar ‘unstoppable’ after he scored four times as the European cham-pions beat Rayo Vallecano 5-2 on Saturday. In the absence of Lionel Messi, the Bra-zilian converted twice from the spot and then slotted home twice again. PAGE 28

Vatican cricket team plays all-Muslim sideIn a � rst for world sport, the Vatican cricket team took on an all-Muslim side from England last Saturday with the home squad clinching narrow win in the � nal minutes. “It is not about who wins or loses,” said priest Eamonn O’Higgins, manager of the Vatican team. He also led the players in a prayer. PAGE 29

Ton-up Mehedi stars for Khulna as wickets continue to tumblen Mazhar Uddin

Khulna script fine comebackFollowing the opening day’s play last Saturday that saw the fall of as many as 13 wickets, the second day’s proceedings yesterday also followed a similar script as 11 wickets went down.

Khulna, who were skittled out for 117 in their � rst innings, came back strong in the second innings managing a lead of 168 runs after ending the day on 205/4.

Opening batsman Mehedi Hasan scored a run-a-ball century which was studded with 18 boundaries. He was ably supported by top-order batsman and national discard An-amul Haque who chipped in with an unbeat-en 164-ball 61.

Earlier, resuming yesterday on 77/3, Dhaka added just 77 runs for the loss of their remaining seven wickets with opener Joyraz Sheik top-scoring with 65.

Tigers’ new pace sensation Musta� zur Rahman (4/46) and veteran spinner Abdur Razzak (3/60) were among the wickets for Khulna.

Rangpur stay firm against Dhaka MetropolisRangpur are just a run shy of taking the � rst-innings lead against Metro after the for-mer concluded yesterday’s play on 241/6.

With the exception of Dhiman Ghosh

(two), all of the Rangpur batsmen posted vi-tal contributions.

Metro, who earlier began the day on 211/7, lost their remaining three wickets for the ad-dition of 31 runs with Shamsur Rahman and Asif Ahmed registering half-centuries.

Tanveer Haider (4/81) and Sanjit Saha (3/48) were the most successful Rang-pur bowlers.

Barisal finally find their grooveSylhet were in the driving seat by the close of the � rst day’s play but Barisal fought back yesterday, having taken a 134-run lead.

A 127-run partnership for the third wick-et between opener Shahriar Nafees (67) and Salman Hossain (72) propelled Barisal to 151/3 in their second innings.

Khaled Ahmed picked up three wickets for Sylhet.Earlier, Sylhet were bundled out for 172 in their � rst innings despite starting the day on a comfortable position of 45/1. Ruman Ahmed was the highest scorer with 69.

Barisal’s Sohag Gazi and Golam Kabir shared six wickets between themselves.

Chittagong looking for substantial leadChittagong, who resumed yesterday on 43 without loss in their � rst innings, add-ed 195 runs at the expense of four wickets with Tasamul Haque (66 not out) and Tigers

opener Tamim Iqbal (62) leading the way.Rajshahi left-arm spinner Sanjamul Islam

was the wrecker in chief with 4/59.Rajshahi earlier put up 208-allout in their

� rst innings. The port city out� t lead by 30 runs heading into the third and penultimate day’s play today. l

NCL, ROUND 4, DAY 2TIER 1

Khulna v Dhaka, KSOASKhulna: 117-allout & 205/4 in 56 oversDhaka: 154-allout in 67.4 overs

Khulna lead by 168 runsRangpur v Dhaka Metropolis, SANSMetro: 242-allout in 105 oversRangpur: 241/6 in 75 overs

Rangpur trail by one runTIER 2

Barisal v Sylhet, SCSBarisal: 155-allout & 151/3 in 46 oversSylhet: 172-allout in 68.2 overs

Barisal lead by 134 runsChittagong v Rajshahi, ZACSRajshahi: 208-allout Chittagong: 238/4 in 104 overs

Chittagong lead by 30 runs

Young Khulna batsman Mehedi Hasan cuts one through the o� -side as a Dhaka � elder takes evasive action during the second day of their Walton 17th National Cricket League’s fourth -round tie at Khan Shaheb Osman Ali Stadium in Fatullah MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Sport26DT

Brilliant Pumas down

IrelandArgentina stunned an injury-depleted

Ireland with an early onslaught and � nished at a canter

to secure a 43-20 victory yesterday

that sent them into the Rugby World Cup

semi-� nals for the second time

REUTERS

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Siddikur � nishes 17th in Macau Openn Tribune Desk

Premier Bangladesh golfer Siddikur Rahman concluded his campaign in the Venetian Ma-cau Open at 17th position, tied alongside six others, following the end of the fourth and � nal round at Macau Golf and Country Club yesterday.

