News3 A number of VoIP service providers (VSPs) have called for restructuring of the BTRC, alleging that the regulator is full of corrupt people.

Nation6 Although routine surgeries have remained suspended at the operation theatre of Khulna Medical College Hospital for the last four months, all surgery-associated medicines and drugs continue to � y o� the store shelves regardless.

Metro7 Shyam Bazaar, one of the busiest bazaars in old Dhaka, is facing severe tra� c congestion due to the many illegal shops, occupying the roads.

International9 Al-Qaeda in Yemen has denied US allegations it is plotting massive attacks that prompted the closure of Western missions in the country this month.

Sport9 Bangladesh head coach Loewijk de Kruif expressed the hope that his players would adapt to the conditions in Nepal quickly and be ready for the challenges in front of them at the Sa� Championships.

16 pages with 8-page business tabloid, plus 8-page Treehouse children’s supplement | Price: Tk10

Bhadra 13, 1420Shawwal 20, 1434Regd. No. DA 6238Vol 1 No 156 WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2013 | www.dhakatribune.com

INSIDE

Long FormOpen heart surgery: A patient’s memoir

5InterviewDhaka deserves more stake in UN peacekeeping

4 8 InternationalSyria vows to defend itself asit faces blames

Madaripur brothel vandalised, lootedn Ashif Islam Shaon

Activists of Islahe Qawmi Parishad along with locals yesterday went on the rampage through a brothel at Puranba-zar in Madaripur sadar town.

The attackers vandalised and looted the brothel of 500 sex workers in a bid to evict them from the area.

Sex-workers’ leaders alleged that a number of members of their commu-nity had been abducted, but police de-nied the allegation.

The incident took place around 11am yesterday.

Following the attack, Ain o Shalish Kendra, Manusher Jonno Foundation, Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust and Sex Workers Network jointly arranged a press conference at the Na-tional Press Club in the capital.

Leaders of the organisations said the High Court on August 26 extended its stay on any kind of removal of the brothel for one year.

Earlier, the HC issued the stay for three months following a writ � led with it on May 7.

They said the brothel was situated at the heart of the town and its land was

worth a fortune to the land grabbers.Since last May, some locals and

leaders of main political parties had been threatening to turn out the sex workers, the speakers said, adding that the politicos used the Islamist group to launch the attack disobeying the court order.

“Every quarter has interest in it. Some see the land as a potential fortune and some cash in on the situation ahead of the next parliamentary election,” said Mohua Leya Folia, programme of-� cer of Manusher Jonno Foundation.

PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

BRINGING BACK KOKO’S MONEY

10% for PM’s special aide n Syed Samiul Basher Anik

The Anti-Corruption Commission plans to “reward” the prime minis-ter’s Special Assistant Ferdous Ahmed Khan with 10% commission on Tk210m for contributing to bringing back the amount siphoned o� by the BNP chair-person’s younger son Arafat Rahman Koko.

“We will pay 10% of the total amount to Ferdous Ahmed Khan’s consultancy � rm Octokhan as his � rm served us in bringing back the laundered money,”

ACC Chairman M Bodiuzzaman yester-day told journalists.

“The process to give away the re-ward is underway. As soon as we re-ceive approval of the � nance ministry, we will give him the money,” he said after the closing ceremony of a two-day training on asset recovery organised by the ACC.

A number of o� cials at the ACC told the Dhaka Tribune that Ferdous had placed his demand for 30% commis-sion to the previous chairman, Ghulam

PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Diplomats, EC discuss polls preparationsn Sheikh Shahariar Zaman and

Mohammad Zakaria

Foreign diplomats questioned the Elec-tion Commission on its stance over the scrapping of article 91(E) in the Rep-resentation of the People Order (RPO) and the registration process of a new political party named Bangladesh Na-tionalist Front (BNF), EC o� cials said.

They expressed concerns over media reports that the EC was deliberating on whether to revoke its power to cancel candidature of an individual for violat-ing the electoral code of conduct. It also wanted to know whether the EC has excluded the military from the RPO’s de� nition of law enforcement agencies.

The questions were raised at the meeting of the EC with foreign diplo-mats of 14 countries and UN organisa-tions to discuss the preparations for next parliamentary polls.

Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad, while answering the diplomats, said the EC was still considering scrapping the article 91(E). However, he assured them of the EC’s initiative to make the next elections ac-ceptable and ensure participation of all political parties.

According to sources, on the issue of BNF, the CEC said EC was examining its � eld-level activities and organisational structure. He assured that registration would only be awarded to those organ-isations, which ful� l the EC’s criteria.

“The CEC informed them that the provision for army deployment during polls was excluded from the RPO way

PAGE 2 COLUMN 4

ACC receives Tk70.4m of Koko’s laundered moneyn Syed Samiul Basher Anik

The Anti-Corruption Commission yes-terday received a dummy cheque of Tk70.4m, which was recovered from the money that was laundered to Singa-pore by former prime minister Khaleda Zia’s son Arafat Rahman Koko.

Attorney General Mahbubey Alam handed over the cheque to the com-mission Chairman M Bodiuzzaman at a city hotel yesterday.

PAGE 2 COLUMN 3

Swachip desperate as AL tenure nears endRuling party-backed doctors’ association allegedly � exing their muscles, paralysing the administrative work in health sectorn Moniruzzaman Uzzal

A sense of desperation seems to have gripped the ruling party-backed doc-tors, as the government moves closer to the end of its tenure, leading to a crum-bling administrative chain of command in the country’s health sector.

Allegations are rife that the leaders of the Swadhinata Chikitsak Parishad (Swachip), the ruling Awami League-backed doctors’ association, has been trying to interfere in the process of

recruitment, posting, transfer and for-eign tours for doctors and procurement of equipment.

Due to the strengthening of stran-glehold by some of the powerful and in� uential Swachip leaders, the health sector top brass, including the director general of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), are not being able to take administrative decisions independently.

Seeking anonymity, a number of high-ranking health sector o� cials told

the Dhaka Tribune that the Swachip leaders had formed themselves into various groups, all of them equally in-� uential.

They said some of the Swachip lead-ers were pressurizing them, directly or indirectly, to � nalise the recruitment, posting and promotion of candidates according to their preferences.

Some of the Swachip leaders refuse to leave the o� ces of the health o� -cials, ruthlessly forcing them to sign

PAGE 2 COLUMN 3

Branches of a tree cover the automated tra� c signal in the capital’s Banglamotor intersection, obscuring the lights SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

GREEN MEANS GO

News2 DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Ansarullah chief remandedn Anisur Rahman Swapan, Barisal

A Dhaka court yesterday granted a sev-en-day remand for Jasimuddin Rahma-ni, the chief of alleged Islamist militant out� t Ansarullah Bangla Team, in con-nection with the murder case of blog-ger Rajib Haider.

Dhaka Metropolitan magistrate Ha-run-ur-Rashid granted the remand af-ter Mainul Islam, a Detective Branch inspector and the investigation o� cer of the Rajib murder case, sought a 10-day remand.

The magistrate also rejected a bail prayer placed by defense lawyer Ad-vocate Sohrab Hossain Molla, and granted the remand – as � ve students of North South University, accused of killing blogger Rajib Haider, had earlier confessed about visiting Jasim, court sources said.

On Sunday, Ansarullah chief Jasim was returned to Barguna jail, after being interrogated in joint interrogation cell (JIC) at Dhaka, under a 4-day remand.

On the other hand, nine Ansarullah activists have been taken in remand so far at Barguna, with remand prayers against 20 others still pending.

Barguna district police superinten-dent (SP) Shaymol Kumar Nath informed that on August 21, Mobashwer Ali, an

inspector of detective branch, sought 10-day remands against 30 activists who were arrested with the Ansarullah chief.

On Sunday, the chief judicial mag-istrate of Barguna, Noman Mainud-din began hearing the remand peti-tions and granted a three-day remand against Yusuf Ali Mridha, a two-day re-mand against Abdur Rahman Matubbar and Ashraf Ali, and a one-day remand against Awal Siraj and Alamgir Hossain, informed public prosecutor Advocate Bhuvan Chandra Haoladar and defense lawyers Advocates Abdul Aziz, Sekan-dar Ali and Siddikur Rahman.

The same court, on Monday, also granted a three-day remand against Md Badal and Qari Abdus Salam, a one-day remand against Jamal Hossain and Abu Saleh, but rejected a remand prayer against Abdul Jabbar due to his old age, the lawyers added.

The hearing on remand appeals against the remaining 20 Ansarullah activists will continue by rotation, with the next hearing date set on September 1, the Barguna SP said.

Earlier on August 12, Sub Inspector Zafar Hossain lodged a case with the Barguna Sadar police station against the 31 arrestees, under section 57 of the IT act, for propagating militancy and communalism. l

Huda’s new formulan Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

Barrister Nazmul Huda on Tuesday said BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia would re-pent for having punished him.

He urged Khaleda to end the prevail-ing political impasse through talks with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

“I told her to hold dialogue with Ha-sina two years back to resolve the polit-ical crisis and for saying so I was pun-ished,” Nazmul said at a press brie� ng.

“But now madam [Khaleda] also talks about dialogue and the whole world is talking about dialogue,” said Huda.

Huda said the national polls could be held under a non-partisan caretaker government by reconstructing the elec-tion commission and handing over the prime minister’s executive power to the chief election commissioner under the existing constitution.

He explained that as per article 48 (3) of the constitution the prime minis-ter will advise the president to recon-

stitute the EC and for the incumbent election commission to resign.

The president would appoint a chief election commissioner and four elec-tion commissioners in consultation, in this case with the two leaders – Khale-da and Hasina.

As per article 55 (2), the prime min-ister would hand over executive pow-ers to the newly elected chief election commissioner.

Then the prime minister would advise the president to dissolve par-liament, which would be done by the president as per article 72 (1) of the con-stitution.

Following the dissolution of parlia-ment, as per article 57 (1) and 58 (1) of the constitution, the premiership and posts of ministers will fall vacant.

Nazmul Huda said the president would then ask the chief election com-missioner and election commissioners to carry out their responsibilities of a poll-time government. l

BNP ready for dialogue ‘anytime’n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday said his party was willing to hold a dialogue on formation of the polls-time interim government “anytime at any place.”

He said following the UN secre-tary-general’s telephone conversation with opposition leader and BNP Chair-person Khaleda Zia the party had said it was ready to hold the dialogue to re-solve the crisis.

“But the discussion should be on the non-partisan interim government,” Fakhrul told reporters at the party’s Nayapaltan headquarters.

Asked about the BNP’s position over Noble laureate Muhammad Yunus’ statement on polls-time government and that he was ready to speak with the government on the ongoing political crisis, Fakhrul said: “Dr Yunus’ state-ment is our statement.” l

Minor girl gang-raped in Ukhian Tribune Report

A minor school-girl was gang raped at Dailpara village under Ukhia Upazila of Cox’s Bazar on Sunday.

The incident came to light two days after it happened, with the victim’s father claiming that local in� uential quarters put pressure on him to not � le a case earlier.

According to the case statement, � led yesterday with Ukhia police station, a class IV student was raped on her way to her house at Amtali Ghat in the area.

O� cer-in-Charge of Ukhia Police Station Gias Uddin Miah said they were investigating the incident. lFamily members of National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam place wreaths at his grave on the anniversary of his death DHAKA TRIBUNE

Diplomats, EC discuss poll preparations PAGE 1 COLUMN 1back in 2009 and not under the incum-bent commission,” an EC o� cial said.

After the meeting, the CEC told re-porters that the commission was pro-curing election materials such as trans-parent ballot boxes, permanent ink, etc from di� erent countries, with the assistance of development partners, whose representatives attended the meeting to take stock of preparation for the polls.

“We will source polling materials from them. We have also sought tech-nical assistance for video arrangement to monitor the polling centres during the next parliamentary elections,” he said. This assistance would be provid-ed under a project of UNDP.

Reiterating that EC wants to arrange a peaceful and fair election where ev-ery party would take part, the CEC add-ed that the commission wants to hold the polls properly, so that the results would truly re� ect the people’s opin-ions.

After the meeting, acting British

high commissioner Nick Low told the Dhaka Tribune: “You should ask what we did not discuss. We discussed ev-erything from transparent ballot boxes to security deployment.

“We want what the people of this country want and that is free, fair and all-party elections,” he said.

When asked about the approach of the diplomats, he said “As individ-ual countries or collectively, we are discussing the issue with the political parties to have a positive election,” he said. “We are united on the issues that need to be tackled.”

On behalf of the diplomats, UN’s Resident Coordinator Neil Walker briefed journalists on what they dis-

cussed at the meeting.“Those countries and partners that

are providing support to the elector-al process in Bangladesh through the Election Commission have come here today to hear what the Election Com-mission is doing with regard to its preparation for the upcoming national parliamentary elections,” he said.

“We have discussed about the preparations. We have exchanged views on our mutual hope for a free, fair, credible and inclusive elections with him today,” he said.

Neil Walker con� rmed to the Dha-ka Tribune that there was no decision as yet over the UN Assistant Secretary General Oscar-Fernandez Taranco’s visit to Dhaka

The meeting lasted nearly an hour.The EC invited the ambassadors and

representatives from the USA, the UK, Canada, Germany, Australia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Switzerland, Neth-erlands, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, the United Nations/UNDP, and the Eu-ropean Union. l

Madaripur brothel vandalised PAGE 1 COLUMN 3She said it was impossible to single out which political parties were involved in the attack.

Asked about the allegations by the victims that local Lawmaker Shahjahan Khan was also involved, she said: “Yes, we heard that. It could be true.”

Witnesses said Islahe Qaumi Pari-shad in the morning attacked the cat-house with some traders of Puranba-zar. Shortly afterwards, a good number of people followed suit.

The attackers were equipped with arms and sticks. They vandalised every room in the brothel and looted valuables.

According to locals, the Islamist organisation has been trying to evict the sex workers for a long time. They staged angry demonstration several times over the issue.

O� cials of Madaripur DC o� ce, leaders of Islahe Qaumi Parishad and the sex workers sat for talks over the issue several times.

Besides, Shipping Minister Shahja-han Khan also held meetings with two political parties, but all went in vain.

The victim sex workers told journal-ists that police were present during the attack, but they did not take any steps against them.

Following the attack, activists of the Islamist group arranged a rally near the brothel and threatened to attack them further if they do not leave the place within an hour, said they.

Islahe Qaumi Parishad’s general sec-retary Ali Ahmed issued the threat.

A leader of the brothel alleged that a vested quarter had been trying to grab the land for years.

Recently, they decided to build a high-rise commercial building there. The attack was a result of that, added the leader.

Contacted, Police Superintended Faridur Rahman of Madaripur told the Dhaka Tribune over phone they had deployed additional police to avoid fresh attack by the Islamist group.

Some10-12 people were detained for the attack so far, he said.

“For safety, we have taken a number of members in the brothel to safe cus-tody. No one was abducted from there,” he claimed. Asked about the initiative police took during the incident, he said: “The attack ended before we reached there. So, there was nothing to do.”

The Press ConferenceFrom the press conference, rights lead-ers said 75% land of the 200-year-old brothel had been purchased by the sex workers.

The attack was made in a pre-planned way to grab the land.

They said they had learnt that hun-dreds of people thronged there all of a sudden. Banks, schools were shut in fear. It was impossible to carry out such an attack without a plan and help of lo-cal administration. l

ACC receives Tk70.4m of Koko’s laundered money PAGE 1 COLUMN 6The commission received the mon-ey on August 13, in a dummy cheque which was issued from United Over-seas Bank of Singapore that said US $956,387.40 is given to the Stolen Asset Recovery Account of Anti-Corruption Commission.

The money is the second instalment of the recovered money. ACC on No-vember 22 received the � rst instalment of Tk130.4m, which was also laundered by Koko to Singapore.

On January 3, the commission re-ceived Tk1.5m as interest on the Sin-gapore $2.04m laundered by Koko and recovered by the commission.

The money was given to the commis-sion at the closing ceremony of a two-day training programme on asset recov-ery, organised by the ACC at a city hotel.

Regarding the recovery of Koko’s money, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said following some clues, the department of justice at USA went to Singapore and found an account where

some unusual transaction was going on.“The authority then arrested the

account holder, who con� rmed that the money belonged to Arafat Rahman Koko, so the person was convicted. Later we requested the authorities in Singapore to give us information, and following the information, a case was � led. A Dhaka court has convicted Koko for laundering money,” the attor-ney general said.

“Later, following a Mutual Legal As-sistance Request, the Singapore author-ity gave us the money since the money was entitled to the state,” Alam said.

The commission � led a case against Arafat Rahman Koko on March 17, 2009 on charge of money laundering which he had illegally obtained from a Ger-man company, Siemens, and other sources, in exchange for helping them get government contracts.

Arafat had a deal with China Har-bour Engineering Company Ltd in a Tk3.51bn contract for construction of the New Mooring Container Terminal

and with Siemens in a Tk2.39bn con-tract for the supply and installation of equipment for the state-run mobile op-erator Teletalk.

A few other people also gave mon-ey to Arafat that was deposited in two of his � ve bank accounts in Singapore detected by the commission. Four of the accounts are with United Overseas Bank and the � fth with the CIC Bank.

The attorney general in his speech also said the money laundering cases would be conducted by the court fol-lowing the Money Laundering Preven-tion Act 2009, but punishments would be declared as per the Money Launder-ing Prevention Act 2012.

The attorney general also put em-phasis on the need of e� cient lawyers to � ght at court in corruption cases.

“Assets cannot be recovered with-out conviction, and for conviction, we need e� cient lawyers.”

The attorney general told reporters that many other politicians were also involved with the money laundering.

“There is laundered money in Singa-pore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, London and many other countries, but the money cannot be recovered until cases are � led in these connections. A country will only return us the laundered money when a judgment is given in a case.”

Law Minister Sha� que Ahmed said that recovering laundered money was not an easy task and there was every possibility that the case would be frus-trated.

“If lawyers are not serious over their duties, there will be chance of delay in the cases. Be strict in choosing lawyers, because lawyers are responsible for de-lay in cases, which ultimately takes 4-5 years for disposal of such cases,” the minister said.

Sha� que also said amendments on criminal procedure and civil procedure were on the way to lessen the procras-tination of the judicial process.

ACC Chairman M Badiuzaman and Secretary Faizur Rahman Chowdhury also spoke at the programme. l

10% for PM’s special aide PAGE 1 COLUMN 5Rahman. But Ghulam rejected the idea, saying the ACC act did not have such provision of rewarding anyone who was not a member of the commission.

At yesterday’s programme, Attor-ney General Mahbubey Alam handedover to the ACC chairman a dummy cheque of Tk70.4m, the last instalment of the total amount siphoned o� by Koko.

The state’s top law o� cial, who was involved with the whole process of re-covering the amount, however, said he was not aware of the procedure of re-warding Ferdous’ � rm.

There are allegations that the ACC has already given Ferdous Tk13m as commission on Tk131.5m, which the commission had already recovered and received on November 22 last year.

The graft watchdog, however, earli-er denied allegation.

It said it had recovered a total of Tk210m, which Koko had siphoned o� to Singapore during the tenure of the BNP-led four-party alliance’s rule from 2001-2006.

Ferdous had applied for a 30% com-mission, but after negotiations the commission decided on giving him 10%, said Bodiuzzaman. l

Swachip desperate as AL tenure PAGE 1 COLUMN 6the � les according to their require-ments.

Moreover, the internal feuds be-tween con� icting Swachip groups have given rise to new problems for the health o� cials. If they endorse the candidate of a particular group, then the rival Swachip group gives them a hard time.

However, top Swachip leaders, in-cluding its Secretary General Dr Iqbal Arsalan, have denied such allegations.

In the ensuing melee, the health o� cials cannot take any decision in-dependently and have to wait for the health minister to decide, leading to delays in the provision of health ser-vices.

The situation has deteriorated to such an extent that some of the health o� cials have stopped attending their o� ces, feigning illness to avoid un-pleasant encounters with the Swachip leaders.

Dhaka Shishu Hospital crippled

The Dhaka Tribune has run several sto-ries in the past few weeks regarding the crumbling chain of command at the Dhaka Shishu Hospital.

The country’s biggest healthcare facility for children has been without a chairman of the governing body, the highest decision making forum of the hospital, for more than � ve months. The authorities have failed to � nalise the appointment due to intensive lob-bying by the Swachip groups for their respective candidates.

The hospital is still to be allotted a budget for the ongoing � scal because the governing body has not been able to hold a meeting since the previous chairman resigned in March.

There are allegations that the earlier chairman’s resignation was due to the pressure exerted by the rival Swachip leaders.

Professor Dr Abdul Aziz, president of Dhaka Shishu Hospital unit of Swachip, alleged that the hospital had reached the verge of destruction because of the ine� ciency of the directors. He de-

manded an immediate appointment in the vacant post of chairman of the gov-erning body.

The biggest fear is that in absence of funds, the hospital might not be able to provide free treatment to poor children from September.

Allegations of graft in dghs recruitmentThe health directorate is currently in the middle of a recruitment process for the vacant posts of third and fourth-class employees in nine districts.

The Dhaka Tribune has also learnt that a number of in� uential Swachip leaders, ministers, state ministers, ad-visers, secretaries and political lead-ers have come up with their own lists of recommended candidates. Junior health minister Mujibul Haque him-self has reportedly recommended 400 names.

There are allegations that a section of DGHS o� cials has recently published the results without the knowledge of the director general as he declined to

entertain the recommendations set by the in� uential � gures.

Recruitment test results of DGFP witheldThe Directorate General of Family Planning (DGFP) has failed to publish the results of a computerised test, held more than two months back, due to the increasing pressure of recommenda-tions by the Swachip groups, said Prof Dr Mahbubur Rahman, a member of the DGFP recruitment council.

Empty box drama at NICVDThe Dhaka Tribune had recently run a story on how a contractor supplied an empty box to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD), in place of the equipment that he was supposed to provide to the hospital and tried to get paid Tk10m for it. In this case too, a group of Swachip doc-tors were reportedly involved. The con-tractor while talking to the Dhaka Tri-bune alleged that he had been a victim of “dirty politics” by the doctors. l

‘We will source polling materials from them. We have also sought technical assistance for video arrangement to monitor the polling centres during the next parliamentary elections’

Judge jailed for keeping phensidyln Tribune Desk

A Dhaka court yesterday sentenced Bhola Senior Assistant Judge Javed Imam to four years’ rigorous imprison-ment for keeping phensidyl.

Judge Md Ruhul Amin of Dhaka sec-ond additional metropolitan session judge court also � ned Javed Tk 10,000 and in default, to su� er more two months in prison, reports UNB.

Police arrested Javed, 30, with 342 bottles of Phensidyl in his possession from the capital’s New Market area on December 1 last year. l

News 3DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

VoIP operators demand reforms to BTRCn Muhammad Zahidul Islam

A number of VoIP service providers (VSPs) have called for restructuring of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission, alleging that the regulator is full of corrupt people.

They also allege that they cannot place incoming ISD calls – despite being connected to the internation-al gateways (IGWs) – because of the BTRC.

“A few high o� cials of the regula-tor, who are supposed to be the pro-tectors, have been playing the role of predators, creating a syndicate with some corrupt businessmen,” Rabiul Karim, convener of the VoIP Service Provider Association (VSPA), said in a written speech.

He alleged that these o� cials had been working at the BTRC for a long time and were now busy ful� lling their

own interests.Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Ra-

biul said the VSPs did not have any idea about how they could collect the money from international carriers for terminating calls. He alleged that the BTRC guideline did not have any direc-tives in this regard.

“We have even found that these of-� cials do not have any clear idea about our licensing procedure.

“The BTRC chairman often misbe-haved with us and did not give us time until the telecommunication minister intervened,” Rabiul said.

BTRC Chairman Sunil Kanti Bose and a few other o� cials could not be reached over phone for their com-ments on the allegations brought by the VSPA.

A total of 1,004 VoIP licences were awarded � ve months ago, but these new VSPs are yet to place calls as, they

allege, the IGWs are not receiving any from them.

A VoIP service provider told the Dhaka Tribune that a number of IGWs had taken VoIP licence and were now handling their own calls only. “Many of the IGWs took several VoIP licenc-es against di� erent people, including their own employees,” he said.

“As the IGWs are handling calls ter-minated by their VoIPs, they now show little interest in receiving calls from us,” he added.

The VoIP service providers ques-tioned the BTRC’s recommendation for a yearly loss of Tk10.73bn from in-coming international telephone calls generated by the IGWs.

“The BTRC is now busy only to fa-vour a few operators who are political-ly powerful,” the VSPA said.

In its recommendations recently sent to the post and telecommunica-

tion ministry, the BTRC also suggested that the government reduce the call termination rate by 50% – from $.03 to $.015 per minute.

It also proposed a change in the gov-ernment’s revenue sharing structure, reducing the government’s share from existing 51.75% to 40%.

The BTRC had recommended awarding 1,000 VSP licences and the government issued 1,004.

The VSPA demanded connections to the IGWs and announced a human chain programme in front of the Na-tional Press Club on September 8 and a sit-in programme in front of BTRC o� ce on 19.

“Give us connectivity without wast-ing any time, otherwise refund our li-cence fees,” said a leader of the VSPA.

The VSPA claimed that each opera-tor had deposited Tk500m as licence fees and another Tk100m as VAT. l

DESTINY SCAMPalash ordered to surrendern Nazmus Sakib

The Appellate Division yesterday stayed the bail granted by the High Court to Sha� ul Islam Palash, the owner of Is-lam Trading International, and ordered him to surrender before the Chief Met-ropolitan Magistrate’s Court, within two weeks, in a money laundering case against Destiny.

Justice Hasan Foez Siddique, a cham-ber judge of the apex court, passed the order following a prosecution plea.

Law enforcers were ordered to arrest Palash if he did not surrender within two weeks. The judge has stayed his bail for two months. Attorney General Mah-bubey Alam argued for the government and Khurshid Alam Khan represented Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

Khurshid told the Dhaka Tribune that the ACC last year registered the case with Kalabaghan police station accusing Palash alongside Destiny chief Ra� qul Amin of money laundering. The case was under investigation, he said. l

First defence witness testi� es in Alim casen Udisa Islam

The � rst defence witness in the case against war crimes suspect Abdul Alim yesterday claimed that one Abbas Ali Khan, not Alim, was the president of Joypurhat district Peace Committee during the Liberation War.

Mamunur Rashid Chowdhury, 55, said they had lived at CO Colony, and the Peace Committee o� ce was nearby.

At the beginning of deposition, the tribunal expressed its displeasure over the defence not providing a complete list of witnesses.

After the deposition, prosecutor Rana Das Gupta pleaded for adjournment as they were not prepared to cross-examine the defence witness. Granting him time, the tribunal directed him to start questioning the witness after the lunch break.

At the end of cross-examination, the tribunal set Sunday for producing other witnesses. The tribunal asked the defence to place two witnesses that day.

Alim, a former BNP state minister

during the tenure of Ziaur Rahman, is facing 17 charges of crimes against humanity he allegedly committed during the Liberation War in Joypurhat as the district Peace Committee president.

Prosecution placed 35 witnesses against Alim. The 19th witness was declared “hostile” as he did not mention anything related to the accused. The defence has been allowed to place three witnesses.

In his deposition yesterday, the witness said he had seen many people coming to the house of one Ha� z Bihari.

The tribunal then intervened and Justice Md Mozibur Rahman Miah asked the defence whether the name of the witness was on the list, and if yes, the serial number. He told the defence: “You have to provide the names of witnesses before the day’s proceedings start. You have brought a person whose name is not in the witness list which you provided earlier.”

The defence said the name was on the list but could not tell the tribunal the serial number. The court was adjourned for 10 minutes. The

judge questioned the defence on the whereabouts of its counsel Tajul Islam.

Justice Mozibur asked the witness: “When did you learn that you have to testify here?” Mamunur said Sazzad Faisal Alim, son of the accused, had asked him to give deposition in the case, around four to � ve days ago.

The tribunal asked the defence

to � nd the witness’ name on the list submitted earlier and start recording the deposition again.

The witness said he had asked his father the reason for the large gatherings at the house of Ha� z Bihari. “He told me that the house was being used as the o� ce of Abbas Ali Khan who was the president of Peace

committee.” At that moment, the defence

informed the tribunal that the witness’ name was at number 2,805 on the list.

The witness further said it was a well-known fact that if anyone went to Abbas Ali to ask for the release of their relatives detained at the army camp, the Pakistani army would set them free. The army camp was at “Kuthibari.”

As he completed his deposition, defence counsel Ahsanul Haque asked him to narrate the incident at the market place that the witness had not mentioned. Tribunal member Justice Sahinur Islam said: “No other story. He has ended his part.”

During the cross-examination, the witness said he had not known the accused before he became MP from Joypurhat.

Alim was arrested on March 27, 2011, and has been on conditional bail since March 31 last year. He is accused of killing thousands of people in Joypurhat in collaboration with the Pakistani occupation army and committing crimes against humanity in the district in 1971. l

Eyewitness describes abduction of Abul Khayer and Fazle Muhi n Udisa Islam

A new prosecution witness yesterday said both Chowdhury Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman Khan were among the people who had abducted his father, the martyred intellectual Abul Khayer, in December 1971.

The abductors also picked up Dr Fazle Muhi from the third � oor of the same building, the prosecution witness, Rashidul Islam, told the International Crimes Tribunal 2. Rashidul, 47, said he himself had witnessed the incidents.

Both Abul Khayer and Dr Fazle Muhi were Dhaka University teachers.

After the deposition, state defence counsels Md Abdus Shukur Khan and Salma Hye cross examined him. The tribunal later adjourned the proceedings till Thursday.

Both Mueen and Ashrafuzzaman were indicted on 11 counts of crimes against humanity that include killing of 18 intellectuals. The prosecution alleges that Mueen was al-Badr’s “operation-in-charge” while Ashrafuzzaman played the role of “chief executor” of the para militia force that consisted of

members from Islami Chhatra Sangha, then the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami.

Rashidul, 18th witness in the case, saw four to � ve armed youths, in a mud-stained minibus, pick up his father from their Fuller Road residence in the capital on the morning of December 14, 1971. He witnessed the incident from the balcony of their house.

The witness said he immediately informed his mother and she rushed to the spot and tried to free Abul Khayer. The abductors threatened to open � re, pointing their arms at her.

Dr Muhi was abducted at the same time and put inside the microbus.

The witness said on January 4, 1972, driver of the minibus Mo� z had told his family members that bodies of many intellectuals were dumped at a Mirpur killing � eld. Mo� z also said Mueen and Ashraf were involved in the killing of his father and other intellectuals.

Later his family members searched the place and identi� ed the body of Abul Khayer at the Mirpur killing ground. The witness said he had heard about it from his mother.l

Tribunal accepts 5 more witnesses against Nizamin Udisa Islam

The war crimes tribunal yesterday ac-cepted a prosecution plea seeking per-mission to place � ve more witnesses against Jamaat-e-Islami chief Motiur Rahman Nizami.

The petition was � led by prosecutor Mohammad Ali on Monday. With these, the total numbers of prosecution wit-nesses stands at 107, of which only 17 have deposed so far. Of the 17 witnesses, the prosecution announced one as “hos-tile witness” as he did not mention the name of Nizami in his deposition.

Nizami was indicted on May 28 last year on 16 counts of crimes against hu-manity he allegedly committed in Pabna and Dhaka during the Liberation War. The charges include genocide, rape, torture, abduction, con� nement and conspiracy.

Just after the getting the approval, the prosecution placed one of the � ve new witnesses. However, the defence raised objection and told the tribunal that they could not cross-examine the witness without any preparation. The defence also wondered how the prosecution had known that their plea would be approved.

The tribunal too questioned the pros-

ecutor about the presence of the new wit-nesses in the court and asked how they had known that they would get the chance. Prosecutor Ali said he had presumed it. Without giving any reason, the tribunal ad-journed the hearing till tomorrow.

Meanwhile, accepting a defence plea, the tribunal added in their order that on that day only the deposition of the wit-nesses would be recorded, and the de-fence would conduct the cross examina-tion on September 1.

In his submission, Ali said the investi-gator had been conducting further probe into the matter and they had already got

some new evidence and witnesses. The tribunal then asked how could there be further investigations, once the charges have already been framed.

Tribunal Chairman Justice ATM Fa-zle Kabir said: “You have already placed a hundred witnesses and now do you need more?” Justice Jahangir Hossain, member of the panel, said, “You have always ac-cused defence of delaying the proceedings. Now we can see the opposite situation. In this case, it seems that the prosecution is trying to prolong the proceedings.”

As the prosecutor tried to quote a provision in the International Crimes

(Tribunals) Act 1973 that allows for more witnesses, the chairman said: “You have to satisfy the tribunal � rst.”

The defence � led a written objection. Mizanul Islam said: “There is no scope of further investigation by the investigating o� cer once the � nal report is submitted. They are trying to hamper the prepara-tion of the defence by changing the pros-ecution witnesses now.”

The tribunal said: “Hearing the prose-cution on the matter, we are inclined to accept the prosecution plea. For the sake of justice, we are permitting them to pro-duce � ve more witnesses.” l

United District’s Club forms a human chain in front of the National Press Club yesterday with a call to say “NO” to drugs MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Tribunal defers order date in Economist’s contemptn Udisa Islam

The International Crimes Tribunal 1 has set September 26 for passing order on a show-cause notice issued to two editors of The Economist for publishing the alleged Skype conversation between a tribunal judge and an emigrant Bangladeshi legal expert.

The order was to be delivered yesterday but the tribunal, acting on its own motion, deferred the date.

The former chairman of tribunal 1, Nizamul Huq, had issued the show-cause notice on December 6 last year, after a person claiming to have been from the London-based weekly called him. The Economist representative said they had with them the records of Skype conversation and email communication between the judge and Ahmed Ziauddin, an expert based in Brussels.

The controversy surfaced after Bangla national daily Amar Desh published its story “transcript of Skype conversation.”

In his submission earlier, counsel for the journalists Musta� zur Rahman said his clients had not done anything contemptuous by contacting the tribunal’s former chairman. He, however, admitted that the journalists should have gone through the tribunal’s registrar, which is the proper channel.

On the other hand, prosecutor Sultan Mahmud said since hacking is an o� ence, therefore, publishing of information obtained through hacking into skype conversations and e-mails is punishable too. He claimed that it had been done to mire the tribunal in controversy. l

Prosecution placed 35 witnesses against Alim. The 19th witness was declared “hostile” as he did not mention anything related to the accused. The defence has been allowed to place three witnesses

News4 DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

City High LowDhaka 32.2 25.5Chittagong 27.4 25.5Rajshahi 32.7 25.0Rangpur 30.5 25.6Khulna 32.0 25.4Barisal 33.3 26.6Sylhet 30.3 24.5Cox’s Bazar 28.0 25.0

PRAYER TIMESFajar 4:21am

Sunrise 5:38amZohr 12:00pm

Asr 4:32pmMagrib 6:21pm

Esha 7:38pmSource: IslamicFinder.org

WEATHER

Temperature unlikely to falln UNB

Light to moderate rain or thunder-showers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely to occur at most places over Chittagong, Barisal, Khulna, Dhaka and Sylhet divisions and at a many places over Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions until 6pm today.

