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The Dhaka Metropolitan Police will introduce plainclothes patrol in combating mugging and robbery, which marked a sharp rise in recent days.
   According to police records, 33 incidents of mugging took place in the city in June while the number was 18 in May.
   The number of robberies committed in the capital in June was 62 as against 36 in May.
   ‘Plainclothes law enforcers will patrol different places to ensure security of the city dwellers,’ the Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner, Naim Ahmed, said after attending the monthly law and order meeting in Rajarbagh Police Lines auditorium on Monday.
   The DMP chief, however, expressed satisfaction over the overall law and order situation in the country.
   ‘A little rise of mugging does not mean the deterioration of the overall law and order situation. It is under control,’ he said referring to the DMP records of killings, which show 29 people were killed in June as against 31 in May.
   ‘We have controlled the situation by arresting the killers and unearthing motives behind killings,’ said the DMP boss.
   The DMP seized eight firearms, 78 rounds of bullet and 20 cartridges, and arrested 24 people, he said adding 13 cases were filed in this connection.
   The police also recovered 37 stolen motorcycles out of 53 in June and arrested 17 people.
   Repression on women also marked a fall in Dhaka with the police registering 143 cases of violence against women, including rape, in June. The number of cases filed in connection with repression on women was 153 in May.
   Police are conducting regular drives to nab criminals, Naim told journalists.
   ‘We reviewed the overall law and order situation and asked all concerned to be more sincere and serious to combat all sorts of criminal activities,’ the DMP commissioner said.
   He also blamed frustration, caused by unemployment, among youths for the rising incidents of mugging.

Agriculture and water resources adviser CS Karim on Monday expressed the government’s inability to reclaim canals and water bodies without people’s cooperation as well as to free the capital from water logging.
   ‘Water logging is a major problem in the city. But how much the government, with its huge limitations, alone can do to solve the problem when sewerage system is being hindered through illegal occupation,’ he told a meeting at Goranchatbari pump station in Mirpur in Dhaka.
   ‘… Everything is being occupied gradually and we do not know whether it is a curse of development or a curse of unplanned urbanisation,’ he said.
   The adviser along with experts and officials of the agencies concerned visited different spots, including Rampura Pump Station and DND embankment, to see the measures taken to free the city from water logging.
   Officials of Water Development Board, Dhaka WASA and Dhaka City Corporation apprised him of the measures taken by the agencies to resolve water logging problem.
   The adviser said, ‘We are conscious of the problems and the common people will have to be conscious so that the sewers are not blocked.’
   Speaking on the occasion, water expert Ainun Nishat said that there was no respite from water logging in Dhaka, especially in the eastern part of the capital.
   He blamed unplanned urbanisation and development as well as illegal occupation for the water logging in the capital. ‘Filing up of canals and water bodies and unplanned urbanisation must be stopped to solve the problem,’ he said.
   Presenting a slide show on the activities taken by different agencies to stop water logging, chief engineer of Bangladesh Water Development Board Liaquat-al-Faruque said, ‘Inadequate drainage facility in the DND area has become a major problem for the area as irrigation canals have been intervened by unauthorised development works.’
   He, however, said the authorities had taken a lot of measures to save the people of DND area from the curse of water logging.
   Describing the measures, he said some 34 kilometres of canals had been excavated this year and 20 new pumps had been set up at different points of the capital to drain out rainwater.
   Water resources secretary Aiyub Miah, Dhaka Wasa managing director Raihanul Abedin, DCC chief engineer Ashfaqur Rahman, and chief conservancy officer Maksudur Rahman accompanied the adviser during his visit.

A comprehensive long-term plan is needed to make the capital city liveable removing all problems, special assistant to the chief adviser for industries, Mahbub Jamil, said on Monday.
   ‘The inadequate number of roads in the city causes difficulties for the smooth transportation system. We shall have to build more roads for easy traffic movement, which will help grow our economy,’ he said addressing a roundtable discussion on ‘Clustered city development study and framework for metropolitan Dhaka’ at a city hotel.
   The Asian Development Bank, Centre for Urban Studies and Strategic Planning and Management Services Limited organised the roundtable.
   University Grants Commission chairman Professor Nazrul Islam, also a noted urban planner, presided over the roundtable moderated by North South University professor Amirul Islam Chowdhury.
   Professor Nurul Islam of the Centre for Urban Studies Nurul Islam Nazem and Emeritus Professor Brian Toberts presented separate keynote papers.
   High government officials of organisations concerned, academicians, architects, engineers, business leaders and public representatives took part in the open discussion.
   Mahbub said the unplanned urbanisation was responsible for weak drainage and sewerage systems. It is unfortunate that many low-lying areas and canals in and around the Dhaka city have been filled up, he said.
   He said many industries, including garments, had been established in the capital city. ‘Nobody agrees to go outside Dhaka due to lack in utility facilities such as power, gas and water.’
   In his keynote presentation, Nurul Islam Nazem said 25 per cent population of Bangladesh had been living in the urban areas, 30 per cent in India, 13.4 in Nepal, 32.8 in Pakistan and 24 in Sri Lanka.
   Professor Brian Toberts said the urban areas had made more than 75 per cent contributions to the gross domestic product in most Asian countries. The speakers said the country should have a master plan to make the Dhaka city liveable for future generations. Otherwise, the city will be unfit for living, they added.
   People are coming to the capital city for different purposes, the speakers said adding that the large number of people beyond the capacity was putting tremendous pressure on the city.

