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The Department of Environment has issued notices against 45 industries, pharmaceuticals and hospitals in Tejgaon for violating environmental rules.
   The enforcement team of the department visited about 80 industries and found that 45 of them were violating environmental rules. They were running without ‘environment clearance certificates’ and creating noise pollution, or lacked environment-friendly waste disposal systems, posing a serious threat to public health and environment, said the officials.
   The team found 15 sweater and garment factories, four washing industries, three packaging factories, three ceramic and aluminium factories, two plastic industries, iron factories, pharmaceuticals, printing and dyeing factory and hospitals, a motorcycle workshop, SIM and scratch card manufacturing company, rubber factory, dry cleaning factory, chemical industry, Eastern Tube Factory, sweet manufacturing factory, bitumen factory and bottled water factory.
   Billal Hossain, the department’s deputy director of implementation, told New Age on Monday, ‘The enforcement teams will visit other industries in the capital and all over the country. Many industries in the country are running without environment clearance certificates, especially those which were established before 1995. We will make all the industries comply with environmental laws to protect our country’s ecology.’
   The industries dump untreated liquid wastes into the water bodies in different parts of the city, according to sources in the department.
   Untreated liquid waste threatens the lives of fishes and also people who are involved with fisheries, said an environmentalist.
   ‘People who are using the polluted water are dangerously vulnerable to different water-borne diseases like diarrhoea, typhoid and various skin diseases’, said Dr Saifuddin Khaled of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University.
   According to the Environment Conservation Rules 1997 all industrial units and projects, after their sites and impact on environment have been considered, will be classified into four categories –– green, orange A and B, and red.
   The department can issue the environmental clearance certificates on the basis of general information, exact description of raw materials and manufactured products, location of effluent treatment plants, effluent discharge arrangements, etc. Sometimes feasibility studies on environment, conducted by the proposed industrial units, will also be required.
   ‘We will issue such notices to the institutions three times, and if after that any of them fails to take proper steps, we will take action according to the environmental rules,’ said Billal Hossain.
   The enforcement team visited in Tejgaon in July and August and issued the first notices then.

Two student groups of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology have got the first and second prizes in IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Inc., New York, USA) Region-10 student paper contest in undergraduate category.
   Asif Islam Khan and Md Khalid Ashraf, students of Level 4, Term I of the electrical and electronic engineering department got the first prize. They will get $300 and a certificate.
   Toufiq, Imtiaz and Shankhanad, students of Level 4, Term 2 of the same department got the second prize.
   It is the first time BUET participated in the contest with three entries. A number of other entries from India, Pakistan, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand and Hong Kong also competed for the award.
   The awards are the highest recognition of IEEE to its undergraduate student members for excellence in research and also one of the most prestigious awards for undergraduate research in Electrical and Computer Engineering across the world.
   IEEE is the leading authority in electrical and computer engineering with over 375,000 members all over the world and IEEE Region-10 that comprises all of the Asian countries except Middle East, holds the student paper contest for over 20,000 student members in the region every year.
   IEEE, Bangladesh section was founded in 1994 and has over 300 members and four student branches.

Twenty more dengue patients were admitted to different hospitals and clinics in the city during the 24-hour period till 9:00am Monday, according to the Dhaka City Corporation control room.
   With them, the number of dengue patients rose to 1,383 since the control room had started keeping records on June 28. Three persons also died of the fever this year.
   Of the new patients, seven were admitted to Holy Family Red Crescent Hospital, four each to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, and Dr Azmal Hospital, three to Nibedita Hospital and one each to Meghna General Hospital and BDR Hospital.
   The control room sources said 68 dengue patients were undergoing treatment in city hospitals and clinics on Monday.
   The health directorate control room, which started keeping the records on June 7, said four more patients were admitted to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital and Bangladesh Medical College Hospital in the last 24 hours till Monday noon.
   The control room has so far counted 1,691 dengue patients.
   The chief entomologist of the corporation, Nasim-us-Seraj said fogging in 500 yards around the house of every dengue patients was on.
   Larviciding in seven areas, identified vulnerable by the Institute Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research is also continuing, he said. The areas are Maghbazar, Dhanmondi, Shidheswari, Minto Road, and Sayedabad, Gabtali and Mohakhali inter-district bus terminals.
   He urged the city dwellers to dispose of all the used cans, pots, bottles and such containers properly as they cannot store water for more than five days at a stretch.
   The people should refrain from storing water in their buckets, drums, tanks, earthen vats and flower vases for more than 5 days.

Two mobile courts on Monday recovered date crossed drugs and reagents from different diagnostic centres and hospitals in the Dhaka city.
   The courts also sealed off a diagnostic centre, realised Tk 3.30 lakh in fines and sentenced five persons to different terms of imprisonment.
   A court led by magistrate Narayan Chandra Debnath fined Gastro Liver Hospital and Diagnostic Centre at 69/D, Green Road Tk 40,000 for storing date crossed reagents, and for not having trade licence.
   Some date crossed drugs were also found at a pharmacy adjacent to the centre, and the court realised Tk 20,000 from Nur Mohammad, in-charge of the pharmacy.
   Besides, the court sealed off Medisair Diagnostic Centre at 63/B, Green Road and fined it Tk 50,000 for involvement with illegal blood business.
   Shah Alam, manager of the centre, was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment, in default of paying the fine.
   The mobile court also fined Shandani Blood and Diagnostic Centre and Mohanagar Diagnostic Centre Tk 2.10 lakh for their involvement with illegal blood business.
   Shandani situated at 79, Green Road, was fined Tk 1.80 lakh while Mohanagar at 22/11, Mirpur Road, Tk 30,000. Four persons of Shandani were also jailed, in default of paying the fine.
   It fined Lab Bangladesh at Babar Road Tk 10,000 for not having legal papers. The court filed eleven cases against the organisations.
   Another court led by Abdul Jalil filed six cases against different fast food, Chinese and local restaurants at Monipuripara, Khamarbari, Badda and Gulshan and fined them Tk 85,000. It found filthy environment, different substandard food items, and cooked foods selling openly.