Moderately heavy to heavy falls were also likely at places, Met O� ce said. Day and night temperature may remain nearly unchanged over the country.

The sun sets in the capital at 6:21pm today and rises at 5:40am tomorrow.

Country’s highest temperature 33.4 degree Celsius was recorded at Jessore and Chuadanga and lowest 24.4 de-grees at Khepupara yesterday.

Highest and lowest temperatures re-corded in some major cities yesterday were:

Bangladeshi workers in queue at Shahjalal International Airport before they leave for Malaysia SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

90 workers head to Malaysia2,000 are expected to go each week

n Rabiul Islam

Ninety Bangladeshi workers traveled to Malaysia yesterday under a govern-ment-to-government arrangement, which will see them joining work in the country’s plantation sector for a migra-tion cost of around Tk30,000.

A Malaysian Airlines � ight (MH-103) carrying the workers left Hazrat Shah-jalal International Airport at 1.10pm, Md. Zahidul Islam, assistant director at the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET), told the Dhaka Tribune over phone yesterday.

Eighty-three more workers are

scheduled to go to Malaysia on Wednes-day, the o� cial added.

“We hope a total of 2,000 workers would go to Malaysia every week from now on,” expatriates’ welfare secretary Zafar Ahmed Khan told this correspon-dent at his o� ce on Tuesday.

The secretary said, “We have held meetings with Malaysia’s Human Re-source Minister and Interior Minister last week, and the labour migration to Malaysia would be expedited under G-to-G system”.

Malaysia has also initiated a move to use the same method to recruit from Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, Zafar

mentioned.Earlier yesterday morning, BMET

organised an inaugural ceremony for the Malaysia-bound workers at Haji Camp in the capital’s Ashkona.

Speaking as the chief guest, Expa-triates’ Welfare and Overseas Employ-ment Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain urged the recruiting agencies not to create confusion among jobs seekers.

He said a section of private recruit-ing agencies at home and abroad – was claiming that the government would not be able to send workers.

The minister said labour migration

to Malaysia has resumed and it would continue. Migration cost would not ex-ceed two months’ wages of a worker, he added.

Mosharraf also called upon expat workers not to � ee their workplaces, as they would become illegal and face punishment.

Earlier, 198 workers went to Malay-sia under the same arrangement.

Meanwhile, a lottery has selected around 30,000 workers to be sent to Malaysia.

The government has also created a database of around 1.5 million workers from across the country. l

Government to � x Singapore migration cost n Rabiul Islam

A Bangladeshi migrant worker requires twice the amount spent by a labourer from India, Nepal and Sri Lanka on mi-gration to Singapore for jobs.

According to a report of expatriates’ welfare and overseas employment ministry a Bangladeshi migrant labour-er needs Tk4,00,000-Tk5,00,000 to go to Singapore while the cost stands at around Tk2,00,000 for an Indian, Nep-alese or a Sri Lankan.

The report says migrant workers go to Singapore for a contract period of one or two years and cannot recover the mi-gration cost over the period of time.

A four-member delegation led by Expatriates’ Welfare Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain visited Singapore.

“During our visit to Singapore, we have formed a committee headed by Bangladesh ambassador to Singapore to submit a report on migration cost soon,” expatriates’ welfare Secretary Zafar Ahmed Khan told the Dhaka Tri-bune at his o� ce yesterday.

He said after receiving the report the migration cost would be reduced to a reasonable level.

According to the report of the minis-try, about 2,00,000 Bangladeshi work-ers are working in Singapore. l

Police rescue boy after three days of abduction n Our Correspondent, Narsingdi

Police rescued a teenage boy from Narsingdi town yesterday after two days of his abduction from Gazipur.

Criminal Investigation Department (CID) rescued the 15-year-old-boy Sajib from Bhelanagar bus station area.

Police said kidnappers had a plan to send the boy in India through Agortoal border.

CID police said Sajib was kidnapped on August 25 from Chandana area un-der Joydebpura of Gazipur district.

Unidenti� ed abductors took the boy to Narsingdi after kidnapping him and demanded Tk1.5m as ransom, they added.

After the incident, the boy’s father Abul Kashem � led a case with Joydeb-pur police station.

Acting on tip o� , Narsingdi CID po-lice raided Bhelanagar bus station area and rescued the boy, but kidnappers managed to � ee. l

Left-leaning student groups protest increased CU admissionform feen Our Correspondent, CU

The left-leaning students’ body at the Chittagong University yester-day demanded the admission form fee for undergraduate students in2013-2014 session be reduced and announced fresh programme fromtomorrow.

The organisations made the demand at a press conference held at the CUC-SU. Chhatra Union, CU unit Organising Secretary MehediHasan Nobel read out a written statement, while ProbalMa-zumder, president of SomajtantrikCh-hatra Front, CU presided over the pro-gramme.

In the statement, they claimed that the CU authorities has illogically raised the admission from fees from Tk400 to Tk500 this year.

“If a student with background in science wants to apply for admission to at least four departments under the Science Faculty,it would cost him/her more than Tk2500 while it would take more than Tk3000 for the Arts Facul-tyfollowing to increase. As a result, it would get more di� cult for students from middleclass, and lower class fami-lies to bear the expenses.”

ProbalMazumder said the fees for the admission form has been increased more than 600% over the last 2 de-cades. It was Tk250 in the 2003-04 ses-sion and it was increased to Tk400 in 2011-12.

They urged the university authori-ties to reconsider the admission form fees and demanded to withdraw the extendedamount.

To realise their demand, the stu-dents’ body will place a memorandum to the CU vice-chancellor on August 29, hold protest procession and rally on August 31 and observe a guardians and students harmony rally at the Shaheed-Minar Premises.

Ruchi Bhattacharyya, organisa-tional secretary of SomajtantrikCh-hatra Front, Rasidul Samir of Chhatra Union, Anwar ShadatJunayed, acting president of CU of Chhatra Federation among others were also present at the press conference. l

America supports development of rice research in BD – Mozena n Arif Ahmed

US Ambassador to Dhaka Dan W Moze-na said America supported the devel-opment of so many new high yielding, dynamic and tolerant varieties of rice in Bangladesh.

Addressing a programme, titled “Rice Research Ideas Exchange for Part-nership for Enhanced Engagement in Scienti� c Research and Development,” at Dhaka University’s Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Department yester-day, Mozana made the comment.

He said America was working as a partner of the Ministry of Agriculture under the leadership of Agriculture Minister Matia Choudhury to introduce those new varieties and improved agri-cultural technologies to millions across the southern regions of Bangladesh.

He also said the existing researches of the Bangladesh Agriculture Univer-sity, Agriculture Research Institute and the DU are of international standard, adding that those researches were in-novative and practical, which could be very useful for the Bangladeshi farmers.

Biological Sciences Faculty Dean Prof Imdadul Haque, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Department Chair-man Prof M Sayedul Islam and Prof Ze-ba-I-Seraj of the same department were present on the occasion. l

Relatives want 27 workers held in Iraq back home n Rabiul Islam

The relatives of 27 Bangladeshi work-ers who are being held in a camp run by a private company in Iraq formed a human chain in front of the Probashi Kalyan Bhaban in the capital yesterday, demanding that the government bring the men home within a week.

The relatives also demanded that authorities take action against the re-cruiting agencies and a non-govern-ment organisation (NGO) responsible for sending the workers to the war-ravaged country with promises of lu-crative jobs.

The relatives later submitted a memorandum to the Ministry of Expa-triates’ Welfare and Overseas Employ-ment. SHISUK (Shikhha Shasthya Un-nayan Karzakram), a rights group that has been providing legal assistance to the families of the victims, helped to organise the human chain.

The family members said Morning Sun Enterprise, Meghna Trade Inter-national, East Bengal Overseas and

Idea International recruited the work-ers between February and March this year. They added that Bangladesh Mi-gration Foundation worked as a broker to send the workers to Iraq at a cost of Tk300,000 to Tk400,000 per person.

M Kodia, a general trading company in Iraq, received the workers and took away all their travel documents. The men were then con� ned in a camp operated by the company in Najaf al-Ashraf, a city south of Baghdad, the relatives claimed.

The entrapped Bangladeshis were passing miserable days in con� nement as they were allegedly tortured and not given food regularly, the relatives said.

Meanwhile, Expatriates’ Welfare Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain told reporters at his o� ce that the gov-ernment would take action against the agencies and the NGO concerned.

“We have communicated with the trapped workers through the Bangla-desh mission in Baghdad in a bid to get them released,” Expatriates’ Welfare Secretary Zafar Ahmed Khan said. l

Unrest forces RMG unit closure in Gazipurn Our Correspondent, Gazipur

Unrest among the RMG workers en-forced closure of “JL Fashion” gar-ments factory at Bis-mail area of Gazi-pur yesterday.

The workers started demonstra-tions, centring the dismissal of some of their fellow workers.

Police said the workers started work abstention in the morning and took to the street to press home their demands that also include removal of four o� -cials, including the general manager of the factory.

At one stage, they blocked the Dha-ka-Mymensingh highway and staged demonstrations there.

On information, police rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.

Later, the authorities concerned de-clared the factory closed for two days, following the unrest.

Earlier, on Sunday the authorities dismissed � ve workers for not main-taining discipline. l

Dhaka deserves more stake in UN peacekeepingAdam C Smith, a visiting research fellow of the New York-based private think tank International Peace Institute, talks to Dhaka Tribune Special Correspondent Kamran Reza Chowdhury

Adam C Smith says as a country con-tributing the highest number of troops, Bangladesh should get more com-manding posts in UN peacekeeping operations in the headquarters and the � eld level. Bangladesh is under-repre-sented in that respect.

Unlike other countries, they go to any mission risking their lives, earning the UN appreciation.

Bangladesh has one under-secretary general for the department of � eld sup-port, Ms Ameerah Haq, who represents Bangladesh extremely well at the UN, says Smith, adding that Bangladesh could have a few more posts in the headquarters and the � eld.

The Bangladesh government should push for more such posts and Bangla-desh has to continue to work on fur-ther developing their capabilities, not only on troops but also on equipment, Smith says.

Participation of South Asian countries in UN peacekeeping missions has been coming down, why?Participation of their troops as relative

share of the total has decreased slight-ly from the historic level of 51% of all troops in 2006 to now 33%, which has been an average for the last 20 years. So, this has not necessarily gone below very far. At the same time, their polic-ing contributions have increased. At present South Asia provides 35% of the all UN police force. So, there is a mixed trend.

Do you think the UN peacekeeping has been facing shortage of funds?Yes, I do think so. I think budgets have not kept up with actual cost of peacekeeping in many countries and I think many TCCs [troops contribut-ing countries], like Bangladesh, their troops have to deal with consequences, the implications of these, I think, de-pressed peacekeeping budgets. That should be higher than they are. As a re-sult of the � nancial crisis over the last few years you have seen an arti� cial ceiling on troops’ number, also on the budget. I think that negatively impacts peacekeeping, and makes it harder for your troops to do the job.

Are there allegations of immoral ac-tivities by the peacekeepers? Does it question the role of peacekeepers in the host country?No country is immune from immoral activities, such as sexual exploitation. The UN maintains “zero tolerance” for sexual exploitation. That can happen...Troops are stationed for 12 months.

DT: Can the UN peacekeeping be ham-pered if the armed forces got involved in the country’s governance?Smith: There is a general trend that the UN examines the commitment of armed forces to the democratic process during the selection process. So, there may be some impacts on Bangladesh’s role as peacekeepers although it varies from country to country. l

Students from Kadomtoli upazila form a human chain in front of the National Press Club yesterday, demanding cancellation of the bails of the rapists of a girl from the area and their exemplary punishment MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Feature 5DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

n Omar Faruk

Lā �ilāha �illā l-Lāh, Mu�ammadur rasūlu l-Lāh (I bear witness that there is no God but God and Muhammad is His

Messenger) – I was slowly reciting the statement of faith as I was being transported on a stretcher from the waiting room to the operation theater of South Lake Hospital, New Market Ontario, on a cold winter morning in Canada.

It was December 16, 2011 and the time was 8am. Earlier in the waiting room, my wife and I performed our morning prayer together. I asked for forgiveness for past sins and sought the Almighty’s mercy. I was calm and content after the prayer and patiently waited for the nurse to take me to the operation theatre.

The operation was on the 5th � oor. As I approached the operating room, I was greeted by the anesthetist. I took a quick glance around the room which was brightly lit and equipped with numerous machines. The anesthetist started to prepare me for intravenous and I knew that within the next few seconds, I would succumb to a deep slumber from which I might never awake. I started to recite the profession of faith once more, and then almost instantly, was gone.

I came to my senses in a large room, quiet and cold, with only a few dim lights. The veil of darkness lifted,

as I ever so slowly opened my eyes. I remember, with a clarity resembling daylight, that I was reciting the very same statement of faith – the shahadah.

I tried to look around and a very young nurse was walking around the room. She whispered politely, “you woke up.”

“So, I am alive” – the reassuring thought � ashed through my mind, “this is the same old world.”

I wanted to talk but was unable as there was a breathing tube down my throat. The nurse comforted me, “we shall now remove the tube and will give you some ice to swallow to relieve the pain in your throat.”

Next, I was helped to sit up on the bed with the assistance of two nurses and was asked to cough deeply to clear my lungs from accumulated � uids.

This was very important – I remember being told at my pre-operation clinic session. The two nurses helped me step down from my bed, after which I moved around the room for a while. I still did not know how long I was unconscious in total after the surgery.

As my mind raced to tie all the events of the past few weeks together, I noticed that my wife and my eldest brother-in-law were entering the room accompanied by the nurse. I asked her gently about the time and day. She told me it was Saturday afternoon, approximately 3:30 pm. I did a quick

calculation; it was almost 36 hours that I had been unconscious.

My wife informed me that I had undergone four by-passes and one cleaning; that’s what Dr Moon, my surgeon, told me would be performed during our pre-surgery consultation meeting. It all worked out, and I was relieved.

My wife later invited other visitors to come one by one to see me. Each spent a few moments with me, during which I inquired about their well being and requested their prayers for my speedy recovery. They all left in the evening by 8–9pm.

The nurse’s shift had been changed, and a new nurse took over for the night. It was time for me to fall asleep again. But I would not sleep so easily now – I would stay awake for extended periods of time late into the night, for many following nights.

For now I would be thinking about the chronology of the events that happened so fast during the last few weeks. “Am I dreaming,” I asked myself. As I started to remember all that had happened in the weeks leading to this by-pass surgery, I realised how fortunate I was.

I appreciated that and thought it is my duty to let others know about the hope imbibed in such experiences – that we could always depend on Allah’s mercy even though we commit so many sins in our everyday lives.

On November 21, 2011, I had an angiogram; it felt like that was yesterday. The test con� rmed that I had � ve serious coronary blockages of my heart. I was stunned by the results. It took me quite some time to accept the truth and grasp the gravity of the situation. Why had such a fate confronted me?

Those who knew me for many years were quite surprised as well and scared too. I was a disciplined man throughout my life – always following a regulated lifestyle with moderation in everything: no cholesterol and no junk food, I was involved in physical activities such as walking and yoga everyday.

As far as I knew, there was no family history of heart diseases. So what had gone wrong? I was asking myself and frantically looking for an answer. Gradually, things settled down and I started to think rationally. I knew from my earlier tests that my heart condition was � ne, very close to normal.

The heart condition is expressed by a fraction, which is medically known as the ejection fraction or EF. Ejection fraction shows the pumping capacity of heart, in other words the muscle power of heart. For a normal heart, it is 60-70%. My EF was 58%. So, there was no damage done so far, even with 90% blockages. But in that moment, everything became clear as the bigger picture manifested before my eyes: “Oh my God, how close was I to a major disaster!”

I started visualising the worst case scenarios. Had I not gone for the test as I did not have any symptom, which normally is related to heart diseases such as chest pain, shortness of breath, or high blood cholesterol, it would have been just a matter of time.

The time bomb could have exploded when I was driving to work or returning home or driving my family somewhere. It was a sheer blessing of the Merciful who decided the outcome of my situation in a way of pure love and gentleness.

From that day on, I asked Allah’s forgiveness after each prayer for my weakness in faith. Miraculously, I got the surgeon’s appointment within two days. My surgeon Dr Moon, a very well

experienced heart doctor, explained all the pros and cons of heart by-pass surgery. I asked him for some details of the procedure that he would be performing – whether he was going to separate my heart from the rest of the body or if he was going to stop it while he would be working on it.

In both cases, I would be put on a heart-lung machine throughout the duration of the procedure. Dr Moon told me that he preferred the second option. I asked him what the failure rate of the procedure was – he took a pause, and replied 2-3%. Then he added, “we put it the other way e.g. success rate was 97-98%.” I gave him a fragile smile and said very slowly that if I was within that 3%, it would be 100% for me.

He asked me when I preferred to undergo the surgery. I was desperate and wanted to get it over with as soon as possible. So I requested the earliest date possible. However, a number of factors would decide the surgery date. In the next few days, I went through a number of pathological tests and information sessions.

The tests ranged from all types of blood work to ultrasounds of the veins in my legs which would be required during the surgery. The information session was to prepare me psychologically by showing a video of an actual heart surgery, and talking with other people who had gone through bypass surgery before. My wife and I attended the day-long schedule and went back to our home in Waterloo with new hope.

I was granted medical leave from my job and was left to patiently wait for a surgery date.

It was possibly early morning of December 7 when I got a phone call from the hospital that my surgery date was � xed and it would be done during the next week. I thanked Allah for the reassuring news. At last, my days of uncertainty were coming to an end and I didn’t have to be under su� ocating stress anymore.

I called my wife at her work place and let her know that I was coming to meet her and spend some time with her. I was familiar with all her coworkers over the last 10-12 years. So, all of them were very shocked when they came to know of my diagnosis. Obviously, they were very sympathetic to us and tried to be very assuring in our di� cult time.

At my wife’s work place, I was greeted by her colleagues. Everybody was anxious. One told me about her father’s by-pass surgery and how he was doing after that. I felt encouraged by her story and asked a few questions.

Then I saw the assistant manager. She hugged me and then all of a sudden, started telling me how

her father had an heart attack on a wintery day while shovelling snow. Her father was a Royal Mounted Police o� cer, and a very active and outgoing professional. He was around � fty when it happened. His heart stopped as he lay unconscious on the snow.

The family called for emergency medical assistance. Soon after their arrival, the paramedics were able to restart his heart and took him to the hospital. Fortunately he survived and

after a long recovery period, came back to work only to � nd that his life had been changed totally. He was given a desk job and was to become very depressed.

Ultimately, he took voluntary retirement and con� ned himself at home. He started drinking a lot and 10 years later had a second heart attack which ended his life. I was stunned hearing this story. I didn’t want such a fate – one of emptiness and the loss of hope. I was silently staring at Cindy, the assistant manager, with an empty look.

Day by day and night by night, I was frantically reaching out for Allah’s mercy, for strength and to remain vigilant even in the face of Cindy’s anecdote. I do not remember how long I was standing there, when I felt my blackberry cell phone vibrating.

The vibration brought me back to the reality. I reached out my phone and saw a message waiting in my mailbox. It was from a very young gentleman who joined my o� ce just a month before I left on medical leave.

His name was Bruno and I had not had a good chance to get to know him before I went on leave. So I was a little surprised when I began to read the email. Bruno, a committed Catholic, was writing to assure me that everything would be alright with my surgery, that God was just taking my test. He cited a number of verses from the Quran which he learned in his world religion class – where Allah (SWT) said for every disease, there is a cure and that humans are encouraged to seek treatments for their ills.

As I read the email, I felt a cold shiver as if I had been struck by a thunderbolt. Like all practicing Muslims, these verses are familiar to me. But never before were they so meaningful to me.

My whole consciousness was engulfed with a strange feeling which

I had felt only twice before in my life – long ago when I was a just a kid; two strange dreams occurred in my boyhood, one just before my father’s death and the other just after his passing. “Is it a message?” I asked myself perplexed. What a strange coincidence! I felt a cold rush through my body making me numb.

Suddenly, I felt that I was not afraid anymore. I felt that I had been assured by someone. My eyes were getting wet – just at that moment I saw my wife coming towards me.

As she approached, I told her cheerfully that the date of my surgery was possibly on December 13. However, this was changed twice and my surgery was actually held on December 16, 2011.

Just one week later I was released from the hospital. While staying there, my physiotherapist taught me aerobic exercises to keep my leg and chest muscles active without harming the healing process of the chest bones which were cut to open my chest cavity, along with a metre-long incision in my left leg. Alhamdulillah, I became quite strong within six weeks and by the ninth week, I was given full permission to drive long distances; I rejoined my o� ce after three months.

Looking back, I remember that the second week after surgery was possibly the worst time of my life so far. Even now, I do not want to remember the pain and agony I was

going through every minute of those days, even though I was on heavy sedatives.

This was because the body was trying to regain control over its activities as my brain had not been conscious for 36 hours. There was a lack of coordination among di� erent functions within the body and hence the su� ering.

During my � rst follow up, my surgeon Dr Moon was very happy to see my progress. I was referred to a cardiac rehabilitation centre to learn di� erent exercises and move forward. The cardiac rehab is probably the most important step that people who have undergone cardiac intervention should pursue in order to stay healthy and prevent any further damage to their heart.

Unfortunately, we are quite ignorant on cardiac rehabilitation activities in our country. There is no organised knowledge-based programme in this area. As such, many patients having a successful by-pass surgery cannot achieve a complete recovery afterwards and face various complications.

The cardiac rehabilitation programme is a broad topic and I hope to explain it in more detail in future.

In the meantime, I must mention that my recovery has continued satisfactorily. Allah blessed my wife and I with the opportunity to perform Hajj and visit our beloved Prophet’s grave in Medina. Hajj is physically very demanding, and I think that my rigorous cardiac rehabilitation routine made it easy for me.

My thanks to all those who will be reading this account of my journey, please remember me in your prayers. May the Merciful keep you safe and protect you from all dangers. Ameen. l

Omar Faruk is a project/process Engineer in York, Ontario, Canada.

Open heart surgery: A patient’s memoir

I was stunned by the angiogram results. It took me quite some time to accept the truth and grasp the gravity of the situation

Suddenly, I felt that I was not afraid anymore. I felt that I had been assured by someone. At that moment I saw my wife coming towards me

BIGSTOCK.COM

6 NationDHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

KHULNA MEDICAL COLLEGE HOSPITAL

Where are the hospital drugs going?n UNB, Khulna

Although routine surgeries have re-mained suspended at the operation theatre (OT) of Khulna Medical Col-lege Hospital (KMCH) for the last four months, all surgery-associated medi-cines and drugs continue to � y o� the store shelves regardless.

There are allegations that these expensive medicines are being sold outside the hospital and not being re-

served for patients who may actually need them. This is a rather common occurrence at the hospital but there is no one to look into the irregularity.

Hospital sources said due to an electric short circuit on the midnight of July 14, medical equipment worth millions of taka got damaged. The damaged equipment include three anaesthetic machines, one diathermy machine, three suction machines,

three OT ceiling lights and two air conditioners.

But drugs worth more than Tk100,000 were taken from the store room on the day when operation activi-ties were halted. Sources said the drugs were taken from the store by showing indent with signatures from the opera-tion theatre’s in-charge, who is a junior consultant (anaesthesiology), and a resident medical o� cer.

Hospital Superintendent Dr Paritosh Kumar Kunda, also a junior consultant (anaesthesiology), could not be con-tacted while an attempt was made to know where the drugs had gone. It was learnt that the missing hospital drugs are sold to other doctors, private clinics and pharmacies at cheap prices.

A source in the hospital said drugs purchased by the government and pa-tients are being stolen for a long time by those who are related to the OT. De-spite there being an adequate supply of government procured drugs and other items in the hospital, the patients are issued lists of drugs to purchase those from outside.

It was found that same person has been doing service at the OT for several years in return for a large kickback. l

Case lodged against 28 for snatching an arrestee from custodyn Our Correspondent, Barisal

Police yesterday � led a case against 28 people, including a discharged po-lice personnel, in connection with the snatching of an accused from police custody, and assaulting law enforcers on Monday night.

An investigation is also underway to � nd out the role of sub inspector Nazrul Islam Majumdar, the leader of the 2-member police team - which had made the arrest of Asif Talukdar, 29, son of Chandu Talukdar.

Nurul Islam, the o� cer-in-charge (OC) at Bakerganj police station, said the case mentioned 13 accused by name, while the other 15 were un-named. The case alleged Babul Ahmed, alias Police-Babul, a police constable previously dismissed from service for peddling drugs, of leading the assault on police and snatching the arrested

Asif from custody. Asif is an accused in cases of attempted murder and drug peddling, the OC said.

AKM Ehsan Ullah, Barisal district police superintendent, said the two injured police o� cers Sub Inspector Nazrul Islam Majumdar and Constable Enayet Hossain, are receiving treat-ment at Barisal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital.

He also said that SI Nazrul would face departmental action; if it were proved that he � ed the scene leaving Constable Enayet alone.

Earlier on Monday night, Sub In-spector Nazrul Islam Majumdar and Constable Enayet Hossain of Bakerganj police station went to Ranirhut to ar-rest Asif Talukdar. Asif’s associates attacked and beat up the law enforc-ers near the Ranirhut Bazar, before snatching the handcu� ed Asif away from custody. l

Swechhasebok Dal leader shot dead in LaxmipurA local leader of Swechhasebok Dal was gunned down by some terrorists at Saharpur bazar in Ramganj upazila early yesterday. The victim was identi� ed as M Bahar, joint convener of Korpara union unit of Swechhasebok Dal and son of Abu Taher of Korpara village of the upazila. Police said a gang of armed terrorists, numbering 8/10, picked up Bahar from his house at midnight and took him to Saharpur bazar. They chopped Bahar with sharp weapons and shot him, leaving him injured. Critically injured Bahar was rushed to Ramganj upazila health Complex by local people and later, he died on way to Dhaka in the morning. – UNB

Three kids drown in NatoreThree children, including two siblings, drowned in a pond at Mahajampur village in Bagatipara upazila yesterday. The deceased were identi� ed as two children of Abdul Kuddus- Julekha, 8, and Soaib 5, and his (Kuddus) niece Sahida Sultana, 8, of the village. Family members said the three children slipped into a pond adjacent to their house while playing near the pond at noon. Local people recovered the three bodies from the pond after a frantic search. A pall of gloom descended over the area following the deaths. – UNB

Freedom � ghter Abdul Wahab dies in ChuadangaAbdul Wahab, a valiant freedom � ghter and also a retired police personnel died of a heart attack at Jibannagar upazila health complex of the district on Monday. He was 62. He is survived by his wife, a large num-ber of well-wishers and relatives to mourn his death. He was laid to rest with full state

honour at Jibannagar central graveyard after asr prayer yesterday. Earlier, a namaj-e-janaza was held at the ground adjacent to the graveyard. – BSS

7,444 bottles of phensidyl seized in two districts Police and BGB in separate drives seized a total of 7,444 bottles of phensidyl in Jhikargachha upazila of Jessore and sadar upazila of Satkhira on Monday. In Jhikar-gachha, a team of the Detective Branch of police conducted a drive at Deuli village in the evening and recovered 4,444 bottles of Phensidyl in 22 sacks from a ditch near homestead of one Munjat Uddin, said DB o� cer-in-charge Moniruzzaman. In Satkhira sadar, Border Guard Bangladesh personnel on a tip-o� conducted a drive at Mollikpara intersection around 7am and seized 3,000 bottles of Phensidyl search-ing a private car, said Satkhira 38 Battalion BGB operation o� cer Anwar Mazhar. However, no arrest was made during the drives. – UNB

Man jailed for 17 years in SunamganjA Sunamganj court on Monday sentenced a man to a 17 years imprisonment for his attempted murder of an individual in 2004. The convict is Monir Miah, 30, son of M Abdul Gani from Kadirpur village in the district’s Jagannathpur upazila. Ac-cording to the prosecution, M Kabir Miah, former chairman of Jagodal union in Dirai upazila, � led a case against three people, including Monir, for attempting to murder him on August 4, 2004. After examining the records and witnesses, the Judge of Sunamganj Special Tribunal 3 and Joint Sessions Judge’s Court 1, Mahbubul Alam, handed down the verdict against Monir and acquitted the other two. BSS

Student’s death on highway sparks protest in Gopalganjn UNB

A college student was killed in a bus ac-cident at Gopinathpur in sadar upazila, Gopalganj on Monday, which triggered a violent protest.

The deceased was Maruf Hossain Mollah, 18, an HSC student at Gopi-nathpur Qazi Zuhurul Haque College.

Witnesses said a moving bus col-lided with Maruf on the Dhaka-Khulna Highway while he was crossing it on his way to the college for his pre-test examination at around 11:30am, leav-ing him critically injured.

Maruf died while being taken to Go-palganj General Hospital.

As the news of Maruf’s death spread, a large number of the college’s students rushed in and blocked the highway. They also staged a demonstration where they pressed for the punishment of those re-sponsible for the accident and building a foot over bridge in front of the college. The agitated students also vandalised a few vehicles on the road. l

T-Aman farming target exceeds in Rangpur region n Tribune Desk

Farmers of Rangpur region have ex-ceeded the � xed target of Transplanted Aman (T-Aman) farming this year for favorable weather with adequate seed and fertilizer.

The farmers have brought 10,54,979 hectares of land under the paddy cultivation so far, higher by 30,646 hectares than the fixed tar-get of 10,24,333 hectares to produce 27,16,909 tonnes rice this season, of-ficial sources said.

The farmers have exceeded the � xed T-Aman farming target in Rangpur, Gaibandha, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, Dinajpur, Thakurgaon and Panchagarh while they achieved 97.93% of the � xed target so far in Kurigram under the re-gion.

Horticulture Specialist of the De-partment of Agriculture Extension (DAE) Khandker M Mesbahul Islam said 83.60% of the growing T-Aman plants

are now in tillering, 14.03% in recovery and 2.37% in panicle initiation stages in Rangpur region.

The farmers are expecting to harvest the early variety and short duration T-Aman paddies like BRRI dhan 33, BRRI dhan 39, BRRI dhan 56 and 57, BINA dhan 7 and BU dhan 1 from the � rst week of October next, he added.

According to DAE sources, the farmers have cultivated T-Aman in 158,200 hec-tares against targeted 153,732 hectares in Rangpur, 122,900 hectares against 122,227 hectares in Gaibandha, 109,360 hectares against 106,814 hectares in

Nilphamari, 111,344 hectares against 113,695 hectares in Kurigram so far, re-ports BSS.

Besides, they have cultivated the crop in 81,085 hectares against tar-geted 77,789 hectares in Lalmonirhat, 249,424 hectares against 239,734 hec-tares in Dinajpur, 132,600 hectares against 124,219 hectares in Thakurgaon and 90,066 hectares against targeted 86,123 hectares land in Panchagarh dis-tricts so far.

Farmers Mohammad Hossain, Shakhawat Hossain and Echhahaq Ali said seedling transplantation got mo-mentum following adequate rainfall in the beginning of August after a month long drought like situation and T-Aman plants are growing well now.

Rangpur Regional Additional Di-rector of the DAE Sikander Ali said T-Aman plants are growing excellent in the � elds now predicting a bumper production this year if the climatic con-dition remains favourable. l

Demu train launched on Thakurgaon-Parbatipur route n BSS, Thakurgaon

The plying of Demu train started on Thakurgaon-Parbatipur route yester-day.

Railway Minister Mojibul Haq launched the operation of Demu (die-sel multiple unit) train on the route at Thakurgaon Road Railway station at 11am.

Speaking on the occasion, the min-ister said the last BNP-Jamaat alliance government had destroyed the railway sector in a planned way. They had plun-dered the assets of railway, he alleged.

Since assuming o� ce, the Awami League government has been trying to develop the railway sector, he said, adding that the government has under-taken 38 projects involving Tk 18,310 crore to this end.

Presided over by Railway Secretary-in-Charge Sunil Chandra Paul, the in-augural function was also addressed by Water Resources Minister Ramesh Chandra Sen, Khalid Mahmud Chowd-hury, MP, Ha� zuddin Ahmed, MP, Manoranjan Sheel Gopal, MP, Railway Director General Abu Taher, Railway (West) General Manager Ferdous Alam and Thakurgaon Deputy Commission-er.

The Demu train will run every day from Thakurgaon to Parbatipur via Pi-rganj, Setabganj and Dinajpur.

The minister said the trains were na-tional resources and it is responsibility of every citizen to protect those.

He called upon all to be united against the destructive activities of Jamaat-Shibir. l

Awami League leader killed in Satkhiran UNB

A union-level leader of the ruling party Awami League was hacked to death by unidenti� ed individuals in the Harispur beel area of sadar upazila in Satkhira, Monday night.

The deceased Robiul Islam, was gen-eral secretary of the upazila’s Shibpur union unit of Awami League.

Sardar Mosharraf Hossain, o� cer-in-charge of Satkhira police’s detec-tive branch, said unknown individuals killed Robiul by hacking at him indis-criminately while he was on his way home from Porandah Bazar on his mo-torcycle at around 10:30pm.

Police recovered the body and sent it to the district hospital morgue for autopsy. l

Section 144 clamped in Natoren Tribune desk

The local administrations have im-posed section 144 in Boraigram upazila and Gurudaspur upazila for yesterday as the local Jamaat-e-Islami and rul-ing party Awami League called sepa-rate programmes at the same time and same venue.

Police said Principal Delwar Hos-sain, general secretary of Natore unit Jammat, arranged a motorcade in the upazilas yesterday morning and he supposed to address rallies at 10 places as a possible candidate from the party for the upcoming general election, re-

ports UNB. On the other hand, activists of local

unit Chhatra League and Juba League, associates bodies of the ruling party, called a motorcade for publicity of the present government’s success in the same upazilas at the same time.

Apprehending trouble, upazila nir-bahi o� cers of the two upazilas im-posed the restriction on all roads and highways under the upazilas, which will remain in force from 6am to 8pm yesterday.

Additional police forces have been deployed in the areas to avoid unto-ward incident. l

Garment workers blockaded a road in Narayanganj yesterday, protesting closure of a garment factory FOCUS BANGLA

NEWS IN BRIEF

Farmers said seedling transplantation got momentum following adequate rainfall in the beginning of August after a month long drought like situation and T-Aman plants are growing well now

A source in the hospital said drugs purchased by the government and patients are being stolen for a long time by those who are related to the operation theatre

People with vehicles are compelled to cross bamboo bridge for lack of bridge on a river at Betgari in Naogoan. The photo was taken on Monday FOCUS BANGLA

A BRIDGE INDEED!

Metro 7DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Illegal shops cause tra� c jam in Old Dhaka n Mohammad Jamil Khan

Shyam Bazaar, one of the busiest ba-zaars in old Dhaka, is facing severe traf-� c congestion due to the many illegal shops, occupying the roads, causing immense di� culty to the inhabitants of the area.