Writers, academics and researchers on Monday stressed that 11 ethnic minority community children in the Chittagong Hill Tracts got scopes for primary education in their respective languages.
   The children mostly leave their schools before completing primary education as they are deprived of taking education in their own languages, they observed at a seminar, styled ‘Going to school: challenges in the Chittagong Hill Tracts’, organised by Manusher Jonno Foundation, at the CIRDAP Auditorium in the city.
   The participants in the seminar also suggested that the authorities should immediately introduce the system and appoint teachers well conversant with the ethnic minority community languages to check the high dropout rates in CHT.
   Professor Sourav Shikdar, who presented the keynote paper at the seminar, also suggested introduction of public holidays on religious and cultural occasions of the ethnic minority communities.
   The adviser in-charge of the primary and mass education ministry, Rasheda K Chowdhury, was present as chief guest at the programme attended by special assistant to the chief adviser for CHT affairs, Raja Devashish Roy, as special guest.
   Professor Sadeka Halim and Professor Mesbah Kamal of Dhaka University also addressed the seminar chaired by the Manusher Jonno Foundation executive director, Shaheen Anam.
   In Khagrachari, Bandarban and Rangamati hill districts, according to a survey, Bangla as the medium of education covers 75 per cent while ethnic minority community language 25 per cent.
   Bangla covers 92 per cent of the textbooks while indigenous languages eight per cent of the textbooks.
   United News of Bangladesh adds: Sadeka Halim said an indigenous family kept changing its home as Bangali settlers had created a sense of insecurity among the indigenous people, raising the dropout rate of their children.
   About the demand for change in the school calendar, Rasheda said the government had already asked the local authorities to redesign the calendar as per the festivals of the respective tribal groups.
   Manusher Jonno Foundation presented a research report on primary education of the ethnic minority community children where it placed 13-point recommendation for effective education of the indigenous children.

Muggers stabbed to death an elderly businessman in front of Khidma Hospital at Malibagh in Dhaka early Monday.
   The victim was identified as Kazi Shamsul Islam, 60, of 44/C Malibagh in the city.
   The police said a gang of muggers intercepted Shamsul in front of Khidma Hospital at around 9:00pm when he was returning home by a rickshaw.
   The muggers tried to forcibly snatch away his belongings. As he tried to resist the gang members, they stabbed him indiscriminately in his chest, abdomen and left thigh before snatching his purse and mobile phone set.
   Hearing his scream, local people rushed him to LabAid Hospital. When his condition deteriorated, he was shifted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital where he died from his wounds at around 12:15am.
   A case was filed with the Khilgaon police.
   The police could not arrest any one in this connection till Monday evening.

Action on Disability and Development, an NGO working with people with disabilities, on Monday demanded formulation of a policy to ensure involvement of the disabled people in politics.
   At a news briefing at the Rajshahi Public Library, the organisation also placed a 16-point charter of demands to ensure the rights of the persons with special needs.
   The demands included keeping 10 per cent seats reserved for the persons with disability in the local government and parliamentary elections and creating proper environment for casting their votes in the upcoming polls.

A two-day job fair began at Dhaka University on Monday.
   The vice-chancellor, SMA Faiz, inaugurated the fair, being organised by the marketing department students on the business studies faculty premises.
   The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry president, Annisul Huq, attended the function as guest of honour. FBCCI vice-president Abul Kashem Ahmed, business studies faculty dean Professor Serajul Islam, and departmental student advisor Samir Kumar Sheel also addressed the inaugural ceremony, chaired by the department chair, Haripada Bhattacharjee.
   A number of corporate houses have been participating in the fair with attractive offers.

