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Three nationalised commercial banks – Sonali, Janata and Agrani – will soon be given public limited company status with the authority to operate on a commercial basis and to hire and fire officials and employees, including the managing director, sources in the finance ministry said.
   The finance ministry will no longer carry out day-to-day supervisory activities nor will it have the power to appoint officials and employees. The entire responsibility for management and operation will be on the board of directors of the banks.
   The memorandum and articles of association of the nationalised banks have recently been amended to this effect and subsequently vetted by the law ministry. The amended memorandum will soon be placed before the cabinet.
   If and when the cabinet approves the changes, the finance ministry will sign a vendor’s agreement with the board of directors of each of the three banks, the sources said.
   The transfer of authority from the ministry to the banks’ board of directors will expedite their corporatisation, high officials of the ministry believe.
   ‘The authority to run the banks will be awarded to the board of directors through the agreement,’ a high official told New Age on Monday. ‘The finance ministry will be relieved from all sorts of monitoring and administrative functions after signing the agreement as the full operational autonomy will be delegated to the board of directors.’
   The corporatisation process of the three banks is being pursued under the ‘enterprise growth and bank modernisation’ project of the government, which was undertaken in June 2004 with funds from the World Bank.
   The privatisation of another nationalised bank, Rupali, is also part of the project and is now nearing completion. Rupali was made public limited company much earlier, the sources said.
   At the initial stage, the ownership of Sonali, Janata and Agrani will remain in the hands of the government, the finance ministry officials said.
   The ministry will appoint the directors of the banks.
   Sonali, Janata and Agrani will be registered under the Company Act 1994 soon after the approval of the cabinet.
   The banks will be named Sonali Bank Limited, Janata Bank Limited and Agrani Bank Limited after being registered with the Joint Stock Company.
   Their shares will be offloaded in phases and directors will then be appointed from among shareholders, the sources said.
   The chairman of the banks will be appointed from among the directors and their choices, according to the amended articles of association.
   The board will appoint the managing director but the appointment has to be endorsed by the Bangladesh Bank. The number of directors will be between seven and nine.

The cabinet on Monday approved the proposal for a second national highway between Dhaka and Chittagong, to be constructed by the private sector.
   At its weekly meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office, presided over by the prime minister, Khaleda Zia, the cabinet also approved the hajj policy without fixing the fare for hajj flights, and a bill seeking amendment to the Transfer of Property Act waiving mandatory registration of mortgaged apartments.
   The meeting adopted a condolence resolution mourning the death of Akbar Hossain, who was the shipping minister of the
   BNP-led alliance government. Members of the cabinet prayed for the salvation of the departed soul and expressed their sympathy for his bereaved family.
   The proposed second national highway between the capital and the port city will be built on a built-own-operate-and-transfer basis, sources present in the meeting said.
   The 210-kilometre expressway will be have a different alignment from the existing Dhaka-Chittagong highway via Narayanganj-Mirsarai and cut down the travel time to three hours from 5-6 hours now.
   A consortium will be in charge of operation and maintenance, and ensure necessary facilities such as filling stations, parking spaces, rest houses, mosques, etc. There will also be booths for toll collection.
   The Malaysia-based Azimat Consortium proposed in 2005 to build the six-lane expressway at a cost of about $900 million on a built-own-operate-and-transfer basis.
   After operating for 30 years the expressway will be handed over to the government, according to the proposal.
   The cabinet, however, decided to go for international bidding for the project and approved the proposal for enlisting the highway as a private infrastructure project.
   Azimat will be considered as a pre-qualified company for the project, the sources said.
   When giving its approval to the hajj policy, the cabinet asked the foreign affairs, religious affairs and civil aviation ministries to fix the fare for hajj flights, be it for ballottee or non-balottee pilgrims, of Biman and foreign airlines through discussions among themselves and negotiation with the airliners.
   For the previous hajj, the biggest annual religious gathering of Muslims at Makkah in Saudi Arabia, the government fixed the airfare at $950 per person rejecting a Biman proposal to increase the fare.
   This year, the civil aviation ministry has proposed an increase in the fare on the plea that Biman would have to incur a loss of Tk 73 lakh on every flight if the airfare remains $950.
   Last year, the government did not fix the airfare for non-ballotee pilgrims, who perform hajj on their own arrangement, allowing the airlines, including Biman, to fix it.
   As the decision caused enormous sufferings to the pilgrims, the cabinet asked the ministries concerned to fix the airfare for non-ballottee pilgrims as well, the sources said.