Siddikur carded one-under-par 70 yester-day to take his overall tally to six-under-par 278, 14 shots behind champion Scott Hend of Australia.

The 30-year old Bangladesh golfer traded � ve birdies for four bogeys in the � nal round and collected $11,314 for his e� orts. l

BD U17 V CAB U17, DAY 3CAB U17 (1st innings): 257-alloutBD U17 (1st innings): 403-allout in 120.3 overs(Shamim 226, Tribrit 6/121, Kaushik 4/132)CAB U17 (2nd innings): 121/3 in 60 overs

Match drawn

Shamim shines for U-17s in drawn gamen Tribune Desk

The third and penultimate three-day match be-tween Bangladesh Under-17 and Cricket Associ-ation of Bengal U-17 ended in a draw following the � nal day's play at Sheikh Kamal Internation-al Cricket Stadium in Cox's Bazar yesterday.

The visitors were batting on 121/3 in their second innings when the on-� eld umpires signalled the end of the day's proceedings.

Earlier, the home side posted 403-allout in their � rst innings in reply to the tourists' 257-allout. Player of the match Shamim Patwari starred for the hosts as he made a brilliant 286-ball 226, featuring 21 boundaries and 10 sixes.

The fourth and � nal three-day game be-tween the two teams will get underway to-morrow at the same venue. l

India, Bangladesh, Pakistan tri-series next month?n Minhaz Uddin Khan

Bangladesh Cricket Board is yet to receive a formal invitation for the tri-nation series that was drawn up by the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

The BCCI in its board meeting recently was supposed to discuss the possibility of India hosting a tri-series featuring Pakistan and Bangladesh in the � rst half of December. If the Indian government objects to this, Bang-ladesh is likely to be considered as the alter-native venue.

A decision from the BCCI on the agenda was pending when this report was � led yesterday.

BCB CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury while talking to the media yesterday in-formed that the board did not get any formal invitation yet.

“We did not get any formal invitation from any country to host the tri-nation series. But we have a slot in hand. So, we cannot ignore it. We are mulling playing some away games in December,” said the BCB high-up.

BCB is currently looking forward to hosting Zimbabwe next month for a limited-over series and is currently busy putting up the itinerary.

“The number of matches for the upcoming home series against Zimbabwe in November will be � xed after consultations with our team management and head coach (Chandika Ha-thurusingha). We are now doing this work. Hopefully we will be done within the next couple of days,” said Nizamuddin.

“The Test series against Zimbabwe will be held in January, 2016. There is every possibil-ity of playing a couple of Twenty20 interna-tionals, alongside Test matches, ahead of the next ICC World T20 2016,” he added.

Besides hosting Zimbabwe, the BCB is also planning to hold a tri-series involving Zimba-bwe and West Indies. l

Taskin ahead of Rubel in comeback racen Mazhar Uddin

There is a good possibility that Bangladesh will avail the service from pacemen Taskin Ahmed and Rubel Hossain, who are currently struck down with injury, for their home series against Zimbabwe next month.

Taskin and Rubel had to be sidelined after the duo got injured during Bangladesh A's tour to India last month. They returned home from the middle of the series and have been under rehabilitation since then.

22-year-old Taskin is, however, con� dent of making his comeback in the Bangladesh Premier League slated to begin from Novem-ber 22. Although the youngster is very inju-ry-prone, Taskin, who picked a side strain in

India, is not at all concerned about the past and is eager to get back to the game.

“By the grace of almighty Allah I am recov-ering very well. My initial aim is to return for the BPL and I think I will be able to do that. I will try my best to be � t before the Zimbabwe series. I missed the last international series due to injury and I don't want to miss any-more action,” said Taskin who will start bowl-ing from tomorrow.

“I will start bowling from Tuesday as there is no problem at the moment. I will gradually start working on my pace and if things go well I hope to get � t before the Zimbabwe series and I will be available for the BPL before two-three weeks of the tournament,” he added.