Light to moderate rain or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty wind is likely at most places over all the six divisions — Rajshahi, Dhaka, Khulna, Barisal, Chittagong and Sylhet — with moderately heavy to heavy falls at places over Dhaka, Khulna, Barisal and Chittagong divisions during the 24-hour period till 6:00pm today, the Met Office said.
   The day temperature may fall slightly over the country, it said.
   The country’s highest temperature on Monday, 31.2 degrees Celsius, was recorded at Mongla and the lowest, 22.8 degrees Celsius, at Sandwip. The sun sets in the capital today at 6:49pm and rises tomorrow at 5:20am.

A special court that deals with high-profile corruption cases on Monday dispensed with personal attendance of jailed former minister Mohammad Nasim during trial of the WorldTel scam case.
   Granting the application filed by Nasim, Judge Shahed Noor Uddin fixed July 23 for arguments in connection with the case.
   From now on Nasim will be represented by his lawyer Sheikh Baharul Islam during trial proceedings, court sources said.
   Nasim filed the application on June 26 as a supplementary to an earlier petition submitted to the government for overseas treatment.
   A front ranking Awami League leader, Nasim is now being treated at LabAid Cardiac Hospital after he suffered a stroke on June 24 at Kashimpur jail in Gazipur.
   The WorldTel scam case alleges that Nasim, while he was telecommunications minister, had abused power to allow WorldTel Holdings Limited to install three lakh digital telephones in the capital without floating any tender.
   Nasim’s associate, AHS Rahman, a director of Consociates Ltd, was also accused in the case as he was illegally appointed a consultant by the then telecommunications minister to supervise the project that harmed country’s interest.
   Co-accused Rahman is being tried in his absence as he fled abroad after securing bail from the court.
   Abdul Hye, an officer of the now-defunct Bureau of Anti-Corruption, sued the Nasim-Rahman duo on January 8, 2002.
   Earlier in October 2007, a special court sentenced Nasim to 13 years imprisonment for amassing wealth illegally and concealing information about his actual property.

The children of freedom fighters of Rajshahi University have demanded punishment to the Jamaat-backed so-called freedom fighters’ organisation for assaulting a freedom fighter on Friday.
   The children of freedom fighters under the banner of ‘Muktijoddha Santan Command’ of the RU unit in a memorandum faxed to the chief adviser on Monday also called for immediate ban on the Jatiya Muktijoddha Parishad.
   They also demanded trial of the war criminals without further delay.
   They said the anti-liberation elements had been continuing such unpleasant incidents with the freedom fighters as they were not tried even in the last 37 years since independence.
   They threatened to go for tougher programmes, if the government did not punish the persons accused of the Friday’s incident and ban the Jamaat backed organisation soon.  The memorandum signed by Sheikh Mohammed Zinnah Al Mamun, convener of the MSC of RU unit, was also submitted to the acting vice-chancellor and student adviser of the university.
   Meanwhile, several hundred teachers and students of the university under the banner of the Muktijoddhar Santan on Sunday held a rally in front of the Central Library protesting at the attack on the freedom fighter, Sheikh Mohammad Ali, and demanded punishment to the leaders of the so-called Jatiya Muktijoddha Parishad for their derogatory remarks on the war of independence.

The welfare and protection of migrant workers should be part of SAARC agenda as South Asia provides 15 lakh workers to labour-receiving countries every year, government and ILO officials said on Monday.
   As 43 per cent of the South Asian migrant workers serve in other South Asian countries, the incorporation is necessary, they said.
   The welfare of South Asian migrant workers has become a matter of concern since the recruitment of workers in the South Asian countries is plagued with corrupt practices, said the International Labour Organisation.
   ‘If South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation includes the issue of migration and workers’ welfare, much of the migration-related problems could be solved easily,’ expatriates welfare and overseas employment secretary Abdul Matin Chowdhury told reporters ahead of today’s two-day international conference on overseas workers.
   Representatives from Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, United Arab Emirates and Sri Lanka will attend the conference at Dhaka Sheraton Hotel.
   The ILO and the ministry are organising the Dhaka conference.
   ‘There is an ASEAN programme of cooperation on migration. SAARC should also initiate a similar programme of cooperation on migration of the South Asian workers,’ Panudda Boonpala, the ILO director in its Dhaka office, told journalists.
   The ILO in its statement said, ‘The rights protection for South Asia’s migrant workers is the major concern.’
   It said that the migration process in the South Asian countries was costly and plagued with rampant corruption.
   According to the ILO, the total number of migrant workers from South Asia in the world is 2.4 crore. Of the total, 29 per cent workers were from Bangladesh while the highest 38 per cent from India.
   The ILO said that other than the South Asian countries, 60 per cent of the South Asian migrant workers went to Gulf countries, 15 percent each to Europe and North America.
   According to 2007 ILO figures, remittances to South Asia were estimated to have totalled $43 billion of which Bangladesh had a share of $6.1 billion.
   In 2007, 8.32 lakh Bangladeshis went abroad for work, according to the figures of the expatriates’ welfare and overseas employment ministry.
   ‘The conference will give the labour-providing countries and labour-receiving countries an opportunity to discuss the problems of migration and recommend solutions,’ Boonpala told the news agency.