The residents alleged that local leaders and police have been aiding the owners to establish their shops be-tween Farashganj and Lalkhuti ghat as they collect extortion money from the traders on regular basis.

After visiting the area, a Dhaka Tri-bune reporter found that only about 8-10 feet width of space is available for pedestrians and tra� c, after half of it has been taken up by the illegal estab-lishments.

The available space is too narrow to allow even two rickshaws to move alongside each other.

Maruf Hassan, an inhabitant of the area, said the situation had deterio-rated to such an extent that in times of medical emergency, an ambulance could not enter the Shyam Bazaar area due to the tra� c congestion and had to take a detour to get to the area.

Locals said they had to take the lon-ger route through Jatrabari or Motijhe-el or via Gulistan to go to Gabtali from

Postogola, due to the choked streets in Shyam Bazaar.

Shop owners and traders who wished to remain anonymous alleged that they have to pay Tk50-350 to Shaym Bazaar committee daily, in addi-tion to paying extortion money to local powerful leaders and police to run their businesses smoothly.

Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Akter Hossain, a hotel owner in the area, said he gives Tk230 to the bazar committee and Tk80 to police, on a daily basis.

Shop owners said the rates to be paid to the bazar committee depended on the space occupied by the shops and could vary from Tk50 for shops occupying a small space to Tk 80-Tk100 for bigger shops. The committee charged Tk 150 for small tin-shed shops on the footpath, and Tk250-300 for shops on the road.

Similarly, the police charged sums ranging from Tk20 to Tk80-100.

Mohammad Sahid, president of Shy-am Bazar Banik Association, denied that the bazaar committee had been taking money from the shop owners, though he said some warehouse owners could have been taking money. Ra� qul Islam, o� cer-in-charge of Sutrapur police sta-tion, denying the charge of extortion said: “no police o� cials is involved in any kind of extortion.” l

Pre-paid smart card to be introduced in railway pilot project n Tazlina Zamila Khan

To introduce digital ticketing to its commuters for the � rst time, Bangla-desh Railway is planning to launch prepaid smart cards, or Spass, under a three-month-long pilot project from September to November this year.

The experimental ticketing system will be introduced in the commuter service “Turag Mail Express” plying between Joydebpur and Dhaka.

Funded by the Japan Internation-al Cooperation Agency (Jica), Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA) and N-Wave Co Bd Ltd, a Ja-pan-based software development � rm, is undertaking the project.

Though digital ticketing in Bangla-desh Road Transport Corporation’s (BRTC) bus service has fallen � at, the DTCA authorities are looking for ways to encourage people to accept the new technology, which will save them

standing in long queues when purchas-ing train tickets.

Shahjahan Ali, managing director of the N-Wave said: “We have a plan to run a week-long campaign through dis-tributing lea� ets and onsite guidance, to raise awareness and inform train commuters about the system.”

“The purpose of launching the pre-paid cards is to ease the hassle com-muters face while collecting tickets. Commuters can also use this card for travelling by BRTC buses.”

“Moreover, we have been planning to set up several booths in every sta-tion, where people can collect their cards for Tk300,” he said.

Meanwhile, while talking to passen-gers it was found that they were inter-ested in embracing the new system.

Kazi Rafayet Hossain, a student of a private university, said: “I have heard about Spass. I will use it as it will save me the hassle while collecting tickets.”

Another passenger, Anwar Sadaat thought the same. He said: “I have been travelling by train for the last two years. It’s cheaper than buses, and moreover it saves my time. I will use Spass once it is introduced.”

However, some of the passen-gers protested the decision, saying two systems at a time will not be very e� ective.

A passenger named Moniruzzaman said: “Two di� erent ticketing systems will confuse people. I do not think this will bring a success. Moreover, Bangla-deshi people are never comfortable us-ing new technology.”

Another passenger, Milon Mia said: “I do not have any problem to collect tickets through long queues. I am hap-py with the manual system. I do not want to go digital.”

Earlier in April last year, N-Wave had introduced the Spass in four BRTC routes. l

10,000 gas connections in Rajshahi by Novembern BSS, Rajshahi

Fazley Hossain Badsha, MP, has urged upon the authority of Paschimanchal Gas Company Limited (PGCL) to put in its level best e� orts for giving at least 10,000 gas connections here by next November.

He made the urge while visiting the Rajshahi PGCL o� ce here today to see for himself its activities and progress of the gas connection process.

Lawmaker Badsha stressed the need for maintaining utmost sincerity and honesty in the ongoing gas con-nection process so that none of the clients does face any harassment and irregularity.

He viewed that industrial sector will be � ourished in Rajshahi in wake of the gas connection. There has also pros-pect of foreign investment. l

23 policemen of Aminbazar camp closed n Kailash Sarkar

All 23 policemen of the Aminbazar camp under Savar police station have been closed after allegations were raised that they were extorting traders at Aminbazar and were involved in var-ious other questionable activities.

A committee has been formed with Dhaka Additional Superintendent of Po-lice Faruk Hossain at the head, to probe the allegations. Although concerned, se-nior police o� cials are still playing mys-terious roles to save those policemen.

Dhaka Superintendent of Police Habibur Rahman con� rmed that all 23 men of the Aminbazar police camp were closed following protests by trad-ers at Aminbazar on Monday. However, Mostofa Kamal, o� cer-in-charge of Sa-var police station said no one had been closed, rather the men were transferred as part of a regular process. SP Habibur Rahman said the policemen were not involved in any kind of extortion.

He added that since an allegation had been raised, police had formed a committee to probe the matter.

According to sources, Sub Inspector Yunus Ali, Assistant Sub Inspectors Md Faruk, Lutfor Rahman and Habibullah, Constables Al Amin, Md Humayun, Ab-dul Alim, Moinul Hossain and Ruhul Amin were among those closed.

On Monday, traders at the capital’s Aminbazar staged angry demonstra-tions setting up blockades on Dha-ka-Aricha Highway protesting their con-tinuous and rampant extortion by the policemen at the Aminbazar camp.

According to the traders, some po-licemen, including ASI Lutfor Rahman, had been taking meat, � sh and other items from the traders without paying for them, for quite some time.

When some traders protested the blatant extortion on Monday, the po-licemen took a few traders to the police camp and threatened that they would be falsely implicated in police cases. l

Chhatra Sangram Parishad vows to resist Shibir violence at RUn RU Correspondent

Rajshahi Chhatra Sangram Parishad yesterday called upon all progressive groups to unite and resist the anti-lib-eration forces of Jamaat-Shibir across the country.

The call for unity came at a rally or-ganised on campus by Rajshahi Univer-sity (RU) unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL).

Describing Bangladesh Islami Ch-hatra Shibir an “arm” of international terrorist organisations, speakers de-manded a ban on Jamaat-Shibir’s in-volvement in politics without delay.

The rally was held to protest against

an attack last Thursday night on BCL General Secretary Touhid Al Hossain Tuhin by Shibir. They said Shibir activists have been trying to create panic on cam-pus, but they would resist all such moves

The tendons of Tuhin’s right arm and legs were severed by the assailants. He is being treated at a hospital in the capital.

Attendants at the rally declared if Shibir activists used arms then they would retaliate in a similar fashion. They urged everyone to resist violence perpetrated by Jamaat-Shibir and de-manded the immediate arrests and punishment of Tuhin’s attackers.

Chhatra Sangram Parishad an-

nounced they would form a human chain and embark on a movement from September 2 if their demands are not met by August 30.

Among those who spoke at the rally presided over by president of RU unit BCL Mizanur Rahaman were former mayor of Rajshahi AHM Khairuzzaman Liton, Bangladesh Workers’ Party MP Fazle Hossain Badsha, Shamsul Islam, AHM Badiuzzaman Shohag and Omar Sharif of BCL, Bangladesh Chhatra Moitree’s Bappa Ditto Bashu and Tan-vir Rushtom, president of Bangladesh National Students’ Movement Monjur Rahman and from Bangladesh Stu-dents’ Association Abdul Jalil Shanta. l

Professor Anisuzzaman addressing a discussion at Bangla Academy yesterday, marking the 37th death anniversary of national poet Kazi Nazrul I slam FOCUS BANGLA

Work on sewage line going on at Chankhal area in the city, hindering tra� c movement FOCUS BANGLA

Kuet student develops ‘drone copter’ for rescue operation n Tribune desk

Abdullah Al Mamun Khan Dip, a stu-dent of Khulna University of Engineer-ing Technology (Kuet) has developed a remote controlled “drone helicopter” to use in disaster management.

“The newly invented drone copter is controlled from the ground. It is also known as a quad copter because it has four propellers,” said Mamun, a stu-dent of Kuet’s Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department.

“The copter can be used for res-cue operations in high-rise buildings or fire hazard spots which cannot be reached by people easily,” said Ab-

dullah Al Mamun. He said that “with the help of a cam-

era the copter can also reach inacces-sible places and relay live video from there.”

Supervised by Prof Dr Md Shahjahan of the department, the copter was devel-oped by Mamun as his 4th year thesis project. It took him a year to make.

The copter runs on battery and can land and take o� vertically. Using a re-

mote control, it can be controlled from up to 2km away.

With a proper sensor it can be used to detect the presence of harmful gas, and even help in determining radiation levels at a nuclear reactor, if required.

Mamun sought the government’s help to make electronic components such as high-speed electronic motors, sensors and gyro-scopes and lithium polymer batteries tax free so scienti� c discoveries are encouraged in Bangla-desh.

Kuet students have also developed line followers, maze solvers, obstacle avoiders, garbage cleaners and a voice control robot. l

Left-leaning student groups protest increased CU admission form feen Our Correspondent, CU

The left-leaning students’ body at the Chittagong University (CU)yesterday demanded the admission form fee for undergraduate students in 2013-2014 session be reduced and announced fresh programme from August 29.

The organisations made the demand at a press conference held at the CUC-SU. Chhatra Union, CU unit Organising Secretary Mehedi Hasan Nobel read out a written statement, while Probal-Mazumder, president of Somajtantrik Chhatra Front, CU presided over the programme.

In the statement, they claimed that the CU authorities has illogically raised the admission from fees from Tk400 to Tk500 this year.

“If a student with background in

science wants to apply for admission to at least four departments under the Science Faculty,it would cost him/her more than Tk2500 while it would take

more than Tk3000 for the Arts Facul-ty following to increase. As a result, it would get more di� cult for students from middle class, and lower class fam-ilies to bear the expenses.”

Probal Mazumder said the fees for the admission form has been increased more than 600% over the last 2 de-

cades. It was Tk250 in the 2003-04 ses-sion and it was increased to Tk400 in 2011-12.

They urged the university authori-ties to reconsider the admission form fees and demanded to withdraw the extended amount.

To realise their demand, the stu-dents’ body will place a memorandum to the CU vice-chancellor on August 29, hold protest procession and rally on August 31 and observe a guardians and students harmony rally at the Shaheed Minar Premises.

Ruchi Bhattacharyya, organisational secretary of Somajtantrik Chhatra Front, Rasidul Samir of Chhatra Union, Anwar Shadat Junayed, acting president of CU of Chhatra Federation among others were also present at the press conference. l

With the help of a camera the copter can also reach inaccessible places and relay live video from there

Probal Mazumder said the fees for the admission form has been increased more than 600% over the last 2 decades. It was Tk250 in the 2003-04 session and it was increased to Tk400 in 2011-12

UN rights chief asked to trace Sri Lanka war missingn AFP, Colombo

Families of people who disappeared during Sri Lanka’s ethnic war demon-strated in the former rebel strong-hold of Ja� na Tuesday as UN rights chief Navi Pillay visited the area on a fact-� nding mission.

Demonstrators led by women held photographs of their missing relatives outside the Ja� na library and urged Pil-lay, the United Nations High Commis-sioner for Human Rights, to intervene.

“There were women whose sons, brothers and husbands had disap-peared in recent years,” a resident told AFP by phone, asking not to be named. “Some of them were weeping. They could not meet with the UN visitor.”

A government census report re-leased in February last year showed 6,350 people were reported missing in the north after � ghting ended in 2009, while rights groups say “disappearanc-es” are still a problem.

The demonstration in Ja� na, 400km north of Colombo, was in contrast a pro-test in the capital Monday.Pro-govern-ment Buddhist monks in Colombo had denounced Pillay, who had called for a war crimes investigation in Sri Lanka.

Pillay, who has previously been accused by Colombo of overstepping her mandate, arrived Sunday for her

� rst o� cial visit after the government dropped its public hostility to her and promised access to former war zones.

She has told reporters she was only holding Colombo to human rights stan-

dards agreed by all nations.Sri Lanka has resisted international

pressure for an international investiga-tion into what the UN says are “credible allegations” that up to 40,000 civilians

were killed in the � nal months of the war in 2009. A no-holds-barred mili-tary o� ensive crushed the Tamil Tiger rebels and ended their decades-long � ght for an ethnic Tamil homeland. l

Qatar announces newMERS infectionHealth authorities in Qatar announced the second con� rmed case in a week of the MERS coronavirus in the Gulf state, with a 29-year-old man infected and in intensive care. The Qatari patient suf-fered from asthma and had been in con-tact with another patient infected with MERS. “He is in a critical condition and is under intensive care,” the Supreme Health Council said in a statement late Monday. On August 20, authorities an-nounced the � rst infection in the Gulf state of a 59-year-old Qatari. Another Qatari national with the infection died in a London hospital on June 28. The vi-rus has killed 47 people worldwide since September, 41 of them in Saudi Arabia which neighbours Qatar.

Sri Lanka police in doghouse over canine ‘wedding’Sri Lanka’s cultural a� airs ministry took strong exception to a mass “wedding” of police dogs, which used symbols of tra-ditional Buddhist nuptials on the Indian Ocean Island. Culture Minister of Sri Lan-ka TB Ekanayake demanded an explana-tion for Monday’s ceremony in central Sri Lanka, which was intended to promote a programme to breed more sni� er dogs. Police “married” nine pairs of dogs on a platform decked with white cloth and � owers symbolic of a traditional mar-riage ceremony. The brides were decked in mittens, shawls and hats while the grooms wore fancy neckties and shawls.

Conjoined twin girls separated in ChinaConjoined twin baby girls have been released from a hospital in China almost three weeks after they were separat-ed in a marathon operation. It took a team of 20 medical workers nearly 10

hours to separate the girls, who were joined at their livers, the o� cial Xinhua news agency reported, citing doctors at a hospital in the southern region of Guangxi. One of the girls took their shared navel while the other may have surgery later to give her a belly button. “The operation resulted in low blood loss, and the two girls are in stable con-dition,” said Yang Tiquan, chief pediatric surgeon of the hospital in Nanning, ac-cording to Xinhua. The twins were born on June 14 in a small hospital in Guiping county, it said.

Top security official in Russia Caucasus assassinatedUnidenti� ed gunmen on Tuesday as-sassinated the top regional security o� cial in Russia’s violence-plagued Caucasus region of Ingushetia as he was being driven to work, investigators said. Akhmed Kotiev, head of Ingushe-tia’s Security Council, was killed when gunmen opened � re on his car in an attack that also claimed the life of his driver, the Russian Investigative Com-mittee said in a statement. The attack took place at around 7:30am close to the village of Nizhnie Achaluki, the statement said. Kotiev’s driver died on the spot, while the security o� cial succumbed to his wounds in a hospital, investigators said.

Six dead in Sao Paulobuilding collapseAt least six people were killed early Tues-day when a commercial building under construction collapsed in eastern Sao Paulo, � re� ghters said. Local press reports said 19 people were injured in the accident. Television pictures showed extensive damage as rescue workers frantically sift-ed through rubble in search of survivors. The cause of it was not yet known.

WORLD WATCH

Wednesday, August 28, 20138 DHAKA TRIBUNE InternationalSyria vows to defend itself as it faces blames United Nation delays investigation into attack for ‘security reasons’

n AP, Damascus

Syria’s foreign minister said Tuesday his country would defend itself using “all means available” in case of a US strike, denying his government was behind an alleged chemical weapons attack near Damascus and challenging Washington to present proof backing up its accusations.

Walid al-Moallem spoke at a press conference in Damascus as condemna-tion of President Bashar Assad’s grew over last week’s purported attack with poison gas, which activists say killed hundreds of people. The Arab League threw its weight behind calls for puni-tive action, blaming the Syrian govern-ment for the attack and calling for the perpetrators to be brought to justice.

The announcement by the 22-member body, which is dominated by Gulf power-houses Saudi Arabia and Qatar, provides indirect Arab cover for any potential mili-tary attack by Western powers.

The United Nations, meanwhile, said that its team of chemical weapons ex-perts in Syria has delayed a second trip to investigate the alleged attack near Da-mascus by one day for security reasons.

Al-Moallem, speaking at a press con-ference in Damascus, likened US alle-gations that President Bashar Assad’s regime was behind the attack to false American charges that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction before the 2003 US-led invasion of that country.

“They have a history of lies — Iraq,”

he said. Al-Moallem spoke a day after US Secretary of State John Kerry said there was “undeniable” evidence of a large-scale chemical attack likely launched by Assad’s regime.

Kerry’s comments and tough lan-guage Monday laid out the clearest argument yet for US military action

in Syria, which, if President Barack Obama decides to order it, would most likely involve sea-launched cruise mis-sile attacks on Syrian military targets.

US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Tuesday that US forces are now ready to act on any such order.

In an interview with BBC television during a visit to the southeast Asian nation of Brunei, he said the US Navy has four destroyers in the eastern Med-iterranean Sea positioned within range of targets inside Syria. US warplanes are also in the region, he said.

Support for some sort of interna-tional military response is likely to grow if it is con� rmed that Assad’s re-gime was responsible for the Aug. 21 at-tack that activists say killed hundreds of people. The group Doctors Without Borders put the death toll at 355.

In an emergency meeting held Tues-day, the Arab League also called on members of the UN Security Council to overcome their di� erences and agree on “deterrent” measures against those who committed “this heinous crime.” The League said it will convene a meet-ing at the ministerial level next week to follow up on the situation in Syria. l

Remember US excuses for Iraq war before attacking Syria: China’s Xinhuan Reuters, Beijing

An attack on Syria would be danger-ous and irresponsible, and the world should remember the Iraq war was started by US allegations of weapons of mass destruction which turned out to be false, China’s o� cial Xinhua news agency said on Tuesday.

The United States served Syrian President Bashar al-Assad notice that it believes he was responsible for chem-ical weapons being used against civil-ians last week.

Military chiefs from the United States and its European and Middle Eastern allies have met in Jordan for what could be a council of war, should they decide to punish Assad, who has denied using chemical weapons and blamed rebels for the attacks.

Xinhua said that Western countries were rushing to conclusions about who may have used chemical weapons be-fore UN inspectors had completed their investigation.

“Such rhetoric, as well as the recent � urry of consultations between Wash-ington and its allies, indicates that they have put the arrow on the bow-string and would shoot even without a UN mandate,” Xinhua said in an En-glish-language commentary.

“That would be irresponsible and dangerous. For starters, the current sce-nario is reminiscent of the lead-up to the Iraq War, which the US staged with alle-gations about weapons of mass destruc-tion that later turned out to be false.”

Xinhua commentaries do not carry the same weight as government state-ments, but they can be read as a re� ec-tion of o� cial Chinese thinking.

China has urged all parties not to jump to conclusions about the re-sults of the UN probe, and has urged calmness in dealing with the accusa-tions.

“It is imperative that the Unites States and like-minded countries re-frain from hasty armed invention and let the UN play its due part in determin-ing how to act accordingly.”

Russia, Assad’s key ally and arms supplier, says rebel forces may have been behind the attack and has urged Washington not to use military force against Assad.

Moscow and Beijing have both ve-toed previous Western e� orts to im-pose UN penalties on Assad.

But China has been keen to show it is not taking sides and has urged the Syrian government to talk to the oppo-sition and take steps to meet demands for political change. l

Iran rejects visit request of UN human rights monitor n AFP, Tehran

Iran said on Tuesday that it had reject-ed fresh requests by Ahmed Shaheed, the UN’s monitor for human rights in the Islamic republic, to assess the situ-ation on the ground.

“We unfortunately do not consider Ahmed Shaheed to be an impartial rap-porteur,” foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Araqchi said during his weekly brie� ng with reporters in Tehran, Ira-nian media reported.

Araqchi said Tehran had received two o� cial letters from Shaheed re-questing access to assess the human rights situation in the country. But such a visit, he said, would not happen as long as Shaheed “continues his trend of writing unfair reports about Iran.”

Tehran has so far refused to let Sha-heed visit the country since being ap-pointed as the UN’s monitor for human rights in Iran in 2011, and has respond-ed to only a handful of o� cial requests for information.

Shaheed has thus far relied on con-tacting campaigners and victims in-side Iran, as well as exiles and human rights groups, to write his reports on the country.

In March, the UN body monitor-ing human rights in Iran sounded the alarm after Shaheed’s latest report touched on restriction of freedom of speech and a slew of other abuses, including torture, forced confessions, secret executions and the jailing of members of the political opposition.

At the time, he also condemned an in-crease in the number of journalists ar-rested, pointing out that more than 50 reporters were behind bars, and said that the crackdown was meant to in-timidate the press ahead of Iran’s pres-idential elections in June.

Iran has accused Shaheed of failing to consider whether the international community was breaching the rights of its people by imposing sanctions over Tehran’s controversial nuclear drive. l

Mandela in ‘critical but stable’ conditionn AFP

Nelson Mandela remains in a critical but stable condition, South African President Jacob Zuma said Tuesday, more than two months after the an-ti-apartheid hero was hospitalised with a recurring lung infection.

“Former president Mandela is still in hospital receiving treatment and remains in a critical but stable condi-tion,” Zuma said in speech issued by the presidency.

Mandela, 95, has been receiving

treatment for a recurring respiratory illness at a private hospital in the cap-ital Pretoria since June 8.

He was previously said to be on life

support, but his condition has been late-ly described as serious but improving.

Early this month, his former wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela told Sky News that he was “now breathing normally” and that doctors had kept draining � uid from his lungs.

Zuma gave the latest health update during a visit to Malaysia, where he re-ceived an award on Mandela’s behalf.The southeast Asian nation honoured the ailing statesman with the inaugural Ma-hathir Global Peace Award, named after the country’s former prime minister. l

Chinese boy has eyes gouged out in gruesome attackn AFP, Beijing

A six-year-old boy in China had his eyes gouged out, blinding him for life, reports said Tuesday, in a gruesome at-tack that may have been carried out by a ruthless organ tra� cker.

Family members found the boy cov-ered in blood some three to four hours after he went missing while playing outside, according to a television re-port posted online.

The child’s eyes were found nearby but the corneas were missing, reports said, implying that an organ tra� cker was behind the harrowing attack.

Police o� ered a 100,000 yuan ($16,000) reward for information lead-ing to the arrest of the sole suspect, who they said was a woman.

“He had blood all over his face. His eyelids were turned inside out. And inside, his eyeballs were not there,” his father told Shanxi Television.

Its report showed the heavily-ban-daged boy being taken from an oper-ating theatre and placed in a hospital bed, writhing in agony as family mem-bers stood at his bedside weeping.

The boy was drugged and “lost consciousness” before the attacker re-moved his eyes, state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) said on its ac-count on Sina Weibo, China’s version of Twitter.

Internet users were outraged by the attack on the boy – who had a cleft pal-ate – in Fenxi, in the northern province of Shanxi on Monday.

About 300,000 patients in China need transplants each year, but only about 10,000 people can get them due to a lack of donors, state media said. l

Tehran has so far refused to let Shaheed visit the country since being appointed as the UN’s monitor for human rights in Iran in 2011, and has responded to only a handful of o� cial requests for information

Malala Yousafzai awarded 2013 Children’s Peace Prizen AFP, The Hague

Teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, shot in the head by a Taliban militant last October after campaigning for girls’ right to education, has won the prestigious International Children’s Peace Prize, KidsRights announced Tuesday.

The Pakistani 16-year-old will re-ceive the award from 2011 Nobel Peace Prize winner and women’s rights campaigner Tawakkol Karman at a glittering ceremony in The Hague on September 6, the Amsterdam-based organisation said.

Malala “risked her life in the � ght for access to education for girls all over the world,” KidsRights said in a statement. “By awarding the 2013 Internation-al Children’s Peace Prize... KidsRights shines the spotlight on a brave and tal-ented child who has demonstrated spe-

cial dedication to children’s rights,” it added.

The passionate advocate for girls education was shot in the head by a

Taliban gunman while on a school bus near her home in Pakistan’s Swat Valley last year.

She was given life-saving treatment in Britain where she now lives, but the at-tack galvanised her campaign for greater educational opportunities for girls.

Malala’s brave � ght back from her injuries and her speech at the United Nations in July have made her a lead-ing contender for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.

But the response to her in Pakistan has been mixed, with many hailing her as a national heroine while others have criticised her for promoting a “West-ern” agenda.

The International Children’s Peace Prize, an initiative of the Dutch-based KidsRights Foundation, was launched in 2005 by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, when he chaired the Sum-mit of Nobel Peace Laureates in Rome.

It carries a cash value of 100,000 eu-ros ($133,000) that is invested in proj-ects relating to the winner’s cause.

Last year’s winner was 13-year-old Cris “Kesz” Valdez for his work with Filipino street children while he him-self was destitute. l

The Pakistani 16-year-old will receive the award from 2011 Nobel Peace Prize winner and women’s rights campaigner Tawakkol Karman at a glittering ceremony in The Hague on September 6

Tamil protesters hold photographs of missing relatives at a demonstration in the northern Sri Lankan town of Ja� na AFP

Syrian refugees, who � ed the violence in Syria, are seen at a new refugee camp in the outskirts of the city of Arbil in Iraq’s Kurdistan region REUTERS

DELHI GANG-RAPE

Defence : Victim’s male friend’s testimony ‘unreliable’ n AFP, New Delhi

A lawyer for the men on trial over the fatal gang-rape last year of an Indian student branded her male colleague unreliable on Tuesday and called his testimony “a bundle of lies.”

A court in India’s capital is hearing closing arguments in the trial of four men for the attack on the student last December, a case that sparked angry protests over violence against women.

A defence lawyer for two of the men said there were inconsistencies in the statements made to police by the 23-year-old woman, who died two weeks after the attack on a moving bus.

Lawyer AP Singh also targeted the woman’s male friend, who was severe-ly beaten during the attack, accusing him of being an “unreliable witness” and calling his account of the incident “nothing but a bundle of lies.”

“He (the friend) does not remember what happened before they boarded the bus and what happened after they were allegedly dumped out of the bus,” Singh told the court. “But he clearly remembers what happened during the time they were on the bus,” he said. l

InternationalDHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013 9

Al-Qaeda in Yemen denies US claims on attack plots n AFP, Dubai

Al-Qaeda in Yemen has denied US al-legations it is plotting massive attacks that prompted the closure of Western missions in the country this month, in a statement posted online.

The extremist network also denied reports con� rmed by Yemen’s Presi-dent Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi that US intelligence services had intercept-ed a conversation between al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri and Nasser al-Wuhayshi, head of the Yemen-based al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

“Hadi repeated the nonsense and propaganda published by US intelli-gence on telephone calls between ji-hadist leaders to justify the US plot to kill Muslims in Yemen through contin-ued raids,” AQAP said in the statement posted on jihadist Internet forums.

Hadi had “claimed the jihadists were plotting to target oil terminals in the country using bomb-laden trucks,” said AQAP. “We deny what he said and regard it as an attempt to justify US criminal practises.

A source close to Hadi quoted the Yemeni leader as saying Friday that in the alleged conversation between the

al-Qaeda leaders Wuhayshi told Zawa-hiri he would be hearing of something “that will change the course of history.”

Hadi and US President Barack Obama had discussed the matter at the White House on August 1, according to the same source.

On August 4, the United States shut 19 of its consulates and embassies in the Arab and Muslim countries amid what American o� cials said was a threat of an imminent al-Qaeda attack.

The missions were later reopened.In the remarks delivered Friday to

police o� cers, Hadi said a bid to attack an oil terminal in Yemen had been foiled after the phone conversation between Wuhayshi and Zawahiri was intercepted.

On August 7, Yemen said it had foiled an al-Qaeda plot to storm the Ca-nadian-run Mina al-Dhaba oil terminal and seize the eastern Hadramawt pro-vincial capital al-Mukalla.

Hadi said authorities were still searching for the second explo-sives-packed truck but had arrested members of a cell who had helped “fa-cilitate the operation.”

The president said a wave of drone attacks during the past two weeks on suspected al-Qaeda targets in Yemen

killed 40 militants, including some ringleaders in the Sanaa region.

State news agency Saba on Friday quoted Hadi as saying he had asked Washington to provide Yemen with drones. The Yemeni leader defended the use of drones by saying they were more precise than other weapons.

“The cooperation in the � eld of combating terrorism is not a secret,” Hadi said, referring to his country’s US-backed � ght against al-Qaeda.

“Instead of showing repent and apologising (over the US drone strikes) Abdrabuh praised these massacres without any shame,” AQAP said, add-ing that he was “dragging the country towards a war with an unforeseen end.”

The network also spoke of failed e� orts by clerics and tribal chiefs to broker a truce between it and the gov-ernment.

An o� cial said in March that Hadi had rejected these e� orts, insisting the militants must lay down their arms.

Among their conditions was the for-mation of a committee of scholars that would oversee the implementation of Islamic sharia law in Yemen and bring an end to US drone attacks. l

India’s top court hits out at high rape acquittal raten AFP, New Delhi

India’s top court has criticised the large number of rape cases that end in ac-quittal, amid renewed outrage over vi-olence against women after the gang-rape of a photographer.

The Supreme Court questioned the reason for the high number of acquit-tals during a hearing on Monday, add-ing that the situation “is going from bad to worse.”

“What is wrong with the system? Why are 90% of rape cases ending in acquittals? The situation is going from bad to worse,” Justice R.M Lodha told the court in New Delhi.

“Why is it (rape) happening again and again? That too only in metropol-itan cities?”

The two-judge bench also ordered the country’s states to come up with better schemes to compensate and rehabilitate victims of rape as well as to improve pro-tection for victims and witnesses.

The statements come after � ve men were arrested over the gang-rape of the 22-year-old photographer in Mumbai on Thursday, a crime that reignited an-ger about women’s safety in India fol-lowing a similar attack last year.

The group allegedly trapped and re-peatedly raped the woman in an aban-doned mill near an upmarket district of central Mumbai, where she was on assignment for a magazine with a male colleague.

The attack rekindled memories of the fatal gang-rape of a 23-year-old stu-dent in New Delhi in December.

That crime sparked nationwide pro-tests and brought to the surface seeth-ing anger about violence against wom-en in India.

The outrage led to a tougher an-ti-rape law that included increased punishment for sex o� enders, who face the death penalty if a victim dies, and a broader de� nition of sexual as-sault.

But women’s groups have said many victims do not report attacks because of social stigma, a hostile police reac-tion and an inadequate and notorious-ly slow judicial process.

O� cial data shows 11,154 rape cases ended in acquittal or discharge during 2012, while 3,563 cases resulted in a conviction.

Another 86,032 cases were awaiting trial at the end of last year, according to the data from the National Crime Re-cords Bureau.

The Supreme Court made the com-ments during a hearing into the gang-rape of a schoolgirl in the northern state of Haryana.

The 15-year-old was allegedly raped by three men in 2012, and her mother was later killed for not withdrawing a complaint over the attack, the Press Trust of India reported.

It said the court was told that the school’s principal refused to let the girl return to classes after the incident. l

Karzai concludes Pakistan visit n AFP, Islamabad

Afghan President Hamid Karzai con-cluded a two-day trip to Pakistan Tues-day by inviting Pakistani Prime Minis-ter Nawaz Sharif to visit Kabul.

Karzai came to Islamabad to meet Sharif for the � rst time since his election in May in a bid to overcome a series of public rows that have hampered e� orts to end 12 years of war in Afghanistan.

The Afghan president urged Paki-stan to help arrange peace talks be-tween his government and the Taliban, then took the unexpected step of ex-tending his visit by a day.

The two leaders met for lunch in the mountain town of Murree, just north of Islamabad, and discussed “matters of common interest”, according to a statement from the Pakistani foreign ministry. “President Karzai reiterated his invitation to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to visit Afghanistan. The Prime Minister accepted the invitation,” the statement said, adding that the dates would be worked out later. l

A woman holding candles walks past a paper reproduction of the ‘Ghost King’ at a makeshift theater during the ‘Hungry Ghost Festival’ in Hong Kong. The Hungry Ghost Festival is celebrated during the seventh month in the Chinese lunar calendar. During the month-long festival, usually in the summer, Chinese people make o� erings of food, ‘Hell money,’ and paper-made models of items such as televisions, servants and sport cars are burnt to appease the wandering spirits. It is believed that the gates of hell are opened during the month and the dead ancestors return to visit their relatives AP

Taliban execute six Afghan aid workers n AFP, Heart

Taliban insurgents executed six Af-ghans working for a � agship develop-ment programme funded by the World Bank in the west of the country, o� -cials said Tuesday.

The killings were reported as Af-ghan President Hamid Karzai held a second day of talks in Pakistan, calling on Islamabad to help set up peace talks with the Taliban to end 12 years of war.

The four engineers and two other workers were kidnapped on Sunday when travelling to Herat province’s remote Gulran district, which borders Iran and Turkmenistan in the far north-west of Afghanistan.

The victims, who worked for the National Solidarity Programme (NSP), were killed late Monday, said a govern-ment statement.

The NSP, which was created in 2003 by the ministry of rural rehabilitation

and development, makes cash grants to village councils to fund roads, bridg-es and other infrastructure projects.

The programme is primarily funded by the World Bank, with international donor nations also contributing. Karzai strongly condemned the murders in Herat and made a veiled reference to a belief that elements in Pakistan contin-ue to shelter Taliban insurgents.

“The killing of innocent engineers and workers shows the Taliban and their foreign masters want Afghanistan to remain a dependent and poor coun-try forever,” he said in a statement.

Elements of the Pakistani state are widely accused of funding, controlling and sheltering the Taliban. Islamabad denies the accusations and says it will do anything to stop the con� ict.

The rebels regularly target govern-ment employees in their guerrilla war against the Western-backed adminis-tration in Kabul. l

China � oods kill more than 80n AFP, Beijing

More than 80 people have been killed and tens of thousands have � ed their homes after the worst � oods to hit northeast China in more than a decade, state media said Tuesday.

At least 20 people died in Jilin prov-ince and 239,000 residents were evac-uated after persistent rain “brought chaos” to 56 counties, Xinhua news

agency reported.Rainstorms have also swept Hei-

longjiang and Liaoning provinces. A total of 85 people are now con� rmed dead in the northeast with 105 missing, Xinhua said.

In Jilin, 585,000 hectares of crop-land had been damaged along with thousands of homes, it said, estimat-ing losses at more than 10bn yuan ($1.6bn). l

Sala� st group behind Tunisia political killings: PMn AFP, Tunis

Tunisia’s Islamist Prime Minister Ali Larayedh on Tuesday accused the country’s main Sala� st movement, An-sar al-Sharia, of “liaising” with al-Qae-da and of being behind the assassina-tions of two opposition politicians.

