Voters’ list and city
corporation elections
Your report ‘EC asked to explain legality of local govt polls schedule without voters’ roll’ (July 16) has encouraged me to add that the High Court while giving its judgment on May 18 on a writ petition filed by some Urdu-speaking petitioners, directed the Election Commission ‘to enrol the petitioners and other Urdu-speaking people who want to be enrolled in the electoral rolls and accordingly, give them National Identity Card without any further delay’. The EC has not yet taken any initiative in this regard in compliance with the directives of the High Court. It is understandable that it would not be possible for the EC to complete the process of enrolment of the petitioners and Urdu-speaking people as voters within the remaining short time. Will the EC deprive these people from their voting rights by holding the city corporation election on August 4?
Ahmed Ilias
Dhaka
Indo-Bangla transit
I thank the New Age editor for his brief and to the point assessment of the transit issue on a channel-i programme the other day. It is indeed a sheer waste of time to discuss this issue under the Fakhruddin government for it is beyond their normal or abnormal jurisdiction to discuss and decide on giving transit facilities to India. The issue should be reserved for the elected government to resolve.
India itself is heading for political test on July 22 with regards to its agreement with the US government on nuclear energy. Even if the government survives the no-confidence vote, the next step may be referendum. The United States is also busy with their presidential election. Then why such hurry?
I am sorry to note that India should have never proposed the transit issue to this government. This is contrary to their principles of democracy. Their step has only given some relief to this unelected government. The caretaker government should be concentrating on holding the general election on a priority basis and install an elected government who could consider the issue of transit in its proper perspective and in totality of the Indo-Bangla relation and regional issues. Secondly, this transit issue creates diversion of some sort in people’s mind on major domestic issues — a targeted scheme partially accomplished.
A reader
Via e-mail
* * *
The meeting of the foreign secretaries of India and Bangladesh was supposed to deal with issues, among others, relating to land transit for India through Bangladesh territories. The Indian high commissioner in Dhaka, Pinak Ranjan Chakraborty, stated to local reporters as well as to the VOA on July 9 that as the transit would economically benefit both Bangladesh and India it should be taken as such and has nothing to do with politics. On the BBC Radio Bengali programme held at 07:30 am the next day, a former Bangladeshi diplomat went further to assert that the transit, if acceded to India, would accrue to Bangladesh a gain of Tk 5,000 crore or 50,000 million in the first year, and in five years the gain might go up to 150,000 million taka. The Bangladeshi diplomat further argued that the decision of transit issue has to be taken by the present caretaker government for no political government would do it.
Well, there are possibilities of gain for Bangladesh. The gain would not only be in terms of employment generation but also in revenue earning. But what about possible losses, inconvenience and vulnerability of defence?
Experience shows India keeps on exerting every possible pressure on Bangladesh. The land transit would only increase India’s advantage further.
Permitting land transit to India by Bangladesh should be preceded by settling the question of transit from Bangladesh to all countries in the subcontinent, even extending up to the Middle East through Afghanistan, just as the European countries have for mutual benefit. However, there is a lacuna in the proposition. Are the roads and railway tracks sufficiently strong to withstand the increased traffic? The Jamuna Bridge has already shown cracks, and so would be vulnerable to heavier and additional traffic from the Indian side.
The transit issue could partially be an economic issue but is essentially a political one, and as such, it should be taken up and decided, if anything to decide upon, by the next political and duly elected people’s government, and not by the incumbent caretaker government of Bangladesh.
MT Hussain
Dhaka
Shuttle train service
and accidents
As a former student of Chittagong University, I always feel proud of being part of two of its unique characteristics. Besides stunning natural beauty, the university provides shuttle train service –– only a few universities like Kent and Indiana enjoy the same facility. Disappointingly, the shuttle service has become almost a death trap for the students.
Every day about 6000 students travel via shuttle train, which has the capacity to accommodate only 1200 students. Therefore, many students cannot but sit on the roof or travel by hanging from different sides of the train. And from news reports we have learnt how frequent shuttle train accidents have become these days. Whenever any such accident occur, the students go on agitating and the authorities give them words to improve the service only for the issue to die down and another one to occur.
We want neither air-conditioned metro service nor intercity luxury coaches. We only want to go to university safely and timely. It may be costly to upgrade the shuttle service, but nothing can be costlier than life.
Mohammed Abdul Baten
University of Stockholm, Sweden
When we are fighting!
When we are fighting to grab power of the country, the world is changing at a fast pace and leaving us far behind. Since the liberation of Bangladesh, different governments ruled the country at regular intervals. Can we proudly mention a legitimate period of good governance and development that occurred in our country? Meanwhile, the chaotic environment and our negligence to address key issues of development have thrown us to a place of no return and the situation is deteriorating each day.
The highest educational institution of Bangladesh e.g. Dhaka University remains closed months after months when other country’s education sector is running smoothly.
The RMG sector of Bangladesh contributes significantly to the growth of our economy. But again labour unrest, absence of security put this growing industry at risk and fails to attract potential foreign investors or buyers.
Global warming will cause sea level rise and millions of our coastal people will be affected. Where do we stand at present in this context, and what preparation do we have to face that calamity?
Extractable underground water level is decreasing at an alarming rate in the cities due to unplanned urbanisation. What measures are we taking to adopt with such situation?
Md Habibur Rahman
On e-mail
