Main Page «
Front Page «
Business «
International «
Sports «
National «
Editorial «
Op-Ed «
Home «
Timeout «
Letters «

Archive «
Launch Supplement «
Special Supplements «

Politicians, experts and green activists on Saturday urged the government to take immediate steps to save the rivers in and around the capital from illegal occupants and stop discharge of effluents into the rivers to resolve water crisis.
   They also called on the government to form an inter-ministerial committee to formulate a comprehensive water management policy aiming to deal with acute water crisis in the city.
   City dwellers consciously or unconsciously misuse 80 per cent of supply water, which is nearly pure or can be used with simple purification, they said at a discussion on ‘Dhaka city’s water crisis and citizen’s view’ organised by Nagorik Sanghati and ActionAid Bangladesh at National Press Club.
   Rahmat Ali, chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on the LGRD ministry, said the government would solve the city’s water problem in phases by 2013 even collecting water from Bay of Bengal after setting up desalinating plants.
   ‘Dhaka WASA is still rife with corruption but no steps are visible to curb corruption in the water agency,’ he said, adding that water crisis is unlikely to be solved soon but the government has taken effective steps to tackle the crisis.
   Engineer Sarder Amin said although demand of water in the city is growing fast, underground water is depleting alarmingly every year because of dependency only on groundwater. ‘Even we cannot use surface water as water of the city’s surrounding rivers has severely been polluted.’
   The authorities concerned will have to think alternative option to solve water crisis as dependency only on groundwater will bring about a dire consequence for the capital, he said.
   ‘The government should take a concerted step to stop discharge of industrial wastes that already polluted the rivers nearby Dhaka city.’ He also blamed lack of coordination among different ministries and government agencies concerned for mismanagement in water supply.
   Sculptor Rasha said the neighbouring country was constructing dams one after another to divert water causing water crisis in Bangladesh.
   ‘Bangladesh’s rivers are drying up as India has built at least 54 dams at different spots in upper riparian areas of the common rivers,’ he said.
   Kazi Mohammad Sheesh, former chief engineer of Dhaka WASA, said as the demand of water rises by 10 to 12 per cent in the monsoon, production of water falls by 10 to 15 per cent as groundwater level falls during the dry season.
   He stressed the need for groundwater recharge and use of surface water reducing the pressure on the groundwater.
   The former WASA official urged the government to free WASA from the influence of foreign consultants. ‘Whenever a project is undertaken, foreign consultants take funds in the name of study, but it does not bring any positive outcome,’ he said.
   Chaired by Nagorik Sanghati president Professor ASM Atiqur Rahman, the meeting was attended, among others, by Advocate Sanzida Khanam MP, Shaheda Tareq MP, Professor Shahidul Islam and water expert Professor Moniruzzaman Mia.

The newly established Rangpur University kicked off its journey on Saturday, materialising the long-cherished demand of the people of the poverty-stricken district.
   The prime minister’s education, social and political adviser, Professor Alauddin Ahmed, inaugurated the launch of the academic activities of the university as chief guest.
   The University Grants Commission chairman, Professor Nazrul Islam, attended as special guest the launching ceremony held at District Council community hall.
   Academic activities of the university under 2008-2009 sessions began with 300 students at six departments — Bangla, English, Economics, Business Administration, Mathematics and Computer Science and Engineering.
   Initially, classes of the university will be held at the Teachers Training College in Rangpur town.
   Speaking on the occasion, Professor Alauddin called upon all the students of the new university to refrain from being involved in destructive politics.
   Destructive politics often causes session jam, causing immense sufferings to the students, he noted.
   ‘The prime task of students is to devote to study to build themselves as worthy citizens so that they could contribute to nation building,’ he said.
   The UGC chairman said the government would soon start construction work of the science and technology university in Rangpur.
   He mentioned that the prime minister Sheikh Hasina of the past Awami League government had laid the foundation stone of science and technology university in the district in 2001 but later the then BNP-led alliance government stopped the work of the university.
   The present government has also a plan to set up a university in each district to facilitate attaining higher education, the UGC chairman noted.
   Former vice-chancellor of Janhagirnagar University, Professor Amirul Islam Chowdhury, lawmaker Anisul Islam Mandol and Abul Kalam Azad, among others, was present in the ceremony chaired by the vice chancellor of Rangpur University, Dr Lutfor Rhaman.
   Later, the chief guest unveiled the foundation of the university on its temporary campus at the Teachers Training College at around noon.
   Academic activities will run at TTC until the university has its own campus to be built on 75 acres of land near Carmichael College.
   Construction of all necessary infrastructure of the university is expected to be completed in two years.
   The Rangpur University Act was passed on July 28, 2008.
   Chief adviser of the immediate past interim government Fakhruddin Ahmed laid the foundation stone of the university on October 22 of the same year.