The chances of Rubel, who picked up a calf

injury, getting back to action is, however, “50-50” according to Bangladesh Cricket Board physiotherapist Bayejidul Islam Khan.

“Rubel is su� ering from grade-2 calf muscle injury for the � rst time. Generally it takes four to six weeks to recover and he has already complet-ed three weeks. Rubel is doing pretty well at the moment as he started running from today (yes-terday). However, it's hard to say whether he will be fully � t (before Zimbabwe arrives) and I think it will be � fty-� fty for Rubel,” said Bayejidul.

Rubel said he is following the instructions given by Bayejidul and is giving his best to recover. “I am giving my hundred percent to make a comeback but I can't say what's going to happen as there is still some pain on my muscle,” he added.l

Sport 27D

T

Bangladesh A � elding coach Richard Halsall (L) is a keen observer as his charges undergo training in South Africa yesterday. Bangladesh A will face South African side Irene in a 50-over match in Pretoria today with the game beginning at 2pm

BCB

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Bangladesh U19s to play tri-series next monthBangladesh Under-19 cricket team will leave here for India on November 17 this year to take part in a tri-nation series featuring the hosts and Afghanistan. The junior Tigers will play � ve matches, provided they reach the � nal, in India as part of their preparations for the upcoming 2016 ICC U-19 World Cup, scheduled to be hosted by Bangladesh. Bangladesh U-19 head coach Mizanur Rahman Babul informed the media yesterday that their spinners will have to play a crucial role in India if they are to progress to the grand � nale. “We have won both the home and away series against South Africa recently and our spin department is our main strength. They are doing very well at the moment and long may it continue,” said Babul.

–MAZHAR UDDIN

FIFA plunges into new corruption scandalAlready reeling from the accusations surround-ing the attribution of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup competitions, FIFA has been plunged into a new scandal relating to the 2006 edition. Although vehemently denied by the German Football Federation, corruption claims made by Spiegel weekly newspaper on Friday would have felt like yet another body blow to world football’s governing body.

–AFP

Celtic can stay top for rest of season - DeilaCeltic manager Ronny Deila believes his side have what it takes to top the table for the rest of the season after they returned to the summit of the Scottish Premiership with a 1-0 win over Motherwell on Saturday. The Hoops moved to the top of the league courtesy the win.

–AFP

Man City striker Bony con� rms he had malariaManchester City striker Wilfried Bony, who has struggled for form and � tness since moving to the club in January, has con� rmed he contract-ed malaria during the close season. The Ivory Coast forward did not go on City’s pre-season tour of Australia and Vietnam.

–REUTERS

Marquez wins thriller as title battle tightensSpanish Repsol Honda rider Marc Marquez slipped past Jorge Lorenzo on the � nal lap to win a thrilling Australian MotoGP as the race for the world championship tightened at Phillip Island yesterday. Defending world champion Marquez pipped his fellow Spaniard by 0.249 seconds for his � fth win of the season, with Italian Ducati rider Andrea Iannone third.

–AFP

Radwanska books WTA Finals placePoland’s Agnieszka Radwanska booked a spot at the end of season WTA Finals in Singapore after outclassing Montenegrin Danka Kovinic to win the Tianjin Open in China yesterday.

–REUTERS

QUICK BYTES Anelka accuses Houllier of racismn AFP, Paris

Controversial former France international Nicolas Anelka accused his ex-boss Gerard Houllier of racism on Saturday, a charge the former Liverpool boss angrily denied.

Speaking in a video posted on Youtube, the much travelled Anelka, currently the play-er-manager of Mumbai City FC in the Indian Super League, accused Houllier of racism over extracts in the latter’s book ‘I Will Never Walk Alone’, which came out on Thursday.

In it, Houllier accuses Anelka of being un-grateful and complains about the striker’s brothers and agents, saying: “His two broth-ers did the round of clubs to try to sell Nicolas to whoever put the most money on the table.”

Houllier claims that when he asked the brothers for an explanation it was “the � rst and only time I saw blacks go red”.

That angered Anelka, who said of Houllier on Youtube: “Racist in character, but it’s not the � rst time.”