The Jatiya Sangsad on Monday witnessed another heated debate between the treasury and the opposition benches following unparliamentary remarks by a minister on the leader of the opposition, Sheikh Hasina.
   The housing and public works minister, Mirza Abbas, in his personal clarification denied the charge brought by the opposition leader in the house on June 12 that his brother, Mirza Khakon, had tortured MNH Bulu inside the Motijhil police station.
   The minister asked the opposition leader to apologise in the parliament for the remarks, otherwise, he threatened to file a defamation case against her.
   Quoting from a book titled ‘Amar Fansi Chai’ ( I should be hanged ) written by one Matiur Rahman Rentu, the minister used abusing words against Hasina which drew angry reactions from the AL lawmakers.
   ‘The dark side of Hasina’s personal life was published in the book and now she wants to taint others’ characters,’ Abbas said.
   Although the AL lawmakers requested the speaker to intervene and stop Abbas, the acting speaker did not pay heed and the minister continued his diatribe.
   The enraged AL members shouted at Abbas in protest, but the speaker tried to stop them instead of intervening in the minister’s speech.
   When Abbas ended his speech the deputy leader of the opposition, Abdul Hamid and the AL member, Shahjahan Khan took the floor and slammed Abbas for his abusive remarks against the leader of the opposition.
   Hamid also demanded that the speaker should expunge the unparliamentary words.
   The speaker assured him that he would expunge the words and the House calmed.
   The communications minister, Nazmul Huda, also criticised the opposition leader for her remarks on allotment of a railway land to a human rights organisation run by the minister’s wife, Sigma Huda.

The Awami League-led opposition alliance called a countrywide daylong hartal today in protest against police attacks which left an opposition leader dead in the city during Sunday’s blockade.
   The Awami League president, Sheikh Hasina, at a post blockade press briefing on Sunday called the general strike.
   Hospitals, drug stores, fire brigade, journalists’ vehicles and ambulances will remain out of the purview of the shutdown.
   Recent hartals have witnessed clashes between the law enforcers and opposition activists, leaving a number of people injured and several vehicles vandalised.
   Around 8,000 law enforcers, including BDR and women Ansar, will be deployed on the city streets to maintain law and order during the hartal hours between 6:00am and 6:00pm.

The World Cup semi-final between Germany and Italy here today rekindles memories of their two epic battles in previous tournaments.
   Their first classic encounter was the 1970 semi-final in Mexico, regarded as one, if not the greatest game in World Cup history.
   In the punishing afternoon heat at the Azteca stadium, Italy edged a titanic struggle 4-3 thanks to Gianni Rivera’s dramatic extra-time winner.
   The end-to-end match is best remembered for the heroics of rising star Franz Beckenbauer, who dislocated his shoulder but carried on playing with his arm in a sling.
   Gigi Riva, who scored Italy’s third goal that day, believes Tuesday’s match will be less of a goal fest.
   ‘It won’t be anything like Mexico in 1970,’ said Italy’s team manager, who as an international scored 35 goals in 42 internationals, a remarkable tally in an era dominated by catenaccio and a career disrupted by two broken legs. ‘There’s so much at stake and I expect it to be much, much tighter.’
   Riva believes beating Germany this time around will be far more satisfying because of all the negative press that has followed Italy since the Serie A match-fixing scandal erupted.
   ‘This game is more important than the one at the Azteca because it comes at a time when our football has taken a real bashing,’ he said.
   ‘From the first day that we got the squad together, it seemed as if we were on a boat that was being pounded by missiles and torpedos every day.
   ‘But we regrouped, and (coach Marcello) Lippi has unified the players.’
   Beckenbauer, now chief organizer of the World Cup, has fond memories of Mexico where Italy were eventually beaten by Pele’s Brazil in the final.
   ‘1970 was a magnificent tournament,’ the German legend told FIFA’s website.
   ‘The fans were fanatical and stadium security wasn’t quite so intense in those days. You could still do pretty much what you wanted to.
   ‘There was just one armed policeman who sat outside the entrance and watched the whole ground. Obviously, that would be unthinkable today.
   ‘Back then, it was simply more relaxed. The games in Mexico were colourful. The country laughed and football danced’.
   For those who watched the games at home, the combination of the baking Mexican sun and television in its early stages gave the images a magical sepia tint.
   The other enthralling Italy v Germany clash was the 1982 final, a more one-sided affair but equally gripping.
   Italy’s Antonio Cabrini missed a 25th minute penalty, before the Azzurri swept Germany aside with a superb display of counter-attacking football.
   The stand-out moment was Marco Tardelli’s wild celebration after scoring Italy’s second goal, his head shaking, fists pumping and eyes bulging in delirium.
   Italy won 3-1 and were crowned world champions for a third time.