The people particularly the poor ones are being deprived of proper health service as about 58 per cent posts of doctors are lying vacant at the public hospitals in Barisal division.
   Sources in the office of divisional health directorate said 515 out of 889 posts of doctors are lying vacant at the public hospitals and upazila health complexes in six districts under the division.
   As only 374 doctors are now providing treatment to more than one crore people in the six districts, one physician has to serve more than 26 thousand people on average, the sources added, saying that 515 (57.9 per cent) posts of doctors are lying vacant for a long time, hampering health service seriously.
   Seventy-eight out of 195 posts of doctors are lying vacant in Barisal while 49 out of 95 posts in Jhalakati, 115 out of 176 posts in Patuakhali, 104 out of 152 posts in Bhola, 75 out of 137 posts in Pirojpur and 94 out of 134 posts of doctors in Barguna.
   Due to shortage of doctors, many poor and underprivileged people are being deprived of proper health service as they have no ability to receive treatment from private hospitals, the sources said.
   Abdur Rashid, director of divisional health directorate, said there are
   32 health complexes, 70 sub-health centres, one 30-bed and four 10 and 20-bed specialised health complexes and 5 general hospitals in Barisal division.
   The government had planned to improve health services in the Barisal division with filling the vacant posts of physicians, create sufficient posts of medical assistants and assistant surgeons and upgrade 30-bed health complexes to 50-bed full-pledged hospitals, he added.

Members of the ethnic minority community formed a human chain in Rajshahi city on Saturday, protesting at the attempt to evict an ethnic family at Godagari upazila of the district.
   Several hundred ethnic minority people participated in the human chain programme held at Saheb Bazaar in the city at about 11.00am. The human chain was followed by a rally.
   The speakers said a gang of armed miscreants led by one Altaf Hossain of village Jamdaha under Dewpara union of the upazila had attacked Hirua Sarder, 60, and his wife Malati Rani of the same village on the night of March 29 to evict them from their land.
   The gang also looted Tk 30,000 in cash and ransacked the furniture of the house, they alleged.
   The speakers demanded immediate arrest and punishment for the culprits to ensure security of the victim’s family.
   They also alleged that influential people in the locality were now pressuring Hirua to withdraw the case.
   Bimol Chandra Rajoar, president and Shushen Kumar Shamduar, general secretary of Rajshahi district unit of Jatiya Adibashi Parishad, Harendra Nath Shing, president and Manik Saren of Adibashi Chhatra Parishad, among others, addressed the rally.
   Afzal Hossain, director of RULFAO, Rajkumar Shaw, executive director of Adibashi Sangiskrikit Unnayan Sagastha, SKL Muhammed Lalon, chairman of ADAB and Fayazullah Chowdhury, executive director of Barendra Unnayan Prochesta were also present.
   The police arrested one person for his suspected involvement in the attack following a case filed in this connection.

The 8th UNESCO Book Fair 2009 will begin at the Central Public Library in Dhaka on Monday.
   The National Association of UNESCO Clubs in Bangladesh in cooperation with the UNESCO Dhaka office organised the two-day fair, which will remain open to all from 10:30am to 6:00pm.
   Books, posters, reports, and journals published by the UNESCO will be available in the fair.

A three-day ‘Information and Communication Technology Carnival 2009’ will begin at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology on April 10.
   The University Grants Commission chairman, Professor Nazrul Islam, is expected to attend the inaugural function of the fair as the chief guest.
   Computer and engineering department in association with mobile phone operator Banglalink will organise the carnival at the auditorium of the university, campus sources said.
   The three-day fair features inter-university programming competition, computer software exhibition, job fair and seminars on ICT.
   The fair organising committee convener, Professor Muhammad Zafar Iqbal, also chairman of computer science and engineering department, said they had taken the initiative to arrange the fair so that students and researchers could widen their experience in ICT.

The car of a physician was stolen from a health complex at Tejgaon in the Dhaka city on Saturday.
   The police said physician Shamsunnahar aboard his car reached Tejgaon Health Complex at about 9:00am.
   On arrival, she entered the office while her driver went to a nearby tea-stall after parking the car on the complex premises.
   After few minutes, the driver came back to the complex and found the car missing. There were five other cars remaining parked there.

The Khulna Unnayan Forum called on the government to immediately take steps to provide gas supply to Khulna region through pipeline.
   Members of the forum formed a human chain at Natun Rasta crossing in the Khulna city in the morning to press for their demand.
   The rally was followed by a rally held at the same place with the forum president, Sharif Shafiqul Hamid Chandan, in the chair.
   The forum leaders also demanded setting up 210 megawatt power plant in Khalishpur industrial belt, an airport in Khulna and immediate dredging of Mongla port channel.
   Khulna panel mayor Ruma Khatun, City Awami League general secretary Mizanur Rahman Mizan, Lokman Hakim, SM Zakatia Zakir, Enayet Ali and Maruf Hossain addressed the rally.
   The speakers protested at the government’s recent decision to transfer money of Khulna gas supply project to uplift schemes in Sylhet. They threatened to go for tougher movement if the government does not take immediate steps to meet their demand.

Rain or thunder showers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely to occur at a few places over Rajshahi and Sylhet divisions and at one or two places over Dhaka and Barisal divisions and the regions of Jessore, Kushtia, Comilla and Noakhali in next 24 hours till 6pm today.
   Day temperature may remain nearly unchanged over the country, Met office said.
   Country’s highest temperature 36.5 degrees Celsius was recorded on Saturday at Mongla and Rajshahi and lowest 19.0 degrees at Srimangal.
   The sun sets in the capital today at 6:16pm and rises tomorrow at 5:45am.