Sahara entry to hurt domestic industry: Moudud Ahmed BNP,Bangladesh

BANGLADESH NEWS

BNP Standing Committee Member Moudud Ahmed on Wednesday raised voice against the proposed investment by Indian conglomerate Sahara India Pariwar in Bangladesh's housing sector, claiming that it will lame the existing Bangladeshi entrepreneurs.

The veteran politician protested the government move allowing investment by the Indian company in a programme at the Diploma Engineers Institute.

He said the existing Bangladeshi entrepreneurs should have been given the chance. "But the government did not do that and instead has taken the initiative to destroy the housing sector in the name of new technology and technical assistance."

"Our local entrepreneurs are adept technologically and technically for such housing project ... we don't need outside technology."

On Friday, chief of the Indian conglomerate Subrata Roy Sahara declared that they were going to invest $100 to $125 million in their first project in Bangladesh. He added that the company had several proposed projects and it would select a suitable one through its offshoot, Sahara Matribhumi Unnoyan Corporation Limited, which was being created.

The business behemoth signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) last week to build a modern housing estate for low-income group people. The 'New Dhaka' project will also meet housing requirements of urban dwellers. 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina vows fair polls under AL govt,Bangladesh

BANGLADESH NEWS

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday expressed her strong resolve to hold the next general election in a free, fair and credible manner as the present Election Commission has been working independently and neutrally.

“Awami League believes in democracy. If the AL government could hold some 5,175 different elections in a free, fair and neutral manner during its tenure, then it can also hold the next general election freely and fairly,” she said promising not to allow anyone to interfere in the EC’s activities.

The Awami League president was exchanging views with the grassroots-level leaders and workers of Meherpur district unit of her party at her official residence Gono Bhaban.

Deputy Leader of the House Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury, AL presidium members Kazi Jafarullah, Akhtaruzzaman Chowdhury, AL joint general secretary Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif were also present.

“No one will be allowed to play with the fate of the country’s people as done in the past…we’ll have to ensure the economic emancipation of our people and AL is working to this end,” Hasina told the AL grassroots-level leaders.

About human rights, the premier said questions are being raised about human rights violation at a time when attempts are made to try those who burned sleeping people to death in buses and cars.

“Where are the human rights of those who were burnt to death?”

She said the government also has the records of those who gave such advice and orders.

Referring to BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, Hasina said, “Has the opposition leader forgotten the 1/11 incident when her two sons were driven out of the country after a good beating? How, can she forget the 1/11 episode… Ijjuddin, Moeenuddin and Fakhruddin? It’s all her creation.”

Mentioning atrocities and oppression carried out by BNP during its terms, the premier alleged that BNP had unleashed torture, oppression and killing on the country’s people, calling out the army in the name of ‘Operation Clean Heart’.

She said then they created Rab and killed some 2,500 people in just one year introducing ‘crossfire’ in the country.

Mentioning that the Awami League is trying hard to strengthen democracy, Hasina claimed that there was no single incident of killing and accident during any of the 5,175 elections held under the present government.

“There was no free, fair and neutral election under any government in the past except AL. Everything will be done according to people’s will and we’ve given this right to our people.”

The prime minister also asked her party leaders and workers to uphold the dignity of the confidence the country’s people reposed on Awami League handing it a landslide victory in the last general election in 2008.

Making a scathing attack on late president Ziaur Rahman, Hasina said Zia had patronised the anti-liberation forces in the country, killed several thousand military and air force officers and soldiers and sent many AL leaders and activists to jail.

After the assassination of Bangabandhu along with most of his family members in 1975 and the killing of four national leaders in jail, the constitution of the country has been desecrated, pushing the country to a different direction, she said.

But after wining over two-thirds majority this time, the prime minister said, her government has restored the spirit of the Liberation War through the 15th amendment of the constitution.

Listing various development activities taken by her government,

Hasina mentioned that her government has been able to reduce the child and maternal mortality rates, poverty rate by 10 percent, increase literacy rate, establish good governance and expand the social safety net programmes.

She also expressed her strong commitment to build a hunger- and poverty-free ‘Sonar Bangla’ by 2021 and turn the country into a middle-income one.

Office bearers and members of the Awami League Central Working Committee, advisory council, executive committee of Meherpur district unit, national committee members, lawmakers of the party, administrator of Meherpur District Council, presidents and general secretaries of upazila, thana, union and municipal units and upazila chairmen and vice-chairmen of the party, mayors and councillors of municipalities, chairmen of the union councils and presidents and general secretaries of the associate and like- minded bodies of the Meherpur district unit Awami League attended the meeting.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for bringing eligible people under tax net,Bangladesh

BANGLADESH NEWS

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday called for spurring all people eligible for paying tax to bring them under tax net to boost revenue and free the country from the net of the income beyond tax.