Germany may have the whole country behind them, but Italy are confident they can cope with the host nation’s 12th man here in today’s eagerly anticipated World Cup semi-final.
   Vociferous home crowds have driven Germany to five straight wins and a place in the last four of the tournament.
   But Italy can take heart from their excellent record against Germany in the World Cup with two wins and two draws in four meetings, including epic victories in the 1970 semi-final and the 1982 final.
   Francesco Totti, whose performance in the 3-0 quarter-final win over Ukraine was his best of the tournament so far, wants Italy to emulate the great Azzurri teams of the past by chalking up another famous victory against their old foes.
   ‘On Tuesday we want to write another chapter in the duel,’ said the Roma captain.
   ‘Those games left their mark, but we want to make our own piece of history, if possible a more memorable piece.
   ‘To beat Germany in their own country in front of a hostile crowd, well it couldn’t get any better than that.’
   Despite some unconvicing performances on their way to the semis, Italy boast a 23-match unbeaten run - their best run of results since 1939 - and defender Fabio Grosso believes they can break German hearts at the Westfalenstadion.
   ‘We’re taking on a great team that has the backing of the whole country, but we believe in ourselves,’ said the Palermo left-back.
   ‘We need to play like we know how and put them in difficulty. They’ve got the wind in their sails at the moment, but we are more than capable of giving them problems.’
   Italy humiliated Germany 4-1 in a friendly four months ago, but coach Marcello Lippi insisted that result will have no bearing on Tuesday’s clash.
   ‘We won’t score four goals against Germany again,’ Lippi said.
   ‘They’re not the same side we met in March. Now they are exploiting the enthusiasm of the whole nation and it has transformed them.’
   Christoph Metzelder said Germany would not be resting on their laurels after their quarter-final win against Argentina.
   ‘We are happy with what we have achieved but it is not enough for us,’ stressed the 25-year-old defender.
   ‘As hosts we have a great chance of becoming world champions. We have used the atmosphere and developed as a team.’
   Germany coach Jurgen Klinsmann is wary of the steadily-improving Italians.
   ‘Italy are dark horses for the title,’ said the German coach who played in Italy’s Serie A with Inter Milan.
   ‘They are tactically very good and have been effective rather than spectacular. They take their chances and it will be difficult for us.’
   Italy defender Alessandro Nesta is almost certain to miss his third straight match due to a groin strain.
   Marco Materazzi will replace the AC Milan centre-back after serving a one-match ban.
   Three-time champions Germany could be hit by a late blow if FIFA decide to punish influential midfielder Torsten Frings for apparently punching Julio Cruz in the Argentina match.
   World football’s governing body are reviewing television footage of the incident.
   At the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, Italy beat a Germany side led by Franz Beckenbauer 4-3 after extra-time in one of the greatest games in World Cup history.
   The end-to-end match is best remembered for the heroics of Beckenbauer, who dislocated his shoulder but carried on playing with his arm in a sling.
   In Spain 12 years later, Italy defeated the Germans 3-1 in the final to become world champions for the third time.
   The defining moment of the match for most Italians was Marco Tardelli’s wild celebration after scoring the second goal, his head shaking, fists pumping and eyes bulging in delirium.
   In total, Italy have played Germany 28 times, with 13 wins, eight draws and seven defeats.
   Germany have never lost in Dortmund, winning 13 of their 14 internationals played there.

