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About a 100 kilometres of rail track between Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj and between Chapainawabganj and Rahanpur have become risky for train movement due to a lack of maintenance over the years.
   About 75 per cent of the wooden slippers of 55 kilometres on the Rajshahi-Chapai-nawabganj route and 40 kilometres on the Chapainawabganj-Rahanpur route have been damaged.
   As a result, the trains on these routes run with a top speed of 10 kilometres per hour for fear of derailment.
   Consequently robberies have become a common phenomenon on the routes, alleged passengers. Derailments have also increased.
   Rajshahi railway sources said three trains ply the route daily instead of the previous six.
   Railway sources in Chapainawabganj said the IR 571 up and the IR 571 down that plied on the Chapainawabganj-Parbatipur route were the main sources of income introduced in 1998.
   In the fiscal 1996-97 the trains earned Tk 2.75 crore and in 2004-05 the earning came down to around Tk 9 lakh.
   The route was one of the most vital one for revenue of the railway, importing goods from India, but as the
   railway track has deteriorated, the importers have lost interest to carry goods through the route.
   The trains of the route do not have enough facility. Most of the compartments do not have lights and toilets have become unusable.
   The stations have become safe havens for criminals and drug users.
   The sources said during the past one year, trains have derailed 35 times on these routes. The last derailment took place on July 18 that resulted in a rail traffic disruption of about 30 hours.

Poultry farms at Tongi, Sreepur and Kaliakoir upazila under Gazipur have been staggering due to lack of specific government policy, traders said Tuesday.
   Traders involved in this business have been counting loss for various reasons including rise of death-rate of chickens due to sick, weakling, and underweight poultry supply from hatcheries, adulterated food items, price hike, sub-standard vaccines and medicines, excessive power outage, non-existence of decease detecting centres and after all lack of overnment’s specific policy for the poultry farms, they pointed out.
   According to an investigation of the Poultry Owners’ Association, the number of poultry farms has been dropped from 2,400 in 2003 to 2,100 towards the end of 2004 in Gazipur upazila.
   Only in Sreepur upazila there were 1,819 poultry farms, of them 57 farms have already been closed down. Some 60 farms out of 108 established with credit facilities from Bangladesh Krishi Bank, Sreepur Branch have remained closed for long.
   Apart from this, many a farms is on the verge of collapse due to inadequate running capital. Even 15-20
   farms have already been sold on auction through the Artha Rin Adalat as they have failed to pay-off their loans. Some more are on the way to be sold.
   Poultry industrialist of Sreepur Khandaker Abul Mohsin said poultry owners could not sell eggs and meat produced in their farms at their desired cost price.
   Poultry farm owners put forward a set of proposals to protect the industry in the national economic interest.
   The suggestions include: to put an end to selling the farms on auction, extend the time-limit of the project after reducing the interest rate, additional credit facilities to the farm owners to reopen the closed farms.

Prices of all essential commodities have shot up in Chapainawabganj during the last few days.
   Prices of different varieties of rice have increased by Tk 1 to Tk 2 per kilogram compared to the price a week ago.
   At present wheat is selling at Tk 19 per kilogram against Tk 17 a week ago.
   Prices of all kinds of vegetables have also marked a sharp rise. Prices of all kinds of rice have gone up by Tk 30 to Tk 40 per maund.
   Potato is selling at Tk 10 per kilogram against Tk 9, eggplant at Tk 24 per kilogram against Tk 20.
   Papaya is being sold at Tk 9 per kilogram against Tk 6, patol at Tk 10 per kilogram against Tk 8, jhinga at Tk 12 per kilogram against Tk 7 previously.
   Green chilli is selling at Tk 12 last week it was selling Tk 50 per kilogram.
   Onion is selling at Tk 15 per kilogram against Tk 12, garlic at Tk 45 per kilogram against Tk 38, ginger at Tk 60 per kilogram Tk 50 previously.
   Beef is selling at Tk 100 per kilogram against Tk 90, white broiler chicken at Tk 75 per kilogram against Tk 65, red broiler chicken at Tk 80 per kilogram against Tk 70, local chicken at Tk 125 per kilogram against Tk 110 and eggs are selling at Tk 16 per four against Tk 14.
   Prices of all kinds of pulses have gone up by Tk 150 to Tk 200 per maund on an average.
   Among the pulses, red lentils are selling at Tk 45 per kilogram against Tk 42, black gram at Tk 40 per kilogram against Tk 36, pea pulse at Tk 38 per kilogram against Tk 36 a week ago.
   Prices of oil and sugar have increased by Tk 3 per kilogram.
   Soybean oil is selling at Tk 48 per kilogram against Tk 45 per kilogram, mustard oil at Tk 85 per kilogram against Tk 82 and sugar at Tk 35 per kilogram against Tk 33 a week ago.
   Though supply of fish in the markets has increased their prices remained static.
   Hilsa is selling at Tk 200 per kilogram and rohita and katla weighing two kilogram are selling at Tk 180 each.
   Some wholesalers said the prices of essential commodities have increased due to short supply.
   Some others said lack of market control is behind the price hike.
   Short supply was caused due to heavy rain during last one week.