A staff nurse of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Hospital reportedly committed suicide by injecting poison into the body at Shahbagh in the capital Sunday night.
   The deceased was Taslima Akhter Lipi, 25, daughter of Abu Shahid and a boarder of Room-507 of the fifth floor of the hospital’s nurse staff quarter at Shahbagh.
   Neighbouring staff nurses said Lipi was performing her duty at ward no. 9/A of the surgery unit on Sunday after passing a leave of five days. She had married a medical officer Rafayet Hossain of the anaesthesia department of the hospital two years ago.
   She was leading a bitter family life as she could not cope with the children and the first wife of her husband.
   They said that a syringe filled with a poisonous drug was found stuck in her left arm and a mobile set was lying beside her body.
   Lipi was talking loudly over the mobile phone before she locked her door at around 3:30pm on Sunday, sources said.

Four students of a Kishoreganj madrassah were injured in an attack by an unidentified criminal early Monday.
   The injured were Hridoy, 12, Shabbir, 7, Hasan, 8, and Sunny, 10, students of Hafizi department of Pakundia Porabaria Paschimpara Hafizia Madrassah in Pakundia upazila.
   Local people said a criminal covering his face with cloth attacked the students with a sharp weapon in front of the madrassah when the students were taking preparation to offer their Fazr prayers, leaving them injured.
   One of the injured, Hridoy, was first admitted to the upazila health complex and later shifted to Kishoreganj General Hospital as his condition deteriorated.
   Three other injured were given first aid at the upazila health complex.
   The motive behind the attack could not be known immediately. Sajjad Hossain, officer-in-charge of the Pakundia police visited the spot.

Apollo Hospitals Dhaka has achieved accreditation from Joint Commission International, USA-based accreditation body dedicated to improving the quality of healthcare.
   Apollo Hospitals is the first hospital to achieve the JCI accreditation in the country, said a press release.
   JCI’s on-site evaluation of Apollo Hospitals was conducted by a team of international healthcare experts, including a doctor, a nurse and an administrator, in September 2007.
   ‘Healthcare organisations around the world want to create environments that focus on quality, safety and continuous improvement. Accreditation meets this demand by stimulating continuous systematic improvements in an organisation’s performance and the outcomes of patient care,’ said Karen Timmons, chief executive officer of JCI.
   Ed L Hansen, chief executive officer of Apollo Hospitals said, ‘We sought accreditation because we want to provide the best care possible for our patients.’
   With the accreditation Apollo Hospitals stands with other JCI accredited hospitals in South Asian and South East Asian countries including Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and India, among others.

JNS to hold discussion today
Jatiya Nazrul Samaj will hold a discussion and award giving ceremony in the Engineers’ Institution auditorium in Dhaka today to mark the 109th birth anniversary of the country’s national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam. According to a press release, agriculture and water resources adviser CS Karim will attend the programme as chief guest while the secretary of the president’s office Md Sirajul Islam, the Investment Board executive chairman Kamal Uddin Ahmed, Darul Ihsan University vice-chancellor Professor Monirul Haque and Dhaka University pro-VC Professor AFM Yousuf Haidar will be present as special guests. The organisation president Dr Ashraf Siddique will chair the function. The JNS has selected a number of personalities in diverse fields for awards.
— BSS

IU Shapla Forum polls tomorrow
Election of the progressive teachers’ association at Islamic University, Shapla Forum, will be held on Wednesday at the university’s teachers-officers club in Kushtia. The voting activities will continue from 9:00am to 1:00pm. About 100 voters will cast their votes to elect a 15-member executive committee. The executive committee members later will elect president, vice-president, secretary and treasurer. The president and the secretary will select the forum’s other office bearers from the executive committee. Professor Mahabubur Rahaman of information and communication engineering department and Professor Abdul Muyed of economics department will serve as the election commissioners.
— New Age