Five additional secretaries and 153 deputy secretaries have been promoted to the ranks of secretary and joint secretary respectively.
   Separate official orders to this effect were issued by the ministry of establishment on Monday.
   All the newly-promoted officers have been made officers on special duty at the ministry of establishment.
   Sources in the establishment ministry said, about 150 deputy secretaries from the ’73 through to the ’82 batches had been superseded in the promotion process. Some of these officers are facing departmental proceedings, a few of them do not fulfil the requirements for promotion while a large number of them have been deprived of promotion apparently on ‘political consideration’, said a high official.
   On the other hand, there are allegations of tampering with annual confidential reports and other irregularities against at least 50 newly promoted officers of whom 30 have got promotion to the rank of joint secretary.
   Out of 153 deputy secretaries who have been given promotion, 113 are from the administration cadre and 40 from all other cadres. Of them, some 95 are from the ’82 special batch, six from the ’82 regular batch while only three officers belong to the ’81 batch. And the rest are from those who were deprived of promotion earlier.
   The additional secretaries who got promotion to the rank of secretary are— Khan M Ibrahim Hossain, secretary-in-charge of the Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs, Aminul Islam Bhuiyan, additional secretary to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Abdul Hye Hawladar, executive director, Jamuna Multi-purpose Bridge Authority, AK Motahar Hossain, additional secretary to the Economic Relations Division, and Mohammad Serajul Islam, chairman of the Tariff Commission.
   All the newly promoted secretaries have been made officers on special duty at the establishment ministry.
   Sources in the ministry of establishment indicated that the government would very soon give promotion to 10 more additional secretaries reportedly in a bid to rearrange the top administration ahead of the general election.
   Talking on the promotion process of civil servants at different levels, the establishment secretary, Mohammad Mahbubur Rahman, told reporters at his office recently that some 14 posts at the level of secretary would be vacant shortly as some of the secretaries would go on retirement by this time. ‘Very soon some additional secretaries would get promotion for the secretary-level vacant posts.’
   Earlier, the establishment secretary told New Age that names of at least 20 deputy secretaries were dropped from the promotion list as there were allegations of gross irregularities against them. At that time he, however, had admitted that names of some 30 deputy secretaries, who were presumably involved in ‘minor irregularities’ including tampering with their ACRs, were on the promotion list.

The government on Monday promoted three Petrobangla senior general managers to directors, superseding two of their senior colleagues.
   Rahman Murshed, M Nazrul Islam and Abdur Rais Siddiqui are the newly-made directors of the state oil, gas and mineral agency.
   Rahman had already been working as the director in charge of operations and Nazrul the director in charge of finance at Petrobangla, while Abdur Rais as the managing director of Madhyapara Granite Mining Company Limited, before these promotions.
   M Moktadir Ali, now the managing director of Sylhet Gas Field Limited, and M Maqbul-E Elahi—the two senior-most general managers—have been superseded at least thrice in the last few years on ‘political considerations’, Petrobangla sources said.
   Moktadir, who had worked as the Petrobangla director (planning) on contractual basis before his posting at the Sylhet gas field, was promoted to SGM on April 5, 1995 and Makbul on July 17, 2000.
   Though they preceded Kazi Shahidur Rahman and Rahman Murshed on the seniority list, the latter two were given the current charge of directors bypassing them. Shahid and another Petrobangla SGM, MA Baset, were killed in a tragic road accident on December 30 last year.
   After them, six more officials were promoted to SGM on February 26, 2004. They are Nazrul Islam, Abdur Rais, M Mahbubur Rahman, M Shahidul Abedin, Atiqur Rahman, and M Jamaluddin. Of them, Nazrul was given the current charge of director (finance) last month, ignoring the seniority list.

The Power Division has asked all the power plants under the Power Development Board to keep records of power generation and sale, and profit and loss, just as independent companies do.
   ‘All units have been asked to keep accounts of how much power they generate and sell, and how much loss or profit they make,’ the state minister for power, Anwarul Kabir Talukder, said when talking to New Age on Monday.
   The board has 20 power plants, including the Ashuganj power plant, which was made a company in 2003. The government plans to turn all the major power generation units into companies over the next two to three years.
   He has recently visited a number of plants, including the ones at Raujan and Kaptai in Chittagong, Ghorashal and Siddhirganj, found out that most of these are incurring losses.
   Expenditure at some of the plants is extravagant, Anwarul Kabir said. ‘At the Raujan plant, overtime bills for the staff often run up to 60 per cent of their salary.’
   The power plants have been asked to make sure overtime bills do not overshoot 10 per cent of salary, he said. The staff of an efficient institution do not need to work overtime more than 10 per cent of the stipulated time,’ he said.
   He said around 140 megawatts of power would be added to the national grid from the existing power plants by overhauling some of the units within two to three months.
   The power board currently generates around 3,500-3,600MW against the demand for around 4,800MW.
   Each of the two 210MW units has been producing only around 180MW because of technical faults, he said. ‘We have taken measures so that the units produce maximum power.’
   Anwarul Kabir said the 50MW unit of the Kaptai power plant would be back online within two months.
   The 80MW Tongi power plant, which has been producing around 30-40MW because of gas crisis, will produce at its optimum level by July 15 as the gas transmission system in Tongi will have been improved by then with the installation of two major transmission lines, he said.
   The installation of a 70MW unit at the Mymensingh plant and a 40MW unit at the Baghabari plant would be completed before the end of the present government’s tenure in October, he added.