Houllier accused Anelka in his book of being ungrateful to the former France coach who tried to resurrect his faltering career after an unsuccessful return to his � rst club, Paris Saint-Germain, only to see the player leave Liverpool after just one season on loan to join Manchester City.

Later Saturday, Houllier angrily denied the allegations made by Anelka. “It’s absolutely risible and ridiculous,” Houllier told AFP. l

Sweden face Denmark in Scandinavian swansongn Reuters, Stockholm

Sweden and Denmark’s playo� for a place in the Euro 2016 � nals will be much more than just another Scandinavian derby between the two neighbours.

The ripple of excitement that went around the room as the seeded Swedes were pitted against the Danes in yesterday’s draw in Swit-zerland only hinted at the signi� cance and intensity of the battle ahead.

This is a derby that has always had an edge to it, as illustrated by the 2007 game in Co-penhagen when a Danish fan ran on to the � eld and attacked referee Herman Frandel, resulting in a 3-0 victory being awarded to the Swedes.

It is also a clash of footballing traditions, with the cultured Danes and their adherence

to Dutch-style passing football meeting the technically limited but physically imposing Swedes.

As usual, a war of words awaits in the run-up to the two-legged playo� but the matches could also represent the end of the interna-tional road for some of the biggest names in Scandinavian football.

One of the longest-serving interna-tional coaches with more than 15 years in the job, Denmark’s Morten Olsen has al-ready said he will step down either after the playo� or, if successful, the � nals in France next year.

On the playing front, injury-plagued Daniel Agger may choose to concentrate on club football, and 36-year-old defender Lars Jacobsen is also expected to hang up his in-ternational boots.l

EURO 2016 QUALIFYING PLAYOFF DRAW

Ukraine v Slovenia Sweden v Denmark Bosnia v Ireland Norway v HungaryFirst named team plays the � rst leg at home.

First legs to be played Nov. 12-14; Second legs to be played Nov. 15-17

28DT Sport

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

LA LIGAReal Madrid 3-0 LevanteMarcelo 27, Ronaldo 30, Jese 81

Eibar 1-1 SevillaBaston 7 Gameiro 71

Barcelona 5-2 Rayo VallecanoNeymar 22-P, 32-P, 69, 70, Javi Guerra 14, Suarez 76 Jozabed 86

Valencia 3-0 MalagaCharles 19-og, Parejo 89-P,Andre Gomes 33

Real Betis 1-3 EspanyolRennella 89 Roco 4, Caicedo 51, Victor Sanchez 55

FC Barcelona’s Brazilian superstar Neymar jumps in the air in celebration after scoring against Rayo Vallecano during their Spanish La Liga match at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain on Saturday AP

LA LIGA TOP SCORERS

8 GOALSNeymar (Barcelona)

6 GOALS Nolito (Celta Vigo), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)

5 GOALS Borja Baston (Eibar),

Imanol Agirretxe (Real Sociedad)

4 GOALS Aritz Aduriz (Athletic Club), Iago Aspas (Celta Vigo), Lucas (Deportivo Coruna), Luis Suarez

(Barcelona), Javi Guerra (Rayo Vallecano), Ruben Castro (Real Betis)

3 GOALS Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid),

Fabian Orellana (Celta Vigo), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Charles (Malaga), Felipe Caicedo

(Espanyol), Cedric Bakambu (Villarreal)

Arsenal victory perfect tonic for Bayern test: Wengern AFP, London

Arsene Wenger believes his side’s 3-0 win at Watford on Saturday is perfect preparation for tomorrow’s crucial Champions League meet-ing with Bayern Munich.

The Gunners have yet to pick a up single point in European competition following defeats by Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiakos this season. 

But they are going well in the Premier League, with Saturday’s victory, courtesy of goals from Alexis Sanchez, substitute Olivier Giroud and Aaron Ramsey, lifting them back into second spot.

“For me the important game was [Saturday],” Wenger said. “Because I knew that � rst of all that to win today was vital to stay in touch with the top teams. “Secondly, the best way for us to prepare for tomorrow night was to win the game [Saturday].”

“Obviously there is no obvious reason to change completely the team,” Wenger added. 

“There might be some, I don’t know yet, I will have to see how completely everyone recovers. 