Ansar al-Sharia “is responsible for the assassinations of (Chokri) Belaid and (Mohamed) Brahmi, as well as our martyrs in the police and the national army,” Larayedh told a news confer-ence, referring to the two politicians killed in separate attacks in February and July.

“We have decided to class Ansar al-Sharia as a ‘terrorist organisation,’” he added.

“Ansar al-Sharia is liaising with AQIM (al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb),” said Larayedh, while pledg-ing that Tunisia would � ght against the group “whatever the sacri� ces.”

The assassinations of Belaid and Brahmi, within just six months of each other, both triggered crises in the North African country, with Belaid’s murder in February eventually bringing down the government of then Islamist pre-mier Hamadi Jebali.

The killing of Brahmi, on July 25, has also sparked mass protests and calls for the resignation of the government led by Ennahda, the moderate Islamist party of Jebali and Larayedh.

While the authorities had already accused members of Ansar al-Sharia of involvement in the two killings, they had not held the movement itself re-sponsible.

Larayedh also said the extremist group was supporting an armed jihad-ist cell which the Tunisian army has been hunting for months, in the remote Mount Chaambi region along the Alge-rian border.

More than 10 soldiers have been killed since the army intensi� ed its op-erations there at the end of July.

“This organisation is implicated in the terrorist operations in Tunisia,” Larayedh said.

“It is responsible for a weapons storage network, it is responsible for planning assassinations, and attacks against security and army posts,” he added.

The Tunisian premier said his claims were based on evidence and the “con-fessions of suspects.”

The Ennahda-led government has been strongly criticised for failing to rein in Tunisia’s extremist groups, es-pecially Ansar al-Sharia, which the Is-lamist party initially favoured dialogue with.

But in recent months it has taken a much tougher stand towards the Salaf-ist movement, which was also blamed for a deadly attack on the US embassy last September.l

Iran to name � rst female ambassador: ministry n AFP, Tehran

Iran plans to appoint a woman ambas-sador and a spokeswoman for the for-eign ministry for the � rst time in the Is-lamic republic’s history, Iranian media reports said Tuesday.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif “wants to employ women for two post: as spokesperson and to lead an

embassy,” current ministry spokesman Abbas Araqchi said, quoted in the media.

A � nal decision is expected “within a week,” Araqchi said.

President Hassan Rouhani, a moder-ate cleric whose all-male cabinet took power earlier this month, has report-edly asked the government to appoint women to high-level posts in the Islam-ic republic, which was founded in 1979.

Rouhani has already named two women: Elham Aminzadeh , who like himself holds a doctorate in law from the University of Glasgow, as vice president for parliamentary a� airs, and Parvin Dadandish as his wom-en’s a� airs advisor. His predecessor as president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, secured approval from the conserva-tive-dominated parliament to appoint

Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi as the repub-lic’s � rst-ever female minister.

Dastjerdi was sacked as health min-ister in late 2012 over disagreements with Ahmadinejad over price hikes for imported drugs. Reformist former president Mohammad Khatami, in of-� ce from 1997 to 2005, appointed Mas-soumeh Ebtekar as vice president in charge of environmental protection. l

Women protest against the gang rape of a photojournalist in Mumbai hold placards in Hyderabad AP

FEEDING ‘HUNGRY GHOSTS’

Where is our self-respect?A report on the plight of Bangladeshi migrant

workers being mistreated has once again been brought to light. This time, two Bangladeshi

female workers were abused in Qatar at the hands of a recruiting agency’s sta� and the workers’ salaries were withheld before they were forced to leave the country.

This is but a single story in a long history of abuses that our countrymen have faced, and it’s outrageous that we allow this to continue.

This implies that we have so little pride that we cannot ensure the safety of our fellow workers. Being able to do even that much is a measure of a nation’s self-respect, but ours seems to have fallen by the wayside.

We need to take much better care of our workers both within and outside our borders.

Other nations, such as Sri Lanka, have taken a strong stance when looking out for their workers. Indeed, when a young Sri Lankan maid was beheaded in Saudi Arabia, the Sri Lankan government placed a ban on sending maids to that nation.

We, however, have fallen far indeed if we have not even come close to taking such a stance and showing support for our workers. We have quotas of workers that we “provide” to other nations, and seemingly forget about them once they leave our shores, and that’s an attitude that must change.

We need to re-gain our self-respect, and this begins by respecting all of our citizens and ensuring their well-being.

Shaming is not the way

Humiliating students for not following school policy is an inappropriate way to bring them in line, as it runs contrary to respectful behaviour

and a� ects their sense of self-esteem.Students who have been deprived of the basic

respect owed to all people, regardless of their age or station, may never learn how to extend it to others.

It’s unfortunate that a principal of a school thinks it is within his rights to e� ectively ambush students during an examination and forcibly cut their hair in the name of dress-code discipline. It’s even more unfortunate that the chairman of the managing committee, also the district commissioner, sees nothing wrong with it.

Not only is this a violation of their persons it is also very aggressive and amounts to an assault of sorts upon them, which will give them the wrong impression about how to get things done.

Dress codes and discipline are indeed important matters for students to understand; however less militaristic means are expected of authority � gures in civilian and, indeed, civil, environments. Warnings, suspensions, detention even academic penalties should have been used as alternatives.

A more sophisticated attitude is required of people who are responsible for moulding the minds and characters of future members of Bangladeshi society.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina must act sensiblyAugust 23On August 18, 2013 at a press conference at the Gono Bhaban, wagging her � nger, Prime Min-ister Sheikh Hasina said, “Sangbidhan thekey ek chool o norbo na, bas.” (I will not budge a hair’s breadth from the constitution, that’s it.)

We are appalled. How could she outright reject the demand of 90% people of the country who want caretaker government system for the next general election? It is not the demand of the opposition; it is the demand of the people. She just cannot ignore it.

Constitution is for the welfare of the people. It had been changed many times in the past; it must be changed again to reinstate the CTG.

If Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina does not change her attitude, we are afraid to think what will happen. There will be total disarray, the country will head towards a turbulent situation, 16 crore people will su� er for her adamant stance. We hope and trust that she will realise it and act accordingly.

Nur JahanChittagong

Editorial10

www.dhakatribune.com

DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

LETTER OF THE DAY

CALVIN AND HOBBES

PEANUTS

Letters to the Editor

Non-party government a must for peaceful polls: Prof YunusAugust 23

This is absolutely correct what Dr Md Yunus has said for holding the next general election under a non-party caretaker government. There is no other means to hold general election except via caretaker government. This system is tested by time for ensuring the voting rights of the people. Dr Yunus says, based on the real political situa-tion of the country, this is what the people of the country can understand easily.

AL should come forward to discuss the matter with the opposition and � gure out the best possible solution to hold a free, fair and neutral general elec-tion. There is no solution by tearing hairs with each other. Dr Yunus is not a person who can be criticised.

Mr Babul Aktar

Completely agree with what he said. We have had enough in the last 5 years! The least the government can do now is to leave in peace and leave us in peace

Bangladeshi

MK Anwar gets bailAugust 22

This is a politically-motivated case as there is no basis.

Mr Babul Aktar

Pakistan links Quetta ‘bomb-making factory’ to attacksAugust 21

This a good sign. FC did a good job proac-tively to protect the citizens.

Muhammad

dhakatribune.com

Humiliating students for not following school policy is an inappropriate way to bring them in line, as it runs contrary to respectful behaviour

We need to take much better care of our workers both within and outside our borders

Coming back to life: A drug addict turns insurance executiveAugust 22

Realisation and determination is the key to escape from the horrifying circle of drugs ... wonder how many families it destroyed till now!! Congratulations Mr Alvi Nur for kicking the butt of this horrendous disease of addiction and com-ing back to life. It’s always better late than never. Hope you live a healthy life now and help others out of it as well. May Allah bless you.

Farah Nusrat

It’s great the author could kick back the habit. It’s interesting though, that he got his � x from Agargaon “BNP” slum. hehe

Izlal Moin Husain

I am happy Mr Nur has sought help for his addic-tion, but to write an article on a triumph when this individual entered rehab in Jan 2013 is a little premature. Drug relapse rate ranges from 40 - 60%, if this is the individual’s � rst time in rehab.

Adnan Khan

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CROSSWORD YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS

ACROSS1 Floating structures (5)4 Halt (4)7 Anger (3)8 Zodiac sign (3)9 Family phrase (5)12 That following (4)13 Rubbed with oil (7)15 Writing instrument (3)16 Eyelid a� iction (3)18 Tree (3)19 Land measure (3)21 Embellished (7)24 Thunder god (4)26 Letting contract (5)27 No score (3)28 Fastener (3)29 Regretted (4)30 Search (5)

DOWN1 Edges (4)2 Fragrances (6)3 Festivity (4)4 Transmit (4)5 Digit (3)6 Insigni� cant (5)10 Faucet (3)11 Mountain nymph (5)14 Register (5)17 Essay on a theme (6)18 Thespian (5)20 Before (3)21 Dry (4)22 Back of the neck (4)23 Depression from a blow (4)25 Number (3)

Crossword

Code-Cracker

SUDOKU

How to solve Sudoku: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 num-ber repeating.

Tra� c signalAugust 23

Sheikh Jinat Mahmid We wait for the red signal to turn green and they do the opposite! A great amount of livelihoods depend on just those two colours of light!

Tahmina Akter Mili This is the reality.

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11Op-Ed Wednesday, August 28, 2013DHAKA TRIBUNE

Bangladesh’s raw deal from India

n Muhammad Eusha

Rivers do not � ow respect-ing political boundaries. A river originating in one country can whimsically cross human-declared

invisible borders, and enter another. A country upstream can take ad-

vantage of her geographic location to deprive countries downstream of a fair share of water by constructing dams across the shared river(s).

Dams can be designed to impound or regulate the � ow of a stream of water. As India and China both have major projects proposed to add to the damming of rivers that � ow into Bangladesh, their building is of major concern to the national interest.

While much good can result for the country upstream from constructing a dam in terms of power generation and seasonal control of water � ow, the country downstream barely bene� ts from such structures across rivers. And this has been the case, unsur-prisingly, for Bangladesh – a country which has su� ered alarmingly over the past few decades because of the Indian dams across common rivers.

A much neglected and quite surprisingly ignored fact about the river-water sharing problem between Bangladesh and India is: operation

of all the dams signi� cantly a� ect-ing Bangladesh have been built and completed by India after the end of the 1971 Liberation War. Construction of the Farakka barrage, for example began in 1961, it was not � nished and did not begin operations until 1975.

It did not take long for Bangladesh to realise that she was being deprived of an equitable share of the water. Although protests were made, a lot of hue and cry resulted in nothing note-worthy as India refused to co-operate.

The Farakka barrage has had a devastating e� ect on Bangladesh, af-fecting not only the ecological balance and diversity of the region but also the people to whom the river’s waters have always been very important in terms of livelihood.

Those who used to � nd sustenance from what once used to be a majestic river are now � oating to cities like Dhaka and Chittagong in search of menial jobs, showing the gravity of the economic a� iction the dam has brought to Bangladesh.

A point to be noted here is, arti� cial obstruction to the natural � ow of a major river a� ects a surprising num-ber of small rivers and rivulets down-stream. Anyone can easily appreciate this by observing the complex river � ow networks of Bengal. So the Farak-ka barrage does not produce adverse e� ects only on one river but on all the connected branches as well.

More recently the Teesta barrage, (operational 1985) has had similar e� ects on its adjacent regions, bring-ing inauspicious changes to the way people resident there are able to live their lives.

Preparations for the much-de-bated and much-hated project, the Tipaimukh dam, also started after the bifurcation of once united Pakistan.

Let us now look at the rivers common to India and Pakistan. The Pakistani province of Punjab is famous for its � ve rivers – Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Sutlej. All these rivers have their origins in India, except one which � ows from a location in China.

India agreed to sign the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan in 1960 and some sources claim that both the countries have been sincere in abiding by the clauses speci� ed.

Barring some occasional com-plaints raised by Pakistan of treaty violations by India, it seems the coun-try downstream is not overly unhappy with the amount of water India is passing through to Pakistan.

India is currently building a dam at Nimzoo Bagin, in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan accused India of infringement of consolidated terms and conditions since construction began; however India has rejected such claims saying she was committed to observing terms agreed by treaty and was not doing anything unlawful by it. Similar dispute had arisen about the construction of the Baglihar dam across the Chenab.

However, arbitration was possible in this case because the World Bank (as broker of the treaty) was enabled to appoint a Swiss engineer (Raymond La� tte) to investigate Pakistan’s objections. He later declared that the construction of the dam in question was not a violation of the treaty.

To a neutral observer, it seems, the Indians have been respectful to their treaty commitments, allowing Paki-stan a fair share of waters a� ected by their dam building and even the wars of 1965 and 1971 have not derailed the water-sharing scenario much.

Bangladesh, however, has not been treated with similar respect. After the 1971 liberation war, the newly born state was systematically and disdain-fully deprived of water. The question is – why is Bangladesh – a weak small nation, and Pakistan – a nuclear weap-on capable country, being treated di� erently in terms of water sharing?

One can also ask if there is any sig-ni� cance of the fact that all the dams did start operation after the bifurcation of once united Pakistan. Instead of trying to answer these uncomfortable questions myself, I would allow the wise readers an opportunity to exercise their intellect and imagination. l

Muhammad Eusha is a freelance contributor.

The right to beg n Hasanuzzaman

Dhaka witnesses an annual in� ux of people seeking assis-tance during the time the Eid-

ul-Fitr. Mostly women, these people are covered in rags and often have snot-nosed babies slung over their shoulders and hips.

Although it may sound morally appalling, such “original” destitute are helping to perpetuate a process which is partially responsible for ensuring an abundant supply of motivated, phys-ically � t beggars. It is, nevertheless, very encouraging that the issue of beggars has not been totally ignored.

The High Court on January 2, 2011 ordered the government and police to implement the relevant provision on street begging under the Dhaka Metropolitan Police Ordinance 1976. One of its key provisions stipulates that “whoever in any street or public place begs … shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month” (Section 81).

However, some have argued that without investigating and exhausting the available options for removing beggars from their destitute state, (such as welfare payments and sup-port,) this provision contravenes con-stitutional “right to life” guarantees.

A further positive move by the ju-diciary was the issuance of a suo moto rule following newspaper reports in 2010 and 2011, asking the government to explain why a directive to stop forced pan-handling through mutila-tion should not be issued.

The government responded by declaring it would form the Nation-al Child Welfare Board to monitor childrens’ rights issues including risky child labour. It said it would seek to ensure education and health servic-es, alongside Shishu Kalyan Boards envisaged to be formed at district and sub-district levels.

However, little is known about the implementation status of the above.

Irrespective of their age, the alien-ation of beggars from society and the harsh treatment destitute children in particular have to endure in their daily life is cruel and compelling them to a harsh life.

One interesting question which is beyond the remit of the prevailing dis-course is how to � nd a way to measure the supply of beggars, the amounts being earned, and whether it is satis-fying their “marginal utility” levels.

Beggars will continue to beg unless

the opportunity cost of begging is not set “higher than not begging.” Because such a cost would also infringe upon the freedom of an individual to seek charity for reasons beyond their control, we may need to consider a new policy on the notion of a “right to beg.”

This type of policy innovation should succinctly articulate the condi-tions under which a citizen of Bangla-desh will be allowed to beg in public.

Such an exercise, although very much bold in approach, would help to better de� ne the di� erent roles and re-sponsibilities of the various ministries and departments which are involved in disbursing public resources, in par-ticular for ensuring that those who are physically disabled, are not excluded from their entitlements.

Once a “right to beg” framework is in place, citizens will need to be en-gaged in a formal monitoring process in order to ensure that their areas of residence and work do not have any children, physically disabled or elderly, being deprived of their rights to public provisions. This process is likely to get an impetus from the Right to Information Act 2009.

A “right to beg” policy framework would make the entire government machinery more proactive in better combating the sources of structural in-justice which coerce destitute people to resort to begging to eke out a life of subsistence, dependant on the will of God. Government departments would become more conscious of their duties to support welfare if only to save pub-lic embarrassment.

Such a policy action should trigger a national behavioural change and aid in taking a more conscious and con-certed e� ort both horizontally (within government), and vertically (govern-ment-to-citizen), in eradicating both man-made and natural sources of such social exclusion. l

Hasanuzzaman is Policy Associate, Access to Information, Prime Minister’s O� ce.

Iran’s supreme leader does not reign supremen Yeganeh Torbati and Jon Hemming

US President Barack Obama has twice written to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali

Khamenei believing that he, not the president, holds ultimate power in the Islamic Republic and the key to unlocking the dispute over Tehran’s nuclear programme.

But the surprise emergence of President Hassan Rouhani, a close associate of Khamenei who advo-cates moderation, has shown a more nuanced picture of power in Iran in which the clerical leader listens to opposing views and then reaches a consensus.

Though supreme leader, Khamenei does not rule supreme. “Of course Khamenei has his own personal viewpoints which, in the last 10, 15 years until now, have been stable and he insists on them and repeats them,” said Aliasghar Ramezanpoor, a former deputy culture minister, listing Khamenei’s deep distrust of the United States, Western cultural in� u-ence and his insistence on the nuclear programme as a red line.

Himself president from 1981 to 1989, Khamenei “knows that on administra-tive issues of the country he must be � exible,” Ramezanpoor told Reuters.

The Iranian political system is a complex mix of Shi’ite Muslim clerical authority and an elected president and parliament, overseen by numer-ous appointed regulatory councils.

Then there are the elite Revolu-tionary Guards who, as well as being engaged abroad - for example helping train government forces in Syria’s civil war and supporting Hezbollah militants in Lebanon - also control large parts of the oil-based economy.

Though all roads lead to the leader,

Khamenei also has to satisfy these constituencies and balance their inter-ests, especially those of the Revolu-tionary Guards.

“Khamenei is not a dictator in the classic sense, but there is no question that on particular issues such as the nuclear � le, he probably will have the last word,” said Gary Sick, an Iran ex-pert and former US National Security Council o� cial.

Good Listener“He will listen very carefully to what is being said before he gives the last word and the last word may be more of a coalition-building e� ort than dictating exactly what the policy will be,” he said.

“When an issue is raised in an ex-pert report, or various factions argue a point, and not just one faction, he pays a lot of attention,” said Ramezanpoor.

Khamenei’s public comments suggest he believes that even if Iran were to give up atomic energy work that the West deems a smoke screen for attaining a nuclear arsenal, the United States is bent on regime change and so any concessions are futile.

From the supreme leader’s per-spective, there are good grounds for thinking that way. Even though Oba-ma o� ered soon after coming to o� ce in 2009 to extend the hand of peace to Iran if it “unclenched its � st,” his administration has imposed what it has called “the most robust sanctions in history” on Iran’s vital oil industry, its shipping and banking sectors.

Together, US, European Union and United Nations sanctions have helped cut in half Iran’s oil exports since 2011, raise in� ation to more than 40 % and devalue the Rial currency by nearly two-thirds since the start of 2012.

Yet Rouhani has said he is open to direct talks with the United States, with which Iran has had no diplomatic rela-tions since soon after its 1979 revolution.

In doing so, the president has at least proclaimed a change of tac-tics that appear to be at odds with Khamenei’s long-held views. It is not, however, a change of policy since

Rouhani also insists he will never re-linquish the Islamic Republic’s “right” to nuclear technology.

Indicating he will at least give Rouhani a chance to try out the new posture, Khamenei has most recently said he is also not against direct talks, but merely doubts they will succeed.

Khamenei allowed each of the two previous presidents, the reformist Mohammad Khatami and the populist hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a period of grace in which they pursued policies he disliked before he blocked them and rendered them ine� ective.

What power each president has is founded on the fact that he is elected by popular ballot, albeit one in which only approved candidates are allowed to stand. As such, he represents the republican half of the Islamic Republic equation.

The question of whether sover-eignty comes from God or the people has often played out violently across the Middle East but appears to be contained within a perennial tug of war in Iran.

Khatami’s attempts to relax social restrictions and institute the rule of law, and Ahmadinejad’s populist national-ism in his second term, proved a chal-lenge to Khamenei, hard-line conserva-tives and the Revolutionary Guards.

Nod to popular willKhamenei’s backing of Ahmadinejad’s disputed 2009 re-election in the face of huge demonstrations also eroded the popular legitimacy of the Islamic Republic and may well have dissuaded the leader from standing in the way of Rouhani’s win.

Khamenei, said Ramezanpoor, “felt that all the people ... were worried about the situation in the country, and were getting upset with him and that things might get worse for him. On this basis he compromised.”

A high-echelon insider who has worked with Khamenei since before the 1979 revolution, Rouhani has a better chance than his predecessors of negotiating Iran’s Byzantine corridors of power.

For now Rouhani has the bless-ing, or at least the acquiescence, of Khamenei, but probably a limited window in which his attempt to en-gage with the outside world and ease sanctions has to show results, or be cast aside.

But even before beginning the task, Rouhani may already be facing turf battles at home. More than two months after his election, the president is still deciding whether to switch the job of chief nuclear negoti-ator from the Supreme National Secu-rity Council to the Foreign Ministry.

While the council would retain oversight, removing it from the talks process could streamline negotiations from Iran’s side since the likes of the Revolutionary Guards, the judiciary and parliament all have places on the council.

The fact that the decision over who should be the point person in Iran’s most important foreign policy issue has taken so long hints at a vigor-ous back-room debate and possible resistance from those who might feel sidelined by the move.

Rouhani himself was the chief nuclear negotiator during Khatami’s presidency. Securing the backing of Khamenei, perhaps better described as a � nal arbiter than leader, will prove the key to Rouhani’s progress. “Rouhani is an insider and is certainly not naïve about what goes on in Irani-an politics,” said Sick.

“I think he is proceeding very cau-tiously. He is taking one step at a time, he is probably clearing it as he goes, staying in touch with the supreme leader and bringing him on board ... that is good politics and a smart way to run your show.” l

This article was � rst published by Reuters.

Beggars will continue to beg unless the opportunity cost of begging is not set higher than not begging

Operation of all the dams signi� cantly a� ecting Bangladesh have been built and completed by India after the end of the 1971 Liberation War

Khatami’s attempts to relax social restrictions and institute the rule of law, and Ahmadinejad’s populist nationalism in his second term, proved a challenge to Khamenei, hard-line conservatives and the Revolutionary Guards

Securing the backing of Khamenei, perhaps better described as a � nal arbiter than leader, will prove the key to Rouhani’s progress

A view of the Farakka dam, West Bengal, India WIKI COMMONS

After the 1971 liberation war, the newly born state was systematically, disdainfully deprived of water

Drama serial 1971 Shei Shob Dingulo begins

n Entertainment Desk

Channel-i begins telecasting a new drama serial “1971 Sei Sab Dingulo” at 7:50pm today. The 1971 liberation war based series is starred by Mosharraf Karim, Litu Anam, Tisha, Shajal, Ruma-na, Rounak Hasan and more. The credit for the drama’s dialogue, screenplay and direction goes to Hridi Haq.

The plot of the production is the period of 1971 and it revolves around the members of a middle class family. Ashraful Alam and his wife, mother and three sons Saeed, Sanju and Ranju and their wives are the lead roles of the story.  

Sanju is a lecturer of Dhaka Uni-versity’s Bangla department and has

a synchronised relation with his wife Bithi who is an admirer of Tagore’s literature. Moreover, Bithi is a coura-geous woman who dreams to actively participate in the liberation war with her theatre troupe. Ranju has an a� air with neighbour Binti who follows the ideologies of Bithi.

On the other hand, Saeed is married to Nayla, daughter of a business mag-nate based in Lahore. The � nancial and cultural gap between the two families often create crisis in the daily life of Ashraful Alam’s family.

When the war becomes intense, the direct and indirect participation of each and every character has been portrayed in the drama. It will be aired 7:50pm ev-ery Wednesday and Thursday. l

EntertainmentDHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 201312

ONTV

MOVIES

TALKSHOW

COMEDY

DRAMA

NEWS

MISC

4:15pm Fox Movies PremiumGhost Rider4:24pm WBThe Specialist6:24pm WBHarry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince7:00pm Star MoviesX-Men 27:00pm Fox Movies PremiumThe Karate Kid7:34pm HBOPuss In Boots8:30pm Zee StudioThe Sorcerer’s Apprentice9:30pm HBOMadagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted9:30pmStar MoviesGladiator11:00pm Zee StudioSnake Eyes

9:30am Star WorldGlee11:30am Comedy CentralOuttsourced1:30pm FXThe Simpsons3:30pm Sony SABFIR5:00pm AXNBloopers7:30pm ColorsMrs Pammi Pyarela8:30pm Star WorldTwo Broke Girls10:30pm Comedy CentralHot In Cleveland

2:35pm NTVNeer3:10pm ATN BanglaLeelabati7:00pm Star WorldOne Tree Hill7:40pm Channel NineGrontikgon Kohe8:00pm ColorsSasural Simar Ki8:15pm BanglavisionLongorkhana9:30pm SATVAkash Meghe Dhaka10:00pm Star PlusYeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hain10:30pm SonyMaharana Pratap11:00pm Zee TvPunar Vivah

2:00pm Desh TvShongbad Shomoi5:30pm Independent TVPurba paschim7:30pm BanglavisionShongbad8:00pm BTVNews10:00pm MaasrangaPrimetime news10:45pm RTVRaater Shongbad

7:30am SATV Shokaler Diary 7:45am ETV Ekushey Shokaal 8:30am ATN News Ekdin Proditin 9:00am Independent TV Ajker Bangladesh 12:20pm NTV Ei Shomoy 1:30pm Channel Ekattor Rendezvous2:40pm ATN News Amader Kotha 6:25pm Banglavision Front Line 10:15pm ATN News News Hour Extra

9:30am Vh1Birthday Bumps11:30am FTVTop Brands1:30pm National GeographicTaboo3:30pm Fox TravellerPoh’s Kitchen5:30pm MTVPing7:30pm TLCNo Reservations8:30pm AXNThe Amazing Race10:00pm Travel XPXplore Thailand

Exhibition‘Nature – Color and Vision’Khurshid Alam SaleemTime: 12 pm- 8pmShipanganHouse 7Road 13New Dhanmondi

‘Automated Subjectivity’By Mustafa Zaman and Shu-vo Ra� qulTime: 12pm-8pm Bengal Art Lounge60 Gulshan AveRoad 131. Circle 1

‘Here is There – There is Here’Toyomi HoshinaTime: 12pm – 8pmBengal Gallery of Fine ArtsHouse 275Road 27Old Dhanmondi

Colors PhotographyDate : 27-29 Venue : Drik GalleryHouse 58, Road 15A (New), DhanmondiResidential Area-1209

Symphony of ColourRahima AfrozTime: 3pm – 8pmDhaka Art Center,House-60Road-7/A,Dhanmondi

‘MKP Doodle World’Mustapha Khalid PalashHot Breads BakeryBanani, Road-11Dhaka

Theatre‘Chaka’Theatre department of Dhaka UniversityDirected by Sudip ChakrobortyTime: 7pmNatmandal, DU

Film‘The Wolverine in 3D’ ‘Nishwartha Bhalobasa’‘Fast & Furious 6’ ‘World War Z in 3D’‘Despicable Me 2 in 3D’Star CineplexBashundhara City,Panthapath

TODAY IN DHAKA Mila makes her comeback after nine yearsn Shadma Malik

After nine years, model Mila Hossain comes back with the same enthusiasm in the showbiz world.  Winner of Lux-Anan-dadhara 2000, Mila, stayed abroad for a long time and occasionally visited Bangladesh. Now, she is back home and working in a TVC directed by Rana Masud and also in two drama series, which will be directed by Kawshik Shankar Das and Mahfuz Ahmed.

Mila talks to Dhaka Tribune about her return in the entertainment industry: “I feel the same excitement and anticipation I use to feel nine years back. There has been a shift in the media industry during my absence. Models, who use to do TVCs are no longer con� ned to that particular genre, instead almost everyone has spread their arena into other entertainment career pursuits. Also, producing a TVC has changed a lot. Before, it use to take over seven days to make just one TVC, but now, due to the advancement of technology, the process is much faster. Instant changes can be made and after feedback, rapid changes can be made to speed up the process.”

After getting o� er from Rana Masud, Mila came back to Dhaka on August 14 to perform in his TVC. Director Rana Masud said: “I needed a model for my new TVC who has a European appearance. Mila � ts the pro� le most accurately, for this reason, I have selected her for my new TVC.”

Mila is also working on a drama series with popular actor Nobel and said that she has worked with Nobel, a few months back in a TVC in New York. “Once again I am working with Nobel, but this time, in a drama series.”

The drama “Shesh Theke Shuru” is been written by Zinnat Hossain Juthi, directed by Kawshik Shankar Das and produced by Zakaria Masud Ziko, under the banner of One Media.

While talking about Mila’s perfor-mance, Nobel states: “Mila made a good comeback, she is giving a very convincing performance. The story of the drama will be persuasive to the audience.”

After becoming the Lux superstar, Mila’s debut was with the late producer Aktaruzzaman. She has worked in over � fteen drama series. She will be working with director Mahfuz Ahmed on a drama series starting from August 30. l

Rahima Afroz’s Symphony of Colour on at Dhaka Art Center

n Shadma Malik

The � rst solo painting exhibition “Symphony of Colours” by Rahima Afroz is being held at Dhaka Art Center till August 29. Afroz tends to work with form and rhythm of colours. The arrangements of the colour contrasts and its composition have been well referred to the title “Sym-phony of Colour.”

Her series painting titled “composition” has been represented with abstracted walls and kitchen utensils. The mixed media paintings por-tray the sensitivity of womanhood, which has appeared with strong texture.

As the feminist artist mentioned, “These paintings give o� the es-sence of a woman. I urge the audience to understand and empathise with the need for social and psychological emancipation of women, as well as their greater role in all spheres of life.”

The nature of the usage of colours in her paintings is about changing colours of the season.

The aesthetics of seasonal colour has dominated the canvas. The art-ist stated: “The variables of colours can be seen when the lights fall on them. I endeavored to capture di� erent insignia and shades present in nature.”

Afroz prefers to work on collagraphs. The underwater complex, along with � sh and aquatic mystery marked the water � eld in her art-works. Working on technique with rich expertise, the surreal images in the colour sepia has been captured brilliantly.

Afroz has participated in more than ten group exhibitions. She at-tended the art camp “Joyeta,” where, many eminent female artists have participated.

Having gained Masters of Fine arts, from drawing and painting de-partment, of the University of Development Alternative (UDOA) in 2009, the freelance artist, Afroz also obtained numerous awards in her career.

Eminent artist Monirul Islam graced the occasion as the chief guest and art critique and architect Prof Shamsul Wares was present as spe-cial guest. l

Madonna trumps Spielberg and Winfrey in earnings

n Entertainment Desk

Pop diva Madonna, is the world’s top-earning celebrity, according to a Forbes list released on Monday, raking in an estimated $125 million in the past year, mainly from her $305 million-grossing MDNA tour, but helped by sales of clothing, fragrance and var-ious investments.

Director Steven Spielberg, who had a big hit last year with “Lincoln,” was a distant second with earnings of $100 million in the year ended June 2013, most of which came from his catalog of past hits such as “ET” and “Jurassic Park,” which

continue to bring in big bucks.“Madonna’s success, at age 55, just goes to show the

incredible power of a successful music career,” Forbes re-porter Dorothy Pomerantz said, noting that 27-year-old pop singer Lady Gaga has often been said to be channel-

ing Madonna’s four-decade-long career.“The young star is certainly emulating Madonna

when it comes to raking in money,” Forbes said, with her $80 million in earnings largely from the singer’s “Born This Way Ball” world tour, placing Gaga 10th on the list.

Forbes compiles its annual list of celebrity earnings using input from agents, managers, producers and oth-

ers to calculate its estimates for each celebrity’s entertain-ment-related earnings.

The � gures do not re� ect tax deductions, agent fees or “the other expenses of being a celebrity.”

Madonna’s top spot compares with her previous peak of $110 million in 2009, but falls short of the $165 million taken in

by Oprah Winfrey in the previous year.Talk show queen and media mogul Winfrey took a big pay cut

this year according to Forbes, falling to No 13 on the list with earn-ings of $77 million.

At No 3 with earnings of $95 million in the past year was a three-way tie among “50 Shades of Grey” author EL James, ra-dio shock jock Howard Stern and music and television producer Simon Cowell.

Others in the top 10 earners included TV host Glenn Beck, director Michael Bay of the “Transformers” franchise, and thriller novelist James Patterson, who Forbes said was now the best-selling author of all time.

Both Spielberg and Bay also made last year’s top 10, though with signi� cantly larger earnings. l

Madras Cafe picks up after a slow startn Entertainment Desk

Positive word of mouth has worked in the favour of John Abraham-Nargis Fakhri starrer “Madras Cafe,” as the movie showed an upward trend in its collections. The movie that garnered Rs 51.5m on its � rst day has now amassed more than Rs 200m.

The � lm grew from strength to strength with each passing day, thus adding to a fantastic [weekend] to-tal. Although targeted at multiplexes of urban centres, the upward trend in mass-dominated circuits -- dominated by single screens -- sprung a pleasant surprise as well. The terri� c word of mouth should ensure a smooth run on weekdays as well,” wrote Bollywood trade analyst Taran Adarsh for Bolly-wood Hungama.

The � lm, co-produced by John, who is also playing the lead in it, came under

the scanner after Tamil activists alleged that it portrays the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) cadres as terrorists.

After attending a special preview of the Shoojit Sircar directed � lm Sunday, the objection against the � lm by the groups grew stronger.

Tamil � lmmaker Seeman, head of Naam Tamizhar (We Tamils) group, said the � lm was “nauseatingly an-ti-Tamil.” In a related development, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Tamil Nadu unit chief Pon Radhakrishnan said the movie should not be released in any part of the country.

Also featuring Nargis Fakhri, and Leena Rashi Khanna, Ajay Rathnam and Maria Paul, “Madras Cafe” is a � c-tional story inspired by true events.

It is set against the Sri Lankan civil war and also depicts the 1991 assassi-nation of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. l

14

13DHAKA TRIBUNEWednesday, August 28, 2013

SportDid you know?

14 15 Zimbabwe stun Pakistan in � rst ODI

The average life span of an MLB baseball is � ve to seven pitches

Rooney tries in vain as United, Chelsea draw

Former Portugal star Deco calls it a day

Bangladesh skipper Mamunul Islam (L) and forward Sohel Rana (C) undergo a � tness test while Dutch trainer Mohammat Yamali looks on at Police Headquarter � eld in Kathmandu, Nepal yesterday COURTESY

Coach realistic ahead of Sa� n Raihan Mahmood

Bangladesh head coach Loewijk de Kruif expressed the hope that his play-ers would adapt to the conditions in Nepal quickly and be ready for the challenges in front of them at the Sa� Championships.