As the public continued to indifferent to a countrywide campaign for inclusion in, correction of and deletion from the existing voter list on Monday, the officials in charge were becoming increasingly frustrated with the task and sceptical of its outcome.
   The Election Commission’s decision to revise the list without door-to-door information collection seems to have backfired, as only a handful of people have collected forms from assistant registration officers in the first three days of the month-long campaign.
   The ward commissioners whose offices are being used by the assistant registration officers have also become sceptical.
   Some assistant registration officers, who are schoolteachers by profession and discharging enumeration duties from their school chambers, have seemingly lost interest or been busy with school duty.
   At the offices of some ward commissioners, the employees have been distributing the forms among those who care to collect those.
   The assistant registration officers stationed at the offices of ward 42, 48 and 49 commissioners in the Dhanmondi area, and Moneshwar Government Primary School and Jarina Sikder Girls High School and College were not even available between 11:30am and 1:00pm.
   While people have remained uninterested because of the hassle involved or unwillingness to provide the requisite information, the commission has made no attempt yet to create awareness and generate positive response.
   On average 20 people have collected the form for inclusion of names every day since the campaign began on Saturday but they are yet to submit these.
   At the union parishad level, the distribution and collection of forms has not even started, with the district election officer attributing the failure to inadequate preparation.
   Many assistant registration officers could not start the work, as they are yet to receive the forms, some officials said.
   Harun-or-Rashid, who is stationed at Rajdhani High School, said 17 forms had been distributed in the first three days while Afoza Begum at Ward 63 could distribute only four.
   Nazrul Islam at Lalmatia Housing Society College said he had stayed in his office throughout the day but ‘no one came to collect any form’.
   No one went to 107 registration offices in ten upazilas and five municipalities in Netrakona on Monday, reports the New Age correspondent.
   None of the 16 registration offices in the Netrakona municipality area and Atpara upazila were open.
   Abdul Motalab, 22, of village Jugirnagua, said he had to go back home as the Duaz union office was closed.
   The same was the case with the registration offices at Baniajan, Sunai, Sukari and Sarmusia UP.
   Humayan Kabir, a fisheries officer for Atpara and assistant registration officer for Duaz, was seen gossiping with his colleagues at his Atpara upazila headquarters office at about 11:00am.
   He told New Age that publicity for registration would start very soon and the registration officers would regularly sit in their offices after the publicity campaign.
   Sources in the district election office said 107 assistant registration officers were in charge of updating the list for 86 unions under 10 upazilas and 21 wards under five municipalities.
   The Netrakona election officer, Mohammad Salamat Ullah Mia, admitted that some registration offices were yet to start the work but maintained that the percentage of enrolment would be poor under the system.
   The New Age correspondent reports from Barisal that 39 forms have been distributed in the first three days at the upazila headquarters.
   Habibur Rahman Tipu, commissioner for the Barisal City Corporation Ward 6, said although some people had shown interest to be enrolled in the list but the assistant registration officer for the ward could not be found.
   Nigar Sultana Hanufa and Nijamul Islam, commissioners for ward 7 and 17, said no one had contracted them to use their offices for voter registration.