“I was able to rest a little early Mesut Ozil

and Sanchez.“We have of course to put pace into the

Bayern game. We are playing against a big team. We know we have put ourselves in a bad position in the Champions League. And we want to make something special against Bayern because that’s the only way we can stay in the race.”

Wenger admitted he had been tempted to rest Sanchez as the forward had travelled to South America and back to play two games for Chile, which saw him score two goals.

“Yes, I was,” he said. “But [Friday], in the training session, he looked quite sharp and the medical people told me he had no prob-lem at all.”

Sanchez opened the scoring with a shot that went in o� a post after Ozil had seeming-ly been brought down in the box by Nathan Ake.  Ozil then set up Giroud for the second and Sanchez and Ozil were both involved for Ramsey’s third.

The setback does not leave Watford in any relegation danger but manager Quique Sanchez Flores was disappointed that his players wilted in the second half.l

Barca boss hails ‘unstoppable’ Neymarn AFP, Madrid

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique labelled star striker Neymar “unstoppable” after he scored four times as the European champions roared back from a goal down to beat Rayo Vallecano 5-2 on Saturday.

In the absence of the injured Lionel Messi, the Brazilian converted twice from the penal-ty spot in the � rst-half and then slotted home twice in a minute after the break before teeing up Luis Suarez for Barca’s � fth of the evening.

“Since the start of the season he has been electric,” said Enrique.

“He was very e� ective and practically un-stoppable. With the speed he goes at inside the area the defenders stop him this way by committing a penalty or it is a goal.”

“I told my players and the press during the week that to play against Rayo is always di� -cult,” added Enrique.

“I have never had an easy game against Rayo with Paco Jemez as coach. It is a game in which you have to be prepared for every ball and they try to make the game as uncomfort-able as possible.” l

Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsey (C) celebrates with teammates Olivier Giroud (R) and Hector Bellerin after scoring their third goal during their EPL match against Watford at Vicarage Road, Watford on Saturday AP

SERIE ARoma 3-1 EmpoliPjanic 56, Salah 69, Buechel 75De Rossi 59

Torino 1-1 AC MilanBaselli 73 Bacca 63

De Rossi marks 500th Roma game with goal and victoryn AFP, Milan

Daniele De Rossi marked his 500th appear-ance for Roma with a goal in his team’s 3-1 win over Empoli on Saturday as Rudi Garcia’s side moved into second place in Serie A.

The 32-year-old De Rossi found the target in the 59th minute after Miralem Pjanic had hit the opener with a superb direct free-kick three minutes earlier.

The Bosnian also played a key role in De Rossi’s goal when his corner was headed home by the mid� eld veteran.

Roma were 3-0 to the good in the 69th min-ute when Mohamed Salah found the net after being set up by Gervinho.

Empoli pulled a goal back through Austrian international Marcel Buechel in the 70th minute. l

Sport 29D

T

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

Ten Cricket6:30PM ATP: Erste Bank Open Round 1, Day 1 Star Sports 41:00AM English Premier League Swansea City v Stoke City

DAY’S WATCH

Ibrahimovic double leads PSG past Bastian AFP, Paris

Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s second-half brace guid-ed Paris Saint-Germain to a 2-0 victory at Bas-tia yesterday as the reigning champions ex-tended their unbeaten start to the campaign.

Ibrahimovic slotted home the opener on 72 minutes at the Stade Armand Cesari after he was set up by Edinson Cavani despite the Uru-guayan being o� side in the build-up.

The Swede then netted his second of the con-test seven minutes from time as Paris registered their fourth straight league win and avenged last season’s shock 4-2 defeat in Corsica.  It was a far from convincing performance from Lau-rent Blanc’s men but the result kept Paris � ve points clear of Angers and Caen at the top.  

Goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu made his � rst start of the season in place of the injured Kevin Trapp, while PSG were also without Blaise Matuidi due to suspension as well as injured duo Marco Verratti and David Luiz.

Angel di Maria was rested ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League clash. l

Ruthless Djokovic hammers Tsonga for Shanghai titlen AFP, Shanghai

Novak Djokovic handed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga a 6-2, 6-4 beating yesterday as the world number one claimed his third Shanghai Masters title to brutally reinforce his reign over men’s tennis.

The one-sided win in one hour and 18 minutes at the Qi Zhong Stadium gave Serbia’s Djokovic his ninth trophy of a season in which he also grabbed three out of four Grand Slam � nals.