Bangladesh had a practice session at Police Head Quarters Field yesterday. Injured goalkeeper Shahidul Alam So-hel missed the training, while captain Mamunul Islam and mid� elder Sohel Rana, who are carrying minor injuries, underwent a light practice session un-der � tness coach Muhammet Yamali.

The head coach was realistic in his expectations for his team. “Two years back Bangladesh did not do well in the Sa� Championship. Things will not change in a day. We are working hard with the players to get a good result in this tournament. India and Nepal are the favourites from our group and in the other group, Afghanistan is also a formidable team,” said the Dutch.

He went comment on how injuries had forced players to play in unfamil-iar positions. “Players are playing in di� erent positions because we have some injuries in the team. The injuries occurred because of some silly things, not physical fatigue, but the players are adapting really well.” l

Bangladesh take on India today in Asia Cupn Raihan Mahmood

Bangladesh take on powerhouse India in their � nal group match in the Asia Cup at the Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium, Ipoh Malaysia today.

After the devastating 2-4 loss to Oman, the Bangladesh appear de� ated but coach Naveed Alam is doing all he can to lift the team’s spirit for the � -nal match. After a strenuous training session, Naveed asked his players to forget about the past and focus on the job at hand. “The defeat was painful, I admit but we have to look forward. Against India, I have asked the players to show what they have, nothing more than that. In two matches, we have cre-ated 15 scoring chances but scored only once. The problem is with the posi-tions,” said Naveed.

The Pakistani admitted he was mys-ti� ed as to why his team were unable

to implement the plans they had re-hearsed. “I have no answer as to why the players did not get out of their old habits. They failed to adopt the system, but I also want to say that Asia Cup Hockey is the highest level of competi-tive hockey in Asia. It’s not so easy,” he commented.

India beat Bangladesh 5-1 in the World Hockey League Round 2 at New Delhi in February.

After back-to-back victories against Oman and defending champions South Korea, the Indians are brimming with con� dence but they cannot a� ord to relax in the eight-nation tournament, which they desperately need to win to qualify for next year’s World Cup at The Hague, Netherlands. India sealed their semi-� nal place after shocking title holders South Korea 2—0 in their second Pool B match at the Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium yesterday. l

Mosharraf and Robin begin defence n Mazhar Uddin

Mosharraf Hossain and Mahbubul Alam Robin’s lawyer, Noorus Sadik Chowdhury, submitted a letter to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) yes-terday defending the two cricketers against charges of � xing related o� ens-es. The barrister said that the charges were baseless and false.

“These are baseless allegations that have no substantial evidence to back it up, they’ve been made up by imagina-tion. I don’t want to comment any fur-ther due to my client’s con� dentiality,” said Noorus.

“The allegations that have been made are based on doubt, and are open to question. ‘Doubt’ is not solid ground for these allegations – it’s a baseless foundation,” he added.

He went on to question whether the

ICC or its Anti-Corruption Security Unit (Acsu) has the authority to investigate this case. “We have doubts whether Acsu or the ICC even have the author-ity to investigate the case, according to the disciplinary code. We are trying to

prove they don’t.“There are speci� c sections of the

anti-corruption code of the BCB ac-cording to which, Acsu and ICC do not have the authority to frame charges or even investigate under these circum-stances,” he added.

Noorus also asked the BCB to lift the suspension that has been imposed on his clients. “In other countries, the accused are permitted to play until proven guilty, but that is not the case here. There might be a conspiracy here. We’ve have asked them (the BCB) to withdraw the ban on the cricketers.”

He went on to speak about how his clients were emotionally handling the situation. “It’s a depressing situation for them. They are both promising players and these kinds of allegations have put them in an awkward situa-tion. Still, they are con� dent things will work out – they’re not devastated, but melancholy.”

Another person who has been ac-cused of wrong doing, Dhaka Gladia-tors owner Selim Chowdhury, also sent a letter to the BCB through his lawyer pleading his innocence. l

Jamal � rst to � ll DPL foreign quota n Mazhar Uddin

Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club have con� rmed the service of four foreign cricketers for the upcoming Dhaka Pre-mier League (DPL), informed the club’s chairman of the cricket committee Mush� qur Rahman Mohon yesterday.

The Dhanmondi based club ear-lier on Sunday at the players’ recruit-ment programme overlooked coun-try’s number one all-rounder Shakib al Hasan to retain the service of national skipper Mush� qur Rahim. However, the president of the club Manzur Kader informed the press that his team this year will mostly rely on their foreign players.

The league is approximately 13 days away, but Jamal are already in touch with their foreign recruits. “We have talked with some of the foreign players and we are willing to sign Charles Cov-entry, Elton Chigumbura (Zimbabwe),

Dilshan Munaweera (Sri Lanka) and Shapoor Zadran the fast bowler from Afghanistan as our foreign recruits this year,” informed Mohon.

Meanwhile, the manager of Broth-ers Union cricket team Amin Khan in-formed that they are still not sure about the resumption date of the league and the club will look for the foreign crick-eters once the date is con� rmed. Broth-ers bagged country’s dashing opener Tamim Iqbal during the recruitment ceremony.

“I have called the CCDM (Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis) chair-man Jalal Yunus today (yesterday) and he informed me that the CCDM will sit in a meeting with the ground commit-tee today and after that we will look for our foreign players as now it will be too early for us to bare their expenses,” said Amin Khan adding that the club will call the players and sit together as soon as the dates are con� rmed. l

The allegations that have been made are based on doubt, and are open to question. ‘Doubt’ is not solid ground for these allegations – it’s a baseless foundation

Swiss tennis player Roger Federer poses with a violin during an advertising shooting yesterday to promote the Lucerne Festival, a prestigious classical music festival that celebrates its 75th anniversary this year. The festival will last September 16, 2013 AFP

Two years back Bangladesh did not do well in the Sa� Championship. Things will not change in a day. We are working hard with the players to get a good result in this tournament. India and Nepal are the favourites from our group and in the other group, Afghanistan is also a formidable team,

Shakib out for three weeksn Minhaz Uddin Khan

Star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who returned on Monday from playing for the Barbados Tridents in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), will be out of action for three weeks with a thumb injury, Bangladesh Cricket Board phys-iotherapist Dr. Debashish Chowdhury told the media yesterday.

“Shakib injured his left thumb on August 18 at a Barbados Tridents practice session. We gave him an x-ray which revealed that he has a hair-line fracture,” said Dr. Debashish, adding that it would take three weeks to heal.

Shakib returned to the country af-ter a length tour which included a stint with Leicestershire in the Friends Life Twenty20 as well as the CPL.

Last Sunday, he was sold to Kalaba-gan Krira Chakra for the Dhaka Premier League, which is scheduled to start on September 10. l

Westin, Flora breeze throughn Reazur Rahman Rohan

Westin sealed their cup phase spot in style after they thrashed Concito PR 7-0 in their last Group N match of the 8th Ascent 5-A-Side Soccer Cup at the STM Hall, Scholastica yesterday. Lalon starred for the winners with four goals while Masud netted a couple.

Flora Telecom also con� rmed their progress to the cup round as they edged past Ice Retail 2-1. Shahed scored a hat-trick for Therap BD as Pepsi were once again on the receiving end. Safwan also scored a brace as Therap hammered the beverage company 6-1.

The cup round will be played today with the 16 group champions � ghting for a place in the quarters. The pre-quarter� nal of the cup will see defend-ing champions Beximco Pharma take on Rahimafrooz SPD in the opening game. Last year runners-up Gemcon Group will take the � eld later against Commercial Bank of Ceylon. l

Match ResultGranada 0-1 Real Madrid Benzema 10

SportDHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 201314

Manchester United's English striker Wayne Rooney (L) competes with Chelsea's English mid� elder Frank Lampard (R) during their English Premier League match at Old Tra� ord in Manchester, northwest England, on Monday AFP

Barca wait on Messi for Super Cup decidern AFP, Madrid

Barcelona will give Lionel Messi every op-portunity to prove his � tness ahead of their

second-leg of the Spanish Super Cup against Atletico Madrid at the Camp Nou today night.

Messi was taken o� at half-time during last week’s 1-1 draw in the � rst-leg with a thigh injury and missed the Catalans’ 1-0 win away to Malaga on Sunday which moved them back to the top of La Liga.

However, the Argentine took a full part in training on Monday with those who hadn’t been involved in the Mal-aga game as the majority of his col-leagues underwent a recovery session.

“We have two days to make a deci-sion, but with the information that I have today we are very happy with how he is recovering,” Barca boss Gerardo Martino told reporters after Sunday’s game.

However, Martino indicated that Ney-mar could once miss out from the start despite shining in cameo appearances as a substitute in Barca’s last two games.

The Brazilian scored his � rst Barca goal to rescue a draw for Martino’s men in the � rst-leg and again looked like the visitors most dangerous outlet when he replaced Pedro with half an hour to go at La Rosaleda at the weekend.

“Neymar is improving all the time, you can already see the di� erence in him between the the last two matches and the � rst one against Levante.

“I don’t know when exactly we will start him but you can see mentally he is ready and we will do it at the most opportune time.”

Even if Messi and Neymar don’t start, Martino will make a couple of changes to the side that started against Malaga as Sergio Busquets and Dani Alves will return after being rested in place of Alex Song and Adriano, who is also struggling with a hamstring injury.

Despite the fact that Barca have set the early pace in La Liga, Atleti’s start to the season has been arguably even more impressive as they followed up a 3-1 suc-cess at Sevilla on the opening weekend of the season with a 5-0 thrashing of Rayo Vallecano on Sunday. l

Real grind out Granada winn AFP, Madrid

Real Madrid made it two wins from two games under Carlo Ancelotti with a 1-0 victory at Granada, but Los Blan-cos were again made to

work for the three points.Rumours of Gareth Bale’s impending

arrival in Madrid had somewhat overshadowed the build-up to the game, but the visitors didn’t appear distracted as Karim Benzema opened the scoring after just 10 minutes.

Mesut Ozil then had a goal ruled out and Isco struck the post after the break

as Madrid continued to have the lion’s share of the chances.

However, Granada were denied a great chance to snatch a point � ve min-utes from time when referee Javier Es-trada Fernandez failed to spot a trip on Diego Buonanotte by Casemiro inside the area.

Ancelotti’s decision to keep faith with Diego Lopez in goal ahead of Spanish captain Iker Casillas was the big news before kick-o� , but the Italian

picked a very attack-minded line-up with Angel Di Maria coming in for the injured Sami Khedira and the former Milan boss was rewarded with a very bright start by his side.

Benzema should have put Real in front after just � ve minutes when he skewed wide after a lovely reverse ball from Di Maria had played him in.

The Frenchman made amends � ve minutes later though as Di Maria’s cross from the right was inadvertently knocked into Benzema’s path by Cristiano Ronaldo and he swept home from close range for his second goal of the season. l

Deco calls it a day n AFP, Rio De Janeiro

Deco, the former Barcelona, Porto and Chelsea mid� elder, cited injury for his decision to retire from football at the age of 35.

The Brazilian-born former Portu-guese international hung up his boots on Monday with a clutch of titles to his name, including the Champions League with Porto in 2004 and again two years later with Barcelona.

“With a lot of sadness and hurt I am announcing the end of my profes-sional career,” said Deco, who has had a frustrating � nal season with a series of health problems for his Brazilian club Fluminense.

Deco, who had a two-year spell with Chelsea from 2008, returned to his

homeland in 2010 where he picked up two national league titles with Flumi-nense.

“I’ve been really happy during this time, I wanted to help Fluminense more but my body won’t allow that, my muscles can no longer put up . l

Gundogan out for a monthn AFP, Berlin

Borussia Dortmund will be without Germany mid� elder Ilkay Gundogan for at least another four weeks, ruling him out of next month’s World Cup quali-� ers against Austria and Faroe Islands.

The 22-year-old has been sidelined since aggravating a back injury in Ger-many’s 3-3 friendly draw against Para-guay on August 14 and an MRI scan on Monday revealed he has a strain in the lumbar region and will be out for an-other month.

It means Gundogan will miss Ger-many’s World Cup Quali� er against Austria in Munich on September 6 and away to Faroe Islands in Torshavn four days later, as well as at least Dort-mund’s next three league matches. l

I deserve players’ title as much as Messi, Ronaldo: Riberyn AFP, Berlin

Bayern Munich’s Franck Ribery claims he deserves to be named European Player of the Year as much as the other two contenders for Tomorrow’s award - Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ribery made the shortlist for the UEFA honour after a 2012/2013 cam-paign in which the France internation-al helped Bayern to a historic treble of League, Cup and Champions League titles.

And discussing his prospects he told Monday’’s edition of Kicker magazine: “I’ve dreamed about this title for a long time.

“Last season I played really well and won huge titles. Why shouldn’t I win it? I deserve it as much as the other two.

“Already I’m very happy to be among the � nalists. But when you have a season like mine you want to be re-warded by such an honour.”

Asked to compare his ability with that of Messi and Ronaldo the 30-year-old added: “Each has their own quali-ties. What (Messi and Ronaldo) do for sure better than me is score goals. They score more often than me, but I set up more goals (than them).” l

Rooney tries in vain as United, Chelsea drawn AFP, Manchester

Wayne Rooney may have played his way out of a transfer to Chelsea after a committed display in Man-

chester United’s 0-0 draw against their Premier League rivals on Monday.

Rooney has been the subject of two failed bids from Chelsea in recent weeks, but he was one of few impres-sive players on a night when the sea-son’s � rst major head-to-head clash failed to live up to its billing.

The England striker’s performance, in which he tested visiting goalkeeper Petr Cech on three occasions, prompt-ed Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho to admit that he could miss out on a move for the 27-year-old.

“I think probably now he thinks

he wants to stay,” Mourinho told Sky Sports. “If that is his decision, we will respect that and say it is over.”

Rooney’s display, and Mourinho’s subsequent declaration, will have cheered David Moyes after his � rst home game as United manager, even though he saw his side refused a sec-ond-half penalty following an apparent handball by Frank Lampard.

Mourinho provided a provocative touchline presence and was goaded throughout on his return to Old Tra� ord as Chelsea coach, but his team rarely threatened ahead of Friday’s UEFA Super Cup against Bayern Munich.

“We play to win but if we don’t win, we don’t lose, and I think the players understand this completely,” Mourinho said.

The point was enough to send Chelsea top of the nascent standings,

but they have played a game more than the rest and United can draw level with them if they win at Liverpool on Sunday.

Rooney’s inclusion in United’s starting XI, for the � rst time since April, caused the evening’s � rst ripple of excitement, but Mourinho’s

team selection was every bit as eye-catching.

The Portuguese named a team without a recognised striker, deploying Andre Schuerrle up front ahead of Oscar, Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne, and leaving Fernando Torres and Romelu Lukaku on the bench.

Moyes could not have picked a more high-pro� le opponent for his � rst turn in the Old Tra� ord dug-out, or a more glorious evening, but the fare on the newly laid pitch was disappointing.

Rooney, for his part, looked determined to in� uence the game, despite Chelsea’s fans mischievously taking up their United counterparts’ chants of “Rooney!” and pledging: “We’ll see you next week!”

Chelsea were content for their hosts to attack them, but the tactic almost back-� red in the 56th minute when Rooney found Danny Welbeck inside the box, only for the England forward to poke the ball wide.

Rooney raised the biggest cheer of the night with a full-bodied sliding tackle to dispossess Ramires, before giving Cech his last and most searching examination of the night with a power-ful drive from 30 yards. l

Real Madrid's French forward Karim Benzema (C) celebrates with teammates after scoring during their Spanish league match against Granada at Nuevo Los Carmenes stadium in Granada on Monday AFP

Moyes refuses to deny Bale interestn AFP, Manchester

Manchester United manager David Moyes says his club have not made an o� er for Tottenham Hotspur forward Gareth Bale, but he refused to deny an interest in the player.

Bale is poised to join Real Madrid for a world-record fee after several months of courtship by the Spanish giants, but reports emerged in the British media on Monday that a rival club had also shown an interest.

When asked if United had submitted a bid for Bale on Monday, Moyes told reporters: “No”.

However, he added: “Manchester United are always interested in the best players and the board and myself would always be looking to sign who we think are the best players, wherever they are.”

Moyes was speaking after a goal-less draw with Chelsea in the Premier League in his � rst home game as Unit-ed manager.

The contest was a drab a� air, but Moyes was encouraged by a commit-ted display from striker Wayne Rooney, who belied reports that he is unsettled at the club with a performance of e� ort and determination. l

Last season I played really well and won huge titles. Why shouldn’t I win it? I deserve it as much as the other two

“I think probably now he thinks he wants to stay, If that is his decision, we will respect that and say it is over,” Mourinho on Rooney

Busquets extends Barca dealn AFP, Madrid

Barcelona mid� elder Sergio Busquets has extended his contract with the club until June 2018 with the option for a further year, the Spanish champions con� rmed yesterday.

Busquets broke into the � rst team � ve years ago during Pep Guardiola’s � rst season in charge and has since gone on to make 238 appearance for the Catalans.

In that time has helped guide Barca to four league titles, two Champions Leagues and two Copa del Rey successes. The 25-year-old is also now a � rmly established member of Spain national team. l

Match ResultMan United 0-0 Chelsea

Sport 15DHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Men: 1st roundGasquet bt Russell 6-3, 6-4, 6-2Ferrer bt Kyrgios 7-5, 6-3, 6-2Tomic bt Ramos 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7/1), 6-3Evans bt Nishikori 6-4, 6-4, 6-2Dodig bt Verdasco 6-3, 7-5, 1-6, 4-6, 6-3Nadal bt Harrison 6-4, 6-2, 6-2Women: 1st roundSerena bt Schiavone 6-0, 6-1Venus bt Flipkens 6-1, 6-2Radwanska bt Espinosa 6-1, 6-2Jankovic bt Madison Keys 6-3, 6-4Robson bt Domínguez 7-5, 6-0Li Na bt Olga Govortsova 6-2, 6-2

Monday's Key Results

National 'B' Chess tournament beginsA total of 138 players are taking part at the Bishal Trade & Rupahali Sarees 39th National ‘B’ Chess Champion-ship-2013, which got underway at the Bangladesh Chess Federation hall room yesterday. Three International Masters, 8 Fide Masters, a Women International Master and 110 rated players from Dhaka city, along with the selected players from all districts associations, services, forces, public universities, junior and sub-Junior champions are participating in the event. The event is being held in an 11 round swiss-league system and top nine � nishers will qualify for the 39th National ‘A’ Chess Championship. Bangladesh Chess Federation will invite � ve grandmasters Niaz Murshed, Ziaur Rahman, Reefat Bin Sattar, Abdullah Al Rakib and Enamul Hossain to participate directly in the ‘A’ Chess Championship. Renowned sports organiser Moza� ar Hossain Paltu inaugurated the meet as chief guest yesterday.

- SH

BJMC held by West BengalBJMC, the representatives of Bangladesh in the Walton International Invitational Women’s Kabaddi, were held to a 12-12 draw with West Bengal at the Kabaddi stadium yesterday. In the day’s � rst game, Assam handed Nepal women’s team a crushing 55-11 point defeat with � ve lonas. Earlier in the opening game, BJMC defeated Assam 26-17.

–SH

Mourinho praises Bayern ahead of Super Cup clash Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has praised treble-winning Bayern Munich ahead of Friday’s UEFA Super Cup clash and said he wants to measure his side against the European champions. Bayern became the � rst German team to win the treble of league, cup and Champions League titles last season under previous coach Jupp Heynckes, winning the Bundesliga by 25 points while breaking or equalling 25 league records. Chelsea, who won last season’s Europa League title, square o� against Pep Guardiola-coached Bay-ern at Prague’s Eden Arena stadium and the 50-year-old Mourinho was full of praise for the Bavarians’ achievements. “With Bayern, what impresses me was always the di� culty of achieving a treble and only great teams with a great mentality and fantastic football qualities manage it,” Mourinho told Uefa.com.

– AFP

Quick Bytes

Star Sports2013 Asia Cup Men’s Hockey LIVE4:00pm Korea vs Oman6:00pm India vs BangladeshESPN

8:20pm 2013 Indian Badminton League LIVE Ten Sports

9:00pm US Open 2013 LIVE1st Round Men’s, Women’s 2nd RoundTen Action

12:00am UEFA Champions League LIVEPlayo� s: AC Milan vs PSV

Day’s Watch

Ashes winners rested from England ODI squadn AFP, London

England have rested several of their Ashes-winning Test side, including captain Alastair Cook, from a squad an-nounced Tuesday for their upcoming one-day internationals against Ireland and Australia.

As well as Cook, England have left out Stuart Broad, Ian Bell, James Anderson and Graeme Swann from their party for the lone one-day international against Ireland and the � ve-match one-day series with Australia that follows.

However, star batsman Kevin Pietersen has been included in the squad for the Australia series, with fellow Ashes-winning batsmen Joe Root and Jonathan Trott also set to face England’s arch-rivals in the one-day format after they too were excused the trip to Dublin.

Former Ireland international Eoin

Morgan will captain the side in the absence of Cook and Broad, with the squad including � ve uncapped play-ers in pacemen Chris Jordan and Jamie Overton as well as Morgan’s fellow ex-Ireland star Boyd Rankin.

Meanwhile batsmen Michael Car-berry, a key � gure with the successful Hampshire county one-day side, and Yorkshire’s Gary Ballance will also look to win their � rst ODI caps.

With Australia’s 18-man squad containing just seven players who took part in the Ashes, it is clear both countries are looking ahead to the return Ashes series in Australia starting in November.

England begin their tour with a three-day match against Western Aus-tralia starting on October 31, meaning leading players will have little time for a break after a packed home schedule followed back-to-back tours of India and New Zealand. l

Stuart Broad accepts Lehmann apology n AFP, London

Stuart Broad said Monday he had ac-cepted an apology from Darren Lehm-ann following the Australia coach’s scathing attack on the England bowler during the Ashes series.

Lehmann, speaking in a radio in-terview last week, accused Broad of “blatant cheating” following the pace bowler’s decision not to walk after edg-ing a catch at Trent Bridge.

Broad told his Twitter followers: “Spoke to Darren Lehmann last (Sun-day) night. He apologised for his com-ments, I accepted it. He said they were made in Jest for banter. Done.”

Lehmann, whose team were beaten 3-0 by England over the � ve-Test se-ries, also called on the Australian pub-lic to make life so di� cult for Broad during the Ashes rematch in Australia later this year that he will want to cry and go home.

The comments earned Lehmann a � ne of 20 percent of his match fee from the � fth and � nal Ashes Test at The Oval, which ended in a draw on Sunday.

Former Australia batsman Lehm-ann, who took over as coach at the start of the series following Mickey Arthur’s acrimonious departure, con� rmed Monday he’d spoken to Broad to draw a line under the incident and will look

to make sure he chooses his words bet-ter in future.

“I’ve had a chat with him already. We just move on,” Lehmann said.

“It was a good learning curve for a new coach, wasn’t it? “You know, it was a jovial setting but you’ve got to learn from that. I’ve got to learn and improve from that. “The players aren’t on their own in trying to improve. Coaches have got to improve so that’s something I’ve got to get better at.”

Despite the series loss and the criti-cism he received following the radio interview, Lehmann still has passion for the role and is looking forward to the remainder of the tour in England and then renewal of the Ashes rivalry in November.

“I’m still loving it, it’s a great job,” he added.

“I’d like to win a Test match, though, but it’s a fantastic job. I’ve seen all the players here, and the one-day and Twenty20 players are obviously start-ing Thursday, so you get to deal with them and look at how we’re going in that format of the game as well.

“By the end of the tour I’ll have a really good mindset on all the players which will be quite comforting for me as coach. The players seem to be enjoy-ing it which is good but we also realise we need to win some games.” l

Nadal, Serena in US Open cruise, rain holds up Federer n AFP, New York City

US Open favorites Rafael Nadal and Ser-ena Williams, with 28 Grand Slam titles be-tween them, cruised into the US Open on

Monday but 17-time major winner Roger Federer was thwarted by rain.

Nadal, the second-seeded 2010 cham-pion who watched the 2012 US Open from his home in Spain as he endured a seven-month injury layo� , cruised to a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 win over America’s Ryan Harrison to record a 16th win on hard courts this year.

The 27-year-old Spaniard has cap-tured nine trophies since his return from injury in February, building up a 54-3 re-cord in the process, and came into New York having won back-to-back Masters titles at Montreal and Cincinnati, com-fortably erasing his shock � rst-round exit at Wimbledon.

“It’s a special emotion to be back in New York. It’s a special atmosphere,” said Nadal, who next tackles either Can-ada’s Vasek Pospisil or Brazilian quali� er Rogerio Dutra Silva.

“I was nervous before the start, but I hope to have these nerves again in the future if it means I win.”

Defending women’s champion Sere-na Williams, a four-time winner, needed just an hour to see o� Italian veteran Francesca Schiavone, 6-0, 6-1.

The top seed � red 13 winners and

broke the former French Open cham-pion six times on her way to a second round match-up against Kazakhstan’s Galina Voskoboeva.

“I’m really excited,” Williams said. “I knew playing a former Grand Slam champion the � rst round was a tough draw so I just tried to be super serious.”

Venus Williams, the back-to-back

champion in 2000 and 2001 and the old-est woman left in the draw at 33, started her 15th US Open with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Belgian 12th seed Kirsten Flipkens, a semi-� nalist at Wimbledon.

Williams, now ranked 60th in the world, next faces China’s Zheng Jie after avenging a loss to Flipkens at Toronto earlier this month.

“It’s just good to be here, see familiar faces since my � rst time in 1997 with the beads and the braces,” said Williams, af-ter � ring 21 winners and who dyed her hair purple for the occasion.

Federer, the former � ve-time cham-pion and seeded a lowly seventh this year, was due to take on Slovenia’s Gre-ga Zemjla in the closing match on Arthur Ashe Stadium. But heavy late evening rain meant the Swiss star, still bruised by his second round loss at Wimbledon -- his worst All England defeat in a decade -- will have to try again on Tuesday.

There were no such problems, how-ever, for Spanish fourth seed David Fer-rer, a semi-� nalist in 2007 and 2012, who defeated teenage Australian quali� er Nick Kyrgios, 7-5, 6-3, 6-2 and will next play compatriot Roberto Bautista.

British quali� er Daniel Evans, the world number 179, stunned Japanese 11th seed Kei Nishikori, in the day’s big-gest shock, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2. l

Fireworks explode over the Arthur Ashe Stadium during the opening ceremony of the 2013 US Open on Day One of the 2013 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on Monday in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City AFP

Zimbabwe batsman Hamilton Masakadza (R) is congratulated by captain Brendan Taylor (L) on reaching 50 runs during their � rst game of the three match ODI series against Pakistan at the Harare Sports Club yesterday AFP

Zimbabwe end winless streak in style n AFP, Harare

A sturdy 85 from Hamilton Masakadza and a crucial late cameo from Sean Williams saw Zimbabwe record their � rst one-day win over Pakistan since 1998.

Chasing 245 in the � rst one-day international of a three-match series on Tuesday, Masakadza laid the platform before Williams � nished the job with an unbeaten 39 from 23 deliveries as Zimbabwe won by seven wickets with 10 balls to spare.

Although Misbah-ul-Haq held the Pakistan innings together in his 50th consecutive ODI as Pakistan captain, he was left to lament his decision to bat � rst at a venue where the pitch generally improves as the day goes on.

“We misread the pitch - it was looking like it was going to be slow in the second innings, but I think it was slow in the � rst innings and played better in the second,” said Misbah.

“Still I think Zimbabwe really de-served it - they played really well and played better than us. There was no panic in their batting line-up and they did it comfortably.”

Misbah � nished unbeaten on 83 and shared in a 99-run stand for the third wicket with Mohammad Hafeez, who made 70, but with Pakistan’s middle and lower order failing to � re they could only manage 244 for seven.

It could have been far worse for the tourists had Zimbabwe held their catches - both Nasir Jamshed and Ahmed Shehzad were put down dur-ing an opening partnership of 56, while Hafeez was let o� on 10 and 55.

Misbah required no such luck in a well-paced knock that saw him go to � fty in 62 balls before opening up to-wards the end, and his two sixes o� Tinashe Panyangara in the � nal over of the innings ensured that Pakistan at least had something to bowl at.

However Masakadza, who was re-stored to the top of the Zimbabwean innings for Pakistan’s tour, put on a con� dent stand of 107 with his open-ing partner Vusi Sibanda as Pakistan’s bowlers found little assistance in the pitch.

Sibanda was eventually trapped lbw for 54 by Saeed Ajmal, but Brendan Taylor maintained stability with a calm 43 not out as he and Masakadza took Zimbabwe to 176 for one in the 38th over.

Masakadza missed out on a poten-tial century when he slapped an Ajmal delivery straight to short extra cover, and the pressure was back on when Timycen Maruma put in another ner-vous showing with the bat.

Zimbabwe needed a nerveless in-nings to put them back on track, and Williams provided it as he struck four fours before � nishing the game in em-phatic fashion when he hit Mohammad Irfan for six over wide long-on.

“We were badly beaten by India a couple of weeks back, so to come out with that sort of performance shows a lot of character,” said Taylor.

“To beat the quality team that they’ve got shows we’re doing the right things, and it just shows that if our top-order batters come o� it lays that foun-dation.”

The two sides meet again at the same venue on Thursday. l

PakistanNasir Jamshed c Taylor b Chatara 27AShehzad st Taylor b Utseya 24Hafeez c Maruma b Chatara 70Misbah-ul-Haq not out 83Umar Amin run out 1Shahid Afridi c Taylor b Vitori 11Haris Sohail c Utseya b Vitori 2 Sarfraz Ahmed run out 7Saeed Ajmal not out 3Extras (lb-7, w-9) 16Total (for 7 wickets, 50 overs) 244

BowlingPanyangara 10-2-38-0 (w1), Vitori 10-0-42-2(w6), Chatara 10-2-32-2 (w1), P. Ut-seya 10-0-60-1, E. Chigumbura 2-0-11-0 (w1), M. Waller 2-0-19-0, S. Williams 4-0-18-0, H. Masakadza 2-0-17-0ZimbabweH. Masakadza c Misbah b Ajmal 85 V. Sibanda lbw Saeed Ajmal 54B. Taylor not out 43T. Maruma c Shehzad b Junaid 18 S. Williams not out 39Extras (b-1, lb-3, w-3) 7Total (for 3 wickets, 48.2 overs) 246

BowlingIrfan 9.2-1-45-0, Junaid 9-0-55-1 (w3), Ajmal 10-0-44-2, Hafeez 10-0-40-0, Afridi 9-0-51-0, Umar Amin 1-0-7-0ResultZimbabwe won by seven wickets.Zimbabwe lead three-match series 1-0.

Score Card

16 Back PageDHAKA TRIBUNE Wednesday, August 28, 2013

BSMMU proposes special incentive for nursesNurses who work in the ICU, CCU and NICU will initially bene� t from the proposed incentive allowance schemen Moniruzzaman Uzzal

Authorities of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University have decided to introduce a “special incentive al-lowance” for the nurses who regularly deal with critical patients in the Inten-sive Care Unit, Coronary Care Unit and Neo-natal Intensive Care Unit.

The proposal for paying 25% extra on basic salary as allowance was ap-proved on Monday in the 51st meeting of the BSMMU syndicate, the highest decision-making body of the only med-ical university of the country.

However, not all the nurses of these units will be bene� tted. Around 120-125 nurses will initially enjoy the bene-� t, of whom 40 nurses work in the ICU, 55 in the CCU and 31 in the NICU.

Seeking anonymity, a syndicate member said: “The nurses against whom there are disciplinary com-plaints, will not get the incentives.”

On Monday, BSMMU Registrar Pro-fessor Dr Sayedur Rahman told the Dhaka Tribune: “The ICU, CCU and NICU are the most challenging wards under the Anesthesiology, Cardiol-ogy and Pediatrics departments [re-spectively]. Nurses who work in these wards need special training for taking care of critical patients and hands on training to operate lifesaving equip-ment. Moreover, they often have to work patiently beyond their duty hours in case there are critical patients. That

is why they deserve the recognition for their hard work.”

No comprehensive recruitment and promotion policyDuring Monday’s meeting, the syndi-cate turned down the Recruitment and Promotion Policy 2010.

Instead, the syndicate advised to form a separate committee to review and form a speci� c and comprehensive policy that would bene� t all the sta� members including teachers, doctors, o� cers and employees.

The BSMMU which was established in April 1998 by renaming the erstwhile Post Graduate Hospital, has never had a comprehensive recruitment and pro-motion policy for all the sta� members, except for the teachers. In 2007, during the army-backed caretaker regime, BSMMU authorities reportedly took an initiative to formulate a draft policy in this regard. That draft, however, has never been � nalised.

After the incumbent government came to power in 2009, a committee, headed by the then BSMMU treasurer Dr Moazzem Hossain, was formed and tasked with coming up a comprehen-sive policy. In September 2010, that committee handed over a draft policy to the vice-chancellor.

At present, all the recruitments and promotions at the university are done according to that draft policy. It was also the same draft that was placed at

the meeting and was turned down by the syndicate on Monday.

Sources said during Monday’s meeting, several members vetoed the approval of the draft and advised re-viewing to make the draft a more com-prehensive one. Later, the syndicate members unanimously agreed to form another committee for reviewing the draft and placing it at the next meeting of the syndicate.

It has been learnt that the syn-dicate didn’t pass approval of the proposed policy. Several syndicate members advise to have the proposed policy be reviewed by another com-mittee, and to make a specific policy for all. Syndicate members unani-mously proposed to Vice Chancellor to form the committee soon. They re-quest to place the reviewed policy in the next meeting.

BSMMU Registrar Prof Dr Sayedur Rahman told the Dhaka Tribune: “We must bring changes to the 2010 policy.

“In that policy, retirement age for a teacher was 60 years. For the employ-ees, it was 57 years. But the govern-ment has recently extended the retire-ment age to 65 for teachers and 59 for government employees. The policy needs to accommodate these changes,” he said.

The new committee would de� nite-ly look on that and hopefully would propose a better policy, the BSMMU registrar hoped. l

A MOTHER’S HARDSHIP

1,100-year old Pala dynasty temple unearthed in Dinajpurn Hasibur Rahman Bilu, Bogra

Archaeologists from Jahangirnagar Univer-sity (JU) have excavated an ancient Hindu temple at Belwa village of Ghoraghat upazila in Dinajpur. The imposing and massive brick structure has been identi� ed as a Hindu temple from the Pala dynasty.

The chief of the project Professor Syed Mohammad Kamrul told journalists that the excavated site was under threat of destruction.

Swadhin Sen, associate professor of archaeology at JU, said the temple, ap-proximately 1,100 years old, it was a major archaeological discovery in Bangladesh.

“Multiple deities were worshiped at the temple at the same time,” said Prof Sen.

Several fragments of black sandstone sculptures have been identi� ed and docu-mented from the excavation, he added.

Among the three carvings that have been identi� ed are the pedestal of the Brahmanic sun god Surya, a fragment of the Gada (mace) depicted in the hand of the Hindu god Vishnu, and a fragment of

a Visnupatta (a type of dedicatory plaque used to worship Vishnu).