Pedestrians run the risk of road accidents at most of the intersections in the Dhaka city because of the absence of zebra crossing or underpass or footbridge in the areas.
   The three busiest intersections are Banglamotor, Karwanbazar and Sahabagh, where around 50 to 100 pedestrians cross the roads every 10 minutes.
   Several accidents took place in the past few years at the Bangalamotor and Sahabagh intersections and pedestrians, including university student and journalist, were killed.
   ‘I fell very horrified when I cross the Sahabagh intersection, which I have to cross at least twice a day for various reasons’, said Shaila Afroz, a Dhaka University student.
   She termed the intersection a death trap, adding, ‘there are traffic police and electronic traffic signal, but sometimes the bus drivers do not follow the signal and local buses overtake each others in competition.’
   Dr Razia Alam, who also crosses the Sahabagh intersection daily, said, ‘There is a footbridge at Sahabagh but very few people use it because it is not on the accurate point’.
   Same is the case with the Karwanbazar-Sonargaon hotel intersection. There is an underpass at Karwanbazar but very few pedestrians need to use it. Pedestrians have to cross at least two or three roads and wait for two or three signals to pass one side to another side at the intersection.
   ‘This intersection is very risky for the pedestrians as they try to cross the road, violating the signal when they find any gap through the running vehicles’, said Mishu Rahman, a private company job holder at Karwanbazar.
   ‘There are four to five traffic police on duty in this intersection but they cannot say anything to the pedestrians when they pass the road in a group, violating the signal and it is also difficult for the running vehicles to take a sudden break’, said Mishu.
   Road accident is very common at this intersection where an underpass or a footbridge should be built on an urgent basis, he said.
   In a study of the Accident Research Centre at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, it was found that 72 per cent victims of road accidents in the city were pedestrians in last seven years.
   About 47 per cent pedestrian fatalities in the Dhaka metropolitan area occurred at the centre of road and about 47.65 per cent on road side in between 1998 and 2004, said the study report.
   The Dhaka City Corporation has planned to construct eight more underpasses and allocated Tk 25 crore in the DCC 2006-2007 fiscal year budget for the Sahabagh underpass.
   The city corporation sources said the Sahabagh underpass construction would begin soon and later other underpass at Banglamotor, linking Newmarket-Gausia Market, Nabisco intersection, Tejgaon intersection, Shapla Chattar at Motijheel, linking Zonaki-Polwel market at Naya Paltan and Shantinagar intersection will be built in phases. Besides, another underpass is under construction at Shanir Akhra at Demra.
   But there is no plan to construct footbridge or underpass at the Karwanbazar-Sonargaon intersection as there is already an underpass there.

Machines, chemicals and petroleum products were destroyed by a fire at Bengal Adhesive and Chemical Products Limited near the Jirabo bus terminal under the Ashulia police station in Dhaka early Monday.
   Four fire fighters also sustained burn injuries while they were dousing the flames, the fire brigade officials said.
   The fire broke out at the tin-shed warehouse of the factory, owned by one Jasim Uddin, at about 5:00am and soon engulfed the whole factory, burning down its assets including petroleum products, chemicals, rubbers and machines.
   Later seven fire fighting units from different stations went to the spot and extinguished the flames at about 12:30pm.
   The injured firemen — Deen Mohammad, Abu Sayeed, Siddiq and Tofazzal Hossain — were given first aid at the local hospital.
   Although the fire brigade officials said the cause for the fire and the extent of loss were under investigation, they said the fire might be originated from the short circuit.
   The factory authorities estimated the loss at about Tk 12 crore.

The food and disaster management minister, Chowdhury Kamal Ibney Yousuf, on Monday inaugurated the Food and Disaster Management Building at Mahakhali in the city.
   The seven-storey building was built at a cost of Tk 9.30 crore on 16 kathas of land, said a PID hand out.
   The minister later inaugurated the information centre for `early warning system’ on natural calamities on the seventh floor of the Tran Bhaban.
   The center was constructed at a cost of Tk 10 crore with the assistance of the UNDP and the DFID.

Light to moderate rain or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty wind is likely at many places over the Dhaka, Khulna, Barisal, Chittagong and Sylhet divisions at a few places over the Rajshahi divisions with moderately heavy rainfall at places till 6:00pm today, said the Met Office in a forecast on Monday.
   Day temperature may fall slightly during the period. The highest temperature on Monday, 36 degrees Celsius, was recorded in Sylhet and the lowest, 24 degrees Celsius, at Cox’s Bazar.
   The sun sets in the capital city today at 6:20pm and will rise on Wednesday at 5:39am.

DU exams postponed
All examinations of Dhaka University under course system scheduled for August 30 have been postponed due to unavoidable circumstances. The fresh dates of the postponed examinations will be announced soon, a DU press release said on Monday.
— BSS

Teenage boy commits suicide in Sylhet
A teenage boy allegedly committed suicide in the Sylhet city on Sunday. The deceased was identified as Abdul Ahad, 18, son of the late Ismail Mia of Charadighipar area of the city. The police said Ahad was found hanging from the ceiling fan in his room Sunday morning. The body was sent to hospital morgue for autopsy. Local people said Ahad was addicted to drug. But the reason behind the suicide could not be known. An unnatural death case was filed in this connection with the police.
— UNB