Flour mills in the Jhalakati district town are crippled with shortage of wheat, working capital and frequent load-shedding.
   Already two of the eight flourmills - Bhai Bhai Flour Mills and Makkah Flour Mills - have already been closed. The other mills - Masud Flour Mills, NTC Flour Mills, ARS Flour Mills, Madina Flour Mills, Talukdar Flour Mills and Javed Flour Mills - are on the verge of closure.
   After the establishment of the flour mills, flour, refined flour and semolina were being supplied to other districts of the Barisal division as per their demand. But at present these mills are facing problems due to acute shortage and price hike of wheat, frequent power outages and shortage of working capital.
   Mill owners said monthly average 1,000 tonnes of wheat are needed for each mill. About Tk 40 crore is needed for wheat import through opening LC which they cannot afford. So, they have to depend on the traders of the Chittagong as wheat import from India remained suspended for the last few months, they added.
   The Chittagong traders import wheat from Russia, Turkey, Canada, Australia and Argentina at comparatively higher rate than that of India and consequently they (mill owners) are to buy wheat at high prices, according to the mill owners.
   They said they were to buy wheat of Russia and Turkey at about Tk 15,000 per tonne and that of Canada, Australia and Argentina, at Tk 16,800. But they have to sell per tonne of flour and refined flour at Tk 17,000 with almost no profit.
   Local businessmen demanded normal import of wheat and uninterrupted power supply for maintaining normal production in the flour mills in Jhalakati which was once famous for its salt industry and was known as second Kolkata for its flourishing trade and commerce.

ROBBERS looted three houses and injured four persons at Shutrapur union under Kaliakoir upazila in Gazipur on Thursday night.
   According to sources, the robbers numbering 18/20 entered the house of one Lal Miah after breaking open its gate at village Chanpur. The bandits looted valuables including cash of one lakh taka at gun point.
   As Lal Miah tired to protest the criminals beat him. They also beat his wife, Rehana, 35, and his younger brother Mamun, 35.
   Later the robbers fled away with the booty.
   Local people took the injured to a local hospital.
   Another two robberies were committed in the houses of Chan Mandal and Hashu Mia at village Barbaria. Chan Mandal’s elderly mother was injured by the robbers. She was given first aid.
   Separate cases were filed with the police.
   Meanwhile, New Age Comilla correspondent adds: A gang of robbers stormed into a bus on Comilla-Barura Road in the Laijola area under Barura upazila in the district on Friday night and looted cash and valuables worth about Tk 6 lakh. The robbers also stabbed a local journalist before decamping with the valuables.
   Witnesses said the gang, who boarded the bus earlier in the guise of passengers, attacked the passengers when it reached the area at about 10:30pm.
   The injured person is Jahid Hasan, Comilla correspondent of the Bangla daily Manabjamin. He was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.
   A case was filed with the police. But the police could neither recover the looted goods nor arrest any of the robbers till filing of the report.

A CUSTOMER beat a fish trader to death at Ghatpar Bazar under Nalitabari upazila in Sherpur on Thursday night.
   The police and witnesses said Mosharraf Ali along with his men went to the bazaar and bought a fish from fish trader Abdul Matin, 50, of the Bailtail area.
   But a quarrel ensued between them over payment of the money and at one stage Mosharraf and his men beat the trader mercilessly injuring him critically. He later died from his injuries at about 11:00pm.
   On information, the police recovered the body and sent it hospital morgue for a post-mortem examination.
   The victim’s son filed a murder case with the police.
   But none was arrested.
   Meanwhile, a BDNews report from Chapainawabganj adds: A mob on Friday beat an alleged child-lifter at village Chandana under Nachol upazila in Chapainawabganj.
   The dead is Munirul Islam, 28, of village Fatehpur under the same upazila.
   The police and locals said Munir and his associate were trying to take away the son of one Rakibul Islam at about 1:00am Friday from his house. As their parents cried for help, locals rushed to the scene. They caught Munir red handed and beat him severely.
   He was taken to Nachol Upazila Health Complex Friday morning where he was declared dead.
   A case was filed with the police in this connection.
   Meanwhile, New Age Gazipur correspondent adds: The police recovered the body of a young man from a canal in the Chhoto Kanchonpur area under Kaliakoir upazila in Gazipur on Friday.
   The dead is Alamgir, 23, a mobile phone trader and inhabitant of the same area.
   According to family sources, Alamgir went out of the house after receiving a mobile phone call at about 2:00am on Friday. Since then he remained missing.
   On Friday morning, local people found the body at Shimultoli canal. On information, the police recovered the body, which bore marks of stab injuries, and sent it to the Gazipur Sadar Hospital morgue for a post-mortem examination.
   The reason behind the killing could not be known immediately. None was arrested till filing of this report on Friday evening.

HUNDREDS of people of several unions in Chapainawabganj have become homeless due to erosion as the Tk 119-crore project for protecting the left bank of the River Padma was not implemented fully.
   The erosion-hit areas are Charbagdanga and Sundarpur unions under sadar and Ujirpur and Chatragipur unions under Shibganj upazilas.
   According to local people, the prime minister promised to establish a dam to protect the Padma at Shibganj from erosion. After this, Water Development Board prepared a project of Tk 81 crore and sent it to the higher authorities for approval. As the project took much time for its review, the WDB called tender for the earlier project of Tk 54 crore. But work order could not be issued as it was not passed by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council. According to the WDB, ECNEC is yet to pass the project.
   The river erosion is still playing havoc in the area.
   At least 360 families of Ujirpur union have taken shelter at Chama. Uttar Ujirpur Primary School, which was established in 1927, was shifted to Chama due to erosion.
   Liakot Ali, 50, of South Ujirpur Bin Para told the news agency that his house and land went under water four times in last eight years. Many other people of the areas met the same fate.
   The people of these areas lost everything and took shelter on both sides of the dam.
   According to local people, the distance between the Padma and the River Pagla at Shibganj upazila is only 150 meters. As erosion hit Atrashia village, the distance between the two rivers is gradually decreasing. If the two rivers join together, the Chapainawabganj-Sonamasjid Highway and 25 to 30 villages under five unions will go under water.
   They informed that at the last phase of the previous government, a Tk 75 crore project of the Padma left bank protection was taken up at sadar and Shibganj upazilas. The project included eight solid spars, flood control dam of 20 kilometres and two cross dams.
   The BNP government started work of the project but it could not be completed as yet.

TWELVE shops were burnt in a fire at Gangatia Bazaar under Hossainpur upazila in Kishoreganj on Thursday night.
   Locals said the fire originated from short circuit of a shop of electric equipment at about 11:00pm. Later, Fire Brigade personnel doused the fire after two hours.
   The loss caused by the fire was estimated at about Tk 5 lakh.

A team of the Rapid Action Battalion arrested a fake RAB member from a shop at Jobber Ali Complex in the Mymensingh town on Thursday night.
   The arrestee was identified as Fahim Khan of village Gubargati under Netrakona sadar upazila.
   RAB sources said Fahim demanded Tk 5,000 from Bablu Dey, owner of a fax-phone shop, as toll identifying him as a member of the elite force at about 9:30pm.
   On suspicion, Bablu informed RAB for confirmation. A RAB team went to the spot and arrested Fahim.
   He was later handed over to the Kotwali police. A case was lodged in this regard.