Incidents of accident have increased on different roads, including the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway, in Comilla. During the last six months, 98 accidents took place in the district which was 70 during the same period in 2004.
   At least 85 persons were killed and 250 others injured. Of the injured, 130 got maimed, according to sources concerned. Among the victims, 87 were passengers, 17 drivers, helpers and supervisors.
   The angry people put barricade on the highway 35 times and the road communication was disrupted over 30 hours.
   Most of the accidents took place on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway at Chowddagram, Amanganda, Miabazar, Suaganj, Alekharchar, Amratali, Beltali, Paduarbazar, Sheoratali, Kotbari, Cantonment Area, Changenee, Katherpul, Nuritala, Bagur, Chandina, Madhayia and Gouripur in Comilla.
   The locals alleged that no effective measure had yet been taken to check incidents of road accident although problems including unauthorised parking, overtaking, overloading, old vehicles, reckless driving, violation of traffic rules and absence of police petrol and remain for long.
   They also alleged that most of the drivers are drug addicted.

A Natore court sentenced four persons to life term imprisonment in a rape case on Monday.
   The Woman and Children Repression Tribunal also fined the convicts Nur Nabi, Jamal Uddin, Fajlul Haq and Sefali Khatun of village Nazirpur under Gurudaspur upazila in Natore Tk 1 lakh each.
   According to the prosecution, the convicts raped their neighbour Asma Khatun on July 27, 2001. Later Asma committed suicide.
   Asma’s father Abbas Ali filed a case with the Gurudaspur police accusing the four.
   Judge Nurul Haq delivered the verdict.

A young housewife, who suffered severe burn injuries as her husband set her on fire at village Bethulia in Sadar upazila Sunday night, died at Sadar Hospital early Tuesday.
   The police said Manju beat up his wife Jasmine Akhter, 19, after she had refused to bring dowry from her parents and stood in his way for a second marriage.
   Later, Manju poured kerosene on her body and set her on fire. Jasmine, mother of one child, was taken to the hospital where she died after over 24 hours of battle for life.
   A case was filed.

A 40-year-old man was killed over a clash between his son and some dissipated boys at village Dasher Kandi under Muksudpur upazila in Gopalganj Monday night.
   According to the police, the deceased’s son Ripon Sheikh, 25, who got married only 17 days ago, while coming back to his residence from another wedding ceremony, was singing a song.
   But the group asked him not to sing that led an altercation between them.
   At one stage they beat him seriously.
   Ripon’s father Mohammad Akkas Ali went to Ebadul’s house and complained to his father against Ebadul.
   At that time Ebadul with his other collaborators seriously beat and injured Akkas.
   The locals took Akkas to Rajoir Health Complex where he was declared dead.
   His body was sent to the Gopalganj Hospital morgue for post-mortem examination.
   The deceased’s wife Khadeja Begum filed a case accusing Ebadul and 16 others with the Muksudpur police.

Four persons were killed and three injured in two separate road accidents in Gazipur on Tuesday.
   According to the police, five persons were injured when a bus from Jamalpur rammed three rickshaws at Rajendrapur on the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway under sadar upazila.
   Locals took the injured to Tongi Hospital. Later the injured were shifted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital as their condition deteriorated. Three of the injured died on their way to Dhaka.
   The identity of the dead and injured was not found immediately. The police seized the bus but the driver and the helper manager to flee away.
   In another accident, a helper of a truck was killed and another injured when a Dhaka bound truck hit another truck which was kept standing at Safipur Bazar on the Dhaka-Tangail Highway under Kaliakoir upazila early Tuesday.
   The injured, identified as Mannan, was taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital in a critical condition.
   The bodies were sent to the Gazipur Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy. Separate cases were filed.

At least 15 persons were wounded in a clash between two rival groups at Khaliskhali union under Tala upazila on Tuesday.
   The police and locals said Dipti Chatterjee of Baghmara village had a land dispute with Khalilur Rahman of nearby Baliadah village since long.
   The wounded were admitted to Sadar Hospital and local clinics. The police were deployed in the area to avert further trouble.