Djokovic’s serve was broken once but he broke the � oundering Tsonga four times, collecting his 10th title in China on the back of a 17-match winning streak including 22 straight sets.

Djokovic was similarly dominant over Andy Murray in the semis and he has looked untouchable in both Shanghai and Beijing, where he beat Rafael Nadal to win his sixth China Open last week.

After a rock-star welcome complete with dry ice and ear-splitting music, Tsonga was quickly in trouble and he nervously netted on break points in the � rst and third games to go 3-0 down.

Some rare Djokovic errors gave Tsonga a break of his own but he immediately handed back the initiative to the Serb, who calmly served out to love for 6-2 and a one-set lead.l

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France (R) congratulates the winner Novak Djokovic of Serbia after their men’s singles � nal match at the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai, China yesterday REUTERS

Vatican cricket team plays all-Muslim side in interfaith relations winn AFP, Rome

In a � rst for world sport, the Vatican cricket team took on an all-Muslim side from Eng-land Saturday with the home squad clinching narrow win in the � nal minutes.

“It is not about who wins or loses,” priest Eamonn O’Higgins, manager of the Vatican team told AFP, after leading the enthusiastic players in a prayer and rousing hymn on the bus journey to the match.

“It is about building bridges between dif-ferent faiths through cricket,” he said as they arrived at Rome’s Capanelle cricket ground.

The Muslim Mount CC team landed in the Italian capital Thursday and were treated to a tour of St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums prior to the match in hot Roman sunshine.

The two teams were also set to dine togeth-er and attend mass at the Vatican on Sunday.

“The hospitality has been outstanding and it is such a honour to be here,” said Hanif Mayet, Mount CC’s chair.

He founded the club in 1976 after claims of racism in Yorkshire in northern England made joining an all-white cricket club an al-most impossible task. 

Desperate to play, Mayet put together a team with friends.

“Thankfully, nowadays attitudes have improved greatly and where we live racism is no longer a problem. Our club is also open to everyone, we don’t discriminate, but it has remained predominantly Muslim,” he said.

Bringing his club to play against the Vati-can team is “a dream come true”, he said. The team asked St. Peters in August to organise a match and  “received a positive response al-most immediately”.

Soon after, Yorkshire County Cricket Club and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) got behind the team’s bid and provided Mount CC with kit as well as equipment and guidance.

“It such a fantastic opportunity,” said Phil-ip French, director of public policy and inter-national relations at the ECB. 

“It shows how cricket can break down cul-tural boundaries and we are so immensely proud of the fact that a team from Batley in Yorkshire is out here.”

French said he hoped the Vatican team would come for a return match next year -- and if all goes well it could take place at York-shire’s home ground of Headingley.

Despite the clear hunger for victory in the air, the teams said it was about more than winning.

“Today we have realized one of our dreams to play against a team composed of Muslim friends,” said Pratheesh Thomas a member of the Vatican team and a seminarian. Mount CC has no intention of stopping here: Abeda Ra-jpura, ladies patron of Mount CC, said.l

The Muslim Mount CC team landed in the Italian capital last Thursday and were treated to a tour of St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums prior to the match in hot Roman sunshine INTERNET

Downtime30DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

CALVIN AND HOBBES

PEANUTS

DILBERT

How to solve: Fill in the blank spaces with the numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must contain all nine digits with no number repeating.

CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS

CODE-CRACKER

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a di� erent letter of the alphabet. For example, today 11 represents B so � ll B every time the � gure 11 appears.You have two letters in the control grid to start you o� . Enter them in the appropriate squares in the main grid, then use your knowledge of words to work out which letters go in the missing squares.Some letters of the alphabet may not be used.As you get the letters, � ll in the other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check o� the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

CROSSWORD

ACROSS1 High mountains (4)5 Puppets (5)8 Buccaneer (6)9 Copied (4)10 Perform (3)12 Enigma (6)13 Examined (6)15 Stanzas (6)18 Sibilates (6)20 Greek letter (3)21 Box (4)23 Forcible contact (6)24 Supple (5)25 Drinks (4)