"There is no alternative to increasing revenue as we want to stand on our own feet and fulfil our development goals with own financing," she said while inaugurating the online tax payment system at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the capital this morning.

The prime minister said the country witnessed a tremendous success in realisation of direct taxes over the last three years due to various pragmatic steps of the government.

The country witnessed 18 percent growth and almost a double revenue income in the current fiscal due to this success, she said.

To retain this progress, the tax net and the number of taxpayers will have to be increased, she said, urging the taxpayers and recipients to change their mindset in this regard.

Finance Minister AMA Muhith, PM's Economic Affairs Adviser Dr Mashiur Rahman and President of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI) AK Azad also spoke at the function presided over by National Board of Revenue Chairman (NBR) Nasiruddin Ahmed.

The prime minister said her government has reformed and modernised the tax administration and developed infrastructure to enhance revenue.

"We have also simplified tax payment system much and introduced tax information and service centres, arranged tax fair and developed the tax policy and management," she said.

Sheikh Hasina said the government has taken initiatives to make the income tax and value added tax (VAT) laws time- befitting. "We have also taken measures for expansion of income tax and VAT departments including construction of a modern revenue building in Dhaka," she said.

The prime minister said the country moved another step forward towards digitalisation with the inauguration of tax payment system through online.

"The system has opened up a new horizon of flourishing tax payment culture in Bangladesh as many Asian countries could not introduce the system," she said, congratulating the persons involved in this success.

Sheikh Hasina expressed the hope that the new system would help boost revenue by encouraging all people eligible for paying tax in tax payment.

She, however, called upon the all concerned to improve the system gradually on the basis of the demands of the taxpayers.

"You will also have to earn ability of regular maintenance of interactive tax website and bearing the pressure of the taxpayers in August-September," she said.

9 cops suspended, AC closed for assaulting journos,Bangladesh

BANGLADESH NEWS

The DMP suspended nine policemen and closed an assistant commissioner for torturing three photojournalists of the daily Prothom Alo while covering an incident at the city's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar on Saturday.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police, meanwhile, set up a one-member committee comprising Sahabuddin Koreshi, a joint police commissioner, to probe the incident, Additional Deputy Commissioner Masudur Rahman, in-charge of Media and Community Service of DMP, told .

The suspended policemen are: Sub-inspector Zahir, Assistant Sub-inspectors Shafiq and Nazmul and six constables – Motiur, Razzaq, Shajahan, Joynal, Ratan and Jahangir.

The DMP commissioner took instant action against Tejgaon AC Shahidul Islam and the others when journalists called him over phone and protested the assault, the official said.

Contacted, Imam Hossain, deputy commissioner of Tejgaon Division, confirmed the action against the AC.

The injured photojournalists of the daily Prothom Alo - Khaled Sarkar, Sajid Hossain and Zahidul Karim - were rushed to National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (Nitor), popularly known as Pangu Hospital.

Kamrul Hasan, special correspondent of Prothom Alo, said police led by the AC suddenly swooped on the three photojournalists and beat them up mercilessly when they were taking photos of the students of Agargaon Women Polytechnic Institute, who started demonstration on the Rokeya Sarani at 11:00am.

The law enforcers then took the journalists to Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station and physically assaulted them again.

On information, their colleagues rushed to the police station and took them to the hospital.

The DMP has formed a one-member committee with joint commissioner Shahabuddin Koreshi to investigate the police action on the journalists.

In the morning, around 300 students of the polytechnic institute blocked Rokeya Sarani for more than two hours protesting what they said the government's decision to downgrade the diploma engineers as class-three officials from the previous class-two employee category.

The authorities have shut different polytechnic institutes across the country recently following the students' agitation over the matter.

The government however said it did not take any decision to change the status of diploma engineers.

Wasfia Nazreen on Everest,Bangladesh

BANGLADESH NEWS

Wasfia Nazreen has become the second Bangladeshi woman to scale the Mount Everest just a week after the feat of Nishat Majumder.

Wasfia reached the summit at 6:41am Bangladesh time on Saturday, Korvi Rakshand, spokesperson of Bangladesh Seven Summits' campaign which arranged the trekking, told .

On May 19, Nishat Majumder conquered the Mount Everest as the first Bangladeshi woman. Nishat and her fellow mountaineer MA Muhit started trekking towards Kathmandu Friday morning from the base camp.

Muhit is the first Bangladeshi to scale the mountain twice and from both sides. He first scaled the mountain peak on May 21 last year.

On the other hand, Musa Ibrahim is the first Bangladeshi to conquer the Everest on May 23, 2010.

Wasfia phoned me from her satellite phone around 7:00am to share her feat with me, Rakshand told The Daily Star around 8:00am Saturday.

Expedition Himalaya.com, organiser of the adventure, posted on its website that reads: Wasfia Nazreen from Bangladesh and three climbing sherpas -- Nima Girman, Da kusang and Furba Dorjee -- reached the summit of Mount Everest at 6:31am (Nepali time) on Saturday.