HM Ershad, the chairman of a Jatiya Party faction, on Monday said his party would join any of the political alliance before the next general election.
   But, he has not made up his mind yet with which coalition to join, although he is certain about his party not being in a position to contest the election scheduled for January 2007 alone due to ‘financial constraints’, the former military dictator said. ‘We are monitoring every political development,’ he told reporters after a meeting in the city with the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association, especially against the backdrop of recent violent labour protests in the apparel sector.
   If the government wished, it could stop the violence, Ershad remarked.
   ‘I think the government has a hand in the crisis,’ he said, referring to the arrest of a leader of the ruling BNP’s labour wing, who allegedly had instigated the violent labour unrest in the Dhaka Export Processing Zone.
   Ershad’s comments came a day after the former president and his wife, lawmaker Rawshan Ershad, had met with the prime minister, Khaleda Zia, at the latter’s office.
   He, however, claimed he had discussed personal matters with Khaleda.
   ‘The popularity of the main opposition Awami League has increased a little following its movements but we are not sure whether this strength is enough to topple the government,’ he said on Jatiya Party’s possible alliance.
   On the other hand, in his opinion, the popularity of the ruling BNP has slid following the exorbitant price hike of essential commodities.
   ‘We heard the prices would come down as the government had reduced the tariffs. But things have happened otherwise, which indicates a lack of administrative efficiency on the part of the government,’ Ershad said.
   Earlier, in the meeting with the BKMEA leaders he discussed the prospects and problems of the industry. ‘If the Jatiya Party returns to power or shares it, we will do our best for the betterment of the sector,’ he pledged.
   The employers, workers and the government will have to solve the crisis in the garment sector through mutual and constructive negotiations, observed the JP chief.
   ‘If you [employers] had sat with your workers and discussed wages and others conditions, before they burst out, the crisis could have been averted,’ he told the knitwear businessmen. Ershad also advised the exporters to seek ‘package deals on receiving enhanced facilities from the government and provide the same to their workers.’
   In the meeting, BKMEA president Fazlul Hoque sought cooperation from politicians in solving the labour unrest, alleging that during the violent protests, political parties remained silent from fear of losing workers’ support.
   Anisul Islam Mahmud and Golum Sarwar Milon, JP leaders as well as garment factory owners, spoke in the meeting. Senior JP leaders including Kazi Zafar Ahmed, Ruhul Amin Hawlader, Kazi Feroj Rashid, and Nasim Osman were also present.
   But, in an interview with the private television channel ATN Bangla later on the day, Ershad did hint at an election alliance. ‘If the opposition is able to unseat the ruling alliance before its tenure expires, the Al-led coalition will win the elections,’ he said.
   To ATN Bangla he claimed he had met the prime minister the day before about family matters, especially the disputed Gulshan house owned by his wife.

Money transfer agencies like Western Union have delayed or blocked thousands of cash deliveries on suspicion of terrorist connections simply because senders or recipients have names like Muhammad or Ahmed, company officials said.
   In one example, an Indian driver here said Western Union prevented him from sending $120 to a friend at home this month because the recipient’s name was Muhammad.
   ‘Western Union told me that if I send money to Sahir Muhammad, the money will be blocked because of his name,’ said 36-year-old Abdul Rahman Maruthayil, who later sent the money through UAE Exchange, a Dubai-based money transfer service.
   In a similar case, Pakistani Qadir Khan said Western Union blocked his attempt this month to wire money to his brother, Muhammad, for a cataract operation.
   ‘Every Muhammad is a terrorist now?’ Khan asked.
   Western Union Financial Services, Inc, an American company based in Colorado, said its clerks simply are following US Treasury Department guidelines that aim to scrutinise cash flows for terrorist links. Most of the flagged transactions are delayed a few hours. Some are blocked entirely.
   In many cases, would-be customers like Maruthayil simply find another way to send the funds often through informal channels.

The parliamentary standing committee on public undertakings on Monday recommended that the Power Division should expand the prepaid metering system and other anti-theft initiatives to reduce the system loss in the sector.
   Both ruling and opposition party lawmakers on the parliamentary committee in a meeting also prescribed taking some special moves including waiver of inertest to realise the huge outstanding bills from the power subscribers, meeting sources said.
   The meeting reviewed the system-loss situation in power supply and distribution and asked the authorities to strengthen the feeder monitoring system to cut power theft, sources said.
   The committee deplored the current 16.31 per cent system loss in the power sector and wished it could be reduced to 10 per cent soon.
   ‘The system loss should not be higher than 7.5 per cent caused by technical loss. But our system loss is as high as 16.31 per cent,’ the committee chairman, Abdul Alim, told New Age. Unabated theft is responsible for such a huge loss, he noted.
   The Power Development Board and the Dhaka Electricity Supply Authority had introduced the pre-paid metering system and thus succeeded to cut down power theft remarkably, Alim mentioned.
   ‘The Power Division reported detection of irregularities and incidents of pilferage in the power supply and distribution at more than one-third of the total feeders and we suggested strengthening the feeder monitoring to correct the situation,’ he said. The meeting also suggested taking punitive actions against those found involved in such pilferage.
   The system loss in another one-third feeders was ‘satisfactory’ and that in the remaining one-third reasonable, the Power Division report said.
   A huge amount of bills remains unpaid by subscribers for long and the committee recommended taking crash moves to realise that outstanding money, Faruk Khan, a committee member from the Awami League, told New Age.
   ‘At least 5.5 crore pre-paid meters are needed to be installed across the country and I suggested taking initiatives to manufacture the meters locally,’ he said.
   The committee members also expressed disappointment at the frequent power outage in different areas during the ongoing World Cup football tournaments and asked the authorities to ensure uninterrupted power supply during the remaining matches.
   The committee in its last meeting had asked the ministry to forecast load-shedding in every area by issuing notice every week to avoid any untoward incident during the World Cup.