DOWN1 Separated (5)2 Pouring edge (3)3 Newspapers (5)4 Sorrowful (3)5 Determines (7)6 Burden (4)7 Location (4)11 Aid to detection (4)12 Daydream (7)14 Way out (4)16 Part of � ower’s calyx (5)17 Classi� es (5)18 Restore to soundness (4)19 Preservative (4)21 Mineral spring (3)22 Top card (3)

SUDOKU

Showtime 31D

TMONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

WHAT TO WATCH

I Am LegendWB 5:16pmYears after a plague kills most of humanity and transforms the rest into monsters, the sole survivor in New York City struggles valiantly to � nd a cure.Cast: Will Smith, Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan, Salli Richardson-Whit� eld, Willow Smith

Kill Bill Vol. 1WB 7:19pmThe Bride wakens from a four-year coma. The child she carried in her womb is gone. Now she must wreak vengeance on the team of assassins who betrayed her - a team she was once part of.Cast: Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox, Daryl Hannah, David Carradine, Michael Madsen

Ghost RiderHBO 9:30pmStunt motorcyclist Johnny Blaze gives up his soul to become a hellblazing vigilante, to � ght against power hungry Blackheart, the son of the devil himself.Cast: Nicholas Cage, Eva Mendes, Brett Cullen, Peter Fonda, Matt Long

Catch Me if You CanZee Studio 11:20pmA true story about Frank Abagnale Jr, who, before his 19th birthday, successfully conned millions of dollars’ worth of checks as a Pan Am pilot, doctor, and legal prosecutor.Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen, Nathalie Baye

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver SurferStar Movies 11:59pmThe Fantastic Four learn that they aren’t the only super-powered beings in the universe when they square o� against the powerful Silver Surfer and the planet-eating Galactus.Cast: Ioan Gru� udd, Jessica Alba, Michael Chiklis, Chris Evans, Doug Jones

n Showtime Desk

Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh has cancelled a pair of concerts in October after revealing that he is battling bladder cancer. In a letter to his fans on Friday via Facebook, Lesh wrote: “I was diagnosed with bladder cancer in early October, and have spent the last few weeks at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale doing tests and eventually a surgery to remove the tumours.”

However, Lesh calmed his fans’ concerns by letting

them know that his prognosis

is positive and that he expects to make a full

recovery. “I am very

fortunate to have the pathology

reports show that the tumours are all non-aggressive, and that there is no indication that they have spread,” said Lesh. “So thanks to my local doctor Cli� Sewell, and the incredible team at the Mayo Clinic, all is well and I can return to normal activities in two weeks.”

In recent weeks, Lesh had cancelled his scheduled appearances at his Terrapin Crossroads restaurant and venue in San Rafael, California, due to unforeseen circumstances. Lesh’s dates with Chris Robinson on October 24 and 25 were cancelled due to the bassist’s health issues, but he promises “we will reschedule these shows as soon as we can.” Lesh previously battled prostate cancer in 2006. l

Born and raised in Dhaka, Bangladesh, E-Boo is a Senegalese rapper inspired by various rap and RnB artists. He started producing music when he was still in high school where he would write songs as a hobby to share with his family and friends.

Continuing to follow his passion for music, E-Boo now shares his music with a wider audience and will release his � rst EP called Dreams by the end of 2015. Watch him this week on Radio Shadhin presents Bongo Open Mic, in association with Dhaka Tribune. l

Habib and Sunidhi on the same stage

Gilby Clarke of Guns N’ Roses performs in Dhaka

n Showtime Desk

Habib Wahid and Indian playback singer Sunidhi Chauhan were con� rmed to perform on the same stage in an upcoming event.

At the beginning of winter, the music event is aptly titled “Winter Blust 2015,” which will take place at the Nabaratri Hall of International Convention City Basundhara on November 6.

Jointly arranged by Club Eleven Entertainment and Inception Media Limited, the musical event will also feature another Indian singer, Rakesh Maini, the winner of Indian Idol-5.

While Habib is currently out of country in his vacation, he recently con� rmed his link to the programme and asked his fans to attend via a Facebook post.