A miniature bronze statue of Hindu god Ga-nesha has also been found, said Swadhin Sen. “The worship of these three gods-Surya, Vish-nu and Ganesha- has been attested by these evidences. This is quite unique in the context of undivided Bengal,” said Swadhin Sen.

The excavation has already revealed the massive architectural layout of the temple, which is divided into two parts: the core temple area is rectangular, measuring 21 meters from east to west and 13 meters from north to south. The other half on the western side contains a solid square brick platform measuring 6.8 meters on all sides, which is the garbhagriha, or inner sanctum.

The space to the east of the sanctum is the mandap (assembly hall), which contains the remnants of six square brick pillars. A brick wall encloses the space on the south, east and the west. The wall has been severely dam-aged by locals who have carried away bricks.

On the west and south-west is a Sapta Rath projection, which are typical of this

period in Bengal, said Dipak Ranjan Das, former professor of Calcutta University and ancient South Asian architecture special-ist. The entire structure, excluding the pavements and approach ways measure 41 meters from east to west and 25 meters from north to south.

The entrance to the temple is to the east. From the parts excavated until now, the temple was a massive and solidly built struc-ture. A raised solid brick platform stands right behind the entrance, which measures 6.6 meters from east to west and 5.8 meters from north to south. The approach towards the platform is from the northeast and southeast corners.

A large area in front of the temple is paved with bricks and has a beaten earthen � oor. The exact dimensions of the pavement cannot be measured because of crop cover and the privately owned land is disputed.

The construction and � nishing of the walls, especially on the outside bears testimony to the workmanship of the skilled builders, said Swadhin Sen. l

Medical admission tests on October 4n Moniruzzman Uzzal

In a circular yesterday the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare announced medical and dental college admission tests would be held on October 4.

The admission tests for those wish-ing to be admitted in MBBS and BDS courses in public and private medical and dental colleges should apply and register online.

Online registrations will be possible from September 4, with the deadline on September 18.

Admit cards will be issued from Sep-tember 25 to October 3.

Foreign students applying need to include certi� ed copies of travel docu-ments or passports.

Meanwhile, in a letter of request to the ministry Bimol Kumer Guho, col-lege inspector of Dhaka University, has asked that the admission fees of pri-vate medical colleges should be � xed, because many private medical colleges charge foreigners large sums of money.

Accordingly, the committee respon-sible for � nalising admission procedures was advised to look into the matter. l

GP to invest $345m in network expansionn Muhammad Zahidul Islam

Grameenphone is going to borrow $345 million � nancial package from IFC, an arm of the World Bank, to expand its coverage in rural areas.

It will be country’s single highest in-vestment in the telecom arena, o� cials of the operator claimed.

“It is certainly a massive expansion and one of the largest investments in the infrastructure,” Abu Saeed Khan, a telecom sector analyst and a senior policy fellow (Bangladesh) at Lirne Asia told the Dhaka Tribune.

“As equipment price is coming down in the world market everyday, this is go-ing to be the biggest investment in terms of equipment in the country’s telecom sector,” said Saeed, former secretary general of Association of Mobile Tele-com Operators of Bangladesh (Amtob).

This investment plan will make Grameenphone stronger in network capacity and give it an extra mileage over other competitors, sources in the

industry said.Another source claimed, “This type

of investment plan means they are go-ing to concentrate more in the 2G and pressure will mount on the govern-ment and the telecom and revenue reg-ulators to open up and set things right.”

Vivek Sood, CEO of Grameenphone told the Dhaka Tribune, “The potential to expand telecom services in Bangla-desh is huge and IFC’s � nancing will be crucial in helping us improve con-nectivity and coverage in rural areas, boosting digital inclusion.”

IFC is leading a consortium of lend-ers including Proparco, DEG, FMO, CDC and OFID, all of which are develop-ment-focused � nancial institutions.

IFC’s own commitment is $150 mil-lion. The total package is one of the largest private sector packages in Ban-gladesh, according to IFC.

Grameenphone has a total of 44.67 million active subscribers, with 42.14% market share according to the country’s telecommunication regulator-BTRC. l

Government to issue new licence to 5 FM and community radios for each districtn Mohosinul Karim

The government has decided to issue licences to new frequency modulation (FM) and community radios in the country.

According to the decision by the information ministry, a total of� ve FM radios and one commu-nity radio for each district, wouldreceive licences and permission foroperation.

A senior ministry o� cial, seeking anonymity, told the Dhaka Tribune on Tuseday that the ministry has already � nalised the decision and published notices on two di� erent newspapers to get expression of interest (EoI) from investors.

“The decision of issuing licens-es may be realised within the current government’s tenure after getting ap-plications from interested parties,” he added.

However, Mortuza Ahmed, the in-formation secretary, refused to com-ment on this regard.

The o� cial said one of the main objectives of giving permissionfor new FM and community radi-os – is to run programmes based on the needs of the illiterate people.Entertainment events and emergency tra� c updates will also be broadcast in such radios.

Programmes targeting di� erent age demographics and women, agro-based programmes, weather updates, job up-dates, and other relevant events will also be broadcast through the radios, which will help the concerned commu-nities directly.

The o� cial said that the decision to issue new licences came as the government believes in freedom ofmedia. The move will ensure immedi-ate information and entertainment to both urban and rural communities, he added.

At present, there are 12 FM radios and 15 community radios operating in the country. The introduction of the new radios will elevate the number to above 80.

The FM radios operating across the country are- Bangladesh Betar (State-owned), Radio Foorti, Radio Today, Ra-dio Amar, ABC Radio, Dhaka FM, Peo-ple’s Radio, Radio Bhumi, Radio 21 and Radio Shadhin.

Two more FM radios with licences are yet to start their operations.

The existing community radi-os are – Sagor Giri of Young Powerin Social Action (Sitakunda, Chit-tagong), Radio Nalta of NaltaCommunity Hospital (Satkhi-ra), Radio Mukti of LDRO (Bogra),Radio Pollikontho of BRAC (Mou-livi Bazar), Barandro Community ‘Radio Ananda’ of Proyas (ChapaiNababgonj), Radio Padma of CCD (Rajshahi), Radio Jhinuk of Sri-zoni (Jhinaidhah), Radio Bikrampurof EC Bangladesh (Munshiganj), Ra-dio Lokobetar of MMC (Barguna SadarUpazila), Radio Chilmari of RDRS(Chilmari, Kurigram), Radio Sund-arban for Koyra Upazilla (Khulna),Radio Naf of ACLAB (Teknaf, Cox’s Bazar District), Rural Radio ofAgriculture Information Servics (AIS) for Barguna District, Radio Sagar Dweep of DUS for Hatiya Island of Noakhali District and Radio Coast Trust for Charfassion Bhola Island, Bhola District. l

In a letter of request to the ministry Bimol Kumer Guho, college inspector of Dhaka University, has asked that the admission fees of private medical colleges should be � xed, because many private medical colleges charge foreigners large sums of money

Telcos add 1.9m in Julyn Muhammad Zahidul Islam

The country’s mobile phone sector is back on the growth trend as they add-ed 9.75m active SIM connections in the last seven months putting the total number of subscribers to around 107m, said the regulatory body.

The number of new SIMs added over the same period last year was 8.33m while 9.43m in 2011, according to Ban-gladesh Telecommunication Regulato-ry Commission (BTRC).

Some 1.9m new subscribers were added in July only.

The telecom regulator published the monthly report on their website yester-day. It said after July, the country’s ac-tive mobile connections were 106.93m.

In July, market leader Grameenphone added 699,000 active subscribers; Robi got 873,000; Banglalink 248,000; Air-tel 76,000 while state-owned operator Teletalk got 8,000 new subscribers.

The report added that Citycell lost 22,000 subscribers in July. l

Rahela Khatun earns a living by helping out households throughout the day. In the afternoon she returns to her makeshift living place in Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital to feed her only son before going to work again. The photo was taken yesterday MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed at Romask Limited, 184, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1215. Editorial, News & Commercial O� ce: FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207.Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com

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Business

Businesswww.dhakatribune.com/business wednesday, august 28, 2013

Poor nations prepare strategy to mount pressure on donorsApparel export to India rises on tariff concession

B3

B2

The right to form trade union? Not in RMG Garment workers are facing the axe for attempted unionisationnKayes Sohel

Garment workers are losing jobs instantly af-ter the factory owners getting noticed there is an effort to form a trade union – a right as-sured by the law.

Leaders of different labour organisations alleged individual factories were taking such actions against the workers, who are making the efforts.

“Dozens of workers have already lost their jobs or faced suspension as they tried to form trade union,” Sirajul Islam Rony, president of Bangladesh National Garment Workers Employees League, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

“Today (Monday) at Star Garments Pri-vate Ltd, eight workers have been suspend-ed soon after taking initiative to form a trade union and at Weltex garments 12-13 workers have been forced to resign,” he said

The incidents are taking place in many fac-tories like Gazipur Eagle Eyes Design Ltd and Rumana Fashion Ltd, according to Rashidul Islam Raju, acting General Secretary of Ban-gladesh Mukto Sramik Federation.

“During the registration time for forming trade union, many workers have faced ha-rassment, which is a clear violation of the newly amended labour law,” he said.

“We feel insecure and face intimidation,” he said, urging the government to monitor the situation sincerely.

Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Associations (BGMEA) Vice Presi-dent SM Mannan Kochi, however, said such incident is not acceptable as law allows them (workers) to form trade union. “We will look into the matter.”

The government last month allowed the country’s 4m garment workers to form trade unions without prior permission from the factory owners, a major concession to cam-paigners lobbying for widespread reforms to the industry following the world’s worst industrial accident at Rana Plaza that killed more than 1100 people.

Kalpana Akter, a leader of the Bangladesh Centre for Workers Solidarity, criticised such incidents saying the law still lacks in protect-ing the workers from harassment by the fac-tory owners.

“The bureaucratic process to form trade unions is lengthy and cumbersome. That’s why workers fail to form unions out of fear of losing jobs,” she said.

Assistant executive director of Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS) Syed Sultan Ahmed said whenever any worker goes for forming trade union, they lose the job.

“This should be addressed immediately to protect worker rights by taking exempla-

ry action against the errant owners and the sacked workers should be given back their job,” he said.

He referred to issues like 30% workers’ representation to form trade union, scope of intimidation, and performance of participa-tion committee apart from EPZ etc are still restrictions to form trade union.

“Taking the advantage of this section of

the law, an employer or owner can dismiss workers,” he said.

During a three-day visit in Dhaka that ended August 21, the US Congressman Sander Levin also expressed his concern over the same issue. “Freedom of forming trade union is a must to ensure workers rights,” he said.

Earlier, Labour and Employment Minister Rajiuddin Ahmed Raju said the requirement of 30% workers’ representation for setting up a trade union has been kept in the amend-ed law to ensure discipline in trade unions in the ready-made garment sector.

Bangladesh government has been under

pressure from the international community to improve safety standards and working conditions in factories following the Rana Plaza collapse and the Tazreen fire incident.

According to the Labour Force Sur-vey-2010 of Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, about 54.1m people over 15 years of age were employed and the Department of Labour officials claimed about 2.1m workers were members of unions.

Going by that account, only 3.88% work-ers out of the total workforce were members of the trade unions. Department of Labour officials also said there were 7,106 trade unions across the country. l

‘During the registration time for forming trade union, many workers have faced harassment, which is a clear violation of the newly amended labour law’

garment workers walking towards their work places in dhaka Nashirul islam

dHaKa tRIBune Business2 wednesday, august 28, 2013

ULAB signs MoU with Thai universitynTribune Business Desk

The University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) signed a Memorandum of Under-standing (MoU) with Assumption University of Thailand to collaborate on academic mat-ters, research and knowledge sharing.

The signing ceremony was held at the ULAB premises at Dhanmondi in Dhaka re-cently, said a press release.

ULAB Vice Chancellor Prof Imran Rahman and Assumption University Registrar Dr Ka-mol Kitsawad signed the MoU on behalf of their respective sides.

ULAB Pro-Vice Chancellor Prof HM Jahir-ul Haque and Registrar Lt Col Foyzul Islam (Retd) were also present. l

Phoenix Finance’s Bogra branch relocatednTribune Business Desk

Phoenix Finance and Investments Ltd has shifted its Bogra branch office to a new lo-cation. The new address is Satani Madrasha, Eakubia School More, Sherpur, Sutrapur, Bogra.

Managing Director SM Intekhab Alam in-augurated the branch, said a press release.

The former communication minister Mamdudur Rahman and other local dis-tinguished people were present at the function. l

Poor nations prepare strategy to mount pressure on donorsThree-day international workshop concludes in Dhaka with a call to increase foreign aidnTribune Report

The Asia-Pacific countries, including Bangla-desh, have sketched out broader strategies to mount pressure on the developing and devel-oped countries to boost development cooper-ation for the least developed and poor coun-tries in accordance with their commitment.

After a three-day workshop concluded in Dhaka yesterday, twenty-eight govern-ments and civil society organisations from 12 countries of the region endorsed a joint agreement for getting effective development cooperation ahead of the first Global Partner-ship Ministerial Meeting to be held in Mexico in April, 2014.

“Most of the countries are near to attain the MDG targets by 2015, but now we need to devise strategy and work plan to face post-MDG situation,” Bangladesh Finance Minis-ter AMA Muhith told a press briefing on the future strategy.

He said the developed world had made commitment of providing 0.7% of their gross national income (GNI) to the least developed and poor nations.

“But they are not even close to their com-mitted amounts of assistance. We have to put pressure on them to extend the financial assistance,” he said.

In reply to a question, the minister said Bangladesh’s graduation from LDC to a mid-dle income country would not affect the aid flow significantly.

The ‘term’(meaning status of the coun-try) will be changed for Bangladesh when it becomes a middle income country, he said, adding that there will be three years time to take preparations for changing the status.

The joint statement recommended three broad strategies at the country level, and will actively seek regional cooperation, in a prac-tical and feasible way.

The strategies are strengthening and

operationalise the country-led results and accountability frameworks and multi-stake-holders’ platforms to assess performance, placement of ODA ( official development assistance) in a broader development fi-nance landscape for financing development priorities including MDGs and Post-2015 de-velopment agenda, and upscale successful South-South Cooperation and Triangular Co-operation from the region, including Asian Approaches to knowledge sharing platforms on development.

After sharing respective country experi-ences and accruing knowledge on effective development cooperation in the region in line with the Busan Commitments and the Global Partnership for Effective Develop-ment Cooperation (GPEDC), the participants reached in a common understanding.

“We recognise that rapid economic growth

has contributed to remarkable progress in the Millennium Development Goals by the region, although these are accompanied by rising inequalities,” said the statement.

It said: “We acknowledge the requirement for deepening of the Millennium Develop-ment Goals in the remaining two years to ad-dress the issues of income and non-income inequalities, the need for quality education outcomes, youth unemployment and vul-nerabilities, gender inequality and social ex-clusion, health and environment risks, con-flict and fragility, governance, slow progress in global partnerships on ODA, trade, tech-nology and affordable medicines.”

The countries anticipated that aid and other development financing will remain important part of the efforts to reach MDGs targets and ensuring stronger links between the uses of country generated revenue and development partners’ funding remain crit-ical till 2015 and beyond.

“We reaffirm that efficient country sys-tems are critically important for country ownership and more domestic resource mo-bilization to manage development goals.”

The event also outlined for specific ac-tions by the developing nations from the Asia-Pacific to adopt the measures to imple-ment the recommended strategies.

The actions are strengthening and oper-ationalise country-led results and account-ability frameworks and multi-stakeholders’ platforms to assess performance, strengthen multi-stakeholder Results and Accountabil-ity Frameworks and placement of ODA in a broader development finance landscape for financing development priorities including MDGs and Post-2015 development agenda.

Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, Economic Relations Division (ERD) Secretary Abul Kalam Azad and Additional Secretary of ERD Arastoo Khan were present at the briefing. l

Oil rises above $106 a barrel on Syrian crisisnAP, Bangkok

The price of oil rose above $106 a barrel Tues-day after a US official said there was strong evidence that Syria used chemical weapons against civilians, a sign that Washington might be considering a military strike against President Bashar Assad’s regime.

US benchmark crude for October delivery was up 34 cents to $106.26 per barrel at mid-day Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The con-tract fell 50 cents, or 0.5%, to close at $105.92 on Monday.

The price of oil has risen about 15% in the past three months on concern that unrest in Egypt and civil war in Syria could disrupt production and exports, especially in Lib-ya and Iraq. It has also raised the specter of spreading violence that could block import-ant supply routes.

Secretary of State John Kerry appeared to be making a case for an aggressive response to the Syrian conflict on Monday when he said there “undeniable” evidence of a deadly gas attack in a Damascus suburb that killed hundreds of people. l

FBBCI seeks Chinese investment in agro-industriesnTribune Report

Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Com-merce and Industry (FBCCI) sought Chinese investment to set  up industrial parks and agro-based industries in Bangladesh. 

At the meeting with a Chinese delegation in Dhaka yesterday, Bangladesh’s apex trade body leaders made the call.

The visiting delegation comprises of four members of the Standing Committees of People’s Congress of Yuxi, Eshan and Xin-ping cities of Yunnan provice.

After the meeting, the delegation said that they would inform the higher authorities in the Chinese government about the FBCCI’s proposals.

”China can invest in Bangladesh in es-

tabilishing industrial parks and agro-based industries taking advantage of cheap labour and low production cost,” said MA Momen, a FBCCI director.

Abu Bakkar Ali, President of Rajshahi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, came

up with the call to the Chinese investors to set up agro-based industries especially in Northern part of Bangladesh.

The Chinese delegation was led by Zheng Yunlong, deputy director of the Standing Committee of People’s Congress of Yuxi city. l

Finance Minister aMa Muhith

BusinessdHaKa tRIBune 3wednesday, august 28, 2013

Apparel export to India rises on tariff concessionExporters see little risk of Rupee devaluationnIbrahim Hossain Ovi

Bangladesh’s export of apparel products to India rose by about 37% to US$75m in the fiscal year 2012-13 thanks to duty-free and quota-free access of some textile products into Indian market.

The earnings increased from $55m in the fiscal 2011-12, after India offered the tariff concession to 46 textile products of greatest sensitivity from September 2011.

In the last fiscal year, Bangladesh export-ed knitwear worth over $14m, an increase of about 12% compared to the previous fiscal year’s value of about $13m.

“Bangladesh has bright export potential in India as the country is densely populat-ed and has strong middle-class consumers,” said a BGMEA director.

He said garment exports to India are in-creasing due to high demands for Bangla-deshi products like trousers, shirts, blous-es, skirts, kids wear, cotton nightwear and jeans.

Woven garments worth $61m was export-ed during the period, which was more than 42% higher compared to $42m of the previ-ous fiscal year.

“Bangladesh’s garment export to India increased due to the tariff concession and geographical proximity, but we could not achieve expected growth,” Salam Murshedy, president of Exporters Association of Ban-gladesh (EAB) told the Dhaka Tribune.

To achieve the target, the government

and stakeholders in the sector should show-case the products in different states of India through holding fairs, he said.

If Bangladesh takes measures to cut a slice from the huge Indian market, Salam said it can become the second big destina-tion for the country’s apparel products.

About the possible impact of substantial devaluation of Indian Rupee against dollar, Murshedy said it would have little impact on our RMG exports as the manufacturers, at the same time, will get inputs at lower prices.

RMG exports may face a setback in the days ahead due to devaluation of the Rupee as the Indian consumers would cut con-sumption, said a senior official of EPB.  

He, however, argued the local manufac-

turers will also get the privilege of lower import cost for raw materials, which would allow them to cut the export products too.

Bangladesh’s overall exports to India rose to about $564m in 2012-13, which is more than 13% higher compared to the previous year’s $498m.

Readymade garment exports from Ban-gladesh to India have seen a significant jump, said a statement of Indian High Com-mission to Bangladesh.

Item-wise break-up of Bangladeshi exports to India reveal that textile fibres, paper yarn, and woven fabric constitute about 24% of the exports followed by other man made textile articles, which constitute about 14%. l

Stocks end flat in volatile trading with increased participationnTribune Report

Stocks ended flat amid high volatility yester-day, as late profit taking cut early gains.

Like the previous session, the market swung positive and negative territories sev-eral times throughout the whole trading session, with investors playing both sides of fence.

After gaining 45.88 points within the first two and a half hours, the benchmark DSEX index closed at 4,132 with a marginal drop of 2 points or 0.04%. The blue chip index DS30 was down nearly 15 points or 1% to 1,529.

The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Se-lective Categories Index, CSCX, lost 36 points to 8,056.Investors preferred booking short-term profit amid fears of political chaos in the run up to general election, said a fund manager.

Opening hype behind the news of the central bank’s release of Tk3bn refinancing scheme could not sustain for a longer period due to natural correction in line with selling spree, said IDLC Investment in its daily mar-ket analysis.

Upcoming corporate declarations of most of the scrips were the key reasons behind tex-tile sector’s dominance in the turnover list. Sector wise as well as scrip wise shuffling leveled the bourse flat at the end of the ses-sion.

However, scrip-wise swings were prag-matic as 70 out of 289 traded scrips posted more than 4% change of their respective prices.

All the major sectors posted losses except tannery, textile and pharmaceuticals, gain-ing more than 3% each. The biggest loser was financial institutions that lost 2.37%, followed by telecommunications 1%, power 0.94% and banks 0.40%.

Slightly higher trading activities were observed at DSE as the total turnover value stood at Tk6.9bn, an increase of 14.6% over the previous session.

Losers took a modest lead over the gain-ers as out of 289 issues traded, 113 gained, 152 declined and 24 remained unchanged.

Grameenphone continued to dominate the turnover’s chart for the third consecutive session as the stock accumulated turnover worth Tk500m.

It was followed by Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Ltd, Square Pharmaceuti-cals, Padma Oil, Meghna Petroleum, Tallu Spinning, Olympic Industries, Apex Adelchi and Heidelberg Cement. l

Probe into four listed companies openednTribune Report

The securities regulator, BSEC, has opened investigation into four listed companies for what it considered abnormal increase in the prices of their shares. The companies are Mithun Knitting, CVO Petrochemical Refin-ery Ltd, Tallu Spinning and Bangas.

The commission has formed a two-mem-ber committee to probe the unusual price hike of the companies and asked to submit the findings within 15 working days, Bangla-desh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) in a statement yesterday.

It earlier asked its surveillance department to take necessary action after instant market watch surveillance system had identified ab-normal price rise of the companies, it said.

In the last one month, stock price of Mithun Knitting surged 62% to close at Tk129.8, CVO Petrochemical 61% to Tk 634.7, Tallu Spinning 40% to Tk 46, Bangas 72% to Tk584.6.

The commission also fined Salta Capital Limited Tk500,000 for short selling of East-ern Bank Limited shares, breaching the secu-rities rules. The broker went for short sale of 3m shares of Eastern Bank in phases between April 8, 2013 and April 10, 2013, it said. l

upcoming corporate declarations of most of the scrips were the key reasons behind textile sector’s dominance in the turnover list. sector wise as well as scrip wise shuffling leveled the bourse flat at the end of the session

SME credit disbursement increasesnTribune Report

The credit flow to small and medium enter-prises during the second quarter of the cur-rent calendar year increased 16% from the first quarter, Bangladesh Bank sources said.

According to central bank data, the to-tal loan disbursement to SME sector rose to Tk225bn in the April-June from Tk194bn in the January-March.

In total, the SME sector received a total of Tk419bn during the first half of the year.

For the year, the SME loan disbursement target was set at Tk742bn by the Bangladesh Bank, suggesting that over 56% of the target-ed figure has already been distributed in the first half.

While SME credit flow has grown signifi-cantly, the private sector credit growth is ap-pearing disappointing.

Due to political uncertainty ahead of next general election, the large entrepreneurs are not showing any interest in investments, said bank sources.

Bangladesh Bank’s Deputy Governor SK Sur Chowdhury said: “We have been asking

the scheduled banks to give emphasis on in-creasing credit supply to the SME sector.”

The SME credit will encourage emergence of new entrepreneurs, he said.

According to the data, 66% of total dis-bursement went to the business sector while the service sector got 28%, the manufactur-ing sector 28%, small industry sector 50.6% and the women entrepreneurs 3.6%.

The figure received by the business sector was Tk278bn while service sector received Tk20.1bn, manufacturing sector around Tk120bn, small industry Tk211bn and wom-en entrepreneurs Tk15bn.

“As big entrepreneurs are not willing to expand their investment right now fearing political turmoil, banks focus on SME cred-it to continue business,” said Nurul Amin, President of Association of Bankers Bangla-desh (ABB). l

smE loan disbursement target was set at Tk742bn by the Bangladesh Bank, suggesting that over 56% of the targeted figure has already been distributed in the first half

wednesday, august 28, 2013dHaKa tRIBune Business4

India says can afford food-for-poor scheme as rupee fallsnAFP, New Delhi

India's finance minister insisted today that the government can afford a vast new food programme for the poor despite concern about its impact on the strained public fi-nances.

The rupee skidded in morning trade to 65.4 against the dollar, close to its lifetime low of 65.56, and stock markets fell the morning after the lower house of parliament passed the Food Security Bill.

The legislation, a flagship programme of the ruling Congress party with a budgeted annual cost of around $18 billion, is intended to "wipe out" endemic hunger and malnutri-tion in the aspiring superpower.

Once passed by the upper house and approved by the president, it will reform India's existing food distribution system, providing five kilograms of heavily subsi-dised food grain per month to more than 800 million people. "After providing for the food security bill, we will remain within the limit I have set for myself in the budget," Finance Minister P. Chidambaram told reporters at a press conference in the capital.

The government has budgeted an addi-tional 230bn rupees annually for the pro-gramme on top of the existing 900bn rupee food subsidy bill.

Chidambaram, who has been seeking to reassure investors about India's finances, re-iterated that a budget deficit of 4.8 percent of gross domestic product remained a "red line" that would not be crossed this year.

India's central Reserve Bank of India has previously warned that increased public spending stemming from the food bill could deepen the government's deficit and stoke

already elevated inflation. "The broad senti-ment for the rupee is still weak. The food bill will be a strain on the government finances," said Siddhartha Sanyal, chief India econo-mist with Barclays Capital.

Asian shares and currencies were also hit on Tuesday by concerns over possible US military intervention in Syria.

The rupee, one of Asia's worst-performing currencies this year, has fallen on fears of for-eign fund outflows as the US economy picks up.

Chidambaram said on Monday that he expected the bill to clear the upper house

of parliament "in the next couple of days". It will then need to be signed by the president to pass into law.

Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi told MPs in parliament that the food bill would send a "big message" to the world that In-dia "is taking the responsibility of providing food security of all its citizens."

Gandhi was later taken to hospital before voting took place but was discharged hours later after a check-up. She had reportedly been suffering from a fever and was exhaust-ed, a party MP said. l

UN food agency urges Asia Pacific to stem food lossesnAFP, Bangkok

Around 35% of food is lost between harvest and distribution across the Asia-Pacific re-gion, depriving millions of nutrition, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation said Tuesday.

Poor production planning, a lack of stor-age, weak transport systems, crop disease and parasites cause some 30% of cereals and 42% of fruit and vegetables to be lost before reach-ing consumers, the FAO said in Bangkok.

“More effort is needed to raise global awareness of the critical issue of food losses and particularly post-harvest losses, as well as food waste, which is increasing,” said Hi-royuki Konuma, the FAO’s assistant director for the Asia-Pacific.

“About 35 percent on average is lost or wasted after harvest”, he said, adding that last year the Asia-Pacific “was home to 536 million hungry people.”

Konuma was speaking at the launch of a campaign to save food in the region, bring-ing together more than 130 participants from

20 countries ranging from Pakistan to the Philippines.

The FAO defines “loss” as food which does not make it from harvest to the market, while “waste” is food thrown away by consumers, restaurants and supermarkets - a trend that increases with greater urbanisation.

The region, whose economies have boomed in recent years, wastes substantially less than more developed areas such as the United States and Europe.

But the issue remains a cornerstone of de-velopment discussions, according to M S Swa-minathan, who helped shape India’s “Green Revolution” which boosted crop yields.

“Food waste is also a waste of natural re-sources like land and water,” he said, adding that “food losses and waste are becoming so central to discussions on both food security and sustainable development”.

The FAO says that if just a quarter of the food wasted worldwide were saved, this would be enough to feed the 870 million people suffering from hunger, of whom 536 million live in the Asia-Pacific region. l

Dollar sags in Asia on Syrian tensionnAFP, Tokyo

The dollar edged down against the safe-haven yen in Asia on Tuesday due to concerns over a possible US military action against Syria.

The dollar was at 98.29 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade, down from 98.51 yen in New York Monday afternoon.

The euro bought $1.3373 and 131.45 yen compared with $1.3369 and 131.68 yen.

The greenback lost ground in the wake of a decline in Tokyo stocks and due to concerns over a possible US mil-itary strike against Syria, said a dealer at a Japanese bank.

“The possibility of the US military at-tacks could make investors risk averse, weighing on the dollar,” he told Dow Jones Newswires.

US Secretary of State John Kerry gave the most explicit warning yet to Damas-cus that the US would take action over the chemical weapons attack, which he labelled a “moral obscenity”.

Speaking amid reports that Washing-ton and its allies are preparing to launch a punitive cruise missile strike on Syrian targets, Kerry accused Bashar al-Assad’s regime of engaging in a cover-up.

“Let me be clear. The indiscriminate slaughter of civilians, the killing of wom-en and children and innocent bystanders by chemical weapons is a moral obsceni-ty,” he declared in a televised statement.

“By any standard it is inexcusable, and despite the excuses and equivoca-tions that some have manufactured, it is undeniable.”

Emerging Asia currencies were most-ly lower, with the Indian rupee trading at 65.32 to the dollar, down from 64.23 Monday afternoon and close to a record low of 65.56 last week.

Expectations of an end to the US stim-ulus programme have seen investors in recent months repatriate some of the vast sums that have poured into emerg-ing economies, hitting currencies and equities.

“Coming on the heels of Friday’s soft US new home sales report, the market has become even more alert to the (US) economy’s readings into the September 18 FOMC,” National Australia Bank said.

Some speculate the US central bank would announce its start of tapering the bond-buying programme at the next September 17-18 meeting of the poli-cy-setting Federal Open Market Commit-tee.

The dollar rose to 10,925 Indonesian rupiah from 10,770 on Monday.

It went up to 44.43 Philippine pe-sos from 44.20 pesos, to 1,115.85 South Korean won from 1,113.20 won, and to Sg$1.2824 from Sg$1.2791, and to Tw$29.97 from Tw$29.89.

The Thai baht was flat at 32.16 baht.The Australian dollar fell to 89.81

US cents from rose to 90.39 cents. The Chinese yuan fetched 16.03 yen against 16.07 yen. l

an Indian businessmen sifts through rice before a grain auction at a grains depot near new delhi yesterday, one day after the Indian parliament passed a flagship $18bn programme to provide subsidised food to the poor that is intended to “wipe out” endemic hunger and malnutrition in the aspiring superpower. despite decades of fast economic growth, India still struggles to feed its 1.2-billion population adequately with more than 40% of children under five malnourished, according to a major survey last year aFP

India will tide over economic woes: President MukherjeenBSS

India’s President Pranab Mukherjee yester-day said long-term prospects of the country are bright and the current economic woes would be successfully overcome.

“Yes, there are predicaments and hur-dles but I am sure we will tide over them...Our long term growth prospects are quite right...,” he said, while addressing the 11th convocation of the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES).

Mukherjee, who himself was Finance Minister, said he was “not disappointed” by the current economic situation in the country. He said that India had achie- ved a 7.9% growth despite major interna-tional financial problems and the Eurozone crisis.

India’s economic growth rate in 2012-13 slipped to a decade’s low of 5% from 6.2% a year ago and the prospects for the current fiscal do not seem very promising.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has re-cently lowered the growth projection for the current fiscal to 5.5% from 5.7% earlier. l

BusinessdHaKa tRIBune wednesday, august 28, 2013 5

Japan’s debt-funding costs to hit $257bn next yearnReuters, Tokyo

Japan expects to spend a record $257bn to service its debt during the next fiscal year, a document obtained by Reuters showed, un-derscoring the huge burden created by the government’s borrowings.

The amount to be allocated for debt-ser-vicing for the year that will begin on April 1 is nearly as large as the gross domestic product of Singapore, which the World Bank put at $275bn at the end of 2012.

Japan’s Ministry of Finance (MOF), charged with drafting the state budget and issuing government bonds, will request 25.3tn yen ($257bn) in debt-servicing costs under the budget, the document showed on Tuesday.

That will be up 13.7% from the amount set aside for the current fiscal year, reflecting the ministry’s plan to guard against any fu-ture rise in long-term interest rates.

The increased debt-servicing cost may heighten pressure on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to proceed with a scheduled two-stage sales tax hike from next year, which is seen as a necessary first step in fixing Japan’s tat-tered finances.

But with Abe having made ending 15 years of deflation and revitalization of Japan’s economy among his top policy priorities, some of his advisers and members of his rul-ing Liberal Democratic Party want to delay or water down the tax hikes, worried they could

hurt a budding economic recovery.Years of fiscal stimulus to revive a stag-

nant economy and surging social welfare costs for a rapidly ageing population have led to Japan running a record 1,000 trillion yen ($10tn) in public debt, double the size of its economy and the biggest among major in-

dustrialized nations.The MOF will compile spending requests

for next fiscal year’s budget, including its own to fund debt-servicing costs and other expenses, and draft the state budget, which needs government and parliament approval to take effect. l

Ahead of G20, China urges caution in Fed policy taperingnReuters, Beijing

The US Federal Reserve must consider when and how fast it unwinds its economic stimu-lus to avoid harming emerging markets, al-though the impact on China could be more limited compared with some other coun-

tries, senior Chinese officials said on Tues-day.

The warning by China’s Vice Finance Min-ister Zhu Guangyao and central bank Vice Governor Yi Gang came as economies from Brazil to Indonesia struggle to cope with capital flight as US interest rates rise ahead of an expected tapering off in the Fed’s bond buying program that unleashed liquidity across the world.

“The US economy is showing some posi-tive signs and is recovering gradually and we welcome this,” Zhu told a briefing ahead of G20 leaders’ summit in Russia next week.

“But the United States - the main curren-cy issuing country - must consider the spill-over effect of its monetary policy, especially the opportunity and rhythm of its exit from the ultra-loose monetary policy,” Zhu said.

Apart from being a leading emerging mar-ket, China has a major stake in the direction of Fed policy as one of the biggest creditors to the United States.

A substantial portion of its foreign ex-change reserves - the world’s biggest by far at some $3.5tn are invested in US govern-ment, agency and corporate debt.

Financial markets are fretting that the U.S. Fed might decide to reduce its monthly bond buying when it meets on Sept 17 and 18. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said in June

the bond buying program could be halted by the middle of 2014.

The prospects of the Fed reining in its stimulus comes as China’s economic growth slows down to its weakest pace in two de-cades, partly as the government tries to re-duce its reliance on exports in favour of do-mestic consumption.