More than 30 people were killed when a metro train derailed in the eastern Spanish city of Valencia Monday, the regional government said.
   A fire brigade spokesman said earlier that two carriages of the train had come off the rails in a tunnel.
   ‘We are still in the process of identifying the dead, but according to an initial estimate there are more than 30,’ regional government spokesman Vicente Rambla told local reporters.
   He said eight to 10 people had been injured.
   The fire brigade spokesman said rescue services had evacuated all the passengers trapped in the train between the Jesus and Plaza de Espana stations in the city centre.
   The accident happened as Valencia was filling up with participants at the Catholic Church’s fifth World Family Meeting, which is to be attended by Pope Benedict XVI on July 8 and 9.
   According to the Valencia metro website, the regional government-run company was distributing half-a-million passes to pilgrims and organisers of the event to permit them to travel freely on the system’s four lines.

The Awami League-led opposition line-up took out a procession in the city on Monday mourn Golam Mostafa Milon, an AL leader killed in police action at Mohakhali during its Dhaka-blockage programme on Sunday.
   Several hundreds activists of the opposition combine holding black flags took part in the procession to mourn the Awami Sechehasebak League Gulshan thana unit vice-president.
   Before the procession, AL presidium member Amir Hossain Amu told a rally at Muktangan that they would take a new oath to unseat the BNP-Jamaat-led alliance government following Milon’s death.
   The government must agree to the opposition’s proposal for reforms in the caretaker government and electoral systems and reform the Election Commission in consultation with the 14-party leaders, Amu demanded.
   ‘Otherwise,’ he said, ‘we shall organise a mass upsurge like that of 1996 and force the government to quit,’ he declared.
   Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury, the general secretary of Dhaka city AL and coordinator of the city 14-party combine, delivered the introductory speech at the gathering.
   AL presidium members Tofail Ahmed and Matia Chowdhury, Workers Party president Rashed Khan Menon, Ganatantri Party president Mohammad Nurul Islam, Samyabadi Dal general secretary Dilip Barua, and Ganatantrik Mojdur Party general secretary Zakir Hossain were among other senior opposition leaders who took party in the procession. It started from Muktangan and ended at the Central Shaheed Minar.
   Earlier, the AL held a gayebana janaza of Milon on the Bangabandhu Avenue, with AL central leaders including Tofail Ahmed, Amir Hossain Amu and Abdur Razzak MP taking part.
   After the janaza, the AL brought out a protest procession that paraded the avenue, Paltan and Press Club areas, creating heavy traffic jams.
   The police on Sunday night took the body of Milon, allegedly by force, and sent it to his Bhandaria village home in Pirojpur district for burial.
   The AL top brass alleged Milon had been killed in a police firing, while his wife Rekha said he succumbed to police torture. But, no mark of injury was found on Milon’s body.
   Our Netrakona correspondent adds: The Netrakona chapter of the AL-led opposition alliance brought out a procession mourning Milon and paraded the main roads of the district town on Monday. A large number of party leaders and activists took part in the procession.
   Meanwhile, Abul Bashar, a sub-inspector of police also killed during Sunday’s blockage, was buried in Gopalganj after a janaza at Narayanganj Police Line. Bashar died as brickbats thrown by opposition activists hit his head during a picket-police clash at Mograpara Bazar crossing in Sonargaon on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway.