Sunidhi, one of the most popular Indian

playback singers, visited Dhaka several times earlier as well, but for the � rst time, she is going to share a stage with Habib Wahid. As over the past few years, Habib Wahid produced some popular playback songs as well, and this could be a � esta for playback lovers. l

n Showtime Desk

Gilby Clarke, one of the world’s leading rock music performer and one of the key ex members of Guns N’ Roses, along with his team Troy Patrick Farrell and E J Curse, got the rock music enthusiasts of Dhaka going with their rock music prowess at the event of YELLOW presents “Sounds of Guns N’ Roses.” This is for the first time a member of the world’s leading rock bands performed in Bangladesh.

The event took place at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre on October 16. Creinse Limited has organised the event with sponsorship of YELLOW, in association with Microsoft Lumia, JB Group, AKhoni.com, Dhaka Foodies and other partners. A big contingent of rock fans thronged the venue to experience rock music at its best. l

Grateful Dead’s Phil Lesh reveals bladder cancer battle

RnB artist E-Boo on open mic

Back Page32DT

MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2015

GILBY CLARKE PERFORMS IN DHAKA PAGE 31

STEPS TAKEN TO DIVERSIFY JUTE EXPORT MARKET PAGE 16

TON-UP MEHEDI STARS FOR KHULNA PAGE 25

Woman dies as hostage of mentally ill fatherVictim, along with younger sister, lived in con� nement for years; no one ever raised alarmn Mohammad Serajul Islam, Sylhet

A woman was found dead in her house in Syl-het city yesterday after spending years con-� ned and isolated in the house because of her mentally deranged father.

Police broke into the house yesterday morning following a tip-o� and recovered the body of Sa� a Khatun Koli, 37, said Gausul Hossain, OC at Airport police station.

Police initially suspect that Sa� a’s death was caused by mental illness, although family members and locals said her death was the re-sult of the solitary con� nement that her father, Qari Abdur Noor, imposed upon himself and his daughters, Sa� a and A� a Khatun Lucky, 34.

Sa� a’s body was sent to Osmani Medical College Hospital for autopsy, after which she was buried in a local graveyard. The autopsy report was still due when this report was � led.

A case of unnatural death was � led with Air-port police station in this regard, the OC said.

A tale of living nightmareTalking to several local sources and extended family members, it was found that Qari Abdur Noor had imposed a life of complete isolation from society upon his family.

Noor had lived abroad for 28 years before he returned home in 1998. The change in his mentality was alarming, a family member said.

Noor forced his family into living a life de-tached from the outside world, con� ned to their home in the city’s Housing Estate area.

He covered all the walls in the house with English and Arabic writings, locals said. When his brothers tried to talk him out of living such an abnormal lifestyle, he once chased them away with knives.

When his wife died in 2009, he arranged her funeral and burial all by himself and did not let any of their family members take part in it.

Since then, he forced his daughters out of school – Sa� a � nished Class XI, A� a Class IX – and kept them under strict supervision, ap-

parently appealing to religious grounds.The sisters were not even allowed to see

each other; only Noor had access to their rooms. He gave them food when he wanted. Family members were not allowed to visit. Power, water and gas lines were disconnected.

When Sa� a’s dead body was found, witness-es said it was evident that she had been starved.

“Both Sa� a and A� a were found wearing rags. There were gaping wounds in Sa� a’s leg. Her nails were at least 1-1.5 inches long,” said a witness, seeking anonymity.

Locals said although they were aware of the situation, they only learnt yesterday about the extent of horror the family lived in.

Neighbours have intervened once before; with the help of police, they rescued Noor and his daughters in 2011 and sent them to Osma-ni Medical College Hospital. The trio received treatment for a few days before returning home – and going back to the same life.

“They must have su� ered a huge traumat-

ic event, which caused their abnormal mental state. This is why they chose to live in captivity. They will need long-term treatment to recov-er,” said Dr Masudur Rahman at the hospital.

When journalists confronted him at hospital, Noor tried to avoid their questions and said, in English: “My mum knows everything.” When asked who his mother was, he said Queen Eliz-abeth II. He then refused to talk to press, saying he would only talk to the law enforcers.

No legal action taken yetStrangely enough, despite many people claim-ing to have known what was going on, no one ever attempted to take legal action to get help to the mentally ill father and his daughters.

However, Noor’s family informed local Ward Councillor Rezaul Hasan Kayes Lodi a year ago about the situation.

“I have known about this situation. It is un-fortunate and inhumane. Noor lost his sanity, that is why he did this to his family,” he said. l

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