Wasfia left the base camp on Monday for her adventure to scale the world's highest peak.

She has to defer her climb to the summit by a day due to inclement weather on Friday.

Wasfia launched her expedition to the seven peaks of the world on July, 2011 under the campaign “Bangladesh on Seven Summits” in celebration of 40 years of the country's independence.

Supported by the country's Liberation War Museum, this is for the first time a Bangladeshi has taken up such a challenge.

Bangladesh on Seven Summits is a tribute to those women and men, who through sheer resolve, overcame enormous ordeal for the birth of our nation.

Wasfia left her regular job at Care Bangladesh at the end of last November to run this campaign that would take her around the world in two years.

Wasfia Nazreen, the first Bangladeshi woman attempting to climb the seven highest mountains of the world's seven continents, began her seven summit campaign on July 3 this year.

On October 2, 2011, she became the first Bangladeshi woman to reach the highest peak of Africa – the Uhuru peak of Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, 5895 metres above sea level.

She reached the peak of Mount Aconcagua in Argentina on December 16, 2011. But she came back 300 metres away from the peak of Mount Elbrus in Russia on July 12.

Wasfia started her journey for Everest on March 26. She was supposed to reach the summit at least seven days earlier. But she could not due to inclement weather including avalanche.

"This is it! I'm going up tonight (2:00am, 21st May) for a possible summit attempt on 25th morning if all goes well," according to Wasfia's last facebook post on May 20.

Railways Minister Obaidul Quader hopes for graft-free railway,Bangladesh

BANGLADESH NEWS

Communications and Railways Minister Obaidul Quader has said there will be no corruption in railway.

“The grabbed land of Bangladesh Railway will be recovered soon and the service of the railway will be improved,” the minister said on Saturday.

He was speaking while inaugurating the new engine and air-conditioned compartment of inter-city Upakul Express on Dhaka-Noakhali route at Noakhali Rail Station on Saturday.

He said the 146 rail stations which were closed due to manpower shortage will be reopened after new recruitment.

Local people have been demanding for a long for a pair of trains on Dhaka-Noakhali route.

Local MP Ekramul Karim Chowdhury, Abu Taher, director general of Bangladesh Railway, its secretary Fazle Kabir were present on the occasion.

As per the new schedule, the train will leave Noakhali at 6:30am and reach Dhaka at 12:25pm while the same train will leave Dhaka at 4:00pm and reach Noakhali at 10:20pm.

Obaidul was made communications minister in December last year after Syed Abul Hossain's removal from the ministry in the wake of graft allegation against the latter.

Obaidul was temporarily given additional charges of the railways ministry after Suranjit Sengupta stepped down as rail minister amid the railwaygate scandal in April.

Nazrul birth anniversary celebration in Mymensingh,Bangladesh

BANGLADESH NEWS

The national level 113th birth anniversary celebration of National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam has kicked off in 

Trishal. The three-day celebration began yesterday at Darirampur Nazrul Mancha. The celebration is being jointly organised by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and Mymensingh district administration.

The programmes include rallies, discussions, live performances, gatherings of poets, staging of plays and dances. Eminent artistes of the country are attending the cultural shows. A three-day fair themed 'Nazrul Mela' is also being held marking the occasion.

Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives, Syed Ashraful Islam formally inaugurated the celebrations as chief guest.

Professor Dr. Syed Giasuddin, vice-chancellor of Jatiyo Kobi Kazi Nazrul Islam University in Trishal, delivered the 'Nazrul Speech' on the opening day.

Deputy Commissioner of Mymensingh, Lokman Hossain Miah, presided over the opening session.

On the concluding day (May 27), H.T. Imam, Prime Minister's advisor for Public Administration Affairs, will attend a discussion as chief guest. State Minister for Cultural Affairs, Advocate Promod Mankin; Advocate 

Muslem Uddin, MP; Hayatur Rahman Khan, MP and secretary of Awami League district unit, Abdul Matin Sarker, will address the discussion, among others.

Dr. Biswajit Ghosh, Professor of Bengali Department at Dhaka University, will deliver a lecture on Nazrul. Mohammad Moinuddin Abdullah, Dhaka Divisional Commissioner, will be in the chair.

Meanwhile, Jatiya Kobi Kazi Nazrul Islam University (JKKNIU) in Trishal has also undertaken a three-day programme at its campus marking the 113th birth anniversary of the Rebel Poet. The programme includes placing of floral wreaths at the portrait of the poet, rally, cultural shows, debate for children, book fair and a photo exhibition on Nazrul.

The students of Music and Drama departments of the university are leading the cultural programmes that include a musical soiree and staging of Nazrul's play. Prizes among the winners of cultural competitions will be distributed on the concluding day.

Different socio-cultural and educational institutions across the district are also observing the birth anniversary of Nazrul with various programmes.