Palestinian militants holding an Israeli soldier captive issued an ultimatum Monday for Israel to free prisoners or face the consequences as the army kept up its military assault on the Gaza Strip.
   The Tuesday deadline was immediately rejected by Israel, which had sent troops and tanks into northern Gaza after a sixth straight night of air attacks launched in a bid to pressure the Palestinians into giving up the serviceman.
   ‘Faced with the Zionist enemy’s persistence in taking military measures and aggressions, we give it a delay expiring Tuesday, July 4 at 6:00am (0300 GMT),’ said a statement from the three groups that seized the conscript in an attack on an army post eight days ago.
   ‘If the enemy does not meet the demands we laid out in our previous statement... we will consider the matter closed and the enemy will be responsible for all results,’ said the statement from the Popular Resistance Committees, the armed wing of the ruling Hamas movement and the Army of Islam.
   Israel, which has massed a force of 5,000 troops on the Gaza border, has so far rejected demands by militants for the release of Palestinian prisoners in its jails, with officials warning that the crisis could drag on for months.
   ‘We will not give in to any blackmailing or to any ultimatum put forth by any terror organisation, and in this specific case, the Hamas,’ army chief Dan Halutz told reporters after meeting the parents of 19-year-old corporal Gilad Shalit.
   On the ground, Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian militant from the armed wing of Hamas as forces rolled into the Beit Hanun area of northern Gaza.

The minimum wage in America, arguably the wealthiest nation in the world, has remained static at the paltry rate of $5.15 for an hour of work since 1997. There has been no pay raise for nine years.
   This glaring anomaly has given rise to some fundamental questions. How can the US, the biggest donor in the world, keep its own work force below the poverty line? Inflation over the last nine years has eaten away 20 per cent of the workers’ pay. The value of the minimum wage is at its lowest since 1955.
   The US Congress has given its members the highest pay raise but in the past nine years it has blocked any move to raise the level of the minimum wage. The members of the Congress have enjoyed a pay increase of $31,600 in the past nine years!
   The Democrats are fighting to raise the level of the minimum wage but the Republicans are opposing the move and pouring cold water on any proposal of a pay hike. Why? Poor wage earners tend to vote for the Democrats. Republicans oppose any upward revision of the minimum wage because the workers do not vote for them and, more importantly, to keep corporate America in good humour.
   Corporate America, according to one newspaper report, donated over $50 million for Bush’s second inauguration.
   Republicans do keep on helping big business. One instance is that President Bush called Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India, before the nuclear deal was signed, to request him to buy commercial aircraft from Boeing.
   The Republicans have blocked a Democratic move led by Senator Edward Kennedy to raise the minimum wage to $7.25 over the next two years.
   A senior economist of the Economic Policy Institute bemoaned the fact that
   the Republicans are blocking upward revision of the minimum wage though they have given generous tax rebates to the wealthier section of the people.
   An executive officer at any big business house gets a pay 821 times (repeat 821 times) more than a minimum wage earner!
   Senator Hillary Clinton, who will seek another term in the Senate and will perhaps be a strong contender for the White House in 2008, is spearheading the campaign for raising the minimum wage. ‘The reality is that a full-time job that pays the minimum wage just does not provide enough to support a family today,’ Hillary was quoted by the New York Times as saying.
   There is no justification — none at all — for condemning the nation’s lowest paid workers to this continuing slide into deeper economic distress, a columnist in the NYT wrote today.

The postal department for the first time on Monday started using an automatic machine capable to sort out 30,000 letters an hour.
   The machine that sorts out letters by reading the post codes written on envelops has been installed at one of the post offices in the city’s Tejgaon Industrial Area.
   On an average, some 10,000 letters are delivered to wrong addresses a year due to mistakes of postal staff including letter-sorting personnel and post masters, according to official statistics.
   ‘The department has to deal with over one lakh letters a day, and for years we have been sorting out the letters manually,’ said Abdus Salam, the director general of Bangladesh Post Office, hoping that the use of this machine would significantly improve the postal service.
   The machine has been imported from China at a cost of Tk 21 crore. The engineers of the supplier, the Shanghai Research Institute, will stay in Bangladesh for a year to train the local postal staff on how to operate it properly.
   The department has a plan to set up such sorting machines at four general post offices, the additional DG of the post office, Prabhash Chandra Saha, told New Age.
   All letters posted at the Dhaka General Post Office and 74 sub-post offices in the city are currently sorted out in two offices—the local ones at Kamalapur and the international ones at Zia International Airport.
   The post and telecommunications minister, Aminul Haque, inaugurated the launching of the sorting machine’s operation at a simple ceremony presided over by Abdus Salam.