Zhu said China faced a severe econom-ic environment at home and abroad, but it would keep economic policies stable.

China will refrain from providing fresh stimulus and he predicted the economy was on track to grow around 7.5% this year - in line with the government’s target.

The government will instead quicken structural adjustments, including efforts to reduce with factory overcapacity, he said.

Speaking at the briefing ahead of the G20 meeting in St Petersburg on Sept 5 and 6, Vice Governor Yi Gang said how nations might cope as developed economies tighten monetary policy will be a focus of the G20 meeting.

“On monetary policy, the focal point (of G20) will be on how to minimize the exter-nal impact when major developed countries exit or gradually exit quantitative easing, especially causing volatile capital flows in emerging markets and putting pressures on emerging-market currencies,” Yi said.

“The impact on China will not be obvious compared to other emerging economies - the yuan will be stable and monetary policy will be stable,” he said.

Analysts said Yi was probably referring to China’s capital controls and its foreign currency reserves, which provide cushions against economic shocks.

“Not only China has capital controls, it also has piles of FX reserves and current account surplus, these are the advantages for China to weather the Fed tapering,” said Minggao Shen, China economist at Citigroup in Hong Kong.

China keeps a tight grip on capital account transactions, but there are many loopholes, especially through trade flows, analysts say. So China’s economy could face some pres-sure from capital outflows, they say.

A $100bn foreign-currency fund being discussed by countries that make up the BRICS grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa will be set up in the foreseeable future, Yi said, adding that Chi-na would provide “a big share” of the funds but he did not give details.

“It will not exceed 50%,” he said.The BRICS’ leaders have agreed to set up

the fund to help ward off currency crises. It is expected to be formally launched at a BRICS summit in Brazil next year. lChina’s Vice Finance Minister Zhu guangyao

World tourism shows surprise surgenAFP, Madrid

International tourist numbers surged by 5.2% to nearly half a billion people world-wide in the first half of 2013, beating earli-er expectations, the United Nation’s World Tourism Organisation said yesterday.

Some 494 million international tourists spent at least one night abroad in the first six months of the year, the Madrid-based agen-cy said in a report of preliminary results for the period.

As a result of the “robust” performance, the WTO said it was boosting its 2013 fore-cast. After originally tipping growth of three to four percent for the whole year, it now ex-pects the increase to be at the higher end of that range “or to slightly exceed it”.

Europe enjoyed growth of 5.1% in interna-tional tourist numbers in the six months, it said.

The Asia-Pacific region reported growth of 6.2% including an 11.6% surge in tourists going to Southeast Asia.

But results were weaker than anticipated in the Americas, which posted growth of just 2.2%.

International tourist numbers grew 3.1% in North America, but South America report-ed growth of just 0.3% and the Caribbean had growth of a meagre 0.1%.

In Africa, international tourist arrivals rose by 3.8%.

In the Middle East, tourist numbers soared by 12.9%, but these figures should be viewed “with caution” because of uneven results and limited data, the report said. l

Japan’s Finance Minister taro aso speaks during a semi-annual parliament hearing on monetary policy at the Lower House of the parliament in tokyo rEuTErs

BANKABBANK | 2.95 | 32.60 | Vol. 272422 D: 24.20 ⇑ 0.83% | 24.21 | 24.70 / 22.00 C: 23.90 ⇓ 0.83% | 23.99 | 24.40 / 23.80CITYBANK | 1.15 | 25.97 | Vol. 367773 D: 16.80 ⇓ 1.18% | 16.90 | 18.50 / 15.30 C: 16.80 ⇓ 1.75% | 16.74 | 17.00 / 16.50IFIC | 1.10 | 18.34 | Vol. 480900 D: 20.10 ⇓ 2.90% | 20.32 | 21.50 / 19.50 C: 20.10 ⇓ 3.83% | 20.38 | 20.60 / 20.00ISLAMIBANK | 3.78 | 27.16 | Vol. 351050 D: 37.10 ⇓ 0.54% | 37.09 | 37.40 / 35.00 C: 36.70 ⇓ 1.08% | 36.72 | 36.90 / 36.60NBL | 1.05 | 15.76 | Vol. 1110966 D: 11.50 ⇑ 0.00% | 11.55 | 12.00 / 10.90 C: 11.50 ⇓ 1.71% | 11.60 | 11.70 / 11.50PUBALIBANK | 1.92 | 21.18 | Vol. 343931 D: 29.50 ⇑ 1.03% | 29.48 | 29.70 / 26.30 C: 29.00 ⇑ 0.69% | 29.03 | 30.00 / 26.00RUPALIBANK | 6.70 | 64.27 | Vol. 37020 D: 60.50 ⇓ 0.66% | 60.69 | 61.80 / 59.00 C: 60.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 60.00 | 60.00 / 60.00UCBL | 1.90 | 21.72 | Vol. 1646598 D: 18.00 ⇓ 1.64% | 18.12 | 18.50 / 16.60 C: 18.10 ⇓ 0.55% | 18.12 | 18.40 / 17.00UTTARABANK | 3.42 | 26.97 | Vol. 311361 D: 24.90 ⇓ 0.40% | 24.96 | 26.50 / 22.50 C: 24.80 ⇑ 0.00% | 24.89 | 25.00 / 24.80ICBIBANK | -1.60 | -13.03 | Vol. 252500 D: 5.90 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.97 | 6.10 / 5.90EBL | 3.91 | 28.22 | Vol. 661050 D: 25.70 ⇓ 1.15% | 25.85 | 26.00 / 25.40 C: 25.50 ⇑ 0.00% | 25.50 | 25.50 / 25.50ALARABANK | 2.03 | 14.91 | Vol. 120746 D: 14.70 ⇓ 0.68% | 14.71 | 15.00 / 13.40 C: 14.80 ⇓ 0.67% | 14.76 | 15.00 / 14.20PRIMEBANK | 2.89 | 22.40 | Vol. 504637 D: 21.60 ⇓ 0.92% | 21.68 | 22.10 / 20.00 C: 21.40 ⇑ 0.47% | 21.62 | 21.90 / 21.40SOUTHEASTB | 1.89 | 22.66 | Vol. 433034 D: 15.90 ⇓ 0.63% | 16.00 | 16.20 / 15.00 C: 15.80 ⇓ 0.63% | 15.82 | 16.00 / 15.60DHAKABANK | 1.46 | 18.08 | Vol. 614423 D: 20.10 ⇑ 0.50% | 19.99 | 20.30 / 19.00 C: 20.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 19.99 | 20.20 / 18.00NCCBANK | 1.90 | 15.88 | Vol. 336135 D: 11.90 ⇓ 0.83% | 11.89 | 12.00 / 11.00 C: 11.90 ⇓ 0.83% | 11.92 | 12.00 / 11.00SIBL | 2.05 | 14.47 | Vol. 838486 D: 11.80 ⇓ 1.67% | 11.92 | 12.20 / 11.20 C: 11.90 ⇓ 0.83% | 12.09 | 12.10 / 11.80DUTCHBANGL | 11.57 | 54.27 | Vol. 18320 D: 98.20 ⇑ 0.20% | 98.09 | 98.70 / 89.00 C: 97.00 ⇓ 6.73% | 97.00 | 97.00 / 97.00MTBL | 1.17 | 17.27 | Vol. 50100 D: 14.60 ⇑ 0.00% | 14.57 | 14.70 / 13.20STANDBANKL | 2.33 | 14.41 | Vol. 633637 D: 13.20 ⇓ 1.49% | 13.22 | 13.40 / 12.50 C: 13.20 ⇓ 0.75% | 13.22 | 13.50 / 13.00ONEBANKLTD | 2.35 | 15.34 | Vol. 606525 D: 14.70 ⇓ 0.68% | 14.80 | 15.20 / 13.40 C: 14.70 ⇓ 0.68% | 14.73 | 14.90 / 14.60BANKASIA | 1.35 | 20.80 | Vol. 789450 D: 19.80 ⇑ 2.59% | 19.77 | 19.90 / 17.40 C: 19.20 ⇑ 1.59% | 19.18 | 19.30 / 19.00MERCANBANK | 2.07 | 16.59 | Vol. 614951 D: 11.60 ⇓ 1.69% | 11.67 | 12.00 / 10.70 C: 11.40 ⇓ 3.39% | 11.46 | 11.90 / 11.00EXIMBANK | 1.80 | 14.31 | Vol. 888879 D: 11.50 ⇓ 0.86% | 11.55 | 12.00 / 11.00 C: 11.60 ⇓ 1.69% | 11.65 | 11.80 / 11.50JAMUNABANK | 2.47 | 18.56 | Vol. 118749 D: 13.80 ⇓ 0.72% | 13.88 | 14.00 / 12.60 C: 13.80 ⇑ 0.00% | 13.77 | 13.80 / 13.70BRACBANK | 1.51 | 24.87 | Vol. 110595 D: 28.60 ⇑ 0.35% | 28.59 | 29.00 / 25.70 C: 28.10 ⇓ 1.40% | 27.86 | 28.20 / 28.00SHAHJABANK | 2.61 | 14.47 | Vol. 200297 D: 14.30 ⇑ 0.00% | 14.35 | 15.20 / 12.90 C: 14.10 ⇓ 2.76% | 14.20 | 14.50 / 14.10

PREMIERBAN | 1.18 | 13.95 | Vol. 712232 D: 9.90 ⇓ 1.98% | 10.01 | 10.40 / 9.10 C: 10.00 ⇓ 0.99% | 10.09 | 10.20 / 10.00TRUSTBANK | 0.50 | 18.00 | Vol. 61588 D: 17.20 ⇓ 0.58% | 17.44 | 17.70 / 15.90 C: 17.00 ⇓ 1.16% | 16.99 | 17.00 / 16.00FIRSTSBANK | 1.85 | 13.89 | Vol. 240512 D: 12.00 ⇑ 0.84% | 12.01 | 12.20 / 10.90 C: 11.90 ⇓ 0.83% | 11.92 | 12.00 / 11.80

NON BANKING F IIDLC | 4.43 | 29.18 | Vol. 208517 D: 63.90 ⇓ 1.39% | 64.59 | 65.90 / 63.00 C: 64.00 ⇓ 1.84% | 64.31 | 65.10 / 63.80ULC | 1.80 | 14.90 | Vol. 60711 D: 27.80 ⇓ 1.77% | 28.05 | 28.60 / 26.00UTTARAFIN | 7.16 | 41.54 | Vol. 147214 D: 78.30 ⇓ 1.76% | 79.12 | 80.50 / 73.00 C: 78.60 ⇓ 1.50% | 79.51 | 83.00 / 78.60MIDASFIN | 0.16 | 10.21 | Vol. 30200 D: 33.00 ⇓ 4.90% | 33.03 | 34.70 / 32.30 C: 33.00 ⇑ 1.54% | 33.00 | 33.00 / 33.00FLEASEINT | 2.34 | 13.93 | Vol. 210408 D: 25.70 ⇓ 1.53% | 25.94 | 26.30 / 24.00 C: 25.50 ⇓ 3.77% | 25.81 | 26.20 / 25.40PLFSL | 1.37 | 17.48 | Vol. 565366 D: 23.50 ⇓ 2.08% | 23.73 | 25.50 / 21.60 C: 23.60 ⇓ 1.67% | 23.74 | 25.00 / 21.70PRIMEFIN | 0.87 | 17.88 | Vol. 236156 D: 25.60 ⇓ 2.66% | 25.98 | 27.50 / 25.00 C: 25.60 ⇓ 3.76% | 25.85 | 26.30 / 25.60PREMIERLEA | 0.10 | 11.37 | Vol. 346500 D: 10.00 ⇓ 1.96% | 10.09 | 10.40 / 10.00 C: 10.20 ⇑ 0.00% | 10.23 | 10.40 / 10.20ISLAMICFIN | 1.03 | 15.48 | Vol. 709611 D: 16.00 ⇓ 2.44% | 16.41 | 16.70 / 14.80 C: 16.10 ⇓ 2.42% | 16.27 | 16.50 / 15.80LANKABAFIN | 1.61 | 31.07 | Vol. 565486 D: 57.40 ⇓ 2.55% | 58.70 | 60.50 / 53.10 C: 57.80 ⇓ 2.53% | 58.89 | 60.00 / 57.60BIFC | 0.15 | 18.58 | Vol. 94741 D: 13.70 ⇓ 2.84% | 13.89 | 14.20 / 12.70IPDC | 1.23 | 19.43 | Vol. 144361 D: 16.90 ⇓ 0.59% | 17.23 | 17.70 / 15.90 C: 16.90 ⇑ 0.00% | 16.72 | 16.90 / 16.00UNIONCAP | 0.54 | 17.85 | Vol. 50316 D: 28.10 ⇑ 0.36% | 28.13 | 28.50 / 26.00 C: 28.80 ⇓ 2.37% | 28.06 | 28.80 / 28.80BDFINANCE | 0.57 | 14.77 | Vol. 81657 D: 18.60 ⇓ 2.62% | 18.89 | 20.80 / 18.00 C: 18.50 ⇓ 3.14% | 18.74 | 19.20 / 18.00ILFSL | 0.35 | 12.19 | Vol. 315100 D: 12.50 ⇓ 2.34% | 12.79 | 13.10 / 12.00 C: 12.60 ⇓ 2.33% | 12.78 | 13.00 / 12.60PHOENIXFIN | 2.46 | 19.39 | Vol. 322960 D: 32.50 ⇓ 2.99% | 33.45 | 35.00 / 30.60 C: 32.70 ⇓ 2.39% | 32.67 | 32.70 / 32.60FASFIN | 0.19 | 13.56 | Vol. 453223 D: 13.70 ⇓ 1.44% | 13.90 | 14.20 / 12.80 C: 13.80 ⇓ 1.43% | 14.03 | 14.30 / 13.80DBH | 3.40 | 16.80 | Vol. 62150 D: 65.40 ⇓ 0.91% | 65.64 | 67.00 / 63.00 C: 67.00 ⇑ 1.52% | 67.00 | 67.00 / 67.00NHFIL | 0.57 | 12.70 | Vol. 248700 D: 29.20 ⇓ 5.81% | 30.20 | 31.20 / 28.00 C: 29.00 ⇓ 5.23% | 30.37 | 30.70 / 29.00BAYLEASING | 0.72 | 25.55 | Vol. 131304 D: 29.90 ⇓ 1.64% | 30.17 | 31.00 / 28.00 C: 29.50 ⇓ 2.32% | 29.64 | 30.10 / 29.20ICB | 109.65 | 595.98 | Vol. 17025 D: 2104 ⇓ 2.66% | 2146 | 2200 / 2081 C: 2142 ⇓ 1.06% | 2142 | 2149 / 2131GSPFINANCE | 1.63 | 22.23 | Vol. 284374 D: 27.70 ⇓ 1.07% | 28.14 | 28.50 / 25.20 C: 28.00 ⇑ 1.08% | 27.88 | 28.50 / 26.00

INVESTMENT2NDICB | 33.02 | 76.34 | Vol. 400 D: 281.2 ⇓ 1.64% | 282.50 | 281.6 / 280.63RDICB | 24.83 | 58.91 | Vol. 550 D: 200.0 ⇑ 0.00% | 200.00 | 200.0 / 200.04THICB | 23.40 | 58.63 | Vol. 100 D: 195.0 ⇑ 2.36% | 195.00 | 195.0 / 195.0

6THICB | 10.58 | 26.73 | Vol. 29800 D: 50.70 ⇓ 1.36% | 50.57 | 51.70 / 50.008THICB | 12.33 | 29.54 | Vol. 23500 D: 53.50 ⇓ 2.19% | 53.79 | 55.00 / 53.001STBSRS | 14.43 | 161.88 | Vol. 19500 D: 98.80 ⇓ 5.09% | 100.26 | 105.5 / 96.30AIMS1STMF | 3.02 | 15.70 | Vol. 666250 D: 43.60 ⇓ 4.60% | 43.88 | 45.00 / 43.00 C: 43.40 ⇓ 6.87% | 44.03 | 44.40 / 43.30ICBAMCL1ST | 7.14 | 48.54 | Vol. 34500 D: 56.80 ⇓ 9.98% | 56.80 | 56.80 / 56.80 C: 56.30 ⇓ 5.22% | 56.32 | 56.40 / 53.80ICBISLAMIC | 2.21 | 26.81 | Vol. 34500 D: 18.20 ⇓ 1.62% | 18.41 | 18.90 / 18.00GRAMEEN1 | 6.26 | 33.23 | Vol. 380500 D: 46.20 ⇓ 0.86% | 46.00 | 46.70 / 45.50 C: 46.20 ⇑ 0.22% | 46.23 | 48.00 / 45.50ICB1STNRB | 4.06 | 35.31 | Vol. 13500 D: 23.40 ⇓ 0.85% | 23.48 | 24.70 / 22.60ICB2NDNRB | 2.49 | 16.24 | Vol. 442000 D: 9.80 ⇓ 7.55% | 10.02 | 10.30 / 9.70 C: 9.80 ⇓ 7.55% | 9.99 | 9.90 / 10.00GRAMEENS2 | 2.17 | 16.41 | Vol. 1136550 D: 17.60 ⇑ 1.15% | 17.53 | 17.90 / 17.30 C: 17.40 ⇓ 0.57% | 17.41 | 17.70 / 15.801STPRIMFMF | 0.64 | 11.63 | Vol. 297500 D: 16.00 ⇓ 1.84% | 16.09 | 16.50 / 16.00 C: 16.00 ⇓ 1.23% | 16.02 | 16.20 / 15.90EBL1STMF | 0.60 | 12.62 | Vol. 799500 D: 6.90 ⇓ 13.75% | 7.15 | 7.50 / 6.90 C: 7.00 ⇓ 13.58% | 7.23 | 7.50 / 7.00ICBAMCL2ND | 0.60 | 12.12 | Vol. 16500 D: 5.40 ⇓ 1.82% | 5.48 | 5.70 / 5.40 C: 5.50 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.52 | 5.60 / 5.40ICBEPMF1S1 | 0.52 | 11.32 | Vol. 221000 D: 5.40 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.49 | 5.60 / 5.40 C: 5.40 ⇑ 1.89% | 5.40 | 5.50 / 5.30TRUSTB1MF | 0.82 | 11.65 | Vol. 663500 D: 7.60 ⇓ 12.64% | 7.81 | 8.20 / 7.50 C: 7.70 ⇓ 11.49% | 7.76 | 7.90 / 7.60PRIME1ICBA | 0.42 | 11.18 | Vol. 59500 D: 5.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.09 | 5.10 / 5.00 C: 5.10 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.03 | 5.10 / 5.00DBH1STMF | -1.12 | 10.15 | Vol. 703000 D: 5.60 ⇓ 3.45% | 5.78 | 5.90 / 5.60 C: 5.70 ⇓ 1.72% | 5.70 | 5.80 / 5.60IFIC1STMF | 0.90 | 11.88 | Vol. 846500 D: 7.10 ⇓ 12.35% | 7.33 | 7.50 / 7.10 C: 7.20 ⇓ 10.00% | 7.29 | 7.30 / 7.20PF1STMF | 0.51 | 11.11 | Vol. 352500 D: 5.10 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.17 | 5.20 / 5.10 C: 5.10 ⇓ 1.92% | 5.13 | 5.20 / 5.00ICB3RDNRB | 0.00 | 10.60 | Vol. 508500 D: 5.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.09 | 5.20 / 5.00 C: 4.90 ⇓ 3.92% | 5.05 | 5.20 / 4.901JANATAMF | 0.78 | 10.68 | Vol. 265000 D: 5.80 ⇓ 1.69% | 5.81 | 5.90 / 5.80 C: 5.90 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.83 | 5.90 / 5.80GREENDELMF | -0.82 | 9.72 | Vol. 529500 D: 5.40 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.49 | 5.60 / 5.40 C: 5.60 ⇑ 1.82% | 5.51 | 5.60 / 5.40POPULAR1MF | 0.79 | 11.38 | Vol. 874500 D: 6.00 ⇓ 3.23% | 6.08 | 6.20 / 6.00 C: 6.00 ⇓ 3.23% | 6.01 | 6.10 / 5.90IFILISLMF1 | 0.00 | 10.45 | Vol. 788000 D: 5.10 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.16 | 5.20 / 5.00 C: 5.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.03 | 5.10 / 5.00PHPMF1 | 0.63 | 10.92 | Vol. 745000 D: 5.70 ⇑ 0.00% | 5.73 | 5.90 / 5.60 C: 5.60 ⇓ 1.75% | 5.68 | 5.80 / 5.60AIBL1STIMF | -0.07 | 9.25 | Vol. 68000 D: 6.40 ⇑ 1.59% | 6.41 | 6.50 / 6.40 C: 6.50 ⇑ 1.56% | 6.71 | 6.90 / 6.50MBL1STMF | -0.16 | 9.08 | Vol. 112500 D: 6.10 ⇑ 0.00% | 6.17 | 6.30 / 6.10 C: 6.20 ⇑ 8.77% | 6.20 | 6.20 / 6.20SEBL1STMF | 1.03 | 11.85 | Vol. 1000500 D: 7.70 ⇓ 12.50% | 7.82 | 8.30 / 7.70 C: 7.50 ⇓ 13.79% | 7.62 | 8.00 / 7.20EBLNRBMF | 1.16 | 10.88 | Vol. 4500 D: 7.30 ⇓ 10.98% | 7.33 | 7.50 / 7.30

RELIANCE1 | 1.05 | 11.36 | Vol. 345500 D: 9.80 ⇓ 2.97% | 9.89 | 10.10 / 9.70LRGLOBMF1 | 0.50 | 10.82 | Vol. 20500 D: 7.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 7.02 | 7.10 / 7.00ABB1STMF | 1.00 | 10.63 | Vol. 60500 D: 7.30 ⇓ 10.98% | 7.42 | 7.80 / 7.20NLI1STMF | 1.29 | 12.22 | Vol. 633500 D: 8.80 ⇓ 11.11% | 8.95 | 9.40 / 8.60 C: 8.70 ⇓ 11.22% | 8.77 | 8.90 / 8.70NCCBLMF1 | 1.16 | 10.48 | Vol. 52000 D: 8.90 ⇓ 1.11% | 8.92 | 9.30 / 8.90ICBSONALI1 | 0.00 | 10.39 | Vol. 663500 D: 6.50 ⇓ 5.80% | 6.68 | 7.00 / 6.50 C: 6.50 ⇓ 5.80% | 6.75 | 7.00 / 6.50EXIM1STMF | 0.00 | 10.91 | Vol. 4500 D: 7.40 ⇓ 1.33% | 7.56 | 7.70 / 7.40FBFIF | 1.43 | 10.27 | Vol. 500 C: 8.40 ⇓ 1.18% | 8.40 | 8.40 / 8.40

ENGINEERINGAFTABAUTO | 4.29 | 52.65 | Vol. 891747 D: 122.0 ⇓ 1.45% | 124.00 | 128.0 / 112.0 C: 122.1 ⇓ 1.37% | 124.00 | 127.8 / 121.2AZIZPIPES | 0.39 | -42.04 | Vol. 9900 D: 15.60 ⇑ 0.65% | 15.66 | 15.90 / 15.50OLYMPIC | 5.94 | 14.91 | Vol. 797722 D: 221.0 ⇓ 1.56% | 225.65 | 232.4 / 210.0 C: 220.2 ⇓ 1.12% | 225.12 | 231.0 / 218.6BDLAMPS | -5.31 | 37.07 | Vol. 24234 D: 148.3 ⇓ 0.74% | 150.95 | 157.0 / 146.0 C: 148.2 ⇓ 3.01% | 151.66 | 155.0 / 148.0ECABLES | 2.04 | 18.87 | Vol. 8800 D: 64.90 ⇑ 4.34% | 64.63 | 66.80 / 60.50 C: 65.10 ⇑ 8.14% | 64.68 | 65.50 / 61.00MONNOSTAF | 5.31 | 44.78 | Vol. 1950 D: 251.8 ⇑ 8.58% | 251.28 | 252.1 / 249.9SINGERBD | 9.99 | 45.74 | Vol. 493811 D: 226.7 ⇓ 0.26% | 230.85 | 235.0 / 220.0 C: 227.3 ⇓ 0.04% | 231.41 | 236.0 / 226.1ATLASBANG | 11.98 | 207.70 | Vol. 54003 D: 204.9 ⇑ 2.30% | 204.12 | 208.0 / 183.0BDAUTOCA | 0.25 | 6.23 | Vol. 17350 D: 24.10 ⇓ 3.21% | 24.38 | 25.00 / 24.00QSMDRYCELL | 1.65 | 58.49 | Vol. 545620 D: 39.90 ⇓ 2.44% | 40.85 | 42.00 / 37.30 C: 39.90 ⇓ 3.86% | 40.75 | 41.90 / 39.00RENWICKJA | 5.62 | -90.00 | Vol. 14100 D: 173.7 ⇓ 2.96% | 177.02 | 183.3 / 172.3NTLTUBES | -2.52 | 312.10 | Vol. 106400 D: 70.80 ⇓ 5.98% | 72.67 | 76.20 / 68.10BDTHAI | 0.43 | 39.35 | Vol. 201480 D: 22.70 ⇓ 2.58% | 23.03 | 24.00 / 22.00 C: 22.60 ⇓ 1.74% | 22.90 | 24.00 / 22.40ANWARGALV | 0.51 | 8.08 | Vol. 40500 D: 15.80 ⇓ 3.07% | 16.12 | 16.80 / 15.70KAY&QUE | -3.89 | 6.03 | Vol. 6500 D: 13.00 ⇓ 2.26% | 13.00 | 13.30 / 13.00 C: 13.30 ⇑ 2.31% | 13.30 | 13.30 / 13.30RANFOUNDRY | 2.84 | 18.62 | Vol. 67000 D: 92.10 ⇓ 0.75% | 92.95 | 98.00 / 89.40 C: 93.00 ⇓ 5.58% | 91.96 | 93.10 / 90.00SALAMCRST | 3.31 | 20.00 | Vol. 498270 D: 41.10 ⇓ 2.84% | 41.75 | 42.70 / 38.20 C: 41.30 ⇓ 2.59% | 41.76 | 42.50 / 41.00GOLDENSON | 3.70 | 28.70 | Vol. 379994 D: 42.30 ⇓ 1.17% | 42.89 | 44.00 / 38.80 C: 42.40 ⇓ 1.62% | 42.59 | 42.80 / 42.30BSRMSTEEL | 3.06 | 19.53 | Vol. 511005 D: 75.40 ⇓ 1.05% | 75.79 | 77.90 / 70.00 C: 74.70 ⇓ 2.35% | 75.24 | 76.60 / 74.20NAVANACNG | 4.09 | 27.04 | Vol. 275051 D: 64.20 ⇓ 0.31% | 64.57 | 65.40 / 60.00 C: 63.40 ⇓ 2.46% | 63.99 | 66.00 / 63.00DESHBANDHU | 1.16 | 12.02 | Vol. 397949 D: 21.80 ⇓ 1.36% | 22.28 | 22.90 / 20.00 C: 21.70 ⇓ 2.69% | 22.12 | 22.60 / 21.70GPHISPAT | 2.32 | 16.80 | Vol. 240200 D: 51.30 ⇑ 0.98% | 51.28 | 51.90 / 46.00 C: 51.00 ⇑ 0.39% | 50.53 | 51.60 / 50.00BENGALWTL | 2.42 | 20.72 | Vol. 189200 D: 45.30 ⇓ 1.09% | 45.95 | 46.60 / 45.00 C: 44.80 ⇓ 3.45% | 45.75 | 46.60 / 44.50

NPOLYMAR | 2.01 | 324.37 | Vol. 272679 D: 55.00 ⇓ 8.94% | 57.15 | 63.90 / 54.60 C: 56.50 ⇓ 7.07% | 57.68 | 64.00 / 56.00

FOOD & ALLIEDAPEXFOODS | 2.54 | 90.81 | Vol. 258300 D: 97.80 ⇑ 9.89% | 96.37 | 97.90 / 90.50 C: 92.70 ⇑ 8.93% | 92.71 | 93.60 / 92.00BANGAS | 7.20 | 50.27 | Vol. 68960 D: 488.4 ⇑ 4.36% | 490.51 | 503.3 / 460.0 C: 491.9 ⇑ 5.97% | 491.15 | 500.0 / 475.0BATBC | 65.69 | 117.22 | Vol. 4550 D: 1600 ⇑ 0.60% | 1617 | 1640 / 1599GEMINISEA | 10.88 | 9.69 | Vol. 2450 D: 175.8 ⇓ 2.93% | 176.73 | 189.0 / 171.0NTC | 29.88 | 110.05 | Vol. 350 D: 868.8 ⇑ 2.25% | 868.57 | 884.0 / 850.0CVOPRL | 2.66 | 13.28 | Vol. 127870 D: 634.7 ⇑ 7.10% | 631.30 | 637.0 / 600.0 C: 634.2 ⇑ 7.22% | 628.59 | 635.5 / 620.0AMCL(PRAN) | 6.53 | 53.37 | Vol. 272200 D: 258.1 ⇓ 5.84% | 267.84 | 287.0 / 253.0 C: 259.5 ⇓ 6.25% | 270.84 | 283.0 / 253.0SHYAMPSUG | -36.87 | -355.85 | Vol. 500 D: 7.20 ⇑ 2.86% | 7.20 | 7.20 / 7.20RAHIMAFOOD | 0.62 | 4.46 | Vol. 160000 D: 17.00 ⇓ 0.58% | 17.33 | 18.00 / 16.80 C: 16.90 ⇑ 0.00% | 16.89 | 17.30 / 16.70FUWANGFOOD | 1.26 | 12.37 | Vol. 556857 D: 26.10 ⇑ 0.00% | 26.63 | 27.10 / 25.00 C: 26.10 ⇓ 0.76% | 26.62 | 27.20 / 26.00MEGHNAPET | -0.58 | -1.02 | Vol. 8500 D: 5.40 ⇑ 1.89% | 5.41 | 5.60 / 5.30MEGCONMILK | -6.68 | -16.22 | Vol. 5500 D: 6.90 ⇓ 1.43% | 6.91 | 7.20 / 6.90BEACHHATCH | 1.01 | 12.48 | Vol. 318869 D: 18.70 ⇓ 2.60% | 19.08 | 20.00 / 18.00 C: 18.80 ⇓ 1.57% | 19.11 | 19.60 / 18.60FINEFOODS | -0.11 | 10.58 | Vol. 120700 D: 18.60 ⇑ 0.00% | 18.63 | 19.20 / 18.10 C: 18.10 ⇓ 1.63% | 18.14 | 18.30 / 17.50RDFOOD | 0.91 | 16.84 | Vol. 1145312 D: 22.90 ⇑ 0.44% | 23.16 | 23.60 / 20.60 C: 22.90 ⇑ 0.00% | 23.06 | 23.50 / 22.50GHAIL | 1.01 | 22.08 | Vol. 2046600 D: 47.70 ⇓ 2.05% | 48.99 | 52.50 / 43.90 C: 48.30 ⇓ 1.02% | 49.05 | 50.70 / 47.60

FUEL & POWERLINDEBD | 31.71 | 144.00 | Vol. 58200 D: 738.6 ⇑ 2.53% | 739.57 | 768.0 / 726.0PADMAOIL | 16.38 | 43.67 | Vol. 587012 D: 366.6 ⇓ 2.55% | 371.96 | 390.0 / 355.0 C: 366.6 ⇓ 2.63% | 371.31 | 386.0 / 365.1BDWELDING | 0.33 | 16.82 | Vol. 584812 D: 21.00 ⇓ 1.87% | 21.12 | 22.00 / 20.00 C: 20.80 ⇓ 2.80% | 21.19 | 21.50 / 20.60SUMITPOWER | 3.17 | 19.26 | Vol. 332100 D: 36.10 ⇓ 1.63% | 36.36 | 38.00 / 33.10 C: 36.20 ⇓ 1.90% | 36.56 | 37.70 / 36.00DESCO | 2.80 | 35.25 | Vol. 623602 D: 82.00 ⇑ 0.86% | 81.30 | 82.80 / 75.00 C: 80.70 ⇑ 0.00% | 80.59 | 81.80 / 80.00POWERGRID | 2.56 | 48.08 | Vol. 72794 D: 56.30 ⇓ 0.35% | 56.22 | 56.80 / 54.00 C: 55.40 ⇓ 1.60% | 54.83 | 55.50 / 55.30JAMUNAOIL | 22.78 | 50.24 | Vol. 437806 D: 228.4 ⇓ 2.39% | 231.33 | 237.4 / 222.0 C: 228.4 ⇓ 2.39% | 230.84 | 238.7 / 227.1MPETROLEUM | 16.98 | 40.41 | Vol. 773405 D: 268.9 ⇓ 2.29% | 271.42 | 283.0 / 252.0 C: 267.9 ⇓ 2.76% | 271.57 | 281.8 / 266.0TITASGAS | 9.01 | 36.56 | Vol. 1486769 D: 85.20 ⇓ 0.47% | 85.72 | 87.10 / 77.10 C: 84.90 ⇓ 0.47% | 85.21 | 86.60 / 84.80KPCL | 4.73 | 15.86 | Vol. 245567 D: 50.80 ⇓ 0.59% | 50.94 | 53.30 / 46.90 C: 51.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 50.90 | 52.00 / 47.00BEDL | 1.57 | 17.89 | Vol. 935803 D: 36.70 ⇑ 0.00% | 36.91 | 37.50 / 33.10 C: 36.50 ⇓ 1.62% | 36.73 | 37.30 / 36.40

dHaKa tRIBune Share wednesday, august 28, 20136 dHaKa tRIBune Share6

CompanyCode | EPS | BV | Volume Traded (Share)DSE/CSE: ClosePrice ⇓/⇑ Chn % | Avg.Price | Hi / Lo

Combined turnover Leader Vol. tO M.

tk.% of ttL avg. P

Grameenphone-A 2532181 532.89 7.24 210.45

BD Submarine Cable-A 1779290 483.74 6.57 271.88

Square Pharma -A 1718719 298.30 4.05 173.56

Padma Oil Co. -A 587012 218.32 2.97 371.92

Meghna Petroleum -A 773405 209.92 2.85 271.42

dse gainer C % a % CP

Safko Spinning-A 10.00 8.59 24.20 Sun Life Insur-ance-N

9.91 10.30 62.10

Apex Foods-A 9.89 9.55 97.80

ACI Limited-A 9.86 8.63 187.10

MeghnaCement-A 9.75 5.96 165.40

dse Loser C % a % CP

Square Pharma-A -22.82 -21.77 171.80

EBL First M F-A -13.75 -12.05 6.90

Trust Bank 1st MF-A -12.64 -11.35 7.60

S.B. 1st M. F.-A -12.50 -12.13 7.70

IFIC 1st MF-A -12.35 -10.94 7.10

DSE Broad Index: 4132.13 ⇓ 0.05% Turnover: 6902.18 M.Tk ⇑ 14.56%, PE: 13.21 Turnover 7,363.52 MTk . ⇑ 14.25% August 27, 2013 MarketCap. 2,039.22 BTk. ⇓ 0.20% CSE All Share Index: 12733 ⇑ 1.04%, Turnover: 461.34 M Tk. ⇑ 30.49%, PE: 12.96

SharedHaKa tRIBune wednesday, august 28, 2013 7SharedHaKa tRIBune 7

August 27, 2013 Sectotal Index: BANK: 32,871.97 ⇓ 0.77% NBFI: 20,818.97 ⇓ 1.90% INVS: 4,926.18 ⇑ 1.63% ENGG: 6,260.34 ⇓ 1.57% FOOD: 8,878.18 ⇑ 1.98% F&P: 10,944.97 ⇓ 1.24% TEXT: 3,131.66 ⇑ 2.05% PHAR: 17,292.59 ⇑ 12.95% PAPR: 799.11 ⇓ 0.64% SERV: 3,165.98 ⇓ 1.16% LEAT: 5,683.91 ⇑ 3.92% CERA: 539.52 ⇑ 6.24% CMNT: 4,681.55 ⇑ 3.20% INFO: 7,536.35 ⇑ 1.30% GINS: 9,533.56 ⇓ 0.96% LINS: 116,760.34 ⇑ 2.40% TELC: 1,480.94 ⇓ 2.56% MISC: 6,506.19 ⇓ 0.78%

MJLBD | 2.73 | 30.24 | Vol. 65395 D: 74.70 ⇓ 0.80% | 74.79 | 75.80 / 68.00 C: 74.60 ⇓ 0.67% | 73.62 | 75.00 / 73.10GBBPOWER | 1.86 | 22.63 | Vol. 577038 D: 26.50 ⇓ 0.75% | 26.66 | 28.60 / 24.30 C: 26.60 ⇑ 0.00% | 26.59 | 27.00 / 25.00SPPCL | 3.81 | 23.34 | Vol. 1296810 D: 60.00 ⇓ 3.23% | 60.99 | 62.90 / 56.00 C: 60.10 ⇓ 3.06% | 61.25 | 63.40 / 56.00

JUTEJUTESPINN | 2.06 | 17.42 | Vol. 8750 D: 79.20 ⇓ 6.05% | 80.69 | 85.80 / 77.90SONALIANSH | 5.54 | 218.80 | Vol. 42600 D: 147.4 ⇓ 5.63% | 151.01 | 159.8 / 146.0

TEXTILEAL-HAJTEX | 1.35 | 15.64 | Vol. 198402 D: 74.20 ⇑ 4.21% | 75.62 | 77.90 / 65.00STYLECRAFT | 20.00 | 287.30 | Vol. 100 D: 649.3 ⇑ 7.50% | 649.30 | 649.3 / 649.3RAHIMTEXT | 0.51 | 73.88 | Vol. 3762 D: 231.3 ⇓ 2.57% | 233.62 | 243.5 / 223.5SAIHAMTEX | 2.75 | 29.50 | Vol. 756600 D: 30.60 ⇑ 0.00% | 31.14 | 32.00 / 30.50 C: 30.70 ⇑ 0.00% | 31.42 | 32.00 / 30.60MODERNDYE | 0.91 | 10.37 | Vol. 700 D: 68.80 ⇑ 6.01% | 68.57 | 70.00 / 66.00DSHGARME | 0.72 | 12.00 | Vol. 12700 D: 31.20 ⇑ 0.32% | 31.57 | 32.50 / 31.00DULAMIACOT | -8.46 | -27.78 | Vol. 4100 D: 8.60 ⇑ 1.18% | 8.54 | 9.30 / 8.10TALLUSPIN | 2.56 | 12.06 | Vol. 4250629 D: 46.00 ⇑ 6.73% | 45.94 | 47.00 / 38.80 C: 46.10 ⇑ 5.73% | 46.01 | 47.90 / 43.90PRIMETEX | 1.01 | 63.54 | Vol. 913750 D: 26.60 ⇑ 4.31% | 27.01 | 27.70 / 26.00 C: 27.00 ⇑ 5.06% | 27.08 | 27.50 / 26.10ALLTEX | -0.11 | 23.81 | Vol. 571000 D: 10.00 ⇑ 5.26% | 9.85 | 10.20 / 9.30 C: 9.90 ⇑ 5.32% | 9.88 | 9.90 / 10.00ANLIMAYARN | 1.19 | 11.01 | Vol. 373000 D: 30.80 ⇑ 2.67% | 31.05 | 31.80 / 29.90 C: 30.00 ⇑ 2.74% | 30.23 | 30.90 / 28.70HRTEX | 2.08 | 14.92 | Vol. 508245 D: 37.20 ⇑ 6.29% | 37.12 | 38.00 / 34.90 C: 38.30 ⇑ 9.74% | 37.98 | 38.30 / 36.10SQUARETEXT | 4.32 | 31.82 | Vol. 1190677 D: 97.00 ⇑ 9.60% | 94.87 | 97.30 / 80.00 C: 96.90 ⇑ 9.74% | 94.90 | 97.10 / 88.20METROSPIN | -1.00 | 19.59 | Vol. 492155 D: 15.90 ⇑ 2.58% | 16.11 | 16.30 / 15.50 C: 15.90 ⇑ 3.25% | 16.16 | 16.40 / 15.70MAKSONSPIN | 0.16 | 20.55 | Vol. 2553641 D: 14.60 ⇓ 2.01% | 15.01 | 15.30 / 13.50 C: 14.60 ⇓ 2.01% | 14.91 | 15.30 / 14.00DACCADYE | 1.21 | 31.13 | Vol. 407968 D: 28.20 ⇑ 0.36% | 28.70 | 29.10 / 25.40 C: 28.40 ⇑ 0.71% | 28.54 | 29.40 / 28.10ARGONDENIM | 1.89 | 38.86 | Vol. 1359640 D: 40.60 ⇓ 1.22% | 41.02 | 42.00 / 37.00 C: 40.00 ⇓ 3.15% | 40.93 | 42.20 / 37.50FAMILYTEX | 3.72 | 14.68 | Vol. 555500 D: 31.40 ⇑ 3.97% | 31.15 | 32.00 / 30.30 C: 30.90 ⇑ 3.69% | 30.71 | 31.50 / 29.70QSMTEX | -1.29 | -39.09 | Vol. 0 C: 0.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 0.00 | 0.00 / 0.00

PHARMACEUTICAL & CHEMICALAMBEEPHA | 3.94 | 26.15 | Vol. 14050 D: 259.5 ⇓ 2.08% | 268.73 | 278.0 / 255.1 C: 258.7 ⇓ 6.94% | 261.36 | 275.0 / 258.0BXPHARMA | 3.77 | 52.55 | Vol. 223394 D: 48.10 ⇓ 1.84% | 48.47 | 49.70 / 44.10 C: 48.00 ⇓ 2.44% | 48.41 | 53.00 / 44.30GLAXOSMITH | 20.25 | 123.32 | Vol. 12100 D: 1056 ⇑ 6.27% | 1055 | 1057 / 1001ACI | -5.82 | 126.42 | Vol. 193549 D: 187.1 ⇑ 9.86% | 184.23 | 187.3 / 154.0 C: 186.0 ⇑ 9.80% | 183.10 | 186.3 / 166.0RENATA | 33.57 | 138.83 | Vol. 90089 D: 795.4 ⇑ 6.52% | 793.15 | 802.2 / 750.0RECKITTBEN | 27.16 | 78.89 | Vol. 1250 D: 951.0 ⇑ 5.27% | 951.30 | 962.0 / 900.0 C: 854.6 ⇑ 7.50% | 854.60 | 854.6 / 854.6

PHARMAID | 5.06 | 26.30 | Vol. 82200 D: 208.7 ⇓ 1.51% | 213.24 | 220.0 / 207.0KOHINOOR | 9.52 | 10.49 | Vol. 1145 D: 348.6 ⇓ 4.83% | 348.47 | 355.0 / 335.0IBNSINA | 3.44 | 34.02 | Vol. 227204 D: 113.3 ⇑ 6.89% | 114.42 | 116.0 / 97.00 C: 107.8 ⇑ 10.00% | 107.80 | 107.8 / 107.8LIBRAINFU | 4.64 | 1565.37 | Vol. 6200 D: 377.6 ⇑ 8.63% | 377.42 | 378.0 / 376.0ORIONINFU | 8.72 | 1.73 | Vol. 594000 D: 48.30 ⇑ 1.47% | 48.32 | 48.80 / 47.20 C: 47.50 ⇓ 1.86% | 49.11 | 50.00 / 47.50SQURPHARMA | 6.93 | 37.18 | Vol. 1718719 D: 171.8 ⇓ 22.82% | 173.59 | 180.0 / 160.0 C: 171.3 ⇓ 22.45% | 173.20 | 176.0 / 170.7IMAMBUTTON | -1.68 | 5.67 | Vol. 6000 D: 7.50 ⇓ 3.85% | 7.50 | 7.60 / 7.40KEYACOSMET | 1.55 | 21.54 | Vol. 1021213 D: 26.70 ⇓ 1.48% | 26.96 | 27.40 / 24.40 C: 26.60 ⇓ 2.21% | 26.85 | 27.40 / 26.50BERGERPBL | 32.46 | 100.20 | Vol. 17400 D: 892.2 ⇑ 2.09% | 908.84 | 920.0 / 891.5 C: 939.0 ⇑ 4.33% | 924.50 | 939.0 / 910.0ACIFORMULA | 3.33 | 38.08 | Vol. 274225 D: 83.50 ⇑ 5.83% | 83.11 | 84.10 / 79.90 C: 83.30 ⇑ 6.11% | 83.19 | 84.80 / 80.50MARICO | 27.53 | 62.47 | Vol. 50600 D: 782.1 ⇑ 7.48% | 777.62 | 782.2 / 728.0 C: 784.6 ⇑ 7.48% | 784.18 | 784.7 / 780.0BEACONPHAR | 0.33 | 11.97 | Vol. 343925 D: 15.00 ⇓ 1.96% | 15.21 | 15.60 / 14.00 C: 14.90 ⇓ 1.97% | 15.17 | 15.50 / 14.90ACTIVEFINE | 3.23 | 13.89 | Vol. 855326 D: 91.70 ⇓ 2.76% | 92.69 | 95.00 / 84.90 C: 91.40 ⇓ 2.66% | 91.66 | 93.40 / 90.50SALVOCHEM | 0.68 | 10.57 | Vol. 922273 D: 21.90 ⇓ 1.35% | 22.17 | 22.70 / 20.00 C: 21.90 ⇓ 1.79% | 22.28 | 23.00 / 21.80GHCL | 2.14 | 57.31 | Vol. 415250 D: 51.60 ⇑ 0.98% | 51.82 | 53.30 / 50.00 C: 50.70 ⇑ 0.00% | 51.39 | 52.40 / 50.20ORIONPHARM | 5.02 | 68.68 | Vol. 829780 D: 64.30 ⇓ 2.87% | 65.44 | 68.00 / 59.60 C: 64.60 ⇓ 2.27% | 65.54 | 67.00 / 64.40JMISMDL | 1.12 | 12.83 | Vol. 290000 D: 131.1 ⇓ 4.59% | 139.71 | 147.5 / 128.1 C: 130.2 ⇓ 3.77% | 138.51 | 147.0 / 126.0CENTRALPHL | 0.61 | 10.99 | Vol. 682000 D: 32.80 ⇓ 0.91% | 33.28 | 34.70 / 32.70 C: 32.80 ⇓ 1.50% | 33.25 | 34.40 / 32.70

PAPER & PACKAGINGHAKKANIPUL | 0.64 | 11.02 | Vol. 7500 D: 17.70 ⇑ 1.72% | 17.71 | 17.90 / 17.50 C: 16.20 ⇑ 0.00% | 16.20 | 16.20 / 16.20

SERVICESAMORITA | 2.31 | 17.25 | Vol. 76106 D: 102.5 ⇑ 9.16% | 98.80 | 103.2 / 90.00SAPORTL | 1.23 | 38.39 | Vol. 184536 D: 26.00 ⇓ 1.14% | 26.15 | 27.00 / 25.00 C: 25.90 ⇓ 1.89% | 26.00 | 26.70 / 25.80EHL | 2.87 | 18.48 | Vol. 791543 D: 58.60 ⇑ 1.56% | 58.74 | 59.50 / 52.00 C: 58.00 ⇑ 1.22% | 58.33 | 59.40 / 54.00

LEATHERBATASHOE | 49.12 | 135.53 | Vol. 66364 D: 804.9 ⇑ 3.83% | 815.88 | 833.3 / 758.0 C: 802.0 ⇑ 4.44% | 815.05 | 825.4 / 801.0

APEXADELFT | 23.01 | 203.26 | Vol. 361000 D: 437.6 ⇑ 6.81% | 420.98 | 441.8 / 399.8 C: 430.0 ⇑ 4.93% | 422.63 | 430.0 / 400.0SAMATALETH | -0.07 | 12.08 | Vol. 4000 D: 10.80 ⇑ 0.93% | 10.75 | 11.00 / 10.70LEGACYFOOT | 0.63 | 17.19 | Vol. 68875 D: 15.20 ⇓ 1.94% | 15.47 | 16.00 / 14.80 C: 16.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 15.98 | 16.40 / 15.60

CERAMICMONNOCERA | 0.71 | 96.33 | Vol. 94262 D: 31.00 ⇑ 8.01% | 30.91 | 31.50 / 27.50 C: 31.50 ⇑ 8.62% | 31.47 | 31.90 / 29.60STANCERAM | 1.07 | 15.97 | Vol. 62500 D: 38.90 ⇑ 9.58% | 36.66 | 39.00 / 34.00 C: 35.00 ⇑ 9.72% | 35.00 | 35.00 / 35.00FUWANGCER | 1.43 | 13.25 | Vol. 461375 D: 19.70 ⇑ 0.51% | 19.88 | 20.20 / 17.80 C: 19.80 ⇑ 0.51% | 19.91 | 20.20 / 19.70SPCERAMICS | 0.62 | 30.92 | Vol. 320867 D: 16.00 ⇓ 0.62% | 16.14 | 17.00 / 15.00 C: 16.10 ⇓ 0.62% | 16.12 | 16.50 / 15.80RAKCERAMIC | 1.98 | 16.76 | Vol. 2227796 D: 58.70 ⇑ 9.72% | 56.83 | 58.80 / 48.20 C: 58.70 ⇑ 9.51% | 57.25 | 58.90 / 53.00

CEMENTHEIDELBCEM | 22.85 | 111.50 | Vol. 340000 D: 385.2 ⇑ 4.31% | 391.47 | 401.0 / 370.5 C: 392.6 ⇑ 7.06% | 394.09 | 398.7 / 369.0CONFIDCEM | 6.23 | 90.76 | Vol. 915923 D: 139.5 ⇑ 1.60% | 143.25 | 146.9 / 136.5 C: 140.1 ⇑ 1.74% | 143.70 | 147.0 / 138.7MEGHNACEM | 6.28 | 33.81 | Vol. 609360 D: 165.4 ⇑ 9.75% | 161.44 | 165.7 / 136.0 C: 166.3 ⇑ 9.77% | 164.31 | 166.6 / 152.2ARAMITCEM | 3.03 | 14.65 | Vol. 266055 D: 79.40 ⇑ 4.75% | 80.14 | 82.00 / 73.40 C: 80.50 ⇑ 5.92% | 80.89 | 82.50 / 77.00LAFSURCEML | 1.60 | 7.22 | Vol. 1698000 D: 34.30 ⇑ 2.39% | 34.25 | 34.60 / 33.40 C: 34.20 ⇑ 2.09% | 34.09 | 34.80 / 33.50MICEMENT | 4.14 | 40.00 | Vol. 445409 D: 96.80 ⇑ 0.52% | 98.09 | 99.90 / 86.80 C: 96.90 ⇑ 0.31% | 98.08 | 99.90 / 100.0PREMIERCEM | 3.59 | 22.92 | Vol. 425400 D: 125.5 ⇑ 0.08% | 129.06 | 131.9 / 124.0 C: 124.6 ⇓ 1.89% | 128.71 | 132.7 / 123.6

IT IINDUSTRIESISNLTD | 0.28 | 17.31 | Vol. 66748 D: 13.30 ⇑ 1.53% | 13.43 | 13.70 / 12.50 C: 13.10 ⇑ 0.77% | 13.17 | 13.40 / 13.00BDCOM | 1.00 | 14.91 | Vol. 411952 D: 23.00 ⇑ 0.88% | 23.13 | 23.40 / 20.60 C: 22.80 ⇑ 1.79% | 22.86 | 23.40 / 22.50INTECH | 0.94 | 10.08 | Vol. 355290 D: 14.30 ⇑ 7.52% | 14.32 | 14.60 / 12.00 C: 14.40 ⇑ 9.92% | 13.96 | 14.40 / 13.00AGNISYSL | 1.07 | 25.52 | Vol. 304334 D: 23.60 ⇑ 0.43% | 24.13 | 24.60 / 21.70 C: 24.20 ⇑ 0.41% | 24.32 | 24.80 / 24.00DAFODILCOM | 1.12 | 11.14 | Vol. 967631 D: 18.60 ⇑ 6.29% | 18.49 | 19.00 / 16.00 C: 18.30 ⇑ 3.98% | 18.47 | 18.80 / 17.90AAMRATECH | 1.17 | 20.44 | Vol. 956900 D: 41.50 ⇓ 1.19% | 42.37 | 43.50 / 37.80 C: 41.50 ⇓ 1.19% | 42.26 | 43.40 / 41.30

GENERAL INSURANCEBGIC | 1.65 | 20.33 | Vol. 78140 D: 29.90 ⇓ 1.32% | 30.31 | 31.00 / 29.30 C: 29.60 ⇓ 2.95% | 29.64 | 30.00 / 28.00

GREENDELT | 4.05 | 64.44 | Vol. 114848 D: 110.2 ⇓ 2.13% | 110.70 | 118.6 / 105.0 C: 113.7 ⇓ 4.53% | 113.70 | 115.0 / 112.0UNITEDINS | 2.47 | 21.04 | Vol. 13100 D: 47.80 ⇓ 3.63% | 48.09 | 49.00 / 47.60PEOPLESINS | 2.05 | 20.72 | Vol. 109100 D: 27.00 ⇓ 0.37% | 27.75 | 28.30 / 26.50 C: 26.80 ⇓ 2.55% | 27.17 | 27.80 / 26.80EASTERNINS | 2.22 | 35.88 | Vol. 32930 D: 39.20 ⇓ 1.01% | 39.69 | 40.00 / 37.00JANATAINS | 7.84 | 170.69 | Vol. 14988 D: 248.8 ⇑ 1.53% | 249.09 | 255.0 / 225.0 C: 250.0 ⇑ 1.21% | 252.85 | 255.0 / 249.5PHENIXINS | 2.70 | 20.96 | Vol. 25288 D: 41.20 ⇓ 1.90% | 41.41 | 42.00 / 40.00 C: 43.30 ⇑ 5.35% | 43.30 | 43.30 / 43.30EASTLAND | 4.06 | 23.29 | Vol. 151590 D: 49.40 ⇓ 1.98% | 49.99 | 52.80 / 48.30 C: 50.10 ⇑ 1.42% | 50.06 | 51.20 / 48.50CENTRALINS | 1.54 | 19.04 | Vol. 82258 D: 29.30 ⇑ 1.03% | 30.49 | 31.40 / 27.90 C: 30.00 ⇑ 8.30% | 30.00 | 30.00 / 30.00KARNAPHULI | 1.56 | 19.42 | Vol. 125980 D: 23.90 ⇑ 1.70% | 23.78 | 24.30 / 22.00RUPALIINS | 2.76 | 23.38 | Vol. 140284 D: 33.00 ⇓ 1.79% | 33.49 | 34.10 / 30.90 C: 33.40 ⇓ 1.76% | 34.22 | 35.00 / 33.20FEDERALINS | 1.10 | 10.98 | Vol. 321263 D: 23.00 ⇓ 2.13% | 23.57 | 24.50 / 22.00 C: 23.10 ⇓ 2.12% | 23.43 | 24.20 / 23.00RELIANCINS | 3.93 | 61.52 | Vol. 16000 D: 76.60 ⇑ 0.00% | 76.56 | 83.90 / 72.30PURABIGEN | 1.05 | 18.71 | Vol. 188000 D: 22.20 ⇓ 1.33% | 22.55 | 23.30 / 22.10PRAGATIINS | 2.01 | 50.30 | Vol. 21100 D: 60.10 ⇓ 0.83% | 60.52 | 62.00 / 59.60 C: 59.70 ⇓ 1.32% | 59.70 | 59.70 / 59.70PRIMEINSUR | 2.14 | 14.14 | Vol. 89500 D: 30.30 ⇓ 0.98% | 30.85 | 32.00 / 30.20PIONEERINS | 3.11 | 23.84 | Vol. 274000 D: 75.00 ⇓ 2.60% | 75.35 | 79.50 / 70.00 C: 82.70 ⇑ 0.85% | 82.73 | 82.90 / 80.90MERCINS | 1.53 | 14.50 | Vol. 160551 D: 27.80 ⇓ 2.11% | 28.35 | 30.00 / 25.60 C: 28.20 ⇓ 1.74% | 28.57 | 30.00 / 27.30AGRANINS | 1.73 | 14.39 | Vol. 66189 D: 24.70 ⇓ 0.80% | 24.93 | 25.50 / 23.00GLOBALINS | 1.09 | 11.78 | Vol. 69688 D: 29.50 ⇓ 3.59% | 29.95 | 31.50 / 28.00NITOLINS | 2.59 | 15.41 | Vol. 17500 D: 34.90 ⇓ 2.79% | 34.91 | 36.00 / 34.50ASIAPACINS | 1.84 | 13.76 | Vol. 61000 D: 28.60 ⇓ 1.38% | 28.64 | 29.80 / 28.50SONARBAINS | 1.68 | 13.38 | Vol. 67721 D: 23.00 ⇓ 1.71% | 23.28 | 23.80 / 21.50 C: 22.20 ⇓ 5.53% | 22.20 | 22.20 / 22.20PARAMOUNT | 1.26 | 13.19 | Vol. 42630 D: 22.20 ⇓ 1.77% | 22.38 | 23.10 / 21.20 C: 23.50 ⇑ 7.31% | 23.50 | 23.50 / 23.50CITYGENINS | 1.65 | 14.26 | Vol. 89594 D: 26.20 ⇓ 1.13% | 26.69 | 27.00 / 24.30 C: 26.20 ⇓ 2.96% | 26.50 | 27.20 / 26.10CONTININS | 1.41 | 15.68 | Vol. 126250 D: 30.00 ⇓ 1.64% | 30.36 | 31.00 / 28.00 C: 29.20 ⇓ 6.41% | 29.20 | 29.20 / 29.20TAKAFULINS | 2.19 | 15.17 | Vol. 74301 D: 31.40 ⇑ 0.96% | 31.60 | 32.90 / 29.00STANDARINS | 2.58 | 13.99 | Vol. 7675 D: 39.30 ⇑ 2.61% | 39.26 | 40.50 / 36.30NORTHRNINS | 1.77 | 11.15 | Vol. 81040 D: 45.50 ⇓ 2.99% | 46.27 | 47.00 / 42.30REPUBLIC | 2.14 | 12.42 | Vol. 340797 D: 58.10 ⇑ 1.04% | 58.66 | 59.50 / 52.00 C: 58.10 ⇓ 0.17% | 58.42 | 60.00 / 57.20ASIAINS | 1.56 | 17.34 | Vol. 119042 D: 26.60 ⇓ 1.12% | 26.17 | 27.20 / 25.00 C: 26.00 ⇑ 0.00% | 26.01 | 27.00 / 26.00ISLAMIINS | 1.29 | 11.96 | Vol. 1643 D: 28.10 ⇑ 0.36% | 27.85 | 28.20 / 26.00 C: 26.10 ⇑ 0.00% | 27.00 | 26.10 / 26.10PROVATIINS | 1.90 | 14.30 | Vol. 101206 D: 27.70 ⇑ 1.09% | 28.06 | 28.60 / 25.50 C: 27.30 ⇓ 0.73% | 26.91 | 27.50 / 27.20

DHAKAINS | 2.84 | 18.02 | Vol. 56000 D: 40.40 ⇓ 0.98% | 40.79 | 42.00 / 40.00 C: 40.30 ⇑ 0.75% | 40.33 | 40.50 / 40.30

LIFE INSURANCENATLIFEINS | 12.34 | 80.99 | Vol. 45384 D: 269.9 ⇑ 0.00% | 271.14 | 275.9 / 255.0 C: 271.0 ⇓ 3.21% | 269.92 | 271.0 / 260.0DELTALIFE | 38.53 | 189.40 | Vol. 17795 D: 5752 ⇑ 3.71% | 5744 | 5754 / 5550SANDHANINS | 2.39 | 28.22 | Vol. 91710 D: 81.90 ⇓ 2.03% | 83.31 | 86.90 / 80.00 C: 82.40 ⇓ 0.24% | 83.81 | 88.80 / 82.30POPULARLIF | 3.70 | 715.41 | Vol. 57200 D: 172.3 ⇑ 0.94% | 174.62 | 180.0 / 160.0FAREASTLIF | 9.21 | 60.79 | Vol. 92761 D: 122.0 ⇓ 1.21% | 124.26 | 126.5 / 115.0 C: 125.2 ⇑ 1.95% | 125.22 | 126.0 / 123.0MEGHNALIFE | 10.82 | 48.87 | Vol. 415970 D: 117.5 ⇑ 3.25% | 116.24 | 119.5 / 109.9 C: 116.2 ⇑ 4.40% | 116.55 | 120.8 / 112.0PROGRESLIF | 2.30 | 31.45 | Vol. 6500 D: 111.8 ⇑ 2.38% | 111.85 | 114.9 / 107.2PRAGATILIF | 0.60 | 30.15 | Vol. 199060 D: 123.8 ⇑ 9.65% | 122.96 | 124.1 / 117.0PRIMELIFE | 5.51 | 27.10 | Vol. 26150 D: 106.2 ⇓ 2.84% | 106.20 | 110.8 / 105.0RUPALILIFE | 3.75 | 31.25 | Vol. 44223 D: 100.8 ⇑ 1.00% | 102.80 | 105.0 / 95.00PADMALIFE | 1.63 | 25.76 | Vol. 177500 D: 60.50 ⇓ 1.63% | 60.82 | 62.50 / 58.00 C: 60.60 ⇑ 0.33% | 61.06 | 61.40 / 59.10SUNLIFEINS | 0.00 | 0.00 | Vol. 1170500 D: 62.10 ⇑ 9.91% | 61.79 | 62.10 / 58.00 C: 62.80 ⇑ 9.79% | 62.49 | 62.90 / 60.30

TELECOMGP | 12.96 | 26.26 | Vol. 2532181 D: 209.8 ⇓ 0.33% | 210.46 | 216.0 / 195.0 C: 209.6 ⇓ 0.95% | 210.26 | 215.8 / 206.6BSCCL | 7.14 | 23.70 | Vol. 1779290 D: 264.5 ⇓ 6.80% | 271.78 | 286.0 / 260.0 C: 265.0 ⇓ 6.72% | 272.94 | 286.0 / 262.3

TRAVEL & LEISUREUNITEDAIR | 1.60 | 15.12 | Vol. 7158543 D: 20.10 ⇓ 1.47% | 20.33 | 21.10 / 18.50 C: 20.30 ⇓ 0.98% | 20.37 | 21.00 / 20.00UNIQUEHRL | 4.02 | 86.29 | Vol. 819155 D: 89.90 ⇓ 2.81% | 91.15 | 94.00 / 83.30 C: 89.90 ⇓ 2.28% | 91.16 | 93.40 / 89.60

MISCELLANEOUSARAMIT | 16.07 | 99.93 | Vol. 60900 D: 287.9 ⇑ 8.68% | 286.05 | 288.0 / 270.0 C: 291.4 ⇑ 8.73% | 290.06 | 291.4 / 270.0BSC | 1.77 | 565.82 | Vol. 202535 D: 601.3 ⇓ 0.66% | 610.74 | 622.0 / 596.5 C: 600.5 ⇓ 0.50% | 610.01 | 620.0 / 598.0GQBALLPEN | 6.55 | 250.45 | Vol. 149806 D: 157.1 ⇓ 0.38% | 160.10 | 165.0 / 142.0 C: 157.0 ⇓ 0.32% | 161.10 | 163.9 / 155.7USMANIAGL | 0.50 | 26.03 | Vol. 216242 D: 156.8 ⇑ 3.36% | 158.94 | 162.9 / 145.0 C: 156.5 ⇑ 2.15% | 158.81 | 163.0 / 155.0SAVAREFR | 0.23 | 12.32 | Vol. 1050 D: 65.60 ⇑ 5.64% | 65.71 | 68.00 / 64.00BEXIMCO | 3.24 | 86.74 | Vol. 1207756 D: 32.50 ⇓ 1.81% | 32.91 | 36.00 / 29.80 C: 32.60 ⇓ 1.81% | 33.03 | 35.00 / 30.00SINOBANGLA | 1.75 | 21.01 | Vol. 129000 D: 19.60 ⇓ 0.51% | 19.74 | 20.00 / 19.50 C: 19.20 ⇓ 1.54% | 19.20 | 19.20 / 19.20MIRACLEIND | 0.14 | 14.90 | Vol. 73557 D: 12.40 ⇓ 1.59% | 12.48 | 12.70 / 12.00 C: 12.50 ⇑ 0.81% | 12.48 | 12.60 / 12.30

BONDIBBLPBOND | 0.00 | 1000.00 | Vol. 300 D: 952.3 ⇓ 0.18% | 950.88 | 955.0 / 950.0 C: 930.5 ⇓ 2.05% | 930.67 | 931.0 / 930.0ACIZCBOND | 0.00 | 1000.00 | Vol. 224 D: 858.5 ⇑ 1.18% | 857.14 | 860.0 / 850.0BRACSCBOND | 0.00 | 0.00 | Vol. 55 D: 1045 ⇓ 2.79% | 1036 | 1047 / 1045

8 wednesday, august 28, 2013dHaKa tRIBune Business

China August official PMI seen hitting three-month highnReuters, Beijing

China’s factory activity in August may have expanded at the fastest pace in three months, a Reuters poll showed, adding to evidence that the world’s second-largest economy may be stabilizing after slowing for more than two years.

The median forecast of 12 economists polled by Reuters showed China’s official manufacturing managers’ index (PMI) in Au-gust may have risen to 50.6 from July’s 50.3.

A reading above 50 indicates expanding activity while one below it points to a con-traction.

Beijing has stepped up efforts in recent months to prevent a sharp economic slow-down by quickening railway investment and public housing construction and intro-ducing a series of measures to help smaller companies, which could sustain the revival of internal demand in the coming months.

“PMI data for August could further con-firm a stabilizing trend of the economy, which is mainly underpinned by infrastruc-ture and property investment,” said Nie Wen, an analyst at Hwabao Trust in Shanghai.

A similar, preliminary private sector sur-vey of purchasing managers, sponsored by HSBC and published last week, showed ac-tivity in China’s industrial sector grew at its quickest pace in four months in August as new orders surged.

The official PMI generally paints a rosier picture than the HSBC PMI, as it mainly cov-ers big and state-backed companies, while the latter focuses more on smaller and pri-vate sector firms.

The anticipated uptick in the vast manu-facturing sector could also have been boost-ed by rising domestic demand from invento-ry rebuilding after significant destocking in the second quarter, analysts said.

Data on Tuesday showed that industri-al profits in July grew 11.6% in July from a year earlier, picking up from annual growth of 6.3% in June, further evidence of an im-provement in corporate fortunes.

The government has also been talking about how the economy has stabilized, look-ing to soothe concerns on global markets about a hard landing for an economy that had slowed for nine out of the past 10 quarters.

The National Bureau of Statistics’ spokes-man told a media briefing said on Monday that there were positive changes emerging in the economy and the government’s 7.5% annual growth target is achievable.

Vice Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao add-ed his voice to the chorus on Tuesday, saying that there was no need for government stim-ulus and that growth can instead be support-ed through structural adjustments.

Analysts said other figures showing in-creased power generation and cargo freight for early August could also bode well for eco-

nomic performance this month, suggesting a rapid economic slowdown may have been arrested.

“We see a big chance of a rebound in the official PMI figure in August, as indicated by stronger power data and recovering cargo transport “said Gao Yuan, an analyst at Hai-tong Securities in Shanghai.

Growth in China’s exports, a key driver of the economy, is expected to stabilize further for the rest of the year due to modest and grad-ual recovery in the United States and euro area.

The commerce ministry said last Friday

that the country’s trade flows were steady-ing in early August, with global demand im-proving and government measures to help exporters kicking in.

There remain obstacles to a strong re-bound, however, including regulatory tight-ening of the shadow banking business, on which many small companies still depend for financing.

The official PMI data will be released on Sunday, Sept 1, at 0100 GMT. The final read-ing of the HSBC PMI is due on Monday at 0145 GMT. l

a worker welds at a machinery manufacturing factory in Huaibei, anhui province. China’s factory activity in august may have expanded at the fastest pace in three months, a Reuters poll showed, adding to evidence that the world’s second-largest economy may be stabilising after slowing for more than two years rEuTErs

India clears $27 bn for power, other projects to spur economynAFP, New Delhi

India's cabinet has cleared 36 infrastructure proj-ects worth more than $2bn - including 18 power projects - to try to jumpstart economic growth and restore investor confidence, the finance minister announced Tuesday.

The clearance was given by the Cabinet Com-mittee on Investment headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and formed in late December to fast-track approvals and ease bottlenecks that hamper growth.

The petroleum and natural gas projects, valued

at 830bn rupees ($12.6bn), are urgently needed to reduce a crippling electricity shortfall and help power Asia's third-largest economy.

The other projects cleared include those in the railway, roads and other sectors, with a total value of 1.83tn rupees ($27.8bn), said Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

"A number of projects had stalled and the mes-sage is we're very keen to to get the investment cycle restarted again," Chidambaram told a news conference, without identifying the projects by name.

"Now the investment cycle has started, it will

gather pace - bottlenecks are being cleared," he said. The committee has cleared investments in a string of energy and other projects since it was set up.

The shortage of power is cited by economists as one of the factors that has slowed the pace of India's economic growth to a decade-low of five percent. India's creaky transportation network has also hurt industrialisation efforts.

Chidambaram's announcement came as India's currency touched a new lifetime low of 66.07 rupees to the dollar amid foreign investor alarm over the nation's record current account deficit

- the broadest measure of trade - and a sharply slowing economy. The rupee's fall was greased by parliamentary approval late on Monday of a $19 billion plan to supply cheap grain to the poor that investors fear will increase the burden on India's already stretched public finances.

Power projects have been delayed due to regulatory, environmental and land acquisition hurdles along with a lack of fuel supply agree-ments. The Congress-led government has been accused of policy paralysis in the wake of a string of graft scandals which has left them on the back foot as the economy slowed. l